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Honey Driver Mystery #1

Mord ist schlecht fürs Geschäft

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Honey Driver, verwitwet und mit 18- Jähriger Tochter, leitet ihr eigenes kleines Hotel in Bath. Zudem ist sie die neue Verbindungsfrau des Hotelverbands zur Polizei. Da verschwindet ein amerikanischer Tourist spurlos. Honey nimmt die Ermittlungen auf, die sie bald auf einen Adelssitz führen, auf dem recht befremdliche Dinge vor sich gehen.

311 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

1380 people are currently reading
907 people want to read

About the author

J.G. Goodhind

14 books30 followers
J. G. Goodhind also writes as Jean G. Goodhind, Jeannie Johnson, and Lizzie Lane.

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5 stars
1,008 (38%)
4 stars
877 (33%)
3 stars
539 (20%)
2 stars
151 (5%)
1 star
69 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
Profile Image for Sina & Ilona Glimmerfee.
1,057 reviews118 followers
May 8, 2019
Jedes Buch ist eine Reise zu anderen Orten und Menschen. Wohin diese Reise führt, wie ich sie fand und ob ich sie euch empfehlen kann? Lest nur weiter...

Wohin führte diese Buchreise? Wer diese Reise antritt, reist nach England in das reizende Städtchen Bath gelegen in Somerset /England.

Wer ist der Reisebegleiter? Durch den Ort führt uns Honey Driver, Besitzerin eines kleine Hotels. Immer auf der Flucht vor ihrer eigenen Mutter, die Honey unbedingt verkuppeln will, kann sie sich aber woanders durchsetzten. Selbst hat sie auch eine Tochter, die sehr beschützend ist. Honey ist eine sympathische und mutige Reisebegleiterin, mit der die Stunden schnell verfliegen.

Reisehighlights? Mit dieser Reise ins beschauliche Bath wurde gleichzeitig auch eine Verbrecherjagd gebucht. Wie das Cover also schon zeigt, befindet man sich zwischen Mord und einem Tässchen Tee. Zusammen mit Honey sucht man nach einem verschwundener Amerikaner. Man reist mit ihr unter anderen zu einem Herrenhaus und zum Fluss Avon. Station wird auch in der einen, oder anderen Lokalität gemacht, um einen Drink oder Krabben zu genießen. Wohlfühl-Krimi halt.

Persönliches Reiseerlebnis? Ich muss gestehen, dass ich etwas brauchte, bis diese Reise genießen konnte. Beim ersten Mal, habe ich die Reise abgebrochen, doch ein paar Monate später, war der Zeitpunkt für diese Buchreise richtig. Honey durfte mich an die Hand nehmen, mir interessante und oftmals recht spleenige Personen vorstellen. Es gibt kleinere Kompetenzgerangel mit Detective Steve Doherty, was das Verbrecher jagen, durchaus mit Humor aufheitert. Auch die Fahndung nach dem verschwundenen Amerikaner gestaltete sich als interessant und abwechslungsreich. Vielleicht ist dies nicht der spannendste Krimi, aber ich bin auch eher ein Fan von Wohlfühl-Krimis und skurrilen Charakteren. Also hat es mir gefallen und da es eine Reihe ist, werde ich sicher irgendwann zu Honey zurückkehren und weitere Abenteuer mit ihr zusammen bestehen.

Wer sollte die Reise buchen? Jeder der Lust hat auf Verbrecherjagd in England und dabei es eher beschaulich mag, als extrem aufregend.
167 reviews2 followers
May 7, 2022
Mediocre at best

I really wanted to like this book. I was hopeful because the premise was so intriguing. The setting of Bath. The woman, her swanky, period hotel. The mother. The daughter. The potential for colorful local characters. It all combined to have great potential. The writing was amateurish. The dialog stilted and just drivel. It was painful in its predictability. The Author did nothing to tell a story. It was all so dull. The premise of the crime was interesting but fell flat. I think in more talented and skilled hands this could have been an excellent book. I will not be reading any further into this series. It would be too disappointing. There are so many talented writers with books worth the investment of my time. Thankfully this was part of kindle unlimited and the only thing I lost was the time reading it. My time is too valuable to invest in any further books by this Author. Very disappointing and I can not recommend this book orvseries.
Profile Image for Jan.
6,531 reviews100 followers
October 10, 2022
Honey winds up with the taskwork of being a liaison with the police on behalf of the hoteliers association. DS Steve Doherty is her assigned contact, dismissive, a lech, attractive, and thinks too highly of himself. Then the guest at a backpackers disappears while leaving his passport behind. Let the nuttiness multiply! Meet the goofiest cast of characters, the twistiest plot, the most diverse settings, and a whole lot of fun! Hope the next one comes out soon!



Profile Image for Les Wilson.
1,832 reviews14 followers
May 1, 2022
A very good read. Hope this is the start of an excellent series
Profile Image for Loralai.
91 reviews7 followers
August 22, 2020
Direkt vorweg: Ich bin kein großer Krimifan.
Es war dennoch sehr unterhaltsam und ich habe natürlich ein wenig mitgerätselt. Im Grunde fügt sich vieles, wie es sich eben auch gehört, zusammen. Eine große Revelation gab es nicht. Einen klassischen Höhepunkt habe ich für mich beim Lesen nicht mitbekommen.

Es ist recht leicht zu lesen und die Charaktere sind alle ein wenig schräg. Ich persönlich mag den britischen Humor unglaublich gerne, aber dieser hat den Protagonisten nicht zu mehr Tiefe verholfen. Sie sind nett gestaltet, aber ohne sich dabei mehr Gedanken um wirkliche Hintergründe zu machen. Im Grunde Statisten, die den Humor verstärken sollen. Dementsprechend überzogen sind auch die Eigenarten von so ziemlich jedem Charakter, der irgendwie in in diesem Buch vorkommt.

Was mich an der Übersetzung etwas gestört hat, war die Tatsache, dass Spracheigenheiten aus dem Britischen eins zu eins ins Deutsche übernommen wurden und cringing leider zum Lesen dazugehört.

Ich gebe dem Buch 3 Punkte, da ich es weder besonders aufregend noch besonders langweilig fand und es für mich somit im klassischen Mittelfeld angesiedelt werden kann.
Profile Image for Vittoria.
26 reviews
November 9, 2011
A very weak mystery. After a few pages you know whoddone it and you keep on reading hoping you were wrong in the beginning for the sake of not being disappointed in the end. Honey is one of the most unlikeable women I ever encountered in a book and I can't see one quality in her that justifies the interest the men in the book seem to show apart perhaps the fact that men are...well, men. I didn't like it and won't read the next books, but since i're read far worse in the past few months, I give it 3 stars.
Profile Image for MaggyGray.
673 reviews31 followers
April 27, 2020
Sehr lustig geschrieben - das reisst die kleinen Längen, die zum Schluss hin etwas rudelhaft auftreten, wieder raus. Hierzu würde ich mir sogar die Verfilmung anschauen.
Profile Image for Eirlys.
1,763 reviews16 followers
April 28, 2022
A good read.

I enjoyed this book because it introduced Honey, an hotel owner, and an amateur sleuth. It has humour, drama and believable characters.
Profile Image for Vicky D..
130 reviews2 followers
January 22, 2023
I really don't mind a plot that drags a little as long as there is something exciting now and then. The story does tie up nicely in the end.
Profile Image for Ivonne Rovira.
2,538 reviews251 followers
April 3, 2013
Browbeat into agreeing to serve as the liaison between the Bath Hotels’ Association and the police, hotel owner Honey Driver thinks she’s merely adding a bit excitement to her pedestrian life of catering to demanding tourists and frequenting antiques auctions. Instead, in the usually quiet resort town of Bath in the southwest corner of England. Honey’s first assignment is to looking into the disappearance of an American from a down-at-heel bed and breakfast with pretensions — “A guesthouse! We’re a guesthouse!” says the proprietor, Cora Herbert — so as not to have to summon the police.

But the missing man was traveling under a false name and disappeared without his passport or luggage: He was actually Elmer Maxsted, a California private detective. Despite objections, Honey insists on calling in the police. Enter Detective Sergeant Steve Doherty of the Bath police.

From the first glimpse of the conceited, gruff but good-looking Doherty, readers will immediately realize that Something in the Blood is what would be called a predictable “meet cute” rom-com were it a summer movie. These types of novels — especially in the capable hands of Katie Fforde, Helen Fielding, or the early Janet Evanovich — can be a guilty pleasure. However, Something in the Blood falls short. Too many of the secondary characters descend into caricature: Honey Driver’s match-making much-married mother, Gloria Cross; the venomous gold-digging trophy wife Pamela Charlborough, the outré New Age Californian Mary Jane Jennings; the mutton-dressed-as-lamb, man-eating Cora, complete with exposed midriff and navel ring and nasty attitude toward other women; the flaming gay hotelier, and Honey’s good-as-gold, classical-music-loving daughter. I really, really wanted to love Something in the Blood, as my beloved sister-in-law raved about it, but I simply couldn’t. (Sorry, Sis! I usually love what you recommend!) But the stock characters put me off.

At the same time, Something in the Blood suffers yet another fault common to unpolished writers. Sure, author J.G. Goodhind includes some amusing situations and some delightful turns of phrase. I was struck especially by the sentence explaining why Honey Driver sides with her chef over her meddling mother: “Good chefs were hard to come by; interfering mothers were two a penny.” Another example, in Chapter 8, describes a row of taxicabs: “a few of them were of the old-fashioned London black cab variety, a row of black beetles queuing for a meal.” Still, the novel contains quite a few examples of florid writing that a good editor should have toned down. In the most egregious example, in Chapter 8, cabbie and World War II aficionado Ivor Webber is reading Mein Kampf, which is alliteratively described as “Hitler’s one and only attempt to woo the world with the written word.” Yikes!

Still, Goodhind creates a decent enough mystery to rate three stars. While not up to the Fforde standard — not Katie, much less Jasper Fforde’s — Goodhind has crafted a decent mystery. Honey Driver probably won’t ever be a favorite heroine, but in the dry periods while awaiting the next Laurie R. King, Andrea Camilleri, Louise Penney or Alexander McCall Smith novels, I’ll make my way through the Honey Driver novels on Audible.com.
Profile Image for Tom Williams.
Author 18 books29 followers
November 3, 2014
'Something in the Blood' is not Agatha Christie. The pleasure does not come from working out whodunnit (or at least it didn’t for me). There is a mystery, and there are clues. Some are subtle while some are not. (The piece of wood with a six that may be a nine and could have come from a door post does tend to batter the reader about the head as well as the victim.) I didn't really care. About a quarter of the way through the book I realised that I wasn't going to work out who had done what to whom or why. It's a traditionally convoluted tale of long-lost siblings and mysterious overseas relatives typical of Sherlock Holmes on a bad day. What keeps the whole thing going and makes this a book I'm happy to recommend is the characterisation. Honey Driver, hotelkeeper, part-time sleuth and enthusiastic collector of Victorian underwear, is a beautifully rounded character. Her efforts to avoid the dentist her mother keeps trying to foist on her as a romantic partner, whilst worrying about where her daughter is spending the night, and trying to stop her chef from running amok with a kitchen knife are all much more interesting than the question of who murdered the American found floating in the Avon. The Avon? Yes, we're in Bath and the place becomes as essential a part of the story as Honey Driver herself. Jean Goodhind clearly knows and loves the city and 'Something in the Blood' has a strong sense of place.

With an attractive heroine in a beautiful city, what more do we need? Perhaps a detective who combines arrogance and misogyny with an unhealthy amount of sex appeal. There's a lovely set up here that I suspect will run through several more volumes. And did I mention that Ms Goodhind has a smooth writing style with lovely touches of humour? Caught out in the dark our heroine is reminded of "the days before Edison lit up and invented the electricity bill". I enjoyed that. Actually I enjoyed the whole thing. I can barely remember who did it and I don't that much care, but don't let that put you off a pleasant read on a chilly evening.
Profile Image for Diana.
914 reviews723 followers
did-not-finish
April 28, 2016
Unfortunately, I had to mark this one as “did not finish.” I read half the book, and then very quickly skimmed the last few chapters to find out how the mystery played out. Even when all the right elements are there – a cozy mystery, English setting, quirky heroine – sometimes a book just doesn’t work for me.

I was intrigued by the premise of an American tourist gone missing on his holiday in Bath, England, however the plot was difficult to follow and just wasn’t interesting enough to hold my attention. Other than her obsession with Victorian undergarments, the main character, Honey Driver, fell flat. She had a few clever moments, but in the end, she’s not a character that I’ll remember.

I enjoyed the descriptions of Bath, and the English slang peppered throughout the story. Both gave me a sense of actually being there, which was fun. Though SOMETHING IN THE BLOOD wasn’t for me, I’d encourage readers to check out other reviews.

Source: Review copy from publisher
Profile Image for Eszter.
14 reviews7 followers
May 31, 2013
I have received a copy of this book through Goodreads First Reads, and again I am thankful for it.

I have to say that this book, although I usually enjoy mysteries greatly, was just plainly boring. Even through I liked the heroine and her sarcastic comments from time to time, the plot was confusing, rushed and annoyingly illogical. Nothing was explained properly, for exemple how she comes to the solution at the end. As I said, the whole plot is illogical, and at the end you just stand there and ask yourself what the hell happened?

So, sadly, this book was a major disappointment for me.
Profile Image for AngryGreyCat.
1,500 reviews40 followers
February 8, 2015
I picked up Something in the Blood, a Honey Driver Mystery, with high hopes. It is a British cozy set in Bath with a middle aged female protagonist, Honey, who works in the hospitality industry. I just couldn’t get into this one from the start, I didn’t find Honey Driver to be an appealing character. I just didn’t like her. She was very heavy handed in her search for clues and dealing with suspects. The clues were too obvious so I figured out the “reveal” relatively early on. I have had other books give away the ending but have still been able to enjoy the story for the setting, the characters, or the writing. Just not for me, I guess.
7 reviews
October 25, 2022
So much potential!

I was really looking forward to this book: I love cosy crime/mystery novels and this one had so much potential. A crime-solving 40-ish year old hotelier with a match-making mother and all-too-sensible daughter investigating a mysterious disappearance in the beautiful city of Bath - just my cup of tea!
Unfortunately, the writing was so poor that it was a struggle just to read it. Disjointed dialogue; poor use of pronouns that leaves you frantically trying to work out who the heck the author is talking about; and some truly terrible description.
I'm usually up for reading most things but I definitely will not be reading any more of Jean Goodhind's books.
Profile Image for Gentle.
135 reviews
April 7, 2015
I won a copy of Something in the Blood on Goodreads. This book didn't hold my attention at all. I tried and tried to get into the story but couldn't. The mystery needed to be a lot stronger. I didn't get a whodunit feel from the book.The ending was easy to figure out. Could have been a much stronger book.
Profile Image for Stephanie.
1,553 reviews31 followers
May 17, 2014
I thought the plot line was good, but I really didn't care for the author's writing style at all. Also, I have a hard time believing that a police detective would be ordered by a superior to work with someone just because she's the hotels association's liason (to the point of calling her when he's going to interview a suspect, etc).
Profile Image for Bryngel.
1,921 reviews13 followers
June 15, 2024
I have read quite a lot of mystery books and I have to say that this takes the prize. A more dull and amateurish book will probably be hard to find. It made me cringe more than a handful of times, so I had to set my mind to it to get through it. Well, I did manage to reach the end, but it sure was a struggle.

I have to say: avoid at all costs.
Profile Image for yourfavouritemixtape.
152 reviews
January 30, 2019
Not too sure about this. First of all I had my problems believing that the police was so easily willing to work with an amateur. Also the changes in point-of-views didn‘t manage to make the story more exciting, it made me not connect with any of the characters.
Profile Image for Joan.
966 reviews
August 6, 2022
+ I don't care much for the style in which this book is written. It's redeeming featuring is the beautiful setting of historical Bath, England.

Honey Driver owns an elegant, historic hotel and lives there with her 18 year old daughter. The bane of her existence is her mother, who is constantly trying to set her up with men. Not that Honey needs any help, as there are currently two hot men lusting after her, one a policeman and the other an American who has recently purchased a bookstore in Bath.

Honey has just been delegated to be the liassone between the Bath police and the local hotel association. Crime would not be good at all for he hotel industry so someone has to assist the police. Her first case is a murder and the policeman assigned to work with her, Steve Doherty, is initially not thrilled to have to babysit. Naturally once he meets the attractive almost 40 year old Honey he changes his mine somewhat.
1,636 reviews15 followers
June 10, 2022
3.5 STARS -ROUNDED UP

This is a hard book to review for me. Parts I really enjoyed and parts were slow and dragged. But, I did enjoy the relationship between our h, her daughter and then add the h's mother to the mix made for an interesting read so I rounded up.

This is a clean story, has many character's so be sure you are able to concentrate.

There are several murders, suspicion on many villains who could have done it. Some twists and surprises thrown in.

The h is smarter than the Police. The head detective dislikes with a passion having to work with the h. But, because she is better at fretting out information, he really needs her and it bothers him a lot.

No cheating, no cliffhanger, HEA, little on romance and clean. I can't improve on the blurb so not attempting. Just giving you some tidbits to help you decide whether to purchase this story. (ljb)
Profile Image for Scilla.
2,010 reviews
February 22, 2023
Honey Driver has been assigned to be the Liaison to the Police for the Bath Hotel Association. She meets DS Steve Doherty, who is very interested in women and looks pretty good to Honey, who doesn't have a current beau. A tourist staying at a Bed & Breakfast has gone missing, and Honey needs to investigate. When the man turns up dead, washed up on the bank of the river. There are several suspects, but Honey finds out that the man had been visiting Sir Andrew and was a brother to his former wife.

This is a clever cozy mystery, and Honey appears to be a better detective than Doherty. Things get very exciting near the end, and Honey now has two men of interest (not for murdering).
Profile Image for Lee-Anne Fox.
163 reviews9 followers
January 7, 2023
Enjoyable read and I especially like the familiar location. Interesting cast of characters and an innovative plot, I will look forward to reading more books in the series to see how the relationships develop. I would drop half a star only for the annoyance of people who irrationally go where they ought not, and for 2 people together who separate without telling each other and neither of whose torch lasts five minutes... I find that sort of thing frustrating, but it wouldn't let me only do half a star so 4 is worse than I meant!
Profile Image for Laurie.
14 reviews1 follower
November 15, 2022
Murder, Bed & Breakfast

A very delightful and cozy murder mystery. I loved it! Amateur sleuth Honey is a delight. Paired with the policeman, Steve, they made a great team. More than once, though, it seemed as if they police force were bumbling along, and Honey helped them solve the case. Plenty of humor, along with twists and turns, keep you guessing til the end. Looking forward to the next books in the series!
Profile Image for Sandy  McKenna.
775 reviews16 followers
December 23, 2022
An unputdownable who-dunnit.

This brilliant who-dunnit is set in Bath - one of my favourite places in the UK.
Honey is busy running her small hotel, but when she is asked to become a police liaison officer, she is immediately involved the disappearance of an American tourist.
An easy to read murder mystery which I found impossible to put down. My first book by Jean G. Goodhind, and I am looking forward to reading more.
Profile Image for Toni.
1,566 reviews64 followers
Read
April 23, 2022
Very involved storyline

I am a big cozy mystery fan. And most series do have a lot of characters. This one seemed to go a bit overboard. I lost interest in part of the plot when it dove into a subject area I wasn't comfortable with. Decent mystery, keeps your attention, but too many secondary characters littering the store. Overall a pretty good read.
Profile Image for Roxx Tarantini.
574 reviews4 followers
July 22, 2022
Never a dull moment!

Goodhind blends secrets, intrigue, and murder into an mesmerizing tale you won't be able to put down! Great characters, unexpected plotline, and a few red herrings keep the armchair detective on the edge of their seat until the surprising ending. You'll love this one!
115 reviews
September 12, 2022
Good book

This was a well-written story, with solid characters and an interesting plot. I liked the fact that the characters acted as they would have in real life, not totally good or totally bad, but formed by their background. It held my interest the whole way through, and I would like to read more of this author's works.





7 reviews
May 3, 2023
Editing needed but an interesting premise

Story is fun; however, the wrter's frequent mistakes with homonyms mars the pleasure in the writing. The story is unusual and full of unexpected, and unlikely twists. If one can accept that Honey can easily navigate impossible situations, The story can be funny, but it lacks verisimilitude.
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