Decorated to Death

An Interior Design Mystery #2

by Peg Marberg

When Jean Hastings, the owner of Designer Jeans, is hired to redecorate the country cottage of Dona Deville, she jumps at the chance, until she stumbles upon the body of her new client, forcing her to unravel a mystery and catch a killer. Original.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction

212 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 5, 2008

About the author

(from "Stop! You are killing me! website)

Jean Hastings and her daughter, Jean Jr., of the interior design firm Designer Jeans, in Seville, Indiana, in the Interior Design mysteries.

(from Fiction db website)

Seville, Indiana, has five traffic lights and one interior design firm -- Designer Jeans, cofounded by Jean Hastings and her daughter, Jean Jr. Lately they're finding that the keen eyes needed for plotting color schemes and tracking down flea market treasures also come in handy for interpreting more sinister designs,,,,

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good story. I like the characters and setting in these mysteries. The story is good and it all gives a vibe of being older than it is (it is set modernly but feels like it should be the 1990's or earlier).

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The decorating business is in a slump, so Jean is happy when former home-town queen Dona Deville inherits a cottage from her aunt and decides to redecorate it. But when Jean, along with her best friend and sister-in-law Mary, drops in on the remote cottage, they find Dona's body. Jean is sure that she can investigate just as well as the police, and although Jean runs on cigarettes and black coffee, and Mary runs on calories and carbs, they make a good team, questioning Dona's entourage, which includes her unhappy daughter, her ex-husband, and several disaffected employees. Jean's daughter JR, who is her business partner, is pregnant and not able to help much, but she comes through with a piece of information that is, literally, life-saving.

[Veronica-Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second in the series: Again Jean Hastings becomes involved in another murder despite her family and the police trying to warn her off. However, fate has a different plan for for Jean and she doggedly pursues a dangerous murderer regardless. Trying to keep up with her is such fun as there are many clues to choose from. I am enjoying this series and am looking forward to the third and final installment of these murder mysteries. Highly Recommended.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

The chain-smoking of the main character makes this book seem like it should be in the 1950s and not in the 2000s. I wanted to like the decorating aspect more, but it was such a small part of the book.

[Kellie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was okay. Decent mystery, in that I didn't figure out the whodunit (which is always a plus) but the characters just didn't hold the charm for me as they did in the first book. The descriptions of the furniture and decor (I get it, they're decorators) grew tiresome. Will read the third book, though, since that seems to be the last in this series that is out.

[Karissa Williams]

Good book, but I saw the "who dunnit" well before the end. I'm usually more surprised by the endings of mystery books. However, I really enjoyed the writing style and the big words the narrator uses. She's kind of ornery, and I liked that, too.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jean runs an interior design business. However, business is slow, so when Dona Deville offers her an opportunity to remodel an abandoned cottage, she is ecstatic - until Dona turns up dead.