Winter Frost by Lauren Carr
Being a fan of Lauren Carr’s works for some years now, listening to a new mystery is like spending time with an old friend. I haven’t spent much time with Chris Matheson, the hero of this tale. As with many of Carr’s works, there’s crossover with her other murder mysteries, so there were some familiar characters like Jessica and Murphy. It was good to see these old friends again. I especially enjoyed Tristan’s role (and seeing his comfort tarantula that enjoys the coffee shop).
This tale features spies! Yes, spies! It’s not the usual fare for most Carr’s mysteries but I dived right into it. I did have some trouble buying into Chris’s super secret lethal spies skills. They’re pretty nebulous and he doesn’t seem to have the personality for it. I would peg his mom as the super secret spy before I would pick him. While I had to suspend my disbelief a bit for Chris, I still liked him and the plot.
The tale does have an underlying Christian theme. For much of the book, this is low key and just an aspect of this or that character. However, the story ends with a strong Christian moral summation. Frankly, that was a turn off for me. I was sad to see that as it makes me leery of further books in this series. Christian lit is not my cup of tea. I hope the series doesn’t fully embrace that aspect and become preachy.
I love all the pets. I know sometimes the things they do aren’t realistic but they add so much color to the story. I love the humor and their antics. Also, the Geezer Squad is a fun addition. Makes me want to join a crime solving ‘book club’.
In all, it was a fun tale. 4/5 stars.
The Narration: Mike Alger has been narrating Carr’s novels for years. I first got to know his voice with the Mac Faraday novels. I like his voice, and as with Carr’s novels, it’s like hanging out with an old friend. While his range of voices is modest, he does a great job with the humor and emotions. He does have an older male voice, no matter what he does, and that didn’t always work for our younger male characters. Also, he has limited female voices, but I did love his old lady voice for Chris’s mom. The pacing was perfect and there were no technical issues with the recording. 4/5 stars.
I received a free copy of this audiobook via iRead Book Tours. All opinions are completely my own.