Lights, Camera, Bones by Carolyn Haines is the 27th book in the Sarah Booth Delaney mystery series. I have by no means read all the books in this series. Actually, this is the third book that I've read. When I read my first book in the series Rock-a-bye Bones (book 16) I wasn't sure if I would try anymore in the series. It was good, but I already have several cozy mystery series that I love. I reviewed Tell-Tale Bones (book 26), and though it was a little too much Southern fiction, I thought it was a great cozy mystery. Which brings me to my thoughts on book 27.

This book does not take place in their hometown of Zinnia in Sunflower County (I don't know if this is a real place in Mississippi, but I love the names!). Instead, it's in nearby Greenville, where a movie is being shot about the town's flood in the 1920s. There actually was a flood in 1927 in Greenville, Mississippi.

The series is growing on me with each book I read. While I'm not to the point of wanting to go back to the beginning of the series, but if I get offered to review the Christmas book coming out in October - I'll read it.

The characters are great. I'm having some trouble picturing Sarah Booth in my head. That might be because there isn't a lot of description - it was probably covered more in the earlier books in the series. Other than that, I didn't struggle with being a relative newbie to the series.

The mystery is pretty good. Sarah Booth and her partner Tinkie don't have a lot of clues to go on to find the two missing movie men. So the reader can't really piece together the mystery either and just has to wait for the story to unfold.

There is a bit of a subplot (which does tie into the main plot) about a shark in the Mississippi River. You know I love all things science-related, so I liked that I got to learn about a shark in freshwater.

The Southern fiction elements weren't as present in this novel as the previous two I read. Or maybe I'm getting used to it more. But if you are a fan of Southern fiction and want a fun cozy mystery to read, then this is definitely the book for you.

My review is published at Girl Who Reads - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2024/06/sarah-booth-delaney-dives-into-movie.html

Lights, Camera, Bones is another great cozy mystery starring the Delaney Detective Agency.

The Agency consists of organic farmer Sarah Booth Delaney and her best friend Southern belle Tinkie. They are asked to investigate some disappearances from a nearby movie set. The movie is about local Mississippi history. However, some of the area’s residents are not happy about seeing their family skeletons on the big screen. There is also a shark loose in the river where the filming is taking place. With dangerous predators on both land and sea, Sarah Booth and Tinkie will have their hands full trying to solve this mystery!

I have read almost all of the books in this series as they are published. My favorite parts are usually the interactions between Sarah Booth and her family’s “haint”, Jitty. Unfortunately, Jitty just does short irrelevant “comic” interludes in this book. They don’t add anything at all to the story. If she is a sea goddess, why can’t she help Sarah Booth find the shark? Seriously, every time she appeared, I just cringed.

If you look past the Jitty scenes, Lights, Camera, Bones is a good entry to the series. 4 stars!

Thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Lights, Camera, Bones is the latest installment in the Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery series. In this book, Sarah Booth and Tinkie are hired to investigate the disappearance of people involved in the shooting of a movie. Sarah Booth and Tinkie are quite the investigating team, and the recurring secondary characters also add to propel the story forward, not to mention adding to the charm of the series. The mystery is interesting and kept me wanting to know more. Carolyn Haines' writing is excellent, I can picture the locations and action very clearly. A wonderful cozy mystery!

I have loved this series by Carolyn Haines ever since coming across the first book, Them Bones, way back in 1999. It amazes me to think that Lights, Camera, Bones is the twenty-seventh book and that Sarah Booth & Co. are still going strong.

I have enjoyed these books for their setting, the mysteries and, most of all, for the recurring characters including not just Sarah Booth but also Tinkie, Coleman Peters and, of course, ghost Jitty, among others. They have charmed their way through many stories.

As can be deduced from the cover, a movie is being made in Mississippi. It is ostensibly about a flood during the 1920s. Why does a character named Marion want this film to be made and…will it be? What happened to a gaffer? Will all be revealed? Of course it will, but there will be mayhem as readers wait for the story’s resolution.

Those who enjoy a quick, light mystery read, can’t go wrong with this latest book by Ms. Haines. Those new to the series may even want to go back to the beginning.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.

Lights, Camera, Bones is a really cute story by Carolyn Haines. ITs the first I have read by this author, and I really enjoyed it and can't wait to read more. Its moves quickly and the characters are very likeable.
Thank you for Advance copy.

Reading this series is like visiting with old friends. Sarah Booth and friends are embroiled in a twisty case and it's a page-turner! All your favorites are back and a couple of interesting new ones. The case is complicated and it kept me guessing. I look forward to new releases in this series and this book is a perfect example of why!

Delaney Detective Agency gets a taste of the spotlight when they are called to a case on a movie set in Greenville, MS, right on the Mississippi River. Marlon Brandon, heir to a wealthy and influential political family, has brought a film crew to town to film a drama about the 1927 flood that submerged a great deal of Greenville. Marlon wants the world to know the story of the flood—and the heroic role the Brandon ancestors played in rescuing dozens of local residents from drowning. Then, a crew member disappears, a severed foot is found in the water along with a shark. As if that wasn't eough, Marlon also disappears. But as rumors swirl around the Delta about Marlon's motives for making the film, Sarah Booth and Tinkie have to wonder whether a shark is to blame, or an equally ferocious human offender. The show must go on, and Sarah Booth and her crew will have to investigate all manner of creatures, over land and sea, in order to solve the mystery and save the day.

I absolutely love this series and have read every one from the beginning except for the novellas. I don't know how the author keeps coming up with ideas after 30 books, but I, for one, hopes she never stops! The characters are growing with each books along with the humor surrounding the characters. Anyone who loves the South will love these books. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting my request to read the latest in the best cozy series ever!

Another great Sarah Booth Delaney novel. Set in Mississippi near the river, a movie company is set up filming a movie about the great river flood in the 1920’s. Tinkie and Sarah Booth are called in as a gaffer has gone missing. They start their search but soon the director is also missing. What is going on in this small town. It seems old time politics are involved, but what are they hiding? And for old time Sarah Booth fans, she has a new car! Don’t miss this great read.

Wouldja believe there’s a shark loose in the Mississippi? Didn’t think so, but when Sarah Booth’s on a case, I’ve gotten used to expecting the unexpected. I was completely surprised about the overall whodunit even though I’d wondered about that person earlier.

Jitty was at the top of her ghostly game taking on crazy shapes like she always does while giving cryptic clues. To me, her best one was a very cool nod to one of my all-time favorite skits from the 70s on that famous late show from Saturday night. And it was perfect for the theme of the book. 😉

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by St. Martin Paperbacks via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

Lights, Camera, Bones is book #27 in the Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery series by Carolyn Haines.

I really enjoy escaping for a few hours with Sarah Booth and Twinkie. They are so different but work so well together. The mysteries are entertaining but the characters are what keep me excited for the new books. There’s a movie filming in Greenville and not everyone agrees with the historical facts and want the movie stopped. Sarah Booth and Twinkie are on a break, but can’t help but get pulled in to investigate a missing crew member. I enjoyed the twists that kept me guessing. I recommend this book and series.

Thank you to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Sarah, Boot and Tinkie have a little downtime and decide to check out the filming site, featuring a locally raised celebrity telling the history of his family and his hometown. It’s an enjoyable way to spend some downtime for the ladies, until a part of the film crew goes missing.

Just like that, the Delaney Detective Agency is back to work! Can the ladies find out what happened to the missing member of the crew? As they try to figure out if the missing man was eaten by a shark, Marlon Brandon himself goes missing. Who is trying to stop the story of Greenville and the Brandon family from being told?

I absolutely adore this series. Sarah, Booth and Tinkie are my kind of gals! I love how Tinky is so steep in the southern hospitality and mannerisms, but yet just as aggressive as Sarah Booth when it comes to getting the job done! These two don’t shy away from anything, and I love every single second that I spend with them while reading a book. If you haven’t read this series yet, get the first book and plan to binge! You’ll thank me later!

There's a movie production in town and everyone is atwitter. Famous actor Marlon Brandon is doing a film about his family who have been movers and shakers in Greenville for a very long time but this film focuses on the flood of 1927. But, this being Greenville, there's something going on. A gaffer, Jules is missing. And there are people in town who aren't happy that this movie is being made.
When Marlon goes missing, there are any number motives that come out of the woodwork though most seem to center around the past. So who is behind the murder and the disappearance?
The Sarah Both Delaney stories are often a little out there (I mean, there's a ghost in every story) but this story includes a shark. Yes, in freshwater. I get that this is a thing that can happen but... it was set up as a major part of the story.

Three stars
Sarah Booth Delaney #27
This book comes out May 21, 2024
Follows Tell-Tale Bones
ARC kindly provided by Minotaur Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

3.5 stars. Sarah Booth and Tinkie are back, this time in nearby Greenville, where a movie is set to shoot. However, although the movie is great for Greenville, some folks don't see it that way. a gaffer disappears and then the star/director also disappears. Sarah Booth and Tinkie are hired by the insurance company to find out how Marlon Brandon (IKR?!) and James the gaffer have vanished. But with a shark prowling the river and creepy "Old Boys" running around ruining the movie, how will they ever find the missing men?

*Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this e-arc.*

Who is so upset about what happened in Greenvilles in 1933 that they're willing to kill? That's the question Sarah Booth and Tinkie are going to answer in this latest in the long running series that also features a - wait for it- bull shark in the Mississippi River. Marlon Brandon (could have done without the name) has written and is producing a movie about the flood but people in town don't want it. So when a gaffer goes missing and a foot is found, well that sets off even more uproar. And then there's another murder! As always, Sarah Booth and Tinkie are a hoot. This is classic cozy territory in many ways with great atmospherics and a sprightly approach to, well, murder. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read for fans of the series and newcomers who will find it just as fun as a standalone.

It’s always been entertaining to read what Sarah Booth Delaney is up to. This time it’s a movie production in a town not far from Zinnia, Mississippi, with a local man as star and screenwriter. But weird things are happening on the set and people start vanishing. And just when you think things can’t get much weirder, a shark shows up in the lake.
It’s hard to tell who is telling the truth and who is trying to rewrite Delta history. There are plenty of candidates for nastiest villain, but Sarah Booth and Tinkie (and a few of their friends) always come through! Though they do spend a fair amount of time trying to get out of the rabbit holes they’ve gone down.
I can’t judge whether this could be read as a stand-alone - I’ve read every book in this series and enjoyed them all, even the serious history that gets thrown in as a bonus! I strongly suggest that you read it all. You’ll laugh and cry and learn stuff!
The Mississippi Delta setting is lovely, it is another character in the book. And the human characters are believably flawed and occasionally over the top, just like real people. .
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.
I will be very happy when my hardcover copy arrives on release day!

In "Lights, Camera, Bones" by Carolyn Haines, Sarah Booth and Tinkie are back. With help from Coleman and Jitty, they set out to find out what happened to a missing crew member on Marlon Brandon's newest film. Did he drown or was he murdered by one of the many people trying to shut the film down?

I always enjoy catching up with Sarah Booth and Tinkie down south and this installment of the series did not let me down.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This story is full of surprises, twists, and turns! I totally enjoyed sorting through the suspects, motives, and hints. And actor and film producer Marlon Brandon is hot stuff with Southern manners!

I enjoyed this book. It is fun and entertaining. The characters are quirky and interesting. The mystery has many twists and surprises. This is a great cozy mystery.

LIGHTS, CAMERA, BONES is my introduction to the Sarah Booth Delany Mystery series. It is book 27. The main character is Sarah Booth. She is ably assisted in her investigations by her partner Tinkie, Coleman Peters who is her love interest and the sheriff of Sunflower County, a ghost named Jitty, and her animal companions.

This case has Sarah Booth and her partner Tinkie hired by a movie company when one of the gaffers goes missing. They learn that the movie is to tell the story of the 1927 flood and is being produced, directed and starred in by local boy Marlon Brandon.

There has been trouble on the set. A vocal minority wants to shut down production. Marlon's grandfather who is a local big deal isn't too happy about the movie either. Sarah Booth and Tinkie begin looking into things and aren't having much success. Things get even more baffling when a foot from the missing gaffer is found. It was apparently bitten off by a shark.

Apparently, someone has imported a shark to add more disruption to the movie making. Coleman is a diver and is part of the crew trying to find the shark and move it back to salt water. Local Mary Dayle who is part of the opposition to the movie, but she still wants to protect the shark. She's a bookstore owner now but was previously a marine biologist.

Then Marlon goes missing. If Sarah Booth and Tinkie can't find him, the movie is doomed.

This was an engaging, light mystery. Prepare to suspend belief because quite a few of the characters have "too stupid to live" moments including the detectives.

This latest in the long-running series has the usual characters involved in solving the disappearance of a gaffer from a movie being shot in nearby Greenville. Tinkie and Sarah Booth, life long friends and PI partners have both matured during the series and I appreciate the rock steady relationship between Sarah Booth and Coleman. Resident haint Jitty is not introduced as usual and may confuse someone who hasn’t read any of the prior books. I enjoyed learning about the 1927 flood, and Haines is good at conveying the power politics and culture of Greenville. There was one frustratingly large clue that I couldn’t believe Sarah Booth and Twinkie would miss in this otherwise interesting and fun mystery. Recommended.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC. All opinions expressed are my own.