Scene of the Climb by Kate Dyer-Seeley is the first book in the new “Pacific Northwest” mystery series. Publisher: Kensington, June 2014

Portland, Oregon, is the perfect fit for someone like Meg Reed. It’s a city with a small town feel, where she can crash on the couch of her best friend Jill, now that she’s graduated from journalism school.

But a girl needs a job, so Meg bluffs her way into writing for Northwest Extreme magazine, passing herself off to editor-in-chief Greg Dixon as an outdoor adventure enthusiast. Never mind that Meg’s idea of sport is climbing onto the couch without spilling her latte. So when she finds herself clawing to the top of Angel’s Rest–a two-thousand-foot peak–to cover the latest challenge in a reality TV adventure show, she can’t imagine feeling more terrified. Until she witnesses a body plummet off the side of the cliff. Now Meg has a murder to investigate. And if the climbing doesn’t kill her, a murderer just might.

This was a fun read that was hard to put down. Meg is my kind of girl and I love her tenacity when it comes to figuring out who the murderer was. The author did a great job in keeping me engaged in all facets of this wonderful book from the introduction of Meg, to the staging of the murder, to watching Meg dig for the clues and to that moment when I knew who the killer was. Meg is very likable and I love her sense of comfort and devil may care attitude. This was a terrific read and I can’t wait to see what adventure awaits Meg.

previously posted on the Cozy Chicks blog