A great book by a fantastic author. The writing is excellent and the mystery keeps you turning the pages. Characters are well developed. Highly recommend.

I love this cozy series. It gets better with each and every book.
Its a delightful slice of Southern life with a wonderful book store, a armadillo and a bevy of supporting charcters. It is humorous throughout and the author has a gift for a well crafted sleuth that keeps me guessing. I look forward to the next in series and had submitted a original review which was lost by the system.

A great series set in a bookstore always catches my attention. When it's a cozy, has a believable cast of characters and the added extra of pink armadillo, well i'm ready to sit down and forget my realm life and get lost in Hazel Rock, Texas. Charli has returned to Hazel Rock to help her father run the family bookstore, housed in a barn. A killer has staged a murder to match the cover of a famous mystery author's new book. Will there be other murders and mayhem before the spree is stopped? Charli has good reason to get involved, Her family's safety is her focus, including her maternal aunt Violet and Jamal, who is like a brother to her. The app he has created may just hold the key to everything.
With just the right blend of mystery, twists, turns, humor, a bit of romance and people you would love to call your friends, The Book Barn mystery series is a winner. This is the third in the series and I hope there are many more.

Book Barn characters are always interesting. They are pretty basic but each does have a distinct voice. I especially am hoping Mateo and Princess get together and Scarlet plays a more prominent role next time

Yay a book that hasn't been sitting on my TBR for two years! I'm still blogger shamming this one because I love this series and sat on this book for a few months before getting to it. Basically shamming myself anyway!

Fortunately, I knew when I opened this baby up, that I would love it! This series has set some of the bars on my expectations for cozy mysteries. Charli owns a bookstore, and guess what?! She actually works! Go figure. Actually, she's probably in the bookstore most of the time, which makes so much sense for a store owner.

Her zest for life is also fantastic. The characters surrounding her are fabulous as well, but my favorite is her pink armadillo! A PINK ARMADILLO. If I didn't have five dogs I would feel the need to adopt one of these little guys. They just sound amazing. Of course, fiction is not real life, but she adds quite a bit to the story, even if it's just grunting and side looks at Charli.

This story picks up right where book two, A Reference to Murder, left off. Poor Charli has basically been in trouble since she went back to her hometown, for various reasons. The reason behind this one made sense, but was not something that I was able to piece together. There aren't too many clues lying around. Which, again, is fabulous. I don't want to figure a story out in the first chapter. There are some clues, but I kept assuming and pointing my fingers at the wrong people.

The one thing that drives me crazy is the love triangle. I'm so used to one person wanting to get involved with the person who is involved with this other person (THAT made total sense). Is this a love triangle when two guys are vying for the same girl? Either way, it's driving me nuts. Which, I guess is a great thing about Kym Roberts. She can keep me hanging on a string and I keep coming back for more. DANG IT!

Both guys are pretty extraordinary as well. Although I have my dang preference. Big time. There's just too many mishaps with the second guy, that make me want to kick him in the shin. I won't say anything else since there may be spoilers, but I'm sure we'd all be on the same team if you read this!

So exciting that book four is coming out later this year! I can't wait to see who Charli chose!

In short: Super cute! Lots of action but not overboard. Love Charli and her little princess armadillo!

2 of the things I really like about this series - set in Texas and the main business is a book store! Of course there are many other things that I like about this series: Princess the pink armadillo that is Charli's pet; the attraction between Charli and Mateo and of course the history between Charli and Cade; and that Charli's mom is there in spirit and don't stand beneath the sign leading up to the apartment if you treat Charli or her dad wrong!

In this installment we get to meet Charli's cousin, Jamal, and her Aunt Violet. I didn't know this, but Violet is her mother's twin sister. I don't think this was ever disclosed in the first two books. But it was nice to see the family dynamic and the family moving forward in their lives.

This wouldn't be a mystery if someone didn't end up dead. Or in this case, a couple of people. While you will pick up on why they were killed, the who was quite a mystery. I definitely did not figure it out until this character revealed themselves as the killer. There are a few humorous parts while capturing the killer, or at least I got a chuckle out of them.

There is still the love triangle - Cade and Mateo both have interest in Charli and I'm sure one day one of them will win out...will it be the new love in Mateo or her past with Cade? Only time will tell.

So much fun! I love mysteries and this one is no exception. Treat your patrons and yourself to a guilty pleasure reading this book.

This series just keeps getting better. I love Charlie and all the other quirky characters in this fast-paced cozy mystery. Her cousin Jamal comes up with a smartphone app/game which would boost sales in her bookbarn. As a former bookseller, this caught my interest! Of course, a few bodies start appearing, threatening Charli, Jamal, and the future of the app. I really enjoyed and related to this story.

Perilous Poetry: A Book Barn Mystery
By Kym Roberts
Lyrical Underground
October 2017

Review by Cynthia Chow

Turning thirty is a milestone in anyone’s life, and for Charli Rae Warren it brings with it a new career, home, and mended relationship with her hometown. She never thought that after running away from home at the age of seventeen that she would return Hazel Rock to run the Book Barn Princess with the father she once demonized. Now, as a result of connections through Charli’s cousin Jamal, bestselling writer Lucy Barton has chosen their bookstore for a promotional book signing. It’s all because of the Book Seekers app created by Jamal and Lucy’s daughter, with the app having players chasing down clues to “catch” books available for sale at Charli’s store. It’s a brilliant sales marketing tool; too bad someone uses it to lead participants to corpses laid out in scenes depicted in Lucy’s novels.

As suspicion falls on Jamal, tourists and gamers descend upon the tiny Texas town of 2,095 to follow clues of both the Book Seekers app and the very real murders. Hazel Rock community leaders are town between those wanting to shut the app down and others who are prospering from the influx of business, and Charli herself isn’t sure which side to take. Her beloved Aunt Violet, the sister of Charli’s late mother and a former police officer, is firmly on the side of Jamal, but threats to the bookstore and family outweigh concerns profit and success. Investigating murder would be complicated enough without it getting so tangled up in Charli’s love life, and with mayor Cade Calloway and Sheriff Mateo Espinosa each vying for a place in her heart, it’s no wonder that sometimes she only wants to curl up with the pink albino armadillo who shares the Princess nickname.

Anyone who succumbed to the Pokémon Go craze is aware of all-consuming it can become; more than one player has been reported to have walked off of a trail or into a road in pursuit of a character. The combination of using this app with actual book reading is outstanding, even if brings along with it the same hazards of being distracted by mobile devices. Setting this series apart as well is its unique presentation of a bi-racial heroine, who co-exists with her multi-racial family. Race is never an issue for their love for one another, making it an enviable model for today. By combining the classic scenario of a fictional murder coming to life with modern-day app gaming playing, the author updates and crafts a thoroughly fun and engaging new mystery. The entertaining small Texas town, realistically quirky characters, and a young woman’s path to adulthood are all skillfully highlighted in this witty, fun, very suspenseful novel.

http://freshfiction.com/review.php?id=64121

This is actually a charming and refreshing book. You have a small town setting but the people aren't that closed minded and you can relate in some way with the various characters. Well written mystery that actually takes center stage and is the focus of the book.

Perilous Poetry by Kym Roberts
Book #3: Book Barn Mystery Series
Source: Netgalley
My Rating: 4½/5 stars

Charli Rae Warren just can’t seem to stay out of trouble. More accurately stated, she can’t seem to keep from attracting trouble to her, much to the despair of her family and friends. In fairness, Charli Rae doesn’t go looking for trouble, it just has a nasty habit of showing up on her front porch. This time, the trouble comes in the form of her beloved cousin, Jamal.

Jamal is a serious computer geek and in his geekdom, he has created an app designed to encourage readers and reading and lead them straight to the Book Barn Princess. What’s more, in conjunction with the launching of the app, Jamal has managed to secure an exclusive in-store appearance by one of America’s hottest mystery writers, Lucy Barton. With nothing but excitement in the air, Charlie Rae agrees to sign on with Jamal and immediately launches into the preparations for a visit from one her favorite authors. With any luck, business will be booming in no time.

Everyone, literally everyone knows Charli Rae’s luck just doesn’t run that way, and within 24 hours of the app launch, a dead body turns up. As if the dead body weren’t enough, the method of murder matches one concocted by Lucy Baton. With a direct connection to her livelihood and family, Charli Rae can’t help but get involved which means asking a lot of questions and poking around where she certainly shouldn’t be poking. For her troubles, Charli Rae gets her bookstore vandalized, her pink armadillo grazed by a bullet, her cousin run off the road, and she, her dad, and her pink armadillo dumped in the river. Oh, and a date with Mateo!! Her efforts earn her a date with Mateo!!

Even with her date with Mateo high, Charlie Rae can’t help herself from staying involved in the investigation which leads to even more trouble and at least two more bodies. Seriously, Charlie Rae is just one big trouble magnet 😊 As the bodies pile up, so do the questions, and the cry for Jamal’s app to be taken down. It’s clear the culprit has it in for Jamal and/or his app and if Charlie Rae, ahem, the police can’t figure out who’s behind the mess, Jamal stands to lose everything, including his freedom.

The Bottom Line: Each installment of the Book Barn Mystery series sucks me in a little deeper. Charlie Rae seems to get more likeable with each book and I found her especially likeable this time around since she seems to have settled on a guy . . . . finally!! With appearances from the entire Hazel Rock cast of characters (you know I LOVE this!), Perilous Poetry delivered on nearly every level and I’m certainly hoping there’s more to come in this series.

Absolutely adore this series. The stories are so entertaining & the folks in Hazel Rock TX are just plain fun.

Charli Rae is back & trying to solve another mystery..... this one centered around her cousin's bookstore app.

Its also fun watching Charli Rae try to sort out her feelings between 2 sexy Texas men.

Can't wait for the next book in the series.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Charli Rae Warren owns a bookstore oddly named the Book Barn Princess, with a pink armadillo for a mascot. The armadillo, Charli's pet, is named Princess, and that's also Charli's childhood nickname. Get past the confusion there and you're ready for small town Texas with Charli's friends and family.

The spotlight is on Charli's cousin, who has developed a Pokemon Go style app focusing on books and on the small town of Harmony Rock. The app is great for business... until bodies begin to show up. The premise is that the new app is in some mysterious way causing the violence. This never becomes plausible in the novel, but that's okay. The entire town gets in an uproar over the possibility, aided by an army of Mystery Moms (book club members) and some fantasy artists.

Meanwhile, Charli's facing a classic two boy problem, with plenty of will they or won't they drama as she dates, disses, and gets rescued by the sheriff and the mayor in steady alternation. She stays perky to the end.

The plot is loose, but the people are fun. Charli is good hearted and the community is appealing. If you enjoy a mystery with romance and lots of shoe detail, this is a light, enjoyable read.

This is the third book in the Book Barn mystery series, and I am happy to say that I have read all of them so far! It’s no surprise to those who know me that I was drawn in by the promise of a cozy mystery series set in a book store. To keep me hooked, the stories also have to be worth reading. I have to say that they are. If you have not read the first two, this works well as a standalone book.

From the main character, Charli Rae, who has settled back down in her hometown of Hazel Rock, Texas after running off when she was a teenager, to the two men who are very interested in her, the characters in this book are well-developed and very interesting. The author’s descriptions are so carefully crafted that I can picture them in mind, and for the most part, I’d love to meet them.

I was kept guessing about who could be behind the murders; however, everything was neatly wrapped up by the end of the book.

This is a great book with a wonderful story and well developed characters. The story flowed very well and was very enjoyable. This book will keep you reading long into the night and you will not want to put this book down until you finish. This was such a great read and full of surprises. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader’s copy of this book. The free book held no determination on my personal review.

I’m not sure how I missed the first two books in this series, but I’m happy to have found it now.

With PERILOUS POETRY being the third book in the Book Barn Mysteries, I thought I’d have to play some catching up. However, I fell into step with the series and characters rather quickly. I really enjoyed protagonist Charli, her family, and of course pet armadillo, Princess. Such an original choice for a cozy pet! The entire cast of characters was so eclectic. Really great fun to read.

Mystery, mayhem, and murder were abundant in this tale. Author Kym Roberts was generous with the action and excitement as well. Page after page I was drawn further into this story. Each time I thought I knew who had “dunit”, I changed my mind and picked someone new. The reveal was a complete surprise to me.

After reading PERIOULS POERTY, I’d like to go back and read the first two installments of this series.

Perilous Poetry by Kym Roberts is book three in the Book Barn Mystery series. Charli is thrilled when her cousin and aunt show up with two surprises. Her cousin wants to use the Book Barn Princess to unveil his new app, and he has arranged for author Lucy Barton to do a book signing. The problems begin when murders start happening that appear to be tied to the app and Lucy Barton's books. Reading the previous books is not necessary to follow this one. The why of the murders is sort of explained but seems to be a stretch. This series is a bit heavier on the romance than some other cozy mysteries, but it is not annoying. I did find the repetitive phrases (OMW - oh my word - and Get Out) to be tiresome. Still this is a fun series. I love the book store set in a barn, and Princess the pet armadillo remains my favorite character.

I am so glad to see Georgia and Sid again! Who is Sid, other than the best friend of Georgia, an adjunct English professor? Sid is the best! He is her confidant, someone to laugh with, who pampers her, and has known her most of her life. Someone who felt so useless at her parent’s house when she took a one-semester position at a small, out of town art college that he packed himself up and sent himself to her. Sid is a skeleton. A walking, talking, skeleton who, when alive, had been murdered, and has been with Georgia’s family since she was a child.

Georgia’s parents are professors who returned from sabbatical and are helping students with meals and homework needs, leaving Sid no place to be except back the attic, alone. Georgia’s daughter Madison is staying with her grandparents, but she is so busy with school that she can’t spend much time with him.

Sid awakens Georgia to see a car with its headlights in the yard behind the summer cottage property she stays at. It was dark, very cold, and snowing hard. Sid boosts her over the wall where they find drops of blood leading away from the car to the body of a woman lying face down in the snow. Only later did she find it was Kelly, the woman who worked in the writing lab to help students with research and preparation of papers for classes.

Sid believed Kelly was murdered. Georgia, not so much…until she met and listened to Indigo, the student who claimed to be Kelly’s assistant. In truth, Kelly was helping Indigo find who has been stealing the students’ artwork, mostly graphic art. Yet if Kelly, a journalist, couldn’t find who the thief was – and if the thief and the killer were one and the same…what could Georgia do? Lieutenant Buchanan seems to think Georgia is a suspect and has questioned her on more than one occasion. Someone has been leaving footprints in the snow and peering in the windows where Georgia lives, which is enough to creep out even Sid! In the meantime, one of the five adjunct English professors is being considered to fill a tenured new opening at the private art college. The other four profs go into self-protection, backbiting mode, as creepy as the footprints.

I love how fully-defined Sid and Georgia are! A reader can almost begin to believe that Sid is a real…okay, he sure seems like … oh, never mind. We see events through Georgia’s eyes, as well as how she and Sid approach finding the source of the problems at the college. They and the other characters, including the department chair, her secretary with his resourcefulness, adjunct professors, and two students enjoy snappy, witty dialog with further-defining behaviors.

Plot twists change the suspect list frequently, even though it seems Kelly would have few enemies since she did not have close friends. There are two additional layers of mystery surrounding the department and staff that make solving the murder and theft even more challenging. Liberally sprinkled within the novel is humor, sometimes completely unexpected, at other times as part of the comfortable friendship Sid has with Georgia. The end brought surprises, as I had thought someone else to be the bad guy(s)! It is completely satisfying, however, and I am already looking forward to the next one. I absolutely love this series, and highly recommend The Skeleton Paints a Picture as well as the earlier three in the series.

From a grateful heart: I received this eBook from the author and NetGalley, and this is my honest review.

Solid mystery with great characters and setting. Love the gorgeous bright pink Book Barn, the quirky pet armadillo, and the fiesty main character. I'd happily read more in this series.