Living Vicariously Has a New Meaning
by Character Lyndy Ellsworth from Broadcast 4 Murder
I should never have told Phee Kimball that I enjoyed living vicariously through her exploits as an amateur sleuth. The minute those words slipped out of my mouth, I saw the look on her face. She was determined to make me her partner in crime, or should I say, crime solving?
I’m Lyndy Ellsworth, and like Phee, I’m a forty-something transplant to sunny Arizona. I moved out west when my husband passed away unexpectedly and I needed to start a new life in a new place. I choose the West Valley of Phoenix for two reasons – the climate and the fact that my wacky aunt resides in the retirement community of Sun City West. Yep, family is family. I work for a medical insurance billing company and given the amount of paperwork I deal with, I can safely say I have some degree of job security.
Phee and I live near each other in Vistancia and are veritable fish when it comes to water. We met at the community pool and are the only diehards in the dead of winter when the temps hit fifty degrees. That’s about as daring as I wanted to get, but Phee had an uncanny way of luring me into her sleuthing. First, as her sounding board, and now, as her, well…unwitting assistant?
This time wasn’t really that bad. All I had to do was sift through some old yearbooks in the archival section of the Glendale Public Library under the scrutiny of a not-so-likable librarian. At least the reward was well worth it – Giant pretzels at Haus Murphy’s German restaurant and the satisfaction that we may have found the killer Phee was looking for.
Poking around libraries and sifting through social media are innocuous enough. I mean, who hasn’t done their fair share of snooping around? But sometimes Phee’s feats are a bit unnerving. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for role-play when it’s a theater production, but in Phee’s case she could have won the Academy Award for impersonating someone who was looking to hire a cleaning service. Still, that wasn’t gross, like the time she went dumpster diving to find a clue. If I followed her lead, I’d need a whole new wardrobe, beginning with running shoes instead of wedge heels.
The worst, however, were the times she literally had to escape from maniacal killers – once on stage during a production, another time in a spa where the sound of water covered her screams, and even in a car whose driver was way too familiar with dark desert roads. If I were to follow her lead, I’d need to purchase one of those umbrella policies from an insurance company to cover heaven-knows-what.
And yet, here I am, chomping at the bit waiting for another frantic phone call from her begging me to poke around in places that are usually best left undisturbed. Living vicariously may have its advantages but there’s nothing quite like the rush of discovering a piece of evidence in someone’s kitchen that may point directly to a murderer. And while I’m no amateur sleuth, I can rest assured, I’m the best amateur sleuth’s sidekick in the West Valley.
Broadcast 4 Murder (Sophie Kimball Mystery)
by J.C. Eaton
Reviews from the tour . . .
There were two very well written mysteries in this book. A few twists and red herrings that were perfectly paced and plotted.
~Miss W Book Reviews
I love this series. Phee and Harriet are so wonderfully thought out with these funny quirks . . . I highly recommend this book for all cozy mystery fans out there.
~Baroness’ Book Trove
Full of quirky characters that provide all sorts of entertainment that makes for a pleasurable read as the clues play out. The quirky dog is just the cherry on top of the cake. A great read for cozy fans with a surprise at the very end.
~Books a Plenty Book Reviews
There’s plenty of chuckles and mystery too that will keep you turning the pages.
~My Reading Journeys
This was such a fun mystery and Phee was absolutely delightful. The mystery was well-written and I had no idea who the killer was until the end.
~Moonlight Rendezvous
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