Aloe & Goodbye by Janice Peacock
Series Name: Ruby Shaw #1
Genre: Cozy
Release: December 10, 2020
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New Yorker Ruby Shaw arrives in a hillside town in Arizona with a brand-new name, a duffel bag on her shoulder, and her daughter, Allie, at her side. Before arriving, Ruby witnesses a murder that lands her in the witness protection program. That decision means she’s gone from being a successful artist to being a nobody in a postage-stamp-sized town called Paradise—a name that doesn’t fit the former ghost town. Even though their new digs are a little shabby, and there may be ghosts haunting the town, they are optimistic about their new lives, that is, until a neighbor turns up dead.
Having just arrived in town, living next door to the victim, and without an alibi, the community members are suspicious of Ruby. A local deputy befriends her, but the deputy still points to her as the culprit each time they find a new clue. If matters weren’t bad enough, Allie is having trouble fitting in at her new school, and Ruby can’t seem to hold down a job.
As they settle in, they meet the quirky inhabitants of Paradise: Bette—the chatterbox café owner, Flora—Allie’s eccentric babysitter, and Derek—who runs local history tours, which he jazzes up with ghost stories of questionable veracity.
Ruby’s life improves when she meets a handsome cook at the local café who is passionate about succulents and cacti, and may feel equally passionate about her. Even though Ruby and Allie want to stay in Paradise, a US marshal has other ideas, as he threatens to move them to a new town after Ruby gets mixed up in the murder investigation. Ruby must find the killer before she and Allie lose their new home or even worse—their lives.
Dru’s Musing:
From the first page, this non-stop action drama immediately grabbed my attention in this pleasantly appealing new series. Ruby is in the WITSEC program and how does one stay below the radar when murder happened on her first night and she became a person of interest, only because she newly arrived in town. I love the comfortable tone and the pacing in this well-written whodunit that had me completely immersed in all aspects and I was completely mesmerized by the uniqueness of the characters and the small-town feel that was visualized in the finely tuned narrative. The mystery was nicely done and kept me intrigued in all possibilities from the murder to the slew of suspects to deciphering the clues and putting all the pieces together until the only person left standing was the killer. I love these types of cozy mysteries that live on the edge and add humor and a furry friend that enhanced my reading pleasure. There were a few surprises that made this tale quite enjoyable. Overall, this was a great read, and I can’t wait to see where we go next with Ruby, Allie and Boomer.