Dead to Begin With (A Country Gift Shop Cozy Mystery, #1)

by Vivian Conroy

‘Highly recommend for any cozy mystery fans.’ – Goodreads review

Coming home can be murder

Vicky Simmons is looking for the simple life. She’s ready to trade in London for a slower pace by opening a British Country Gift Shop in her old hometown on the coast of Maine. Little does she know a few old faces are back in Glen Cove, including unrequited teenage crush Michael Danning—having taken over the local Gazette and looking better than ever.

All is looking rosy until Vicky finds herself face-to-face with a dead body and Michael is the prime suspect. When the sheriff links the motive for murder to the unsolved disappearance of a teenage girl twenty years ago, Vicky must turn amateur sleuth. She’ll stop at nothing to save Michael…and unmask the real killer!

Don’t miss any title in the Country Gift Shop Cozy Mystery series:

Book 1 – Dead to Begin With

Book 2 – Grand Prize: Murder!

Book 3 – Written into the Grave

Praise for Vivian Conroy

‘Wow, I very much loved this book. It is the first I've read by Vivian but most definitely will not be the last.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Ms Conroy’s writing is fresh and entertaining, it’s like an episode of Miss Fisher Murder Mysteries sprinkled with what I can only describe as a good old-fashioned Miss Marple.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Both the story and characters were well written and whenever I had to put the book down I couldn’t wait to start reading again.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘This would suit anyone who has not so far stepped into the world of cosy mysteries and if you are already a fan, this will not disappoint.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Loved every minute of this.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

• ISBN13: 9780008239183
• Publish Date: 13 January 2017
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: HQ Digital
• Edition: Digital original
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 384
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[Mystereity Reviews]

See this and all of my reviews at Mystereity Reviews

3.5 stars

A good start to a new series, and while it started off slow, I'm glad I stuck with it. Once the story got going, it was hard to put down and by the time I wound my way up to the exciting ending, I was hooked. The plot blended an old disappearance with a new murder, and the many plot twists kept me on my toes, there were so many suspects that were more suspicious than the actual culprit. I admit, I didn't know who the killer was until a few pages before Vicky figured it all out, but the clues were all there. Well done!

The cute setting of Glen Cove sounds like the sort of quaint New England small town familiar to anyone who has ever watched Murder, She Wrote. In fact, I kept waiting for Jessica Fletcher to ride down the street on her bike! The colorful cast of characters added a lot of charm to the story, especially Cash. I thought his character evolved the most during the story, and that gave him more dimension than the other characters.

Overall, Dead to Begin With is a charming, entertaining and absorbing cozy mystery and a great start to a new series. I'll definitely keep this on my list of series to watch, and I recommend it for cozy mystery fans, who will find a lot to like.