Great book, I really liked it. Entertaining and fun to read . Murder Happens , a Little Love Affairs. I can recommend it.

Thank you St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Paperbacks for allowing me to read and review Four-Alarm Homicide on NetGalley.

Published: 04/23/24

Stars: 4.5

Gratifying.

This is the sixth book in the House Flipper series and my second. The pleasure was all mine.

A clean cozy mystery centered around a small town house flipper with a small cast of series characters. I found them to be likeable.

This is a hit and I'm looking forward to reading the remaining four.

This was a fast easy read that made me feel good.

Home renovation, wedding plans, kitties and a murder make for a great read. Whitney and her cousin, Buck, have a renovation business. They just bought a fire station and are transforming it into a home. She is getting married and Collin and her have decided the garage area of the fire station will be the perfect venue for the wedding. Right around the corner is a duplex with one side empty and the owner, Joanna, has asked if she and Buck would renovate it and allow her to purchase it.

While all of this sounds easy enough, there are a few hitches. Someone sets the fire station on fire and there are seven owners of the empty duplex. Between trying to get the fire station ready in time for the wedding, finding out who set the fire and getting quit deeds from the seven owners, Joanna comes to the fire station in medical distress. Unfortunately, even with quick help from Whitney, Joanna doesn't make it.

There are a couple of other things happening in the story but to tell you would spoil the read. Needless to say, I couldn't put the book down and found myself reading into the wee hours of the morning.

this entertaining witty story will capture you in the very first chapter. Lots of twists and turns, interesting complex characters, a fast moving story with murder and mayhem! An unpredictable story that will keep you guessing to the very end! A real page turner and a must read!

This was my first House Flipper Mystery. I enjoyed meeting Whitney and Buck and following their renovation projects. Collin is Whitney’s fiancé and a police detective. I like Collin and Whitney’s relationship. It seems built on respect and a willingness to communicate. I enjoyed attending a wedding at the end.
The mystery was an interesting one. I did spot the instigator early on but not the reasons why.
I think this would be a fun mystery for a wide range of interests. I had little problem following the story line even though this is the 6th book in the series.
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martins for the opportunity to read this book.

Four-Alarm Homicide is book #6 in the House-Flipper Mystery series by Diane Kelly.

I always look forward to seeing what Whitney and Buck will take on as a renovation project. You don’t have to read the series from the beginning, but my favorite part is seeing how the characters grow and relationships develop over time. I really enjoy the chapters from Sawdust’s point of view. The mystery was intriguing and the twists and turns keep me guessing. I was a hooked from the beginning and couldn’t put this down. It was an enjoyable, entertaining read.

Thank you to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Four-Alarm Homicide is book 6 in the House-Flipper Mystery series by Diane Kelly.
This was such a fun contemporary cozy story.
The mystery is interesting and had lots of twists which kept me guessing.
The plot was well laid out with so many suspects. I loved trying to figure out what really happened.
The characters are well rounded and well developed.
Fantastically written with vivid descriptions that really put you in the storyline

Thank You NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Whitney and Buck, cousins, are also house flippers. Working in Nashville, they both have an interest in rehabbing historic properties and that is how they end up with an older fire house. They see the potential in turning it into a delightful family home. The neighbors become interested and also tell them about a townhouse nearby that needs to be fixed up since the family member died. Problem - the other family members do not want to sell - but money talks, so Whitney figures out a price and buys them out, with a little something to boot. And Whitney is also busy planning her wedding with Collin, a local homicide detective. Oh, and Buck's wife is expecting their first child, so life is more than a little involved for Buck and Whitney.

Very shortly, one of the neighbors dies in Whitney's arms. And here the plot gets a little strange as Whitney resolves to sort out this mystery death. Natural causes? Or murder? Who could have possibly wanted this sweet older lady to die? Could it have been the former owners of the townhouse? How about the neighbor across the street? How about the woman's family?

Four alarm homecide is a murder mystery that five thousand present got my attention because of the cat on the cover .

I’m glad it did catch my attention though because I loved every moment of it and will definitely be nabbing a physical copy .

Four-Alarm Homicide is the 6th book in the house flipper mystery series and the second one of I have read. Whitney and Buck Whitaker live in and operate a house flipping business in Nashville, TN. Whitney has found herself involved in solving homicides by discovering dead bodies. This story starts with Whitney & Buck winning the bid to buy a closed-up firehouse from the local historical society and turning it into a residence. It will also be the venue for Whitney and her law enforcement beau, Collin Flynn's wedding. There's a lot of work to do before the big day.

Nearby neighbor Joanna Hartzell appeals to Whitney & Buck to buy the deteriorating townhouse next to her to rehab. There is some drama with the townhouse's deceased owner's children, but Whiteny & Buck prevail and now have two projects and quite a few interested neighbors who want to purchase the townhouse when its finished, but Whiteny has given Joanna right to first refusal. Joanna ends up dying in Whiteny's arms in the firehouse by unnatural causes. There is vandalism, family drama and quite a few suspects and if that wasn't enough Whitney is trying to finish planning her wedding!

WOW! This was a page turner! I could not put this down and I admit I lost sleep so I could get to the end and find out who was the killer. It's that good!! I also enjoyed being in on the wedding planning and spending time outside of the mystery with the characters. I will admit to being disappointed and upset with Collin at one point, but it all worked out.
I cannot recommend this book enough!

Thank you to the author, St Martin's and Netgalley for the chance to read this story.

This is the sixth book in the House-Flipper Mystery series. It as a standalone novel. I have read many of the books in the series and other series by this author. I find them well written and well plotted.

I was amazed at how childish the siblings of the deceased owners of the townhouse were. But what can I say, not all families are alike. I immediately took a dislike to all of them but I’m sure that was the author’s intent.

I was sad that Joanna died but glad Whitney and Colin figured it out. I was surprised at the reveal to find out who the killer was.
I enjoyed every twist, turn and flip this story took and was happy to see a clearly defined solution for each of the issues raised.

I can’t wait for the next Diane Kelly book to publish. I was given an advanced readers copy and am not required to leave a positive review. I rate this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Vandalism, arson, and death are found in the latest cozy House-Flipper mystery, Four-Alarm Homicide.

Cousins Whitney and Buck are flipping a historic firehouse and a nearby townhouse. Many local residents show an interest in purchasing the townhouse. However, Whitney has already given the right of first refusal to the townhouse’s neighbor, Joanna. When Joanna collapses and later dies, Whitney suspects foul play. Are any of the neighbors desperate enough for the townhouse to kill for it? Or has Joanna challenging personality made an enemy of someone else? Whitney, with some help from her police detective fiancé, is dying to find out.

This slow-paced cozy mystery has fun characters and a chuckle or two. The murderer was a complete surprise to this veteran armchair detective. In fact, without a last-minute spontaneous confession, I don’t think Whitney or the police would have caught the perpetrator either. So, Four-Alarm Homicide is not really a fair play mystery. It is a nice way to spend a few hours as long as you don’t worry about whodunnit. 3 stars.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Paperbacks and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

I really enjoyed the remodel part of this story--seeing Whitney and Buck flip two places was definitely unique and a lot of fun! I also enjoyed the suspects as I myself suspected all of them at some point, and Kelly did a great job making them all seem suspicious. My enjoyment waned, however, at the ending. It left a very bad taste in my mouth when the murderer was revealed and it was explained what happened, and I found myself unable to enjoy the rest of the story with Whitney and Collin's wedding as I was just too upset by the murderer reveal.

Four-Alarm Homicide is the sixth book in the A House Flipper cozy mystery series by Diane Kelly. I've read all the books in this series but you could read any of them as a stand alone. However, it's a wonderful series and you would be doing yourself a disservice skipping other titles.
Whitney and Buck are cousins who buy, fixup and sell homes in Nashville. This book brings the duo to an open house for an old firehouse. They are turning it into a single family home. They're also fixing up a townhouse that the next door neighbor, Joanna, asks them to fix due to the state of the property. Soon, Joanna collapses and Whitney feels that it was murder!
The characters are great in this cozy mystery. My favorite characters as well as the cat named Sawdust and Collette. The books have a not always easy to solve mystery. I love the chapters narrated by Sawdust!

This was the first book I have read in this series, and by this author, but it definitely won’t be my last. It did work as a standalone, but now I want to enjoy the first 5 in the series to see how the storyline and characters developed.
Whitney Whitaker and her cousin Buck are carpenters who by buildings to renovate and then flip them. This time around they’re doing a nearly century old firehouse. Having friends who were among the first renovate old warehouses in Boston and New England in the 1970’s, this rehab drew me right in, and echoed the issues and joys my own friends experienced. The characters are well written, and I enjoyed how the essence of Nashville was incorporated in to the story to make the location distinct. Whitney’s reasoning through the death of their newest client was fun to follow, with plenty of suspects I definitely didn’t figure out who did it. I enjoy books told from multiple perspectives, reading about how different people perceive things, and really like the twist on this here when Sawdust the cat gets their say.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy, you’ve hooked me on the series!

Another wonderful cozy book in this series,I really enjoyed visiting with Whitney and Sawdust again.Diane Kelly never fails to entertain and keeps me turning the pages.#netgalley #st.martins

I'm one of those people that have to start at the beginning of a series. I need to know character foundations before I read the most current release but you really don't have to for this series. Yes the characters have evolved since the first story, but there's background enough to show where they've been and how they got to the current story. This is a great series and I loved this book. I loved the idea of taking a fire station and making it into a house/living area. I love mysteries where I can't figure out who did it until it's revealed and this was one of those stories. I had an idea who was to blame and I was totally wrong! Great story and I can't wait for another in the series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher.

Four-Alarm Homicide is part of the House-Flipper Series with carpenter Whitney Whitaker and cousin, Buck. By Diane Kelly has given the reader a complex murder mystery this time. Who would want to kill this older woman who just wanted the left side of the townhouse duplex repaired into a property to be proud to have attached to hers.

There are wonderful characters who renovate buildings and houses in Nashville so there is also the flavor of this distinct city too. Enough backstory is given on this house-flipping crew that if you haven’t read the series before you will still have no problem. I have read some but somehow got behind in the series. Still I enjoyed this book.

I enjoy this series. All the regulars are friends and get along. Courtney and her cousin Buck buy properties and do renovations to make them more useable. In this story they buy an old fire hall. They get another deal and a buy a nearby townhouse. That is when their problems start. The lady that told them about the townhouse dies unexpectedly at the fire hall. Was it natural or was she murdered? Several people are investigated including Courtney. I was totally surprised by the ending.

Whitney and Buck had quite the adventure going on with two house flips after they ended up with two places to remodel that were neighboring. They met an assortment of neighbors in the process. I liked Gideon’s character a lot and thought it was pretty cool how he and Joanna had both had major loved one losses and started their friendship around that. I never guessed whodunit and my first choice ended up wrong for sure

The showdown was calm and more of a confession—can’t really say much more without giving away details. The books in this series sometimes span a few months and this one did the same. I absolutely loved the ending!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by St. Martin Paperbacks via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.