Delia Dickens has spent a dozen years living in Manhattan or Boston since her messy divorce. Now she has come back to the small town on Long Island to reconnect with her teenage son and to help modernize the family business. Then comes the murder and her need to investigate as well as visits from her grandmother's ghost. Well worth reading this first in a new series.
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Pub Date Oct 21, 2025 **** review #NetGalley @bookbub @goodreads #LibraryThing
#DeathonDickensIsland by Allison Brook @marilynlevinsonauthor #BookontheBeachMysteriesBk1 @crookedlanebooks #cozies #cozyparanormalmystery #bookstagram #cozymystery #newseries #storygraph #smalltown #longisland #divorcee #estrangedteenager #grandmotherghost #rescue dog
#familydrama #familyexpectations #slyhumor

Delia Dickens has come home to Dickens Island, a small island in the Long Island Sound, after a twelve-year stint in Manhattan. She’s looking forward to helping her father revitalize the general store that the family owns as well as curating a small book nook. Most importantly, she wants to reunite with her fifteen-year-old son. But Dickens Island isn’t the peaceful town Delia remembers–and she might be in more danger here than she ever was in the big city.

This was a quick read and a delightful book. The characters are amazing and the story is wonderful.

This is the first in a new series by Allison Brook--known for her Haunted Library series. Set on the fictional Dickens Island on Long Island Sound, the story involves parts of the same family who has inhabited the island for centuries. When Delia Dickens returns to the island after leaving Manhattan, she finds the island much changed. As she attempts to help her father run his general store, she also tries to modernize it while getting pushback from her father.

As the story progresses, we see two murders--one from many years ago and one from today. And did I mention her dead grandmother has a thing or two to say?

Overall, a nice start to a new series. Interesting character and a great setting. Lots of room for character development and an interesting mystery.

Delia Dickens has returned home to the island named after her ancestors, and with her estranged teenage son now lives in the house left to her by her grandmother, Helena. With disagreements between Delia's aunt and uncle in their capacity as the town manager and local council leader causing problems in their marriage and between islanders the small community is no longer the haven Delia remembers and when a friend of her uncle is found murdered she finds herself both investigating and acting as a marriage councillor! Can she really find a killer, repair her relationship with her son, reconnect with her first love, and get her head around the fact that her late grandmother haunts her old home, all while trying to rescue the family business? Delia has a feeling she may have taken on a bit too much?

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Crooked Lane Books, but the opinions expressed are my own. I loved this author's Haunted Library Mystery Series, which sadly finished last year, and was delighted to see this new title by her. This hasn't hit the previous heights yet, but it was definitely a good if very busy start! Delia is easy to like, as is her son, Connor, and there is a rescue dog to enjoy as well! I am definitely looking forward to reading more. 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

"Death on Dickens Island (The Books on the Beach Mysteries #1)" by Allison Brook is a new series and similar in some ways to Allison Brook's Haunted Library Series. Delia Dickens has recently moved back into her grandmother's home she inherited on Dickens Island (yes, named for her family) to make a more active role in her teen son's life. Her mother is needing a break from the island and feels it's time the Delia take a more active role in the family interest of the island and in raising her own son. Her son been being raised most by Delia's parents after a rather traumatic divorce from her husband when her son was a toddler. Delia is trying to help her father and uncle see it's time to modernize and change the direction of the island.

Unfortunately, being a small town/island there's drama. Especially when someone turns up murdered. Delia gets pulled into it since her uncle had a questionable relationship with the victim and the ghost of her grandmother has appeared to tell her that the energy balance of the island is way out of whack. With help from her grandmother's ghost and the few locals who are still around to remember history, more than one mystery is solved.

Delia is back home on Dickens Island after a long time away; her parent's marriage is seemingly in trouble and so is her aunt and uncle's, which she is asked to mediate. She is trying to reconnect with her son, who has been living with her parents for most of his life and she is trying to update the family's general store into the 21st century.

This story had all the earmarkings of a good cozy, but it wasn't for me. It was nice, but there were points that were too slow; there was not a big build-up to the reveal of the murderer; there was a ghost presence that seemed forced, rather than integral to the plot; and there were points that I forgot I was actually reading a cozy.

This, to me, seems more like a general fiction story with cozy elements mixed in. If I had known that going into this story I think I would've enjoyed it more.

3 stars

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A fantastic cozy mystery. It was such a lovely book. I loved the charming characters and the town itself. It had a fun plot twist for me. I had to keep guessing who was the culprit. It was entertaining and lighthearted.

Cozy nice characters, interesting addition of a ghost, murder mysteries old and new. Enjoyable read. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was a fun cozy mystery. There is a ghost that plays a small part and I enjoyed it. I look forward to the next one.

Allison Brook is the queen of cozies! This book was absolutely everything I want in a mystery and I can't wait to see what this author puts out next!

Delia Dickens whose ancestors first settled Dickens Island heads home after living in Manhattan for 12 years. She know if she is going to build a relationship with her 15 year old son she needs to start. Her father owns the general store on the island, he asks her to come home to help bring the store up to date, yet fights her at every turn, Meanwhile, Delia's mother has moved into her Manhattan apartment for a break of indeterminate length leaving Delia to cope with the Dickens Island family. Shortly after arriving back on the island Delia encounters marital strife between her aunt and uncle, challenges mothering her son, a stray dog adopting her and a murder. As she attempts to wend her way through all this, a familiar figure reappears to assist, her deceased grandmother. Captain Kidd's journals, along with a treasure map provide a catalyst for more adventures before Delia's challenges mostly resolve.
I thought this was a great start to a new series. First books are always a bit of a challenge for me because there is usually so much time creating the setting and introducing the characters the plot suffers a bit. I did not find that to be true in this book. For the most part it felt very organic. My only discomfort would be with the relationship between Delia and her son, Connor. The initial interactions and their relationship later in the book felt true, but when the breakthrough came, it felt abrupt and forced to me.
I look forward to reading further books in this series. A return to Dickens Island would definitely be in my future reading plans.
Thanks to Crooked Lane and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Death on Dickens Island is the first installment of "The Books on the Beach" cozy mystery series. This is the first of Allison Brook's works that I've read.

The author does a fine job of taking the reader on a journey to the fictional Dickens Island, located in the Long Island, NY area. Settings are nicely described and characters are reasonably well developed. As with any "first" in a series, there are many people to meet, and it takes a bit of time to sort out all of the relationships. However, the plot does begin to come together for the reader at about 25% of the book. The mystery has a connection to Captain Kidd, and the historical aspect of the novel is fun to consider.

The family dynamics among the characters are complicated at best. That adds a bit of a challenge for the reader (at least it did for me), since I spent some time wondering why these relationships seemed so disposable. The novel might have flowed a bit better if there weren't interpersonal difficulties with nearly every person in the story.

Without wanting to create spoilers, there was an intriguing segue into the paranormal. At first, I was skeptical of how this would fit with the direction of the story, but as events unfolded, it did fit and in fact added an interesting angle to the mystery. However, there is a relationship twist that is revealed through the paranormal experience. In my opinion, that did not add anything of substance to the story and seemed far out of place.

Generally, Allison Brooks' writing is good, creating a readable little cozy mystery that some may particularly enjoy - especially those interested in Captain Kidd or the Long Island Sound area. For me, it was just so-so, but I may actually give the series another try when book #2 is released.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for the advance reader copy #netgalleyarc #DeathonDickensIsland

NetGalley offered me an ARC of Allison Brook’s new series. It was well written with a decent story line and the added feature of a ghostly grandmother and a hidden library. As with any first book of a series, a fair amount of time was spent on character development, so the pace was a little slow. My biggest issue is that I really do not like the main character very much. The author had made her whiny and fairly annoying. But, this is just my take on the book and the opinion is mine alone.

Delia Dickens, whose anncestors founded the Dickens Island, has returned home to the house that her grandmother willed her, after several years living in Boston and Manhattan. She returns to her 15 year old son who has been raised by her parents since he was three. Delia seeks to help her dad in the village general store and faces some resistance from him when attempting to update the merchandise. That resistance to change is a male family trait as both her dad and uncle like to leave things as they always have been. I loved that this old house has a secret niche from which treasures from the past are found or raises more situations for Delia. This cozy mystery involves the entire community with town hall meetings as they struggle to determine the owner of two properties which could determine the future of Dickens Island. Oh, yes, she gets involved in solving two murders. This book and new series will delight fans of Nancy Atherton. Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this book; this is my honest opinion.

Would you believe me if I told you that I read and finished this book in one day?

Well, you're gonna have to, because this was truly an entertaining and amazing book. Death on Dicken's Island is a fun and adventurous novel, combining humor, mystery, and romance all in one -- and succeeding perfectly!

The author truly has a sense for writing, making the book easy to follow and fast-paced. This book was quite honestly hard to put down. If I had to summarize my review, it would turn out as the following:

A truly amazing book, combining different aspects and genres perfectly and making it entertaining and easy to follow. This book was hard to put down, and deserves to be read by the book community!

This is my first book by this author and I was happy to start with her new series. There is a paranormal element, which I wasn't sure of, but that is not a deal breaker for me as I enjoy paranormal cozies. There is a good mystery and intrigue, but the book is a bit slow to get started. I also liked that when the main character returns to her home town after being away for so many years it was not the same place as she left. Sometimes, in a cozy mystery, the town never changes but yet there are murders. In this story the main character realizes that home might not be how she remembered it.

Delia has moved back to the small island where she was raised. She is happy to be back but dealing with a teenage son, a father who dislikes change and a old boyfriend is stressful. Maybe a murder to solve will be a good thing.

Death on Dickens Island is the debut book in this cozy mystery series. Delia Dickens returns home to the island where she grew up and it's not the peaceful haven she remembers. A young woman is murdered, and when her aunt and uncle are implicated, Delia does her best to find the real killer. There is mystery, a little intrigue, romance, and a cute dog. The pacing of this book was a bit slow for my liking. I did like the characters, the family dynamics, and the unexpected paranormal visits from her grandmother. Overall, a nice cozy. I look forward to reading the next one in this new series.

Delia's sleuthing techniques and style left a lot to be desired; she wasn’t a convincing amateur sleuth. This story lacked the excitement I had expected, it was mildly entertaining with mild intrigue.

#DeathonDickensIsland #NetGalley is the first in a new series by a favorite author.
This book knocks it out of the park for me, an avid cozy mystery reader.
Delia returns to Dickens Island, and she is desperate to heal her relationship with her son.
Working at the family general store keeps her busy, but when a murder takes place, putting her aunt and uncle on the top of the suspect list, Delia knows she needs to ask questions.
There is so much to love about this book, I am so happy to have read it, and I'm hoping there will be more to come.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of this book.
I will be recommending #DeathonDickensIsland to other cozy mystery readers.