Pirate booty...in the form of gold doubloons. A cold mystery from the sixties that's tied to said doubloons. A possible link to Ellery's great, great, great aunt. Add in a potential ghost at the family homestead and there's a lot going on that needs some explaining, just as Vera needs answers on what happened to her brother Vernon all those years ago.

I really enjoy this series. It's the perfect cozy and I love the characters. It's nice to see a cozy featuring two men and and it includes all the usual things I love about cozies...including an adorable pup, quirky supporting characters, and a solid mystery each and every time. I've read all the books in this series and never have been disappointed. I'll keep reading as long as Ellery and the gang keep on sleuthing too!

Well worth the wait! Absolutely love this series and each book gets even better! Josh Lanyon is amazing at crafting stories that are grounded with characters that you connect with and mysteries that you can't get enough of. "Death at the Deep Dive" is seventh in the series and doesn't miss a beat at suspense, humor, and fun. The plot focuses on pirates which is a delightful way of using the culture and theme of the town (Pirate's Cove) to craft the mystery. It all starts with mysterious coins. Ellery Page was already curious about this treasure but when resident Mrs. Sutton-Shandy asks for his help solving a mystery from the past, he's drawn into a Pirate's Cove drama that unfolds in the present. This mystery draws him into the lives of various residents, but it also gives him a connection to his Aunt Eudora (who left him the bookstore). This is a cozy mystery so while there is murder there are no gory details or grotesque imagery. Lanyon crafts brilliant mysteries that balance suspense and humor with moments rooted in action with other moments that are lighter and funny. One second, you're wondering what's up with the lamp light upstairs and the next you're aweing at Jack making Ellery breakfast in bed. The primary focus is on the mystery, but Ellery and Jack's relationship continues to adorably progress as they've developed a sweet routine together and are facing a sudden potential change when Ellery gets an unexpected offer. This whole series is addicting and highly recommended!

Death at the Deep Dive is the seventh book in the Secrets and Scrabble cozy mystery series by Josh Lanyon. Released 14th Aug 2022, it's 222 pages and available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

As a light and engaging series, this one is so appealing. Protagonist Ellery is drawn into murder and skullduggery again when he stumbles across potential pirate treasure in the form of real gold doubloons and silver coins from the 17th century.

Despite being the seventh book in the series it would work perfectly well as a standalone. The mystery is mostly self-contained in this volume, and although there are developing relationships and long term plot elements (like the dive bag which started this installment and which was thought lost/stolen), new readers coming to this volume won't have any trouble following the story. The author is technically adept and provides necessary backstory without info-dumping. The narrative is lighthearted, including an ensemble cast of oddball small-town characters. This is one series I recommend without reservation to my cozy/romance/mystery loving friends.

There are some fairly silly and over the top developments and plot twists, but it's a small village cozy, so it's really part of the whimsy. The "over the top" characters and dialogue were always on the right side of whimsical and charming and didn't shade over into annoying or yank me out of my suspension of disbelief, so it was a very fun read. The author/publisher has taken pains to make it clear that the romance is between two men, so I won't mention that, but there's absolutely no content which would scandalize anyone's maiden auntie. This is pure escapist comfort reading, simple and fun.

Four stars. Engaging and well written.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

I always look forward to a new book in the Secrets and Scrabble series by Josh Laynon. This one has our beloved amateur sleuth Ellery Page in possession of actual pirate treasure and asked to find out the truth about what happened to its owner.

This story diverts from the usual set up by giving Ellery a break from starting a book stumbling across a dead body. The mystery of this one is less life or death than past ones, but still with its own twists and turns while Emery digs into the past of the small town's inhabitants.

Reader's get to know more about Emery's aunt who left him her bookshop and there's plenty of meetings with the members of the Silver Sleuths . We are also given some quality Ellery and Jack one on one time that is sweet and brings a big step for the couple's relationship.

Death at the Deep Dive was a fun continuation to the Secrets and Scrabble series, and I look forward to devouring the next book when it comes out in the future.

This latest installment in the Secrets and Scrabble series is one of my series favorites. In Ellery's brief time in Pirate Cove, he's built up the Crow's Nest bookstore with the able help of his assistant manager / sleuth Nora Sweeney, is restoring his ramshackle Victorian gothic mansion, gotten the pretty much perfectly dreamy boyfriend - Police Chief Jack Carson - and has been involved in far, far too many murders.

Buck Island's history is a rich melange of pirating and sunken treasure, with the Shandy family featuring prominently. Vernon Shandy has been missing for almost 60 years, and with Ellery's discovery of a sack of Spanish coins, it appears that Vernon did find the famed Blood Red Rose treasure. Ellery believes that Vernon was murdered and Vernon's sister Vera tasks him with solving the murder, offering up a list of suspects, including Ellery's great aunt Eudora.

Ellery's great aunt Eudora Page has always been in the background of the series, mostly as the vehicle to bring Ellery to the island by willing him the bookstore and mansion, the Captain's Seat. But here we finally get to meet Eudora - as an young attractive woman in 1963. We've grown to love the village of Pirate's Cove and Bucks Island and its residents and in solving the mystery, we poignantly learn Eudora's dreams and her sadness.

And in the end, the perfectly dreamy Jack Carson comes through with a perfectly romantic scene, and I am left to look forward to the (final?) installment in the series where we meet Jack's parents?? Learn if Ellery returns to acting to finance restoring the Captain's Seat? See if Jack finally learns to cook?? 4.5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Squeeee! That ending! I love this series. Watson is still a little troublemaker, but the cutest one. Ellery is still sticking his nose into other people’s business (at the direction of other nosey people) and getting into trouble while Jack bails him out through real police work and training.

We’re learning more about the history of the island including Ellery’s great-great-great aunt Eudora. And the Captain’s Seat may or may not be haunted.

This series is so cozy. It’s like that warm beverage, feet up, sitting in front of the fireplace, warm-cozy feeling. I highly recommend this series, but you have to start at the beginning.

4.75

Another fantastic installment in the "Secrets and Scrabble" series.

"Death at the Deep Dive" was gripping and funny, light-hearted and entertaining, but also fueled by tension and packed with some pretty emotional moments.

Ellery Page's latest adventure was, as usual, an absolute joy to follow: a sixty-years old murder mystery, pirate treasure, decades old disappearances, family secrets and grudges, ghosts and secret journals, unexpected career opportunities (both of the sleuthing and acting variety) and, of course, Ellery's usual run-in with a conveniently placed corpse: our Scrabble and mysteries-loving hero can't catch a break at Pirate Cove. But thankfully, his romance with Jack seems to be going great, for once.

I absolutely adored this installment! It's not my favourite of the series, but it's fun and clever and the mystery was complex and ridiculously enjoyable. And Josh Lanyon's writing is, as usual, absolutely brilliant and witty.

The whole cast of characters, both main and side, were fabulously entertaining, as usual, and quirky and ridiculously wacky: Ellery owns my heart; Jack for once doesn't need to do any grovelling because he was an absolute dreamboat (THAT FINAL SCENE!!!); and the Silver Sleuths stole the show, again. I love those meddling, trouble-making little rogues so damn much!

The premise for the next book sounds AMAZING. I cannot wait to read it.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love this series as it's highly entertaining and compelling. This is the 7th book in the series and it's a sort of end of a cycle book: we learn something new about Ellery's family and gresta-aunt and a cold case is solved giving peace to a lot of people.
Ellery and Jack are a lovely couple, I love them as characters and love their romance. Wallace is a lovely dog and I'm always left wondering if i can adopt him.
There's a pinch of paranormal in this story but the solid mystery is solved by logic and clues. I didn't guess the culprit and a was surprised by the twists.
Can't wait to read the next novel, this one is highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

Very entertaining and fast read! This was the first book in the Secrets and Scrabble series I found, as it was an advanced reader copy. I'm so grateful to have had the chance to read it here. I enjoyed it so much I can't wait to get my hands on the others! Cleverly thought out and masterfully written.

DEATH AT THE DEEP DIVE by Josh Lanyon is an uneven mystery, which is more than compensated for by the lovely romance running throughout. The mystery portion of this book was difficult for me to follow - I didn't remember some of the characters and events being referred to, and I felt like I missing pieces of the story. However, the book more than made up for this with a wonderful romance - including an absolutely stellar ending!

I didn't realize this was part of a series when I requested this book. That being said, this book was such a fun and fast paced read and I was able to follow along with the story even though this is the first one I've read in the series. This is definitely a cosy mystery, which was something I have been on the hunt for and I definitely found it in this book. I will definitely be picking up the rest of this series.

I had this one on my TBR ARC list for a while before I read it. Why, you might ask? The author released book 7 in the series before releasing book 6 and I didn’t want to read them out of order. (A shocker coming from me, I know, but there you have it!) It didn’t take me long to pick up Death at the Deep Dive after I (finally) got to read Lament at Loon Landing. That’s one way to keep a reader on their toes! 😉

I’ve gotta say, as far as mysteries go, this one had more than a couple of twists and turns. There were way more than average usual suspects, which made this one a pretty fast read. Even Jack was more likable in this installment so there wasn’t a lot of time wasted being irritated with him. LOL!

As usual, the quirky characters drove the story and I enjoyed my time spent in Pirate’s Cove. According to the author there’s more to come and I can’t wait for the story to continue.