Book Review: Will Travel for Trouble Series Boxed Set (Books 4-6) by Minnie Crockwell

Posted May 6, 2019 by lomeraniel in Audiobooks, Cozy Mystery, Mystery / 0 Comments

Book Review: Will Travel for Trouble Series Boxed Set (Books 4-6) by Minnie CrockwellWill Travel for Trouble Series Boxed Set (Books 4-6) by Minnie Crockwell
Narrator: Michelle Babb
Published by Self-published on 04-05-19
Genres: Cozy Mystery, Mystery
Length: 8 hrs and 26 mins
Format: Audiobook
Source: Narrator
Buy on Amazon/Audible
Goodreads
Overal Rating: five-stars

Trouble at Hungry Horse, audiobook four: Minnie Crockwell, recreational vehicle enthusiast and traveler, no sooner leaves Glacier National Park than she encounters some trouble with her RV and tow car, necessitating an unexpected layover at a campground in the nearby small town of Hungry Horse, Montana.

Within an hour of checking in, however, a gunshot rings out, and Minnie finds herself on her hands and knees hiding under a park bench. But the shot wasn’t meant for her. In fact, no one can even find the shooter or a gun.

It seems everyone hated the victim. Everyone! The question is who hated the victim enough to kill her? Minnie just wants to get her RV fixed and get on the road, but she soon finds herself immersed in the repercussions of a decades-old tragedy.

Trouble at Snake and Clearwater, audiobook five: Minnie Crockwell receives a call from her niece, Tiffany, who has recently moved from Arizona to Washington to be with her boyfriend. Lonely in a new area, Tiffany asks Aunt Minnie to stop by for a visit.

Finding a wonderful RV site with a panoramic view of the Snake River, Minnie settles in for a short, relaxing visit with her niece. Binoculars in hand, she admires the scenery - from the golden hills across the river to the fishermen trolling in boats. The beauty of the scene is marred though, when one fisherman disappears from his boat right before her eyes.

Trouble in Florence, audiobook six: Minnie Crockwell is heading south to warmer climates by way of Highway 101, also known as the Oregon Coast Highway and Pacific Highway. She stops for a few days in the quaint little seaside town of Florence, Oregon, for a stay at the Tuscan Sands RV Park.

Minnie wastes no time heading to the beach for a walk with Ben. What could be more relaxing than walking on a nearly deserted Pacific Northwest beach?

But the dangerous and erratic driver of a blue Jeep, the fierce coastal storm that sweeps through overnight, a barking dog that paws at the sand, and the discovery of a body partially submerged beneath a log on the beach all conspire to take the "relax" out of relaxing.

Against her will and Ben’s words of caution, Minnie cannot help but try to solve the mystery of the trouble in Florence.

Minnie Crockwell travels the country in her RV with Ben, the ghost of a soldier deceased in the 19th century. These three short stories are similar in quality and length to the first three ones contained in the first book, and I had a fun time again and again.

It seems bad luck surrounds Minnie wherever she goes, since she tends to find a murder victim at every park she and Ben visit. I think Minnie is the woman who everyone would like to become: retired at the young age of forty, and free of any responsibilities to roam the world in her RV. There are two important men in Minnie’s life, even though both represent more a platonic love than the prospect of a real one: on one hand, there is Ben, protector and constant companion, but his incorporeal essence makes a relationship impossible. On the other hand, we have Minnie’s ex-husband, a police officer, with whom she keeps a genuine but only epistolar friendship, and to whom she asks for advice about the murders in her emails. This love triangle works well, and helps giving depth to the characters. Something about Minnie Crockwell stories is that her characters are alive and it is easy to relate to them. It is not that I would act as Minnie does, just that I wish I had the guts or the naivete to do it.

The stories are very entertaining and have several twists and turns, to the point that you do not see it coming until the end. One of the things I love the most are Minnie and Ben’s conversations, full of humor, sass, and sentiment. I grew fond of both, and I do deeply care for them.

If Minnie and Ben’s conversations are one of the best things in this series, part of this is due to Michelle Babb’s excellent interpretation skills. Babb does not read or narrate, Babb lives a story, becomes its characters, and makes you root for her. These books have great dialogs but they would not be the same without Michelle Babb. She also gives unique voices and styles to the characters, and in a way, it is like I can close my eyes and see the movie in my head, having each character a unique appearance. When a narrator does that with a book, it is just perfection.

I am looking forward to more adventures with Minnie and Ben, and to anything narrated by Michelle Babb.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Story (Plot)
five-stars
Narration
five-stars
Overall: five-stars