This was a great read I really enjoyed the mystery aspects and writing! I think the characters had strong personalities and the plot was paced correctly. I think this is a great book

"The Busy Body" by Kemper Donovan is the first in a series revolving around a nameless narrator who finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery.

The narrator is a ghostwriter who sees herself as Lady Cyrano. She has no close friends and is cut off from her family by her choice, and she likes it that way. She doesn't like to associate with others and keeps to herself. When asked to write the memoir of Dorothy Gibson, a former Senator who lost the Presidential Elections, she gladly agrees. Many admire Dorothy’s work ethic and steel-trap mind, and so does the narrator. The plot thickens when a neighbor they met once is found dead in her bathtub. When suspicion of foul play arises, both ladies team up to solve the mystery.

Overall, it was a well-put-together mystery that kept me guessing until the end. I liked the homage to Agatha Christie (one of my favorite authors), the setting, and the eloquent writing. I also liked the dynamics between the characters, the dialogues, and the puns. The romance was also a nice touch.

The book kept me engaged in most parts. However, it started very slow with over-detailed descriptions of surroundings and a stream-of-consciousness streak that further slowed down the pace. Luckily, the pace increased after the finding of the body.

I have to say that the overuse of name-dropping - of real and fictional characters - and pop culture references threw me off. Also, the repeated references to the failed campaign and badmouthing the candidate that won were a bit too much.

I also didn't like the lack of backstory on the nameless narrator which leaves us in the dark about her history. Maybe it will be revealed in the next book. While I liked the ending, Hercule Poirot style, I didn't like the choice the narrator made in the end. It makes her seem too inflexible and set in her ways, not a characteristic I like in my heroines.

The ending seems to imply that the next book will be with the ghostwriter only, which is odd. Here she was just the sidekick to the senator, and the senator was the one who cracked the mystery. Overall, it is a decent start to the series but could do better with some tightening of the plot and another round of editing (there were format issues). I rate the book 3.5 out of 5 stars and recommend it to less fussy readers who enjoy whodunits with a Golden Age atmosphere.

* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc. All opinions are my own.

My thanks to Net Galley and Kensington books for allowing me to review this arc. Unfortunately I only got thru 40% on my Kindle. The mystery sounded good. Ghost writer hired for a memoir of a former Senate candidate and the candidates neighbor is found murdered in her tub. I struggled because I believe this was an uncorrected copy. There were no chapter breaks, misspellings, words strung together, sentences ending in the middle of the page, a large space after, then continuing on the next line. Hard to comprehend.

The narrator has been hired to ghostwrite a former senator and presidential candidate's biography. To do so, the unnamed narrator follows the subject everywhere including to a neighbor's memorial service. Was the neighbor really murdered? Enter the narrator and their subject to solve the case. Cleverly plotted, this debut mystery gives homage to Christie and provides a modern fresh story.

This snarky, cozy adjacent mystery has a lot in common with classic mysteries while having a decidedly contemporary bent. A ghostwriter is summoned to the job of working with a high profile politician who recently lost her bid for the presidency, and the gig quickly turns from writing Dorothy Gibson's memoirs to sidekicking as the former senator relentlessly "investigates" the death of a neighbor. The characters are hilariously and completely described, though leaving plenty of intrigue around the central ghostwriter character for future development as the series continues. Comps include Killers of a Certain Age or the Horowitz and Hawthorne series.

This is a clever mystery in the style of golden age writers like Agatha Christie. The plot is well crafted and the narrative voice is unique.

A very talented ghostwriter signs on to help a failed female presidential candidate (shades of you know who!) write her memoir. Their initial work weekend is going well when there is a murder next door. The politician feels called upon to investigate taking her ghostwriter along - a Watson to her Holmes. An enjoyable mystery tale ensues.

An unnamed ghostwriter willingly takes on her latest project, the memoir of a former senator and defeated, female Presidential candidate Dorothy. Arriving in Maine to dive into the book, the ghostwriter and Dorothy are soon in the middle of murder mystery involving a Dorothy fan and neighbor. Much like an Agatha Christie tale, the duo follow the clues and set out to figure out the killer's identity. The ghostwriter's point of view is a bit snarky and conversational, keeping this a quick and lighter read. Well plotted with interesting characters.

This fascinating debut of the Ghostwriter series by Kemper Donovan is well done and well-paced. The main character is never named, but a failed Presidential candidate retains her to help write her memoir. Instead, Dorothy Gibson, the subject, entices the ghostwriter (GW) into helping her investigate the murder of a neighbor.

The author’s writing style is different and engaging. And the comfortably related story augers well for this new series.

A cozy mystery on steroids with an interesting cast of characters and a clever finale that will leave the reader feeling satisfied.

I do wish the author had made it easier for us to relate to the protagonist. We don’t initially know if she’s male or female; she’s female. We have no name other than ghost writer, and we know nothing about her life other than a couple of random hints dropped here and there. Having said that, you do warm up to the author’s vision for this book roughly half way through.

Based upon the conclusion, I do recommend this book for anyone who loves a good, albeit, different kind of cozy mystery.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions are my own.

Politics meets murder mystery in this thoroughly entertaining book where The West Wing meets Marple.

It’s no surprise that the author, who has read every single Agatha Christie book, is able to spin an excellent whodunnit yarn.

A fun and punchy who dun it. Enjoyable, fresh, fun and a new author for me.
I found this to be fun and enjoyable.

I love finding new authors who have a great spark, and Kemper Donovan is one of them! if you love Agatha Christie and all things Christie vibes you need to add this book to your collection. Women Sleuths, Sets at the wilderness of Maine, and a fast page turner, make this a fabulous read!

There is a lot to enjoy in The Busy Body. I loved the world of ghost writing in which it was set and the well read nature of the characters made it fun to find their literary references sprinkled throughout the text. This book reminded me of Knives Out as it’s also a fun exploration of the world of privilege while also unraveling a mystery. Similarly, the humor kept me turning the pages while hunting for clues along the way. I will definitely read subsequent entries in the series!

When our unnamed protagonist—a ghostwriter—is hired by a failed presidential candidate to write her memoir, she is thrilled. It is a dream job with a client who is very recognizable. But, their work is interrupted when a neighbor is murdered and they become intrigued by the turn of events and begin to investigate the crime. I loved the way that this story is told, in a very conversational—almost confidential—tone, directly to the reader. The narrator makes frequent asides (usually in parentheses) that are very funny: usually sarcastic and often biting, but sometimes simply amusing. Nothing is as it appears in the story surrounding the dead woman, the various characters who may have killed her, and the investigating cops, and the result is an intriguing murder mystery told in a very engaging manner. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

Once I got over the male author in a female character's voice, I enjoyed the book. Obviously Dorothy Gibson is modeled after Hillary Clinton and it works very well. Every time she laughs, I can hear Hillary's laugh. The lead character is a ghostwriter who is never identified by name (which (I found disconcerting because no one called her by name in the book). When a women they met casually at a liquor store is found dead in her bathtub the next morning, Gibson and ghostwriter are on the case. Like all good Agatha Christie detectives, they insinuate themselves into the investigation and proceed to solve the crime before the grumpy detective. Clever, funny and totally enjoyable.

Name of Book: The Busy Body
Author: Kemper Donovan
Series: The Ghostwriter #1
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Kensington Books/ A John Scognamiglio Book
Pub Date: January 23, 2024
My Rating: 3.3 Stars!
Pages: 320

Freelance writer aka GW (as we never get her name- have to admit at first I thought GW was a male) gets a call from her agent Ronda that she has been requested to be the ghostwriter to help Senator Dorothy Gibson write her memoir. Ms. Gibson (actually she is okay with being called Dorothy) recently lost a presidential election, is assigned a ghostwriter writer to help her write her memoir. GW is invited to stay at the Gibson estate in the small town of Showhegan, Maine, One evening Dorothy discovers she is low on wine so she, GW as well as a group of security, bodyguard etc. head off to ‘Betty’s Liquor Mart’. Vivian Davis a neighbor and a Dorothy supporter is there. When she sees Dorothy asks if she may take a selfie so that she can show her husband. They chat for a bit and then everyone is on their way. A few days later they see the same picture in the paper with notification that Vivian Davis committed suicide from an overdose.
‘Dorothy and GW are suspicious and decide perhaps they can to help the investigation.

This started out great for me. The characters got my attention. Plus I was pleased when I saw the genre was not only as Mystery Thriller but also as a cozy mystery ~ however, it didn’t take long for this cozy mystery fan to know ~nope not a cozy.

https://cozy-mystery.com/Authors_D.html

Story ended up good but it wasn’t as great as I hoped.

Want to thank NetGalley and Kensington Books/ A John Scognamiglio Book for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for January 23, 2024.

Everything about this book called out to me, but I am sorry to say I could not get into it. I tried several times and found my attention wandering each time until I finally gave up. Not for me, but it looks like plenty of other reviewers are connecting and recommending.

A punchy vibrant whodunit. A political maverick who lost the presidential election and a ghost writer team up in a small town to clear their names from a murder. At times the writing felt a little cringey and juvenile for the voice of the protagonist, but overall it was a good crime novel.

**SPOILERS**

A ghostwriter gets the job of a lifetime writing a book about a presidential candidate, Dorothy Gibson. The ghostwriter lives with Dorothy in her home and becomes embroiled in a scandalous suicide turned murder. The ghostwriter and Dorothy then take matters into their own hands to try and solve this mystery.

The mystery element of this book was really well done. I have read so many mystery/thriller books now that I tend to guess who the perp was within a few chapters. You had me until the end and I was shocked with how it turned out! In my opinion however, the ending felt rushed and a little 'get it over with'. I doubt in real life that the perp would confess like that when they had the opportunity to run off like planned.

I requested and received an EARC from Kensington Books/A John Scognamiglio Book via NetGalley.