Review: Doom Magnet by Gregory Ashe

Title: Doom Magnet

Series: The Last Picks: Book Three

Author: Gregory Ashe

Length: 190 Pages

Category: Cozy Mystery

Rating: 5 Stars

At a Glance: Doom Magnet is a quintessential cozy: it’s charming and funny, and the relationship between Dash and his found family—even Keme!—couldn’t give off more heartwarming vibes. I don’t ever pretend to know where Gregory Ashe will take a storyline next. The best thing to do is snuggle in and enjoy the ride.

Reviewed By: Lisa

Blurb: They say bad things come in threes. Usually, they don’t mean murder.

After several months (and a few murders), Dash is finally starting to feel at home in Hastings Rock. He’s enjoying the quiet after the end of tourist season, he’s comfortable at Hemlock House (the jury is still out on whether it’s haunted), and most importantly, he has friends.

Friends, unfortunately, who have a tendency not to take no for an answer. Which is how Dash finds himself at a cold-water surfing competition only a few days before Halloween—and, even worse, attending a costume party at the surf camp later that evening.

When Dash stumbles across the body of a predatory local real estate developer, he’s the only one who believes it’s murder. Worse, Dash’s friend Deputy Bobby (they’re just friends, thank you very much) is on leave from the sheriff’s office while he and his fiancé prepare for their move to Portland. But Dash is determined not to let a murder go unsolved. And as Dash works to prove that the death was anything but accidental, the killer turns their attention to him.

Review: If there were such a thing as being genetically predisposed to being a prolific mystery writer, Dashiell Dawson Dane would’ve hit the DNA jackpot. Not one but both of his parents are powerhouse authors. Poor Dash, though, can’t figure out who the figment of his imagination, Will Gower, is. Is he a PI, a cop? Will has gone through quite a few iterations in Dash’s head—on the page, meh, not so much—so it’s a good thing for Hastings Rock that Dash is better at solving real-life murder mysteries than he is at convincing himself to sit down at the computer and write them.

But . . . motivation can come from the most unexpected places.

The body Dash literally stumbles upon at the foot of a cliff seems to be the victim of a tragic accident. But appearances aren’t what Dash is interested in; he’s interested in digging deeper to be sure the facts and the assumptions jibe. Dash doesn’t seem to have many, if any, qualms about sticking his nose into a good case. Even when the sheriff warns him against it. And even if it puts his life in jeopardy. Much to Deputy Bobby’s chagrin.

I didn’t realize I was going to get a little romantic suspense along with the cozy mystery vibes when the Last Picks series was born. Believe me, it’s a bonus. Dash and Deputy Bobby are peas and carrots. They’re peanut butter and jelly. They’re cheese and crackers. You get the drift: they go together. Only, there are complications, one super-compelling complication named West (Bobby’s fiancé), and the not-so-subtle pining is maddeningly sweet and a little painful, too. Mostly because Dash does his pining to his closest friends (and to us), and Deputy Bobby is stoic about it. In other words, Bobby doesn’t say much, but body language is a whole thing unto itself.

Doom Magnet is a quintessential cozy: it’s charming and funny, and the relationship between Dash and his found family—even Keme!—couldn’t give off more heartwarming vibes. What will happen with Deputy Bobby seems a foregone conclusion, but I don’t ever pretend to know where Gregory Ashe will take a storyline next. The best thing to do is snuggle in and enjoy the ride.