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A Poppy Cove Mystery #3
A Nate To Remember
It’s springtime in Santa Lucia and everything is blooming, including the Poppy Cove dress shop. 1958 is proving to be a banner year for its young owners Margot Williams and Daphne Huntington-Smythe––with Hollywood starlets becoming customers and attracting national attention to their business. Even the girls’ love lives are blossoming. But a casual walk with their boyfriends along the beachfront after an art show suddenly turns shocking, when an unidentified man’s body is found washed up on the shore, with a gunshot wound clean through his heart. The startling discovery becomes personal when the police arrive at the dress shop the next day and confirm that the dead man is none other than Nate––Nathan––Reed, Margot’s ex-husband! Everyone is astounded; Margot has always been secretive about her background, but no one thought it included a spouse. The news becomes even worse when it’s discovered that Margot had a hidden handgun which has now gone missing, and is the same caliber as the one that killed her ex. The young designer finds herself the prime suspect in the murder. She feels even more alone when her police detective boyfriend Tom is forbidden to associate with her while the crime is investigated. As Margot’s past comes to light, Daphne must come to terms with the news about her friend and business partner, which causes her to wonder if maybe she’s lived too sheltered a life. Determined to have her own secret adventure, Daphne gets herself involved in a predicament more daring than she bargained for. With Margot working hard to prove her innocence and Daphne trying to lose hers, Nathan’s killer is still on the loose and creating more havoc. That dead man on the beach is truly A NATE TO REMEMBER.
192 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 23, 2015
1 person is currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Jean Coast
4 books83 followersBarbara Jean Coast is the pen name of authors Andrea Taylor and Heather Shkuratoff, both of whom reside in Saint Martins, New Brunswick, Canada. Barbara Jean, however, is a resident of Santa Lucia, California (eerily similar to Santa Barbara), where she enjoys long lunches, cocktail parties, fancy dinner dates with attractive and attentive gentlemen. Her interests include Alfred Hitchcock movies, reading Carolyn Keene, music by popular musicians, such Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, shopping for new dresses, attending society events and always looking fabulous in kitten heels. DEATH OF A BEAUTY QUEEN is the follow-up to STRANGLED BY SILK in the Poppy Cove Mystery Series. Visit her website www.barbarajeancoast.com where you can also follow her blog www.welcometopoppycove.wordpress.com, Twitter www.twitter.com/BarbaraJCoast, Like Poppy Cove Mysteries and Friend Barbara Jean Coast on www.facebook.com
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 27, 2015
Hey guy and gals, if you’re looking for a dream mystery to curl up with, look no further. A NATE TO REMEMBER is a book to remember. It will take you back to simpler days when Tupperware and cocktail parties were all the rage, when sweet girls were courted by nice young men (well, mostly), and murders never happened…..well, almost never happened. ;-)
A NATE TO REMEMBER is the third book in the Poppy Cover Mystery series written by Barbara Jean Coast. I have loved this series since book one, STRANGLED BY SILK, and I discovered Margot Williams and Daphne Hunting-Smythe, the owners of the Poppy Cove dress shop and lead characters of this series.
In this installment these sweet ladies and upstanding business women are in a real fix. At least Margot is. The dead body of her ex-husband, that no one knew she had, is discovered and Margot becomes he prime suspect.
Barbara Jean Coast aka Andrea Taylor and Heather Shkuratoff have really outdone themselves this time. This story is by far the best in the series to date. It was nothing short of a brilliant mystery and a completely amazing read. I was entranced through the entire story. And when I got to the surprising reveal and found out the who and why, I literally said “Wow” out loud.
If you have read the first two Poppy Cover book, you are going to be thrilled with this one. If you haven’t read the series, do yourself a favor and get all three books in the series, and take a trip back to the 50’s you’ll never forget!
A NATE TO REMEMBER is the third book in the Poppy Cover Mystery series written by Barbara Jean Coast. I have loved this series since book one, STRANGLED BY SILK, and I discovered Margot Williams and Daphne Hunting-Smythe, the owners of the Poppy Cove dress shop and lead characters of this series.
In this installment these sweet ladies and upstanding business women are in a real fix. At least Margot is. The dead body of her ex-husband, that no one knew she had, is discovered and Margot becomes he prime suspect.
Barbara Jean Coast aka Andrea Taylor and Heather Shkuratoff have really outdone themselves this time. This story is by far the best in the series to date. It was nothing short of a brilliant mystery and a completely amazing read. I was entranced through the entire story. And when I got to the surprising reveal and found out the who and why, I literally said “Wow” out loud.
If you have read the first two Poppy Cover book, you are going to be thrilled with this one. If you haven’t read the series, do yourself a favor and get all three books in the series, and take a trip back to the 50’s you’ll never forget!
July 4, 2015
I was captivated by A Nate To Remember. This is the third in the Poppy Cove Series by Author Barbara Jean Coast and they just keep getting better.
A Nate To Remember transports a reader back in time to the sun and sand of sunny California when fashion was inspiring and iconic. The fashions in this Poppy Cove mystery are described in such detail that you not only can see them in your mind, you wish you had access to the designs.
The characters are well established as we were introduced to some of them in the first two books of the series. In A Nate To Remember the writers give us more details into their background that add to their dimension. The author adds new characters to the mix that fit in flawlessly with the story. The writer develops the characters so I as reader care about them and their story.
The story line and plot is well orchestrated. The ending surprised me. That in one word is mystery. It is a mystery that takes you in many directions, leads you back to the final conclusion, without losing you in between. Great job, Barbara Jean Coast.
A Nate To Remember transports a reader back in time to the sun and sand of sunny California when fashion was inspiring and iconic. The fashions in this Poppy Cove mystery are described in such detail that you not only can see them in your mind, you wish you had access to the designs.
The characters are well established as we were introduced to some of them in the first two books of the series. In A Nate To Remember the writers give us more details into their background that add to their dimension. The author adds new characters to the mix that fit in flawlessly with the story. The writer develops the characters so I as reader care about them and their story.
The story line and plot is well orchestrated. The ending surprised me. That in one word is mystery. It is a mystery that takes you in many directions, leads you back to the final conclusion, without losing you in between. Great job, Barbara Jean Coast.
July 10, 2015
ormat: Paperback
I read lots of cozies so I know how difficult it is to come up with a unique setting and characters, which is why I enjoy this series. It is unique, with a setting in the late 1950s in Southern California, with a social revolution just around the corner for women. What is especially fun is that we know how things will change for the protagonists in the coming decade, even if they are only testing those new waters.
The author creates a richly imagined fictional setting, peopled with believable characters. It's the kind of creation that requires the reader to give herself up to the other time and place, and give into the fantasy and let the book immerse you in that world. And the cozy murder mystery is well constructed, too! I especially enjoy the discreetly omniscient narrative voice, which is my favorite, letting me into each of the characters at various points in the story.
The series continues to grow, as we learn more about our fashion femmes' pasts, and opening up new paths in their futures.
I read lots of cozies so I know how difficult it is to come up with a unique setting and characters, which is why I enjoy this series. It is unique, with a setting in the late 1950s in Southern California, with a social revolution just around the corner for women. What is especially fun is that we know how things will change for the protagonists in the coming decade, even if they are only testing those new waters.
The author creates a richly imagined fictional setting, peopled with believable characters. It's the kind of creation that requires the reader to give herself up to the other time and place, and give into the fantasy and let the book immerse you in that world. And the cozy murder mystery is well constructed, too! I especially enjoy the discreetly omniscient narrative voice, which is my favorite, letting me into each of the characters at various points in the story.
The series continues to grow, as we learn more about our fashion femmes' pasts, and opening up new paths in their futures.
July 9, 2015
*See Barbara Jean's review* Everyone is welcome in Santa Lucia! Hope you enjoy reading the Poppy Cove Mystery series as much as I have been enjoying the co-authoring of this journey back in time.
July 9, 2015
Hey there Guys and Dolls,
Here’s the scoop on the latest book in my Poppy Cove Mystery series. Santa Lucia’s social set is in a flap and you know what a flap my little town can get in! Margot’s not so distant past becomes the latest news when the body of a mysterious stranger who it turns out is not a stranger to them all washes up on the beach with a bullet hole clean through the heart, the town finds out more than just the latest designs from Poppy Cove. Daphne begins to question the sheltered life she’s been living and plans a daring, bold adventure to change her image, create a regret or two, and stir up the embers of her romance with Dan her current beau.
Margot the prime suspect in the murder of Nathan Reed, her ex-husband, and is forbidden to see her main squeeze the tall, dark and dashing detective Tom Malone, who’s been taken off the case and forbidden to make contact with his girl. He’s high on the list of suspects too and before it’s over there will be plenty of suspicion, suspense, and salacious tittle tattle to keep you turning the pages of A Nate To Remember. The martinis and the chaise lounge are ready for you to put your perfectly polished toes up and enjoy dipping into the pages of this my third and thrilling tale from Santa Lucia!
Here’s the scoop on the latest book in my Poppy Cove Mystery series. Santa Lucia’s social set is in a flap and you know what a flap my little town can get in! Margot’s not so distant past becomes the latest news when the body of a mysterious stranger who it turns out is not a stranger to them all washes up on the beach with a bullet hole clean through the heart, the town finds out more than just the latest designs from Poppy Cove. Daphne begins to question the sheltered life she’s been living and plans a daring, bold adventure to change her image, create a regret or two, and stir up the embers of her romance with Dan her current beau.
Margot the prime suspect in the murder of Nathan Reed, her ex-husband, and is forbidden to see her main squeeze the tall, dark and dashing detective Tom Malone, who’s been taken off the case and forbidden to make contact with his girl. He’s high on the list of suspects too and before it’s over there will be plenty of suspicion, suspense, and salacious tittle tattle to keep you turning the pages of A Nate To Remember. The martinis and the chaise lounge are ready for you to put your perfectly polished toes up and enjoy dipping into the pages of this my third and thrilling tale from Santa Lucia!
November 1, 2015
"Everyone else had something––a past, a secret, some sort of hardship that, as was said, ‘built character.’"
I was a little late to this, the third Poppy Cove mystery, but the gossip was so fantastic
I kept berating myself.that BJC had never told me about Margot Williams' past. Oh, we knew what she'd told us...all about coming to Santa Lucia. And that dress store? Poppy Cove? It's just to die for. Margot's boyfriend, Tom has asked some important questions....did she tell him her whole story?
What's going to happen to Margot if what they say is true....is her past really that bad that she'd go to such drastic lengths? One never knows.....
Dressed and soundtracked in the fifties, this third trip to Santa Lucia is as fraught as the first two, only this time Margot is the one in trouble! It's interesting to see just whose supporting her, and those who are gossiping. Margot learns a lot about her past, her present and possibly her future in this fast paced fun cosy mystery as guaranteed to entertain as the first two were
I was a little late to this, the third Poppy Cove mystery, but the gossip was so fantastic
I kept berating myself.that BJC had never told me about Margot Williams' past. Oh, we knew what she'd told us...all about coming to Santa Lucia. And that dress store? Poppy Cove? It's just to die for. Margot's boyfriend, Tom has asked some important questions....did she tell him her whole story?
What's going to happen to Margot if what they say is true....is her past really that bad that she'd go to such drastic lengths? One never knows.....
Dressed and soundtracked in the fifties, this third trip to Santa Lucia is as fraught as the first two, only this time Margot is the one in trouble! It's interesting to see just whose supporting her, and those who are gossiping. Margot learns a lot about her past, her present and possibly her future in this fast paced fun cosy mystery as guaranteed to entertain as the first two were
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews