Published by Avon

Publication date – 25 May 2023

Source – review copy

I wrote murder mysteries. I didn’t investigate them. Until now…

Crime writer turned amateur sleuth, Jen, has taken over the running of the local bookstore in her hometown of Riddleton.

But balancing the books at Ravenous Readers is nothing compared to meeting the deadline for her new novel.

Dodging phone calls from her editor takes a back seat, however, when the local police chief is poisoned. To solve the murder, Jen must dust off her detective hat once more.

With everyone in town seemingly a suspect, and evidence planted to incriminate local police officer and close friend Eric, Jen is working against the clock. Can she find the killer and beat her own writer’s block before it’s too late?

Author Jen is struggling to write the infamous second novel after her first was a bestseller. She also has to run her bookshop, Ravenous Readers and hopefully begin to turn a profit. Whilst helping at a benefit dinner the local police chief dies, poisoned. When Jen’s friend Eric is framed for the murder Jen decides to investigate.

A murder taking place in a small town, with a hated victim, a handful of suspects and an amateur sleuth. All the ingredients for a cosy mystery. Which is exactly what The Murderous Type is.

Jen is headstrong, not easily intimidated and determined. As a result she can be unaware of how other people are feeling, which leads to some run ins with best friend Brittany. In other respects she can be laid back, leaving much of the running of the bookshop to her friends Lacey and Charlie, which helps when she wants to rope them into her investigation.

The mystery itself is straightforward. Who could have killed the police chief. There’s no end of possible suspects given he wasn’t well liked. But this is a cosy mystery so the list of those who could have killed him is kept to a select few. Jen herself admits that she is involved in the investigation not just because her friend Eric is being framed. She is nosy but also has a sense of what is right and wrong, though is willing to bend a few rules in the process.

There were a few moments when I pulled away from the story. One where the British Medical Examiner used American terms and another when Jen made repeated comments about her expanding waistline, which she mentioned more than a few times. However, these did not put me off reading.

This is the second in the series but you don’t have to have read the first book. There are hints throughout as to what had happened previously without revealing the killer so that readers can always go back should they wish.

An entertaining cosy mystery with characters that have room to grow as the series progresses.

You can buy a copy of the book here.

(This is an affiliate link so I may earn a small amount should you purchase through it. You can also buy The Murderous Type from your local independent bookshop.)