Uncommon Grounds gourmet coffee shop reopens in its quaint
new location at a century-and-half-old train depot. Maggy
Thorsen, half owner, rents a magnificent 5'-high, 15'-
diameter balloon in the shape of a coffee cup and saucer to
commemorate the event, along with a mime and dignitaries to
add to the celebration of their grand re-opening.
The event proceeds with few glitches, until a body is
discovered in the coffee cup. Once again, Maggy proves to
be a magnet for murder. Maggy's police chief boyfriend,
Pavlik, tackles the investigation with Maggy sleuthing on
her own. The list of suspects narrows to the victim's
husband and the victim's secret lover. Hints from well-
meaning friends suggest Pavlik might be the lover. Maggy
prays they are wrong as she pokes and prods trying to find
the answers.
This sixth Maggy Thorsen mystery continues with Ms. Balzo's
knack for portraying likable and unique characters. Her
trademark humor shines through and the mystery is solid. A
CUP OF JO is an entertaining cozy mystery!
Maggy Thorsen's heart, uncharacteristically, is swelling
with optimism.
Sure, her original Wisconsin coffeehouse, Uncommon Grounds,
was destroyed in
a freak early May blizzard. But, thanks to friend and new
business partner,
Sarah Kingston, a perfect location for its successor has
been found in a
quaint Brookhills railroad station recently revitalized by
the creation of a
commuter-rail connection between the old depot and the city
of Milwaukee,
fifteen miles east.
Maggy and Sarah hope to piggyback the grand reopening of
Uncommon Grounds on
the media coverage of Dedication Day for the train's two
terminal points.
Maggy even digs deep into her development budget and
commissions a giant
inflatable Uncommon Grounds coffee cup for the celebrations.
All seems perfectly poised for the great day, until
Brookhills' in absentia
event manager, JoLynne Penn-Williams, finally makes her
appearance - as a
corpse in Maggy's piece de resistance. . .
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