Without a Clue by Melissa Ferguson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**3.5-stars rounded up **
Without a Clue is a light and funny Romantic Cozy Mystery from Melissa Ferguson. I’ve never read from Ferguson before, so I didn’t know what to expect going in.
I was initially drawn to this because of the cover, and then was hooked by the fact that it’s set on a Book Cruise, like what do you mean? A Book Cruise!? I needed to know more.
This story follows Pip Dupont, a Personal Assistant for a very famous Mystery author, Hugh Griffin. Hugh and six of his author friends, each from a different genre, make up a writing group known as The Fabulous Seven.
Pip organizes a Book Cruise, where the Fabulous Seven will be the guests of honor, a bit of a writing retreat for them, and then the rest of the cruise guests are fans, who want an opportunity to meet these beloved authors.
Hence, the Book Cruise is born.
Pip plays the role of frazzled assistant well, because that’s exactly what she is. With hundreds of devoted Readers, and seven headstrong authors to keep track of, it’s a lot.
Pip never expected the disaster that occurs on the second-day though, when Hugh is found murdered.
Cruising in the midst of the Atlantic ocean, with no help close at hand, and a cruise security force that’s clearly inept, it’s up to Pip to figure out who the culprit is. Their Book Cruise has suddenly turned into a Murder Mystery cruise.
Aided by her friend, and crush, Nash, a successful author of Western novels, Pip digs in deep, questioning the others and trying to navigate the complex relationships and sensitive egos of the authors, all with a killer on board.
This is a really cute Cozy Mystery. It went in a direction I hadn’t expected, and I did really enjoy the Book Cruise setting and the cast of characters. The various authors brought humor and fun, and Pip was a great MC to follow.
My reading experience was definitely enhanced by the fabulous narration of Karissa Vacker, one of my all-time favorite narrators. I would definitely recommend the audiobook if you’re going to pick this up.
I would say even for a Cozy Mystery, this is very low stakes, so it’s perfect for weekend or vacation reading, when your mind just wants something light.
I liked having the romantic tension between Pip and Nash as well. I don’t tend to mix Romance with my Cozies, but it worked here. Nash was a fun love interest and I felt like the relationship felt very natural, as they’d known each other for a while due to the Fabulous Seven.
While this won’t standout as a long-term favorite, I didn’t need it to be. It gave me exactly what I was looking for when I picked it up, and I can only praise it for that.
Thank you to the publisher, Thomas Nelson Fiction, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This was very enjoyable and I would be interested in picking up more from Melissa Ferguson!