A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem is a fun cozy mystery that delves into the world of pageantry. Blended with familial connections, dark family secrets, feminism, and financial class, this story will keep you intrigued and reading even if you aren’t typically a cozy mystery reader.

I listened to the audiobook version of this story, which was performed well by a single narrator. I listened at 1.75x speed (1.75x is my normal audiobook listening speed).

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for this advanced audiobook copy.

Kristen Bird’s *A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem* has an intriguing concept—mixing Southern charm, dark secrets, and a touch of true crime—but the execution doesn’t fully live up to its potential. While the book offers moments of wit and suspense, it struggles with pacing and depth, making for an uneven reading experience.

The strongest aspect of the novel is its setting and atmosphere. Bird captures the world of beauty queens and small-town intrigue well, infusing the story with Southern flair. The premise is engaging, blending mystery and social commentary in a way that feels fresh.

However, the pacing can be inconsistent. Some sections drag with too much exposition, while key plot moments feel rushed. The characters, though interesting, sometimes lack the depth needed to make their motivations and actions feel fully believable. There’s also a tendency to rely on telling rather than showing, which can make the narrative feel distant rather than immersive.

Despite these flaws, *A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem* still offers a light, entertaining mystery with a unique premise. Readers who enjoy quirky crime fiction with a Southern twist may find it worth a read, but those looking for a tightly plotted, deeply engaging thriller might be left wanting more. ★★★☆☆

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

This is more of a COZY mystery than a true history, in my opinion, but it was a good read. Amateur sleuthing, silly hijinks and little romance made for an enjoyable read.

Readers of light, cozy mysteries will probably enjoy this one.

3 stars.

This was a pretty solid cozy mystery. Dakota was a likeable and compelling character, and I appreciated that while at first glance she was "not like other girls," she really showed a lot of introspection and ended up growing by the end. The friendships between her and the other contestants were heartwarming too.
I think the mystery plot had some room for growth in the way it was paced, but it did throw in a surprise that worked well.

A fun and easy read full of an endearing main character, hilarious and supportive side characters, an intriguing murder mystery, and the glamorous setting of a small-town pageant. This gave me major Miss Congeniality vibes. Readers who love a cozy mystery with an amateur sleuth will be a fan of this!

Only true desperation would drive Dakota Green to take part in a beauty pageant! But the combination of her family's financial woes and her mother's last wishes forces her into doing exactly that.

Dakota's beloved aunt, who has long been involved with organising the pageant is all too happy to teach her the ropes - even if her niece would actually rather be mucking out stables!

What Dakota doesn't expect is to stumble upon a situation involving a decade old murder mystery. But, armed with sarcasm and a keen intellect, this girl is up for most things - including navigating the murderous machinations beneath the surface of the world of the beauty queens in Aubergine, Virginia.

Strap in for a fun ride with this one - featuring an entertaining, witty and highly relatable protagonist in Dakota. It gets 3.5 stars with ease.

This one was so much fun! The narration was Fabulous! Really helped to immerse yourself of being in the south. The plot was intriguing, the twists were twisty and entertaining. I really enjoyed it.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the audio version. I really enjoyed this book a lot. All the characters were fun and if you like southern charm type novels you will like this one a lot. It was a fun murder mystery and yes towards the end it was a bit cheesy in spots but all in all I would read from this author again. I really hope this continues into a series? Highly recommend. The narrator did a great job!

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for this arc! I don’t think I’ve ever read a murder mystery in this setting before so it was definitely fun. The southern accents were the perfect touch for the audiobook.

The plot of this was great! The narration was almost enough to make me skip it completely. If there's a next installment, I will not be using the audio.

In this cozy mystery, we meet Dakota Green the stable hand who enters a beauty pageant. Dakota is trying to save her family home but ends up in the midst of a mystery when the pageant owner disappears. The suspicion falls on her aunt, though Dakota is sure her aunt is innocent. Our heroine is now not only trying to win the crown, but also solve a mystery and clear her aunt's name .

This book was a fun read , I definitely got Miss Congeniality vibes and I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed that movie. Cozy mysteries generally aren't my favorite genre, but that is more a me thing.

I also recommend this book to anyone who wants a light hearted, sometimes funny , cute read. In the midst of the mystery, there is a little romantic interest that adds another layer of intrigue to the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to listen to the audiobook in exchange for my thoughts

Okay, A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem was the most delightful surprise of my reading life! I’m a die-hard thriller fan, but I don’t usually dive into the lighthearted mysteries. But that cover? It called to me like a pageant queen on a glitter-filled float! 🎀

Imagine Miss Congeniality meets Fried Green Tomatoes with a touch of Sookie Stackhouse sass, and you’ve got this book. Dakota is dealing with the loss of her mom, and guess what her posthumous request is? Sign her daughter up for the town’s infamous beauty pageant. Of course, Dakota’s like, “What?!” But as a former beauty queen’s niece (who also happens to have the looks), she’s got no choice but to face her biggest challenge yet. And of course, things go completely sideways when the pageant owner vanishes, a stolen crown reappears among her aunt’s possessions, and suddenly Dakota’s juggling solving mysteries and keeping her pageant dreams alive. 💅

Now, she’s got a to-do list:
1. Clear Aunt Deedee’s name.
2. Find Mr. Finch.
3. Make it to the top 3 of the pageant (???).
4. Win the crown… and survive?

With her Aunt Deedee in the forefront of her mind, Dakota bounces between ballrooms, mansions, gardens, and dark tunnels (don’t ask) in search of clues. Along the way, she makes unlikely—sometimes hilarious—allies, while trying to stay fabulous and earn those pageant points. 😂

This book was like a warm hug wrapped in sequins and mystery. It was the perfect break from all the dark thrillers I’ve been reading, and I couldn’t stop laughing through the twists and turns. If you want something fun, heartwarming, and full of surprises, A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem is your new best friend. 💖

Big thanks to NetGalley, Kristen Bird, and Storm Publishing for the ARC! Go grab it when it hits the shelves on Friday, Feb 28th! ✨

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Thanks to netgalley & Storm Publishing for an advance audio copy of this title.

I was really looking forward to this as I've been reading tons of cozy mysteries lately but this one was different from what I usually grab so I figured it would be nice to get outside of my normal reads but in the end I was disappointed.

Dakota Green, the star of our novel, gets a request by her late mom-who recently died from cancer-to participate in her local town's famous beauty pageant. Over the past year, every month, Dakota has been receiving letters from her mom, delivered by her best friend, asking her to do certain things & entering the pageant is the final thing.
Not only does her mom want her to stop grieving for her but she's going to need the prize money to pay back debts incurred during her cancer treatment & make sure Dakota doesn't lose the family home. Never mind Dakota is the furthest thing from a girly girl & never participated in a pageant in her entire life!

So our entire premise is a bit crazy, which is perfectly fine as lots of cozy mysteries have crazy premises & I've enjoyed them just fine. But this one couldn't pull it off, sadly.

The first half was slow to the point I was bored & the second half had so much happening I almost couldn't keep it all straight. Then we get an extra reveal in the epilogue which had me yelling 'are you for real'. Maybe I should have seen it coming but frankly it just annoyed me.

I also was not a fan of the narrator & felt as though the southern accents were fake-- it could have just been me but I also disliked the way she made the male characters sound too.

The one thing I thought was GREAT was Dakota's positive attitude towards the other pageant girls overall--her (for lack of a better description) girl power & props towards her fellow contestants was wonderful!
That was the best part of the book overall.

The blatant set-ups for the next volumes in the series were a bit too obvious IMO & I don't think I will be continuing with volume 2.

I would round this down to a 2.5 out of 5

Thank you to the author publisher and Net Galley for an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.

I enjoyed this fun, cozy, small town mystery. Bird immediately makes you fall in love with "down in the dumps" Dakota as she struggles to begin life with out her mother. She receives letters from her mom each month giving her tasks to complete. That is how she ended up in a beauty pageant .I loved watching her grow and find "family" . This story is funny, charming, and twisty. If you need a light-hearted fun story pick this one up.

Not really my cup of tea. Maybe I should stick to regular mystery instead of cozy crimes. You may love this, if that's your genre.

Dakota Green is still mourning the death of her mother and is deep into debt from all the past medical bills. Dakota, a tomboy, is forced to enter the local beauty pageant in hopes of winning a financial prize that will save her home and pay off her debts.

The pageant begins and bodies start to pile up - Dakota becomes involved in solving the murder when someone close her becomes the main suspect. The novel weaves between clues and a reluctant beauty queen.

I listened to the audiobook and the narration was fantastic! This is the first book of Kristen Bird that I have read, it was a fun read!!!!

Thank you to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the advance copy of the audio book.

What do you get if you cross Miss Congeniality and the Thursday Murder Club? This book!
This is a light hearted cozy mystery about a beauty pageant gone wrong.
Dakota mourns her mother's death. Her last dying wish? That she enter the local beauty pageant. The potential winnings would save their house from repossession.
Reluctantly but left with no choice Dakota enters the centennial run of the pageant. One which both her Grandmother and Aunt were past winners of. When her Aunt us unexpectedly arrest for stealing and a sudden murder occurs, Dakota can't help putting on her best Miss Marple and get to the bottom of it. With the crown and her family' s future on the line can she get it all done?

I thought the book was ok, entertaining enough but nothing too original or special. I listened to this and the audio was very very southern with some of the characters almost robotic or comically clichéd sounding. Narrator could have been a bit more believable in this dramady of a book.
Many thanks to Dreamscape for providing me with an Audio copy of this book via NetGalley for review. All opinions are my own.

This was such a fun read! The cover and story are quirky, and I loved it. This book is a fantastic mix of Nancy Drew and Miss Congeniality, and I could not get enough. I enjoyed following Dakota as she navigates the minefield of catty contestants, skeptical judges, the infuriatingly handsome new sheriff and of course solving the mystery. I am a huge fan of small-town mysteries, and the audio book narrator did a great job! I hope this becomes a series!
Thank you, Net Galley, the author, and the publisher, for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dakota Green reluctantly finds herself participating in a local pageant after receiving a letter from her late mother. Before passing, her mother wrote Dakota monthly letters to be delivered for the next year. In one of these letters, her mother urges Dakota to enter the pageant, revealing that she had already given Dakota’s aunt—who sits on the pageant's board—clear instructions on what should happen. But things take a dark turn when a board member is found dead, and her aunt becomes the prime suspect. Dakota, along with a few new friends from the competition, embarks on a quest to uncover the truth, clear her aunt’s name, and catch the real killer.

I absolutely loved this book! It’s a perfect blend of Nancy Drew and Miss Congeniality—funny, suspenseful, and filled with twists that will keep you guessing. Prepare for a rollercoaster ride of surprises, with clues that lead you everywhere except the right direction. Will anyone solve the mystery before more people are hurt?

I'm sorry but this book was boring as hell, nothing substantial happened until 60% through. It was just a little bit of pageant and a lot of reminiscing about her dead ass mother. Don't get me wrong, I get that she's in her grieving phase but a mystery novel that promises murder and mayhem should not be about remembering when the MC's cooler-than-most-moms mother said something while on her deathbed. This was a waste of time and seriously underwhelming. Also, I was not surprised she won the pageant even though she did nothing to earn it. The romance between her and the sheriff was so annoying that I had to stop the audio several times. I will not be following this series