Scot & Soda

Last Ditch Mystery #2

by Catriona McPherson

Scottish-born California transplant Lexy Campbell sails into trouble when her houseboat party ends on a deadly note.

Now settled in her little houseboat, moored in the slough at the back of the Last Ditch Motel, Lexy Campbell wants nothing more than to build her counseling business, avoid her mother's phone calls and--who knows?--meet a nice guy. But when she throws a Halloween party for her motley crew of motel pals, the only single man is too old for her, too wrapped up in the case of beer chilling in the slough, and--oh, yes--too dead.

The sensible choice is to leave it up to the cops to identify the body and catch the killer. So faster than you can say "Tam O'Shanter," Lexy and her friends jump into the case themselves, delving deep into their town's past for the roots of a mystifying crime.

Praise for Scot & Soda

"Peppered with clever red herrings, the mystery gleefully revels in the absurd, but it's Lexy's friendships with the Last Ditch's unusual residents that give this series its big heart. Those who enjoy the Stephanie Plum mysteries will find plenty to like."--Publishers Weekly

Praise for Scot Free, Book 1 of the Last Ditch Mystery Series:

A 2019 Lefty Award Nominee

"[McPherson's] character-driven romp is sparked by the larger-than-life, quirky residents of the Last Ditch Motel, putting this laugh-out-loud whodunit on a par with the early Janet Evanovich."--Library Journal (starred review)

"McPherson, a master of creepy psychological mysteries, shows an utterly different side of herself in this zany series kickoff."--Kirkus Reviews

"McPherson gives the fish-out-of-water theme a hilarious and original spin with Lexy Campbell, a Scottish therapist who falls for and marries a sexy California dentist who turns out to be more horndog than hero. Throw in a sweet old lady accused of blowing up her pyrotechnic husband and a hilariously bumbling supporting cast, and you have the perfect comic caper. Lexy is my new favorite unwitting detective and her cultural observations and mistakes are laugh-out-loud funny. Scot Free is a little sexy and a lot funny, with a heart and a bang."--Jess Lourey, Anthony and Lefty-nominated author

"The only times I stopped turning the pages were when I was laughing so hard it took both hands just to hold the book. McPherson is an ace plotter, a vivid, original stylist, and great company. A great beginning to a new series."--Timothy Hallinan, author of the Junior Bender series

"Everyone who knows me knows that I don't throw the word 'hoot' around lightly. So if I were to say that Catriona McPherson's new novel was a hoot, believe me, I would mean it. Filled with an entertaining cast of eccentric characters, Scot Free is a funny and original mystery. Quite frankly, it's a hoot. There, I said it."--Johnny Shaw, author of Big Maria and Imperial Valley

"Lexy's snide observations about the California lifestyle can't cover up her affection for her friends, who are as warm-hearted as they are weird. Readers will look forward to Lexy's further adventures."--Publishers Weekly

"McPherson, who has earned acclaim for her dark thrillers and Dandy Gilver period cozies, blends jaunty pacing, a comically rendered Southern California setting, and quirky characters in this series starter. A sure bet for fans of Janet Evanovich and Sarah Strohmeyer."--Booklist

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Cozy Mystery, Detective, Contemporary

301 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2019

About the author

Catriona McPherson (she/her) was born in Scotland and immigrated to the US in 2010. She writes: preposterous 1930s private-detective stories about a toff; realistic 1940s amateur-sleuth stories about an oik; and contemporary psychothriller standalones. These are all set in Scotland with a lot of Scottish weather. She also writes modern comedies about a Scot-out-of-water in a “fictional” college town in Northern California.

She has won multiple Anthonys, Agathas, Leftys and Macavitys for her work and been shortlisted for an Edgar, three Mary Higgins Clark awards and a UK dagger

Catriona is a proud lifetime member and former national president of Sisters in Crime.

Reviews

[Gail C. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Midnight Ink for providing me with an advance digital copy of SCOT AND SODA by Catriona McPherson in exchange for an unbiased review. This is the second book and my first read in the “Last Ditch” mystery series. While the mystery is complete within the book, many of the secondary storylines between characters are continuations from the first book in the series and are referenced here without explanation, which made it more difficult to fully understand relationships between them.
The characters in this book are broadly written with substantial quirks, so broadly that they lean toward being verbal caricatures rather actual characters in a novel. The attempts at humor are also very broad and, for me, were not so much funny as overdone. Humor is a personal thing, and others may find the humor in this novel to be to their liking.
In this entry for the series, the characters, who live in the Last Ditch motel or, in the case of the protagonist, Lexi, on a tiny houseboat anchored in the slough behind the motel. She is a native of Scotland who has emigrated to the United States. Much of the conversational sniping between characters is based on the language and lifestyle differences between those born in America and Lexi, who was born in Scotland.
The book opens with preparations for a halloween party being hosted by Lexi on her houseboat, although the celebration is significantly different from her experience with Halloween in Scotland. As the party progresses they start to pull up a box of beer cooling by being immersed in the slough, only to pull up a corpse instead.
Although Lexi and her friends are instructed not to investigate by the detective in charge, with many references to the murder in the previous novel in the series, they ignore her instructions and launch their own investigation. The civilian’s investigation makes much of the vicitm’s name, Tam Shatner, and the fact he was dressed in the Halloween version of traditional Scottish dress, including a tam o-shanter that was stapled to his head postmortem.
It was difficult for me to develop interest in following these characters or in learning who had killed the victim. I also did not develop any empathy for the victim which made it difficult to care who had committed the murder.
This may be a book that is more enjoyed by people who have read the first book in the series and already have an affinity for the characters. For those who enjoy this particular brand of humor, there may also be some appeal. The book is well-written and can be enjoyed by the segment of readers who enjoy this particular brand of humor and quirkiness.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner!

This one is even better than the first one. So many laughs and so many twists. You will love it.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

We were first introduced to Scottish therapist Lexy Campbell in Scot Free, and she was such a wonderful reflection of Catriona McPherson's personal wit and humor that you knew it was the beginning of a fabulous new series. Like the author, character Lexy Campbell is a Scottish transplant to northern California, but unlike the author, Lexy's introduction to the states has been a series of mishaps and murder. Lexy has landed in the fictitious town of Cuento, California at the Last Ditch Motel and is currently living on a houseboat anchored in the slough next to the motel. While this situation sounds less than desirable and certainly has its share of problems, Lexy has formed close friendships with the long-term residents of the motel, which also boasts the Skweeky Kleen Launderette. It's a crew of diverse backgrounds and talents, and the bug-a-phobic, fashion enthusiast doctor and germophobic owner of the Skweeky Kleen have some interesting ideas about how they can combine their talents with Lexy's therapy business. Quirky rules the day at the Last Ditch Motel. But, I've gotten ahead of the story.


Lexy is trying hard to make her Halloween party on her houseboat an American celebration, in spite of her unfamiliarity with many of the non-Scottish traditions. There are some glitches, but Lexy and her friends from the Last Ditch are enjoying the infected toenail chips, the phlegm cups, and the hen's feet treats and the festive atmosphere of the creepy holiday. But, there's creepy cool and creepy bad, and when Lexy tries to pull up the beer chilling in the slough off her boat, the creepy gets way too bad and way too real. Tangled up in the rope and beer is a dead body, a real body, not some Halloween prank, and the man is dressed in Scottish attire, a kilt and a tam o'shanter (red wig and tam) stapled to his head. The coincidence of a dead body in Scottish attire showing up attached to the boat of the only Scottish person in the vicinity seems way too close for comfort. That a ring Lexy saw attached to one of the fingers of the dead man disappears before the body can be examined sets Lexy's curiosity radar ablaze. It's not surprising that the Last Ditch "family" of friends becomes involved in discovering who this party crasher is and why he ended up dead in the slough. When they uncover his identity as one Tam O. Shanter attending his 50th high school reunion, there's no holding this oddball investigative crew back. They are in it until the bitter end, and the road there is a twisty, bumpy one.

Catriona McPherson is a born storyteller, and whether it's a gruesome, dark tale or a spirited, witty romp, she creates the characters who are perfect for their parts. The Last Ditch mysteries will entertain you page after page with humorous antics and witty dialogue. Lexy trying to straighten out her Scottish take on the American language is hilarious. I'm looking forward to the next adventure this charming Scot and her friends jump into with a ready smile.

Thanks to Midnight Ink for an ARC of this delightful tale.

[Keenan Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scottish immigrant, Lexy Campbell, lives in a boat behind The Last Ditch Motel (and Skweeky Kleen launderette) on a slough south of the tracks in the make-believe town of Cuento, California. Her gang of cohorts, two couples and a single mother and her son, all permanent residents of the hotel, have formed a family of their own. Plans are made for the group to celebrate Hallowe’en on Lexy’s boat.
When a dead body, dressed in Scottish costume and with a red wig stapled to his head, gets tangled in their beer line, Lexy and her pals feel duty-bound to solve the murder. Their efforts are complicated as they continue to deal with day-to-day life, their respective jobs, getting the kittens groomed, and fetching lattes.
The investigation takes a turn when someone attacks a horse, cutting off its tail, and a nightshirt (who knew that a “cutty sark” is a nightshirt?) is found on a reputed burial ground, all of which invokes the Burns’ poem “Tam O’Shanter”. Kind of creepy that the dead body is dumped and the Scottish poem is invoked all within spitting distance of the only Scottish immigrant in the vicinity. One might think she was the target of these bizarre events.
This is cozy at its coziest: zany antics, knitting needles and cats, mundane and exotic beverages and foods offered, some of which are consumed. My favorite parts of the book include the affectionate banter between Lexy and her friends centered around Lexy learning Americanisms and the Americans learning Scottish slang.
The story winds up with a satisfying ending which at the same time leads to a last-minute reveal leaving me wanting to read the next installment of this quirky series.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scottish therapist Lexy Campbell is enjoying life in her peculiar little niche in California, until a dead body interrupts her Halloween party. She and her friends try to identify the corpse, which Lexie recognizes as having similarities to the poem Tam O'Shanter. Can he really be a man named Thomas O. Shatner, back for his fiftieth high school reunion? Is he, as they severally imagine, an out gay man persecuted by his classmates, a ladies man who irritated the girls in the class, or a popular member of the group? After giving the first book in this series five stars, I felt I wanted to do the same for this one, even though, to be truthful, it probably deserved 4 1/2 stars.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars.

It's Halloween and Lexy Campbell has gone all out with the spooky decor and food as she entertains the inhabitants of the Last Ditch Motel on her houseboat. Unfortunately, when she pulls up the rope which is attached to the 72 bottles of beer she has cooling in the water they come attached to a dead body dressed in a Tam O'Shanter and orange wig (a Jimmy wig as we would say).

The Cuento police don't seem to be taking Lexy seriously, they ignore her comment that there was a large signet ring on the body's finger which seems to have gone missing, so Lexy, Todd and Kathi decide to do some detecting of their own.

There seem to have been a series of incidents on Halloween linked to the events in the Robert Burns poem Tam O'Shanter and all the evidence points to the victim being a former resident Thomas O. Shatner who was in town to attend a fiftieth high school reunion. But who could have murdered him? Was it some sort of retaliation for being gay? Could it be the former senior class president and captain of the football team? Was it one of a quartet of girls that used to hang around with the captain of the football team? Is it connected to the mysterious disappearance of one of those girls after the graduation party?

There are red herrings galore and, I'm afraid, it maybe got a bit too clever for itself partway through and like another reviewer I was left a bit confused at the end. Still enjoyable but a little confusing.

[Diane Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scot & Soda is a humorous fish-out-of-water tale and the second in the Last Ditch Mystery series.

Lexy Campbell is a Scottish therapist in rural Northern California. During a small Halloween party on her houseboat home, a body is found caught on the rope holding the party’s cold beers in the slough, or swamp, where the houseboat was parked. The shooting victim had a tam o’shanter stapled to his head so it was hard for Lexy not to take it personally. With the help of her odd friends at the nearby “Last Ditch” motel, Lexy can’t help but investigate especially when a ring seen on the body in the slough is missing after its retrieval.

The characterizations of the unique denizens of the hotel are varied and refreshingly different from the usual cozy mystery sidekicks. As a matter of fact, this wacky tale seems almost like a cross between a cozy and a Serge Storm novel. However, the mystery followed a convoluted course with a dearth of clues until right before the conclusion. The witty one-liners and unusual characters helped raise Scot & Soda to 3 stars despite the disappointing mystery.

Thanks to Midnight Ink and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Kaitlyn Dunnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little hard to follow here and there but I loved the final twist at the end.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a 3.5. This second book in the series was not as good as the first.

[Penny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly pleasant, sometimes confusing, definitely silly. Good for a 'reading palate cleanse' as it were. Not worth purchasing - get it from your library or download from the free Libby app.

[Linda (The Arizona Bookstagrammer) · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Scot & Soda” (Last Ditch Mystery #2) by Catriona McPherson ⭐️⭐️ + Lexi lives in a houseboat on a slough behind the somewhat seedy Last Ditch Motel in the fictional town of Cuento in Northern California (aka Davis, Ca). She’s a recent immigrant from Dundee Scotland and much of the book centers around her misunderstandings of American slang, customs, and cultural celebrations and her friends’ misunderstandings of Scotland slang, customs, and cultural celebrations. When I say “much” I reallly mean it. A few misunderstandings here and there is cute, but enough is enough... OK, leaving out the cultural references, what left is this - When a dead body is found on her property, Lexi and her merry prankster band of Latch Ditch Motel friends go full-bore detective to find out who did it and why. It’s a convoluted trip to a pretty irrational truth. I really like the idea of funny, quirky friends living in unconventional situations, but somehow this was just too full of cutesy-unconventional characters (as if the author was making sure she included every gender possibility, every racial group, every phobia ) and I found myself thinking “get on with it!” Much as I wanted to like it, it’s a 2 1/2 from me.

[Aera · Rating 1 out of 5]

Never did I read a cozy that was this painful to read. Painful. The author's writing style is difficult to follow, confusing and at times incoherent. I wanted to quit numerous times but a personal quirk of mine is to finish a book no matter what with the hope that it would get better. It never did. There's a level of immaturity here that is beyond the typical immaturity level that's in cozies (and that's saying a lot) with none of the wit or humor that made it extremely tedious to read.

The plot is convoluted, confusing, and contrived. I didn't like any of the characters. Not a single one, including the MC. They're supposed to be an oddball, quirky lot (something I actually love in cozies) but none of them are lovable and not even towards each other. This is Scooby Do with a lot of lame, snarky, junior high level comebacks, with none of the charm and fun.

I finished this book but just barely. I usually take one or two days to finish a cozy. This took three weeks of constantly trying but I did it! Can I get a medal?

[Kay Bowen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hydrogen peroxide is not lye and would make a really bad murder method, just for the record. According to Wikipedia, lye is "sodium hydroxide." I hope the editors have corrected this. The dialogue was witty and the main characters were fun, but I didn't care for the setting and found the ending a bit confusing.
I did read the first book in the series.

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quirky, odd book with too much insider knowledge from the characters for me to keep up.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

When we last left Lexy Campbell, she is enjoying a parting gift from her former client - a houseboat moored behind the Last Ditch Motel. She has own office there, and lives relatively in peace and quiet. At a Halloween party she organizes in her houseboat, she and the Last Ditch crew finds a corpse. Without any identification except clues found on the victim and a few strange incidents, they guess a connection with a Robert Burns poem, "Tam O' Shanter". As they dive deeper, Lexy and the Last Ditch crew discover secrets hidden within the genteel homes of Cuento's upright and respectable citizens.

This is Book 2 of the Last Ditch Mystery series, and the gang is back again for more shenanigans and zaniness. This time, everyone (even Della!) gets involved in the newest murder, and Lexy, Todd and Kathi lead the charge. (They're also partners in an enterprise involving various therapies for clients seeking counseling, much to Lexy's chagrin.)

What I like the most about this series is that you'll never know what you're going to get. You think that with a new piece of information discovered, Event A is what had happened, but it turns out, it's not. And then you start all over again, and then you find out that there are some connections, and then it isn't, and you feel like you're going nowhere. Then the mystery is answered, but in the way you'd have thought. At times this is confusing, but this is why the story is filled with action. It's told in the first person point of view, and the character, Lexy, through whom we see everything going on is a person of action as well.

We read and experience all of these through Lexy's rambling narrative. She's still the cozy mystery protagonist who gets us to join her in this roller-coaster ride. And you can't help but love her. Lexy is adorable and charming with her enthusiastic sharing of her own Scottish culture, while being blissfully ignorant of the American lifestyle and thus committing faux pas most of the time. She's enabled and joined by the residents of the Last Ditch Motel who she had come to think of fondly as her family, and they in return has got her back in everything she does. I like how the different personalities of the supporting cast do not outshine the others or even outshine Lexy, but their group dynamics work well, and their quirks, phobias and flaws make for unique characters we can connect to.

There'd better be a Book 3. And I hope Lexy finds romance this time around, and that someone should be the person who can keep up with her as well as really love her.

*** I got a copy of this book from NetGalley. These are all my own opinions. #NGEW2019

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's Halloween and transplanted Scot, Lexy Campbell is hosting a Halloween party for her friends from the Last Ditch Motel and the Skweeky Kleen launderette. Lexy lives on a house boat moored in the local slough that runs behind the motel. As the party progresses and themed food is consumed - some of them very creative if not also very creepy....but following the rule of no insects - beer is needed. It has been cooling in the slough, tethered to the houseboat. Beer, however, does no need a dead body chaser. When the line is pulled in, a surprise comes along with it. All eyes turn to Lexy when the body is wearing Scottish apparel and has a tam (known as a jimmy wig) stapled to his noggin. She's the only Scot for miles around, after all. Well, one thing leads to another, the cops tell her to stay out of their investigation but that falls on deaf ears and Lexy and her very funny motley crew are off and running to catch a killer.
While this book can be read as a stand alone, reading them in order will make for a better read as the second book can become a confusing with so much back story thrown in at the beginning. The humor appeals to me and yes, it can be a bit over the top but I like zany and I really like quirky characters in my mysteries. The mystery itself was satisfying and I will happily read more books in this series.
My thanks to the publisher, Midnight Ink and to NetGalley, for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got suckered into reading this second book after originally deciding to stop at the first

The last quarter of both books picked up & became interesting so that it was possible to forget how long & eyerolling the first three quarters of the first book was by its end ... not making that mistake again, there will be no number 3 on my bookshelf

I love McPherson's Helen Crowther series - she's not a dunderhead & I downed the first two in 2 days each

I love her Dandy Gilver series - Dandy can be a dithery but she's 100 years older than Lexy ... & even without accounting for history she's far more together & self-correcting than Lexy

But I've had it with Lexy, Todd & Kathi - I like Roger, Della & Mike & it's obvious that their function in the books is to express the exasperation the reader feels with Lexy

But I'm not buying it ... Lexy is just so spineless as well, literally not speaking up properly for a situation that's endangering her license, work visa & ultimately her very life in the US

Whereas Dandy & Helen make mistakes but course correct on their own in a very reasonable amount of time ... Lexy & Todd bumble on with their mistakes almost or even until the denouement of the story

I just cannot take their stupidity any more, especially with two people who had to be smart enough to get through so much professional training

And especially with Lexy who is supposed to be a therapist

[Nancy Haddock · Rating 4 out of 5]

The edition I read was from the library. Got that out of the way.

So, I was really eager to read this one, and I liked it, but the story had almost too many twists. Lexy and Todd went sleuthing to talk to multiple people multiple times. Sometimes Kathi went along. It didn't confuse me as much as it wore me out. There seemed to be no forward movement, no really solid clues.

Now it comes together at the end and all the misdirection makes sense, but it frustrated me getting there. As the reader, I want to follow along with the clues. They don't need to be arranged in a straight line, but I like some order. I like to solve the case with the protagonists.

On the positive side, I like the humor - irreverent as it sometimes is - and I love the characters. They're quirky but with real humanity. There is a lot of action, though most of it consists of driving to and from places to question people. Still, there isn't too, too much introspection. That bogs me down.

I read the 4th book first, then went back for the first two. I'll definitely read the 3rd book, and I hope there are more. And I rather hope they're not all quite so complicated.

[Reggie Billingsworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

If anything McPherson's plots are deviously complex (no 'cosy' stereotypes here!) and with the increasing numbers of characters horning in on Lexy's inquiries and business actually, it's a bit of a push to keep track of it all. The many references to culture, language and perception clashes are most entertaining while I'm still at a loss as to how many fluid relationships are actually going on.

Ah well.

I don't try. I just keep reading and enjoy most of the smart-arse dialogue. Sometimes I get a bit techy over it but since (apart from the odd cast member who cites "Masterpiece" as their educational source...that's a hoot) far too many Californians consider their world the centre of the universe, the author's satire on all that is much appreciated and welcome.

My rating is more like 3.5...as I am still unclear what the last two pages were about and now I've thought about it I would leave the review rate at 3.0 as I am still mystified over what the last page is about and somewhat irritated that the author would think it was clever enough to leave it that way.

Chronic obscurity is not always a winning style.

[CR · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Review: I think this one would have gone over a lot better if I had read the first book in the series. Theres a lot that gets mentioned in this one from book one but it's not explained in a way to make it so those of us who haven't read book one would still know what's going on. And that being the case I did not take any starts away for that as it's not the books fault.

So there other mysteries in this one were great. They were fully formed and I enjoyed them. The humor in this book was little over done and didn't work for me at all. And the characters just felt a little over the top as well. Parts of the story really felt like those Hallmark Mystery Movies that I have gotten addicted to over the last few months.

In the ending for this one I think I would have enjoyed it more if I would have read book one. But even without doing that this book was still pretty good. The story it self needed to be a little better with its cohesiveness as at times it felt like it was all over the place.


Go Into This One Knowing: Read Book One First!!

[Cherie O'Boyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scot & Soda is a mystery best savored slowly, taking ample time to appreciate the clever word-crafting, quick-witted dialog, and entertaining dialect (both Scottish and Californian).

One example, buried amidst a face-paced scene, is this wry and too-true observation made by Lexy, the story’s protagonist and a psychotherapist, after she’s uttered a wise-crack about crazy Californians: “ … to be fair, offering counselling and therapy isn’t the classic way to meet the balanced portion of any population.”

Amusing in places, confusing in others (these are the bits to re-read), don’t try to blow through Scot & Soda in an afternoon, as it is not your usual light-weight cozy. It is intelligently written, utilizing the unique perspective of a recent immigrant and her attendant cross-cultural confusions to further and deepen the plot.

I received this book as a gift, with no expectation of a review.

[Sarah Niebuhr Rubin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally fun, full of humor, and true Scot from accent to words that just don't quite translate into American English.

Lexy (that's not how it's really spelled) and her new friends at the Last Ditch motel, a motley gang, are deep in it when their Halloween party is disrupted by a corpse wrapped around the beer. There's a blundering quality to how they quite intentionally go about investigating the death, and how they don't quite believe the detective on the case (her name's not really Mike) can or will figure things out on her own.

I laughed til I cried, I faked my own Scottish accent in my head as I read, and I totally believed every second of it. I was ahead of Lexy at times in what I knew, and that was half the fun - waiting to see what would make it click for her.

Can't wait to read the next one.

[Linda Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

You definitely should read this series in order!

I absolutely love Catriona McPherson, especially the Dandy Gilver series. I have also enjoyed most of her more serious standalone novels. The new Last Ditch series is completely different, and is probably best read when you're in the mood for a whacky heroine and cast of lovable weirdos. Kind of like a Scottish Stephanie Plum and her crew of misfits, before Evanovich got so hung up on the Morelli vs Ranger question, and decided to add Diesel to the mix.

The writing is of the highest quality, and I don't mind having to look up the occasional Scottish word or phrase. The mystery was very complicated and convoluted, but the ending is fantastic!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 2nd book in the Last Ditch mystery series. Lexy is Scottish and has settled on a houseboat behind the Last Ditch Motel. Lexy has found a family with the residents of this hotel and when they plan a Halloween party on her houseboat they never expected the night would end in murder. They discover a body of a man dressed in a Scottish costume tangled up in their beer line. They feel honor bound to help find the killer of this man. Are the Scottish references imply that Lexy is involved or perhaps the killer means for some of the events to involve her. Fun and zany read. Can’t wait to see what comes next with this group of characters.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lexy's back - she came to the US because of a guy, who turned out to be a rat, and now she's living on a houseboat and planning a Halloween party (oh and trying to build up her business). Things go wacky when Lexy and her friends fish a dead body out of the water- and when they investigate. This is quirky to be sure but its also a bit more over the top than the last one (which I noted at the time was a bit too much in spots). Paring away some of the joke about Scotland and language and so on would have increased the humor in the better ones. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. The mystery itself is fine and readers of cozys might enjoy this unique heroine.

[ME · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well it's not one I can recommend to just anyone. The language is foul, some of the content is past the scope of raunchy, and if you don't do "gay-speak" (meaning no offense, just noting the facts) you will not understand half or enjoy this book. I thought the story cleverly spun (typically McPherson) but honestly I prefer the... purity(?) of a good Dandy Gilver without all the other distractions. It is funny, I'll give it that, but after everything, it leaves you completely in the lurch and just ends. Literally, it's just over. So... I can't say I REALLY liked it, but I liked it for the complexity of the plot... and the live oak dying of drought and irony.

[Ursula S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very complicated, and maybe a little convoluted, mystery in this one! It wasn't too difficult to read, but I often felt like the only reason I kept reading was because I got emotionally engaged with the main characters in the first book of this series.

Some of the fun bits in the book were familiar places such as Evangeline's in Old Sacramento, and the general "landscape" of events. All quite familiar.

Some gratuitous political remarks may alienate the reader. Thankfully they weren't excessive, but I did pause a few times to wonder why the author felt they needed to be included. Unnecessary.

[Linda Millard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I very much enjoy the Dandy Gilver books by Catriona McPherson. This new series set in present day California has not started out that well with the first two books. I do give bonus points for having the body show up in the first 20 pages. The Halloween party scene with all the Last Ditch regulars was a bit of an overwhelming reintroduction to the characters. I read too many books to keep characters in mind from one prior book read over a year ago. Something that really annoyed me was the characters constantly telling each other not to say certain words or phrases that should be no problem. The over use of this redundant habit seems like a time and word waster. The idea that two of the Last Ditch residents with crippling phobias have forced their way into a business arrangement with Lexy seems ludicrous. I will be giving this series at least one more outing and hoping a great plot and less annoying behavior by everyone will make me a fan.

[Susy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book which is set in a thinly disguised rendering of my home town but I had trouble keeping track of the group of would be detectives trying to solve the mystery of a corpse that shows up in the slough after a Halloween party.
As I write this I see that perhaps I would have had a better reading experience if I'd read Scot Free, the first book in this Last Ditch Mystery series, first.
Lexy Campbell, a Scottish transplant, is a fun narrator & I loved hearing the author discuss her craft so I'll try another of her books at some point.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book… Very interesting writing and an amusing style with a lot of twists and turns that really make you question exactly what’s going on. Makes for a great mystery. The ending was just as mysterious as the first book in the series and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even trying to talk about the plot at this point would be difficult but let’s just say nothing is as it seems and none of the characters are who you think they are. I’m looking forward to a third book in the series and hope that there will be one.