I liked this book but did not like the second book and would not continue with the series. Thank you for the preview.

A fun cozy that introduces a good character in Charlotte. Fans of the genre will appreciate this one for it's humor and just tricky enough plot. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Dead on the Vine by Elle Brooke White had a lot of potential. Cute animals, farm, and engaging characters, but it all fell flat for me. It could be that it was just the first book in the series, but there were several parts that just really dragged. Horse, the pig, was adorable, but I would never let a pig sleep in my bed. I would definitely give book 2 a chance before I made up my mind about this series. Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Death on the Vine is a promising start to a new series. It is an enjoyable, easy read, with a good murder mystery and a well thought out cast of characters.

Charlotte Finn is heading to Little Acorn, California after inheriting Finn Family Farm from her great-uncle Tobias. Charlotte has fond memories of a magical summer she spent there as a child. While touring the property with a realtor, they find a man dead with a pitchfork in his neck. Charlotte also learns that someone has been sabotaging the farm. There are also people claiming that the farm belongs to them.

With the help of her two best friends can she prove the farm is rightfully hers and also solve a murder?
This is a great start to a new series and I look forward to reading more from this series!!

Such a fun cozy mystery! I loved the animals and farm life, and the author did a great job with the mystery and plot.

I usually go for book-related or food-related cozy mysteries, but this is the first time I'm reading a farm-themed one, even if I have some similar titles in my ever-growing (and never diminishing) TBR pile. (Goodreads is really a good tool for management, although I am mostly overwhelmed.)

Charlotte Finn formerly worked in the "big city" (Chicago), but after a major disappointment and a sudden legacy from her great-uncle Tobias, she sets off with her two childhood friends, Diane and Beau, to check out her inheritance. However, being an heiress is not what she expected, because the farm has been making only very little, the next-door neighbors, the Averys, are claiming ownership and causing trouble, and while on a tour, they find a dead body stabbed with a pitchfork. If Charlotte plans to make the farm work, she has to figure out how to deal with the Averys and solve the murder.

I feel a strange fairy tale-ish quality from this title. I don't know if it's because the action happens on a farm, and there's a sort of magical quality about growing fruits and vegetables, taking care of livestock, reviving the lake, a beautiful farm house, and best of all, an intelligent pig named Horse. I actually like this book. Charlotte is a good heroine for a cozy mystery, and she is very much a strong and independent woman. I like her close bond with Horse, and it's so cute that they become the ultimate detecting pair, because Horse is very much a detective in his own right. Diane and Beau are such supportive friends, and Diane's sympathy and Beau's eccentricity adds more charm. I'm still trying to figure out the other characters, but I hope nothing romantic suddenly develops because I'm more interested in how Charlotte, Horse, Diane and Beau make a go out of running the farm (I like their ideas) and detecting along the way.

This book has actually a lot of strong and interesting female characters. The murderer has plausible (although unjustifiable) reasons for the crime, although I feel like the male characters were sidelined or became stock characters because the females (even those who were mentioned once or twice) stand out more. Nevertheless, it's good to see that everything got resolved in the end without much of a fuss, and the motivations came from insecurities and frustrations more than actual greed.

I really loved this first book in a new to my series and author. I can't wait to read the next one. The characters and location really add to the plot. This book keeps you guessing until the end.

I really enjoyed this cozy mystery! The characters were easy to connect with. Mrs Robinson and Horse were definitely the best characters!!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book, which I voluntarily chose to review.

The first book in the Finn Family Farm Mystery series by Elle Brook White is Dead on the Vine. Charlotte has inherited her uncle's produce farm, and her only plan is to sell it. Her quick sale plan goes off track when a dead body is found in the tomato patch. Charlotte is now investigating a murder in addition to running the family farm. The longer she stays the more attached she becomes. When I first started this book, I thought I was going to hate it. I was not sure that a character who thought a 1996 car was "classic" would ever be likable. The more I read the more I liked Charlotte, her friends, and the farm fixtures. By the end I found myself looking forward to the next book.

Cute first installment of a new mystery series. Well written with good characters and a good mystery. I would absolutely recommend this book, and I can’t wait to read more by this author!

Dead on the Vine is the first Finn Family Farm cozy mystery by Elle Brooke White. Released 7th April 2020 by Crooked Lane, it's 336 pages and available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats.

This is the first book in a small town whimsical cozy (including a pig and ladybug who "help" solve the crimes. It doesn't go full Rita Mae Brown and narrate from the pig's (and ladybug's) points of view, but it edges pretty close). The city-girl-in-the-country trope is in full force although to the author's credit, the humor at her expense isn't mean spirited or mocking.

Some of the characterizations are vague and a bit two-dimensional. I had some trouble keeping her friends' dialogue clear in my mind as I was reading...they felt a bit tacked on and just showed up and disappeared when their scenes were done. The action and plot developments were somewhat strongly foreshadowed, so there was never an *aha* denouement.

I was fully expecting the handsome lawman to show up in the first book (setting the stage for the inevitable romance in future books), and I was totally 100% off base. The lawman is a law-woman and proves to be a surprisingly good friend and sounding board to Charlotte as she attempts to unravel the death of a young man on her property as well as the vandalism which threatens to shut down her dream of making a go of her late uncle's farm before it really has a chance to get off the ground.

The writing is uneven, and some of the dialogue is a bit rough, but as a first novel, and series starter, it's engaging and fun and worth a look for fans of very light cozies with anthropomorphic animals. There is no really overt violence (including the main murder) or sexual content and the language is very clean.

Three and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

I enjoyed this one. I didn't want to put it down once I picked it up. It was well written and held my attention until the very end.

This was a really cute start to a new cozy series! It sometimes fell into the trap that first books do of over-explaining, but I forgave some of the faults because I really enjoyed the story overall.

The premise is a fun one: girl inherits farm (in gorgeous California) but distant relative and leaves her city life behind to start fresh. At first she considers selling the place because what does she know about farming? Especially when they stumble upon a dead body on her land! But soon Charlotte falls in love with the land and, in addition to determining to solve the murder, decides to make a go of it on her farm. She's not alone, of course. The local farmhands are at the ready and she's got her two best friends by her side. Not to mention her adorable sidekick, a pig named Horse, and her pet (!) ladybug Mrs. Robinson!

The premise was intriguing for sure but to me it's the supporting characters that make this book sing. Her besties are a lot of fun - ESPECIALLY Beau! I was laughing out loud at his antics. And outfits. I also loved the Sheriff and look forward to seeing more of her. The love angle was a good one but they didn't rush into it, which I liked. Plenty of time to develop that relationship.

All in all a really fun book and I definitely look forward to continuing this series!

A good cozy mystery, fun to read and engrossing.
I liked the quirky cast of characters, the lovely setting and the solid mystery that kept me guessing.
I look forward to reading the next instalment in this series.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Charlotte Finn has come to a crossroad in her life when her marketing career goes pear shaped. As she says, she feels like a character in the tv show, Green Acres. She is going from a Chicago penthouse to a produce farm in a small town - Acorn, California. Trouble is, she hasn't got the proverbial clue how to run one. Her great-uncle Tobias has willed it her and it's her best choice given her current lack of them.
Joining her two childhood friends, Diane and Beau, she sets out to claim her inheritance only to discover that it's more than a produce farm....it's a money pit. Next move, find a realtor to find out its actual worth and sell it. Well, the place is a bit run down but she had no idea it would include a dead body with a pitch fork in its neck. It's a lot to take in almost from her first moment in town. Who wanted the young man dead, on her property and, by the way, who has been doing the sabotage and why? With the help of Diane, Beau, the farm caretakers, Joe and Alice and a couple of extra special helpers - a little pig named Horse and a hitchhiking ladybug she has christened Mrs. Robinson. All in all this is the perfect escape reading and I will be adding the series to my TBR series.
My thanks to the publisher Crooked Lane and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a really fun whimsical mystery. It reminded me a little of an adult version of Charlottes web with a really good mystery woven in. I always love stories of people coming from a big city to a small town and this was a great version of that. I loved the characters, the setting and I thought the mystery was very well done. I would recommend this lovely cozy mystery.

A great start to a new series! Charlotte inherits a farm from a relative and finds that it may be the best and most dangerous thing that's ever happened to her! After leaving her marketing job (not her choice) Charlotte teams up with two of her childhood friends to turn her inheritance into a successful farm. All is going well until the dead body shows up!

I enjoyed the pace of the book and the whimsical spirit of the book. The red herrings in the book were entertaining and I thought I knew "whodunit" but I was wrong. I'm looking forward to their next adventure! A ladybug, teacup pig and a charming and determined amateur sleuth make an engaging team!

I received an ARC from NetGalley and the opinions expressed are my own.

4.5 stars. Delightful! Terrific mystery and a cast of characters - both human and animal - that I enjoyed spending time with.

This is a great series launch. Charlotte is a great protagonist - realistically questioning how to proceed with her inheritance while still having the sass and gumption to not put up with the garbage folks try to dish out. Horse the pig and Mrs. Robinson the ladybug were a fun, quirky addition to the story as were the other animals on the farm.

The mystery was great - I was cycling through my villain choices until about 3/4 of the way through when I decided on a culprit. I loved how the capture/wrap up worked out, too.

This was a perfect blend of characters and character development story along side a well-plotted and satisfying mystery. Looking forward to reading a lot more about the Finn Family Farm!

This is such a charming debut cozy mystery ! I love the farm theme and the adorable baby pig. Well done to the author who has created a fun interesting series that every cozy lover will adore. Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity. My review opinion is my own.

We are introduced to our protagonist Charlotte who is home on her families produce farm in California with only one goal, to sell it as soon as she possibly can. Her plans are thwarted when a murder occurs on the farm with their farm tools. Charlotte wants to solve the murder as the victim is one of her relatives and as soon as she can to put the farm on the market and start her life over. She is soon knee deep in soil, manure and clues as well as suspects. Along with her adorable baby pig who is helping in the investigation, her caretakers who she is suspicious of and a cantankerous nearby farmer who does not like her or her family farm. The clues come together to a very pleasing conclusion.

I enjoyed the setting, the charcters, the animals and the fun sleuth. I look forward to the next in series.
Very well done to the author.. Cross posted.

Dead on the Vine is a delightful beginning to the Finn Family Farm series. White has created a charming cast of what one hopes will be the regular characters, both two- and four-legged. The story moved quickly and kept my attention throughout. There were multiple red herrings and twists that kept me engaged in the mystery and wavering between multiple suspects until I was about 2/3 done with the book, and settled on a suspect. Hopefully there is a follow-up book in the future, because I look forward to continuing with the series.