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bujo_bellel's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I really enjoyed this book! It was so cozy and I really liked the vibes that it gave. This book was an amazing introduction to the characters as well as the town and it helped me to understand how the town worked and understand the world. I really liked the characters and how they interacted with each other, it really felt like everyone were family and everyone took care of each other. I actually suspected the killer was involved in the situation but I did not figure out their motive, so I didn't think they were the actual killer. However, I did like that the clues did eventually point out to the killer and it was not a crazy revelation and something that I could have actually figured out. I really liked all the characters that were introduced, and I am looking forward to seeing more of them in the future books. I really liked Vera and Lenore's friendship, they are so caring towards each other and I like how they interact and are partners in the investigation. I really liked Orville and Vera's relationship and their banter, I squealed at the end! Hoping to see more crumbs of this in the next books lol. I love Vera's character and how determined she was to solve the murder, even putting herself at risk, while also reporting the various updates and finds for the news, I like that she is journalist and it definetly added to her character and explains her curiosity. I quite liked how the book ended, and will definetly be continuing the series!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, and Animal death
Minor: Medical content and Alcohol
naomi_k's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Racism, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, and Classism
Minor: Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Police brutality
bessadams's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Death
Moderate: Medical content, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail
cozyreader9752's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Kidnapping, and Murder
emilywemily6's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This was a cute enjoyable read, but there wasn’t much to it. I absolutely loved the premise but I feel like the authors made this story too cozy and simplistic; the murderer was kind of obvious and most of the book was people just running around clueless not getting any more facts about the case. It definitely had a whimsical tone, but in some ways it felt a little forced/scripted. I wish there was just a little bit more depth to this book to add more interest. I will read the other books in the series, but I am not sure if I will purchase them or if I will just borrow from the library.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Bullying, Murder, Classism, Infidelity, Death, Medical content, and Violence
linneak's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Violence, and Infidelity
catwhisperflubbs's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
mysterious
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Amazing book! It's so popular but still underrated because of how good it is.
Plot:
South of Mirror Lake but North of Elm Grove, lies the town of Shady Hollow. All of its residents are animals with the intelligent traits of humans. Think Sing!, Zootopia, or Animal Crossing.
All of the townsfolk live in harmony. None would ever dream of changing that. But creatures aren't so sure when a toad is found floating in a pond with a knife in his belly. Dead.
Pros:
Amazing book! The mystery is complex and fun, the characters are lovable yet suspicious, and it will keep you on your toes.
Cons:
A bit hard to ease into, definitely complicated in some parts, but that's about it!
Plot:
South of Mirror Lake but North of Elm Grove, lies the town of Shady Hollow. All of its residents are animals with the intelligent traits of humans. Think Sing!, Zootopia, or Animal Crossing.
All of the townsfolk live in harmony. None would ever dream of changing that. But creatures aren't so sure when a toad is found floating in a pond with a knife in his belly. Dead.
Pros:
Amazing book! The mystery is complex and fun, the characters are lovable yet suspicious, and it will keep you on your toes.
Cons:
A bit hard to ease into, definitely complicated in some parts, but that's about it!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcohol, Grief, and Murder
the murder's never seen it's just the corpses that are later foundmeezan's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Animal death
twistedflower2357's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
A good cozy! I found this to be a lovely, relaxing read and a pretty solid mystery overall. Be warned that the uncovering of clues is fairly slow-paced, with a greater focus on the motivations of the characters rather than the evidence and murder method. It’s definitely more of a “who-dunnit” than it is a “how-dunnit”.
The characters are all charming and have at least a small level of depth to them (though I wouldn’t go into it expecting major character development or otherwise deeply-written characters). However, there are a few side characters who I found myself rooting for or wanting to learn more about, but once something interesting was revealed about their characters, they were just… kind of dropped? Overall, I don’t terribly mind, since they were dropped for not being relevant to the mystery any longer, but it was still a bit disappointing. There are also some characters who rely on racial stereotypes, such as Lefty the raccoon and Sun Li the panda, where the animal apecies clearly correspond to different human races. These stereotypes are occasionally addressed with a little nuance, but most of the time are not. Some uncomfortable, off-handed jokes are made about racial profiling by police officers and stereotypes about the ingredients in Chinese food. It’s not very plot-relevant so I can’t say it’s a bad book just on that basis, but it’s definitely something to be aware of going in.
The focus is more on the well-developed atmosphere, a wonderful mix of cute small-town vibes with something sinister lurking beneath. One significant strength of this book is just how much Shady Hollow feels like a small town, not shying away from the good or the bad parts of that. Sure, it’s romantic and cozy, but there’s also the sense that the residents of Shady Hollow are largely close-minded and content to jump for the easiest solution to a complex murder, lending to a constant undercurrent of tension and giving Vera’s occupation as a news reporter some extra interest and relevance.
I don’t think this is a groundbreaking mystery on a technical level. The final reveal might not “wow” you if you’ve read more complex mystery stories, but I’ll reiterate that the strength of this book isn’t necessarily with the intricate mystery or characters, but the excellent atmosphere and whimsy. It’s written, paced, and executed well, making it a solid pick for anybody in need of a nice murder mystery to fall into for a few minutes before heading to bed. I would recommend it to a fan of cozies. But if you’re like me and you prefer sprawling and complicated mysteries, this book may not work for you.
The characters are all charming and have at least a small level of depth to them (though I wouldn’t go into it expecting major character development or otherwise deeply-written characters). However, there are a few side characters who I found myself rooting for or wanting to learn more about, but once something interesting was revealed about their characters, they were just… kind of dropped? Overall, I don’t terribly mind, since they were dropped for not being relevant to the mystery any longer, but it was still a bit disappointing. There are also some characters who rely on racial stereotypes, such as Lefty the raccoon and Sun Li the panda, where the animal apecies clearly correspond to different human races. These stereotypes are occasionally addressed with a little nuance, but most of the time are not. Some uncomfortable, off-handed jokes are made about racial profiling by police officers and stereotypes about the ingredients in Chinese food. It’s not very plot-relevant so I can’t say it’s a bad book just on that basis, but it’s definitely something to be aware of going in.
The focus is more on the well-developed atmosphere, a wonderful mix of cute small-town vibes with something sinister lurking beneath. One significant strength of this book is just how much Shady Hollow feels like a small town, not shying away from the good or the bad parts of that. Sure, it’s romantic and cozy, but there’s also the sense that the residents of Shady Hollow are largely close-minded and content to jump for the easiest solution to a complex murder, lending to a constant undercurrent of tension and giving Vera’s occupation as a news reporter some extra interest and relevance.
I don’t think this is a groundbreaking mystery on a technical level. The final reveal might not “wow” you if you’ve read more complex mystery stories, but I’ll reiterate that the strength of this book isn’t necessarily with the intricate mystery or characters, but the excellent atmosphere and whimsy. It’s written, paced, and executed well, making it a solid pick for anybody in need of a nice murder mystery to fall into for a few minutes before heading to bed. I would recommend it to a fan of cozies. But if you’re like me and you prefer sprawling and complicated mysteries, this book may not work for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Police brutality
There is a character who experiences discrimination due toapersonfromflorida's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Infidelity, Animal death, and Death
Minor: Medical content, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail