Cover Image: Bear Witness to Murder

Bear Witness to Murder

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

I feel kind of bad only giving this a 3.5, but I just did not enjoy it that much. In fact, I put off reading just so I didn't have to read this one. Possibly if I had read the first book I would enjoy this one more, but I didn't really find the characters likable. Sasha (MC) was not really fun, her sister was irritating, and I didn't like her mom at all. Her mom wanted her to get back with her cheating ex-husband!

Plus, I know that cozy mysteries push the cute factor, but an entire town having an OktoBEAR Fest made me cringe.

Was this review helpful?

Sasha, owner of a special teddy bear shop finds another dead body in this second installation in the series. Haven't read the 1st one, but wasn't too lost overall. A good story, although a bit sad at the end. A good premise for a cozy mystery though, and would recommend.

Was this review helpful?

A good book. Well written with great characters and a good plot. The storyline flows and the mystery is enjoyable. I highly recommend.,

Was this review helpful?

I didn't really care for this book. The characters didn't really come alive for me, and there were too many of them. I ended up skipping over the parts where they were making bears for the festival. Their wasn't a whole lot about the murder, it was mostly in the background. I don't think I would try another one in the series.

Was this review helpful?

Small town cozy mystery that makes you want to pack up and move there (yep, even with MURDER!). Great plot, atmosphere and fantastic characters- everything that gives a cozy the charm we love!

Was this review helpful?

The mystery is well written with plenty of suspects, clues that are well placed, and red herrings to keep you guessing who the killer is until the surprising reveal. While all the characters are well written and well developed the author seems to add more depth to the main characters than she does the secondary characters. The author also does a good job of describing the scenes in the book so you can picture what is happening in the book.

I like that Sasha and Maddie always look out for each other in both their private and professional lives. I like that Sasha and Jay are giving their budding romance a chance even though it will be a long distance romance for a few months. I don't like that Sasha's mother Judith keeps trying to her to get back together with her cheating ex-husband Flynn, the author never explains why Judith likes Flynn so much maybe it will be explained in the next book. I found myself getting bored reading about the high school rivalry between Sasha and Holly almost every time Sasha saw Holly around town, this story line was very tiresome and it never seemed to end.
I look forward to reading book #3 Have Yourself a Beary Little Murder to see what happens to the characters.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Kensington Books for my review.

Was this review helpful?

This book starts off not too long after the first book ends and Sasha is hosting the Silver Hollow Cranbeary tea party. Pretty much the whole town was involved and everything went beautifully untik Sasha stumbles over a dead body the next morning. I enjoyed this mystery immensely, especially since there were so many suspects. Highly recommend!

Was this review helpful?

Bear Witness to Murder (A Teddy Bear Mystery Book 2)
By Meg Macy
4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Silver Bear Shop and Factory manager Sasha Silverman is cozying up to the fall season by hosting Silver Hollow’s Cranbeary Tea Party, the opening event of the village’s Oktobear Fest—a too-cute celebration themed around teddy bears. She barely has a moment to agonize over the return of her former high school rival, Holly Parker, whose new toy and bookstore in town could spell big trouble for the Silver Bear Shop and her cousin’s small bookstore when Sasha discovers Holly’s shop assistant dead with a knife plunged in her body, the unpleasant woman suddenly looks like a real backstabber. So does Sasha’s ex-husband, rumored to have rekindled the fiery extramarital affair he once had with the victim.

Bear Witness to Murder by Meg Macy is the second book in the cozy Teddy Bear Mystery series. The story takes place in a small town with Sasha running her family business, the Silver Bear Shop and Factory. Which makes me think of a build a bear shop. Sasha’s mother always pushing her cheating on her really brought the story down.I mean really who would want that for their daughter ? Other than that it was well-written and engaging. Thank you for the advance copy I received from the publisher via NetGalley.

Was this review helpful?

Sasha is enjoying all the fall celebrations that Silver Hollow has to offer until someone that nobody likes ends up dead and she's in deeper than the stuffing in the bears.

Was this review helpful?

This was a fun read! It's set in a fictional town in SE Michigan where I live so it's neat to see some of the references in the books and to recognize landmarks.

I enjoy the characters in this series. I really like Sasha and Maddy. This one had some big surprises in characters! I don't want to say any more about that though because it'd give away the ending!

The plot line moved along at a decent pace. I loved all the things that were going on in the town, Oktobear Fest and the Cranbeary Tea Party and all the interesting things! There were some good red herrings in this book so it was hard to figure out the villain. I totally did not see it coming!

I recommend the series if you're a teddy bear fan, cozy mystery fan, or both! You can read them as stand-alone books but it's more fun to read them as a series, so start with the first book, Bearly Departed.

Was this review helpful?

Sasha Silverman has things in full swing for the fall season including Silver Hollow’s Cranbeary Tea Party, the opening event of the Oktobear Fest in town. Sasha's rivalry with her high school nemesis, Holly Parker, is heating up as the temperatures fall - Holly's new toy shop could cut into the profits of the Teddy bear factory. The murder of Holly's assistant throw things even further off kilter and it doesn't help that Sasha's ex is rumored to have been having an affair with the victim. But was the victim the intended target? Sasha has a lot to clear up before things will quiet down.

I love teddy bears so I can't help but love these stories. I do feel that the characters need a bit more fleshing out but hopefully that is in the future plans.

Was this review helpful?

This is the second in the Shamelessly Adorable Teddy Bear Mystery series. Missing the first book did not hinder my reading experience; however, I sure do want to go back and see what happened in book one. So much happened in this story, I feel the need to see what excitement took place in book one. In this story, our main character does solve the crime, but she really does not investigate the crime, she happens upon the resolution. I will be interested to see if she is a mystery solver or someone who just happens to be in the right (or wrong) place at the right time. Sasha and her sister Maddie run the Silver Bear Shop and Factory. Hence the name of the series. It is time for the OktoBearFest in their town of Silver Hollow. The festivities are hindered when Sasha finds Gina, a local shop assistant, murdered behind a local establishment. Who killed Gina? The Mayor who is up for election and was being sued by Gina? Holly, Gina's boss who has a lot of resentment towards many in the town including Sasha? This was a fun and quick read and I look forward to reading more. I am giving it a 3.5-star review rounded to 4.

Was this review helpful?

This is a great book; this is the second book in the Shamelessly Adorable Teddy Bear Mystery series written by Meg Macy. Silver Bear Shop and Factory manager Sasha Silverman is cozying up to the fall season by hosting Silver Hollow’s Cranbeary Tea Party, the opening event of the village’s Oktobear Fest—a too-cute celebration themed around teddy bears. But when Sasha discovers Holly’s shop assistant dead with a knife plunged in her body, the unpleasant woman suddenly looks like a real backstabber. So does Sasha’s ex-husband, rumored to have rekindled the fiery extramarital affair he once had with the victim. Now, before a gruesome homicide case takes the fun out of both the Fest and her personal life, Sasha must identify the true culprit from a daunting suspect list or risk becoming as lifeless as one of her stuffed bears. This book will keep you up reading way past your bedtime because you will not want to put it down. I can’t wait to read the next book by this great author.

Was this review helpful?

With the Cran-beary Tea Party launching Oktobear Festivities, Sarah hopes to move past the murder at the Silver Bear Teddy Bear factory. Unfortunately, her high school nemesis has returned to town. And that's not the only upsetting return, her cheating ex has joined a new law practice in town. Still, everything could be tolerable, if only she didn't literally stumble on a body in the early morning fog.

Was this review helpful?

Silver Bear Shop and Factory manager Sasha Silverman is welcoming in the fall season by hosting Silver Hollow’s Cranbeary Tea Party, the beginning of the village's October Fest, a celebration centered around teddy bears. But making things less than cuddly for her is the return of her former high school rival, Holly Parker, who has opened a new toy and bookstore in town, in competition with Sasha's Silver Bear Shop and her cousin’s small bookstore.

But the day after the tea party, Sasha discovers the body of Holly’s shop assistant dead with a knife plunged in her body. The police suspect Sasha's ex-husabnd, who had an affair with the dead woman while he and Sasha were married, and supposedly rekindled that romance.

Sasha is determined to find the real killer, but the investigation puts a damper on the festival, and takes another life.

This is the first book in the series that I've read, and I was a little nervous about reading a book set amongst cuddly teddy tears. I was afraid it would hurt my love for teddy bears, but it did not. This book is cozy, after all, and very enjoyable.

There is a wonderful cast of characters, none of which are of the cookie cutter variety. They are all different, which leads to a great read when you wonder what a character will say or do next. The fact that this book was not predictable kept me turning the pages, and wondering how Ms. Macy would put two and two together to come up with a satisfying ending.

And it was an ending that I didn't figure out until the very last, which makes it all the more enjoyable. I will definitely go back and read the first book in the series, and will look forward to the third one.

I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

Was this review helpful?

I so enjoyed book one in this series, BEARLY DEPARTED, that I couldn’t wait for the next book. BEAR WITNESS TO MURDER did not disappoint!

From the opening of the book set at a tea party, the autumn setting, adorable teddy bears, wonderful characters, and a whodunit that had me completely fooled, BEAR WITNESS TO MURDER certainly put the “cozy” in cozy mystery!

Author Meg Macy has created in her, Shamelessly Adorable Teddy Bear Mystery series, a feeling of warmth and family. Even if these weren’t mysteries, I’d still read them. Keep in mind, I don’t often venture out of the mystery genre.

No worries. That warmth I mentioned above didn’t in any way take away from the great mystery element of BEAR WITHNESS TO MURDER. Each time I knew I was on the right track to the killer, the author would throw in a roadblock that had me scrambling in a new direction, looking for a different suspect. Not only was I surprised by details that kept coming to light, I was completely shocked during the reveal.

BEAR WITNESS TO MURDER is a book you’ll want to add to your TBR.

Was this review helpful?

This is book 2 in the Shamelessly Adorable Teddy Bear Series. It can easily be read as a stand alone. Sasha is in charge of her family business , Silver Bear Shop and Factory and is getting ready for the town's fall festival. Sasha is worried about a new toy store opening in town and when she goes to the shop and finds the clerk dead it's a bad omen for everyone. Sasha works with the police to find the murderer before the town celebration is ruined. A good cozy with a different career for our heroine. The cover is adorable and I can picture these cute bears taking over many more stories. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Was this review helpful?

This is the second book in the mysteries series. I knew who the murderer was. I just didn't trust the person. It was a well written story. Lots of ups and downs. There was also some romance thrown in. Very fun reading. I like this series.

Was this review helpful?

Bear Witness to Murder is the second book in the Teddy Bear Mystery series. I don’t know what I enjoy more about this series – reading about the teddy bear-themed events, or the mystery itself. Sasha Silverman is such a down to earth, believable character that she makes both of them fun.

Was this review helpful?

I enjoyed this cozy mystery and will look for more by this author. I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

Was this review helpful?