Nightmares Can Be Murder (A Dream Club Mystery) Mass Market Paperback – September 2, 2014

I purchased this book because I thought it would be centered more on the retro candy store business than on dream analysis. My error. I know zero about the dream-analysis portion of the book, am not interested in it, and have no real opinion on the subject. So, I'll focus on the actual story-line instead.For a 1st book in a series, I had a little trouble with the character development of both sisters. Based on the timeline, both must be somewhere near their mid 30's. Neither seems to have a romantic interest, but both seem to have cash reserves. Did Taylor quit her Chicago job? She apparently didn't make any friends in Chicago or form any interests, as she doesn't seem to have any contact with anyone outside of Ali's friends in Savannah. For a business consultant, her advice was incredibly basic & obvious. A business consultant would want to analyze the books, look at the business plan, consult with the C of C and tourism bureau, study the market, discuss forming a merchant's association and other alliances of support within the community. A consultant's job is to reposition the company to make it both dynamic and sustainable, with a plan & a pathway to get there. The author made a big show of Taylor giving Ali's assistant a thumbs up for giving out helium balloons to the tourists. I still couldn't figure out why Ali had an assistant in the first place, given the fact that her business was another in a long line of business failures - yet neither she nor Taylor were putting any time into actually running the store.The characters were a diverse bunch, which is always helpful. But the character development is a little sloppy. It isn't enough to simply state that Noah was part of an elite operations unit, or Taylor was a workaholic....a well-shaped character would have had, for example, trouble sleeping in such a change of scenery. Or, initially a little bored with the Savannah lifestyle. In the end, I just didn't "get" Taylor. I couldn't picture her, I couldn't compare her to anyone I knew, I sort of was left with the feeling that she was a bit of a know it all.What I will say about the dream club meetings, was that dream discussions would occasionally morph into reality. "I had a dream that someone was murdered" isn't a premonition. Yet the book treated it as so. "In my dream I saw one of you alone with Chico" had the entire group panicked that a deep secret would be revealed. IT WAS A DREAM. Worst yet, was the dream discussion that the group felt should be brought to the police's attention. Very confusing.The book was riddled with continuity problems - one chapter in particular. The sisters were up at 7am. They had a visitor at 8. The visitor started paying for her purchase, but was stopped & questioned. Maybe 15-20 minutes later, she grabbed her purse (not her purchases - nor did she pay for them), and left. The sisters then left to run errands, but decided to stop for an early lunch. I'll say - it couldn't have been 9am. Afterwards, they stopped at a friend's house and had cinnamon rolls because their stomachs were growling. They may just have healthy appetites, but again, I'm more inclined to call it continuity. The living room candles were originally fat amber, then later fat vanilla. We were reminded that the cats slow-blink as a show of friendship a couple of times. We were told & retold many different parts of the story, almost as if we were returning from commercial break, and trying to catch up.Altogether, I didn't hate the book, but I wasn't very excited about it either. I couldn't really find any way to connect with Taylor or Ali, and didn't much like any of the supporting characters. For me, it didn't really have a "wow" factor that grabs the reader, and pulls them in.

Hard-charging business consultant Taylor Blake takes a break from big city life to return to Savannah, Georgia, to help her sister Allison improve business at Allison’s vintage candy store, Oldies but Goodies. Taylor immediately sees many areas of improvement, but doesn’t want to step on her sister’s toes, so decides to ease into suggestions to increase business.Allison is interested in dream analysis and invites Taylor to attend a meeting of the Dream Club, which meets at the store. Taylor, who is skeptical about dream interpretation, goes to the meeting, to be sociable, and for the excellent desserts her sister provides (another way to increase business, Taylor thinks to herself!)A shady lothario who owns a dance studio down the street from the candy store gets murdered and Allison is one of many potential suspects. Taylor begins an investigation, aided by an old flame who used to be an FBI agent, but is now a private investigator, and another friend who is a reporter looking for her big break.I found the relationship between Taylor and Allison and the operation of Oldies but Goodies much more interesting than the Dream Club aspect. The potential for a rekindled relationship between Taylor and Noah, the former flame, was an attractive element, as is the relationship between the three old friends. I could have done without a couple of the Dream Club members – I get that you need unpleasant characters to move things along, but I wanted to biotch slap a couple of them. At least the author humanizes them by the end of the book.This was a well-written book, with good character development and an interesting plot. It made me want to read more of the author’s work (she also writes the “Talk Radio Mysteries.”) If you are interested in dream interpretation, the dream symbol guide at the end of the book is an added bonus. I will read more in this series because I really do want to see what happens to Oldies but Goodies, and the relationships between the central characters.

This book had me hooked from the start - beginning with the cover. The artwork on this book is beautiful and would definitely catch my attention if I saw it on a shelf full of books. I have read Mary's first series (the Talk Radio mysteries) and enjoyed them. So, when this first book in her new series was introduced, I pre-ordered it months in advance. I was definitely not disappointed. I read a lot of cozy mystery series, and I would rank this new series in the top 5 (and of those 5 it would be hard to choose a favorite). The premise of the Dream Club was so refreshing, and the old time candy shop was also a nice component. I thought the characters (Taylor, Ali, Noah, Sara and the Dream Club ladies) were well developed, and I'm looking forward to learning more about their lives as the series progresses. I liked Taylor and Noah's relationship. Not too much conflict - just old friends meeting again and realizing that maybe it's finally their time. The identity of the murderer was not obvious and kept me wondering. The twists and turns had me thinking I knew who it was several times, but I didn't figure it out until about the same time that Taylor did. And, of course, because of my love of cats - I was happy to have Barney and Scout as a part of the "family". I would absolutely recommend this book, and I'm looking forward to reading the next installment in the Dream Club series.