Ellery Adams is one of my favorite authors. Her writing draws me in every time, which is probably why I’ve stuck with this series so long. While the mystery is well-constructed and interesting, there’s something about the setting and the writing with this particular series that just seems so overly flowery and borderline cheesy to me. I just can’t connect with this series, as much as I try, and this is probably the last one I will read.

Reading a book written by Ellery Adams is always a treat, and the Book Retreat Mysteries are among my favorite cozy reads. This eighth installment, MURDER ON THE POET’S WALK does not disappoint, combining murder, romance, family, and literary themes to make an intelligent, compelling tale.

A startup greeting card company is holding a poetry competition at Storyton Hall, keeping Jane and her stalwart Fins on their toes. When one of the top contenders is found murdered, and another death soon follows, Jane and company work with the police to track down a killer while also working through a potential breech in the secret library and Uncle Aloysius facing some challenges. And, there is a town pig gone viral and a wedding.

I do so wish I could vacation at Storyton Hall. It is an ideal bibliophile‘s retreat. The world Adams has built is magical, yet believable, and a perfect backdrop to the series. There is not a single character that I do not absolutely adore. I appreciate Jane’s focus on her family and friends. She is mature and relatable. The murder mystery is well thought out and expertly executed. Even with plenty of suspects to choose from and a steady doling out of clues, I was hard pressed to identify the killer until rather late in the story.

I highly recommend the entire Book Retreat Mystery series. MURDER ON THE POET’S WALK is a top notch cozy read and sure to be on my list of best books of 2023.

I want to stay at the Storyton Hall with its wonderful rooms named for authors and outside paths between the hotel and the waterway filled with paths for walking, sitting and places to relax. Jane and her wonderful staff are hosting a poetry contest for a greeting card but Murder strikes again for The Book Retreat Mysteries Series. A contestant, rumored to be a top runner for the prize, is found murdered in a boat where she is dressed to resemble a poem. Jane enlists the help of her faithful head staff personnel as well as her book club friends and her twin boys and her boyfriend, Edwin to search for the murderer or could there be more than one murderer as more bodies are discovered throughout the premises of the complex accompanied by written poetic clues. The guest/contestants continue their pursuit of their craft as well as the tasty meals and drinks prepared for them. Add the enjoyable characters of Jane’s aunt and uncle and a quick look of the town of Storyton with an exciting pursuit through the town. Discover the secret library of the Hall but someone has managed to find it between walls and floors and stolen some of the priceless material that has been housed here for many years. Will everything be destroyed before the murders can be solved. Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for an advance reader copy; this is my honest review.

I want to walk inside this book and join the staff of Storyton Hall. Do not want to be a guest. Guests die. But I would love to be an assistant librarian and hang out with Jane and her gang. Another great entry in this series. Thanks to #NetGalley and #MurderOnThePoetsWalk for advanced digital copy.

Murder on The Poet’s Walk by Ellery Adams takes us back to Storyton where everything is story tale perfect, except for murder. Jane Steward was hosting a poetry group this week featuring a fledgling greeting card company who is looking to hire the winner of a contest that is being run to be its in-house author of greeting cards. Because it is difficult to earn a living as a poet, they often work at other jobs as well and two were represented here: teacher and “jingle” writer. The teacher had multiple students attending the workshop/contest as well as the literary and fun atmosphere of Storyton Hall. There were activities planned as well as plenty of writing time and time for the attendees to experience Mrs. Hubbard’s food.. It all kind of fell apart when Jane, taking a morning walk, came across the body of one of the writers posed in a canoe in rushes on the side of the lake.

Jane and her life in Storyton welcomed us back for this interesting novel. There is plenty going on: the wedding of Eloise and Lachlan is coming up in just two weeks, the boys are home on holiday break, and concerning things are happening with Uncle Aloysious. It is all in a day’s work for Jane who has plenty of help keeping things going. At the end of the day she returns to her house on the grounds and to her partner, Edgar, who also acts as father to her boys. There is so much back story to this novel that it is not worth it to try and make sense of it to you. Suffice it to say there is a good mystery here that needs to be solved so the guests can leave Storyton. Jane, her assistants- the Fins, and the police have their work cut out for them. It is an all-together enthralling novel set in paradise and full of intriguing characters, both locally and in just for this story. I recommend it.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Murder on the Poet’s Walk by Kensington, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #Kensington #ElleryAdams #MurderOnThePoetsWalk

Poets have gathered at Storyton Hall in hopes of winning a writing competition which includes a job with a greeting card company. Unfortunately, once again murder visits the Hall. As the top contenders are being killed, Jane, the Fins and the Cover Girls race to find the killer.
I look forward to every visit to Storyton. I've so enjoyed seeing how the characters have grown and changed as relationships develop. The town of Storyton is changing but still feels like such a warm and welcoming place.
Ellery Adams is one of my favorite cozy mystery writers. Ms. Adams' writing style is fast paced and very humorous. I never guess the culprit until the end so the mystery elements are fantastic very reminiscent of Agatha Christie. I love this series and always look forward to my visits to Storyton Hall and anxiously await the next one. I highly recommend Murder on the Poet's Walk and this entire series to all cozy mystery readers.

I received a free epub copy from NetGalley!

This book retreat mystery series fits a lot of my happy places when it comes to cozy mysteries, books, cooking, and travel. I thoroughly enjoyed this installment of the series and enjoyed meeting Jane and all of the other characters who are a part of the series. The mystery was intriguing and the characters were well rounded and likable.

The mystery was well thought out and paced in such a way that I got the information I needed right as I needed it. I felt the pacing of the overall book was superb and that the story was wrapped up very well.

Murder On The Poet’s Walk is the eighth book in the Book Retreat Mysteries series by Ellery Adams.

Storyton Hall is hosting fifty poets vying for a job with a new greeting card company, Current Mood Card Company. Jane Steward, Storyton Hall's manager, hopes the competition will conclude without one dying.

After taking her Great-Uncle Aloysius's water bottle to where he was fishing, Jane returns to the Hall along the Tennyson’s Trail; she sees a canoe at the edge of some cattails. As she approaches, she notices a woman sitting in the boat. Jane soon realizes that the woman is dead and is one of the poets staying at the Hall. What she and the staff find unusual is that the body’s position in the canoe is much like the lady in the poem The Lady of Shallot. Then a second poet is found floating face down in a pool of water at the construction site of a new folly, much like in Hamlet’s Ophelia. Having found two dead poets, this is compounded by Jane learning that someone has discovered some secret passages at the Hall. With the help of her staff and the members of her book club, the Cover Girls, and her romantic interest, Edwin, Jane sets out to help the local police find who is responsible for these deaths. In addition to the investigation, Jane is also concerned about the health of her great-uncle. Her uncle has recently started to be forgetful, and she is concerned that he might be starting to suffer from dementia.

I love this series and the other works of Ms. Adams. The book is well-written, plotted, and beautifully told. The story reads at a good pace. All the characters, who are well developed and believable, are back again to help Jane solve the murders. I particularly enjoyed Jane’s twins, Hemingway and Fitzgerald, who are well-behaved and helpful. They were instrumental in saving their uncle’s and their mother’s lives.

I’m looking forward to the next book in this series to see what adventures Jane and the folks at Storyton are up to.

Back to Storyton Hall for a convention of poets. Except two bodies mar the days of paying ode to the masters.
Jane and the Fins are in it, but there are very troublesome things occurring.
The water works will likely flow freely as as you read. I was distraught at one character’s actions and was very concerned.
There is an super romantic scene in the book that will make you sign in envy.
I loved al, the secret passages and the missing Items that needs to be retrieved.
My inner Nancy Drew always gets a workout when I read a mystery by Adams.

It’s always a pleasure to visit Storyton Hall where the books are plentiful, the food is creatively bookishly themed and where there’s always a mystery to be solved! This is a wonderfully creative series that draws you in and keeps you looking for clues right along with Jane and the Storyton staff and friends. As is the case with most series, it’s always better to start at the beginning so you can get to know the characters and their interwoven relationships. I highly recommend this series for anyone who loves unique settings, interesting characters and well crafted mysteries - you won’t be disappointed!

It was so nice to be back at Storyton Hall with Jane and the gang. Jane has her hands full when a greeting card competition gets deadly.
Jane has so much going on with this competition and her best friend Elosie is getting married in 2 weeks. But she discovers a Rip Van Winkle, aka dead body, that is how Jane and the Finn's (a group of men who have vowed to protect Storyton, the secret library, and the owners) talk about a dead body so as not to upset their patrons.
I'm not one to ruin the storyline of a book so I am not going to start. What I do review is how well the author writes and about the characters
Ellery Adams is a wonderful author who writes mysteries-cozy mysteries. She creates a world in which I would love to live in it. Storyton Hall is just the place that I would love to live in being that it is an Inn and each room is based on books...what bibliophile wouldn't want to stay there or even live there! The writing is flawless and flows to keep your attention. It may have taken me a little longer than I prefer but I was also on deadlines for 2 other books that I was reading but once I got my hands on Murder on the Poet's Walk I had to start it right off. That is how much I love Ellery's writing.
The main characters are wonderful and who wouldn't want a group of men protecting you! Jane has 4 of the best protecting her along with her twin boys Hem and Fitz. The staff Jane has working in the kitchen are the best...like I said I would love to visit Storyton Hall if it was a real place. The grounds sound like paradise and Jane is fixing it up more and more.
If you haven't read this series I highly recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read an advanced digital copy for an honest review. These are my words and my words alone...they are not eloquent but it is from the heart

This is another excellent addition to this excellent series: gripping, well plotted, and entertaining.
It's always great to travel to Storyton Hall and catch up with Jane and the cast of characters.
This is a solid mystery that kept me guessing and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
One note: I love this series but I think the books must be read in order as there's some backstory.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Storyton Hall is a book-themed resort managed by Jane Steward and owned by her family. Poets from all around are competing for a coveted greeting card contract and the resort is the perfect place to hold the competition.

As the festivities are about to start, Jane takes a walk on Tennyson Trail, part of Poet’s Walk which is a series of trails named after famous authors. While walking she discovers woman’s corpse drifting in a rowboat on the lake, posed as if she were Lord Alfred Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shallot”. After identifying the Corpse as one of the poets staying at her resort Jane takes on the responsibility finding the killer, along with her family, staff and the local sheriff. A second poet is murdered before they can identify the killer.

I found this book difficult to follow. There were so many characters, and the author refers to them by their first name as well as Mr. or Ms. last name, which added to my confusion. The many famous poets mentioned were challenging for me, too since I'm not a big fan of poetry. It became easier to read about half way through, and the end was rewarding.

What could be more peaceful than a weekend poetry conference at a beautiful estate/hotel in rural Virginia? Fifty poets are attending. All are hoping to win a greeting card company’s job competition. Unfortunately, the tranquility is soon shattered when the estate's manager, Jane, finds a woman’s body posed like a poem on a walking trail. Who could have done a Murder on the Poet’s Walk?

Jane, her staff, and the local police investigate. There are clever clues, and several red herrings, strewn about. There are a multitude of literary facts and Easter eggs too for those English majors in the reading public. There are also some stories that continue to build the ongoing series’ plot.

While set in a cozy mystery’s world of no sex or graphic violence, the Storyton series has more of a traditional mystery feel. The owners and several of the staff have a secondary role as secret keepers of sacred literature. Many have special skills from being former military or intelligence officers. These characters are not the typical cozy mystery’s chefs and bookstore owners. It makes the mystery feel more important somehow.

Since Murder on the Poet’s Walk is somewhere between a cozy mystery and a golden-age style clue-driven mystery, it is rather hard to rate. I think only fans of both will enjoy it so 4 stars for straddling the line well.

Thanks to Kensington Cozies and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

On Tuesday, 9/27, Ellery Adam's latest installment of the "Book Retreat Mysteries" (#8) series is released.
I loved this book. Despite the murders, Adams infuses all the characters and the town with such warmth and care for each other, that it is easy to forget you are actually reading a murder mystery!
As for the mystery itself, it did leave me guessing until the end, so that was fun.
4.5 out of 5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington for the ARC.

Time spent visiting Storyton Hall is always a pleasure. Sure the body count is a factor but Jane, her family and The Fins will sort it out. The village is entrancing and Storyton Hall has so many book themed rooms that one needn't leave the grounds. Pick a book and a comfy chair and escape into another world.
In this, the 8th of this wonderful bibliomystery series, there are poets everywhere, all vying for the lucrative contract with a greeting card company. Lots of money for the winner but does that mean it's connected to a couple of murders, each with a poetic clue? That is what Jane sets out to do, catch the killer. If that isn't enough to deal with, she runs the hotel, is mother to twin boys and is The Guardian of a vast and valuable secret library. Plus her best friend is soon to be married. I'm not going to say anymore about the plot because I don't want to spoil your enjoyment. Just trust me, this is a twisty, red herring filled, well-crafted and satisfying mystery with a great cast of characters.
My thanks to the publisher Kensington and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

If I could simply use one word for how I feel about this series of books, it would be "Wow"!
I have always enjoyed this series, and I am continually impressed this latest offering was above and beyond my expectations.
This book grabbed me from the first page and did not let go.
The characters and setting are written vividly and are intriguing.
The whodunit and suspects kept me enthralled and guessing!
I strongly suggest you read this series in order, to fully appreciate it.
I highly recommend this book.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

Murder on the Poet's Walk, the eighth in the Cover Girls Book Group series by Ellery Adams is one of the best yet! I love visiting Storyton Hall and the gang, where I am always assured of a wonderful time. The characters, setting, and book language call to my inner book nerd , leaving me filled and satisfied with every visit. The blurb provides all you need before diving into this twisted, thrilling murder mystery. Enjoy!

Thank you @NetGalley @Kensington @ElleryAdams for granting my request for an Advanced Reader E-Copy of this book to read and review. I am happy to offer my opinion on any book Ellery Adams writes as she is one of my favorite authors.
#MurderonthePoetsWalk #NetGalley

Murder on the Poet’s Walk is part of the Book Retreat series. It can be read without reading the prior books, however, I recommend going back to learn even more about these characters and Storyton Hall. Storyton Hall has poets in abundance as they are competing for a greeting card contract. When one of the front runners is found in boat posed as “The Lady of Shallot”, Jane Steward, the resort manager, works with her staff and the local police to find the killer. When a second murder occurs and the victim is staged as another literary character, the chase is on to find out who did and why.

I have read some of the books in this series, and I think I’m more happy than sad that the secret repository of rare manuscripts is less of a focus of the stories. A lot of growth has occurred during this series in what I consider a fairly logical manner. Characters are aging, and the issues that go along with that are addressed in a way that shows that no one has all of the answers. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and look forward to find out what happens next to these characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed reading other series by Ellery Adams, but being this is the eighth in the series and 1st I read, I feel as if something is missing. Definitely on me since I haven’t read the other books, in other words probably more enjoyable if one read previous books. Seems to be a far fetch story that really stretches one imagination, but that is what a book should do.
Thank you NetGalley for this eARC. I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an Advance Reader Copy of this story. #NetGalley #MurderonthePoetsWalk