Ponder: Mother-Daughter Murder Night

Mother-Daughter Murder Night © 2023 by Nina Simon is a sleuth tale worth investigating. The three generations of female characters and the unique setting were the best parts for me. There is 15 year old Jacqueline, her mother Beth, and Beth's mother Lana. Beth and her daughter live in the sloughs of Monterey County, CA and Lana comes to join them when she becomes ill. Jack calls her grandmother Prima, and Lana is indeed a bit of a prima donna. A prima donna and a shack in the middle of a marsh are not an ideal mix, but the combination does make for an amusing side interest.

Lana is a high-powered, formidable, ambitious, fiercely-independent real estate business woman. She is diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and must reluctantly come to live with her daughter for assistance. Her haute couture clothes and fashionista high heels are not a good blend for a rustic cottage in the slough, but she preserves her image and her self-designed persona despite debilitating cancer treatments. Beth is a caring nurse for the geriatric in a senior living facility and has raised her daughter since birth as a single mom. Beth is in a close relationship with her daughter and in a rocky relationship with her mother. Teenager Jack loves the outdoors and wildlife and has a job as a tour guide, kayaking and paddle boarding among the marshlands. When a dead body is found stream-side during one of her tours she is initially a suspect in the murder.

Lana springs into action to prove her granddaughter's innocence. She converts her aggressive business savvy into actions investigating the murder. Beth is inadvertently dragged into the sleuthing when one of her geriatric patients is found dead. Death is not an unusual occurrence given the age of the residents of the facility but could these two deaths be related?

Mother-Daughter Murder Night is full of surprises starting with the very first page. The author's style is very captivating; her twists in conversation and unexpected character actions challenge the reader on his assumptions. The mystery in the convoluting plot and accompanying logic do hold together well. Mysteries are not usually my first genre of choice, but in Mother-Daughter Murder Night, figuring out "whodunnit" made for an engrossing, entertaining read. This novel is Nina Simon's first. I will be on the watch for her future works.

★★★★☆ Really good; maybe only one weak aspect or limited audience