Enjoyed this Small Town Cozy Mystery

A homeless author, a heartbroken daughter, and a theater ghost. There's trouble in Chapel Springs. 

There's always someone new in Chapel Springs someone who is either coming home or stirring up trouble. 

A best-selling author's latest book is a flop. While the reviewers are happily skewering her, her race car-driver-husband walks out on her and she's evicted, because he hasn't paid the lease on their condo for the last three months. Then she discovers he also he drained their bank accounts. Homeless and broke, she and her little boy have no choice but to retreat to the house she inherited from her Nana in Chapel Springs the house that's been gutted. Then, a stranger knocks on her door. One that will change the course of her life. 



Howie Newlander is back in town. After the residents thwarted his plans for a Miami-style resort on Chapel Lake, he's running for mayor and stirring up the farmers by spreading rumors about diverted water and misused taxes. The Lakeside Players want to remodel the town's old theater, named for Claire's late great-aunt. Empty and boarded up for the last forty years, the theater is rumored to be haunted. When Newlander and Mayor Riley go head-to-head, Claire gets caught in the middle. 

Claire's youngest daughter is in love with a non-believer whose daddy is Claire's nemesis, the mayor. Having him part of her family isn't in her plan. The years of heartache before her husband became a Christian should warn her daughter off this boy. So far, her daughter's heart isn't hearing the warnings. 

With hearts pulled in all directions, will they find a home in Chapel Springs?

Available on Amazon

Meet the Author:
Ane Mulligan-

"I've been a voracious reader ever since my mother instilled within me her own love of reading at an early age. Together we would escape together into worlds otherwise unknown.

A new love entered my life when I saw Mary Martin in PETER PAN. Struck with a fever from which I never recovered, I submerged myself in drama through high school and college, but, alas, Broadway never found my phone number. 

While a large, floppy straw hat is my favorite, I've worn many different ones: hairdresser, legislative affairs director (that's a fancy name for a lobbyist), business manager, creative arts director and writer. My lifetime experience provides a plethora of fodder for my Southern-fried fiction (try saying that three times fast).

I wrote and published my first script in 1996 and to date have over 4-dozen scripts in print and numerous articles on various aspects of Christian drama and the craft of writing. In Jan of 2003, having quit my job with my husband’s encouragement, I began to write full time. I reside in Sugar Hill, Georgia with my artist husband, our chef son, and a dog of Biblical proportion."

My Take:

I pretty much fell in love with the Chapel Hill characters in the last book I read Chapel Springs Survival. The small town of Chapel Springs reminds me a bit of the small town I live in, although there isn't much tourism here, like there. But the characters could very possibly fit right in.

Claire has a bright personality, she's everyone's friend, a bit of a worry wort, always sticking her nose in someone's business and speaking her mind. In other words, open mouth - insert foot. But she is also always ready to help those in need, and stand up for her friends. I can't imagine Chapel Springs with out her. She's a pottery artist who owns a shop with her BFF Patsy who is also an artist, except a painter instead. They make the perfect combo. 

This particular story is a cozy mystery about a well-know author who moves back to Chapel Springs after ending up penniless. Carin ends up finding more than she every dreamed in Chapel Springs, most importantly people who really care! A theater ghost provides a nice twist and a bit of mystery to the tale, when the Chapel Springs folks are wanting to re-open the local theater which has been closed for forty years.  Faith, Family, Friends, and a bit of politics create a enjoyable story for readers to cozy up with. I love how God works everything out for good to those who trust Him.  No matter how much Claire worries or tries to take control, she always ends up surrendering to God and letting Him have the final say. 

I received this book courtesy of the author to read and review. I was not required to review positively and all opinions are my own.