(rounded up from 3.5 stars)

A good start to a new cozy mystery series set in rural Saskatchewan, Canada. The main character is Jeannie, a 60-year-old farmer whose husband died in a car accident six months before the start of the story. She’s kind of crabby and rude sometimes, but seems to be working on letting her softer side show more often.

An unscrupulous real estate agent wants to buy her land and Jeannie has no intention of selling - to her or to anyone else. Without giving too much away, the woman winds up dead while driving Jeannie’s car so it seems that Jeannie was the real target. An off-duty cop from Saskatoon (2 hours away by car), Derek, teams up with Jeannie and the local police to figure things out. I was a little surprised that Jeannie jumped into a relationship with Derek, given her being recently widowed, and they had had a good marriage.

I enjoyed the local atmosphere, including the descriptions of the land and Jeannie’s lush gardens, her pride and joy. The mystery was a good one, with a number of potential suspects. Friends and neighbors abound, so it will be interesting to see where this series goes next.

I bounced between the audiobook and the ebook for this title, which was very convenient, and allowed me to continue with the story even when I could not sit down and read - or when I could not listen. The audiobook was well narrated by Dawn Harvey. She excelled when voicing Jeannie.

Thank you to ECW Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a review copy of this book and for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

Jeannie is a recent widow that handles her grief through her artwork and working in her garden. She is pestered to sell her land by a realtor. She develops a relationship with the realtor, but when they borrow her car - they are killed in a crash. It seems that the person wanting her house is willing to kill for it !

Jeannie goes into detective mode with this fun whodunit mystery.. It's pretty base level, nothing crazy, but it was a cozy read. I would read more by this author or character, it just wouldn't have me running to the shelves.

Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dawn Harvey the narrator’s voice reminds me of Cloris Leachman I absolutely love it!!!
I didn’t enjoy this as much as I hoped. Did I guess who was trying to kill Jeannie no and I love when I don’t see it coming, however I felt it was a bit drawn out, and Jeannie wasn’t super likeable. The way she wanted a commitment with Derek after such a short time was pretty weird. I’m not sure I would read another one if I had to pay for it.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this audio!

I didn’t like this book as much as I thought I would. The narrator did great.

The audio was good and I liked the voice for the narration! This book was slow for me to get into but I'm not usually an audiobook reader. It was a good cozy mystery with an older FMC.

This high quality audio is the first in a series of cozy mysterys. The narrator did a good job. However the mystery was overshadowed by the constant references to the background and scenery . It was a predictable mystery with a variety of side characters. I found the mystery entertaining and the main character likeable. This would suit anyone who enjoys a cozy mystery as long as you are not put off by over descriptive background.
Thank you netgallery and publisher and author.

This audiobook was made available for me to listen to and review by Betty Ternier Daniels, ECW Press Audio, and NetGalley.

The narrator of this audiobook is Dawn Harvey. Dawn did a good job with using dedicated different voices for the various characters. I thought she did a really good job with the voices, which made this much more interesting.

This is a bit of a standard cozy mystery story, set in a small farming village in Saskatchewan, Canada. Jeannie is newly widowed and mourning her late husband, Frank. She's 60, her kids are adults who live on their own, and her farm has quite a few chores. Jeannie has chosen to stay in her village and on her farm for a variety of reasons. Her kids wish she would move to town, Saskatoon, and have been working with a realtor who is murdered by someone trying to kill Jeannie. Jeannie has the help of a friend familiar with police procedure, as well as the support of her sister, tenants, and friends, with which to solve this crime before anyone else gets hurt.

This was decent. Jeannie is a crabby Boomer, and I found her to be charmingly abrasive. She's not obnoxious, just believable for her age and small town. Also, she's opinionated but not karenlike. I liked her friends and family quite a bit. They seemed to give Jeannie grace, so I assume some of her prickliness was due to grief. I will say the romance storyline felt awkward more than organic.

I think this suffers from the author telling too many details or clumsily written background scenes. This has a slight first book awkwardness, but the mystery is decent. I'd check out the next book in this series. I'm sure the skill gained in crafting this book will result in an even better cozy next. All in all, this is average to slightly above average🤷🏾‍♀️ a solid 3.25.

Thank you to Betty Ternier Daniels, ECW Press Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.

Cute cozy mystery, I liked that the character were older adults later in life you don’t see that often. The main character is very likable and the narrators did a great job!

The cover sold this book to me and really happy that I was chosen to review the audio version. I liked this audio alit and it would make a great book club listen along. Have recommended to the women in my book club. Well written and executed

I love a good cozy murder mystery and this one didn't disappoint. It kept my interest and was easy to listen to plus it made me want to continue in the series, which is not an easy feat.

Jeannine has lost her husband and her land is wanted by a real estate agent that is a shark. The realtor will not leave Jeannine alone and has gone to the extent of blackmailing Jeannine. However, the realtor ends up dead and now everyone is wondering if Jeannine was really the target. If so, then why?

Thank you #NetGalley for the advance listen

Grounds for Murder is an easy quick read with likable characters and a plot that has a few twists that were definitely unexpected. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was very good with most of the voices but there were a couple that were a bit over the top or annoying. I don’t fault her, voicing a man’s voice is difficult for a female the only fault that I could honestly find would the voicing of the children. While there was not much children’s dialogue but the small amount that there was did make me want to fast forward through it. But, all in all I really enjoyed the plot, the twists, and the romance which is harder to do when an older person is the main character but it was done very well! We might be older but we are not dead! Lol.
Enjoyable and entertaining! A solid 3.75 stars for me!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this audiobook. A nice cozy mystery with mostly enjoyable characters. Quick, easy listen. I finished it in one afternoon.

I look forward to other installments in this series.

The story itself was quite alright! Not too slow and intriguing to get through! The narrator on the other side- I'm sorry but first of all, I felt like the voice didn't exactly fit. Secondly: it was SOO slow because of the way of narration. I can only speculate that I would've ranked the book much higher than I rank the audio book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. I really loved this audiobook. A nice cozy mystery with an amusing family and town folks. Great and easy listen. I loved the narrator. I definitely want to read or listen to more books in this series.

I was waiting for this audio to pick up but it was just so lame for a murder mystery. I didn’t enjoy it much at all it was very strange the main character was in danger , yet busied herself with cleaning other people’s houses and weeding gardens

Thank you to Netgalley

A modest opening for a series and an easy listen to accompany everyday activities. Jeannie is not the most likeable of characters but there is plenty of scope for the character and enough potential to spark interest in another instalment.

Jeannie Wolfert-Lang, a Saskatchewan native, recently lost her husband. She is happy to bide her grieving period by painting and gardening on her Canadian farm land.
But everyone in Jeannie's life- including a very pesky, persistent realtor- will not shut up about her selling her property.
When the realtor borrows Jeannie's car and is killed, it becomes clear that whoever wants this property is willing to kill for it!
We get some fun whodunit from here and while there were no major twists, I enjoyed Jeannie and the retired detective as amateur-ish sleuths.
I've read quite a few reviews that found Jeannie "prickly and unlikeable"
Well, that is exactly what I LIKED about Jeannie. I find her stubborn resolve to be totally realistic. After all, she is a woman in her 60s with a dead husband and someone out to kill her, I'd be prickly too!
While not specifically marketed as book one in a series, I assume we will have more of Jeannie and hope some of the gang makes it to the next books- especially Diesel the kitty.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this audiobook ARC and the chance to read for an honest review.

Grounds for murder

In this compelling mystery, readers are introduced to Jeannie Wolfert-Lang, a resolute widow who finds herself ensnared in a dangerous web of intrigue when someone tries to force her off her beloved farm.

This novel skillfully weaves a rich tapestry of suspense and emotional depth, offering mature readers an engrossing narrative filled with well-drawn characters and a tightly plotted storyline. The author’s keen insights into the personal and ethical dimensions of rural life enhance the intrigue, making this a standout read for those who enjoy a layered and thought-provoking mystery

This was an entertaining enough mystery, with an interesting physical location that was just as much a part of the story as the action itself. The story was good, following the pattern that I love so much in cozy mysteries and the narrator does a fantastic job. However, Jeannie, the main character, is insufferable. If she's going to carry a new series, she needs to be more sympathetic. It was hard to feel compassion for her when she kept running roughshod over everyone.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me listen to this audiobook.

Thank you Netgalley for my copy.

This was okay. It was one of those novels that's fine whilst you read it but a bit a bit forgettable after. It was probably much longer than it needed to be and that's probably where half the issue is. Not much happens for a very long time. And then it does and you're just pleased that something is going on at last.