Read this if you like:

✨cozy mystery
✨murder in a small town
✨amateur detective / blogger
✨giggle worthy humor
✨banter
✨juicy secrets

Thank you NetGalley and Sydney Leigh for an advanced reading copy in exchange of a review!

SPOILER FREE THOUGHTS:

💭 Law and Order SVU vibes but make it extra giggly

💭A cozy mystery with a cute dog, COUNT ME IN

💭 Sydney Leigh creates humorous, dynamic characters and leaves you wanting more!

When I picked up Instagoner, I knew I was in for a fun time. After absolutely loving Peril in Pink, Sydney Leigh’s debut, I couldn’t wait to see what she had in store next. And spoiler alert—she totally knocked it out of the park! This book is exactly what I want in a cozy mystery: it’s packed with suspense, humor, and a little social media twist. Honestly, I couldn’t put it down.

The premise is pretty simple but super effective: Emily Dalle, a lifestyle blogger, finds herself caught up in a murder mystery after stumbling upon the body of controversial talk show host Jackie Hunter. What starts as a hit-and-run quickly turns into something much darker, and Emily, being Emily, decides to take matters into her own hands. She uses her blog (and her online followers) to investigate what really happened to Jackie. It’s such a fun twist on the classic mystery formula, and I really enjoyed how Emily dug into Jackie’s past, uncovering secrets along the way.

Leigh does a fantastic job with the characters, and Emily is the perfect mix of stubborn, determined, and willing to stir things up when necessary. I found myself rooting for her, even when she was taking some seriously risky moves or making questionable choices. Her relentless drive to find the truth—no matter the cost—really pulled me through the story. Yeah, Emily can be a little judgmental at times, but I think that just adds to her depth. She’s a work-in-progress, and I kind of loved that about her. It made her feel real, and honestly, it made me relate to her in a way that’s hard to explain.

But let’s talk about the supporting characters, because they’re a big part of what makes this book so enjoyable. Fitz, Emily’s best friend, is one of the highlights. He’s loyal, sweet, and always there when she needs him. Their friendship is one of the heartbeats of the story, and I loved how supportive and genuine he was, even when Emily was being a bit of a mess. I do wish we got to know him a little better, though. He’s got his own little mysteries going on, and I’m hoping future books dive deeper into his backstory.

And then there’s Murray, the dog. Honestly, he’s just the best. I’m not even a huge dog person, but Murray totally stole the show. I loved the little extra layer of charm he added to the story. If you’re a dog lover (or even if you’re not), I think you’ll totally appreciate his role in the plot.

As for the mystery itself, I was hooked from the start. There were so many suspects, so many motives, and just when I thought I had it all figured out, boom—another twist would throw me off course. I love that in a mystery! The red herrings were spot-on, and I was constantly second-guessing myself. By the time the killer was revealed, I was genuinely shocked. That’s always a good feeling when reading a mystery—when it’s unpredictable but still totally believable.

One thing I would’ve liked to see more of was Emily’s blog and her career as a lifestyle influencer. It’s mentioned in the book, but I feel like we didn’t get enough of that side of her life, especially how it ties into the investigation. I think there’s a lot of room to explore that aspect in future books, especially with the role her followers play in helping solve the mystery.

I’m also curious to see where things go with Emily and Noah. Their connection is definitely there, though it’s not the main focus of the story (and honestly, I’m okay with that for now). There’s potential for something more, though, and I’m excited to see where that goes. I also hope that Fitz’s character gets more development in the future. There’s a hint about his sexuality that I think could be explored more in-depth, and I’d love to see that side of him fleshed out more.

The pop culture references were a nice touch, though a few of the lines felt a little forced. Nothing major, but there were a couple of moments where the dialogue didn’t quite flow naturally. Still, it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the story at all. The descriptions of the town, the studio, and the mountains really brought the setting to life, and I could easily picture everything in my head.
All in all, Instagoner is a great start to what promises to be a fun and suspenseful series. The mystery is solid, the characters are super engaging, and the pacing kept me on my toes the whole time. I’m definitely excited to see where Emily’s journey goes next. I’m also looking forward to learning more about Fitz and Noah, and I hope future books dive a bit deeper into their backstories. If you’re into cozy mysteries with a modern twist, this is absolutely worth picking up.

A mystery set in today's blogger world. Fun, exciting story with realistic characters. You will enjoy!! Thanks #Netgalley and #LevelBestBooks for the eARC in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are mine.

Books about influencers are tough for me to read in general & this was no exception. There’s almost always a sense of entitlement; she even repeatedly argues with the Sheriff & directly goes against his orders. That would not fly in a real life scenario, I don’t care if she’s best friends with the sheriff’s brother.

Murray, the dog, was by far the best character.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I had high hopes for this cosy crime novel. I thought it would be a delightful, quick read. However, I ended up feeling disappointed by its premise. Maybe my expectations didn't match the book's intended audience. That could explain why the writing style and pacing didn't resonate with me. The story unfolded slowly, taking time to develop plot points. I wished it had moved faster. The characters were average and lacked depth. They didn't draw me into the narrative as I hoped. Despite my reservations, I still recommend this book for young adult readers. I didn't expect it to be classified in that genre, which might have influenced my perception.

A cute story but the characters felt forced. Emily was embarrassed on a national stage but is now working with the person who turned against her and her sister who she accused of a huge betrayal. I felt like Emily was either ridiculously naive or a doormat to all of the people in her life.

Engaging characters but a little too "sweet" for my taste. Although I consider this a cozy, I still like a little more edge in my fiction.

I loved this book! It was a beach read mixed with murder mystery where none of the stakes felt too high or too scary but still had twists and turns. It was somehow also a very cozy book. Such a nice break from my typical thrillers and it still kept me engaged.

After loving Peril In Pink so much, I absolutely had to jump at the chance to read Leigh's newest novel Instagoner, the start of a promising new cosy mystery series.

Emily Dalle is a successful blogger and is about to launch her own TV show when she bumps into a dead body one morning while cycling, which turns out to be the most famous, and most notorious, person in their part of the world.

Our rather curious MC decides to take things into her own hands by taking to the blog-o-sphere and asking her followers for footage, photos, etc, from the place and time in question. The local police keep warning her to stay out of the official investigation, but our dogged protagonist insists that the public can be helpful.

Oh, and let's not fur-get her trusty sidekick (sidedog?), Murray!

There are two noteworthy things about Instagoner, one negative and one positive:

- We do not stan, support or engage with a certain famous bigot and any of their associated works so a reference to a certain well-known character very nearly caused me to put this down;
- I did not predict the culprit nor did I suspect the culprit, and this was a total bonus.

This is overall a solid start to a new series and I am excited to see what Emily and Murray get up to next.

It's a fun, cozy mystery with some predictable little twists. I enjoyed instagoner and am interested in reading more books by this author! It was a good read, and it kept me engaged.

I like this arc so far.
Thank you so much Netgalley and publisher. The pub date was on August 27,2024, and full review to follow. I’m

Review of “Instagoner” by Sydney Leigh

3,5 ⭐️

This was a fun little murder mystery with some great elements in there. The characters were witty and the investigation into the murder of Jackie had some nice twists and turns. I wasn’t too blown away by the twist at the end, but the story did feel very cosy, and I really liked that. Also, the dog!!! He’s the best 🥹

This story follows blogger Emily who finds the body of Jackie during a bikeride with her best friend Fitz. Quickly, the death is considered a murder and there’s many theories and suspicions rising! Everyone’s a suspect, but Emily is determined to find out who killed Jackie, even after what Jackie has done to Emily in the past.

A recommendation for anyone who’s looking for a cozy mystery with some fun banter and (mainly) likeable characters. I had a good time, plus I flew through the story. It’s very easy to read and it’ll make you wanting more ♥️

Thank you so much to Sydney Leigh for sending me another ARC-copy of her book. Make sure to check out her other book, Peril in Pink, as well 🩷

I like a good mystery and was intrigued by the social media element to it. So I was looking forward to delving into that novel. Sadly the story actually never reeled me in. A miss for me,

When lifestyle blogger Emily Dalle comes face-to-face with controversial talk show host, Jackie Hunter, she’s in for the shock of her life. But this time it’s not Jackie’s words that cause a stir—it’s her dead body. Emily knows the chance of Jackie’s death being a random hit-and-run is about as low as the blows she dished out on her gossip feed. The police are doing their best but with their limited resources, Emily enlists the help of her online audience to figure out what really happened. She gets some great tips, including one from the murderer who tells her to back off. Will Emily piece together who killed the Queen of Mean or will she fall victim to the same fate?

I really enjoyed the interactions between Emily and Fitz. I loved the subtle pride and prejudice reference. There were a number of things that I felt missed the mark in this book. It felt very cliche and surface level. For example, Emily talks about how she uses heavy makeup for her online persona but is there something more? Does it help hide her identity or is it a crutch for an emotion issue? Also the sub plot with her mother is left open, I’m not sure if it’s going to continue in book 2 but it felt unfinished. Also this is a series, the romance with Noah felt very rushed instead of building with each book. That’s subjective though, I really like a slow burn.

Overall, it wasn’t terrible but definitely not a re-read for me. I’m unsure if I’ll try the second in the series or not.

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Emily is a fun protagonist that I enjoyed cheering for with a unique spin as an influencer. And, of course, the way to my heart is including a dog in a book! Author,
Sydney Leigh, created a cool mystery and I enjoyed my first book by her!

Sadly I found this one to be rather slow and guessed the twist really early on so the whodunnit aspect wasn’t the best for me. I will say I enjoyed the main character and liked having someone to root for, but I felt it missed the mark in some areas overall e.g. the relationship with Noah, with the buildup I was expecting more to come from it. Decent characters and I liked the writing style with the blog posts but not one for me.

I really enjoyed Peril in Pink by this author so when her new book was available, I needed to request it. It was easy to read, enjoyable, fun, and quick!

Instagoner is the first book in the new Bark and Blog Mystery series written by Sydney Leigh. The sleuth is lifestyle blogger Emily Dalle, who gets mixed up in the murder of the Queen of Mean, a controversial talk show host with a vicious gossip feed. Emily enlists her blog followers to solve the mystery. She ends up in the killer's sights and has to solve the mystery before the killer comes for her.

This cozy has a fun, modern vibe. The sleuth has an interesting profession, a quirky best friend, and a cute dog. I liked the concept of a lifestyle blogger crowdsourcing clues. It felt like cozy crime meets true crime. I would continue on with this series.

Thanks to Level Best Books and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for a fair review. All opinions are my own.

Fun read and a perfect palette cleanser between literary reads.

With the town of Eliot HIll, Sydney Leigh has created a twon that I would love to visit, even live in, regardless of the murder and bike gangs. Supported by a charming cast of characters, including her best friend Fitz the barista and her furry companion Murray, our lead character Emily is ready to face any challenges, whether it's an internet stalker, career moves with her mother or a run in with her ex.

I look forward to returning to Eliot Hill in future books and following up with Emily and friends.

Oh my gosh, the different twists this book had. It's so good. It kind of reminds me of the Good Girls Guide to murder. She doesn't stop looking for information and uses social media and then gets herself into trouble. It's very good and keeps your attention the entire time. I really liked this book.