Undercover Babymoon (Unde(a)Feated Detective)
by Karina Bartow
About Undercover Babymoon
Undercover Babymoon (Unde(a)Feated Detective)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Setting – Orlando FL/Caribbean Cruise
Publisher : Wild Rose Press (September 11, 2024)
Paperback : 246 pages
ISBN-10 : 1509257616
ISBN-13 : 978-1509257614
Digital ASIN : B0D8L6GQ98
Most mothers-to-be spend their pregnancy leafing through baby names and shopping for nursery furniture. Minka Avery spends hers trying to hunt down a murderer on the open seas.
Minka’s promotion to Orlando PD’s homicide department has some bumps at first, including her growing baby bump. Just as she and her partner begin to hit their stride, Logan Baris’s suspicious death baffles them. The investigation leads the detectives to believe he had a hand in a shady operation, but the cruise ship worker’s troubles seem to voyage into the ocean blues with him.
After they meet up with some dead ends on land, Minka convinces her partner and his wife to join her and her husband to embark on a covert investigation on the ship. Will they be able to uncover whatever scheme is underway on the vessel? Or will the choppy waves of personal drama make it run ashore?
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Homicide detective Minka Avery is pregnant and deaf (she now has a cochlear implant) and she and her brother-in-law partner Cael have caught the murder case of Logan Baris. All the clues appear connected to his job on a cruise ship. It took some convincing, but Minka and Cael’s captain agrees with their plan to take their spouses along on a babymoon cruise to investigate all the players.
Will they be able to find out who killed Logan Baris and why? Will they determine the depth of the master plan? Will they pin down everyone involved? Or will they get too close and end up overboard?
This is my first book by Karina Bartow. I was intrigued by both the protagonist’s deafness and the author’s personal story. Ms. Bartow doesn’t let her disability (Cerebral Palsy) define her and uses her experiences to create strong characters like Minka Avery.
Minka is a confident woman and a skilled detective. Not reading the previous books I gleaned from this one that both her husband and her brother-in-law were in dire situations before. I could see those times strengthened Minka’s relationships with both. Cael, her brother-in-law trusts her and they know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Her husband Wes teaches biology at the local School for the Deaf. They have a seven-year-old daughter, Caela. Wes and Caela know the gender of the new baby, but Minka wants to be surprised. I love how genuine Ms. Bartow’s core characters are. I was invested in their lives immediately.
Solving Logan Baris’s murder was not easy. Minka and Cael had theories but no evidence. Boarding the boat they had no one they could trust, everyone was a suspect. They also had to act like tourists so they didn’t blow their covers. I had a great time following along with them and it was even better when some of the clues started to fall into place. Serious events set the Avery’s lives spinning setting up an exciting and heart-pounding showdown.
I was very happy the author included an epilogue. It wrapped up the loose ends and included the birth of the new little Avery along with a little more insight about Minka.
Undercover Babymoon was a well-plotted well-written entertaining read with a captivating protagonist. I am eager to read more books by Karina Bartow.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to the author for providing me with an ARC.
About Karina Bartow
Karina Bartow grew up and still lives in Northern Ohio. Though born with Cerebral Palsy, she’s never allowed her disability to define her. Rather, she’s used her experiences to breathe life into characters who have physical limitations, but like her, are determined not to let them stand in the way of the life they want. Her works include Husband in Hiding, Forgetting My Way Back to You, Brother of Interest, Wrong Line, Right Connection, and Accidental Allies. She may only be able to type with one hand, but she writes with her whole heart!
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” “As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.”