This was such a fun series! Each short story was well crafted and left me wanting a full length version. Some of these authors were already go-to authors for me, but I’ve added a few more to my list now after reading these stories.

Thank you to NetGalley + the authors for my advance copy!

I was really excited by the premise of this collection, but overall it fell a little flat for me. I enjoyed 4 out of the 6 stories, but only one (The Reunion Dinner) really stood out.

Individual reviews with further thoughts have been left on each individual story’s page. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and authors for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my thoughts.

STAGED
I enjoyed the format of this short story how each chapter started with a relevant quote about home staging that also fit in with the story, but overall the writing was painful. The over-use of referring to characters by their full names after the initial introduction or by name over and over again instead of switching it up with a pronoun here or there was grating. Additionally, I felt like so many of the names were fake sounding (vs realistic character names if that makes sense) and some of the plots/dialog were written quite silly as well (making lighthearted jokes about not killing each other right after your friend was murdered, tampering with the crime scene with the cop right outside). I really struggled to get through this short story, but was intrigued enough to at least see the resolution.

THE REUNION DINNER
Really enjoyed this one! I loved the family personalities and dynamics, the drama of the intertwining relationships, and the unexpected twists!

CRIME OF FASHION
The writing felt silly, half the character names were ridiculous, but the worst thing was the repeated uneducated mentions of OCD.

THE NOSY NEIGHBOR
I’m having a hard time deciding what I thought on this one but liked it for the most part. I wasn’t sure where the story was heading at first, since it was made obvious that Doris killed Bob early on but I thought it was a great reveal that Marge had been talking to her ashes the whole time. I also really enjoyed the banter between Doris and Marge, as well as Marge’s denial of her nosy nature. However, I felt like the reveal that Doris killed Harold too happened so fast and I would have liked a little more time in the story to unpack that plot point and Marge’s reaction.

ONE LUCKY SUBSCRIBER
I thought the premise for this was really interesting and unique, but maybe not well suited for a short story as it was hard to get to know the characters and fully visualize the setting.

A CLASSIC CASE
This wasn’t what I was expecting but I thought it was quite cute and sweet!

The Busybodies collection features six short stories from a few authors I've read and liked a lot and a few who I'd wanted to read. Ultimately, my favorite stories were from the authors I was already familiar with - Alicia Thompson and Jesse Q. Sutanto. I appreciated the variety in this collection.

This was a really fun short story collection from some notable, auto buy authors. I enjoyed the lightheartedness of each of story and the tongue in cheek humor that often left me chuckling. I enjoy when authors work together to establish a central theme for a short story collection.

Busybodies is an engaging anthology featuring six novellas that delve into the chaos caused by meddling relatives, nosy neighbors, and social media influencers. Each story is filled with mystery and clever twists and captures the essence of characters grappling with unexpected events.

In “Staged” by Elle Cosimano, real estate agent Lyda finds herself investigating when her landscaper turns up dead in a home she’s trying to sell. The character-driven narratives offer enthralling insights into their lives.

I was pleasantly surprised by the contributions from authors like Garrett, Thompson, and Rosenblum, alongside familiar names like Cosimano, Sutanto, and Prose. Their unique perspectives make this collection an enjoyable read.

Overall, the anthology is a delight with clever storytelling that leaves you wanting more. I’m grateful for the e-galley of *The Busybodies Collection* via NetGalley.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the Amazon Originals short story collections that are free for Prime subscribers in the Kindle app. I especially appreciate the ability to add on free Audible narration, which ultimately is how I listened to this series (although I am very grateful to have received an ARC of the digital ebook from NetGalley). As a whole this collection has some powerhouse authors and excellent narrators.

Staged by Elle Cosimano, narrated by Megan Tusing
As a fan of the Finlay Donovan series, I was looking forward to this real estate murder mystery. I liked how this book started off with friends prepping to sell a house with some suggestion of possible romance, but then there’s a turn toward murder and mystery. It’s all packed in such a brief book that I never felt like I could sink my teeth in to the plot or characters. Lots of potential but overall a bit of a miss for me. Interestingly, narrator Megan Tusing received a SOVAS nomination for this in Outstanding Audiobook Narration – Short Story Anthology – Best Voiceover!

The Reunion Dinner by Jesse Q. Sutanto, narrated by Eunice Wong
If you love Sutanto's Aunties series or Vera Wong, give this a shot. In this story Josephine Ying is eager to fulfill Chinese New Year hosting duties when tragedy strikes. A surprise guest ends up dead, and Josephine takes it upon herself to get to the bottom of it. This started out cheeky and humorous but ultimately became a bit too silly and intertwined to believable. The narration was great. This was my second favorite book in the series.

Crime of Fashion by Emma Rosenblum, narrated by Brittany Pressley,
This short story brings a bit of mystery into the fashion world as an expensive necklace goes missing on a photoshoot. I found this decently interesting because of the setting, and I would recommend it to fans of The Devil Wears Prada, The Bold Type or Gossip Girl. In general, it's probably a bit forgettable, but it's a very readable short story that fits in with the series.

The Nosy Neighbor by Nita Prose, narrated by Sherri Slater,
I am a big fan of Nita Prose, so I was really looking forward to this fourth installment. This short story really embraces the "busybody" in main character Marge who spies on her neighbors and suspects nefarious deeds afoot. This book had a fun few quirks but lacked the endearing charm of The Maid series.

One Lucky Subscriber by Kellye Garrett, narrated by Jordan Cobb
Unfortunately, this is the dud of the bunch. I had a hard time keeping track of or caring about any of the oddly-named characters. The writing felt forced with awkward analogies, misfired metaphors and superfluous similes. The plot is difficult to follow, but I might summarize the chaos as some sort of financially-motivated social media competition in a mall? I think? While I was excited to be exposed to a new author through this read, I discovered that I am not the reader for Kellye Garrett. If you read and/or listen this short story because it's free to Amazon Prime subscribers or perhaps you are committed to completing the series, I would recommend turning it into a drinking game for every "GoPro."

A Classic Case by Alicia Thompson, narrated by Helen Laser
A Classic Case of saving the best for last! This final Busybodies chapter is the best of the bunch. Admittedly, I am a biased romance devotee who will possibly over-inflate a rating for a book that involves chemistry or crushing. Alicia Thompson comes through with a cozy mystery for anyone who has nostalgia for Blockbuster video. When Audrey picks up on a break in rental enthusiast Mr. Hoffman's routine, she begins to suspect something terrible has transpired. As she tries to get to the bottom of his absence, her path must cross with the "hot and grumpy" clerk. This short book is less sinister than the rest but still plays into the busybody mystery theme.

Busy Bodies, there’s a mystery around every corner by multiple authors such as Jesse Q Sutanto,, El CosaMano, Nita Pros, Emma Rosenblum, Kellye Garrett and Alicia Thompson.. The anthology is made up of six short Cozy mysteries that range from hilarious to quirky and there’s even one that gives you a creepy uneasy feeling but all great and so worth reading once I started with the first one I couldn’t stop my favorite who is either nosy neighbor or family reunion but all are worth picking up you can either get them in this one book or separately with Kindle unlimited that also has the audio narration with it, something I absolutely appreciate it. From a necklace that goes missing in a lot door scenario to a family reunion dinner that doesn’t go the way the host thinks it should, A lonely and shy girls search for her Tuesday afternoon video searching partner and a funny but creepy one called lucky subscriber to a woman who is asked to watch the house of her neighbor who is also the vein of her existence and loses her mind in the process. These books are so funny I am laughing just remembering them I four out of the six books in my opinion were five star reads not to mention the great narration on the audiobooks I just can’t say enough about this funny quick laugh out loud fall on the ground laughing mysteries. So so good! #NetGalley, #AmazonOriginals,#Busy bodies,

The Busybodies Collection is a cozy crime/mystery short story collection featuring stories from six different authors: Elle Cosimano, Jesse Q. Sutanto, Emma Rosenblum, Nita Prose, Kellye Garrett and Alicia Thompson. Each story is a standalone and is between 30-50 pages so is designed to be read in one sitting (each one took me around half an hour to read) and the stories do not need to be read in order.

Staged by Elle Cosimano 2⭐: This book tried to do too much in 40 pages and didn’t end up doing anything particularly well. The characters so say have been friends since secondary school but there’s a complete lack of emotion when one of them is murdered. This short story tries to have a romance subplot alongside the mystery which was completely unnecessary.

The Reunion Dinner by Jesse Q. Sutanto 4⭐: This was such a fun short story! I loved the plot twist and how the clues all come together at the end. I wish this had been a full length book so we could’ve developed some of the motives a bit more.

Crime of Fashion by Emma Rosenblum 1⭐: This book made 40 pages feel so long. There were too many characters who were introduced but had zero personality. Within the first page the author uses OCD to describe someone who likes things to be neat and orderly and continues to use it in this manner throughout which was infuriating.

Nosy Neighbour by Nita Prose 5⭐: I really enjoyed this short story and definitely want to read more of Nita Prose’s books. Despite it being 30 pages long, I thought the plot was interesting and I liked the double plot twist. The characters were well developed however I would’ve love to read a full length book about Marge and Doris over the years.

One Lucky Subscriber by Kellye Garrett 3⭐: The premise of this book was so promising and I loved the setup of the high stakes hide and seek game however the plot fell flat.

A Classic Case by Alicia Thompson 4⭐: This was definitely on the cozier end of the mystery spectrum however I enjoyed it. I liked that Alicia Thompson kept it very simple for a short story and everything wrapped up really nicely.

Overall I love these short story collections and hope that this is something Amazon continues to produce in the future. They are a great way of discovering new authors and due to their length are perfect for getting out of reading slumps or for if your brain needs a break.

This is a fun set of stories that I really enjoyed reading. Some were more engaging than others, but all had a fun mystery. I highly recommend these for anyone who loves mystery and short stories.

Thank you net galley and publisher for this ARC. This was a fun series of short stories. Some of the authors were new to me.

This was a fun little set of short stories. I’ve read books by almost all of these authors except Alicia Thompson so I was familiar with their work before and was excited to read these.

Staged: Fun quippy characters which is classic Cosimano, and I liked the small town everyone knows everything thing but could have used a bit more.

The Reunion Dinnner: Loved the meddling matriarch in this one and the giant family vibes were great. Also wanted more of this one though.

Crime of Fashion: This one really stood out to me, I feel like the setting and characters were developed really well really quickly.

The Nosy Neighbour: Like The Maid, this story was very straightforward and simple until it wasn’t. Not sure that I liked any of the characters but it was entertaining enough.

One Lucky Subscriber: I thought this was the most unique of the stories, the setting and situation were really cool.

A Classic Case: I really liked this one. It was sweet. But I also think it was a bit contrived, one of the main characters withheld a lot of information unnecessarily.

Overall I think most of the mysteries were predictable, which given that they’re short stories isn’t much of a surprise. If you’re expecting big twists you won’t find them here, but if you’ve enjoyed any of these authors work before then these will be fun little reads. Thank you to Amazon and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC!

This is my second collection of Amazon short stories and I have enjoyed both of them. It’s fun to be exposed to new authors and read different work from loved ones!

One of my favorite things about this collection is how true to their voice each author was, while also exploring something new.

I have been a big fan of Nita Prose's previous work, and I loved reading about a different character from her -- all while maintaining the engaging writing and quirky characters I love.

I really enjoyed the Alicia Thompson story -- she is a new-to-me author and I will definitely check out some of her work now. I enjoyed the movie store setting and it ended up being a very sweet story.

I am a huge fan of Jesse Q. Sutanto and enjoyed her story and all the family drama.

Overall this was a fun collection and a great way to check out new authors! Looking forward to reading the next Amazon collection.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

Thanks to Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for early access to the Busybodies collection of stories. Busybodies is a collection of six short stories which is now available from Amazon. I love mysteries with neighbor-next-door vibes, and these are so fun! Not quite cozy mysteries, these fun novellas have had me entertained throughout. These are almost all written authors I’ve read before and really enjoy - Elle Cosimano, Jesse Q.Sutanto, Emma Rosenblum, Nita Prose, Alicia Thompson, and (new-to-me author) Kellye Garrett. They are now available for free if you have Amazon Prime - and that includes the audio too!

this was a short story collection of all little mysteries. My favorite one was probably “a nosy neighbor” by Nita prose. It actually made me laugh out loud. The others were just ok, not too exciting, but not horrible.

Busybodies is another fun novella collection from Amazon! A few hits, a few misses, but a mostly good time.

Staged by Elle Cosimano - I LOVE Elle's work, and this was like her Finlay Donovan series meets HGTV. An endearing friendship duo and a kooky bunch of neighbors lead to an unlikely detective case.

The Reunion Dinner by Jesse Q. Sutanto - This felt like a mix of the author's Vera Wong and Kwan's Crazy Rich Asians. Fun, funny, and plenty of drama!

Crime of Fashion by Emma Rosenblum - Devil Meets Prada but make it klepto. I didn't love this one.

The Nosy Neighbor by Nita Prose - This one had strong Desperate Housewives vibes for me! I enjoyed the plot and pacing. Recommend.

One Lucky Subscriber by Kellye Garrett - My least favorite of the bunch. Like reality TV meeting low budget social media nonsense. Pass.

A Classic Case by Alicia Thompson - I don't even remember what this was about. I guess that's the review.

A collection of short stories written by a bunch of popular authors. Each one has it's own short story that involves women who are trying to figure out a mystery. I love the idea and enjoyed each of these, they are available on Amazon and great little shorts if you enjoy a mystery.

First off, I absolutely love the Amazon Originals collection of novellas -each anthology has been an absolute hit and the Busybodies Collection was no exception. This collection offers plenty of funny and romantic and slightly suspenseful moments that will keep readers entertained with each story!

These were fun, and I'm enjoying these collections that Audible has been able to pull together. I think my favorites of this collection were the first and last stories by Elle Cosimano and Alicia Thompson, respectively. I would have gladly read an entire full length book of the first story in the series. I'm excited to see what other collections Audible pulls together.

This is a lovely collection of six bite-sized mysteries, written by women (some I that I know and others I had yet to explore). I enjoyed the diversity of the writing and discovering some new authors I am keen to see more of. I wasn’t expecting this to be so humorous!

From a tale of two realtors-turned-detectives, to a deadly family dinner, to the disappearance of a very expensive necklace, to a fabulously eccentric neighbour, to a viral game of hide-and-seek, and finally a missing video patron. My favourite story was definitely <i>A Classic Case</i> by Alicia Thompson.

Overall, I think this works way better as an audiobook and I struggled to read the formatting of the Kindle book, although it was beautifully designed. Some stories were definitely better than others.

Thank you to Amazon Original Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This compilation, available to Amazon Prime members comprises six short cosy mysteries by popular authors. All slightly off beat, entertaining and good fun!

*Staged by Elle Cosimano, in which first time realtor Lyda is staging an old house for open inspection with the help of friends. When one of them is murdered in the house she must discover the culprit and their motive.

*The Reunion Dinner by Jesse Q. Sutanto. A woman hosting her first family Chinese New Year dinner gets an unpleasant surprise from her son and then a guest is murdered. Great unexpected ending!

*Crime of Fashion by Emma Rosenblum. When an exquisite Bulgari necklace at a fashion shoot disappears the young wardrobe assistant is the one the finger is pointed at. To keep her job and reputation she must solve the case herself. Some enjoyable tongue-in-cheek comments on the fashion industry.

*The Nosy Neighbour by Nita Prose. Marge is the elderly, nosy neighbour who sits at her window keeping tabs and passing judgment on her neighbour Doris and her husband Bob. But Doris has her own plans for Marge to get her just rewards for her nosiness. Very enjoyable, even if I wouldn’t want either Marge or Doris as my neighbour.

*One Lucky subscriber by Kellye Garrett, in which a popular social media influencer holds a high stakes game in a suburban shopping mall that turns into a murder investigation. Interesting idea that didn’t quite work for me.

*A Classic Case by Alicia Thompson. A young introverted woman who loves old movies is alarmed when the elderly man she meets at the video store every week doesn’t turn up. The grumpy sales clerk who she has a secret crush on, seems not to care about her or his missing customer. Cute story and my pick of the collection.