The Jig Is Up is book one in the brand new series Irish Bed & Breakfast Mystery by Lisa Q. Mathews.
Such a good start to a cozy mystery series.
Lisa Q. Mathews painted a beautiful descriptive scenery, created endearing characters, and crafted a mystery that will have readers guessing until the final page.
I love this new book and I'm so excited to read the next book.

Thank You NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

The Jig Is Up is book #1 in the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mystery series by Lisa Q. Mathews.

Kate heads to Shamrock, a town in New England that heavily plays upon the town’s early Celtic history. She has 2 daughters, a 7-year-old and a 14-year-old. They are returning to Shamrock based on an urgent message from her sister Colleen. They discover a body and Colleen is a suspect, so Kate has to clear her sister’s name. I enjoyed the characters and the setting. I was pulled right into the story and the twists kept me guessing until the end. I thought this was an entertaining story and look forward to more.

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.

Set in a small town called Shamrock and set during the week leading up to St. Patrick's Day, The Jig is Up is a wonderful first book in a new cozy mystery series! I felt right at home in Shamrock, having grown up in a neighborhood that fancied itself to be a little slice of Ireland (so much so that many of the street signs were written in both English and Irish). The story centers around the tragic loss of an Irish Dance Instructor and when suspicion falls upon our main character's sister, Katie must take it upon herself to solve the case. The action of the novel starts right away, but the mystery was overshadowed by a lot of town and family drama. I didn't mind this because it's a great way to make readers long for a sequel to find out what happens with the Buckleys, but the mystery definitely took a back seat for most of the book, not being solved until the very end. I'm one of those readers who hope that Mathews continues on with this series!

Magnificent start to a new series. The characters are so interesting and the mystery is well-plotted and super engaging. I cannot wait to read more.

This was absolutely enchanting! I loved the setting of Shamrock, Massachusetts. The writing was so engaging and fun! I cannot wait to read more in this series!

Great start of new series. There is an interesting variety of characters. Family, friends, and a small town all add to the story. An enjoyable cozy mystery with some surprises. I look forward to reading the next one. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

This debut cozy mystery has good bones but didn’t quite reach its potential in my opinion. I liked the setting and having the mystery surrounding an Irish Dance school was unique. Where the story failed to create a connection for me was in the main characters. Kate is the mother of two girls and is a bit older than many cozy main characters, but she often comes across as rather immature, indecisive and her behavior is inconsistent - being assertive at times and then panicking at others. Kate’s sister Coleen is secretive and refuses to discuss the reason she sent Kate an urgent request to come home and that’s just accepted. This is one of those series introductions that seems to be having some growing pains. We didn’t learn enough about the main characters to form that bond that cozy readers look for. There were also unanswered questions that left a feeling of dissatisfaction.

The Jig is Up was one of my most anticipated reads for the second half of 2024, but I have mixed feelings about it. While I enjoyed the setting and the writing style, I found the characters and the ending lacking.

Firstly, the story dives straight into the crime with minimal character introduction. Colleen, upon her first introduction, comes across as elusive, claiming her 'urgent' message to Kate was a misunderstanding. This left me questioning why Kate would take a leave of absence from work, pack her bags, and bring her two daughters back home based on such a vague 'urgency.'

Throughout the story, Kate tries to get Colleen to explain the reason behind the call, but Colleen dodges her at every opportunity. Despite this, Kate is determined to prove her sister's innocence, even as she harbors doubts about Colleen’s involvement.

The narrative is filled with side stories and red herrings, which, in my opinion, detracted from the main plot. It wasn't until the final three chapters that Kate suddenly uncovers the killer’s identity - a revelation that felt abrupt and disconnected, as there were no prior hints pointing to this character's involvement.

As the story concluded, I was left with more questions than answers - such as Colleen’s true reason for the 'urgent message,' her unexplained financial worries, and more.

The book began with promise but ultimately fell flat as the story progressed. Overall, it’s an okay start to the series. I will give the next installment a try before deciding whether to continue with the series.

Kate's sister Colleen becomes the prime suspect when her friend Deirdre is found murdered and so starts a new cozy series. This is a little cheesy-the town of Shamrock plays off all things "Irish," there's a former love interest who is now a police officer, and, well you might guess the murderer. That said it's the first one and Katie, Colleen, and Kate's kids are well done, as is their dad. The plot gets a bit twisted up in rivalries. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Interested in where this goes next.

Lisa Q. Mathews’ The Jig Is Up is a delightful cozy mystery that whisks readers to the charming town of Shamrock, Massachusetts. Kate Buckley rushes home is response to her sister Colleen’s urgent text then encounters a tragic murder. Things get a bit chaotic when Colleen steps into the spotlight to oversee the town’s beloved Irish dance show. (I reviewed an advance reader copy and all opinions are my own.) Mathews skillfully blends heartfelt family dynamics with a suspenseful plot, making this novel a captivating and enjoyable read.

First off, let me say that every so often, I search the web to see if there is a book out there in the world that someone wrote that revolved around Irish dancing. I've never had any luck, until I came across The Jig is Up! The book I have hoped for was finally here! I grew up Irish dancing and had always hoped for a book that included the crazy unique shenanigans of the Irish dance world such as a feis (an Irish dance competition), curly hair wigs, sock glue, poodle socks, accordions, and jigs and reels.

The Jig is Up is a cozy mystery, where the Irish dance teacher in a small town called Shamrock (located in Massachusetts), turns up dead. Kate, who returns home to her family's bed and breakfast at the call of her sister's urgent request (unrelated to the murder) tries to solve the mystery of the teacher, in what seemed to be a murder.

This isn't my usual type of read, but I enjoyed the cozy mystery that had my fill of Irish dancing that I was looking for. I can say I definitely didn't see the result of mystery, so that kept me guessing.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for an eARC of this book.

We've always said the drama in Irish dancing world could make a good book and Mathews proves it can, LOL. This is book 1 of the new Irish Bed & Breakfast Mystery series, and leans heavily into the Irish dance world, with the drama of competing dance school, and dancers competing for top billing in the traveling Irish dance shows. Don't worry if you're not familiar with terms, as Mathews explains everything as it happens. In this book it's small town drama competing with big dreams and bad luck. Add them all together with a big dose of family, and a touch of cozy mystery, and you have a quick read that will have you coming back for book 2 in the series, to see how the events at the end of the book have unfolded.

Kate Buckley comes home to her hometown of Shamrock, Massachusetts, after receiving a panicked call from her sister Colleen. When Kate arrives with her two daughters - fourteen-year-old Maeve and seven-year-old Bliz, she finds Colleen doing anything she can to avoid telling Kate what is wrong.

The ultimate distraction occurs when they stumble upon the body of Colleen's best friend Deidre in the backstage area where she had been preparing for the St. Patrick's Day step dancing festival. A recent fight with Deidre makes Colleen the prime suspect for the murder.

Kate is determined to prove her sister innocent and find the real killer. There are quite a few suspects from a frenemy who wants to set up a competing dance studio to Deidre's old dance partner who resented her for leaving the dance troupe.

As Colleen takes over preparing the young dancers for the St. Patrick's Day performance, Kate investigates suspects often running afoul of her old boyfriend turned police detective and her own brother who is also a police officer.

This was an engaging cozy mystery in a nice small-town setting. I liked the way Kate figures out what is going on both in regard to the murder and in regard to her sister Colleen's secrets.

This is a wonderful fun start to a debut cozy series. .The setting is a Irish theme small town called Shamrock . I loved the culture, the food and the characters. This is family based and their business is a Irish theme B&B . The sleuth was engaging from beginning to conclusion. .This is a fun new cozy series for all cozy readers to enjoy.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity. My review opinion is my own.

I enjoyed this great start to a new cozy mystery series. I loved the mystery and the characters and I can't wait to see where this series goes.

Irish dancing, a suspicious death, family issues, ... welcome to Shamrock. This is an entertaining story with a nice writing style and lovely characters. It keeps you guessing until the end.
I received an advance review copy for free via Netgalley and Croked Lane Books and I’m leaving a voluntary and honest review.

This is the first in the new Irish Bed and Breakfast mystery series. Kate Buckley, a single Mom of two has traveled to her hometown of Shamrock Massachusetts from New York because her sister Colleen tells her they need to talk and it is really important. Kate is concerned it is about her parents who run a B&B in town but when she arrives, Colleen doesn’t want to talk. Kate and Colleen along with her daughter go out to eat but stop first to pick up Colleen’s best friend Deirdre who is running the upcoming Irish dance festival for St. Patricks day. Kate and Colleen find Deirdre dead and it is apparent it was not accident but Kate is shocked when Colleen is suspect. Kate and Colleen’s father was the former police chief and he is wheelchair bound and retired but still runs things from behind the scenes. Kate also begins to investigate as she knows her sister would never kill her best friend. Lots of surprises in this first installment. I liked Kate and her family and the Irish themed town is very charming. I enjoyed the mystery and looking forward to the next in the series.

This book was a fun first in a new series!

The whole book is set in a small town called Shamrock and is appropriately everything Irish.

Kate comes home after an urgent text message from her sister, Colleen, but when she rushes from the big city back home Colleen doesn't want to talk about whatever "urgent" matter that prompted her to send the text.

Colleen and Kate, plus Kate's daughter, Maeve, are heading out to eat and stop along the way to pick up Colleen's best friend and Irish dance star, Dierdre. Instead, they stumble upon Dierdre's body and Colleen becomes a suspect.

Kate is on the case to clear her sister and find out what really happened to Dierdre.

There is a jaw-dropping bombshell secret that comes out about Kate's family and some other secrets from the town. This was well-written and a definite page-turner and well-worth adding it to your TBR list.

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

4.5*

The Jig is Up is the first book in a new series of cozy mysteries. The primary protagonist is Kate, whose sister is a suspect in a murder that darn near takes place on page 1. Honestly, the murder happens so quickly that readers cannot judge who should be the heroic protagonist, although that lack of knowledge may not pose too big a problem. Author Lisa O. Mathews moves the opening along very quickly, but unfortunately, the plot seems to drag a bit in the middle.

There are several sets of sisters, with in one instance, the sisters being an especially confusing group. I found was hoping for a character list to keep some of the characters straight. The actual mystery serves as a way to introduce the characters, with a focus on Irish Step dancing and family support, as a way of life for Irish-American families. As a first novel in a cozy mystery series, the author needed to focus on so many motifs that she had a difficult time carrying the plot forward. The romance was contrived. Is romance always necessary for women to be fulfilled? Let the romance develop naturally, rather than rush it.

Thank you to publisher, Penguin Random House, for providing this ARC for me to read and review. My comments above reflect my honest review. I look forward to reading book 2 in this series, with Mathew’s having dealt with all this first novel trauma and having developed into a first rate mystery writer.

This was a fun start to a new cozy mystery series. The story is structured like a typical cozy mystery (amateur sleuth, off-page violence, etc.) and is a good length.

The author is clearly a seasoned writer who understands how to structure a sentence and balance exposition with dialogue. I would absolutely read more of her work.

I enjoyed the Irish-themed New England setting. The author did a good job of peppering it in without being too heavy handed.

The mystery was set up nicely and not too easy to solve.

The author handled the sleuth's kids well in this particular book. The young characters were heavily incorporated into the story and mystery but they were likable and not annoying.

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