Iced in Paradise by Naomi Hirahara is the first book in the NEW “Leilani Santiago Hawai’i” cozy mystery series. Publisher: Prospect Park Books, coming September 3, 2019.
Leilani Santiago is back in her birthplace, the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i, to help keep afloat the family business, a shave ice shack. When she goes to work one morning, she stumbles across a dead body, a young pro surfer who was being coached by her estranged father. As her father soon becomes the No. 1 murder suspect, Leilani must find the real killer and somehow safeguard her ill mother, little sisters, and grandmother while also preserving a long-distance relationship with her boyfriend in Seattle.
Leilani returns to her hometown to help the family business. Only thing that can mar her return is when her father becomes the prime suspect in the death of a visiting surfer. Determined to save her family, Leilani begins her own investigation.
This was a very enjoyable tale that quickly became a page-turner as I had to know what happens next. The mystery was nicely done, but it was the characters, the setting, the dialect, and the mingling of cultures that enhanced my reading pleasure. I like the tone and the pacing was on par with how well this story was being told. The suspect list was small, and it was fun watching it all play out with a few surprises, especially when the killer’s identity was revealed. That I did not see coming. Leilani is a wonderful protagonist that I hope we get to see more of. I like her spunk and her gumption for herself and her family.
This was an enticingly pleasing treat that I savored and I can’t wait to see what new adventures await Leilani and the Santiago family in this delightfully charming debut series.
**********
FTC Full Disclosure – I received a digital ARC of this book from the author.