The mystery and crime genre can be a dark and gory world that can both attract and disturb readers. It’s addictive, but not always healthy, to dive into grisly murders, exhausting clues, and basically the worst of human behavior.
So, it’s refreshing to find a cozy mystery series that doesn’t leave you feeling sad and frustrated with the world. Instead, it gives you hope that the good guys can win, the bad guys will lose, and that justice will prevail.
Author Sharon Kay delivers this hopeful message in the follow-up to her cozy mystery novel, The Peculiar Case of the Petersburg Professor, with Fashionably Fit, Fatally Flawed! Below is my review of the sophomore installment in the series along with my interview with Kay about her sequel and her writing process. Then, enter to win a copy of the book using the Rafflecopter form below!
Fashionably Fit, Fatally Flawed! plot summary
It’s Christmas 1974, and Michelle Kilpatrick is on winter break. With school out of the way, she’s intent on celebrating the holidays as well as the grand opening of her friend, Rick’s, mother’s new gym. Her plans change, though, as a young, potential beauty queen drops dead on one of the treadmills just prior to the launch.
Michelle is thrown into investigative journalist mode as the mysterious circumstances of the death swirl around her. Together with her former classmate and colleague, Craig, she sets out to find out what happened and who could be responsible.
Along the way, Michelle finds herself struggling with her feelings for both Craig and T.J., dodges her father’s antagonistic attitude towards her pursuit of a professional life versus one spent on the family farm, and attempts to juggle work, play, and holiday celebrations in between her investigation. As she dives deeper into the circumstances and the suspects, she finds herself in over her head, and potentially in danger of being the murder’s next victim.
The story
The sequel to Kay’s introductory novel featuring college sleuth Michelle Kilpatrick is a seamless transition to a new story that piggybacks off the first while maintaining its own separate story and adding new characters to its already established cast. Set just after the events of the first book, the novel wades returning readers back into the small town of Petersburg which is full of secrets, shady characters, and a handful of intrepid new adults.
The setting
Not only is the Christmas setting chronologically appropriate, but taking away the school element gives Michelle the time to investigate a new mystery while also adding other challenges, such as holiday obligations and inclement weather, to her already strained schedule. Petersburg is the same small, sleepy town that just happens to have a lot of dirty laundry that seems to be getting aired out, and the end of the book seems to suggest that this is all part of a larger conspiracy that will tie the series together even tighter than previously established.
The characters
Michelle appears to be coming into her own in this story. She marches forward with her future career plans, despite her family’s, particularly her father’s, protests. She also appears to be more confident in her investigative skills, though she still has work to do in terms of confidence with her self-image and the collection of guys who all appear to be competing for her affections.
The guys themselves are all very distinct and have their own well-developed back stories and motivations. There’s Craig who is rich and charming yet can run hot and cold emotionally. Michelle’s best friend T.J. is struggling with his relationship with his new girlfriend and appears to long for the good old days when it was just him and Michelle. And there’s Rick who is wrapped up in his mother’s business drama, yet still harbors a not so well-hidden crush on Michelle.
Personally, I’m team T.J., but there’s no rule that says that Michelle has to pick any of these men. She’s still figuring herself out, and that alone is a full plate on top of trying to figure out who she wants to end up with. That’s easy to say from a modern perspective, but when a faux relationship is revealed to her family, it’s easy to see how much pressure was on women in the 70s to settle down as soon as possible, career-bound or not.
The Kilpatrick family dynamic is particularly interesting to me. Michelle is the black sheep yet still one of them, and it’s a struggle for her to try to have her cake and eat it too. Her siblings tease her, her father berates her, and her mother subtly supports her.
However, it’s difficult enough to keep up with the farm, and Michelle, who seems to be away more than she’s home, feels like a dead weight to them. But those who branch out from the norm often have to take a selfish stance, and that can often put both a physical and emotional burden on both sides.
My recommendation
Fashionably Fit, Fatally Flawed! is the perfect follow up edition of the Michelle Kilpatrick mystery series. It creates a brand new conflict that incorporates new characters along with the old favorites, a unique, compelling, and digestible mystery, and plenty of side plots to keep the reader interested. I like Michelle, her gumption, her supporting cast of characters, and the world that Kay has built and continues to play in, and I can’t wait to see what happens next!
My rating
Enter the giveaway!
An interview with Sharon Kay
What was it like writing a sequel to The Peculiar Case of the Petersburg Professor? What was easier, and what was more challenging?
In many ways it was easier because I already had my primary cast of characters. I knew who they were and their backstory.
When I first started writing the Michelle Kilpatrick Mysteries, I planned on each book being a stand-alone mystery with the same cast of characters, but by the time I finished Book One, I had created a mystery thread that would run throughout the series. The challenge then became how to reference happenings from the first book without boring readers who had already read it and, yet, include enough previous details so new readers would not get lost.
The murder in this book is very specific and unique. How did you come up with it?
I knew I wanted my victim to succumb to something other than a gunshot wound and decided on a death by poisoning. The tricky part was deciding which poison to use.
I researched several poisons—symptoms, time between poisoning and death, how much would have to be used, was it easily obtainable in 1974, etc. Without giving too much away, I found the perfect one for the situation in which it was needed.
This story takes place during Christmas 1974. Are there any traditions or images that you drew from the Christmases you celebrated in the 70s?
My parents owned a gift shop in the 70s and 80s. My brother and I worked there with my parents. Since the holiday rush started at the store with Halloween and all of us working there, decorating the house had to be done by November 1st or it wasn’t going to get done.
Out of habit, I have kept up that tradition even though I am no longer in the retail business. As they say, old habits die hard. When my oldest son was born on November 3rd, the only thing I changed was that I didn’t decorate until after his birthday.
Food was and still is a big part of our Christmas tradition. I have a fondness for the recipes my mother always made when I was growing up like opera fudge, walnut crescent cookies, and my father’s peanut brittle.
Michelle finds herself surrounded by guys who appear to be competing for her affections despite her humble attitude towards herself. What do you think draws them to her? Any plans for a female friend in the future?
At a time when the world is in flux with the fallout from the Vietnam War, President Nixon’s resignation, and the growing distrust of the establishment, T.J., Craig, and Rick are attracted to Michelle because she is genuine. She’s a dreamer and an eternal optimist. Of course, T.J. is the most comfortable with her since they have practically grown up together and knows firsthand, how loyal she can be as a friend.
Not sure at the moment where their friendship will take them, but I foresee more positive interaction between Michelle and Tasha as they learn they have more in common than they first thought.
You created a music playlist for Book 1. Did you create a separate one for Book 2?
Yes, the playlist for Fashionably Fit, Fatally Flawed consists of 11 Christmas songs that were played (and still are) in December 1974 and is posted on my website.
What are your favorite parts of a book to write?
My absolute favorite part of writing my books is the dialogue. I like getting inside my characters’ heads—imagining what they are feeling, how they are reacting to those around them, and how others are reacting to them.
I particularly enjoy the banter when it creeps in. I don’t always plan for the dialogue to go that way, but sometimes—and the best times—is when the characters take it there themselves.
Some of the relationships in the first book (ex. Michelle and T.J., Michelle and her dad) are strained in this book. Do you have plans for how these conflicts will play out, or do they come as you write?
Without giving too much away, I can say that the relationships in the book reflect real life. Some get resolved, some that seemed stable hit a few bumps, and others may not end in the perfect fairy tale way that we always desire. But that’s okay.
We can’t make everyone like us or agree with us. The main thing is to be true to our values. We can do our part by being kind and respectful of others while accepting the fact that they are responsible for their actions.
What do you want readers to take away from Michelle’s story as a whole?
One of the big takeaways is that dreams can come true, but you have to work to make them happen. Also, if a dream gets modified or dropped, that’s okay, too. It’s not a sign of failure.
Life is about growing and the changes that come with it. Sometimes those changes are in ways we imagined, while others are totally unexpected.
What can you say to get readers excited for Book 3?
Inspiration for Book Three came from my kids’ lives as competitive figure skaters training with Olympic coaches and their teams. Adding a hefty dose of imagination to those experiences, I set the stage for the next book, which takes place in April 1995 when an ice-skating coach brings his team to the University of Petersburg to train for their chance at the Olympics.
A coach is murdered amidst a swirl of scandalous lies, but when the wrong person is arrested, Michelle, Craig, and T.J. spring into action to find the killer. As they dig deeper into the case, they discover a thread that connects the coach’s death and the coverup surrounding Sarah’s death (Book 2). Things get murkier as someone tries to kill Michelle’s mother, and the revenge against Mae Emerson becomes clearer.
Author links
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Check out my review of Book 1 in the series, The Peculiar Case of the Petersburg Professor, here!
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Buy a copy of Fashionably Fit, Fatally Flawed! here, and help support local bookstores! This is an affiliate link, and I will earn a commission on any sales.
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