ARC Review: Fatal Festival Days by Jamie M. Blair

Fatal Festival Days
Author: Jamie M. Blair
Series: A Dog Days Mystery
Publication: Midnight Ink (November 8, 2018)

Description: It's a dog's life for Cameron when a killer threatens the Winter Festival fun

Planning activities for the Winter Festival in Metamora, Indiana, is hard work for Cameron Cripps-Hayman. Not only is she organizing dog sledding, ice sculpting, and downhill skiing events, but she's also dealing with angry protesters and a missing mascot. The last thing she needs is another mystery to solve. And yet, that's what she gets.

After a greedy landowner is found dead on top of a ski hill, Cameron scrambles to keep the reindeer games running. Then the festival's former-Olympian host is also found dead. Cameron gets the Metamora Action Agency together to investigate, but proving the victims were both murdered—and catching the killer—will take a miracle on ice.

My Thoughts: Cameron Cripps-Hayman is planning the Winter Festival in Metamora, Indiana, and waiting for something bad to happen. She says she's a pessimist, but experience has proven her right more than once. When Clayton, the man who is letting them use his land for the ski races, is found dead on the top of the hill, Cameron has to find the killer in order to save the festival. She has many suspects including a Native American group unhappy that his "ski hill" is a sacred mound. Clayton was a wheeler-dealer who made some other enemies in town too.

Before she can even get very far into her investigation, there's another death. David, the former Olympian who is the guest of honor at the festivities, is found dead stabbed by an ice pick from the ice sculpture competition.

Main characters in this one beyond Cameron are her sister Monica who has a business baking dog treats - which is useful because Cameron seems to have five rescue dogs of her own; Cameron's somewhat estranged husband Ben who is the local police officer; Cameron's Action Agency which consists of two high school seniors and two senior citizens. Throw in Clayton's family and some of his friends, Monica's dog trainer boyfriend, Ben's parents, and you have a book filled with bunches and bunches of characters.

This is the third book in a series but the first I have read. I had many, many questions as I was reading and had a hard time keeping track of the characters. I am assuming that reading the previous books would have helped keep the characters straight and answered some of my questions.

This was an entertaining mystery, but I would recommend reading the first two books before reading this one.

Favorite Quote:

I tried not to be a pessimist, but there's always a kink in the hose. When there wasn't, I walked around waiting for the sky to fall on my head. If something bad would just happen, I could get past it and not look for it. It wouldn't be the specter on the horizon.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from Midnight Ink. You can buy your copy here.