Normally when I read a character who has the same name as me she's either the victim or the mean girl. I'm glad this time she's the FMC and she's the one trying to solve the mystery.

I was really intrigued by the summary and at first glance, this seemed like it could be one of those mysteries that left me wanting more!

What I love about a "cozy who dunnit" is that the stories tend to be quick-paced and have a bit of humor involved. I found this book to fall short on both unfortunately. This could be due to the fact that this ARC was sent without a final round of editing.
A final round of editing could have eliminated some of the repetitive and cushion information that slowed the story down. They ending seemed very repetitive although, I did not suspect this person as the killer myself, I felt inclined to skim through the final chapter.

I think this book has more potential!
Would love to see a throughout edit to round out the story a bit more.
I loved the idea surrounding why the main character was in town but the mystery almost seemed to split into two different stories.

Setting ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Story/Mystery ⭐⭐⭐⭐
MC ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Side Characters ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Whodunnit ⭐⭐⭐

• Cosy mystery
• A spooky mansion with family friendly themed rooms! Scooby-Doo! Ghostbusters! 👻
• Likeable female protag
• 2 aunts. A green witch 💚 and a crystal witch 💎
• Steady pacing
• Satisfying ending

LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this cozy mystery!!!! "Murder at Blackwood Inn" is book one in her Haunted Dead and Breakfast Mystery series and I'm gonna be very impatient for book two!!

I stumbled upon Murder at Blackwood in when I was looking for a mystery for my Friday evening and it was everything I hoped it would be. Charming, cosy and fast paced.

The story revolves around Carissa, a recent divorcee and ex mystery ghost writer who moves in with her two aunts to help open their new B&B. The aunts are kooky and enjoy things like theming rooms after famous mysteries, growing poisonous herbs and collecting crystals. There's also Pyewater the cat and Noah, the hot caretaker. Not long after Carissa arrives, mysterious deaths occur and, with the help of sexy Noah she needs to uncover some family skeletons and figure out what's really happened.

Although this could do with another edit, there are a few errors in the text which needs to be picked up, I didn't find it too distracting. Overall, I found the story enjoyable, if not a little simple, but that's what I was looking for so no complaints here. Carissa isn't the brightest spark but I was rooting for her and I'd like to learn more about this tumultuous ex in future installments. The aunts could also do with a bit more fleshing out but again, this was a good character introduction for them. I'd also like to learn more about the Town itself and think it will make a great setting for more mysteries to come.

I'm looking forward to reading the next one!

Cozy mystery fans who like a little bit of the paranormal and witchiness in their books will enjoy this one. The characters are fun if not terribly original (the aunts are right out of Practical Magic) but the story is fast-paced and interesting.

Loved this book. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC.
I picked this book for the orange kitty on the cover. 2 eccentric Aunts and their niece running an inn. What could go wrong? Someone ends up dead but who is the murderer. This book kept me entertained the whole time trying to figure out the mystery.

Promising start to a new series. It took a while to really get into but the characters seem likable enough. A good mystery but somewhat easily solved. I'd like to see more descriptions of Pelican Point. I never really got the sense that I could see myself there. In desperate need of editing with many typos and grammatical errors. I definitely plan to read the next one in the hope to learn more about the characters and location.

3.5*
Cosy mystery with a dash of romance. It kept me interested the whole time, wanting to solve the mystery. I would recommend add this to fall TBR. This version could benefit from another review, as there are some sentences not accurate, or with missing words. I had a lot of fun reading this book. The cover is lovely.

Murder at Blackwood Inn had me turning lights on at night! Admittedly, I’m a scaredy cat, but the ghosts, oujia boards, and seances had me dreaming of a who-dunnit! I loved hearing about the town and the history of the Inn’s architecture -such a fun addition to the story. Especially when you can picture the house! A budding romance, quirky characters, cranky neighbors, and a dead body…or two..were the perfect ingredients for a successful mystery!

I’m ready for book 2 already! 👌🏼

This is honestly really good for people who are fans of Charmed (original) and any of the Sabrina witch shows. It feels very whimsical because of the characters!! Unfortunately just wasn’t for me, though I don’t read mystery novels all that often so hey it’s just something I need to indulge in more so I can enjoy it more. I have high hopes for this book and others enjoying it

#MurderatBlackwoodInn #NetGalley is a fun cozy mystery that I really enjoyed reading.
The cast of characters are so colorful and funny that it made the story even more interesting.
The aunts made the story exciting and I hope there will be more in the series.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of this book.

This was such a cosy read! I loved the witchy vibes throughout the book and loved that they had themed rooms as I would definitely stay in a place like this! ( Hopefully there would be no murders!!). I really enjoyed the mystery of the inn and of the murders and didn't guess the killer before the reveal scene. However it feel quite rushed at the end and a lot of information was given in quite a short amount of time. I do hope there is a sequel as I would love to read more about the blackwood inn!!

This book was a cute and cozy mystery with fun characters and a spooky setting. Overall, it’s an easy comforting read that’s a good time. I liked the idea of the spooky themed Bed and Breakfast, the cats were cute, and the mystery was fun.

There were some parts of the mystery and ‘spookiness’ that were pushed to the readers a little too hard, things that could have been shown instead of directly told. I also would have liked a little more backstory on some of the characters, especially Carissa. All we really know is her recent divorce, her job, and her obsession with Nancy Drew before we’re thrown into the murders. It made her harder to relate to and her character to fall a little flat sometimes. Her aunts were similar, they were both a little eccentric and secretive and that was the extent of their personalities in this book. I would like to see them given more background and characteristics in future books.

I would say this book is worth reading. It’s cute, has a nice - if predictable - mystery, and is a relatively quick read.

Murder at the Blackwood Inn by Penny Warner is the first in the Haunted Dead and Breakfast Mystery series. I was really looking forward to this book because it seemed like it had everything I enjoy in a cozy mystery - a small town setting, family secrets and a little bit of the paranormal. I really tried to like this book, but I just couldn’t do it. I felt like I was dropped in the middle of a story and had no idea what was going on. There was so little backstory given for any character that it was hard to even figure out how old the characters were. For some reason, everything was a secret, except the secret code. That code seemed to stump the characters, but I can’t imagine it stumped any reader. The plot had so many holes in it that I wondered if it had even been edited. Also, the idea that someone would have to give up a baby for adoption and hide a pregnancy due to family shame in the year 2000 seems awfully hard to believe. There never was anything very paranormal in the book and I basically finished the book because I needed to in order to review it.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book. All opinions are my own.

Carissa Blackwood, una escritora fantasma, está pasando por el peor año de su vida. Después de descubrir la infidelidad de su esposo con su mejor amiga y perder todo su dinero, decide aceptar la oferta de sus tías para ayudarles a administrar su B&B temático de fantasmas en Pelican Point, California.

Cuando una mujer del pueblo muere envenenada con una sustancia que solo podría haber salido del jardín de Hazel, y un amuleto de Runa es encontrado en la escena del crimen, las tías se convierten en las principales sospechosas. Con la ayuda de un misterioso manitas, un encantador periodista y, curiosamente, el fantasma de su abuelo, Carissa se ve obligada a descubrir la verdad detrás del asesinato antes de que alguien más termine muerto en el B&B.


~

Espero que los siguientes libros se centre más en los sobrenatural, aquí se hace alusión, pero se deja al aire.




Pensé que el personaje que aparecía y desaparecía era un fantasma. Bueno, esa parte del final me dejó con dudas, pero todos podían verlo y hablar con él, entonces ya no sé qué pensar.



Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! The eccentric Aunts were entertaining and I can't wait to see what else this author comes up with!

It’s a bit different from the cozy mysteries that I have read. The mystery itself is, for me, predictable and had too many elements. What is with all the secrecy? Were the Blackwoods descended from paranormal beings? Because it really started out like they were. The sisters seemed like they weren’t just eccentrics who are passionate about their chosen field of learning, it was insinuated that they have nonhuman ancestry. Then there was Noah. Why is he that way? There was a weird air of mystery that was somewhat not resolved until the end of the story. Timeline of the events is a bit confusing, especially when they switch back and forth from past to present. It was hard to focus there were so many aspects to the mystery.

What I like about the story is the whole Pelican Point universe. I love the way the author brings to life each character and the whole of Pelican Point. I can practically imagine the place and conjure the people like I know them in real life. And the tea in this small town is scalding hot!

I guess, yeah, I’m looking forward to the next book in the series. I wanna know what happens to some of the minor characters. I need some answers!

If you’re looking for a cute and cozy spooky mystery, this is it.

I loved the Nancy Drew references from the main character and how she worked to embody the character to try and save her aunts.

The Aunts and other people in the house are eccentric and it’s so endearing watching them do their best to create a spooky fun house and prevent murder.

And the cats… adorable. Mischievous.

The whole feel of the book is of a classic spooky house mystery with a dash of romance. Highly recommend adding this to you fall to be read pile!

This was a cute little story but I really hope it goes for another round of editing before publication. Words were missing from sentences in spots. The main character was… something. A “code” that I was able to read right away was a big mystery for her and the Nancy Drew stuff was a bit much. I’d probably give the second book in this series a chance to see if it improves.