Ambitious.  That was the first word that came to mind after it became clear where the story was going.  I love the setting, and the characters, and Holmes deserved her Agatha nomination for the first in this series, but as much as I admire her willingness to tackle such an intricate murder mystery, it didn't quite achieve success.  

The plot was a familiar one, but the method, while very clever, was too convoluted to feel as fresh as it should have.  I really like the angle she took with the murder method but by the end of book, I felt the same way I do after I've read an article on quantum physics: like I have the general idea down, but don't as me to explain it or it will all fall apart.  

I enjoyed a lot of the book, and I love reading about watch/clock making, so I'll read the next one, if there's a fourth, but reading murder mysteries should not feel like reading quantum physics.

See all of my reviews at Mystereity Reviews

In Clock and Dagger, the second in the Clock Shop Mystery series, Ruth is once again plunged in the middle of a murder. The clock is ticking, can Ruth find a killer before time runs out?

It's just after Christmas in Orchard, MA and clock maker Ruth Clagan is busy with several events, and with troublemaker Becket Green's unreasonable plans.  Just days before she's set to re-open Cog & Sprocket, word gets out that Beckett is planning a book store/coffee shop/corner market/clock shop to rival all the struggling businesses in Orchard.  During an open house event staged to spur local patronage to the town's shops, one of Ruth's employees is found dead and shortly after, another is critically wounded. Can Ruth put the pieces together before it's too late?

Good plot, although I figured most of it out 2/3 of the way through the book. The murderer was a surprise (mostly because they weren't in the book much) and I loved Caroline's intriguing back story and I enjoyed all the random trivia about clocks.   

The conclusion didn't do it for me, though.

Although likeable, Ruth is rather obtuse.  At one point, the bad guy says, "One thing I've always liked about you is your intellect." and I snorted.  Really?  It took her until the end of the book to figure out why Ben was in a snit.  

Overall, an enjoyable read, even with all the plot holes.  I like this series enough to continue with it, and I recommend it as a nice, light mystery.

Another disappointing sophomore effort.  The first book in the series had so much potential, but the author really stumbled about at the beginning of this one, trying to info dump without info dumping.  The result was awkward, clunky dialogue that sorely needed better editing.  The awkward writing continued with an excess of repetition and over-detailing silly things like conversations with her cat, or her issues with her hair.

Still, Holmes has created a great cozy community and I'm fascinated by the clocks and the watches (which are what she should have been detailing more of).  The story kept those clocks and watches on the periphery, which was too bad.  The characters, too, are all very fleshed out; even the nemesis is realistically nasty, not a caricature.  

In spite of the fact that, really, there was no mystery surrounding the man in black (the author was a subtle as a sledgehammer here), the murder plot ended up being crafty and surprising. 

I don't know if I'll stick with this series; the potential is there, lots of it, but the writing needs to grow up quick and the author deserves a better editor.

This is my book for the Set in New England square of Halloween Book Bingo; it's set in the Berkshires, in the fictional town of Orchard, Massachusetts.

Best first in a new series I've read in a long time.

Ruth’s grandfather instilled in her a love of timepieces. Unfortunately after her grandmother died and he remarried, Ruth and Grandpa Thom became estranged. She’s wanted to reconnect after her recent divorce, but sadly her grandfather has been found dead after a break-in at his shop—and the police believe he was murdered.

Ruth has been named the heir to Grandpa Thom’s clock shop, the Cog & Sprocket, in the small Berkshire town of Orchard, Massachusetts. As soon as she moves into the small apartment above the shop and begins tackling the heaps of unfinished work, Ruth finds herself trying to stay on the good side of Grandpa’s bossy gray cat, Bezel, while avoiding the step-grandmother she never wanted.

I really have no complaints; it was a solid story with fleshed out characters, an air of romantic interest, but no sign of a love triangle.  I found the whole horology angle incredibly interesting and I find myself more curious now about old clocks.  I guessed the murderer pretty early on, but not because the author played fast and loose with clues; rather there was a subtle difference to one of the characters that just made me think "that one".  It wasn't obvious though, so I enjoyed reading to the end in order to find out if I was right.

Additionally, this is the first book I can remember reading in recent memory that didn't have editing errors so blatant that they stopped me in my reading tracks.  Nice.

I'm looking forward to the next book with hope that Ms. Holmes has another solid mystery on offer.

Very good for a first in a new series. The plot dragged a bit in places, but I think a lot of that was trying to set the back story, the scene and the characters.  That beings said, it was a bit heavy on the grief thing.  It seemed like there was someone lamenting the untimely passing of the MC's grandfather on every page.  Ok, I get it, it's a bummer.  Stop bringing it up every 5 seconds.

Overall, a solid start and an enjoyable read.  This is definitely going on the list of series to watch.