Everything is sweet in the town of Confection. Lexi runs the bookshop, and life is good, until her dog Cookie unearths the dead body of her next door neighbor. Cookie is known for her digging, but she really outdid herself this time! And since Lexi was just arguing with her neighbor the day before, she is high on the list of suspects. The more Lexi tries to clear her name, the more complicated things become. It’s an intricate plot, cleverly woven together. The tale is well constructed, with interesting characters and cute ideas, one being the book club called The Macaroons. It’s a promising beginning for a new series. ( )

Digging Up Trouble is the debut of A Sweet Fiction Bookshop Mystery series. Confection, Oregon is a small town where the residents lavish their time and attention on their gardens. The upcoming contest with the large cash prize has people pushing for their gardens to look their best. They do not appreciate a cute dog digging in their flowerbeds. Lexi Jones has returned to her hometown where she manages the family bookshop, Sweet Fiction and, in her spare time, is working on a novel. I would have liked to learn more about Lexi (lack of background). There are a number of secondary characters that include Lexi’s besties, her uncles, and the Macaroons (the book club). The whodunit is straightforward. There are several suspects and I thought there were too many red herrings. There are clues a plenty to help readers arrive at the solution before the reveal. I did not understand why Detective Berg was so focused on Lexi. The story flowed well until about two thirds of the way through. It slowed down then until the reveal scene. The author has set up a love triangle that I wish was not a part of the book. Cookie was the highlight of the book. He is a smart, wily, and entertaining canine. Digging Up Trouble is a lighthearted whodunit with crafty canine, rampant rumors, flower garden fanatics, a devious digger, a cunning killer, curious clues, and a surfeit of suspects. ( )

Digging Up Trouble is the first book in the Sweet Fiction Bookshop series by Kitt Crowe.

Lexi Jones has left her job as editor in Seattle and has returned to her hometown of Confection, Oregon, to take over her parent’s bookstore. Confection is known for its beautiful gardens cared for by competitive gardeners. For Lexi, all of the town’s gardens aren’t the best thing as her rescue dog, Cookie, is a digger and has them into trouble. Detective Berg has warned Lexi the next time Cookie is seen digging, a ticket will be issued.

One morning, as Lexi gets out of bed, she hears a bark from Cookie, figuring she has to go potty. She grabs her robe and heads downstairs to let Cookie out. She finds the doggy door slightly ajar and heading next door to her cantankerous neighbor’s, Gil’s, house. Hoping to sneak into Gil’s yard and get Cookie back home before anyone sees them, but luck wasn’t on her side. What she did see was Cookie sitting in a shallow ditch with a piece of copper pipe in her mouth and Detective Berg and another officer next to Cookie and Gil’s dead body in the ditch.

Berg can confirm that the pipe was the murder weapon, and Lexi will become a person of interest when the police learn that she had a loud disagreement the previous day.

Many of the residents of Confection didn’t care for Gil., but it is not clear why Gil was killed. It’s thought that someone didn’t want Gil to win the $15,000 prize for having the best garden in the annual garden judging, where others believed the rumor that Gil had a map for possible buried treasure.

Since Lexi doesn’t have a lot of faith that Detective Iceberg, the name she gave the detective, would find the killer, she sets out on her investigation. Lexi will get help from her book club, The Macaroons, and her uncle and his partner.

The book is well-written and plotted and has an interesting and believable cast of characters. I am looking forward to learning if there will be any romance in the future for Lexi, and hopefully, Cookie won’t get into any trouble.

I’ll be watching for the next book in the series. ( )

After a hectic career as an editor in Seattle, Lexi Jones is back in her hometown of Confection, Oregon, running Sweet Fiction and taking care of her rescue dog Cookie. She's surrounded by family and friends and life would be great if her dog wasn't a digger in a town with too many competitive gardeners getting ready for the annual garden contest. Cookie has drawn the attention of new police officer Chad Berg who keeps threatening to give Lexi a citation if she can't keep Cookie on her leash.

Lexi's next door neighbor is a cranky old gardener who complains about everything Lexi and Cookie do. So when Cookie gets out in the yard and climbs under the fence into Gil Cloutier's yard, Lexi is quick to try to get her back. But Cookie has made an interesting discovery; someone has murdered Gil and buried him in his yard.

Lexi looks like the perfect suspect since she's a beginning author who wrote a death scene starring Gil after their last argument. Lexi recruits her best friends Cat and Teri along with the Macaroons - the book club at the store - to help her clear her name and find out who really murdered Gil.

Finding Gil's enemies isn't hard. It seems he's angered quite a number of people in town including his three grown sons and the other members of the Confection Garden Club. While Lexi investigates, against Detective Chad Berg's strong advice, she learns a number of town secrets. She also finds herself the target of someone who doesn't want her looking into Gil's death.

I liked the interesting group of characters and the small town setting of this story. Lexi is the narrator of the story and I really like her voice and style. I liked her two potential love interests, Detective Chad Berg and her best friend's older brother Dash who might finally be seeing Lexi as someone other than his little sister's best friend.

This was an entertaining start to a new cozy series. I can't wait to see what happens next. ( )