What a fun series. Pator Hope is very relatable. I love that she's in her 40's, loves and quotes old movies, quotes 70's song lyrics and has a super cool dog named for Humphrey Bogart. She is no Nancy Drew, because she prefers Trixie Belden, but she does love to play sleuth. If your looking for a somewhat different and surprisingly entertaining read, definitely check this one out. Here's looking at you, kid!

A very promising cozy series debut -- plenty of humor and a unique protagonist/setting (a female Episcopalian priest, recently widowed and new to town and to her job), plus an engaging mystery. I will definitely be looking out for the next one in the series. I also jumped straight into Walker's other cozy series launch, Murder Most Sweet because I enjoyed this one so much.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

I downloaded this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

This was the first book I've read by this author and the first in her new series. And, frankly, it read like it was the first in a series. Which isn't to say it wasn't enjoyable because I still finished it since I wanted to know how it worked out. However if I didn't know going in that this was a spin off from another of the author's series, I would have thought this was her first book.

First I want to just get out how much it was hammered home that the victim was not liked. By golly did that keep getting brought up. And I'm not sure why. Maybe it was because the would be sleuth in this series is a Pastor and one of the primary settings is a church. So the author wanted a balance between the gruesome factor of the murder with that. But my goodness did it grate after a while and it seemed like his evil doings and flaws kept getting doubled down on. At one point I actually exclaimed, "We get it! He's a bad bad person. Now let's move on."

The characters were endearing if stereotypical. There was some inconsistencies with the characteristics of them though so that was hard to adjust to. There were pacing issues, especially towards the end when the mystery was trying to be solved. And speaking of the mystery, I'm not sure how I felt about how that resolved. It seemed....off. And the last section was a bit hokey and seemed to serve only to set up the rest in the series.

Now all that said I did enjoy the book. I really appreciated how attention was called to how some Christians judge on appearance only, such as an elderly church member being judgmental of a youth's sleeve tattoo and thinking that was why she wouldn't make a good secretary. I like how Pastor Hope was willing to listen to everyone in her church and outside of it, as well as not being judgmental herself. I really liked the idea behind the tea in the book since I feel that is something that all denominations should strive to do and get along with each other. If the series continues the characters need to be stronger, the pacing better, and there need to not be as many strings for other mysteries or red herrings since that takes away from it. Also don't keep compounding all the ways the victim was a terrible person. While the victim here was, piling on him was unnecessary all things considered.

Hope is a very likeable character and the author invests a great deal of effort in creating a relatable ensemble cast from which she will be able to draw going forward. Leveraging old movies to help the reader get a clear picture of each one, and various aspects of the story, was both helpful and most enjoyable. A had a good few chuckles.

Hope, a woman pastor moving into a small community, experiences the opposing forces in the most credible way. There are those excited and encouraged by this change and those who are committed to the status quo and are determined to make life more difficult for her. She takes each incident in her stride while making her fair share of mistakes. (I loved this about her).

Not one but two murder mysteries kept my attention along with the many red herrings inherent in all good cozy mystery novels. For me, the resolution of the primary case felt just a little unsatisfactory and even implausible, perhaps one too many coincidences? Hmm…

I do look forward to seeing what Hope Taylor gets up to in Apple Springs in future.

With thanks to #NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books and the author for my free advanced reader copy to review in exchange for an honest opinion.

Hope Taylor's first introduction to her new parish is an interesting one - she's "beaned" by a garden gnome named Elvis and then later that day, discovers the dead body of a man who wasn't thrilled to have a female associate pastor. Hope finds out her new flock has many secrets - one of them might just make her the next victim!

I loved "meeting" Hope Taylor! The mystery kept me up until The early hours of the morning and then I was sad because I had finished The book! The author has a gift of creating characters that feel like "old friends" and are so relatable in their personalities and life experiences that they "jump off the page"! I hadn't read any cozies where the main character was a Pastor. I loved the book and all of the parish business and amateur sleuthing Hope did - the interactions with the parish members were sometimes tense, hilarious and genuine. The mystery was fast-paced and the characters well-defined and added a wonderful ambiance to the book.

The next adventure can't happen soon enough! I received an ARC from NetGalley and the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is a gentle and entertaining mystery with genuinely likeable characters. Hope is new in town and quickly finds herself in a situation she could not possibly have anticipated. The mystery itself has enough twists and turns to keep the reader interested and the final reveal contained enough of a surprise to be satisfying. Hope herself is good company, although her inner voice is irritating at times, and I’d gladly spend more time with her and the rest of the cast. The only poorly written character is that of the rather two dimensional victim, so this doesn’t detract from the book too much. This is the first title that I have read by this author and I will look out for others.

When Pastor Hope Taylor arrives at her new parish, she not only has a black eye from a run in with a garden gnome, she comes across a body at the church.
She has had a previous run in with the victim and some of the older ladies believe she killed him.
With the help of her new friends and sister-in-law, she snoops until she finds out who the killer was, but not before finding another body, this one's in her yard and has been for some time.
Skillfully told, with humor and colorful characters you would expect to find, well at least it reminds me of the ones from my church, she leads us through the reasons why each suspect is a suspect. Then rules them out.
I requested and received a Net Galley Arc to peruse and offer my opinion freely.

Charming, character-driven cozy mystery set in the idyllic rural setting of Apple Springs in Northern California.
A lovely easy read. Reccomend it if you like Agatha Raisin series by MC Beaton.

When I saw this book was available, I will admit I hesitated to read it, but I am so glad that I did.
Pastor Hope is a great new character, I love her down to earth personality and her quirky sense of humor.
It’s not easy becoming the first female Episcopalian priest, however, Pastor Hope is determined to make a good first impression with her new church family. We all know that’s not going to happen, so I will suggest you grab a copy of this book, make a pot of tea, and eat a few shortbread cookies while you meet Pastor Hope and all the rest of the colorful characters in this perfect cozy mystery.

Charming, character-driven cozy mystery set in the idyllic rural setting of Apple Springs in Northern California.
This is a very clean, but compelling story with an interesting female lead and several key female characters who make the book come alive.
Hope Taylor wants a new life in the community but not everyone wants to share their deepest secrets from the past with a stranger.
Yes, some of the older characters were stereotypes but the mix was vibrant and up to date.
I did find the number of characters in the book hard to keep track of but the resolution was worth it.
A very enjoyable read from an author to watch.

clergy, small-town, amateur-sleuth, women-sleuths, cozy-mystery, family-dynamics, friendship, law-enforcement

Widowed Hope moves to a small upstate town to become assistant rector in a parish that has never had a woman priest before. Tough enough, but soon she comes upon the recently dead body of the town's most thoroughly despised resident and goes right to the top of the suspect list even before she's had a chance to make friends! But she does make friends and her sister-in-law comes up from the city to be her support and comic relief. And so the sleuthing begins! Add in lots or movie trivia, a fine English Tea a la Downton Abbey hosted by by the parish ladies then opened to the rest of the town's residents, a skeleton in the garden, and more. I absolutely loved it and hope to read more!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley!!!

A wonderful cozy mystery. Hope is the new pastor and moves to the small town where she keeps finding corpses. Great set of characters and story. Super fun read. Highly recommend this book and author.

Really loved this one. A nice cozy with a woman pastor as the main sleuth. Interesting characters and the plot kept me guessing. I read this one slowly because I didn't want it to end.

Hope Taylor has left San Francisco behind and has moved to Apple Springs and will be the first female pastor of the Faith Chapel Episcopal Church. While many are happy she has joined their flock, some aren't as welcoming. First there are the old timers that don't believe a woman should be a priest, then there's the little matter of finding one of the parishioners dead on her first day at work, leaving some to wonder if she didn't off the least liked man in town. Hope wants to clear her name and keep her job, so she starts to look for the murderer and winds up digging up another body in her own backyard. Now Hope is trying to find out who the dead woman in her yard was as well as who killed Stanley King before she meets her maker herself.

Old classic movie lovers, this is your cozy series! I honestly debated reading this book as I was worried it would be filled with religion, but you know what? I LOVED IT! While Hope IS a pastor, she's also a human being and that's who we see most in this series. Her heart aches, her foibles and her strange sense of humor that is right up my alley. Best of all are her Biblical and old movie quotes that are absolutely dead on for each of the situations. That's right, I was apprehensive and here I am loving it! I have read another book by this author, Murder most sweet, and loved her writing style and was not let down. Laura Jensen Walker is one of my newest MUST READ authors. Can't wait for more from this talented writer.

#Hope,Faithandcorpse Pastor Hope arrives as Apple Springs first female clergy at the Episcopal church. When she finds the body of a church elders body only to have people believe she killed him due to his view that women should not be preachers. She wants to clear her name and hopefully along the way get the approval of the older members of the church who disagree with her being hired.
The unearthing of a second 100 year old body in the back yard of te home she now owns does nothing to endear her to the new congregation. She makes new friends along the way. I enjoyed the story with all its twist and turns. Watching the budding relationships as well as the ministry she is building added to the story. I highly recommend this novel to everyone.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books, in return for an honest review. This is the first in what I hope is a continuing series. I loved this book! Hope Taylor is the new Associate Pastor at the Episcopalian Faith Chapel and it’s first female. On her first day, she’s knocked on the head by Elvis and is found holding a burial urn and standing over a dead body. Quite the first impression! It’s a small town and everyone suddenly knows her as the pastor who killed the town bully. Hope, a widowed 42-year-old, knows she needs to both clear her name and find ways to connections to all the people who now want to meet her for the wrong reasons.
This is a fun book. The story is well told; the characters are interesting and unique. I enjoyed it so much. Hope’s first day is a great introduction and Ms. Walker did a wonderful job of continuing the character development and building the mystery. There are several surprises along the way that keep the story moving. I hope this is the beginning of a long series and can’t wait to read the next book of Hope’s adventures in Apple Springs, California.