Reviews - The Game Is Afoot

161 reviews for:

The Game Is Afoot

Elise Bryant

4.05 AVERAGE

sammijess's review

5.0

emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

This is the rare sequel that's better than the first installment. I appreciate its focus on what self care actually means and looks like especially for Black women.

dani_fallon's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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

lololovesthings's review against another edition

4.0

funny mysterious medium-paced

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

4 stars.

If all cozy mysteries are as good as Elise Bryant's, consider me a fan! Mavis Miller is back to solve another mystery when her almost 8 year old daughter Pearl's soccer coach unexpectedly drops dead on the field one Saturday morning. After rage-quitting her job, Mavis has nothing but time to solve this mystery...and help in Pearl's classroom, try to get Pearl a solo in the school play, all while putting herself second, again, and not taking care of herself or practicing self-care. I love this whole crew, including Pearl, Jasmine, Mavis's dad (who now runs a murd3r podcast!), the lovely though constantly therapizing Jack, and even horrible Trisha! Newcomer Bethany, a woo-woo cancer survivor mom who thinks essential oils can cure anything and is part of an MLM scheme, is an annoying but interesting foible to Mavis's life. This book is SO funny. I love Bryant's sense of humor! It is a mix of warm, caring parent/mom jokes, and snarky, biting observations about how chaotic life can be, including ruminatings on work, being a mom, race, neighborhood busy-bodies, technology, and crime. I laughed out loud so much while reading this story. These characters are relatable and feel strangely true to life (minus the whole murd3r thing). The mystery part is not super difficult to figure out, but the journey to get there is engaging, interesting, and zany. I cannot wait for the third book in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley, Elise Bryant, and Berkley Publishing Group for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

karty_v's review against another edition

5.0

emotional funny lighthearted 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: Complicated

Mavis and the crew keep me rolling with laughter 😂

Also that cliffhanger!?

jess_reads_books's review against another edition

4.0

mysterious tense medium-paced

justkeyreads's review

5.0

funny lighthearted mysterious 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: No

The laughter and love I have for this cozy mystery series continues as we follow Mavis and the shenanigans she finds herself in. Pearl is a gem and just kept me laughing and loved getting to know Mavis’ dad a bit more in the book as she helps herself start finally caring for herself.

steel_city_peach's review

3.5

funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Girl, Please

This picked up right where the previous book left off. Mavis was still a goofball. Her amateur sleuthing was silly and reckless. The mystery of what happened to Coach Cole was an interesting storyline. The hints for what may happen with Mavis and her ex made me happy. That’ll make me want to read any future books. I thought that this installment was a little better than the first book. I’m not a fan of the cozy mystery genre, but this was entertaining enough.