I picked this book for its cover & the idea of what it was (a murder mystery). But, for me, it was dull & very slow. I couldn’t finish it. I found I really don’t like cozy books.

I liked the cat.

Thank you to #Netgalley for giving me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased opinion. Thank you Fran Heap for suggesting I read this book she wrote.

This was an okay story. The characters were ok. The story was sweet. I love a small town setting. Just didn't stick with me. Nothing to the story that made it pop.

A quick and easy story to follow, good plot and enjoyable murder mystery. A fun read and I hope there will be more to come

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Fran Heap for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for Murder, Mystery & Mothers coming out May 29, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. I think Tammy is a fun character. I definitely enjoy fresh start stories. The town felt quaint and cozy. I’ll definitely check out more books by this author!

A nice cozy, easy read. While the character building is sparse, I'm sure it will flesh out in future installments. I enjoy how the characters have come together in a found-family. I would love to learn more about the individual characters. I've already read the second installment and found it enjoyable. I'll be adding this series to my cozy-reads TBR.

A great start! Looking for a new start, Tammy moves from LA to Willowcroft, Michigan. The mystery she is trying to solve is a very cold case of 70 years. Tammy along with new friends and a feline sleuth are enjoyable characters. The mystery is interesting. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. Thanks#Netgalley and #BooksGoSocial for the eARC in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are mine.

Murder, Mystery & Mothers is a nice and easy read, with a pleasant writing style. However, I was never on the edge of my seat. The plot wasn't as gripping as I was expecting it to be. But the first book sometimes needs to put things into place and this one is promising. So I'll try the second installment, hoping for a more compelling story.

Tammy Rumbelow, a successful mystery writer, leaves LA to start a new life in a small town in Michigan after experiencing a terrible betrayal by those she loves. She has also left behind memories of her overly critical mother whose voice she struggles to suppress. Tammy is keen to start a new life and moves into a beautiful blue cottage in Willowcroft and while unpacking, she finds an old letter hidden in the house for many years. Eager to get to the bottom of the mystery, she enlists the help of some of the locals and together they form a murder club of sorts to try to solve the murder of a local woman which occurred in Tammy's blue cottage, 70 years ago. Along the journey, Tammy adopts a local homeless car she named Lockie who helps her settle into her new home and who helps her uncover clues related to their mystery. When Tammy and her friends start asking too many questions, they begin to receive threatening letters and realise they may be getting close to discovering the truth.

A sweet, easy to read cozy mystery with fun characters and a quick enjoyable read. I wasn't sure why Tammy and her mother's unhappy relationship wasn't developed thoroughly into the context of Tammy's character and the story itself, as it clearly has an impact on who Tammy was. Having said that, this is a good book if you're looking for something undemanding and light-hearted to read.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I instantly warmed to the residents of Willowcroft and the town itself; I'd love to visit the local diner and the knitting club was entertaining. As part of her fresh start, Tammy's journey to trust her new friends and quiet her inner critic was engaging. Her struggle with her mother's critical voice adds a relatable layer, making her journey of self-discovery as compelling as the mystery itself. You genuinely root for Tammy to find her own voice. It was also fascinating to see how the team used their varied resources. The retired detective's methodical approach combined with the tech whiz's digital prowess propelled the investigation forward, brilliantly linking decades-old secrets to current dangers.

If you're seeking a lighthearted yet captivating read for fans of cozy mysteries, definitely pick up Murder, Mystery & Mothers. It's a perfect blend of intrigue and charm that will leave you eager for more. I'm already looking forward to reading the next installment, Skeletons, Secrets & Speakeasies!

Thank you to BooksGoSocial for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and Books Go Social for this advanced listening copy of Mirder, Mystery, and Mothers. This book will be released on May 29, 2025

This was a cute and cozy mystery. A mystery writer moves to a town for a fresh start, and comes to find out….she needs to solve a mystery involving her new home. People show up at her house at weird times, and her new friends to help solve the mystery are a LOT older than her and have lived in the town for forever. Some laughs and I guessed the twists before they happened, but this was an easy read.

This book had me at "cottage" and "ragtag group of locals." I enjoyed this book so much, it was different than anything I've read but then at the same time it had everything you want in a cozy mystery.

I quite enjoyed this cosy mystery book, and c'mon, the cover is really cute, so it is partially responsible for me picking it up in the first place! Thank you for the arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an arc of this book!!.

Onto the review, the book was alright honestly speaking, it was a good first attempt at a murder mystery, on the more technical side the dialogues could use a lot more work, along with the pacing and the overall way the story was told. I feel the writer still hasn’t quite found out her voice yet which made it personally difficult to go on,, but there is promising hope.

On a more creative side if you like cosy mysteries you will really like this book, it follows the story of an author who just moved to Willowcroft, plagued by her mother’s criticisms and her lack thereof success she looks to Willowcroft to be a beacon of hope, and instead finds a promising murder mystery that takes place right in the center of her house.

It’s quite nice overall, it has all the elements of a good book but personally comes short of a great one. There’s hope, which is the most that I can say, and I look forward to seeing the progress.

This is a great first book in the Willowcroft Cozy Mystery series. Tammy relocated from Los Angeles to Wiilowcroft Michigan. She is escaping a betrayal of friendship and love that seems to have affected her writing career. I guess we’ll have to wait to see if more details are forthcoming in later books.
Tammy purchased a little blue cottage on the edge of town. It sounds like a lovely place.
Hesitantly, Tammy ventures into the waters of friendship with ladies in town. Olivia is the owner of a bookshop in town. Mrs. Temperance is a mature lady who helped to welcome Tammy to her cottage.
The mystery is a cold case that involves the cottage.
I loved the group who comes together to solve the mystery - Tammy, Olivia, Mrs. Temperance, Mr. Wallace and Xander, a teen out of school for summer break. There is also a highly intelligent feline sleuth, Lockie.
Investigating a 70 year old murder isn’t an easy task. I enjoyed seeing how things played out.
I like Willowcroft. It sounds like a lovely town.
Tammy has quite a bit of self talk that intrudes in which she hears the negative voice of her mother. This could be troubling for some.
Thanks to Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for the opportunity to read Murder, Mystery and Mothers.

Tammy is a mystery writer who leaves LA to live in a blue cottage in the small town of Willowcroft.

Leaving behind a theiving best friend, a cheating ex and a spiteful mother, Tammy worries about making new connections in her new home.
When Tammy finds a decades old letter which links to an unsolved murder which happened in her home, she gets together with a group of people in the village to solve the mystery, all with the help of her adopted stray cat Lockie!

This was such an easy to read, delightful, small town cosy mystery. The writing style made it a book I could fly through quite quickly and I loved having an uncomplicated and fun book to read.

I loved all the characters and found it reminiscent of ‘Only Murders in the Building’ with an at first glance misfit group of friends of varying ages and backgrounds.

I would recommend this book and will definitely look out for more books by this author!

This is a new cozy mystery series and is quite enjoyable. We are following Tammy who has moved to a small town in Michigan from L.A. to get away from the betrayal of her ex-boyfriend and ex friend and the critical voice of her mother. Tammy moves into the little blue cottage that she finds has quite the history. She joins forces with several new friends to solve the years old mystery and someone in town who wants to keep the past buried.

The story was entertaining, While the ending was not such a surprise, I did enjoy the eclectic group of sleuths that Tammy has befriended and agrees to solve the mystery of her house. It is also a story that gives you the warm feels of chosen family. I have to admit my favorite character was the Lockie who seems to be quite the feline detective.

I look forward to seeing this series develop.

Thanks to NetGalley and BooksGo Social for the chance to read this ARC and give my opinion.

I enjoyed this book it’s definitely worth reading!!

After a devastating betrayal mystery writer Tammy Rumbelow flees LA for a charming blue cottage in Willowcroft, Michigan. But when a yellowed letter in the attic reveals an unsolved 70-year-old locked room murder in her living room, her peace is shattered.

Determined to start fresh, Tammy enlists the help of a ragtag group of locals:

Bookstore owner Olivia Huddlestone offers a sanctuary for clandestine conversations and genealogical sleuthing among her shelves.

Eccentric Mrs. Hazel Temperance mines her knitting circle for gossip.

Retired detective “Wally” has contacts at the sheriff’s department.

Tech whiz kid Xander Simmons hasn’t met a computer he didn’t like—or a website he can’t hack.

And a stray cat with a nose for clues…

As threatening letters appear and break-ins escalate around town, Tammy must prove to herself—and her inner critic—that she’s capable of solving a murder, or will that be two?

First time reading this author. I enjoyed the characters and the setting. It would be a place I'd love to live. The mystery kept me guessing, although I was surprised how long it took them to figure out one person's name was possibly the maiden name. Other than that, I look forward to more by this author.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book had a lot of fun moments and the theme of found family was what I really enjoyed in this . It’s one of those cozy mystery type of novels. Our main character Tammy decides to run away from LA to this charming blue house in a small town in Michigan as an escape. It isn’t this house that Tammy finds this whole letter that leads her on this journey to solve a 70 year old unsolved murder that happened in this house. Tammy goes on this mystery adventure, and teams up with a bunch of characters in the town will end up being more of a fun family. The best part was lockie who is the straight cat that Tammy ends up taking care of enjoying their murder mystery family/team!! I do feel like there were lots of parts of the stories that could’ve been developed more, especially with kind of the plot of why Tammy was escaping in the relations with her mother, leading her to a lot of intrusive thoughts from her. Overall, if you’re looking for a low stake, found family trying solve a cold case murder mystery then this is the one for you! Lockie was really one of the best parts of the storyline!!

Thankful to be getting this ARC through NetGalley and Montlake. Be on the lookout on May 27 for release

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC!
This small town, cozy mystery was so fun to read, all the characters were so loveable and quirky (especially Lockie). The author was so great at describing the scene, I felt like I was there with the characters, definitely Hallmark town vibes!
Tammy, Xander, Wally, Olivia, and Mrs. Temperance all brought unique and fun aspects to the case, Lockie was definitely my favorite detective. I will be picking up the prequel to this book about Lockie next! Fran Heap did such a good job on this book, I am looking forward to the next book in the series next month!
Although I loved this book, I did feel like the murderer was obvious pretty early on. With not many suspects and taking place in a small town, there weren't many options on who the murderer could be. Also there were many assumptions on what happened during the crime which was not very satisfying, I wish we got a flash back scene so we could see what actually happened. The loose ends were also a little annoying but I understand that is necessary since the mystery continues in the next book.
Can't wait to see Lockie again in the next book!