LAST LICKS by Claire Donally

Publisher:     Berkley

Published:     May 6, 2014

ISBN:       978-0425252550

Genre:      Cozy Mystery

Format:    Print

Obtained via:  Publisher  

Reviewed by name and email address:  Gina  Ginalrmreviews@gmail.com

THREE ½ HEARTS

Sunny Coolidge’s life has pretty much settled down and things with constable boyfriend Will Price are moving along.  Her dad is even starting to get along…a little…with her cat Shadow.  But then she receive a call that her boss, Ollie Barnstable, has been in a car accident and will be recovering at Bridgewater Hall.  When Sunny, following the Kittery Harbor way goes to visit Ollie she discovers certain things:  Her father, Mike, is there already visiting with Ollie and while there has run into an old friend of his, Gardner Scatterwell and the facility has a comfort cat, Portia who visits with the patients.  At first no one thinks twice about Portia visiting with Gardner.  But…the thing about Portia is she seems to know who will be dying.  When Sunny receives a call from Ollie in the middle of the night it’s not with happy news—apparently Gardner has died. Ollie isn’t quite convinced Gardner’s death was merely the elderly gent having yet another stroke.  When the sheriff refuses to look into the possibility of murder Ollie puts Sunny on the case.  Can she uncover the truth about Gardner’s demise before a killer finds her?

Claire Donally’s Sunny and Shadow mysteries are among my favorite.  I just love how Shadow, the cat, is portrayed.  Donally has felines and their personalities down pat.  I’ve also enjoyed how Sunny has developed in the first two books and how she’s standing up more for herself in book 3, LAST LICKS.  Likewise, the kinder and somewhat gentler Ollie was nice to see.  Kittery Harbor is a nice little town with a personality of its own as reflected by the residents.  The mystery in LAST LICKS was nicely done and who did the deed kept me guessing until the very end.  And then, once the killer was caught, I half expected there to be another good twist.

One issue I had, which is something that bothers me in general is poor research.  In this case, it wasn’t even that in depth of an issue – SPOILER ALERT – there is no way a good and/or honest cop would turn over a key piece of evidence to the defense attorney.  He or she would retain custody until trial. 

Sunny’s reaction to Portia was my most favorite aspect of the story—I’d like to see more of the two of them, but please, spare readers a love triangle between Will, Rafe and Sunny.  If I want a romance I’ll pick one up—I don’t need it in my cozy mysteries.  Looking forward to book 4!

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.