Sleigh Bell Tower: Murder at the Campus Holiday Gala (Braxton Campus Mysteries #8) by James J. Cudney

Published: December 20th 2021 by Next Chapter

About the Book: When Bell Towers decides to build their newest boutique hotel in Wharton County, Braxton establishes a hospitality program as part of their university expansion. Despite the Ingram and Lynch family ties to prominent citizens, a dispute over the proposed landsite pits citizens against each other. One takes matters into their own hands and slays the hotel magnate during the campus holiday party. As the list of suspects increases, long-lost family members are anxious to keep their secrets from being revealed, complicating Sheriff Montague’s ability to determine the murderer’s true motive. Even Kellan’s forced to cast doubt on his friends and colleagues when it becomes obvious someone he knows committed the ultimate crime.

April and Kellan are also celebrating their first Christmas and Hanukkah together, exchanging gifts based on the classic Twelve Days of Christmas song. While they trim the tree, light the menorah, and experience all the traditional holiday festivities with the kids, Nana D delivers her sarcastic brand of humor and endlessly tortures the town. Among Eleanor’s surprise news, Augie’s new girlfriend, and Myriam’s hilarious demands, Kellan’s dealing with unexpected holiday drama. The poor guy simply wants to spend the merry season with his family before he’s forced to trek to Scotland to fulfill his promise to the late Constance Garibaldi. What kind of quest has the psychic sent him on now?

5 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is the 8th book in the Braxton Campus Mysteries series by James J. Cudney and I enjoyed it as much as, or more than, the previous books in the series. This is a series that builds upon the previous books in the series, so if you are a person who enjoys reading a complete series, then it is best to read them in order. If you are someone who dips in and out of a series, you can read this as a standalone book. Now, about the story.

Kellan is happily moving on with his life. April and her brother have moved in with Kellan, his daughter and nephew. He is getting along better with his boss at the college and Christmas is coming. This year this blended group is learning about each other’s customs and celebrations as April and Augie are Jewish so celebrate Hanukkah. While the celebrations are gearing up, something is causing problems in Wharton County. A hotel conglomerate wants to build a large hotel on the lake and it will dwarf the Inn belonging to friends of Kellan and his family. There has also been some shenanigans involving the zoning of the property. The family selling the property is in trouble and there are a lot of people who are upset with the owner of the company. When the hotel magnate ends up dead at the Braxton College Winter Gala, there is no shortage of suspects.

James J. Cudney has a way of hooking you from the first page and keeping it that way until you close the book. I love the characters in the book and have enjoyed seeing them grow and develop. Now, Kellan is an amazing MC, who is smart, trustworthy, honest and caring, but Nana D. is still my favourite. She is sassy, hilarious and unrepentant, but you know she is coming from a place of love. April has also become a favourite character, a long way from how I felt about her in the beginning of the series, especially now that she trusts Kellan’s instincts so much more. This was a well-written and plotted mystery, with several suspects, lots of red herrings (or should I say blue anchovies), and a few twists that kept me guessing right to the end. The final twist had my jaw dropping and I love the set up for the next book. I love everything about Christmas, so I enjoyed all the festive activities, descriptions and customs. It was well described and an integral part of the story. I thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of this story and am already looking forward to the next book when Kellan heads off to Scotland.

About the Author: James is my given name, but most folks call me Jay. I live in New York City, grew up on Long Island, and graduated from Moravian College, an historic but small liberal arts school in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, with a degree in English literature and minors in Education, Business and Spanish. After college, I accepted a technical writing position for a telecommunications company during Y2K and spent the last ~20 years building a career in technology & business operations in the retail, sports, media, hospitality, and entertainment industries. Throughout those years, I wrote short stories, poems, and various beginnings to the “Great American Novel,” but I was so focused on my career that writing became a hobby. In 2016, I committed to focusing my energies toward reinvigorating a second career in reading, writing, and publishing.

Writing has been a part of my life as much as my heart, mind, and body. At some points, it was just a few poems or short stories; at others, it was full length novels and stories. My current focus is family drama fiction, cozy mystery novels, and suspense thrillers. I conjure characters and plots that I feel must be unwound. I think of situations people find themselves in and feel compelled to tell the story. It’s usually a convoluted plot with many surprise twists and turns. I feel it necessary to take that ride all over the course. My character is easily pictured in my head. I know what he is going to encounter or what she will feel. But I need to use the right words to make it clear.

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