Oliver Twisted by Cindy Brown

Cozy mysteries are a passion for Kerry Hammond and she has just discovered a series by Cindy Brown. Let's see what she thinks. 

Cindy Brown’s Oliver Twisted, the third in the Ivy Meadows Mystery series, was published by Henery Press in Trade Paperback. This book drew me because of the catchy title, and when I found out that all three of Brown’s books have a similarly fun play on words—Macdeath and The Sound of Murder—I just couldn’t pass up a chance to read it.

Ivy Meadows is a professional actress but is currently undercover in a production of Oliver Twist. This is no regular play, though. It’s being performed on board the literature-themed cruise line Get Lit! Ivy and her uncle have been hired to investigate a string of thefts that have been relieving the passengers of their jewelry and cash. Mingling with the passengers as a character in the play provides Ivy the opportunity to observe the ship’s staff and try and find the thief.

She thinks that her main challenge will be keeping sea sickness at bay, but quickly discovers that theft isn’t the only crime happening aboard the ship when she finds her roommate’s dead body in the wardrobe. Add a suspicious death to the theft ring and sea sickness and Ivy really has her work cut out for her.

This book is a great example of why I like to ready cozy mysteries. Many times cozies contain a great setting or revolve around a fun event. The reader gets to live vicariously through the characters, and in this case, travel on a literature-themed cruise ship that features characters pulled from the pages of a Dickens novel. Brown has dreamed up a fun and interesting scenario and sprinkled in a colorful protagonist, supporting actors, and a juicy mystery. I found myself wishing that the cruise line was real and that I could book a ticket.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review is fair and independent.