This is the first in the “Happy Hoofers” series by Mary McHugh. This is a group of friends in their fifties who love to tap dance – Tina, Janice, Pat, Mary Louise and Gini. They started by looking for a fun way to exercise, and learned to tap dance. They began doing performances in the community and then put a youtube video online. A Russian rivercruise line were looking for entertainment and after seeing the youtube video, booked them to perform on the ship going from Moscow to St. Petersburg. It sounded like a great way to see this part of the world so they accepted.

From the first, this cruise was nothing like the ones they had heard friends and relatives raving about. The food was terrible, many of the staff did not speak English and the staff was not overly friendly. When the chef ends up getting murdered, the cruise takes a turn for the worse. Actually, the food got better with the sous chef doing the cooking, but their movements were limited and they could not get off the ship as often as expected. As the investigation continued, there is another murder, some sleezy encounters with other passengers and the fear that the murderer is still on board.

I enjoyed the story. The Hoofers, were a fun group of ladies who made friends everywhere they went. The pace of the story was quick and the supporting characters were also fun and engaging. Of course the setting was great, the cruise ship as well as some of the Russian ports they stopped off. The only thing I did not like was that I figured out what happened shortly after the murder was discovered. I am looking forward to the next one to see what the Happy Hoofers are getting into in Spain. ( )

Meeting this group of female friends and joining them on their crazy Russian cruise was a pleasure. These amazing ladies, all over the age of 50 know how to live life to the fullest. This story includes topics about long lasting friendships, love, loss, romance, tap dancing, cruising, Russian food, culture, & history; murder, adventure, quirky characters, all bundled into a enjoyable FUN read. ( )

Chorus Line, Caviar, and Corpses by Mary McHugh is a cute cozy mystery. It is the first in the Happy Hoofers mystery series. The Happy Hoofers have been asked to perform on a Russian river cruise. The Hoofers are popular since a video of them tap dancing appeared online. The Happy Hoofers consist of their fearless leader and travel editor for Perfect Bridge magazine, Tina Powell; documentary filmmaker, Gini Miller; community theater actress and director, Janice Rogers; married and mother of three (and Tina’s closest friend), Mary Louise Temple; and family therapist, Pat Keeler. All of the ladies are in their 50’s and in very good shape because of their dancing.

The Smirnov, a Russian river cruise boat, is going to travel the Volga River from Moscow to St. Petersburg. The Happy Hoofers are excited about the cruise and looking forward to exploring Russia in between their dancing obligations. They arrive at the cruise ship and find they have very small staterooms (as well as the world’s tiniest bathrooms). They are then greeted by Heidi Gorsuch, the ship’s cruise director of activities. She is a stern Russian woman. After a delicious breakfast, the ladies set out to check out the boat and make friends. Tina, whose husband, Bill, passed away a year ago, meets Barry Martin. Barry is a lawyer (just like Tina’s husband, Bill) and actually went to law school with Bill. They also meet Brad Sheldon who is an off-Broadway actor who recently broke up with his boyfriend, Maxim. They were supposed to be on the cruise together. Alex Boyer, a report with the New York Times, is also on the cruise. Alex takes an instant likes to Gini.

The group is looking forward to lunch and they are very disappointed. When they complain to Heidi, they meet Kenneth Allgood, the chef. Ken is a British chef trying to cook British versions of Russian dishes for the passengers (with little success). Ken goes out of his way to threaten Tina for complaining about his food. Ken wants to get to America to open a restaurant in New York. Ken and Brad get close the first night on the ship.
The next morning Ken is nowhere to be found and neither is Brad. The police are called to investigate. After searching the river they find a body. They are only able to identify the body by the passport (which was in a waterproof pouch). Brad is not found. The police set out to find Brad while questioning everyone on board. Something does not seem quite right and the Hoofers set out to solve the mystery.

Chorus Lines, Caviar, and Corpses is a fun mystery. It includes some wonderful descriptions of the scenery and sights in Russia. Recipes are also included for some of the dishes mentioned throughout the book (the ship gets a much better chef after Kenneth Allgood). I enjoyed the twist at the end of the book when the killer was revealed. I liked that the heroines in the book are older. I give Chorus Lines, Caviar, and Corpses 4 out of 5 stars. A good first mystery in the Happy Hoofers series.

I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads Program. ( )

4 STARS

This is the first book in a fun new series about 5 middle age women who are dancers. This is exciting, murder mystery, lots of action, travel in Russia on a river cruise. I really liked the characters. I am already starting to read the next in the series.

The Happy Hoofers are Tina, Janice, Pat, Mary Louise, and Gini. Tina is the leader and the main character for the Chorus Lines, Caviar and Corpses. The ladies are good friends and a little bit of everything. Their dancing was put up on the internet they were invited to dance on a cruise.

The Russian cruise was not what they expected. The cabins were crowded, the food was terrible, the chef was murdered. They made some good friends too. Lots of humor about British chefs.

The setting was on the Volga river from Moscow to St. Petersburg. It made the sites tempting to go see.

The mystery was good I did not guess who the murder was. Tina was attacked and used her brain to get away from him.
I liked the Happy Hoofers and want to see more of them in the future.
I bought this ebook on Amazon. ( )

I received this book as a goodreads first-read giveaway. It is a really good cozy mystery. The characters are "real" and interesting and the writing is enjoyable with the right amount of humour thrown in. It looks like it could be an interesting series as it looks like every book will take place in a different country and each one will be narrated by a different member of the Happy Hoofers dance troop. ( )