Reviewed by Tracy A. Fischer for Readers' Favorite

I must confess that I love mysteries, and I’m always looking for new books in this genre. Unfortunately, I’ve been getting a little bit burned out on my favorite books lately. So many of them seem the same, and I often guess the bad guy within the first quarter of the book. So, I sometimes pick up new mysteries a bit warily nowadays. It was with that attitude that I picked up author B.L. Blair’s new book, Dead in a Dumpster, the first in the Leah Norwood Mystery series. I needn’t have worried. Blair’s book is a delightful, cozy little mystery story that I enjoyed from the very start.

In it, our protagonist, Leah Norwood, owner of a small perfume and lotion shop, Scents and Sensibility, finds the body of fellow business manager Isabel Meeks in her store’s dumpster; her already bad day gets much worse. Considered a suspect, as she was not a fan of Ms. Meeks (but hey, no one was, she was not a very nice gal), Leah decides to take the investigation into her own hands. Considered as suspects? Isabel’s highly attractive assistant manager, Trent Kearney; the owner of the store Isabel managed, Anthony Thorpe; and, oh, yes, an entire family of drug dealers. Throw into the mix a gorgeous new police chief, and this story will keep you turning the pages.

I really, truly enjoyed Dead in a Dumpster. It was a fun read and was humorous, suspenseful and had just enough romance thrown into the mix to make it a delightful book. This is the first book that I have read by author B.L. Blair, but it certainly won’t be the last. I will be looking forward to reading Book Two in this series!