In Dead Post Society, house flippers and cousins, Whitney and Buck, decide to renovate an old Victorian mansion with a dark history. Forty years ago, the headmaster of a local boarding school killed his wife and then himself in the study of the home. When Whitney finds a new clue to the incident, she decides to investigate the cold case. Was the murder-suicide really a double homicide? Can Whitney uncover the truth that the police could not all these years later?

Buck and his wife have just had their first child. Whitney is approaching her first anniversary with her detective husband and is contemplating trying for a child of their own. I’ve read several other books in this series and this one minimizes the Whitney and Buck banter. It also focuses on Whitney following clues that take her away from the renovations. While I miss the house flipping tips, I really enjoyed Dead Post Society. It was nice to delve into a cold case rather than a fresh murder. The clues are all there in plain sight, along with a few red herrings, for any amateur detective readers too.

Overall, Dead Post Society is a great cozy mystery that tweaks the usual formula to keep it interesting. 4 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with an advanced review copy.

I don't know how Diane Kelly does it. I've read several books in the House Flipper Mystery Series and while the core characters remain the same and the house-flipping theme provides a through-line, each mystery and project is unique.

In Dead Post Society, Whitney stumbles across a cold case -- a long-neglected Victorian gem that was the scene of a decades-old unsolved death. It was considered a probable suicide, but there were enough inconsistencies to leave the case open. As a result, she must tread carefully to avoid stepping on any toes.

On the personal front, Whitney's cousin and business partner, Buck and his wife welcome their first baby. Who knows? Whitney and Collin may not be far behind.

Of course, her loyal kitty, Sawdust, chimed in with a few thoughts. The book also included a recipe and every chapter started with a poem -- so there was something for everyone. Too much? Maybe. But still a good read with a quick pace and lots of possible suspects.

Fun for fans of cozies. I'm already looking forward to the next one!

I received this Advanced Reader Copy of Dead Post Society from St. Martin's Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Dear Fellow Reader,

April Fools Day. Remember how much fun it was when you were young? I wonder if it means much these days. It is probably not a “holiday” that needs to continue. I will bet that teachers would agree. Although I am sure that some find it to be fun. This year in several places, it is an election day, which could bring a new meaning to April Fools Day.


Dead Post Society is the seventh in a series by Diane Kelly. I had not read any of the other books in the series, and I didn’t have a problem understanding what was happening.

As the book opens, we meet Whitney Whitaker Flynn, a property rehabber. She works with her cousin, Buck. While they work as rehabbers, they also work for Buck’s father, Roger, and his other son, Owen, as carpenters. Whitney is at a job site to meet Buck, Roger, Owen and Troy Loflin. Troy is the developer of an abandoned school. When the school was open, it was a remote location but as towns have grown, it is not as far off the beaten path as it was. Troy and his wife had gone to the school (Ridgetop Prep in Ridgetop, TN), and he decided to develop the property as an upscale residence for senior citizens.

While Whitney waits for the others to come to the property, she sees an abandoned Victorian house on the property. She decides to look at it. At first, she isn’t sure it is abandoned as it is full of furniture, but it is so neglected that she is sure it must be abandoned. She goes inside (just a pesky lock on the front door). She looks around and likes the look of the house as a rehab. She does notice some strange things like all the furniture is in front of the windows and there is a blood stain on the floor of the office. (complete with a typewriter and a handwritten manuscript) Buck arrives and while he chastises her for going into the property for safety reasons and perhaps some lock picking, he joins her in looking around the house. Right before they leave the house, Whitney finds a bullet in a front porch post.

They have their meeting with Troy and Whitney finds that he is planning to demolish the house. She asks if she can bid on buying it. Troy agrees. She tells him she will put together a plan and get back to him. He does tell her that the final headmaster and his wife (Irving and Rosie Finster) both died in the house. It is assumed that it was a murder/suicide, but the case was left open.

Whitney and Owen submit a proposal to buy the house and property, which is accepted with some minor changes. Their first priority is to work for their Roger but in doing so, Whitney finds out more about the house and the deaths. She takes the bullet to the police and while it isn’t totally enough to re-open the case, the detective is interested. Whitney pieces parts of the puzzle together and starts interviewing the people who were at the school at the time.

Was it a murder/suicide or a double murder?

I enjoyed the book. Each chapter starts with some poetry, which I wasn’t sure added to the book, but it didn’t subtract from it. Also, there were a few chapters written from the viewpoint of Whitney’s cat that I wasn’t sure were necessary. But overall, it was a fine cozy mystery. Thumbs up!

Thanks for reading.

In case you missed it, President Trump signed an executive order to dismantle the IMLS (Institute of Museum and Library Services). This will affect your local library. As of right now, the entire staff at IMLF has been put on leave. If you have a few minutes, please read the information from the American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/show-up-for-our-libraries If you love your small local library, this could affect the hours and collections. Libraries are a great resource, and this will affect them.

I love this series. Buck and Whitney are cousins who work together to fix houses. They have come across a lot of bodies in their time, but this time they think they'll avoid it by fixing somewhere that already had a body. Unfortunately they are wrong!

I love the characters and how they continue throughout the series. I have become invested in their lives and can't wait to see where they go next.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Diane Kelly for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for Dead Post Society coming out April 1, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author! I’m obsessed with cozy mysteries! I haven’t read the other books in the series, but I thought this was a really fun book. I loved the featured Victorian mansion. I thought the town and people felt really quaint and cozy. I think Whitney was a really intelligent and talented character. She has a fun job. I would definitely check out more books by this author!

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cozy mysteries!

Dead Post Society is a great addition to the House-Flipper Mystery Series by Diane Kelly. I like how carpenter Whitney Whitaker and her cousin Buck chose different kinds of properties. This time it is a Victorian with a violent past. This time it is a cold case that was never solved giving the house a haunted atmosphere to the setting.

While the series does not necessarily need to be read in order, you will want to read more of this cozy mystery home improvement series after reading this one. What a great TV show the Dead Post Society would make.
4.5 Stars

This might be my favorite of the books so far, but I might’ve said that about others as well lol. While working for Buck’s dad on a huge project, Whitney stumbled onto their next flip project which sounded pretty amazing from the descriptions. It was easy to picture how it might’ve looked once renovated.

The downside was the murder-suicide that happened there, but Whitney wasn’t really convinced that was the case and started digging. And for anyone who’s followed this series since book 1, we know where that gets her sometimes. Usually in the crosshairs of a killer, but she had a little help this time plus the fact she’s a contractor. They have all sorts of stuff up their sleeves, so this perp never knew what hit them. Little Sawdust kitty might’ve had a paw in it as well!

I loved the wrap-up and ending and now I can’t wait to see what’s in store for Whitney and everyone!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by St. Martin/Minotaur Books via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

This is a great cozy cold murder mystery. The character development on the characters and their relationship were such a nice addition to solving the murder. Experiencing newly wed life along with the flipping business relationship of cousins all intertwined into the story. This book had me guessing and laughing and enjoying the adventure.
If you love cozy mystery and unsolved cold murder cases this is a great quick read perfect pallet cleanser.
Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the chance to read this book and give my opinions.

Whitney Whitaker flips houses with her cousin Buck and has recently married Colin Flynn, a detective with the Nashville P.D. Whitney and Buck have decided to flip an old boarding school headmaster's house into a boutique hotel. She finds that that this house was the scene of a 40-year-old murder suicide. After finding a bullet in a post on the porch, she is not sure it wasn't something more sinister. Whiney is determined to find the truth of what happened 40 years ago, even if it seems someone is not too happy about her snooping. We also get to see Whiteny and Colin settle into married life as well as Buck & Collette's parenthood. Sawdust is still giving his opinions throughout the book (Its m favorite part if I have to admit it)

I enjoyed the book, The mystery had me guessing as there were lots of suspects and they all had secrets to hide (at least the ones still alive). I appreciate the getting to glimpse into Whiteny & Buck's relationships as well still getting the cuteness of Sawdust. Don't we all want a Sawdust? Thanks to Diane Kelly for another great read and am looking forward to the next adventure.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the chance to read this book and give my opinions.

This is another enjoyable addition to this entertaining series. In this 7th installment in the House Flipper Mystery series, Whitney and Buck are renovating the headmaster’s house of an old boarding school that is also being renovated to become a senior living community. Entering the old Victorian house is like viewing a time capsule. Everything is just as it was at the time of the death of the headmaster and his wife. The deaths were thought to be a murder-suicide, but the case was never definitively resolved and is considered a cold case even forty years later. Whitney’s curiosity is peaked and she can’t help but try to find answers to what happened that night so long ago. The storyline was interesting and it was fun to follow along with Whitney as she scoured old school documents and records and interviewed former faculty and students looking for clues.

I do love a cold case and one involving a home renovation is even better. Whitney and her cousin and business partner are exploring an old boarding school property when they discover the property also included a Victorian house where a terrible crime has occurred. The house is like a time capsule and Whitney discovers a clue that leads her to believe the crime may not have happened quite like everyone thought.

Why Whitney's family and friends do appear in the book - especially her husband who just happens to be a homicide detective and her cousin Buck - the focus is mostly on Whitney and her investigation. I loved looking over her shoulder as she dug through old records and hunted down witnesses. She's sometimes a bit impulsive but she's at least aware of it and is rarely in Too Stupid To Live territory. I also really love the handful of chapters from Whitney's cat, Sawdust's perspective.

This was a fun cozy mystery with some home renovation and a fantastic cold case investigation. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author!

Shades of high school English. This story is a course in high school horror. When Buck and Whitney take on the headmasters’ murder house Whitney can’t help but look into the cold case. This leads her into looking at the staff, the mean girl and bad boys from the adjacent former boarding school. Another fascinating mystery.

Probably the best in this cozy mystery series so far! Whitney and Buck decide to renovate an old Victorian where a supposed murder-suicide took place 40 years ago. But when Whitney discovers an overlooked clue, she thinks someone might have gotten away with a double murder and decides to investigate the cold case. She's very methodical and thorough in her investigation but sure gets herself in some tight spots. Fun and entertaining with very likable characters. A nice touch is the poetry that begins each chapter and ties in with the pun of the title. And as a bonus, Kelly even includes a recipe that is mentioned in the story that I can't wait to try!

Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new cozy mystery via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

I was immediately captivated by the story line. While this is the first book I have read in this series, I enjoyed it immensely. I will going back to the start of the series and reading them. It was a wonderful story and the characters were relatable and well developed.

Whitney Flynn and her cousin and business partner Buck Whitaker are about to take on their first house flipping job since Buck became a parent and Whitney got married. Buck’s dad has recently won the contract to transform the abandoned grounds of Ridgetop Preparatory Academy into a retirement community. While Whitney and Buck are happy as always to be part of Uncle Roger’s carpentry crew, they also have their own professional eye on the headmaster’s residence set just a distance away.

After learning that developer Troy Loflin has no plans for the house beyond demolishing it, Whitney and Buck persuade him to sell it to them instead. The old Victorian could definitely use a little rehab, but would be perfect as a Bed & Breakfast catering to the retirement community’s visitors. Troy does warn them that the building has a sad history, telling them that the last resident, Dr Irving Finster, had shot his wife Rosie then killed himself in a fit of jealousy and despair almost forty years earlier.

While Whitney and Buck are understandably appalled, they figure that the house itself deserves a second chance. Sure it’s a little creepy working in a building that’s been pretty much left undisturbed since the deaths. But as the cousins work to rehab the house alongside fulfilling their carpentry duties at the nearby complex, they slowly uncover clues that indicate that the tragic story might be only that: a story. The more Whitney learns, the more convinced she becomes that someone killed both the Finsters then set it up to look like a murder-suicide.

The local detective in charge is skeptical but not unwilling to listen. Detective Macedo has a heavy workload but tells Whitney that if she brings him hard evidence, he’ll make the Finster case a priority. As Whitney investigates, she discovers that the cold case might be a lot hotter than she’d anticipated. Someone has gotten away with murder for almost four decades, and isn’t about to go down without a fight.

I loved the dark academia vibes of Diane Kelly’s seventh House-Flipper mystery. The twists kept me hooked as Whitney chased down leads and pored over the school’s old paperwork to find both clues and answers. I also enjoyed the developments in her and Buck’s personal lives, and am super excited about where the series is going next. I do think we could have used a little more from the perspective of Whitney’s cat Sawdust here, as we had in prior books, but found his involvement satisfying regardless.

There was only one recipe included with this novel, but it’s a good one!

QUOTE
Lemon Pistachio Orzo Salad

1 cup orzo
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
¾ cup chopped pistachios (almonds may be substituted if preferred)
½ teaspoon chopped fresh dill weed
Salt to taste

Cook the orzo as directed on the packaging. Drain thoroughly and set aside to allow the orzo to cool. Whisk the lemon juice and olive oil together. In a large bowl, mix the cooled orzo with the chopped pistachios and dill. Drizzle the lemon juice and olive oil mixture over the ingredients. Stir until well blended. Enjoy as a side dish. Perfect for picnics and potlucks!
END QUOTE

It takes a lot longer to cool orzo than I anticipated! I definitely recommend pouring a little olive oil on the freshly cooked pasta and giving it a nice stir so that the orzo doesn’t clump up as it cools. I also figured I’d save a step by whisking the lemon juice and olive oil together in the large bowl I’d be adding the other ingredients to later. I just made sure to gradually stir the rest in to properly coat everything in the dressing.

While this lemon pistachio orzo salad is certainly delicious as is, I decided to dress it up with chicken and mixed greens for a complete and healthy meal. It also makes for a terrific cold lunch when you’re on the go. I like to add a little bit more olive oil and lemon juice to refresh the salad after it’s been in the fridge, but it’s still as tasty as on the first day it was made, with the dill and pistachio giving the salad a wonderfully unique flavor profile.

Next week, we travel north to New York City, baking up delicious treats while witnessing history threaten to repeat itself as a writer’s gathering turns deadly. Do join me!

Dead Post Society
House-Flipper Mystery #7
by Diane Kelly
Genre: Mystery
Imprint Publisher: St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books
ISBN: 9781250359339
Pub date: April 1, 2025

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an e-copy of the book. All opinions are my own.

Publisher’s summary and excerpt here.

Dead Post Society is a bit different in that the victims died decades ago, and the case was never closed. There is no fresh evidence or clues for investigation. Many of those alive when the deaths occurred have passed on, but some are still alive. Some are former faculty. Some are former students. One of them is a killer. But the killer has kept their secret for decades and is determined to keep it a lot longer.
The mystery was well-written, with plenty of red herrings and twists to keep me guessing. I wasn’t a fan of the very few chapters in Sawdust’s point-of-view, but that is a personal preference issue.
4/5 stars

Dead Post Society is the 7th book in Diane Kelly’s House Flipper Mystery series.. I only started reading this series last year and wish I had started sooner. With every book, you feel like your vising old friends. I love watching the relationships grow between the main characters and new ones they meet along the way.. Every book in the series is a good read.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒖𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒖𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉?

In this seventh installment of the House Flipper series, things are changing for cousins Buck and Whitney. Buck and his wife have recently welcomed their first child, and Whitney and her husband are coming up on one year of marital bliss.

They've tackled some big projects before, but this is the first time they've undertaken a project where two murders have occurred on the property. They're rehabbing a former boarding school that's going to be repurposed into an upscale retirement community, complete with apartments and even a memory care wing. Whitney is drawn to the crumbling Victorian house on the property, and the developer has no use for it, so he agrees to sell for a song--but the catch? The former headmaster and his wife died there, and their deaths were ruled a murder/suicide.

But when Whitney begins work on the house, she finds something curious that suggests a gun had to have been fired more than twice. As she digs into the history of the school and the students who attended, she realizes that the couple's death was instead a double homicide. Will she uncover the culprit before she becomes a victim?

This is such a fun series, and I've so enjoyed the character development of both Whitney and Buck. As an English teacher, I loved all the literary references and poems that appeared before each chapter, and the title was beyond clever! Thank you to Minotaur Books/St. Martins Press for the early copy. This title is expected to publish April 1, 2025.

The Dead Post Society is the seventh installment in Diane Kelly’s delightful House Flipper series. Newlywed Whitney and her cousin, Buck, work for Buck’s father, helping transform a former private school into a retirement community. When they learn that the developer plans to demolish the abandoned Victorian headmaster’s house on the school grounds, they see its potential and quickly purchase it, envisioning a charming boutique hotel.

However, the home carries a dark past—the headmaster and his wife were found shot to death, a case long presumed to be a murder-suicide. But lingering evidence suggests otherwise. When Whitney discovers a bullet lodged in an outdoor post and a corresponding hole inside, she realizes the mystery may not be as closed as everyone thought. Determined to clear the home's reputation, she teams up with law enforcement to uncover the truth. However, not everyone is pleased with her investigation, and soon, Whitney finds herself in dangerous situations.

The book’s title is a clever nod to The Dead Poets Society, and Kelly adds another literary touch by opening each chapter with a famous poem, offering subtle hints about the unfolding mystery. With its perfect mix of renovation, intrigue, and wit, this latest installment is a must-read for fans of the series.

A nice addition to the series that sees Whitney, now married to Collin, contemplating motherhood even as she solves a cold case with her cousin Buck- a cold case they discovered while working on a renovation with Buck's dad Roger. This is a little different from the usual cozy plot because the murder at the old house took place years ago. Are there ghosts, btw? I like this series not just for the mysteries but also for the relationship between the cousins, their spouses, the details of house renovations, and, of course, Sawdust the cat. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. No spoilers for me.