Digging Up Trouble

Kitt Crowe

Oct 2021 · A Sweet Fiction Bookshop Mystery Book 1 · Crooked Lane Books

About this ebook

This series debut set in Oregon offers “plenty of clever clues and red herrings” to delight fans of cozy mysteries by Jenn McKinlay and Joanne Fluke (Peg Cochran, USA Today bestselling author).

Lexi Jones and her dog, Cookie, make a bitter discovery in their sweet-as-candy town . . .

Life is sweet when you live in Confection, Oregon. Or, at least, that’s how it’s supposed to be. But on a summer day, when tourists and locals alike gawk at the majestic mountains, quaint Craftsman houses, and lovely flowers—particularly the renowned Confection Rose—the last thing anyone has come to see is a dead body, unearthed from a shallow grave by a curious dog.

A bathrobe-clad Lexi rushes next door to her neighbor’s backyard to find her pooch, Cookie, stalwartly sitting watch over a body in the vegetable garden. Cookie, encrusted in dirt, grips a copper pipe between her teeth. Was this the murder weapon? And was Lexi the murderer? It sure looks that way, seeing as she was spotted squabbling with the victim just the day before. The case becomes all the more perplexing when the real murder weapon turns out to be a garden stake. Then where does the copper pipe fit in? And might a more likely suspect let Lexi off the hook?

All the volumes in the Sweet Fiction Bookshop, and all the specials at Eats n’ Treats, prove of little help in jogging Lexi’s brain to find a solution. Fortunately, Cookie is not finished digging up clues. As the fur flies, can this trusty border collie mix save sweet Lexi from a bitter end?

Ratings and reviews

Digging Up Trouble is the debut of A Sweet Fiction Bookshop Mystery series. Confection, Oregon is a small town where the residents lavish their time and attention on their gardens. The upcoming contest with the large cash prize has people pushing for their gardens to look their best. They do not appreciate a cute dog digging in their flowerbeds. Lexi Jones has returned to her hometown where she manages the family bookshop, Sweet Fiction and, in her spare time, is working on a novel. I would have liked to learn more about Lexi (lack of background). There are a number of secondary characters that include Lexi’s besties, her uncles, and the Macaroons (the book club). The whodunit is straightforward. There are several suspects and I thought there were too many red herrings. There are clues a plenty to help readers arrive at the solution before the reveal. I did not understand why Detective Berg was so focused on Lexi. The story flowed well until about two thirds of the way through. It slowed down then until the reveal scene. The author has set up a love triangle that I wish was not a part of the book. Cookie was the highlight of the book. He is a smart, wily, and entertaining canine. Digging Up Trouble is a lighthearted whodunit with crafty canine, rampant rumors, flower garden fanatics, a devious digger, a cunning killer, curious clues, and a surfeit of suspects.

About the author

Kitt Crowe lives for books. Fueled by caffeine, she shares her living space with two teenagers, a zany dog, and a cat who thinks he's in charge. But she manages the chaos enough to write about those sleuths who solve crimes and the dastardly who commit them. There's never a dull moment with Kitt at the keyboard.