Viola Roberts, author of historical Western romances, has gone to St. Perrysburg, Florida to attend The Novel Writers of America Conference in The Corpse in the Cabana by Shéa MacLeod. She and her best friend, Cheryl Delany another writer, enjoy the change of scenery from their home in Astoria, Oregon when the first night they spot the 50-something number one best selling romance writer in the country, Natasha Winters, dancing very sexually with Kyle, a young hotel employee half her age. Her divorce is not yet complete with her manager, Jason Winters, whom she caught having an affair with fellow romance writer, Piper Ross, both of whom she has blackballed from the publishing world. As Cheryl makes a snarky comment about Natasha’s cougar- like behavior, the older woman hears and attacks Cheryl, leading to a major cat-fight that has to be broken up by Viola and Lucas Salvatore, the top thriller writer who has shown interest in one of the pair of best friends.
Later that night, as Viola trudges across the sand, passing the cabanas on the beach, she spots a body in one of the cabanas, and the person appears to be in distress. Going forward to examine the individual, Viola realizes that this is the dead body of Natasha Winters, and she has been stabbed. The detective in the case, Detective Costa, a.k.a. “Detective Hottie,” finds Viola suspicious because she found the body and Cheryl because of the big fight she had with Natasha. Told not to leave the island until they get closer to a solution for the case, Viola determines to investigate for herself, along with the reluctant assistance of Cheryl and periodic assistance of Lucas.
The Corpse in the Cabana has an interesting premise, based on the cutthroat world of publishing, as each author tries to get on top of the next and bump the others from the position. We see most authors trying to put each other down in order to be the best. Natasha once told Viola that her readers were intrinsically dumb and just needed to just be spoon-fed her usual craft in order for her tu stay on top, something she would even sacrifice her mother to do.
Incidentally, this does not reflect my personal experience among the world of authors. I had previously imagined the world of authors to be like this, which is much like the world of academia as I experienced it, but as I got to know authors on Facebook, I discovered that most are very supportive of each other. They recognize that readers don’t limit our books to only one author but read a wide variety of writers. Many seem to team up to promote each other’s books and even hold writers groups to help each other’s books improve in quality.
One detail I appreciated about this book is that Viola as the main character does not limit herself to the typical persons as the author as a fit, young character. Instead, Viola is in her early 40s and more like a donut than a celery stick. It is nice to see a real person instead of the images we often see in mystery books, especially given how many pastries people in these books consume.
I liked the audio narration of Yvette Keller. She adds life to the book and drama to the more intense situations. Her depictions of the book strongly help to make it more fun for the listener.
I had a very good time listening to The Corpse in the Cabana. The book has some vivid characters and fun scenes. I especially enjoyed the interaction between Viola and Cheryl and look forward to seeing their relationship expand in future books. I give this book five stars.
To purchase this book for yourself, click here on Amazon.
