Mambo and Murder

A Fiona Quinn Mystery, Book 6

By: C.S. McDonald

Narrated by: Maren Swenson Waxenberg

Length: 4 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Three ballroom dancers were murdered over 40 years ago. Wow, that’s one old cold case. What’s more, the murderer, who was thought to have been killed during a police chase, has resurfaced in Pittsburgh. Yikes! How can that be?

Worse, ballroom dancing simply isn’t Detective Nathan Landry’s forte. After weeks of practice, Nathan still has two left feet. Can Fiona step in to guide Nathan through this dancing debacle or will it take 40 years for the detective to find his footing?

Double yikes! Join Fiona and detective Landry in this high-stepping whodunit!

©2018 Cindy McDonald (P)2019 Cindy McDonald

A Cozy Dance

Humor abounds when Detective Nathan Landry has to sign up for ballroom dancing lessons to work on a case involving a dance competition. Unfortunately for his hapless partner, Nathan turns out to be a menace on his feet. Never mind, though; his girl Fiona is happy to step in because it’s a great way to spend time together…and she gets to do some legitimate sleuthing.

It’s a very, very cold case indeed and the suspected perpetrator of those forty-year-old murders has apparently resurfaced after having thought to have died all those years ago. Can Nathan and Fiona catch their man on the dance floor? Plenty of clues make this a real puzzle and working it together brings laughs as well as justice.

I can’t say that I care for Ms. Waxenberg’s interpretation of Fiona because she gives the character a rather grating voice. Still, the narrator’s other vocalizations don’t affect me the same way and, although the main character is certainly important, she doesn’t prevent me from wanting to listen.

Who Gets Under Fiona's Skin

Loved this book. The characters are adorable. Fiona and Nate are cute as can be. We get to see Fiona in a different light when we see her brother Chad in, shall we say, different circumstance. The narration is fabulous. As always, the narrator brings the characters completely to life. Check it out!

Dancing can be deadly!

Mambo and Murder
A Fiona Quinn Mystery #6
By C.S. McDonald
Narrated by Maren Swenson Waxenberg

When the fingerprints of a killer believed to be dead for 40 years are found at a break-in Detective Nathan Landry is called in. Now Nathan has to infiltrate the local ballroom dancing scene. There is just one little problem - Nate can't dance. Worse his attempts to learn has taken out his partner and resulted in him being kicked out of dance class.

Well, it's more like a BIG problem and he has to call on his girlfriend Fiona Quinn to risk life and limb to be his partner in this undercover gig.

Fiona has her own mystery to solve her late Grandma Evhas been receiving letters from the 1970s! And even more interesting some of Fiona's neighbors have been getting decades-old mail too! Where has the mail been all these years and why has it started being delivered now?

Mambo and Murder is at times just a little over the top - especially when the ballroom dance competition is underway. Fiona has a moment that is just too-too! Let's leave at a sibling moment that is not to be missed. But all isn't gliding across the ballroom floor perfection when danger comes calling and the past and the present collide.

This was an excellent listen for a work commute or just for a little downtime after you get home. The narration by Maren Swenson Waxenberg is excellent. The pacing is good and the dialog of the various characters is discernible so one can tell the characters apart while listening.

I was provided a complimentary copy of the audio version (I had previously purchased the ebook version) with no expectations but to provide my honest opinion - all thoughts expressed are my own.

Another Great Fiona Adventure

I absolutely love the Fiona Quinn series so I jumped on the chance to review several more. This one did not disappoint! Detective Nathan Landry has a cold case to solve that requires a little undercover work. Unfortunately for him, the undercover work requires competitive ballroom dancing skills, which he does not possess, and early dance training with his detective partner end disastrously with a broken ankle for his partner and a bruised ego for Nathan. Fiona's turn! This former ballet dancer turned kindergarten teacher already has plenty of detective experience, and she has *a* dance background, how hard can it be?

This one was such a fun ride! My early suspicions proved accurate this time (sometimes these surprise me in the end) but I don't mind that the mystery wasn't too difficult to suss out. Honestly, I think I'm just getting used to the way these books go and I had a good hunch. The plot is indeed tight and well written.

I also love how these books always have a secondary mystery that ties into the main conundrum in the end. This time Fiona's long-deceased (but not absent) grandmother is finally receiving letters from her sister that never made it to her when they should have decades earlier. Could these letters, or whoever else's mail is being uncovered and just now delivered, hold important clues to Fiona's current case? You'll have to read (or listen) to find out!

As usual, Maren Swenson Waxenberg's narration is top-notch as well. I find her pleasant and easy to listen to at any playback speed, and while she doesn't push her voice into wildly different character voices (which I appreciate, it doesn't always work out well for some narrators) I never have any trouble keeping track of who's speaking, what was spoken dialogue and what was internal thoughts, etc. I forget I'm listening, honestly. It sounds and feels like just a variation of the voice in my mind when I read for myself. True that doesn't mean anything stands out, but in this case that's a good thing. The story is allowed to shine and the delivery feels natural and easy.

As I usually comment on any of McDonald's cozy mysteries, these do all stand on their own quite well and you could jump into any of them as a first read. If you want to start here or skip to here without reading all five of the previous books, you absolutely can. With that said, do try to read the first book first, I think it'll make a little more sense if you meet the main cast as they were intended to be introduced before following them on the rest of your adventures. That goes for the Fiona Quinn books and the Owl's Nest books.

I was granted complimentary audiobook access to Mambo and Murder by C.S. McDonald as part of my participation in a blog tour for this title with iRead Book Tours. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.