Taking the Wrap (A Mandy Dyer Mystery) (A Mandy Dyer Mystery) by Dolores Johnson

Mandy Dyer #7

by Dolores Johnson

"Chilled to the Bone. After an accidental coat switch at a popular Denver resturant, dry cleaner Mandy Dyer is tasked with finding the person who walked off with her cousin Laura's coat using an old dry cleaning slip. When Laura, a photographer anxious to retrieve the undeveloped film in the coat's pocket, is run down outside Mandy's store, Mandy brushes it off as a coincidence. After a second near fatal incident, well, it doesn't take a professional cleaner to spot a nasty mess. Two other people who dined at the Rendezview resturant that night are murdered, and Mandy hopes the pictures still in Laura's camera taken at the resturant may provide a clue. But what do photos of diners, including several couples, a lone business woman and two out of focus figures, reveal about deadly intent? Only Mandy, with her unerring eye for detail, catches the subtle clue that reveals a stunning motive for murder, and a killer who's just warming up." This is from the back cover of the book.

Genres: Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Cozy, Cozy Mystery

Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 2004

About the author

Dolores Johnson is a journalist who has worked on newspapers in Oregon, California, Wyoming and Colorado, but she always wanted to write and sell a murder mystery. She tried writing books about an investigative reporter and a newspaper editor, but it wasn't until she wrote a book about a dry cleaner, using her background as a free-lance writer and field reporter for American Drycleaner, that she met with success.

Series:
* Mandy Dyer Mystery

Reviews

[Kate O'Shea · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mandy Dyer's peaceful existence is shattered by her friend, Laura, who has a strange request: that Mandy help her find out who swapped coats with her at a local restaurant. Mandy reluctantly agrees but once Laura leaves Mandy's dry cleaning shop she is run down by a speeding car.

This begins a series of increasingly worrying events that has Mandy back to detective work to try to find who has hurt Laura and why before things escalate even further.

I have to say that Mandy isnt particularly good at detective work as she focuses on tiny details rather than being logical. She mentions several times that she is independent and doesn't need a man yet any time anything male hoves into view she goes to pieces and starts imagining that the man wants to be with her. Instead of coming across as a strong minded woman she seems petty and jealous and desperate to please the male of the species. I found her really quite irritating.

The story itself was exceptionally easy to work out - except for Mandy who was too busy imagining drug deals to contemplate anything else.

I listened to the audio version, narrated by Emily Ellet, was alright. I understand Mandy's mother was supposed to be irritating but her "voice" grated so badly I nearly switched it off. I'd also like to beg female narrators, yet again, not to "do" male voices - the younger men sounded constipated and the older ones sounded like Carry On characters.

Sorry. Just not for me.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Brilliance Publishing for the audio advance review copy.

[Maren · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't actually finish, giving up after a few chapters. It just isn't pulling me in at all. Life is too short for boring books

[Get Your Tinsel in a Tangle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listen, when your seventh brush with death is triggered by a coat swap at a restaurant, it might be time to consider that your actual side hustle is attracting murder. In Taking the Wrap, Mandy Dyer is just trying to steam-press her way through life as Denver’s sassiest dry cleaner, but the universe said, “No ma’am, we have mystery to commit.” And now she's back in sleuth mode, trying to trace a missing coat, soothe her hit-and-run cousin Laura, dodge burglars, survive an attack, and not commit felony levels of romantic self-delusion. It's a lot. And yet, somehow, not enough.

The inciting incident? Laura’s coat goes missing at a mountaintop restaurant. Seems simple. A switcheroo. Maybe some mix-up with similar sizes. And then... BAM... Laura gets mowed down in broad daylight and suddenly it’s less Coat Swap Shenanigans and more Final Destination: Dry Cleaning Edition. The only clues are a crusty dry cleaning tag, a matchbook, and vibes. And Mandy’s got to work with all that while her cousin recovers from a shattered leg and a mystery stalker rummages through her apartment like it's Black Friday at Macy’s.

Let’s talk Mandy for a second. Because she’s... a character. Emphasis on character. On one hand, she’s plucky, persistent, and very committed to chasing leads with the kind of hyperfocus usually reserved for true crime podcasters. On the other hand, she absolutely will be actively investigating a murder while simultaneously getting flustered by any man who makes eye contact for more than 0.2 seconds. One suspect has a chin dimple and suddenly Mandy’s like, “Motive? No idea. Alibi? Who’s she? But what if this man is my future?” Girl, your cousin just got hit by a car. Focus.

Now, there is a mystery here, and it’s got that vintage cozy vibe where no one cusses, everyone has a quippy neighbor, and murder seems slightly less traumatic when solved with community support and an old-fashioned answering machine. But the tension? It's lukewarm. The killer’s identity might as well have worn a t-shirt that said “It’s Me, Hi, I’m the Problem, It’s Me.” And yet the book still pretends like we haven’t figured it out by Chapter 12. I was screaming “IT’S THE COAT, STUPID” while Mandy theorized about international drug cartels. It’s like watching someone try to solve a Wordle with algebra.

And then there's the side characters. Laura is out of commission for half the book, Cece (Mandy’s mom) remains a chaos goblin from hell, and every man within a 10-mile radius is either suspicious or a potential soulmate. Sometimes both. The “usual gang” from earlier books shows up for some lukewarm hijinks, but they feel more like sitcom cameos than real plot drivers. I honestly wish someone had let the dog solve this case. At least it wouldn’t have gotten distracted by a flirtatious handshake.

The narration by Emily Ellet tries her best, but the voice work for older male characters veers a little too close to “Monty Python side character with indigestion.” And Mandy’s internal monologue, when voiced out loud, somehow doubles in chaotic energy. It's like hearing your most dramatic friend talk through a breakup and a murder theory at the same time... entertaining, but deeply unhinged.

Look, I had fun. Kind of. This book isn’t a disaster, but it’s definitely got main character syndrome without enough self-awareness to back it up. If you like your mysteries a little corny, a little kooky, and dressed in freshly pressed khakis, you might enjoy this. But for me? It was a dry cleaner’s mystery that came out a little wrinkled. 3.5 stars, mostly for the chaos and coat-based carnage.

Whodunity Award: For Making Me Question the Violent Potential of Every Single Outerwear Mix-Up

Huge thanks to Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for the early access to the audiobook, because nothing says it's the end of hot girl summer like dry cleaning drama and attempted murder in surround sound.

[Julie Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. The author has come up with another creative way for Mandy, are favourite dry cleaner owner, to become involved in an investigation. In this case there was a lot going on with a missing neighbour, a car crash, mystery meetings, a stolen coat and break ins, all of it connected and just needing Mandy to put it all together. It sounds complicated when laid out like that but it wasn't and does get nicely wrapped up, even with some unwanted help from Mandy's sidekicks. The usual gang of characters, I have come to love over the series are they to lend a hand or cause trouble, like only they can, adding to the entertainment value. I had guessed who the killer was but still enjoyed listening to Mandy putting the pieces together and making sure I was right. I can't wait for the next book.

When Mandy's cousin Laura comes to her looking for help looking for a lost coat. Mandy can't really see what she can do. Laura was taking pictures at a restaurant, when somebody went home taking her coat and a roll of film with them. The only clue was in the coat left behind, an opened envelope, a match book and a dry cleaners tag. Mandy agrees to call around other dry cleaners but can't see how else she can help. Until Laura is involved in a hit and run accident right outside the dry cleaners. With a broken leg and no other family in town to take care of her, Mandy plays nurse only to walk in on a burglar. Unsure what she has stumbled in on the only thing that makes sense is it has to do with what happen at the restaurant. The thief is either after the coat or Laura took a photo of something she shouldn't have. The only way to protect her cousin is to find what the thief is looking for first. Then she learns about the traffic accident near the restaurant that wasn't so much an accident and it seems the thief isn't afraid to turn deadly for what he is looking for.

I like the narrator. She helps paint a vivid picture of the characters in my mind and makes the story a pleasure to listen too.
I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

[JoAnn Plant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievable! Laura, a semi-cousin of Mandy's (her uncle is Mandy's sixth stepfather) loses her coat in a "mix up" at a restaurant where she was taking pictures per a neighbor and asked Mandy to find it and to see who the coat she had to take belonged to. As Mandy agrees, Laura leaves in a snowstorm - only to be run over by a white SUV who leaves the scene. She breaks her leg and then while recuperating in her apartment, someone breaks in a trashes the place. Mandy is hurt and sent to the hospital but since no one told her mom or stepdad what happened, Cecelia decides to once again make an appearance in Denver - only this time she decides Laura needs a man and proceeds to make her up so she will be up to dating the "Handsome" neighbor that let Mandy into the building the night Laura's apartment was ransacked. Only one little problem - Nat, Mandy's best friend, drops by and falls head over heels for Laura (who is just as smitten - much to the chagrin of Mandy's mom Cecelia). Trouble really starts to heat up when Betty is enlisted (once again) to help "CeCe" stake out the place Laura lost her coat; they get stuck as 1) it is snowing, and 2) Betty forgot to mention she either does not have a driver's license and/or can't drive in the dark. Once again, Mandy is called upon to save them but thankfully enlists Mac to help. He drives his pickup in order for Mandy and the ladies to follow him. Unfortunately, they are followed by a truck who wrecks the rental and therefore Mack has to call the police and drive everyone home. Since Laura mentioned an accident driving home with the coat, Mandy checked into things and found that yellow paint had been found on the car, therefore the deceased drive was not drunk, but run off the road. Then Mandy's suspect is murdered which leads to one conclusion - Mom's interest in the neighbor!
They were after a rare item that may or may not be real and worst of all the neighbor who recommended Laura was found with her coat. The killer was found, romance was found and Trouble from the last book (Kincaid) is her new man, even as Stan is now single

[the_nerd_cafephile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many thanks to NetGalley, Brilliance Publishing, and the author for the ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The only one thing I did wrong with this book is that I did not do my research and did not realise this was very far down a whole series!!! Oh well, did that stop me from reading it? Obviously not? Or enjoying it? Nope!!!!

Anyways, this book is No. 7 in Mandy Dyer's investigation series. Mandy is a dry cleaner and an amateur sleuth, but with all her previous experience (which I am not aware of – soon to be solved), she was thinking of completely quitting sleuthing when her cousin came to her with a coat swap. Laura, Mandy's cousin, is a photographer, and the coat swap means she doesn't have a camera roll that was in her own coat, and the coat she has now has no clues except for a dry cleaners registry number and some random stuff – so who else can she ask for help other than Mandy, who is not only a successful investigator in her own right but also a dry cleaning business owner herself?

When Laura gets run over right after Mandy agrees to try and find the coat, which is then followed by a few incidents, it seems like this is far beyond a coat swap.

This was indeed a cosy mystery set in winter, with banter, found family and a well-crafted mystery. It took me almost 75% to guess the culprit right – which makes this a very successful mystery indeed! Also, the narrator made this a smooth sailing ride – with the drama, action, urgency and vibe balanced.

Side Note: I truly enjoyed how Mandy was getting annoyed at all her meddling humans and how out of control she felt hahahah – it was very realistic.

[MizzyRed · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is enjoyable to listening to. Yes, you can see it is dated which makes solving murders and mysteries a bit harder but Mandy is always up for it, even when she decides to take a break and still ends up with someone coming to her with a mystery red coat, switched at a restaurant. I did like getting to know Mandy's step cousin Laura (a professional photographer) who ends up in trouble which may or may not be because of the coat or photos she had taken at the restaurant. And you know Mandy always helps out family, even if they end up in a pickle trying to solve the case with Mandy. Mandy's mom does make an appearance (and you get more hijinks with her and Betty!). Plus a certain private investigator shows up again to sleuth alongside Mandy. I hope things work out for those two!

The other bit I have been liking about these books, is that I always learn some little facts about subjects. This time it is stamps, the rare ones, errors and how much they can be worth and the history about how some of them came to be.

This was a fun audiobook to listen to. The narrator, Emily Ellet, does a good job with Mandy and the others and makes this a lighthearted story. I also like the cleaning tips at the end. Very appropriate for a dry cleaning owner and part time detective.

[Michelle | Simply in the Moment · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the narrator of Taking the Wrap. She did a great job with all the different voices. She saved the book for me. I appreciated how the narrator differentiated between the characters' voices. She really brought the characters to life.

The story itself was okay. I liked the cozy mystery feel the story gives to the reader. It's a fun, a little corny, but a reasonable mystery until the killer's identity becomes blatantly obvious. I wasn't quite halfway through the book when I became frustrated that Mandy wasn't seeing who the killer was, when it was so obvious.

Overall, I liked that Mandy was a dry-cleaning sleuth. It's different from others that I have read. The cozy mystery theme was spot on. If it wasn't so obvious who the killer was and the lack of Mandy realizing who the killer was, I would've rated the book a higher rating.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC; all opinions are my own.

[Farah G · Rating 3 out of 5]

When an acquaintance of hers shows up with a story of a coat that has been accidentally swapped and asking for her help, Mandy has no idea of just quite how deep a rabbit hole she is about to go down. Murders and attempted murders follow as she tries to piece together what lies behind these mysterious events.

This one was not for me, but it might be enjoyed by cosy mystery aficionados who are satisfied with a fairly standard piece of storytelling in the genre.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

[Kendra W · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got bored really quickly. The main character annoyed me to no end. She was so whiny and selfish. She kept rambling on about things that didn’t matter. There were hints to the plot being dropped often that would later become meaningless and just felt out of place. I stuck with it longer than I should have because I wasn’t sure what my issue with it was. It’s the main character. She’s like one of those people you meet and immediately wish you hadn’t.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

When someone takes the wrong coat at a restaurant, the hunt begins for the owner. During the search, people are missing, murdered, pushed off the road, and injured during a break-in. What is the "burglar" looking for? What did the owner of the coat have?

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book as I read a previous one of this series.. I remember how much I hate Mandy’s mom. I absolutely despise parents who treat their children the way Cece treats Mandy. Sad to say if Cece is in another book I won’t be reading

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a decent read but I could guess most of the key points long before they were addressed. also, the copy I read had a lot of grammatical errors, easy stuff and editor should have caught.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun beach read/ cozy mystery.

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was another fun book!

[Doreen Fritz · Rating 2 out of 5]

A quick, easy read. Unusual character in that the "detective" is the young female owner/operator of a dry cleaning business. the setting is in Denver, Colorado, and it was fun to get to "know" a new area. The mystery wasn't all that gripping, and the overblown avoidance relationship with her mother was ---, well, overblown. I picked this book up at the "Rack and the Track" provided by the public library ..., so, in other words, free. It was worth that.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a terrible addition to the cozy mystery genre, but not particularly memorable, either. It got points for not overdoing the dry cleaning angle, but lost points for leaving its characters so flat. The protagonist spent most of the book being irritated with other people, which made it hard to really like her; no character was developed beyond what they did for a living and a few personal quirks. I might give the series another shot, because it had some potential.

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mandy is a dry cleaner owner and her cousin comes to her for help in finding her coat, because someone took it and left theirs in its place. In the process, her cousin (step-cousin) gets hit by a car, her apartment is ransacked and Mandy and her mother are attacked. All in the search for the coat that Mandy is trying to find the owner of.

[Cws]

F Joh

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mystery revolves around a coat that was taken from a restaurant and the one left behind. An interfering Mother and friend makes for an interesting addition.

[Dolores Johnson]

Dolores Johnson (not me. I have long admired her work) has created a fascinating character as detective (dry cleaners owner), and provided a remarkable world to create mysteries. Great read.

[Susan Dunlap · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Mandy character is enjoyable and an easy read.

[Mary Newcomb]

Mandy Dyer unwraps a tricky one. It started with a missing coat and went on to multiple murders and matchmaking.

[Toesnorth's mom]

silly, inane, poorly written

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

fun because it takes place in Colorado — local :-)

[Lydia Gates · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good. Could eliminate the damn language.