Dolled Up to Die by Lorena McCourtney - REVIEWED

About the Book:  (from the publisher)
Cate's not sure just what she expected . . . but she knows it certainly wasn't this.
When Cate Kinkaid receives a frantic call about a triple homicide, she drives to the scene against her better judgment--aren't triple homicides more up the police department's alley?--only to find that the victims are not quite who she expects. Now she has a new rule to add to everything she's learned in her short stint as an assistant private investigator: always find out if the victims have human DNA. Because these three do not.

But who would shoot this nice lady's dolls? What possible reason could the shooter have? And then there's the startling discovery of another victim, who definitely does have human DNA . . .

With tension that is matched only by humor, Dolled Up to Die is the exciting second book in Lorena McCourtney's Cate Kinkaid Files. You won't find a place to stop and take a breath in this fast-paced story.

My Thoughts:

“But I know you’re going to jump into this even if it looks as risky and dangerous as doing a Tarzan swing on a spiderweb.”  (p. 74)

Mitch Berenski knows Cate Kincaid pretty well, and thus can talk with her frankly about her involvement in the murder case that she stumbles into.  In fact, her case involves two murders, a host of suspicious people and dolls, and a very complex set of family and marital relationships.  Lorena McCourtney’s second book in the Cate Kincaid Files proves to be as multi-layered, fast-paced and quirky as the debut novel in the series!  

There are characters like Robyn that I’d really like to strangle at times, and there are characters like Mitch that I’d like to applaud and hug simultaneously!  The relationships in the Kieferson family keep me rather on-edge, and the guy who works for the vineyard in the Kieferson empire creeps me out!  All in all, it is a very intriguing combination of characters, plot twists and a small-town community suddenly shaken by mystery and mayhem.

I will tell you this…Cate faces some serious danger, and there is growth and development in the relationships among various characters that is both surprising and satisfying.  I think readers will appreciate the levity the author uses at times.  The scene with the cat and the wig was hilarious!  The wig was a crazy anomaly no matter which way you look at it!  Robyn….seriously? 

I’d classify this as a classic cozy mystery and happily recommend it to everyone!  It was a great romp of a read!!

About the Author:

Lorena McCourtney is the New York Timesbestselling and award-winning author of dozens of novels, including Invisible (which won the Daphne du Maurier Award from Romance Writers of America) and Dying to Read. She resides in Oregon.