Book Review: Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret (Ernest Cunningham, #3) by Benjamin Stevenson

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Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret (Ernest Cunningham, #3)  by Benjamin Stevenson opens with the main character traveling to a magic show prove his ex-wife's innocence in a murder. It involves ruling out the different people in the show. Will Ernest prove that his ex-wife is innocent without ruining things with his fiance? First and foremost, a big thank you to NetGalley for approving me to read this book. I received a copy for free in exchange for my honest review. The approval for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) came after the book was already published and being busy with the holidays both contributed to the delay of me reading and reviewing the book. The synopsis intrigued me, and I wasn't sure what to expect from this author as I haven't read anything by him before. However, it feels like Benjamin Stevenson is following a step by step guide provided to him in a writing class because the main character keeps mentioning how things should go according to "the norm...
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Book Review: Murder By The Seashore (California Bookshop Mystery, #1) by Samara Yew

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Murder by the Seashore (California Bookshop Mystery, #1) by Samara Yew takes place in Oceanside, California.
Murder by the Seashore (California Bookshop Mystery, #1) by Samara Yew takes place in Oceanside, California.  It opens with Scarlett Gardner having a hard day at work because everything has gone wrong.  She partly blames Connor, her ex-boyfriend, because he dumped her and took off to greener pastures for a start up company when they were supposed to be running the bookstore she opened together.  Taking a walk on the nearby beach, Scarlett stumbles over a dead body, which turns out to be that of Lorelei Knight . . . the last customer who frequented her store the night before.  Now, Scarlett is the prime suspect and needs to clear her name.

First and foremost, I'd like to thank NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Murder by the Seashore (California Bookshop Mystery, #1) by Samara Yew.  When I read the synopsis of this book, it sounded like it was right up my alley.  I received a copy of this cozy mystery for free in exchange for my honest review.

The beginning of the story started off a bit slow, but it quickly picked up pace.  I found myself falling in love with most of the characters . . . and the storyline, of course.  The few characters I didn't care for were Connor, Detective Maxwell, Autumn, and Martin.  However, Martin did redeem himself a bit later in the book.  You'll have to read the book to find out how!

There were plenty of twists and red herrings.  My first suspect was Evelyn Maxwell, who happened to be married to Police Detective Maxwell and work for Scarlett.  She acted very strange in my opinion.  Other people I suspected were Connor, Autumn, and Lucia.  I was glad to see that the person I finally decided upon as the culprit was in fact the murderer.  However, I never did figure out the connection between Lorelei and Scarlett.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery quite a bit because it's well written and held my attention.  I can't wait to find out what happens next in this series.  Four out of five stars is what I gave Murder by the Seashore (California Bookshop Mystery, #1) by Samara Yew.

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