I really enjoyed the relationship she had with her sisters and mom when she was solving the case. I loved the vibe of them. I loved that that it was a black family who are in business. Iykyk. It was full of black love, black supporting small businesses and I’m here for it!

A clever pun for a title and a story of three sisters coming together to solve mysteries? Sign me up.

The three Jessup sisters, Tansy, Magnolia, and Juniper, have come together to reopen their grandparents’ old record shop. Their grand opening is thrown off when a dead body is found in their supply closet. When their uncle becomes suspect number one, and they place the shop as collateral for his bail, it suddenly becomes their problem to solve the murder and prove their uncle’s innocence.

This was a cute and quick read. We really get a sense of Cedar Rapids and all of the interesting people that live there. And I have to give props to the author for getting me actually invested in a love triangle, if only by making me dislike one of the guys so quickly.

I do wish we had gotten a little more character development with all of the characters, especially with the three sisters. We get a little bit with Juniper because she’s our narrator, and we see a lot of the relationship between the three of them, but I would have loved to see more. And all the side characters we get to meet feel a little flat, but interesting enough that I wanted Juniper to spend more time with everybody.

I was able to predict the murderer, but the motives remained a mystery to me, so I was surprised by the ending. And it was fun to read as the three sisters did their own investigating, but had to keep it secret from their mother, the family lawyer, and the ex boyfriend cop.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the arc

Vinyl Resting Place is a cozy mystery set in small town Cedar River, Texas, near San Antonio, where the three Jessup sisters decided to open Sip and Spin, a vinyl record shop and coffee bar. The sisters find a dead young woman in the supply closet on opening day and what follows in an amateur sleuth investigation into the murder. Kudos to author Olivia Blacke for setting the cozy mystery in an original setting with likeable characters. The novel has repetitive details about the resurgence of vinyl and the family's history of operating record shops. The novel is also heavy of the descriptive details of the clothing worn by the sisters: twinsets, floral knee-length dresses, and old concert tee-shirts. And keep an eye on Daffy, the stray cat, who readers are told numerous times is shy around strangers. Overall, Vinyl Resting Place, the first book in a new Record Shop Mysteries series, is a good read.

This was a fun start to a new cozy series. I loved the family relationships and the idea of the vinyl and coffee shop. I didn't love the involvement of Uncle Calvin (or his character) or the weak love triangle (flirt triangle?) of the main character, her new date, and her ex. I'm hoping book 2 will build on the good stuff and tighten up the weaker elements. I enjoyed it enough to look forward to the second book. I mostly read this, but did try a few chapters of the audio. The narrator was great, but I admit I sped up the narration to 1.25.

*Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Tantor Audio for the advanced review copies.

Vinyl Resting Place is the first volume in the Record Shop Mysteries series by Olivia Blacke. I’m sorry to say I didn’t love this one for several reasons. I didn’t find the characters relatable or very well-developed. I read a ton of cozies and I usually power through them, but this one was just put-downable. Since this is the first in a series, it seemed that the time spent laying the groundwork slowed the pacing.

I received this Advanced Reader Copy of Vinyl Resting Place from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This fun cozy mystery was a joy to read. The author did a great job with developing the setting and characters with their Texan mannerisms that enveloped the reader to go along for the sleuthing ride. In no time, Olivia Blacke quickly makes the reader feel like they’re rubbing elbows with the town’s quirky characters and forcing you to fall in love with the place.

I really enjoyed the family dynamic between Juni and her sisters. Each one had their own distinctive personality that balanced each other. It’s also nice that although Juni was the main sleuth in the story, the sisters made a combined effort to help solve the murder and clear their uncle’s name. I also appreciated that the story was fast-paced and Juni’s complicated love life adds a interesting bit of spice to this cozy mystery.

Fun mystery. I liked the interaction between the characters as well as their closeness. The mystery was interesting and kept me guessing until the end. I felt the writing was concise and the plot was captivating. The book held my interest and I felt compelled to read. I enjoyed this and looked to reading more in the series.

I've grown up surround by vinyl records, and my husband is currently in his vinyl phase of DJing, so I was very excited to read this book. The premise sounded like a fun mystery, and I was hoping for some good music references throughout. Unfortunately it didn't quite live up to those expectations.

The mystery was the only reason I kept reading this book, and not necessarily because it was good, but mostly because I just wanted to see who the killer was. I didn't realize I would have to go through the main character literally accusing almost every side character of being the murderer, often with no evidence to back it up. Also, her cop ex-boyfriend was awful and definitely did a lot of shady investigating to try and find clues, which honestly would not have held up in court.

The last thing that really bugged me was the constant mention of her adult tricycle. I live in Portland and in the 10+ years I've been here, I've seen maybe 2 people riding adult sized tricycles. Yet from this book you'd think every person in Portland owned one. Of course this was supposed to make her seem super quirky and out of touch with her Texas roots, but it just came off as annoying because it was mentioned every other page.

Really wish this book had a little more editing to tighten stuff up, and not make the mystery seem like the side character.

This book was very entertaining, I loved the characters and the mystery was well done!! I would highly recommend this book to everyone!

This was a great start to a new series! I would love to visit Sip and Spin!
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thoroughly enjoyed this first book in the Record Shop Mystery series. This is also the first book that I have read by Olivia Blacke; looking forward to reading more of her books. When Juni moves home and invests everything she has, along with her sisters, to re-open a record shop, she was excited until opening day. During the grand opening, a body is found in the cleaning closet and her uncle is implicated in the murder. Juni and the family are bound and determined to clear her uncle's name, but he has gone missing as well. Beau, Juni's former beau, is now a police officer. They are pushed together numerous times, but Beau still reminds Juni she is not a police officer and should not be doing any investigating. Well, like anything else, Juni does not listen. But, there are consequences to every action. The problem is that they need to find out who murdered that girl. It was a fun read and hopefully will see more of Juni and Beau, and hopefully, reunited permanently. Thanks to Ms. Blacke, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.

Vinyl Resting Place is the first installment in the Record Shop Mysteries. Juni has moved home to Cedar River Texas to open a vinyl record store with her sister., Tansy and Maggie. and her sisters, Tansy and Maggie. Their parents and grandparents had run record stores in the same location before vinyl went out of favor. The sisters throw a grand opening party that is a huge success until Juni finds a body in their storage closet. The lead detective happens to be the man who broke Juni’s heart and caused her to move away in the first place. Their Uncle Calvin seems to be the prime suspect for the murder. The book follows the usual cozy mystery outline but it is fun to read. You learn about the characters and their relationship to family and community members. It is a quick, easy read. I’m going to be watching for book two.

I had trouble getting invested in this mystery and its characters, despite the interesting setting. I ended up abandoning the book about a third of the way through.

I adored this book! It is such a fun start to a new series. Sip and Spin was a great setting. I loved the characters and their personalities. The plot twists were so fun to follow. I am so excited to read more by Olivia Blacke!

I thank NetGalley for my free copy in exchange for my honest review of the book. Juni, Tansy and Maggie Jessup brin back their grandparents' old business. Records are coming back so they decide to open the store where they all grew up and of course make it their own. They add a coffee corner which brings people in. However, when they preparing their business to open a female body is discovered in a closet. This brings numerous people to the store and the streets. Their uncle is also missing. An investigation begins and the story takes many paths in trying to solve the crime. An interesting read.

First in a series, Vinyl Resting Place fits the cozy mystery genre nicely. We are introduced to three sisters, all named after flowers, their mother, and their uncle. In addition, there are friends, boyfriends, and husbands thrown in the mix, to give the reader a variety of characters to get to know. The main character though is Juni, the youngest sister and initially introduced as the one who is the least focused or together, as compared to her siblings; however, as the story progressed, we gain insight into their lives, and of course, no one is perfect or as they appear to outsiders.

This story is a murder mystery, but it is also about family dynamics and shifting perceptions. Juni feels like she has to prove herself and her place in the family business (running a record store), which leads to her taking some risks to solve the murder. There is at least one more in the series already written/planned, and I am looking forward to reading it.

(I received a copy of Vinyl Resting Place from Net Galley and have written an impartial review.)

This was an okay story, but it was missing something to make it great. The mystery was okay, but the reveal was lackluster. I thought there'd be more with all 3 sisters or at least their relationship, but we really mainly focus on Juni. And while I enjoy a romance subplot in a light mystery story, neither relationship with Beau or Teddy wad developed enough for me to care either way. Juni wasn't very good at investigating and mainly just fell into answers or assumptions bur not in a funny way. The story was perfectly average, but I did enjoy the record store setting. It was a great ambience for the story.

I could not put this one down. It's a story that's been written in thousands of cozy mysteries, but there's something about Blacke's characters and writing style that pulled me in and made me not want to put the book down until I'd gotten to the end.
Juni Jessup is the youngest of three sisters who are celebrating the launch of their own vinyl record store/coffee house the night before the grand opening. It's all going great until Juni finds a dead young woman in their supply closet. And since it's (of course) a small town, the lead detective is the guy that broke Juni's heart before she left their small Texas town six years ago.
As things get personal and Juni and her sisters risk losing their store and seeing their uncle go to jail for a murder they're sure he didn't commit, Juni is rediscovering that everyone knows everyone's business in her small town and that that just might be what saves them all.
Juni, her family, and everyone in their little town is interesting characters that made the story fun. I wasn't 100% sold on the nascent love triangle part of the story because it feels a little forced, but I loved everything else so much that I'm willing to completely overlook that.
Overall, it's a typical cozy mystery but of the type that's so enjoyable that you keep coming back despite knowing how it's going to end before you even finish the first chapter.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Paperbacks for the most excellent read!

I thoroughly enjoyed this promising series debut mystery featuring a trio of sisters who own a vinyl record store/coffee shop in small town Texas, near Austin.

The characters are engaging and fun and the plot is quite entertaining. I'm hoping for a long run on this series and I'm looking forward to more. In fact, I've already pre-ordered the next book in the series.

Highly recommended to cozy mystery fans!!

great start to a new series, and I loved the main characters ( the sisters themselves ) , they had me laughing at some of the things they said