Another laugh-out-loud cozy mystery from Lee Hollis, the 16th Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery, Death of a Clam Digger, was once again for this reader an absolute joy to read, and a fun way to spend an afternoon! When Mona's rival is found dead on the beach, she and her family are the prime suspects. Hayley must investigate to clear her bestie's name, and as usual, chaos ensues. Loved it! A+++

I always enjoy the books in this series as they're solid mysteries and there's a lot of fun. This one confirmed my opinion and I read it in one sitting.
Compelling, entertaining and well plotted.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

amateur-sleuth, cozy-mystery, crime-writer, culinary, family-drama, family-dynamics, feuding-families, food-columnist, friendship, Maine, murder, murder-investigation, pet-dog, read, recipes, restaurant, rivalry, series, situational-humor, small-business, small-town, verbal-humor*****

Clams, clans, and rivals.
The book opens with a pair of rivals mud wrestling for real, progresses through a series of confrontations between other members of the rival families, to a murder, all the while presenting some excellent recipes and a really good whodunit. The publisher's blurb is a good hook, and I suspect that the book can easily stand alone because so much family history is aired in the course of the book. Loved it and laughed my sox off.
I requested and received an EARC from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

Quite the winner! Loved learning all about Mona's sons and the family rivalry with another clamming family in Bar Harbor, Maine. Lee Hollis knocked it out of the ballpark with Death of a Clam Digger. Ripe with romance, mystery, vengeance, lies, and family drama, so much history is unearthed about Mona's life as a kid, her breakup with Dennis, and how many children they really had - 9! Oh my... and we met many of them in this book. Definitely a great entry in the series, and I think it may even be in my top 2 or 3 overall for the Hayley Powell Mysteries. Even Bruce had some spotlight when an ex- returned to town and tried to worm her way back into his life. Plus, the funny fight scenes and delicious sounding food made me thrilled during the entire read on a flight home from California earlier this week.

Hayley Powell and her family and friends have quite the happy and somewhat idyllic life.. I’d like to join them someday! What’s not to love? Death of a Clamdigger is funny and a solid mystery. It will keep you missing until the end.

Boom, boom, boom. Things moved along at a rapid clip, one after another. I mean, it barely gave me time to take a deep breath when Hayley had some uncharacteristic self-doubts and the action paused...briefly. Aside from that, the fast pace of the story keeps you reading, wondering what will happen on the next page or two, meaning you should probably not start reading until you have a bit of time. If you're like me, you'll find yourself clicking along at that boom, boom, boom pace until the end. What fun!

Hollis is a favorite author and I have particularly enjoyed this series, so it's no surprise I liked it. My only qualm, which may have more to do with the timing of my read than the book itself, was that I shuddered at certain characters frequent resorting to violence and even guns. Despite the blurb mention of Romeo and Juliet vibes, it frequently felt more like we were caught in the crossfire between the Hatfield and McCoy clans, Hayley's attempts to divert encounters were both amusing and relatively useless, but I liked that she tried. I have to admit to having a sense of relief later at Mona's eventual realization about the shortness of life, so to speak. Oh, and then they find the body.

Who murdered a dying man? Why are Vera and Mona usually at each other's throats? Will young love conquer all? What does a potential seafood company have to do with anything? Could Hayley's husband Bruce really be tempted to stray? Will Hayley's asking of questions be dangerous? Oh, never mind. Of course it will be but, well, she just can't help it. No more teasers. Read the book. My mood going into the book aside, it's a fun read you'll be unlikely to be able to put down.

And, that includes salivating over the recipes at the conclusion of each of Hayley's Island Food and Spirits column inserts every few chapters. Hey, there are even recipes for dips and cocktails! Don't skip the columns, btw. They offer great insights into the characters backgrounds and interactions, insights that will frequently help you sort out the mystery. Or, well, not. At least you'll have a dip or cocktail to ponder over.

Thanks #NetGalley and #KensigntonBooks - #KensingtonCozies for inviting me back to Bar Harbor, Maine. Hope things are a tad calmer my next visit.

I really loved this book in a new to my series and author. I can't wait to read the next one. The characters and location really add to the plot. This book keeps you guessing until the end

Death of a Clam Digger
By Lee Hollis
Pub Date: July 25, 2023
Kensington Cozies
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
I was not familiar with the author but I do enjoy cozies and I was attracted to this book by the title and cover,
I highly recommend it! Not only was the story good it was interspersed with delicious recipes like baked stuffed clams, Mona’s easy steamed clams, clam cakes and sausage spaghetti.
Loved this book.
4 stars

Death of a Clam Digger by Lee Hollis is book #16 in the Hayley Powell Mystery series. This was a fascinating who-dun-it. I liked that some of the aspects of this mystery were different. I really like that the death was labelled inconclusive so not a murder or accidental. That should have been the end of the matter but that wouldn't be much of a story. Amateur sleuth Hayley Powell was asked to investigate. I enjoyed Hayley's methods and her results were surprising.

This is book 16 in an established series yet I read it as a stand-alone and was able to follow all of the characters.

Hayley Powell owns a busy seafood restaurant but she always has time for her BFFs Mona & Liddy.
Mona's bitter rival, Lonnie Leighton, owns the other seafood supply company in Bar Harbor, Maine. When Mona's youngest son announces his plant to marry Lonnie's youngest daughter the feud ignites.

The plot moves quickly and Hayley's husband, Bruce, had her worried. The ending was a surprise.

I am not familiar with this author, but I am a fan of cozy mysteries, so I was eager to read this book. This book was very entertaining, full of colorful characters and tasty recipes, with a great whodunnit mystery. I am a huge fan now of this author. I would highly recommend this book.

An excellent series! This one can be read as a standalone. Hayleys best friend Mona has been part of a fuss between the Barnes and Leighton families fora long time. When a body is found in the clam flats suspension arises. With unique charming characters, twists and turns, romance and a solid mystery this book will hook you from the first and you'll love the ride! One of the series best!!!! Thanks#netgalley and #Kensington for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

I love all of Lee Hollis' books, but this one may be my new favorite. I love these characters and was excited to read this newest book in the series. When the father of the family always in battle with Mona and her family is found dead, the natural assumption its death of natural causes. But, when secrets start to come to light, and Mona's sons are somehow entangled in the whole truth, Hayley decides a little sleuthing could clear things up.
This cozy mystery has it all - twists and turns, romance, of course a mystery, and lots of laughs. A truly fun and enjoyable book. Can be read as a standalone.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Death of a Clam Digger is the next book in the Hayley Powell Food & Cocktails mystery series. I absolutely love this series. The characters are unique and interesting, the setting is super charming, and the mysteries are always intriguing. AND, of course, the cocktail and food recipes are delightful! I can't wait to make some of these clam dishes and stir up some of these delicious drinks!

Mona Barnes, Hayley's best friend, has been deeply invovled in a long-standing family feud between the Barnes and the Leightons. With both family's owning successful seafood companies, competition has been and will ever be fierce. Add to the feud that certain family members' relationships may be getting closer, and drama will ensue! Finally, when a body, closely linked to the Leightons is discovered in the clam flats, there are quite a lot of suspects. Unfortunately for Hayley, many of the suspects are part of the Barnes family.

Death of a Clam Digger is a perfect cozy mystery complete with the charming setting, fun characters, and intriguing mystery. If you're looking for a great cozy mystery series, definitely pick this one up!

I Adore this series. This series never let's me down for an excellent reading experience. They always make me feel like I'm being wrapped up in a warm fuzzy blanket. I hope she continues this series because it is one of my favorites.

I just reviewed Death of a Clam Digger by Lee Hollis. #DeathofaClamDigger #NetGalley
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It was so nice to slip back into the world of Hayley Powell. I love her good humor and recipes. Even though she is busy at her restaurant and writing her columns at the Island Times she always makes time for her best friends. This time Mona has lots of trouble with her three oldest sons, Dennis Jr, Digger and Dougie, so she calls on Hayley for help and of course Hayley tries to help Mona the best way possible. That is until Mona's rival turns up dead and all fingers are pointed at Mona's boys. Even though the town's capable sheriff, Hayley's brother in law, is always at the ready she does help lend him a helping hand. But this time seems to be trickier than normal seeing that Mona's boys don't seem to be acting innocent and they are all hiding something. As if Hayley doesn't have enough to worry about her new husband, Bruce's ex-girlfriend shows up in town. She's beautiful, successful and extremely rich. What is she looking for in Bar Harbor? Hopefully not Hayley's husband!

Kindle Copy for Review from Net Galley and Kensington Books.

I received a free, advance copy of this book and this is my unbiased and voluntary review.

In this latest Hayley will have to deal with more than just rotten clams at her restaurant. An altercation leads to murder as she must find a killer among her patrons. Who wanted the seafood supplier dead?

Once again people will clam up when it comes to the truth. A yummy read if you aren’t allergic to clams food and drink wise recipes.

This is a lovely, relaxing read. I have enjoyed this series and always look forward to the next one. The recipes Hollis includes are always intriguing. They don't seem intimidating to noncooks and don't use ingredients that aren't in most large grocery stores.

I really enjoyed this book. It takes place in one of my favorite places on earth Bar Harbor Maine. I love mysteries that take place by the seashore. Local sleuths solve mystery. It’s a short read, but a very excellent one. I am now going to read more in the series. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free copy for me to read and review.

Thus was q fun cozy mystery from food to trying to find out who killed someone outside. Thr characters and setting were fun. This book was approved by netgalley and the publisher for me ton eead and review.