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The Last Note: A Miami Music Mystery

Killer songs and a killer voice, but a killer at her gig? Vy has always found herself at the center of attention as the lead singer for one of Miami's top cover bands, but when she finds herself at the center of a murder investigation, while performing at the Steel Horse Bar, that changes the tune of the night. Someone believes that Vy knows the truth behind the murder of the bar owner Ricky, and now that person is after her. Vy better figure out quickly who wanted Ricky dead, who is threatening her with her favorite band’s song lyrics, and why she’s falling for the handsome Detective Houston, before she too sings her last note. With a mixture of mystery, mayhem and comedy, you will find yourself immersed in Vy's musical and murderous world.

212 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 13, 2018

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About the author

Zaida Alfaro

3 books42 followers
I’m the author of the completed Miami Music Mystery series, The Last Note, In the Key of Dead, and The Hidden Track, where I combine my love of music with cozy mysteries, quirky characters, clever twists, and a little humor.

With The Ghost of Me, my first psychological thriller, I take a darker turn into fractured memories, buried secrets, and the unsettling question: What if you can’t trust your own mind?

When I’m not plotting fictional murders, I’m an active member of Sisters in Crime, the Florida Writers Association, and the South Florida Women’s National Book Association.

Whether cozy or dark, one thing is certain: someone always has a secret.

For more information, visit www.zaidamusic.com

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5 stars
12 (66%)
4 stars
2 (11%)
3 stars
2 (11%)
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
Profile Image for Join the Penguin Resistance!  .
5,742 reviews342 followers
October 23, 2018
Review of THE LAST NOTE by Zaina Alfaro
(A Miami Music Mystery)

Yes, all three combine in this novel: the City of Miami, Music, and Mystery (and Murder!) A perky and fast-paced mystery with a likable and easily empathized with heroine, THE LAST NOTE draws from the author's own personal experiences in Miami and in music to create a winning heroine who will draw attention from other characters and from readers. Meanwhile, readers glean a lot about the Miami Cuban-American experiences, about Latinas, and will warm to the protagonist turned amateur sleuth and her family, friends, and new love interest.
Profile Image for Desiree reilly.
419 reviews37 followers
March 21, 2018
THE BOOK WAS GIVEN TO ME BY THE AUTHOR FOR REVIEW AND I DID I COULD NOT PUT THE E BOOK DOWN AND THIS IS MY OPINION OF THE BOOK,
THE STORY IS BASED IN FLORIDA AND THE SINGER IS Vy AND HER GROUP SHE A GREAT SINGER AND THEN SHE IS WELL DEMANDED FOR THE BARS OR THE GIGS SHE LOVE TO SING AND SHE CAN SING ALL MOST ALL MUSIC HER GUYS ARE BEHIND HER ALL THE WAY ,
WELL NOW THE BOOK IS IN THE HIP MUSIC AND THEN VY HAS TWO WEIRD TASTE ONE IS THE HAZEL NUT COFFEE AND AND THEN SISSY DRINKS. SHE WORKS DURING THE DAY AT A HUM BUG JOB SHE IS PARANOID OF ELEVATORS AND THEN BEING CLOSED IN TO SMALL PLACES.
MIAMI IS WELL KNOWN FOR ALL KIND OF MUSIC BUT SHE WORKER IN DAY SINGER AT CLUBS SOME NIGHT AND THEN ON THE WEEKEND NOW SHE GETTING READY FOR GIG AND HOPE IT PAYS GOOD FOR THE BILL SHE NEED TO PAY THE RENT AND THEN THE CAT WILL NEED HER FOOD
NOW SHE PLAYING AT THE STEEL HORSE BAR AND SHE SUPPOSE TO PLAY ONLY FOUR HOURS, HER GUITARIST ID NOT LIKE THE BAR AND THEN THEY DID NEED THE MONEY YOU SEE SHE HAD TO BOOK WERE SHE CAN.
THE DRUMMER S THE OTHER WOMEN OF THE BAND AND HER NAME IS ADRIANNA. SHE COMPUTER GURU AND SHE HAD APP SO THEY COULD SINK WITH THE MUSIC.
WELL THE GROUP STARTED TO PLAY AND THEN THEY TOOK A BREAK AND THEN SHE SEEN WHAT WAS GOING ON THE SIDE OF THE BAR THE OWNER OF THE BAR NAMED RICKEY AND THEN DAVE THE GEN MANAGER LOOK THEY WERE ARGUING AND THEN SHE WENT TO SEE RICKY HE WAS THE ONE WHO BOOK THE BAND IN AND SHE ASK ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON AND THEN SHE FOUND OUT
YOU SEE THERE LIKE 3 RING CIRCUS IN THE BAR RICKEY WAS SUPPOSE TO GET DIVORCED AND HIS WIFE DOES NOT LIVE NEAR HIM AND THEN DAVE WHO HE THEN THE WAITRESS YOU SEE RICKEY WAS GOING TO BE REMARRIED TO ONE OF THE GIRLS AND THEY WOULD ELOPE TO VEGAS AND GET MARRIED.
THING TURN TO WORSE NOW RICKEY DEAD YOU GOT A BAR FULL OF PEOPLE AND THE PERSON THEY ARE BLAMING IS VY
WHY SHE WAS THE LAST ONE SUPPOSE TO SEEN RICKY TO SEE HM ABOUT GIGS NOW THE COPS ARE HERE AND THEN THE POLICE SHOW UP AND VY IS THE FIRST ONE QUESTION WHY THEY SEEN HER GO IN. WELL THAT NOT ALL THE BAR WAS HOPPING WITH MUSIC AND NOW THE MURDER. THE POLICE LET THEM LEAVE BUT THING DON'T HAPPEN LIKE THEY SHOULD OF HAPPEN NOW THEY GO TO ANOTHER BAR AND THEN SOME ONE ELSE GET KILLED BUT WHO THERE YEA VY THEY ARE TRYING TO SEE WHAT IS CONNECTED WHO EVER IS DOING THE MURDERS BLAME HER WHY SHE A SINGER.

WELL SHE CALL SIS AND ASK HER GET HER BUTT DOWN HER AND HELP HER INVESTIGATE ON OUR OWN WHO WANT ME WHY ME I AM SINGER . WELL HER SISTER AND HER ARE BECOMING BUDDY'S WITH THE COPS AND THEY AR GETTING INFO ON EVERY ONE , THINGS HAPPEN THEN STORMS HIT AND THEY ARE AT THE BAR AND LIGHTS AND THEN THE STORM KNOCKED DOWN THE PHONE AND HER SISTER DISSAPEARD AND SHE FRANTIC AND SHE LOOK IN BAR SHE GRABS ONE OF THE GUYS WHAT THAT ROOM THE STORAGE ROOM WELL SHE FOUND HER SISTER AND SHE WAS FREAKING OUT WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON
NOW.
THEY FINALLY GET HOME AND THEN THE POLICE TELL THEM THEY GOT TO COME IN OK WE WILL
I AM NOT GOING TO TELL YOU WHAT ELSE HAPPEN THE BOOK IS GREAT READ AND THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME READ IT
Profile Image for Tony Parsons.
87 reviews7 followers
March 21, 2018
Miami, FL. Vy Blanco was screaming for someone to help her.
She suffered from claustrophobia.
The elderly woman let her rest on her couch.
Happy Corporate America Building. 29 floors & Vy (Cuban American, BS; English) would be in her office. She worked as a legal law aid.
Steel Horse Bar. Vy (Cuban American, lead singer), Carlos (Cuban-American, lead guitarist), Adrianna (drummer, computer guru), & Rob (Canadian, bass player) were blasting the place with their music.

Cassandra ran out of the office screaming at the top of her lungs Ricardo “Ricky” Callister (Steel Horse Bar owner, divorced) is dead.
Detective Anthony Gunbar, & Detective Bryan Houston, had arrived on the scene.
Ricky might have been using this bar for a drug trafficking operation.
He had died of Apple Martini alcohol drink/cyanide poisoning.
Riozani Italian restaurant. Anthony, Alexia “Lexi” (Vy’s sister), Bryan, & Vy (Violeta, Violet) were going on a double date,

Next stop the Moonstruck jazz bar.
Kendra Williamson came in later & was talking to the 2 girls.
Vy later went to the bathroom & it was not a pleasant sight.
Kendra’s blood was everywhere on the floor.
She had been hit on the head with a very heavy object.
Steel Horse Bar. The lights went out & Vy could not find Alexia.
Tina & Kyle were helping her look.
A locked door had been missed in the search.
Alexia had bound/gagged but was alive & OK.
A note was pinned on her.
Cedars Medical Hospital (Miami, Fl.), Dave Campbell (Steel Horse Bar GM) has been in ICU.
James (bartender) had called Vy & told her 1 of the band members left a mike/stand behind.
Will the murder mysteries be solved & someone brought to justice?

Warning: This book contains graphic adult content, or violence, which is only suitable for mature readers. It may be offensive or have potential adverse psychological effects on the reader.

I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.

A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written cozy murder mystery book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great murder mystery movie, or better yet a mini TV series. A very easy rating of 5 stars.

Thank you for the free author; Goodreads; MakingConnections; Making Connections discussion group talk; Cozy Cat Press; Amazon Digital Services LLC.; book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
264 reviews3 followers
July 5, 2018
Vy is a singer in a band that regularly sings at the Steel Horse Bar.  Suddenly she finds herself in the middle of a murder scene and her sister zips to her side.   The inseparable sisters start dating the police officers in charge of the case and get tangled up in trying to solve it.  Someone isn't quite who they seem, though, and Vy starts being threatened.  What will it take for the killer to finally leave her alone (and discovered!)?

Overall, I didn't hate this book, but I didn't love it either.  I wouldn't seek out others of this series to read in the future.  A few things were either slightly strange to read:

 -The police officers are totally fine to share case details with the sisters.  Way too open.  They also seem naive and kind of unable to solve the case on their own..or take a lot of initiative to do so.  This is so radically different from most murder mysteries I've read.
-Vy's inner dialogue is extremely hard to read sometimes and she seems so...flaky.  Things like someone will ask her something and she'll say something like, "Shut up and just get to the point" was what I wanted to say but what I actually said was..."Thanks for the drink." It's just hard to read.
-Vy is so much a girly sorority girl type, and that's just not my style.  So much drinking, so much "woo girl" (if you've watched How I Met Your Mother you'll get the reference), so much just not very serious about much.

That being said, I did enjoy the music theme and the song references throughout.  I enjoyed the story and thought the plot had potential, but didn't like the Vy character as much as I wanted to, and wish some of the details like the dialogue I mentioned would have been edited out.

Overall, I'll go 6 out of 10 for enjoyment and 4 of 5 for readability.  The readability score isn't 5 just due to some unnecessary details and a main character I found kind of shallow.

-Holly

**I received this book for free in exchange for an unbiased, honest review.  Thanks to Zaida Alfaro for the chance to read it!

For more reviews, check out bedroopedbookworms.wordpress.com!
Profile Image for Susan Reads Cozies.
395 reviews20 followers
March 9, 2024
I read the second book in this series last year. I am so happy I was able to read how Vy’s story started. One of my favorite things about this book is Vy’s relationship with her sister, Alexia. They work well together and make a great sleuthing duo. My other favorite part is Detective Houston and the chemistry between him and Vy. A part of me is glad I read the second book first. I would have had much stronger feelings toward Detective Gunbar and his persistent detective style if I did not. It’s a good thing Houston was able to somewhat keep Gunbar in check. There were a lot of potential suspects here. I kept thinking it was everyone else but the person it ends up being. I think I was too distracted by Houston and the other guy trying to get Vy’s affection. I am hoping for another book to see how everything turns out.
 
Thank you to the author for my gifted copy of the book.
Profile Image for Bart Gilbertson.
Author 14 books31 followers
February 19, 2018
"The Last Note" struck a chord with me! From the opening moments of this engaging read, I was hooked until the last page was turned. Zaida Alfaro demonstrated a real writer's flair and a storyteller's wit. She knows how to pull you in and keep you turning the pages. With a setting like Miami, she could have easily immersed us with atmosphere and description - but she wisely avoids this. Her descriptions are poignant enough to paint an effective mental picture without taking your focus away from the characters and story. She knows how to craft a well plotted story, and yet give it a spontaneous feel. I was in the moment. The story flows freely and is paced very well. She also knows how to build the tension and gives you just enough information to keep you guessing. All questions are answered to your satisfaction. For those who have an affection for alternative rock, or rock music in general, there are enough references in here to keep you smiling - and they all fit the situation. It was hard for me to believe that this was a first effort. Kudos to Zaida Alfaro - a wonderful debut novel! I can't wait to read more from this author.
Profile Image for Brooke Banks.
1,088 reviews188 followers
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October 27, 2018
I received this book for free from Great Escape Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.Today's feature, The Last Note, is set in Miami with a Cuban twenty something aspiring singer songwriter. How fucking cool is that? Don't worry though all the usual ametuer sluething, humor with an eccentric cast comes through organically and cohesively. There's drinking, swearing, and innuendo but it's all above board.
About The Last Note:

IMHO: The Last Note:
I love cozy mysteries. They're usually light and fun with enough intrigue to keep me tuned in. Since the WeNeedDiverseBooks movement opened my eyes, I've been disillusioned with how homogenized the genre is. I've found a couple here or there, but my hunt hasn't exactly been fruitful.

Imagine my surprise and delight when Great Escapes Tours delivered The Last Note right into my mailbox! I'm so happy to have made the cut for the tour and get to review it.
“I guess she’s not too worried about privacy. Look at me. She’s not worried because I’m not suppose be in here. Why do I keep talking to myself?” This whole snooping idea didn’t work well with her personality. --Vy, page 73 The Last Note.


Diverse! Vy & fam are Cuban. Several background characters are Latinx as well.
Did not guess what was going on or who the culprit was until the very end when it all came spilling out
Romancing detective was cute and sweet
Detectives are competent and cooperative
Love the sisterly love and girl gang vibes with her friends
Liable to make you hungry with all the takeout and restaurants.
Interesting to see what happens with the band and her gigs.
Can't wait to find out what her and her sister get up to in next time in Fort Lauderdale

Great Rating Graphic

The Last Note is a great cozy mystery when you want all the good stuff set on a bigger and varied stage. It's a breeze to devour in one shot and works atmospherically well with the colder rainy weather lately.
Author of The Last Note:

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Got any questions about The Last Note? Any cozy mystery recs? Hit me with 'em in the comments!

Want more underrepresented characters in cozy mysteries? Next Saturday, November 3rd, I'll be reviewing the Grasmere Cottage Mystery series featuring a interracial M/M couple.

 This review was originally posted on The Layaway Dragon
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews