Ellie Alexander, the queen of cozy mysteries, does it again with A Murder at the Movies, delivering another captivating and delightful read. This time, our beloved protagonist Annie is thrilled to be organizing Redwood Grove's first film festival. However, the excitement quickly turns to shock when an infamous film critic falls to his death during the premiere of a Hitchcock-inspired thriller. Annie’s sharp instincts tell her that this was no mere accident.

As she delves into the mystery, Annie discovers that many members of the cast, crew, and festival guests have their own dark secrets. From a lead actress with a scandalous past to a film historian fiercely protective of his vintage reel collection, everyone seems to be hiding something.

As a fan of Ellie Alexander, I anticipated a highly readable and entertaining cozy mystery, and A Murder at the Movies certainly delivered. The plot is engaging and filled with twists, keeping me on my toes. The mystery is well-crafted, and I must admit, I didn’t figure out the culprit ahead of time, which only added to the fun.

Annie continues to be a delightful protagonist, and it’s refreshing to see her collaborating with the detective, which isn’t common in many other cozy mysteries. This dynamic adds a new layer to the investigation and makes the story even more enjoyable.

One thing to note is that the overarching mystery surrounding Annie’s best friend's murder, introduced in the first book, doesn't play a significant role in this installment. However, this leaves me eagerly anticipating future books in the series to see how that storyline unfolds.

A Murder at the Movies is a thoroughly enjoyable cozy mystery with a compelling plot, engaging characters, and plenty of surprises. Ellie Alexander’s ability to blend charm, suspense, and a touch of humor makes this book a must-read for fans of the genre. If you're looking for a fun and exciting read, look no further than A Murder at the Movies.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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Loved!
I have loved this book so far, it’s just such an amazing carry on to the first book, it has a lovely easy flow which is nice to read, you don’t get bored because you literally have no clue at all who the killer is and a little romance also!

I found my self feeling like I was one of the friends just enjoy the tea when it gets to gossiping bits!

Cannot wait for the new books!

Loved this one! Great and fun read. Highly recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for my ARC.

As with most cosy crime you do need to suspend belief in reality and wallow in the joy of the small town of Redwood Grove. I read this is one sitting and it’s a nice easy holiday read, would I read more. Actually yes, I’ve become quite invested in who killed Scarlett and what the latest clue is and what will happen with Annie’s fledgling relationship with Liam. So really quite an addictive series

A Murder at the Movies by Ellie Alexander is the second book in the Secret Bookcase Mystery series.

After the smashing success of the Mystery Fest a few months ago, Annie Murray's place of business, the Secret Bookcase, is in the black. Not only that, but the store has also gotten some good publicity. Annie gets a call from a director in Hollywood who wants to have her movie premiere in Redwood Grove. She asks Annie to help coordinate with the local movie theater to show the movie there. She also wants Annie to set up a small dinner at the local bar, the Stag Head, which is owned by Liam Donovan, Annie's arch enemy, the night before the showing. Annie agrees to help the director.

However, once the cast and crew arrive at the Stag Head, Annie realizes that Hollywood is not as glittery as it seems. The director, Heather Hathaway, is a nervous wreck. If she doesn't get a glowing review from the most difficult movie critic in Hollywood, Martin Parker, her career is over. The dinner turns disastrous when an unexpected guest arrives. Things only get worse the night of the premiere when Martin Parker is killed during the movie. Annie is horrified that this could happen in her serene little town of Redwood Grove, and is determined to figure out who killed the egotistical critic before someone else gets hurt.

I loved this book! Annie is such a great character.. Everyone seems to gravitate towards her. I especially liked her burgeoning relationship with Liam. We also got introduced to a couple new characters. I love how the story feels so genuine. It is not just about the mystery, but about the people in the town. I can't wait to read the next one!

Many thanks to #NetGalley and #Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read the eARC of #AMurderattheMovies.

A great second entry in a fun new series! Alexander continues to write charming, lovable characters in a cozy town with enough intrigue to keep me guessing. The premise of a movie premiere captured me less than the mystery festival of book 1, but it did pay off. I guessed the key detail early on, but I wasn’t set on my belief in the who the killer was, so it still had the element of surprise in the end. The long-term mystery of Scarlet’s death (and the growing tension with Liam) makes me anxiously await book 3.

A Murder at the Movies is the second book in Ellie Alexander's Secret Bookcase Mystery series. And after the huge success of her weekend mystery themed festival in the first title of the series, Annie has now been contacted by an Indie film director to assist in bringing a film festival and the premiere of a new thriller movie to town!

The opening night was an interesting start to this film festival. The Hollywood crew: director, producer, star of the movie, a film critic, plus a local man who has a classic collection of Hitchcock film reels, all join Annie and her friends at a big Italian dinner hosted by the owner of the restaurant, Liam. The evening starts off with a bang as an unexpected guest arrives, and then the film critic shows his true colors.

The following day is the movie premiere, and that's where our mystery really begins. During the movie, a flickering sequence starts, and something large is heard falling from above! We soon learn that someone has been thrown over the theater balcony, and Annie is right there to administer CPR, but it's too late for our victim to be saved. Annie is upset by the outcome of the town's first film festival and is now determined to help the police in figuring out exactly what happened to the victim.

In addition to the movie premiere, Annie also finds herself needing to make some difficult decisions when her old college professor, Dr. Caldwell, now the local detective, asks her to think about coming back to criminology. This leaves us wondering if Annie will quit her retail job at the Secret Bookcase to pursue the career that she dreamed of before her best friend, Scarlet, was murdered ten years ago.

I have thoroughly enjoyed both books in this series, and I'm really looking forward to reading more about the relationship that has been building between Annie and Liam throughout the stories. I absolutely love all of the characters as well as the setting of Redwood Grove, California. The mysteries are well plotted and keep the reader guessing right up until the end. I cannot wait to read the third book in this series to find out what will happen next!

Many thanks to #NetGalley and #StormPublishing for the opportunity to read the eARC of #AMurderattheMovies.

I’m already a fan of this new cozy mystery series and it’s only two books in! This second book is at least as good as the first one, The Body In The Bookstore. What a great idea to release the first two books simultaneously. It gives the reader a chance to really get invested in the regular characters. And this series has some terrific recurring characters.

The setting is a small town in northern California called Redwood Grove. And we have book lovers and a mystery-centric bookstore. Annie Murray has worked at the Secret Bookcase for over 8 years and after holding a wildly successful town-wide mystery weekend, she is approached by an indie filmmaker to organize a movie premiere of her noir-style movie. Annie organizes a town-wide event for the premiere, with Hitchcock-themed displays and events around town.

When an influential film critic dies during the premiere, Annie gets to use her criminology background once more.

There’s an overarching mystery that will continue into future books, the mystery of who killed Annie’s best friend and classmate, Scarlet, right before their graduation. There’s also a developing relationship with a restaurant owner, Liam, which may end up as a love interest or may instead mature into a deep friendship. It also looks like Pri, Annie’s best friend and coffee shop owner, may also have a budding romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read an advance review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

A Murder at the movies is a good who done it mystery book. This was a fast and easy read. I did enjoy this book. This is book 2 in the series I would recommend reading book 1 first although I don't feel like it seemed like I missed anything major. This is a good mystery series that I would recommend if you are looking for a good mystery that isn't full of gore.

A Murder at The Movies is a fun sequel in the Secret Bookcase Mystery series. I really enjoy the characters and I liked that we learn a little more about support characters as well as Annie’s past in this book. There are lots of red herrings and twists throughout. I did not figure out who the killer was until a few pages before it was revealed. I can’t wait for book 3 so I can return to Redwood Grove!

I have posted this review on Amazon, Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6595464312

And Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/p/C8vYUqwgfwE/?igsh=MW9kaGJkbjZqNXB3NA==

Thank you NetGalley for this arc!
4.5 stars I adored this book the setting was so cozy I love how the mystery unraveled. In addition to enjoying the presence of all the side characters and references. I will definitely be checking out Ellie Alexander’s other novels.

This is the second book in Ellie Alexander’s newest series and one of only three books I managed to finish this month 😵‍💫

It answered a lot of the lingering background questions I had after reading the first one, developed each of the supporting characters a bit more, and set the stage for what I think will be a super fun series (A Victim in the Vines at the old Wentworth property, Foul Play at the Festival at the Harrogate Festival, etc. - I’m obviously not a writer😆).

My only bit of caution is around the Annie/Liam plot line. I’m not a fan of a love story that overshadows the mysteries in any way. This book felt like it was pushing it at times, but hopefully that was just to set up the relationship.

Thank you @netgalley for the #arc of this new series!

Book manager and event organizer Annie is working on the event that launches her town’s first ever film festival. An infamous book critic has his final breath during the screening of a thriller that has been inspired by Alfred Hitchcock. Annie once again decides to investigate and find out who the culprit is. It was nice to visit this Small Northern California town of Redwood Grove again and getting to know all the characters more. There are also some romantic storylines for Annie and Pri.

Once again the. Queen of the Cozy Mystery has written a fabulous book. So looking forward to reading more I. This series.

Thank you to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the free book!

Annie Murray organizes a film festival as the second event in Redwood Grove. While it brings in a crowd, it also drives in a murderer.

As sure as Annie knows her name, she is also sure that the death of film critic has nothing to do with natural causes. Can she solve the murder, will she suffer a fatal review of her own?

The second entry in this new cozy series is even better than the first! Ellie Alexander is the queen of cozies. She brings lovable protagonist, a precious pet, fabulous supporting characters, red herrings, and a plot that keeps you guessing to the end. If you have never read a book by Ellie Alexander, you’re missing out.

5 stars
I love a cozy mystery, and one set in a bookstore is always going to be a yes for me. The premise sounded pretty darn intriguing - an independent horror film, opening weekend festivities happening in small town California, an accompanying murder - and I was not disappointed! The setting was super fun and I really enjoyed all the kooky characters that you can typically find in small towns clashing with the high faluting out-of-towner Hollywood types. (I live in a small town myself and can 100% attest to their authenticity. Lol.)

I have to be honest - I didn't realise until I started the book that it was the second in a series. I was a bit worried I might end up missing important things, but this story was pretty great even as a standalone. There was enough backstory given that I could figure out what had happened in the first book, but now that I've finished this one I definitely need to go back and read A Secret Bookcase Mystery #1!! Now to try and bide my time until book #3 comes out...

Thank you to NetGalley, Ellie Alexander, and Storm Publishing for this advanced digital readers copy. All opinions are my own.

Annie Murray is excited when she is asked to help organize a film festival and film premiere in Redwood Grove – it will bring much needed money to the town and the bookstore she works at. She quickly discovers that the movie world is completely different from the book world and soon she is once again using her background as a criminology student to solve yet another murder mystery. She needs to be careful though not to become the next victim.

“A Murder at the Movies” is the nicely done second book in Ellie Alexander’s A Secret Bookcase cozy mystery series. I like a lot about this series – the bookstore setting, Annie as a main character, her relationship with book store owner Hal, fellow bookstore worker Fletcher, her best friend Pri, former college professor Dr. Caldwell, and her prickly relationship with Liam (which is growing much less prickly!). If there is one thing that I don’t like about this series is the ongoing mystery of who killed Annie’s best friend Scarlett ten years ago – this is a bit of a downer and I’ll be glad when the mystery is solved and Annie can (hopefully) move on. The current day mystery is well done with just the right amount of suspects, plenty of twists and turns, and a few red herrings. I did figure out who the killer was but still enjoyed reading it as Annie came to the same conclusion that I did. All in all and enjoyable mystery.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

A Murder at the Movies, the second book in Alexander's new A Secret Bookcase mystery series, was a real treat to read. I enjoyed investigating with Annie as she tried to help figure out who could have done in a rather infamous movie critic. There's twists and turns, some interesting red herrings, danger, suspense, and maybe the beginning of a romance for our intrepid amateur sleuth.

If you like your mysteries on the cozy side and set in a small town, then you'll definitely enjoy reading this book.

Many thanks to the author, Storm Publishing, and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.

A Murder at the Movies is the second book in Ellie Alexander’s new cozy mystery series set in the picturesque small town of Redwood Grove. Annie is a local bookseller and following the success of the mystery festival has been contacted by a movie producer to host a film premiere. Everything is going great until the guest from Hollywood begin to arrive and it’s clear that there are obvious tensions in the group. When the visiting film critic is found dead during the film premiere, it really puts a damper on the event as well as raises the question who has the most to gain from this.

I’m enjoying this new series and I’m really liking Annie as a main character. There’s more to Annie and the residents of Redwood Grove than meets the eye and we are slowly learning more about them especially Liam and his interest in Annie. Can’t wait for the third book in the series to be out later this year.


Thank you @ellie_alexander @netgalley and publishers for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback

The second in the Secret Bookcase Mystery series features a glamorous film premiere. After the successful Mystery Festival, the small Northern California town hosts a movie premiere sponsored by the bookstore. Annie meets a cast of eclectic characters, including a particularly unlikeable film critic who uses his power destructively. When there is an unfortunate incident at the premiere, the victim is unsurprising, but the numerous suspects make solving the crime problematic. Vibrant characters and a clever mystery make this an engaging story.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

A Murder at the Movies is the second book in Ellie Alexander's Annie Murray series. While I thoroughly enjoyed the first book The Body in the Bookstore, I found this second book rather predictable, I was pleased that it did contain the same likable characters as the first. I hope the third book resolves the slowly evolving relationship between Annie and Liam. All in all A Murder at the Movies is a satisfying Cozy novel, a quick and entertaining read. Thanks to NetGalley, Storm Publishing and Ellie Alexander for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book, my review reflects my honest opinion. 3 stars.