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A Chiro Cozy Mystery #1
Dr. Shine Cracks the Case
A CHIROPRACTOR, HER WISE-CRACKING COMPANION, SMALL TOWN CHARM & MURDER.
When former NYPD officer, Susannah Shine, changes careers and becomes a Chiropractor, her path leads her to the small Georgia town of Peach Grove. After she finds the body of a local restaurateur on her doorstep, the ex-NYC cop, must hunt down a list of suspects while staying one-step ahead of the detective who’s accusing her of a murder she didn’t commit.
When her BFF, Bitsy Long, forms the Ladies’ Crime Solving Club, Dr. Susannah and her staff unearth long hidden secrets via the Peach Grove Independence Day Festival.
The ChiroCozy Mystery series is light-hearted mystery series featuring humorous characters, southern charm, and recipes. If you like Janet Evanovich and Jana DeLeon, then you’ll love this series that combines their best traits in a fastpaced, can’t-put-downable adventure. Dr. Shine Cracks the Case is a 2021Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Finalist for Best Cozy
When former NYPD officer, Susannah Shine, changes careers and becomes a Chiropractor, her path leads her to the small Georgia town of Peach Grove. After she finds the body of a local restaurateur on her doorstep, the ex-NYC cop, must hunt down a list of suspects while staying one-step ahead of the detective who’s accusing her of a murder she didn’t commit.
When her BFF, Bitsy Long, forms the Ladies’ Crime Solving Club, Dr. Susannah and her staff unearth long hidden secrets via the Peach Grove Independence Day Festival.
The ChiroCozy Mystery series is light-hearted mystery series featuring humorous characters, southern charm, and recipes. If you like Janet Evanovich and Jana DeLeon, then you’ll love this series that combines their best traits in a fastpaced, can’t-put-downable adventure. Dr. Shine Cracks the Case is a 2021Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Finalist for Best Cozy
364 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 10, 2020
191 people are currently reading
450 people want to read
About the author
Cathy Tully
9 books49 followersCathy Tully is the pen name of E.C. Tully, a chiropractor and writer. She writes the Dr. Susannah Shine ChiroCozy Mystery Series. She lives in Georgia with her husband and rescue cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
December 19, 2023
This is another of many books I’ve had and wanted to read for a while. Now I wish I hadn’t waited because I really enjoyed these characters and can’t wait to read more. That Bitsy was a hoot! I’d read the prequel to the series so I was somewhat familiar with Susannah and Bitsy’s characters, but Bitsy sure was one of the best friends anyone could have as she proved in this story. I really loved Iris and Roman’s characters and hope they appear in more books in the series!
And wow, what a long and tense showdown but it moved quickly and I couldn’t read fast enough. All I can say is let’s hear it for good friends and horses! The ending was my favorite type which featured the full explanations along with food and good friends. I’ve got the next book so hopefully I can get to it soon.
And wow, what a long and tense showdown but it moved quickly and I couldn’t read fast enough. All I can say is let’s hear it for good friends and horses! The ending was my favorite type which featured the full explanations along with food and good friends. I’ve got the next book so hopefully I can get to it soon.
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August 28, 2021A LIGHT-HEARTED COZY
The book description says this is “a light-hearted cozy mystery featuring quirky small-town characters, southern charm, and recipes.” That is exactly what the book delivers, including the recipes. The author and the protagonist are both chiropractors, which makes the title of the book—“Dr. Shine Cracks the Case”—hilarious, and assures you this will indeed be a light-hearted murder mystery.
The author sketches a convincing small town in Georgia with a cast of interesting and believable characters; including Rusty, the protagonist’s trouble-making cat, and Henry the Eight, her goldfish who observes all but says little. The plot is solid, the dialog is well executed, and the mystery is probably solvable before the big reveal if you don’t get too distracted by the characters and their various machinations. My advice: let yourself get distracted.
All stories are imperfect and this one is no exception: (1) it has a big cast and I had trouble keep track of everybody, though I admit that this is probably unavoidable in a mystery novel, which needs lots of suspects, and may say more about me than about the book; (2) the protagonist’s recurring vertigo was an interesting plot device, but was perhaps overdone; (3) I kept looking for some backstory to explain Detective Withers’ fixation on the protagonist, but never got any.
This is a well-written book employing a full range of cozy mystery tropes. Cozies aren’t my favorite genre—I write science fiction—but this book was a fun read. If cozies are your thing, “Dr. Shine Cracks the Case” is worth a read.
The book description says this is “a light-hearted cozy mystery featuring quirky small-town characters, southern charm, and recipes.” That is exactly what the book delivers, including the recipes. The author and the protagonist are both chiropractors, which makes the title of the book—“Dr. Shine Cracks the Case”—hilarious, and assures you this will indeed be a light-hearted murder mystery.
The author sketches a convincing small town in Georgia with a cast of interesting and believable characters; including Rusty, the protagonist’s trouble-making cat, and Henry the Eight, her goldfish who observes all but says little. The plot is solid, the dialog is well executed, and the mystery is probably solvable before the big reveal if you don’t get too distracted by the characters and their various machinations. My advice: let yourself get distracted.
All stories are imperfect and this one is no exception: (1) it has a big cast and I had trouble keep track of everybody, though I admit that this is probably unavoidable in a mystery novel, which needs lots of suspects, and may say more about me than about the book; (2) the protagonist’s recurring vertigo was an interesting plot device, but was perhaps overdone; (3) I kept looking for some backstory to explain Detective Withers’ fixation on the protagonist, but never got any.
This is a well-written book employing a full range of cozy mystery tropes. Cozies aren’t my favorite genre—I write science fiction—but this book was a fun read. If cozies are your thing, “Dr. Shine Cracks the Case” is worth a read.
January 8, 2023
This was a strong debut to a promising cozy mystery series featuring Dr. Susannah Shine, a former NYPD transit cop who relocated to quaint Peach Grove, Georgia, to pursue a new career as a chiropractor. There are some colorful secondary characters, notably Susannah's BFF, Bitsy Long, owner of the heavily peach-themed boutique, Peachy Things.
When the story opens, Susannah responds to an alarm that has gone off at her office. While she's checking to see if the rescue cat she feeds has set it off, someone conks her on the head. When she awakens, she finds that Anita Alvarez, a local restaurant owner, is lying dead in her parking lot. Furthermore, Susannah is a person of interest in the woman's death.
The new detective in town, Varina Withers, assumes the lead on the case; she and Susannah take an instant dislike to one another. Detective Withers makes it clear she thinks Susannah is a quack, and because Susannah sells vitamins and health supplements out of her office, Withers believes the victim was poisoned by something Susannah sold her. When Susannah's assistant later collapses from poisoning, Detective Withers is ready to arrest Dr. Shine.
Determined to prove her innocence, Susannah enlists her friends and associates in sleuthing Anita's life and last movements, trying to determine who might want to kill her, how, and why. Susannah's sleuthing puts her in the path of the killer, but thanks to her ingenuity and a little help from her friends, she's able to solve the case, bring a murderer to justice, and redeem her reputation.
This novel has all the elements of a well-written cozy, and I'm happy to recommend it.
When the story opens, Susannah responds to an alarm that has gone off at her office. While she's checking to see if the rescue cat she feeds has set it off, someone conks her on the head. When she awakens, she finds that Anita Alvarez, a local restaurant owner, is lying dead in her parking lot. Furthermore, Susannah is a person of interest in the woman's death.
The new detective in town, Varina Withers, assumes the lead on the case; she and Susannah take an instant dislike to one another. Detective Withers makes it clear she thinks Susannah is a quack, and because Susannah sells vitamins and health supplements out of her office, Withers believes the victim was poisoned by something Susannah sold her. When Susannah's assistant later collapses from poisoning, Detective Withers is ready to arrest Dr. Shine.
Determined to prove her innocence, Susannah enlists her friends and associates in sleuthing Anita's life and last movements, trying to determine who might want to kill her, how, and why. Susannah's sleuthing puts her in the path of the killer, but thanks to her ingenuity and a little help from her friends, she's able to solve the case, bring a murderer to justice, and redeem her reputation.
This novel has all the elements of a well-written cozy, and I'm happy to recommend it.
October 15, 2020
I hope Dr. Shine gets a series!
I loved this story! Especially since it was written by an author new to me. I hope that it is the beginning of a cozy mystery series. Dr. Susannah Shine and her circle of friends are an entertaining group. Susannah is suspected of murder and it is killing her business and she’s not going to take it sitting idle. She decides the only way she will clear her name is to solve the murder herself. This was a clean, intriguing mystery filled with just enough red herrings to keep you guessing until the end of the story. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to readers of any age that enjoy a great mystery with a bit of humor thrown in for good measure.
I received an advance reader copy of this book from the author. This gift did not affect my review of the book. This review is my voluntary and honest opinion.
I loved this story! Especially since it was written by an author new to me. I hope that it is the beginning of a cozy mystery series. Dr. Susannah Shine and her circle of friends are an entertaining group. Susannah is suspected of murder and it is killing her business and she’s not going to take it sitting idle. She decides the only way she will clear her name is to solve the murder herself. This was a clean, intriguing mystery filled with just enough red herrings to keep you guessing until the end of the story. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to readers of any age that enjoy a great mystery with a bit of humor thrown in for good measure.
I received an advance reader copy of this book from the author. This gift did not affect my review of the book. This review is my voluntary and honest opinion.
June 14, 2023
This is the first book in a new cozy mystery series (for me), and the first one I've read with a Chiropractor in the starring role. Dr. Susannah Shine is a newcomer to the small town of Peach Grove Georgia, settling into her chiropractic practice, when she finds the owner of a restaurant dead from poison in the parking lot behind her office. A new detective set her sights on Susannah as a perfect suspect since the doctor sells certain supplements that she is sure were the source of the poison. Fortunately, Susannah, her loyal office staff and her best friend Bitsy do their own investigation to clear her name. I did not guess the perpetrator till close to the end, a very satisfying conclusion!
October 13, 2020
This is a great cozy mystery and the start of an interesting series. I haven't read cozy with a chiropractor as the protagonist, before this one and the short prequel. The main character is Dr Susannah Shine, we used to be a cop but is now a chiropractor. she moves to the tiny Town of Peach Grove, Georgia to set up shop and makes a lot of friends while she's in town. During one of the Business Association meetings. She overhears the heated conversation between the cantina owner and husband. Then the cantina owner Anita is found dead in the parking lot of Susanna's Chiropractic Clinic. And the Town's new detective think Susanna is guilty. I found this very interesting and fun to read.
October 20, 2020
I really enjoyed reading about Susannah and her BFF Bitsy They have a great quirky friendship that feels so real the reader wishes they were seated at the giant kitchen table eating peach cobbler with them. The banter and teasing that goes on among them and with Larraine and Tina is very realistic and authentic. The book captures the charm and downside to small town living quite well. Dr. Shine’s feeling of still being an outsider after all her years living there seems so accurate
The actual mystery is well written with multiple red herrings but the clues are there and you can figure the guilty party out just prior to Susannah’s epiphany. I look forward to reading more in this series
The actual mystery is well written with multiple red herrings but the clues are there and you can figure the guilty party out just prior to Susannah’s epiphany. I look forward to reading more in this series
August 25, 2022
I enjoyed reading the first book in Cathy Tully's ChiroCozy mystery series. It was fun to read a cozy that has a chiropractor as a sleuth. Dr. Susannah Shine is a former cop turned chiropractor in Peach Grove, Georgia. Her best friend is Bitsy Long, owner of Peachy Things boutique. They and a group of restaurant owners and other business owners are part of the PGBA--Peach Grove Business Association. When one of the members, Anita Alvarez, is found dead in a parking lot, Susannah has to prove to the unlikable female detective that she is innocent. This series has quirky characters that will be fun to get to know.
July 31, 2023
A Fast Read
This is a quick-moving tale of murder and attempted murder, and there are more than enough suspects to go around. When the new police officer in town sets her sights on Susannah, the town chiropractor, the threat of jail becomes all too real. The doc takes on her own investigation with the help of her bestie Bitsy, and Larraine and Tina, her loyal staff.
Every time Susannah thinks she's got it figured out, another piece of the puzzle drops. And, when word of the victim's autopsy hits, the officer's attention focuses strictly on her. She and her crew need to solve this murder quickly or she will be behind bars.
This is a quick-moving tale of murder and attempted murder, and there are more than enough suspects to go around. When the new police officer in town sets her sights on Susannah, the town chiropractor, the threat of jail becomes all too real. The doc takes on her own investigation with the help of her bestie Bitsy, and Larraine and Tina, her loyal staff.
Every time Susannah thinks she's got it figured out, another piece of the puzzle drops. And, when word of the victim's autopsy hits, the officer's attention focuses strictly on her. She and her crew need to solve this murder quickly or she will be behind bars.
December 3, 2022
I enjoyed DR SHINE CRACKS THE CASE. It has interesting characters and realistic dialogue, but I just couldn’t seem to feel a real connection to the story.
1) The mystery clues were so all over the place that I could never make any sense of them.
2) Why did the police completely ignore that the perpetrator hit her hard enough to cause a concussion? It made no sense that Dr. Shine was the primary suspect.
3) Why in the world didn’t Dr. Shine get a lawyer when she found out that she was a “person of interest” in a murder case?!
1) The mystery clues were so all over the place that I could never make any sense of them.
2) Why did the police completely ignore that the perpetrator hit her hard enough to cause a concussion? It made no sense that Dr. Shine was the primary suspect.
3) Why in the world didn’t Dr. Shine get a lawyer when she found out that she was a “person of interest” in a murder case?!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 16, 2023
Chiropractor Susannah Shine has settled into her new small town home of Peach Grove where she has opened her first chiropractic clinic. Get to know Susannah, her goofy friend Bitsy, and other fun characters in this first book of the series.
There’s a new detective in town and she’s gunning to arrest Susannah when a dead body is discovered outside the clinic. You’ll enjoy some laughs as you enjoy watching the mystery unfold.
Looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
Great mystery and easy read!
There’s a new detective in town and she’s gunning to arrest Susannah when a dead body is discovered outside the clinic. You’ll enjoy some laughs as you enjoy watching the mystery unfold.
Looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
Great mystery and easy read!
April 25, 2023
3.5 but I am rounding up because I didn't see it coming, lol (well, I guess I should say who). So kudos to the author there! (Also, new author, new backlist, yay!!)
It was interesting all the motives that were thrown out, I think everyone was really a suspect, even the cat.
I was so excited to find out there was a chiropractor cozy mystery, THERE REALLY IS A COZY MYSTERY FOR EVERYTHING!! :)
It was interesting all the motives that were thrown out, I think everyone was really a suspect, even the cat.
I was so excited to find out there was a chiropractor cozy mystery, THERE REALLY IS A COZY MYSTERY FOR EVERYTHING!! :)
February 11, 2021
Loved my time in Peach Grove with Dr. Shine and Bitsy! A fun read. The story keep the pages turning but I didn't want it to end. Cathy Tully writes with the charm of Charlotte McLeod, and captures the joie de vivre of Janet Evanovitch. Need a little escape but looking for something a notch above the rest in quality of writing and editing? This writer is for you.
January 23, 2026
This book was okay. I was very surprised on whodunit. It was well hidden. I love it when they do that. I try to solve the mystery as much as I can. Honestly the book was a bit slow at times. It wasn’t until 80% that I didn’t wanna put the book down.
It was a cute quick cozy read. Def would recommend for a light mystery. I don’t see myself continuing the series though.
It was a cute quick cozy read. Def would recommend for a light mystery. I don’t see myself continuing the series though.
October 23, 2022
This was a thoroughly enjoyable read! I loved the characters and one of them is so well done that you just love to hate her. It's so well written that it keeps you guessing until the end. All in all, a cozy mystery you'll definitely want to pick up!
February 11, 2023
Dr. Shine Cracks the Case.
A Murder mystery with a difference. A tale that keeps you guessing right up to the end. The characters are delightful, I particularly liked Bitsy Long. What a wonderful friend to have.
A Murder mystery with a difference. A tale that keeps you guessing right up to the end. The characters are delightful, I particularly liked Bitsy Long. What a wonderful friend to have.
February 22, 2023
Not Really My Cup of Tea
I do not like foul language. I don't use it. I don't like books that use it. The story was okay, but the language will prevent me from reading any more from Cathy Tully.
I do not like foul language. I don't use it. I don't like books that use it. The story was okay, but the language will prevent me from reading any more from Cathy Tully.
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October 26, 2023Interesting story
This is the first book I have read by this author. I liked the mystery part of the story best. The characters were ok but didn't really capture me or make me invested in them in any way. I may try another in the series to see if there is character growth.
This is the first book I have read by this author. I liked the mystery part of the story best. The characters were ok but didn't really capture me or make me invested in them in any way. I may try another in the series to see if there is character growth.
December 7, 2024
Silly characters
I really wanted to read this book. But I just couldn't continue reading. The characters are acting silly, not having good sense. Silly foolish behavior is not interesting.
I really wanted to read this book. But I just couldn't continue reading. The characters are acting silly, not having good sense. Silly foolish behavior is not interesting.
August 7, 2025
Unique
This high quality, unique cozy mystery is told with vibrant storytelling, compelling characters and natural sounding dialogue. The comedy and pacing carry this story along, never a dull moment.
This high quality, unique cozy mystery is told with vibrant storytelling, compelling characters and natural sounding dialogue. The comedy and pacing carry this story along, never a dull moment.
October 10, 2020
Binge-worthy❣️
Very anxious to read more . . .
Next please⁉️ More and more difficult to put down . . .
Very anxious to read more . . .
Next please⁉️ More and more difficult to put down . . .
August 2, 2022
good start to this series.
November 29, 2022
Who killed Anita and why??? Thank goodness for the find my friend app!!! I enjoyed this story and recommend the book.
December 12, 2022
I loved the characters, Bitsy is stuck in my head, we all need friends like her! I'm glad I picked this one up, can't wait to see what happens in the next book.
June 4, 2024
Beyond loved this book!! Such a fun read that was page turning and kept me on my toes. Looking forward to reading the rest of the books in this series.
July 26, 2024
Who killed Anita and why??? He wanted to prove that he was a better chef??? I enjoyed this story and recommended the book.
August 4, 2024
Great cozy mystery which include chiropractor as the main character which I really enjoyed. First time reading this author and I will be reading more of Cathy's writing.
January 25, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️It was ok, Pretty Good ! ☺️😊
This is a good book. It is quite enjoyable.I wasn’t thrilled by it, but it wasn’t a book that I disliked entirely.
This is a good book. It is quite enjoyable.I wasn’t thrilled by it, but it wasn’t a book that I disliked entirely.
April 9, 2025
Ok
I' m not a big fan of cozy mysteries but for a cozy mystery it wasn't half bad. The characters were some what interesting and were well written.
I' m not a big fan of cozy mysteries but for a cozy mystery it wasn't half bad. The characters were some what interesting and were well written.
July 6, 2025
It took me a month and a half to get into this book. There were a lot of characters thrown in at the beginning but it was a decent, cozy mystery
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews