This is the second book in the Mack's Bar Mystery Series and I enjoyed it even though it was very different from the first one. Mackenzie "Mack" Dalton is a Milwaukee bar owner with Synesthesis. This is a real disorder that gives her extra senses and her own senses a boost, for example when you smell something you might hear a sound, or when you see something you might smell an odour.

In this book, Mack has become involved with the Detective she met in the last book. Duncan has been testing Mack's extra senses and hopes to use her skills to help solve some of the crimes he has to solve. When she goes with him to the home of a suicide victim, she tells him it was not a suicide, but a murder. While he introduces her to the persons of interest as his assistant, she listens, observes and gives him enough information to solve the case. When a second case pops up, where a woman is killed and her child is missing, he again engages Mack in the investigation, especially with time being of the essence when a missing or kidnapped child is involved.

Of course, once again all the quirky patrons of Mack's bar add interest to the story. There are new characters in the story as Mack's bar has become a police hangout as well as a new "Capone Club" starting where people come to solve riddles that are composed by various members. Cora plays a big part in this book with helping to solve the missing child mystery. Unfortunately at the end of the book, Duncan is disciplined for involving Mack in the investigation and he tells her that they can not see each other for awhile. Will this be the end of their relationship? Only time will tell.

I will definitely make more visits to Mack's Bar to see what is in store for Mack, Duncan and the rest of the gang at the bar! This is definitely a book I would recommend to cozy mystery fans! Of course the recipes for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks at the back of the book are a plus and look delicious. ( )

I really liked this one. Allie's synesthesia (a neuropsychological trait in which the stimulation of one sense causes the automatic experience of another sense) adds a fresh twist on the amateur detective and the author combines police procedural into the mix too. Anyone familiar with police investigations might find it hard to suspend disbelief enough to enjoy Allie's working with the police, but my unfamiliarity worked in my favor.

There's a lot going on in this book, arguably too much, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Allie's bar regulars have created a "crime club" and each day has a different theme (murder, vandalism, fraud) with fictitious crimes, puzzles and riddles to solve. I liked this idea, but it might have worked even better had the author used fewer of them (there were at least 3 I can remember).

The author doesn't focus on just one crime in Murder with a Twist. There are two that Allie assists Duncan with, one after the other. I liked this deviation from the common, bog-standard formula of just one crime or multiple crimes that ultimately tie together. Admittedly, the first mystery isn't complicated or drawn-out, but it still shook my expectations up and I appreciated that. The second crime that took up most of the book was excellently crafted and plotted and I liked the ending even more for its lack of TSTL decisions.

This is definitely a cozy, but it's a more mature one than the standard today, with slightly heavier subject matter and much less chipper dialog. Readers who don't like the cutesy cozies might enjoy this one if they're seeking lighter fare than their normal thriller/suspense reads. I am eagerly anticipating the third book. ( )

I was hesitant to continue with this series after being split about Murder On the Rocks, the first book in this series. I felt very much the same about Murder with a Twist by Allyson K. Abbott.

First of all, this is a themed cozy with a bar theme, but the bar atmosphere takes a backseat. Interesting, since I remember one of my biggest complaints in the first book was that there were no scenes that took place out of the bar! Can we get a happy medium here?

This go around the protagonist, Mackenzie "Mack", spends a lot of time following her love interest, Duncan, around while he is on the job as a police detective. Mack is an active consultant to the investigation and using her medical condition, synesthesia, as a tool. Synesthesia is a real life disorder in which the bodies senses are all cross circuited, so Mack can taste smells, see sounds, etc. This lead to the most annoyingly boring storytelling! On and on about something tasting bitter, salty, sweet... It was all the same after awhile and so repetitive. I can't imagine having the disorder. Just hearing about Mack's experiences were enough to drive me mad.

It is really too bad that synesthesia takes over so **** much, because at first it appeared like it might be a cool skill for an amateur sleuth to have. It had sort of a Monk super observant skills feel for a time. I guess this is just a case of too frickin' much of a good thing.

The romance is bland...Just wasn't feelin' it. The writing was alright, but of the variety that left me feeling like I was being told rather than feeling like I was present. ( )

I received this book as a goodreads first-read giveaway. It was a fun cozy mystery. The main character has a unique gift that is interesting to read about. Unfortunately, there was a lot going on, a little too much. Between the huge cast of secondary characters and the 'fake mysterys' that they try to solve, the main mystery gets a little lost. ( )