A MURDER BETWEEN THE PAGES by Amy Lillard brings small town living, a cozy book store/coffee shop, quirky characters and humor to this cozy mystery. It is the second book in the Main Street Book Club Mysteries series and is set in Sugar Springs, Mississippi.

Our protagonist, Arlo Stanley, is co-owner of a bookstore and coffee shop with her high school friend, Chloe Carter. Arlo started a Friday night book club which three octogenarians, Fern, Camille, and Helen, joined. Their next book selection is by a local, deceased author and focuses on a missing girl. The women believe the book was inspired by a cold case that occurred in their town during the 1970’s. When another young woman, Haley, dies at the house where the girl disappeared, the book club decides to investigate both cases. What happened fifty years ago? Did the girl run away or was she murdered? Did Haley have an accident or is there something more sinister behind her death?

Arlo is a character that seems to be the ‘straight man’ to the three octogenarians who were the stars of the book in my eyes. She tries to keep them out of trouble, but continues to be pulled into their shenanigans. This makes for some comical scenes that lighten some very serious themes. However, we gain insight into Arlo’s personality through her interactions with these women and this makes her feel more real and relatable. Her voice manifested in her mindset, vocabulary, opinions, body language and her internal narrative. There are a lot of characters to get to know rather quickly, but if you pay attention, they become clear and distinct.

The author did a great job of creating a strong sense of place. The first part of the book had several instances of “telling” rather than “showing” and this detracted from the initial flow. However, as events transpired and the action picked up, I soon felt like I was living the events alongside the characters. There were several twists in the book, but most of them were not great surprises except for the last sentence in the book.

If you like entertaining and amusing cozy mysteries, then this is one you should check into. It worked well as a standalone novel, but would likely add background and depth if read in order. This is the first book that I have read by this author and I look forward to enjoying the next book in the series.

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and Amy Lillard for a digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently set for November 24, 2020. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

I really enjoyed this book. The character of Arlo was engaging and believable, and I enjoyed that many of the other lead figures in the book were much older - there aren’t enough women over 40 in fiction these days, never mind over 80.

The plot was quite reliant on the relationships between the residents of the small town, and I think this makes it appeal particularly to those who love cozy crime, though perhaps could be offputting to those less keen on the genre.

For me, this was a 3 star read - it did everything I wanted it to, but didn’t surprise me with anything new. I’ll definitely look out for others in the series.

Arlo's book club is back in action and ready to solve a mystery... maybe... if there's a mystery that actually needs to be solved. The other members of her book club have decided that Wally Harrison's book, "The Missing Girl," must be based on an actual woman who went missing from the local Lillyfield mansion about 50 years ago. Although Arlos isn't quite on board with their conspiracy and just wants to get on with her book club, she's soon pulled in as an actual mystery unravels around her.

I really wanted to like this book. A murder, a bookstore, a writer, and a mystery linked to a book! It had the perfect setup but just fell really flat for me and it was a bit of a slog for me to get through it. That being said, just because it wasn't the book for me doesn't mean that many others won't love it. I definitely suggest grabbing this book to see if it works for you!

3/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[[Edited to note that after rethinking the story I've increased my rating from a 2 to a 3 because I do think that the story was quite interesting.]]

This is the second book in the new cozy series "Main Street Book Club" by author Amy Lillard. Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity. My review opinion is my own. The first in series was delightful and a great cozy for all of us that like book club mysteries. This is a charming series with great charcters and wonderful references to books.

Arlo and her Friday night book club are on the trail of a cold case murder long past. The have just solved one murder of an author and soon find clues that a new murder may be related to the cold case.

I love that the author features seniors as sleuths and book club members. They are delightful to read about. Arlo's character is growing and as before has good sleuthing skills . I enjoyed this fun read and look forward to the next in series.

This next book picks up right where the series starter left off, which is perfect because the book club gals were raring to get to the bottom of the mystery from Missing Girl. The three highly spirited and slightly up there in age gals are sure that fiction was reflecting fact and that the past was colliding with the present. I am not sure what is more humerous, these outrageous octogenerians or Arlo's attempts to keep the ladies out of mischief. You cannot help but shake your head while reading because you know that Arlo has her hands full, and even the local law enforcement tries to warn her that she needs to keep the ladies from hindering the investigation into Haley's murder while they conduct their own inquiries into the 50 year old mystery of the disappearance of Mary Kennedy. I think that the biggest mystery of all is trying to figure out why Arlo doesn't feel that she deserves to have romance and love. So she made what some (Mads) might think was a selfish choice by breaking his heart to protect her own since he was bound for football fame and fortune. Arlo hurt herself as well as Mads and then thinking that she was playing it safe and falling for Sam who then decided that he wanted to leave the sleepy little town of Sugar Springs, Mississippi for a bigger city. Arlo says it is karma and that she ruined things for three people. It's been 10 years Arlo, it's time to move on and take some chances.

Wally Harrison, even though he's dead, continues to plague Arlo. Her mystery book readers- Camille, Fern, and Helen- are determined to investigate a 50 year old case which they believe is at the root of Harrison's best seller. Hah! They find more than they bargain for- a new corpse. Geez. Arlo, who is somewhat reluctantly involved, ultimately agrees with them. Mads, the local sheriff Arlo more or less ditched for Sam, a PI, is ok with the group poking around (they were successful the last time). AND, Camille has a love interest- but is he a good guy? This is a light cozy set in small town Mississippi. Don't worry if you didn't read the first one- this is fine as a standalone because Lillard does a nice job of catching you up. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A fun read.

This is the second book in the series with Arlo and the Main Street Book Club. Fern, Helen, and Camille, the three octogenarian members of the Book Club have decided that Wally Harrison's book "The Missing Girl" is based on the woman who disappeared from the Lillyfield mansion 50 years before. Then, a young girl currently working in the mansion is murdered. When one of the maids claims she saw the girl's boyfriend throw a statue (which was probably used to hit her in the head) into the lake near the house, the police have the lake emptied. That's when the missing woman's missing car is found in the middle of the lake in addition to the statue.

Meanwhile, Camille has a new boyfriend. When Sam and Arlo see the couple when they go out to dinner, they realize the new boyfriend has prison tattoos. The Book group is sure the two cases of the recent murder and the 50 year old one are connected, but it's dangerous to get in the middle of a current murder case! The plot is clever and well told, and the Book Club members are wonderful and amusing, and Arlo has her work cut out to keep them in control, especially with her high school boyfriend egging them on and living in the upstairs apartment of her store.

I wasn't able to get into this one, the characters were too over the top for me. The expectation that a younger generation person is expected keep "control" of the older generation, I also found annoying.
However, the mystery did keep me guessing and I liked the bookstore and town setting.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

What's on the agenda for Arlo's Friday Night Book Club, besides gossip? Murder, naturally. The book choice, Missing Girl, is at the top of the list as members believe there is a link between it and a 50-year-old cold case and they wish to pursue both.

Enter murder. Arlo reluctantly finds herself drawn into a real life investigation and tries to reel in the more bold and eager book club members who unreservedly jump in. The women are characterful, especially Fern who seems to have an uncanny knowledge of forensics. They encounter curveballs and secrets as they search for answers with Sam, a PI. Sam and the police aren't exactly clever and Sam quite willingly discusses the case with the ladies. The police officer halfheartedly warns them to stop. Love interests enter the story, too.

Very light cozy mystery lovers will enjoy this. It was a bit too light and predictable for me but that's just my taste. Still was a fun read on a blizzardy day!

My sincere thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this fun book in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated.

This was a fun mystery with a good set of characters. It takes place in a small Mississippi town. Arlo is a young lady in her thirties that owns a cafe/bookstore. Hoping to meet younger people that loves reading she started a book club. Unfortunately what she got was a group of older gossipy women. The book club takes on a cold case to solve. This book could be read as a stand-alone however it will make better sense reading them in order.
#amurderbetweenthepages#Netgalley

Arlo’s Friday Night Book Club is back for the second entry in the series. Instead of just gathering to discuss their latest read, the members of the book club work on solving an old cold case, which also has a second more recent death that seems to be tied to the previous one.

I liked the characters (it’s not a particularly young crowd so that may be boring to some people) and I thought that small town feeling came across well. The mysteries were interesting but some aspects of it were easy to guess.

So, overall nothing groundbreaking the the cozy genre but still pretty enjoyable.

This novel features Arlo, named after the folk singer, who left her parents and their commune because she wanted to settle down. She chose Sugar Springs, Mississippi and an older woman became her de facto guardian for the remainder of her teenage years. Now Arlo is in her late 30’s and has opened a bookstore/coffee shop with her best friend, Chloe.
In the first novel, Arlo started a weekly book club she hoped would attract younger, intellectually inclined readers. What she got was three older women, one of whom is her former guardian. They morphed from weekly to daily and in the first book solved a murder, so now they see themselves as sleuths par excellence.
Now Arlo feels the responsibility to keep these women safe while trying to keep them from annoying the local sheriff, Mads, who Arlo dated in high school. At the same time, she has rented out the upstairs space to Sam, whom Arlo broke up with Mads for, and who now may, or may not be interested in Arlo. There are hints that Mads is also still interested in Arlo; but none of the trio seem able to define their interest, if any, or move it forward.
In this book, the book club gets fixated on a 50 year old case they are convinced was murder and decide to solve it. At the same time, a young woman at the estate where the first murder occurs is killed, and Mads is focused on solving that murder.
The book moves quickly from one theory to another from the book club members while Arlo tries to keep them safe and away from Mads. Sam, who is a private detective, is of little help as he keeps finding out bits of information and throwing that into the mix.
In addition to this action, one of the book club members has met a man on-line. Arlo and Sam see them out at dinner and he is covered with prison tattoos, another source of worry for Arlo. As all these strings swirl just out of Arlo’s control, the current murder begins to show ties to the murder of 50 years ago, and they both culminate with the book club members, along with Arlo and eventually Sam, Mads, and another police detective converge on the people involved.
There was no surprise in the book for me. There are several identity reveals, including who the murderer is; and I had them correctly identified almost from their introduction. Because the solving of the crime(s) is so scattered, the book seems best suited for someone who wants to be entertained, laugh at some of the situations, and then have the solution presented.
If you like your books with an emphasis on cozy and not really on detection, with humor thrown in, this series is probably just right for you. I would recommend reading them in order as there are character developments and relationships that progress from book to book. My thanks to Poisoned Press and NetGalley for an advanced digital reader copy of this book. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

I absolutely loved A Murder Between the Pages! This book came out at the perfect time, since Netflix is now airing a series about Sherlock Holmes' sister. I think a lot of young people will be looking for more strong female protagonists in mysteries, and this one takes the cake! I had such a fun time reading and trying to solve the mystery alongside the characters. I'd highly recommend this to anyone who would like a lighter murder mystery!

The ladies in Arlo’s book club find their current selection by a former town resident to be so similar to a cold case from 50 years ago that they decide to try and figure out what happened to the missing piano teacher. When they arrive at the mansion where the woman disappeared all those years ago, they literally have another murder land at their feet. The ladies are convince the murders are connected and begin their own sleuthing to figure out what happened both in the present and the past…and Arlo is along for the ride while trying to keep the ladies out of prison.

This is a cute series set in a small Mississippi town. The first book in the series doesn’t need to be read before this second entry, so enjoy it as a stand alone and get acquainted with the book club and the small town charm while trying to figure out whodunit and why.

This is the second entry in the Main Street Book Club Mystery series and we finding ourselves returning to Arlo’s Friday Night Book Club. I enjoyed how the the book club members decide to investigate a cold case. Suddenly, things begin to heat up and become all too real. When a murder which seems to be connected to the original case occurs, the gang begins to search for whodunit. The author has created an enjoyable mystery that she has filled with a likeable group of characters and an interesting plot. A fun read.

I would like to thank Amy Lillard, Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press, in return for an honest review. While the second book in this series, it can be read as a standalone. Arlo, Helen, Fern, Camille and Chloe form a book club at Arlo and Chloe’s Sugar Springs, Mississippi, bookstore/coffee shop. After successfully solving the mystery of a local author in the first book in this series, they’re now reading his best-seller mystery that’s fashioned on the disappearance of a young woman from the local mansion. While Helen, Fern and Camille are all 80 years old or older, Arlo and Chloe are both younger (30s?) and single. The older members decide to accompany Arlo to the mansion to pick up books being donated by the owner. While there, they witness a young woman falling down the staircase and dying. When its determined to be murder, the older women decide to solve the current murder as well as the possibly historical one. Arlo tries to restrain their impulses and then goes along for the ride.
For me, there were too many characters and too many mysteries all jumbled together to sort and enjoy this story. The main characters, Helen, Fern and Camille, seem to talk over each other and it is hard to distinguish which mystery they’re addressing – the 50-year-old one, the book or the current murder. Also, I don’t like how the older women are portrayed as doddering, over the hill characters. Arlo appears to treat them with an amused and affectionate disdain for their foibles – really? Just wasn’t my cup of tea.

4.5 stars

This is the second book in the Main Street Book Club mysteries in Amy Lillard.

Even though Arlo is the head of the Friday Night Book Club, it seems her more senior members quickly take over and not by discussing their current book but by solving an old murder! Mary Kennedy, piano teacher, vanished one day and never reappeared. And it flummoxed everyone for years. Then when Arlo and friends go to the house of one of the bookclub gal’s sisters for a book donation, the gal they are looking for falls down the stairs right before their eyes and dies instantly.

This mystery was compelling and keeps you interested all the way through. The cast is memorable but I do think there might be a bit too many seniors for some people’s taste. But that is neither here nor there. I like the whole community vibe the book puts out. I did not read the first book in the series so I do plan to check that out ASAP to get a bit more backstory. Definitely a series I want to continue with.

If you like cozy mysteries, definitely check this one out. You won’t be disappointed.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.

An Engaging Crew....
The second in the Main Street Book Club Mystery series and a return to Arlo’s Friday Night Book Club. Still basking in their recent success the group decide to investigate a cold case which suddenly becomes all too real when a murder occurs which is clearly connected. Can they solve the mystery? Enjoyable cosy mystery with a likeable and engaging crew.

Arlo and the book group ladies are back again in A Murder Between the Pages by Amy Lillard.
The ladies are reading and discussing Missing Girl, which they are comparing to a woman’s disappearance many years ago.

Arlo feels like a babysitter for the three ladies, Helen, Fern and Camille. Even though the ladies are past retirement age, they get themselves involved in things better left to the authorities.
When the death of a young woman shakes the small town to the core, the ladies are determined to ask questions, and Arlo tags along, trying to keep them out of trouble.

I enjoyed this book and the ladies, but I’m struggling to make a connection with Arlo. I haven’t found anything that makes me click with her yet, but I’m hoping it will happen in the next book.
#netgalley #amurderbetweenthepages