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A review by laurenjodi
One Bad Apple by Sheila Connolly
3.0
One Bad Apple
3 Stars
Made redundant from her position at a Boston bank, Meg Corey relocates to Granford, Massachusetts to prepare the house her mother inherited for sale. Meg soon realizes that she has bitten off more than she can chew when her plumbing packs it in and a body is found in her newly installed septic tank. Unfortunately, the corpse is none other than Meg's ex-boyfriend and now she is the prime suspect in his murder …
Although the story is quite readable and the heroine is engaging, there is very little tension or suspense. Not only is the ultimate solution of the mystery anti-climactic, but the killer is rather miserable and pathetic.
While stories involving home repair and renovation are often entertaining, the descriptions of Meg’s cleaning, scraping and remodeling are excessive and her attempts at learning the history of the house are tedious, especially as their is nothing particularly interesting about her family’s past. All of this comes at the expense of the murder investigation.
The characters are not fleshed out well and the small town vibe that is one of the mainstays of the cozy mystery genre is sorely missing. Finally, Meg’s budding relationship with her next-door neighbor / plumber has potential, but there is a point in the story where he undergoes a personality transplant and becomes an insufferable jerk - so much for that.
Not sure that I'll continue.
3 Stars
Made redundant from her position at a Boston bank, Meg Corey relocates to Granford, Massachusetts to prepare the house her mother inherited for sale. Meg soon realizes that she has bitten off more than she can chew when her plumbing packs it in and a body is found in her newly installed septic tank. Unfortunately, the corpse is none other than Meg's ex-boyfriend and now she is the prime suspect in his murder …
Although the story is quite readable and the heroine is engaging, there is very little tension or suspense. Not only is the ultimate solution of the mystery anti-climactic, but the killer is rather miserable and pathetic.
While stories involving home repair and renovation are often entertaining, the descriptions of Meg’s cleaning, scraping and remodeling are excessive and her attempts at learning the history of the house are tedious, especially as their is nothing particularly interesting about her family’s past. All of this comes at the expense of the murder investigation.
The characters are not fleshed out well and the small town vibe that is one of the mainstays of the cozy mystery genre is sorely missing. Finally, Meg’s budding relationship with her next-door neighbor / plumber has potential, but there is a point in the story where he undergoes a personality transplant and becomes an insufferable jerk - so much for that.
Not sure that I'll continue.