This is what happens when Stars Hollow meets Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and I LOVED it! I am already impatient for more of Sarratt and its delightful citizens that James Bond wishes he had as neighbors. All we know when we first begin is that the small village of Sarratt has just acquired two new, mysterious residents. Luna, beauty and grace personified, and her husband Alex, sun god with forearms that are noteworthy, have moved in and confounded the neighbors who make it their business to notice things. When a severed hand shows up in the bushes, the village and the Richters will find themselves thrown together in ways they never could have anticipated.

This book was so funny and endearing, and surprising in how absolutely it pulled me in and held me hostage until the very last page. There is action and intrigue, tempered with things that are so ridiculous it could only happen in a fictional small town. The fact that we get nearly all the spice from one of the neighbor's Wattpad fan fiction about Luna and Alex was brilliant and hilarious, and not at all creepy in the way I was worried it would be. I loved the characters, the setting, the mysterious way Luna and Alex weave in and out of country life, the found family aspect, the romantic sub plot, it was all so good. Apparently Samara Knight has a more intense series about Luna and Alex, which I will definitely be reading soon because those two have some Chemistry going on, but I'm glad this was my introduction to them. The author says in the acknowledgments that she had originally set out to right a simple cozy mystery, and the village itself kind of took over the story, which I absolutely believe, and I'm so glad she let it.

If you are looking for a cozy mystery with some bite, read this book. If you are looking for a humorous good time with some bad guys and small town charm, read this book. Honestly, please just read this book. This is one I will definitely be rereading when I need a little pick me up.

Thank you to NetGalley, Samara Knight and the publisher for allowing me to read an advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own and freely given.

An unusual novel which mixes three genres - light-hearted and amusing small village/town fiction, the spy story, and romance - with an element of the psychic thrown in.

On the face of it, Sarratt is just a quiet village where people are constantly curious about each other, only systematic in the way that curiosity is indulged. Alex and Luna are cash buyers for a cottage the day an estate agent sign is put up. It quickly become apparent to others that they are not who they claim to be, and speculation and suspicion are rife. One of the inhabitants writes sexy spy fiction which she uploads to an app chapter by chapter: this bears an uncanny resemblance to what happens in real life very shortly after chapters are uploaded, and the two lead characters closely resemble Alex and Luna in ways the author could not have known. As the book progresses, we find that some other characters have their own secret background. There is some violence, with a fairly high body count, but this does not overly intrude on the cosy atmosphere of the village.

This is a hugely enjoyable, fairly short novel with laugh-out-loud moments.