ARC Review: Snow Place for Murder by Diane Kelly

Snow Place for Murder
Author: Diane Kelly
Series: Mountain Lodge Mysteries (Book 3)
Publication: St. Martin's Paperbacks (October 24, 2023)

Description: The third in the charming and engrossing Mountain Lodge mystery series by Diane Kelly, in Snow Place for Murder, the weather at the Mountaintop Lodge is truly frightful…

International resort developer Nigel Goodwin has traveled all the way from London, England to Misty Murphy’s little corner of North Carolina and bought out the Mountaintop Lodge for the week prior to Christmas. Their intention? To pitch an exclusive new resort concept to wealthy American investors.

But locals are at odds over the idea, and when a group comes to the lodge to express their worries to Mr. Goodwin and the potential investors, a blizzard hits Beech Mountain. Like the weather outside, things quickly get frosty, and Misty has to call local police to intervene. Handyman Rocky Crowder plows the lodge’s drive and, in an attempt to regain a jovial holiday atmosphere, smooths the snow pile into a makeshift sledding hill for the guests to enjoy.

Misty’s boys have finished their exams and are “home” from college for the winter break, planning to spend most of their time snowboarding at the ski resort. While taking a few runs down Rocky’s sledding hill, they discover a funny-looking, nose-shaped rock. Only it’s not a rock. It’s the frozen nose of Nigel Goodwin, who’s found dead and buried under the mound of snow.

Who put the developer on ice and why?

My Thoughts: Misty Murphy has rented out her Mountaintop Lodge to international developer Nigel Goodwin the week before Thanksgiving as he pitches a new resort to investors. Misty isn't sure that she is in favor of the new resort and quite a number of the townspeople are also opposed to it.

When Goodwin is found dead at the base of a sliding hill at the Lodge, it is first thought to be a tragic accident. However, when the medical examiner determines that he was murdered, Misty finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation again.

There is a large pool of suspects from the victim's wife to his assistant to the various investors to the disgruntled townspeople. It will take all of the police and Misty's actions to find the murderer. 

I liked the setting. I liked Misty's determination to make a new start after her amicable divorce. I liked her new relationship with Rocky. I liked her relationship with her almost grown sons and with Rocky's daughters too. I also liked chapters told from Misty's spoiled cat Yeti who has her own unique viewpoint about all the activities at the lodge.

This was an entertaining story which manages to discover the murderer and tie up all the loose plot threads before it is finished. 

Favorite Quote:

Both Jack Jr. and Mitch were tall and lean, like their father, but they had my dark hair, hazel eyes, and pale freckled skin. J.J. rushed over and reached for Yeti. I tried not to be jealous that my boys seemed more excited to see the cat than they were to see their mother, but I wasn't successful. "What am I? Chopped liver?"

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