2/5

I was confused reading Murder Wears a Little Black Dress because it is marketed as cosy mystery, but inside was a bit heavier that what is cosy, but also not up to 'real' mystery yet. This book is crossing to the chicklit genre for a while before the murder business (then again in the middle, then in the end) that I'm not even sure anymore.

Pros:
- characters are quite fleshed out
- I like the supernatural bit, like, believe it or not and it adds something to the book

Cons:
- too many characters to keep up, although author did a good job in keeping the focus in Kelly's parts
- the subplot works in the romcom but not in cozy mystery, or at least too much imo
- slow build, it's too slow for me, it's not that nothing is happening in the first act, but author took a long route to get over some things

(I received a digital arc for free from NetGalley & Lyrical Undergroudn in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion)

Cute story showing how families and small town life can be. Fast paced, quirky characters and plenty of plot to keep it interesting. Quite clever, I was surprised at the end.

Murder Wears a Little Black Dress is the cute story of a Kelly, a girl whose career in NYC is ended unexpectedly. She then takes over her recently-deceased grandmother's consignment shop. Soon after beginning her new career, a customer tries on a dress and declares it to be haunted by a man murdered by the wearer. Chaos ensues, with Kelly even being held accountable for other murders occurring in the town. While this book is pretty corny, and slow-moving in some places, it still made for a quick and enjoyable read.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

I had the pleasure of reading an early ARC of MURDER WEARS A LITTLE BLACK DRESS—the debut story in the new Resale Boutique Mysteries. It’s trendy and fast-paced with plenty of suspects, entertaining characters, and home and hearth details to appeal to cozy fans. I enjoyed this story from cover to cover. The author plotted the scenes much like you put together a chic ensemble with accessories. At the end, the reveal is well pulled together and appealing.

Kelly Quinn’s granny left her a consignment shop that was her pride and joy. Located in Lucky Cove, NY, the shop is rundown and Kelly’s vision is to update and revamp the space into an upscale boutique. Her granny’s best friend, Pepper, works there and is wary about the changes Kelly is making. When a customer tries on a black lace dress and has a vision of murder, business slacks off and Kelly fears the financial strain will be too much to stay afloat amid rumors she’s selling haunted clothing. To keep the shop open, Kelly begins to piece clues together and figure out how the black dress was involved in a murder. This cozy is a clever whodunnit! Enjoy!

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Kensington Lyrical Press. Thank you.

When her high-flying New York fashion career hits the skids, Kelly returns to her hometown of Lucky Cove. She plans to reopen her grandmother’s consignment shop as the chic Curated by Kelly Boutique and even though it wasn’t the future she hoped for, she didn’t expect one of her customers to be “haunted” by a black dress . The dress triggers visions of someone being killed. A crazy customer? It would appear the dress actually foretold the future when a woman really is murdered. Add in Halloween hijinks and people just looking for trouble and Kelly begins to wonder if she made the right decision about moving back home