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mborer23's review against another edition
4.0
Notice: I received an ARC copy of A Killer Edition from Berkley Publishing Group. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Tricia and Angelica are back in this quick, compelling read, and it's always a pleasure to be back in Stoneham. Pixie's shining as the assistant manager at Haven't Got a Clue—so much so that Tricia's feeling a bit unnecessary. After Tricia decides to visit another bookshop in the village, she's shocked to find a corpse in the shop owner's backyard. Who could have killed Vera, and did it have anything to do with a dispute over a garden? Or was the victim's estranged family behind the killing? Tricia has plenty of time on her hands to find out.
This was a fun read, although it seemed a bit short to me. There was a bit of a clunky note around a possible same-sex relationship. However, It was refreshing to see someone in a cozy mystery actually know how to use Facebook and Google to find things out, though. I definitely recommend this book, and this series, to any cozy mystery fan.
Tricia and Angelica are back in this quick, compelling read, and it's always a pleasure to be back in Stoneham. Pixie's shining as the assistant manager at Haven't Got a Clue—so much so that Tricia's feeling a bit unnecessary. After Tricia decides to visit another bookshop in the village, she's shocked to find a corpse in the shop owner's backyard. Who could have killed Vera, and did it have anything to do with a dispute over a garden? Or was the victim's estranged family behind the killing? Tricia has plenty of time on her hands to find out.
This was a fun read, although it seemed a bit short to me. There was a bit of a clunky note around a possible same-sex relationship. However, It was refreshing to see someone in a cozy mystery actually know how to use Facebook and Google to find things out, though. I definitely recommend this book, and this series, to any cozy mystery fan.
wife228's review against another edition
5.0
Fast reading
I love this series. The sisters are wonderful. I hope the author continues with this. Enjoyed reading this. I’m sure you will too.
I love this series. The sisters are wonderful. I hope the author continues with this. Enjoyed reading this. I’m sure you will too.
aeoliandeductress's review against another edition
3.0
Audiobook
3.5
I actually thought the mystery in this one was more solid. I know others felt there was too much focus on Tricia's commentary and the bake-off but I actually thought her outside ventures made the idea that the killer would think she's onto them more plausible.
Don't like the switch with Pixie at the end though. After her big decision not to leave last book, that was rather dumb.
3.5
I actually thought the mystery in this one was more solid. I know others felt there was too much focus on Tricia's commentary and the bake-off but I actually thought her outside ventures made the idea that the killer would think she's onto them more plausible.
Don't like the switch with Pixie at the end though. After her big decision not to leave last book, that was rather dumb.
aspygirlsmom_1995's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
I thought the story was well-written with developed characters. It was easy to read with good wrap up of the mystery. Recipes at the end. I will share my complete review soon.
thephdivabooks's review against another edition
4.0
I loved visiting Stoneham (aka Booktown) in the latest edition of the Booktown Mysteries, A Killer Edition! Lorna Barrett is a big name in cozy mysteries, and I always enjoy her books. This one was a bit heavier on the cute and cozy side than the mystery, though there are a few twists towards the end that brought the mystery back to the front of the story!
In this latest mystery, Tricia Miles—owner of mystery bookstore Haven’t Got a Clue—finds herself with extra time on her hands. Her newly promoted assistant manager Pixie and her store clerk Mr. Everett are running the shop even better than ever, so Tricia is finding other passions to pursue to keep herself from micromanaging at the store.
Determined to get a spot on the board at Pets-a-Plenty, the local animal shelter, as well as enter the amateur cupcake bake-off, Tricia finds herself with plenty of activities to occupy her days. But when her friends-with-benefits situation doesn’t totally fulfill her evenings, she takes the advice of her therapist and heads over to the romance bookstore owned by her friend Joyce Whitman to add some steam back into her life.
While browsing the shelves, Tricia witnesses Joyce’s neighbor Vera having some heated words with Joyce. A few hours later, Joyce and Tricia discover Vera’s body just outside Joyce’s garden gate with a pitchfork pushed through it. Tricia doesn’t believe Joyce had anything to do with it, but who did? The more she looks into it, the more she realizes that Vera was well known through Booktown, volunteering at the animal shelter, working on the school board. Tricia may be busy with the upcoming bake off, but she still has time to solve a mystery!
Booktown is like any small town—filled with kooky characters, feuds, and local gossip. I loved that we got a who’s-who list at the beginning of the book to reference, since I have missed many of the books in the middle of this series. It helped me to reference who owned what local spot and who was involved with who, without Barrett having to recap too much in the text.
Tricia and her sister Angelica have a fascinating dynamic. They are a mix of close and supportive with a bit of an ongoing feud. Angelica is highly successful, and for the first third of the book I actually couldn’t tell if Tricia even liked her sister. But by the end, their relationship was well-rounded, and I understood them better. The sisters really look out for one another, but also are a bit competitive.
I would have liked the mystery to be more central, but I felt that a lot of the investigating happened by chance because Tricia was already involved in many of the activities that Vera had also been involved with. Tricia was much more fixated on the bake-off, the animal shelter, and her sadness to not be so central at her book store than she was about the mystery.
That aside, I thought the whole ending was fascinating as clues began to come together. I certainly was surprised by the twist the mystery took! And I do love the small town cozy parts to this series. A fun and light mystery that Booktown fans will love!
Thank you to Berkley for my copy. Opinions are my own.
In this latest mystery, Tricia Miles—owner of mystery bookstore Haven’t Got a Clue—finds herself with extra time on her hands. Her newly promoted assistant manager Pixie and her store clerk Mr. Everett are running the shop even better than ever, so Tricia is finding other passions to pursue to keep herself from micromanaging at the store.
Determined to get a spot on the board at Pets-a-Plenty, the local animal shelter, as well as enter the amateur cupcake bake-off, Tricia finds herself with plenty of activities to occupy her days. But when her friends-with-benefits situation doesn’t totally fulfill her evenings, she takes the advice of her therapist and heads over to the romance bookstore owned by her friend Joyce Whitman to add some steam back into her life.
While browsing the shelves, Tricia witnesses Joyce’s neighbor Vera having some heated words with Joyce. A few hours later, Joyce and Tricia discover Vera’s body just outside Joyce’s garden gate with a pitchfork pushed through it. Tricia doesn’t believe Joyce had anything to do with it, but who did? The more she looks into it, the more she realizes that Vera was well known through Booktown, volunteering at the animal shelter, working on the school board. Tricia may be busy with the upcoming bake off, but she still has time to solve a mystery!
Booktown is like any small town—filled with kooky characters, feuds, and local gossip. I loved that we got a who’s-who list at the beginning of the book to reference, since I have missed many of the books in the middle of this series. It helped me to reference who owned what local spot and who was involved with who, without Barrett having to recap too much in the text.
Tricia and her sister Angelica have a fascinating dynamic. They are a mix of close and supportive with a bit of an ongoing feud. Angelica is highly successful, and for the first third of the book I actually couldn’t tell if Tricia even liked her sister. But by the end, their relationship was well-rounded, and I understood them better. The sisters really look out for one another, but also are a bit competitive.
I would have liked the mystery to be more central, but I felt that a lot of the investigating happened by chance because Tricia was already involved in many of the activities that Vera had also been involved with. Tricia was much more fixated on the bake-off, the animal shelter, and her sadness to not be so central at her book store than she was about the mystery.
That aside, I thought the whole ending was fascinating as clues began to come together. I certainly was surprised by the twist the mystery took! And I do love the small town cozy parts to this series. A fun and light mystery that Booktown fans will love!
Thank you to Berkley for my copy. Opinions are my own.
fischer5310's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
nick_27's review against another edition
5.0
I always say that if I can't geuss the killer in a cozy, then I'm left satisfied. Well as long it isn't a random person out of left field.