Book ~ "Rum Luck" (2016) Ryan Aldred

From Goodreads ~ Ben Cooper was supposed to be on his Pacific honeymoon. Not waking up in a Costa Rican prison cell with no memory of the night before.

Then again, Ben never thought he would catch his fiancée with some clown - literally. Or that his friend Miguel would drag him to the surf paradise of Tamarindo before Aunt Mildred could ask why they cancelled the open bar reception.

But surely his friend and lawyer Victoria didn’t need to fly down from Toronto overnight. After all, the police would let him go once he sobered up and paid his fine. Right?

Except for the little matter of a murder. And Ben’s buying a beachside bar from the victim, hours before the man’s death.

With foreclosure looming and death threats piling up on the rum-soaked bar, they must turn to the wild idea that got them into this mess - building a business around those who’ve always wanted to run their own bar on a beach somewhere, even for just a week.

But to survive, they’ll need every skill at their disposal - including those they’d rather forget they have.

Ben was supposed to be on his honeymoon in Costa Rican but when he found out his fiancée was cheating on him, he broke up with her and took Miguel, his best friend, on the trip instead.  Then he wakes up in a Costa Rican jail with a massive hangover.  Miguel had called Ben's friend, Victoria, who is a lawyer, to fly down to help him out.  It seems that Ben had gotten drunk and had bought the bar he was drinking at (with the funds he and his fiancée were going to use as a down payment on a house) ... and then the owner was found murdered and Ben is the suspect.  While the murder is sorted out, Ben, Miguel and Victoria have no option but to run the bar.

This is the debut novel by this author and I enjoyed it.  I liked the writing style and found it humorous.  I liked the characters and thought they worked well together.  Ben is getting over a broken heart.  Miguel is a bartender back in Toronto with a secret past.  Victoria is a lawyer who surprisingly has other skills.  I look forward to future books in what could be a fun series.

I thought it was a bit ironic that Ben "lives" just outside of Toronto and the author lives in PEI ... I started reading the book in Toronto (where I live) and finished it just before my flight to PEI today!