This story had a fun storyline but at times grammar made it where I needed to go back and re read lines more than once. I did enjoy the character builds but did feel like this was a generic mystery with nothing that really set it apart from others.

Madeline was definitely a different kind of main character, gutsy and brave but then she'd been an actress for quite a few years so she was used to all sorts of situations which might've gotten her ready for stuff she'd encounter in real life. I felt the characters were tons of fun, especially Madeline's wicked sense of humor.

Gloria, her new pastor friend cracked me up at how cool and upbeat she was. I mean who wouldn't love a friend like her who's also an ordained Episcopal priest and was capable of other types of guidance as well as just being good bestie material. Phil (aka Philomena) was a really interesting character and had been Aunt Rose’s longtime friend, so she was like another aunt to Madeline. There was lotsa drama and mystery but some good humorous parts too ending up with an epic showdown with the killer. I'm really looking forward to the next book!

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

Booked for Murder is your classic small town cozy mystery. It’s one of those books that never feels too serious or thrilling, but provides a cast of quirky and colorful charterers a reader can easily visualize. I can honestly say that the setting and audiobook narration made this book more enjoyable reading experience in bringing the characters to life.

The story centers around Madeline, who like many, never imagined she’d return to her hometown of Enigma after leaving years ago to pursue an acting career. But stardom isn’t always easy to achieve, and now, grieving the loss of her beloved Aunt Rose, Madeline finds herself inheriting her aunt’s quirky, well-loved bookstore and home. This leave Madeline with more questions than answers as she steps in this new chapter of her life.

As Madeline tries to figure out her next steps, she’s reminded of how deeply her aunt impacted the community. While repeatedly asking herself “Why me?”, she sees the importance of keeping her Aunt’s Bookstore open for those in need. But returning home isn’t all sentimental memories. Fires are set, and not everyone in Enigma sees this as a homecoming. Things take a darker turn when Tammy, a local girl Madeline had recently connected with, is killed. If some people were upset with her being there, imagine them now. Grappling with Tammy’s tragic death, Madeline sets out to unveil the truth of Tammy’s murder, honor her aunt’s memory, and figure out just where she belongs.

This story is more than just a murder mystery. It’s about grief, second chances, and rediscovering the potential in where you come from. I found myself really drawn to the way this book explorers longing to be someplace else while discovering where you are isn’t that bad after all. I would 100% recommend having the audiobook to fully animate the small-town southern sayings and backhand compliments. In no small feat, the narrator captured the personality and sly humor of each character making them a little bit more distinguishable.

Though the mystery itself follows a predictable path, it’s the sense of community, found family, determination that elevates this story. Booked for Murder is a charming read that cozy mystery fans will appreciate.

I actually found this book to be quite amusing! I did not see Phil being the one who lit the fire & I did not foresee so many other things happening the way they did. It kept me guessing, and kept me on my toes. I would definitely read another book by this author!

Omg who doesn’t t love a new PJ NelsonCozy Mystery! She is on of my favorites. Love this. Will give a better review at a later date but definitely 4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️s.. thank you NetGalley for this opportunity. And PJ Nelson for writing a fabulous book.

I'm a sucker for a good cozy mystery, and this Southern cozy mystery was the perfect companion for a cold winter night, complete with a glass of wine and a comfy blanket. Madeline Brimley inherits her Aunt Rose's bookstore in the quirky town of Enigma, Georgia, where she spent many a childhood vacation. She's all set to start anew, but things quickly take a turn for the weird. The locals are less than welcoming, and someone's clearly got it in for her - I mean, who needs a warm welcome when you can have a burning gazebo, threatening phone calls, and a bookstore fire? And then, because things weren't exciting enough, a murder happens. But Madeline's no quitter, and she's determined to get to the bottom of things. As she digs deeper, she discovers that her aunt was sitting on some pretty big secreta that can affect whole town. Can Madeline figure out whodunit, or will she be the next victim? The supporting cast, including Reverend Gloria, Philomena, and David the handyman, add some much-needed humor and intrigue to the story. All in all, this was a fantastic start to a new cozy mystery series, and I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment.

Overall a read that took me by surprise. I didn’t know what to expect but I really enjoyed it. At its core it’s a murder mystery in a small town with an engaging narration by the primary character.

I thought this did a good job of making the reader and Maddy feel the same in the sense that we were both trying to solve the mystery. The same things Maddy were discovering, we were too.

This was like a 4 or 4.5⭐️ There’s the main character, Madeline, and she has two friends. They kind of reminded me of the women in Sweet Magnolias, but with more generational/age difference - they had the love, laughs, support. I liked the mystery of this book. It was like a small town drama with lots of secrets. A big theme/emotion I saw throughout this book was jealousy. There was soo much jealousy! I think a lot of conflict in this book could have been avoided if the characters handled their emotions better. Also, some of the characters had the most outlandish, outrageous background stories…?! Like someone was from the swamp, someone grew up on a religious compound.. just the most thrown-together, crazy backgrounds. Like those could be a story in themselves. Now don’t get me wrong: I love it, I’m here for the crazy, but like what are the odds?? There’s a small romance subplot (but I kind of wanted her to be with someone else but it’s finnee). I loved Elbert. Elbert was probably on of the most minor of side characters, but I loved him so much. I wish there was a map (big map girl) of the town and of the layout of the house/bookstore. That would’ve been very nice and helpful. Also, sometimes this trio of women made dumb decisions. Like they are very nosy and couldn’t listen to what they were told to do. Like can you not try to take this whole investigation into your own hands and let the police do their job?? But I guess that’s what makes it interesting lol. I liked this book. She was cute, she was southern. I think this is gonna be a series and I want to read the next book, so that’s gotta mean something. Overall, this was a good book, not fantastic or anything, but the pacing was good and I do want to read the next book!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin’s Publishing Group, for this charming, winding, and captivating ARC!

Synopsis:
Madeline Brimley left small town Georgia many years ago to go to college and pursue her dreams on the stage. Her dramatic escapades are many but success has eluded her, leaving her at loose ends. But then she gets word that not only has her beloved, eccentric Aunt Rose passed, but she's left Madeline her equally eccentric bookstore housed in an old Victorian mansion in the small college town of Enigma. But when she arrives in her beat-up Fiat to claim The Old Juniper Bookstore, and restart her life, Madeline is faced with unexpected challenges. The gazebo in the back yard is set ablaze and a late night caller threatens to burn the whole store down if she doesn't leave immediately.


Thoughts:
The mystery was pretty intriguing and kept me hooked the entire time. However, it was a little slow in some spots. Overall, it was a solid book!

After aging out of the best New York theatre roles after passing the ripe old age of thirty, Madeline Brimley is returning to the town of Enigma, Georgia after learning of an unexpected inheritance. Madeline hasn’t been back to Enigma since she left for college when she was 17, but learning that she now owns her aunt’s home and Old Juniper Bookshop gives her a chance to start over with a new career. One of the first people she meets is young Tandy Fletcher, who is so warm and helpful that Madeline welcomes her into the Bookshop as an assistant and gives her a place to stay overnight. That is why Madeline is devastated when she discovers Tandy stabbed to death in the living room. Dr. Philomena Waldrop, one of Aunt Rose’s best friends, is concerned that Madeline was the intended target, especially after a gazebo on the front lawn is set on fire. A threat over the phone only cements this belief, and with the fire investigators instead suspecting Madeline, she decides to begin investigating who either wants her out of town or actually managed to murder their intended target.

This first in the series immediately has readers falling in love with Tandy, which makes it all the more shocking and heartbreaking when she is killed. Readers will be as invested as Madeline in tracking down her killer, with clues leading them through Enigma’s many unique and engaging characters. Enlisted onto Madeline’s investigative team is Episcopal priest Gloria Coleman, an extremely intelligent and confident woman who faces her own obstacles in the religiously conservative rural town. The southern setting is elaborately described with enough details to have readers believing they are in the midst of Enigma’s fall season, and they will be as drawn back in as Madeline. A handsome handyman adds to the lure of staying in town, even if she hadn’t learned that she was required by the will to stay at least six months before she can sell the properties. Forgiveness and compassion are central themes as Madeline discovers more about her family and about the residents of Enigma, with her realizing that so much could have been prevented if there were more of both. This is a promising start to a new series that will please fans of the bookselling business as well as the enviable Southern setting.

A perfect cozy mystery for book lovers! As a Georgia resident, I especially loved the Georgia setting. I'll be excited to read more from this author.

P.J. Nelson starts the Old Juniper Bookstore mysteries with Booked for Murder. The owner of the bookstore in the small town of Juniper left her home and bookstore to her niece Madeline. The latter leaves her acting gigs and takes over the store. The gazebo of the property is torched to the ground and a local young girl who helps out in the bookstore is found knifed to death. Madeline is getting threatening phone calls. Who is doing these nasty deeds and why? Madeline has her work cut out for her as she tries to find out whodunit and not get killed.

Thank you to the publisher for an advanced readers copy of P.J. Nelson's Booked for Murder. This was a really fun novel. Madeline Brimley has returned to her hometown after her aunt has died, and passed on her home and built-in bookstore to her. It is listed as the first book n the Old Juniper Bookstore mysteries, so the expectation is a series. Madeline's arrival comes with threats for her to leave, and the old gazebo in the back yard is burned down. The story involves more threats, an encounter with a young college student who has apparently worked and occasionally lived in the bookstore, a professor, a woman Episcopal minister, and a budding romance with a man who is repairing the burned gazebo.. When the college student ends up dead, Madeline is even more determined to figure out what is going on. She isn't necessarily the brightest investigator, but she is determined to solve the crime, and thinks the young police officer, who she used to babysit in her youth isn't up to the task.

As I write this I realize this is an interesting but somewhat silly book. That said, I never thought it would be a DNF. I was interested enough to continue. In the end things get nicely resolved, as expected, but I am not sure how much there is for a continuing series of mysteries. We will see. I'll give the book a 3.5 star review.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of Booked For Murder by P. J. Nelson.

This cozy mystery is set in Enigma, Georgia, a small rural town south of Atlanta. The main character, Madeline Brimley, has returned to her roots to take over the Old Juniper Bookstore which was left to her by her deceased aunt. Aunt Rose was always an important person in Madeline’s life, even helping to raise her and influence her career choice as an aspiring actress. It has never been Madeline’s intent to return to Enigma, however, her career as an actress in Atlanta is not going well, and her devotion to Aunt Rose draws her back to the small town. Once she arrives, she finds out that not everything in Enigma is as it was when she left, and picking up running the bookstore where her Aunt left off might be a deadly role for her to take.

This is a great little mystery full of quirky characters, including a spunky heroine who is not the best detective. Nelson’s story is funny, if a little predictable, and will have you laughing while simultaneously shaking your head as Madeline jumps to conclusions. Looking forward to the second book in this series!

Madeline left the small town of Enigma, Georgia years ago. She hadn't planned to come back. Then her aunt left her the cozy bookstore that was a part of her years growing up in Enigma. She's not sure she even wants to stay. But then the gazebo in the backyard is set ablaze, followed by the threatening phone calls. Madeline is determined not to be run out of town. She, instead, sets her energies to discovering who is behind the trouble and why are they determined to chase her away.

When I read a book the most important thing I look for are engaging characters. I want the characters to drive the story so the action feels natural. Unfortunately, while I was intrigued by the underlying mystery, I just couldn't connect with any of the characters. It was never clear who they were or what part they were supposed to play in the story. Each character seemed to change who they were depending on the circumstances of the scene. Throughout the story I always felt the plot was pulling the characters along rather than the characters driving the story.

Because the antagonist was so flat, because their actions were a bit obvious, it wasn't difficult to deduce who the ultimate adversary is or why they did what they did. And in trying to provide alternative suspects, the author simply matches the character actions to the scene rather than matching the actions to a character personality.

As I said, the mystery was engaging enough, but I'm unlikely to pick up the next story in the series. This is probably a 2.5 star read for me.

A fun cozy but I think the red herrings were a bit overdone. I am looking forward to reading more in this series, though.

This was a cute and fun whodunit that proves you can go home again! Throw a little arson and attempted murder in and you have a great book! This was my 1st book by P.J. Nelson but will not be my last!

I really enjoyed Booked for Murder. Madeline was a decent character but could have been a little better written. I know she had a lot going on but there was no character growth. She only really connected with two characters until the every end of the book. As the main character, I would think she would have really made a connection with several of the other characters. The way the story was written I also would have accepted her and the fire guy to have a romantic relationship.

Overall, this was a enjoyable murder mystery.

This book was a great little cosy mystery and I saw someone where that’s it’s supposed to be the first in a series! Yay , can’t wait to hear more from these characters! Read it for sure

When Madeline inherits her late aunts house/bookstore, it seems people are not too happy about her being there. Someone sets the gazebo on fire, her friend Tandy is murdered in the house and the front door was set on fire. Now she wants to solve the murder and who is trying to burn her house down.

I would describe this book as a slice of life narrative with a bit more stakes involved. The author captures the atmosphere of a small town in Georgia including the interpersonal dynamics at play.

Madeline Brimley returns to the bookshop inherited after the passing of her beloved aunt and quickly finds herself in unfortunate circumstances. The supporting characters are truly what made this story interesting, introducing subplots and moving the story forward while adding character development and depth to the story overall.

I felt like the pacing was slow with some highly predictable “twists”.
I would definitely be interested in reading a second book in the series to see how the characters continue to interact with each other.

Good fit if you are in the mood to read a book that is mysterious and reflective with a slow plot and with an emphasis on diverse and complicated cast of characters. The flaws of the characters is a main focus of the book.

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing a digital arc of the book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.