Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6) By Patricia Rockwell

Essie Cobb hates the pandemic. She misses her friends Opal, Margery, and Fay. She misses all the adventures they used to have at the Happy Haven Assisted Living Facility. But now she is restricted to her room and she can’t go anywhere or do anything.

Or can she?

Essie is not one to take adversity lying down––or rather sitting behind her walker. She has decided to try her hand at Zooming––that is, chatting online with friends and acquaintances. Little does she know that her adventure is just starting! Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6)

READ ✓ E-book, or Kindle E-pub ´ Patricia Rockwell

The combination of endearing characters, a woman in trouble, and a setting that acknowledges the emotion and financial devastation of the COVID pandemic makes this a rewarding read. Essie Cobb lives at Happy Haven Assisted Living Facility. She uses a walker, but her mental faculties are sharp. Because of the pandemic, Essie hasn’t been able to get her hair done or exercise sufficiently—something all of us can relate to. She learns about Zooming (which she at first thinks is some new sports car) from Joey, her aide. Marjorie, Opal, and Fay are Essie’s friends, and they all learn how to use Zoom to visit with one another, since they cannot meet in person.

Although it wasn’t realistic that elderly ladies who’d never used a computer before would suddenly be able to type, manipulate a mouse, discuss browsers, and use email, I overlooked the implausibility and went along for the ride, enjoying the story. When their Zoom meeting is crashed by a strange woman, upset and looking for someone named “Will,” Essie and her friends embark on a rescue mission, and I couldn’t put the book down. The ending was uplifting and very satisfying.

This sweet cozy was marred by some poor editing, however. The use of two “en dashes” (——) for a dash is okay at first, but then it becomes three en dashes, and finally four (————). This makes for strange-looking text (I read from a digital version). I also recall seeing typos such as missing quote marks, a paragraph that ended with a comma instead of a period, and a sentence that read “…was old cold on the floor” instead of “out cold on the floor.” Maybe “old cold” was a Freudian slip, given the age of the characters!
Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6) A lovely cozy mystery

Essie Cobb and friends live in an assisted living centre for the elderly. The Pandemic has started and they're bored as they can't leave their apartments. They start Zooming each interim their computers. One day a strange woman drops in on their Zoom meeting and it is the start of a mystery. These books are really good and I love the characters. I hope there will be more. Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6) How fun to hang out with four lively older women living at an assisted living. They are mavens for mischief that won't let you put the book down until you land on the last page. The author delivers surprises and an upbeat engaging plot. Rockwell deposits you into each scene. You'll enjoy three stories woven together creating the perfect cozy. Great writing! Great story! Great fun! Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6) Ever hear of a “pandemic cozy mystery”? I think Patricia Rockwell might have invented this new mini genre--although I could be wrong. The plot of this book is so cleverly put together. Four elderly women learning to use Zoom for the first time end up solving a mystery from their individual rooms at Happy Haven retirement home. The dialogue between Essie, Marjorie, Fay and Opal is sweet, good-natured and downright hilarious. I actually found myself laughing out loud while reading this. It’s nice to read something that is as humorous as it is thrilling--and the mystery solving itself definitely keeps you on your toes.
After a bit of a struggle with the unfamiliar technology, Essie, Marjorie, Fay and Opal can finally talk with each other again as if they were all in the same room. There is only one problem--during their meeting, a mysterious “zoom crasher” joins in on the ladies chat room. She seems distressed, and keeps calling for someone named Will, a person that the four women have never heard of. When they try to help this mystery woman, she leaves the meeting in a panic, leaving everyone to wonder, who is Will, and why did this mystery woman seem so upset? From there, Essie becomes maybe the first ever “Zoom detective” as she and the girls work together to solve the mystery social-distancing style.
This book is such a fun read. There has never been a better time for a cozy like this to come out during a time when all of us could use some extra laughter, comfort and enjoyment. Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6) This was my favorite book of the series. 😍 Zoomed (Essie Cobb Senior Sleuth, #6)