Leslie Nagel

Charley Carpenter loves retro clothing and has finally realized her dream: to own a vintage clothing shop. She is busily pouring her heart and soul into Old Hat and doing everything she can to make it successful. To drum up some business with the upper-crust ladies in Oakwood, Ohio, she joins a mystery book club, The Agathas. Each month the club members meet at a member's home to discuss a murder mystery novel. Charley finds the books enjoyable, but most of the members of Agatha are spoiled, snooty and condescending. When two ladies with close ties to the group are found murdered, their bodies posed in imitation of crime scenes from the book club's reading list, every member of The Agathas is a potential victim -- and a suspect.

This is a debut novel from Leslie Nagel. I love reading new authors! This book was well-written and enjoyable. The mystery was filled with suspense, twists and turns, and an exciting ending! I wasn't sure who the killer was until the very end!

Charley Carpenter is a likable main character. As in most cozy mysteries, her love interest is the detective assigned to the case, Marc Trenault. The romance doesn't overshadow the mystery...there's just enough to sweeten the story. I like the fact that she is independent, intelligent and a strong woman. Nagel did an excellent job developing her characters. The wealthy members of the book club are irritatingly snobbish, but not overly so. Marc has just a bit of jerk thrown in among his good looks and charm. And, Charley's friends have personalities that help move the plot along nicely. All in all, a very well written cozy mystery and an excellent first novel!! I can't wait to read more by Leslie Nagel!

The Book Club Murders is the first book in The Oakwood Mystery Series. The book releases September 27th, 2016. Learn more about the author on her website: www.leslienagel.com The site has information on her book, a recommended reading list, and even some great writing tips!

… (mehr)

The Book Club Murders is the first installment of the new series by Leslie Nagel. For the first in a series, I thought this one was pretty good. The cast of characters was unique with lots of quirky townspeople. Charley Carpenter, the main character, was likable and well described, as was the feel of the small town. I wasn't crazy about the plot point in which Charley is asked, as a civilian, to aid in the police investigation. I felt like this was completely unbelievable. I would have loved to have seen her solve the mystery without the information the police was obtaining in their inquiries.

A big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.… (mehr)

Charley Carpenter runs a vintage clothing shop, but frequently turns detective when a mystery presents itself. Driving home to get ready for the first Oakwood Mystery Book Club meeting, Charley has to abandon her car when she is caught in the path of a tornado. escaping to safety through an underground tunnel at the high school, Charley discovers a backpack with a journal that is coded. After researching the code, she and one of the current high school students,PJ, who is a math wiz, determine that the journal belonged to Regan Fletcher , a young girl murdered 40 years ago after the Homecoming Football game. Her boyfriend had been convicted (while protesting his innocence) and a felon later confessed and recanted. Her boyfriend was never really freed from the suspicion of her murder. Charley and PJ continue to work on the coded journal and eventually figure out what was really going on 40 years before.

I found this mystery to be extremely entertaining, maybe because I was in high school in the 70's or maybe because of the interesting way the story was presented, Using technology that hadn't been available 40 years before. Sometimes the mix of old and new doesn't work, but this did.… (mehr)