Santa, Surf and Sapphires

Life's a Beach #4

by Emerald Finn

Romance is in the air, and Charlie’s first date with Sunrise Bay’s hottest policeman is to the Yule Ball. Organised by Charlie’s unstoppable Aunt Evie, the charity ball is the town’s biggest fundraising night of the year. A dazzling sapphire necklace is the centrepiece of the auction and the bidding is fierce. But as the auctioneer’s hammer comes down, the lights in the ballroom go out. When they come back on, the necklace is gone. Aunt Evie is devastated and Charlie is determined to use her newfound detective skills to find it. The pressure is on to bring the necklace ho-ho-home for Christmas. But Charlie isn’t the only one searching for it, and the other hunters will stop at nothing to get their hands on it.

Genres: Cozy

254 pages, Paperback

Published December 23, 2022

About the author

Emerald Finn loves books, tea, and chocolate, not necessarily in that order. Oh, and dogs. And solving mysteries with the aid of her trusty golden retriever. No, wait. That last bit might be made up.

Reviews

[Phrynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is Christmas time in Sunrise Bay, the surf is up and the sapphires of the title are being worn by one elegant lady at the Yule Ball. Charley is there too on a first, special date with policeman Curtis. When the lights go out, the sapphires are stolen and Charley is determined to help the police find them.

This book, and the whole series so far, is light, easy reading and a whole lot of fun. The mystery is intriguing, the characters are friendly and the whole tale is nicely written. I have already bought book five, Family, Friends and Fatalities.

[Tari · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's hard to picture Christmas when it's sunny and bright, but it'd be a different experience that's for sure! Heck, even where I'm at in the northern hemisphere, we rarely get a white Christmas anymore, so yeah if it can't be snow, why not white sand right? Charlie sure had her hands full after some lowlife stole a necklace that'd brought a huge bid in for the local hospital's fundraiser.

But as she investigated, she found out a few things that made the case even more confusing although it eventually pointed her in the right direction. I loved the showdown! That lady who donated the necklace wasn't taking lip from anyone! She handled it great! Even though this wasn't a murder, it was still one of my fave Charlie cases. I love how she and Curtis are growing closer too! The mistletoe scene was super cute! Can't wait to borrow the next in KU when it's out.

[Terry Cerche · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lively interesting suspense til the end crime novel with continuing character development following the first novel in the series. Looking forward to the next book.