Title: Madam Tulip
Author: David Ahern
Published: April 2016
Genre: Mystery
How I got the book: I received a free digital copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Out-of-work actress Derry O’Donnell is talented, professional, just a little psychic… and broke. Spurred on by an ultimatum from her awesomely high-achieving mother, Derry embarks on a part-time career as Madame Tulip, fortune teller to the rich and famous. But at her first fortune-telling gig – a celebrity charity weekend in a luxurious castle – a famous rap artist mysteriously dies.
As Derry is drawn deeper into a seedy world of fashion, millionaires, horses and cocaine, she must race to save her best friend from jail and a supermodel from being murdered. Her efforts threaten to destroy her friends, her ex-lover, her father and herself.
My Review:
If you know me, you know I like mystery. So I didn’t really need to think twice about this one when the author had asked me to review it.
Derry O’Donnell is trying to make her way as an actress with minimal success. Inherited from her ancestors, she’s a little bit psychic so she decides (with a little push from her friend) to become a fortune teller part-time. By doing so, she meets a few new people as clients and ends up getting herself into some trouble.
This is a new take on a murder mystery, for me, as the protagonist uses her psychic powers to help her along the way. It did remind me of the TV show Psych, except Derry, known as Madam Tulip, tends to see things by accident sometimes. Still, she uses that to her advantage to figure things out.
I thought it was an interesting take on a mystery and the psychic powers were put to good use, especially since her visions weren’t always completely clear.
I enjoyed following Madam Tulip around as the protagonist. She had a good head on her shoulders and even though she wasn’t a detective it was a classic who-dun-it story.
I also loved her father as well as her friends Bella and Bruce. Bella wasn’t in it too much as she got herself into a bit of trouble, but Bruce was a great supporting character as he helped Madam Tulip figure things out. Even her father, who is a bit out there, did his best to help out, despite not fully understanding the situation.
Each character was crafted wonderfully and they all were unique from one another with a variety of personality.
I found the author’s writing style easy to read and follow. The pacing of the novel was well done and I didn’t find any inconsistencies in tense or anything.
My only minor complaint was that there was something going on with Madam Tulip’s parents. While bits and pieces were explained about that I wasn’t sure what exactly it had to do with the storyline. This is the first book in a series so maybe more will be explained later, but for now, I found as though it wasn’t really needed.
This was a good, enjoyable read. I loved the characters and the overall plot and murder was well thought out and executed. I would recommend this book to anyone slightly interested in it and I’m sure I’ll be reading the second book in the future.
Madam Tulip by David Ahern gets…
4 out of 5 stars
Favorite Quote:
“I can only make the promise. You have to decide if you want to trust me.” –David Ahern, Madam Tulip
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