This was good, I loved the central mystery of who shot Brick, it was a real rollercoaster with lots of theories, missing/hidden evidence and not many clues. I'd say this is the first book where relationship stuff largely took a back seat to the plot and was mostly Bree being a bridezilla. The side mysteries, the elderly lady looking for her loss love was wrapped up pretty quickly, both bittersweet and a bit heartbreaking. The continuing saga of Tess's father limped along in this book, but I enjoyed the ending.

Overall, a good read and I'm looking forward to the next book.

This was the Cozy Mystery Discord server book club selection for September and the first one I've read in this series. Cute, charming and very cozy, I really enjoyed it.

Although the characters were likeable, they didn't have a lot of dimension, especially Lucy's husband and kids who weren't much more than convenient plot distractions. I don't know if that evolves as the series goes on (this one is fairly early in the series) but I felt that all the family activities bogged it down a bit in the middle, along with the constant rehashing. Still, I liked the writing style and the plot was absorbing; although there were a couple of dropped threads, I liked how Lucy set out to investigate and everything she found.

Overall, I enjoyed this one and I'll be reading the other books in the series as I can get to them.

I adore this series, I would love for Merry to be my BFF (maybe she could help me pick out better clothes?) and that castle! Mmmff, I want a castle.

I enjoyed the plot, I love how this series incorporates a lot of characters, but they are so well written that it's easy to keep them straight. While having so many characters might bog the story down, I've found that's not the case with this series, and I'm sure it takes a lot of skill as a writer to accomplish.

All the hubbub around the tv show was fun (although I'd have to say, I found it slightly weird that people were fawning over opera singers like they were rock stars, but to each their own.) and the investigation into the attack kept me guessing right to the end.

Another great book in the Merry Muffin series and definitely recommend to people who love more cozy (and muffins!) in their cozy mysteries

See this and all of my reviews at Mystereity Reviews

Poignant, eloquent, and spellbinding!

Sgt. LeeAnn Hogan is at Walter Reed, recovering from the disfiguring wounds and trauma suffered in a failed military operation in Afghanistan. Disoriented, angry and scared, she takes solace in the friendship with her hospital roommate, Marci. When Marci suddenly dies, it sends LeeAnn adrift; signing herself out of the hospital, she takes off to an uncertain future, deciding along the way to visit Marci's hometown in Washington State. When she arrives, she finds that Marci's daughter, Mia, has gone missing. Feeling a responsibility to help, Marci is compelled to help find the little girl, the last thread that binds her to her dead friend. Along the way, she's forced to confront herself and her demons and start the road back to her new life.

The Right Side will definitely be one of my top books of 2017! More suspense than mystery, it was an fantastic read, and so hard to sum up all the things that I loved without rambling on too long! The pace was perfect, taking just the right amount of time to set up the main character and her world, not only LeeAnn's mental state after she was wounded, but also snapshots of her formative years, providing a strong base for her reactions and experiences in the later part of the book, which made it feel more authentic and realistic. Superbly written, I was quickly drawn into LeeAnn's struggles, I couldn't help but admire her. Her pain, confusion and struggle is palpable, leaving me slightly uncomfortable (in a good way, if that's at all possible!) and so grittily realistic that it's almost like reading a true story. I loved that Goody is a reflection of LeeAnn herself, even if she doesn't recognize it. Tough, resolute and enigmatic, they make a perfect pair. The satisfyingly ambiguous ending left the door open for further adventures with LeeAnn and Goody, something I truly hope will come to be.

Nice, light read, I liked the plot but didn’t get a good feel for all the characters, most of whom were more like footnotes than suspects. Still, it was enjoyable and a great Halloween/Fall read

RTC but this was cute

I'm a sucker for covers and this one grabbed me from the moment I saw it; maybe because the Siamese cat reminds me of The Cat Who series I love so much but either way, the book itself was a stellar read.

But a cover can only take a book so far and this book didn't need to be carried. This is the first book in the series and I loved it from the first chapter, a fun, light read that was easy to sink into. I loved the idea of a jewelry designer and it was easy to get caught up in the thrill of Emma's garage sale find at the beginning of the book. While I would've liked to have "met" the victim before she was killed, there was enough detail woven into the story to give a glimpse into the woman and set up the Le Mann family dynamic; her rude and demanding brother, a talented furniture restoring sister and an elderly mother in a care home. Combined with the motley crew of likeable but eccentric townspeople, a pragmatic and stern detective, a charming main character and a great plot and you have the ingredients for a great cozy mystery series.

The plot was well done; great pacing and I loved how organic the investigation felt, especially the interactions with the police and the reactions of Emma and Carleen to the death. The investigation was mostly just eavesdropping and information gathering by Emma, but how it went from clue to clue felt very natural. I went back and forth in my head about suspects and while I suspected the culprit early on, they weren't at the top of my suspect list, a twist that was well done and really set up the dramatic ending. Loved it!

3 1/2 stars

Stella and Nick move from NYC to rural Vermont when Nick gets his dream job as a forest ranger. Within minutes of arriving at their newly purchased home, they discover a body in the well. Barred from their house by the investigation, they take refuge at a deer camp with no running water or electricity and decide to solve the murder so they can unload their moving truck and get settled in their new home.

It was hard for me to rate this book. On one hand, I loved the premise and the setting, but issues with the story detracted from my enjoyment. I call this a fixer-upper book; it needs a little work but it has great bones. There were many elements I enjoyed, from the leaf peepers (that bus had me laughing, I could easily picture the scene!) to the country store that has everything, including gossip. And the premise is what drew me in; making a move to Vermont and discovering a body in your well, yeesh! I just wish the book had lived up to its premise because it had everything it needed to be a great read, but it ended up falling short.

Although the eccentric townspeople gave the story a lot of flavor, I found I didn't connect with the main characters. There wasn't enough of Nick to form a bigger impression of who he is, but he was nice enough. On the other hand, Stella wasn't nearly as engaging; she was condescending and her attempts at witty banter and friendliness felt forced and spurious. The pair of them reminded me of Michael and Stephanie on Newhart, it felt like they elevated themselves as being smarter and less eccentric than the rubes were, a trait I didn't find particularly likeable or neighborly..

As for the investigating, it can be summed up as Stella and Nick annoying several townspeople with their questions, making assumptions, accusing people outright and then stumbling across the clues that solved the whole thing. I’ll say this, the one big clue that was overlooked when it was found and didn’t become relevant until the end was a good twist, but overall the investigation by Stella and Nick was lackluster. It wasn’t so much that anything they did solved it, they just kept guessing until the story fit.

Despite all the detractions, I did like the book. If Stella was more likeable, the story smoothed out and the ending jiggered into something more realistic, this would easily be a 5 star read. A big thank you to Netgalley and Beyond the Page books for the advance copy to read and review.

"I hit the brakes in shock. Frankie flew straight through the window, which was fine. He'd be fine."

I’ve been reading this series almost since the beginning and I just realized how badly I want to be Verity! I'd love to have a Frankie, a ghostly gangster living in a rosebush in my living room who lends me his power to see "the other side" *sigh* This is probably my favorite paranormal cozy mystery series entirely because it's so well written with a ton of suspense, nail-gnawing action, thrills, chills, laugh out loud moments, a dash of romance and superb plots.

But this one was one of the best (if not THE BEST) in the series. Usually it takes a few chapters to get the story going and once it does, all you can do is hang on white-knuckled until the end. (And that's not a bad thing!) but this one went gangbusters almost from the start. There were two plots in this one; the first, an investigation into the death of family friend who fell out of the bell tower at a historic church after giving Verity an old photograph and a letter. The second plot involved several malevolent spirits at the old church who are bent on destroying Frankie and Verity for unknown reasons. And if that wasn't enough to keep Verity busy, she also has to deal with boyfriend Ellis's attitude towards her ghost hunting business as well as Frankie's personal quest to confront the person who shot and killed him in the 1930s. Add in help from an unexpected source, heartbreaking tragedies, happy endings and man, this book was unstoppable. I welcomed the long awaited exploration of Frankie and his backstory; it's been a long time coming and I loved how it tied the plot together into one narrative.

If you're looking for the perfect Halloween read or just like ghosts, you can't go wrong with this series. Definitely recommend!

This one was great, the perfect read to kick off my Halloween theme read (I have 10 Halloween books lined up to read over the next month. Want to join in? Stop in to r/CozyMystery on Reddit!

With a juicy plot (I love when old houses have secret staircases and bodies hidden in secret rooms!) and not one but 2 bodies, an old one and a new one. Loved the investigations into both and that haunted house sounded like somewhere I'd like to visit.