Thursday Morning Breakfast (And Murder) Club Review

Thursday Morning Breakfast (And Murder) Club

By Liz Stauffer

Published June 28th 2013 by Sartoris Literary Group

246 pages

4 stars - Fantastic Mystery!

*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review!*

When Clare Ballard sports a new bruise on her right cheek the day after a contentious town meeting, the ladies of the Thursday Morning Breakfast Club suspect her husband Roger of abusing her. That same day Hester Franklin, another breakfast club lady, is called to rescue her grandson Patrick after he is arrested for transporting drugs. Proclaiming his innocence, Patrick threatens that those who set him up will pay. Roger Ballard is high on his list. But it's when Lillie Mae Harris, the club's leader, discovers the body of the local drug dealer on the nearby hiking trail, that the community is upended. Roger Ballard, the primary suspect, goes missing, and when his body turns up in his own back yard, Clare Ballard confesses to his murder. No one believes she did it, but Clare insists she's guilty and mysteriously refuses to talk to her lawyer, the police, or her family and friends. The Thursday Morning Breakfast Club ladies believe she's protecting someone, and they vow to find out who it is. Charlie Warren, the town's homegrown policeman, using unconventional means, collaborates with the breakfast club ladies to draw out the real criminal. But danger lurks. Alice Portman, the matriarch of the breakfast club, is struck down in her own yard and is sent to the hospital. Then others in the small community start to disappear-one after the other. As the ladies get closer to the truth, they get closer to the danger. With no time to cry over spilled coffee, they form a plan to capture the true culprits before someone else is murdered.

Review:

It's been quite a long time since I've read a mystery novel but I'm glad that I got to start again by reading this particular one. Although the title, Thursday Morning Breakfast (And Murder) Club, is long, the novel is actually a quick read. It's interesting, suspenseful and full of drama. It really is a great murder mystery.

In the small village of Mount Penn, not much violence or drama goes on. So when murders and disappearances start becoming a recurring thing, the citizens are definitely worried. Lillie Mae is the main character and very invested in the lives of the people of Mount Penn. Throughout the book she helps those in need and eventually figuring out the murder mystery. The characters in this novel were interesting and unique in their own ways. I could picture them just from the way Stauffer described them and had them act out. And I enjoyed the way they all got together to help out their friends and the police. 

One of the aspects of this novel that I enjoyed the most was probably the detail. Sometimes too much detail takes away from the book but sometimes it really sets the mood for you. Now, yes, at times I felt like the characters had unnecessary conversations or too much detail was involved, but all in all the book was written well. I could picture the early morning breakfasts and the neighbors running around learning gossip or helping out. So i did enjoy that. I also loved how, as the reader, I didn't know who the murderer was. There were small twists that would prove me to be wrong and lead me in other directions. 

All in all, this novel was a great murder mystery and really kept me intrigued. It's a quick read because you want to know the outcome and great for any fans of mystery. And if you haven't read a mystery book in awhile then this is definitely a good starting point. So if playing Clue just isn't doing it for you, make sure to check out this perfectly good mystery!

Vanessa