One of the things I didn’t know when I requested this ARC is that this is the second book in the Maggie Dove trilogy, or that the main titular character is a woman over sixty! You can imagine my joy upon finding this out; women of a certain age are so rarely the protagonists in their own stories.

Sadly, on the whole, the execution didn’t work well for me, because the story swings wildly from comedy to quasi-horror with paranormal elements and back again; the narrative voice lacks cohesiveness, and the protagonist’s characterization lacks depth.

Beware: grief; loss of an adult offspring; depression; abuse; rape; domestic violence; suicide; drug addiction.

The story, told exclusively from Maggie’s point of view, starts lightheartedly, introducing her with little-to-no backstory; she’s a widow starting a new business as a private investigator, with the help of a wealthy patron-cum-partner, Agnes Jorgenson, and Helen Baker, a youngish single mother with a six year old son, Henry.

“Under other circumstances, Maggie would have prayed. She was a Sunday School teacher and prayed a lot, but she couldn’t see asking God to bring her business. Detectives thrived on misery: on people whose spouses were cheating or had employees who were stealing or family members who were lost. She couldn’t bring herself to pray for misery when she’d spent a good portion of her 62 years trying to avoid it.” (Chapter 1)

It turns out that Maggie’s daughter died a good twenty years earlier, and that she has been essentially paralyzed by grief for most of that time; it was only after the events laid out in the previous book (which I haven’t read), that Maggie had started to break out of her depression, making connections outside a reduced circle of friends and activities, and basically, starting to live again.

Part of the process of rejoining the living, so to speak, is setting up the detective agency with the two aforementioned friends; given that Maggie’s background hasn’t prepared her for the role, she is taking online classes from someone that calls himself “Detective Grudge”. This feels ridiculous on its face, and more so given that she and the partner’s six year old child watch the ‘lessons’ together.

Also, I don’t care that we are told that Maggie loves the kid, there are ways to write this sentiment without being offensive: “He was like a dog. He had the gift of being able to fall asleep in any position, in any place, at any time.” (Chapter 8); I hope this was changed in the published version. (Hint: children that age can and do fall asleep easily and deeply, regardless of location or timing, it’s definitely not just Henry.)

The story soon goes full Gothic when the heiress of the wealthiest family in town comes to hire Maggie to call her younger sister and “tell her not to come”; after the sister comes back to town anyway, along with her son, her husband Lucifer (because of course), their lover Passion (supposedly her actual name), Maggie visits the house. Ostensibly, it’s to reassure herself her would-be client is safe, but then there’s a weird scene between Maggie and evil sister Domino involving a tarantula, pseudo-witchcraft, and abusive sexualized behavior towards Passion.

Maggie ends the the scene by leaving the house–without speaking to Racine or her mother–and sitting outside by a tree, while reflecting that trees are comforting, and that she herself is like a tree, “just kind of stood there and grew, or occasionally drooped” (Chapter 4).

One of the bizarre mannerisms of the book is that everyone addresses the main character as Maggie Dove–not Maggie, not Mrs Dove, but Maggie Dove. This feels weird when her partners are talking to her, and even weirder, if that’s possible, when a man with whom there’s a tentative romantic interest also addresses her like that.

There are a number of other issues that come up in weird ways.

There seem to be only two Black people in the whole town, the new pastor at Maggie’s church, a Ghanaian Black woman, and the new cop, a young Black woman from the Bronx; out protagonist doesn’t take long to imply that of course they must know one another. And also, for funsies, the cop is the typical Angry Black woman, every time our very white Maggie has reason to interact with her.

Then there’s Domino; the only bisexual character in the story, not only is she “the evil sister”, she’s dead in short order, and all the details surrounding her life and death paint her in the worst, cheapest light.

Maggie’s so-called investigation of Domino’s death is complicated by her partner Agnes’s antics, in ways that are supposed to be humorous but don’t land well. See, Agnes is in love with another woman–who happens to be married and cheating on her husband with Agnes. And because the affair is not going well, Agnes goes on rage rampages, with Maggie her preferred target.

There’s more, a lot more, involving Sunday School, and bullying, and The Brothers Karamazov, and suicide, and “good” witches, “bad” witches, ghosts and drugs, and and and. Unfortunately, none of the sensitive issues have enough weight or space in the story; they are rushed in favor of the comic relief, and the narrative bounces around between plotlines, most of which aren’t properly resolved by book’s end, so that what plot is there is disjointed.

Maggie Dove’s Detective Agency gets a 6.00 out of 10.

A good enough read on its own, but it would have been helpful to have had access to the first book in the series.

Maggie Dove is an older lady starting a detective agency in a small town outside New York City. Her first client is Racine Stern, daughter of the oldest and richest family in town. Racine wants Maggie to stop her estranged sister Domino from returning because she is “evil” and Racine doesn’t want their elderly and ill mother to be upset. Domino ends up returning but dies when she falls off the tower at Stern Manor. Was it an accident? Suicide? Murder? Maggie and her detective partners investigate to try to find the answers.

This book was fine. Not bad, but also not great. Maggie is a nice, lovely lady. I liked her faith and learning more about her backstory. The other characters were also nice. Nothing noteworthy, missing the charm that is often found in these small town mystery series. I didn’t dislike it, but it also didn’t grab me and make me want to read more in the series. Thanks to NetGalley for the free ebook.

Maybe it's because of her former profession as a Sunday school teacher but the main character lacks a spine. She may be smart enough to solve mysteries but she can't even make a stand for herself. The plot moved teriibly slowly as well.

DNF

I would like to thank netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

It didn't feel like the book was going anywhere.

Maggie Dove, former Sunday School teacher, is not your run of the mill detective. She doesn't take your fun of the mill cases either. Her latest request involves an old family and a little bit of voodoo hoodu. Racine Stern is worried that her near do well sister Domino is coming back to town to cause trouble with her rock star husband. Racine is sure that Domino is pure evil and hire the Maggie Dove detective agency to keep an eye on the situation which quickly turns bleak as Domino ends up dead, a supposed suicide. You can't help but to take a liking to Maggie Dove who seems so unassuming and so nice. Not the sort of lady who would be a private eye. She is up to her nice Sunday dresses in crazy including a coven of witches, a mourning husband named Lucifer, and drugs some old some new. This was a little slow at the start and Maggie's partner Agnes seems a little overbearing but it does balance Maggie Dove nicely. Oh and don't forget about all the helpful advice from Detective Grudge and his "how-to" videos.

Thank you for the chance to review this book, however, unfortunately, I was unable to download this title before it was archived

I was given this book by Netgalley for an honest review. I loved the first book by Susan Breen simply titled Maggie Dove, but her newest book, Maggie Dove's Detective Agency is even better. After nearly losing her in life in the first book, but solving the mystery Maggie decides to open a detective agency. Well at first no business, but then Racine Stern, one of the wealthiest residents of the village offers Maggie a thousand dollars toi get rid of her sister Domino who Racine believes is pure evil and out to kill her. Maggie declines and her partners think she's insane for doing so.Maggie does take the case and suddenly all heck breaks loose regarding Domino. Lost of twists and turn. It's a fun read and Susan Breen pulls you right into the story. The cast of characters are kooky, fun and it is just a great read. I can't wait for the next Maggie Dove book.

Not one for my favorite reads, but later the ladies did start to grow on me but it lacked the the formula that I look for in my mysteries

Maggie Dove and company return in a new book. Maggie and her friends, Agnes and Helen, have started their own detective agency. When Racine Stern hires them to convince her sister, Dominio, not to come back to town, Domino is already ahead of them. But when Domino falls to her death in front of a crowd at a party, it is ruled as an accident. But, Maggie wonders if that's really the case.
Readers will be surprised to discover just who is guilty.

A simplistic read. A shallow view of much of the world. A surprisingly good twist

I loved this book. I can't wait for the next book in the series. Love the characters and the town. A nice cozy mystery.

Princess Fuzzypants here:

Maggie Dove is the owner of a detective agency. At least that is what the name of the business says so although the way her partner treats her makes that conclusion suspect. Agnes, who put up the capital, blusters and orders her around terribly.

True Maggie is on a learning curve, having hidden away from life after her only daughter died in a terrible accident. At first she stumbles and avoids any of the tougher parts of the career she has chosen but she catches on quickly, It is a good thing. When the woman who hired her is consider guilty by the town of the murder of her celebrity sister, she must find out if the sister committed suicide or was it murder. Her sister was not a very nice person and there are several other people who had reasons to want her gone.

Maggie Dove is persistent. Even when the client fires her, she continues her search for answers. When another body shows up, Maggie feels compelled to dig deeper. Considering her inexperience, her instincts are good enough to put her in danger when she discovers who is really behind the murders and why.

Maggie starts out as a slightly dotty character. She views the world through her experiences as a Sunday School teacher and has difficulty being forceful or strong. She does, however, surprise everyone with how good she becomes, no one more so than herself. It is a bit of a coming out party for her.

I enjoyed the story and the characters. Watching Maggie come into her own is most satisfying.
I give it four purrs and two paws up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alibi books for an e-Arc of this title in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoy this series so much. I really felt like I knew her. In this book Maggie is building her detective agency. She takes a case that has her involved in things she never expected...the least of which is murder. This is a fun series, and I highly recommend it.

I loved the fact that this was a detective story told from the point of view of an older woman and not a super hot, scantily clad 20-something or a dude. The characters were fun and had great backstories that made it easier to get to know them. The various twists in the mystery were placed perfectly throughout the story and never seemed too over the top. My only real complaint is that Breen often reminds the reader of information she'd already given in several previous chapters, as though she doesn't trust her readers to pay attention to the story.

This book is perfect!

Maggie Dove is a lovely woman who has been trapped in grief for 20 years. Now she has opened a detective agency with two partners, Agnes and Helen, and she recapturing her life. Being a detective frequently challenges her comfort zone but she is determined to be a success. When a prodigal daughter returns home after 40 years and suddenly commits suicide, Maggie is hired by her sister to uncover the truth.

This story is filled with delightful characters. I felt like I could really relate to Maggie because she old enough to be retiring but instead she if forging a new life for herself. Agnes was a little tough for me to like at first because she can be moody, but she always has Maggie’s back and she grew on me as the story progressed. Helen is a single mother with a mysterious past and a rambunctious little boy who adopts Maggie as a grandmother. I liked how the author was able to integrate some personal life challenges of the characters into the overall story and do it in such a way that it felt natural and not forced. This story is book 2 in a series but does well as a stand-alone. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would be interested in reading future installments of this series.

A low key private detective story with none of the drama and anticipation usually associated with this type of story that I have previously read. It was amusing in parts but didn't make my pulse race. Some interesting characters who matched the storyline.

I loved the older character.....since I'm there myself. Smart, witty, and not ready to quit. Shows that even though you are aging, you aren't dead and still worthwhile, funny and a very interesting character..