I received this book for free from Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Grave New World by Gena Showalter, Jill Monroe Series: A Jane Ladling Mystery #6
on April 29, 2024
Genres: Cozy Mystery
Pages: 209
Format: eBook
Source: Advance Reader Copy
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Jane Ladling cordially invites you to the world’s most romantic wedding. But first, there’s a few items to check off her to-do list.
Actually plan the festivitiesFind a way to pay for said festivitiesAvoid finding a dead body. OOPS! Solve a murderAs the owner of a landlocked cemetery and self-proclaimed expert amateur sleuth, Jane knows death inside and out. After receiving an invite to speak at a local writer’s club, she discovers a dead body upon arrival, plus an invitation from the killer.
Player one is ready. Are you?
Now the game is on!
With a newly elected (smoking hot) sheriff who doubles as her overprotective fiancé, a gaggle of enabling best friends, and a lovingly vicious guardcat at her side, the intrepid Jane has no doubt she’ll win. But as clues lead everywhere and nowhere at once, another victim is discovered, and an ancient family curse rears its ugly head. Jane realizes she’s caught in a battle between cat and mouse. To succeed, she’ll have to lay a trap of her own…
This book was so fun! Jane is finally to the point where when she thinks about the “Ladling Curse” she can tell her intrusive thoughts to shove it. She believes in her man, and in what they have, and that’s stronger than any self-fulfilling prophecy disguised as a curse (previous books we learned that all Ladlings learn about the Ladling Curse, and how if a Ladling woman falls in love, her man will die).
Our little Jane is growing up 🙂
She’s been asked to speak at a writer’s club/book club so when she shows up at the Tea House, she’s surprised that no one is there. As she pokes around, she finds not the group, but instead a body. And then she’s whacked from behind and falls unconscious.
When she wakes up, the mystery of what happens becomes priority one, even over picking a maid of honor! Because, not only is Jane finally believing in love and not curses, she’s getting married to the love of her life, Conrad.
He brings Jane in as a consultant, but they soon realize she may be the target of a killer, and not just a hapless bystander. This changes their investigation drastically. And with that comes clues, tips that lead nowhere, and wild hunches. This is a wild investigation, and in true Cozy Mystery fashion, the shenanigans of this quaint town really make the book.
If you enjoy Cozies, you’ll love this. If you are new to Cozy Mysteries, they’re fun and interesting! And with Gena Showalter and Jill Monroe writing, they’re always funny. These two could write a cookbook and I’d read it. Do yourself a favor and start reading the Jane Ladling Mysteries. They’re books that leave you happy and satisfied.
***ARC courtesy of the publisher
