But that all changes abruptly when the mysterious red box with the dangling silvery bells attached arrives on Erie Street. The contents will shock her and the police, and set her on a path to stop a murderer.
All novels are unique and do not require reading the series in any order.
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MY REVIEW
Beware the red present with silver bells decoration.
As if it weren't enough to lose a husband and two young sons to a fire, Madeline, who is just starting to be able to function again, now has to contend with some presents from an evildoer unknown. It's enough to put a lady off the holiday season. I do give her points for not falling apart all over again. But then she had a little assistance from her father the doctor, and a 'perfectly safe and non-addicting' little chemical called morphine.
Madeline kind of reminds me of Sherlock Holmes and his "Seven Percent Solution" of cocaine. He used it when not on a case to keep his mind occupied. Madeline started taking medicines after the fire to be able to function at all, and who can blame her. On top of that, she recognized that she was becoming addicted, and was taking first steps to control the problem.
I found it somewhat confusing to figure out if she favored Hugh, an English nobleman (staying with her father until his own house was built), Oliver (a friend from Florida) or John (a newspaper reporter from New York). But I can kind of understand her actions here again; after what happened, she's not really ready and/or in the mood to start another romantic relationship. She should get some kind of credit for having all three of them to dinner at the same time with no fights breaking out. I don't know that she could get away with it in this day and age.
And you know she gets extra credit for sneaking into a gentlemen's club disguised as a man ... TWICE!
Whichever friend of hers 'wins' Madeline's heart in the end will have his hands full, and be very grateful for it.
Silver Bells Slaying is the 5th of 6 Madeline Donovan mysteries.
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MEET THE AUTHOR
Madison Kent books include: The Mystery at Belle Magnolia, Stalking Jack, The Harrison, Some Saints Prey, Silver Bells Slaying, A Smidgeon of Ghosts, Devil on Deck, and coming soon, the eighth in the series...Sweet Murder.
She is a poetry contributor to Sacramento Free Press (Poems for All Chapbook) Pomona Valley Review #7 and 8, The Voices Project, The UK Poetry Library, Creations Magazine and Prose and Rhyme; short stories to Prose and Rose and The Book Patch as well as others.
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Silver Bells Slaying helps to fulfill my 2018 - 2019 Winter #COYER Reading Challenge.
(Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book free during an Amazon promotion found due to one of the following 'deal notification' services: BookBub, Freebooksy, Robin Reads, or eBookSoda. This review is given under no obligation and represents my own views.)
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