This book was cute and I recommended it to my sister. Don’t know if I would continue with the series, though the main female character got under my nerves through no fault of her own. But I just felt like it was missing some thing.

Love this mystery!! The audio voice was so nice - some audio books the voice is a deal breaker. I also loved that this is a period piece.

I've got to be honest, this one was really not my favorite. It's the second book in a series that can be read as a stand alone (which is what I did), but I would definitely recommend reading the first one before you read this!
I felt like the characters were underdeveloped, likely because they were more fully developed in the first book. I found the main character, Evelyn, to be kind of annoying too.
However, I will say that I did enjoy trying to solve the mystery and I truly didn't see the twist at the end coming! It was a quick little read too!
Thank you to netgalley and dreamscape media for a copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an advance audio arc of The Socialite's Guide to Death and Dating by S.K. Golden in exchange of an honest review.

"In 'The Socialite's Guide to Death and Dating' by S.K. Golden, Evelyn continues her adventures as a quirky and fashion-forward protagonist who loves solving mysteries. The story is filled with intrigue, with four bodies and an attack on Evelyn's father. While the book retains its fun and entertaining quality, Evelyn's character portrayal in this installment feels slightly bothersome and occasionally treads into the realm of overplayed. Despite this, the book remains a captivating read, and fans of the series will likely enjoy diving into this latest installment."

3.5 Stars

This is the second book in the Pinnacle Hotel series, set in the late 50’s, but can be read as a stand-alone.
Poor little rich girl(woman) Evie Murphy lives in the Pinnacle Hotel. In fact, until very recently, she hadn’t set foot outside the hotel since finding her mother’s murdered body when she was a child. Her relationship with her father is loving, but not close- he travels all over and is seldom home.
Since Evie’s dad owns the hotel, she has had the run of the place all her life. Although filthy rich, Evie is a kind and generous person. She is also oblivious and naive. She sees the best in everyone though and has recently fallen madly in love with Mac, who used to be a bellhop and is now Evie’s assistant. When Evie’s father finds out about the relationship she is furious, threatening to cut her off. Mac and her father get into a loud argument, making Mac the lead suspect when Mr Murphy is found barely alive by one the staff.
This is a cozy mystery series that does go into a few serious issues like PTSD and Agoraphobia, but not with any real depth.
I’m enjoying getting to know these characters and look forward to the next book!
Thanks to @netgalley and @dreamscape_media for the audio for this book!
All opinions are my own.

I received this audiobook ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am usually not a fan of reading a book out of order in a series, but this worked fine as a standalone. I think I may have liked the relationship with Mac more if I had read the first book, but otherwise it was good!

Evelyn is definitely a “poor rich girl” who can be charming and annoying in equal measure. More than anything I kept being annoyed by her calling Mac “lover” constantly. She’s written well considering the time period and circumstances. The mystery was engaging, even though I had a pretty good idea who the murderer was at least halfway through. It was interesting enough to keep me reading, and the ending had me wanting to read the next story!

Set in the 1950s, Evelyn Murphy is the socialite of New York City. Being the daughter of the second wealthiest man in the city, is certainly helpful for her social life. However, despite her glamourous lifestyle, Evelyn suffers from anxiety and prefers to remain with the Pinnacle hotel where she lives in one of the penthouse suites. While attending a party she manufactured with her beau, Mac, they discover a dead body that turns out to be someone in the high society circle. Evelyn is considered a suspect, so in order to clear her name she and Mac must look into the death and find the real killer. Along the way Evelyn works to manage her anxiety, and her relationships.

I enjoyed this novel, and found it to be a cozy book, with interesting characters. It did follow a somewhat stereotypical plot line, but was overall a interesting book. I listened to the audiobook, so I found it easy to comprehend and the narrator enjoyable.

Overall, I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for an easy mystery to read.

In 1958 New York, Evelyn Murphy is thriving as an event planner in her father's hotel, the Pinnacle. On the heels of a successful fundraiser, Evelyn stumbles upon the lifeless body of Judge Baker and the very next day, she finds her father as the next victim. With her boyfriend Malcolm Cooper accused of the crimes and in custody, Evelyn must leave the safety of her home to unveil the true killer before she's forced to leave the hotel for good.

While I enjoyed the first book, I wasn’t expecting to be so entertained by this one. Evelyn is just as spoiled as before, but she is attempting to improve herself. She has a job as an event planner in the Pinnacle and she is slowly forcing herself to leave her safe space more. She is, after all, only a little agoraphobic.

What I really liked was how she was confronted by her own actions and forced, even a little, to think about what she did and whether it was right. Even as a spoiled young woman, she was charming and a delightful character to follow. It was also interesting with her dad on the scene, proud of her cleverness but disapproving of her actions.

The plot kept me guessing for most of the book, but the reveal of the villain made sense. And the end! Ending on the note it did made me eager for the next book. The narrator made each person come alive in the story and I enjoyed listening to her.

I would recommend this to readers looking for a historical mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting thriller. I did not realize this was a second book in a series though and feel as though I need to go back and read the first book.

I picked this up not realizing it was the second in a series, so I missed the first installment, but I didn't feel like I was missing anything, maybe just some emotional investment with the characters. The main character walks a line between charming and unlikable, often leaning more toward the latter, but her desire to grow in the end won me out. I liked a lot of the ingredients, such as the luxury New York City hotel setting and the romantic side plot, but neither of these were explored as much as I'd hoped. On the other hand the author does call out corrupt legal systems and class/wealth disparity, giving a little more depth to this closed-door mystery.

I got to read this as both an audiobook and an ebook and enjoyed both. The voice of Evelyn is brought together perfectly by Amara Jasper who brings to life the well-meaning but pampered princes who is only just starting to figure out how the other half lives.
When the book opens, Evelyn is hosting a fancy dress fundraiser for the mayor at the Pinnacle she is talking to Judge Baker and his heavily pregnant wife Elena as well as Doctor Smith. After checking on some details for the party, Mac, her assistant and beau, convinces her to go with him to Yonkers now that everything seems to be running smoothly. They're in the Pinncale's garage (which Evelyn has never been in before) when she notices a shadow in a nearby car. Curious, she opens the door and discovers the judge with a needle in his arm, apparently dead of a heroin overdoes. Detective Hodges is on the case but with a new partner, Detective McJimsey. The latter is not impressed by Evelyn.
The mystery ends up being a little bit convoluted but I was especially impressed by the end of this story and look forward to reading the next in the series with bated breath.

Four stars
This book comes out October 10, 2023
Follows The Socialite's Guide to Murder
ARC kindly provided by Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

DNF @26%

This just isn't the series for me - I get why people like it and I would probably recommend it to friends who like historical mysteries, but for me, its a no-go. The MC [and her attitude and behavior] drives me crazy and that makes the book very unenjoyable for me and I find myself picking up other things, or doing other things rather than reading it. I understand that not every book is for every person, but I will say, I am disappointed.

I was able to get the audiobook ARC, and I cannot say whether or not I really like this narrator simply because I have not listened to her narrate any other books, but for this book, she is not one of my favorites [though I realize it is just her interpretation of what she thinks the MC and cast are like - in that case, she nails the franticness and silliness of the MC perfectly]; I would listen to her narrate something else before fully deciding whether or not I liked her narration overall or not.

Thank you to NetGalley, S.K. Golden, Amara Jasper - Narrator, Crooked Lane Books, and Dreamscape Media for providing the eBook and audiobook ARC's in exchange for an honest review.

Evelyn Murphy is the wealthy daughter of a hotel owner in New York in the 1950’s and suffers from agoraphobia and anxiety. When dead bodies start showing up and her father is attacked she puts herself in the middle of the mix to find out who the killer is. She must also clear her boyfriend who her father insists she dump or he will cut her out of the will.

Evelyn is a product of her raising and very spoiled but she is also very likable. I enjoyed this book and would like to go back and read the first book in the series.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Medua for an advanced audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It’s been a while since I read the first book, so I didn’t completely remember what had happened. I don’t think that detracted from the story at all.

The main character is slightly bratty and stuck up but I find myself rooting for her anyways. She suffers from agoraphobia ever since she found her mother dead when she was younger.

I liked this book more than the first! I liked that the main character, Evelyn, seems to be growing up a little bit and becoming a better person. I also love that she is partnering up with Detective Hodgson, his crusty demeanor balances out their relationship.

This is a fun book with a some humor sprinkled throughout. I would recommend it for those who like a cozy mystery and immersing themselves in the rich society and fashion of the 1950s.

I was given a free copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC.

3.8*/5
The story started out strong with multiple death! How exciting!
The female main character, Evelyn Murphy, daughter of the Pinnacle Hotel's owner, was determine to solve the murder herself.
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The plot set in the 1958, with Evelyn's personality, it really showed how the time was changing back then with feminism. How she was a brave woman, who spoke up but also need approval from her father/husband in order to get money out of the bank.
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This is indeed a cozy read, I finished this audiobook under 30 hours thanks to the great performance of the narrator of this audiobook. She did a brilliant job bringing out the characters to life and brought out their personalities. The tone for the humor was on point! Love it! It kept me going without stopping.
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Evelyn's personality had lightened up the story for me, i loved that she still worried about shopping and fashion when she had bigger things to do. She was very cute indeed.
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On the other hand, I have to be honest and say that the plot is quiet simple and typical - a spoiled rich nosy girl had nothing better to do then trying to find out "who had done it" and had way too much money. The ending was predictable for me, Its wasn't thrilling nor it had put me on edge. The romance between her and Mac didnt really workout for me. I didnt enjoy the fact that their relationship ended like that. It was a rush, could have gone without it as well.
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Nevertheless, this is a good cozy story to read/listen while sipping a tea on a rainy day.
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Thanks a lot for the ARC copy.

Appearances are deceptive. When a murder occurs too close to home, Evelyn can't help but get involved in the investigations. After all the consecutive attack had been on her father. But with her socialite status, dangling romance life and a murderer at loose, it's a hard call to put one first.

Now let us talk a bit about the feel of the story. The "ever so" phrase has been overused by the protagonist, and it may have been used to create a character trait, but it becomes "ever so annoying" after 10-20 repetitions.
The male narrator's voice is so suspicious right from the start that you can't help but keep your ears perked up every time he speaks - one of the reasons you will keep going through with all this.

Enjoyed the male characters more than the protagonist, who was at some moments too girly for me. For instance: do you really have to worry about going to a saloon to get your 💅 done when xxx is in jail? Nevertheless, it was entertainment at its best.

Thank you @netgalley @skgoldenwrites @dreamscape_media for the Audio ARC.

Genre: #cozymystery #murdermystery
Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐️

I actually quite adored this book. I requested it without realizing it was the second in a series, and yet it fully immerses you within the first few moments of the book so that you don't feel like you're missing any information. Evelyn's personality is fleshed out immediately and she is funny, witty, charming, anxious, sweet, and overall just a wonderful character to follow around.

All the characters, from main to the smallest side role, were well done and felt like real people. I especially liked Poppy and Hodgson. Even though I had my guesses on who was at the heart of the murder/crimes, it still kept me guessing, which I loved!

The plot was good, the relationships were well written, the writing itself was engaging and easy to follow, and I had a truly amazing time listening to this audiobook. I'm now excited to read the first in this series and hope that there are more to come.

I wanted to give this series another chance, hoping that some of the kinks from the first one would be worked out in the second. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case: Evelyn is still the most annoying MC I’ve ever read: she’s self-absorbed, ditzy, and thinks she’s smarter than she will ever be. Still so much “ever so”. I skipped ahead to the end since the mystery did interest me but I will not be reading any more of these.

The Socialite's Guide books by SK Golden are my favorite type of cozy mysteries. They're historical, these ones are set in the 1950's. They have a voicey amateur detective, and they are very far from twee. These are set in the fancy Pinnacle Hotel in New York City. I usually don't care for books set in New York since so many authors are in awe of the setting. Here the main character is an agoraphobe, so almost never leaves the hotel. The focus is on her and her accomplishment traveling to a new location and not on the wonders of the city, which I appreciate.

In this excellent installment, Evelyn has taken up event planning for the hotel, but when one of the guests turns up dead, she's on the case with hunky Detective Hodgson. I enjoy how Evelyn uses society's sexism and misogyny of the time to her advantage. And I was particularly interested in learning more about Detective Hodgson's past. I'm excited for book 3, which promises the duo looking into Evelyn's mother's death.

The Socialite's Guide to Death and Dating is read by the marvelous Amara Jasper. I love her way of voicing Evelyn. She's also excellent with the male characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for access to an audio review copy of this book.

The title of this book is so clever and of course made me want to read it. Death and dating? Anyone who has ever dated as an adult can tell you they often feel intertwined.

Evelyn is initially very hard to like. She is vain, superficial, and self centered. Her agoraphobia may have been covered in book 1, but as I was starting with book 2 I did not have that information. She cares about her dog and that appears is about it. However Evelyn has a good heart as we see as the novel progresses. Despite being a product of her environment, Evelyn does try to be empathetic and aware of the plight of others. She is not perfect of course, but she is aware of it and is trying to change. I felt so bad for her at the end of the novel and proud too.

I look forward to continuing this series and seeing what shenanigans Evelyn gets into