Editor-in-chief Irene Ingram pencils in her newest mystery in Joyce St. Anthony’s second captivating Homefront News mystery, perfect for fans of Anne Perry and Rhys Bowen.
As World War II rages in Europe and the Pacific, the small town of Progress is doing its part for the soldiers in the field with a war bond drive at the annual county fair. Town gossip Ava Dempsey rumors that Clark Gable will be among the participating stars. Instead of Gable, the headliner is Freddie Harrison, a B-movie star. When Freddie turns up dead in the dunk tank, Irene Ingram, editor-in-chief of The Progress Herald, starts chasing the real headline.
There are plenty of suspects and little evidence. Ava’s sister Angel, who was married to the dead actor, is the most obvious. The couple had argued about his affair with the young starlet Belinda Fox, and Angel was the last person to see Freddie alive.
Irene discovers there’s more than one person who might have wanted Freddie dead. As Irene draws on her well-honed reporter’s instincts to find the killer—nothing is what it seems in Progress, and now her own deadline could be right around the corner. (Goodreads synopsis)
I have read Joyce St Anthony’s 1st novel in her Homefront News series, so this was a true continuation for me.
I love the use of headlines at the beginning of each chapter because it puts everything into better context. Why a female is the editor-in-chief and why everyone is on edge with and/or worry. I also loved the sense of community as each character brings a new possible solution. The strength of women during this time is very apparent in the novels and cannot/should not be downsized. In this novel, many of Irene’s male co-workers all show their admiration for Irene. Which is a big step from the first novel.
Two of my biggest pet peeves with cozy mysteries are the local authorities being jerks to the amateur, and the amateur putting themselves in unnecessary danger. Fortunately, Irene doesn’t run the risk of local law being a jerk to her as it is her future father-in-law, and he has learned to work with Irene. However, Irene is not very sensible to her own safety, as she puts herself in danger. If she couldn’t trust the local law then I would understand, but that it obviously not the case here.
Overall, I rate this novel 4 out of 5 stars.
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