Another fantastic read! I thought the plot and the characters in the story were great! Highly recommend!

On Spine of Death is the second book in this series. I read the first one. The author must have a wonderful sense of humor as there are parts that have you laughing hysterically. Tess Harrow is a renowned thriller author who along with her daughter, Gertrude (Gertie) have moved and living in the remote town of Winthrop, Washington. The story opens with Tess tied to a chair in the cellar of the hardware store as she is researching for her latest book "Fury in the Forest". She inherited the store and her cabin when her grandfather died.. Her handyman, Herb was her grandfather's best friend is helping Tess renovate the store as she wants to open a bookstore. While taking down a wall the floor collapses with all the debris of rocks, etc. come down on Tess along with human bones. Sheriff Vincent Boyd and his chief deputy Ivy Bell are there about the bodies and are enjoying seeing Tess tied to the chair and Ivy is taking pictures. Sheriff Boyd is the spitting image of Tess's book character, Detective Gonzales.

Nicki Nickerson is the librarian of the bookmobile and Tess' s friend. She is also an FBI agent who is watching Mason Peabody and his brothers who own a logging operation close to the Canadian border. There is questionable ties and business practices..

Herb feels that Tess is cursed. Since her arriving in town there have been murders. Herb quits and tosses his toolbelt on the floor and the floor gives way., There is another pile of bones. Both of the bodies have hatchet marks on them. Tess calls her agent, Nancy to see if she can find another carpenter. She can't.

Jared Wright comes and applies for the job. Their meeting does not go well. He tells her and the sheriff that Nicki has sent him, He is also FBI. Nicki can't believe they sent Jared as he is an FBI because of his father.

Gertie tells her mother that she will be working for Ms. Sylvie the coroner for her school project and is very happy about it. Tess goes to see the sheriff about the hatchet markings and that she has an author friend who specializes in hatchets.. He also was published in Forensic Magazine by the name of Peter Oblonsky. Both Boyd and Syvie are excited that he will be coming to help with the murders.

Tess finds out the names of the victims. The first is Annabelle Charles who has been missing since 1988. the second victim is Lucretia Gregory a hiker who disappeared 5 years ago.

This is where the story takes the reader on an adventure of finding out who killed the victims. There is so much going on in the story that it is hard to put in writing. I will leave this to the reader to enjoy to the unexpected and exciting ending.

I look forward to the next book in the series. Will Jared come back to live there. Will Tess have a romance with the sheriff and what new adventure will Tess and her friends get into.

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC.

Ms. Berry pens a tale about a cozy author working her craft.
Tess is remodeling the store her grandfather left her, while working on her current book. While trying to work out her heroine’s escape in the basement of said store, the remodeling crew, her daughter and friend Herb cause a wall to collapse on her. A body in the rubble has Tess freaking out and the sheriff investigating.
Another body is found and townspeople are pointing fingers at her dead grandfather. She is not having that and vows to find out who they are and why they died. Her daughter Gertrude’s interest is piqued and she decides she wants to work with the coroner as her class project, much to Tess’s dismay. As you can guess by what I’ve revealed, this is a fun, fast moving tale with twists and turns. Bit of humor and a dry witted sheriff round out the story. I highly recommend this cozy as it was hard to put down from the very start.
I requested and received a Netgalley ARC and will be looking for more by this author.

Kindle Copy for Review from NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press.

I received a free, advance copy of this book and this is my unbiased and voluntary review.

Renovations on an old hardware family store turns into an unlikely discovery when old bones are discovered from a cold case. It looks like her grandfather might be a murder. Can Tess find the truth to save her family reputation?

It’s the second installment in this cozy series. It was alright story.

The title doesn't really reflect the story or the series much despite the main character being an author and planning to open a bookshop, but I don't rate on that.

I found the book an enjoyable read, but there were some weak spots:

Too much repetition such as the junior agent's description and his feelings for Tessa.
Tessa's jumping the gun as to whodunnit with absolutely no evidence.
The actual reason for the murders, was there even a real, concrete reason given?
The ending was quite abrupt and didn't tie up all the loose ends. Especially those to do with Simone.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press, in return for an honest review. While the second book in this series, it is easily read as a standalone. I love this series and hope it continues for a long time to come. Great stories about a transplanted female mystery writer and her pre-teen daughter to the wilds of a small town. Somehow, bodies turn up in unexpected places and ways around Tess, so she gets involved in the solutions where she’d planned to or not! Can’t wait for the next book!

I enjoyed this book. It’s got lots of twists and turns. The characters are great. I was surprised by who the killer is #OnSpineofDeath #NetGalley

On Spine of Death is just as good as the first book in Tamara Berry's new series.
Tess Harrow and her daughter Gertrude have decided to live permanently in her grandpa's rustic cabin in the small town of Winthrop. While renovating her grandpa's hardware store, human bones are discovered.
This cozy mystery kept my interest throughout the story. Tess is a little quick to point the finger at others but is still likable. All in all a very good read. I look forward to the next book.
I received an ARC in return for my honest opinion.

In the aftermath of solving their first murder, bestselling author Tess Harrow and her teenage daughter Gertrude have decided to stay in Winthrop permanently. Now that they've made some updates to their cabin in the woods, they're turning to the family hardware store that Tess inherited and converting it into the town's first independent bookstore. But when renovations unearth bones from a cold case, the work comes to a grinding halt. With the whole town convinced that her grandfather was a serial killer, Tess has to call in a fellow horror author for reinforcements. Together, they'll come up with a perfect story to make all the clues fit...and solve a mystery more than thirty years in the making.

I am always drawn to books about books, bookstores, etc. so the first in this series caught my attention, and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Tess and Gertie and the FBI agent who was undercover as a Bookmobile librarian. The story was fast paced and intriguing and kept me reading until I finished the book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting my request to read the second installment in this fun new series. I highly recommend this series, and this book, to anyone who loves this type of cozy. I do recommend reading them in order as it makes some events in the second book make more sense.

This book was sent to me electronically for review by Netgalley. I thank the publisher. Characters who are true to life...likable...some not so much...mystery and intrigue...a book that is enjoyed by a cozy fire in a cozy chair with a fuzzy afghan...steaming hot herbal tea...perhaps a scone...or beside the ocean...your choice. you won't be sorry you chose this one. The story moves quickly...it could be true life...is it? Read it and determine...

Tess and Gertrude have decided to lay down roots and stay in Winthrop. As the old family hardware store is being converted into a bookstore, the renovation reveals some old bones, from thirty years ago. While the town is convinced Tess grandfather was a murderer, Tess is focused on finding out really did it. Who better to help her than her friend Peter, a fellow author who specializes in horror. What could go wrong?

Tamara has a knack for bringing fun, quirky characters and humor into her mysteries. Chock full of red herrings, she keeps you guessing until the end. If you want a good mystery, along with some chuckles, check her books out. You will not regret it.

I love a good cozy mystery, and I throughly enjoyed this book. Tess is a single Mom to a teenage girl and a beat selling author who’s constantly researching for her next book. During one of her research experiments, two sets of bones are found in her bookstore renovation. I have not read the first in the series and this book could be a stand alone! The characters were likeable and I feel like we really got to know them. There’s were several points in this book that I couldn’t put it down because I needed to know what happened next! The ending was a little rushed after how thorough the first 75% of the book was, though I’m excited for any future installments of Tess’ journey!

Suspects Abound…
Suspects abound in this second in the By The Book Mystery series. At last Tess and her daughter have decided to make their stay in Winthrop a permanent situation but when renovations turn deadly there’s another mystery to solve. With the locals sure that her grandfather was a serial killer, Tess throws caution to the wind and asks a fellow writer for a helping hand. With a colourful and eccentric cast, a fun narrative and plenty of humour this is an enjoyable and entertaining cosy mystery and a worthy follow up to the first in the series.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Poisoned Pen Press and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

The second in the cozy mystery series was just as exciting as the previous. Tess, her daughter and friends leave no stone unturned. A solid story, charming characters and laughs abound.

If you enjoyed the humor of Tamara Berry’s Buried in a Good Book, you might want to catch up with the adventures of that quirky cast in On Spine of Death. Thriller writer Tess Harrow and her fifteen-year-old daughter Gretchen are digging themselves into the life of Winthrop, but someone else already wrote a story for them to uncover.

In fact, Tess is tied up in the basement of her grandfather’s old hardware store, working on a plot for one of her thrillers when Gertrude takes a sledge hammer to the floor. Tess has plans to turn the old store into a bookstore called The Paper Trail in the Old West-themed town. But, several blows of the sledge hammer sends bones into the cellar where Tess is sitting. First it was flying body parts. Now, Tess is buried in old bones.

It’s going to be up to Sylvia at the morgue and Sheriff Vincent Boyd to decide if those bones mean a crime was committed. It seems likely since the bones have hatchet marks on them, and someone put them in Tess’ grandfather’s store. But, she’s not willing to believe her grandfather killed people and hid the bones in his own store. Tess does have an author friend, though. Peter Oblonsky writes horror novels, and he’s a hatchet expert. Boyd and Sylvia are fans, so they’re excited to have Peter visit to examine the bones. But, the bones are stolen from the morgue before Peter can check them out.

Peter is curious about everything, though, and the whole story of bones and theft reminds him of a book called “Let Sleeping Dogs Lie.” He reminds Tess she once blurbed it, but she never read it. Now, as she pours over it, the town, and the story of missing women and bones sounds as if it was set in Winthrop. She’s just afraid to tell Sheriff Boyd about the book, because his older sister was one woman who went missing, and was never found.

Berry manages to squeeze FBI agents and an ongoing investigation into this story in which everyone is a suspect. Once again, there’s a cast of quirky characters, fast-paced appearances and disappearances, and an unexpected killer. It’s a humorous cozy for those who enjoy the Keystone Cop type of action.

All the required pieces for a cozy mystery are in the book but somehow they seem more fresh and entertaining. Simultaneously the reader is annoyed and amused by Tess, the mystery writer turned interfering visitor to the small and rural town. Interesting characters and some surprising twists.