First published as September Fair in 2009; reissued by Thomas & Mercer on August 27, 2024

September Mourn is a novel of the northern Midwest. The pace is easy. Characters are at least superficially and often genuinely friendly. Cows are abundant.

September Mourn is the fifth entry in a series that stars Mira James. Mira is a librarian and part-time reporter for a small-town newspaper in Battle Lake, Minnesota. She regularly stumbles upon murder victims, a habit she would like to break. I confess that I haven’t read the first four “Murder by Month” mysteries — the series was first published by a Minnesota publisher that subsequently closed its crime fiction imprint — but I don’t think that impaired my ability to understand or enjoy this one.

The story takes place at the Minnesota State Fair. Ashley Pederson is awaiting coronation as the new Milkfed Mary (a/k/a Queen of the Dairy) while a sculptor carves her likeness from a large block of butter. The lights go out. When they come back on, Ashley is dead. Her skin has turned “the brightest red” Mira has ever seen. There’s a clue in the skin color, yes?

Mira takes a picture of Ashley just before the lights go out, but someone steals her camera before she can study it. As a reporter whose story will be better if she can solve the crime, Mira dutifully interviews people who might offer insight into the murder. She discovers that locks of hair have been cut from the heads of several Milkfed Mary contestants. Another clue? She uncovers scandals and crimes, some related to the murder and others not, as she assembles a bucket full of clues that will help her find the killer.

Ashley was a Mean Girl, so the list of murder suspects is lengthy. Is the killer a competitor for the crown? Could it be the chaperone, the pageant sponsor, or the state fair’s corporate president? Might it be the eco-terrorist Aeon Hopkins or a Milkfed Mary from the past? The lengthy list of potential suspects should engage the attention of murder mystery fans.

September Mourn has the light tone of cozy mystery with a dash of romcom. Violence is restrained and not particularly graphic. Mira doesn’t try to be an action hero, although she does defend herself when necessary. Mira is attracted to Johnny Leeson (the Adonis of Battle Lake) but she doesn’t jump into bed with him. For Mira, sex is a matter of desire rather than action. She shares thoughts with the reader that are slightly saucy (“I wanted to kiss so long that our lips pruned”), but cozy mystery fans can probably read the story without blushing. The few ribald comments in the novel are made by a senior citizen.

The senior who contributes lusty thoughts to the story is Mrs. Berns. Some of those thoughts are inspired by Neil Diamond, who is performing at the fair. Mrs. Berns’ friend Kennie Rogers is the mayor of the small town in which Mira lives. They provide comic relief in a novel that never takes itself too seriously.

Jess Lourey’s prose is consistently witty. The mystery’s resolution is satisfying. The characters are enjoyable. Atmosphere is spot on. I was pleasantly surprised by September Mourn and look forward to dipping into other entries in the reissued series.

RECOMMENDED

'September Mourn' is the fifth of the Murder by Month series by Jess Lourey and it has continued down a slightly more serious vein in terms of its theme. There is still the usual zany comedy and black humour but Lourey is clearly stretching her legs here with a more topical central theme.

We get a lot of Mrs Berns in this one, which is always a big tick from me, and she's a large part of Mira's realisation that Battle Lake is where she needs to be right now. The other big part of that is Johnny who turns up intermittently to send Mira into sonnet lines of lust.

The story is a play on the death of a beauty queen, with Mira witnessing yet another murder in the locality as the winning 'milk fed Mary, Queen of the Dairy' drops dead while in a butter sculpting session. When it becomes clear that there has been foul play, Mira is reluctantly drawn into the mystery - one milk fed Mary at a time.

As with the August offering, Lourey brings a number of red herrings into play here, managing to tie the various stands together in a strong, as believable as possible, conclusion. It's the strongest book of the series so far, to my mind.

She also brings us away from Battle Lake which, at first a little jarring, works very well and breathes a certain freshness and change of pace into this offering. I'm happy to go back to Battle Lake but this was a fun interlude to see our characters in new spaces.

My thanks to Thomas & Mercer for the eARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Another great Jess Lourey month of murder! In this episode, Mira heads to the Minnesota State Fair on assignment to interview the newest Dairy Princess. Having grown up with "Princess Kay of the Milky Way," I was disappointed by the Milkfed Mary, Queen of the Dairy substitute name. Surely there could be a better name? But, that was my only disappointment! This book, as in previous novels, provides a great combination of mystery and humor, especially when Mrs. Berns (her delightfully unique senior friend) arrives to join her. When the princess is murdered while modeling for a butter sculpture (yes, there really are butter sculptures made of the princess!), Mira investigates. She runs into a lot of trouble (as usual) and uncovers a whole lot more than the killer's identity. I have to say that upon finishing this book, I quickly progressed to reading the October and November books. They'll make you want to read more!

I love this series! Though I do wish I'd be granted a listen to one of the audiobooks by the publisher. I'd love to see how closely the narrator(s) mirror the Minnesota-speak! Regardless, even if you just read the e-book, you'll enjoy this glimpse into what rural Minnesota life is like, spiced up with a good mystery. Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for providing an advance review copy of this book. My opinions are my own.

This book was alright! It was a fun concept, pretty thrilling, and i wasnt expecting it to end this way. However, it was going pretty slow and showing lots of details that werent needed for the story. This might be because its part of a series and i havent read the other books, so this could just be me. Was still fun though!

Thank you to netgalley and the author for sending me the book in exchange for an honest review

This was an amusing story full of over-the-top crazies, who love all the fatty foods offered at State Fairs. For me it was just to much attention given to things and people that (in my opinion) became filler for the story. There were a few funny moments, but for me they were far and few between. It was an okay cozy, but I struggled to get the book read. It wasn't a favorite of mine, but it was an OK read, therefore I awarded it 3

September Mourn by Jess Lourey 📚

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Number five in this series, which seems to consistently be three star reads. Not the best series I have read, but certainly not the worst.

These are all on the shorter side, so they make for quick and easy reads. I like reading them between other heavier books.

This was your typical cozy mystery. I enjoyed the setting taking place at the state fair — definitely fitting to read this at this time of the year.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the free copy of this book 📖

“The Minnesota State Fair wows again with 4-H exhibits, rides, a Neil Diamond concert, and deep-fried everything on a stick. Covering it is a breezy assignment as fluffy as cotton candy for reporter Mira James, until the main attraction becomes murder.

Ashley Pederson, crowned Milkfed Mary, Queen of the Dairy, is getting her all-American likeness carved in a block of unsalted butter when she drops dead, her face as red as a stoplight. Cause: malicious poisoning. Despite Ashley's creamy good looks, her reputation was pretty rancid. Still, who'd want to take out the soon-to-be college freshman and Battle Lake resident? Mira's made a vow to the dairy darling's grieving mother to find out.

Amid queenly competitors, rumors of sordid love affairs and embezzlement scandals, small-town secrets, and big business cover-ups, can Mira find the murderer on the Midway? You bet your corn dog she can.”

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Book #5 in the Murder by Month series finds Mira and her cohorts at the Minnesota State Fair, a community setting where everyone is out to have fun and everyone becomes a suspect when the dairy queen dies after having her likeness carved in butter!!! Grab yourself a corndog and follow along as the investigation searches for clues in the animal pens, the thrill rides and any of the myriad side shows. Jess Lourey keeps these stories moving quickly and the characters are good for a couple of chuckles. Mix together any of the cozy mysteries you loveand you'll come out with Lourey's Mira and her next adventure.

September Mourn was an intriguing story, Mira is a reporter trying to find out what happened to the Milkfed Mary Queen of the Dairy after she drops dead during the ritual of butter carving. Mira has to unravel the truth to find out what happened without getting herself in trouble.

I really enjoyed this book! It started off a bit slow and I was quite unsure where it was going but once things started to unravel I did not want to put the book down!
Mira was such a likeable and relatable character, and I really enjoyed how well the story flowed and how things wrapped up in the end.
I’m very excited to read more of this murder by month series and to get more of Mira!
Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC!

I've enjoyed several of Jess Lourey's Minnesota-based thrillers, so I was pleased to have the opportunity to preview this Murder by Month mystery (my first). The irreverent and whimsically portrayed protagonist is a perfect antidote to the normally very serious characterization found in most murder mysteries, and made for a very enjoyable read. Lourey also did a great job of keeping us guessing "whodunnit" until the very end.

Not only was it easy to start this series months in without feeling lost, I'm now intrigued to check out the upcoming adventures but also the past months I've missed so far. Whether this is your first or most recent read in this series, I highly recommend it!

This continues to be a fun series although I must confess that I have started listening to them in audiobook form, from my local library, and I'm enjoying the audio version more than the book version at this point. This is the second book to feature a more serious topic - this time genetically modified food additives - and I'm not sure how I feel about the shift in focus. The stories continue to be entertaining and full of banter and hijinx, but the shift to more serious issues underpinning the murders does give them a slightly darker tone that I find a little incongruous with the overall nature of the series. On the whole I find it to be a fun series with great narration that really captures the spirit of the characters, and the focus on the Minnesota State Fair made for a fun change of venue!

Another fun installment of the Murder by the Month series — this time at the Minnesota State Fair.

And WOW there's a lot of fair-related stuff. We don't even get a day trip to Battle Lake. Many of Mira's friends come join her at the fair, which was fun and flavorful, but frankly, I tired of this one after a little while. Compared to the others in the series, this one focused a lot more on solving the crime, poking around, and less on character arcs and worldbuilding. But like the others, this one "went there" with a touchy subject, this time, animal exploitation and the inhumane practices of big ag.

Not my favorite so far, but hey, the fair only comes once a year.

Loving this super fun series. The September installment took place at the state fair, which added a fun change of scenery and lots of local flavor to the story.

Mira James is an identifiable character with highly entertaining side kicks. Add in the chemistry with Johnny and the story kept me intrigued the whole way through.

Excited for the next installment!

Mira is once again at the heart of a murder investigation on the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. She will delve into the mysterious circumstances surrounding Ashley Pederson, the newly crowned Queen of the Dairy. The narrative promises a rollercoaster of antics featuring eccentric characters, competitive rivals, animal rights advocates, local scandals, and romantic entanglements. Additionally, a suspenseful haunted house tour is sure to leave readers breathless. This engaging and fast-paced story is sure to captivate, and anticipation is high for Mira's next adventure.

This was another fun adventure with Mira and her crazy new town! Mrs. Berns is my favorite character in all the books so far. She’s so hilarious! I can’t believe the murders followed Mira out of town! I cringed anytime I had to read the Milkfed Mary name, but it was an interesting murder added to the list so far. Can’t wait to read more of her adventures. Hopefully Mira and Johnny get together in the next book!

The fifth installment of Jess Lourey's Murder by the Month series perfectly hits every delightfully weird aspect of the "Great Minnesota Get Together," where the murder of a Battle Lake beauty queen draws Mira James into yet another mystery to solve. In her role as a part-time newspaper reporter, Mira is covering one of the state fair's most iconic events: an expert artists sculpts the heads of several dairy princesses in butter. After a hometown dairy princess dies in front of a huge crowd crammed into the dairy building, Mira promises the girl's grieving mother that she'll do all she can to find out what happened - which she does with the help of her salty octogenarian best friend and the mayor of Battle Lake, who both have the hots (big time) for a particular state fair performer. This page-turner is filled with twists, red herrings, and as always, Lourey's thorough research into setting and her authentically Minnesotan characters.

A nice addition to the series, I really enjoy the character and returning to the midwest vibes and strong complex female main character themes. The mystery is once again compelling and the pacing and conclusion are well done!

I have read all of the murder-by-month mysteries so far (6 books), and I love them all. This one takes place at the Minnesota State Fair and Mira finds herself knee-deep in cows, murder, and scandals. She was sent to the Fair by her boss at the newspaper she works for, to cover all things Battle Lake. The newly chosen queen of the dairy is murdered right in front of Mira. She now feels responsible to find out who did it and why. This one takes several twists and turns before the truth is revealed. Mira can take beatings, solve murders, but getting the guy just keeps eluding her. I really hope she finally gets Johnny. I definitely recommend the series.

September Mourn by Jess Lourey is full of murder and suspense, the case twists and turns to keep you guessing right up to the end for a compelling conclusion.

This cozy mystery is book 5 in the Murder by the Month series. It was a quick read. It did feel a little different from the books that I've read in the series so far (maybe from the change in setting?). It still does hit all the points of a traditional cozy mystery, but it didn't quite hit the mark for me, I somehow could not get invested.
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Not sure if it's the change of setting for this book, but this seemed different to the rest of the books in the series so far. The characters weren't weighed down by being over constantly over quirky and protagonist Mira had a balance that hasn't existed in the prior books.

The mystery takes place at a state fair, much of the fair being rural in nature. I can relate to that, having grown up in a country area. Maybe that's why I related to this mystery so much. The setting for the murder is inventive and grabbed my attention. But it's not a mystery that will keep you guessing. I think the culprit is quite easy to pick once you meet the character, but the story introduces a lot of new characters that are there to highlight more of Mira's past, a part of the mystery, or a part of the more serious topic of big agribusiness and the methods used to increase animal growth and productivity. Introducing the more serious topic in this mystery gave the story another layer and it's a worthwhile topic to discuss. I do wish the author went even further, but it probably would darken the lighter tone of the story. And the lighter tone did match the setting of the state fair.