Crooked House- A Murder Mystery Book Review

Do you love murder mystery books?  Today I am sharing a suspenseful murder mystery Crooked House by Marlene Bateman, which I received a copy of to review.

The Book:
Erica Coleman Priviate investigator with all of her OCD quirks and tendencies is back! When Erica gets a call from her best friend's daughter Megan, saying she believes her roommate Liz is trying to be killed; Erica knows she must do what she can to help solve this mystery before it is too late.

In a historic district of town, Liz owns a historic house, nicknamed the cooked house, due to it's leaning pillars. Liz's neighbor is very upset with the state of disrepair to this historic home and is continually after Liz to fix it, but is he capable of murder? As more and more attempts are made on Liz's life, will Erica be able to solve the mystery before it is too late?

An Excerpt from Crooked House:

“I’m scared.”

Erica’s heart turned over when she heard the quaver in her young friend’s voice on the phone. 

Then Megan asked, “Can you come?”

 “Of course.” Erica’s reply was automatic. She would do anything she could to help. Although she often received emotionally-laden phone calls in her job as a private investigator, there was a difference when the call came from the teen-aged daughter of her best friend. The very fact that Megan—who was usually so calm and composed—sounded frightened out of her wits, put Erica on high alert. 

“I think someone’s trying to kill my roommate, Liz,” Megan said.

“What makes you think that?”  Erica asked. “Has someone threatened her?”

“No, but Liz has had a couple of serious accidents lately—at least she says they’re accidents, but either one of them could have killed her.”

Erica made an effort to reel in her skepticism. “Tell me about them.”

“First, someone tampered with her car. The brakes went out and Liz ended up driving across someone’s yard and hitting a tree. Fortunately, she was okay. The second one happened downtown. Liz was on the sidewalk waiting for the bus when someone shoved her. She fell into the road. A truck was coming and if a guy hadn’t pulled her back, Liz could have been killed.”

Still, they could have been accidents, Erica thought, at least until the third one occurred—this time at Crooked House

My Review: 
This is not the first Erica Coleman novel I have read, (this is the third novel) and I enjoyed this one just as much as the other. Erica has a lot of odd OCD quicks, that the first time I read one of the books bothered me; but in the end, it is the these compulsions and her keen ability to notice details that helps her solve crimes and becomes an endearing trait.  This time, as I read the book, I already know how Erica was and it never bothered me while reading. 

I love that the author is able to tell a suspenseful story with twists and turns, and even murder yet she keeps the books in a place that doesn't feel too dark or overly graphic. The book left me guessing to the end and my thoughts of the suspect changed several times. 

If you like murder mystery books, I recommend this book and series.

Note: This book can be read as a stand alone book, but good to read the others to get to know the main character more. 

Learn more about the author and the book at her website

Purchase the book at the following:
Amazon//Deseret Book//Seagull Book