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Ella Westin Mystery #3
Toxic Train
When a fellow train passenger is murdered right in front of her eyes, newlywed Ella Westin thinks it's great that all the suspects are trapped with her. But when she can't check out backgrounds or confirm motives - or lack of - she soon finds herself in over her head.
Then an unthinking Joe seems more determined to sabotage Ella's efforts than the murderer. Will she be able to solve the case before a second death occurs? Did the murderer engineer too good a crime for even Ella's skills? Can she track the criminal or will she be derailed before she can put her plan in motion? If the couple survive, is this just the beginning of a toxic relationship?
This is the third story in the Ella Westin Mysteries.
19,968 words.
Then an unthinking Joe seems more determined to sabotage Ella's efforts than the murderer. Will she be able to solve the case before a second death occurs? Did the murderer engineer too good a crime for even Ella's skills? Can she track the criminal or will she be derailed before she can put her plan in motion? If the couple survive, is this just the beginning of a toxic relationship?
This is the third story in the Ella Westin Mysteries.
19,968 words.
ebook
First published May 27, 2012
1 person want to read
About the author
Jennifer Oberth
16 books27 followersJennifer Oberth is a sweet, gorgeous, intelligent gal with a great sense of humor. She likes long walks on the beach.
Oh, this is an Author Bio? In that case…
Ahem,
Jennifer Oberth is a sweet, gorgeous, intelligent gal with a great sense of humor. She likes to take long walks on the beach where she thinks up delicious ways to murder people and give them motives, means, opportunities and fake alibis.
Don't randomly ask her what she's thinking because she'll tell you. She doesn't want a repeat of that time she was with a group of strangers and she blurted out her frustration at her car. "How on earth am I expected to kill somebody in the woods without being seen when I can't turn off the automatic headlights?"
She didn't know why they shrank back and gave her a wide berth the rest of the evening.
She didn't know why no one offered advice to get around this tricky annoyance.
It's a coincidence she then started writing cozy mysteries set in 1875…
Jennifer Oberth (the sweet, gorgeous, intelligent gal with a great sense of humor) has two cats (Copper & Outlaw). When she's not at work, cursing the computer when it doesn't work, she can be found at home, cursing the computer when it doesn't work.
She has written five short stories ('Married To Murder', 'Honeymoon Homicide', 'Toxic Train', 'Mr. E in Cabin 187' and 'Georgia Meets Virginia') and a novel ('Masked Rider: Origins'), all mysteries.
*****
Evelyn David, author of the Sullivan Investigations Mysteries had this to say about 'Married to Murder':
"Married To Murder is a fun whodunit with snappy dialogue and a tongue-in-cheek delivery of the plot. Mystery readers should enjoy this story - I know I did."
*****
Jamie Freveletti, author of Running From the Devil, winner of the Lovey Award & 'Best First Novel' by the International Thriller Writers & Barry Award for 'Best Thriller', had this to say about 'Married to Murder':
"Jennifer Oberth's Married To Murder is a fresh and quirky new addition to the cozy historical mystery scene. Ella Westin is a witty and determined sleuth and Oberth's writing is wonderfully comedic."
Oh, this is an Author Bio? In that case…
Ahem,
Jennifer Oberth is a sweet, gorgeous, intelligent gal with a great sense of humor. She likes to take long walks on the beach where she thinks up delicious ways to murder people and give them motives, means, opportunities and fake alibis.
Don't randomly ask her what she's thinking because she'll tell you. She doesn't want a repeat of that time she was with a group of strangers and she blurted out her frustration at her car. "How on earth am I expected to kill somebody in the woods without being seen when I can't turn off the automatic headlights?"
She didn't know why they shrank back and gave her a wide berth the rest of the evening.
She didn't know why no one offered advice to get around this tricky annoyance.
It's a coincidence she then started writing cozy mysteries set in 1875…
Jennifer Oberth (the sweet, gorgeous, intelligent gal with a great sense of humor) has two cats (Copper & Outlaw). When she's not at work, cursing the computer when it doesn't work, she can be found at home, cursing the computer when it doesn't work.
She has written five short stories ('Married To Murder', 'Honeymoon Homicide', 'Toxic Train', 'Mr. E in Cabin 187' and 'Georgia Meets Virginia') and a novel ('Masked Rider: Origins'), all mysteries.
*****
Evelyn David, author of the Sullivan Investigations Mysteries had this to say about 'Married to Murder':
"Married To Murder is a fun whodunit with snappy dialogue and a tongue-in-cheek delivery of the plot. Mystery readers should enjoy this story - I know I did."
*****
Jamie Freveletti, author of Running From the Devil, winner of the Lovey Award & 'Best First Novel' by the International Thriller Writers & Barry Award for 'Best Thriller', had this to say about 'Married to Murder':
"Jennifer Oberth's Married To Murder is a fresh and quirky new addition to the cozy historical mystery scene. Ella Westin is a witty and determined sleuth and Oberth's writing is wonderfully comedic."
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 30, 2017
The saga of Ella Westin continues. I love Ella!
January 9, 2024
The newlyweds Ella and Joe Westin are riding the train coming home from their honeymoon. There has been a murder. No vacation can win over that.
In the third “Ella Westin” installment, Jennifer Oberth writes a murder mystery “whodunnit” with the usual level of humorous circumstances, creating a world where a woman can boss around a bunch of male suspects without them incurring the usual prejudices. Well, they can try, but against Ella, they don’t stand a chance.
If you haven’t read the previous “Ella Westin” stories, you can start with this one; the story is so well-written that it welcomes new readers, as no prior knowledge of the characters is needed to follow the rhythm.
If you enjoy the murder mystery genre, you will love this short story.
In the third “Ella Westin” installment, Jennifer Oberth writes a murder mystery “whodunnit” with the usual level of humorous circumstances, creating a world where a woman can boss around a bunch of male suspects without them incurring the usual prejudices. Well, they can try, but against Ella, they don’t stand a chance.
If you haven’t read the previous “Ella Westin” stories, you can start with this one; the story is so well-written that it welcomes new readers, as no prior knowledge of the characters is needed to follow the rhythm.
If you enjoy the murder mystery genre, you will love this short story.
February 14, 2014
Ella Westin is a young newlywed on a train ride with her new husband, Joe, meeting new people and trying to enjoy what should be a peaceful journey. However, with her typical luck, Ella must solve a murder that occurs right before her eyes. Poison hides somewhere on the train, waiting to eliminate anyone who uncovers too much of the murderer's plot. Can Ella protect her hapless husband, Joe? Can she fool her fellow passengers long enough to prevent another murder and stop the culprit?
Jennifer has created an exciting mystery with an interesting surprise. Ella's unique personality and approach to life in a time where women held second-class status gives the tale a modern feel.
I haven't read any other books in this series, but I could still enjoy the story and understand the characters and plot without that background. Hints appeared to previous adventures, which interested me but didn't detract from the story at hand.
I was surprised and disappointed to find almost no character or scene description in Toxic Train. Too much description is a problem I see most often, but I do need enough to know roughly what characters look like, how old they are, and how to distinguish one from the other. Jennifer's characters managed well with scant description, which is an accomplishment, but the missing scenery gave a hasty and dry feeling to a tale that could have had so much more richness to it. Without any description, the story lost its historical feel and blended into any other time period. A large part of my enjoyment in reading historical fiction is the transport to another time and the things I learn from it.
I'm not one to try to guess "whodunit" before the story ends, but I'm also not one to ignore the possibility. I didn’t guess ahead of time, and I enjoyed the surprise and the ensuing adventure that the killer's identity prompted. Toxic Train is a fun and entertaining read with some good challenges to convention to make the reader think, fun setting, and interesting mystery.
I approve this title for Awesome Indies. http://awesomeindies.net
I received this book from the author for the purposes of an unbiased review.
Jennifer has created an exciting mystery with an interesting surprise. Ella's unique personality and approach to life in a time where women held second-class status gives the tale a modern feel.
I haven't read any other books in this series, but I could still enjoy the story and understand the characters and plot without that background. Hints appeared to previous adventures, which interested me but didn't detract from the story at hand.
I was surprised and disappointed to find almost no character or scene description in Toxic Train. Too much description is a problem I see most often, but I do need enough to know roughly what characters look like, how old they are, and how to distinguish one from the other. Jennifer's characters managed well with scant description, which is an accomplishment, but the missing scenery gave a hasty and dry feeling to a tale that could have had so much more richness to it. Without any description, the story lost its historical feel and blended into any other time period. A large part of my enjoyment in reading historical fiction is the transport to another time and the things I learn from it.
I'm not one to try to guess "whodunit" before the story ends, but I'm also not one to ignore the possibility. I didn’t guess ahead of time, and I enjoyed the surprise and the ensuing adventure that the killer's identity prompted. Toxic Train is a fun and entertaining read with some good challenges to convention to make the reader think, fun setting, and interesting mystery.
I approve this title for Awesome Indies. http://awesomeindies.net
I received this book from the author for the purposes of an unbiased review.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews