Summer has to come back home after her mother's sudden (and somewhat mysterious) death. She works with her aunt and cousin and mother's friends to get to the bottom of her mother's untimely death. For a cozy mystery, this book felt a little drawn out to me and while we learn a good deal about the victim via third party description, I prefer to mee the victim first hand to create a connection. A serviceable beach read cozy.

We follow Summer, a Shakespeare professor who has recently returned home to her small island town to attend the funeral of her mother, who suddenly died under mysterious circumstances. Summer, facing some personal trials, is not taken seriously by the chief of police, as she once scorned his son many years ago. As a result, and with the help of her aunt, cousin and niece, Summer decides to investigate her mother's death on her own, believing her mother was murdered. Her investigation takes her all around the small island, talking to residents, in hopes that she can discover who murdered her mother.

I would rate this book 3.5 stars. I did enjoy the story, it kept me reading. However, there were some aspects I didn't enjoy. The story was very, very long and extremely repetitive. It could've been cut down significantly. Also, the character of Summer wasn't overly likeable. She presented as snobby and superior, with a weird phobia thrown in. Her desire to find her mother's murderer was commendable, however she had no experience, it felt very amateur. I liked the supporting characters of Agatha and Piper a lot. I absolutely loved the setting and story of the bookstore, it was great for an avid reader. However, I missed the love/relationship aspect in this book-there was none, although there was potential for one. Lastly, I didn't know who would end up being the killer, but it was extremely lacklustre and disappointing. The answer was literally right in front of the characters the entire story and it just felt redundant.

Loved this book. I have definitely found a new author to follow up on. I would love to have this become a long series. Highly recommend.

I was looking forward to this new mystery series, and there were parts that I enjoyed and parts that I just didn't. I liked the beach setting and the bookstore and some of the characters. The writing was rather clunky and repetitive at times, as an advanced copy it definitely needs more editing, the murderer was fairly obvious early on, and some of the characters were hard to get to like. I would read the next in the series to see how it progresses and if it tightens up a bit more.

This cozy was a good escape during this time of quarantine. Summer had to grow on me though, as I wanted to shake her at times. She could be a little dense. Overall, the other characters were fun and the plot was good. And what could be better than a bookstore on the beach? I look forward to the next installment.
Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Summer is not having a good summer. After a minor scandal has her scurrying off to England to spend some time researching Shakespeare for an academic paper, she has to rush back home to North Carolina when her mother dies suddenly of a heart attack. Arriving back home in the small town she thought she'd left behind forever, Summer begins to suspect that her mother's death wasn't natural and after failing to convince the town's police chief to investigate, takes on the challenge herself with her aunt and cousins. Can Summer uncover the truth before she ends up a victim in her own tragedy?

I saw this on Netgalley and couldn't resist snagging it.  I really enjoyed this, equal parts engaging, heartbreaking, exciting, and heartwarming. Summer and her family are likeable and the story was rich in detail, making the setting and the characters seem so realistic it was like being there. But that came at the expense of the pacing, which lagged a bit in the middle and there was a fair amount of rehashing. I liked how organically and realistically Summer set out to investigate, especially when she followed in the footsteps of her mother's last day. Took her a bit longer to see whodunit than it did me (and I thought the motive was a bit shaky) but that twisty, action-packed reveal and the surprise twist at the very end wrapped everything up nicely and left me wanting more.

I was in the mood for a cozy mystery and this book fit the bill. Summer's mother passed away but she finds it hard to believe her healthy and vibrant mother had a heart attack. As with any cozy mystery, our protagonist put on her figurative sleuth had and began asking questions. Summer has a rich back story, including a rift with the local police chief and being on the verge of losing her job. I enjoyed the murder mystery, the charming cast of characters and the setting of a bookshop in a small coastal town. What I didn't particularly love was the repetitiveness of Summer's inner dialogue. On several occasions, she shared her thoughts on the case and I had read those exact same thoughts in a previous chapter. Overall, it was a light and fun read even though it was about murder! Thank you to Crooked Lane Books, Netgalley, and Maggie Blackburn for sharing the advanced review copy of this book!

Great new book. Very cozy and fast paced with lots of twists and turns. Look forward to reading more by this author.

I don't usually read cozy mysteries but I'm glad I tried this one. It reads quickly although I think it was a tiny bit dragged out and repetitive. It's a nice pallet cleanser and a cozy read for when you want to just relax your brain a bit.

This book, written by an author with another well known name was a real page turner. It was an easy read, the plot light and entertaining. I had n9 idea who the murderer was - and was really thrown at the reveal! I can't wait to get my hands on the next in the series!

I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. Summer is the amateur sleuth and she does a great job at it. She did get hurt once. There are so many people involved in this but she is determined to find out who murdered her mother and how they did it. It is a page turner. In this story most of the characters are strong which has you guessing until the end.

The first in a new cozy series, Little Bookshop of Murder by Maggie Blackburn is a fun, quick cozy mystery. Set on an island beach town it centers around Summer Merriweather who has returned to her childhood home after her mother's sudden death. Summer becomes convinced that her mother's death mas not natural and they're may be a murderer on the loose. Shortly, after she arrives Summer herself begins to be threatened only strengthening her resolve to get to the bottom of her mother's passing. There are some strong female characters and I loved Summer's parrot Mr. Darcy, but the development of some of the characters could have been stronger. I also found Summer's arachnophobia a strange addition to the plot. The murder mystery itself was pretty obvious from the get go, but I still enjoyed the story and found that the series itself has a lot of potential. All in all, I enjoyed the setting and characters and would read the next instalment.

This was a fun new cozy author for me. I enjoyed the story and the characters. The town is one I wouldn't mind living in myself. A very good read.

Summer goes back home for her mother's funeral. Once she's there, she begins suspecting something was wrong and that her mother had been murdered. With the help of her mother's friends, her aunt, her cousin and her niece, she starts investigating the case.

I had a few issues with this book.
First of all, it still needs editing and correcting. Names change, and I found a couple of "we" that should have been "they".
The murderer was clear from the very beginning.
I get feminism and strong women, but I don't get why men are useless in the story, or they just don't exist. Who's Mia's father?
Where do Piper and Mia live? They seem to move in with Summer instantly.
Everybody works at the bookstore, yet there's only one employee, they all just help out.
Summer is an expert on Shakespeare. She has a PhD! But she only mentions the most famous quotes and characters. Nothing worthy of a professor of Shakespearian lit.
Summer despises romances. As I was reading this story, besides feeling the character was a snob, I felt like the author was trying to convince me that romances and cosy misteries can be good books, too.
To me, the beginnibg of every chapter felt like a recap, only missing the "previously on..."

I hope this story gets edited before it gets published. The idea was ok, but I feel it still needs work.
I'd like to read a new version of this novel.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.

Summer has just returned home after the sudden death of her mother. She is convinced that it's not possible that her healthy mom could have died suddenly of a heart attack. She talks to the local sheriff but, perhaps because she had once left his son at the altar, he refuses to believe her so she sets out to investigate her mom's last days herself with a little help from family and friends.

Little Bookshop of Murder is the first book in a new cozy mystery series A Beach Reads Mystery by author Maggie Blackburn. I love books about books and bookstores so I really wanted to like it but the best I can say - it was okay. There were a lot of problems that kept me from becoming invested in the story although I was able to finish it. First, there were lots of characters to provide suspects but, despite this, the murderer was pretty obvious fairly quickly. Also many of these characters seem important to the story only to vanish like the man who I'm guessing will be her love interest in future novels based on the fact that he's pretty much the only male in the story who isn't an idiot or dismissive, or useless. However here, it just seems like he's there to back her up on her murder theory which seems strange in a book that, at least on the surface, appears to be trying to embrace feminism. And although Summer is supposed to be a Shakespearian scholar and professor who hates romance novels, she quickly falls in love with them which I guess is good because she is inheriting the store and that is pretty much the only genre it offers. At times, the novel just felt like an ad for romance novels. As well, there were a lot of words used that seemed out of place or poorly used - really, I guess, a small quibble - but it did tend to throw me off my reading stride and make it even harder to maintain my willing suspension of disbelief.

So I suppose the real question is do I recommend this. Maybe if you are a fan of cozy mysteries and are just looking for a couple of hours of entertainment without expecting much from either the plot or the characters. Overall, though, I would suggest, if you're interested, get it from the library.

<Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked lane Books for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review</i>

This book introduces us to a new "cozy" community. Set on a beachtown, the main character comes back home upon her mothers death. She is not convinced that her mother's death is not suspicious and so we out more about this beach town.

This book needed another round or three of editing. Misused words, inconsistent characterization, and obvious punctuation and grammatical mistakes are present throughout this book. As far as the main character goes, for a woman who is supposedly a Shakespearean scholar, she chooses the most banal quotes to toss off at random intervals. There is a glimmer of something there when she talks about the grief experienced by someone who was more or less estranged from a family member, but much more polishing is required to make this book work.

With thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest review
Was an okay read good plot but a bit lacking.

I really enjoyed this book. It's a well paced, exciting read with well constructed characters and solid plot development. The protagonist was initially a bit standoffish and snobby, but that changed by the end of the story. An excellent mystery, l did guess it about though but it didn't stop me from enjoying the book. I definitely look forward to reading more from this author.

I would like to thank Maggie Blackburn, Crooked Lane Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

A grand slam for the first in a series. Summer Merriweather goes back to St. Brigid after learning of her mother’s death. She is convinced that her healthy and active mother didn’t die of a heart attack.
She inherits her mother’s beloved book shop Beach Reads. Summer who has a PHD in Shakespearean Lit did not understand the romances and mystery her mother stocked the store with.
With the help of her Aunt Agatha, cousin Piper and her daughter Mia she sets out to discover the truth.
Lots of twists, turns and excitement through out the book. The setting is relaxing and well developed characters. I will be getting book 2!