A "Clue"-style mystery meets modern romance with a twinge of comedic charm! Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for providing an advanced reader copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

Kate Valentine is the author of popular murder mystery series starring main character and sleuth, Loretta, and her side-kick Blake; while Kate isn't plotting her next book, she's slipping into Loretta's mind to borrow from Loretta's confidence and perspective to make her own real-life decisions. Loretta's confidence is especially necessary while Kate prepares to attend the wedding of her ex-fiance and editor to her Loretta novels, Spencer, who is marrying the publishing house head of marketing, heiress Kennedy Hempstead. After Kate and Spencer's split, Spencer and Kennedy were betrothed within 6 months. Kate ignored the wedding invitations she received in the mail until she received a final invitation accompanied with a personalized letter from none other than Hempstead matriarch, Rebecca Hempstead, requesting Kate's attendance at the wedding.

And that's how Kate finds herself traveling to the private island on which the historic Hempstead Manor is located, in order to celebrate her ex-finance's nuptials. Since things can't possibly get worse, Kate quickly stumbles (literally) into her ex-best friend, Jake, who she hasn't seen for 2 years after their friendship came to a horribly awkward end. When they reach the manor, Kate and Jake discover that Jake was invited to the wedding at the last minute and that they have somehow been listed as each other's plus-ones, leaving them to share an attic room with 1 bed. The wedding guests assume a romantic history between Kate and Jake, and Jake steps into this role to protect Kate from any embarrassment - after all, she's attending her ex-fiance's wedding.

Aunt Rebecca Hempstead, current family matriarch and first-in-line to divvy out trust funds to worthy members of the Hempstead family at her own discretion, announces during the rehearsal dinner that she will be donating the entire Hempstead Island, Manor, and fortune to the local historical society. Other Hempstead family members in attendance are shocked by this news, furious that their inheritance is now at risk. Aunt Rebecca is hell-bent on ensuring that the family's fortune is spent towards charitable purposes, and will do anything to keep the other Hempstead heirs from squandering their own shares.

The shocks of the evening aren't over - when Kate attempts to swipe an extra bottle of wine from the cellar to drown her sorrows, she trips over an unconscious body. Her screams attract a crowd of onlookers, who immediately assume that Kate is murder suspect no. 1. Kate, on the other hand, through the lens of Loretta, sees a room of potential murder suspects to weed through: angry Hempstead family members, jealous friends of the bride, frustrated authors working under a failing publishing house, and a team of wedding planners and staff.

"She Doesn't Have a Clue" is a successful and creative blend of genres, including contemporary romance, mystery, and even some comedic spins. I immediately noticed and appreciated that this novel is reminiscent of the film or board game "Clue", but with a plot that is 10x more intricate! Although there is a lot going on and a lot of characters to follow, I had no issues keeping up with the plot and comprehending the mystery storyline. I would definitely recommend picking up this novel upon release on January 21, 2025!

This book was EXACTLY what I was hoping for. It was so over the top and cheesy and just so much dang fun. Obviously, the mystery aspect was a bit predictable, but I also feel like that was probably moreso because of the audiobook narration. I feel like some of the characters were narrated in a way that was just a bit obvious that they were being suspicious. But this book had the rich family drama that I wasn't expecting (I went into this not really knowing anything because I wanted to just vibe) but absolutely ATE UP.

If you're looking for a nice mystery romance that will have you laughing, I would recommend this one. It was just a grand ole time. Though the romance of this book really bothered me because it seemed to be a lot of miscommunication that could have been easily solved if they had just believed each other and TALKED. Which I know sometimes is very realistic, but it was just frustrating to deal with.

This is being billed as half mystery and half romance. As a lifelong mystery lover, I was completely disappointed by the quality. As a rom-com/love story reader, I would have greatly preferred that it be a closed-door romance—or been billed outright as an open-door romance, with no pretense of mystery. I was hoping for something along the lines of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, Elle Cosimano's Finlay Donovan series, or Jana DeLeon's Miss Fortune series—all of which include mystery, romantic suspense, a strong cast of supporting characters (as well as strong female main characters), and quite a bit of humor.

From the outset of She Doesn't Have a Clue, main character Kate behaves less like a clever mystery writer and much more like a flighty incompetent. At some points, she seems downright dumb! The “mystery” is just a cover for open-door sex. [Earlier scenes leave something to the imagination and are much hotter. As the book continues, the sex scenes become more graphic, including silly names.] I found Jake a more appealing character. He should have had a stronger love interest and adventure partner than Kate.

The audiobook is narrated by Sarah Mollo-Christensen, who narrated other books in my library—both read and to be read.

While this was not a hit for me, it might appeal to readers looking for spicy romance . . . and not much more. [2.66⭐]

Part mystery part romance in this book.

Author Kate Valentine is having a bit of writers block when it comes to her mystery novels when she is invited to her ex fiancés wedding in a remote private island off of the Washington coast. She is surprised when her coauthor of a different series is there too. One she has always harbored some feelings for when terrible things start happening, things that happen to happen in her mystery novels.

I wanted to like this better than I did. I didn’t realize from the title which now I feel foolish but I didn’t realize the main character was going to be SUCH a bumbling buffoon. Unbelievably bamboozled by everything, she drove me nuts.

The audio was good.
Thanks to netgalley and Macmillan audio for an alc

She Doesn't Have a Clue by Jenny Elder Moke is mystery and a rom-com. A rom-com mystery? It is locked room as it is set on a private island off the coast of Seattle and it has forced proximity with someone that makes our FMC, Kate, well, he makes her heart go pitter pat. I like Kate, she is just a normal girl attending her former fiancee's wedding. I'm not sure why she is attending, because aside from her former fiancee, and Jake, her crush, no one seems to want her there. Kate writes mysteries, her main character is Loretta, and as a murder happens on this island, Kate tries to get into Loretta's head to solve the murder. Kate is also extremely clumsy - I can see this as a movie with Kate literally falling into the bride - of course everyone thinks she is trying to ruin the wedding. It is a cute and cozy mystery and a sweet rom-com. I was fortunate enough to have the audio arc as well as an e-arc so I read this immersively. The narration by Sarah Mollo-Christensen was very, very good. She did a host of characters including Jake with his Australian accent, very well. The audio book kept me going even if the story occasionally lagged. I enjoyed this story and give it 3.5 stars. Thank you to #netgalley, MacMillan Audio, and St. Martin's Press for my advance copies.

really liked the humor
and cozy mystery
elements of this story.
The romance between
the main characters,
though seemed a bit
rushed and awkward
and did not fit
well into the
story as a whole.

For the most part I enjoyed this cozy mystery / romcom. the story was cute and I love me some mystery.

4⭐
1🌶️
Tropes/Themes: murder at a wedding, fake dating, forced proximity, whodunnit, cozy mystery
Single POV 3rd person
Single Narration

This book was really good, but I don’t recommend it for audiobook. I think it’s better as an ebook. Because the FMC is a mystery writer, parts of this story are excerpts from the FMC’s book but there was no distinction between the two until after. Which, if you’re reading it, that makes sense, but to suddenly hear this other book or character being referenced really pulled me out of the story for the first few chapters. Like eventually I realized that when “Loretta” is talking, it’s because Kate is slipping into her book character persona.

And the way that Kate “becomes” Loretta is really cool and really adds to the story. I like how Ms. Moke did this, but it just makes it difficult to follow when you’re listening as opposed to reading.

And as I said, this was such a cute whodunnit story. I didn’t really try hard to guess who the murder was until closer to the end, but my guess was wrong lol. I thought the narrator did a really good job, even with the different voices/accents.

I really liked the mystery side of this book. I love an amateur sleuth and closed circle mysteries are some of my favorites. And while Kate writes best selling murder mystery novels, she clearly is an amateur when it comes to solving a “real life” murder. It was entertaining reading as she tried to find clues and connect the dots with the help of the love interest, Jake.

I really liked Jake as a character. And, to be honest, he’s the reason I struggled with the romance side of the novel. I honestly felt like he deserved better. Jake is a former pro surfer who spent his early twenties living a lavish lifestyle and being the ultimate ladies man. After a career ending injury, he tells his stories to Kate who writes them in book format which successfully sells.

But due to this history, I feel like Kate only sees him as this younger version of himself and makes him up into this “god like” version of himself. Which leads to miscommunication and assumptions on her end as well as her trying to seduce him while drunk then being so upset he doesn’t want to take advantage of her inebriated state and making more assumptions. I felt like she saw him for who he was and not who he is now. I thought he was owed an apology by the end of the book but she never took real responsibility for her actions romantically and was easily let off the hook.

As this is a ALC I’d like to say I really enjoyed the audiobook narration.

She Doesn't Have a Clue
By Jenny Elder Moke
Read by Sara Mollo Christensen
Ms. Moke is unknown to me, but I have listened to several books narrated by Ms. Mollo-Christensen. She is Australian by birth, but I am not certain of her actual accent. I have heard her use an American accent (VERY good), and Australian accent (good), and a British accent (please stop). As there is an Australian character who may or may not be the love interest, I have high hopes for the narration. Nothing is harder than spending hours focusing on the quality of the accent of a narrator rather than his or her actual words.
Not something I always do, but I decided that I would go with a kind of play by play review, as I take notes along the way anyway. We'll see if it ends up being tedious and rambling...
1st, a few notes:
*I'm not usually keen on exes as love interests or main characters
*I usually shun strictly romantic novels, but I can enjoy a romance within a mystery
*With romantic novels, I have high expectations. I NEED a happy ending. So, my tolerance of the romance depends on the outcome.
*Mystery/romance, is something new for me.
*If I engage in romantic genre, it really helps if there is humor.Thankfully, for my enjoyment, there does seem to be.
*I listen to audiobooks at .70 speed or less to be sure I don't miss anything.
*I will make note if I need to speed up. Sadly, this is not a rare occurrence.
*I actually quite enjoy a good "locked room"-locked...island?- mystery. I've heard many readers mention they are tired of the trope, but it's one of my favorites for some reason.
We begin with an excerpt from the Kate's amateur detective novel (Something Borrowed, Someone Blue) wherein the vital clue is discovered by the sleuth. Not sure if the circs will come in significantly later. The books are cozies involving a protag named Loretta Starling, a bartender by night and amateur detective by day. I appreciate that parallels are drawn between her and Jessica Fletcher, such as the question we all have regarding how she is never considered the main suspect since people tend to drop dead around her.
So far, I like that Kate seems to have a healthy amount of common sense and intelligence. Nothing is worse than the moron who goes into the dark alley anyway.
Again, I have to say, although it likely relates to the fact that I have (TMI) two exes myself, I usually find books that include dealing with them annoying. I guess I'm not comfortable with that type of drama or that kind of conflict. I'm the one who needs spoilers on whether the couple ends up together and fast forwards the part where one hurts or betrays the other. Likely baggage, but there it is.
Back to our Reg Sched
I love that I've already giggled during the first chapter. That IS a rare occurrence with unfamiliar authors.
FYI, there is strong language, with some f-bombs. I'm not fond of the use, but I'll live unless it's OVER used.
Yep, great Aussie accent. Great "male" voice. And, from what I've heard so far, greatly hot Aussie. Bonus!

We are periodically drawn into a "Loretta" chapter since Kate is trying to overcome her writer's block and using current events to finish her novel. She has a secret need to "become" Loretta in order to make her own decisions.
The romance/attraction thing is pretty standardly overdone in the manner of an "adult" (read: naughty) romance, but I'm cool with it as it's secondary to my interests. Just an FYI in case it gets explicit. I'll keep ya posted ; )
As usual, I have a pretty good idea of the culprit early on, but I don't mind that in a cozy. When I want a serious mystery, I will read Michael Connelly.
Note: a fascinator is a hair accessory worn on the right side of the head to special occasions or cocktail parties. I love vocab,but if I knew the word, I had forgotten its meaning.
I'm finding it QUITE funny by chapter 3, I must say, and I'm enjoying the excessive creepiness of the house.
I'm getting pretty confused about WHY exactly Kate was even seeing Spencer, much less engaged to him. Pet peeve. I dislike it when people decide to spend their lives with someone who doesn't even make them feel loved.
Okay, now we're protecting Spencer? Really? That could get irritating. I mean he cheated on you 6 months ago while you were engaged, he wasn't at all a prize in the first place, and you want to protect him from suspicion? Ick. I mean, LET the hot guy hate your EX, how is that a BAD thing??
Gotta ask rn, HOW do you have hot coffee and breakfast including bacon when you have no power, haven't had any for hours, and can't get the generator to work? Sheesh. Editor, where art thou? Can I please request an explanation? Is there a back up generator?
Okay, it's 40% and I'm rolling my eyes for the first time and sighing heavily. Oh Kate, you were so... logical! What happened??
A-VOI-duh the EK-SUH!
Do you WANT to be a murder suspect?
Do NOT make me mentally start shaking you.
Seriously, HOW is the staff STILL cooking breakfast?? Please explain. Campfire? Gas stove? What??
(Eventually, it is mentioned that there is evidently another generator which is low on fuel. Whew!)
I greatly appreciate the "toothpick related emergency" part. The comedy is worth the previous eye roll.
Couple inconsistencies, but nothing that impacts the plot. Just minor details.
Definitely what I'd call spicy. I've heard more explicit, but if this isn't your thing at all, I'd give it a miss.
There's a VERY good reason I dislike books when an ex is involved. I REALLY dislike them. Be prepared for some serious mental violence against Kate concerning Spencer if you're of the same mind. I'm speeding up to get past the back and forth and back to the actual plot.
And yes, I picked the right culprit.
As for the romance...AWWWWWW! I'm pleased with the ending on that.

Okay, I'm sorry if that was disjointed, but I ultimately do recommend giving She Hasn't Got a Clue a go if this is your genre. I am very much looking forward to the possibility of a second Kate Valentine book, although there is no cliffhanger. Maybe a spin off?

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY for this advance copy in exchange for a (brutally honest) review!!

Thank you Macmillan Audio for the gifted audiobook!

This was a fun and wild ride! I love the mix of mystery and romance, throw in a second chance, friends to lovers plot, and I’m sold! I love that all of the characters have professions in the literary world. Main character Kate is a writer who uses her own amateur sleuth main character as a sort of alternate personality throughout, as she tries to figure out who the murderer on the remote island she is stuck on is. To add to the drama, this is all taking place at her ex’s wedding. There is a quite an eccentric cast of characters, and they all added so much entertainment.

If you read or listened to The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year, or were a fan of the movie Clue, I think you’ll enjoy this one too! It has similar vibes.

🎧 The audiobook is narrated by Sarah Mollo-Christensen. It was so fun to listen to her bring these crazy characters and all of their shenanigans to life, and how she differentiated the voices for each. I loved her Australian accent for Jake. I feel like the audio definitely elevated the story for me!

Read/listen if you like ⇣
•Mystery
•Rom-com
•Second chance
•Friends to lovers
•MCs are authors
•Destination wedding
•Stuck on an island
•3rd person POV

This was my first murder mystery and romance book combination. And while I can appreciate what Jenny Elder Moke was trying to do, it just didn’t really work out for me. The book had an overall Knives Out vibes with a dysfunction family fighting over an inheritance with a hint of romance between Kate and Jake. Listening to this book as an audio book was also quite confusing at times. Especially when Kate turned into her heroine/alter ego Loretta Starling, the part time sleuth/mystery solver. It was a fine read, but can’t say that I would urge anyone to pick it up.

Thank you MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for this audio ARC.

3 stars

Parts of this book really worked but other parts didn't as much for me. It is always hard for me to believe someone would keep certain things like a dead body a secret and also...be able to bang like IMMEDIATELY after seeing one? The mystery to me was interesting but there were so many things happening at once it was hard to follow at times. And the reveal was...eh, didn't make all that much sense to me. I think the romance was pretty good and at times I would have preferred to focus more on that. I felt things for the MCs and I felt it was really well written but this makes me feel that a mystery romance isn't my preferred genre.

Regarding the audiobook, I loved the narrator. I felt she was really good throughout and I was impressed with her male Australian accent! I don't know if I would have finished the book without it being the audiobook though.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this eARC and ALC!

I have some mixed feelings about this one. I love me a good cozy mystery and I was excited to get into this. The narration was great and I was having a good time BUT there were lots of language and two entire chapter were spice scenes. I did skip those chapters and obviously didn't miss anything but I really wish there was a clear spice warning in the synopsis or chapter description. If there wasn't as much language and the spice was omitted, I would definitely have given a much higher rating. While I did enjoy this read, I'm not sure that I would be willing to explore any more of this authors reads due to the amount of explicit content.
Thank you NetGalley, and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to listen and review this advanced copy.

She's got alllll the clues, she just needs to put them together!
This book is a total comedy, like an Adam Sandler murder mystery & I'm here for it!
I'm getting this book for my mom for her birthday this year! 😂😂😂

Publisher Summary
With a colorful cast of characters and a cellar full of wine, anything can happen—from murder to a second chance at love—in Jenny Elder Moke's half mystery, half romance adult debut set at a lavish destination wedding.A high-end wedding on a private island off the coast of Seattle sounds like something out of a magazine. But for bestselling mystery author Kate Valentine, it’s more like a nightmare.Why Kate agreed to attend her ex-fiancé’s wedding is its own enigma, but she’ll plaster on a fake smile for two nights, with the aid of free champagne, naturally. And because the groom happens to be her editor, she’ll try to finish a draft of her latest Loretta Starling mystery as a wedding gift.When the bride is poisoned and Kate stumbles across a dead body, she finds herself in a real-life mystery that eerily echoes the plot of her latest novel. And the only person who seems willing to help Kate catch the killer is Jake Hawkins, aka: the Hostralian; aka: Kate’s biggest romantic regret.As the wine flows and the weather threatens to hold every guest hostage, bitter resentments and long-held grudges surface amongst the colorful crowd. Anyone could be capable of murder, it seems. What would Loretta do? Unfortunately, Kate doesn’t have a clue.

Thanks to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for the ALC of this book!

She Doesn't Have a Clue
A Novel By: Jenny Elder Moke
Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen
Coming 1/21/2025
Length 10 hrs and 24 mins
Publisher Macmillan Audio
Categories Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

At her ex-fiancé’s lavish island wedding, mystery author Kate Valentine finds herself embroiled in a real-life murder mirroring her latest novel, forcing her to team up with Jake, her biggest romantic regret, to solve the crime before another guest dies.

This novel is 50% mystery, 50% romance, and 100% romp. It’s hilarious and improbable and tons of fun. I loved the characters and felt more invested in them than I normally would for a murder mystery. The excellent audio narration helped make this a highly entertaining book.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This is such a fun romance! There is mystery and spice and just a fun read. This book reminds me of the movie The Lost City. Kate, a mystery author falls into a mystery of her own. The author is on an isolated island for an extravagant wedding of her ex-fiancée and his new love. When a mystery that mimics one of Kate's books unfolds on the island, Kate is the primary suspect and she works hard to solve the crime.

I loved the audiobook version and I loved the storyline. It was a fun read. I would highly recommend this book!

I honestly kind of loved this book. It was a great mixture of mystery and romance that fell into a lot of classic tropes while also maintaining a distinct style. I thought the characters were likable even when they were annoying and I would read more of these if they were a series…

This audiobook is a 3.5 star for me. The suspense and romance were well balanced. The main twist was pretty good. While I questioned who I thought the murderer was, the motive never added up until the end. I really liked the main character. Her daydreaming disposition and Nancy Drew tendencies made her laughable and likeable. The narrator did an excellent job voicing multiple characters. I was engaged the entire time, and the family dynamics added realism to the otherwise obscure wealthy lifestyle. That being said, the ending fell flat for me. The unlikely and frankly bizarre turn of events at the end of this book had me rolling my eyes. Up until this point, I really enjoyed this! I would still recommend this to a mystery/romance reader.

I ADORED this book so much more than I thought I would. If you're a fan of Nancy Drew, true crime, and mysteries that take place on a remote island where a wedding is supposed to take place - look no further. I thought the two main characters were so fun, that I hope this ends up being a series where I can tag along with even more mysteries. And while I guessed the culprit pretty early on (the only thing keeping this from five stars), I still enjoyed the ride! This book was silly and fun, while tackling some more serious topics. I would highly recommend!