I always enjoy Julie Hyzy's mysteries; as a writer, she doesn't burn a series out with a spectacular book or two, with mediocrity dragging the remaining books down.  Her writing, character development and plotting are even and steady and her series' arcs are a slow burn, rather than a flash in the pan.

 

Grace to the Finish was actually slightly less about the murder mystery (although that was good too), than it was the resolution to a series long arc concerning her sister.  Hyzy's solution was clever, if a little bit convenient.  The actual mystery was ok, but less a puzzle for the reader to solve than the narrative of the mystery's solution.

 

With cozy series one can never be sure if the titles aren't a indication of the series' status, so Grace to the Finish could very well be the last book; if so, it ends in a pretty good place without a lot of loose threads left dangling.  But if there's a ninth book, I look forward to it with pleasure.

 

Book themes for Las Posadas:  Read a book dealing with visits by family or friends, or set in Mexico - Grace has to deal with her sister's return and a visit from her long absent Aunt.  These two are major players in the plot.

 

 

 

Author: Julie Hyzy

Title: Grace to the Finish

Series: Manor House Mystery

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Now that Grace Wheaton has officially been named heir to Bennett Marshfield's fortune, her usually busy schedule has become a juggling act. In addition to her duties at Marshfield Manor, she's bankrolling her roommates' refurbished wine shop, Amethyst Cellars. Grace is excited to check out the rustic space with Bruce and Scott. But that excitement turns to dismay when they stumble upon the body of the banker involved with the sale.

Grace wants to get to the bottom of this mystery quickly so that her friends' new venture isn't overshadowed by an unsolved murder, but she's got even more to balance when her troubled sister, Liza, is released from prison early. Liza's first stop is Marshfield Manor and her first priority is grabbing a bite of Bennett's fortune for herself. Grace has to keep her greedy sister at bay and catch a killer before her new life comes crashing down around her.

 

 

 

 

 

I loved Grace to the Finish, I loved the cover art, I loved the characters, the story, I pretty much loved it all which really kind of bums me out because now I want to start this series from the beginning and read it all the way through and I just found out that the author is bringing the series to an end. Sad way to meet such a great book is when its coming in on its last leg.

If you haven't read the previous books in this series the author makes it fairly easy to slip in and understand what's going on enough to be able to follow along without too many plot or character gaps which is always great but there is definitely story on both ends that I want to know more about.

Grace to the Finish is fun, its well written, its one of the best cozy mysteries I've read in a long while.

 

 

 

 

 

Until next time book lovers...

 

 

Krissys Bookshelf Reviews received a digital copy in exchange for an honest review from Netgalley. All thoughts, comments and ratings are my own.

If any of Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews has been helpful please stop by to like my post or leave a comment to let me know what you think. I love hearing from you!

 

 

Krissys Bookshelf Reviews

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I always enjoy July Hyzy's writing and Grace Sees Red wasn't an exception, even if the mystery plot relied completely on the "friend in peril" trope.

 

The mystery in this one is the murder of an old cantankerous goat of a man at a very posh assisted living facility in a neighbouring town.  We learn about Grace's assistant's long-standing secret about where she spends her weekends at the same time we learn she's the number one suspect in the murder.    The basis for suspicion felt a bit weak to me from the start, and I've always thought Frances needed her ears boxed - the author takes cranky a bit too far to be loveable - but otherwise I love the characters, so it was easy enough to overlook.  I didn't figure out who the real bad guy was though, and I count that as a win.

 

Hyzy never goes the expected route with romantic interests so Grace is still a free agent and we are introduced to a new possible romance, one that has potential to be interesting.  So even though it looks from the last line of the book that we're going to be recycling a previous plot (the sister - she's back!), I'm still firmly on board for book 8.

 

(This book qualifies for the Book published in June, July or August of 2016 in Summer Book Bingo.)

In this edition a new family, including two children, are welcomed to the White House, but the transition did not go smoothly by any means, especially between the White House Kitchen Staff and the new First Lady. In fact, it only took a few days for her to bring in their own personal family chef to prepare the family meals. The new chef believed he was hired to be the new executive chef of the entire White House, and was very disappointed to learn that Ollie (Olivia Paras) would retain her position but her load would be lightened as she would no longer be preparing the family meals. To say the kitchen was tense is an understatement. Adding to the stress was a package of Buffalo Wings delivered for the children's first night in their new home, but because the package did not go through proper channels Ollie could not serve them to the children. This was not well received by the First Lady and Ollie believes her days as White House Chef are numbered.


Unfortunately some staff ate the wings and became terribly sick. It is then the Ollie and certain secret service agents start to put together that the family was in danger, but they must keep mum about their suspicions to keep the first family safe and determine if they have someone on the staff working with the group targeting the First Family.

I LOVED IT!!!!!

I absolutely positively loved this book, just as I did the other books in this series. We get a look at what goes on behind the scenes at the White House. Julie Hyzy did an exhaustive amount of research and you can see it in her writing. She takes us to a place you can't even see on a tour and divulges the inner workings, it is quite fascinating.

I immediately fell in love with Ollie, Cyan, Bucky and Henry. The new First Family with children added to the mix, brings in a whole new element to the story and the White House, the same way the Obama girl's have done in real life. I was touched by the Wisconsin reference, even though it was the location of a prison. The story could definitely be a "ripped from the headlines" saga. I understand how closely guarded our President's family is, and why the protocols are in place. This story is an edge of your seat mystery but also an excellent example of why the protocols are in place and what a dangerous world we live in today.

Julie, I am so glad I started this blog and found your marvelous work. Those nice little cliffhangers always leaving me wanting more. All the White House Chef Mysteries are a pure delight and I give all 4 books 5 stars and consider them a must read for every mystery lover!!!!

To find out more about Julie, this series, the Manor House Mystery series and her other mysteries be sure to check out her website.




Disclosure of Material Connection: I received these books free from Berkley Prime Crime, a Division of Penguin Publishing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 19s 16 CFR, Part 255 : 1CGuides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. 1D

In this edition a new family, including two children, are welcomed to the White House, but the transition did not go smoothly by any means, especially between the White House Kitchen Staff and the new First Lady. In fact, it only took a few days for her to bring in their own personal family chef to prepare the family meals. The new chef believed he was hired to be the new executive chef of the entire White House, and was very disappointed to learn that Ollie (Olivia Paras) would retain her position but her load would be lightened as she would no longer be preparing the family meals. To say the kitchen was tense is an understatement. Adding to the stress was a package of Buffalo Wings delivered for the children's first night in their new home, but because the package did not go through proper channels Ollie could not serve them to the children. This was not well received by the First Lady and Ollie believes her days as White House Chef are numbered.


Unfortunately some staff ate the wings and became terribly sick. It is then the Ollie and certain secret service agents start to put together that the family was in danger, but they must keep mum about their suspicions to keep the first family safe and determine if they have someone on the staff working with the group targeting the First Family.

I LOVED IT!!!!!

I absolutely positively loved this book, just as I did the other books in this series. We get a look at what goes on behind the scenes at the White House. Julie Hyzy did an exhaustive amount of research and you can see it in her writing. She takes us to a place you can't even see on a tour and divulges the inner workings, it is quite fascinating.

I immediately fell in love with Ollie, Cyan, Bucky and Henry. The new First Family with children added to the mix, brings in a whole new element to the story and the White House, the same way the Obama girl's have done in real life. I was touched by the Wisconsin reference, even though it was the location of a prison. The story could definitely be a "ripped from the headlines" saga. I understand how closely guarded our President's family is, and why the protocols are in place. This story is an edge of your seat mystery but also an excellent example of why the protocols are in place and what a dangerous world we live in today.

Julie, I am so glad I started this blog and found your marvelous work. Those nice little cliffhangers always leaving me wanting more. All the White House Chef Mysteries are a pure delight and I give all 4 books 5 stars and consider them a must read for every mystery lover!!!!

To find out more about Julie, this series, the Manor House Mystery series and her other mysteries be sure to check out her website.




Disclosure of Material Connection: I received these books free from Berkley Prime Crime, a Division of Penguin Publishing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 19s 16 CFR, Part 255 : 1CGuides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. 1D