I love love love cozy books, especially when they make me want to move to where they’re set. Something about small doses of magic with small stakes that makes me want to curl up with hot chocolate and a cat. This was such a comforting read and really put me in the holiday mood. It’s got spooky vibes but the warmth in the story still made me feel very ready for the upcoming snow.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Duncan’s coffee cart mystery series (which got a little shout out here) and was absolutely pumped for this new book. Once again, Duncan had created a very fun and young-ish feeling cozy. It felt like things took a bit to settle in during this book, from a character and plot perspective. However, they all got there by the end of the book. The mystery was well plotted, with enough red herrings to keep me guessing. I’m excited to see where things go next!

Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop has the best of both worlds. It is both a holiday cozy and a literary cozy. Most holiday cozy mysteries are set at Christmas time, but this new series is set in a small town that celebrates Halloween year round. Add that twist to the fact that the protagonist is a bookstore owner and you had me hooked. Reading this book was such a fun way for me to spend Halloween. The author knits together family drama, a returning famous local, a returning wannabee and a town full of secrets. I found the mysteries a bit too easy, the clues were not quite subtle enough. But then when you have been reading mysteries for decades, not that many books do keep you guessing. The author does shine in her world building and character development. I want to visit this town, shop in Bailey's bookstore and check out all the other local attractions. The characters are delightful and I can't wait to visit these new friends in another installment of the series.

I read an electronic review copy from Kensington Books, but the opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. I can honestly recommend this novel to any cozy mystery fan.

If you like anything autumn or Halloween themed then Elyan Hollow & this new series is for you. The location, the descriptions are all perfect to get into the season. Besides the murder, there’s a side mystery as to who is Bailey’s biological father. I really liked both. Plus I love when the mysteries tie into the past & this one does it expertly.

This is what cozy mysteries are all about & I can’t wait for future books.

🎃

Read if you like:
* Haunted Haven by Carol J. Perry
* Kitchen Witch series by Lynn Cahoon
* Witch Way Librarian series by Angela M. Sanders

A spooky celebration conjures real frights in Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop, a new cozy mystery series set in a small town with a big reputation for Halloween.

Bailey Briggs loves all things Halloween—which is good, because she lives in the year-round Halloween-themed town of Elyan Hollow, Oregon. This fall, in addition to managing Lazy Bones Books, which she just took over from her grandfather, Bailey is also running the inaugural Spooky Season Literary Festival. She’s secured help from other local shop owners; brought in several authors, including a hometown hero; and even planned extra events like a murder mystery game and an arts and crafts session. What Bailey didn’t plan on, though, was the disrespectful crew of Gone Ghouls, a ghost-hunting TV show that’s filming around Elyan Hollow. After Bailey gets into an altercation with the crew, things go from bad to worse when she discovers a body in the middle of the town’s hay bale maze. To clear her name and save her festival, Bailey decides to investigate the murder. She uncovers decades-old grievances, family secrets and rivalries that are a lot scarier—and deadlier—than some of the stories in her bookshop.

Author Emmeline Duncan previously wrote the Ground Rules cozy series, which similarly overflowed with Pacific Northwestern charm. The town of Elyan Hollow feels like its own character—quirky, warm and inviting (despite the murders). It’s easy to root for Bailey, who loves her home and friends and is hoping that her literary festival is the start of something special for Elyan Hollow. While Bailey is working around the clock to make the festival a success, she’s also navigating several challenges in her personal life, like an absent mother, an overbearing uncle and the mystery of her birth father. Like real life, not all of these issues are resolved, but Bailey learns more about herself and where she came from, and grows more confident in her professional life, too.

At times, the mystery takes a back seat as Duncan explores Bailey’s personal struggles and establishes the residents and businesses of Elyan Hollow. However, as this is the first book in a planned series, future installments may not have this impediment. Fans looking for a lighthearted cozy to get them in the Halloween spirit won’t be disappointed with Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop.

I enjoyed Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop for its charming Halloween-themed town and quirky characters, especially Bailey and her Great Pyrenees, Jack. The setting of Elyan Hollow, Oregon, a place that celebrates Halloween year-round, was an absolute treat for someone like me who loves all things spooky. That said, the mystery was a bit slow to pick up. While I liked getting to know Bailey and her world, it took a while for the suspense to build. The story gained momentum once the body was discovered, but I wanted more substance in the mystery-solving process. The family dynamics added emotional depth, and I appreciated how Bailey's strained relationship with her mother was woven into the plot. It tugged at my heartstrings, and I hope future books delve more into that aspect. It's a fun, cozy mystery with a unique setting and potential for future installments. I’ll likely pick up the next one and recommend this to cozy mystery fans, especially those who adore Halloween vibes and lovable dogs.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced copy

In a Halloween themed town, Bailey has taken over the reins of her family-owned bookstore and is eager to prove her worthiness by organizing a weekend literary festival. The tv ghost hunter filming overnight in her store caused significant damage and when he is found dead, Bailey becomes a suspect. There's plenty of twists and a lot of secrets buried from the past which makes for an entertaining story.

This was the perfect atmospheric fall read. Set in a town that gives Halloweentown vibes, Bailey is putting on a book festival when a murder takes place. She works to solve it and ends up discovering a lot more in the process. I loved every part of this story, the final reveal felt a little rushed though.

Hello Fellow Reader,

The concept of a cozy mystery that takes place in a cute Halloween-themed town as well as a bookshop drew me in, unfortunately, it didn't captivate me as much as I hoped it would. Duncan did a great job describing Elyan Hollow, and I got a feel of the small-town life in a tourist town, so much so that I would have loved to visit had it been real. Bailey seemed like she would have been a great lead, especially with her little puppers Jack Skeleton, but I feel she was a little robotic. The plot was very straightforward with almost no twists. Duncan also had the problem of telling their readers things rather than trusting the reader to put things together, Bailey also felt like she was just stumbling along for the ride rather than actually trying to solve the murder and clear her name

Overall, a series with potential if Duncan can learn to trust her readers.

There were a LOT of names in the beginning of this story and I felt dumped into a situation. I think the author was trying to avoid info-dumping but it took me a bit to get into the rhythm of the story.
Bailey Briggs normally love Halloween but this year is particularly challenging. She's taken over the family bookstore and is hosting what she hopes will be the first of an annual literary festival. Also, there's a camera crew in town taping for a ghost hunting type show. Both have people who grew up in town and there seems to be something going on between them. One will end up dead.
There's a lot going on in this book including Bailey finding out more about her family. A good start to what I assume will be a series.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out July 23, 2024
ARC kindly provided by Kensington Publishing and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

If you love Halloween and comfy reads this book is for you! Bailey the now owner of Lazy Bones Bookshop is getting ready for the upcoming spooky season by holding a Lit Festival when there is a murder in her small town and surprise she is the main suspect! This book felt like a mix between Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala and Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree. Comfy, spooky and thrilling!

I had such high hopes for this book, especially since I love Duncan's Ground Rules series. However, the main character in this book just seemed mean. In the Ground Rules series, the main character sometimes seems unlikeable, but not like this. I had a hard time with this book because I couldn't overcome my dislike for the main character. I know sometimes, with cozies, it can take a few books into the series for an author and the characters to get in the groove. I'm willing to try more books in this series because I like this author, and I hope this book is just a one-time fluke. I love the idea of this series with the Halloween-obsessed town and the spooky vibes. It's right up my alley.

Such a cute, cozy mystery premise in a PNW year-round Halloween town. Unfortunately, I did not feel connected to any of the characters and by the quarter-way mark I just wanted the book to end. Too many plot lines with too little actual plot to justify the back and forth cozy vs thriller vibe. The writing felt choppy and hopped around too much, making the MC a makeshift detective – which just wasn't enjoyable for me. It was fun to read about a make-believe town inspired by Halloweentown and I did enjoy the mentions of ARCs, subscription boxes, etc. Such potential, but just fell flat.

Loved the setting and the premise of this first book in a new Halloween-themed cozy mystery series. Unfortunately, Duncan bogs down the plot with way to many minute details about anything and everything. Like explaining what an ARC is, full details of what every character was eating or drinking, or every single step of Bailey's routine of running a bookshop. To the level that at times this reads like a "how to" book rather than a fictional mystery. Side characters kept being reintroduced every time they reappeared, it was repetitive and got kind of annoying. In a novel under 300 pages, readers don't need that many reminders of who one of the random bookshop assistants is who doesn't factor into the main plot points at all.

All of the pieces are there for this to be a really enjoyable cozy mystery, but for me it was a huge miss. By the time readers finally found out who the murderer was and why they did it, I had stopped caring. The killer reveal was meh... and I felt was pretty flimsy reasoning for someone to all of a sudden wind up killing two people.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and Kensington Cozies in exchange for an honest review.

Chaos at the lazy Bones Bookshop
By Emmeline Duncan
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a cute Halloween town inspired cozy mystery. It was definitely a slow paced cozy mystery with all the cozy vibes that I was totally there for, and I would not go into it hoping for a fast paced mystery. We followed Bailey along on her day to day activities of running her bookshop, organizing for the Halloween festival that she was coordinating, then chaos starts happening at her bookshop with her at the center. It was fun being along the ride with Bailey and her cute pup Jack for all their daily strolls, and her trying to piece together and solve the murder, as well as some other surprises. If you’re looking for a cozy mystery with all the fall Halloween vibes, I would definitely check this one out!
Thank you Net Galley for a chance to read and review this ARC.

Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop is the first in a new series by Emmeline Duncan. I love Duncan's coffe cart series and was so excited to read this. It follows Bailey Briggs who lives in a town called Elyan Hollow which is were a famous Halloween book/film was set. She has taken over her grandfather's book shop, Lazy Bones Books and is also taking part in the the town's annual Halloween celebrations with her childhood friends and her faithful dog Jack. Bailey is hosting a literary festival during the event with some spooky authors, including the writer of the book that made the town famous. There's of course a murder and sleuthing ensures. I found the book had a lot going on at times, probably because it's the first book and there was a lot to set up. I still really enjoyed it and would love to read the next one. A perfect cozy for the fall/spooky season.

This new cozy series is so fun. I love that the town is basically Halloween all the time. I really enjoyed Bailey as a character. I look forward to learning more about her as the series continues. The mystery in this book was so surprising and twisty! Definitely some intense reveals at the end!

Normally, spooky season is Bailey Briggs’ favorite time of year, and her Halloween-themed small town’s time to shine. But between managing Lazy Bones Books, working on her graphic novel-in-progress, and running the Spooky Season Literary Festival, Bailey hardly has a moment to enjoy Elyan Hollow’s spot-on seasonal vibes. Not to mention, at every turn she seems to be tripping over the contentious crew of Gone Ghouls, a ghost-hunting reality TV show currently filming around town. Bailey tries to stay focused on the Lit Festival, which is supposed to kick off Elyan Hollow’s annual Halloween Fair; instead, this year’s festival begins with a murder. What a fun town! The characters are all very well written and the plot itself kept me guessing until the end. Highly recommend and hope there will be more in this series.

Normally, spooky season is Bailey Briggs’ favorite time of year, and her Halloween-themed small town’s time to shine. But between managing Lazy Bones Books, working on her graphic novel-in-progress, and running the Spooky Season Literary Festival, Bailey hardly has a moment to enjoy Elyan Hollow’s spot-on seasonal vibes. Not to mention, at every turn she seems to be tripping over the contentious crew of Gone Ghouls, a ghost-hunting reality TV show currently filming around town. Bailey tries to stay focused on the Lit Festival, which is supposed to kick off Elyan Hollow’s annual Halloween Fair; instead, this year’s festival begins with a murder.

It’s bad enough Bailey discovered the victim, but now, as a lead suspect with some damning evidence pointing her way, she’s got to clear her name.

As her investigation weaves through family secrets, professional rivalries, and town feuds, the list of suspects is growing fast and unfortunately, so is the list of victims. If Bailey doesn’t find the killer soon, Elyan Hollow’s haunted reputation will get a little too real.

First in a new series, this is a fun, fast paced read. I enjoyed most of the story. The Halloween themed town and Bailey's backstory added a little depth. I also appreciated that, unlike many of these cozies, Bailey did not actively keep things from the police and she only had one too dumb to live moment.
Recommended for those looking for a light seasonal cozy mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a copy of the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Bailey Briggs lives in Elyan Hollow and now takes care of her grandfathers book shop Lazy Bones Books watched closely by her constant companion Jack the Pyrenees dog. Each year Elyan Hollow is host to a successful and uneventful week long celebration of Halloween. This year though the celebration is anything but uneventful with an number of bodies turning up and Bailey and Lazy Bones Books seem to be in the middle of it after hosting the first ever Literary Festival with a number of well know authors.
I loved the story and enjoyed the writing of the author. There were tears and laughter during this cute small town story. The murder mystery was the main topic but there was also the side story of Bailey and one of the star authors and how their lives are entwined which kept me interested until the end.
Great quick read and look forward to reading more from this author.