Aloha to Chip Hughes' MURDER ON MOLOKA'I and Jill Marie Landis' THREE TO GET LEI'D

Kalaupapa, Moloka'i

I watch Hawaii Life/HGTV on Sunday nights (link) (link) and Buying Hawaii/Destination America on Monday night (link). These shows give me a taste of paradise.  I recently read two cozy mysteries set in Hawaii, authored by kama'ainas (locals), that also remind me of the good life I enjoyed in the Aloha State:

Chip Hughes' MURDER ON MOLOKA'I:

When Boston heiress Adrienne Ridgely strides into his Honolulu office, Surfing Detective Kai Cooke likes what he sees, but doubts what he hears. Adrienne’s sister, environmental activist Sara Ridgely-Parke, plunged to her death from a mule on Moloka‘i – the first fatal incident on the soaring cliffs above Kalaupapa’s fabled leper colony. Murder, cries Adrienne, perpetrated by Sara’s ex-husband, developer J. Gregory Parke. Cooke flies to Moloka‘i, tracking tantalizing leads to an unlikely murder that, despite himself, he starts to believe in.

Was the mule prodded or spooked or drugged? Did Parke do it for vengeance, or Adrienne for an inheritance, as Parke alleges? Soon Kai uncovers a motive more noxious than either of these – entangling him in the shady dealings of big-time developers, corrupt politicians, and underworld thugs. As he hops from island to island seeking a pivotal clue, the clock ticks down on more than the P.I.’s case or even his own life. The future of Moloka‘i itself is at stake.

Jill Marie Landis' THREE TO GET LEI'D:

A jigger of tranquility is all Em Johnson wants, but now that her beloved Tiki Goddess Bar has been chosen as the location for Trouble in Paradise, TV's hot new reality show, life is anything but tranquil. When a member of the camera crew is found dead in her kitchen-stabbed to death with Chef Kimo's sashimi knife-the scene on the sleepy North Shore of Kauai goes from eccentrically crazy to downright dangerous. Suspects lurk behind every paper drink umbrella. 

It's not enough that Chef Kimo is the number one suspect or that the life's-a-party Hula Maidens nearly burn down the place while dancing the hula with flaming coconuts. Em still has to deal with her Uncle Louie's wedding to The Black Widow-until his fiancee's Mercedes plunges into the Pacific. Roland Sharpe, a handsome, Hawaiian, fire-dancing detective, warns the locals not to interfere, but Em and the madcap Maidens can't help themselves and soon wind up knee deep in danger again. Can the irrepressible troupe solve three murders before the champagne goes flat?

They are easy reads with island humor intertwined with quirky characters.  If you are a fan of cozy mysteries and Hawaiian culture, these books are for you!

I am giving away my last Hawaiian souvenir to one randomly selected commenter.  To enter the giveaway, 

1.  Have you read a book set in a small locale that you have visited?

2.  This giveaway is open to all readers.

3.  Comments are open through Saturday, January 4, 10 pm in Baltimore.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, January 5.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

To learn more about Chip Hughes and his books, check out his website at surfingdetective.com.

To learn more about Jill Marie Landis and her books, check out her website at thetikigoddess.com.

Anahola Beach Park, Kauai