A solid mystery that sets readers up for a series. I really enjoyed the characters and plot and found that the author did a great job of giving you just enough answers to solve this mystery but still keep you invested in the characters for the next book. The narrator was fantastic, though some of the southern drawls were too exaggerated and not quite Georgian. For the central mystery, I found the plot well rounded- if a little predictable, but I expect that with a cozy mystery.

This is exactly what you want it to be. It's a cozy mystery and I really enjoyed the audiobook for this. I will say that I wasn't quite sure where it was going to go because they made it seem like so many were at fault but I wasn't that shocked when it was revealed. However I really did enjoy my time listening to this!

Links to come.

“As an official minister in the church—and I’ve got a degree and a certificate and a funny collar and everything—I would have to say you’re wrong, Doctor I’m-a-psychologist-so-I-know-human-nature. The world is made mostly of things trying to stay alive.”

I liked this start to a new cozy mystery series. Madeline is an intriguing character, a little lost and rough around the edges, but still likable and relatable. I thought it was interesting how her background in theatre influenced her thought processes and her investigation style, like her ability to remember spoken conversations almost verbatim. The town of Enigma is simultaneously charming and a little off-beat. I liked getting to know the townsfolk, especially Gloria. The mystery itself was engaging. I’ll admit that I wasn’t emotionally prepared for that death, but I understand why it had to happen for the story to move forward.

The audiobook is narrated by Hallie Bee Bard. I thought she did a great job bringing Madeline and her investigation to life.

“On the surface, small towns can seem so simple, but they’re not. Behind every smile there could be an unspoken resentment. Every kind word was a possible pretense. Every action had more than one motive. Everybody had secrets and lived with the dull fear that those secrets would be found out.“

Enigma is a small town where it’s citizens have many secrets. There’s a murder and anyone could be the suspect, everyone has a motive.

The FMC moves back to town after her aunt dies to help get loose ends tied. While there, someone wants her gone. They try to burn down the house twice, they leave threatening messages, & someone is even murdered.

If you enjoy:
🕵️‍♀️ cozy mysteries
🧩 suspects left and right
🏡 small towns
🎭 drama

The audiobook for this one was cozy to listen to as well. The narrator had the perfect voice for our FMC. Her southern voices for all the characters were spot on.
Length: 9 hours
Narrator: Hallie Bee Bard

Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, & Minotaur Books (SMP) for the free ARC & ALC in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ALC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is the epitome of cosy mystery, although it does offer larger stakes than many others of the same genre, with fully named and established characters actually at risk. The characters are well rounded enough that there is a level of depth to them without their development overtaking the story.

The small town feel is done well however there is an aspect of realism that is sometimes lacking.

In 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗠𝗨𝗥𝗗𝗘𝗥, 𝗣.𝗝. 𝗡𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗼𝗻 delivers an atmospheric southern cozy mystery brimming with charm, suspense, and small-town intrigue. When Madeline Brimley inherits her late Aunt Rose’s eccentric Victorian bookstore in Enigma, Georgia, she hopes for a fresh start. But her arrival is anything but smooth: a gazebo fire, chilling threats, and a murder in the store itself leave her fighting to clear her name. Madeline is a determined protagonist whose resilience and quick thinking make her a compelling lead. The quirky supporting cast, including new friends who help untangle the town’s secrets, adds humor and warmth to this otherwise suspenseful tale. Nelson’s vivid descriptions bring the old bookstore and small-town setting to life, creating an engaging backdrop for the unfolding mystery. This series opener is a delightful blend of southern charm, danger, and cozy escapism. Fans of bookstore mysteries and strong heroines will love this intriguing caper.

This was such a cozy read! It’s perfect for winter and the season, and while it seemed to drag in some parts, it was still good!

This debut cosy murder book, was a great listen, with some very quirky characters.

When Madeline inherits her aunts house/bookshop, she has to move back to live there and run the bookshop, but then she starts getting threatening letters and someone tries to set the place on fire...

It has mystery and great characters who develop well throughout all in all a wonderful listen

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

Rating: 4/5
I received an eARC for my honest opinion.

I liked this murder mystery book a lot. It was cozy, it had mystery, a little bit of romance, murder and great characters.

This book is about Madeline who inherits her aunt’s house after she passed, but it’s not just a house. Upstairs is the house, and downstairs is a cute and cozy bookstore. However, when Madeline gets to Georgia and to the house someone sets ablaze the gazebo in the backyard, and now she is getting threatening calls telling her she needs to leave or else… Who is it in this small town where she grew up that is trying to kill her and destroy the house that she inherits?

This is the best book to read in the fall/winter, it’s cozy, it’s interesting, the writing style just flows, and you will find yourself ending the book within 1 sitting. I liked that the plot was engaging and still allowed you to have fun while wondering what will happen next. I liked the fact that the author made sure to paint a picture of what was going on or what the characters were thinking without giving the readers an info dump. There wasn’t a dull or boring moment in this book, something interesting was happening on every page and the reader will find themselves invested in the investigation, all the half-cooked ideas that Madeline came up with to later say “what was I thinking”. I found myself laughing and wondering to myself “did I pick the wrong person, did they do it”. I loved that there were twists and turns in the plot because it kept it fresh.

The characters were well developed, and I loved that you would see Madeline’s growth throughout the book… well other than her running into danger without back up lol. You will see a strong, determined woman who will not let anyone step all over her and what is hers now, but you will also see a small-town community come together to work through all the events that happen in this book. However, let's talk about that sexy handyman now lol. I need more of that man in this book lol or in another book, he was sweet, understanding but rational and a calming person for Madeline.

I received the audio for this book as well and I found the narrator did a great job with bringing this book to life. I loved how she changed her tones for all the emotions and the changing her voice for all the characters. I would definitely listen to another book by this narrator, and I would read another book from this author as well.

I want to thank NetGalley and Dreamscape/St. Martin Press for the opportunity to review this book.

After inheriting her aunt’s bookstore in a small town, Madeline finds herself battling arson and murder. She must solve the crimes before becoming the next victim.

This book is difficult to review because the writing is so smart while the heroine is TSTL. Madeline makes terrible decision after terrible decision with no explanation for why a smart person would do that, other than “I need the heroine to make this terrible decision in order for my plot to work.” I also felt like the victim was too well-developed for cozy mystery. The combination of a Southern literary style with cozy mystery was a bit jarring at first, but I got used to it. I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

What a fun mystery and absolutely loved the narrator! I enjoyed the plot and there were definitely great twists. Would definitely recommend to mystery fans

Dreamscape Media ALC
I really enjoyed this southern cozy mystery. I liked how it took the main plot points of the genre and messed with them just a bit to give the story a completely fresh feel, while I also knew what to expect. I thought the eclectic bookstore Madeline inherited was such an interesting place for bad things to happen. This book showed how valuable friendships are, how we can care for someone quickly, and how everyone in a small town is a suspect. It also explored grief and moving on to what's next. The narration was so fun to listen to, and I'll continue to listen to this series because the performance was top notch.

This was atmospheric and cozy!

I really enjoyed the setting, and the cast of characters. I don’t typically read a lot of cozy mysteries, but I enjoyed this one. I do feel like there was maybe a touch too much going on with all of the sub plots, and the pacing was a little off. Other than that, this was definitely enjoyable.

Apparently, it's either romances or cozy mysteries for me in December! Booked For Murder, An Old Juniper Bookstore Mystery, by P. J. Nelson is book one in this fun new series!

Madaline Brimley is met with arson after returning to small-town Georgia to run an inherited bookstore, but threatening phone calls quickly escalate to murder for this amateur sleuth.

The loss of one character shortly after being introduced to them pulled at my heart strings! I felt the same way as Madaline did because I too only just met and latched onto this now deceased character! They were the sweetest, and then they were gone too soon!

As this is the first book in a new series, there isn't a lot to judge it on, but Nelson did a great job with atmospheric descriptions and in laying the groundwork for series continuation.

Hallie Bee Bard created a truly entertaining audiobook! The appropriate voices for all characters added to my enjoyment and allowed for each individual to be easily distinguished amongst the others!

Overall, this was a quick and entertaining mystery!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and Dreamscape Media for the complimentary copies to read and review.

A very cute and cozy mystery set in small town Enigma, GA where our FMC (Madeline) comes home to take over her Aunt Rose's bookstore after her passing. Chaos ensues, including multiple fires and a murder. But... who done it??

Overall, I liked this but didn't love it. It definitely grasped me in the beginning and I was very intrigued, but the plot lost me in the middle. I also wasn't the biggest fan of our FMC, but it def kept me guessing and the audiobook definitely made you feel like you were in small town GA

Congratulations to P.J. Nelson, @harlequinbooks, @dreamscape_media, @stmartinspress, and @minotaur_books on today's release of 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗠𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿. ⠀
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I read this over the weekend and thoroughly enjoyed this southern cozy debut novel where we will meet Madeline Brimley who returns to Enigma, Georgia and discovers she's inherited a bookstore. She also discovers her small hometown holds deadly secrets. ⠀
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When she gets word that her beloved and eccentric Aunt Rose has passed and left her with an equally eccentric bookstore housed in an old Victorian mansion - she’s immediately faced with unexpected challenges. ⠀
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The gazebo in the backyard is set a blaze, and she begins to receive threatening calls to burn the whole house down if she doesn’t leave immediately. Ignoring those threats only brings more tragedy with another fire, a murder, and a cloud of suspicion falling over her and many in the town. ⠀
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If you enjoy cozy mysteries and light, quick reads - you’ll enjoy this. This book was chosen as an Amazon Editor's mystery pick for December and is quickly becoming beloved by indie booksellers. ⠀⠀
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Thank you to @NetGalley for also giving me the opportunity to listen to this on audio before release. I feel like the narration of #HallieBeeBard truly added to my reading enjoyment!
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You can pick this up today at your favorite place to purchase books.

A southern cozy mystery. I found it a tad bit confusing, and I wasn't really connecting with the characters.

I think that cover is really cute and I liked the audio narrator.

After being away from her hometown Madeline is surprised when her aunt leaves her her bookstore. Everything seems fine and dandy until a young girl turns up murdered in said bookstore. Madeline begins playing detective in search of Tandy’s murderer.

This is such a cozy murder mystery with that hometown southern feel to it. The audiobook hones in on that feeling as we meet characters with their cute southern, sweet accents. P. J. knows how to draw you into the store as we meet the people the different people and possible suspects in town. I enjoyed how we are following Madeline around as she amateurly investigates to figure out this mystery. Not only does she find out who the killer is, she finds out secrets, small town gossip, a little bit of chaos, but also, she finds her place back in her hometown.

This was an easy read/listen and I really appreciated having the audiobook along side to get the feel of the people. I will say I had an inkling of the killer but the way the different scenarios were thrown in, I just wasn’t quite sure I was right. I liked how it kept me guessing!

I have been into cozy mysteries this year and I was excited to read this one, especially with the title and the setting of a bookstore. I found it entertaining enough but I struggled at times with the characters. The MC is very annoying and unlikeable and I found it hard to connect with her. I found she also acted in a way that made no sense to me. I didn’t really like any of the side characters either and found them not very realistic. It felt like it could have been better, but I still had fun reading it.

I did a mix of audio and print and the audio book and as superior, the narrator really good. Gets an extra half star for sure.

"Maybe that was Enigma. The lies were so big because the town was so small."

There are many lies to unravel and secrets to reveal in the aptly named small Southern town Engima. It's what is so entertaining about P J. Nelson's debut cozy murder mystery, Booked For Murder (Book 1 of An Old Juniper Bookshop Mystery Series).

When Madeline left Engima she thought she'd be returning as a successful actress but that remains an elusive dream. Now she's entering Aunt Rose's Victorian mansion mourning the loss of her career and her Aunt. Looking around she has to smile. The mansion still serves as the Old Juniper Bookshop, where "each room was allegedly dedicated to a general genre— the dining room was supposed to be the mystery section, but there were also two cases of poetry..."

Before Madeline can decide if she'll keep the bookshop or the mansion, the historical gazebo out back is torched to ashes. Then the threatening phone calls start, promising her mansion is next to burn if she doesn't leave town. Before she can call the police there's a fire in the house. As the smoke clears a dead body lies on the floor and Madeline is suspect number one.

I applaud voice actress Hallie Bee Bard performing so many quirky characters; especially the often unhinged Madeline. Not trusting the young sheriff, who she used to babysit, to solve the case; she plays amateur sleuth with the help of her Aunt's BFF Philomena the professor, Episcopal priest Gloria, and even Cannonball the cat saves the day.

There's a hint of a budding romance with a hot contractor, a surprising love story, and a couple of twists that are worth booking yourself some time for this cozy mystery.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.