Murder at Blackwood Inn is the first installment in the series, and it drew me in from the get-go. I enjoyed the overall ambiance and the way the inn was presented felt like a magical combination of Good Witch's Grey House and the Halliwell sisters' mansion in Charmed. The writing style was addictive, and the plot compelling. I'm looking forward to the next book!

This was a super fun, cozy mystery with a classic whodunnit vibe. Murder at Blackwood Inn had just the right mix of creepy atmosphere, quirky characters, and twists to keep me guessing. It gave me major Clue vibes in the best way. Some parts felt a little over-the-top, but that was part of the charm. I liked trying to piece it together and didn’t totally see the ending coming. If you’re into light thrillers with a bit of drama and small-town secrets, this one’s a good pick. Not too dark, just the right amount of suspense. Solid 4 stars!

"Murder at Blackwood Inn" is a very amazing read. A fun and scary read about ghosts haunting this old house where generations have died: I enjoyed reading with Carissa and her aunts and all the other characters. I wasn't sure who the killer was, but well done and kept me going till the end. Thank you, looking forward to the next book.

This is the first book in a new cosy mystery series. I enjoyed the eccentic characters but found the story slow paced. I would continue the series. Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for ARC.

A fun start to a new series. Quirky characters, cat and a mystery pulled me in. While not a hard one to figure out, its a fun enjoyable read. I definitely am looking forward to the next one! Thanks #Netgalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for the eARC in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are mine.

Small town who dunnit with a dash of the occult aka murder mystery meets haunted house

4/5⭐️

Following her divorce Carissa Blackwood starts off fresh and moves to the small town of Pelican Point to help her aunts to turn their family residence into a Bed and Breakfast.
The Blackwood family, most importantly Carissa’s late grandfather, has been dipping into the occult for before and these days, the house looks the part with herbs and crystals around, squeaking floorboards and a whopping seven cats. When two people connected to the Inn die under mysterious circumstances, all eyes fall on Carissa’s aunts.

I enjoyed the setting, and the quirkiness of Carissa‘s aunts. They were funny and likeable without becoming caricatures.
The mystery was solid, not overly complex but definitely not predictable for me. I was pointing fingers at the wrong suspect, so kudos there. Carissa herself is likeable and earnest, though I wished she’d been a little sharper in piecing the clues together.

I need to call out the Harry Potter cat problem though. The cats are named after famous cats and the HP one is named Hermione. Everyone knows Crookshanks was the feline, come on.

Overall, a fun, easy and entertaining read.

Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the free copy. All thoughts are my own.

This if the first book in a new series and I enjoyed the read. I am a sucker for a cozy mystery with quirky and fun characters. This one had them and the characters did not disappoint. The story flowed at a nice pace and the characters had to work at finding the clues, the didn't just come easy. All in all, this was a well written first book in a new series that entertained me and kept me guessing until the end.

Ghostwriter Carissa Blackwood is having the worst year of her life. After leaving a cheating husband she takes up the offer from her two aunts to move to the Blackwood Bed n Breakfast Inn in Pelican Point California. When one of the towns people turns up dead from poison found in her aunts garden then they also find a charm that her other aunt collects. This leads Carissa to look for the possible killer with the help of the handyman Noah, Aiden the charming newspaper man and the ghost of Charissa’s grandfather to clear her Aunts and find the real killer. This was a good mystery story to find the real killer. It has fun characters and lots of twists. I would recommend to everyone.

This was such a fun book! I loved most of the characters, and i really enjoyed the story.

I appreciate that the secret room was so hard to find, and that the characters really had to explore to figure out the Blackwood Inn.

The aunts were my favorite characters. They both had interesting personalities that played well off each other. I loved the theme they decorated each room im their B&B with.

While this book was somewhat easy to solve, I did like the intrigue and whodunit attitude of the book. Like other cozy mysteries, this book is not scary, but there is enough of a spooky factor to keep cozy mystery fans hooked.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this book to review.

This was a fun mystery novel, and I enjoyed it a lot. I am looking forward to reading more by this author.

Getting a new start on her life, Carissa joins her two eccentric aunts in managing their new B&B. Little did she know the words “haunted” will apply especially when she hears noise during the night. Things get worse when a visitor is poisoned and all eyes’ points to her aunt who has an herbal garden that have poison plants. Knowing her innocence, Carissa starts looking into who wanted the visitor dead and why.

The author did a great job in setting this up with an eclectic yet quirky cast of characters, a small-town atmosphere and engaging dialogue that helped move the story forward. The pool of suspects was short, but the motives were larger than life when uncovered. There were a few red herrings that enhanced my reading pleasure and when I thought I had a handle on the person responsible, the author changed directions and I enjoyed following the path she had laid out, especially when one by one, the pieces began to fit together with the killer’s identity made known. Overall, an excellent read and welcome addition to the cozy genre.

A new series with a MC who has made a couple of semi-voluntary life changes (divorce, back to family, open a B & B, a little bit of ghostliness, murder, amateur sleuth, and some sly humor. Wonderful start!
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Pub Date Sep 23, 2025 **** review #NetGalley @bookbub @goodreads #LibraryThing
#MurderatBlackwoodInn by @pennywarnerink @HauntedDeadandBreakfastMysteryBk1 @crookedlanebooks #cozymystery #newseries #storygraph #smalltown #familydrama #suspicion#ghostwriter #murder #seance #ouija #amateursleuth #secrets #quirkycharacters

Cozy mysteries are just ok to me half of the time. And unfortunately this was one of those times. There wasn't anything really wrong with it. I just felt detached from the story and there was nothing interesting about the characters. Maybe if you typically like cozy mysteries, you'd like this too.

I recently finished "Murder at Blackwood Inn" by Penny Warner, and I couldn't put it down! From the very first chapter, I was drawn into the mysterious atmosphere of Blackwood Inn. Warner's vivid descriptions brought the setting to life, making me feel like I was right there, experiencing the tension and intrigue.

The characters are incredibly well-developed, each with their own secrets and motives that kept me guessing until the very end. I particularly loved the protagonist's clever approach to solving the mystery, and her interactions with the supporting cast added depth and humor to the story.

Warner has a talent for crafting intricate plots, and the twists and turns in this book were both surprising and satisfying. I appreciated how she wove in red herrings and kept the pacing just right—there was never a dull moment!

Overall, "Murder at Blackwood Inn" is a fantastic read for anyone who enjoys cozy mysteries with a touch of suspense. I highly recommend it to all mystery lovers, and I can’t wait to read more by Penny Warner. Definitely a five-star experience!

I couldn't resist the opportunity to read a cozy mystery with a haunted house. This book has so many things that intrigue me! I love stories with secret passages and hidden rooms; there is so much to explore in this story!

The author has a writing style that makes the story atmospheric and I really enjoyed the main character, Carissa and her aunts. The plot was well done and the mystery is neatly wrapped up by the end.

I would love this one to become a series. How about it?

WILL UPLOAD IT ON INSTAGRAM CLOSER TO PUB. DATE.

Murder at Blackwood Inn marks a promising and delightfully quirky start to a new cozy mystery series by Penny Warner. Set in the charming (and slightly spooky) town of Pelican Point, California, the story introduces us to Carissa Blackwood, a ghostwriter who retreats to the newly inherited Blackwood Bed ’n’ Breakfast Inn after a painful divorce—only to find herself entangled in a murder mystery with more than a hint of the paranormal.

Carissa’s two eccentric aunts, Runa and Hazel, are instantly lovable in their own strange ways: one want to host séances, the other runs a herbary with a rather alarming poison garden. When a local is found dead—poisoned by something from Hazel’s garden and with one of Runa’s charms nearby—Carissa is drawn into the investigation to clear her aunts’ names. Along the way, she gets a little help from the ghost of her own grandfather, Bram Blackwood.

The mystery itself is engaging, with just enough red herrings and secrets to keep you turning pages. The paranormal touches—ghostly sightings, spiritual charms, and eerie family secrets—are well-balanced, adding a fun and cozy gothic flair without veering into horror. The inn itself, steeped in history and occult rumors, is the perfect setting for a mystery of this kind.

While Carissa is a likable and relatable protagonist, her detective work sometimes feels more like casual sleuthing than true investigation. Much of her progress comes from chatting with locals rather than deep digging or clever deductions.

Overall, Murder at Blackwood Inn is a fun, atmospheric, and slightly spooky read that hits all the right cozy notes. With a unique cast of characters and a mystery wrapped in family secrets and spectral whispers, it’s a great choice for fans of paranormal cozies. I’m already looking forward to checking back in at the Blackwood Inn for the next installment.

3.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This cover just pulled me right in . It's giving all the cozy Halloween/fall vibes that I'm craving right now
I really enjoyed the first of this series and will absolutely be keeping an eye out for the next I need to continue !

Give me a cosy mystery and I will not be putting it down in a hurry.
I absolutely loved this novel, cosy, slightly spooky and a great start to a series that i can't wait to delve into. Thank you for letting me read this!

Carissa is going to help her aunts set up their B&B after she divorces her husband (the cheater) and loses her ghost writing job. Her aunts are lovably quirky. Aunt Hazel has a poison garden and grows and uses all kinds of herbs. Aunt Runa is an expert on crystals and their properties. They have turned the old home into a spooky-themed B&B, but when murders are tied to the house, the guests quickly check out. Now Carissa is delving into the history of the place to clear her aunts and keep the B&B going.
This is a fun cozy mystery with fun characters, a handsome handyman, and a spooky house. There were plenty of suspects and the solution was a surprise.
Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

Murder at Blackwood Inn is a decent start to a new mystery series with a very promising premise. My main issue was how repetitive the writing was. We'd get the same information over and over as if the author thought the reader might have developed amnesia while reading. The premise really does sound fun and intriguing though. Of course this was an ARC so I'm not sure if maybe the repetitive issues were addressed during the editing process. One can only hope. I'll definitely read the next book in the series to see if the writing gets better.