Customer Reviews

We Wish You a Merry Murder

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
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This was the first of the Susan Henshaw mysteries I read--a friend recommended it to me as a fun change of pace from all the professional and religious reading I was doing at the time. To be honest, it's far superior to the first two installments, "Murder at the PTA Luncheon" and "The 40th Birthday Body"--the latter of which was especially bad. "PTA" probably would have kept me reading, but "40th" would have stopped me cold. This is the one to start with if you're new to the series. Susan copes with holiday shopping, a visit from her mother-in-law, parties--this series has at least one party in every installment!--and, of course, the murder of a neighbor. But how do I say this? This one is just plain FUN to read. Call me corny, but I can feel Christmas in the air and coming through every page. Like the other reviewer, I like to re-read this during December. That's when my holiday savings account is matured and just for a few weeks, I feel as if I could just go into the stores and buy whatever I want like Susan and Kathleen do. By the way, I'd never heard of a cookie exchange party until I read this book. This is my year to try one myself. Did I mention that this book is fun???

This was my first foray into Valerie Wolzien's mystery series featuring wealthy suburban mom Susan Henshaw and her gorgeous ex-cop best friend, Kathleen. In addition to the mystery that's the centerpiece of the story, Valerie captures in delightful detail what December is like for a mom who wants to make Christmas perfect for her family. I usually dig this book out and re-read it in one afternoon during Advent. Believe it or not, it's part of what gets me into the Christmas spirit

Susan Henshaw and her friend Kathleen are worried about their friend Kelly. She is still reeling over the divorce from her beloved Evan, and resents his new wife, Rebecca. The holidays promise to be a difficult time for Kelly, especially with all the entertaining that goes on in this wealthy Connecticut neighborhood. Things are complicated by the arrival of Susan's mother-in-law, her self-proclaimed nutritionist boyfriend, and Kathleen's mother. These three are constantly harping on Susan and Kathleen about something, whether it's the non-healthy food they serve or the behavior of their families. Rebecca and Evan give their usual elaborate Christmas party, but things are less-than-merry when Susan and Kelly discover Evan's dead body. By the time the police arrive, the body has disappeared and Susan and Kathleen spend the rest of the book trying to discover who the murderer is. This book is better written than the first two in the series, but the characters take a strange, blase attitude towards the fact that Evan has been killed. Neither his wife nor his ex-wife seem too concerned about his death or the disappearance of his body. Other than that, this is an enjoyable "cozy".

This is one of the early Susan Henshaw mysteries. Susan is getting prepared for the usual Christmas fesitivies when her mother in law cuts a vacation short, arrives a week early, and is on a new diet. She criticizes everything they eat and seems to survive on microvaved meals found in a plastic bag. She seems to be in love with the inventor of her meals, an abrasive podiatrist who considers himself a nutrition expert. A neighbor seems to be going off the deep end. She is recently divorced and he and his new wife have built a house directly behind hers. The husband turns up dead during a Christmas party at the new house, only he is dead in his old house. The police are called, but the body disappears.

This is an exceptionally good holiday mystery. The suburban wives and former wives are pretty strange in Hancock as usual. Kathleen and Susan have a more difficult time than usual solving the crime and entertaining relatives at the same time.

This isn't my favorite mysteries, but definitely a decent read. After reading this I see that I will continue reading the series.

Susan Henshaw is a housewife and sleuth. She's got enough to do considering Christmas is so close, and her mother-in-law has just arrived (early by the way) with a phony health doctor who comments on everything they eat. Soon Susan's friend Kelly Knowlson (a woman obsessed with her ex-husband) who gets accused of killing Evan (her ex-husband), when he turns up missing.

Will Susan be able to solve the case, get Kelly off the hook, and have a good Christmas before it's too late?

This is a great book for the holidays. There are a lot of rich, gossipy women, who seem like a bunch of backstabbers, but the mystery is okay.

For YEARS I have read this book EVERY Christmas (sometimes more than once!) Yup, I know how it ends and it ends the same way every time, but it has become a tradition for me to just get lost in it for a little bit each year! I had my first one for so long that it literally fell apart on me - I am SO HAPPY I could get another - this will remain a tradition of mine, no matter how silly it may seem ;-)

In the 3rd book in the Susan Henshaw mystery series, it is almost Christmas in Connecticut, and the Henshaw family is preparing for the many celebrations of the holiday season. Susan's mother-in-law, Claire, is expected in town to spend time with the family, and surprises everyone when she arrives a week early. Susan's well-laid plans are quickly thrown out of sync, and are turned completely upside-down when she stumbles over a dead body during a party. Susan's friend, Kelly Knowlson, has been an emotional wreck after her divorce and the quick remarriage of her ex, Evan, to his business partner. Making the situation worse is that Evan purchases the property behind his first wife's home, and builds his new bride, Rebecca, a home on the adjoining property. During a party at Evan & Rebecca's home, Susan and Kelly stumble upon the dead body of Evan posed in Kelly's home, and when they leave to get the police, the body disappears. Kelly begins to lose grip on reality, and Susan works overtime to find the dead body, discover the identity of the killer, and still find time to have the perfect Christmas celebration for her family and close friends.

Having read the first two books in the series, I have to agree with other reviewers in their assessment that this book was the best in the series so far. The mystery offered several twists and turns, and I was kept guessing as to the identity of the killer and the location of the body until the very end. The plot was different than many others in the genre in the fact that the reader was kept guessing as to whether a murder had actually occurred, and none of the other characters were ever at risk of becoming another victim. The police do not play a role in the series, and it was a bit odd to not have them involved in the case. I am a very large fan of domestic cozies, however, and found this to be an interesting, original addition to the genre.

The first book in the series is called "Murder at the PTA Luncheon". Enjoy!