Cover Image: Live, Local, and Dead

Live, Local, and Dead

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Member Reviews

Best ever hook in the first paragraph of the story: "I shot the snowman. But I did not kill the guy inside." Unfortunately, as it turns out, the man that Jaye killed (or did she?) turned out to be a radio show host, Edwin MacGillicuddy of Atlanta, aka. Edwin Anger, that she had just fired, so some people (especially his fans) began to accuse Jaye of actually murdering him. She couldn't have that, so she set out to find out whodoneit. There were plenty of suspects with a lot of good reasons to potentially kill Edwin Anger.

This cozy mystery is certainly different. Jaye Jordan has moved to a small town in Vermont and purchased a small radio station. She is divorced from David, the father of her ten-year-old daughter, Ryan. And she has a crush on the governor, Will Ten Broeck. Jaye and Ryan have a gray cat named Neptune. Such a fun name. I liked all of the characters, including the animals. No, Neptune wasn't the only animal.

I thought this was well done and the author gave life to the characters and the animals. I loved Neptune and Charlemagne who was "seven feet and a couple thousand pounds of bull moose" but both so adorable. Anyone who reads this fun and quick read is bound to fall for them both, too.

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DJ Jaye Jordan expected a quieter life after moving to Vermont and taking over a local radio station. However, after axing political commentator Edwin Anger's show, she faces a loud group of protestors. And while her late-night show leans heavily on love songs, her daytime antics are a bit more ... explosive. Thinking she'll teach them a lesson, she grabs a musket, shoots a snowman, and watches as both the body of Edwin Anger and a mystery come tumbling out.

Nikki Knight's debut novel is marketed as a cozy and any brief synopsis would show it has all the hallmarks of the genre: a small community, a fun niche, and a murder needing solved. However, Live, Local, and Dead deviates from the norm a bit, going lighter on the actual investigation.

This isn't a bad thing.

Jaye has the makings of an amateur sleuth who's fun to follow. Really, she's so likable the locals can't even really believe she had anything to do with Anger's death. She's funny, fiercely loyal to her family and friends, and a bit unpredictable. After all, this is the type of woman who has no problem opening fire on a snowman. You can practically hear Knight reveling in the impulsive situations Jaye finds herself in. Yet this mentality barely extends to the murder investigation, with Jaye more looking to police for answers.

Yet, even without the traditional sleuthing, Knight sprinkles in just enough searching and hijinks that everything still feels cozy. Maybe it's the snowy Vermont backdrop. Maybe it's the blossoming romance between Jaye and a state politician. Maybe it's the hints of danger Knight weaves into the murder's aftermath.

Or maybe it's all of the above. Ultimately, Live, Local, and Dead might be a little nontraditional, but it's also a lot of fun.

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I loved this story from the beginning. I really sucks you in and keeps you guessing. A definite must read.

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I really loved this book in a new to my series and author. I can't wait to read the next one. The characters and location really add to the plot. This book keeps you guessing until the end

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This is a great start to a new cozy series. I really liked the characters and thought the setting was unique. I look forward to reading more in this series.


Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the digital arc.

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A light fun read., with a bit of a mystery. I loved the setting in Vermont and grew especially attached to the moose! The book addresses relationships, family, some politics , morals and values.

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This was a super cute start to the series. I loved the characters and how they played off each other. It was a very unique cozy and that really made it stand out. I will for sure recommend to all of my mystery and cozy fans at my shop!

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I thought I was reading a radio themed cozy mystery set in Vermont. Instead I got a romantic political rant.

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Jaye is mad at the men protesting her radio show, so she grabs the gun and blows the head off the snowman. As the snow melts, they find a dead body in it....
Crooked Lane Books and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published on February 8th.

Now Jaye is being accused of being the killer. She's not but she she needs to prove it.

She soon has a suspect but proving it is hard work.

She has started a relationship withe Governor and is soon falling for him. He's protecting her but she realizes it's not her they after but him! Can she stop another killing?

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⭐⭐

Unfortunately, this one just wasn't that great for me. The setting was super unique, and that earned this a bonus star. Other than that, I didn't like much else. It honestly didn't even feel like a cozy mystery. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Jayne is never involved in investigating the murder, which is just straight up weird for a cozy mystery. There was too much romance, and I felt like I was being beaten over the head with politics. Definitely a miss...

**ARC Via NetGalley**

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Princess Fuzzypants here: DJ Jaye has purchased a radio station in a small Vermont town. She wants to return to local formats rather than the canned satellite feeds that have taken over much of the radio business. She is a one armed paper hanger, doing it with the assistance of her her 10 year old daughter. Response has been positive until a nasty group of right wing haters descend on her and her station because she took off a particularly vitriolic personality and replaced him with live programming.

Things ramp up when he is found dead in a snowman in front of the station. And these nasties do not play nice. In fact there are several threats to Jaye that make her fear for her life. Thankfully, she has a ton of town support and some political support too. She and the Governor get reacquainted and the sparks are flying. He has her back but it turns out that both of them might be the targets for very different reasons.

I was worried at first that this would be a rant against anyone who was not liberal in their beliefs but the villains were clearly the extremes and as Jaye so eloquently put it, it would be just as bad if it was extremes from the left. I thought the fact that things are seldom black or white but that hatred in any form is unacceptable was handled with great sensitivity. It did not distract but rather enhanced the tale. But it was the characters that made this story sing. I enjoyed the interaction between Jaye and her ex David and Ryan, the daughter they share. I loved the extended family relationships not only from her marriage but within the town. It was uplifting. Five purrs and two paws up.

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Jaye had a sassy, brash, bold take no crap attitude. She was a DJ with a lot of backbone. The romance between her and Governor Will was the icing on the cake with this book for me. Solving the mysterious death of the former radio announcer was too puzzling to let go of, even if some foolishly blame her for it.

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My rating: 4 of 5 stars, I really liked it.

Book 1 in a new series.

This was a strong debut for the series. I really enjoyed most of the characters, and the plot. The main character seemed like a smart, strong, likeable person who cared a lot about her family, her job and her town. Unlike a lot of cozies mysteries, she didn't leave her job to someone else and go haring off, sticking her nose in dangerous situations, which made me like the book all the more!

The only bit that annoyed me was the hand feeding candy to a wild moose. I live in CO, we have all sorts of wildlife. Wild animals are WILD, and experience has shown me that humans are stupid. They don't need encouragement to do dumb things to wild animals. Moose are amazing animals best enjoyed from a distance, just like all wildlife.

Aside from that, I enjoyed the book and look forward to more in the series.

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Mom shot the snowman! Recently divorced DJ Jaye Jordan recently relocated to Vermont from New York with her daughter. When she sets out to make a point and blows the head off of a snowman with a musket, the last thing she expected was to inadvertently shoot the head off of talk show host Edwin Anger and being accused of his murder. Determined to clear her name and find the real killer, she is faced with obstacles along the way, including constant threats directed at her, ultimately putting her daughter in harms way as well. Can she figure out who the killer is before someone else gets hurt?
Thank you Netgalley, Nikki Knight and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read and review this book. This was a cute cozy mystery that was easy to read and follow along. There was even a smidge of romance! I would have liked to see Jaye take a more active role in the sleuthing part, and maybe a little more mystery. This is the first book in a new cozy mystery series and I’m looking forward to seeing the character development as the series goes on. I think the series has potential and this book is a good start. I rate this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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This debut has a lot of potential... interesting setting and relatable characters. For that reason I am rounding up from 3 and a half stars. The mystery is easy to guess and the heroine doesn't really do anything to help solve it. Jaye Jordan buys out of her DJ role in NYC and uses the cash to buy a tiny rural radio station switching it from talk radio to all music and locally produced. Fans of one hate-filled on air host are not pleased and go after her with protests, mail campaigns and more. Good debut and I predict the next book will smooth out the rough edges. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

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This was a good beginning to a new cozy mystery series, that I would recommend to anyone who thinks it sounds interesting!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

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Live, Local, and Dead Earns 5/5 Radio Dials…Entertaining with an Edge!

Nikki Knight has “tuned” us into an exciting first book in her Vermont Radio Mystery series by adding a bit more of an edge. Her charismatic DJ, divorcée, and single mother Jaye Jordon left New York City behind and bought a radio station in a small Vermont town. Wishes to bring a more pleasant tone to the station, she fires shock jock Edgar Anger. But, it isn’t all spinning the vinyl of the top love songs, she’s forced to deal with a pair of armed protestors spurred on by Edwin Anger’s anger about being fired. In a fit of frustration, Jaye rips the musket out a the protestor’s hands and fires a shot killing…a snowman. Someone else, however, was angry, too, and had hidden Anger inside the snowman, so now more are calling for Jaye’s arrest on charges of murder. With an exciting start, the murder mystery continues with more angst, more accusations, and more “anger” in a clever and engaging mystery. Jaye has a delightful relationship with her pre-teen daughter, her ex, and her parents who now live in Florida, but it’s the former crush, now governor, who adds a lot more spice to the story. Knight’s writing style is compelling and offers some contemporary commentary that would liven up any book club discussion. A thrilling read with a nice edge to the humor and the romance.

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⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley Crooked Lane and Dreamscape Audio for the Early listen and ARC. This review pertains to both audio and ebook. What a fun cozy mystery! Love visiting these cozy little towns. Author did a great job loved all the characters. Narrator did a fabulous job telling the story.
Definitely recommend!

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Recently divorced, Jaye Jordan returns to small town Vermont where she’s now the new owner of the radio station where she started her career. The story grabs the reader immediately with a group of angry right-wing protesters outside the radio station protesting the cancellation of Edward Anger’s talk show. A fed-up Jaye just happens to have a muzzleloader near by which she uses to shoot a hole in a snowman (in the middle of town, no less), to scare the protesters off.

At that point, I knew this book was not for me. I give the author credit for the most creative opening of any book I’ve ever read. I also give her credit for being even more creative by coming up with the idea of stuffing Edward Anger’s dead body in a snowman. But a woman who just happens to have a muzzleloader handy to fire at a snowman to scare off, of all things, right-wing protesters just turned me off.

Unfortunately, it didn’t get any better as I got further along. While I appreciated the quirkiness of some of the characters, the more I learned about Jaye, the more I disliked her. It’s rare that I don’t find a female protagonist to be a sympathetic character, however I found her to be anything but. I will say that she is a good mom to her daughter but I generally found her to be annoying and at times a bit obnoxious.

Jaye aside, I will say that Ms. Knight is a talented writer who has a gift for spinning a good plot and coming up with a creative setting. If she were to write another series with a different protagonist or a standalone, I’d definitely give it a try.( BTW, as an aside, Ms. Knight gets major points from me for using the Oxford comma in her title.)

While Live, Local, and Dead wasn’t for me, I’m sure there are other readers who will love it.You may be one of them, so if the book sounds like something you’d like, why not go ahead and give it a try?

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Radio DJ has had her fill of the stupid protesters hanging out in front of her studio/home. She takes one of their Revolutionary War style muskets, aims and fires! The snowman's head explodes. She made her point. Unfortunately, in the days that followed the snowman started to dissolve and there was a dead body inside. This was just the beginning of many 'hate crimes' in her small Vermont town. Identifying the killer was just the beginning.

Although I liked the characters and their interactions, this wasn't really my favorite kind of book. First, there wasn't enough mystery for me, too easy to guess. The main problem for me was the labeling of most characters. Were they liberal or conservative? Were they TruthTellers or Knuckle-draggers? Since I have no idea what that is means, maybe they're both? I don't like labeling people and felt a twinge of annoyance every time it happened in this book, which was too often. I hear enough of it on the news and like to keep away from it during my reading time.

I'm giving the book 3 stars for the characters and their interactions.

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