Karen E. Olson - Ink Flamingos

The fourth book in the Tattoo Shop Mystery series, published June 7, 2011.
Genre: cozy mystery
Cover: colourful



The Painted Lady is Brett Kavanaugh's high-end tattoo shop on the Vegas strip. But when she comes across the outlines of dead bodies, it's her sleuthing skills that are in demand…
Dee Carmichael, lead singer of the hot pop sensation The Flamingos, is one of Brett's most dedicated customers - or was. Dee has been discovered dead in her hotel room, surrounded by ink pots and needles. And a tall redhead matching Brett's description was seen leaving the crime scene. Now Brett has been branded the prime suspect. This can't be good for business…
Meanwhile, a blog has been showcasing Dee's deadly tattoo. Things get worse when pictures of Brett start appearing on the site. Turns out, someone isn't merely following Brett, but impersonating her all over town. Now she must act fast to find out who's out to get her before the killer puts the dye in dying once again...


A Las Vegas location, and a tattoo shop, what is not to love? This is a high paced story, especially for a cozy mystery, and Brett has hardly time to get some rest. Someone is impersonating Brett and setting her up as a murderer. To clear her own name, and her business, she has to investigate this herself. Even though her brother is a cop, he can't protect her and they don't have a clue to the real identity of the killer. But Dee died of ink poisoning … Brett has only done black tattoo's on her, she knew about her allergy so who has given her color? And why would she get a tattoo in a seedy hotel room, instead of in a clean tattoo shop?
Two men are vying for her attention, Harry, a recent hanger on in her shop, and Jeff, who own another tattoo shop in Vegas, but not as upscale as Brett's. Can she really be interested in Jeff? She only ever saw him as her competition, but he sure is there for her when she needs protection or a ride or whatever. Even her brother seems to like him …

I did enjoy this book a lot, I had no idea about the killer, or the why, and I liked Brett's confusion about her romantic interest or not. I would have enjoyed reading more about that, as Jeff is a great and unique character, but sadly, this is the last book in the series (and somehow I picked this one instead of book 3!)
The ending was creepy, and I was glad that Jeff saved the day. Yes, I did suspect the bad guy, but not the whole plot! If you like short series I do recommend this one.

8 stars.

© 2015 Reviews by Aurian