Title: Mind Your Own Beeswax
Author: Hannah Reed
Publisher: May 3rd 2011 by Berkley
Format: Paperback, 292 pages
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Series: Queen Been Mystery #2
If it was not for the art of beekeeping, I am sure that would not continue with this series. There is something about bees that have always fascinated me and the apiary science within this book is interesting.
Once you get past that, you realize how ridiculous the rest of the writing is. Hannah Reed is obsessed with bullet points, really, who puts bullet points into fiction writing. Granted, there are not as many of those little bullets as in the first book, so to temper it, she has resorted to “point one” and “point two”. I do not know who would notice a difference, but to me, they are the same thing.
Then we have the sister of the main who speaks in text talk. Ms Reed calls them acronyms, but she needs to look up the definition of that word. Very few are actually acronyms, most are initialisms.
Then we have two modern day murders. Once again, the author has either has taken leave of her senses or forgot how she had dressed her main character. Who wears flip-flops through a wooded area at night? Not to mentions the same type of foot ware to climb up a ladder and onto a branch of a tree the next morning. However, my all time favorite - checking for fingerprints in woodland around a murder scene. Really, is that even possible? What would they check – bark on a tree, an errant leaf? Checking for footprints would have been better and a bit more realistic.
All this and we have not reached page 100 yet. Gee, this is going to be a long day.
Story Fischer owns a small market in Moraine, Wisconsin; known as “a hotbed of rumor and innuendo and a den of dubious drama” has hosted a candle making session. A woman in the back of the room appears familiar to Story but she cannot put a name to the face.
Later that day, upon learning of the disappearance of Lauren Kerrigan, a past resident of the town, old feelings and resentments come to the surface. Now the town is buzzing (like the bee reference) over the investigation and who is responsible for the two murders now and a vehicular homicide that had sent Lauren to prison 16’ish years before.
Shoot, did not even make it to page 200 before other glaring errors appear. First, you have to believe that a trained police dog will follow the commands of someone other than his handler, but if Story and the dog track through the wooded area on foot, how did they get in a truck to leave? Second, “AND” is not an acronym for 'Any Day Now' (pg 191) – if you noticed, the letters were transposed. Makes one ponder if proofreading was a requirement before publication of this book.
The ludicrousness of this book is overwhelming. Just because a book is within the cozy mystery category does not mean that the readers are brain dead. Respect your readers and give them a book that does not insult their intelligence.
By the end, I think I just gave up. I am sure there were more errors, but I stopped paying attention. Enough already. Time to move on.
Once you get past that, you realize how ridiculous the rest of the writing is. Hannah Reed is obsessed with bullet points, really, who puts bullet points into fiction writing. Granted, there are not as many of those little bullets as in the first book, so to temper it, she has resorted to “point one” and “point two”. I do not know who would notice a difference, but to me, they are the same thing.
Then we have the sister of the main who speaks in text talk. Ms Reed calls them acronyms, but she needs to look up the definition of that word. Very few are actually acronyms, most are initialisms.
Then we have two modern day murders. Once again, the author has either has taken leave of her senses or forgot how she had dressed her main character. Who wears flip-flops through a wooded area at night? Not to mentions the same type of foot ware to climb up a ladder and onto a branch of a tree the next morning. However, my all time favorite - checking for fingerprints in woodland around a murder scene. Really, is that even possible? What would they check – bark on a tree, an errant leaf? Checking for footprints would have been better and a bit more realistic.
All this and we have not reached page 100 yet. Gee, this is going to be a long day.
Story Fischer owns a small market in Moraine, Wisconsin; known as “a hotbed of rumor and innuendo and a den of dubious drama” has hosted a candle making session. A woman in the back of the room appears familiar to Story but she cannot put a name to the face.
Later that day, upon learning of the disappearance of Lauren Kerrigan, a past resident of the town, old feelings and resentments come to the surface. Now the town is buzzing (like the bee reference) over the investigation and who is responsible for the two murders now and a vehicular homicide that had sent Lauren to prison 16’ish years before.
Shoot, did not even make it to page 200 before other glaring errors appear. First, you have to believe that a trained police dog will follow the commands of someone other than his handler, but if Story and the dog track through the wooded area on foot, how did they get in a truck to leave? Second, “AND” is not an acronym for 'Any Day Now' (pg 191) – if you noticed, the letters were transposed. Makes one ponder if proofreading was a requirement before publication of this book.
The ludicrousness of this book is overwhelming. Just because a book is within the cozy mystery category does not mean that the readers are brain dead. Respect your readers and give them a book that does not insult their intelligence.
By the end, I think I just gave up. I am sure there were more errors, but I stopped paying attention. Enough already. Time to move on.
