Book Review: Unlucky Charms By Linda O. Johnston

Unlucky Charms is the third book in the Superstition Mystery series by Linda O. Johnston. I did not read the first two books, Lost Under a Ladder and Knock on Wood but feel like I was able to catch up pretty quickly with the characters and small town atmosphere.

Rory Chasen, manager of the Lucky Dog Boutique in Destiny, California, hopes her new line of good-luck doggy toys will be a hit, especially the stuffed rabbits with extra-large feet. The timing of the line’s debut proves ill-fated, though, as several local shops—including Rory’s—are ransacked and vandalized with spilled salt and other unlucky charms.The most likely culprit is disgruntled real estate agent Flora Curtival, whose issues with the town give her a motive. But after Flora is murdered and one of Rory’s toy rabbits is found with the body, Rory needs all the luck she can get while trying to determine just who killed the superstitious vandal.

Unlucky Charms is a book with play of mystery, and for those that have read the previous books, some interesting character development. Not having read the earlier books I found the quicks of the town and Rory's relationships to be a bit flat or odd. I like that the mystery was more complex than I expected, but I did to like that Rory seemed to be as uncertain about her life and the mysteries that she was trying to solve as the reader. I did like that I was surprised with the identity of Flora's killer- even though I had my concerns about that character's story. However, it felt like Rory was more surprised than I was. I like a main character that is at least a little more clever than I, and definitely more entertaining. I think I could be friends with Rory, but she never really brought the book to the level that I was looking for. It was a good read- but it never really captured me. 

Unlucky Charms is an interesting mystery, with lots of surprises for the reader. If you liked the previous books in the series then you are likely to enjoy this one as well. However, it was not fantastic, and did not make me want to go bad and read the previous books. It was good, but unfortunately not enough to garner a new fan.