Linguistics professor Lauren Rousseau returns in Murder on the Bluffs, the second in a new series that also works as a standalone mystery.

Now that the semester has ended, Lauren plans to explore her small hometown. However, after she confronts her insurance agent over a bill, she discovers his body while she’s out on a run. Although she’s not a suspect, she begins her own investigation. The man was a member of the mysterious Bluffs Land Trust that collects profits from land rentals. These profits are supposed to be turned over to the town’s school system but that has not happened for years. Another complication is that the members of the Land Trust are all men who have inherited their seats. Coincidentally, one is Lauren’s Karate teacher whom she is very attracted to while her boyfriend is out of the country. Her father’s disappearance and death while she was in college are also on her mind. Could there be a connection?

I love the Lauren Rousseau series. It has so much going for it. There are the usual quirky characters, family problems, interesting careers, locations that switch between a beachside town and a college campus and typical small town intrigue. The problem here is that Lauren seems a bit out of character. The story starts with an argument that seems over the top for Lauren. Then, days after her boyfriend leaves for Haiti, she is fantasizing about her Karate teacher. I am really looking forward to the third in this series and hoping that then Lauren will decide if she wants to be a committed relationship. 4 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley, Beyond the Page Publishing and Edith Maxwell for this ARC.

Linguistics professor Lauren Rousseau learns about a long-simmering controversy involving a secretive local land trust. Instead of providing money to the local schools as required, the Trustees had been withholding the money for years. After a heated town meeting, Lauren stumbles upon the body of Charles Heard, one of the Trustees, while hiking on the local bluffs. Lauren starts asking questions and quickly learns that Heard had many enemies but which one hated him enough to kill? Heard's volatile sister Mary wants answers but is also hiding some secrets of her own.

Meanwhile, as the anniversary of her late father's birthday approaches, Lauren is determined to find out more details about his death from her reticent family. But Lauren did not expect the bombshell truth about why he abruptly left the family.

Lauren then finds another injured man near the bluffs after going clamming with her new karate instructor Dan Talbot. Who attacked Danny Spirokis? As Lauren investigates the remaining Trustees, she realizes there may be a link between their corrupt actions and the death of her father. After another close call at a train station in Boston, Lauren inadvertently finds herself alone with the killer and has to use her wits to escape.

I received an eARC from Netgalley and Beyond the Page Publishing with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.

This was so disappointing.

I went from loving Lauren in the last book to wondering why she became so stupid and self centered. The first book, she was looking for a killer while keeping the police in the loop. In this one, she keeps stumbling around and gets into arguments with them.

The killer was very obvious. There weren't that many suspects and this guy was so suspicious. Every time he appeared, he became more suspicious. Not that Lauren ever suspects him. She's trying to cheat on her boyfriend who she treated worse than last book when she did cheat on him and was wishy-washy about their future together. In my last review, I said I wanted a revival of this series. I changed my mind.

This review is based on an advanced reading copy provided by Netgalley for an honest review.

This is the second installment in the Lauren Rousseau mystery series about a linguistics professor who finds herself stumbling across murdered bodies. I would consider this a cozy mystery, as not too many gory details are given about the murders, the story is set in a quaint picturesque town, and there are interesting side characters. I enjoyed this book more than the first in the series as I began to warm to the main character.

In Murder On the Bluffs, the book opens with Lauren having an altercation at the bank with one of the bank's officers, then later that day while on a run she discovers his body. He has been murdered. He was not a particularly popular man so there is no shortage of possibilities for who could be the murderer. Meanwhile Lauren's personal life is still complicated. Her long time boyfriend is off on an extended trip, and she thinks she might be interested in Dan, her martial arts instructor. The pace of the book is pretty quick as the mystery unfolds. New clues lead Lauren in various directions before solving the murder. More is revealed about Lauren's family and friends in town.

There is a lot to like about the story, with some interesting characters and setting. I'm still on the fence as to whether I am totally engaged in the series, and I would rate this a 3.5. Rounding up to 4 because I feel it shows promise.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and Beyond the Page Publishing, in return for an honest review. While the second book in this series, it is easily read as a standalone. Lauren Rousseau, PhD in Linguistics and newly tenured professor at a small college, is frustrated when she has a negative encounter with one of the town’s big wigs, which is witnessed by the chief of police. When she finds the man dead on the local sea bluffs, Lauren is thrust into town intrigues about a significant land trust, the cabal of trustees and secrets that impact her own family. Not quite sure who to trust beyond her mother and sister, Lauren realize that these are mysteries she needs to solve or die trying. I enjoyed this book. It’s a solid cozy mystery and Ms. Maxwell’s expertise in the genre is obvious.

Book two, can be read as stand alone.
I enjoy the characters. I love that Lauren is a linguistics professor.
It is a good mystery.
Also recommend her Maddie Day cozy mysteries.
Lauren learns more about her families secrets

A solid mystery that kept me guessing. I liked the character development, the setting and the plot.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

I was drawn to the cover and the premise of Murder on the Bluffs! I was really excited to curl up with it and a cup of coffee. I do enjoy a good mystery. I loved the storyline and the further development of the characters, especially the main character. I found myself warming up to Lauren. The mystery was very interesting and the plot was well developed. I plan on finding and reading more books by this author. I'm loving this series and look forward to book 3.

I would like to thank Edith Maxwell, Beyond The Page Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Murder on the Bluffs will keep you reading as Lauren trys to peice the clues together to solve the crimes. She can't help if she stumbles on victims. The characters will keep you wondering about their motives.

I loved the cover and the premise of Murder on the Bluffs and was excited to sit down and read a good mystery. But the story was just "okay" for me. I couldn't connect with any of the characters. The mystery was interesting and kept me reading, but I really was not connected or intrigued by the story. I will check out other books by this author, though, and see if other books will be better suited for my taste.

#MurderontheBluffs #NetGalley