Member Reviews
Fun read! Lean into the silliness of everything in the town of Confection being named something sweet. It sets up virtually unlimited possibilities for future books in the series.
Lexi runs a bookstore and hosts a book club that sometimes turns into an amateur sleuthing group, figuring out local crimes.
Love her dog, Cookie, who also makes an excellent plot device to transition from one scene to another or win over a reluctant character. The relationships were well fleshed out and there were plenty of them. Lexi is well-liked in the community and seems to be easily able to earn trust and get people talking.
This is the second book in a series and I’m definitely planning on reading the first, but jumping in here was fine – no issues with following without having read the first.
I received this Advanced Reader Copy of A Poisonous Page from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I'm a big fan of cozy mysteries, especially those with a bookclub/bookshop component, but I noticed something with these books, I either love them or it's a complete miss.
With this one, I really enjoyed reading about the main character's literary background related to book editing and writing. Yet, for some reason, I didn't click with the overall ambiance.
I think the timing is a bit off, I'll try and pick it up again at a later time, because the subject matter did pique my interest.
Intriguing storyline. Plucky amateur sleuth and many other interesting characters. Fictional bookstore. Small town. And a dog named Cookie. What more could you need in a cozy mystery?
I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to more in the series.
Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.
Once again I have not read the other books in this series etc etc. Personally I don’t think you need to read cozy mystery books in order, I think series in the genre of cozy mysteries are mostly a fun bonus and a way to follow your favorite authors. More of a feature rather than the main point. I’m never going to anxiously await the next book in a cozy mystery series because cozy mysteries simply do not take up that much space in my head.
Copaganda: The cop’s the love interest!
The mystery: It was fine!
Animal action: There’s a dog, her name is Cookie.
Setting: Small town, involving the manager of a bookshop. Lots of puns involving dessert/books in this one because the town is named Confection.
Main character: She’s likable but not super interesting, I guess? Which is fine!
Three stars. It was perfectly fine.
At the start of this review I want mention I didn't know this book was part of a series when I started it and I haven't read the first book in the series yet.
I really enjoyed this book as a cozy mystery. It was sometimes a bit slow, especially at the start but it still was easy to read since the chapters are really short. I loved the quotes and mentionings of famous detective series like Scooby Doo or Inspector Barnaby and the discussions about such. I grew up with part of these and it really sent me back. For the mystery itself the plottwist wasn't that amazing to me but it was funny, which isn't usually a feeling I have about the reveals in a mystery.
What got me most about this book though is the sexual tension between our main character and the police detective and I hope for the romantic relationships in this book that there's gonna be another book to this series. It gave me a bit of a change in my usually only mystery focused books these days and I really enjoyed reading it.
Overall it was a 4/5 stars for me, I really enjoyed it but the mystery itself wasn't so strong that it blew me of my seat. Though the sexual tension was nearly unbearably good (Please keep in mind I am not a regular romance reader so you might see this differently)
I am finishing up reading this book and will give a full review in a few days. I wanted to read book one first and it took a bit to get it from the library
This was such a nice cozy mistery read. Amazong story that just fllowed on it's own. I wasn't able to put it down. And, I mean it has a dog named Cookie in it what else could you ask for. Amazing.
A cute and enjoyable cozy mystery. This is the second in the series and I haven't read the first. However, there was enough backstory presented that it can be read as a standalone. I liked the main character and her dog! Confection is a town I want to live in and I would love to work at the bookshop. I will read more in this series.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.
It’s so nice to be back with Lexi, Cookie (the sweetest dog in the world) and the fine folks of Confection. I really like how Crowe balances just the right amount of clues and red herrings to keep the mystery flowing and me guessing to the end. I can’t wait to see what happens next in this incredibly fun literary cozy series that features a bookseller/writer and her sleuthing book club. This is book two of the Sweet Fiction Bookshop series, so be sure to snag the first in the series, Digging Up Trouble, today.
I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for an honest review
A Poisonous Page by Kitt Crowe is such a fun cozy mystery! It definitely gives me "Hallmark Movies & Mysteries" vibes. I'm always a fan of stories that take place in the Pacific North West. This one takes place in the town of Confections, OR - and of course, all the streets and businesses are named after something sweet!
Our MC Lexi and her furry companion Cookie are such well-developed, quirky characters, and it's fun to navigate the murder mystery with them. Lexi is the manager of a bookshop, and their book club (that also sometimes turns into a murder investigative team) is named the "Macaroons" - how cute is that?! There is definitely an enemies to lovers vibe between Lexi and Detective Berg.
Some opinions:
-It was a good, well-rounded plot, and actually gave you the chance to figure out what happened
-I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style, not sure if Kitt is a new writer or not, but that's how it felt
-It got a little too cheesy for me at times, but it was fun
-bookish books are an automatic +1 in my book ;)
I did not read the first book, but it was written well enough that I had no problem understanding the town and what went down prior to "A Poisonous Page".
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
A Sweet Fiction bookshop Mystery book 2. This was my first book in the series. I was able to understand what was happening with the characters and their back stories that I wasn't confused. I really enjoyed the characters that I'm going to need to read the first one. This will be a series I will keep reading. I'm now a big fan.
Lexie Jones manages the Sweet Fiction bookshop that her parents own. She has an adorable pup named Cookie. She lives in Confection, a small town in Oregon. A member of the chamber of commerce dies of a heart attack and then another one dies a week later of natural causes. Then a body is found in her friend's backyard and the police think he's the killer. Lexie and her book club decide to crack the case and find the real killer.
I loved the banter between Lexie and Detective Berg. I can't wait to see what happens next in the series.
What a fantastic addition to the series!
Quirky characters - including Cookie, a mystery that keeps one guessing till the end, and a dash of romance - this is definitely my kinda cozy mystery.
The mystery behind the murders kept me guessing till the end. There are plenty of red herrings so if you are the kind of reader who usually plays detective, better give your deerstalker hat a break.
Excellent storytelling. Likeable characters.
This was an engrossing and completely entertaining cozy mystery. Highly recommended!
This was the first in the series for me, but I really enjoyed it. Our heroine was plucky, but not annoyingly headstrong, with a supportive family and besties. She also had a great cast of side characters to bounce ideas of off, a super adorable furry sidekick, and hella chemistry with our detective. And cute and fun nicknames for everyone and everything. On top of all that, the mystery was fun, engaging, and had a good amount of twists and turns. And the solved it mostly through detective work!
Very enjoyable book that was a perfect balance of murderous intrigue and lighthearted romantic comedy that makes it a worth my read. Demolished it in a day sat outside in the sun and couldn’t believe how hooked I got. Lexi, the protagonist, appeared so brightly down to earth that I felt I connected on a best friend wavelength with her.
Blog Review: https://drizzleofjoyblog.wordpress.com/2022/04/19/a-poisonous-page/
This is book 2 in the series. I can’t wait to read book 1. Short chapters and well developed characters. This was such a fun and entertaining reading.
An amateur sleuth, a Book club, a book store in a, small town where everyone knows everyone,
Well developed characters and several plot twists to keep track of.
This is the second book in a series,, however you don’t need to read the first one to jump into this installment. A good weekend read.
Lexi Jones runs the Sweet Fiction Bookshop in Confection Oregon. Local realtor Marilyn dies of a heart attack and no foul play is suspected. However, when her Rachel a realtor who worked with Marilyn is found murdered sitting in a chair in Dash's (a friend of Lexi's) yard, he is the number one suspect as he had dated both women. Lexi investigates along with the members of the Macaroon Book Club. Are the murders related to Dash or to the real estate transactions of the two women? As Lexi looks into the men Marilyn and Rachel were involved with, the suspect list grows as relationships are investigated.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy.
A Poisonous Page by Kitt Crowe is a fun Cozy Mystery. It’s #2 in the Sweet Fiction Bookshop series but can be read as a standalone if needed. The characters are so fun and developed it makes the chapters read quickly. Having the book club gather in a bookstore to look as it they are discussing books while trying to solve the deaths of the people in their community just draws you in. It’s also hard not to love Lexi’s dog in this story.
I will follow along if there’s another book in this series.
Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Book 2 into the series! As always, a good cozy crime read with amateur sleuths and a pet (bonus!) Of course, I can't forget the enemies to lovers spark in there. Wish the bookshop contributed more to the overall storyline more, was expecting a bit more given the title and the description, but still enjoyed it nevertheless.
This is such a fun cosy mystery fiction to read!
Thank you, Crooked Lane Books, for the advance reading copy.
The plotline is so refreshing and the way the mystery solving process has been dealt is calming and so definitely cool which I would never expect from a murder mystery story. So I am quite surprised here!
The writing is fun and entertaining. The characters are convincing. You won't take much time in reading the entire book. Each chapter carries a part which will propel you to go to the next chapter without delay. And that's the best part.
Short chapters, good character development, a fun plot and a satisfying ending. Just go for this book for a fun weekend reading.