A diverting tale led by a smashing amateur detective...
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TITLE INFORMATION
MURDER ON MOKULUA DRIVE
A Natalie Seachrist Hawaiian Mystery
Jeanne Burrows-Johnson
Artemesia Publishing (302 pp.)
$25.95 hardcover, $0.99 e-book
ISBN: 978-1-932926-60-6; February 10, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
A semiretired journalist in Hawaii who experiences visions tries to solve a neighbor’s murder in this second installment
of a mystery series.
No longer constantly overseas as a travel writer, Natalie Seachrist has more time to spend at home in Hawaii. She’s
preparing to leave her Waikiki condo but decides to stay at her aunt’s cottage in Lanikai. With help from her boyfriend,
Keoni Hewitt, and her twin brother, Nathan Harriman, Natalie gets settled at the cottage and mingles with neighbors. But
before long, she has a vision. Her sepia-toned visions often show her an event during or before its occurrence. This time,
she sees a concealed man murder one of her new neighbors, but Natalie convinces herself it was nothing more than a
nightmare. She unfortunately learns the next morning that the same woman from her vision has mysteriously died.
Luckily, Lt. John Dias, the old partner of former homicide detective Keoni, is on the case. John, whose grandmother had
a gift akin to Natalie’s, willingly listens to her breakdown of the vision. Putting together the skills of John and Natalie,
who’s an exceptional researcher, the two hope to prevent one particular individual from getting away with murder. The
most striking feature of Burrows-Johnson’s (Prospect for Murder, 2016) book is a winsomely detailed setting, from
seafood and Kona coffee to Hawaii’s generally relaxed ambiance (including a hammock on the lanai). As such, the
story’s mystery is simply another task for Natalie, along with moving to Lanikai and planning Keoni’s surprise birthday
party. Nevertheless, the protagonist is first-rate. Natalie, for example, despite using her visions as an investigative tool,
produces a significant break in the case with mere deductive reasoning. Her special ability does factor into the probe, but
she would have made headway on smarts alone. The plot offers a couple of impressive twists, and though some of the
case unfolds outside of Natalie’s first-person narration, the protagonist sees it through to the end.
A diverting tale led by a smashing amateur detective whose dexterity far exceeds her paranormal gift.
Yolanda Carter dreams of owning her own bakery. Employed at a cat shelter, she stumbles across a scheme that threatens to close it down. Will her delicious brownies save them?
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