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bookbrig's review
mysterious
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? No
4.0
I liked the title, which is why I checked-out this audiobook. The reader did an excellent job, and it was a quick, fun read. I liked the premise and our leading ladies, even if some of the action felt a bit awkward. It was wonderful to read about women over 40 having mystery adventures. I think I've read so much YA for so long, it's still novel to encounter adult protagonists just... existing. Anyway, a satisfying not quite cozy mystery, and I'd love to read more in the series (the author had an interview included at the end where a second book is mentioned).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Confinement
Minor: Murder
amhud1030's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Grief, and Death
purplepenning's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
A solid debut and an enjoyable read — perfect for fans of The Marlow Murder Club and The Golden Spoon.
The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder is a cozyish mystery uniquely situated in the world of high-stakes antiques dealing and featuring an interesting niece-aunt team of amateur sleuths. Unlike other reviewers, I appreciated the narrator shifts and thought they added to the insight and enjoyment of the reading experience. The found-family vibes, the thoughts on aging, the reflections on past mistakes and course correcting, the plucky courage of the elderly aunt and the reemerging analytical courage of the middle-aged niece — all work to give this a little more depth and intrigue than a typical cozy mystery might have. If this is the beginning of a series, I'd definitely check out the next one.
The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder is a cozyish mystery uniquely situated in the world of high-stakes antiques dealing and featuring an interesting niece-aunt team of amateur sleuths. Unlike other reviewers, I appreciated the narrator shifts and thought they added to the insight and enjoyment of the reading experience. The found-family vibes, the thoughts on aging, the reflections on past mistakes and course correcting, the plucky courage of the elderly aunt and the reemerging analytical courage of the middle-aged niece — all work to give this a little more depth and intrigue than a typical cozy mystery might have. If this is the beginning of a series, I'd definitely check out the next one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Grief, Gun violence, and Murder
Minor: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Confinement, and Fire/Fire injury
bibliomania_express's review against another edition
slow-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
2.0
The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder by C.L. Miller follows Freya Lockwood, divorced mom and former antique hunter, as she investigates the death of her former mentor.
While the mystery set-up was interesting, the book dragged out too much and suffered from an overabundance of point-of-view chapters. I found the head-hopping unnecessary since it pulled us away from Freya and didn't give us any good information that Freya didn't figure out on her own. Some of the surprise identities were rather obvious if you took a moment to think about them and why they would be included in the way they were.
I also found the huge time gap between the events in Cairo and the current timeline too large. It made a lot of things feel disconnected and made me question why characters waited so long to deal with things.
I did like Freya and her path to rediscovering her old, confident self. Her emotionally abusive ex wasn't really handled, but it wasn't mishandled. I just wish there was more straight on acknowledgement, or if that had been excised.
There's also a really forced romantic sub-subplot that an uninvolved character was pushing for, so it felt underdeveloped and more annoying. It might be developed more in future books (since this is set up to be the start of a series), but I just wasn't feeling it.
So, overall, although the premise was good, the writing style and pacing really brought this one down.
Rating: 2/5
*I received an eARC from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
#theantiquehuntersguidetomurder #clmiller #mystery #bookreview
While the mystery set-up was interesting, the book dragged out too much and suffered from an overabundance of point-of-view chapters. I found the head-hopping unnecessary since it pulled us away from Freya and didn't give us any good information that Freya didn't figure out on her own. Some of the surprise identities were rather obvious if you took a moment to think about them and why they would be included in the way they were.
I also found the huge time gap between the events in Cairo and the current timeline too large. It made a lot of things feel disconnected and made me question why characters waited so long to deal with things.
I did like Freya and her path to rediscovering her old, confident self. Her emotionally abusive ex wasn't really handled, but it wasn't mishandled. I just wish there was more straight on acknowledgement, or if that had been excised.
There's also a really forced romantic sub-subplot that an uninvolved character was pushing for, so it felt underdeveloped and more annoying. It might be developed more in future books (since this is set up to be the start of a series), but I just wasn't feeling it.
So, overall, although the premise was good, the writing style and pacing really brought this one down.
Rating: 2/5
*I received an eARC from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
#theantiquehuntersguidetomurder #clmiller #mystery #bookreview
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Murder
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