A Trouble'd Christmas
by Susan Y. Tanner
Series: Trouble Cat Mysteries #11.5
Series Rating:
Published by KaliOka Press on November 22, 2019
Setting: Birmingham, Alabama
Genres: Animal Romantic Traditional Mystery
Pages: 58
Format: Kindle
Goodreads
Also in this series: Familiar Trouble , Trouble in Dixie , Trouble in Tallahassee , Trouble in Summer Valley, Small Town Trouble , Trouble's Wedding Caper, Trouble in Paradise , Trouble Under the Mistletoe, Turning for Trouble, Bone-a-fied Trouble , Trouble in Action, Trouble Most Faire
BETRAYAL, REVENGE, and GRAND THEFT!
After his release from prison, Mace Walker has two goals – prove himself innocent of grand theft and see the guilty party punished. Even if his ex-fiancée, Felecia McIntyre, helped frame him. Maybe especially so.
Three years ago, Felecia’s heart broke to watch prison doors slide shut behind the man she loved. It broke again when Mace refused to allow her to visit and her letters were returned unopened.
Now, just two weeks before Christmas, Mace walks back into her life along with a sleek black cat whose owner believes he can solve mysteries and bring criminals to justice. A crime-solving cat may be just what Felecia needs because Mace has changed. Angry, bitter, and out for revenge, he’s determined to make the woman he once loved help prove his innocence—whether she’s willing or not.
Trouble would rather be home watching Christmas classics with his human, Tammy Lynn, but his creed is always to ‘protect and serve’. Neither of his temporary charges display much in the way of Christmas spirit so It’s A Wonderful Life might seem an unlikely outcome. But, then, they don’t know Trouble …
A Trouble’d Christmas by Susan Y. Tanner is a wonderfully written short read to get you in the Christmas spirit.
Will Trouble help Fee clear Mace?
The story jumps in when Mace gets out of prison for the grand theft of some large machinery owned by his ex-fiancee Fee’s family business. Mace clearly didn’t do it. Even Trouble believes him. Yet, Mace spent the last three years in jail and wants the true culprits to pay. He also wants his name cleared.
Mace and Fee join forces with Trouble to figure out who took the machinery.
Fee is a fantastic cook and runs a catering business on the side. Her primary job is managing the business side of her uncle’s heavy equipment rental business. I like Fee. She has had a rough few years but is strong and stubborn. Fee has some excellent friends and a great family to help her get through it.
Mace is angry at the world, which is entirely understandable. He doesn’t understand how all the evidence is stacked against him when he is innocent. Mace will forever be changed from his time in prison, but he has the potential if he allows himself to heal and to trust again.
Trouble assists Fee in finding clues to ascertain who the actual thief is. Thank goodness he was there because she really didn’t have a clue as to where to start. He also saves the day in a bit of high-impact drama. However, Trouble wants to spend the holidays with Tammy Lynn and his family at home. He must get this wrapped quickly so he can enjoy his Christmas traditions.
Five Stars
Although the story doesn’t take long to read, it is well thought out, and the romance is a beautiful second chance at love type. The characters grabbed me immediately. My rating for A Trouble’d Christmas by Susan Y. Tanner is five stars.
Trouble Cat Mysteries
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of A Trouble’d Christmas by Susan Y. Tanner.
Until the next time,
About Susan Y. Tanner
Susan Yawn Tanner is published in historical romance as Susan Tanner. Her novels, Highland Captive, Captive to A Dream, Exiled Heart, Fire Across Texas and Winds Across Texas as well as A Warm Southern Christmas (part of a Christmas anthology), were all published by Leisure Books in the early ‘90’s.
Writing as Susan Y. Tanner, Ms. Tanner’s latest venture is a ‘series within a series’ of romantic mysteries showcasing one smart feline named Trouble. Because Ms. Tanner is a horse lover as well as a cat lover, her Trouble books all have backstories which feature the world of horses. Published by KaliOka Press, these books are part of the Familiar Legacy series written in concert with some very talented authors. Trouble in Summer Valley was released in 2017, Turning for Trouble in 2018, and Trouble in Action is slated for 2019.
Ms. Tanner is excited that Secret Staircase Books, an imprint of Columbine Publishing Group, has opted to publish Fire Across Texas and Winds Across Texas, as well as A Warm Southern Christmas, in both print and e-book. This is the first time these titles have been available in e-book. They will be released under the name Susan Yawn Tanner.
Ms. Tanner barrel races and writes with equal enthusiasm.
Photo Credit: Deborah Jones-Kuykendall
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- Jenz 2023 Goodreads RC
- Jenz 2023 Six Shooter
Thank you for understanding my story so well. This is a well thought out review and much appreciated,