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Bridget Allison
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Maid for Mayhem (A Gretchen Gallen Mystery "Maid for Murder Series" Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Bridget Allison (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 174 ratings
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When Gretchen finds herself flung off the corporate ladder she decides to relocate to an adjoining rural county. There she finds employment with a wealthy older woman and a home in the guest house.
Her plan is to live simply as she regains her footing and decides her future. But when her benefactress dies, suddenly Gretchen finds new friendships with hilarious women, unexpected beaus, and a true calling in a crime scene cleanup business.
When a serial killer starts to drop in the locals, Gretchen finds her hands full with new murder scenes to clean. On top of everything, her companion Mosey, a retired cadaver dog has begun to sniff out something oddly close to home. As the bodies begin to mount up, Gretchen soon realizes the killer has a type... and it fits her perfectly.
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  1. Book 1 of 2
    A Gretchen Gallen Mystery"Maid for Murder Series"
  2. Print length
    186 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    December 16, 2013
  6. File size
    3224 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Total Price: $5.98
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004X2HN4M
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Graysea Publishing; 2nd edition (December 16, 2013)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 16, 2013
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3224 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 186 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 174 ratings

About the author

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Bridget Allison

Bridget Allison

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Bridget Allison was born in North Carolina, the seventh of eight children, all voracious readers and Irish storytellers. She has degrees in English Literature and Psychology. After winning local poetry contests during high school and college, she began to write only for herself, worked for Ernst & Young, became a wildlife rehabilitator and learned to fly a Piper Cherokee.

She enjoys talking about murder plots from a puzzle aspect with her children, which frequently horrifies those within earshot. Her first book in her series is "Maid for Mayhem," and "Maid in the Shade" #2, is now published as an ebook as well. "Maid in the Shade does contain a bonus first chapter for #3 in the series "Maid in Waiting."

Her current favorite authors are John Irving, David Sedaris, Pat Conroy, Janet Evanovich and Elizabeth Berg. She posts anecdotes about her day on facebook, and after being frequently asked why she doesn't write books, she decided to write the Gretchen Gallen series.

She is married to her high school sweetheart Doug, and lives in Weddington, NC. She has two children, Chelsea, Duke 2010 who won prizes there for creative writing and works in media and Grayson, a Management College graduate of NCSU who works in asset backed finance.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
174 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Annie B
5.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly enjoyed this book
Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2011
Verified Purchase
As an NC native, I am always on the lookout for books set in NC, so I was pleased to find this book. Though this is obviously a debut novel, I found it to be a good, fun read. I can't really classify it as a cozy mystery, though It's more of a mystery suspense book with cozy elements that does lean more toward cozy than thriller.

This book really has a little bit of something for everyone, mystery: romance, quirky/interesting characters (but not silly ones). I found the characters to fun and believable, and the book has some truly laugh out loud moments, which always makes me a happy reader. I also found the characters to be true to place, and enjoyed reading about some places and people in NC that are completely realistic. The blossoming romance was nicely done and hints of future development lead me to think that a sequel may be in the works. I really didn't know who did it until the very end. The book definitely had a surprise or two!

Admittedly, the writing was a bit uneven at the beginning and the editing could've been better (true for lots of ebooks, so I'm not complaining, just mentioning it), but this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the book. For pure entertainment, I give this book 5 stars, warts and all. This is a good book for reading on the deck or at the pool, or by a fireside with a cup of tea. The price is pretty darn good too!

I am certainly hoping that there's a sequel! Overall, fun mystery read.
5 people found this helpful
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Jackie-the-Greyhound
4.0 out of 5 stars Well worth taking the time to enjoy this one...
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2011
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I stumbled on this title in a somewhat obscure message board where the author was asking about reviews. I VERY RARELY find the titles of interest when I see such things and freely ignore them, however this one did somehow pique my interest. I did NOT avail myself of the author's offer for a free copy as I would rather just read it like any other story I would pick. Nope, cold hard cash was paid for this one (well, the electronic bits and bytes that stand for cash were transferred to Amazon), albeit a small amount. (Don't get me wrong, books do need publicity and the author was quite polite and within the bounds of reason with her posting--and it's not like the big publishers don't send out freebies to reviewers. It's just I'm nothing close to a professional reviewer and I just happen to prefer to buy what interests me and only review something if I feel like it).

The main character is Gretchen Gallen. She had been an up-and-coming worker in a big city financial firm, but left after unraveling subsequent to a traumatic event. She landed in a small city living in a cabin and working to help her older landlord with the lady's daily activities while simultaneously trying to put her own life back together. Without belaboring the plot too much (see the blurb) Gretchen finds herself helping to take care of things once her landlord passes away, and finds herself in the position to start a specialized clean-up business taking care of places where people have died.

On the positive side the main character has some depth to her and we get to see how the events of her life have led her to this small town. The story is full of humorous and entertaining characters and has plenty of small town and southern interests. To say I found myself laughing quite a bit as I read is an understatement--lots of fun content. This is not however all peaches and lightness and silly humor. There are plenty of darker and recovery themes as well which made this not exactly the light/fun read I was expecting but really made for a much better read.

I was quite engrossed in this one!

On the negative, well there could have been a little better/tighter editing. I don't blame the indie nature of this, I have seen much worse coming out of 'The Big Six' publishers of late, however, I do wish it had been a little better. Formatting was fine (Kindle edition) and no issues there. A few punctuation issues not that I'm some great expert...but a " instead of a parentheses is noticeable, as was a name shift at one point--I'm guessing Jared was named Jake (or was it Jack) during an earlier draft. I also had a little trouble following the timeline. The first chapter started off showing Gretchen at work, then she went back in time to show past events, and at some point I can see how it all caught up. Perhaps it was me but I had a little hard time putting that first chapter back in the timeline and in finding out how Gretchen's interactions with Jared developed.

There were some predictable developments and elements, and the final big reveal happened with the main character lying in a hospital bed. Normally I dislike that, but in this case it fit. Not high literature, but much better than most 'light' reads. A few details were left hanging--better that way because if everything had been tied up, well, that would have been just a little too neat. Leaves room to carry on in the next book(s). I hope.

To sum up, the negatives were just a little too distracting to give this a full five stars, but if Amazon would allow the 10 star system this would have been about an 8.9. What that means in a more practical sense--I really enjoyed the story. I want to know what happens next, and I want to know more about the secondary characters (please, please don't make this into one of those never-ending 'which guy does she pick' things a la Stephanie Plum or Hannah Swenson). More important than the 'was this worth the money?' question (a big yes!) is that this was a definite 'worth the time'. My time is much more valuable than money and I was pleased to spend it reading this book.

I fully intend to stalk the author's website to make sure I get to read the next one! Highly Recommended!

JTG
17 people found this helpful
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Illinois Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Captivating book
Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2019
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Gretchen Gallen is a woman with a troubled past who tries to make life easier for people who have a death (or violent accident even) in their home. She will come and clean up the scene so the family doesn't have to face that horror. Her business started when her landlady/ boss died suddenly at home. While her previous career in finance didn't lead her to this job, her personal background of two rapes, as well as alcohol and drug addiction shaped her into the perfect candidate for this job. Add a serial killer to the mix, and she got a whole lot busier... but not too busy to make a new friend and notice the men in her life!

This was a book with a lot of issues and a good mystery woven together with a hint of romance. A fast read that left me wanting to know what happens next. The author handled the often dark and complex details well, making it impossible for me to stop reading before it was done. I am ready to read her second book now!
One person found this helpful
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Beckett Shiona
3.0 out of 5 stars Great characters; lots of typos
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2019
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I enjoyed the characters of this story, who were, for the most part, three-dimensional. I did find it difficult to accept that this supposedly-intelligent woman was unable to connect the dots and figure out the murderer until after putting herself in jeopardy. (But then--Spoiler Alert!--this supposedly-intelligent woman refused an offer of a ride home, was assaulted, and then failed to report the rape, thereby putting other women in jeopardy by letting her assailant go scot-free.) There were some genuinely funny moments scattered throughout the story, but also some unbelievable ones (such as--Spoiler Alert!--the syringe in the bedsheets.) Unfortunately, there were a lot of truly sloppy typos and editing fails, too; i.e., a "quarter house" when what was meant was a quarter horse; ice "tickling" instead of "tinkling". These are just a couple of examples of errors; there were numerous punctuation mistakes, too. If not for the editing fails and my irritation with the main character's behavior, I would probably have given the book four stars.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

PS
5.0 out of 5 stars Maid for Mayhem
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 11, 2019
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Terrific book . Very enjoyable read . It kept me engrossed . Characters were entertaining . Will read more about Gretchen and friends .
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PJS
2.0 out of 5 stars An interesting premise, but got lost somewhere along the way
Reviewed in Australia on August 21, 2014
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The story opened-up in an interesting way, but then jumped backwards a few times. This seemed like it was going to be a much better read than other cozy mysteries, but the overload of Unresolved Sexual Tension between our herooine and 2 - 3 males in the book, plus being molested as a child and raped as an adult lay over the top of the story like a big, wet and heavy blanket. Some clever and witty dialogue and interesting secondary stories, but in the end the I flicked to the last 2-chapters to get it over and done with. Sorry, not for me, but will be popular with other readers.
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