I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley for review and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
DNF. This is a rare thing for me, especially with a cozy mystery. I read and re-read the first few chapters but just couldn't finish the book. Usually I can connect with the characters immediately and get a feel for the plot line. Unfortunately the political insults distracted from the dialogue and the plot. Will not be seeking more from this author in the future.

This is NOT a cozy mystery. I am normally not bothered by graphic talk and politics, but I want cozy mysteries to stay cozy. There are trigger warnings in this book for racism (the author condemns it). The protagonist also didn't do any investigating. Most of this book is focused on her relationship with her new boyfriend, who is the opposite of her regarding politics. Very disappointing.

Pretty good for a debut mystery and I'll save a spot for the second mystery to see if I'll be adding it to my TBR list. It isn't the usual cozy mystery with a single mom setting out to solve a crime and the police telling her to stay out of it, etc. There is a murder, a mystery and the small Vermont town setting. Jaye is a newly divorced mother of a ten year old who has come back home after her divorce and the loss of her job. Her ex has taken a job at a community college not fat away in New Hampshire so their daughter, Ryan, has the benefit of both parents in her life. Jaye is back working as a DJ but now she's running the show and she and Ryan live upstairs over the radio station. Of course there has to be at one animal but this has two and only one is the family cat - named Neptune. The other is a moose.
Jaye, in a fit of temper over a pair of dudes marching back and forth in front of the station, protesting the firing of their favorite DJ, grabs one of their muskets and blasts the head off a large snowman. Not long after that the former DJ's body appears and Jaye becomes a person of police interest. Overall it was a pleasant mystery but with a bit too much politics. The supporting characters of family and friends were a nice group and, overall, this first book introduces the reader to people who have the potential of continuing to develop into a nice mystery series.
My thanks to the publisher Crooked Lane and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

DNFing this one at chapter 10. I don't like the main character, the mystery isn't holding my attention and I just overall am not enjoying this one. Moving on.

Much Shenanigans…
A new series, Vermont based and billed a Radio Mystery. With a colourful and well drawn cast of characters and a swiftly moving storyline involving a killer, romantic suspense and much political shenanigans. More edge than a traditional cozy mystery. Entertaining and interesting with a keen sense of place and time as well as contemporary issues. A promising start to the series.

Nikki Knight is a new to me author, and I was curious about Live, Local and Dead. I am a huge fan of cozies, and I liked that out leading lady runs a radio station instead of owning a bakery or a bookshop.

And usually in my cozies, the leading lady is involved in solving the mystery, but here Jaye is targeted and not involved, so we miss out on a lot of the workings of that.

And, now this is just my thing, it felt a bit too political for me. This probably won't bother anyone else, but for me it was just, nope, not something I needed in there. We get enough of that baloney n real life - sorry Ms Knight,

This was the first in this series, so I probaby will read more (just hoping less politics haha)

The concept of hiding a murder victim in a snowman was something new to me. As a first in the series, this book was a tad high on the character introduction, almost to a point where after discovering the dead body, nothing happens until the first half - no amateur sleuthing, nobody seems to be bothered to learn the identity of the victim. This is something I could not follow through and kinda spoiled the read a tad for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily. I very rarely give a book less than four stars. I love to read so I am pretty much happy with any book. However, in this case I cannot give this book more than two stars and that is being generous. When I chose this book on NetGalley it shows as being a cozy mystery. This book is far from being a cozy mystery. The main character, Jaye Jordan, does not even discover the dead body, and she has absolutely nothing to do with the investigation of the murder, which, in my opinion, are two key ingredients to a cozy mystery. Since this one was little different setting (not a bakery or restaurant), I was hoping for more. The book is very political and it is very apparent from the beginning how the author feels about some subject matters, which is of course her prerogative. However, in my opinion, the place for this was not something titled a "cozy mystery". I read cozy mysteries to escape from real world problems and maybe get a chuckle or two in the process. There were also way too many characters. I had a hard time remembering who was who. I am sorry to say that I will not be reading anything else from this author or in this series. I am sorry to leave this bad review, but from what I have seen in other reviews, I am not the only one who feels this way.

Live, Local, and Dead is book one in the Vermont Radio Mystery series by Nikki Knight. I enjoyed the book, but I don’t really see it as fitting the cozy mystery genre. It’s more of a romantic suspense. Also, be warned if you don’t enjoy political comments and themes. I am interested to see where this series goes. I will keep reading.

Loved reading this book and author. If you haven't read it yet I highly recommend her and her books. Happy reading and enjoy

Didn't like this one. The protagonist was too dark. I love snark but this was too much and the character was just obnoxious. Her constant grumbling about the climate she lives in didn't help. If you like traditional cozies, skip this one.

To be clear, my rating is not due to an entire dislike of this book. Live, Local, And Dead is entertaining, action-filled, and fun to read. This is a new series, “A Vermont Radio Mystery,” from author Kathleen Marple Kalb (Nikki Knight), and it is not your run-of-the-mill cozy. DJ and radio station owner Jaye is putting her life back together after a devastating divorce and the end of her big-time career. Starting fresh back in the town she grew up in, taking care of her daughter, and rebuilding a radio station isn’t easy, but she has the help of a loving family, namely her ex’s family and her friends. The townspeople love her and what she is doing; maybe she can make a go of it on her own and have a happy life. All is going well until she loses her temper one morning, and a body shows up later.

Blowing the head off a snowman outside the radio station, which is also her home, seemed harmless enough, and it got her point across to some loud protesters. When the body of a radio talk show host, Edwin Anger, ends up inside the snowman, Jaye wonders if losing her temper was a smart move. The controversial radio hosts fans start accusing Jaye of killing the man, so she takes steps to prove to them and everyone else that she is a mother first, a DJ, and a business owner, not a killer. It doesn’t take long to find suspects, the man upset a lot of people, and the evidence shows that all of the suspects had an excellent reason to kill Edwin, some more than others. For Jaye, she has no doubt about who the killer is, but proving it puts her and her daughter in peril. Things go from bad to worse as the investigation progresses, but in the end, Jaye helps capture the killer and puts her radio station on the map.

The characters in Live, Local, And Dead are energetic, compassionate, amusing, and filled with purpose. They are passionate about their state, maybe a little too much, but it’s refreshing to watch as they come together to protect and take care of one of their own. I adore the Moose; he is magnificent. And Jaye’s daughter is a real treat. However, I was not a big fan of Jaye; she needs a spine and less dependent on a man for her happiness. But more than anything, she needs to speak like a real person and not a DJ all the time. I love the radio station and that it is also her home. The romance with the governor I found a bit unbelievable. She is still upset about her divorce, and suddenly she is having a physical relationship with a man she barely knows? The killer was instantly recognizable; I did not feel there was any real mystery to uncover.

All of this said, I was entertained by the story. The radio station, Jaye as a single mother and a DJ, was fun and original; I love her music selections. I know there will be growth as the series progresses, and I hope we get a better understanding of who the recurring characters are and what Jaye’s plans are for the radio station’s future, her relationship with her ex, his family, and the governor. A few tweaks, and this will be a wonderful series for readers to curl up with.

Reading the description I thought I would give this mystery a try since I have never heard of a cozy mystery with a radio jocky as the lead character. Jaye Jordan has an interesting back story. The use of radio jocky as a job for a main character was interesting. The moose is a cool part of the story.
The book doesn't really deliver as a cozy mystery. Jaye does not do any investigating. She works well with the local police. There are dangerous events that happen as part of the story that put Jaye and her daughter Ryan in danger. But there is no investigating and some of the things that are caught are due to Ryan and her friend.
There is a lot of focus on the relationship that develops between Jaye and the governor of Vermont. It's a sexual relationship and while the doors are closed on events there is a lot of discussion and Jaye saying things like I hope your imagination fills in the blanks.
I would agree with another reviewer that this may be better categorized as romantic suspense. You don't necessarily expect the heroine of romantic suspense novels to investigate, and romantic suspense usually involves the development of a romantic relationship.
There was a great deal of political topics and political correctness dealt with in the book.
I like the story all right but it doesn't wow, so 3 stars.

A rare pass from me- although others might enjoy it. I'm always up; for a new cozy series and this one where Jaye moves to Vermont and buys a radio station looked like it had potential. I wasn't expecting it to be so political. I appreciate that current events and attitudes have a role to play in plots, even in cozies, but this was just too much for me. I read cozies for escapism (yes I know there's a murder but)...) not more of what I see on the news, And it seemed remarkably stupid for Jaye to shoot a musket at a snowman. Thanks for the ARC. Here's hoping the next installment ditches the politics.

Live, Local and Dead is the first book in author Nikki Knight's Vermont Radio Mystery series.I like the premise of the series but not the execution. I enjoyed meeting the main characters. I noticed some political comments which fits somewhat with the storyline but is not my cup of tea. I felt the pace was a little slow at times.

Good start to a new cozy mystery series. I’ve never read one that was set around the radio. So I’m inclined to continue with this series as books are released.

I was really excited to read this book. I thought the setting of a radio station would be an interesting change to the bake shops and libraries of cozy mysteries and while the setting was different, this was definitely not a cozy mystery. Yes, a murder occurs but Jaye doesn't investigate; she just continues on at her job. The police solve the murder and do not really include Jaye in it so we don't get much information about it. Which then leaves us with a book with way too much politics for my taste. Demonizing the right is way too common a theme and it's not even well done, with so many stereotypes and bad caricatures. So what we're left with is the romance and that wasn't enough to carry the book. I did really like the relationship Jaye has with her daughter but not much else. I will not be continuing with this series.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook version. Hmm I don't know where to start. I usually go into these types of murder mystery books with just an open mind and knowing they are a bit cheesy but at least they are entertaining. I don't know with this book it just didn't draw me in. I didn't like the main character or any of the characters in this book. Just a miss for me.

Jaye Jordan has left her radio job in New York City and purchased a small radio station in Vermont. She's her own boss, and her daughter can still spend time with her father - Jaye's ex, who is teaching at a nearby college. Jaye has decided to drop the syndicated programs and go live and local.

However, the fans of a syndicated hatemonger named Edwin Anger are upset and all two of them are protesting. When Jaye grabs one of their muzzleloaders and blows the head off a large snowman, no one expects to find a body entombed in it. And no one expects the body to be Edwin Anger.

Jaye is busy; she's raising her precocious daughter Ryan and coming to terms with her new relationship with her former husband. His cancer diagnosis and eventual recovery broke their marriage leaving Jaye wary of any new relationship. Meeting the man who was once a girlhood crush of hers and who is now the governor and dealing with their attraction to each other doesn't make her life simpler.

I really enjoyed this story and getting to know Jaye. I loved her relationship with her daughter. I also loved her strong circle of friends. Her budding new romance was great too.

This cozy mystery had it all. The mystery was engaging. There were touches of humor especially when the moose who lived by her transmitter shack appeared. There was also a nice sprinkling or romance.

The plot of the book was such a great page turner. I truly cannot wait to read another wonderful book from this author. This was a truly great book.