The story is set in a lakeside town during the summer. I did enjoy reading the descriptions of the cabins, the woods, and the lake. The main character, Rain, comes back to her family's lake home for the summer to recover from her husband's death as well as all the life changes she will be making. Her lake home also houses a small, neighborhood library in the original cabin portion which was built by her grandfather. While at home, a man is murdered on her property by the library cabin. The story centers around Rain and her childhood friend and neighbor, Julia, as they investigate the murder. Julia's brother, Jace, is on the police force and repeatedly asks them to quit investigating, but it wouldn't be a cozy mystery if they did that.

I really struggled to get through a lot of the dialogue in the story and found that I couldn't connect with most of the characters. Although her parents were both key to the story and were both out of the country for the summer, she never actually talks to either of them. I found it really strange that she didn't call her dad more and didn't try to contact her mom other than one email. The whole story felt as though we were just being introduced to the town and characters to set us up for future series titles, which made the mystery feel shallow and rushed.

Thanks to NetGalley, Holly Danvers, and Crooked Lane Books for the advanced eBook in exchange for my honest review.

👩 Rain Wilmont goes back to her family's lakeside cottage after losing her husband. She is expecting solitude and tranquillity, and instead, she finds the body of a murdered man beside the library that her mother used to run. Rain immediately starts playing detective with her friend Julia, and her brother Jace, a police officer.

❤️ I loved:⁠
🌊 The setting. What's better than a cottage by the lake.? A cottage with an adjacent library by the lake. It must be a sort of bookish Heaven or something. I loved the community of Lofty Pines as well, and their attachment to the cottages and the lake.
👴 Rain's grandfather. I enjoyed reading about his life and his passion for writing. I also loved the fact that his family treasured so much his manuscripts.
✍️ The style. It's been a quick read for me, it took a 2 hours flight and a night in to finish it. It flows smoothly, and the pace is quite fast, there is no time to get bored, you just want to arrive at the end, discover who the culprit is, and if it's true that Rain's family is involved.

🤔 I wasn't so sure about:⁠
👩 The characters. They were not completely developed and a bit 2 dimensional for my liking. But maybe it's because it's the first book of a series and we'll get to know them better in the next episodes.
🏖️ It's not cosy enough. Maybe it's because it's set in summer, but it didn't make me want to snuggle on the sofa with a cup of tea.

⭐⭐⭐ 3/5⁠ A cosy mystery set in a stunning location with an intriguing whodunit.

Murder at the Lakeside Library by Holly Danvers is the first book in the Lakeside Library Mystery series. The plot is interesting, but there is so much backstory to the main character that the mystery seems secondary. For me this is not a negative as long as there are more books so I can enjoy the journey with the characters and get to know them better. I truly hope this series continues.

***** I received an ARC from NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my honest review. *****

Such a great read. I really enjoyed the plot of the story. I felt like I was a character interacting within the story. New author for me and I cannot wait to read another book.

Rain Wilmot has retreated to her family’s cabin in Lofty Pines, Wisconsin after her husband’s death. She is grappling with grief and the fact that he had cheated on her. Rain’s mother, Willow, ran a small library out of the cabin. Since Willow isn’t planning on going to the cabin this year, Rain is charged with opening the cabin. The opening is stalled by Rain’s discovery of the body of Thornton Hughes on the property. Thornton was rumored to be looking to develop land on the lake – something the locals are opposed to. When Willow’s name comes up in the investigation, Rain takes it upon herself to solve the murder mystery.
I enjoyed the book. It was easy to read and follow. I’m looking forward to more books in the series.

Murder is not supposed to happen in a close knit summer escape town. But crime has come to this lakeside town. Rainn is so caught up in her own grief she jumps here and there trying to make sense of the death on her family property. She drags her childhood friend along as she searches for answers. She questions her parents and grandparents life choices while trying to make sense of her own. I liked the friendships and how they help unravel the mystery. And how cool to have a library right there on the property. I liked the story.

Murder at the Lakeside Library is a nice start to a brand new series and I look forward to reading more. Perhaps some of the scenes were a little wordy and overdone for my tastes but the author did a wonderful job at setting the scene and making the murder a head scratcher!

A lakefront family home "up north" in Wisconsin, a small-town vibe, and a community library operated out of the original log cottage part of the house: what better place could there be to relax, reflect and reconnect with oneself after losing your husband? Rain is in her early 30's and reeling from her husband's untimely and tragic death soon after she discovered that he had been unfaithful. She is an only child and goes to spend the summer at the lake house she loved growing up, but had not spent much time at for several years. She will be alone most of the summer while her parents are off on different travels.

After leaving her old life in Milwaukee and arriving at the lake house, Rain discovers her childhood friend, Julia, next door just like when they were young. Rain and Julia quickly rekindle their old friendship. On Rain's first night back, Julia and another neighbor are at her house to discuss the summer opening of Rain's family's community library. However, those plans are quickly derailed by the discovery of a very dead and obviously murdered man, who's body is lying behind the old outhouse on Rain's property. What ensues is a quest by Rain, with Julia's help, to try and solve the murder. As clues are uncovered, it becomes clear that somehow her parents and/or her family's past may very well be integral parts of the mystery.

Murder at the Lakeside Library is a quick and very fun read. It was mostly, but not quite, satisfying in how the murder and family secrets were revealed. Too many details were left until the explanations at the very end, holes that the reader had no way to fill in with guesses. Also, I didn't find the characters to be very 3-dimensional. Lastly, I was a bit annoyed by small details that reminded me of sexist undertones that still exist in the Midwest. Such as when Julia's brother, who is the local police officer, lecture's Rain, calling her "young lady" as if she were a naughty child and not an intelligent, grown woman near his own age.

I really enjoyed the setting and the notion of a private community library as a beloved meeting place for the lakeside residents. However, the library was not actually opened and used during the days this story takes place which was disappointing. I hope this charming setting becomes a vivid and lively place in the next installments of this series. I think this series has potential for developing the characters more fully and providing another romp of a mystery.

I thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing this ARC in return for my unbiased review.

2 stars.
I really struggled to get into this one. There was just too much extra stuff that added no value to the book.

Murder at the Lakeside Library is the debut of the A Lakeside Library Mystery series set on the shores of Pine Lake in the small town of Lofty Pines, Wisconsin. Rain Wilmot is recently widowed and looking to gather her life back together escapes to her family's lakefront cabin. On arrival at the cabin she reconnects with her childhood friend and neighbor, Julia.

Rain hasn't been to the cabin in years and wasn't aware that her mother, Willow had been keeping the family library started by her author, grandfather open to the residents of the small community. In just a matter of hours Julia talks Rain into opening the library again and they stumble upon a dead man laying next to the cabin's outhouse. Rumors swirl in the community that Willow may have been having an affair with the dead man and speculation is that perhaps Rain's father is the killer.

There are only a handful of characters in the book and I couldn't relate to any of them. The majority of the book seems filled with descriptions, descriptions, descriptions and I found myself doing quite a bit of skimming. The mystery picks up in the last few chapters and the reveal leaves opportunity for future installments in the series so perhaps I will visit Pine Lake again.

I received an advanced copy of Murder at the Lakeside Library from NetGalley via Crooked Lane Books. While not required to write a review I am happy to offer my honest opinion.

This is the first in a new series and it's nice to get in at the beginning. That said, there is a lot of time spent on providing background on the main character and her grief and angst over the death of her husband. I think there may be a bit too much detail, especially at the beginning, and it takes a bit to finally get to the mystery

The mystery is a good one with plenty of red herrings but there is a lot of distracting noise about Rain's marriage, the state of her parents marriage etc. While we didn't get to really know the other characters, I think that will be resolved in future books in the series.

Being from Wisconsin, I enjoyed the setting and the up North vibe.

I'd rate it a 3.5

I received an ARC from the publsiher via Netgalley but the opinions expressed are my own.

Beautifully written! Colourful descriptions of lakeside and the community! Entertaining and uplifting! Thoroughly good read!

I really wanted to like this book. I do love a good cosy mystery and the setting sounded wonderful however...
Unfortunately I didn't connect with characters or the plot. Names like Jace, Rain, Thornton grated. The book was incredibly slow going and I also felt I didn't really learn very much about the characters. They felt a bit flat and shallow.. It waffled rather and could have done with a bit of pruning. The main character Rain, clearly had a back story but we didn't really get to know anything about it so it was difficult to empathise with her.
A shame really- a missed opportunity

An enjoyable light read based upon the murder of a stranger discovered upon the main character ( Rain’s) visit to her family’s cabin at the lake. It’s a delightful mystery with a few twists and turns to bring it to its conclusion.

cozy-mystery, Wisconsin, rural, murder, murder-investigation, amateur-sleuth, family-dynamics, friendship, summertime

A story about a serve-yourself library in the Northwoods at a lake and with a murder, how can you go wrong? If you like to read about wealthy Summer People with problems including the challenge of solving a murder in an area with limited law enforcement, this book's for you. But if Rain's personal problems with grieving the too recent death of her husband gives you flashbacks, give it a "not now, thank you". It's a good read.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley.

Rain has just moved back to Lofty Pines, Wisconsin after the unexpected death of her husband. Looking forward to going back to the cabin that she spent summers at and possibly opening up her family's little library, she's not expecting any real excitement. Just when she's moving in and getting together with an old friend, a death occurs on her property.

I liked this start to a new series. I liked Rain and all the side characters. The setting made me feel like I was right by the lake and the mystery was well done. I enjoyed reading about Rain and thought she did a good job doing her own little investigation.

I will not hesitate to read the next book.

Great book, and I hope more will follow.

Rain heads to her family cabin on the lake for a new start. Before even getting her stuff out the car a body is found outside the outhouse. Rain, together with her childhood side kick, will lend the local police a helping hand to find out who the murdered man was, and at the same time unravels some family secrets.

Perfect cozy read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for a chance to have an early read for my honest opinion..

Entertaining story of a woman who barely arrives at the family lake house and has reunited with a friend that lives next door and another friend of her family, when they find a dead body near the old outhouse on the property. The neighbor calls her brother, the police, and then the friends start trying to figure out who this dead man is.

I received a digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book, I really did! It just never really gave enough. Not enough backstory regarding the protagonist, not enough character development for the supporting cast, not enough plot to complete the story or the solve the murder.
The protagonist, Rain, drives all day to her family's vacation home on the shores of Pine Lake, WI. She is met there by her childhood friend Julia who is surprised to see her. There has been some tragedy in Rain's life where her husband was killed, (There's some mention of a motorcycle, and a half-painted nursery, but no more backstory) Julia expects Rain to fill her mother's role in keeping the town 'library' running, which is actually the original part of the cabin, but the morning they are supposed to meet with the loosely-formed library committee, a dead body is found by the outhouse. Julia's brother is the police officer who first arrives at the scene. As a cop, he really does nothing more that wander around telling Rain not to touch anything, which of course she does anyway. The pieces and parts of the story just don't really pull together to make a whole. The story is choppy, as if parts of it were moved around randomly. Overall, I think the book could use a lot more editing before it's ready.

I requested for and received a copy of this book from NetGalley. The below review is my honest opinion.

Murder at the Lakeside Library follows Rain, the protagonist as she arrives at her family's log cabin in Lofty Pines. Dealing with personal loss, Rain is emotionally unstable, but feels that this break will do her good. As we follow Rain while she re-discovers friendships, deals with having to run the library connected to the cabin and tries to find some peace in general, a dead body is found near the outhouse on the family's property. From here the reader is pulled into the investigation of the murder and Rain's attempts to find out the truth. 

The story is well-written, but at times I was a little confused as to where it was going. With a lot of the focus on Rain and her reactions, we are not provided a lot of insight into the murder investigation until the very end. This is something that I did not enjoy as I wanted to understand what was happening as the story progressed.

However, I enjoyed the dynamics between Rain and her friend Julia. The characters were well developed and some were even endearing. I particularly enjoyed the twist in the story at the end and this redeemed some of the story for me. I would recommend this as a cozy mystery which is simple to read and enjoy!