Involuntary Turnover

Kat Voyzey Mysteries #1

by Cheri Baker

HR director Kat Voyzey has a talent for getting things done. Whether it’s brawling employees, difficult bosses, or dress code drama, she knows how to handle a crisis.

But when an employee is murdered at the Seattle hospital where Kat works, and the police try to blame the victim, playing by the rules won’t be enough to save the day.

Fueled by an endless supply of coffee, and assisted by a colorful cast of coworkers, Kat is determined to bring the murderer to justice. But can she do it before the killer strikes again?

This mystery is the first in the Kat Voyzey Series.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Ebooks, Cozy

222 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 13, 2013

About the author

Hello everyone. I'm Cheri Baker, an author, primarily of mystery and suspense, based out of Seattle, WA.

I'm an avid reader who enjoys coffee, mysteries, science fiction, terrible monster movies, and hanging out with friends and family.

Thanks for visiting my page on Goodreads!

Website: https://www.cheribaker.com
My mailing list: http://www.cheribaker.com/news
My blog: http://www.cheribaker.com/blog

Reviews

[N.N. Heaven · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun mystery with a full-cast of characters. The plot was predictable but was just what I needed after reading a heavy fantasy.

My Rating: 4 stars

[Nola Arganbright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Human Resources investigates.

A good strong mystery with an unexpected conclusion. The characters are strong and the subject matter of the story well researched.

[Carla Villar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can predict most mysteries early on. This one kept me guessing!

[Mariah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not very well written and predictable. Would not have read if not for this book challenge. Not that many protagonists work in HR, go figure.

[Bob Pore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun quick read. I’m always a fan of Seattle based stories when I can recognize the places called out.

[Martha L Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable reading.

I liked the book. Good mystery without too much confusion. I will read more books this author has written. Happy Trails!

[Sandra Lopez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kat is the HR director at a medical center specializing in employee relations. Basically she deals with all the drama in the work place. At the end of the day, keeping the boss happy is a good career move.

Kat knows the plight of the worker and having to deal with a boss always telling you what you did wrong.

“I understood that she was being impossible and it was my job to be quiet and suck it up.” (11) Yep, heard that!

According to her boss, when an employee makes a mistake, you should rub it in their face, humiliate them, and move on. Kat wasn’t interested in being the corporate b#@.

But it was a job after all. The last thing she expected was to find one of her file clerks dead from a gunshot. Someone murdered her. Like any HR director, Kat goes through the standard protocols of keeping the company afloat, preventing employees from running amok, and keeping the media out of all this. And why the need to get religious in this? Was there any actual crime-solving in this? I liked her wit, but there was too much corporate policy dragging down the whole mystery. Other than that, it’s an okay read.

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a nice departure from the normal cozies I read.

We have an HR manager who works at a hospital, a staff member is found murdered in the records room, and none of the clues make sense.

This was a nice departure because it was more believable and relatable. the HR manager, Kat, did not put herself (purposely) into dangerous situations. She did what a normal person would do. Ask questions, sort fact from fiction and then give the information to the police.

There are your normal kooky employees, we all know and work with them. The overbearing boss who occasionally throws you under the bus, plus the bureaucracy that comes with a large corporation.

The story wraps up nicely at the end and has a very credible plot.

[Tess Ailshire · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good story, away from the norm of a cozy mystery. This heroine is as malleable as most, but at least has a professional job that she can't leave to a minion at a moment's notice, and factors at work beyond what the nosy neighbors might think. She's surprisingly human for an HR "Director", and I'm surprised to find "Director" with a C-suite higher-up, in that size corporation, but I'll let it go.

A couple of typo errors, but relatively minor.

Intriguing motivation and circumstances.

Definitely worth the read.

[Mella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this, I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did. Cozy mysteries are all very similar but I really found the concept and the investigation unique. Kat is sensible and doesn't put herself at risk, instead conferring with the police and making use of resources at her disposal. Her character is likable and smart and kind. The mystery itself was interesting and I found the pages passing very quickly. I will definitely read more of the series. 3.5 stars.

[Shamika Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good but not great

Enjoyable and realistic but the ending felt a little flat. I didn't suspect the villain but it still felt a little too abrupt. You discover who the person was, they knock you out cold, you're stitched up by the doctors, he's automatically caught and the story ends. Idk I feel like there's something missing.

But it was entertaining for the most part, so there's that.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Series Opener!
This was my first experience with Ms. Baker's work, and I am looking forward to reading more in this series. The book was well-written, and it was very hard to put down when it was time for bed! The characters were well-developed and the mystery kept me guessing until very close to the end. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a great almost-cozy read (a few curse words).

[Sue Shipley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kat is the Human Resources manager at Holy Hope Hospital. Cheri salts this novel with many work related incidents that ring true for anyone who has worked in corporate life. The death of an employee sparks the team to look for the killer and solve the mystery.

I enjoyed this story and will look for further books

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty well written, clean, light murder mystery. It seemed to be well edited, which is rare these days. I felt that I could predict a lot of the flow of the book, but that's ok. My only real objection is that there were some dumb moves on the part of the heroine that I found implausible. Still, I think it's a pretty good setup for a series, which is clearly the plan.

[Aimee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book for free with Freebooksy. Some of the cozy book I get from that service are terrible, but this was a pleasant surprise. It was a fun mystery with engaging characters and a mostly plausible mystery.

This wouldn’t be the first book I would recommend for someone looking for a good mystery, but I enjoyed it and will read the next in the series.

[Lois · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and Engaging

I totally enjoyed the characters and the storyline. The solution to this mystery was not easy to see before Kat pieced it together and surprised me at the end. A very fun read. (Needs editing for quite a few typos and grammar but nothing major). Nice work for a first novel!

[Amit · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, easy read; just what I needed in the current situation. The setting that I can relate to of course helped. I also liked the pacing of the mystery, has a nice flow. Though I would, for sure, have loved some more twists -- it gets a bit predictable at times. Anyway, the book delivered on what I expected going into it. I sure will pick another mystery from the likable protagonist.

[Hunter Eubanks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, and felt that Cheri Baker has a very readable writing style The story was very low key but very plausible. The ending tied up the questions very well. The setting was in Seattle, the home of Ms Baker, so she writes about the city and streets most familiar to her, but since I have only visited Seattle once, I could not picture her descriptions.

[Connie Ely · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Stars

The plot of the book was pretty good, however I had already figured out the killer and the scam well before the police and the HR person! So the author stating the obvious at the very end of the story was ..like ok you , the author, finally solved the mystery after the readers!

[janetwright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hospital Haunts

Good story. Kind of drags in a couple places, but it's an entertaining short read. Lol, true story, I read it while in the surgical waiting room at our local hospital!

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Involuntary Turnover

Absolutely loved it!!! Kat is great. Can't wait to see if her way of dealing with her horrible boss changes. I sense the possibility of romance with Derek... Really impressed that this was a first time work by Ms. Baker

[Diane Vinyard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Working in Medical Records departments for most of my career, I was surprised a book could be written with a murder taking place in a Med Rec department. Nothing ever happens in Medical Records!!! Good story, and love the main character Kat Voyzey. Looking forward to her second in this series.

[Ash · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love a cozy type mystery and this one. The book was okay. It didn't thrill me but I didn't hate it either. I felt like the story is something I've read similarly to before but it is a mystery that you can read and try to figure out.

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice read

This book was a great discovery, I enjoyed the antics of Kat and her crew as they worked to solve a mystery. It was a nice quick read, just they way I enjoy it. I recommend it!

[Anne Tully · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable!

I loved that Kat worked in HR, what a novel twist! I mean, who works in HR? Fun mystery with well thought-out characters. Will be looking for the next in this series.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Enjoyable

I found this book on freebooksy. I normally a Sci-Fi reader and every now and then I like to see what's available in the murder mystery world. This one sounded interesting and truly I found it to be quite enjoyable. I look forward to reading another in the series.

[Shirlynn Buck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Detective Kat to the Rescue

Involuntary Turnover is a super quick mystery that will keep you in stitches while trying to help Kat and her amateur sleuth co-workers solve the murder of their co-worker. This looks to be a series to devour.

[Sue Sheetz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Riveting in a Fun Way

Truly enjoyed the different avenues Cheri Baker took in writing this story. It was intriguing but a fun read too! I highly recommend reading more of her books!

[Kimberly Peery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very entertaining read

Wonderful characters and great story. When you think you know the truth and then your not sure you were right, you have to keep reading.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

this book is one that brings the people that care about the people that work in all positions in a large hospital.