D Minor
book review,  Books

Book Review: Death In D Minor

DEATH IN D MINOR

by
ALEXIA GORDON
  Genre: Paranormal Mystery / African American Sleuth
Publisher: Henery Press
Date of Publication: July 11, 2017
Number of Pages: 236
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Gethsemane Brown, African-American musician and expatriate to an Irish village, solved a string of murders and got used to living with a snarky ghost. She can rest easy now. Right? Wrong. The ghost has disappeared, her landlord’s about to sell to a developer, and her brother-in-law’s come to visit. She scrambles to call her spectral roomie back from beyond and find a way to save the cottage from destruction.
But real estate takes a backseat when her brother-in-law is accused of stealing a valuable antique. Gethsemane strikes a deal with an investigator to go undercover at a charity ball and snoop for evidence of a forgery/theft ring in exchange for the woman’s help clearing him.
At the party, she accidentally conjures the ghost of an eighteenth-century sea-captain, then ends up the prime suspect in the party host’s murder. She races to untangle a web of phony art and stolen antiques to exonerate herself, then the killer targets her.
Will she bring a murderer to justice, or will her encore investigation become her swan song?


PRAISE FOR DEATH IN D MINOR:
Gethsemane Brown is everything an amateur sleuth should be: smart, sassy, talented, and witty even when her back is against the wall. In her latest adventure, she’s surrounded by a delightful cast, some of whom readers will remember from Gordon’s award-winning debut and all of whom they won’t forget. Gordon writes characters we want resurrected.
  Cate Holahan, author of The Widower’s
Wife and Lies She Told
Erstwhile ghost conjurer and gifted concert violinist Gethsemane Brown returns in this thoroughly enjoyable follow-up to last year’s Murder in G Major. Facing eviction from the historic seaside cottage she calls home, Gethsemane must clear her brother-in-law’s name – as well as her own – when a priceless artifact goes missing and the wealthy dowager to whom it belonged is “helped” over a high balcony railing.  With the help of a spectral sea-captain she accidentally summoned, Gethsemane tries to unravel the mystery as the murderer places her squarely in the crosshairs.
 Daniel J. Hale, Agatha Award-winning author

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Lady-Jayne

Death in D Minor is listed above as a paranormal mystery — but to me, it ALSO has all the markings of a great “cozy” mystery:  the amateur sleuth (Gethsemane) is intuitive and well-educated (a concert musician), set in a small town (here – a quaint Irish village), has some quirky sidekicks (here a ghost stands in well, along with a helpful Irish priest) and while the mystery surrounds a murder, the story rates low on the violence factor.

I confess, I am rather partial to cozies. Don’t get me wrong – I love a good grizzly murder mystery or a fun romance – but this kind of mystery is pure enjoyment and escapism without being dark – something I can really use right now.

In Death in D Minor, author Alexia Gordon brings us the smart and determined Gethsemane Brown, a delightful classical musician who stumbles into a mystery. But whereas in many cozy mysteries the local police are generally unhappy with the amateur sleuth poking into the situation, in a fun twist Gethsemane is drawn into it by the police themselves. And she might be accused of a crime herself, as is her brother-in-law, just to twist things up a bit.

Speaking of twists, this book has a few that left me completely confused as to who the guilty party was. Aside from the actual mystery, what I LOVE about cozy mysteries is that I can count on interesting characters, and author Gordon does not disappoint. Gethsemane is spunky and determined, and INTERESTING – I love an intelligent protagonist. Her sea-captain ghost was a fun addition to the story, and I wish we had seen more of him.

I would love to see a guide to pronouncing the Irish names in future entries to the series because (embarrassing confession) I’m awful at confidently pronouncing them (betraying my Irish heritage) and I feel like a doofus it when I discover I’ve been pronouncing a name incorrectly (are you with me, Harry Potter fans, when you discovered it was NOT “Her-mee-ohn”).
Fans of Susan Boyer will love this book. I’m definitely looking forward to the next  in the series (and will be picking up the first)!  With that thought I can safely say that while this book is the second in the series, it works fine as a standalone.  If you are looking for a fun mystery, Alexia Gordon’s Death in D Minor needs to be added to your to-be-read list!
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A writer since childhood, I put literary endeavors on hold to finish medical school and Family Medicine residency training. Medical career established, I returned to writing fiction. I completed SMU’s Writer’s Path program in Dallas, Texas. Henery Press published my first novel, Murder in G Major, book one of the Gethsemane Brown mysteries, in September 2016. Book two, Death in D Minor, releases July 11, 2017.
Murder in G Major won the Lefty Award for Best Debut Novel, was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best New Novel, and was selected one of Suspense Magazine’s Best Debuts. I listen to classical music, drink whiskey, and blog at www.missdemeanors.com, voted one of Writers’ Digest magazine’s 101 best websites for writers, and featured on Femmes Fatales.            
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GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!
GRAND PRIZE: Signed Copy of Death in D Minor + Whisky Field Guide, Sea Salt & Bay Rum soy candle, Notepad, $20 Starbucks Gift Card

2ND PRIZE: Signed Copy of Death in D Minor, Ceramic Skull Coffee Mug, $20 Amazon Gift Card

October 25-November 3, 2017
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