Buck Up
by Annabelle Hunter
Series: Lark Davis Mysteries #5
Series Rating:
Published by Annabelle Hunter on March 9, 2021
Setting: California
Genres: Cozy Animal Mystery
Pages: 280
Goodreads
Get Your Copy at: Amazon
Also in this series: Leg Up, Load Up, Stir Up, Cinch Up, Saddle Up , Jingle Up
Come for the tea, stay for the murder.
Larklyn Davis, professional dressage trainer by day and amateur sleuth by impulse, is ready to admit it: she loves solving murder cases. And her track record is pretty impressive. But her Gran disagrees and sets out to ensure Lark eliminates everything in her life related to sleuthing—including Lark’s boyfriend, Detective Brecken Wilson.
With their once loving relationship deteriorating quickly, it looks bleak until Gran’s long-time rival turns up dead after starting a fight in the Tea House. Then it turns downright disastrous. When Lark's Aunt Helen is named as the prime suspect, they must put aside their arguments and band together to find the real killer, this time in a town they don’t know.
Manipulation, betrayal, heartbreak, money… the suspects are plentiful, but more is going on than meets the eye. Can Lark and Gran overcome their differences and work together before another person dies?
Buck Up by Annabelle Hunter is a mystery filled with self-analysis for Lark and Elise.
Will Lark figure out who killed Daisy and clear Aunt Helen’s name?
Lark teams up with Lindsey and her Gran Elise to clear Aunt Helen’s name when their rival from Misne ends up dead after visiting the Tea Room. It is quite an odd combination of sleuths, but it works. During the course of the investigation, Lark and Gran see how their snarky words can hurt people. Gran does some serious soul-searching. At the same time, Lark continues to learn that there is more to Lindsey than the blogging blond twit that Lindsey portrays. While the mystery was interesting, I loved that the author used it as a way for the characters to grow. We truly get to see a side of Lark that she doesn’t allow out very often.
Being in Lark’s head is fun, for the most part.
Gran smiled and gestured to the last remaining chair—Peacock’s chair.
“Please, Benny. We would love it if you joined us. Would you like some tea?”
Benny was a coffee fanatic, like me. We’d spent many mornings in Tops, our coffee house, debating coffee beans with Jasmine, the owner. The only way he drank tea was if it was a life-or-death situation.
“Why, yes, Elise. I’d love some tea.” Benny sat down in the last chair, taking the cup of tea from Elise and relaxing back as he took a sip.
Sweet cheese and crackers. We were at DEFCON four. Or one. Whatever the bad DEFCON was. Someone was going to die. Wait. Someone already died. But this was bad.
Hunter, Annabelle. Buck Up (Lark Davis Mysteries Book 5) (p. 48). Kindle Edition.
The Mystery
Daisy Schmidt in Misne is similar to Elise in Barrow Bay. She runs the town; they either conform or they are forced out. It doesn’t matter that it is her own family that she is bankrupting. It’s really no surprise when Elise is murdered. However, the fact that Misne’s Police think that it is Aunt Helen is a surprise. The timing is perfect, but everyone knows that Helen would never kill anyone, especially with tea. Ms. Hunter does a fantastic job of weaving the clues and red herring all together.
I will tell you that I wouldn’t want to live in Misne. Most of the people there are grumpy, and the Police force is terrible. Perhaps they should change up their detectives a bit. All except Handsome Ranger or Aiden, whichever you would like to call him. He and Lindsey need to figure out their relationship a bit more. They would make an adorable couple. I am not sure how that would work with the two towns, though. 
Five Stars
I love Ms. Hunter’s writing style. She mixes humor, mystery, family, horses, and real-life issues together extremely well. It is all so believable. My rating for Buck Up by Annabelle Hunter is five stars. I wholeheartedly recommend this series and all of Annabelle Hunter’s books.
Lark Davis Mysteries
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Buck Up by Annabelle Hunter.
Until the next time,
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- Jenz 2023 Beachcombers Mystery RC
- Jenz 2023 Cloak and Dagger
- Jenz 2023 Craving the Cozies
- Jenz 2023 Cruisin' thru the Cozies
- Jenz 2023 Finishing the Series
- Jenz 2023 Goodreads RC
- Jenz 2023 Medical Examiner RC
- Jenz 2023 Six Shooter
Leave a Reply