Book Review: Gone with the Twins by Kylie Logan (League of Literary Ladies Mysteries #5)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Fun characters, fun story, just plain fun

Cons: Pacing a little off at times

The Bottom Line:

New book, fun series

Pages fly by once again

Love these characters

Twin Troubles on South Bass Island

Confession time – even though I’ve been a lifelong reader, I’ve never been part of a book group.  I realize I’ve probably missed some great books I wouldn’t pick up on my own that way, but I’m usually trying desperately to get through all the books I already know about I want to read.  Still, I love visiting the members of The League of Literary Ladies and seeing how the classic they’ve chosen for their next book discussion plays into the events happening on their island.  We get to do that again with Gone with the Twins.

It’s summer, and the current book the group is reading is Gone with the Wind.  It may have been inspired by The Twins.  Riva and Quentin are children of movie stars who have become even more famous after escaping from a harrowing kidnapping.  They’ve purchased property on South Bass Island and opened it as the bed and breakfast Tara, the southern mansion from the book.  Between their status and the theme of their bed and breakfast, it is really cutting into the business run by Bea Cartwright.  In fact, her own bed and breakfast has no guests or reservations at the moment.

Then there’s Vivien Frisk.  Her aunt, the best realtor on the island, has recently died, and Bea is hoping to buy a piece of furniture that her aunt owned.  When she arrives to make arrangements for the piece, she discovers Vivien’s dead body in the basement.  There are several people with motives, including Bea’s friend and neighbor Chandra.  Chandra has no alibi, won’t say where she was, and appears to be hiding something.  Can Bea get to the bottom of this latest mystery?

Whenever I pick up a book in this series, I know I am in for a fun ride.  This latest is no exception, and it had me turning pages until the end.  The pacing appeared to be a bit off in spots, but I didn’t really care because I was having so much fun.  The climax brings everything together in a very fun way.

The characters in this series are what makes everything so much fun.  The four ladies who make up the league are very different from each other, and they each add a nice touch to the book, complimenting each other perfectly.  Bea, as our main character, is a fantastic lead, and now that her secret is out to us, it provides some added fun to the narration.  The new characters are just as much fun, and they hold some secrets of their own that Bea needs to uncover before the book ends.

If you haven’t read this series yet, I highly recommend you read it in order.  I mentioned Bea’s secret already.  If you don’t know what it is, you’ll have to trust me that half the fun of the series is discovering it along the way.  Plus, there’s how secrets affect her love life.  And yes, long time readers will be glad to learn that Levi has another delicious secret up his sleeve.

You may have noticed that I used fun a lot in this review.  That was on purpose, and that’s because it really is the best word to describe the book and the series.  Fans of the series will love Gone with the Twins, and if you are new to the fun, start this series from the beginning today.

Need to back up?  Here are the League of Literary Ladies Mysteries in order.

NOTE: I received a copy of this book.

Giveaway!

Thanks to the publisher, I have one copy of this book to give away.  Because it is a physical book, the contest is limited to residence of the US.

Just leave me a comment with your e-mail address so I can get in touch with you if you win.  I will pick the winner next Tuesday, March 14th, so please leave your comment before 12:01AM Pacific Time on 3/14.  You will have until midnight on 3/19 to get back to me, or I will choose a new winner on 3/20.