Hannah Solis moves back to her hometown with plans to reopen the Victorian inn she owns with her sister. Face with challenges a small budget, has her work cut out for her.

When an elderly, crotchety old neighbor becomes a friend, had to find herself becoming a suspect in his murder. Now Hannah has more on her plate as she tries to restore and open the inn as well as clear her name. Well, Hannah be able to solve the mystery and stay in the Victorian home, turned inn, or will she be going to the big house for life?

This was a great start to a new cozy mystery series. I love the setting, the characters, and the mystery. I will definitely be booking a room for more in this series.

A town full of suspects and even more people to ask questions about the past makes for a twisty tale as inn-keeper Hannah seeks to find justice for her elderly friend, not to mention remove any suspicions others may have about her being involved. The author capably wove together a great variety of evidence, mostly collected by Hannah, that pointed toward motive, but the sheer number of characters was problematic (especially at the end when so many threads had to be tied up). While I enjoyed the ideas related to Hannah’s leadership to restore resources for pollinators on the Hummingbird Hollow B&B property, some of these and other passages around nature were distracting as they were not balanced in relation to their role in the storyline. There were also some clarity of timing issues (a pet peeve of mine). Despite these minor issues, this was a solid tale which entertained me for a few hours.

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books, Netgalley, and the author for early access to this cozy mystery.

If you're looking to read this as part of the cozy mystery genre, you'll be disappointed. This book has multiple things cozies specifically avoid - unnecessary gore and foul language. Neither of those bother me personally but if you like to avoid them then I wouldn't recommend this book.

Hannah Solace returns to her small town of Jasper, Vermont to run an inn her sister won in her divorce settlement. Normally cozy series begin when the protagonist returns to the small town where they grew up but the book makes it clear several times Hannah has been back for two years before the setting of this book. She befriends the town curmudgeon, Ezra Grayson in those two years and brings him food and companionship in the form of gardening chatter as both have a passion for plants.

Ezra winds up murdered and it turns out his prime piece of real estate on the town square isn't the only important part of his estate. Things get worse when Hannah finds out she is the heir and has to keep it a secret.

I gave this three stars because I cared enough to see how it wrapped up but this is not a book I would revisit nor is it a series I would continue.

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

Well this was a fun read - and one I got through in 2 sittings though it did keep me up way too late as I just had to finish it. I have read other books by this author under another name and really enjoyed them so I had high expectations going into this one and I was not let down.

Hannah has some baggage that she's still working through when she comes back home to small town Vermont to manage the B&B. Her relationship with her father is strained and her relationship with her sister is complicated in a big sister/little sister way. Her friendship with town curmudgeon, Ezra, is a bright spot for her even though he would protest at having it put that way. When Ezra dies and Hannah finds him she is quickly pulled into not only investigating who would want Ezra dead but who Ezra was in the first place. This pulls her into making peace with some aspects of her pass as well.

The pacing of this one kept me turning pages way past my bedtime. Hannah frustrated me at times but I did sympathize with her and I found her fairly easy to connect to. Plus, there is a big dog named Moose and who could resist a big dog named Moose?

This was a fun read that touches on some darker issues. The characters are flawed but sympathetic and the pacing kept me hooked from beginning to end.

It will be interesting to see what happens in the next book . The murder kept me guessing.

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

This is such a strong start for a new series. Right out of the gate I responded to the authors writing style & especially to the main character, Hannah. She’s not perfect, her family isn’t perfect & something about that was oddly refreshing. It’s still a cozy but it also has something deeper, something a tad darker than most. I really loved that.

The murder itself & the mystery is handled really well. There’s lot of engaging sleuthing. And absolutely wonderful twists & discoveries, truly I didn’t not know who the guilty party was. It has a fantastic ending, I can’t wait for hopefully another book because I really enjoyed following Hannah.

🪻

Read if you like:
* Garden Squad series by Julia Henry
* Cozy Capers series by Maddie Day
* Maple Syrup series by Catherine Bruns

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book is a new cozy mystery that follows a woman who owns a B&B. One of her friends is killed and she wants to find the truth.

I thought this book was just ok. I liked the characters and the mystery was interesting enough.

I did like the audiobook as well! I liked the narrator and the pacing.

I just felt a bit bored throughout. It took a while to figure anything out for the mystery.

Overall, a decent cozy mystery but not my favorite.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery. It has the typical amateur sleuth who is under suspicion and must discover the murderer to keep herself from being arrested. Hannah manages her sister's B&B and is good friends with an elderly neighbor. When she finds him on the B&B land and it is determined he was murdered, she becomes a suspect. Her investigation is more figuring out past events and relationships than finding current evidence.

The characters are a bit unusual for a cozy mystery. None of them seem particularly happy so the character development was not upbeat. The best part of the book was the good descriptions of the setting.

It is a good start to a new series and an interesting read. I enjoyed it enough that I will be watching for the next one.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

What a delightful character Hannah Solace is and so feisty! Hannah is shocked when her friend Ezra is found dead - she decides to investigate the crime! All the sub plots within the story are tied up nicely with a satisfying conclusion. I found the characters to be well written and very descriptive. I loved her relationship with her Sister, Reggie and her niece, Peach! I hope there is a book 2 as I look forward to catching up with them all.

Oh, what a great new series! I liked Hannah. She was a bit rebellious and stubborn. There were great side characters, and I’d like to see what becomes of them and her relationships with them. The mystery was good. There are so many suspicious suspects. I definitely did see where it ultimately went! I am absolutely continuing with the series and author.

Welcome to a small town in Vermont where secrets and murder lie in wait. This is a new series The Hummingbird Hollow B&B mystery series by cozy author Ayla Rose who also writes cozies as Wendy Tyson . I enjoyed this first in series as a strong debut and well crafted sleuth.

Protagonist Hannah is moved back home to renovate and manage a local B&B . She has many obstacles as her sister is her co owner and has many opinions. Hannah befriends a curmudgeon elderly neighbor who she has come to respect. He lives next to her and various nefarious people are attempting to force him out of his historic home.. She advises him and he is steadfast in his refusal to go into a home and leave his beloved property. When he is found brutally murdered Hannah is determined to solve his murder and see the suspect brought to justice. She does not count on arguing with his family over his estate and finding clues that soon point her in the direction of a surprising murderer.

I loved this debut as the sleuth was so well crafted I was kept guessing throughout., A lovely cat and dog round out the protagnist as do many likable supporting characters. This is a promising series that I look forward to reading for many years to come., Well done to the author,

I enjoyed reading Murder on Devil’s Pond. The main characters are well-rounded and complex and people I would like to know. The Vermont inn with its pollinator gardens sounds like a place I might like to visit.
The mystery kept me guessing until the end. Ayla Rose does a fantastic job at misdirection and planting red herrings. This is a solid series debut and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Hannah has returned to Vermont to help her sister Reggie hold on to their B&B. Hannah has taken on the day to running of the Inn and has befriended her elderly neighbor, Ezra who owns a lot of prime property. Property that a lot of developers and relatives want. When Ezra turns up dead, Hannah delves into finding the killer.
With characters that you can like one minute and distrust the next, red herrings with twists, this debut book by established author, Ayla Rose, is an interesting book and possibly a series.
Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for an early copy. This review is my personal opinion.

I really enjoyed this debut mystery by Ayla Rose. It's set in a small Vermont town, with lots of quirky characters, quaint surroundings, and deep dark secrets that come to the surface. The mystery was engaging and kept me guessing until the very end. As is typical for the first in a series, there was a lot of set up for the characters and location, but it didn't detract from the story. It also has a very New England feel to it, so some cozy mystery readers may find that to be less than cozy, but as a native New Englander, I got these people and the town. I look forward to the next in the series. Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the advance digital copy!

3.5 stars, rounded up

Hannah returns to her hometown to help her sister renovate the inn they co-own and befriends her reclusive elderly neighbor Ezra. When she discovers his body shortly after an unsettling conversation with the cranky man and learns that her name is on the police’s list of suspects, she begins her own investigation to learn who is the real culprit.

This appears to be the author’s first novel, but I enjoyed it as much as first-in-series books by established authors. I loved reading about Hannah’s efforts to turn the inn’s backyard into a sustainable garden, and hope we get more of that as the series progresses. I’m not as enamored by Hannah’s relationship with her sister, Reggie – or Reggie’s relationship with her young daughter, Peach. Reggie needs to loosen up a little with her sister, but be an actual *parent to Peach. I love Moose, the mastiff, and Turnip, the cat, and can easily see Moose playing a bigger role in future books.

The body was found rather early on, so the rest of the book was spent trying to solve the crime. While I wondered a few times about some of what the police shared with Hannah, I liked that she took the information she learned to the police rather than keeping it to herself. There were a lot of suspects to think about, and I was sure I’d worked out who the killer was, although I couldn’t figure out a motive for that person. Given my track record for coming to the wrong conclusion, I wasn’t as surprised by the identity of the killer as I might otherwise have been, but at least this person had a strong, logical motive.

I look forward to reading more of this series, and have made a note to look for the next book to keep up with Hannah, Reggie and the rest.

B&B Cozy Mystery that follows a Vermont B&B inn owner who turns sleuth after she discovers her elderly neighbor dead on her property and finds herself on the short list of suspects.

4/5 stars: This is the first entry in Rose's Hummingbird Hollow B&B Mystery series, which is a B&B Cozy Mystery that takes place is Vermont and features a woman who co-owns an inn with her sister and loves gardening turns sleuth after discovering her elderly reclusive neighbor dead on her property. With plenty of twists and turns, Rose has crafted a mystery that deftly balances the suspects, clues and red herrings and will leave you pondering the whodunit until the final reveal. Additionally, Rose's writing and character work is stellar; the characters are well-rounded and complex while remaining incredibly likable. Hannah's a great character, her sister's interesting and her niece is adorable. I look forward to seeing more from them and the folks of Jasper. Oh and I simply adore Ezra's dog, Moose, and the inn cat, Turnip. Rose touches on some serious subjects; so take care and check the CWs. This is a great start to a new series and I can't wait to read more!

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

I was excited about reading a cozy mystery set in a small town in Vermont. Unfortunately the book didn’t live up to my expectations. The characters weren’t really fleshed out and I never connected enough with Hannah to care about the story.

What a great cozy mystery! The descriptions of all the wildlife really set the scene for me. I love that all the characters are flawed, but most have redeeming qualities that make us love them anyways. I believe this was listed as book one in a new series, and I hope so, because I really enjoyed our protagonist.

This was an enjoyable debut in a new cozy mystery series set in a Vermont bed and breakfast.

The setting is lovely. New England always makes a good backdrop for cozy mystery series. I enjoyed the descriptions of the pond and surrounding landscape.

The book's protagonist is gardening for wildlife around the B&B. I enjoyed this hook so much that I would have liked to see more of it in the story. More info about pollinator gardens, native plants, and landscaping to feed and shelter birds and bees would have been very welcome.

The mystery itself was very well done and probably the strongest aspect of the book. I did not guess the killer.

I would read more in this series and more from this author. I would like to see the hook utilized in the mystery or a subplot. I would also Iike to learn more about the sleuth and the community.

Thank you Crooked Lane Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I am usually a person who has to love the characters to love the story. However, this book! Thinking back, I’m not entirely a huge fan of any of the characters. They are all very real and raw and flawed. Yet somehow, I ended up really feeling for them.
The story kept twisting and turning with plenty of backstory that you don’t see coming. The pace kept you itching to read just one more chapter (with every chapter lol). I cannot wait for the second book and to see where the story and characters go from here. Definitely an author I will be reading again!