Stats for my copy: Kindle edition, St. Martin’s Press, expected publication 7/27/21.
How acquired: From NetGalley for review.
(For Goodreads synopsis, scroll down.)
My thoughts: I enjoyed the first book in this series, so when I got an email from NetGalley that this second book was available I snapped it up. I think I liked this one even more than the first book.
All the familiar, quirky characters from the first book are still around. There’s a lot going on, what with Levi getting in the middle of a fight that puts his friend in the hospital, a rascally raccoon wreaking havoc, Sunshine and her best friend Quincy exploring each other with hilarious results, and Sunshine’s daughter secretly investigating a long time resident as a possible serial killer. The action never lets up. There’s plenty of humor as well, with lots of bantering conversations.
While Sunshine is investigating that fight that appears to be more than just a bar fight, she’s contacted by Wynn Ravinder, who is incarcerated, and who claims he has information about Sunshine’s abduction seventeen years ago. Sunshine has very little memory of that incident, or the weeks leading up to it, and she is eager for answers. I loved her interactions with Wynn, and finding out a little more about her past, despite Wynn not being completely trustworthy.
Meanwhile, she is still pining for Levi Ravinder, who is determined to hunt down the three strangers who were involved in that fight. Even after being hit by their truck, he refuses to go to the hospital, and Sunshine spends much of her time trying to track down Levi and force him to get medical care. I was really glad that Levi was very involved in the story and we got to spend quite a bit of time with him.
And then there’s Auri, Sun’s daughter. After seeing some old newspaper clippings about a string of missing persons cases many, many years ago, she is convinced that Mrs. Fairborn, who used to run a boardinghouse out of her home, was a serial killer, which leads to Auri – and her friends Cruz and Sybil – getting into all kinds of trouble. And here I thought my daughter was a handful!
The writing is breezy and flows along nicely, and while most of the characters are a bit quirky and out there, they are all still well written and believable, not to mention relatable. I especially liked Levi (of course!), but am also very found of Quincy and Cruz, along with Auri and Sunshine’s parents. The mayor, not so much. The subplot about the mayor and a rumored secret society called the Dangerous Daughters was a little too out there, and I wouldn’t have minded if it were cut out completely. And the book ended a little abruptly. Not exactly on a cliff hanger, but without a full resolution. Other than those two issues, I have no complaints. This was a fun read, and I look forward to a third book. I certainly hope there will be a third book!
Goodreads synopsis: Running a small-town police force in the mountains of New Mexico should be a smooth, carefree kind of job. Sadly, full-time Sheriff--and even fuller-time coffee guzzler--Sunshine Vicram, didn't get that memo.
All Sunshine really wants is one easy-going day. You
know, the kind that starts with coffee and a donut (or three) and
ends with take-out pizza and a glass of chardonnay (or seven). Turns
out, that's about as easy as switching to decaf. (What kind of people
do that? And who hurt them?)
Before she can say iced
mocha latte,
Sunny's got a bar fight gone bad, a teenage daughter hunting a serial
killer and, oh yes, the still unresolved mystery of her own abduction
years prior. All evidence points to a local distiller, a dangerous
bad boy named Levi Ravinder, but Sun knows he's not the villain of
her story. Still, perhaps beneath it all, he possesses the keys to
her disappearance. At the very least, beneath it all, he possesses a
serious set of abs. She's seen it. Once. Accidentally.
Between
policing a town her hunky chief deputy calls four
cents short of a nickel,
that pesky crush she has on Levi which seems to grow exponentially
every day, and an irascible raccoon that just doesn't know when to
quit, Sunny's life is about to rocket to a whole new level of
crazy.
Yep, definitely a good day for chardonnay.
