Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels

Callie Webber has come back to her Chesapeake Bay home to relax after working hard for the J.O.S.H.U.A. foundation. However , she ends up investigating another charity, one that helps out troubled women with clothes and accessories to start a new job. Callie is drawn to one of the young women, Shayna and is eager to get her started with her new career. But then Shayna's boyfriend goes missing. Eddie Ray then ends up dead in the trunk of her car. Not believing the rumors that Shayna is a murderer Callie goes to investigate who it really is. The clues she discovers all lead up to finding out that Eddie Ray might have stumbled onto something that he shouldn't have. This is another wonderful work from Mindy Starns Clark. Callie continues to be a likable heroine, who shows that she can remain calm and cool in heated situations. I also liked that the detective working with Callie was female as well showing that women can domen's jobs. The suspense in this book is excellent, you are kept guessing the whole way through. The reader is introduced to many clues throughout the book, but it is only at the end that you see how they all fit together. This book really makes you guess Tom's identity. At first I was annoyed that he kept ditching Callie and wouldn't offer her any answers to her questions. It was totally understandable why she would be frustrated, angry and why she would resort to snooping. It all came down to a trust issue but I can see why Callie would question Tom when he won't tell her anything. I even thought for a while that the other guy could possibly be Tom, he was a good guy for Callie though at the very least. I liked the references to geocaching, it was really cool to learn more about that activity. Once again this is an superb addition to the series, highly recommended for mystery fans.

This entire series is fantastic! Very suspenseful and addicting, with great characters. Books 4 & 5 were my favorite, and seem to be the most popular among the general population.

"Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels" was the first book I've read by author Mindy Starns Clark, and this book turned out to be a dandy thriller. This is the second book in Ms. Starn's Million Dollar Mystery series. The first few chapters were a bit slow to get into the story, but by Chapter Five I was hooked on Callie Webber, the fresh, witty heroine of this series and the other wonderful characters inhabiting her Chesapeake Bay world. Callie is a thirty-something widowed private investigator who has moved to the tranquil Chesapeake Bay area to start a new life after the tragic death of her husband in a boating accident. Callie has a new job as an investigator for a philantropic organization called J.O.S.H.U.A., where her responsibility is to investigate charitable groups who have applied for grant money. During a brief hiatus between assignment for J.O.S.H.U.A., Callie is doing a bit of volunteer work on her own with a local charity that helps collect career-type clothing for impoverished women. In the course of this work, Callie befriends a recovering drug addict named Shayna Greer, who suddenly finds herself accused of the murder of her boyfriend Eddie Ray. Shayna turns to Callie for help in proving her innocence, and Callie finds herself driven to find the real murderer. There are many plot turns in the story, and my the second half of the book, the suspense level is very high! Author Clark is known for her inspirational Christian writing, and while at first I was surprised with the Christian references, I found myself liking this strong, god-fearing protagonist very much. Callie also finds herself flirting with her good-looking neighbor Kirby Collins, while also being attracted to her mysterious boss at the J.O.S.H.U.A. foundation, Tom. I'm definitely looking forward to reading the other offerings in this great series!

It's not often the 2nd book in a series is as good as the first, but I have to say that I absoulutely loved this one better than the first, and the first book was great too!Not only does Mindy Clark do a great job with her character profiles/backgroud but it makes you feel like you know them and are with them while the story unfolds. I found myself at times talking to them ( the characters). In this book, Callie not only works on another murder mystery, but she also is going through some personal feelings and changes. Her boss, Tom, is and enigma to me and there are a few nuggets of info on him that keep you guessing just what is up with him. I am so hoping in the next book that Mindy will give us some more details on him.Mindy's books both the first in this series ( A Penny For Your Thoughts) and Don't Take any Wooden Nickels are really, really hard to put down.Enjoy them. I know I sure did.

It is rare that an author writes a 2nd book in a series that is just as good or better than the first. I found this book to be page turning and enjoyable. And the ending was a real surprise too!