GIVEAWAY REVIEW Death Makes the Cut by Janice Hamrick @JaniceHamrick @MinotaurBooks

July 19, 2012 By Mary 38 Comments

Book Description

Publication Date: July 17, 2012 Series: Jocelyn Shore

The first bell of the new school year hasn’t even rung, and Texas high school teacher Jocelyn Shore is already at the scene of a murder. Friend and fellow teacher Fred Argus has been found dead on campus, and it isn’t long before the annoying, albeit attractive, Austin police detective Colin Gallagher uncovers evidence that Fred might have been selling drugs to students. Shocked by her loss as well as the insinuation that Fred was a dealer who got what he deserved, Jocelyn starts asking the kinds of questions guaranteed to set fellow teachers, administrators, and parents on edge.

With the school serving as the setting for a big-time director’s latest film, her investigation could hardly have come at a worse time. Jocelyn, however, finds clearing her friend’s name far more important than the needs of a pesky movie crew and doesn’t care who knows it. But it’s only when she’s attacked while on set that she realizes someone is determined to make sure the secrets hidden by Fred’s death remain hidden no matter what the cost.

Humor, romance, and murder abound in Janice Hamrick’s follow-up to her Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award–winning debut, Death on Tour, and make Death Makes the Cut a charming addition to this outstanding new series.

About the Author

Janice Hamrick is the author of two titles in her Jocelyn Shore mystery series. The first, Death on Tour, was the winner of the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition, a finalist for the Mary Higgins Clark Award, and a nominee for the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Awards Best First Mystery. She lives in Austin, Texas.

Details

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (July 17, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 125000554X
ISBN-13: 978-1250005540

SOURCE: AUTHOR

MY THOUGHTS

ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT

Jocelyn is back in Austin, ready to start the uneventful school year as she has planned, teaching French and History. Well, it doesn’t do according to her lesson plan when she finds her mentor and fellow History teacher, Fred, dead in the school’s tennis office. Enlisted to take over as tennis coach, she thinks the police aren’t doing enough to catch the killer, especially when the police suspect him of selling drugs. Jocelyn thinks those drugs were planted by the killer and wants to clear his name. The detective, Colin, assigned to the case, questions her and some of those questions become personal. As Kyla, Jocelyn’s cousin notes, Colin is hunky and hot — my words not hers, but you get the point. Since Jocelyn is now in a long distance relationship with Alan, Kyla thinks that Jocelyn needs to date someone local and Colin couldn’t agree more.

Also, a famous director, Michael Dupre, is using the high school as a film site and rings in Jocelyn’s tennis team as extra which absolutely fries the drama teacher, Roland, since he would love nothing more than audition for the director to get his big break. While the kids are filming, Jocelyn is attacked and ends up in the hospital and when she is finally released, she finds her home burglarized and trashed. Colin comes to the rescue and puts her on surveillance. As Jocelyn collects more clues to Fred’s murder, her best friend and fellow teacher, Laura, finds a few suspicious things about the drama department and the school’s finances. Jocelyn warns Laura not to get too nosy because of what happened to her and things don’t go well for Laura as she uncovers more dirt about the school accountant, Pat.

My favorite line is the story is when Laura, described as tiny, tries to drag Jocelyn to see something in the school’s theatre: “She tugged at me, trying to pull me after her. It was a little like a dachshund trying to move a fully loaded Yukon sled.” I bet you can guess why this is my favorite! This is a fast paced and easy to read story, just perfect for the hot days of summer. I love that Jocelyn is not perfect and just like a dachshund, she tends to stay on scent, even though her logic knows she should just give up on the hunt for the killer. Everything is believable and right down to the interactions with her cousin Kyla, students and other teachers just rings true. I did have an ARGHHH moment at the end of the story where things are left up in the air with her love life. I really hope there are more books planned for this series since I just adored everything about it.

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