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A Big Clock Mystery #1
The Unprintable Big Clock Chronicle
Fans of breezy, page-turning mysteries will fall in love with Jill Winters’ clever new series featuring Caitlyn Rocket, grad student and part-time newspaper reporter. Amid the bells, carolers, and holiday parties that fill the snowy pocket of Big Clock, Minnesota, a crime has been committed in the town’s famous clock tower—and if not for the impulsive wager between Rocket and her boss, the bizarre tangle of events might never be discovered...
After doing The Chronicle's grunt work for the last six months, Rocket is ready to move out of her cobwebbed cubby hole in the corner. A nearby office robbery gives her a perfect opportunity to prove herself to the managing editor of the newspaper, Ian Beller. How hard could it be to look into the crime? According to her boss, all she has to do is find some leads. He never told her HOW to find them—and left to her own instincts, Rocket devises some clever, equivocal, and at times, comical, ways to investigate. Before long she discovers that the small company she’s investigating is a hotbed of secrets and grudges... and if she looks hard enough, she’ll find a winding trail of clues that lead to murder.
Jill Winters brings a fresh voice to a series that is as cozy as it is brimming with charm. Rocket is a thoroughly lovable protagonist, and her capers are well-crafted enough to keep even seasoned mystery readers guessing. Winters’ previous novels, published by Penguin Group, received critical praise for their tight plotting and Winters’ trademark humor.
THE UNPRINTABLE BIG CLOCK CHRONICLE is the first in a four-book series.
After doing The Chronicle's grunt work for the last six months, Rocket is ready to move out of her cobwebbed cubby hole in the corner. A nearby office robbery gives her a perfect opportunity to prove herself to the managing editor of the newspaper, Ian Beller. How hard could it be to look into the crime? According to her boss, all she has to do is find some leads. He never told her HOW to find them—and left to her own instincts, Rocket devises some clever, equivocal, and at times, comical, ways to investigate. Before long she discovers that the small company she’s investigating is a hotbed of secrets and grudges... and if she looks hard enough, she’ll find a winding trail of clues that lead to murder.
Jill Winters brings a fresh voice to a series that is as cozy as it is brimming with charm. Rocket is a thoroughly lovable protagonist, and her capers are well-crafted enough to keep even seasoned mystery readers guessing. Winters’ previous novels, published by Penguin Group, received critical praise for their tight plotting and Winters’ trademark humor.
THE UNPRINTABLE BIG CLOCK CHRONICLE is the first in a four-book series.
394 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 8, 2011
41 people are currently reading
329 people want to read
About the author
Jill Winters
9 books30 followersJill Winters is currently working on the third book in her Caitlyn Rocket mystery series.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
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December 27, 2011First off, full disclosure: I won this book from Goodreads. First time EVER!!!!!
I really wanted to like it a lot. And I did like it, but my response was mixed.
The heroine, Caitlyn Rocket, is a twenty something grad student and part time reporter. She begins investigating a local robbery to build cred with her boss, get a better office and a job reference. Then, of course, the fun begins as she discovers that there was a lot more to the robbery than first appeared, we meet a whole cast of characters and the office supply theft turns out to be murder.
Rocket, as she is called by her boss, is well drawn and likeable. In fact, all of the characters (including her boss and co-workers, obnoxious mailman and best friend) are well drawn and believable (with the exception of the downstairs neighbor see discussion of subplot below). The bare bones of the mystery plot are good but sometimes the machinery moving the plot along is either far fetched or lumbering. The robbery that starts things moving is a short blurb in the local paper about the theft of office supplies from a supply closet. Rocket impersonates a cleaning person to get info on the office in question. It's pretty hard to believe that you could appear at an office with no warning and convince the other cleaners you had been sent there and they should take you along with them. Later Rocket looks on the internet to see if any of the stolen goods are being resold. But the items in question were an electronic paper cutter, two packages of paper and an old laptop? Even if you could find them how would you know they were the same ones and why would someone sell them anyway when they weren't worth anything . . .
Rocket starts investigating, telling bigger and bigger lies to get at the truth. Then she has guilt over the big liar she has become, I liked that - it rang true. The subplot with the downstairs neighbor doesn't sound real at all though, it borders on caricature. I understand that there needs to be a second story in addition to the main one, but we need to find something else.
I found the writing style accessible but awkward. There were sentences where I, for example, wanted to just re-order the words or just wanted to re-order the words. But still the story drew me on, I wanted to know who did it (and didn't guess) and I'm thinking I should read it again to find all the clues I missed.
All in all, the pieces are all there, they just need a little tweaking. I'll give the next book a try and see how Rocket does . . .
I really wanted to like it a lot. And I did like it, but my response was mixed.
The heroine, Caitlyn Rocket, is a twenty something grad student and part time reporter. She begins investigating a local robbery to build cred with her boss, get a better office and a job reference. Then, of course, the fun begins as she discovers that there was a lot more to the robbery than first appeared, we meet a whole cast of characters and the office supply theft turns out to be murder.
Rocket, as she is called by her boss, is well drawn and likeable. In fact, all of the characters (including her boss and co-workers, obnoxious mailman and best friend) are well drawn and believable (with the exception of the downstairs neighbor see discussion of subplot below). The bare bones of the mystery plot are good but sometimes the machinery moving the plot along is either far fetched or lumbering. The robbery that starts things moving is a short blurb in the local paper about the theft of office supplies from a supply closet. Rocket impersonates a cleaning person to get info on the office in question. It's pretty hard to believe that you could appear at an office with no warning and convince the other cleaners you had been sent there and they should take you along with them. Later Rocket looks on the internet to see if any of the stolen goods are being resold. But the items in question were an electronic paper cutter, two packages of paper and an old laptop? Even if you could find them how would you know they were the same ones and why would someone sell them anyway when they weren't worth anything . . .
Rocket starts investigating, telling bigger and bigger lies to get at the truth. Then she has guilt over the big liar she has become, I liked that - it rang true. The subplot with the downstairs neighbor doesn't sound real at all though, it borders on caricature. I understand that there needs to be a second story in addition to the main one, but we need to find something else.
I found the writing style accessible but awkward. There were sentences where I, for example, wanted to just re-order the words or just wanted to re-order the words. But still the story drew me on, I wanted to know who did it (and didn't guess) and I'm thinking I should read it again to find all the clues I missed.
All in all, the pieces are all there, they just need a little tweaking. I'll give the next book a try and see how Rocket does . . .
August 11, 2024
2.5. I wasn’t real fond of the main character. Also I knew something was off with that neighbor, Lucy, at the beginning of the book. I kept flipping back to see how old she really was. She didn’t behave like her age.
Quotes…
Page 12 - No matter how much you long to, you can't go back to the past—but it can come to you.
Page 232 - You know, while teaching Braille to blind kittens and reading by the light of his halo.”
Page 259 - But whenever anything like that would happen, my mom would say, 'The bad news is, he's a jerk. The good news is, you got to find out early. Another girl won't be as lucky.'
Quotes…
Page 12 - No matter how much you long to, you can't go back to the past—but it can come to you.
Page 232 - You know, while teaching Braille to blind kittens and reading by the light of his halo.”
Page 259 - But whenever anything like that would happen, my mom would say, 'The bad news is, he's a jerk. The good news is, you got to find out early. Another girl won't be as lucky.'
December 25, 2017
Good book
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
July 21, 2015
Really good first in a series
This is a really good start to a promising new series. The author gives terrific descriptions of the MN locale and one feels right there.
The book begins with a newspaper intern and her boss making a wager concerning a possible crime in there town of Big Clock. The ins and outs of the investigation show Caitlyn's skills at investigation. The author weaves a good take and I am looking forward to the 2nd book in the series.
This is a really good start to a promising new series. The author gives terrific descriptions of the MN locale and one feels right there.
The book begins with a newspaper intern and her boss making a wager concerning a possible crime in there town of Big Clock. The ins and outs of the investigation show Caitlyn's skills at investigation. The author weaves a good take and I am looking forward to the 2nd book in the series.
January 23, 2015
Caitlyn Rocket working at the local Big Clock newspaper, when there is a robbery at a local office. As a project her boss gives her the job of solving the crime with the opportunity to get a better office and a job reference.
April 6, 2014
Quick fun read
good character description
lighthearted,quirky mystery
I will read more of Jill winters book's and recommend them to anyone who asks.
good character description
lighthearted,quirky mystery
I will read more of Jill winters book's and recommend them to anyone who asks.
November 14, 2014
A pretty good who-done-it. Nice light ready. Kept me guessing until the end. Good job.
November 18, 2014
Quite engrossing...
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews