Title: Love Notes in the Key of Sea
Series: Georgie Shaw Cozy Mystery
By: Anna Celeste Burke
ISBN: 9781530991778
Website: desertcitiesmystery(.)com
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra
Summary:
Love Notes in the Key of Sea, Georgie Shaw Cozy Mystery #2 Georgie Shaw and Detective Jack Wheeler have a second chance at love-despite the fact they met during a murder investigation. Decades earlier, Georgie lost the love of her life in an attack on the beach that left one man dead and two others missing including her fiancé, Danny Farrell. When Georgie returns to Corsario Cove, more than memories haunt her as a song Danny wrote just for her echoes in the air: Love Notes in the Key of Sea. Who else, other than she and Danny could know that song? A new mystery brought Georgie and Jack together, will an old one drive them apart?” (Goodreads)
Review:
I am happy to report that Ms. Burke has kept up the high standard she set with the first book in the series Murder at Catmmando Mountain. I thoroughly enjoyed Love Notes in the Key of Sea.
Love Notes in the Key of Sea begins with the reader being immersed in the developing on-going relationship between Georgie Shaw and detective Jack Wheeler. This reader quickly feels like this couple is one to root for! Here is hoping this fledgling relationship can flourish (but first, Georgie must overcome feelings from a prior relationship). As the story begins, the daughter (Meredith) of a family friend (Jennifer Dodson) is attacked and this event brings back memories for Georgie as to a similar event she lived through in her youth.
Soon after discovering that Meredith had been attacked, Georgie seems to lose it…but I must say, Jack’s discourse has me loving him even more:
“It’s as though something suddenly swallowed me up and I couldn’t finish that sentence.” Then Jack responds “Because you went through something similar at Meredith’s age. What exactly, I don’t know, do I? Every time the subject comes up, you slip away, then go silent. It’s like a ghost story. Only the ghost is the part of you that steals away to Corsario Cove whenever something sets off your memories of the event. You’re otherwise one of the smartest, most with-it women I’ve ever met, and yet you carry this secret around with you like Marley’s chain. Not your boss Marley. But that ghost in the Dickens Christmas story. I…I’m going to shut up. We’ve been through this before, and I don’t want to make you feel worse since you’re obviously upset. When you’re ready to talk, I’m here.”
As the story unfolds, we do learn the why with respect to Georgie losing it and it then makes sense. We get the courtship story of Georgie and Danny (her fiancé) as she tells Jack about her past – including stories of her now deceased mother and father. I must say – I like reading the history of Georgie. It provided some much needed depth to this main character!
The current attack triggers memories for Georgie that have been long suppressed. Both Georgie and Jack work as a team in this story to solve the mystery of that long ago fateful night on the beach when Georgie was injured and lost her memory of that particular night as well as her first love. What a tale!
I found the story easy to read, lots of content and very emotionally moving. All that in a short 100-page story. I cannot wait for the continuation of this series. I look forward to seeing further developments in the relationship between Georgia and Jack once they return to Marvelous Marley World.Anna Celeste Burke knows how to craft a story. Usually I find novella length stories without sufficient depth to the characters and am left wanting. This is NOT the case with this author’s writing. I love her writing style and the way she tells a story. It leaves me wanting to continue on with the series. Thank you for penning such an incredible series and I look forward to the next book – All Hallows’ Eve Heist.
