Book Review: Murder in the Piazza | Jen Collins Moore

An American woman living in Rome… sounds like the beginning to a story that I want to be living! I just hope that the next thing that happens in mine is a dead body and a murder case on my hands… But at least in Murder in the Piazza, a Maggie White Mystery, the murder victim isn’t exactly a beacon of morality!

About the Book

Maggie White, a downsized American executive stuck in Rome on her husband’s expat assignment, is finding the dolce vita isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. She’s taken a job offering painting instruction to well-heeled travelers and her boss-a rather unpleasant English lord-has turned up dead in his penthouse. Maggie’s left with a palazzo full of suspicious guests, a valuable painting her boss might have stolen, and a policeman who’s decided she’s the prime suspect. Now Maggie must keep the tour up and running while she tracks the killer and works to clear her name.

Reflection

Maggie White is in Rome working for a tour company that sells American’s a picture-perfect holiday in Italy—for a hefty price tag. Five months earlier Maggie White was downsized from her high-status executive job, and she still can’t quite believe it. Now, reporting to the worst boss in the world, Maggie tries to remind herself of how much she has accomplished. Two amazing kids who are off to prestigious liberal arts colleges, a successful career (until she got laid off), and a list of PTA victories that are nothing to scoff at!

So how can she be reduced to tears by the insufferable Lord Walpole? She may dream of him meeting an untimely end, but no one is more shocked than her when only a week on the job she finds him dead in his study of decidedly unnatural causes!

Maggie isn’t the only person who despised Lord Walpole. The list of suspects with motives is longer than a string of melty mozzarella! Rumors abound about the illicit and illegal activities Lord Walpole had his hands in—drugs, money laundering, and fraud to start! But when the lead inspector closes the case with barely an investigation, Maggie finally feels like she can put her smarts to good use trying to uncover the murderer. Afterall, she didn’t spend her life reading famous mystery authors just to back down from a case in her real life!

I loved Maggie—she is so funny and creative. There is no where her wild imagination won’t go when coming up with theories, suspects, and leads to investigate. The setting is of course fantastic, and the mystery never gets too dark, making it a fun, light read for a murder mystery! I loved all of the colorful characters that comprise the cast, and I loved how brazen and outspoken Maggie is. That is what we need in a leading lady!

I’m definitely looking forward to book two, and also craving a plate of pasta!

Thank you TLC Book Tours and Level Best Books for my copy. Opinions are my own.

About the Jen Collins Moore

I love to travel, and I write mysteries about the places I love to visit. Remembering the sights, smells, sounds, and, of course, food, of a favorite place is one of my greatest pleasures when bringing a story to life.

I’ve always known I wanted to be a writer, but I took a long path to get here. After earning an A.B. from Bowdoin College (a fancy Latin term for a Bachelor of Arts) and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Business, I pursued a career in brand management. I left corporate America in 2010 to found Meez Meals, Chicago’s favorite meal kit service. I love getting to talk about food all day and finding ways to make dinnertime a little easier for thousands of families.