Alas. I like Molly's other incarnations, so I was excited to find this (based on the yummy, promising title) - even before I realized it was her.

I won't pile on to what others have said, which I unfortunately agree with for the most part.

What irked me the most were all the typos, miscues, and outright errors. Ex: one minute there is a tense, one-on-one dialogue with Summer and one of her mother's friends, but then suddenly, the name of someone else not in the room is replying. I can't tell you how many times I had to flip back and look to see if I'd missed something.

Nope.

And so many loose ends, in terms of build-up devices which are never addressed again or else seemed to be out of sync, or barely touched upon later, as well as other continuity problems, etc.

There is even a villainous character who is redeemed because he ACTUALLY SAVES A CAT!!! (look up Save the Cat if you don't know what I am talking about). And sadly, yes, it is so obvious who the perp is, and fairly early on, I only kept reading because I hoped there was a surprise twist.

Honestly, Molly acknowledges her new publisher and editing team most generously, but if they were working on MY baby and let this get out the door, I would be furious! Did anybody even give this a complete read-through edit??

Better luck next time. I am rooting for you!

( )

Summer is a professor of Shakespeare. Her job is in peril, for more than one reason. She doesn’t publish enough; she doesn’t pass enough students; she suffers greatly from arachnophobia. Her mother, though apparently is good health, suffers a heart attack and dies. Mom had a different view of books. She owned Beach Reads, a bookshop that lived up to its name. Summer is convinced that her mom was murdered. Now, she has to convince the authorities. She also, unintentionally, will convince herself that romances, AKA beach reads, are not necessarily inferior literature. This tale is a pretty good start for the series. The mystery was good, and the characters were interesting. I look forward to the next book, where hopefully the characters will be further developed. ( )

Summer Merriweather, a Shakespeare professor, returns to Brigid's Island, NC, for her mother's funeral. Hildy Merriweather's death was completely unexpected and the more that Summer hears about her mother's last day, the more she is certain that death was not from natural causes. When there is a fire at her home and arson is determined, and then a burglary at the Beach Reads bookstore, Summer and her Aunt Agatha are sure that someone is trying to eliminate the family.

I enjoyed the mystery however, I'm not sure about the foibles of the main character. I think it would have been better without them. The Book club members needed more dimension as well as the other family members.

This was a Advanced Reader's Copy but even with that known there were a few too many grammatical and spelling errors. ( )

Summer Merriweather has returned to Brigid’s Island, North Carolina for her Mother's funeral. Summer hasn't been back to the island for years and with memories at every turn she doesn't know how she'll move beyond her grief even though the life she's so carefully constructed for herself isn't going exactly to plan nor is it bringing her the happiness she anticipated.

It was glorious to be engrossed in this picturesque setting from the beautiful cover to every descriptive delight with a bookstore named, "Beach Reads" and a lovely cottage on the beach as home. But all is not as picturesque on the island as one might envision which makes for a page-turning cozy mystery as Summer begins investigating her Mother's death.

One of the most interesting characters is the talkative African grey parrot named, Mr. Darcy, that was the pet/companion of Summer's Mother, Hildy. Although Mr. Darcy has been identified as being "old" I'm hoping he continues to make an appearance for the duration of the series.

As there are several avenues of possibilities for the direction of the series it will be interesting to read the author's choices for her characters. I'll definitely visit St. Brigid's island again. ( )

The sudden death of her mother brings Summer Merriweather back to her childhood home in the beach town of St. Brigid, Virginia. Hildy Merriweather was a leading member of the community and proprietor of the Beach Reads bookstore. Once in St. Brigid Summer learns that Hildy had received anonymous threatening letters prior to her death. Hildy was in excellent health so her sudden death due to a heart attack is suspicious. Summer suspects that her mother was murdered, but the local police chief is not interested in pursuing an investigation. This leaves it to Summer, her aunt Agatha and her cousin Piper to do their own. This turns into a long-drawn-out inquiry (about 50 pages too long) which finally comes to an exciting conclusion as the killer's identity is revealed. Along the way to the reveal, there's many red herrings, marginal characters (a history teacher, a fire chief) and plot dead ends (e.g., Summer's arachnophobia), but a real lack of suspense. It's way too clunky.

Summer is the main character of this story. (Mr. Darcy, the parrot is a close second). She struggles to come to terms with her mother's death. Unfortunately, she's difficult to like because of an unfocused development of her character; she comes across as an arrogant entitled snob. Her backstory is dribbled out in bits and pieces which is frustrating for this reader. By the end of the story, she has finally made her passage to maturity even though she's in her mid-30's. If it's writing style, it didn't work for me.

As a mystery story, it's not well executed. Numerous petty annoyances, some of which a proper copy edit would correct. For example, the place name of Summer's town is variously Brigit, St. Brigid and Brigid's Island. Which is it?

My recommendation: skip it.

Note: I requested and received a complementary advanced reading eBook from Crooked Lane Books via Netgalley. The comments about it are my own. ( )