Kate Valentine, a mystery author has been involved to the wedding of her ex fiancée. The wedding is being held on a remote island that can only be accessed by boat. To Kate’s surprise Jake Hawkins, who she wrote a few books with him is also at the wedding as her plus one. After the dinner rehearsal where Spencer read his notes about the bride (which by the way came from one of her books) flees the reception. Kate then finds the bride in the wine cellar with something in her mouth. Just like her novel were her heroine Loretta had solved a murder at a wedding. Now fiction is turning real as Jake and Kate finds another body. It is now up to Kate and Jake solve the murders before she is the one taking the fall. She Doesn’t Have a Clue is a laugh out loud book with just enough murder, romance and mystery wrapped up with unforgettable cast of characters. I would like to think both NetGalley and Minotaur Publishing for letting read an advanced copy of this book.

The view shift was really hard for me to get into from fictional character to author. I think I would like this one more as an audiobook!

I loved the genre mashup of the premise, but I found the story-within-a-story parts far more interesting than the actual plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

She Doesn't Have a Clue is a fun closed circle murder mystery that had me laughing out loud, swooning hard, and completely engrossed in the whodunnit of it all. Kate is a popular mystery author who is stuck writing the next installment of her series when she travels to a private island off the coast of Seattle to attend the wedding of two people who work for her publishing house. However, the groom also happens to be her ex-finance and her old crush, Jake, also crashes the wedding which leads to further complications for Kate. But when Kate stumbles on a dead body killed in a manner similar to a death in one of her books, Jake is the only one who can help her clear her name.

Adding to the wonderful zany atmosphere of Kate and Jake trying to find clues to narrow down who is behind everything, there is also a storm that has trapped the guests on the island. The storm was a great addition to the story because it wasn't just used as a plot device to keep the characters stuck. The storm also plays a part in the wedding and further deterioration of the historic house they are staying in.

Moke also did an incredible job creating a truly fascinating group of characters. They all felt flushed out and the banter between everyone led to some very funny scenes and moments. Everyone had their own motivations to possibly wanting the dead person gone and it made for some amusing times watching Jake and Kate knock them off their suspect list.

Speaking of Jake and Kate, their chemistry jumped off the page. I adored the almost second chance romance aspect of the story and seeing them work together. They also got themselves into some very interesting predicaments that are still vivid in my mind.

It also has the pleasing element of Kate daydreaming of different scenes that she could include in her book. Her protagonist felt like another character and I loved how her writing world reflected her reality. It was such a fun way to tell a story and highlighted Moke's firm grip on her characters and storytelling.

Overall, this was a very fun and easy read that would be the perfect book to curl up with a warm drink and cozy blanket. I believe this is Moke's first adult novel and I'm eagerly looking forward to what she comes up with next.

Rating: 4 Stars
Kate is an author known for her murder mystery books, but will she be able to solve this very real murder mystery?
When Kate agreed to go to her ex-fiancés wedding, she assumed showing face was all she had to do, since he is her editor. When the bride gets poisoned and then finds a dead body, the only one she can seem to trust is Jake Hawkins. Her biggest regret. Kate is determined to find who is behind this. She also realizes that someone is planning this based off her books.
I love that the author mentioned Murder She Wrote! It is one of my favorite murder mystery shows. Kate's character brings such a lightheartedness to the story, that you almost forget that there is actual murderer on the loose. Their second chance romance is to die for. I loved the dynamic between them.
I could not put it down. The twists and turns of this book keep you guessing till the very end.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press/ Minotaur Books and Netgally for the best murder mystery romcom I have ever read, in exchange for my honest reviews.

3.5/5

Fun book and a quick read! This was my introduction to rom-com/mystery and I felt some of the scenes heavy in romance and spice were oddly placed and took me out of the story, but I enjoyed the relationship between Kate and Jake. I echo the sentiments of other reviewers with having a lot of characters to keep track of and do wish we focused on less. But I had a good time, I liked the atmosphere and didn’t expect the murderer!

Thank you Minotaur and NetGalley for this ARC!

Seeing that She Doesn't Have a Clue was advertised as a murder mystery/romcom mashup, I just knew that I was going to love it. Unfortunately, in this case, the storyline did not hook me in like I had hoped it would. The way that the sequence of events and characters were presented made it had to keep track of what was going on. Nothing about the plot felt at all realistic or probable, despite the setting of the story. I also found all of the FMCs relationships throughout the book to be extremely awkward. While the FMC was endearingly awkward herself, her interactions with Spencer and Jake made me want to pull my hair out. I am all for a woman knowing her worth and moving on after having been cheated on, but the way that Kate babied Spencer at the expense of Jakes feelings really bothered me. It also frustrated me how hot and cold she was with Jake during their investigations and I'm honestly surprised that he stuck around as long as he did. That being said, Kate's epiphany at the end of the book and the way that she grew following the events of the story made me really happy and I loved that she could acknowledge some difficult things about her personality and make the moves to change them. The ending definitely made me happy I read the story

3.75⭐️ The best way I can describe this book is like if I had a Hallmark Movie Mystery with a splash of spice and incredible banter all wrapped up in a bow. It was cozy, fun, and very entertaining. My only critique/suggestion I have is that the book includes a glossary of all the characters' names and how they are connected to each other. With so many people in this whodunnit, I did tend to loose track of how people were related/connected to the Hempsteads. Overall, I very much enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a cozy murder mystery!

Thank you to NetGalley, Minotaur Books and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this eARC for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.

This was a fun, rom-com, locked room mystery and I ate it up. She Doesn’t Have a Clue is very reminiscent of the Clue movie if that were a romcom in my opinion.
I loved the romance, the banter was top-tier, the mystery was engaging and kept you on your toes, the fmc was relatable and funny.
Overall it was an enjoyable read, it felt like there were a few loose ends, but for what it was I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book!

⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is 3.5 stars for me!

Another cute romance book but….with a twist! Mystery, a body, a murder! This book has all the cute elements of a typical contemporary romance but it takes it just one step further and adds a level of intrigue that I didn’t know I was missing until I read this book.

I greatly enjoyed reading this one, it was fun and lighthearted and I enjoyed the characters, even the side ones!

One of the best features was the level of communication pretty early on between Kate and Jake that I really appreciated. I’m often frustrated when the two leads can’t communicate and sometimes it feels like characters are purposefully missing the point when a simple conversation would do. This was not the case with Kate and Jake and I loved that their feelings were spoken outright and communicated clearly to each other.

I also really enjoyed the switching of POVs between Kate and Loretta, it was just the right amount of back and forth between them and I felt I could understand how Kate thinks most of the time through the use of this aspect.

Overall, I did enjoy this book a lot! It was a quick read and was very entertaining. I do wish the general plot line could have been made a bit clearer as I did feel sometimes I had missed something or context was left out. I also felt I had missed earlier context from Kate’s storyline from before the book begins and almost felt that there could have been another book set before this one and that might have helped clear some things up.

Overall, a great read though and I loved the mystery aspect of it!

This was a fun rom-com mystery with plenty of twists and suspects. Kate is invited to her ex-fiance's wedding at a private island near Seattle, where sabotage and murder happen. I am usually good about guessing who was involved, but the book had me going back and forth, still getting it wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and how Kate has to face her flaws at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Kate is going to Spencer's wedding, who is her ex fiance. it's on a remote Island. On the way there, she runs into Jake, literally, who is also attending the wedding and ends up being her plus one. While on the island, it becomes apparent that someone is trying to kill the bride and Kate decides to figure out who.

There's a lot of characters which makes this book hard to follow.

I'll start with saying that this was a very easy read (in a good way) and the writing was fairly good. It was easy for me to read over the course of a few days without getting confused or needing to backtrack to remember how the plot was going. However, as much as I love crossover genres, I always feel that one genre overshadows the other and it ruins the book for me.

For me, the mystery lacked to a point that romance took over in places when it shouldn't have. There's a point where she shoves a suspect in a secret passage and instead of chasing after her, she starts making out with Jake. It just seemed off. I wasn't overly excited about it.

Solid 3 stars for me.

This book was a fun, easy read that felt a bit like watching an episode of Murder, She Wrote—but if Jessica Fletcher was much younger and there was a lot more spice! It also had some Succession-style family drama thrown in, which kept things interesting. I appreciated that I didn’t guess whodunnit, which is always a nice surprise in a mystery. However, there were moments when I found myself frustrated by the typical "why won't they just talk to each other" dynamic between characters, which felt a bit forced at times.

What really stood out was how much the book mixed genres—it’s part mystery, part rom-com, with plenty of drama. The setting on a private island during a storm gave it that classic locked-room mystery vibe, and I thought the quirky cast of characters added to the fun. That said, there were a lot of characters to keep track of, and some of them weren’t as fleshed out as I would have liked. The pacing, especially in the beginning, felt a little uneven as it switched between the main story and excerpts from the protagonist’s novels.

Overall, if you’re in the mood for something lighthearted and a bit chaotic, this book is an enjoyable romp. Fans of spicy rom-coms with a mystery twist will probably get a kick out of it, especially if you don’t mind a bit of melodrama and characters who tend to stumble through situations. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s a solid palate cleanser for anyone looking for a cozy yet intriguing read.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Jenny Elder Moke for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for She Doesn't Have a Clue coming out January 21, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. I was intrigued by the romcom mystery. It was so much fun! I was obsessed with Kate and Jake. The dialogue was witty and I loved the banter. I love that Kate was an author. There were so many fun characters. The setting was perfect. I loved the mystery! It felt like a Hallmark mystery, but even more fun. And I love Hallmark mysteries! I would definitely check out more books by this author!

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys mystery romcoms!

Kate is a mystery writer who receives an invitation to her ex- fiancés wedding on a private island. When she arrives to the boat to take her to the wedding, her former crush appears claiming to be her plus one for the weekend. Of course a storm comes to the island and murder and mayhem ensue. Everything was a bit over the top and silly but in a good way. I love it when a cozy, locked room mystery is done correctly and this one was. 4 ⭐️ I’d recommend to my friends for sure when thiss comes out in January. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins press for an ARC copy.

Unfortunately, She Doesn’t Have a Clue fell flat for me. While the premise had potential for a fun mystery, the plot felt predictable and lacked real excitement. The main character didn’t stand out, and the pacing was slow, making it hard to stay invested. I was hoping for more twists and depth, but the story felt underdeveloped. It’s not a terrible read, just not as engaging as I had hoped. Fans of light mysteries might enjoy it, but it didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

I was kicking my feet and giggling the entire time. Very real, flawed relatable characters. I love a mystery rom-com so I couldn’t put this book down until I finished it. I already want to reread it and avoid the rest of my TBR.

She Doesn't Have a Clue started with a captivating premise that immediately drew me in, and I had high hopes for its potential. Unfortunately, the narrative was weighed down by excessive information and pacing problems, making the reading experience feel more like a chore. I often found myself struggling to stay engaged as the story unfolded, which was disappointing given its intriguing concept.

If the plot had been streamlined and the characters introduced in a more cohesive and thoughtful manner, I truly believe the story could have been something special. There were moments of brilliance that shone through, hinting at the what the author could offer with a bit more refinement. Ultimately, it feels like a missed opportunity, leaving me wishing for a more polished version that could do justice to its original promise.

Please note, I do not publish negative reviews on any of my platforms.

This is a cute mystery with a good romance subplot. If you lean more towards romance than mystery, then this is the book for you.

Kate is a mystery writer who is attending her exes wedding on a secluded island. Jake, the one-that-got-away, is also going. When a poisoning occurs, Kate is considered the main suspect. Kate and Jake work together to find the real villain while exploring their unresolved feelings for one another.

Jake and Kate have lovely chemistry. You can’t help but root for them from the start. As for some tropes you have one-bed, second chance, and fake dating.

The author interludes passages of the Loretta mysteries that Kate writes. These were such fun additions to the story. I would totally want to read these if they existed in real life.

While I had predicted the ending, it didn’t stop my enjoyment of the book. Overall, it was a fun, cosy time.