Dead Ahead is the first book in The Ruthless the Killer Mystery series.
I thought the series name was a typo when I first saw it, but it’s not: Ruth Smythe’s unfortunate nickname is Ruthless the Killer. It’s inaccurate (as she—and we—will learn). But, as Ruth says, logic rarely stands a chance against the ghosts of the past.
Ruth has returned to Australia from the USA to the stone cottage she has recently inherited from her father. She’s looking for peace and quiet, but events get in the way: she’s barely moved in before someone is murdered in her barn. And things basically go downhill from there.
Dead Ahead is the first book in what promises to be an enjoyable cozy mystery series. Sure, it has the inevitable “problem” of all cozy mystery series: the unrealistic ratio of murderers (and victims) to regular people (is there anyone still alive in Midsomer?). But let’s be honest—that’s why we read cozy mysteries.
Dead Ahead has everything cozy mystery readers want.
A small town setting, complete with quirky townsfolk. A slow-burn not-there-yet promise of romance between Ruth and the local hunk. The ex-girlfriend. A whole cast of characters who could have motive for murder (or who could be future victims).
And it’s got the plucky and likeable amateur sleuth who may or may not solve the mystery (because to tell you would be a spoiler),but who certainly gets involved to the point she annoys the real investigators.
The story is set in Australia, and the setting definitely adds to the story. Dead Ahead does use Australian spelling and vocabulary, and the “Aussie lingo” defined at the beginning. The lingo isn’t forced into the story in a cliche stone-the-crows way, but in a way that reads as authentic to the characters and which doesn’t distract from the story.
Overall, Dead Ahead is an enjoyable read, recommended for cozy mystery fans.
Thanks to the author for providing a free ebook for review.
About Susan J Bruce
Susan J Bruce is a former veterinarian turned award-winning author, professional copywriter and animal artist. Susan’s veterinary background invades her writing and animals run, fly, or crawl into nearly all of her tales. When Susan’s writing group challenged her to write a story that didn’t mention any animals—she failed! Susan lives in sunny South Australia with her husband, Marc, and their furred and feathered family. This currently includes a fat tortoiseshell cat, a rescue cockatiel, and an irrepressible ShiChi (Shih Tzu x Chihuahua) who thinks her mission in life is to stop Susan writing.
Running Scared is Susan’s first novel and was awarded the 2018 Caleb Prize for an unpublished manuscript.
Find Susan J Bruce online at:
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About Dead Ahead
A deliciously twisty Aussie cozy mystery with a side of rom-com!
Ruth is desperate for a fresh start, but a body in her shed, an inconvenient romantic attraction, and a secret childhood reputation as a ‘harbinger of death’ get in the way.
As they do…
Murder and mayhem mingle with matters of the heart as Ruth soon discovers the town holds buried secrets and scandals—some of which may even involve her own late father.
But when a close friend goes missing, and the police fear the worst, all Ruth can think about is unravelling the mystery and finding her friend.
Can Ruth solve the crime in time to save her friend? Will she succeed or will bad luck be the death of her?
Emily Dana Botrous lives in San Diego, California with her husband and their four children. She lived in 10 states before she settled on the West Coast where she plans to stay for awhile. She started writing short stories at age 10 and studied English in college. The only thing she enjoys more than writing is motherhood.
