Wonderful new cozy mystery series! This is a fast, easy read perfect for readers that want a light read. I loved the characters. Anna is so personable and has a lot going for her. She has a PhD in Medicinal Anthropology so she is good at asking the right questions to figure out how to solve a murder. The two love interests Evan and Luke are perfect additions to the story and keep things interesting. I can't wait to read more of the series. If you love a great cozy mystery, this is the book for you!
Thank you to NetGalley and Blue Eagle Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Princess Fuzzypants here: Nothing puts a crimp in an opening than when one of your first guests dies at your breakfast table, eating one of your scones. The police investigating the death clear out the remaining guests of the B & B but the gossip mill looks primed to “kill” Anna’s business before it really gets started. Rumours abound that Anna is responsible for the death and the police cannot exonerate her until the toxicity reports come back. It does turn out to be poison that killed him but through no fault of hers.

In fact, her scientific background helps the police determine the source. But there are two kinds of poison- one actual and one emotional. Anna is doing herself no favours as she questions and extrapolates on the various characters who may or may not have something to do with the demise of her guest. In fact, she is doing a bang up job stirring up hostility. Thankfully, once a kitty, whom she names Tough Cookie, moves in and takes over., things start to improve with the feline intervention. Something tells me there is more to the cat than meets the eye.

There are a couple of times, including the final confrontation, when Anna really does come perilously close to a Darwin nomination. She does discover the killer and she is vindicated with help from her friends. I confess I twigged quite early as to the perp but it is always fun to see if your suspicions are right. There is potential in the storyline and we shall see where Anna goes next.

Four purrs and two paws up.

Loved reading this book. Looking forward to the next book in the series. This was a new author for me. Hope you enjoy the book as much as I did

First off I want to thank the Author, Publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this ebook! I loved this mystery so much. From start to finish the author did a great job keeping me interested. The characters were really cute. I really loved the little boy in the story. He was just so cute. I think that this is the first mystery in a very long time that kept my interest and I really cared about the story and were it was going. I would for sure read from this author again! Loved it!

Nota: 4,0 de 5,0 estrelas
Primeiro eu agradeço muito ao pessoal da NetGalley, Blue Eagle Press e Jane Gorman por disponibilizarem o ARC para os leitores. Gostei tanto dessa leitura que não consegui parar de ler, um mistério aconchegante, intrigante e bem divertido.
A história começa quando Anna herda uma mansão vitoriana em Cape May de sua tia-avó Louise e decide reabrir o B&B (um bed and breakfast é um estabelecimento de hospedagem que oferece pernoite e café da manhã), porém numa reviravolta inesperada encontra seu primeiro hospede morto na mesa do café da manhã.
Anna é uma personagem cativante, esforçada e inteligente que tem em seu passado o trabalho de antropologista. Sem deixar de mencionar os outros personagens também de quem gostei bastante. A história tem um ritmo empolgante e me identifiquei bastante com a escrita. Espero muito a continuação da série. Está recomendadíssimo.

Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
First of all, I am very grateful to the people of NetGalley, Blue Eagle Press and Jane Gorman for making ARC available to readers. I enjoyed this reading so much that I couldn't stop reading, a cozy, intriguing and very fun mystery.
The story begins when Anna inherits a Victorian mansion in Cape May from her great aunt Louise and decides to reopen the B&B (a bed and breakfast is a lodging establishment that offers an overnight stay and breakfast), but in an unexpected twist she finds her first guest dead at the breakfast table.
Anna is a captivating, hardworking and intelligent character who has the work of an anthropologist in her past. Without forgetting to mention the other characters I also liked a lot. The story has an exciting pace and I identified a lot with writing. I look forward to the continuation of the series. It is highly recommended.

This is the first book in a new series. I really struggled to get into the book in the beginning, it just seemed to move so slow. I really enjoyed the setting and the premise of the book. My problem was the main character Anna. I know I'm probably in the minority here but, I didn't like her. I thought she angered too easily and was annoyed a lot. The bright spot for me was Eion, Anna's 8 year old Scottish cousin. He was delightful! I do have trouble understanding an 8 year old you don't know, from another country even, comes to spend the summer with you. I'd like to read the next book in the series to see if my feelings about Anna change.

Scones and Scofflaws (A Cape May Cozy Mystery, Book 1) by Jane Gorman
Publisher: Blue Eagle Press
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers | Women's Fiction
Release Date: December 20, 2020

Scones and Scofflaws is the first book in the new A Cape May Cozy Mystery series by Jane Gorman! Spoiler 🚨Alert: I can’t wait to read the next books in the series!!!!

This was such a great cozy mystery. I love the characters and how the author provided enough insight to let you feel connected, but keep you coming back to find out more! This book has a great pace and I could not put it down! There was a great who-dunit that left you wondering how it would turn out until the very end.

I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to the future books to come. I have so many questions about the future and the past!

This is a great book for cozy mystery fans! I would definitely recommend reading this!

I'm so grateful to Jane Gorman, Blue Eagle Press, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

I love a good cozy mystery! This book definitely fit the bill. Anna’s bed and breakfast is set up for failure when her first guest drops dead at the dinner table. Anna sets out to clear her reputation and save the b&b with the help of some her friends in the town of Cape May, NJ. It was a fun adventure with Anna. I can’t wait to read more in this series!

This cozy mystery is set in Cape May, New Jersey, a town at the southern tip of the state, filled with gorgeous Victorian homes, many of which are Bed & Breakfasts. The main character, Anna, has a background in academic research, which seems helpful if she’s going to be trying to solve mysteries. I was drawn to this new cozy mystery series because of its setting. I’ve lived in New Jersey for many years and have visited Cape May off and on, so it was fun to read about places I’m familiar with. We meet a lot of the townspeople in this book, including the friendly and knowledgeable librarian, a handsome handyman, a quick-to-anger lifeguard and Anna’s best friend who runs a bakery in nearby Wildwood. This series has some definite potential, although I hope that the Climbing Rose Cottage (Anna’s B&B, inherited from her great-aunt) doesn’t become the scene of a lot of murders! That would certainly be bad for business. Side benefit: learning about and getting a recipe for a cocktail called the Scofflaw, which sounds delicious!

Thank you to NetGalley and Blue Eagle Press for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

When her first guest at her B&B dies while eating breakfast, Anna finds her business shutdown before it really has a chance to open. To make matters worse, her young cousin from young cousin from Ireland arrives to stay with her earlier than expected. It was a little slow getting started, but when it did, it quickly lead to a nice resolution. It will be interesting to see if the young Irish cousin gets to stay since he is only suppose to stay for the summer.

I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher or author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Oh, there will be a follow-up to this book, I'm sure! And I would love to read it.

Perfect ingredients for a cozy murder mystery: an old house that makes weird noises, a cat, and a funny little cousin from overseas. I really did love the interaction between Anna and Eoin.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.

Jersey Shore BnB Cozy Mystery
This cozy mystery takes place in a picturesque town on the Jersey shore. The setting is perfect and the characters are fun. The heroine is fairly unbelievable. While she is supposed to be working towards a doctorate in Anthropology, her thinking is far from objective and logical thinking and analysis the scientists are trained in. She tends to fly off the handle on whims without thinking through her actions. I can only assume that there will be more episodes to this book because of certain pointless characters like the young Irish cousin. Since the book was pretty good, I will read at least the next in the series. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

The story does a great job of setting up the mystery and then anthropologist turned B&B hostess, Anna McGregor leads us through a merry chase and I thought I had it partially figured out but then realized...red herring. I would suggest you skip to the back of the book to find the scofflaw recipe and make one to enjoy while you armchair sleuth your way through this charming and cozy mystery. Anna is definitely not one to sit around and wait for local law enforcement to find the killer, she may be a killer baker but her scones couldn't have killed her B&B's first customer, could they? The story sets us up for many interesting characters and some unusual future stories. While I am not a fan of the multiple love interests angle it will keep things interesting. My only negative remark is that I REALLY would have like to seen a scone recipe to go with the scofflaw drink directions.

While I struggled a bit to get into the story, I was able to read it all the way through. Some parts seemed to drag on, there was a lot of fluff that didn’t seem pertinent to the story.

Anna McGregor is a fun character who inherits the Climbing Rose Cottage B&B. She works hard at getting it ready with the help of her hunky handy man Luke. When her first guest dies at the breakfast table she is horrified. She has to work fast to clear her name before her new business is ruined.
I really enjoyed the mystery, characters and setting in this one!
#SconesandScofflaws #NetGalley

This is the first book in a series based in Cape May, New Jersey. Anna has taken a break from studying for her PhD in forensic anthropology because she’s inherited a B&B from her late aunt. It needs work doing on it, and she’s employed Luke to help with that.

One of her new guests is found dead at the breakfast table on their first day, which looks very suspicious for Anna. She has to solve the murder otherwise she’ll end up getting the blame.

I enjoyed this ‘cozy murder’ and recommend it. I’m looking forward to further books in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Blue Eagle Press for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Blue Eagle Press, and Jane Gorman for the advanced reader copy of Scones and Scofflaws. This cozy-style mystery is the first in the new Cape May mystery series by Jane Gorman.

Scones and Scofflaws follows Anna, who has just re-opened the doors to the Victorian-style B & B that she inherited from her great aunt. While she may have moved to Cape May to escape the troubles that were brewing while she tried to obtain her Ph.D in medical anthropology, her luck isn’t about to get any better. Unfortunately for Anna, at the very first meal she serves at the bed and breakfast, a guest ends up dead at her dining room table - of course making Anna the prime suspect. Now it is up to her to find the true killer with the help of her best friend, an unexpected visitor from Ireland, and many charming characters she meets along the way.

Anna is highly intelligent and a fun protagonist to follow as she unravels the mystery of what happened to her guest. The pace of the story was spot-on, leaving time for the reader to enjoy piecing together the clues without seeming to drag along. Although I ended up guessing who the murderer was correctly, there were enough twists and turns to keep the book interesting. This storyline also left the potential for a variety of spinoff side stories including romances, budding friendships and rivalries, and her mother-like relationship with her young cousin and a feline friend found in the most unexpected of places. Bonus: recipe for a scofflaw included as well!

Overall, this book is a charming read and I can’t wait to see what the author comes out with next!

Thank you NetGalley, Jane Gorman and Blue Eagle Pressley for ARC of Scones and Scofflaws. This is my personal review.
This is the first book in A Cape May series.
I found the book to be a bit slow and hard to get into reading. I will read more in the series to get to know the characters better.
Anna McGregor inherited a Bed and Breakfast from her Aunt. she had to do a few updates and repairs to get it reopened but she did it and looked forward to meeting her guests.
When one of her first guests died at the breakfast table the first day, he was there she knew things were not going to go as she had hoped with her business.
When the police suspected she has been the one to kill him she knew she had to solve the crime, or she was going to be out of business.
I liked the mix of characters but sometimes found there to be a disconnect in who was who and how they played in the story.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and Blue Eagle Press, in return for an honest review. This is the first book in a new series with an interesting heroine. Anna McGregor is a forensic anthropology PhD student on a current hiatus. After her faculty advisor and former lover absconded with her research and published it as his own, she counts herself fortunate to inherit an old Victorian mansion in Cape May, New Jersey, from her aunt. Juggling all her finances to enable the renovations, Anna’s thrilled when her first guests check in. Unfortunately, one of them also checks out by dying at breakfast the next morning. With the police believing it was poison and Anna is the prime suspect, she’s bound and determined to prove them wrong and get her business reopened before her new home is the state prison. Aided by Sammy, her best friend, her cat, and her unexpectedly visiting eight-year-old Irish male cousin, Anna channels her inner researcher to solve the case.
A fun introduction to a new series. Anna is a likeable heroine with an interesting backstory which sets the stage for future storylines. I hope Eoin, her cousin, sticks around as he was great fun. There’s a potential ‘like’ triangle that could play out in future stories too. The murder and solution were well plotted, and the murderer was not readily obvious. Kudos to Blue Eagle Press who supports the Independent Book Publishers Association for producing this new author.

Anna McGregor, PhD student, decides to open a B&B when she inherits the home of her beloved Aunt. By the Jersey shore, The Climbing Rose Cottage opens for business. Just one day later, a guest turns up dead after breakfast. Several suspects begin to appear and it seems no one in the small community is without suspicion. When Anna herself starts being questioned, she decides to do some investigating of her own. Was the death an accident, revenge, or something else?
Believable, well thought out characters guide you through the days following the death. The cozy town by the sea and descriptions of quaint homes and shops keep the mystery light and enjoyable.