Carrots by Colleen Helme

Found a new cozy series that I like.


A Shelby Nichols Adventure. The first book in the series is called Carrots. 

Here's the blurb:

"Shelby Nichols is an average woman who is married to the only guy she ever fell for. Her life is organized and predictable, revolving around her husband and two children. All that changes the day she stops at the grocery store for some carrots. As the cashier rings up her purchases, a gunman is busy robbing the bank inside the store. When a customer grabs the robber’s mask, he is shot and everyone runs for cover.
Everyone except Shelby, who finds herself face to face with the killer. The next thing she knows, she’s lying on the floor with a bullet wound to her head. Luckily, the bullet only grazes her scalp, and she doesn’t suspect any lasting affects until later, when she suddenly ‘hears’ what people are thinking. With this uncanny ability, her life takes on a whole new dimension. Her kids think she’s bossy and too old to understand them, but that’s nothing compared to her husband. He says he loves her, but what is it about the redhead at work that he doesn’t want her to know? As if that isn’t enough, the gunman knows she can identify him, and he’s out to silence her forever. In her fight to stay alive, she is saved from certain death by a handsome hit-man with ties to organized crime. This pulls Shelby even deeper into danger, where knowing someone’s thoughts can not only hurt her feelings, but get her killed."

One headline I saw describe the book as "The Godfather meets Love Story".  I will throw in a twist of Lucy.

The bank robber is after Shelby. But the mob is after the bank robber. Shelby gets in the middle of that and the local mob leader wants to see her. Once he finds out she can read minds, he makes a deal with her. Of course the police need to interview her, since she saw the bank robber and the people that are after the back robber. Once they find out she can read minds, that want her to help them out. Then there is the new lawyer, Kate, in the law firm where husband is also a lawyer. She seems to be after her husband. Shelby uses her ability to try to find out what exactly she is up to.

All of these pieces are skillfully connected in the story. Shelby has to hide all of her connections to these people from everyone. There are humorous parts such as her disguise that isn't always on right. There is plenty of action...pretty much non stop. Yet it is a quick read.

There are 10 books in this series with 11 coming out next month. It looks like the characters that are introduced in book one continue. (Except the ones that don't make it to the end of the book.) I think it is a book that will grab hold of cozy lovers that like action and likeable characters. (There was a preview of the next book at the end of Carrots and I found myself ready to just read on. It jumps right in where the first book left off.)

About the author:

As the author of the Shelby Nichols Adventure Series, Colleen is often asked if Shelby Nichols is her alter-ego. “Definitely,” she says. “Shelby is the epitome of everything I wish I dared to be.” Known for her laugh since she was a kid, Colleen has always tried to find the humor in every situation and continues to enjoy writing about Shelby’s adventures. “I love getting Shelby into trouble… I just don’t always know how to get her out of it!” Colleen lives in the Rocky Mountains with her family. Besides writing, she loves a good book, biking, hiking, and playing board and card games with family and friends. She loves to connect with readers and admits that fans of the series keep her writing.

http://colleenhelme.com/

(I received a free copy and published this review voluntarily)