Two ex-friends. One dead body. The beach town of Eden Bay will never be the same again. A fast-paced cozy mystery series from USA Today Bestselling Author Stacey Alabaster Claire is an up-and-coming movie exec who inherited her grandma’s book store in the quiet beach community of Eden Bay. Alyson is a surf-bum who embraces the small-town, beach lifestyle. When a surfer is killed, the two ex-best friends are pulled together to solve the murder. With one killer behind bars, more soon follow. Can their rekindled friendship handle more murders or will it tear them, and Eden Bay, apart? This Hang Ten Australian Cozy Mystery Boxed Set contains all twelve books in the Hang Ten Australian Cozy Mystery series, a fast-paced series with an authentic Australian flair. If you like quirky characters and unexpected twists, you're going to love the Alyson and Claire. Stories Bodies on the Beach A Deadly Development Slaying at Sea A Time for Murder Murder and Manuscripts Homicide on the Hunt Slaying in Sydney Bitten on the Beach Milkshake Murder Dying for an Education Marriages and Murder Surfboards and Suspects Get the Hang Ten Australian Cozy Mystery Boxed Set and start solving your next mystery today! Always FREE on Kindle Unlimited
I have always loved a good mystery. From my early years watching Murder She Wrote to more recent shows like Monk, Psych, and my absolute favorite BBC show ever, Sherlock, I have studied what it takes to make an entertaining mystery. I am truly blessed to be able to write and share my own mysteries with you. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I loved writing them :)
Where to start.. Alyson Foulkes and Claire Elizabeth Richardson are poorly written and more like a couple of mean girls at high school than two over 25's running their own businesses, bringing up a niece or, just about anything. They're still scrounging free milkshakes from the café and they bicker continually, the only consistent theme being "I'm better than you!".
Several other characters change their names; Claire's boss starts as Jessica and then becomes Danielle in the next book, Byron Bryon and then back again to Byron, is it Alex Higgles or Alex Higgins? This one changes more times than I could be bothered to count.
It's unedited. Littered with errors spelling, grammar and silly typos.. at one point a cruise around "the tropical islands around Austria" is mentioned. Ok I know that she meant Australia but it's not a one off and I really expect these things to have been fixed prior to publication.
Like a previous reviewer I found myself so frustrated with the ridiculous number of errors that I went back and checked the Kindle store reviews at 2/3's of the way through.. I can only sumise that the level of literacy has severely dropped worldwide. There's a few reviews that are truthfully mentioning it but the great majority appear totally oblivious.
I continued to read, purely because I loathe leaving a purchase part read, partly because I decided to treat it as a comedy series instead.. it works better that way.. to find the scenarios becoming more and more funny, as their attempts to "solve the crimes" were not exactly either logical, practical or sensible it kind of fit. Then I was startled by some editing notes within the text.. instructions/questions to "add break here?" Seriously Stacey you need to ask for a refund if you paid for proofreading or editing services.. I really think if you at least use a simple spell check many of the issues would be picked up.. especially the random comma's in words and spelling/typing errors.
I had to stop and write my review about 65% through this collection. I have to get this off my chest. How old are Claire and Alyson? I think it says somewhere they are in their mid 20s? I swear these two women, and I use the term lightly, act like 10 year olds when it comes to dealing with emotions and each other. I would never want another friend if this is the way adults without mental deficiencies, really treated each other. These are the two most selfish, egotistical characters I have ever read about. It's like they do not know that other people have feelings or opinions. Then they kowtow to what other people tell them to do on something they should stand up for themselves. I also think that Alyson should never have alone time with J when she makes such unhealthy decisions for her. Letting a 9 year old be the one to make what should be adult choices to make is crazy. But then she does a better job than Alyson or Claire. Which isn't saying much. I'm flummoxed. I've never read a book by Stacey before, so I don't know if this is how she writes her characters all the time. It just amazes me that someone who can write such a good mystery, can write such bad dialog and characters thoughts. Just...WOW!!! Insane. Sorry I have said such horrible things Stacey... I've never written a review like this. I just don't understand. You write a really good mystery, good visuals for what sounds like a beautiful beach town, just a really all around good story line!!!! Your characters just need to grow up. The way you describe Alyson and Claire makes me think Troy and Matt are perverts for dating them. 25 year olds dating 10 year olds 😝😜. Yuk!!!
I wasn't sure I would care for the writing still but quickly got used to it. I enjoyed the quirky characters. The visual writing was wonderful. I could see it all. If you want a good, quick read this is a great choice! Always remember, just because two people are different.. doesn't mean they can't be amazing together!!! Look forward to reading more from this author!!
I thought the boxed set was very well written. The books kept my interest where I had a hard time putting the set down to get anything done. If you like cozy mysteries then I would recommend reading Stacey Alabaster's books.
I read the first book. I was interested for most of it. Then the ending came--it was like the author thought the book was long enough and just abruptly finished it. It was kind of cheesy and to quick of a resolve. I don't plan to read the other 11.
Wow! I stared with the first book and just kept going. I love the way they flowed into each other. Some twists and turns to keep it interesting. Good reads!
I truly enjoyed each h storyline. However, I get a bit frustrated by the grammar. For example, the improper use of "I" and "me". Sometimes the sentence construct is off. Maybe a be better editor would help.
I am also left wondering about some details like what exactly is going on with J's mom. Or the cause of death of victims would be helpful to know sooner. Overall, the stories are pretty good!
The 12th book is included in this omnibus but it’s very rough. Includes several editing notes of the “include section mark here?” sort and typos. It’s also oddly choppy as far as the story and is probably lacking a solid editing. Good rough idea, though, with an interesting twist to quickly wrap up the series.