Catch Handle
Series: Book #1
Author: Alison O’Mara
Publisher: Independent
Page Count: 222
My Rating:
Book Summary
Arabian horses are admired for their strength, grace, and athleticism. They are beautiful, intelligent, and remarkable animals.
As a newly minted veterinarian, Vivian Anderson knows and loves horses better than most. With an important horse show on the line and the search for a full-time vet job fast-approaching, Vivian is fully occupied at her Aunt’s Arabian horse ranch and her equine medical externship.
Vivian’s world is abruptly shaken by a shocking murder that casts suspicion on the people she thought she knew best. Stolen medications, fatal “accidents,” unsavory horse handling, and a handsome newcomer have Vivian reeling. She cannot shake the feeling that the seemingly random events are all part of the same puzzle, but who can she trust?
Vivian is about to learn just how dangerous her world of horses can be.
More Facts for Readers about our Sleuth:
Main Sleuth: Vivian Anderson
Best friend/Sidekicks: None, although she’s close with her Aunt Abby
Physical Description: White female with Auburn hair
Age: Unknown, but likely mid-twenties based on the context
Location: Northern California
Time of Year: Midsummer
Business: Veterinarian with a focus on large animals, mainly horses (aunt owns Silver Tree Arabians, a horse farm)
Pet: Scamp, a rescue cat, and her aunt’s dogs, Jeff, a Boston terrier, and Mutt, a golden retriever
Love Interest: Nate Campbell and Colin Jennings
Family: Abby (her aunt), parents are deceased
Cussing? No, there was like one Sh*t at a moment that made sense.
Diversity? Yes! While most main characters appear to be white Caucasian there are good characters like Ramon and Miguel who are Hispanic and Alcott who is British and described as a “fit, handsome black man in his forties”. These characters definitely appear in a number of scenes throughout the novel and they’re are not portrayed in a stereotypical way, so they are very authentic.
My Review
I was really happy to read “Catch Handle”, a new, independently published cozy mystery from author Alison O’Mara. I give this novel 5 stars! This cozy is excellently edited and checks off all my boxes for a good read. We’re introduced to main sleuth Vivian who by all accounts is an unassuming veterinarian patiently working with her clients and their horses. Then things start to go horribly wrong around the horse shows she attends and people in her social circle are turning up murdered. Everyone has a motive, but no one has a clue and when Vivian cracks the case wide open it’s a fight for her life.
This cozy has a slow but necessary build up to the first murder as we’re introduced to nearly a dozen characters that make up the inner circle of the local horse community. Vivian also develops not one but two love interests! But the time of the murder virtually everyone is a suspect and the red herrings are abundant – which I love. Up until the final chapters I was genuinely unsure who the real culprit could be. The whole story wraps up in a very tidy and satisfying way – there are no loose threads!
And you know what’s really refreshing? By the time we’re at the end of the book we don’t just learn who the culprit is and the story is over – we actually go beyond that and get a run down of how the remaining characters are doing and where everyone stands. O’Mara doesn’t rush to just end things – for which I feel very grateful.
I genuinely would read a second book if this becomes a cozy series and I recommend this book especially to animal lovers and folks familiar in any way with the horse community. On a personal note for me – my little sister rides and trains horses – so I could easily picture her as the Vivian character.
The only folks I might not recommend this series to are my fellow vegans who will have an especially hard time learning about the darker side of horse breeding and training. But many of us didn’t grow up vegan and are still able to keep a detached emotion, especially when we know we’re reading fiction. Regardless of personal vegan feelings – I still really enjoyed this book!
**I was sent a free Kindle version of this book by the author in exchange for my fair and honest review.**