"Don’t Cross Mo Ellery" by Birdie Horne

 

"Don’t Cross Mo Ellery" by Birdie Horne is a chaotic cozy mystery, just like its heroine. Birdie Horne is the pseudonym of two authors, Eden Robins and Mary Winn Heider, and this is their first novel together. And a successful endeavor it is!

Told in the first-person POV, the book follows Mo Ellery, a 29-year-old bisexual hypochondriac woman who finds herself in the thick of a murder mystery. Her 29th birthday starts on the wrong foot when a Zoom work meeting goes awry due to a small accident involving indecent exposure. As a result, she gets fired, dumped by her boyfriend, and kicked out of their Chicago apartment, all on the same day. She finds a low-paying job as a crossing guard and moves into a small flat in a less posh neighborhood. However, her troubles are far from over. The neighbors are less than welcoming, the kids disregard her orders to wait for her signal to cross, and her bestie is distant.

Among the colorful locals are Claudia, a wacky old woman; Marlowe, a tween prodigy; and Poodle Dude, a man with an SUV full of poodles who speeds through her intersection each morning. The plot thickens when Poodle Dude dies after speeding into a sinkhole. Claudia believes he was murdered and drags Mo into investigating it. Soon, Mo finds herself the guardian of three poodles and in the role of an amateur sleuth. When another local dies under mysterious circumstances, Mo needs to step on it. With the help of Marlowe, her sidekick - or is it the other way around? - they try to find a murderer. What follows is a series of shenanigans, chaos, and mayhem.

I enjoyed the book very much. Mo isn't your standard heroine. You'll either like her or hate her, and I liked her. Yes, she is a mess, selfish at times, and has issues, but that made her feel human and authentic. She grows and develops throughout the tale, and I couldn't help but root for her. She doesn't always act wisely, that's true, and more than once I wanted to shout at her to reconsider her actions. But then, we all make the wrong choices at times.

What made the book work for me was the humor. Much of it comes from Mo herself, whose chaotic decision-making repeatedly lands her in awkward situations. The investigation is just as messy as its heroine, which fits the tone of the story perfectly. I also enjoyed the interactions between the characters and watching Mo become more aware of her flaws and more independent as the story progresses. And I loved the dogs and their antics!

The mystery is a light but fun one. There is a light romance subplot, which doesn't overshadow the plot. The pace was just right, and the tone strikes a nice balance between lighthearted and tense moments. Even though two authors wrote the tale, the seam is invisible, and the writing is smooth.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read, a palate cleanser if you please. Despite enjoying the book very much, there were a few things that kept it from being a five-star read. The opening scene made me somewhat uncomfortable, and I found the motive behind the murders a bit far-fetched. That said, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to those looking for a light and fun read. I would love to read more books featuring this heroine.

* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc.  All opinions are my own.

* More info about the book: "Don’t Cross Mo Ellery" by Birdie Horne

"The Engagement Party" by Darby Kane

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Agatha Christie's books were the first real locked-room mysteries that I came across, and since then, I have become a fan of the locked-room thriller trope. The story grabbed me from the blurb, making me eager to get a crack at the inside. And, once I did, I knew I was in for a great read.

"The Engagement" by Party Darby Kane is a gripping locked-room thriller set on a remote island in Maine. Twelve years after the murder of their friend Emily Hunt, a group of college friends reunites for an engagement celebration of their friend Will and his fiancee Ruthie.  Among the party are Alex and Cassie, who got married and are now successful lawyers, and Mitch and his colleague Sierra who is secretly in love with him. The dreadful reunion soon turns deadly when they reach the island.

A body discovered in the trunk of a car with a note demanding the truth sets in motion a chain of events that can only end in one way. The plot thickens when a torrential storm strands them together with no cell connection, no means to leave the island, and a determined murderer on the loose, intents on exposing the past. They must confront secrets, lies, and a race against time to survive.

There's nothing I like more than a good locked room mystery, and this one fit the bill perfectly with threatening notes, murders, and secrets aplenty to keep me on my toes. There’s so much I loved about this book. I loved the complexity, the injection of book notes between the chapters that shed light the horrid past, and the writing. I loved the way the details unfolded tantalizingly, and how each piece of the puzzle interconnected seamlessly. The story is told in the third-person POV and from multiple perspectives, which I also liked.

However, what is it with college and murders?? The locked-room thriller trope with secrets and deeds gone awry during college days has been overdone lately. I have read quite a few books in this vein, so the premise, interested though it was, wasn't very original from that aspect. In addition, I didn't like any of the characters except Sierra, although she took her over-protective mode too far. They were all horrible, and I didn't care for them at all.

The pace wasn't consistence, alternating between slow and fast, with too much bickering in between, and a tighter edit would have given the book more polish. Still, the engrossing plot made this an enjoyable read. Despite the book flaws, I found the novel addictive. The author has spun together a great book and has given that book plenty of twists and turns to keep us guessing. It's a wild ride, and you never know which direction you'll be flung next.

All in all, it's an interesting, enjoyable read with a satisfying conclusion that I highly recommend. The author wrote in the acknowledgements that she wanted to show how an interest in truth crime and genuine desire to help and dig the true can go very wrong, and she certainly did that!

* Thank you  Edelweiss and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc.  All opinions are my own.

* For more info about the book: "The Engagement" by Party Darby Kane