*** 2.5 ⭐️***

Golden Girls meets Thelma and Louise gives the wrong setup for this book and these two protagonists. I would say it’s more like retirees left to run amok.

Sally and Pearl, bingo buddies, take a much needed vacation when Sally’s husband dies. At the resort where they’re staying in Mexico, they meet members of a singles group and also get mixed up in an inadvertent murder and a drug smuggling ring.

Sally is a sad-sack kind of character, used to being silenced and pushed around by her stodgy husband. When he dies, and she gets to rediscover herself outside of her marriage, it takes 3/4 of the book for her to find her voice. It was frustrating to read about her being so afraid of common perception as well as her lack of initiative to do anything.

Pearl, on the other hand, is the zany, no filter, Southern woman with a family secret that doesn’t get divulged until at least halfway through the story (if not further) - adding zero insight into her character profile. Pearl is the friend that most people can only tolerate in short spurts because of her raucous behaviour.

In short, this book had its good and bad moments and definitely is not the cozy mystery designed to get anyone out of a reading slump. The plot is fine, the characters were somewhat unbecoming, and the ending lacked excitement (even with a shootout). A semi-ok attempt at what is supposed to be a series with the same shenanigans.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This book was unfortunately not for me. I expected more shenanigans with the 2 main characters but it just wasn't as much as I'd like to have seen. The characters seemed a bit undeveloped and the pacing was slow for me. I expected the murder to happen earlier in the book but it seemed too drawn out. I did like the setting of Mexico, it made me feel like I was right there!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This was a quick, fun little book. I enjoyed the story and think it would be a good beach read. Nothing too intense, just a fun ladies trip with good food, good drinks, a little adventure and a little murder added in.

Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC. This is my honest review.
This book has such an opener! I wasn’t expecting it to start with the MC’s running for their lives but it is great. So many questions right from the start that I HAD to find out the answer to. I read this book pretty quickly because I was so excited. Not at all what you would expect based on the cover.

What a great book. It's sooo funny my jaw is sore from laughing so much. Senior citizens fighting crime with hilarious antics. The perfect feel good book that will crack you up.

Such a great cozy mystery! I loved that our main characters aren’t exactly young. It really gave the story a great extra something for me. I really hope there are more in this series.

Interesting take on a cozy mystery. Pearl’s backstory just about broke me, and I liked how Sally is finding her mojo.
Definitely in line for more books in this series!

Fun and zippy, mayhem filled book starring two not so old ladies; pretty enjoyable for a first in a new series! Our MCs were fun and the mystery was intriguing; nothing too taxing, but still pretty fast paced. Looking forward to more in this series!

Boy this book really caught my attention. It's well written with realistic and relatable characters. The two older women are besties and decide to take a trip to Mexico because Sally's husband has died and pearl thinks a change of scenery would do her some good. They are having a lovely time until a new acquaintance turns up dead. This book was witty and funny. I had a great time reading this charming cozy.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

We didn’t realize how much we just needed to escape for a short while! We needed Sally and Pearl—and we needed Mexico!

If you enjoy cozy mysteries with adventure, then this book is for you. This book was a delightful surprise, and the story has a great set of characters. We liked reading about both characters and especially admired Sally's new lease on life.

Although there is certainly humor, there are also moments that show, growth, fear failure and not being who you were meant to be, and the determination to find that person. Sally and Pearl, named in honor of the author's grandmother and great-grandmother, are both widowed, and it made us think of how being a senior citizen does not mean that you can’t have fun. The combined humor with serious situations were mostly well written.

Although it was a fun read, the "mystery" was easy enough to figure out and a tad bit slow in the first half. Having said that,
this book is a light and easy read for those without high expectations of accuracy but who read for enjoyment.

We would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

L&L rating: 3.5 stars

TL;DR: mystery, friendship, humor, senior citizens

Mexico, Margaritas, and Murder is a cozy mystery with two senior ladies, Sally and Pearl, front and center. While I thought the character development was well done, I found the plot to be completely unbalanced. The author tried putting a lot of action into the last few pages, and it felt rushed. Overall, this novel was an okay read, but I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it to others.

I read this on the beach in Mexico while drinking a margarita! So much fun. I can’t wait for more adventures of Sally and Pearl.

I LOVED this book. Pearl and Sally are literal goals. I only hope to be exactly like Pearl when I reach that age. So, I love a good murder mystery. Having two older women enjoying their time at a resort in Mexico and somehow thinking they need to solve a murder, 10/10. I just started the second book and can’t wait to continue the story with these two lively characters. I think they compliment each other very well. Please please please continue their story.

Thank you to netgalley for the early arc in exchange for a review.

Wendy Day introduces us to the comedic duo Pearl and Sally. The two ladies banter away in a sense that I find entertaining and endearing. The story starts with Sally losing her husband and realizing that she might have missed out on certain things in life. Here is where her daring friend Pearl steps in and convinces her to go on vacation to Mexico. During their visit, they get in big trouble. This little lead in grabbed my attention, as it is a unique premise and I love that it focusses on senior women.

Mexico, Margaritas, and Murder has all the ingredients for a wonderful book: a good friendship, a great destination and some mystery! While reading it, I enjoyed the friendship between Pearl and Sally and I loved how the author created space for Sally's character to grow and evolve past the life she knew with her now passed husband. However, I found the lead up to what I felt was the key part of the story too long and when we finally hit where I wanted to be it was over in a blink of an eye. It was hard to keep my attention throughout the book, because I felt that the author went too deep into details that didn't matter to me. This is so very personal, but the writing style was unfortunately not for me either. It kind of abruptly jumped from one thing to the next and I missed some smooth flows to keep me going. Although I loved the idea of the story, and I did enjoy the two characters, it's sad to say that this book was not really for me.

What a fun duo Sally and Pearl are! Definitely would have a fun girl's night out with them! Very fun read. Good story plot that flows smoothly. Grab a few hours for some light hearted reading. I can't wait to see where these two fun characters get into next! Thanks #netgalley and #OpenSkyPublishing for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

Sally and Pearl are two elderly women who watch a lot of true crime television and suddenly find themselves in the middle of a possible murder situation while on vacation in Mexico. Surely nothing could go wrong, right?? Sally lost her husband suddenly and her friend Pearl is helping her cope by planning a trip to Mexico to a nice resort. It isn't Pearl's fault that their neighbor at the resort was seemingly pushed down the stairs in a murder plot. This was a very fun and lighthearted cozy mystery. The protagonists of Pearl and Sally were a fun duo; Pearl seems like somebody that I'd want to spend more time with! I appreciate the friendship these two have for each other, and that they had fun on their adventure, even though it seemed a bit silly and somewhat unbelievable at at times, which was the worst part of the book in my opinion. It was a cute and fun afternoon read, nothing that was too intellectual or serious.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

I received a copy of this book early through NetGalley. The title and prompt looked fun and light hearted. I did enjoy this book, but I don’t think I would say it’s a must read. The characters are Pearl and Sally are cute. Sally is finding herself after 46 years of marriage. But I feel it lacked something for me. It went from a murder, to being solved in a snap.

Thank you to Wendy Day for the copy via Netgalley to read and review!

This is such a cute story of two friends coming together after a loss. I love Pearl's energy, she gives me all the happy vibes even though she has seen tragedy in her own life. (But..... did her kids names change from book 1 to book 2....???)

I loved the descriptions of Mexico and the beach. it made me feel like I could imagine the resort. I also loved the fun, flirty relationship between Sally and Mike. They're cute.

This one was cute! I enjoyed it. A little mystery and humor in it. I loved that the characters were young as they are in most books. It shows that you can still have a good time regardless of your age.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

What do you do when your husband dies and you’re not sure what to do with yourself? You go to Mexico with your best friend and end up in the middle of a murder mystery.

This book was cute and funny and the main characters were super adorable. I think this book would make an a great action comedy movie.

Due to the nature of the early review my copy had some formatting issues that made reading somewhat difficult, but overall I enjoyed this book.