Hot Button
Button Box Mystery #2
Kylie Logan

Berkley Prime Crime
June 2012/ 978-0-425-25135-5
Mystery/Cozy/Amateur Sleuth
Amazon

Reviewed by Laura Hinds

There is a Button Collectors Conference in Chicago, and Josie Giancola is the chairwoman. Josie owns a button shop, The Button Box, and the conference will increase its visibility and shore up Josie's reputation as an expert in the field. Thad Wyant, a reclusive collector with expertise in Western Buttons, has flown in to be the keynote speaker. This is quite a coup for Josie, and she's excited to get the conference rolling.

Unfortunately, things are not on the button as planned. Little things mostly, like missing name tags for attendees and catering orders cancelled. Yet Thad Wyant quickly goes from being a feather in Josie's bonnet to being a thorn in her side. He is rude to the point of obnoxious, drinks far too much, and ends up murdered before his speech and before the conference goers get to see his historical Geronimo button.

Josie's ex-husband, Kaz, has insinuated himself into the conference, posing as Josie's right hand man. He certainly does come in handy a time or two, but he also knows how to push Josie's buttons, which only serves to irritate her. Josie is romantically interested in the police detective assigned to the case. Detective Nevin Riley and Josie worked together on a previous case, and this time he comes right out and asks for her help.

I loved the first book in this series, Button Holed, and was thrilled when I was assigned to review Hot Button. I must admit, though, that at first I was wary, afraid that a story about a button conference wouldn't hold my interest long. I was wrong, I read the book from cover to cover in three sittings because I was interested and just had to find out who the killer was and why.

With some interesting twists and turns, along with realistic characters and relationships, Hot Button is a good mystery. There's a murder (or two), a hint of romance (or two- one with Kaz and the other with Nev), and even an annoying, eccentric character (or two.)

I was very happy that Josie, the main character, remained true to her strong self, and did not become a woman dependent on others to solve the crime. She took responsibility for things that went wrong at the conference, even when she was not in control of the situations. A nice touch is that Josie never once pushed the panic button. Bravo to Kylie Logan for another fabulous book!

Reviews of other titles in this series

Button Holed #1
Hot Button #2
Panic Button #3