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theavidreaderandbibliophile's review
3.0
A Streetcar Named Murder by T.G. Herren is the debut of A New Orleans Mystery series. I thought the author captured New Orleans. I like that she included history of the city and events. We get to learn about krewes and their origins as well. Valerie Cooper, the protagonist, is a widow of five years. Her twin boys are enjoying their first year of college. My feelings about Valerie are mixed. I want to like her, but she got on my nerves at times. I wanted her to be less wishy washy. The one time she was brave was when she should not have been. Her friend, Lorna is a force of nature. I am amazed the two are friends especially after learning how the two met. Lorna came over to introduce herself to Valerie shortly after the family moved in. The twins were running amok (terrible twos time two), and Valerie was worn out. Lorna quickly got the boys in line (gave them orders) and then the two ladies enjoyed the wine that Lorna brought with her. I would have taken the wine and sent Lorna packing. I found the story to be a slow starter. The mystery did not take place until slightly past the halfway mark. By the time the murder occurs, it was obvious who would die and how. The solution to the whodunit was easy to figure out. I believe the information was supposed to be a twist, but it can easily be discerned long before the reveal. The mystery is wrapped up at the end, so I was not left with any lingering questions. I did feel that there was too much repetition in the story. I lost track of how many times we are told Valerie is a widow, that the family does not know why Arthur was estranged from the family, and that Lorna writes romance novels. The pacing was slow. The overly detailed descriptions and lack of action are the cause (do we really need to know what each person is wearing down to their tie tac or every detail of how Valerie makes her mac and cheese). There is mild foul language and the consumption of copious amounts of wine. There is some humor courtesy of Lorna. As you can tell, A Streetcar Named Murder was not a hit with me. A Streetcar Named Murder is a Southern cozy mystery with an enigmatic inheritance, a rude realtor, an unusual knife, a krewe party, a dying declaration, a disheveled detective, and a surprising revelation.
kansas_girl's review
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This fun, cozy novel is set in New Orleans, and how much fun is that! Herren is a long-time resident who fills this novel with a deep knowledge of this city’s culture and customs, and he creates a keen sense of place. The heroine, Valerie Cooper, receives a strange letter from a law firm telling her that her late husband’s great uncle has left her a partnership in a thriving New Orleans antique shop as well as an estate that is going to save her from having to sell her beautiful historic home in the Irish Channel neighborhood of the city. The problem is that she never knew this uncle existed as he had been estranged from his family for decades. Slowly she learns that even her husband didn’t tell her everything, and old rivalries and hurts hurl themselves at her until she finds a local real estate agent (who is her personal nemesis) stabbed to death at a costume party for a women’s Mardi Gras club. First in a new series, this book is a quick, entertaining read with lots of eccentric characters that I hope Herren builds on in the future. Oh, and there’s a yellow cat. Can’t have a cozy mystery without a cat.
akolb51's review
slow-paced
1.0
Valerie Cooper, a widow, just inherited a partnership in an antique store from her late husband's uncle. She's an empty nester looking for something to complete her life. And, honestly, that's as far as I got because this story was not interesting and repetitive. The main character was living in her past, dwelling on memories and not living. It was depressing. I didn't want to waste any more time on this story. Some people would love this story because of the setting, but there was no action and little plot building. Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the honor of reading this Advanced Reader's Copy. This review is my unbiased opinion.
bella_and_the_bookstack's review
3.0
2.8 out of 5 stars (rounded up to 3 stars)
Widow and mother Valerie has recently come into a large inheritance from her late husband’s uncle. To her knowledge, her husband didn’t even have an uncle. Now, she’s dealing with the realization that she and her sons have inherited a fortune. But this newly inherited antique business may be just what Valerie needs in her life… that is, until she finds a dead body. As the new owner of the shop, Valerie must clear her name as a suspect in the murder.
~~
This book made me feel very conflicted. On one hand, I enjoyed the overall storyline. On the other hand, I had a difficult time connecting to the characters.
Valerie seemed to dwell on the same few things throughout the whole book. Here’s are some examples:
1. Her late husband. I know he was a big part of her life, and she is still grieving over him. BUT, as a reader, we didn’t need to be reminded of that every couple of pages.
2. She would also repeatedly mention that she is up every day at the same time, six in the morning. This was ok to mention a few times, but we definitely didn’t need to know that as many times as Valerie mentioned it.
There were a couple other things she kept on repeating, which started getting kind of irritating.
I also really hated her friend Lorna. Lorna really irritated me throughout the whole book. In fact, it was a bit shocking that Valerie decided to become her friend. Based off Valerie’s recounting of how they met, I was really stunned by Lorna’s behavior.
At the time that they first met, Valerie’s twin boys were toddlers. Of course, toddlers being toddlers, they were having a bit of a meltdown. Lorna (a complete stranger at the time) knocks on the door and somehow instantly can calm the boys down with a few words and a sharp stare. Armed with a bottle of wine and a charming smile, Lorna precedes to tell a stunned Valerie “you’ve got to tame the little beasts when they’re young or they’ll grow up to be monsters. Date rapists or something equally horrible.”
Um, what?! If a complete stranger knocked on my door, critiqued my parenting, and said that about my theoretical kids, I would be LIVID! Like ma’am, leave the bottle of wine and get out of my house. Because the twins were having a tantrum, all of a sudden they’ll become date rapists? What?! This was literally one tantrum that Lorna had seen, and she felt she had the right to say that? And to top it all off, Valerie seems to remember this memory with great fondness. I know it’s only a few pages of the book, but it really left a bad impression towards Lorna for the rest of the time.
~~
Despite my struggles with the characters, the book was still a cute cozy mystery! If you can ignore Lorna and get past Valerie’s tendency to dwell on stuff, the book is still quite interesting. Even though there wasn’t as much of a mystery as I would have liked, I would still want to read the next books in the series, as I did enjoy it overall.
Thanks to the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.
Widow and mother Valerie has recently come into a large inheritance from her late husband’s uncle. To her knowledge, her husband didn’t even have an uncle. Now, she’s dealing with the realization that she and her sons have inherited a fortune. But this newly inherited antique business may be just what Valerie needs in her life… that is, until she finds a dead body. As the new owner of the shop, Valerie must clear her name as a suspect in the murder.
~~
This book made me feel very conflicted. On one hand, I enjoyed the overall storyline. On the other hand, I had a difficult time connecting to the characters.
Valerie seemed to dwell on the same few things throughout the whole book. Here’s are some examples:
1. Her late husband. I know he was a big part of her life, and she is still grieving over him. BUT, as a reader, we didn’t need to be reminded of that every couple of pages.
2. She would also repeatedly mention that she is up every day at the same time, six in the morning. This was ok to mention a few times, but we definitely didn’t need to know that as many times as Valerie mentioned it.
There were a couple other things she kept on repeating, which started getting kind of irritating.
I also really hated her friend Lorna. Lorna really irritated me throughout the whole book. In fact, it was a bit shocking that Valerie decided to become her friend. Based off Valerie’s recounting of how they met, I was really stunned by Lorna’s behavior.
At the time that they first met, Valerie’s twin boys were toddlers. Of course, toddlers being toddlers, they were having a bit of a meltdown. Lorna (a complete stranger at the time) knocks on the door and somehow instantly can calm the boys down with a few words and a sharp stare. Armed with a bottle of wine and a charming smile, Lorna precedes to tell a stunned Valerie “you’ve got to tame the little beasts when they’re young or they’ll grow up to be monsters. Date rapists or something equally horrible.”
Um, what?! If a complete stranger knocked on my door, critiqued my parenting, and said that about my theoretical kids, I would be LIVID! Like ma’am, leave the bottle of wine and get out of my house. Because the twins were having a tantrum, all of a sudden they’ll become date rapists? What?! This was literally one tantrum that Lorna had seen, and she felt she had the right to say that? And to top it all off, Valerie seems to remember this memory with great fondness. I know it’s only a few pages of the book, but it really left a bad impression towards Lorna for the rest of the time.
~~
Despite my struggles with the characters, the book was still a cute cozy mystery! If you can ignore Lorna and get past Valerie’s tendency to dwell on stuff, the book is still quite interesting. Even though there wasn’t as much of a mystery as I would have liked, I would still want to read the next books in the series, as I did enjoy it overall.
Thanks to the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.
the_sassy_bookworm's review
4.0
⭐⭐⭐⭐ -- Such a cute cover on this book!
It's a fact that if a book is set in New Orleans there is a very good chance I will (at the very least) like it. Especially if it is a mystery. Such was the case here. I quite enjoyed this book. Was it perfect? No. The murder took a bit too long to happen, and it was annoyingly repetitive in places. I mean, how many times are you going to ask the detective if he wants a coffee??
It's a fact that if a book is set in New Orleans there is a very good chance I will (at the very least) like it. Especially if it is a mystery. Such was the case here. I quite enjoyed this book. Was it perfect? No. The murder took a bit too long to happen, and it was annoyingly repetitive in places. I mean, how many times are you going to ask the detective if he wants a coffee??
amandajeanne's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
amylow1107's review against another edition
3.0
Review of A streetcar named Murder.
This is a cozy mystery set in New Orleans. This is the first book in a series. I gave this 3 stars. You could say this is a slow burn cozy. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Valerie is a widower with college age twin boys. She’l suddenly inherits an antique store in New Orleans. She also discovers family secrets. She navigates the secrets and finds her nemesis dead at a ball. Her next door neighbor and friends help figure out the mystery.
I felt like a lot of the first half of this book was a lot of information that wasn’t needed. Descriptions and descriptions of Valerie cooking, driving and shopping was all just filling up the book. The murder didn’t happen until half way through the book. Then was easy to figure out who did it. There was too much repetition. I loved the next door neighbor, Lorna! She was a hoot! Valerie seemed a little too oblivious to things going on around her. The little bit of romance in this happens at the end which was a downer.
I won’t be continuing this series.
I don’t recommend this unless you like slow burn cozy mystery and want a very light mystery.
This is a cozy mystery set in New Orleans. This is the first book in a series. I gave this 3 stars. You could say this is a slow burn cozy. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Valerie is a widower with college age twin boys. She’l suddenly inherits an antique store in New Orleans. She also discovers family secrets. She navigates the secrets and finds her nemesis dead at a ball. Her next door neighbor and friends help figure out the mystery.
I felt like a lot of the first half of this book was a lot of information that wasn’t needed. Descriptions and descriptions of Valerie cooking, driving and shopping was all just filling up the book. The murder didn’t happen until half way through the book. Then was easy to figure out who did it. There was too much repetition. I loved the next door neighbor, Lorna! She was a hoot! Valerie seemed a little too oblivious to things going on around her. The little bit of romance in this happens at the end which was a downer.
I won’t be continuing this series.
I don’t recommend this unless you like slow burn cozy mystery and want a very light mystery.
jenmoody23's review against another edition
5.0
This book revolves around Valerie, a widowed empty next mom living in New Orleans. After coming into a surprise inheritance, she find the body of an acquaintance and quickly learns of the deceased’s disdain for her.
I love a book set in New Orleans. The author got the feel for the city just right. I loved getting to know Valerie along with her friends, family and neighbors. We met several great characters, but getting to know them was never confusing as it can be with the first book in the series.
We didn’t get to the murder until we were a little over halfway through the book. I typically don’t like that in my cozy mysteries, but there was so much more to the book in character development and atmosphere that it didn’t seem to drag on.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and absolutely can’t wait for the next book in the series.
I love a book set in New Orleans. The author got the feel for the city just right. I loved getting to know Valerie along with her friends, family and neighbors. We met several great characters, but getting to know them was never confusing as it can be with the first book in the series.
We didn’t get to the murder until we were a little over halfway through the book. I typically don’t like that in my cozy mysteries, but there was so much more to the book in character development and atmosphere that it didn’t seem to drag on.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and absolutely can’t wait for the next book in the series.
pussreboots's review
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
whewtaewoon's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5