My Review
Hattie is from a long line of moonshiners starting back during prohibition. She decides to open a store to sell her family’s hooch in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Unfortunately, the owner of the bar across the street is found dead on her store’s doorstep. Hattie just had an argument with him so the local detective figures he found his killer. Hattie must find the real killer in The Moonshine Shack Murder.
There are suspects galore and clues aplenty in The Moonshine Shack Murder. Hattie is not giving up until she finds the murderer. I enjoyed learning about moonshine. Hattie’s romance with the local police officer gets off to a great start too. Plus, the Tennessee setting was new to me. If you like a relaxing mystery, a feisty heroine, and a charming romance, be sure you pick up this first book in a new series. 4 stars!
Thanks to Berkley Books, Great Escapes Book Tours, and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.
Character Guest Post
by Chattanooga Police Officer Marlon Landers and Diane Kelly
I doff my riding helmet to you readers out there. I’m Chattanooga Police Officer Marlon Landers. My beat is the riverfront district along the beautiful Tennessee River. The area has lots of restaurants, bars, art museums, and shops. It’s popular with tourists and locals alike. Great place for date night.
I’m a mounted officer, which means I ride about not in a typical cruiser, but rather on a gorgeous horse named Charlotte. She’s a big gal, which is a good thing because I’m a big guy. Sitting up high like I do, I notice all kinds of things. Pickpockets trying to sneak up on a target. Thieves looking for cars to break into. Teens trying to pull a dine-and-dash at one of the cafés. Lately, one particular person seems to keep catching my eye. She’s a young woman, late twenties, with cute brown curls. She’s a little filly, but she makes up for her small stature in sass. She owns the moonshine shop that just opened on Market Street. But while she’s been friendly to me, I have yet to win over her cat or her granddaddy. Problem is, my great-grandfather was the Hamilton County Sheriff back during the days of Prohibition, and he had it in for Hattie’s great-grandfather. Who needs the Hatfields and McCoys when you’ve got the Landers and Hayes families?
It took the sheriff years, but he finally caught Eustasius Hayes and sent him to the slammer for running illegal moonshine. Hattie’s granddaddy was left without a father for a few years, and, given that I’m one of the sheriff’s progeny, he’s taking things out on me. I’ll keep trying, though. Maybe I’ll wear him down, get him to like me. Hattie’s cat Smoky will likely take even more effort. He’s one of those ornery sorts, who hisses and spits and growls. He likes to sit in the front window of Hattie’s shop and watch people go by between his cat naps.
The people who run the businesses in the area get along great, for the most part. The only one who didn’t fit in well is Cormac O’Keefe. He ran Limericks, the Irish pub that sits right across the street from the Moonshine Shack. He and Hattie got off on the wrong foot. Now, he’s dead. Someone put an end to him right in front of Hattie’s store. I know it wasn’t Hattie who killed Cormac, but Detective Pearce – “Ace” to those who know her – isn’t so sure. I can understand why Ace would be suspicious. Hattie had a motive to kill Cormac, and she also had the means. In fact, he was cut with a broken jar of Hattie’s own shine. But she’d never kill anyone, no matter how much they might deserve it. I’ve got to walk a fine line here. I want to let Hattie know I’m on her side but, at the same time, I’ve got my duties to Ace and the police department, too. If only Cormac had treated people right, there wouldn’t be such a long list of suspects.
At any rate, I hope you’ll saddle up and join me, Charlotte, Hattie, Granddaddy, and Smoky as we try to solve the murder. It’s sure to be a wild ride!
About The Moonshine Shack Murder
The Moonshine Shack Murder (A Southern Homebrew Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Publisher: Berkley (July 6, 2021)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-10: 0593333225
ISBN-13: 978-0593333228
Digital ASIN : B08KPKD22T
In this intoxicating new cozy mystery series, the future for modern-day moonshiner Hattie Hayes looks bright–until death darkens the doorstep of her Moonshine Shack.
The Hayes family has made moonshine in Chattanooga since the days of Prohibition, and Hattie is happy to continue the tradition, serving up fun, fruity flavors in mason jars for locals and tourists alike. All signs indicate her new ‘shine shop will be a smashing success. What’s more, mounted police officer Marlon Landers has taken a shine to Hattie. For the first time ever, the stars seemed to have aligned in both her work and romantic life. But when a body ends up on her store’s doorstep alongside a broken jar of her Firefly Moonshine, it just might be lights out for her fledgling business.
The homicide detective can’t seem to identify the person who killed the owner of a nearby bar. The only witness is Hattie’s longhaired gray cat, and Smoky isn’t talking. When the detective learns that the victim and Hattie had a heated exchange shortly before his murder, she becomes her prime suspect.
Lest Hattie end up behind bars like her bootlegging great-grandfather a century before, she must distill the evidence herself and serve the killer a swift shot of justice.
About Diane Kelly
Diane Kelly writes stories that feature feisty female lead characters and their furry, four-footed friends. Diane is the author of over 30 novels and novellas, including the Death & Taxes, Paw Enforcement, and House Flipper mystery series. In 2021, she’ll launch two new series, the Southern Homebrew moonshine series and the Mountain Lodge Mysteries. Find Diane online at DianeKelly.com, on Twitter and Instagram @DianeKellyBooks, and on Facebook at her Author Diane Kelly page.
Author Links:
Website: https://www.dianekelly.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DianeKellyBooks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DianeKellyBooks
Newsletter signup: http://www.dianekelly.com/sign-up-for-my-newsletter/
Purchase Links
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Giveaway
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Thanks so much for featuring my book and Marlon’s character interview on your blog today, Diane! (Great name, by the way!)
Thank you for stopping by.