I love the cozy mystery vibes of this series. It’s such a fun time. The setting of the Romance Bookstore in a beach town is just amazing. This one is set after the Pandemic and the first instore author event since restrictions have been lifted is happening on Valentine’s day. I really appreciated the brief mentions of the pandemic. It wasn’t overpowering but just hinted at the reality of returning to life after and also the affects that it had on retail stores.

The characters in this series are my absolute favourite! Everyone is so precious. From the MC, Summer to her family Mia, Agatha, Piper, Sam & Fatimah, the book club including Marilyn & Glads, Cash & his dad, Ben and of course Mr. Darcy. This book has such a strong feeling of family & community and I just love it. Of course there were some unsavoury ones, this is a murder mystery after all but even so, all the characters were very fleshed out and all had a distinct voice and personality. Maggie Blackburn just has a way of writing characters you can’t help loving.

The only reason this book didn’t get a higher star rating is because the end felt a little rushed. There was so much build up and mystery and discovers leading up to finding the killer but then when it was revealed it happened so quickly. I was left a little disappointed in the ending but I do still love the book and the reveal did make sense it just happened so suddenly.

Overall I really enjoyed this series. It was a fun cozy mystery with an amazing group of characters and such an incredible atmosphere. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for whatever Maggie Blackburn writes next. While I don’t want these characters to have to deal with more murder I hope she decides to write another installment! Especially after that Epilogue!