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Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Book Review: Three Shots to the Wind by Sherry Harris (Chloe Jackson Sea Glass Saloon Mysteries #3)

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Strong mystery makes characters stronger
Cons: All cons shot
The Bottom Line:
When ex comes to town
Chloe must solve his murder
Over all too soon



Cozy Trope Twisted by Murder

In my day job, I’m an accountant, so as soon as I heard the premise of Three Shots to the Wind, I started giving Sherry Harris a hard time.  The truth is that since she is one of my favorite authors, I was looking forward to this book.  And I wasn’t disappointed at all.

Chloe Jackson has now been in Emerald Cove, Florida, for seven months, and she is adjusting to her new life as part-owner of the Sea Glass Saloon.  However, things quickly get complicated when she gets a series of anonymous gifts, all including a card that says “I love you, Chloe Jackson.”  She knows it isn’t her boyfriend, Rip.  They are taking things slow, and neither of them have said the “L” word yet.

She figures out who it is in the worst way when she stumbles on a crime scene.  The victim?  Her ex-fiance, Perry Franklin.  She hasn’t seen him in the year and a half since she broke off their engagement, but it is clear he was turning an accounting convention in the area into a chance to win her back.  Since she broke up with him when she realized how boring she found him, she can’t imagine why anyone would kill him.  Will she learn the truth?

One thing I loved about this book is how it twisted a familiar cozy trope.  Usually, about two or three books into the series, the main character’s ex will show up to try to win her back.  And, usually, that’s a sub-plot going on in addition to a murder investigation.  Here, that becomes the main story since Perry is the murder victim.  Sherry Harris does a good job of bringing in connections to Perry to become suspects, too.

Naturally, Perry doesn’t turn out to be the boring accountant that Chloe thought he was when they were together.  These reveals give us motives that keep us guessing until the end.  I enjoyed trying to piece it together, and the climax made perfect sense.

I also really appreciated how this story gave Chloe a chance for some real growth.  A fun sub-plot allows some other relationships to grow as well.  These characters are becoming more real with every book, and I love them more with every book.  Naturally, the suspects fit into this world perfectly.  They weren’t quite as well developed as the main characters, but they did their job of keeping us guessing.

I’m ready for another adventure with Chloe, already.  If you’ve missed this series, be sure to check it out.  And, if you are a fan, you’ll love Three Shots to the Wind.

Have another round with the rest of the Chloe Jackson, Sea Glass Saloon Mysteries.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Giveaway:

I'm giving away a copy of this book.  The winner will have a choice of a physical copy (US addresses only) or a digital copy (open to everyone).

Just leave me a comment with your email address.

I'll pull the winner on Friday, April 1st (no fooling!), so please enter before midnight Friday morning California time.

12 comments:

  1. Marcia (makennedyinaz@hotmail.com)March 29, 2022 at 11:59 AM

    Whoo hoo! I love Sherry Harris' books. Each one is better than the one before. Thanks for the giveaway.

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  2. Ooooo this sounds so good! Thanks for the review and giveaway!
    FiveSibes(at)gmail(dot)com

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  3. Christi King has contacted me letting me know she is having trouble entering the contest, so I am putting in this entry for her. If anyone else has issues, please do let me know.

    carstairs38 at gmail

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  4. We are getting ready to move, so I can't take on any more physical books at this point, but sounds like a good book-drawing to enter!

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  5. Thank you for your review on "Three Shots to the Wind" by Sherry Harris. It just makes me want to read this book all the more. It's on my TBR list and I can't wait for the opportunity to dive in reading this episode in Chloe's life.

    Greatly appreciate the chance to win a copy. Shared and hoping to be the fortunate one selected.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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  6. Can't wait to read this! ioncookbooks at yahoo dot com

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  7. I love Sherry Harris's books and love this title. Thank you for this chance at your giveaway. pgenest57 at aol dot com

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  8. I have enjoyed this series thus far. Chloe is a favorite cozy mystery leading lady.
    memaribwd@hotmail.com

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  9. Three Shots to the Wind by Sherry Harris sounds like a fun and entertaining book. I would love to have a physical copy.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

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  10. As always, this was a great review. Thank you and, although I have followed Sherry Harris for some time, I have never had the honor to read any of her material. (Our library only carries the paperbacks and almost never gets eBooks if they have a different format available.)

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  11. I’d love to win a copy! I really enjoyed From Beer to Eternity. Thank you for the chance!. smurphy(at)macados (dot)net

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  12. I haven't read anything by this author but this series has especially caught my eye. I'm glad to see how much you enjoy it! I need to get the first book.

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