The Busy Body is an interesting take fully inspired by Agatha Christie’s writing style.

While this will definitely be enjoyed by many, I was not the biggest fan. I thought the storyline was very ridiculous, a Hillary Clinton-inspired character that decides they want to moonlight as a detective partnering with a self-absorbed ghost writer who is so arrogant and tries to sound interesting but is painfully bland. There’s a lot of heavy dialogue and wannabe ‘witty’ banter that falls flat. Additionally, the big reveal was a little obvious by the time it was “revealed.”

I was honestly kind of bored by the end and not that interested in the drama that the author was trying to drum up between the characters. I also didn’t love the audio narration that seemed like the narrator was trying a little bit too hard, but that is probably a personal preference.

That being said, I can appreciate what the author was trying to do and I do think this could be a fun read for those who enjoy Agatha Christie. All in all, this was a 2.5 ⭐️ read for me, rounded down to 2.

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. The Busy Body is available on January 23, 2024.

Kemper Donovan’s The Busy Body is a charming cozy mystery. It has all the right elements, but I didn’t love it. A ghostwriter is invited to help write the biography of a woman presidential hopeful who narrowly lost the election. While on assignment with former Senator Dorothy Gibson the two stumble into a murder investigation. Antics unfold and all is revealed in the final scene.

I am sure this book will find its readers and it will be well received. I didn’t enjoy the main character’s voice and direct to audience approach. I’m not a fan of books that are being written by the main character, so this was just a miss for me.

The Busy Body is about a ghost writer who is hired to write about a recently failed presidential candidate. Right after they meet, they stumble upon a murder and they try to sleuth out the murderer like an old fashioned Agatha Christie detective. There are lots of fun Easter eggs for Agatha Christie fans embedded in the story.

The only negative for me is that I’ve been a listener of Kemper’s All About Agatha podcast (and Patreon sponsor) forever, so my brain kept switching to his voice being the narrator instead of the female narrator of the story. But that’s on me, not him.😂
Great job Kemper!

Special thanks to NetGalley and RB Audio for the advanced audiobook copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was fantastic. I read so many mysteries that it's hard for any one of them to seem fresh, but this one was.


Review copy provided by publisher.

The Busy Body is a cozy whodunnit told through the lens of a ghost writer working on a memoir of a failed female presidential candidate.
While some of the “twists” were predictable, I was genuinely surprised by elements throughout the book. A fair amount of plot twists! A lovely, witty, and humorous mystery from start to finish! Narration well done - loved all the nuances of each character. Eva Kaminsky is a favorite of mine. She can morph into so many different characters with her voice range. I always really enjoy her work and think she was a great pick for this story!
Dorothy is a delightful character - wise, humble, strong and very in love with herself.
Strong female leads are where it’s all! I think a lot of women and men would love this story!
Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook early.

When I saw that The Busy Body was described as “Veep meets Agatha Christie” and for fans of “Richard Osman, Anthony Horowitz, and Nita Prose”, I KNEW I needed to read this book.

The Busy Body is a cozy whodunnit told through the lens of a ghost writer working on a memoir of a failed presidential candidate. While some of the “twists” were predictable, I was genuinely surprised by elements throughout the book.

The narrator was great but I do think that this is the type of book that would benefit from a full cast recording - I found myself getting a little lost and confused keeping track of all of the side characters.

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ ~ 3.5 stars rounded down.

This was so fun to read and I would love to see it as a series! A big thank you to NetGalley, RB Media, and the author Kemper Donovan for the advanced copy. US Publication Date: January 23, 2024

Excellent choice of narrator for this title. Great pacing and use of voice to help the story move along. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this audiobook.

The story of an unnamed ghostwriter and a former Senator who end up embroiled in a murder investigation. The ending felt off to me, but it was an interesting story.

The narration was great. I recommend the audiobook.

Fast paced. Cozy, but not too cozy of a mystery. I throughly enjoyed listening to the audio version of this book. Strong female leads were refreshing, real, and honest.

So many plot twists! A lovely, witty, and humorous mystery from start to finish. If you love Agatha Christie novels, this will certainly be your cup of tea. I dearly hope this is a series in the making!

I have very mixed feelings about this book.

The book is about a ghost-writer who is staying with a former senator after a failed presidential campaign so she can write her memoir. While the nameless writer is staying with the former senator, murder happens, and mystery gets solved.

The premise was interesting, and I did enjoy the plot and mystery in the book. I didn't really care for the political narrative, and I think I would have enjoyed the book more if the narrator for the audiobook had a little more depth. She tended to be pretty monotone, and I felt like she left the story feeling flat.

I do like books about books, and I love Agatha Christie, but like I stated at the beginning, I have very mixed feelings about this book.

I want to give a huge thank you to netgalley and RB media for an advanced copy of this audiobook.

A ghostwriter follows a controversial senator, blamed for splitting the vote and helping usher in a terrible president, as she tracks down a murderer in The Busy Body.

I really enjoyed this story! I recognize the series is called "The ghostwriter" but the real star of the book is Dorothy Gibson, the senator that everyone has an opinion on. She's witty and smart, but works very well with her unnamed ghostwriter. Together, under the watchful eye of a protection detail and harried assistants, they try to discreetly investigate a neighbour's suspicious death and end up entangled in a deadly mess and a PR nightmare.

I'm looking forward to the next book in this series! I'll definitely read it!

I received a free audiobook copy from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

Thank you NetGalley and Recorded Books for this ALC. If you loved The Seven Husband's of Evelyn Hugo and the Finlay Donovan series, this first installment in The Ghostwriter series is for you!

The novel is such a refreshing, yet thrilling cozy mystery. I was as invested in the characters of this story, as I was in solving the mystery. Smart, witty, and just an utter delight to have listened to this wonderful performance.

I am so excited to read the next installment.

This book was really good, enjoyable and easy to listen to with a nice narrator, I enjoyed the American accent there was a bit of a drawl which I liked. An unusual twisty plot and a fun story.

Hmmm...I have some mixed feelings about this book, but lets start with the pros -

- It was face paced, well plotted, and well thought out. The main elements were accounted for in the end. It had a strong sense of place and overall was a very fun read. I hope there is an audiobook!

Cons:

- I am not a fan of male writers writing female protagonists, and the fact this one was so poor!y developed isn't helping things. This book would have worked just as well with a male MC and would have been even better with a named, developed one at that

- It is SO derivative and I am shocked other reviewers haven't commented on it. This may as well be called "Hillary Clinton Solves a Murder". I like Hillary Clinton so I enjoyed imagining her in this setting, but I don't think all readers will. Writing Dorothy's character clearly took no imagination

- Why was there the romance element? It didn't add anything to the story and felt like a last minute addition that didn't fit in well. If it was a means to an end to reveal the 'secret' tidbit at the end, Leila, Dorothy, Sarah, or Locust could have done the same thing

- Why didn't the ghostwriter write Dorothy's book?

- There are a lot of characters and it was a little hard to keep them all straight. I think Peter and Denny could be completely removed from the book without changing anything

- How many times does an author need to use " pulchritude" in one book?

An in demand ghost writer, who remains unnamed, is tasked with writing the memoir of former senator and presidential hopeful Dorothy Gibson not long after she loses the election. However, when a suicide occurs just down the road, something doesn't seem to add up so her and Dorothy stumble into an investigation to find out what really happened.
This is a classic whodunit with lots of twists and turns. I loved the characters especially Dorothy who seems inspired by some real-life politicians. I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Thank you to the author, publisher, narrator and Net Galley for providing a free e-audio version of this title in exchange for my review.

**This book is NOT a contemporary Agatha Christie!** This book has so much unnecessary filler and so many useless details, comparing it to any Golden Age Detective novel, let along Agatha Christie, is wrong, bad, and makes me mad.

I rarely enjoy newer mysteries or thrillers, but the description of this one sounded ok, and I made the mistake of believing it was written similar to my beloved GAD novels. I thought it would be ok. It was not.

The details of "the female politician who lost" was beyond irritating. The "ghostwriter" narrator seemed more of a sidekick than a ghost writer, and was long winded and boring. I hated every single aside we had to hear from her brain. And for the number of times the narrator tells us that she's "not going to go into that" I felt like I ended the book with an unbelievable number of details about this mostly unnamed person.

I really can't think of one single good thing to report about this book. The mystery was not thought out, the character developments made me hate them, and the descriptions of the surroundings made me want to scream. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone I know - would, in fact, urge them *not* to waste the time in reading this one.

1 star for 'hated it' and I wish I could rate lower.

A very enjoyable gossipy plot. Great surprise ending! Narration well done - loved all the nuances of each character.
Dorothy is a delightful character - wise, humble, strong and very in love with herself.
A talented ghost writer is hired to assist with Dorothy's memoir. After the murder of a neighboring socialite, their plans take a turn.
I enjoyed the humor immensely - dark, funny and very enjoyable.

Many thanks to the author Kemper Donovan, RB Media, and Netgalley for providing me access to the ALC in exchange for my honest review. This title will be released on January 23, 2024.

Our unnamed narrator is a professional busybody—a ghostwriter. She heads to Oregon to pry into her latest client’s life, that of Senator Dorothy Gibson. A neighbor turns up dead. Although the death is declared suicide, the the busybody and the politician take it upon themselves to try to catch a killer.

The Busy Body falls solidly into the mystery genre with a sedate pace. The inciting incident doesn’t occur until about 15%. Thereafter, the amateur investigation aspect of the plot consists of little action—just a lot of prying conversations. Strangely enough, the mystery has no community component; that is to say, that the amateur investigators just snoop their way into random interviews with strangers. Sense of place remains weak throughout the story. Additionally, mundane details often bogs down the story's flow. I held on and was eventually rewarded by the interesting tidbits revealed in the latter half of the book.

The unnamed narrator does provide some amusing commentary, but it leans more toward witty or slightly quirky than outright humorous. I enjoyed unusual dynamic between the narrator and Sen. Dorothy, which falls somewhere between strangers, co-conspirators, boss-employee, and friends. However, I needed them as individual characters to pop off the page. I wanted more of their backstories. Sadly, neither main character stood out as particularly enigmatic or unique. Given that the setup is a ghostwriter coming to learn about her next subject, I found it odd that we never really get to know who either character was under the surface.

The prose is competent. The Busy Body a fine read for someone who wants a bare-bones, low-key mystery. Just know that it's not cozy, action-packed, comedic, or atmospheric.

NARRATION: Excellent. Eva Kaminsky manages to convey in the performance the protagonist’s professional expertise and energy, as well has the opinionated narrative voice that sometimes veers toward sharp and judgment. This is where the prose married with the narration really shines. Kaminsky also does an entertaining voice for the Senator.

I read a lot of mysteries, from the gritty, disturbing ones to the light, cozy style. While The Busy Body fell more on the side of the light mysteries, it was super entertaining and enjoyable. I thoroughly enjoyed how different, but well-developed the characters were, and I loved the way they related to each other. I am a huge Agatha Christie fan, and I understand the comparisons between this novel and works by the Mystery Queen, without clearly copying her plotlines and style. All in all, a super fun read!