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strawberrydolly's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was my first Ellery Adams, my first cozy mystery (and first StoryGraph review) and I really enjoyed it.
A fair warning that this review contains slight (vague) spoilers.
I’ve heard some say it’s slow-paced and I can’t argue with that too much, but I’d still say it was more of a medium pace. The plot never slowed down or went off track. Lots of different events kept things interesting and even the side love story made some contributing points to the overall mystery. The reason behind the murder itself, confused me at first, but after the entire situation was explained a few times, I understood it.
I definitely loved all the characters. They were all diverse and different. I only had a problem with June and sometimes Nora who said Hester was young and naive several times throughout the book. It just seemed unnecessary and was a tad bit annoying to hear it. It wouldn’t have bothered me otherwise, but it definitely had that kind of feeling in the cases of boomers muttering, “kids these days,” under their breath. Other than that, The characters were great and lovable, despite their past. Estella was my favorite and I hope to see more of her in the next book, considering what happened to her in this one. I also loved Jed and am excited to see his and Nora’s relationship grow.
I did enjoy how the characters had depth to them and everyone, even minor characters had secrets and a hidden past.
Another notable mention is there were SO many literary refences that a few have to go over your head. Luckily, most of them don’t hold any significance to the major plotline and if it does, its throughly explained. It’s simply a more enjoyable read if you understand them. I enjoyed the twist this book gave, I truly wasn’t expecting it. The afterword definitely got me hooked into reading the next book (which I was planning on anyways). Overall, 4.5/5.
A fair warning that this review contains slight (vague) spoilers.
I’ve heard some say it’s slow-paced and I can’t argue with that too much, but I’d still say it was more of a medium pace. The plot never slowed down or went off track. Lots of different events kept things interesting and even the side love story made some contributing points to the overall mystery. The reason behind the murder itself, confused me at first, but after the entire situation was explained a few times, I understood it.
I definitely loved all the characters. They were all diverse and different. I only had a problem with June and sometimes Nora who said Hester was young and naive several times throughout the book. It just seemed unnecessary and was a tad bit annoying to hear it. It wouldn’t have bothered me otherwise, but it definitely had that kind of feeling in the cases of boomers muttering, “kids these days,” under their breath. Other than that, The characters were great and lovable, despite their past. Estella was my favorite and I hope to see more of her in the next book, considering what happened to her in this one. I also loved Jed and am excited to see his and Nora’s relationship grow.
I did enjoy how the characters had depth to them and everyone, even minor characters had secrets and a hidden past.
Another notable mention is there were SO many literary refences that a few have to go over your head. Luckily, most of them don’t hold any significance to the major plotline and if it does, its throughly explained. It’s simply a more enjoyable read if you understand them. I enjoyed the twist this book gave, I truly wasn’t expecting it. The afterword definitely got me hooked into reading the next book (which I was planning on anyways). Overall, 4.5/5.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcohol and Medical trauma
kibbles15's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked this book, but I did not love it. I felt that the plot was slow and the characters themselves were not developed as much as I would have liked. I also feel that the sexual content, while mild, was more explicit than necessary. Note while this is considered a "Cozy murder mystery", several hard topics are discussed in the process as the four main characters get to know each other. These include domestic and child abuse, teen pregnancy, drunk driving...to name a few. That being said, I do think the theme of friendship through adversity was a nice touch to the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Sexism, Sexual assault, Grief, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Murder, Medical content, Infidelity, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, and Death
Minor: Pregnancy
cozyspookyreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The strength of this story lies in two things. One- its absolute coziness. I promise you will spend this book hungry for sweet treats and longing to visit your local bookstore. Two- its complex, aloof, sharp, and hilarious main characters Nora. I will continue this series for those things alone.
If you’re a heavy mystery reader I wouldn’t recommend this first book though! The mystery itself wasn’t interesting to me, but the characters and their stories was what kept me going.
If you’re a heavy mystery reader I wouldn’t recommend this first book though! The mystery itself wasn’t interesting to me, but the characters and their stories was what kept me going.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Car accident and Violence
misse3's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Misogyny, and Medical content
Moderate: Abandonment, Stalking, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Car accident, and Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity, Medical content, and Violence
alex_delart's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
You can tell the author loves books very much and if you like me have been stuck in a reading rut, this book might be the one for you (it also includes many namedrops and recs so it may be a gateway to other lovely titles). The mystery solution is quite satisfying, the book had me guessing all along. I felt inspired by the courage of the members of the secret club, they are people of no big influence or power and yet they risk their livelihoods for whats right, and they listen to their intuition. Im so glad that there is a sequel as I would miss the characters very much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Car accident, Misogyny, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Gun violence
aweeks77's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Disappointed there’s not a base recipe for the comfort scone!
Content Warnings
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
alicelalicon's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Sexual assault
leslie_overbookedsocialworker's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Chronic illness, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Gun violence and Violence
genny's review against another edition
The dialogue sounds so unnatural. The very first conversation was already awkward, and the prose didn't really improve from there. These are characters who barely know one another yet they're quick to spill life stories and spout honeyed words of wisdom out of the blue. Just very clunky/corny and I couldn't ignore it any longer.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Death and Violence
meredith_elise_'s review against another edition
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Infidelity, and Alcohol
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