Isabella Bassett

About 8 months ago, Anne and her husband moved from Boston to Ascona in Southern Switzerland, a Mediterranean town where the primary language is Italian. Anne’s husband Ben learned the language from his grandmother and speaks fluently. However, even taking an Italian class Anne still relies on her husband as a translator in many situations. A bookshop selling Italian antiquarian books captures Anne’s interest with a sign advertising for an English-speaking assistant. This position might help Anne with the language and return her confidence and self-worth.

I was fascinated by this cozy as it is the 1st time, I recall reading a cozy described by the author as "some elements are grounded in historical fact, and all of the events are historically plausible." As a mystery develops for Anne to investigate, the bookshop’s black cat reminds me of Koko assisting James Qwilleran in "The Cat Who…" series by Lilian Jackson Braun.

The one puzzling factor is a character's name is sometimes spelled Elaine and at other times spelled Elain, sometimes within the same paragraph—a curiosity it was not discovered during editing.

The series of books are marketed as fast-paced cozies to read in approximately 2 hours. I look forward to reading more of the series.… (mehr)

Anne is an American immigrant who works at a bookstore in Switzerland. One day, she watches her boss and the owner of the book store, Marco, play the card game Tarocchi with a group of local men. When some of the players are discovered dead with cards from the game next to them, Anne worries that Marco might be next.

This was a nice cozy mystery, but I didn't feel that strongly about the book (in a positive or negative way).

I liked the setting; it was fun to be transported to Switzerland and to learn a bit more about Ascona, which is the town the book is set in.

I liked how the mystery drew from real events and problems. The local men for example, are veterans of the French Foreign Legion, and the book briefly discusses their transition from active combat into civilian life.

Still, I didn't think that the mystery itself was particularly compelling. Anne happened to be involved in the mystery due to her connection to Marco and the store, but she didn't feel like a part of the mystery, if that makes sense. She does sleuth, but I also got the feeling that the police might have been able to solve the case with or without her involvement.

I also found it hard to connect to the characters. I think it's because this is the first book in the series that I read. Most cozies usually work as standalones, and this one does to an extent, but I did feel like I was thrown into the middle of Anne's story. You'd be better off starting from the beginning and working your way through the series.

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… (mehr)