I genuinely struggled through this book. I typically love a cozy mystery but the main character, Madeline, was so unlikeable that I struggled to connect with the story. She had moved away from this small town nearly 20 years ago and expected to return as if nothing had changed. She stepped on the toes of the local police because she used to babysit him even though he seemed to be doing his job just fine.
Then there was the climax which was completely ridiculous to me for some reason and I could barely get through it.
I do however find myself looking forward to the next book anyway because I want to know what the heck is up with “Joy” and what’s going on with the financials, because obviously something is going on there.
Thank you to NetGalley for my e-ARC!

What a great mystery read! Mystery has always been a favorite of mine and this book was spot on. I couldn’t put it down. There were twists and turns. Not what I was expecting

Booked For Murder is a phenomenal story that will keep you on the edge of your seat! The small town of Enigma and its many fun and crazy characters is the perfect place for a murder-mystery. The leading lady, Maddy inherits a bookstore from her oddball, but fun and caring aunt. Of course right away things start going wrong. From arson and mysterious phone calls to straight up murder, this is a book you won’t be able to put down. The dramatic endings to chapters keep you longing to read more and the plot twists swing at you left and right. I loved this book and highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good murder-mystery (and bonus it’s in a bookstore)!!!

Booked For Murder by P.J. Nelson

In this southern cozy book debut, Madeline
Brimley returns to the bookstore she inherited, discovering that small towns hold deadly secrets.

This was a very enjoyable cozy mystery. The characters were perfectly set. The plot was good. Lots of twists and turns in the story to keep you reading. I recommend vthis book..

What a delightful murder mystery. Madeline Brimley returns to her hometown of Enigma when her Aunt Rose dies and leaves her bookstore to her. However, things start to go awry the first night. The gazebo in the backyard is set on fire, Madeline gets threatening phone calls and when a sweet local girl, Tandy Fletcher is murdered in the bookstore, Madeline, her Aunt Rose’s best friend Philomena, and the local Episcopalian priest, Gloria, get together to solve the murder.

What a fun bunch of characters, this is a small southern town at its best. A smart aleck priest, good ole boys who are not what you expect, a good-looking fireman, a handyman who knows Shakespeare and just small town people knowing all your business. This was a fun read, I zipped right through this, enjoying the characters, the murder, the atmosphere of the people who lived in the town and the setting of a town where everyone know your name. Characters made me smile, the murder mystery was on point and not easily solved, I just wanted to go into the bookstore, sit down and have a cup of coffee with these characters. Good mystery, fun characters, you will be flipping pages to see how it ends. Can’t wait for the next installment. Nicely done!

I am a sucker for anything about books as a starting place for a plot. PJ Nelson's Booked for Murder does not disappoint. I'll look for more by this author.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery. It was a quick read and the setting of a bookstore made it even more appealing. The characters were quirky and I was kept guessing about the ending with many twists and wrong guesses. Well done!

I really enjoyed this book. The characters felt more real than in a lot of the murder mystery books that I’ve read. There’s doubts, confusion, false accusations. It isn’t some random person solving the mystery all alone with ease and clarity. There was a lot of emotion packed into this story. I also loved the inclusion of books, jazz, and tea!

Booked For Murder is a fun Cozy murder mystery. Perfect quick beach read with fun, quirky characters and lots of twists and turns.

This was a typical cozy mystery! I really enjoyed the atmospheric small Southern town setting and the fact that the main location was a Georgia bookstore! I can picture it. The story itself was ok. Our FMC Madeline is not only learning how to run a bookshop now after her aunts death but she has to solve a murder that has occurred in said bookshop. It starts off with a bang right off the bat but stays pretty charming and cozy. The ending was rather unexpected in a kind of “huh, ok” way. Overall, this isn’t a stand out story but certainly worth the read on a rainy day in if you enjoy a cozy bookshop mystery.

Debut author PJ Nelson crafted a fun little story where the main character goes to a small town to keep her recently deceased Aunt’s bookstore open.
I’m not the biggest fan of cozy mysteries, but I have read a few. One thing I like is when all the side characters have their own little quirks to make them seem more well rounded. Nelson did this very well in this book.
The book moves well with very few spots where my attention started to drift.
If this is Nelson’s debut, I feel her next one will be even better.

In this atmospheric southern cozy debut, Madeline Brimley returns to the bookstore she inherited, discovering that small towns hold deadly secrets.

This was definitely a cozy quick read, but ultimately puttered out for me.

I think readers of cozy mysteries will obviously love this book and the books to come after.

Thanks Net Galley and Minatour Books for the ARC of this novel.

Holy moly for back and forth guessing. This book had so many wrong guesses about the killer that I couldn’t keep up. I liked the character and the backstory but the quick flip flopping was not fun.

I’d give this 3.5 stars. I rounded down here instead of up because I think it being partly set in a bookshop is really where that other half a star comes in for me. If it had been in any other setting that didn’t involve books, it would be a solid 3 stars.

So if you’re looking for a run of the mill, quick cozy mystery… this qualifies. It was a quick read with enough action to keep me engaged. However, there were no surprises in this one for me. I knew whodunit for part of the crimes pretty early on. The other part was fairly easy to figure out further into the book before the official reveal. So no surprising plot twists for me. I also can’t say I was terribly fond of any of the characters. They seemed too… excitable… or fixated on their current solution, until they weren’t. I seriously felt bad for the police officer having to deal with this group.

I’m not sure if I’ll continue with the series… maybe I’ll try one more. I’d honestly be more interested if it was the aunt (now deceased) that was the detective. She seemed like a much more interesting character than her niece.

I really enjoyed this book! The pace was perfect for a murder mystery, not too slow or fast. It always left you wondering what was going to happen next and who was the culprit of it all. I believe that the book had a great and satisfying ending to it as well. I do wish I had a more concrete answer on exactly how old Madeleine is just cause I couldn’t really figure out what stage of life she was in. I couldn’t immerse myself into the story as much as i would’ve liked because i was trying to figure out a rough timeline of how old she was and in turn how old Aunt Phil was. Overall a great book and definitely something I’d recommend to anyone who likes cozy murder mysteries

I loved this book so much, as a southerner myself, I fell in love with the atmosphere of this mystery almost immediately. It’s a must read for anyone looking for small towns and deathly secrets!

In his debut novel, P.J. Nelson brings such a fun, atmospheric, cozy mystery. I ate it up! There was suspense, action, murder (of course), and some great twists. It was definitely a fun read. I can't wait to read more by PJ!!

I enjoyed this fun read by P.J. Nelson! I must read any book set in a bookshop, and this one didn’t disappoint. Add in a cozy murder mystery, and I am set! This was a perfect summer read! Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and author, for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

What a wonderful cozy mystery! I’m so glad that this is the first book in a new series. Main character Madeline inherits a bookstore, so she returns to the the small Georgia town she left behind when she tried to chase her dreams. Once she arrives though, she starts to receive threats, which lead to a murder. I can’t wait to see who book 2 is about!

Madeline returns to Enigma, GA after her aunts death and takes over her little local bookstore.
After leaving her dreams to make it big as a stage actress, Madeline seems to be content with a simple little life in a small southern town, except:

There's nothing simple about the threat she receives shortly after her arrival. After a gazebo is burned down and a request for her to hit the road accompanies it, Madeline finds herself playing a new part: that of an amateur detective.

Characters are introduced and well built so as to add suspicion to the whodunit.

It's a simple little cozy mystery, and I love that it is book themed.