Book Review: Room Service and Murder

By Sara Steven

There's never a dull day working in the hotel industry. Drug busts, arrests, plenty of clandestine escapades, and parties so wild they'd put fraternities to shame. The last thing Casey Cooper expected was to walk into a guest room and discover the lifeless body of her friend.

Though all signs point to a self-inflicted death, Casey doesn't believe it. On a truth-seeking journey to find justice for her friend, suddenly everyone looks like a suspect. Could it be the former child actress, the over-worked assistant, a long-lost relative, or even the delicious new manager who always seems to be distracting Casey from her mission to find her friend's killer?

Can Casey find the truth before the body count rises and she becomes the next victim? (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads)

I’m no stranger to Melissa Baldwin’s books, but this was my first in her Cozy Mystery series, and I have to say, it was a lot of fun! With chaos and intrigue at every turn, I never knew for sure what Casey would find in her quest to clear her friend’s reputation. In one breath, I thought for sure I knew who the culprit was, yet something else would happen that would throw me off the trail.

There was real emotion and truth behind Casey’s reaction, in finding someone she loves, dead. While it might have been too easy to portray Casey as an overly emotional wreck, that didn't happen here. Given the person she is and the responsibilities she has in running a hotel, the shock and want and need to return to work and carry on with what’s normal for her made Casey appear to be an even more realistic character, during a time in her life where nothing is normal. It lends into the depths she chooses to go to, even putting her own life at risk, to find out what really happened.

I also felt that vein of honesty in the budding relationship between Casey and her new boss. There were clear limits set by both characters, and in the moments where I felt there would be no possibility for the two of them to connect, there were hints towards a potential relationship. And yet, just when I thought they would take the plunge, nothing would happen. It really kept me on my toes, where the romantic angles in Room Service are concerned.

Given the mystery, the unknowns that lurk within the hotel shadows, strong, well written, well developed characters and the splashes of romance thrown in for good measure, Room Service and Murder is a well deserving, five star read!

Thanks to Melissa Baldwin for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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