False Premises

A Domestic Bliss Mystery #2

by Leslie Caine

A Domestic Bliss Mystery #2

“Sparkles with charm, design lore, and a sleuth with a great mantra. Cozy fans will embrace the Domestic Bliss series.” —Carolyn Hart, Edgar Award-winning author of Letters from Home

“An appealing heroine and warm, genuinely winning voice.” –Publishers Weekly

“A fast, breezy read.” –The Mystery Reader

“A great mystery that puts you on the edge of your chair until the end!” –Fresh Fiction

“Interior design is a hot topic, and Caine delights readers with her enigmatic protagonist…humor is never in short supply in this fun, engaging mystery, which is certain to delight fans of cozies.” –Romantic Times

Smart, talented interior designer Erin Gilbert is becoming great friends with her free-spending client, Laura Smith, whose stunning mansion is brimming with rare, expensive antiques…until she realizes the fabulous treasures she so carefully acquired for Laura have been completely replaced with fakes! When Laura's explanations sound as phony as the furniture, Erin is compelled to dig deeper into Laura’s glamorous life—the real antiques have got to be somewhere—until her investigation is interrupted by a murder!

It seems Erin has revealed the same cunning con artist who all but ruined her handsome-but-bitter archrival, Steve Sullivan. Erin wants answers but Sullivan dreams of revenge; so when detectives are called in, their perfect suspect is…the charming (almost, maybe, not quite, perhaps boyfriend) Steve Sullivan himself!

Now Erin must chase down the real killer before the cops drag Sullivan away in cuffs…that would put a real damper on their budding romance!

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Cozy, Mystery Thriller, Interior Design

317 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 28, 2005

About the author

Aka Leslie O'Kane

(about the photo from author's own webpage)

"This is an old photo of my daughter and me in front of our house in Colorado. She is now in college and looks quite different, but amazingly, I haven't changed one bit!"

(from author's own webpage--abbreviated)

As the opening for my "Meet Leslie" page, here's a touch of biographical information: I have been married for more than two decades and have two not-so-young children. My daughter is in college and my son is in high school. I have a bachelor in journalism, a degree as an electrical-engineering technician (I repaired computers for IBM for three years), and am a certified interior decorator, though I only rarely work as a decorator.

DEATH BY INFERIOR DESIGN is Leslie Caine's first book, but is actually my eleventh published mystery novel. I've dropped a syllable from last name, and it's my hope that I'll be writing the "Domestic Bliss" series for many years to come so that I won't continue this name-shortening strategy. (I don't see myself writing books as: "L," though that would come in handy for quick signatures.) One of the first questions I'm asked at signings is why I chose to use a penname for this series, and the answer is that, while I'm proud of my previous works, I wanted a fresh start. To use a designer analogy, my penname is like emptying the room to enable the fabulous "makeover."

Reviews

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gilbert discovers fake art and that there's a world class scam artist in town. Her rival, Sullivan decides to keep an eye on the scammer, and wouldn't you know it, but he's the prime suspect when the murder happens.

Not the best book in the series.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 bumped up to 4 stars. Who killed Laura the con woman? Who to trust? Will Gilbert and Sullivan ever get along? Danger and twists throughout this cozy mystery. While I did guess the guilty person, it wasn't obvious. I enjoy reading this fast paced roller coaster series.

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't overly impressed by this book. There were a lot of characters doing a lot of things and it didn't flow very well.

[Diane Ritter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like this book better than the first book in the series, but I was hoping that I would be able to give it 4 stars. Sadly, I am not able to do that; however, I will give it 3.5 stars.

I was hoping that Ms. Caine would be better about the dynamic among her characters, and I will say that it was just a hair better than the first book in this regard. But, it still seems to me that she tries to make the relationships between the characters too busy, too complicated, too messy. I’m looking for more clarity here!

Also, what’s the deal between Hannah and John?? Is that going to be answered in a future entry of the series—the answer to that question and the blossoming relationship between Erin and Steve are what’s going to keep me moving on in this series. Maybe that will be a 4 Star??

[Boots · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this a while ago, so review if from a fuzzy memory: Meh. Haven't checked out later books. I think the characters started to annoy me.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

another good story, lots of twists, can't wait to read the next...

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars

[Ali · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the second book in the Domestic Bliss Mystery series and while I found the lead character, Erin, slightly annoying during her first outing she was almost unbearable this time around, a late twenty something quickly going on 13 or even 3. The mystery is rather complex involving a great many coincidences, five degrees of separation, murder, arson and possible con artists. I kept reading for the mystery and only for the mystery, which was quite good but marred by characterization. I actually wondered if the author was so far removed from being a late twenty something woman that her characters frequent self-described "ungracious behavior, snapping, almost snapping, struggling to not lose her temper, fuming, gritting her teeth" and I could keep going with plenty more examples from the book, is how she actually believes women make their way through the world. All of the actions and reactions I described happened in the first 130 pages of a 325-page book but the same behavior pattern continues through to the end. There was even a page where the character "almost snapped" at the top and then actually “snapped” a paragraph later. This behavior is all the more unbearable when told to the reader from a first person perspective because there isn't a moment you spend sympathizing with the lead rather you spend all your time feeling sorry for her friends and acquaintances. This character needs either a behavioral therapist, anger management classes or to grow up - probably all three.

[Jessi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was... an interesting story. My first foray into the Domestic Bliss series, I didn't feel like I needed to have read the other books in this series. Except for the random chapters that were in a different font. What was up with that? It really threw me off. A little something at the beginning with an explanation would have been nice.
We meet up with Erin Gilbert who is meeting with her friend Laura Smith. Laura is a semi-new friend, one Erin is just getting to know. We find out that Laura has a dark history. And it seems to be following her around. Most startling? She's the woman who skipped out on Steve Sullivan taking all of his savings.
So when she turns up dead, Steve is the natural prime suspect. But Erin was with him at the time of the murder. Since she's involved anyway, she sticks her nose in even further.

I don't think I'll be reading this series any more. I started this book four times before I finally dragged it on a trip so that I'd have to read it. I couldn't connect with Erin and it was starting to get ridiculous (which even Erin commented on) how many people Laura was connected to.

[Lain · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a huge Leslie Caine fan, but this book left me baffled. There was simply too much happening, without enough context. Too many suspects, too many arguments, too many leads. And none of the characters was developed enough to make me connect with them or the story.

I also find the insertion of random chapters of interior design advice to be an annoying interruption. They do nothing to further the story or the character development. They belong in an end-of-chapter summation, or an appendix -- not thrown randomly into the book. And the way they're done in a different typeface and design - horrid! I actually thought there'd been a mistake. The font is difficult to read and the design is ugly.

Overall, not one of her best books, or even her best series. I love the lightheartedness that went with some of her earlier series, which is entirely missing in this series. There's nothing light about it -- just depressing.

[Carlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This the second book in Leslie Caine's cozy mystery series starring interior designers Erin Gilbert and Steve Sullivan. They have separate solo businesses but clients get their names confused for obvious reasons causing much friction between the two (mostly covering up their mutual attraction). The mystery was truly a mystery with so many suspects in the murder(s) I didn't figure it out till the end (when Erin figured it out!). In some ways the story was like a G & S operetta where misunderstandings and miscommunications not only irritate the protagonists but also put them in danger. I really feel this series will just get better and better and would love to binge read all the 8 or 9 remaining, but I just can't justify paying $3.99 for each book after the first one when I have so many other (free) unread books in my Kindle library. But I hope to get back to the series at some future time.

[Grey853 · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the story had a lot of potential, I was put off by the annoying lead character of Erin. She spends more time in her head contemplating romantic notions than working on the mystery. In addition the mystery itself was overly complicated with too many characters and too much going on in a somewhat haphazard manner. All that chaos sprinkled with decorating tips made it a bit hard to follow at times.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like this book as much as the first one in the series. There was a lot going on, but nothing really happening. There was the first crime, then a whole bunch of filler, then the solving of the mystery at the end.

I still really liked Caine's writing style and the main character, Erin Sullivan.

[Pam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mystery/romance. Not the best I've ever read, but not too bad. Like other reviewers, I thought that Erin spent more time on trying to decide who she liked better than on trying to solve the murders. And, of course, she almost gets killed in the process. Too many characters who are all involved with each other, too little action. More like a soap opera than a mystery.

[Kathy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought that this book was very boring. The author, in my opinion, spent way to much time describing furniture and not enough time developing the story. I think I have read other books by her that were better, but this one wasnt very interesting at all.

[Celia · Rating 1 out of 5]

The main character is annoying and kept butting in where she didn't belong. The whole "romance" was very middle school where he was mean to her because he liked her. The only good parts were the interior design tips between each chapter.

[Kristina Light · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am reading this series in order. Each book takes a few days, an easy and fun read and a great cozy mystery. I enjoyed this book more than the first, but recommend following the series in order. If you enjoy cozies, this is a fun series.

[Allison Kohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read

This book is so good that I forgot to breath while I was reading it. Leslie is a whiz at spinning a story that is too complicated for the reader to figure out who done it. i suspected everyone but the real murderer.

[Elisha (lishie) · Rating 1 out of 5]

The 2nd in the series. Did not make me happy.

[Alicia V · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Great continuation in the series and awesome Decor tips through out.

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

The tale kept me occupied. There were a lot of twists and turns in this little whodunit as well as a few decorating tips!

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun.

[Celia · Rating 4 out of 5]

really enjoying this cozy series thus far which is good as I think I have 4 others in the series in my library bag.

[Bebe Four · Rating 2 out of 5]

2+

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as enjoyable as Death by Inferior Design, but still good.

[Diann · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure what keeps drawing me back to this series. Think I like the characters. Mildly entertaining.

[G · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book

[Shirley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good mystery but it was a little confusing at times with so many characters. Quick read.

[Val · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice easy read. Crime novel with humor.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the second entry in this series.