Review | A Highly Suspicious Death by Laura Pauling
Laura Pauling delivers a fun beachfront romp in A Highly Suspicious Death
I love a fun and silly cozy mystery. From goofy character names to awkward romantic moments to over the top secondary characters to off the wall idiosyncrasies, Laura Pauling hits all the best notes in A Highly Suspicious Death.
Devon Despicable (and he is at first) is an art gallery owner dealing in Treasure paintings. The book opens with Devon spotting a body washed up on the beach in front of his house. This is a semi-regular occurrence due to treasure hunters drowning near his home. Devon is so used to bodies washing up on his shore that he waits to call the authorities and is genuinely bothered by having to deal with it at all.
The body turns out to be that of Frances Lovely (and she is too), but she is far from deceased. Fran washes up in a suspicious red-stained wetsuit, a bloody wrench, and no memory. But Fran isn’t the only body to wash up that morning.
William Waterford (sounds rich, and that’s sort of correct) washes up and ends up being a bonafide dead body. Devon, whose planning a gala for the sale of a new Treasure painting is doubly put out by having a second body wash up in one day. Afraid that his go-to detective will be suspicious and try to implicate him in wrongdoing, Devon convinces Fran to help him move the body so no partygoers stumble upon it. Fran is then tasked with hiding old Waterford while Devon prepares for the gala.
Early the following morning, they move the body back to the beach, call the detective, and head out to feign surprise. When they arrive, three unknown people are standing around the body. The first is an overdressed woman by the moniker of Florence Flaverly. She claims to be Waterford’s lover, and quite possibly a failed actor by her theatrics. Another of the strangers is a snooty French chef who is dolled up in his kitchen whites and tall hat. I’m not sure his character has a real name. Everyone refers to him as Chef. The last is hired biographer Joe Smith who is so one dimensional his character could have been a poster of a writer taped to the wall for all he adds to the story. I feel like Pauling felt like she needed a third suspect to round out the suspicion so she threw Joe Smith into the mix.
Like before, the detective shows up and this time sticks around to actually question people. Let’s take this moment to chat about the detective. I’m not sure how to feel about his character. He seems like he’s up to something, almost like a double agent with the way he treats Fran like they know each other, but Fran can’t remember him. He also comes off as a creep when he forces her to go on a date with him.
While all of this is going on, there’s a second, parallel plot happening “Sometime close to but probably not in the golden era of pirates.” Here we met Lucy Von Stratton and Lord Edward, two young adults whose once wealthy families are now destitute. Their families have arranged to have them marry so as to pull the other out of debt. Unbeknownst to the other side, neither will be able to do this. Luckily, it turns out that through a bit of fun and mistaken identity, Lucy and Edward end up liking each other and set sail on the high seas in search of adventure.
Edward’s and Lucy’s story is by far my favorite plot in A Highly Suspicious Death. I love Lucy’s unconventional mindset for a young woman in, let’s say, the 1700s. Edward as well is unconventional in that he wants a wife who is his equal in spirit and intellect.
As this is the first book in a series, much of the later books are set up, leaving much of the story to still be discovered. While it’s not expressly stated, the story alludes to Lucy and Edward being the owners of said treasure everyone is hunting, and the reason for Devon’s Treasure paintings, which are supposed to hold the key to finding the loot. I’m not sure who the authors of said paintings are or where Devon gets them. That is never explained. It’s all intentionally vague.
Pauling does an amazing job reeling the reader in. I’m not one for series, but with this is one I want to know more. I want to know what happens to Lucy and Edward. See if the treasure is discovered. Find out who authored the paintings and how Devon has them. So many questions to be answered, and I want to know who, what, when, and how, darn it!
I would highly recommend A Highly Suspicious Death to those who like a fun quick read. Pauling’s narration is fast-paced and enjoyable. She doesn’t spend too much time on romance but instead makes romantic interactions more like how they are in real life, especially when dealing with damaged folks. The narrative has some heavy points but balances out with a lighthearted tone. Make sure that if you decide to pick this one up, you have the next one at the ready. You won’t want to stop.
