Charlotte Finn inherited the Finn Family Farm from her late uncle. At first, she was going to sell it and go back to her job in Chicago, but after being there for a while decided she wanted to stay and make the farm profitable. She's repaired the pond she used to swim in, made additions, and now her best friend Diane Mason is getting ready to open a farm-to-table restaurant on the farm. Her crops are doing well, and she's pleased.

At least until she and Diane's brother Beau go into town and hear some of the other farm owners talking about the strawberry blight. While she doesn't have it herself, she wants to know what is going on. After Beau gets into an altercation with Linc Pierce, they leave. The next day Beau wants to make amends and he and Charlotte go to Linc's farm only to find him dead. While it looks like suicide at first, it's soon found to be a homicide. With Beau the main suspect, Charlotte is determined to prove his innocence. Especially when she finds something horrifying on her farm, and clues all around her. Now if she can just discover what they mean...

This is the second book in the series and I enjoyed it much more than the first (sorry). The characters are a little bit more fleshed out, and the story line is very good. We go with Charlotte and gather clues along the way, hoping to find the trail of a killer. We also find that Samuel, her farmer, is along and willing to help, if only to keep her out of trouble. She has her own ideas on how to figure out who is ruining everyone's strawberry plants, and she's going to do something about it, even if it does get her into trouble.

Sheriff Goodacre likes Charlotte, but refuses to share information -- unless Charlotte has something that's worth sharing with her. Their rapport is also excellent, and I like the fact that the sheriff doesn't dismiss Charlotte out of hand deciding that she's 'just rambling on.' She actually listens to her and follows leads when necessary.

When we come to the climax and the murderer is revealed, it's a rather interesting one. It occurs at the same time as another event, and mixing the two together seems to work somehow. While I don't see a third book in the planning, I do hope that the author follows through and writes one. Recommended.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

This is a very lighthearted, laid back, cozy mystery. For me with this book and these characters, it works just fine. Charlotte is settling in as the owner of Finn Family Farm. She has her hands full with strawberry season which is about to be ruined by a blight. Worse than that is a murder of the only farmer not affected by the blight. There is a fair amount of silliness which I appreciate. I do read to escape after all, and Finn Family Farm is the perfect escape.

Book 2 in A Finn Family Farm Mystery. This farm themed cozy is extra cute and super light. It has fun, likeable characters (both human and animal) and a great setting.

I don’t dislike Charlotte, the lead character, but I find myself drawn to all of the supporting cast more. Her besties, Beau and Diane, are both strong characters with witty dialogue and interesting storylines. Loved watching Diane’s farm to table restaurant come together. Samuel is a sweet love interest and a few of his reactions to Charlotte’s clueless comments made me laugh out loud. Chief Goodacre is my fav. She’s the perfect combo of smart and sarcastic. I enjoy her weakness for good food too. Horse, who’s actually that cute pig on the cover, is indeed the star of this series. He has an uncanny ability to understand everyone and helps out around the farm or during several sleuthing missions. I liked the addition of Fred and Ginger to the farm. Owls are quite fascinating to observe.

I figured out the culprit fairly quickly, but still enjoyed watching the story unfold. The mystery centered around a blight on most of the strawberries grown in the area. I liked learning about several farming techniques: the use of fertilizing drones and how liquid nitrogen could flash freeze certain produce until it intended use was pretty interesting.

This is a fun cozy mystery. The human characters are interesting and likable and the farm animal characters are adorable. The mystery is well written with plenty of suspects and red herrings. I look forward to reading more in this series.

All thoughts and opinions are my own, and in no way have I been influenced by anyone.

https://bookshop.org/books/strawberries-and-crime-a-finn-family-farm-mystery/9781643855783

Publish Date: October 12th 2021

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Horse (and Charlotte) are back to help solve another little acorn mystery. The strawberries are dying but no one is sure why. When things get tense and a body is found, all evidence point to sweet Beau. No way Charolette will let that happen. When things start hitting close to home Charlotte really gets fired up and is determined to put a stop to the blight on the strawberries and stop a killer.

I love and adore Horse. This is the second in the #finnfamilyfarmmysteries series. I really love the cast of characters and their development. Diane’s opening a restaurant, Beau is being a delight, Samuel is even getting more backstory. I enjoy this series and can’t wait for the next installment!!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

#strawberriesandcrime #ellebrookewhite #crookedlanebooks #bookstagram #bookrecommendations #bookreview

True confession: I wish I could say that the reason I chose to read Strawberries and Crime is that I read the book jacket blurb and decided that it was my kind of book. The truth is that I was compelled to read it because of the adorable pig on the cover.

That having been said, it may have been adorable little Horse (yes, that’s his name!) the pig who first caught my attention, but I’m happy to report that it was the excellent cast of characters and the great plotline that held my attention and earned this five star review.

Strawberries and Crime is the second book in the Finn Family Farm Series, following the first book, Dead on the Vine. I haven’t yet read Dead on the Vine, but I had no problem with being able to follow the story in Strawberries and Crime as if it had been a standalone.

I’m not normally a fan of books set on farms. I have nothing against farms or farmers. It’s just that I’ve always tended to find other settings more interesting. I’m happy to report that this book was an exception. The plot involves a cantankerous and not exactly well-loved local farmer named Linc Pierce whose body is found hanging from a barn rafter. Charlotte Finn, the heroine, and her old friend Beau Mason, also a local farmer, are the ones who discovered Pierce’s body. At first look, it appears that Pierce died by suicide.

But wait. There’s more to the story. For one thing, a partially eaten sandwich is found near the body, which seems strange if Pierce’s death was in fact a suicide. Second, it seems like an odd coincidence that the only local farmer whose berry crop wasn’t destroyed by blight was the now-deceased Linc Pierce’s. The town police chief doesn’t buy suicide as the cause of death and at first sets his sights on Beau as the prime suspect in light of the fact that he had had a heated altercation with Pierce earlier in the day. Meanwhile, all hell breaks lose in Little Acorn as the farmers, recalling that Pierce had before his death suggested that the farmers’ strawberry crops had been sabotaged, hurl accusations against each other for allegedly perpetrating the sabotage.

With the police chief convinced first that Beau is the murderer and then that yet another of Charlotte’s friends killed Pierce, it’s up to Charlotte to team up with her farmhand Samuel and - best of all - with, yes, her trusty porcine sidekick Horse to solve the case. Which she does in very impressive style.

I really enjoyed this book and will be going back to read Dead on the Vine. The characters are multi-dimensional and believable. Charlotte is wonderfully quirky but never too quirky. While I’ve read a few reviews critical of the roles that Horse and his friend Mrs. Robinson the ladybug play in the book, I have to say I disagree with them. One of the things I liked best about the book is Charlotte’s love for animals and the sense of whimsy she brings to her relationship with her beloved Horse and also with Ms. Robinson. There are many cozy mystery series that feature a hero or heroine who is strongly bonded with a pet dog or cat to the point where the animals are an important part of the storyline. I firmly believe that the author made a brilliant decision in choosing to make Horse an important character in the series.

Strawberries and Crime by Elle Brooke White is book two in the Finn Family Farm Mystery series. This is the first one I have read.
The beginning, I felt, was very slow and I almost stopped reading it. The characters are likeable and I loved Horse the pig though. There are plenty of suspects and plot twists.
I was given an ARC by Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley for an honest review.

In this second Finn Family Farm mystery, Charlotte Finn and her childhood friends Beau and Diane Mason are creating new lives on Charlotte's inherited Farm.

The main crop in the area is strawberries, and many of the local farmers are losing their crops to an unknown plight. As Charlotte and Beau begin their investigation, they come across one of the farmers dead in his barn. Charlotte has a gut feeling that the dead farmer and the dead strawberries have something in common.

Unfortunately, reading this book was a challenge. Some parts of the storyline appeared out of nowhere, and disappeared just as quickly. I think I'd try this author again since I like the characters and the main story. I hope the next killer has a better motive.

Strawberries and Crime by Elle Brook White
Book #2: Finn Family Farm Mystery Series
Source: NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books
Rating: DNF

The Bottom Line: One of the great things about cozy mysteries are the quirky characters all collected in a single small town. A great cozy mystery will have such an array of crazy, fun characters all pulling together to solve a mystery. When the characters are so flat as they are in this book, there’s nothing for me to truly enjoy and want to know more about. Even the idyllic setting and promise of yummy food descriptions were not enough to overcome the flatness of the characters for me.

I absolutely loved the farming theme in this cozy. The characters are endearing, and the setting is lovely. I loved the mystery and enjoyed following Charlotte while she tried to solve the murder.

I have never read a cozy mystery like this one, where a pig, and a ladybug, were two of the main characters. They had me thinking it was going to be one of those quaint and boring ones. I must say I was wrong, yes, it was all those things, but it turned out to be very entertaining.

Excellent book! I really enjoyed the book and thought it was after story as well as well developed.

I enjoyed the first one in this series so much and I was so looking forward to this one. I love that Charlotte had inherited her uncle’s farm and is trying to continue on with his legacy. Her friends were so alive and fun in the first one that I couldn’t wait to see what they would get up to in this one. Diane is realizing her dream by opening her restaurant on the farm and this was a much-needed high point in this book because both Charlotte and Beau were so flat and one-dimensional in this one. The exploration into farming techniques was fascinating but not enough to carry the story. The mystery was OK but I figured out who the killer was pretty quickly. Also, there were so many grammatical errors (words missing, punctuation missing) that it was difficult to get into this book. I don’t think I will continue with this series.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story, it's engrossing and entertaining.
Horse is a great character and I was happy to catch with this lovely pig and the cast of fleshed out characters.
The mystery is solid and kept me guessing, I appreciated the descriptions of country life and the setting.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Strawberries and Crime is book 2 of Elle Brooke White's Finn Family Farm Mystery series. Although I didn't read book 1, Dead on the Vine, I soon got into this novel and Charlotte's life on the Finn Family Farm, left to her by her Great Uncle Tobias. Set in Southern California among the hills of the Santa Barbara Mountains, Charlotte is a likeable protagonist, albeit a bit impulsive in her sleuthing. The author surrounds her with a great cast of secondary characters including Horse, Charlotte's pet pig. He has been adorned with humanlike qualities allowing him his own mannerisms making him, for me, the star of the show. The mystery is weaved throughout the story and took some unravelling as I considered the suspects on offer. Chief Theresa Goodacre is a hands-on, no-nonsense law enforcement officer that doesn't suffer fools and keeps Charlotte in check. All in all, a great cozy with a surprise finale.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

A relaxing cozy mystery with a highly intelligent pig. The setting is Little Acorn, a rural town in Southern California among the hills of the Santa Barbara Mountains. Most of the action takes place on the Finn Family Farm or on the local farms owned by the murder victim or the various suspects.

I learned a great deal about farming, particularly organic farming. Assisting the human population in solving the murder/suicide of Linc Pierce are a variety of animals including Horse (a pig who ate like one), Mrs. Robinson (a ladybug), and Fred and Ginger (a pair of nesting barn owls). It was concerning when Charlotte Finn and the Chief of Police took much of the last chapter walking through the evidence to educate their audience and the reader as to how they solved the crime. One would expect a well-written cozy mystery not to require this kind of detail.

The book was a relaxing read and worthy of a four-star review.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

Strawberries And Crime is the second book in the Finn Family Farm Mystery series by Elle Brooke White.

Charlotte Finn is settling in nicely at the farm she inherited from her uncle, Finn Family Farm, and helping Charlotte on the farm by Joe and Alice Wong, caretakers, and Sam Watson, farmer, who stayed on when Charlotte took over the farm. Also involved on the farm are Diane and Beau Mason, BFF, who were childhood friends of Charlotte.

Charlotte and Beau head into town to pick up some supplies and come across some farmers arguing outside the feed store. The argument is about the blight that some of the farmers are experiencing. Linc, the most vocal of the farmers, pushes Beau to the ground, calling him a pretty boy. The next day Charlotte and Beau head out to Linc’s farm to discuss the previous day’s altercation. When they enter his barn, they find him hanging from a rafter. At first, the police ruled it a suicide but later called it a homicide, with Beau becoming the prime suspect.

Charlotte will begin her investigation in hopes of clearing Beau from a possible murder charge. There seems to be no shortage of suspects. She suspects the contractor that is building Diane’s restaurant that is being constructed on the farm. She will also suspect some neighboring farmers who seem to be reluctant to share information about their farming methods. She will find a clue in Linc’s barn that will head her in the right direction.

This book is an excellent follow-up to the first book in this series. The book is well-written and had enough red herrings that I was kept guessing until the end of the book as to who the killer was. The characters are well-developed and believable. I particularly enjoy Horse, the little pig, and his friend Mrs. Robinson, the ladybug who helps Charlotte.

I will be watching for the next book in this exciting and interesting series.

Strawberries and Crime by Elle Brooke White is the 2nd book in A Finn Family Farm Mystery series, and an enjoyable read. Charlotte Finn inherited her family's produce farm in Little Acorn, California . Charlotte is settling in, until a plant disease is destroying strawberries. The only person who's strawberries are fine is Linc Pierce, who is found dead after hanging himself. Charlotte doesn't know who to trust, so she begins her sleuthing with the help of a baby pig named Horse and some old childhood friends. I really enjoyed this book, and think the series is off to a good start. I am looking for the next book in the series. I highly recommend this book to all people who love cozy mysteries.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was a cute mystery that I enjoyed reading. The star of the book, is Horse, who is a pig. I wasn't sure what to expect when they said the pig sniffed out clues to the whodunit, if it was going to be something akin to the Jules and Bun mysteries where the rabbit can "talk" or if the piggie is just an intelligent side kick.,

Charlotte Finn is settled in and making a go of the farm she recently inherited from her great uncle Tobias. Her BFF Diane is going to open a restaurant on the property and the farm is abuzz with excitement about the pending opening. Unfortunately, a murder puts a damper on the festivities, especially because Diane's builder and paramour, Danny, is a suspect. To make matters worse, a strawberry plight is attacking local crops and several clues lead Charlotte to believe this is manmade. She and Horse are determined to get to the bottom of things.

Again, Horse is the star here. I wanted a pet pig after reading this. Charlotte is a feisty, headstrong and smart character and I appreciate she takes no guff from anyone and holds her own with the males in her farming town. The plot was charming and the characters equally charming. An enjoyable way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Charlotte Finn had settled into life on the Finn Family Farm and was happy in her surroundings, until blight started attacking the strawberries. Only one farm in the area didn’t seem to be affected, and when the cantankerous old farmer was found hanging in his barn, Charlotte and Boyd thought it was suicide. But it didn’t take long before it was proven to be a murder. The Chief of Police was doing her best under trying circumstances, while Charlotte was investigating on the side.

I was initially attracted to the cover of this book, and although I haven’t read the first in the series, I found Strawberries and Crime by Elle Brooke White easy enough to get into. But in my opinion, the story and writing were mediocre at best. I found myself annoyed with Charlotte and her followers – they seemed childish and immature. And a comment by one of the characters – “This isn’t a farm, it’s a zoo without cages” – seemed spot on to me. A pig called Horse; a ladybeetle called Mrs Robinson; it was more along the lines of a children’s book in my opinion. Not for me I’m afraid.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.