CW: Vehicular Homicide; Overstimulation (Autism)

This book was fine. Oliver Popp, a gay, autistic journalist, heads to D.C. to write a travel piece. Along the way, he runs into an old classmate – who later is killed after being hit by a self-driving car. He gets entangled (via work and later romantically) with a photographer named Ricky, a D.C. native. Together, they investigate the Tesla-esque company and its Musk-esque CEO, have run ins with Congressional folks, and flirt a lot. Like I said, it's perfectly fine. It just wasn’t that exciting for me or particularly memorable. I think fans of cozy mysteries may like it, as the investigation and its outcome were pretty good, and those who enjoy a side of romance will also be satisfied.

Oliver Popp likes three things: lists, plans, and knowing exactly what’s coming next. So when his travel writing gig sends him to Washington, DC, he’s ready with color-coded itineraries and an emergency granola stash. What he isn’t ready for? A murder, a mystery, and a photographer who’s as chaotic as he is charming!

Enter Ricky Warner: flirty, fast-talking, and somehow always covered in just the right amount of dog hair to be adorable. When the duo’s travel piece gets derailed by a suspicious hit-and-run (with a victim who really didn’t seem all that surprised to be hit), Oliver finds himself investigating a murder instead of reviewing museums. And while he’s at it, he might just fall into his first real crush, and his first unstructured weekend.

Delightfully weird, unexpectedly tender, and proof that sometimes the best adventures aren’t the ones you plan, this part cozy mystery, part coming-of-age novel is a must read for any romance and/or queer rom-com lover

When a young, autistic travel writer teams up with a flirty photographer for his first assignment flying solo, there’s no shortage of shenanigans that might ensue. But despite his careful planning and preparation, there’s one thing Oliver Popp didn’t prepare for: murder. HOW TO HAVE A KILLER TIME IN D.C. is an entertaining and exhilarating ride as Oliver and Ricky traverse D.C. in search of clues instead of photo ops.

I really appreciated the fun approach to unraveling this mystery, complete with its colorful, entertaining characters and clever twists and turns. Readers get just enough information to feel like an insider in the investigation, while the suspense and intrigue will keep them reading to see what happens.

The burgeoning romance between Ricky & Oliver is sweet and subtle despite their colossal set up. I enjoyed seeing them get to know each other as well as the dynamic they share. Oliver’s character is told in a way that feels open & honest; his autism isn’t treated as a limitation or with abject ableism - just thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that impact specific situations throughout the story. I was also delighted that Ricky’s character doesn’t fall into a stereotypical caregiver role. He’s kind, considerate, and respectful - all the things Oliver deserves.

The whole Moonshot Motors plot is WILD. I'm always wary of being too technochauvinist despite my tendency toward early adoption, and this story is a fantastic reminder that humans create technology. No matter how hard we try, the systems we create include fallacies and vulnerabilities that open to considerable exploitation. I don’t know about you, but I won’t be riding in a self-driving car anytime soon.

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington for access to this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Oh my gosh, I'm so glad I requested this ARC! The premise sounded good to me, but honestly it exceeded expectations! First, the 'who dunnit' of it all really kept me going until the very end. I did guess correctly, but there was a lot of context clues I had to pay attention to to realize what was going on. Next, the CHEMISTRY between Oliver and Ricky 🥵. Watching their relationship blossom from strangers to kind of friends to maybe something more had me begging for more. I definitely will be continuing this series solely to see what happens to the both of them next. And lastly, the representation was *chefs kiss* AMAZING. The BIPOC people throughout, the queerness, the neurodiversity, just everything was so amazingly well written. I genuinely look forward to reading the next installment of this series, and seeing where adventure takes Oliver and Ricky next!

Interesting premise! Autistic representation is something sorely lacking in the literary world and add that the main character here is also gay and it taps into a unique viewpoint rarely seen in romance books. I thought the main character was written very well. The only issue I had was the premise. I was intrigued by this touristy travel aspect of the book and I was hoping DC was going to take center stage. However it took sort of a backdrop and when travel did happen it felt a little forced. Overall it was a good book and I would even say it is cozy mystery adjacent. I would love to see Oliver's character developed more and set in a hometown solving crimes. I do not think his personality suits big city adventures.

Oliver! He starts out flustered, and oh-so-adorable, and he just continues to grow on you! I love him! It's always nice to see an autistic character who isn't a caricature. Thanks, Sam Lumley!

And then there's Ricky - the absolute odd-couple but perfect match I was hoping for!

And DC! The city is her own character (as it should be) and despite the fact that everything disrupts Oliver's itinerary, this is 100% the romp we need in the capitol city!

I love a good buddy-sleuth team, and this novel was just right. Fun, mayhem, political intrigue, sight-seeing. Applause all around.

"Next time you want to try a tactic like that, would you clue me in beforehand?"
"Sure. That's a good idea. You know, a good cop, nutty cop approach. I like it."

I liked it too!

Autistic travel writer Oliver Popp is sent off to D.C. to generate some content and clicks for his magazine for the first time. His boss creates a carefully calibrated schedule for his short visit and hooks him up with a freelance photographer, Ricky Warner. With Ricky’s distaste for a schedule, they collide, both figuratively and literally, creating a secondary mission– find out what really caused Oliver’s long lost friend, Elise, to be in front of their auto-driving car at the perfect time.

Based on the author’s profile, I don’t believe he is currently living in D.C., so I’m not sure if this book was purely written based on research or experience. Regardless, this book felt like a love letter to D.C. with such vivid details about different neighborhoods. This was one of my favorite aspects of the book, for sure.

I really enjoyed Oliver’s perspective as a reluctant follower of Ricky’s plans for both the main article and the bonus second article. Oliver is braver person than I would ever be with some of the things he did at Ricky’s urging. The dynamics between Ricky and Oliver were cute, though I felt at times Ricky was pushing too much especially when he has only known Oliver for a few days. Their burgeoning romance was sweet, but I’m glad they left it on a more open-ended note.

The mystery aspect of the novel definitely drew a lot of inspiration from real life in regards to a certain tech mogul who focuses on car tech advancement. It was very easy to guess who caused the murder and the subsequent bad acts and the reason why throughout the novel, so if you are looking for a lot of twists and turns, this isn’t necessarily a book for you, but if you enjoy cosy, lower stakes reads, then this will be a nice choice.  

When logging this book into Goodreads, I realized that this is the first book in what will eventually be a series. I’ll definitely be checking back into our new favorite amatuer sleuths and see what mess they accidentally end up in this time.

This is a beautiful story. I love that the main character is autistic, and is very true to himself. I also love that Ricky is so understanding and supportive of his autism and works with him so well and respects his boundaries. I think this book is very powerful and hopeful for anyone who might feel like their autism might make it harder for them to find someone who is so understanding and respectful. Plus, the journey they go on together is just fun. It is filled with twist and turns and while it talks about autism doesn’t make it the main focus of the story and when it is brought up it is highlighted in such a positive manner.
Thank you so much to Kensington Publishing and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title

"How to have a killer time in DC" was a book I spotted on Netgalley and I just knew it would be right up my ally. I mean, it's a (cozy) murder mystery mixed with a queer romance?! We all know I eat that up!!

I absolutely loved the diversity of characters and the way the author touched serious topics was really well done for me. Overall, I enjoyed the writing style and I absolutely flew through this book! I started reading in the morning & finished the book the same day (and had such a fun time reading!). The plottwists are well done and honestly, I couldn't guess who did it while reading the book! Looking back, the clues were there for sure, but I didn't catch them while reading. For me, that makes the murder mystery aspect well thought out and well done!

Now let's take a little sidenote on something that was "missing" for me. While I really enjoyed the murder mystery, I also lowkey missed the travel aspect. I hoped to see more of Oliver and Ricky working / visiting places. The focus on that aspect was gone pretty fast and switched to the whole mystery and murder part, which is kinda understandable but still left me with a little missing. I hope that, in future books, we would see a little more of that! In my opinion, this book also started a little slow, but I am glad I just pushed through and carried on to read it, because after the first 15 / 20% it really sucked me into the story completely!

But besides that, I had a great time with this book. It's an easy & quick read and I think it's perfect to take with you on a little (beach) vacation! Our main characters are lovely, I had a lot of fun with them and even (most) of our side characters were enjoyable and interesting.
This is the first book in a series & I think I would read the next books aswell!

Cute, cozy mystery book with lots of self reflection and growth. Giving this a 4 out of 5 stars.

Autism is a spectrum, and the portrayal of our MC Oliver is very similar to my own experiences that it was a joy to read. I especially enjoyed seeing a successful young professional who is ok with his own neurodivergence and makes sure to advocate for himself. And he continues to get better at expressing his needs, which is something more of us need to do.

The ending did feel a bit rushed to me. I was 90% done and I could've easily had the book last another 50-90 pages instead of another 20. There are enough hints and indications throughout to potentially solve the mystery yourself.

Overall really fun read and I hope to read more adventures of Oliver Popp!

I really enjoyed this book. The author does have a tendency to get bogged down in explaining mundane details, but that sort of narration is also pretty true to the autistic condition, so I don't necessarily think it's a bad thing here, since the MC is autistic. I did find the fact that seemingly every man the MC encountered was into him a little annoying, and vice versa for the LI's exes, but for a lighthearted romance, this isn't a big deal. Overall, I had a good time and I thought the characters were fun, and the storyline enjoyable. 3.5 stars (rounded up)

Sam Lumley’s debut mystery is a delightful blend of travelogue, quirky humour, emotional insight, and unexpected danger — all wrapped up in the voice of one of the most memorable protagonists I’ve read in a while. How To Have A Killer Time In DC surprised me in the best way.

Oliver Popp, our 24-year-old autistic narrator and travel writer for Offbeat Traveler magazine, is the beating heart of this story — shy, sweet, highly structured, and brimming with honest vulnerability. I really liked him. There’s a quiet confidence to his voice that grows as the mystery unfolds, and I found myself rooting for him on every page — not just to crack the case, but to step into his own power (and maybe let a certain charming photographer get a little closer).

As someone with an autistic nephew — he has been diagnosed with Asperger’s and, at 21, still requires daily support and guidance — I found Oliver’s portrayal refreshing and sensitively handled. It’s clear Lumley didn’t write Oliver to be an archetype or a teaching moment. Instead, he’s just... Oliver. Quirky. Observant. Loving a structured itinerary. Prone to overload. Learning how to make room for change, even if it throws off his plans. I felt a lot of affection reading him, and couldn’t help but wonder what the world might look like for my nephew in a few more years.

The writing is wonderfully immersive, balancing playful tension with emotional depth. Lumley has a gift for vivid scenes and distinct character voices — and DC shines with detail and atmosphere. There’s something effortlessly charming about the whole experience, from the flirtatious chaos Ricky brings, to the sly humour tucked between lines of suspense.

This is a murder mystery with a beating heart, a celebration of neurodiversity without turning it into a spectacle, and a quirky queer romance that’ll charm your socks off. A solid and satisfying read that left me eager to see what Sam Lumley does next.

A good cozy mystery with a compelling lead.

Oliver is a journalist for Offbeat Traveler magazine and is going to D.C. to write his first big article. His trip starts out with running into an old friend Elise, who is going to D.C. to defend the self driving cars she works on in a congressional hearing. When Oliver meets up with Ricky, the adventurous photographer he is paired with for the article, the two decide to dig deeper into the story behind the self driving cars rather than just write a tourism article.

The premise of this book seemed to be a bit of a stretch to me, but it led to an entertaining story. The mystery was fun and took some good twists and turns. I really liked Oliver as a character and enjoyed going on the journey with him.

3.5 stars

I really, really enjoyed Oliver’s tale. From my own perspective, I like learning about people’s lives and experience - putting myself in their shoes. But most especially learning about differing perspectives that disabled people and people from other cultures than mine have (with Ricky). All of which means this book had a lot of things for me to uncover as I enjoyed the story.
The author, Sam Lumley, has done a brilliant job of weaving new people experiences into an intriguing narrative and keeping everything fresh and interesting.
I look forward to reading more of their work in the future.

I received a free copy from the publisher through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

How to Have a Killer Time in D.C. immediately caught my eye when I spotted it in Netgalley and when I discovered the main character was gay and autistic, I was even more excited as those aren't things you see very often in cozies. And I am autistic myself and like reading about autistic characters. I have to say I started this book with quite high expectations and sadly this book just wasn't fully for me and it made me sad as I really wanted to enjoy this book.

Something about the writing style didn't quite work for me, add in some wrong expectations and parts that didn't quite work for me and I was almost ready to DNF it and am not quite sure that wouldn't have been better. There were parts I enjoyed and others I struggled with, so I ended up having very mixed feelings about this book.

I think I went into this book with the wrong expectations. I was thinking there would be a lot of traveling around the city for the article Oliver is writing, I wanted to see the city come to live and experience it that way. And I was looking forward to reading about an autistic main character and how that would impact things.

The travel aspect is mostly the backdrop and set up for the story, but the book focuses more on the mystery and romance. Which is fine, but not what I expected, the travel bits seemed to flew by and the city and places they visited didn't really come alive for me. Even Oliver and Ricky didn't really seem to have much motivation for the travel bits when they could be solving a murder.

Then there is Oliver being autistic and I think the representation is decently done, it just felt like less part of the story than I had expected. There are some scenes were Oliver being autistic really was obvious, but other parts less so. He seemed to handle things better than I expected with all the stress of what's going on and only some autistic traits really come through, again that's fine, I just expected that to be a bigger part of the book. I also thought Oliver was quite easily pulled away from his original plans to solve the mystery by Ricky and I just would've liked a bit more about him taking care of himself and standing up for what he wanted. Then again he didn't seem to mind the change in plans too much and liked going along with Ricky.

The mystery part of the story I actually quite enjoyed. I wasn't quite sure I would at first especially with the mystery being slow to start with the murder only happening around 20-25% I think it was. There also is this whole thing with self driving cars involved, which felt a bit off and like a weird jab at a current company at first, but I enjoyed the unique situation it added to the mystery later on. It certainly felt like a very modern murder mystery. There are some interesting twists and turns and I really liked the reveal at the end. I don't think that reveal would be easy to predict, but I like how despite that I think you could still guess who the murderer is. I didn't manage to predict the murderer, but I did think it made sense and there are some nice clues pointing in that direction when I looked back.

There were a few small things about the mystery and how it was handled that bothered me, but that was mostly related to how the characters got about investigating at times. There is a scene were Oliver uses someone's interest in him against that person and that whole scene made me feel very uncomfortable, both for Oliver and the other guy. It felt very icky for both of them and wished they had found another way to get what they needed. Then there is an ex of Ricky who they keep bothering multiple times, which also just didn't feel right to me with how those interactions were handled.

Despite my issues with some of the characters behaviors I did mostly like both Oliver and Ricky. I also thought their connection was clear, but the romance does follow a very pronounced back and forth pattern, which felt a bit much on top of the mystery. They would grow closer and have these nice sweet scenes and then decide to be friends again or something happened that put some friction between them. It just felt the whole book was like that. It has a bit of a happy for now ending with it not being fully clear what the future looks like romance wise. I assume in future books that will change.

To summarize: I really wanted to like this book, but struggled with it a bit. There is less about the traveling than I had expected and the travel scenes that are there weren't really interesting, the city didn't come alive for me. I would've liked more about Oliver being autistic as that was one of the reasons I picked up this book, but the parts that dealt with him being autistic did feel well written, there just wasn't as much of it as I had expected. I mostly liked the characters, except for some of their behaviors when investigating the murder and how they treated some side characters. The romance has a very pronounced back and forth swing with them getting closer and then something pulling them apart. I liked them together, but didn't care for the whole push and pull vibes. The mystery was quite good and I liked how that played out. There is an interesting reveal at the end and while I didn't guess the murderer, I could see some clues when looking back. I am sad I didn't enjoy this book more, but if you want a modern mystery featuring electric self-driving cars with a gay couple in it, you might enjoy this one.

God I love a good mystery novel with a non detective protagonist! This probably comes from my unabashed love for JB Fletcher and the whole Murder She Wrote Universe. There's just an extra layer of fun shenanigans that comes from a layperson sleuth. I also had a fun time with the mystery which felt like an excuse to dunk on Elon Musk in the best way. Initially I was unsure how I would feel about the romance element of the book since Oliver was kind of isolated and I find romances that have a strong supporting cast of friends most compelling. However, it worked really well for me in this case. I really hope that we get to see Ricky and Oliver reunited and they go on a bunch of silly mystery solving adventures. Also if you grew up in the D.C. area I think this book will be a fun read for you since it's a real love letter to the city.

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: on page panic attacks and autistic meltdowns

This was an action packed romcom mystery that was fun to read. The characters were full of personality and well thought out.

5/5 stars: This is the first entry in Lumley's Oliver Popp's Travel Guides to Murder series which is a 2SLGBTQIA+ Literary Travel Cozy Mystery that follows a California autistic, gay travel writer, on his first assignment in Washington, DC, and his local flirty freelance project photographer as they team up to turn sleuth after they're involved in hit-and-run death of an old acquaintance's while test “driving” a self-driving car. The woman had just given testimony at a congressional hearing about the safety and security of her company's AI software and it didn't go well. With plenty of suspects, the two men will have to work fast to not only meet his deadline but figure out who's behind the murder before they end up next. With plenty of twists and turns, Lumley has masterfully crafted a mystery that deftly balances the suspects, clues and red herrings and will leave you pondering the whodunit until the final reveal. Heartfelt and humorous, Lumley's writing and character work are stellar; the characters are well-rounded and complex while remaining incredibly likable. Oliver, who's a gem, and Ricky, who's just as lovable, are great and I love getting to meet them. I very much look forward to reading more of this duo's sleuthing adventures! Also I loved being a tourist in and around DC with Oliver and Ricky. I very much appreciate how Lumley's written Oliver's Autistic representation, which he states as being largely based on his own experiences. With tact and sensitivity, Lumley touches on some tough topics; so take care and CWs. A great, fun read; Highly recommend!

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing | Kensington Cozies in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

‘How to Have a Killer Time in DC’ felt like a Scooby-Doo mystery, and I mean that in the best of ways. I loved the fun romp through Washington with crazy shenanigans, a cast of surprisingly chilled politicians and law enforcement (considering the plot deals with sinister Big Business Wheeling’s and Dealing’s in the nation’s capital) and an appropriately cacking Villain. I found myself humming ‘Scooby-Dooby Doo, where are you?!!’ when Ollie and Ricky sneak in and out of cafes, convention centres, protest marches and hotel rooms.

A big part of the appeal of this book came from the Crime Busting Duo themselves. I fell in love with Oliver from the first page and Ricky is the perfect partner to gently coax him out of his safe routines into the fun, crazy times. I also really liked how their relationship grew over the course of the book, and where we left them at the end.

This was the perfect vacation read, and I will definitely be continuing with the series. Recommend!

I love a good cozy mystery, and this delivered on the cozy and mystery vibes! The characters are lovable, and I liked the twists to the story.

I was hoping for more of the “travel writer” aspect of the story, and I do think the romance overtook the mystery a little bit for me.

The writing was a little difficult for me to follow and stay engaged at times (there were a lot of run on sentences), and a couple scenes rubbed me the wrong way. I was not a fan of Oliver using Joey even when he was uncomfortable with it.

Thank you to Kensington for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!