I thought this was going to be a good book since it takes place on a beach and has a bookstore. Unfortunately, it was just on the meh side of things.

Summer Merriweather returns to St. Brigid, a small beach town, after her mother died unexpectedly leaving behind a bookstore and a town full of people who loved her. Summer is reeling from the loss, as well as some kind of incident from the university where she works involving spiders (which is never fully explained) and may or may not be getting fired. As Summer collects her mother's last moments, it's becoming clearer that someone murdered her and now that someone is after Summer.

The good: I enjoyed the setting. I think Beach Reads sounds like a fantastic bookstore that I would love to get lost in. The little town of St. Brigid seems like a delightful place to visit. And...that's all I got.

The bad: Summer is a whiner. All she does is "bloom with warmth" or complain about everything she can think of, which got very old. She is a Shakespeare professor who does not believe in literature other than the classics and is a self-proclaimed "literary snob." I too have an English degree. I love Shakespeare. However, would I belittle others because they enjoy light fluffy romances or cozies? Heck no, because I love those too. The uptight literature part of Summer ruffled my feathers. Plus Summer's misuse of "to sleep, perchance to dream" deflated her literary bubble for me.

The really bad: I totally figured out whodunit after about 20 pages. No joke. No spoilers but holy cats it was painfully obvious. I saw that this author has written multiple other series under a pseudonym. I hope those whodunits keep you guessing longer.

Definitely a disappointment.

I had a very hard time getting into this book. Usually I fly through cozy mysteries relating to books, but this one was a struggle. I did finish, but I’m not sure I will read any others in this series, should they be released. Fairly early on I had the murderer pegged, and there weren’t any surprises as the book went on. It was an average read.

I had such high hopes for this book from the description, and I was utterly disappointed. Ugh, it was such a big fail for me. From the painfully obvious whodunit aspect (everyone in this acted bizarrely clueless for the entire duration of the novel) to the old-fashioned high-literature/genre fiction dichotomy, I just wasn't engaged. Also, the racial dynamics in the book seemed a bit tone-deaf as well: there were multiple characters with "mocha" skin (the only time skin color was mentioned, other than a 'pale' adjective here or there). White is still very much the default in this little world.

What an amazing start to a very promising series! I loved the main character and fell in love with her life and the town itself. I can’t wait to read more in this series.

This is the first installment in the Beach Reads Mystery series. It has a great mystery and the characters and location are totally adorable.

I'm all for an "unlikeable" character, but how on earth does someone grow up in a bookstore and go on to study literature to be sooooooo ridiculously and ignorantly snobby about books??

Upon reading the blurb for this I thought it sounded like a book I would love to read and I really did enjoy it.
I think I liked it as it was easy to read and even though somewhat predictable it was still fun.

The where varying characters, some quirky some interesting and some just a little boring but they all fit fairly well into the story. And it was great that the main character was a book snob and Shakespearean scholar as this mad for a fun character.

There was a bit of everything in this book, fun, humour, mystery, family and friendship so it has a bit of everything and as I said it was an easy read which is sometimes good for the soul.

An absolutely delightful novel about family, old friends and murder in a cozy beach town. Though the author gave ample clues, leading me to the identity of the murderer early in the book, it didn’t spoil the story for me. The plot is rock solid, the characters endearing and the writing top notch. Easily one of the best books I’ve read recently. I received this book free and chose to make a voluntary, unbiased review.

I love books about bookstores! And when you add a mystery component to the story, it gets even better. The author does a great job of developing the characters and providing lots of intrigue to keep you guessing who committed the crimes.

I have to admit that the main character, Summer, got on my nerves with her snobby attitude about the books sold in her mother's beachside bookstore. Just because she is a fan of the "classics" does not mean everyone else should only want to read that type of book. So just chill and encourage people to read! Period!

I loved the family relationships and the love and care that the women shared with each other. Such a wonderful community environment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

There were a number of editing and continuity issues with this title, which other reviews note as well, that did detract from the story. That being said, the premise was interesting and I did want to finish it because of that arc. I also have a soft spot for bookstore-based cozies, and the tie in with the main character being a Shakespeare scholar held a lot of promise for me.

This book was a nice, light, summer escape. A cozy mystery set in a small, North Carolina beach town called St. Brigid's Island. This is the beginning of a new series.

Summer, a Shakespearean professor, has returned home for her mother's funeral. She wants to settle her mother's estate and get back to her academic life - even though her future at the university has been jeopardized due to an incident there. Her mother, Hildy, owned a bookstore in the town specializing in romantic reads which Summer despised. She finds some threatening notes to her mother saying she should 'sell the bookstore or die'. Summer becomes suspicious that her mother's death may not be from natural causes. She begins to investigate.

Some quirky characters are introduced - some I liked much more than Summer. The ladies from Hildy's book club circle, Posey, and the fire chief, Levi were my favorites. The book was a fun read, but I figured out the murderer early on - and Summer should have as well.

Thanks to Crooked Lane Books through Netgalley for an advance copy of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for advanced read of this book.

Just like Hildy loved Beach Reads, I am a fan of bookstore/library mysteries.
While I wasn't revetted to the edge of my seat, I was interested to see what would happen next.
I guess when you're writing about us older people, you feel the need to take the narrative slow.

As a lover of books, I am drawn to books with bookshop in the title. After I read a more intense book with heavier content, I love to follow up with a quick and cozy read! This book did not disappoint!! I found the main character easy to sympathize with and loved that she had a great family to support her. I can't wait to see what comes next in this series!

a great cozy mystery, I really liked the characters and the mystery kept me guessing until the end, I recommend for all mystery lovers

Thank you to Netgalley, Maggie Blackburn, and Crooked Lane Books for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoy cozy mysteries, so was happy to give this one a try! This cute little cozy mystery has some fun characters, is set in the cutest small town (would it be a cozy mystery if it wasn’t?!?), and certainly leaves the reader with some questions about the personal lives of some of the characters!!

I like the uncertainty in the main characters life, and also enjoy the presence of the bird (it’s nice when authors stray from your typical dog and cat pets.) I was able to figure out who-dunnit, but I’ve read so many cozy mysteries that it’s not hard for me. I enjoy that the story involves a bookstore and that the main character and her mom have a very different idea of what should and shouldn’t be read and enjoyed!

If cozy is your thing give it a shot!!

I found this to be a delightful cozy mystery. It’s a solid first installment in, what I hope will be, a long running series. The tone is generally light hearted and the characters are quirky and likable. I love to idea of a quaint little beach town bookstore featuring into the Murder mystery. The mystery is set up well and has a satisfying ending. I will enjoy reading more books in this series to see how the characters develop and what mischief they can get into while sleuthing.

I did not finish this book. The premise of it was good, but the writing just did not leave enough for me to want to continue.

So this book was blah for me. I love a “cozy” murder mystery, I love a “beach read”, I love books about books... but this had a lot going on plus a whiny main character that I had a really hard time connecting with. Also, I was able to figure out who the murderer was in the first chapter which is not great. If you love predictable murder mysteries, this is the book for you. I do not know who they will do a second book in this series... oh Mr. Darcy, the best part!

The mystery wasn’t that mysterious; only the why. I really don’t like the trope where the one person that should be suspected the most, with hints dropped all along the way, gets overlooked by the person trying to solve the mystery. It makes the heroine seem stupid and foolish, trying to justify why said person shouldn’t be a suspect no matter how many clues point that person’s direction. Suffice it to say, the killer was NOT a mystery, and the only thing I was trying to figure out was the why. The why didn’t make any discernible sense either, in that the killer was obviously not thinking logically about anything.

There was a lot of repetition in the mundane details, and I can’t say how many times Summer rehashed the same problems in her head. I know everyone does that, but it’s frustrating to actually read about.

I liked the side characters more than Summer, like Piper and Agatha and Marilyn. Summer has arachnophobia (which I can relate to), and her job is in a precarious position because of it. But it is summertime when her mother dies, so she heads back to her childhood home on St. Brigid’s island to sort things out. Her mom started and owned a very successful romance bookstore called Beach Reads, and Summer didn’t agree with only romances being stocked. This was something I really didn’t like about Summer; she was a book snob who looked down on people who didn’t like classics. She does eventually end up changing her mind slightly, but for a cozy mystery about someone who doesn’t like cozy mysteries and romances, Summer wasn’t very likable.

I wish we had gotten more character development for Mia and Poppy, and I would have liked more scenes with Levi, the fire chief. Maybe there will be more books? I might still pick them up.

This is book 1 of this new series, and it's off to a rollicking start! The reader can really relate to Hildy- how a social post was the start of a chaotic end of semester early for her, and how she has no idea if she will still have a job, so a sabbatical in England? GREAT! but then to get called back because of your mother's untimely death? You might feel like you had a curs eon you. But for Hildy there are more surprises and secrets in store! The book does a great job introducing what will I;m sure become the central figures in the new series, and as the book evolves, the reader becomes attached and looking for that cozy mystery happy ending. But will Hildy get one? All signs point to no, and you won't find out if this keeps to the traditional route or not, until you read this fun book! Definitely a fun beach read!