Book Review: "The Perfect Match" by Janice Hanna

Title:  "A Perfect Match"

Series:  Hometown Mysteries

Author:  Janice Hanna

Publisher:  Barbour

Publication Date:  3/1/2011

Pages:  256

Buy From Amazon:  HERE

Book Description (PBS):

Join Annie Peterson as she follows the clues to discover who set fire to the local dating service, the Perfect Match. Is the arsonist the financially strapped widow who owns the matchmaking business, a mismatched newspaper editor, an unsatisfied and unmarried forty-something customer, or the new female investigator who, except for her suspicious past, seems the ideal mate for Annie's son Devin?

The race is on--to see whether or not Annie and her cohorts can solve the crime before another building is burned to the ground and before Devin becomes enamored of the woman who may be Ms. Wrong.


My Overall Feeling of the Book:

I didn't realize that this was a part of a "series" until I started reading it.  It is the kind of series that is written by different authors so I decided it would probably be OK to read without having read the others.

I was a bit leery starting.  I was hoping that I would be able to get into the book though I felt that I had already missed out on getting to know the characters.  My worry was short lived because I got pulled in quite quickly.

There is very little mentioned about prior events so I was able to get to know the characters as I read without feeling like I was missing pieces of the puzzle.  The author did a very good job of creating this book to be a stand-alone part of a larger series.

It was a nice, quick read.
My Favorite Character:

My favorite character is Annie, the super-sleuth.  She is a married empty-nester who tries her best to live a life that God would be pleased with.  She kinda reminds me a bit of my Mom.
My Favorite Scene:

My favorite scene is when Opal's cat, Don Q., leaves a little present on the front porch for his family.  I can't tell you how many times we've walked up to our door to find mice, birds, etc as love offering from the cats!

My Favorite Sentence/Paragraph:

I'd heard the saying, "Silence is golden, but duct tape is silver" all my life but never really pondered its meaning.  By the end of of the first night with Opal in our home, I understood it completely.  Opal was like a record that never stopped playing...one nitpicky critique after another.

Annie Peterson page 39

It Would Have Been Better If:

It was a pretty good little mystery but I only remember 1 or 2 sneaking about scenes.  Other than that it was a lot of speculation as to who set the fire without a whole lot of investigation.

I Would Recommend This Book To:

Amateur detectives, empty-nesters, members of small town churches, Pennsylvanians (whoot-whoot!), dachshund lovers, soft-hearted people, mystery lovers.

Rating

4/5

On to the next book,