Aloha! I’m Auntie Akamai from Aloha Lagoon. I live with my sweetums, Paulie, my African Grey parrot, in a cute little bungalow by the sea.

So, you want to know about my day? Well, I get up before the sun to make sandwiches for the excursions for my brother’s dive shop, Aloha Lagoon Diving. I usually make Spam sandwiches since the tourists love them. After that, I do my daily cleaning, gardening, grocery shopping, and other chores. Even though I’m retired, there is always work to do. Nothing changes with that, just not taking care of the kids or husband anymore. My kids have spread like seeds in the wind, and my husband passed away a few years ago, so it’s just me and Paulie.

I do the crossword and sudoku puzzles every day. I have a few television programs I watch—I never miss Jeopardy. Every Tuesday and Thursday (after Jeopardy, of course) I meet with some ladies to play Mahjong. So I lead a pretty boring life.

Well, except when Kiki got tangled up in a murder investigation!

When Kiki Hepburn first arrived in Aloha Lagoon, this man went on the same dive excursion as her, and then went and got himself killed. The police decided their mutual dive made a connection between Kiki and the dead man—two strangers to Aloha Lagoon—so, to them, she was a suspect. She was convinced she needed to clear herself. So, I decided to help her out and got to play Jessica Fletcher. Oh, I miss that show.

Kiki and I snuck into the dead man’s room to look for clues. That was really exciting. We interrogated a suspect, too! That was fun!

I have to admit, I was surprised at how clever Kiki was. . . I try not to judge people based on appearances, but she didn’t look like she was very smart. She looked pampered and spoiled—and was, a bit—so it took me very much by surprise when she wanted to live in my detached screen-in lanai. (It used to be a garage, but don’t tell her!) She loves it because she can hear the waves. That girl is obsessed with the ocean and all its creatures. She’s also quite fond of my keiki, Dex. (That means nephew.) Kiki and Dex work together at Aloha Lagoon Diving. He appears to be quite smitten with her. Ah, young love.

But I digress. Despite her smarts, she still was almost taken down by the murderer. Thanks in a small part to my Paulie, and maybe even a little bit of me throwing my weight around, she survived to dive another day.

Death Under the Sea, An Aloha Lagoon Mystery #16
Genre: Cozy
Release: November 2021
Purchase Link

From debut author Rosalie Spielman comes a to-die-for beach read in Aloha Lagoon!

Former socialite Kiki Hepburn can think of no better place to hide out from her controlling family than the pristine waters of Kauai’s Aloha Lagoon. That is until her debit card is cancelled, old frenemies from her life back home show up at the resort, and a mysterious stranger arrives on the island, intent on dragging Kiki back to the life she so desperately wants to outrun. Kiki is resigned to her fate and ready to say goodbye to her dreams of scuba diving her way through paradise…

Until the mysterious stranger turns up dead.

Suddenly cancelled debit cards are the least of her worries. With the police involved, Kiki is sure her true identity will come out—not to mention her less-than-friendly connection to the dead man. Unsure who she can trust, Kiki sets out to clear her name… before it’s on everyone’s lips. Throw in an epically uncomfortable wedding engagement, family secrets, stolen couture, a hot dive shop guy, and a kooky landlady with a cranky parrot, and it’s sink or swim for her in Aloha Lagoon.

Meet the author
Rosalie Spielman is a mother, veteran, and retired military spouse. She was thrilled to discover that she could make other people laugh with her writing and finds joy in giving people a humorous escape from the real world. She currently lives in Maryland with her husband and four creatures—two teens and two fur babies. For more information on her books or to subscribe to her newsletter, go to rosalie-spielman-author.com.

All comments are welcomed.