A Crafty Killing

Victoria Square Mystery, Book 1

By: Lorraine Bartlett

Narrated by: Jorjeana Marie

Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

The last thing Katie Bonner wanted was to become the manager of Artisans Alley. But when her business partner, Ezra Hilton, is found bludgeoned to death, she has no other choice.

Business under Ezra had been faltering - but was it enough to provoke someone to murder? Only Katie can find the answer.

While the cops are proceeding by the book, Katie is investigating by the booths - for the answer to the killer's identity lies in the hidden secrets of Artisans Alley itself.

©2011 Lorraine Bartlett (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

" A Crafty Killing begins with a bang!" ( Romance Readers Connection)

Fun and Enjoyable

What did you love best about A Crafty Killing?

The quirky characters and the craft cooperative.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Crafty Killing?

Katie trying to deal with being majority owner of Artisans Alley and the people she has to deal with.

Any additional comments?

Well written book and really enjoy the characters being brought to life by the narrator.

Creative premise on a cozy mystery

This is a really creative premise with a place for artists to sell their works, Artisans Alley. Ezra, the owner, gets pushed down the stairs, forcing the young widow Katie, whose last husband had invested in the alley and thus is a minor partner with Ezra, to have to take over.

I really enjoyed reading about the various characters and their lives. I also liked the way the police are not treated as dumb but given real lives and are real people.

This is a fun book that I recommend and look forward to the next in the series!

Terrible narrator

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I'm not sure. I am currently only in chapter 2 and having a VERY hard time getting into the book with this horrible narrator. She drags out every single syllable in a word. No one actually speaks that way and it's very hard to listen to.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Get a different narrator.

How could the performance have been better?

Use a different narrator or at least have this one speak in a normal way. She drags out every syllable and it's awful!

New & Different Cozy Mystery

Katie Bonner becomes the manager of Artisans Alley after her business partner, Ezra Hilton, is found bludgeoned to death. Katie takes on the faltering business of renting space to Artisan in the Artisans Alley after she quits her job at an insurance agency and wonders if she is taking on more than she can handle with the business, secrets and a possible relationship.

Entertaining without being graphic or gruesome.

This is another case of wishing the rating system was a little more precise. I gave the reader 3 stars but feel that it was a little better than three stars, but not quite four. I don't know if it was because I listened to several very quick readers before, but I found her reading to be a little slow and a little monotone. It was not horrible though and I was soon able to forget my problems with the reader and lose myself in the story. That either means I was being to nit-picky in the beginning or the reader found her groove and was able to smooth out any rough spots.
I really liked the story. It was a good, solid mystery with good characterization. I look forward to listening to the next books in the series.

You never know where life is going to take you

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, because it is a well written, well narrated mystery.It gets your attention and you don't want to stop listening until it is done.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Katie,, who else. She is a strong brave women. I don't think I'd be able to move on and take on all that she has, and quite successfully, so soon after my husband's death.

What does Jorjeana Marie bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

A lot can be missed in just reading the book because gives special meaning to the words by how the words are spoken, inflection, speed, pauses. They can make the book much more exciting than just reading the page.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When Katie and Vance's nephew were being held up by Tracy and she found out that the accident that killed her husband was not an accident as was believed by everyone, even the police, but was actually a murder committed by Tracy.

Any additional comments?

Lorraine Bartlett is an excellent author and her books don't have to have a narrator to make them any better. I loved this one and can't wait to see what more is to come. Her character, Katie, make an excellent protagonist for this series.

very enjoyable

really enjoyed this start to a new cozy. This narrator always sounds like she has serious sinus problems but that didn't get in the way of my listening. plot was interesting and a bit different. really liked that Katie didn't get everything she wanted. wasn't your typical happily ever after.

A Good Start to a New Series

This is a realistic mystery with realistic characters. Katie Bonner is a likeable character and I look forward to reading more about her.

FUN!

excellent reading. great plot. Kept me guessing till the end. great characters. looking forward to seeing what comes next.

A Crafty Mystery

This one caught me by surprise. I expected a sweet little cozy mystery. This was So much more. Katie & a slew of characters were so interesting. The backdrop, Artisans Alley, was original. And I was quite taken by the whole atmosphere. A great beginning for the series.