Review

Retired school teacher Daisy Buchanan enjoys running her eclectic shop “Sometimes a Great Notion”. Daisy and her devoted husband Joe enjoy their quiet life in Millbury, Pennsylvania. One of Daisy’s favorite things to do is attend auctions to hunt for bargains and unique finds for her shop. Daisy is shocked and upset when her friend Angus Backstead, a frequent auctioneer at many local sales, is arrested for murder. The victim is Jimmy Kratz, also a regular on the auction circuit, and a friend of Angus. Daisy is convinced Angus is innocent and won’t stop until she proves it, even when it seems she is the only person in town who believes Angus isn’t the murderer.

If future books are as good as this debut, then this could become a very popular series. It’s wonderful to see an older, married couple as the main characters. Daisy and Joe are complex characters and although this is still a fun, easy to read cozy mystery, I’m impressed with how much depth these characters have. Although Daisy learns her marriage isn’t as perfect as she thought when the book beings, she and Joe clearly love each other. They experience realistic problems that make the characters seem more real and made me root for them even more to resolve their differences. One of the sources of tension is their pampered daughter Sarah arriving for an extended visit. Sarah is a drama queen that takes a while to warm up to. However, she becomes more likeable by the end of the book and I love the way things turn out for her.

Daisy does a great job talking to friends and acquaintances in the town to investigate Jimmy’s murder. I find it strange that nobody, not even Angus’s own wife, supported Daisy’s search for the truth behind the murder. Later in the book, an explanation is given as to why Joe might not be enthusiastic over Daisy’s involvement, but I don’t know why some of the other characters showed such reluctance to support Daisy. Angus had what the police saw as a motive, but it wasn’t so strong that good friends should have been so convinced of his guilt. This lack of explanation about why the other characters, especially Angus’s wife, are so indifferent about finding out the truth behind the murder is one flaw in an otherwise wonderful book.

Daisy’s shop has a little bit of everything which makes the book interesting. I love that the author includes a wide variety of tips at the end of the book from yard sale tips and recipes, to how to repurpose an old sweater. Going Through the Notions is a great debut by Cate Price that fans of Elizabeth Lynn Casey will enjoy.