This was SUCH a fun book. I found it to be so well done. The characters were funny and Pomona’s development throughout the book? *Chef’s kiss* I’ll talk about all of my favorite things below (aka, the plot, the writing, and the characters).

With the plot, it was pretty straightforward with the three act structure. If you don’t know what that is, it just basically means that you have a very clear beginning, a point where the book gets to the main part of the story, and an obvious climax. I love three act structures, so this was easy for me to follow as a reader. Now, I’m not gonna lie, I did find it pretty predictable once I got halfway through the book, but it didn’t bother me that much because this was such a lighthearted and entertaining read. There were equal parts romance and mystery and this book never leaned towards being dark.

With the writing style, it was so whimsical and laid back that I felt like I was actually talking to Pomona the whole entire time. Her thoughts easily reflected her character and there was plenty of comical relief in the book. If you want a writing style that is laid back, conversational, and overall, a funny read, this is the book for you!

As far as the characters go, I have a few things to gripe about, but most of them, I absolutely love. So with the grandmother and Pom’s mother, I thought they were absolutely vapid and didn’t have a single redeeming quality. I find it hard to believe that both of these women didn’t have anything human about them. It really bothered me. Like sure, have a villain, but what the hell are their motivations? With Pomona specifically, she was like that in the beginning, but her character developed SO MUCH. I don’t understand how some other readers hated her the entire way through unless the beginning just put a really bad taste in their mouths. As far as I’m concerned, though, Pom is my queen.

Overall, this was the best, hilarious, lighthearted read with such fun characters. There isn’t much substance to this book, so don’t expect that, but it is a great break from reality without ever getting dark. Solid 4/5 stars. A huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read an ARC of this novel.

**This review will be posted on my blog one week before the posted publication date.

This is such a charming book— truly the perfect flawed heroine, navigating tensions & romance. I was nervous the combination of these two genres would be awkward but I felt like they integrated flawlessly. This was super fun, engaging, and a romp of a good time

This was absolutely hilariously written. I realize that it’s about murder but it’s also about this character Pomona that has such a distinct voice that DREW me back to this book over and over and over. I would honestly consider it a cozy mystery by my own standards because it was murder but not like “scary”?? Idk. I can’t wait for everyone to read this!

This book was so much fun!! Pom the rich heiress loses everything when her grandma was brutally murdered. According to the will all of her assets freeze until the mystery is solved. Pom teams up with her new roommate Gabe to get to the bottom of things! I loved watching Poms character growth and how she falls in love with new hobbies.

Can’t wait for this to be released so everyone will get to read the brilliant book!!

Thank you to NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

Pomona Afton Can So Solve a Murder is one of those books that initially feels like it’s walking straight into the “riches to rags” trope, setting up the FMC as yet another overly inflated heroine. However, it manages to surprise you by evolving into a heartwarming, lighthearted mystery. Bellamy Rose’s writing shines with wit and humor, blending quick pacing with just the right amount of self-awareness to keep readers hooked. What’s especially refreshing is that Rose strikes a balance—there’s enough satire and playfulness to poke fun at the genre's clichés, but not so much that the story feels detached from reality. You can still root for the quirky socialite-turned-detective baker as she navigates both murder mysteries and the search for her own happy ending. It's the kind of book that makes you laugh, while also rooting for a character who is charmingly flawed and deeply human.

I love a good mystery and one with romance - it's one of my favourites. The cover of this book is gorgeous - so I was excited to read it. It was so cute - funny, romantic and the mystery plot was intriguing. It kept my interest throughout. I also loved the characters - they were well developed and especially loved Gabe....cannot wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

"Pomona Afton Can Solve a Murder" is a delightful mash-up of rom-com and murder mystery, packed with wit, charm, and a dash of self-discovery. Pomona Afton, a spoiled hotel heiress, suddenly finds herself penniless and forced to solve her grandmother's suspicious death to unlock her frozen trust fund.

Bellamy Rose creates a fun and engaging mystery as Pomona, with the reluctant help of her grumpy yet charming roommate Gabe, stumbles through her investigation. Their banter and budding romance add sweetness to the plot, while Pom’s hilarious struggle to adapt to a life without luxury provides plenty of laughs.

With quirky characters, unexpected twists, and a heroine who grows in surprising ways, "Pomona Afton Can Solve a Murder" is an entertaining, feel-good read that leaves you rooting for both love and justice.

I received an advanced copy from NeGalley for my ho eat review. I LOVED this book! I love romance, I love comedy, I love mystery. This has all three! This was such a cute story, and I loved how someone so rich has to figure everything out on her own without money and it’s hard for her at first. I love Gabe, he’s a great character. Actually, all of the characters are well rounded! I guessed pretty early who the killer was based off of the clues, but that didn’t matter to me because there was more to the book than just “who dunnit.” I can’t wait to own my own copy! Love the cover art as well!

📖 Book Review 📖 We once lived in a hotel when our house sold and my parents wanted us to finish out our school year and so I lived a lap of luxury in the Embassy Suites for just about two weeks! I can still remember the indoor pool and getting to eat strawberry frosted donuts every day for breakfast…it might not be the lap of luxury hotel heiress Pomona Afton is accustomed to but it was pretty sweet for a five year old! Luxury is fleeting because nothing is the same for Pomona after she discovers her grandmother’s murdered body and the cold case leaves her trust fund frozen. Even pulling yourself up by the designer bootstraps is no easy feat and Pomona Afton Can So Solve a Murderis a hilariously heartwarming journey and you can’t help root for her the whole time.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

This was a fun, hilarious, and charming read. I liked the characters and their development. It gives Only Murders in the Building vibes if Paris Hilton was a lead character. I will definitely read other books Bellamy Rose writes in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Was a really good book! I didn’t see the ending coming. I wasn’t sure at first, it was a little slow, but when the murder happened I was hooked. The mystery of trying to find out who did it, and the little love story was amazing! I highly recommend this book! A really cute fast read.

Pomona Afton can so solve a murder, and she did it while finding love along the way! I never knew I needed a rom-com murder mystery in my life, but this was actually such a fun, quick read. I've been in a major reading slump, and this was the perfect little book to get me out of it. It was funny, charming and slightly suspenseful.

After Pom's grandmother is murdered, she finds herself with no trust fund and no apartment. Having no clue what to do, she ends up moving in with her ex-nanny's son Gabe and they end up trying to solve the murder of Pom's grandmother together. And while they are playing sleuths, you also get to see Pomona's growth and realization that yes she can do hard things. Oh and that maybe she found love where she least expected. I guessed the ending pretty early on, but that didn't take away any enjoyment from the book. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very quick and easy read. I enjoyed the humor along with the murder mystery. I did feel there could have been more character development, but overall a good read.

Perfect for fans of Only Murders in the Building. This book was hilarious with perfect twists. The ending connected everything so nicely. I really enjoyed Pomona's world!

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this one! I like the character development of Pomona as the book progressed.

Pomona Afton is for fans of Lucy Score's Riley Thorn. This book had everything I could want as a cozy mystery reader: there's romance (not too spicy but enough tension there to keep you reading for the relationship as much as the whodunit), there's comedy, and there's a murder to solve!

Pomona Afton starts off as a spoiled brat with way too much time and money on her hands. Thanks to her grandfather's success with Afton hotels, she's never had to think about what it is she wanted to do in life which means she's never actually tried to do anything. Something which sorely comes back to bite her in the bum when her grandmother is found murdered.

A mean, hateful, and downright awful old woman dies, and the family isn't too put off about it.... that is until they all learn that her will states all accounts are frozen and there is to be no access to the Afton hotels until the murderer is caught. Now the family cares. Nicolaus, the heir to the business and beloved child has a girlfriend he can stay with, and the parents can stay in the Hamptons during the off season (side note: they're still well off, just not so keen to share it with their children), That leaves Pomona...

Her "friends" all of a sudden don't have a place for her to crash, and everyone else in her life seems to have disappeared, so in a moment of desperation, Pomona calls her old Nanny who sets her up with living arrangements with her son Gabe, a hardworking heartthrob who just happens to run a coffee shop where he can get her a job.

Pom doesn't want to be stuck in this apartment with Gabe for too long, and Gabe wants his mom to get the inheritance money the grandmother promised in her will (after all, Gabe's mom did raise the Afton children). So together the two set out to solve the mystery of who is the murderer, and along the way they form a friendship that, as it turns out, both of them needed.

I can't stop raving about this book to my friends, my employees, and anyone who will listen. I know it isn't released for another 6 months, but someone PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell me, Bellamy Rose is working on a sequel.

Pomona Afton lives the life most people could only dream about. Her grandparents founded a successful hotel chain, and she and her family live in luxurious apartments overlooking Central Park in one of them. At 28 years old, her life is a series of partying, galas, trips on private jets, and being an influencer (when she can be bothered). One day, she takes the private family elevator up to visit her grandmother. in her penthouse apartment. The grandmother is mean and critical to everyone, but Pomona is horrified to find her grandmother dead in a pool of blood. The police quickly determine she's been murdered. That is disturbing enough, but it soon becomes apparent that grandma had a feeling someone was out to harm her. She's recently made a provision in her will that freezes all assets if she dies in suspicious circumstances. This means that Pomona's entire family is given only a few minutes to pack up any belongings they have and leave their apartments. Her brother and parents are out of jobs in the family business. With nowhere to go, Pomona calls the one person who she felt cared about her, her former nanny Andrea. Andrea is sympathetic and mentions that her son is looking for a roommate. With no other options, Pomona is forced to move in with Andrea's son Gabe in an apartment in a much less upscale part of town. Not only that, there isn't even a doorman, not to mention an elevator, in the decidedly rundown building. Desperate to get back to her jetsetting lifestyle, Pomona decides it's up to her to track down the murderer so her grandmother's assets can be unfrozen.

I enjoyed spoiled rich girl Pomona's fall from grace and forced self-reflection. She was funny and had plenty of asides about the fabulous life she used to lead. She got on with things, even though she'd never had to do anything for herself before, and even discovered a passion that was missing in her formerly aimless life. And of course, there is a bit of romance thrown in! Very enjoyable.

This book was very interesting to read. definitely a new concept to read. It is a great read, I recommend this book to anyone who like a fun mystery aspect.

An absolute delight of a gossipy, riches to rags mystery that I literally couldn’t put down (and I mean literally - I read it in a single sitting). It lives up to its Only Murders meets Gossip Girl promise and I truly loved it.

Ultimately, Pomona Afton Can So Solve a Murder is a fine book. I honestly think the major issue with the book is that it's so short. In the NetGalley app it's only 237 pages and that includes the pages at the beginning and the acknowledgements at the end. In that small space, there's a murder with multiple suspects to investigate, a romance, Pomona changing from a spoiled heiress to someone who figures out how to more genuinely care about the people around her. and she also learns to bake bakery quality treats and starts a whole business around it. It's just a lot in such a small page count and it needed room to breathe. It doesn't help that the story takes place in a short amount of time too, meaning Pomona decides to bake some brownies for the first time and has a business about a week later.

What I think could have absolutely sunk this book and, thankfully. didn't, was Pomona herself. While it was a perfect balance, she does learn how to be a somewhat decent person pretty quickly, but she also doesn't change with just a switch, which could have messed with her characterization. I can see if some people don't like her, but I thought she was fine.

I will say, I did call who the murderer was pretty early, although that's just going to be a by person thing, but this isn't a bad book at all and if you want a breezy murder mystery, you could do much worse.