On a whim, I chose to read Sleep Like a Baby by Charlaine Harris. I hadn’t read one of her books in awhile. Once again, she proves herself to be an author that you can easily return to time and time again.

I haven’t read any of the other Aurora Teagarden mysteries, though I plan to. When I chose the book, I didn’t know it was a series. As I was reading it, there was occasional mention of an event that happened in the past. Many authors use this technique, but no one does it quite so well as Charlaine Harris. She lets you know that these characters have a history, but she doesn’t make it sound like some soap opera recap like some authors do.

The story revolves around Aurora Teagarden, her husband Robin, and their new baby daughter Sophie. Like most mysteries, there is a dead body. This time it is found in their very own backyard.

This is not one of those mysteries with lots of twists and turns that leaves you second guessing along the way and frantically turning pages to find out what happens next. It takes a more meandering route, taking it’s time, with the story unfolding. It’s as much about the characters as it is about the mystery.

It was just what I was in the mood for. Completely enjoyable.

Sleep Like a Baby
An Aurora Teagarden Mystery #10
Charlaine Harris
Minotaur Books, September 2017
ISBN 978-1-250-09006-5
Hardcover

From the publisher—

Robin and Aurora have finally begun their adventure in parenting. With newborn Sophie proving to be quite a handful, Roe’s mother pays for a partially trained nurse, Virginia Mitchell, to come help the new parents for a few weeks. Virginia proves to be especially helpful when Robin has to leave town for work and Roe is struck with a bad case of the flu.

One particularly stormy night, Roe wakes to hear her daughter crying and Virginia nowhere to be found. Roe’s brother Philip helps her search the house and they happen upon a body outside… but it isn’t Virginia’s. Now, not only does she have a newborn to care for and a vulnerable new marriage to nurture, Roe also has to contend with a new puzzle — who is this mystery woman dead in their backyard, and what happened to Virginia?

Roe seems to be in the midst of a lot of relatively new life experiences, what with a fairly recent marriage, a younger brother who hasn’t been in the picture all that long, a brand new baby and, now, a new dead body. Goodness, what’s a sleuthing librarian to do?

When Robin has to leave town for a few days and Roe is sick, they call for help from Virginia who had been a nanny/housekeeper/mother’s aide after Sophie’s birth and she’s happy to come do night duty. Roe’s much younger half-brother, Philip, who lives with them now, will help out in the daytime as much as he can so Roe feels comfortable sending Robin off to his book convention. That comfort is, of course, the trigger for dastardly things to start happening. This time it’s a double whammy when Virginia goes missing and there’s a strange woman lying dead in Roe’s backyard. Obviously, the police have to be called but this IS her backyard and her missing nanny so, naturally, she’s going to do some investigating on her own, right? One of the first things that comes to light is that the dead woman is no stranger and then the clues begin to mount.

Now, I’ve been making a little fun of Roe and her latest exploits but the truth is she’s one of my go-to amateur sleuths when I’m feeling the need for some light mystery reading. Roe is a smart woman, well-educated, and she has the chops to do the snooping what with her amateur criminology background. Belonging to a club of people who like to solve mysteries gives her a one-up on most sleuths and some cops. And Robin, well, he’s one of the very good guys and I appreciate their relationship and their respect for each other even though I sort of wish they hadn’t gotten married. I also am not thrilled with her having a baby.

Robin and Sophie kind of throw this series into the land of those TV shows where we wait for years for that special relationship to happen and when it does everything starts to go flat. That hasn’t happened yet but there’s no doubt Roe’s behavior and perspective are different now and the family issues were a bit too front and center. Still, I really did enjoy this book and I’ll just have to see where things go from here.

Reviewed by Lelia Taylor, October 2017.

Princess Fuzzypants here:
When her successful mystery writer husband leaves for a conference where he is nominated for a major award, Rho's troubles just begin. As a new mother, she is nursing every few hours so when she falls ill and can barely lift her head, she must call in some help. That is all well and good until her help disappears about the same time a dead body turns up in her backyard. Said dead body turns out to be a stalker of her husband and if you think that is weird, hang on. It only gets weirder by the moment.
Police suspicion under the guise of "doing their jobs", thefts including one in a hospital where she is visiting her stepdad and shootings all are bound together. While there are clues all the way along the full story is not revealed until towards the end and it is a revelation.
The characters are well drawn especially Rho and her family. She is a smart and capable woman at the end of her tether, dealing with more problems than anybody should have. Nothing that she does rings false or contrived and the reader really gets sucked into the story.
It is a jolly good mystery with a fascinating heroine.
I give this five purrs and two paws up.

Well, the more Aurora Teagarden that is in the world, the better - especially because it means more Hallmark movies! I’m glad Charlaine Harris has returned to her world and I enjoyed all of the twists and turns that the series has taken. (Although, I must admit, whenever I read about how rich Roe is, I get jealous. It seems too easy.) Also, I can tell how much Harris’s writing has grown since her earlier books. The mystery in Sleep Like a Baby was intriguing and the obstacles of Roe being sick while caring for her baby made the story more interesting. Overall, I liked it and I’m hoping for more books!

It is no secret that I am a tried and true Charlaine Harris fan. If there is a book she’s written, I’ve read it. Her worlds are easy to get lost in and her characters are easy to love. Aurora Teagarden is no exception. Roe has always been one of my favorite characters. Whether it’s her career as a librarian (and therefore love for books!), her penchant for finding herself wound up in murder mysteries (how could there be so many in such a small town, one has to wonder), or her way of moving about in the world with a strong self-awareness of who she is while also being very cognizant of the needs of others, I couldn’t say. All I know is, I’d love to be friends with Roe.

As for this book in particular, #10 in the Aurora Teagarden series, I’m not going to lie. It isn’t my favorite. Don’t get me wrong. The plot is pretty good. The writing is exactly what you’d expect from Ms. Harris. But there was something missing for me, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. The last book was so, so good, and I was really excited about it because it had been a long while since anything had been written in the series. In fact, I thought the series was over. But even after such a long break, All the Little Liars was right on track with all its predecessors.

So, what was different about this one? Well, two things. To be honest, I just don’t feel the relationship between her and her new husband, Robin. It feels like friends who made one of those “if we aren’t married to other people by the time we’re 40…” kind of things. I just don’t feel any connection between them. It’s not a romance novel, so that shouldn’t be a huge issue, but since their relationship and their family is a major part of this particular book, not being able to feel a spark between them was a little off-putting.

The second thing is, the baby changes everything. Don’t get me wrong, it should. As a mother, I know having kids changes everything in your world – how you see it, your place in it, your priorities, how you feel about yourself. So, naturally, it changed all of those things for Roe as well. But it also changes the tone of the story, and I wasn’t really expecting that. Everything is told from Roe’s point of view, so if her POV is dramatically changed, the readers experience changes as well, no? Not bad, just a shift I wasn’t anticipating.

At the end of the day, it’s Charlaine Harris. It was a pleasure to read, even if it was a little different from what I anticipated. And, I’m hoping there will be at least one more in the series, perhaps a chance to see Roe get back to herself a little more before winding things up.

If you’re a Charlaine Harris fan, I probably don’t have to convince you to read this one. If you aren’t familiar with the series, I highly recommend starting at the beginning, not because you’ll be lost if you don’t, but because you’ll have a better idea of who Roe is if you watch her grow through all of the books.

Another Aurora Teagarden mystery? Yes, please! I cannot get enough of this series. Every time I pick up another addition to this series, it’s like visiting old friends and I am so pleased that she’s decided to write more.

In this one, Roe and Robin are not only adjusting to life as newlyweds but also to life with a newborn. And to make matters more complicated, Robin has to leave town for work and poor Roe has the flu. Thankfully Roe has help from Virginia, but that soon ends when dead body is discovered in Roe’s backyard and Virginia is nowhere to be found.

There was a lot going on with Roe in this one—a new marriage and a new baby—so she and Robin are definitely feeling the strain, which only gets worse when a dead body is found in the backyard.

So I figured out most of the mystery early on but I still found the process enjoyable. And Roe wasn’t as hands-on in the investigation aspect as she has been but it worked because we got to see more of Roe as wife and mother and, honestly, while I enjoy the cozy mystery aspect of this series I truly read it to see what’s going on with the characters, and not just the main characters.

Overall, I could not put this book down and I had half the book read before I had even realized it. I love being back in Roe’s world and seeing what’s happening with friends and family.

I love Charlaine Harris and her Aurora Teagarden series, so I was excited when I saw another book in the series on Netgally. This book is about Robin and Aurora embarking on parenting! Their daughter Sophie is quite a handful so Roe’s mom gets them a nurse to help out. Perfect timing for Virginia Mitchell to arrive since Robin has to leave for work and Roe gets the flu.
Roe wakes up in the middle of the night to Sophia crying and Virginia is missing. While searching for Virginia Roe and her brother find a body and it isn’t Virginia! So now she has to figure who the dead woman is and find out where Virginia!
Charlaine Harris is an amazing writer and she did not let in Sleep Like A Baby! I look forward to reading more from Charlaine!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read all 10 but enough that the characters felt familiar and I settled right in.
There was a bit too much whining and a whole lot of nursing (why do stories involving new mothers revolve around nursing?), but the plot is interesting if not a bit of a stretch at the end, the writing flows and it was an entertaining quick read.

This is a great book; this is the tenth book in the Aurora Teagarden series written by Charlaine Harris. Robin and Aurora have finally begun their adventure in parenting. With newborn Sophie proving to be quite a handful, Roe's mother pays for a partially trained nurse, Virginia Mitchell, to come help the new parents for a few weeks. Virginia proves to be especially helpful when Robin has to leave town for work and Roe is struck with a bad case of the flu. One particularly stormy night, Roe wakes to hear her daughter crying and Virginia nowhere to be found. Roe's brother Philip helps her search the house and they happen upon a body outside... but it isn't Virginia's. This is a great book with a wonderful story and well developed characters. This book will keep you reading long into the night. If you are looking for a great book, then you need to read this book. I am looking forward to reading the next book by this great author. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader’s copy of this book. The free book held no determination on my personal review.

I've been a big fan of the Aurora Teagarden series and was looking forward to reading this book. I found this installment in the series to be disappointIng. The story spent too much time on Aurora's new baby and not enough time on the plot. I found the mystery itself to lack depth. It was as if the main storyline was the new baby and the mystery was thrown in without much development. I'll continue to read new releases by this author but hope that the next book in this series is more satisfying,

Does it get any better than a new Aurora Teagarden novel? When Charlaine Harris resurrected the series last year after not touching it for nearly a decade (thank you Hallmark Movies and Mysteries,) I about died from joy. Sleep like a Baby picks up at the birth of Roe and Robin’s little bundle of joy, Sophie Crusoe. It quickly jumps a few months to find the couple (and Phillip, Roe's teenage half-brother who happens to live with her and Robin) adapting to life as newlyweds, with a very new family dynamic.

As Robin gears up for his first trip away since Sophie’s birth, he’s in the running for an award at Bouchercon, Roe finds herself coming down with the flu. Not willing to have Robin miss his chance to network and bask a bit in his own success, Roe rehires the young woman who helped her when Sophie was first born. Virginia Mitchell jumps right in and takes over, leaving Roe to sleep off her illness. It’s all going well until Sophie’s crying wakes Roe from her fevered haze to discover her sitter missing and an unknown body in the backyard.

While the story isn’t as strong as All the Little Liars, Sleep like a Baby offers up a good mystery, a few great surprises, a nice visit with most of the core characters and even brings back a character the reader hasn’t seen (or heard from) since Last Scene Alive. Really, when you're a fan, it’s hard not to love a new book in this series. The only downside? The wait till the next Aurora Teagarden book hits the shelves.

In this installment of the Aurora (Roe) Teagarden series, we have a new mystery to uncover. Roe has delivered little Sophia and is unable to go to the awards ceremony that Robin has been nominated in for one of his books. As he gets ready to leave for the weekend, Roe is starting to feel unwell. Robin calls in the help of caregiver, Virginia to help with Sophia at nights while he is gone.

As the weekend progresses, Roe is feeling worse and worse. She can barely function past breastfeeding Sophia and is very thankful for her brother and Virginia's help until she wakes up the second night to Sophia full on screaming and no signs of Virginia. She drags herself out of bed to take care of the baby and then wakes Phillip up to help her look for Virginia and finds a dead body in the back yard instead.

I've never thought of myself as much of a fan of mysteries but I have to say I'm really enjoying this series. It's written very well and I really like unraveling the clues as the characters do. I do find it funny that Roe seems to have an awful lot happen to her in this small town. If we were speaking real life, I think I would have moved a long time ago but for fiction, it's pretty entertaining. I look forward to what the author comes up with next. ARC provided by Netgalley.

I love the cozy mysteries of Charlaine Harris. The Aurora Teagarden mysteries are especially enjoyable due to the delightful characters. Even this many stories into a series the writing and plots seem fresh.

I'm a little biased because I love these characters. I've been with Aurora through a strange inheritance, a few failed relationships, and a whole bunch of other things. So I love seeing her becoming a mom, being happy with Robin, and with a good relationship with Phillip, her half-brother. I also loved the actual mystery here. Where did the babysitter go and just who is the dead woman in the backyard? There were several scenes in this one that just gave me chills. I was wrapped up in the mystery right from the start and didn't want to put it down.

However, there were a few flaws. I mentioned I'd been a reader of the series from the beginning but the previous book came out last year and the one before that came out almost ten years ago or so. The problem is that the book references a few events and characters from long ago. And it's not a "this character from book 3 was at the grocery store and we said hello" kind of mention. It's important to the mystery. I found myself clutching at shadows trying to remember things that had happened years ago which detracted from my reading experience. I'm not sure what it would be like reading this one if you were completely new to the series.

So while this isn't my favorite in the series it was still a lot of fun. Catching up with Aurora, Robin, and Phillip and the side characters is like catching up with old friends.

I was so excited when this series was brought back to life and can say I'm not disappointed in the direction that it is heading. In this next book of the series Aurora is getting into her routine as a new mother. When Robin, Roes husband has to go out of town to receive an award she wonders if she will be able to handle everything herself. As Robin is leaving Aurora turns up sick so he hires Virginia who helped them when they first brought the baby home to help her out. A few days later on a stormy night Roe is awakened by her babies cries. While investigating she realizes Virginia is nowhere to be found so she wakes her half-brother up to help search. During the search they find a body in the backyard who isn't Virginia. Roe thinks she looks familiar but isn't sure who it could be. Follow along as Aurora tries to figure out if she wants to return to work at the library, who the strange woman is in the backyard, and what exactly happened to Virginia.


I

In the newest Aurora Teagarden book, Roe is a sleep deprived new mother who unluckily gets the flu right as her husband Robin leaves town for an important work engagement. She's happy to have the help of baby nurse Virginia, but when she wakes up to a crying baby in the night and discovers Virginia is missing and there's the body of another woman in her backyard, Roe finds herself again in the middle of an investigation. While this is not a thrill-a-minute type of mystery, there is a good deal of action and side stories involved, and the pacing and style are very true to the previous books in the series. There's good character development and progress, which is so nice to see in a longer running series. As a long time fan of the series, I love seeing Aurora's life change and grow throughout these books.

I've read many (not all) of Charlaine Harris's series, and I'm inclined to believe that the Aurora Teagarden one is my favorite. Sleep Like a Baby is a book for Aurora's fans- this is not a series in which the books can read well as standalones. Much has happened in Aurora's life over the previous nine books that isn't rehashed in great detail in this book, and for the best experience, readers should have read the previous books.

Another journey into life with Roe Teagarden didn't disappoint.

I was wary reading this as I have just caught up with the movies on Hallmark. So I have those characters in my head.

The book started off a little slow to me, but quickly became interesting and flew by before I knew it. Certainly a fun and fast murder mystery to read.

Another great adventure for Aurora Teagarden! This time, Roe is adjusting to married life for the second time and giving birth to their first child. No sooner does she return home with the brand new baby, when her author husband has to fly out of town for an book award ceremony. While he is gone, Roe comes down with a flu that knocks her off her feet and a body is found murdered in her yard. It takes all of her detection skills to solve this one, especially as she has to do it all while sick and caring for a newborn!

I've dipped in and out of this series over the years so I was familiar, although hazy, on some of the characters but not on either Robin or Roe, both of whom are just nice people. This installment is more about Roe moving into a new place-motherhood- than the mystery and that's what makes it special. Roe's always been a fun character but this book made her feel more real as she struggles to deal with all the changes in her life as well as with being sick and having a new baby. That said, the mystery of the missing babysitter and the unknown dead woman in the garden is well done. Phillip, Roe's half brother, is a good sidekick. Thanks to net galley for the ARC. This is an entertaining book and I suspect Roe's woes will resonate with more than one of us.

4.5 Top Pick

Aurora Teagarden is on leave from her job in the library, as she and her husband Robin adjust to life with their newborn daughter, Sophie. When Robin has to go out of town on business, Roe is grateful to have help from the highly recommended Virginia Mitchell. Virginia proves invaluable when Roe comes down with the flu. Everything changes one night when Roe wakes up to Sophie’s cries. After comforting Sophie, she searches the house for Virginia. There is no sign of her nanny, but Roe finds a dead body of another woman instead! Roe can’t help herself and finds herself in the middle of the mystery of the dead women and the investigation to determine if the death and Virginia’s disappearance are related.

I have read a few books in this series, but it has been a while. Since then, I have watched some of the Hallmark movies based on the series. As expected, there are differences between the movies and the novels, but seeing the television version of Aurora Teagarden made me eager to read this new book in the series. The book reads like a standalone, so new readers will have no problem enjoying the story. I like the depth and realism of the character of Roe. Her relationship with her husband, as well as with her younger brother, is very believable. The details of Roe and Robin learning to care for Sophie and their worries about her are also realistic and parents or anyone who has cared for a newborn will relate.

A major part of some of the prior books in the series is Roe’s participation in the “Real Murders Club, but the emphasis of this book is Roe solving the mystery surrounding the dead woman found in her backyard and the disappearance of her temporary nanny. I enjoyed seeing Roe balance her recovery from the flu and taking care of her newborn with solving a mystery. She mentions the club to her stepfather John, but it’s a very small part of the book. I think there is enough going on in the book that it doesn’t suffer without the club. The pacing of the book is even and I eagerly turned the pages to find out the solution to both mysteries.

After reading Sleep Like a Baby, I have a renewed appreciation of the author’s writing skills, as well as a reminder of how much I enjoyed this series in the past. I am hoping the author treats us to more of Roe’s adventures in the future.

~ Christine