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Shelle Perry (66 KP) rated The House on Crow Mountain in Books

Sep 1, 2021

Mystery Thriller, Cozy Rules

The House on Crow Mountain is probably the most uncozy-like cozy I have ever read. Don’t get me wrong it totally adheres to all the cozy rules; no graphic language, sex, or violence. It also follows the popular cozy tropes; a small town, a broken-hearted woman who returns home to make a new start, clever pets, etc. It is just I consider cozy to be a light afternoon read. More fluff than serious. I mean no disrespect to the books and authors I have read to date, some are among my all-time favorites.

This book from the first sentence to the last pulled me into a hard mystery thriller that just happened to follow cozy rules. It has everything; gripping suspense, a leading lady wracked with grief and guilt, and a possible love interest trying to redeem himself from a tragic mistake, or was it? There are far-reaching family secrets, menacing red herrings, and a sinister plot. There was no guessing whodunnit before the reveal. I really (I mean really) did not like the person, but there were so many other people to not like, to suspect, to think about that it barely registered. I could not put this book down as the story unfolded and the floating, maybe relevant plotlines merged bringing the story to its climax.

I seriously hope for this to be a series as there are characters that I would love to learn more about, but I tell you, I would be okay with this being a one-off. The story as it stands has mostly been told and it is that good.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
I received an advance review copy for free through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Kudos

Aunt Dimity Goes West

Nancy Atherton

(0 Ratings) Rate It

Book

Everyone's favorite sleuth heads to the Rocky Mountains in the twelfth installment of Nancy...

Sue (5 KP) rated Turn A Blind Eye (A Florida Murder Mystery) in Books

Aug 13, 2018

This book has it all, a little romance, some suspense, and quite a bit "I never saw that coming". It is a combination cozy mystery and suspense/romance, which makes it a great book for all three genres of readers. This story entwines the lives of Libby, her sister Mia, the couple that helped Libby through a horrible time in her life, and Rebecca a mother trying to understand what happened to her daughter.

Kudos

Sarah Betts (103 KP) rated Hot Fudge Murder in Books

Dec 31, 2019

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this cozy featuring an ice cream inventor!

Kate is invited to scoop at a fashion designers party which would be great but the poor man ends up murdered! (Sadly, not by a hot fudge sundae.)

Kate decides that she needs to solve the case.

It's a fun mystery with interesting characters and potential motives.

.

Kudos

Chocolate a la Murder

Kirsten Weiss

10.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

Maddie gets rattled by a candy-coated murder. It's Wine and Chocolate Days in San Benedetto, and...

General Fiction (Adult) Mystery Cozy

Railroaded 4 Murder (Sophie Kimball Mystery)

J.C. Eaton

8.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

While planning her wedding, Sophie "Phee" Kimball gets sidetracked by the murder of a model train...

Cozy Mystery Cozy animal mystery

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2352 KP) rated Death On Demand (Death On Demand, #1) in Books

Sep 15, 2020

Crime Writer Murdered

Annie Lawrence has inherited the Death on Demand mystery bookstore on Broward’s Rock off the coast of South Carolina. She has allowed the bookstore to continue to be used by a group of mystery writers on Sunday nights. On this particular Sunday night, one of them is murdered, and Annie becomes the chief suspect. Good thing that her not-quite-ex, Max Darling, is on the island to help her clear her name. But can they do it?

While I’ve read other books by the author, I have yet to dive into this series. I’m glad I finally took the plunge. The mystery is complex with a good puzzle and lots of twists before everything is resolved. Annie and Max are strong and fantastic lead characters. The suspect could have been a bit stronger, although they got better as the book went along. The references to other mystery authors and novels was a lot of fun, although occasionally it did feel like it was a bit much. There was more foul language than I am used to in a cozy mystery. The setting, essentially a resort community, was fantastic. This book came out in 1987, so some things were dated, but just keep that in mind when you pick up the book and you’ll be fine. Now that I’ve visited the store, I will definitely be back.

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2352 KP) rated Her Dying Day in Books

May 19, 2023 (Updated May 19, 2023)

Her Dying Day

Mindy Carlson | 2022 | Mystery

7.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

What Really Happened to Greer Larkin?

Documentary graduate student June Masterson has finally hit upon the perfect topic for her final project – the disappearance twenty years ago of Greer Larkin. Greer had burst onto the mystery scene with six well received books before she disappeared, never to be seen again. With the principles in Greer’s life agreeing to talk to June, she fantasizes about solving the case, making for the perfect end to her documentary. Can she do that? Will she even finish it in time?

I struggled with part of this book – a subplot in June’s life that I truly didn’t like. I can understand her choices, but still, it bothered me. I did appreciate the character growth we got. And the mystery itself was very well done. It kept me guessing all the way to the satisfying ending. There was one aspect that was left opened, but it could propel a follow up book. This book has some content that definitely keeps it from being a cozy; it’s honestly a little hard to place outside of just plain mystery. If you enjoy an engaging mystery, you’ll be glad you picked up this book.