A Bad Day for Sunshine by Darynda Jones is book one in her new series. I fell in love with this book from chapter one.

Ms. Jones' descriptive writing made the town of Del Sol and it's residents come alive. This story flowed as readers are introduced to Sunshine, Quincy, Auri, Jimmy, Hailey and Levi. The kidnapping mystery was complex with so few suspects and clues that I was beginning to doubt if it would be solved in this first book. With Ms. Jones' sarcastic wit, a well-crafted plot and another mystery about Sunshine to be resolved in a future book, I am hooked on this series.

Told from alternating perspectives of Sunshine Vicram, new sheriff in Del Sol, NM, and her teenage daughter Auri, this new series can potentially find a fan base from Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum tribe. This book mirrors the silliness of the Plum books, and is also definitely on the lighter side of police/detective novels with no in-your-face gore or thriller trauma. Author Darynda Jones does a good job setting the story in a quirky small town, and introducing potentially recurring characters who will interest and amuse readers. This series debut quickly gets confusing, though, as there are multiple “cases” that keep popping up and being added to the story that are not connected: the abduction, the dead body that re-introduces a cold case not connected with the abduction, a hidden adoption brought to light, the mysterious Daughters group that no one seems to know about but who seem to run the town, the missing deputy no one wants to talk about, the mean Mayor who is out to get Sunshine (coinciding with the mean girls out to get Auri), the unsolved case of Sunshine’s own abductor and possible father of Auri, what Levi is hiding, and of course how Sunshine even got elected as Sheriff when she didn’t throw her name in the hat. Also difficult is the character of Sunshine, ironically enough the main character who is the least defined. Jones describes her as “cold as ice,” but in several scenes describes her sexual angst and attraction and flirtation to no less than three other characters. The reader has trouble buying in to her as a competent sheriff when multiple personal distractions take her away from her office and job. The series certainly has potential, so hopefully this first book was a leap to try to get the setting secured and characters in place to set the stage for future episodes. It’s worth reading and giving the future book #2 a chance before making a final judgment on this series.

A new series for DJ different from her Charley Davison series but just as awesome.
Great characters that make the story.
Drama, mystery,twists,turns,like the snarky sassy fun humor even though it is a suspense.
It has a beginning adult and teenage romance.
It has a kid napping,a mysterious officer,an old unsolved case and feuding neighbors.
A really great beginning to a series now have to wait for the next.
Voluntarily reviewed.

Sunshine was abducted at age seventeen and wants to find the man who did it. She became a detective in Santa Fe, New Mexico and moved back to her home town Del Sol with her daughter Auri age fourteen. Problems develop for both Sun as Sheriff and Auri at school Her 1st day as Sheriff becomes very unsettled hearing that a fourteen year old girl, Sybil, was missing. Sun gets into the search for the girl and flash backs come to her in thinking that had happened to Sybil. Everything comes out about Sun's abduction that she could never remember or discuss. This is a book you don't want to stop reading. Lots of exciting twists and turns that gets your mind trying to figure out how it will end!

First off, I love Darynda Jones and the Charley Davidson series so I was a little worried if this book was going to even come close to as good! Well I must say I was pleasantly surprised! Darynda has done it again!! I absolutely loved Sunshine and all the characters in this book. The story has a little bit of everything: adult romance, teenage romance, action, mystery, and several twists and turns! Thank you Darynda Jones, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing me with and ARC in exchange for an honest review. The hardest part about this is now having to wait forever for the next book when this one isn't even officially out yet!!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to.

I would like to thank Darynda Jones, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for letting Christmas come early by allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I have been a fan of the Author for quite some time now and I could not believe my eyes when I saw the new book and I just knew I had to read it in record time. I loved the characters and the storyline, and now that I devoured it I can go back and leisurely read it again until the next installment. The pace was good and as always there was plenty of suspense, humor and some smoldering longing between the main characters that could set the pages on fire.
Lucky I have all her other books so they will have to tide me over until I can find out what will happen next to Sunshine and Levi. Very entertaining Read.

While I enjoyed the story I felt like I had only read a short part of the story when I had finished it. I felt that too much had been avoided, left out, and not finished or explained throughout the story.

I just finished reading “A Bad Day For Sunshine” … I loved it! I’d never read Darynda Jones before. And as soon I finished, I looked her up and plan to read all of her backlist! Which is the true sign of loving a book! The story was super engaging, and I loved all of the characters. Sunshine was so very likable, and her relationships with the other characters were fun and heartwarming. I was also really impressed how seamless the jump between characters POV was. I’m super excited for this series to keep going! When is the next one ….?

Review by 2shay.............

If you loved The Charley Davidson series, hold on to your panties, Ladies, Sunshine Vicram has Levi Arun Ravinder! He’s HOT! Sun and Levi have a strange non-relationship full of mistrust and misunderstanding, with a level of sexual tension that makes the pages burn. Sun’s loved him since she was ten. How he feels about her? I’m not sure. But their non-relationship is just a small part of the story.

Sunshine is the new sheriff in town. How that happened is still a little mysterious, but she has come home with her amazing fourteen, almost fifteen, year old daughter, Auri. Aurora Dawn Vicram is a red headed wonder child. She’s smart, vivacious and hides a deep and secret pain. Pain that she tries hard to keep from her mother. I may love Auri just little bit more than Sunny.

But as special as they are, there are more great characters. Sunny’s parents, Cyrus and Elaine Freyr, are doting and manipulative with both their daughter and granddaughter. They’re fabulous and add layers to the story. Sunny’s best friend since kindergarten and her current chief deputy, Quincy Cooper, is another hotty, and much of Sunny’s past we learn from him. Then there is Elaine’s best friend, Darlene Tapia, who makes “magic muffins” that predict upcoming disasters for the town.

The town. Del Sol, New Mexico is the best supporting character of all.  Full of quirky residents and drawn flawlessly from the small towns I am familiar with in N.M. To my knowledge, Del Sol is purely fictional and could be anywhere from Albuquerque to Sante Fe, but reminds me more of Taos with their quirky, artistic and touristy similarities. It doesn’t matter. I want to live there, even if only in the author’s imagination. I want to know who the Dangerous Daughters are and what happens between Sunshine and Levi, if anything. I want to know what happens the next time Darlene delivers muffins to the Sheriff’s Department. The last time the Sheriff’s Department received muffins, on Sunny’s first day at work, all hell broke loose.

I will be stalking Ms. Darynda Jones for a while, wanting to know when the next book will be ready. If you love a great tale, you will fall hopelessly in love with Del Sol. Grab a copy as soon as possible, and...

Enjoy! ARC graciously provided by St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an honest and voluntary review.

Like a big bright ray of sunshine, Darynda Jones' s A Bad Day for Sunshine slid onto my kindle bringing nothing but smiles and happiness. Full of the humor and a strong, funny female lead that Ms. Jones's books are known for, this book is hands down an entertaining mystery full of surprises, hot guys, and a hot mess of a heroine. Elected sheriff in a race she didn't enter, Sunshine Vicram returns home and is thrown into a case for a missing teenager. Add in a missing convict, an old murder victim, and and an old flame and Sunshine's life gets way interesting way fast. Auri is a delightful mess following in her mother's footsteps. The story left me grinning like the Cheshire Cat and just when I thought I figured it all out something new crawled out of the woodwork. This story is just fun and totally addicting. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from Netgalley.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Darynda Jones for this ARC copy of A Bad Day for Sunshine. I finished two days ago and
***I am completely obsessed with this book.***

A Bad Day for Sunshine is Darynda Jones' brand new series. A bit of fun about this book is it was dual povs...Sunshine, the brand new sheriff who was elected without even running and her daughter Auri. Auri was navigating all the troubles that go with being the new kid in school but multiplied by 100 because the student think she is a narc since her mom is the new sheriff. I adored the quirky supporting characters, the hilarious side crimes, the mystery, the freaking make my heart melt sex on a stick Levi, I LOVE HIM. I can't get enough! I had to put my kindle down for a min at 34%. Two words...
HOUSE KEY.
This book was quite an emotional read for me, I cried multiple times. Darynda has a way to make you feel like you are right there, in the scene living it with these characters. I was a weeping mess. My heart was swelling right along with Sunshines, and also breaking. It was beautiful. I highly recommend this book, I have no idea how I am going to wait for book 2!!

Yes! We have a loving, bad-ass mom with a snarky sense of humor. We have her whip-smart daughter. We have a wonderful cast of supporting, supportive characters: friends and family. We have hunky hot men. We have mystery and a long ago unsolved crime. A good start to a fabulous new series. Enjoy!

(Review contains spoilers which are hidden when posted elsewhere.)

I have mixed feelings about this first book in Darynda Jones’s new series. On the positive side, the characters are likable and Jones brings her trademark snark and sass both to Sunshine and to her daughter Auri. Sun’s relationships with Auri, her best friend Quinton, and her parents all are enjoyable and there are some fun, quirky characters who will be fun to follow. I especially like Auri, a bit better than I do Sun, if I’m being honest.

But I also have some frustrations with the story. Despite the urgency of finding the missing girl, Sun and her fellow law enforcement people seem to get easily distracted and the plot often meanders. Some of the plot devices to create tension make little sense. <spoiler>Why would the kidnapped girl, after having had visions much of her life about her kidnapping and death, hide some of the most crucial clues like the drawing of the name graffiti, in a hidden envelope? Why not send everything to the new sheriff and tell her to ask Auri about it?</spoiler> One of the biggest, most personal mysteries about Sun seems so obvious as a reader, but she herself remains clueless despite the blatant clues. <spoiler>Audi’s looks alone should have given a clue as to her father’s identity. Once Sun found the shack in which she was held and Levi’s uncle’s body found nearby, she should have put some clues together. It’s blatantly obvious that the uncle had kidnapped her, that Levi rescued her and killed the uncle, and that he and Sun had been consensually intimate shortly before the kidnapping and he is Auri’s father. Even if Levi doesn’t know about Sun’s retrograde amnesia from the kidnapping (he obviously knows Auri is his), the blindness and stupidity on both sides is frustrating. Worst, the “mystery” is not solved in this book and Sun idiotically is wondering if Levi was one of the kidnappers.</spoiler>

While wanting at times to slap some sense into some of the characters isn’t exactly an endorsement, I enjoyed the characters enough that I likely will check out the second book in the series. I only hope Jones doesn’t drag out the mystery reveals too much longer.

Oh Sunshine you have many questions with little answers given. That leaves us with many questions and little answers, but LOADS of theories. I like loads of theories.

We meet Sunshine on her first day as Sheriff of the town she grew up in. Things are not all sunshine and roses for her on that first day. Mainly b/c of muffins.

This was great book world building. You have her 14 yr old daughter. Her best friend. Her parents. Her mom's book club. An old crush. A nemesis both Sunshine's and Auri's. High school drama. Gay friends. TWINS sorta (side note I love Quincey). Old crime unsolved, new crime to solve. A missing rooster.

The humor is much the same as Charley and Cookie from the Grave series. The quick whit and back and forth are awesome.

An addictive first installment in an exhilarating new series. Sunshine is an extremely capable, if somewhat bewildered, new sheriff in town. Her daughter, Auri, is the love of her life, and has her own stuff going on. Both story lines are equally enthralling and the mom-daughter dynamic is hilarious and heartwarming. Throw in a bunch of tiddly older ladies, meddlesome parents, Levi Ravinder, a town flasher, Levi Ravinder, oodles of gorgeous men and women of all ages, mean girls, Levi Ravinder, a murder or two, kidnappings, a psycho chicken and have I mentioned.... Levi Ravinder? This promises to be a blockbuster of a series.

I loved it! This author is one of my favorites. She combines humor with light topics and heavy ones and maintains tight loyalties with friends and family all while multiple mysteries overlap in the story line. The steam is building and I can't wait to see what happens next in the series.

A Bad Day for Sunshine was about a sheriff who won an election without entering a race. Returning home to a town you grew up in to face a harrowing past. It is easy to engage with the character Sunshine and how she deals with today and the past. Nothing is as it seems, and remembering the past has everything with today's mystery.

A great mystery and love story. The election of a sheriff that didn't enter the election is a little unbelievable but the rest of the story is great with lots of surprises and very lovable characters including a mystery deputy. I love the relationships between the Mother, daughter, and grandparents as well as a high school boyfriend.

I like Jones’ writing and was eager to read this new series from the beginning. It has all the snappy dialogue that I love from this author. For me the characters were just a bit too precious and special. I kind of overloaded on it. Even the names were a little snowflake-y. The plot moved right along but I found it was just overall a little too twee for me.