It’s been a long time since I’ve read a cozy mystery, and I’d actually forgotten how much I love them. But when I discovered my friend, J.C. Kenney, had authored a new one (A LITERAL MESS), I knew I had to give it a read. I just couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy! And when I did, I was not disappointed.
First a moment of full disclosure: J.C. Kenney has been a dear friend to me these last three years, often my mentor and always one of my biggest cheerleaders. With this in mind, you should know I was pre-disposed to fall in love with his newest novel. However, with that said, I feel completely confident telling you that I’d love A LITERAL MESS even if I’d never heard of the author. It’s that good! And the best news is that you can get your hands on a copy TOMORROW when it hits bookshelves everywhere. For now, just let me tell you that I loved the cast of characters in this novel. Allie Cobb, the “Kickboxing Crusader” (an inside joke you’ll get when you read the book) is a complete delight.
Similar to Charlaine Harris’ AURORA TEAGARDEN series, J.C. Kenney has created a homespun detective determined to dig her nose in where it doesn’t belong, and very nearly gets herself killed in the process. This first installment of Allie Cobb is page-turning, and left me completely in suspense regarding “whodunit” until the very end.
Trust me: if your genre is the cozy mystery, you’ll want to get your hands on A LITERAL MESS by J.C. Kenney. Friend or not, he’s one heck of an entertaining author!
SYNOPSIS
The first book in a new series featuring Allie Cobb brings the New York literary agent back to her Hoosier home town where a mysterious death keeps everyone on spoiler alert . . .
Allie Cobb left home for the literary circles of Manhattan to make her name out from under the shadow of her legendary father. Now his death brings her and her rescue cat Ursula back to the southern Indiana town of Rushing Creek, population: 3,216. But a tragic new chapter hits the presses when the body of her father’s hard-drinking, #1 bestselling client is found under the historic town bridge. The local police suspect foul play and their prime candidate for murder is the author’s daughter—Allie’s longtime friend.
Determined to clear her bestie, Allie goes into fact-checking amateur detective mode while trying to ignore the usual rumormongers. Those with means, motive, and opportunity include the vic’s ex-wife, his rejected girlfriend, the mayor, and a rival agent trying to mooch clients. With a rugged genealogist distracting her and the imminent Fall Festival about to send tourists descending on their once-peaceful hamlet, Allie needs to stay alive long enough to get a read on a killer ready to close the book on a new victim: Allie . . .
PURCHASE LINKS
FIND J.C. KENNEY ON SOCIAL MEDIA
C.H. Armstrong Books 
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