This was a nice quick read. You can't go wrong with a book set in Scotland. The mystery was unique and kept me quessing. If you love international cozies with great setting and characters you will enjoy this book

Scones and Scoundrels has its strong points. The setting in a small town in Scotland is ideal for a cozy mystery. The author has written some great characters that draw the reader in. However, the pace of this mystery is just off. This band of sleuths do not even agree to investigate the mystery until the last third of the book. For that reason, the novel seems to wander somewhat aimlessly. Furthermore, the resolution to the mystery seems pulled out of a hat at the last minute, providing the reader no real opportunity to puzzle it out for his or herself. That said, I would like to see another novel with these characters in this setting if the mystery were better structured.

There's nothing more I love that quaint settings, delightful and familiar characters, and a mystery. Set in a bookshop in Scotland (with a connected tea room and inn), four women share life and business. When a guest author arrives, she turns out to be an unpleasant experience for all and it was hard to like her. And maybe that's what made this book hard to connect to until I was over 1/3 of the way through.

I adored the first book in this series and after reading it, went out and found all the books by Molly MacRae and devour them for their wit and delightful characters. However, Scones and Scoundrels took several days of trying to get into. Once I was about a third of the way through, though, I flew through the rest of the book. It had a great and unexpected twist in the "bad guy" that redeemed the slow beginning....

I enjoyed the setting of the Scottish Highlands and the mysteries. That it is a group of women sort of working with the police was nice. My only problem was I never was able to keep the four women and their relationship straight. This might not have been a problem if I had read the others in the series.

I received an advanced copy from Netgalley for an honest review

WHAT in the holy heck did I just read?
This book was boring. As in "I just might fall asleep in the middle of the day while reading it" boring.
It was all blah blah blah and dither dither dither and NOTHING, and I mean N O T H I N G happens [unless you count wishing one of the characters dead every time they are on the page] until 67% in the book. So you have to listen to blah blah blah and dither dither dither for 66% of the book and be BORED out of your mind [I made my complete lists for next years challenges and found that more fun than reading this book].
And then, just when something exciting happens, it all just goes back to blah blah blah. And entries into the "cloud document". And more blah blah blah and dither dither dither. And then they have a suspect and its a good one and then WHAM alibis happen and it goes back to blah blah blah until you finally get to the "bad guy" making their appearance and you are like "I JUST DO NOT CARE" at this point. And the reason was so lame and so meh and truly didn't make sense with the whole story that you just [had to force yourself to] read, that it makes the blah blah blah seem exciting.

I felt the first book was okay - it was an average, run-of-the-mill cozy mystery. I wasn't fully engaged by the characters, but it was still an okay read. Then I had to read this and was like "W T H" throughout most if it. I don't really care about the characters [except Christine's parents, who I adore and think there should be more of] either.

I cannot recommend this book to anyone because, WHO has time to waste like this [TEN days is way too long to take to read a cozy and yet, that is how long it took me. TEN DAYS? <eyeroll> ]?

Book two in the series takes us back to Inversgail, Scotland and our owners of Yon Bonnie books. When the native darling and author comes to town, they cannot wait to host a book signing for her. When the author ends up murdered by none other than a scone from the tea room at the bookstore, the ladies are thrown into an investigation to clear their store and their name.
This book was hard to dive into at first, but when sticking with it, I was not disappointed. The writing was wonderful as always, but, even though the characters are well written, it is a struggle to relate and like the main ones. As always, the mystery was plotted out wonderfully, and once the book started to take off, definitely enjoyable.

Janet and her daughter Tallie have moved to Scotland with a few friends and opened a tea and book shop. In the Highlands. I will admit to this being my dream job!

To get this out-of-the-way, I wasn't impressed with the blurb. The Tearoom was never under suspicion, nor were the ladies. I would like to see that adjusted in the blurb.

This story had so many characters I almost couldn't keep track of who was who. 
Some of them were developed but most we didn't really know much about. There were so many suspects and I have to admit I did not see the ending coming!
Daphne was an easy character to dislike and yet she had secrets that in the end made me feel sad for her. 

I will probably read the next one too. This is a cozy mystery series that is intelligent, funny and heart warming. And the atmosphere is pretty spectacular in the descriptions of the area.

Well Done!   Netgalley/Pegasus Books   January 2, 2018

Thanks Pegasus Books and netgalley for this ARC.

I love this series. Strife, confusion, and a dealy villian that you won't figure out until the end. The ladies make this series interesting, cozy, and fun.

This is the book for you if you're looking for a more complicated cozy. It's got the bookshop/tearoom in the village setting (in Scotland!) and it's got intrepid female amateur detectives. It's also got a pretty unlikeable character in Daphne, who might seem like she's more trouble than she's worth, especially to Janet who hosts a book party for her at Yon Bonnie Books. Of course there's a murder. There are also a fair number of red herrings and perhaps, too many characters. That said, Janet and her daughter Tallie, in particular, are very good characters. This is the second book in a series but it's fine as a standalone. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Heads up that you might find yourself googling some of the Scottish words but that's a plus as you're also learning something new!

I really had high hopes for this book. The description was very appealing and I am a fan of this author. Unfortunately, I was disappointed.
The story itself was good and I enjoyed the characters, but Daphne Woods, who the story was centered around, was very unlikable. There was nothing I could find that made me feel bad for her, or had me rooting for her. She was a miserable person who really made the story difficult to read.

I found myself skimming the pages and wishing the book would end, which is very rare for me.
Writing an unfavorable review is always difficult, but I would read the next book and see if it was just this particular story that was unappealing.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book.

I wanted to like this more than I did. I liked the idea of it, but I never really connected with any of it. The mystery was a little interesting, but since I didn't really care about the characters I ended up not really caring too much about it being solved.

Very much part of the "cosy" sub category of mysteries - a village setting, a local mystery, a cast who are first and foremost "characters".
When I started I expected it to be one of those books you devour in a couple of sittings in a comfy armchair but it didn't engage me as much as it should. I'm not sure I really got to know any of the characters and understood their motivations (especially regarding Daphne's behaviour who for most of the book I expected to be an imposter). This lack and a plethora of red herrings/unresolved plot points made it difficult for me to accept the sudden resolution.
There are definitely possibilities for this series to grow but we need to know more about the central characters and the reasons for particular choices by the whole cast.

I give this book 3 out of 5 Cozy Stars! I liked this book, overall. Just like the two previous cozies, this book had a lot to do with bookish things. I really enjoyed the setting and the mystery of the story but the main character just didn’t sit well with me. Rude people just make me a bit uncomfortable. Also it was a bit hard to catch up with all the characters. The book was well written so I look forward to checking out the author’s other books.

Princess Fuzzypants here:
There are two things- other than cats- that can enhance my enjoyment of a mystery. One is the characters are people I would like to “know” and for whom I have a strong connection. The second is a familiarity with the setting where I can visualize the locale. This book had the second one in spades. Add in a lovely primer of Scottish lexicon and this should have been a favourite.
I cannot say precisely what did not quite make it in the characters.. I liked them but I did not LIKE them. In the same manner, I did not dislike the book, I just did not love it and I wanted to love it. It is quite possible this could be a series that takes a while to grab hold. Only time will tell the tale.
In the meantime, I give this four purrs and one paw up..

This was a fun cozy mystery set in Inversgail, Scotland where the town is welcoming back renowned environmentalist and author, Daphne Wood, who left thirty years ago. Just before she arrives in town a body is found behind a local pub. The four women who are owners of a local bookstore and bed and breakfast, start investigating and trying to find out more about the death. Then other things start happening and the investigation gets deeper.

I enjoyed the read and liked the characters although sometimes I thought there were just too many of them. The setting in the Scottish highlands gave the story atmosphere and the character, Daphne, was really quirky and strange. I liked the characters Janet and her daughter, Tallie the best. The other characters didn't seem to stand out as much. I also liked the bit of Gaelic thrown in - it contributed a lot to the setting and atmosphere of the book. A fun book to curl up on the sofa and drift away!

Thanks to Molly MacRae and Pegasus Books through Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank NetGalley and W.W. Norton & Co. for providing a copy of this book for review. Thirty years ago Daphne Wood left Inversgail and became an author and environmentalist, living by herself in a cabin in the woods. Now she has returned for three months for an author in residence program. Before she even arrives she sends an unreasonable list of demands that cause problems for the locals managing the program.

Shortly before Daphne’s arrival, the body of a young American hiker is found behind the local pub. Janet Marsh and her friends, owners of Yon Bonnie Books had been involved in an investigation in the past, but are determined to stay away from this one. Daphne, on the other hand, thinks they should look into it and spreads the word that they are investigating. When Daphne’s body is found, Janet and her friends fear they may also become targets and decide that the easiest way to stay safe is to find the killer.

Molly MacRae has created a highlands bookshop and village that you can get lost in. Yon Bonnie Books, the attached cafe with its’ fresh baked scones and the local pub where villagers gather at the end of the day make the reader comfortable, yet when Daphne arrives you can feel a change in the atmosphere. The four women who own the bookshop/cafe are close and supportive of each other. As they interact with various villagers, who can be quirky and occasionally annoying, they search for motives and a possible killer among people they have come to know. Like Stella Cameron’s Folly series, once you visit Yon Bonnie Books you will look forward to future visits.

This series has potential, due to the four main characters, Janet, Christine, Tallie and Summer, but too many characters were thrown in with the purpose of offering red herrings. I would like to see more character development, but I would read the third installment. I liked the surprise ending, but it took a bit long to get there.

Maybe my brain is just too full. I am sorry to say I did not finish this book. I barely made it through the first chapter. There were too many different people, with too many different problems and back stories to keep track of easily. And, for me, "easy" is the key to cozy mysteries. I don't want to think too hard and sure don't want to have to keep track of half a dozen different people in the first chapter. Sorry...not for me.

I usually don't get into a book quite so much that I want to kill off one of the characters myself! However, I did enjoy the mystery solving by Janet and her friends. The whisky society was fun running gag throughout the book and you do finally get to the bottom of it by the end of the book.