A Dash of Death

by Claudia Bishop

Book Overview

There's bad news for Samantha Warren: the plucky Houston, Texas, reporter lost her job and her fianc? in rapid succession. But Sam has a way of making lemonade out of the bitterest of lemons. At a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425146383
• ISBN13: 9780425146385
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 5 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.2" x 6.7"

Customer Reviews

Serial murders in Hamlock Falls

In this second book of the series, Quill and her sister Meg are again entwined in running their inn (which is having cash flow problems), running their love lives (both have love interests but are not ready to be too committed to them), dealing with the goofy visitors that are part of the inn scene at this point in time, and, most importantly, trying to solve a perplexing series of murders that is affecting town residents. The whole shebang appears to start out with the arrival of a Martha Stewart take-off named Helena who films a TV series called "A Beautiful Life" In true Martha fashion this is a series that attempts to show you how to live the beautiful life with a charming hostess (Helena) who is actually a very snobbish and delightfully wicked person with the cameras turned off. Most of the humor in this book revolves around Helena meeting up with real life situations in this upstate New York community. One of the reasons why Helena is visiting the inn is that her show sponsored a contest for the design of the most beautiful plate settings and the winners are five ladies who work for the local paint plant in Hemlock Falls. The contest is worth a cool million dollars to the winners and Helena has come up to meet the winners. Although, in the beginning she thinks that there is only one as only one name is listed. Well, women who work in the paint plant are not exactly the kinds of people that Helena likes to associate with and so her nasty side tends to come out. At this point in the story, the five women start to die off or disappear. One is killed in an apparent hunting accident in the woods where Helena is walking, another dies in a hit and run "accident" and one disappears. Ths invigorates Quill and Meg to start their own research. Research which ultimately reveals other possible sources of trouble in Hemlock Falls including some shenanigans related to the paint plant. Finally, all is resolved although I must admit that I did not figure out who was the culprit until the final chapter myself. Altogether an enjoyable light read that would be perfect for summer reading at the beach.

One woman is missing and another dead.

It is discovered that Helena Houndswood, TV star of It's a Beautiful Life, is staying at The Inn at Hemlock Falls incognito. Sarah Quilliam ("Quill") and her sister Margaret Quilliam ("Meg") run the inn. Meg is the grourmet chef and Sarah is the manager. Then it is discovered that a group of women who work at the local Paramount Paint plant won the design contest sponsored by her Helena's TV show. Soon one winner is missing and another dead. Who is behind this? Helena begins to show her true colors. She is a snob with a heart of stone until the camera is rolling. Then she is all class. Could she be behind the disappearance and death?I have read the whole series of books set in Hemlock Falls. They are delightful and easy to read. I feel as if I know Quill and Meg. They always end up helping solve the crimes. Quill dates Myles the local sheriff and he doesn't approve of her help in these matters. There are many wonderful characters who work at or stay at the Inn in each of her books. Dina, the receptionist, is the one who recognizes Helena and alerts Quill. Doreen, the head housekeeper, with her many opinions and schemes often helps Quill but can also be an embarassment.Then there's the town Chamber of Commerce. Quill is the secretary, but she can't seem to take readable notes. The Chamber is always sticking their two cents into the mix. In this book they set up the Little Miss Falls beauty contest and attempt to get Helena to cover it on her show.Quill gets herself into many situations while looking into the disappearance and death. The plot is very well written and the setting is beautifully described. I would love to go there for a stay. I highly recommend this book as well as the whole series. They are great!

More Fun Than The First!

I liked the way Ms. Bishop built up her characters in this book. But mainly I really enjoyed the humor. I had fun finding the nods to Miriam Monfredo and the scattered quotes from my much loved Shakespeare. (Although I missed any Gilbert & Sullivan references this time!) I cook for a living and can relate to Meg and her wrath toward the uninvited in her kitchen. Though I had mixed feelings about Quill giving up her art entirely in the first book; I am glad to see her sketching again. I also like the recurring town characters and am glad she has'nt killed them off. (yet!)

A celebrity guest comes to the Inn

Sarah Quilliam is used to tempermental guests but even she becomes impatient with Helena Houndswood. Helena has a tv show called "It's a Beautiful Life" and she fancies herself an expert on the subject. She conducts a contest on her show in which people compete to design the most attractive table ware. The winners are five women who work at a paint company near the Inn at Hemlock Falls. When Helena meets them she is distressed to see that these ladies do not live up to her expectations of people who are leading "a beautiful life". She threatens to keep them from collecting the million dollar prize money, but the ladies have other ideas. Suddenly the prize winners begin to show up dead or presumably missing. Helena is a prime suspect, but so are the other guests at the Inn. Quill is determined to find the murderer, but as usual she goes off in the wrong direction before the actual murderer is revealed. This is a well-written, enjoyable mystery.

Surprise Ending! Not what I expected. Kept me wondering.

I enjoyed the book and thought I had figured out at least who the "bad guy" was. But I was wrong. The plot was well laid out and kept my interest.