Cover Image: The Girl with the Dragonfruit Tattoo

The Girl with the Dragonfruit Tattoo

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Member Reviews

DNF at 40%. Overly cheesy for my taste and the dialogue felt wooden.Just not for me despite it’s cute cover and fun title.

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I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

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The Girl with the Dragonfruit Tattoo is the third installment of Carrie Doyle’s Plum Lockhart mysteries. Set on the tropical island of Paraiso, Plum is experiencing significant advances in both her personal and professional lives. However, when Juan Kevin’s estranged wife shows up, Plum decides to accept an old friend’s invitation to join her on a luxury yacht for a dinner party. During the dinner, Plum meets a young server who starts making accusations against people on the yacht and later washes up dead. As a result of Plum’s connections to people on the yacht the police reach out to her to go undercover to assist in the investigation.

The author of this series has done a good job with creation of her characters and settings giving the reader sufficient description to enable them to envision the exact scenes as they are taking place. By bringing in characters that Plum has an already established history, the author also enriches the present storyline with the events of the past which further increases the reader’s connection to Plum and the entire storyline. Through the use of multiple unique settings, the author sets up a series of interesting twists and turns in the plot which lead to a surprising and novel revelation of both culprit and motive. I look forward to more in this series to see how Plum’s relationship with Juan Kevin as well as the increasing positive trend that her involvement with the local law enforcement is taking.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press and am leaving this review voluntarily.

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If you are a fan of the tv show Below Deck and you like mystery books, you will enjoy this book! I was thinking about how the book reminded me of that show and then about 3/4 of the way through the book, it mentioned this show, so I like how it is very relevant to today’s world.

The main character lives on an island and solves crimes in her spare time. She gets caught up in a murder on a yacht and then chaos ensues.

Thank you to Net Galley and Poisoned Pen Publishers for the gifted e-copy of this book.

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This story had some good details but was hard to get through at times. There was some parts and characters that made it a little smoother to read. However it did get to a point I gave up but am will to see what’s next if there is more to come

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The cover of this drew me in, but I didn’t read/see that it was part of a series. Cosies are my preferred genre, and I’m always looking for a new series to add to my TBR list. Sadly, this one won’t be joining the waiting list. Plum is a wholly unlikable character, and although I wasn’t entirely lost with respect to the characters and back story (so the standalone aspect worked to a degree in that sense), it could be because I felt there wasn’t much to them.

Plum ends up accusing everyone of either murder or theft and then gets offended when she’s accused! At the end, she knows, then doesn’t, then knows again who the murderer is. There’s also some really terrible dialogue.

I nearly DNF’d it, but pushed through as I feel I’ve DNF’d several books already this year and don’t like to do it too often. Sometimes a book can turn around, but unfortunately this one did not, for me at least, and I seem to be in the minority of readers, which is great.

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Plum is a cheerful character who you can't help but like. Her antics kept me amused and turning the pages.

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A cute and enjoyable whodunit cozy mystery with a tropical backdrop. If you enjoy tense, psychologically manipulative and twisty thrillers, this isn't what you're looking for. But if you want a lighthearted and no stress beach read this summer, this is it. I realize now this was part of a series but read fine to me as a standalone. Thank you to Dreamscape Media, Poisoned Pen Press, Carrie, and NetGalley for an ARC and an ALC of this title!

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I really loved this book in a new to my series and author. I can't wait to read the next one. The characters and location really add to the plot. This book keeps you guessing until the end

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I absolutely adored this trilogy! Getting to watch Plum change and grow and accept not only herself, but those around her was inspiring. It was cute and funny and I loved the setting of the book!

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This was a really nice read! I love a good mystery and i haven’t read one yet that takes place in Australia which was cool. I was never bored and it had some interesting twists and turns. Definitely recommending this!

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A cozy mystery set on an Australian Island. Oh and did I mention there's a yacht? Sign me up! Not only do I love mysteries but this one had me ready for the beach! Although I did figure out the mystery early on, I wouldn't let that deter you from reading this one. It's perfect as we gear up for these summer months!

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The Girl with the Dragonfruit Tattoo by Carrie Doyle is the third book in this series. I didn’t know this when I started the book but I was able to make sense of everything without reading the previous two books. This was a cute, quick cozy mystery set on a yacht near an Australian island. After reading this one, I want to go back and read the others! And that cover is just too cute!

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ehhhh wasn't my favorite book and didn't realize it was a sequel till after starting it. Overall the writing was there but didn't do it for me.

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I think this is my favourite book in the series so far. I liked that it had the vacation vibes but had a bit of a different location to it. The relationships blooming were fun to ready and I love getting to see Plum continue to grow as a person. The crime in this book was interesting and I enjoyed that there were so many different layers to it.

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Thank you Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC of the book.

This book is part of the Trouble is Paradise cozy mysteries series.

Plum Lockhart is living and working on the Paraiso island. One day she runs into her old friend Ellen from New York who invites her to a yacht party that is hosted by a famous manager. The party is full of rich and famous guests, but Plum’s attention was caught by the server who was trying to get help from Plum. Soon after the party the server dies, and Plum agrees to join the host and guests of the party to solve the server’s murder.

I loved this book. it was an easy read and I enjoyed the author’s style.

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I have been following Plum Lockhart since she fled cold, unfriendly New York City and arrived on the paradise island of Paraiso. In this travel/transportation mystery, the amateur sleuth must solve a murder as a guest on a yacht with the rich and famous. I really liked that Carrie Doyle switched things up in the series and added a boat mystery to the longlist that already exists, including classics like Death on the Nile and Murder on 'B' Deck. I still have a soft spot for brash yet also insecure Plum as she navigates a community that is so foreign to her but is slowly becoming her home. And, since the beginning, my favorite aspect is the island itself. I first picked up the series because the setting reminded me of the TV series Death in Paradise, and it remains a perfect fictional escape.

With that said, compared to the first two installments, this book wasn't as compelling for me. I attribute this to the fact that Plum was mostly on her own for this one. She was away from Lucia, Juan Kevin, the police chief, and her on-again-off-again best friend Gerald for much of the narrative. Understandably, she was on a yacht island-hopping, but one of my favorite aspects is the collaborative sleuthing experience even if it is Plum who puts the final pieces together in the end. I definitely grew attached to Plum's dynamic with Gerald especially in book 2 as well. I think the brief loss of this sense of community left the narrative with most unlikable and 2-D characters since no one on the boat had been in the books before and all of them were suspects. My least favorite in the series so far but still a solid 3-star read, and a super fun, recommended series overall!

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This didn’t really hold my attention and the big reveal ended up annoying me. Ultimately I just think cozy mystery type books are not for me.

I would not be likely to recommend this one.

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Dollycas's Thoughts

We are back on the island of Paraiso and Plum Lockhart is thrilled with the way her villa rental company thriving. She is also happy with the direction her relationship with a certain Security Director is moving.

At a party hosted by one of the island's elite residents Plum runs into a friend from her magazine days, Ellen Katz. She is on vacation with her Hollywood producer husband. They have been yachting around the world with famous rapper/talent manager Robert Campbell and his other guests. Ellen invites Plum to come out to the yacht where there is always a party going on. Plum does join the party for a few hours and is surprised when one of the servers tries to share a secret with her. Before the two can meet privately Plum is headed back to the island.

When that server's dead body washes up onshore two days later Plum wishes she had known what the girl wanted to tell her. In a real twist, Police Captain Diaz asks Plum to go undercover on the yacht to uncover the killer. She vows to do her best but she soon learns the server wasn't the only one with a secret. Everyone on board could have done the deed. And asking the right questions to the wrong people could make Plum the next victim to wash up on shore.

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Plum spends a lot of time away from her business in this third Trouble in Paradise Mystery. Thankfully she has Lucia to keep things running. Juan Kevin Munoz is also left on the island but he has a personal problem to handle. I missed that we didn't have as much time with these characters but the time we did have was worthwhile.

Readers are introduced to Plum's friend Ellen, her husband Joel, their host Robert Campbell, and all his guests and crew on the yacht including a young actress, India Collins, and R&B pop singer Nachelle Brown. A surprise guest shows up later in the voyage. All the characters are complex and interesting. They all make perfect suspects.

The mystery is complicated with plenty of twists and turns. I thought that while it would never happen in real life Plum going undercover on the yacht was pretty entertaining. I loved Agatha Christie-esque reveal. The subplots were very well written and placed within the story. Plus the surprise yacht guest was hilarious. There are other humorous moments as well.

Of course, the setting on Paraiso is delightful. My happy place is on a beach with my feet in the sand. I would mind traveling the seas on a yacht either, but I am faced with caviar dreams on a hamburger budget. That is why I enjoy escaping into stories like these.

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A cozy mystery on an Australian island, plus partying on a yacht! Sign me up. This was a fun story and it even had my favorite…turtles! I knew who the killer was early but that’s normal with a cozy. All in all it was a good solid read.

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