Massage & Murder

A Cozy Spa Mystery #1

by Jenn Cowan

I'm a Licensed Massage Therapist.
A professional.
A healer.
Not a killer.

When a client ends up dead on my massage table, I become the number one suspect.
I have Means.
Motive.
Opportunity.
But I didn't kill her.
The clock is ticking, someone is stalking me, I have to find out who before I end up in jail or worse...dead.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Fiction

188 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 28, 2018

About the author

Indie Author in several genres, but cozies are my favorite!

Website: www.jenncowan.com

Facebook: facebook.com/JRCowanWrites/

Instagram: instagram.com/JRCowan1/

Happy Reading!

Reviews

[Corinne [hiatus] · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 mystery stars

Do you ever get inspired to choose your next book based on your suroundings?

I'm on a ski trip and lodge in a hotel that happens to have a spa. So I got the urge to read a book related to one.

I chose this book based on its name and cover, which is very cute.
This is book 1 in a series of cozy small town mysteries that feature the same main characters:
- Autumn, a 33 year old massage therapist, Nancy Drew fan, witty and charming, that dabbles in solving mysteries
- Josh, Autumn's BFF and a massage therapist as well
- Travis, Autumn's high school boyfriend/soulmate, which cheated on her with her best friend and is now the town's detective

This book was cute, the plot evolving rapidly and the ending was unexpected. Overall, I liked it and it fit well with my holiday mood.

There is also a teensy weensy bit of romance triangle but it remains unresolved and I guess it will remain as a backstory for the remainder of the series.

[Somia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light fluffy read, curious enough that I'll read book two.

Acquired via KU.

[Elsbeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Promising start of a new cozy mysterie series!
This book grabbed me from the start. I couldn't put it down, before I knew who did it. And I had absolutely no idea! So, since I know I'm not stupid (I have the degrees to prove it), it must be a very good mystery!
I can't wait to read the next book!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Massage and Murder was loads of fun from page one. It had all the ingredients I love in a cozy mystery: small town, complicated love interest, best friend/sidekick, a victim with lots of enemies and of course the likable amateur sleuth herself. The story also set the stage very nicely for future mysteries. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nadine · Rating 2 out of 5]

A good story hidden underneath a not-so-good writing style

The book’s written in first person, present tense. It’s difficult to make that work. To pull that off you need to make sure it doesn’t feel like stating fact after fact. Sadly, that’s exactly how this feels. The short sentences also attribute to that. I know that short sentences are very on-trend, but it just didn’t flow.

Example:
“April Biggs.
Ex-beauty queen.
Blond, busty and beautiful.
The town’s queen bee.”

That’s not a story, that’s fact-stating.

Another example:
“My face is flushed; I can feel it. My vision blurs; I may pass out.”

Again: this feels like stating dry facts and I can’t connect. If you think, while reading this, ‘what the hades is she talking about’, then by all means do read this book. Because it does have good things, which I’ll explain later.

Another negative point: not enough variation in the wording.

Example:
“He gets me…or he did. We like the same things or at least we did in high school. In high school, we were the ‘it’ couple.” IMO: he/we did and high school are both repetitive and that doesn’t show a lot of skill.

My last complaint: it even sprang from present to past tense at one time.

Having said that, there were also good things, pleasant things. The characters were nice (I especially liked Cat!). The story itself was interesting. In substance, things were really good. But every time I really started to like it, the sentences were super short again and the flow disrupted. And that killed any suspense that should have been there. At the end of the book I still wasn’t used to it and it had started to really annoy me.

However, since the story itself does show promise, I’ll give this author one more try.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autumn loves to give massages and works at the local spa with her best friend Josh. When one of her clients is killed there after she had given her a massage self-protection drives her to sleuthing, as her ex-boyfriend and police detective puts her on the top of his suspect list.
The case becomes more complicated with more violence in the small town and sleuthing becomes a desperate activity.
The story is more interesting due to the complicated dynamics between Autumn, her side cick Josh and Travis, the police detective and ex-boyfriend.
Small town gossip helps to enhance the situation to a crazy level.
A very enjoyable book, fun to read and highly entertaining.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Marcia-Lee Finocchio · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Spa Murder Mystery

What a fantastic story. First book by this Author and I simply loved it. Storyline is awesome, characters are fantastic and the twists and turns amazing..Didn’t want the story to end...Found myself another great Author to read.

[Shweta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Autumn and Josh are 2 BFFs who've studied together, trained togther, been diaper friends and now live next to each other. Ace masseuses, they work in a spa.

Their happy lives take a wierd turn when Autumn's one time best friend and the girl who stole her boyfriend comes to the spa and is murdered there.

Autumn's ex-boyfriend Travis is the lead detective on the case and considers Autumn a prime suspect.

Soon another murder, a fire, 2 funerals confuse the situation.

A funny yet emotional read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Evonne Hutton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story line with some interesting characters
A massage therapist finds her client dead on her treatment table!
This small town cozy will delight

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Michelle Shemon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Massage & Murder
A Cozy Spa Mystery Book 1
Jenn Cowan

I thought this was a great read. I love cozy mysteries. Would be a horror to have someone die on your massage table. Ewe to be touching them, and then all of a sudden they are all dead. Then you are off to see what happened to them. You get a fun ending , and a surprise twist!! Definitely a fun read!

[Fleur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autumn finds herself in trouble when her last client ends up dead on her massage bed and now she and Josh, who is not only her coworker but best friend have to work out who killed April because well she wants to clear her name and she kind of can't help it. We get to meet other residence of the small town as well as get thrown some curve balls, be entertained by the awkwardness between Autumn, Josh and Travis and find out secrets that others would have preferred to be keep quiet.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autumn and her best friend Josh are massage therapists and absolutely love their jobs. When Autumn finds her client dead on her massage table and is now considered as suspect number one, Autumn and Josh put themselves on the case to solve the murder.

This first book in the series is filled with humor, a little romance, lots of hijinks, a murder with lots of potential suspects, and an amateur sleuth that is willing to put her life in danger. It was an enjoyable read and I can’t wait to find out what is next for Autumn and the gang.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nadea Croix]

Enjoyable quick read, have good points, interesting storyline and concept that has some challenges makes an endearing read.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is an interesting cozy mystery story that has humor and is captivating. Good engaging characters and well developed. I appreciate reading this book.

[Debbie Orazi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love cozy mysteries and this book was no exception. The characters were well developed and drew you into the story. The plot was well written and had surprising plot twists. I look forward to reading more books by the author. Highly recommend.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

She does massages but when a dead body appears on her table she is the suspect. She did not do it so she tries to find out who did. Will she find the real culprit? See how she gets on

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autumn has returned to her hometown and works with BFF Josh at a spa - massage therapy. And ex beau Travis is in Homicide, with the local pd.

but the pain, dirt, anger and loused up loves - only in a small town does the lingering hurt of a high school break up live down the street from you, or try to charge you with murder.

Can Josh keep Autumn alive, well and out of trouble - maybe with the help of Travis - a reluctant arrangement for both boys.

Revenge seems more painful than sweet in this small town.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Gerry Meincke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Massage & Murder a interesting mystery

I really liked the eBook "Massage&Murder". Cozy mysteries are my favorite books to read. This one had me wanting to not put it down, I will check with my sisters and see if they would like it also. Gerry Meincke

[Sue Cullins · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good cozy mystery

This is a good cozy mystery. It is interesting from the very beginning. It does begin to drag close to the end though. It has a surprise ending. I recommend it.

[Ella Portera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, entertaining book. Love to see more from these characters.

[Mary A Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great mystery

This book kept me up all night, it was so good! Really enjoyed the characters, and the plot twists. I'm ready for the next one!

[JoAnne McMaster (Any Good Book) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Autumn is a massage therapist in a run-down salon, but she loves her job. That is, until her ex-best friend is found dead on her massage table. Now, the lead suspect -- her ex-boyfriend and also the father of her ex-best friend's daughter, thinks she may have murdered the woman. With motive, means, and opportunity, she knows she's not guilty. But in order to find out who killed April, Autumn may just have to use herself as bait...

I really wanted to like this story, but I have a hard time with first person, present tense, As in: "I am going to the store now." Who cares? This is difficult enough to pull off in a book, but it just feels off if you can't...and it could be better.

Maybe if the plot were pulled together better, or the facts were written as a story, it would have been better. But I just didn't enjoy this as much as I should have. Also, there should have been an editor somewhere along the line. Words were used that shouldn't have been, as using "too" instead of "to". This was done quite a bit. And Travis's hair color changed in the middle of the book -- he 'ran his hand through his blond hair.' Say what? I thought he was a redhead? Ah, well...

I also didn't like the fact that Travis really thought Autumn could be guilty. For someone who has feelings for her, this seemed wrong. If they were married, would he still believe her capable of murder? If he would, then she should run as fast as she can in the other direction. Just sayin'...

But it was the ending that got me. I really detest cliff hangers, and even though this left us just a bit of a one, it was still a cliff hanger. It's like holding the reader hostage: you need to read the next book to find out what happens next! Nope. I don't like it one bit. And isn't fifteen years a long time to be rehashing high school grudges? Move on, people!

Other than that, the story line was okay, and I may or may not read the next in the series. An alright read that is a short cozy and quick to read.

[Sandra Lopez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Someone was trying to break into the spa, where Autumn works in the small town of MO.

One of the worst clients of the day was the Queen B and guess who was stuck giving her a massage? The Queen B’s open criticism of the town spa inspires her to open another better spa. Then she’s found dead on the massage table with Autumn having means, motive, and opportunity. But she wasn’t a killer; she was a healer.

Everyone in town had a reason to kill April, but who did it?

Keeping the suspects/characters straight can be a little daunting. Writing was fragmented a lot of the time, but it was an okay mystery.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Family huh

What an array of caracters so diverse in nature but bonded in the drama of a small town. To start with one of the most hated woman in town is found dead in the town spa .here are some of the reasons she may have been murdered for, coveting others boyfriends, blackmailing, playing people against each other, degrading others, lieing about the paternity of her child,cheating on her husband and last threatening to open another spa in the small town.who killed her , can you solve the mystery before the end of the book. Kat

[Phyllis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and lively

I truly enjoyed this cozy mystery that takes place in my home state of Missouri. The characters, the drama and gossip of a small town spilled out over the pages almost like own rural town. And then you add in murder that was complicit with other crimes added the mystery and excitement. It didn't end there because there was also love, romance, broken hearts and forgiveness poured into the storyline! Can't wait to get the series!

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing new read

This was the best cozy mystery I’ve read in ages. It was just the right read to wind down from my holiday weekend. Loved the protagonist and especially the mystery. It was so nicely done. The pacing was good. The dialogue was great. Definitely going to read more in this series.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first in the series and the first time reading this author. The main character is Autumn who is a massage specialist. The town's main evil woman gets killed right after Autumn gives her a massage and the town cop, Autumn's ex from high school thinks she may have done it. Autumn sets out to figure out who really did it before sheens up charged. I loved this fast paced page turner.

[Helen Agathocleous · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good storyline

Firstly, the book does need some editing as there were some grammar errors. Secondly, yes the book is written in the present tense, however this did not spoil the storyline of flow of the book. On the whole it's a very good cozy mystery which I enjoyed. Thankfully I downloaded the entire series to date and plan on reading them all.

[Jennie Ersari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling cozy!

Autumn is a massage therapist. When no one else is available, she has to massage her biggest enemy, April. When April is found murdered a short time later, Autumn is determined to prove her innocence by solving this mystery!

[reader 1085 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. Fun quick cozy with the amateur sleuth outdoing the police. Autumn, Josh and Travis have known each other almost all their lives and make up the eternal triangle. Book needs editing , a few typos

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.