I’m so disappointed that this didn’t quite work for me as i’ve really enjoyed West’s previous books! This is quite a departure - her other books are juicy suburban family dramas and this is a hard pivot into a quirky cozy mystery. Admittedly not my genre but i wanted to give it a try since I’ve loved West before, but i was quickly reminded why this genre does not work for me. This is completely personal preference, and i hope readers of this genre LOVE this one but i prefer my mysteries a bit more dark and twisty

When you have one of the most common names in the U.S., it’s easy to feel like you blend into the background—just one of many, easily overlooked. This book taps into that exact feeling, but flips it on its head with a chilling twist. What if someone took advantage of that sameness to disappear in plain sight? That’s where this thriller shines. It uses the concept of name repetition as a launchpad to explore identity, anonymity, and the danger of hiding in the crowd. It’s such a unique angle that immediately pulled me in.

This story was packed with twists and layered reveals that kept me flipping pages. Just when I thought I had a handle on where things were going, something new would surface—another thread, another secret, another connection. I loved the way everything eventually tied together, even if it took some mental juggling to keep track of the moving parts. It wasn’t just about the mystery, though; it really made me think about how easy it can be to disappear when the world sees you as one of many. If you’re a fan of thrillers that make you pause and reflect in between the suspense, this one’s worth picking up.

The Sarah Jones Project was started by Seventeen, as a punishment for misbehavior online, and collects women together who are all named Sarah Jones. They call each other their ages in order to differentiate. At first, the point was to make a positive difference in their community. But when another Sarah Jones turns up murdered, the Sarah Joneses agree to work together and find the killer.

This was a lot of fun. It's along the lines of a cozy mystery, though it has a little bit of romance, and a little thriller too. The Sarahs are all so fun, but also just HAPPEN to have the right kinds of backgrounds to solve the case.

I saw a lot of the drama coming, but it was just the details that were unclear. The ride was a fun one, and I love that the book leaned things open to having more come along for these ladies to solve.

I really enjoyed this book! It's very well written—-a little mystery, with a dash of humor and a sprinkle of romance. The characters are very relatable; they'll pull you in and the plot twists keep you invested to the finish!

Kathleen West’s *Making Friends Can Be Murder* is a clever, fast-paced mystery with a twist of romantic comedy and a unique premise that keeps the pages turning. Blending suspense, humor, and some romance, this novel is both entertaining and unexpectedly layered.

The story follows two protagonists—both named Sarah Jones. One is a thirty-year-old woman navigating the pitfalls of adult friendships after joining a local “Sarah Jones” meetup group, only to find herself entangled in a murder investigation. The other Sarah Jones is a sharp, determined seventeen-year-old who’s chasing the truth behind the death of yet another Sarah Jones. Their parallel journeys cleverly explore identity, trust, and how names—and friendships—can become more dangerous than expected.

The novel unfolds through four different points of view, each contributing to the web of secrets and shifting alliances. These alternating perspectives add dimension to the story and keep the narrative feeling brisk and engaging. The pacing, paired with witty dialogue and just the right amount of romantic tension (especially with the thirty-year-old Sarah’s flirtation with a charming FBI agent from her gym), makes this a perfect book to devour by the pool or on a vacation getaway.

*Making Friends Can Be Murder* is a satisfying blend of mystery and charm, ideal for readers who love a quirky premise wrapped in suspense. It’s light enough to enjoy in one sitting but smart enough to linger after the last page.

This is unfortunately a DNF for me. I’m not really caring for the writing or the characters, I found myself skimming a lot and not remembering anything to be honest.

How many women named "Sarah Jones" are there in the world? It is a very common name, and the main character of this book becomes part of a group of women with this name after her marriage is called off. When a woman named Sarah Jones is murdered, the motley crew, along with other new friends, work to solve the crime. I enjoyed this cozy mystery filled with friendship and humor. Give this a try if you like a book that is charming and unique.

I finished this since but I frankly didn't want to. I thought it was pretty dumb and confusing to keep track of characters referred to with numbers rather than names. I listened to the audio version and that occasional fake Minnesota accent was trying.

A quirky book with quirky characters that have nothing in common except for their name, Sarah Jones.

“The Sarah Jones Project” was born after Sarah Jones 17 (they go by their age) gets in trouble at school for negative social media posts. Sarah Jones 30, moves into town & is looking to make friends and quickly joins the group. Then there are Sarah Jones 39 and Sarah Jones 44, both teachers; Sarah Jones 69, a retired attorney and “Murder She Wrote” blogger “; and Sarah Jones 27 who is a nanny to another Sarah Jones (not a member). Yes, it can be confusing, but this was a fun, cozy mystery that heats up when Sarah Jones (not a member) dies, is it suicide or murder?

The story unfolds mainly through the POV of Sarah Jones 30 and Video Transcripts of Sarah Jones 17, including group chat text messages, and a newly commissioned FBI agent, a nun with an interesting past, and the motley crew of unlikely friends who are determined to get to the bottom of things.

I received this advance review copy from NetGalley & the publisher for my honest review.

Have you ever met anyone with the same name as you? Being a Caroline, that doesn’t happen often and I have certainly never met anyone with the same first and last name.

in Making Friends Can Be Murder, a group of women all named Sarah Jones join a club and they come together to solve a murder. Sarahs of all ages and backgrounds and really just an unlikely group of friends with such sweet and endearing interactions. I cackled at the group chats. And I loved seeing things unfold from different perspectives, including the non-Sarah in the story a male FBI agent. It was a unique story with sweet friendships and a twisted murder that kept me guessing. It was clever and suspenseful. I only wish they mentioned the famous Sarah Jones - the drummer for Harry Styles, obvs. Out now.

Sarah Jones got into all kinds of trouble (again) at her private Catholic school. The headmistress, determined to steer Sarah onto a better path, assigns her a project instead of placing another letter into her file. Sarah chooses to lean into her common name and initiates the Sarah Jones project - a group of women who share the same name whose mission is to spread good in the community. A thoroughly diverse group of Sarah's join the effort - all ages and backgrounds. In order to keep themselves straight in the group chat, the ladies identify themselves with their ages - except for the very important politician Sarah who has refused to join, but her nanny of the same name has joined. The VIP Sarah soon meets a tragic, fatal end causing the other Sarahs to join forces and find her killer. The clues soon make them realize one of the Sarahs is involved....but which one?

Very fun read - I loved the connection of the multi-aged Sarahs and I'm always up for a good suspense/mystery story. The clues were winding even though it was identified early in the book which Sarah was involved in the VIP Sarah's death. All the why's and wherefore's are the meat to this book - not the whodunit part. Unique read, and I will definitely keep this author on my radar and plan to read more of her work.

I can say with a high degree of certainty that if there was a club of people with my same name it would not have many members. Not so with “The Sarah Jones Project” which has so many Sarah Joneses that they are identified by their ages. Started as a punitive project by a high school student, the members of the group find themselves investigating the death of one of the Sarahs.

MAKING FRIENDS CAN BE MURDER is a lighthearted mystery set in Minneapolis featuring multiple Sarah Joneses, a newly minted FBI agent, a nun with a secret past, and a con artist. The dual points of view from Thirty (one of the Sarahs) and George Nightingale (the FBI agent) weave together the murder mystery, a fraud case, and a long cold case involving a missing boy.

Maybe it’s me, but it took me a while to sort out the many Sarah Jones characters. The twists are mostly predictable, but the lighthearted tone kept the book moving. This is an entertaining and enjoyable mystery that leans toward cozy rather than complex.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the advance copy. All opinions are my own.

Included on June issue of the BookTrib Chill Quill: Beach Reads with a Body Count: https://booktrib.com/2025/06/17/the-chill-quill-beach-reads-with-a-body-count/

3.5 ⭐️

The premise of this book was pretty interesting to me with a mixed age group of women getting involved in an FBI case. I feel like there were a lot of moving parts and it took me a second to dive in. I was able to predict some twists but the tension was well done.

It’s a good mystery book, with exploring the various characters as well as the multiple POVs building onto the plot. I really enjoy this because it makes the story more engaging to have multiple voices. Their group dynamic was fun and I was really rooting for thirty and George together.

The book felt a bit slow in the first half which I didn’t love. The last half was a bit better on pacing but I wish everything resolved a little more quickly since we had everything figured out by like 80%.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for my complimentary eARC, and to PRHAudio for my complimentary audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Making Friends can be Murder is a fun new cozy mystery. If you liked Only Murders in the Building, you will most likely enjoy this book.

While I was a bit confused at the beginning of the book, I was eventually able to keep all the "Sarah's"
straight. There are a few story lines and it was interesting seeing how they came together.
Although I am disappointed, I thought there was going to be a big reveal about one of the Sarah's moms (I actually gasped out loud) but nothing was ever mentioned again. A few of the Sarah's were actually left out of the story entirely, so I feel bad for them.

I paired the audio with the eARC, and it was perfect for my 4 hour flight.
Julia Murney has a very pleasant voice.

I only made it ten pages in. I did not like the concept of multiple Sarah Jones’s. Also the conversation between characters was cringe from the start. I couldn’t continue.

Actually, I loved this book. The situation reminds me of what happens when one moves to a new location and is looking for new friends. It seems each person one meets, as in this book, is different with a variety of life stressors. The book conclusion was an uplifting one.

Kathleen West’s Making Friends Can Be Murder is a cross between a cozy mystery and a police procedural. Multiple crimes and even a murder or two kept me turning the pages from the first page to the last.

When multiple Sarah Jones, who shared the same name, decided to form a club, little did they know that the high school project Sarah called 17 created would turn into so much more. They would even ultimately be involved in helping to solve a murder. The story had numerous twists and turns, as well as multiple connections to people and places—some tenuous, but others were stronger.

It was interesting to see all the Sarahs, who ranged in age from 17 to 69, connect. As they worked together, there were clues galore, but also red herrings. There was also a cold case, and Sarah, referred to as “30,” was front and center on the current case and an informant to the FBI, which wasn’t always at a professional level. But her mother had an unlikely connection to the cold case even though she had died many years before when giving birth.

As clues are collected and sifted through, the Sarahs are gathering more details than the police and the FBI. There were a few chuckles along with heartbreaking moments. As the cases are solved and closed, we still have a peek into their lives.

There is some romance involved, too. When the whodunnits are revealed, we get closure, but I would have liked the story to have gone on a little longer. The text messages between the Sarahs were a nice addition.

Making Friends Can Be Murder is spot on as a title for this cozy mystery/police procedural. It's filled with clues and multiple crimes to sift through to figure out whodunnit.

The review is posted on NovelsAlive.

Making Friends Can Be Murder follows the lives of several women who share a single thing in common: their full name. “The Sarah Jones Project” was born after Sarah Jones, 17, gets in trouble at school for some negative social media posts. The project, meant as her way to make amends, involves inviting other “Sarah Joneses” in the community to join her group. Everything is all well and good until a different Sarah Jones ends up dead, and police are pointing the finger at one of the group members.

This book has everything: a funny and unique premise, a murder mystery that had me completely engrossed, a dash of romance, and plenty of laugh-out-loud moments along the way. It manages to be light and fun while also being twisty and totally engaging.

Each Sarah Jones is uniquely and quirkily individual. Seeing as they all share the same name, the group members identify each other by their ages (17, 30, etc). It sounds confusing to follow, but it really did work to simplify and streamline what could have been a mess of words. The side characters were also beyond fun and intriguing! I mean, a nun with a secret past she’d rather keep under wraps? Say less.

This book moves at a pretty steady medium-fast pace, and I honestly didn’t even realize it was 432 pages until I had finished it (in 3 nights, mind you). So don’t let the word count scare you off!

If you’re looking for a unique and twisty cozy mystery, this is the ticket.

Big thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the gifted eARC!

This was such a fun and different murder mystery novel! A group of women of all ages who are all named Sarah Jones come together as part of a 17 year old's school social project entitled "The Sarah Jones Project." They are at the end of the assignment when another Sarah Jones ends up murdered and they are on the hunt for the killer - but is the killer among them using a false identity?

This book is told in multiple viewpoints and includes text message threads and deposition transcripts to fuel the whodunit narrative (which as a true crime junkie, I loved!). In addition to the Sarah Jones mystery, there's also a cold case that is being worked on with some of the same characters having connections to both. I absolutely loved the intertwined plots as you had no idea what was going to happen next! We also have a little bit of romance thrown in this with Thirty (all the Sarahs go by their age to differentiate each other) getting close to the newbie FBI agent involved in the case.

If you're looking for a unique murder mystery and some romance (closed door), then this is a great pick!

Thank you so much to Berkley for the gifted copy! 🖤