A Cutthroat Business by Bente Gallagher

A Cutthroat Business: A Savannah Martin Mystery by Bente Gallagher

Everyone has warned new-minted Realtor® and Southern Belle Savannah Martin that real estate is a cutthroat business. But Savannah doesn't take the warning seriously... until an early morning phone call sends her to an empty house on the other side of town, where she finds herself standing over the butchered body of a competitor, face to face with the boy her mother always warned her about.

 

Savannah Martin is a true Southern Belle. From the antebellum mansion she grew up in to the finishing school she attended. Now, after a short lived marriage and a stint as a make-up consultant, Savannah is trying her hand at being a Realtor. While working her Saturday morning shift in the office she gets a call from a client who had a meeting with Brenda Puckett, the star seller in their office.  Brenda hasn’t shown up for the meeting and the client would like to see the house. Savannah heads over and comes face to face with Rafe Collier, town bad boy and hot guy du jour.  What she doesn’t expect to find is the butchered body of Brenda Puckett.

While Brenda isn’t the most liked person around, Savannah can’t believe that someone could hate her enough to actually kill her.  Savannah has every intention of not getting involved in both the police investigation or with Rafe Collier, but when things don’t add up, she can’t help but start digging.  And every time she turns around, there is Rafe.  When a second body soon turns up Savannah realizes she just can’t stay out of it, that she needs to figure out who the killer is before they strike again. Infidelity, positions of power, star crossed teen lovers, little old ladies and backroom deals are just a few of possible reasons for the murders. But just which one brought Brenda, and the other person down? And while all of this is going on, Savannah has to deal with the old high school boyfriend her mother would like to her to be with and the hot, sexy, bad boy Rafe, who no one wants her to be with.

A Cutthroat Business is a fun, new, exciting entry into the cozy genre, showing us a whole new side to what has become a cutthroat real estate business. Savannah is young, fresh, and such fun to get to know.  I like Savannah because she knows she’s very ‘green’ when it comes to the real estate business (not to mention sleuthing) and doesn’t try and be something she’s not. A Cutthroat Business is a great start to a new series. It’s a quick, lively cozy read that will keep its readers entertained and when they are done have them anxiously awaiting the next book in the series, Hot Property, to find out just what happens with Savannah and the men in her life! 

If you can't wait until your copy comes in the mail, click HERE to read the first three chapters of the book.

And make sure you visit Bente at her BLOG so you can read all about what's coming next from her and her alter ego Jennie Bentley (of the Do-It-Yourself Home Renovation Series)

FTC Full Disclosure ~ I received this review copy from the publisher, in hopes I would review it.