This was a very good first book for a series. Loved the characters and am looking forward to meeting them again. They are all very quirky! One mystery was solved in this book but it left another very important mystery hanging. Guess we'll have to read the next book in the series to find out the answer.

I received a free copy of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.
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OH MY, WHAT A TALE! I was so caught up with following Verity and helping her find her aunt that the tale ended way before I was ready! Self imposed Verity chose to never leave her apartment after she and her husband were involved in a car crash that ultimately took his life. To make matters worse, her aunt's attorney called to say that her aunt was presumed dead after her car was found in the lake! With two murders occurring just days AFTER she arrived in the village and SHE is the prime suspect she is determined to find her aunt. I AM SO GLAD THAT THIS IS ONLY BOOK ONE! ( )

Verity Hawkes has been hiding out in her apartment in Vancouver for two years, ever since her husband, Matthew, died. Now she's gotten a call from her Aunt Adeline's lawyer, Wilford Munson. Adeline's car was pulled out of a river, and while Adeline wasn't in it, neither has she turned up anywhere else. She's missing and presumed dead. And recluse Verity needs to come to tiny Leafy Hollow, Ontario, to settle her aunt's estate, right now.

Reluctantly, Verity takes her first trip in two years.

Her aunt's Rose Cottage, which she remembers so fondly, is in very sad shape. Her aunt's garden has clearly been neglected longer than Adeline has been missing. Her lawn care business is alive, but in the red, because Adeline hasn't been going after unpaid invoices in a while.

This is not going to be the short trip and then back into hiding in her Vancouver apartment that Verity has hoped for. Something is very wrong, and she's not at all convinced her aunt is dead.

Soon, while continuing to believe that she's absolutely going back to Vancouver as soon as possible, Verity is making friends, forming connections, doing small, helpful things for people, getting caught up in trying to run her aunt's business effectively. And, of course, trying to figure out why her aunt disappeared.

The first part of the book had me jumpy (like Verity, I do have anxiety issues), with events that seemed to happen just a little bit too quickly and randomly. Then either the book settled down or I did, and became quite enjoyable. Even across this rather short book, characters grew and developed and showed more depth than seemed likely at first meeting. By the end, I really wanted to see more of most of them.

Recommended for a light read.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the author, and am reviewing it voluntarily. ( )

I love a book set in Canada, makes a nice change from the USA and there are lots of subtle and not so subtle differences between the two countries including their crime rate and their coffee francises. Verity Hawkes is awoken by a phone call informing her that her aunt is missing - possibly dead, and she is the nearest relative to go and sort out affairs. Verity lives on the other side of the country to her Aunt, and, to make matters worse, following the death of her husband, Verity has been a shut-in, so to get on a plane a bus and a taxi to get to her aunt's home in a tiny village near Niagra is a big ask. She does it and becomes embroiled in not only working out what happened to her missing aunt (that is a later books) but the murder of at least two unloved residents of the village. There is a hunky gardener and an equally hunky policeman, and a weird neighbour and a cat who moves in. All together a good start for the Leafy Hollow Mysteries. ( )

What a great book. It had the mystery and intrigue as well as a bit of potential romance and a whopper of an ending. A great cast of quirky, and downright intriguing characters made this book a real page turner.

I enjoyed every page. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. ( )