Doubloon Jeopardy - Museum of Mysteries

Museum of Mysteries #3

by Catherine Dilts

As the townspeople of Crescent Harbor, California, prepare for the inaugural Pirate Days festival, excited tourists clad in pirate attire descend on the charming village. Local legend claims a pirate landed there and buried his treasure. Scarlett McCormick, head curator of the esteemed Reed Museum of Art and Archaeology, is pressured to validate the legend or face a mutiny. Scarlett plans special exhibits at the museum to coincide with the event, and she stops at a pumpkin patch for autumn decorations. The errand takes a disturbing turn when she finds a dead man dressed like a pirate. Dead men tell no tales, so it’s up to Scarlett and her friends to learn the truth. The discovery of an ancient cutlass and gold doubloons supports the man’s connection to the pirate festival. But the cause of his demise remains unclear. Was it an accident or murder? While Scarlett investigates the death and the artifacts, she unwittingly becomes a target. Will she solve the mystery before she’s forced to walk the plank?

215 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2022

About the author

Catherine Dilts was inspired to write a murder mystery after being tormented by a dreadful co-worker. She took out her homicidal frustration in a fictional format, resulting in her first short story sale. A lifelong quiet observer of people, aka introvert, Catherine writes vibrant characters who often have minds of their own. Most of her stories have a cozy mystery flavor. The prolific author of the Rose Creek and Rock Shop mystery series, and half a dozen write-for-hire novels, she also continues writing short fiction. Twelve of her stories appear in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. Catherine co-authors two series with her daughter Merida Bass. Grandpa's New Year's Relocation is a finalist for a 2026 CAL award.

Subscribe to her shared Substack newsletter, The Tuxedo Cat Takeover, at: https://catherineandmeridawrite.subst...

https://www.catherinedilts.com/

Reviews

[Emily Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doubloon Jeopardy is a delightful cozy mystery packed with charm, suspense, and clever twists.
The pirate festival setting adds a fun and unique atmosphere that makes the story even more engaging.
Scarlett is a smart, likable heroine who keeps the mystery moving at a perfect pace.
Catherine Dilts balances intrigue, humor, and small-town charm beautifully.
A thoroughly enjoyable read that will keep mystery lovers guessing until the very end.

[Chuck Neumann · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Doubloon Jeopardy" is a mystery novel that is part of a series called Museum of Mysteries. The stories revolve around the new head curator Scarlett McCormick and her friends. In every novel she becomes involved in solving a murder mystery. These novels would make a good series on TV's Hallmark Movies and Mysteries channel if they still did mystery films. In this novel Scarlett (an unusual name for a museum curator but she does have red hair) stumbles on a dead man in the town's pumpkin patch while picking up items for the museum's thanksgiving display. Since she found the body, she seems to feel it is her job to find out who killed him. Meanwhile, almost everyone in town is dressed up as pirates in the town's first annual Pirate Days festival. That brings in plenty of suspects for Scarlett to investigate. She is helped by her friend Allie, the museum's security chief Winnie and a local FBI agent Luke, who is slowly becoming more than just a friend. The mystery itself is interesting. The characters are well drawn, although a couple of them seem a little odd. All and all a fun read. Part of the fun is the fact you know the main characters from earlier novels. I rated it a four based on what it is, a cozy murder mystery.

[Melmo2610 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am enjoying this series! This is a fun mystery with pirates and murder. Good read!

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good addition to the Museum of Mysteries. However, I found it a bit boring and wordy and slow. It was a good mystery, but it could have not gone on so long to solve it. The ending just sort of stopped.

[Cheryl Springer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not that mysterious really, but still a nice read...

[Laura Gobat · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book slow hard to get through. It felt very disjointed.

[Madeline · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little scooby dooish.