Empress Isabella's Disastrous Thanksgiving by Margaret Evans

What on earth is happening in Raging Ford, Minnesota, this Thanksgiving? Laura Keene and Connor Fitzpatrick try to finalize their wedding plans, but when a Turkey Circus comes to town and their favorite, mysterious feline Empress Isabella dips her paw into the works, forget the cranberry sauce because anything can happen! Instead of basting turkeys, mashing potatoes, or whipping up delicious pumpkin pies, the townsfolk...get a little distracted. Keep your windows shut and doors latched--and don't forget to duck as the flock (or rafter) of turkeys run and flutter-fly through the town!

Empress Isabella's Disastrous Thanksgiving is the second prequel to the new Laura Keene Cozy Mysteries series. Stick around for Empress Isabella and a Cracklin' Christmas for the third and final prequel, introducing the new cozy mysteries series.   (Summary via Goodreads)

Empress Isabella's Disastrous Thanksgiving by Margaret Evans is the second novella in her three part prequel to the Laura Keene Cozy Mystery series.  The first part of this prequel was Empress Isabella and the Halloween Caper and hopefully you read it, if not don't worry you can catch up quickly !

These mini books, which are less than 100 pages and can be read in one sitting, are setting the stage for readers to get to know the people and town of Raging Ford Minnesota in Evans Second Treasures Mystery series.

In Empress Isabella's Disastrous Thanskgiving the people of Raging Ford are gearing up for the Thanskgiving holiday and are welcoming a traveling Turkey Circus to town.  Unfortunately a lot goes wrong with the circus with all the turkey's, as well as the wild turkeys that are on the preserve by the Old Library in town, being let loose and a dead body is found in the woods.  

Main character Laura Keene who owns the Second Treasures thrift shop is the "owner" of Empress Isabella who is a cat that only Laura and her fiance Sergeant Connor Fitzpatrick can see.  Empress Isabella feels that something is off with this Turkey Circus so she goes and watches everything around the three tents that they put up in town.  She soons learns what they are really in town to do and she gathers her "friends" which are probably other cats no one can see and she helps save the holiday.....unfortunately it is after the turkeys go crazy, the town is a mess from that and the dead body is discovered....

Readers will love these little stories and if you have a few hours, you will have no problem reading one....or two of them in one sitting.  I was able to accomplish that with the first two and know that the last one will go just as smoothly....even if the story doesn't go that way.

I look forward to the third book because Evans is setting the stage quite nicely for Laura and Connor to celebrate Christmas and then get married on December 27th......I'm sure nothing will go wrong but if it does, I bet Empress Isabella will be on top of things !!!

Review by Missi M.