Review of The Deadly Pub Quiz

[John Owen]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Deadly Pub Quiz" by Ann Parker.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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If you've not read Ann Parker's "Abigail Summers Cozy Mysteries" series yet, you've not read one of the best paranormal crime mystery series there is and are missing out big time! I was thrilled by the first installment, "The Deadly Detective Agency," and it only gets better in this second book, "The Pub Quiz." There is simply no way anyone wouldn't like and be hooked on this amazing series — I'm even anticipating a third book already!

In this installment, Dora Bream was strangled to death in her home. This particular case was complicated because there were many suspects, as Dora wasn't well-liked due to her nasty attitude, and she allegedly blackmailed almost half the village. Unfortunately, all the suspects, mostly those whom the Deadly Detective Agency suspected she was blackmailing, had alibis. The person who topped the suspect list was Julian Banning, as Dora had caught him with a stolen ring and had probably used it to blackmail and extort him, which gave him a strong motive to kill her. However, Banning was also poisoned in a pub quiz shortly after.

In the meantime, Veronica Stokes, a con woman from London, who was claiming to be a medium named "Claire Voyant," put up a fraudulent advertisement in the papers, claiming she could give readings and speak to spirits while riding on Hailey's achievements. Hailey was mad at her and went to talk to her to stop conning people, but she found her murdered as well. She panicked and ran instead of calling the police, making her a suspect in the murder. The mystery became even more complicated and interesting! There were now three murders to solve, and Hailey was likely to go to jail for the murder of Veronica. They had to act fast, and the Deadly Detective Agency's skills could just be what would restore calm to Becklesfield and save Hailey.

There's no doubt Parker is among the best authors I've come across. The book is unique for introducing ghosts playing Sherlock Holmes, and I think this adds a certain amazing twist to crime mysteries that makes the book a whole lot better. The narration, mystery, suspense, and literally everything is just well done! Abigail, the "big-headed, know-it-all," in Terry's words, proves herself once again to be the brilliant, sharp-witted detective she always brags she is. It was amazing to see Terry get closure about his family and Suzie help her brother against bullies in this installment. And it was also amazing overall to read about all the good being done by the Deadly Detective Agency as well.

I'm pretty upset this book had to end at all. I just wish there was a book three coming up. I absolutely enjoyed Parker's sense of humor and play on words. For example, when Abigail said that she would protect her friends to the death, yet they were already ghosts, it cracked me up. Betty's naivety is also humorous as she consistently misspeaks words, but in this book, I had a feeling that she does that only for the fun and humor and is actually more intelligent than she seems.

However, even the best are sometimes flawed. The same is true for this book, even if they were just minor issues. I'm not sure if it's a coincidence that I found this same issue with the previous book as well, but there, again, is a character switch here, where words are attributed to the wrong character. This only happened once, though. The next is more of a personal take — I do feel Patrick Bates' comeuppance came too easily, which makes it seem rather odd.

Despite the issues mentioned prior, this is among the best paranormal crime mystery and thriller books I've read — or even the best! I rate it 5 out of 5 stars. I absolutely and wholeheartedly recommend it! And I do hope there's a third installment!

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The Deadly Pub Quiz
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[NetMassimo]

You review of the first book in this series gave me a good impression. It seems like this sequel is another engaging paranormal thriller with twists, so it increases my curiosity about this series. Thank you for your great review!

[John Owen]

You review of the first book in this series gave me a good impression. It seems like this sequel is another engaging paranormal thriller with twists, so it increases my curiosity about this series. Thank you for your great review!

Thank you NetMassimo for stopping by . Both this and the first book were enjoyable reads. It's a series I can recommend any time.

[Prohlife Jobs]

Ghosts solving crimes is such an interesting twist in this saturated genre. I am quite intrigued to read this book and see exactly how they do it!