I just love Ellie Alexander so much! Her cozy mysteries are seriously my favorite and I look forward to reading more from her! I’m loving this new series so much! I absolutely adore her Bakeshop series and this series is awesome too!

Annie's friend Penny purchased the old historic Wentworth property and is restoring the old farmhouse. It was a much more expensive endeavour than she had anticipated and she is running out of money. Annie suggests a Murder Mystery Dinner as a way to raise funds. Rumour has it that the eccentric Wentworth family hid a fortune somewhere on the property, which adds to the setting for this event. The event is a success, until a neighbour, Curtis Wright drops dead at the table. Curtis is not well liked at all and several people at the dinner have reason to dislike him, but to kill him? Penny is the main suspect as Curtis had been harassing her trying to purchase the property. With lots of suspects, secrets revealed and hidden passages, will Annie find the culprit and clear Penny?

I do love Annie and her friends in this small town. Although this story is not set at the Secret Bookcase Bookstore, it is them that sponsor it. The victim, Curtis has very little to redeem him, except that he sponsors the local performing arts society. They are the ones performing in the murder mystery. When Curtis drops dead, some think it is part of the dinner, but it wasn't him that was supposed to die. I had several suspects in mind and they were crossed off as I read and deduced a few clues, but alas, I was not successful at my sleuthing, but was close. (I never guess the killer when I do attend these mystery dinners). I did find Pri was a bit annoying in this one. She is definitely a drama queen and that grated on my nerves a bit. With the search for the treasure being added into the storyline, and secret passages where there is a dramatic showdown, I enjoyed this mystery. I am also enjoying the storyline of Annie's and Liam's relationship. They have come a long way from the first book when they couldn't even be in the same room together.

Death at the Dinner Party is a deliciously fun, cozy mystery that will have you hooked from the very first course! Annie Murray, the host with the most, plans a murder mystery–themed dinner party at the historic Wentworth farmhouse, a perfect setting for spooky tales and immersive fun. But when the actual murder happens, with a guest dropping dead at the table, things go from playful to perilous in the blink of an eye.

With a colorful cast of characters (and suspects) each harboring their own motives, Annie finds herself in a race against time to clear her friend Penny's name and uncover the truth behind the murder. The dark secrets of the Wentworth family and a collection of shady dealings make for a captivating, twist-filled journey. Add in some hidden passageways and creepy surprises, and you’ve got a dinner party no one will soon forget!

The pacing is spot-on, keeping you engaged without ever feeling rushed, and the mix of humor and tension is perfectly balanced. Annie is a relatable, clever protagonist, and her determination to solve the case, all while trying to avoid becoming the next victim, makes for an entertaining read.

If you're a fan of cozy mysteries with a touch of suspense, Death at the Dinner Party is a must-read—full of intrigue, twists, and plenty of laughs.

I’m so glad that I found Ellie Alexander through NetGalley because I absolutely am loving reading her cozy mysteries. I loved the sleuthing but also the budding romance between Liam & Annie. I look forward to reading more in this series.

This is a series with a twist that I like. Annie is actually trained to investigate and one of her college professors is the head detective in the community. In fact, she has offered Annie a job and relies on her powers of observation and deduction in the cases that Annie witnesses. This one occurs at a dinner party. It is supposed to be a murder mystery until one of the guests expires from poison. The fact that there is a storm raging and the lights go out only complicates things. While the victim goes out of his way to antagonize people, the motive for murder is not clear.

Annie would have been involved regardless but when her friend Penny is one of the suspects, she is committed to finding the killer. She is also getting involved in a more pleasant way. It looks like her burgeoning feelings are reciprocated and she and Liam are starting to gel. Although she is a capable woman, he can come in handy when she needs him most. No one is batting heads with someone else and there is mutual respect all around. I like that. And the mystery itself was good with lots of tense moments that keep me turning the page. Five purrs and two paws up.

The queen of cozy mysteries has done it again! Death at the Dinner Party is the third book in the Secret Bookcase series and serves up the right amount of suspense and bookish mystery.

Following Annie and her friends on yet another adventure, this third book picks up right where the last one landed but has enough to get you hooked as a standalone cozy mystery as well.

When Annie's friend Penny admits she's struggling financially to restore the historic farm she recently purchased, Annie and her friend (and Penny's girlfriend), band together to host an upscale murder mystery dinner to raise funds. But when a guest is actually murdered after the first course, the group has to go from hosting a fake murder to solving a real one.

I've really, really enjoyed this new series from Alexander. I've read them a bit out of order, as I wanted to read the holiday one around Christmas and didn't have a copy of the second book for a while, but I was still able to pick up the through-thread of her old college classmate's murder and appreciate each individual story for their own. Now all I need is the final book! I love murder mystery dinners, so I loved that element of this one and wish I could have seen how it played out. Penny's financial worries were never really resolved, so I'm a bit curious about that, but I otherwise really enjoyed the book. Annie is a fun character and I've really liked her as a lead.

Thanks to Storm Publishing for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4 stars - 8/10

The book has an inevitable mystery that pulled me in and kept me on edge until the end. The historic Wentworth Farmhouse gave me eerie vibe where mystery, long buried secrets, and rumours engulfed it. The investigation aspect is spot on. I really liked this one. Thanks to the Publisher

Another great book in the Secret Bookcase series. Annie throws a murder mystery themed dinner party to help her friend raise money. During the party an obnoxious guest is murdered, so Annie, Pri, Dr. Caldwell, and other friends are on the hunt for a murderer. Drawing on the history of San Francisco’s underground tunnels. Alexander takes the reader through the history of Redwood Grove, including the rumored tunnels and treasure. A nice, easy read!

A gripping book, this story pulls you till the very end, I enjoyed reading it. I definitely will love to see more from the author

Death at the Dinner Party is a quick and fun cozy read.

The third installment of the Secret Bookcase Mystery Series has Annie and her best friend Pri, help plan a fundraiser of a murder mystery dinner to help with the continuing work on the Wentworth property. Their friend Penny has done a wonderful job with the house, but the property itself remains in shambles. The murder mystery dinner is a fun way to have interaction through fundraising until Penny‘s neighbor is found poisoned. Annie make it her mission to get to the bottom of this deadly mystery.

Ellie Alexander writes a fun and easy to read cozy mystery. Annie, for a smart woman,tends to make some choices that are not always smart. We do see a lot of growth in her character from the first book to where we are now. Although I found the mystery aspect of this very easy to figure out it was still an entertaining read.

Very readable cozy crime. I didn’t realise this was part of the series, however it reads ok as a stand-alone. It did drag slightly in places.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review.

Thank you to the author, publisher and @NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

And now I have to wait a little for the fourth installment, but these are supremely bingeable and have a cast of absolutely loveable characters. I almost like our supporting cast better than the FMC, but I see a few things picking up in her future!

Fans of Clue will love this dinner party disaster that may or may not contain buried treasure. You’ll have to read on to see!

This series is just a ton of fun. I really enjoy how Alexander crafts her mysteries and this is no different. This installment brings a bit of romance to the table, for both Annie and Pri. While I missed being in the bookstore for the majority of the book, the farm setting was fun.

3.5 stars rounded up. This was a quick, cozy mystery. It's the third in a series and I was able to follow it even though I haven't read the first two. It wasn't the most exciting mystery I've read, but it made for a decent cozy read, especially during the fall.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

I just started reading Ellie Alexander this year and I can already call her one of my favorite authors. Death at the Dinner Party was another super fun, page-turner that just made me feel lucky to be a cozy mystery reader! This installment in the Secret Bookcase series was so interesting with it's focus on the historic Wentworth farmhouse and family. I was so intrigued by the plot!

Another cute read from Ellie Alexander! Death at the Dinner Party is a cozy mystery that takes place in idyllic Redwood Grove, CA! After having just survived a murder at their movie theatre, Ellie decides to help her best friend Priya (Pri) and Pri's girlfriend, Penny out by hosting a dinner party at her house. What was supposed to be a fun murder mystery dinner turned into an actual murder! All of the characters found themselves smack dab in a murder investigation with the killer still in the house. This is just a quick fun mystery and all of the characters are lovable. 4 stars! Thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this eARC.

The premise of this book really pulled me in, I loved Annie’s character and of course Liam but the story just didn’t build for me. I was hoping for a dinner table who done it but it didn’t come across for me in that style.
I have since started A Holiday Homicide, 30% in and really enjoying it.
Thank you NetGalley, Ellie Alexander and Storm Publishing for providing me with a copy to read, all opinions expressed are my own.

Another great addition to the Secret Bookcase series. I have enjoyed all three books so far and can’t wait to see what other adventures the crew at the Secret Bookcase and Redwood Grove community will find themselves experiencing. Each book has a unique murder mystery focus and the author does a great job of creating lots of twists and turns pepper with clues to keep you invested in the story and flipping through the pages to see if you can guess who is guilty of murder. The characters are well developed and this one has those you’ve fallen in love within the previous books … Annie, Hal, Fletcher, Pri, Liam, and, of course, Prof Plum. But there are also a few characters that will have you rolling your eyes and wondering how people can be so rude and/or entitled. But that just adds to the dynamic of the story. While this would be fine as a standalone, I would strongly encourage you to go back and read the first book so that you can fall in love with the characters from the beginning!

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

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(3.5 stars, rounded up)
Death at The Dinner Party is the third book in the Secret Bookcase cozy mystery series. Ellie Alexander knows how to write a strong mystery story. This one has some great fall vibes, so people looking for seasonal sorts of reads will enjoy this one a lot.

The setting is a small town in northern California called Redwood Grove. Annie Murray has been working at the Secret Bookcase, a mystery-centric bookstore, for over 8 years and in that time has organized a number of special events. The bookstore doesn’t figure into the story very much this time, which is too bad, but all the regular returning characters are here. Penny has bought a historic home that needs a lot of “love” and Annie organizes a special murder mystery dinner as a fundraiser, with hired actors and everything. Attendees are encouraged to come in period costume (think 1920 and 1930s).

One of the guests is murdered at the dinner party - and it’s not acting! The rest of the book, of course, concentrates on trying to figure out whodunit and why. Annie has a background in criminology, so her investigations make some sense. Her original ambition was to open a detective agency with her best friend in college, Scarlet, but that went by the wayside when Scarlet was killed right before graduation. That mystery carries over from earlier books in the series, and I hope we will eventually learn what happened to Scarlet, because nothing much new was revealed in this book.

Along the way, there’s a search for lost treasure, secret passageways/tunnels and Annie and Priya get themselves into a very dangerous situation. There is progress in Annie’s relationship with Liam, which was good to see, but I thought her focus on how handsome he is and what great shape he’s in was a bit much.

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