wayfaring_witch's review against another edition
2.0
I was excited for a cozy mystery that takes places in a bookish cafe in Florida... but I felt no real connection to characters or plot. 2018 Pop Sugar Reading Challenge - A book that involves a bookstore or library
wildflowerz76's review against another edition
3.0
This was a cute little mystery. I didn't LOVE it, but I did like it and I think I'll read more if I come across them at a decent price. That's despite the extremely dumb move the main character made in the last portion of the book. Seriously??
parttimebloggerbookgeek's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book for the most part I found myself quickly turning the page to find out what happened next.
The good-the setting, the characters, the plot.
The not so good-it seemed to drag in parts, there was a flatness to some of the side plots and I felt it was a little too long.
Overall after reading some real letdowns lately this was a pleasure to read. a nice cozy mystery and I would most likely read more from this author.
The good-the setting, the characters, the plot.
The not so good-it seemed to drag in parts, there was a flatness to some of the side plots and I felt it was a little too long.
Overall after reading some real letdowns lately this was a pleasure to read. a nice cozy mystery and I would most likely read more from this author.
tarana's review against another edition
3.0
I would give this a 3.5. This author does a fabulous job of describing the area in a few sentences - you feel like you are there in Florida next to the Gulf. It was also a pretty good mystery. I like many of the characters and their mannerisms. I did get annoyed by some of the pettiness of the main character (who cares if someone always says he must 'dash'?). All in all, a good read that you can finish fairly quickly.
bookwyrm_lark's review against another edition
4.0
Review (and an interview with the author!) originally published at The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
Well Read, Then Dead was a delightful surprise. Of course I expected to enjoy a cozy mystery focused around a bookstore-cafe combo, but I didn't have an inkling how much I would like the characters - especially Sassy, Bridgy, and Aunt Ophie (who is a stitch!) Feisty old Augusta is also a favorite of mine, with her strong sense of justice and her habit of telling it like it is. The recurring supporting characters, including two policemen and a journalist, are also well-drawn and varied enough to be interesting and realistic.
I don't want to give too much away, but Ophie comes down to help Sassy and Bridgie in the kitchen while their regular cook is out of commission. She's a Southern lady to her fingertips, with that stereotypical blend of charm and steely will, flavored with a streak of eccentricity. She could have been annoying, but she became one of my favorite characters in the entire book. I hope she decides to stick around instead of going back home for the next book!
The plot held together well, and ended up throwing me one or two curve balls as well as misleading me entirely when it came to one suspect in particular. While I did spot the murderer pretty early on, it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story at all -- and after all, I could have been wrong! (I wasn't, though.) The only thing that detracted at all was Sassy's habit of not telling the police right away about things she knew or heard, and one flaming example of TSTL syndrome. . . which the heroine in question knew was stupid and did it anyway. Actually, that was what redeemed her decision a bit - that she knew it was stupid, but her curiosity was so strong she went ahead with it. I could understand that so much better than a heroine who had no clue she was being stupid. I mean, we've all done things we knew were stupid, for reasons that made sense to us at the time, right?
Bottom line: If you're looking for a new cozy mystery series with a solidly written plot, engaging characters, and a healthy helping of humor, you don't need to look any further than Well Read, Then Dead.
FTC disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher/author/publicist. All opinions are my own.
Well Read, Then Dead was a delightful surprise. Of course I expected to enjoy a cozy mystery focused around a bookstore-cafe combo, but I didn't have an inkling how much I would like the characters - especially Sassy, Bridgy, and Aunt Ophie (who is a stitch!) Feisty old Augusta is also a favorite of mine, with her strong sense of justice and her habit of telling it like it is. The recurring supporting characters, including two policemen and a journalist, are also well-drawn and varied enough to be interesting and realistic.
I don't want to give too much away, but Ophie comes down to help Sassy and Bridgie in the kitchen while their regular cook is out of commission. She's a Southern lady to her fingertips, with that stereotypical blend of charm and steely will, flavored with a streak of eccentricity. She could have been annoying, but she became one of my favorite characters in the entire book. I hope she decides to stick around instead of going back home for the next book!
The plot held together well, and ended up throwing me one or two curve balls as well as misleading me entirely when it came to one suspect in particular. While I did spot the murderer pretty early on, it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story at all -- and after all, I could have been wrong! (I wasn't, though.) The only thing that detracted at all was Sassy's habit of not telling the police right away about things she knew or heard, and one flaming example of TSTL syndrome. . . which the heroine in question knew was stupid and did it anyway. Actually, that was what redeemed her decision a bit - that she knew it was stupid, but her curiosity was so strong she went ahead with it. I could understand that so much better than a heroine who had no clue she was being stupid. I mean, we've all done things we knew were stupid, for reasons that made sense to us at the time, right?
Bottom line: If you're looking for a new cozy mystery series with a solidly written plot, engaging characters, and a healthy helping of humor, you don't need to look any further than Well Read, Then Dead.
FTC disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher/author/publicist. All opinions are my own.
marjolaine_lafreniere's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 rounded up.
I did enjoy this quite a bit. I loved all the friendship, the faintest hint of something that might someday become a romance was perfect (it's a cozy; if I want a romance I'll read that) and the plot was solid and neatly wrapped.
It only missed that "x-factor" element, the thing that makes you devour a book. I could, and did, put it aside for hours and even days at a time without missing it. Ergo the merely above average rating.
I did enjoy this quite a bit. I loved all the friendship, the faintest hint of something that might someday become a romance was perfect (it's a cozy; if I want a romance I'll read that) and the plot was solid and neatly wrapped.
It only missed that "x-factor" element, the thing that makes you devour a book. I could, and did, put it aside for hours and even days at a time without missing it. Ergo the merely above average rating.
mercyblue's review
Star rating: 2 Stars
When one of her prominent book club members is murdered, Sassy gets conscripted by the deceased's best friend to help catch the killer. Little does Sassy know she's putting her life and the lives of her best friends in jeopardy to try and find the murderer of Delia Batson.
In the beginning, this novel was an enjoyable and light read but, the farther along I got the more the writing started to unravel. Fifty percent of the way through it on my Kindle and no real progress has been made in the murder inquiry. Sassy does little to no sleuthing until you're more then sixty percent of the way through the book. I also found most of the main characters incredibly irritating and the plot to have more holes then a bag of Swiss cheese. There won't be any reason for me to pick up the next novel in this series, it just isn't worth the money.
When one of her prominent book club members is murdered, Sassy gets conscripted by the deceased's best friend to help catch the killer. Little does Sassy know she's putting her life and the lives of her best friends in jeopardy to try and find the murderer of Delia Batson.
In the beginning, this novel was an enjoyable and light read but, the farther along I got the more the writing started to unravel. Fifty percent of the way through it on my Kindle and no real progress has been made in the murder inquiry. Sassy does little to no sleuthing until you're more then sixty percent of the way through the book. I also found most of the main characters incredibly irritating and the plot to have more holes then a bag of Swiss cheese. There won't be any reason for me to pick up the next novel in this series, it just isn't worth the money.
angrygreycatreads's review against another edition
4.0
Well Read, Then Dead by Terrie Farley Moran is another series set in Florida with all the colorful Keys type characters that go with that trope. The protagonist(s) own a bookstore cafe and become embroiled in a murder when one of their regulars dies under suspicious circumstances. Secrets are revealed about the victim and the other characters. I enjoyed reading this and look forward to seeing more in this series.