Cozy mystery sleuths get all the cool jobs. In The Last Word by Gerri Lewis, Winter Snow quite fittingly works as an obituary writer. So it's not too surprising when Leocadia Arlington requests an obituary be delivered to her by Friday. That Ms. Arlington's intended subject is herself? Yeah, that's a little more surprising.

Quirky is a word often thrown around with cozies and, even with just the premise, Lewis has absolutely nailed that descriptor. Winter, dead serious about her profession, agrees to the job and sets off to meet with Ms. Arlington. These are scenes are some of my favorites in the book, because it's so different to have the sleuth actually interacting with an individual who knows she's going to be the victim of the story. More than that, Ms. Arlington seems almost resigned to her fate. So while it ultimately isn't that surprising when she later dies, it is mildly unsettling in a way cozies often aren't.

This also provides strong motivation for Winter to dive into the investigation. Winter had a tangible connection to the deceased and, like any good writer, she wants to see a story through to its end. Plus, of course, the police, represented by Kip (competent) and Tom (not) are woefully underprepared to solve the case on their own.

Like any good amateur detective, Winter puts herself in unnecessarily risky situations. Lewis has no problem quite literally turning the heat up whenever Winter repeatedly returns to the scene of the crime or interrogates someone. There's a palpable danger in these moments, and Lewis deserves praise for showing realistic consequences.

However, my favorite part of The Last Word is the overall world that Lewis has crafted. Winter is a charming, funny sleuth surrounded by a wildly entertaining cast of characters. As she stumbles around putting the pieces of the mystery together, I found myself wondering how this town would could tie into future installments of what I hope is a long series. Best of all, Winter's job as an obituary writer is more than just window dressing to give the book its hook. Because Lewis has crafted a fully realized world, Winter actually uses these skills in some tightly written research scenes to both help further the action and explain why properly written obituaries are important as historical records.

A wonderfully constructed mystery, a genuinely likable sleuth, and plenty of quirky details. The Last Word better be far from the last we hear from Gerri Lewis.

The Last Word is book #1 in the A Deadly Deadlines Mystery series by Gerri Lewis.

This is an interesting new cozy mystery series. I read a lot of cozy mysteries and obituary writing as a career is something I haven’t seen. I really like the main characters. This mystery was complex. There was so much going on every time I thought I figured it out, there was another twist. I enjoyed how everything was wrapped up. I am looking forward to the next book!

Thank you to the author, Crooked Lane Books, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

There are many aspects of The Last Word that I enjoyed. It’s a debut for a new series and I was looking forward to following books. I love that the main character’s, Winter Snow, job is being an obituary writer. I liked the other characters and the different personalities they had and the small town was perfect. Overall, it had all the aspects needed to make a cozy mystery.
Winter Snow is called by an elderly, matriarch of the town to write her obit which she will need soon, even though she’s not sick. When the women is murdered, Winter sets out to find the killer and why she knew she was going to die. Halfway through the story, an alternative lifestyle is introduced as part of the storyline as part of the mystery. I feel that this aspect wasn’t needed to make the mystery.
I was given a complimentary copy of The Last Word, but all opinions are my own.

This was a fun new start to a new cozy series. I loved the setting and the new premise of an obituary writer turned amateur sleuth. I enjoyed the cozy cast of supporting characters that really rounded out the mystery. I look forward to more in the series.

My thanks to Crooked Lane Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A cute cozy for a nice, sweet read! This strikes all the standard cozy beats: small business person, quirky relatives/neighbors, the hot male love interest and, in this case, great pets. It was fun to read-especially since the mystery is one of the better ones I've read recently in a cozy. In the end, it was so pleasantly twisty that I almost made a flow chart of who was where when. This is a series starter definitely worth checking out.

When obituary writer Winter Snow vines her elderly neighbor at the bottom of her steps, she must figure out who what really happened.

A great story with a great mystery. It will keep you guessing until the end.

Winter Snow writes obituaries for a living. She lives in a small town in Connecticut that holds some sad memories, although the reader never gets the full story.
Winter is asked to prepare an obituary for a living well known resident of Ridgefield. Mrs. Arlington has an interesting backstory and pieces of it are revealed as the book progresses.
The book is written in first person from Winter’s perspective. As usual it means I had to look at the description to remember her name for the review. I like first person narratives, I just don’t really remember the names of those doing the narration.
Winter has some too stupid to live moments. Some may be justified in that she doesn’t know who she can trust.
It felt like it took a long time to unravel all the puzzles presented by this mystery. It’s a good first book for a new cozy mystery series.
Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Dollycas's Thoughts

Winter Snow makes her living writing obituaries for the good people of Ridgefield, Connecticut. Having dealt with grief herself she knows obituaries are not just notifications and tributes. They "facilitate acceptance", "immortalize a person for their earthly accomplishments" and are pieces of history "that will live in genealogy research and community memory" and they bring comfort to those left behind. Winter takes great care with each obituary she writes.

Winter is usually contacted after a person dies so when she gets a call from the very alive Mrs. Roth Arlington, a well-known philanthropist, stating she needs an obituary right away for herself, Winter agrees to meet with her, even if it means traveling in a what is sure to be a hurricane. Mrs. Arlington is a formidable woman who knows what she wants. She gives Winter a folder full of information and they visit for a while but Winter leaves concerned for the woman. The next day she returns to see how Mrs. Arlington fared the storm, instead she finds the woman's Great Pyrenees puppy, Diva, in distress and her client dead at the bottom of the stairs.

If only the dog could talk. Officer Kip Michaels and his partner Tom Bellini arrive on the scene and let Winter know that she is a suspect in Mrs. Arlington's death. Knowing she is innocent she sets out to find the real killer and her Uncle Richard, his friend and her octogenarian neighbor Horace, her BFF Scoop, and Mrs. Arlington's dog Diva, are on board to help her in any way that they can. She just hopes she isn't the next victim because she is definitely not ready for her short life to be immortalized.

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Ms. Lewis introduces a cast of unique characters in her first Deadly Deadlines Mystery. Winter Snow is 29 and is using her journalism degree to open a freelance obituary business. She is thrown into a murder investigation to clear her name and makes some mistakes. Her father died when she was young but now she is very close to her Uncle Richard. He spends a lot of time at her cottage on Mamanasco Lake. He has a huge heart and loves helping people. Her elderly neighbor Horace stops by often too. He's a feisty man in his 80's with a twinkle in his eye with a willingness to help as well.

We also meet Winter's friend Kevin Blake, aka Scoop. He was one of a few reporters who kept their jobs when the local weekly newspaper was bought. Kip Micheals is a new hire for the Ridgefield police department. He has been paired with Tom Bellini for training. Winter met Tom in her reporter days and she was not impressed. His leering looks show her he hasn't changed a bit. Our victim, Mrs. Arlington (Lottie) lives alone with her new puppy and a helper who lives in a cottage on the property. She had been working on her memoirs at the time of her death. I can't forget the Nosy Parkers. The Parker sisters, Gabby and Abby. They eavesdrop and people watch to pick up on "juiciest of stories" and right things they feel are wrong.

I felt all the characters were fleshed out well for the first book in the series. The author has left plenty of room for growth as the series continues. Ms. Lewis puts more focus on the mystery and it was a doozy. While Winter wasn't the best amateur sleuth she had good instincts. Kip realized that even though she continued to put herself in danger working together may not be a bad decision. He tries to keep her out of the fray but she is pretty stubborn. As they followed the clues a huge secret came to light. Then key people went missing. That leads up to a scary showdown when even more secrets are revealed. I enjoyed the way the author twisted everything together and made my heart race at the end.

Ms. Lewis plotted this mystery out so well. I thought I had figured out the guilty party but it was much more entailed than I imagined.   Yes, there were flaws in police procedures but I chalked it up to a very new amateur sleuth and a new cop.

The Last Word has given this series a marvelous start. The author's attention to detail, her realistic characters, an unusual theme, the hint of romance, humor in all the right places, and a top-notch mystery made for a very entertaining read. I am hoping book two is well in the works because I am looking forward to visiting these characters and Ridgefield, Connecticut again soon.

I enjoyed the story and look forward to more. This is my first time reading this author. The mystery kept me guessing. I like the characters as well.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've read a lot of cozy mysteries over the last year and I've never read one quite like this. If you hesitate on reading cozies or think "they're all the same," give this one a shot!
Your main character writes obituaries for a living and one day receives a call from an elderly lady asking for her to write her obituary within a few days while she's still living which peaks her interest as to why this customer would want that done. The rest of the story goes from there. It was such a fun read with great twists and turns and a fantastic group of characters (my favorites were her Uncle Richard and neighbor Horace). My only criticism was although I enjoyed all the characters, I felt that there was too many, and I had a hard time at different points keeping them all straight but over it was a great read and I highly recommend. I'm looking forward to whatever this author puts out next.

***Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the E-Arc of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.***

An entertaining cozy mystery. I particularly loved the world that was created.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

This is a solid cozy debut! The main character, Winter Snow, being a freelance obituary writer is interesting and unique. The mystery was well done and on the whole holds your interest. Winter does some snooping/sleuthing that is at times questionable and a bit off putting however. I did enjoy the book and feel that there is so much in this novel that will appeal to cozy mystery enthusiasts. A very good first installment in this series.

ARC Review ~ the Last Word ~

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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Obituaries, blackmail and murder. The Last Word was a great debut and introduction to the series. I’m intrigued by the characters and the mystery was a lot of fun. It was an easy read allowing me to escape into the little world for a while. There was a little dash of romance that had me excited to see where the series and the main character, Winter, goes from here.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC!

One thing cozies always get right is the quirky cast of characters and this one doesn’t disappoint – you have the reclusive, mysterious elderly woman who wants her obituary written, the fun best friend who has a heart of gold, the older relative who gives good advice but lets the amateur sleuth make her own mistakes, and the love interest who is continually warning the sleuth to watch her step. The amateur sleuth also has a fascinating profession that makes you want to know more, in this case a freelance obituary writer. Add in a cute setting and you’d think this would be a slam dunk. But it’s the amateur sleuth herself, Winter Snow (can we stop, please with the cheesy names?!!!), where my issues start. She’s supposed to be smart but makes so many TSTL decisions. She breaks in for clues, one of my huge pet peeves. She frequently destroys crime scenes and chains of evidence. And this story dragged. Especially the reveal. That was so long and convoluted that I lost track of what happened. I may read the next one but I’m undecided as of now.

What a treat! Great characters, an offbeat career for heroine and a very good plot. Looking forward to future books by author. Thanks to #NetGalley and #TheLastWord for advanced digital copy.

I really enjoyed this book, staying up past my bedtime to finish it in two days. The characters were well-written, especially Winter Snow, the protagonist. The obituary writer occupation was one I hadn’t come across yet, so I enjoyed reading about an occupation that was new to me.
The pacing kept me reading. The mystery took a twist I didn’t see coming, but it fit the story.
I hope this series continues.

An obituary writer was such an interesting twist on cozy mysteries! And I couldn’t help but request it to see how it’s used!

Winter Snow, professional obituary writer, finds her business swamped an old woman requests her own obituary written before she is found injured in a suspicious accident.

I liked a lot about this story. I really loved Winter’s relationship with her uncle and her community. Her friendship with Scoop and Horace were delightful, and I loved to see her rely on her community as she looked for information and tried to solve the crime.

But there was something about the style of writing that didn’t gel with me. It felt like I wasn’t in the story, but rather that I was reading as someone summed up a mystery for me. There were so many instances of “she recounted” and “I explained”. It ended up leaving me feeling disconnected from the story. The mystery did keep me guessing!

I’d be interested to read the second one, because I really enjoyed the relationships and the unusual occupation of an obituary writer. And I’m definitely invested in learning more of Winter’s background.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this arc.

The Last Word is the first book in the A Deadly Deadlines Mystery by Gerri Lewis.

Winter Snow is a free-lance obituary writer. Winter receives a call from Mrs. Arlington, a local philanthropist, asking Winter to write her obituary. Mrs. Arlington(Lottie) informs Winter that she should not bother coming to see her if she can’t finish the obituary by Friday. Winter has to drive through a tropical storm to reach Lottie’s home to gather information on Lottie’s life. Shortly after arriving, the storm knocked out power at Lottie’s home. Even though the generators have started, Winter wants Lottie to go home with her. Lottie refuses, saying that she has to work on her memoir. The next day, Winter returns to Lotties to check on her and obtain additional information on her life. When there is no response to her knocking, Winter finds the door unlocked. She enters and finds Lottie’s near-lifeless body at the foot of the stairs. The police come to investigate, and Officer Kip Michaels seems to want to check out Winter’s story, while Officer Tom Bellini is more concerned with proving her guilty of murder.

Winter will start to investigate who might have killed Mrs. Arlington. Winter soon learns that Lottie has included facts that these people would like to keep secret in her memoirs. She must discover who might have the most to lose when the memoirs become known.

The story is well-written and plotted and reads at a nice pace. The characters are well-developed and very believable.

I will be watching for the next book in this interesting series.

“The Last Word” by Gerri Lewis
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

***Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the eARC copy of this book. My opinions are my own. This book comes out tomorrow!***

“The Last Word” is the first in the “Deadly Deadlines Mysteries” series. Winter Snow is an obituary writer for hire in the comfortable, charming, real-life town of Ridgefield, Connecticut about an hour and half outside of New York City. She gets a peculiar request from Lottie Arlington, the wealthy philanthropist in town. She asks for Winter to write an obituary for her that HAS to be finished in three days. Of course Winter finds this a bit odd as Lottie is still very much alive and appears to be in good health.

A day after a hurricane passes, Winter goes to Lottie’s house to check on her and finds her unconscious at the bottom of the stairs. And that’s where the mystery begins. Winter thinks Lottie was pushed, wondering if she was feeling threatened and that’s why she wanted the obituary. The police originally think it’s an accident until they don’t and Winter becomes the prime suspect.

And then of course Winter sets out to find the guilty party.

In general, I thought this was okay. I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but I don’t think it was very memorable. I think the overall mystery was good in the sense of the who and the why. I also like that the initiating incident wasn’t a murder as it so often is. The slow burn romance with one of the cops is cute, but also seems ill-advised. Like he doesn’t know that she didn’t do it.

But also in the same vein, it felt very convoluted. There are a lot of characters to keep track of. There is a whole character that is waste of space and I really hope comes more into play in the future. It also drifts toward the over-descriptive. I don’t need to know every right and left turn that Winter takes to get wherever she is going almost every time she goes anywhere. I don’t need to know that the marinara sauce is vegetarian. Like why are you telling me this (more than once) when marinara is in and of itself vegetarian? It feels like the author is trying to hit a word count.

The first in a new cozy mystery series with obituary writer, Winter Snow, as the protagonist. Winter is startled when she is asked to write the obituary of a wealthy woman, mostly because the woman is still alive. Things take an even weirder turn when that woman dies under mysterious circumstances. Winter becomes determined to find the truth before there are more deaths.

This one had a slow start, but then it picked up! For a debut in a new series, it was really solid with good characters plus canine companions. I am left wondering though because Winter kept talking about moving to New York throughout the first part of the book, but then it seemed like she was staying or that storyline was unresolved? Maybe I just missed that! Same with her keeping Diva (the dog). Oh well, didn't detract from my enjoyment. Looking forward to see where Winter's adventures take her next!

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.