Murder on the Mesa

A Violet Vaughn Southwestern Mystery, Book 1

By: Kristina Charles

Narrated by: Erin Anderson

Length: 4 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Rattlesnakes, RVs, and road trips? None of these are in middle-aged Violet's vocabulary. But overnight, she's barreling across the country, leaving Chicago for a tiny, New Mexico desert town in search of the man who stole her money. Oh, and he happens to be her ex-husband. Well, almost ex.

The Englishman she picks up on the way has a secret, but Hugh seems to come in handy. Especially when the two find themselves in the crosshairs of the town sheriff as suspects in a murder. With the help of some quirky townsfolk and a rescue dog, they might be able to solve the crime themselves, get Violet’s money, and find out what happened to the missing and murdered indigenous women from the neighboring Navajo Nation.

©2023 Kristina Charles (P)2023 Kristina Charles

Great storyline and interesting storyline

The story was wonderful with interesting facts about the Navajo Nation and areas of New Mexico. The characters were well developed and I enjoyed the audible book quite a bit. The narrator did a good job with the various voices and infections too.
The story kept me captivated.

An excellent narrator for this cozy mystery!!!

Found myself genuinely invested in the characters and their well-being as well as wanting to find out the "who" in the "who dunnit?". Love how each character was brought to life by the narrator. Made this a really fun listen!!

First in a Southwest Desert Cozy Mystery Series

This is a very good, solid first cozy mystery in a new series! One of the things that drew me to it is a Midwest woman’s first experience in the Southwest Desert. Except it wasn’t where she planned to be…ever. It is a fast-paced tale that introduces us to the likable, engaging Violet and Hugh, and a passel of quirky folks preparing for the coatimundi festival. What’s a coatimundi and why is there a festival? Come along to Coatimundi, New Mexico, one of only two states in the US where they can be found.

Violet left for New Mexico when finding out that her not-quite-ex-husband had stolen what she had anticipated for living expenses after he moved to a little town in New Mexico. The only way she could survive on her income was to get that money back from him, so she got a low-priced, old, camper for the trip. Along the way, she met Hugh, visiting from across the pond and driving a much nicer RV than she could dream of.

The people in Coatimundi are mostly welcoming, and definitely eccentric. Their brand of quirky is entertaining and completely harmless. . . except for whoever killed Violet’s not-quite-ex-husband. She was unfortunate enough to find his body, and really unfortunate enough to be the main person of interest in his death, as is her new friend, Hugh. With law enforcement who wants an easy solve, and new friends who are willing to help her, will she be able to find whodunit and find the money Jim had to have hidden somewhere on his property?

I quickly became invested in Violet, a woman who works hard, is intelligent, and personable. The festival sounded like it would be a lot of fun. Violet rescued a dog with Hugh’s help, and many of her new friends want her to stay. They are very excited about the shop they want her to open. Just her luck, the sheriff who didn’t like her hated the product, also.

I like the tie-in to missing and/or murdered indigenous women, especially as it is the first time it has been part of a plot in a cozy mystery I have read. That is the only mystery not solved at the end of this intriguing cozy, so I am looking forward to seeing them work on this too long neglected crisis of Native American women. All other mysteries were resolved and whodunit revealed.

The narrator was very good, and I can now pronounce coatimundi in my sleep! The second mystery in the series has been recently released in Kindle, which I eagerly picked up, and I hope there will be many more to come – and that more audiobooks are forthcoming with the same narrator, Erin Anderson. I highly recommend this first in a new series!

From a thankful heart: I received a copy of this audiobook from the author, and this is my honest review.

Cozy Mystery Delight

I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook. I usually listen when I’m driving as I’m in the car a lot for long distances. This Violet Vaughn mystery series Book 1, kept me super entertained and wondering where the hidden treasure was and who the bad guy was. I didn’t figure it out, which was awesome, I enjoy the journey so was thrilled to hang on every word to see how it ended. Narrator kept me fully engaged. I loved the characters and found them to be very relatable. Great storyline. Looking forward to Book 2.

Great Narrator, Fun Book

A good narrator can really make or break a book for me, and this narrator did a fabulous job! I would happily listen to more of her recordings. The book itself was a fun story, and I look forward to the next one in the series.

Loved it!!

This a fantastic start of a new series!! I can’t wait to read the next one!!

Fun and great narration!

This was a fun who-done it mystery. The narrator really brought it to life.

Great Mystery

Erin Anderson did a great job with the narration of this book. The storyline, flow and characters are entertaining. The book is fast paced and action-packed.