Sunday 15 January 2017

#BookReview Olmec Obituary by L.J.M. Owen

Olmec Obituary by L.J.M. Owen
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Archaeologist Dr Elizabeth Pimms thoroughly enjoys digging up old skeletons.

But when she is called home from Egypt after a family loss, she has to sacrifice her passions for the sake of those around her.

Attempting to settle into her new role as a librarian, while also missing her boyfriend, Elizabeth is distracted from her woes by a new mystery: a royal Olmec cemetery, discovered deep in the Mexican jungle, with a 3000-year-old ballplayer who just might be a woman.

She soon discovers there are more skeletons to deal with than those covered in dirt and dust.

Suitable for readers young and old, Olmec Obituary is the first novel in a delightful cosy crime series: Dr Pimms, Intermillennial Sleuth. Really cold cases.


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For some reason did I not expect Olmec Obituary to take place in present time. I thought it would take place at the beginning of the 20th century. It's odd how a cover and the blurb can make you expect something else than what you get.

I'm actually a bit surprised that this book is labeled cozy crime because that's not the feeling I got when I read the book. Sure there are no sex scenes and not much violence, but it felt too serious to be a cozy crime book. Sure it had its funny moments, but most of the time it had a serious tone, especially since the main character and her family is recovering from a death in the family and Elizabeth herself has had to give up on her career as an archaeologist to support her family. So, she's not always a happy camper. But I guess since it's not many bloody murder scenes sprinkled in the book can one see this book as a cozy crime novel.

Olmec Obituary is a page-turner. I started to read the book in the evening and finished in the middle of the night. I came to enjoy Elizabeth Pimms and her family quite much and the flashbacks 3000 years ago to the life of the skeletons Emily is examining adds drama to the story. What was is that killed all those people and will Elizabeth get to the bottom of the mystery?

This is definitely a new favorite series of mine. I was intrigued by the mystery with the skeletons and Elizabeth's problem with both her family and work kept my interest up from the beginning until the end of the book. It was such a splendid book.

Olmec Obituary is one of those books that I hoped would be entertaining to read, but in the end, surpassed my expectations. I can't wait to read the next book in the series!

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through Netgalley for an honest review!

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