Member Reviews
Thanks NetGalley for this arc. CoCo Cline has her own successful social media firm. When she is hired to assist with a grand opening of a store she stumbles across a dead woman. Can CoCo help the investigation or will she hinder it? The plot of this story sounded right up my alley and it was. I thought the blogger element was well portrayed as social media is so prevalent now a days. I wasnt sure how I felt about CoCo at first but she grew on me and I enjoyed this modern mystery. My only con is that I thought the writing style was a bit off, some of the grammar choices were weird and it became a little distracting.
#Followme for Murder was a fun cozy murder mystery. At first it was slow and all about Coco Cline and her social media but towards the middle I was hooked. I like how the murder happened in the beginning and not in the middle. Mrs. Chen character annoyed me a little and I had suspicions about the Chens. I thought I knew who it was but then I would be wrong. This book kept me guessing and actually finished the book in one day. I had to know who the murderer was. I love Coco and her friend group. I definitely will recommend this book! First book read by Sarah E. Burr and won’t be the last!
Thank you NetGalley and Level Best Books for the digital ARC.
To be honest, I didn't think this was going to work out. Because Coco is an influencer and famous blogger, I was afraid that if she helped the cops solve Stacy's case, she would absolutely screw it up and possibly jeopardize the investigation. I'm relieved to report that I was mistaken! Although she does assist the police, she does so in a professional manner. It was, without a doubt, a fantastic read.
Sean and Olivia, who are Coco clients, are getting ready to establish their specialty consignment shop. One day, Sean and Olivia were running late and ordered Coco to go ahead and open the shop, which she did. However, when Olivia went to the break room to get napkins for the lunch she had brought for them, she discovered Stacy, the store clerk, dead. She was undoubtedly questioned and assumed to be a suspect because she was the first to find her, but she was later proven innocent. They must now pursue Sean and Olivia as suspects. Coco will go to any length to get them declared innocent because she believes they are. But are they? Is it possible that someone close to her is her assassin? What will happen when they discover what Stacy was doing these past few months?
Coco Cline, a popular blogger is the star of #FollowMe for Murder. Central Shores is a sunny beach town, the perfect place for coco and her perfect boyfriend Hudson to settle down. When a murder is committed, coco is unlucky enough to discover the body and soon gets herself deeply involved in the case. With a little help from her friends, coco does some sleuthing of her own, and central shores might not be the safe haven she thought!
I found coco to be such a vivacious young woman intent on discovering the truth behind the murder. The little glimpses we get into her personal life are just enough to get a good feel for who she is as a person. I felt her sidekicks were relatable, I can envision their characters strongly. Everyone knows a Jasper and Charlotte!
As the truth is uncovered there were a few little red herrings in there to keep me on my toes - which is always appreciated!
Overall the book is a lovely lighthearted mystery, perfect for the modern day Nancy Drew!
Thank you NetGalley & Level Best Books for the digital ARC.
#FollowMe for Murder is a light-hearted, cozy, small-town mystery — 28-year old influencer, Coco Cline plays detective as she hunts a murderer on loose after finding someone dead in her client’s store. She must save the newly established business’ reputation while saving herself from the dangerous killer.
Coco is smart, beautiful and funny but fairly short-sighted for a person who is the sole witness of the corpse. But, her friends & boyfriend have her covered. It was interesting to watch the gang solve the mystery together & having Coco’s back. The kinda friendship we live for.
Just wish the killer was someone less predictable (despite all the red herrings) but nonetheless, the pace & revelations kept me on the edge.
P.S: Brownie points for Jaspers’ wits — easily my favorite character from the book & also all the bookish & show/movie references 🙌🏻
An ok read. I realize the main character is a social media influencer but it was tiresome to read about all her accounts and she had her nose in her phone the entire time. I also didn’t particularly care for Coco. She was very self absorbed and not all that likable. I’ll pass on this series.
This is the first mystery technically a cozy mystery that I’ve read that has had a blogger as the heroine. I have to say that I enjoyed the book from page one. It was nice to read a cozy mystery in which the heroine was in in her late 20s. I would have liked it better if the heroine was in her 30s. But it was still nice to have a millennial cozy mystery heroine. As many of the previous ones I’ve read the heroine has been older.
#FollowMe for Murder is a refreshing take on the cozy mystery genre and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
One of my biggest complaints with cozy mysteries is that many of them draw on the same tropes, character types, and settings. I loved how this book clearly drew and built on the genre while also standing out from it.
The main character Coco is a blogger, Instagram influencer, and owner of a consulting company that helps businesses improve their social media presence. While the mystery is set in a small town like many other cozies, there's big money involved - Coco herself was part of a startup that was bought out by Facebook for nearly $50 million! There are multiple characters of colour in the mystery who felt like fully-formed and real people, which is unfortunately still very rare in cozies.
Characters, including the police, routinely use the Internet, social media, and new technologies to help solve the mystery. This isn't shocking in the real world as this happens all the time in investigations, yet it's extremely uncommon to see in cozies. I'm always on the lookout for cozies that incorporate tech and I was impressed by how this one did it.
Truly, this book is bringing cozies into the 21st century. It feels modern, bright, and with the times.
The mystery itself was also very enjoyable. There were a few shocking moments that kept me on the edge of my seat. I was so compelled, I kept on reading until 4am! I didn't see the ending coming, but after considering all the clues, the solve made a lot of sense.
Some readers might not be the biggest fan of Coco and her friends because they can come off as a bit self-centered or shallow at times. I personally didn't mind. It's natural for characters to have flaws and these flaws were not so annoying that it made me want to put down the book, but I know others might not feel the same way.
Thank you to NetGalley and Level Best Books for providing me with an ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.
This ARC was provided to me via Kindle by Level Best Books and #NetGalley for my honest opinion. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
A new cozy mystery series with promise. I look forward to reading more.
Coco Cline is focused on growing her business. While she’s already been quite successful at just 28 years old, she’s setting her business up to help others be successful as well. When she finds a body in her client’s shop, she finds herself adding Sleuthing to her resume. Will she be able to help her clients get their store reopened before they lose too much, or will Coco end up losing too much if she gets on the killer’s radar?
I didn’t expect to like this book as much as I did…and I can’t wait for the next one!
A great start to a new cozy series. I love the elements of modern life. Coco is a celebrity blogger and quite an interesting character. The murder takes place early in the book. I thought I had it all figured out but alas! Nice surprise!! Not many mysteries fool me so I was thrilled! Sarah E Burr proves she is an author to watch. Love her writing style! Make sure you pick this one up and meet Coco, Charlotte and the rest. Thanks#netgalley and #Levelbestbooks for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.
#FollowMe for Murder by Sarah Burr is a modern mystery set in Seaside Delaware. This is the first in a new series staring millennial PR guru Coco Cline. I enjoyed her friends Charlotte and Jasper and found the mystery to be a challenge, but solve-able! This is the first book I’ve read by Burr but won’t be the last!
I love a good whodunnit murder mystery and Sarah E. Burr delivered a great story with this book in a way that wrapped all of our obsessions with current social media trends and apps right into the storyline that keeps you turning pages and guessing up to the second that the murder we is revealed!
Coco Cline is a social media guru and happens to stumble upon a dead body while helping her client launch their new business. And from then on, Coco and her wannabe detective BFFs (and boyfriend) venture out to solve the mystery if who murdered Stacy.
The characters were all extremely well written. A couple had annoying moments or personality traits, but it only made them more relatable. After all, who isn’t annoying from time to time?
I’m hoping that Sarah E. Burr writes more stories with Coco and her sleuth-ing gang into a series of books. I would devour every one!
4.5/5 ★'s for me.
This book was a fun murder mystery. I loved that the murder happened near the beginning of the book, so it really felt like a whodunnit I could try and solve right along with the book characters. I also really enjoy books where everything isn't so simple to solve or books that keep you guessing until the end. This book did just that. I thought I knew who it was at least twice, but was wrong. In the last five or so chapters of the books is when I really put on my sleuth cap and started to move in the right direction. I did suspect the person who was guilty at the beginning, but my suspicions were quickly put at ease and I didn't think twice about it for a long while. There honestly wasn't much about this book that I didn't like. The only thing that stood out was the fact a few of the characters could be a tad annoying, but I think they were wrote that way for a purpose. Mrs. Chen specifically drove me insane. Coco did seem a bit self-centered and absorbed at times, but I feel like her attitude was realistic for what was happening within the storyline. I loved her group of friends and the relationship they had. They were hilarious together and often dramatic. I appreciated the ending of the book. I thought it was going to be predictable ending based on everything previously in the book, and I was really surprised it didn't go that route.
This was a cleverly written book. I am hopeful that I will get to see more of Coco in the future. I also can't wait for anything else Sarah E. Burr writes.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves murder mysteries especially less dark murder mysteries. It had just enough murder and was balanced with a whole lot of fun.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided me with this free ebook in exchange for an honest review.
Until the 50% mark I thought this was a 3 star read and then suddenly I was hooked and audibly gasping at the reveals!
This book was a very light and fun murder mystery. Is that a thing? The murder happened really near to the start of the book and we didn’t previously meet the victim so I wasn’t emotionally attached. Although I did feel some annoyance towards the characters judging her romantic life.
I don’t think I necessarily liked any of the characters, the main characters were pretty self centred and were focussed on their influencer life. They were all also pretty well off and I suppose I just couldn’t relate to any of them. I did think it was weird that a long term and live in boyfriend would have their own flat…in the same area…either you live together or you don’t . It felt a bit odd to me. Despite not really liking the characters, they were fun to read about. Sort of in the same way I used to watch The Hills or The City, I couldn’t relate but I loved to see the fashion.
Coco and her band of friends were just hilarious and turning Miss Marple in the current time should not have worked. They obtained information that should have been private and ultimately cracked the case. If you enjoy some realism in your murder mysteries then this element may annoy you but I was looking for something fun and this was it.
This book was cleverly done! I didn’t start putting all the pieces together until the last third when it all came together and suddenly it all made sense. I did not see the big reveal coming
Extra points for not ending the book in the boringly predictable way that I feared it would
Thank you to NetGalley who provided me with a this free ebook in exchange for an honest review
Good book! This was a great little cute thriller mystery! This book had suspense, intrigue, and some great amateur sleuthing! It had a great who done it too! I can usually guess who it is but thus one had me till close to the end! I will definitely recommend this book! It was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!
Psst. There are some annoying characters. Ignore them like you ignore real annoying people in your life.
Thank you, Level Best Books and the author, for the advance reading copy.
Pretty easy to dive into with outspoken characters, specially the main character from whose POV the story is being written with.
Easy to understand and follow, a very much up-to-date plot with a very relatable "blogger" character the book is fairly fast-paced and crazy enough to enjoy reading in one sitting.
A murder mystery to solve and a plot much to do with today's internet/social media era as a part of the detective work? I mean why is there too less of this?
Love the romance element. I wasn't sure about it when the characters were introduced but then things worked out pretty good and things wrapped up well in the end.
Worked out fine for me. An enjoyable read. I was waiting for a big surprise or a twist towards the end. Am I disappointed? I only know.