Book Review: Booty Bones

Author: Carolyn Haines

Publication Date: May 20, 2014

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Series: Sarah Booth Delaney # 14

Sarah Booth Delaney’s fiancé, Graf Milieu, has become depressed while recovering from a severe leg injury, but Sarah Booth knows just how to help him heal. She’s arranged a romantic getaway for the two of them at a lovely beach cottage on Dauphin Island off the Gulf Coast. On the first day of their island adventure, they take a historical tour led by Angela Trotter, a young woman well-versed in local lore, including rumors of pirate treasure hidden somewhere on the island. In fact, Angela confides to Sarah Booth and Graf that her father, a sailor and treasure hunter, was murdered just when he thought he was closing in on the treasure. Angela's convinced that the wrong man was imprisoned for her father’s murder, and she manages to persuade Sarah Booth to take the case. And Sarah Booth soon realizes that there's much more going on than meets the eye. With untold amounts of treasure offering plenty of motive for murder and a fiancé falling deeper into depression, Sarah Booth's peaceful island vacation is quickly spinning out of control.

In Booty Bones, Carolyn Haines will once again delight readers with her trademark blend of clever plotting, witty prose, and Southern charm.

The end of an October day is nothing less than stunning on the small barrier island named for French royalty: Dauphin Island, Alabama.

“She must have been a mighty wise woman.” Truer words were never spoken.

“Or you could pull on your big-girl panties and confront him about the woman on the beach. Don’t let him dodge the issue.”

Sarah Booth Delaney is one of my absolute favorite characters of all time. This time of year is one of my favorites because I know the next installment of this series will be released. This series is always fun, charming, and will keep you on your toes and on the edge of your seat. In this particular installment Haines takes readers to Dauphin Island where Sarah Booth is about to solve a murder and possibly discover a buried treasure. I loved the alternate setting in this book. The beach was so peaceful and it was nice to see Sarah Booth in a different setting. Dauphin Island came with a wonderful cast of characters and some interesting folklore as well!

Graf and Sarah have reached a steep hill in their relationship. Because of Graf’s accident, which occurred in the last book and I am not going to spoil for those of you who haven’t read it, Sarah and Graf are at a rocky place and Sarah is not sure that their relationship will ever be fixed. This issue in their relationship was not so overpowering that it took away from the mystery, but it was a nice little twist in the story. It was nice to see a different side of Sarah; she is not always put together and does have issues in her own life to work out too.

I can never say enough good things about this series. Each mystery is always a change and Haines always mixes things up for readers. Each mystery brings something new and exciting, and I must add that I hope Haines does not decide to stop adding to this series anytime soon. I enjoyed the beachy feel in this book and I wished I had been sitting on the beach to read it like I was last summer. I encourage all of you that are looking for a good mystery series to pick this one up!

***A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at Minotaur Books in exchange for my honest review***