Death Steals the Spotlight by T. C. LoTempio


 Death Steals the Spotlight is the third novel in T.C. LoTempio’s Urban Tails Pet Shop series, and it is one of my favorite cozy mystery series. Shell McMillian’s mother, Clarissa, is a famous actress working with the Fox Hollow Players (a small town drama set) who brings a famous director to town to work on their production of Our Town. One of Shell’s cats, Purrday, finds a Maine Coon that Shell names Princess. The director, Raymond Terrill, is not happy with his office accommodations, and Shell agrees to lend her shed to his needs. She also discovers that Raymond, who everyone hates and is a curmudgeon, is a cat lover. He just so happens to have fallen in love with Princess and takes her to the shed with him.

I love cozy mysteries with pets. I just find them so much more relatable because I own 6 animals. I can understand how the amateur sleuth discusses the case with them, and how their unique mannerisms can provide answers.

The plot was very smooth with plenty of suspects who had plenty of motives. Shell’s detective boyfriend has to remove himself from the case because his own cousin is one of those suspects. Despite the murder, though, this novel still put a smile on my face. The main characters are obviously lovingly written.

Overall, I rate this novel 5 out of 5 stars. 

Comments