A High-End Finish by Kate Carlisle

This is another gem that includes everything that I’ve come to expect from Kate Carlisle. Like her Bibliophile series, “A High-End Finish,” the first in her new Fixer-Upper Mystery series, revolves around a whip-smart, independent woman mixed-up in a satisfying murder mystery. The protagonist, Shannon Hammer, owns a general contracting business that refurbishes old Victorian-style homes in the small Northern California town of Lighthouse Cove. The writing is funny and polished. Ms. Carlisle’s characters are well-rounded and compelling. I couldn’t put it down and recommend “A High-End Finish,” as well as all of Kate Carlisle’s other mystery novels.