Cover Image: Corned Beef and Casualties

Corned Beef and Casualties

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Member Reviews

Corned Beef and Casualties is an entertaining novella by Lynn Cahoon. The story follows Jill Gardner as her store, Coffee, Books, and More, is raking in the green as her little coastal town holds a big festival for St. Patrick’s Day. When a woman who just visited Jill’s shop is found dead near the shore, Jill starts to conduct a mini investigation of her own.

I loved the setting in the southern California and that it took place during St. Patrick's Day! Of all the holidays, people seem to go crazy the most on St. Patrick's Day.

This is my first time reading the series and it definitely serves as a great standalone, while at the same time, is encouraging me to read the rest of the series! I liked how there was no shortage of mystery and character development.

An enjoyable read that kept me engaged!

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I really enjoy this story. This is the tenth in the series. It is a novella. It is not in synch with the rest of stories. It should have happened before book 8. Sasha & Toby broke up in book 8 because she took a better job in another town and in book nine Greg & Jill are living together. They are not in this book. Also, Jill’s aunt has been seeing her current beau for a while and not a few weeks.

Despite the inconsistencies. this was a quick easy read. This story is centered around St Patrick’s Day and the town’s celebration. A young woman is murdered and Jill treis to help Greg find out who the murder is.

I volunteered to read and review an ARC of this book provided by NetGalley and Kensington Lyrical Underground. These are my unsolicited opinions.

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Short and Sweet Cozy Mystery
This story is part of the tourist trap series. This is a very short novella of fewer than 70 pages. It is like watching a very good, half-hour television mystery. I was very surprised when the end jumped up and bit me! The book stands alone perfectly. This is the first of the series that I have read and I never felt like I was missing details. The author does mention an occasional detail from the past, but it is within the context of this story. There is humor mixed with the drama as well as dogs and romance. I plan on buying more of this series. I was given this ARC book for free and this is my honest review.

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CORNED BEEF AND CAUSALTIES is another holiday novella in the Tourist Trap Mystery series by Lynn Cahoon. While I prefer full-length books, I do adore the Tourist Trap Mysteries and the ability to visit South Cove, California even if for a short read. And I’m always drawn to St. Patrick’s Day themed stories... especially since my ancestry is Irish. Protagonist Jill Gardner, owner of Coffee, Books, and More is getting ready for the town’s first ever St. Patrick’s Day event. And what an event it turns out to be with perhaps just a little too much flowing green beer. Ms. Cahoon captures the festival’s shenanigans and celebratory spirit with fun descriptions and events.

When the sweet woman, who Jill felt a close connection to after their brief chance meeting, is found murdered on a deserted beach, she feels the need to get involved. I liked how the author has the townspeople come together to piece together the victim’s last hours on earth to help solve the mystery. Even though it is a novella, I felt the story contained all the necessary elements to make it a delightful read: good characters, a mystery to be solved, clues sprinkled around, and a satisfying conclusion.

Not only is Jill’s shop known for its coffee drinks but also for its sweet treats, especially cheesecakes. Jill’s friend, Sadie, who is the owner of Pies on the Fly, creates the desserts and comes up with a special cheesecake especially for St. Patrick’s Day. She names the cheesecake after the fun visitor who shows up at the end of the book… Gertie might be real or imagined or mystical… either way, the cheesecake inspired by her appearance embraces the epitome of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations and the author provides a recipe for it at the back of the book.

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I still am trying to adjust to the novella offerings in the Tourist Trap series. I love South Cove, Jill and the rest of the cast, but I feel that the ending to 'Corned Beef and Casualties' was a little abrupt. I still have questions about what is going on with some of the characters and want to have another full length book to address them. I anxiously look forward to that time.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions express in this review are entirely my own.

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It's Saint Patrick's Day and that means a new opportunity for South Cove, California to host tourists. AND for murder! Jill and her police chief love interest Greg find themselves trying to solve the homicide of Alana, a young woman visitor. It's a quick easy read that will leave you looking toward a longer book. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this classic cozy that includes a recipe for cheesecake!

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Welcome back to South Cove! And a warm welcome it is. It is a pleasure visiting with Jill, Greg and the crew again. In “Corned Beef and Casualties,” the town is hosting a St. Patrick’s Day festival, replete with green beer, green potatoes and even green cheesecake. The holiday parade goes off without a hitch, as does the fireworks display. But, after the revelers have headed home, a woman’s body is found on the beach. Jill Gardner realizes that the victim is a customer with whom she had a chance encounter at her shop, Coffee, Books, and More. Saddened at the young lady’s demise and against the advice of her detective-boyfriend, Jill tries to piece together the chronology of the girl’s last day. Jill follows the clues and winds up accidentally solving the crime. For a novella, “Corned Beef and Casualties” is well-plotted, with just enough twists and turns to keep you guessing.

Note: I received an ARC of Justice in Plain Sight from NetGalley and Kensington Books Lyrical Press. The above is my honest review.

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Corned Beef and Casualties by Lynn Cahoon is the 10th book in A Tourist Trap Mystery series, and a great addition. Jill Gardner is the owner of Coffee, Books, and More and she and the town are busy getting ready for the big St. Patrick's celebration her town is trying out. Jill serves a young lady a mocha, and she feels a connection with her, they both lost their moms while they were young. Later the young women is found murdered. I love this series, and enjoyed this novella too. I highly recommend this book/series to all cozy mystery lovers.  I also recommend that you read them in order to get the most out of the books.

I received this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

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Corned Beef and Casualties is Book 10 in the Fabulous Tourist Trap Mystery Series. I loved this holiday novella centering around St. Patrick's Day. This is the third Novella in this series and I LOVE ME A GOOD NOVELLA! I enjoyed visiting South Cove again with Jill and her gang.

The plot was well developed for a short read. The story revolves around the St. Patricks Day Weekend festival. The night after the festival a young woman is found dead on the beach.

There were even some twists which is a credit to Ms. Cahoon's writing to being able to provide such a well crafted story in a novella.

I am excited to read the next book in this series and see how Ms. Cahoon explores the story arc of Jill seeing people that no one else does.

Don't miss the yummy cheesecake recipe, I plan on trying that out!

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This novella had a strong start with the first St. Patrick's Day celebration in South Cove. All the usual players were present and the visitors were ready and rowdy for adventure. Jill's Coffee, Books and More was very busy as was boyfriend Greg, policing all the crowds. Sadly, the body of a young partier was found dead at the beach at the culmination of the celebration after the fireworks. This had all the markings of a full novel but didn't reach it's promise. While Greg is tied up in his detective duties, Jill goes snooping trying to develop a timeline of the girl's activities for the day. In the end, her efforts weren't a key factor in finding the criminal. this was a 1/2 hour read for me and I'm glad it didn't take more time as I was disappointed in how the mystery was resolved. Better luck next time.

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I am absolutely loving the novellas that the author has added around the holidays. They are short, holiday themed and well plotted to have the characters discover the crime and have to wrap it up quickly. As always the characters are well developed and enjoyable. The only issue I have is that I had read the series in order and now the novellas are happening out of order. They actually take place prior to some of the books so it is odd to be reading about the characters in a certain place in their relationships when I know what has already happened in the books. For someone new to the series, read the books with the novellas in their correct order and you won't have that issue. It hasn't stopped me from enjoying the novellas nor will it keep me from reading future books, it's just a bit off kilter reading out of order like this.

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This book was a fun, cozy mystery novella. I really liked the characters, and although this is the 10th book in the series, I didn't feel like I was missing out on too much. The story is about a cute waterfront town that is celebrating St. Patrick's day. A woman is murdered, and our heroine, Jill realizes that she met her the day of her murder. Jill's boyfriend, policeman Greg King warns her not to get involved, but clues seem to fall into Jill's lap.

I really enjoyed the warmth and humor of this novella and would recommend to my fellow cozy mystery readers. I am excited to start the series from the beginning! Thanks to #NetGalley for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

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Another tourist trap novella from Lynn Cahoon and this was my favorite thus far. In fact, I felt the saint patrick's day celebrations had so much drama that she could have stretched it into a full novel. The story played out with a steady thorough pace and then abruptly concluded with an ended that was basically just told to the reader instead of figured out by Jill. The ending to me was the weakest part of the novella because you felt as a reader that it was too easy with no suspense. Fortunately, the rest of the book was interesting and I loved all the main and secondary character interactions, so it kept me entertained and involved up until the sudden conclusion. I would still give this book 4 out of 5 stars based on the fact that most novellas to me are filler books and this felt much more like a real, fleshed out story that just could have used another chapter or two. I can't wait for the next full length novel from the series.

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This is the 10th book in the Tourist Trap series. It's a novella, but I always welcome a new Tourist Trap mystery!
Jill Gardner and her boyfriend Greg as well her famous Aunt Jackie are back, this time for a St. Patrick's Day celebration in South Cove. Unfortunately, a girl is found dead and Jill had spent some time with her before she was killed.

Another classic cozy, easy to read and a nice way to spend an afternoon. Thanks to Kensington Lyrical Press and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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I will be totally honest; I love Lynn's Tourist Trap cozy mystery series. I have read them all and even though I have already preordered this ebook, I jumped at the chance to get a sneak peek ahead of time. I have been enjoying these few novellas that Lynn has put out and have been greatly anticipating her next full length novel. This was a quick read that kept me entertained all the way through. It contained all of the usual ingredients: love between Jill and Greg, a bit of snark, the lovely (mostly) shop owners and townsfolk, and of course murder.

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What a bitter sweet story, so full of the love between Jill and Greg and so sad about the murder of a girl just because she said yes to a proposal. A good read. #CornedBeefAndCasualties #NetGalley

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This is a St Patrick's Day novella in the Tourist Trap series and is a nice addition to the series. It is fun to rejoin Jill, Greg, Aunt Jackie, and all the people of South Cove for another adventure. South Cove is putting on a big St Patrick's Day Festival. A young lady visiting dies on the beach. Jill met and liked her so she begins to investigate. The ending is short but it is a novella and is very enjoyable.

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Corned Beef and Casualties by Lynn Cahoon is the third holiday novella in the Tourist Trap series. As always, it was fun to be back in South Cove with Jill, Greg, Aunt Jackie, Amy and Sasha.

This was a quick and easy read. The plot centers around the St. Patrick's Day weekend festival being held in South Cove with a parade and plenty of green drinks. A sweet young woman and her friends stop by Coffee, Books and More after the parade and Jill immediately takes a liking to her. Unfortunately, that night after the festivities, she is found on the beach dead. Jill really does try to stay out of this one but her curiosity is too strong. However, she only solves the case by being in the right place at the right time. The plot moved quickly with just a few twists to keep me turning the pages. Ms. Cahoon has left me wondering about the red-haired woman who visits Jill in the shop in the last chapter.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Lyrical Press via NetGalley. All of the above opinions are my own.

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If you like the Tourist Trap Mysteries, don’t miss this novella. It’s always a pleasure to visit the regular characters of the seaside town of South Cove, California and this time, the town is poised for its annual St. Patrick’s Day celebrations when a body is discovered on the beach. Jill Gardner, owner of the local coffee shop/bookstore uses her sleuthing skills to help boyfriend, Greg King solve the mystery behind the murder. A short, quick, clean cozy read that is absorbing. The author includes a cheesecake recipe that sounds yummy!

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Kensington Lyrical Underground. Thank you.

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Corned Beef and Casualties is the latest novella in Lynn Cahoon’s entertaining Tourist Trap Mystery series. This is a clean and quick read with well-developed and likable characters and a murder to try to solve. There are inconsistencies regarding the characters from previous books, and the reveal seemed rushed, with few details provided.

The town of South Cove, California is holding a St Patrick’s celebration with lots of activities and festive adult beverages to entertain the somewhat rowdy crowd. The body of a young woman is found on the beach after a spectacular fireworks display, and when it’s ruled a homicide, South Cove’s lead detective, Greg King, and Toby Killian try to track down the killer. Jill feels a connection to the victim, newly engaged Alana McDaniel, because she’d been a customer at her shop, Coffee, Books and More, earlier that day. Greg, who is also Jill’s boyfriend, doesn’t like Jill to investigate, but even though she promises not to, she feels compelled to ask questions and prepare a timeline for the activities of Alana and her friends.

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

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