Published 2013

Summary

Tabitha runs a popular cafe in Hobart, Tasmania. It’s popular with local hipsters, but also with the local police force. When a dead body is found in a hanging trap on the top floor of her building, she can’t help but be curious. It seems that there’s an obvious link to the local trapper who has recently caught, though not injured, a cat and a postal worker. With the help of a blogging Scotsman and some other highly entertaining friends, she starts investigating, but soon discovers she might be touching a nerve.

My Thoughts

It was a very well-crafted mystery. There was an abundance of red herrings and clues. Because the story had several miniature mysteries going on simultaneously, it was hard for Tabitha (and the reader) to figure out what was connected to the death and what wasn’t. I did not guess who was responsible for the murder until it was actually revealed, and I love to be surprised!

What Else I Liked

• The characters! I adored Tabitha – her wit, her fashion sense, her cooking, her weakness for men with accents. Her friends – Stewart, Darrow, Zee, and Ceege, were all fabulous. Even the minor characters were very well-developed and had unique characteristics that made them memorable – Kevin, the boy genius, and Bev, the traditional grandmother who crafted delicious pornographic pastries, were two of my favorites.

• The banter between the characters was laugh out loud funny. In fact, that was one of my favorite things about the book. I enjoyed the characters so much that I would have enjoyed the read even without the mystery.

• Hobart was so well described that when I googled it to learn more I felt like I recognized the pictures.

• There are delicious recipes in the back of the book.

What I Didn’t Like

• It went from light-hearted cozy mystery to a dark, twisted psychological mystery really quickly. So, while I loved 95% of the book, I would say 5% was quite creepy. In a way, Tabitha’s presence kept it from getting really dark because her personality is so fun and optimistic, but it felt really out of balance with the light, cozy atmosphere of the rest of the book. I don’t enjoy psychological thriller-type mysteries, so that was unexpected and less fun.

• There may be a romantic triangle starting and I normally hate that in a mystery because it distracts from the puzzle. However, in this case, it has so far been well-written and there isn’t a lot of angst. It’s very light hearted and even funny, so I will keep an open mind and see where it leads. 

Potential Triggers/Upsetting Events

This review was adapted from one that I wrote in 2013. I haven’t had a chance to re-read it recently so I can’t say what, if any, triggers may exist here.

If you know of any, please let me know in the comments.

Rating 4/5

About the Author

Livia Day is the pseudonym for Tansy Rayner Roberts, an author and podcaster living in Tasmania. She uses the name Livia Day for her Cafe La Femme and Fashionably Late Books. Tansy sold her first novel at the age of 19 and has been writing ever since across a variety of genres.

To learn more about her and her books, check out her website here.

If you sign up for her newsletter, she will send you a free short story. You can read my review of Curse of Bronze here.