Dee Ernst

4.5 stars

MUCH better than most small-sized KU independent mysteries tend to be. Writing style, characterization, and small town charm make it a slice above the rest.

While the mystery part didn't start heating up more intensely until later, I was enchanted with the main character, a mother who has come off weight loss with daughters after a mid-life change. It almost felt like the comedy The Burbs, where a group of friends start getting nosy about weird neighbors. Fun stuff.

Her friends and show more their health walks with the wine and dogs felt absolutely natural. The conflict of still being hung up on her ex-husband who bailed was also natural but not usually touched upon with this kind of novel that usually keeps it simpler, but the new relationship felt mixed between downright cute/funny and warming. Sometimes kids can be annoying in these, but that wasn't the case here - instead the mother has to start letting an older daughter go when she wants to move on with her life, while consoling a younger daughter who doesn't feel the same. Even the dog had a convincing personality.

Mystery wise it was good. There were some small twists. The strength of the story didn't like in a complex mystery, but how the small town was woven up into this tragedy under their noses.

Another thing was a surprisingly dark and gritty finale mixed in with standard cozy mystery fare. Despite convincing humor this book didn't keep it so light and fluffy that it was airy as some cozies tend to be. This helped put it a pace above the rest, with the mental illness coming across chilling, and the final dream sobering - hard to forget.

Highly recommended for cozy mystery fans. show less

An MC that is (almost) 50? Who has a romance? Yes please! One quibble though - does the author really think 50 is that old? When the couple finally gets together (he's 55) they have one round of not so great sex and then say "well, if we were younger we'll give it another go but hey, let's go for a walk instead?" That isn't me or any of the people in their 50s that I know. We can still go multiple rounds in a day! Especially when it's a new lover.

Otherwise, this book is about Lucy, who after show more having gone through a horrific personal and professional incident finds herself taking a job that challenges all the doubts that have crept in during the aftermath. We see her navigating her family, creating a new found family, and rediscovering just how good at her job she is. A lot of books set in France by USians writers end up being so nauseating in their gushing about that country but this one sets just the right balance in giving us a window into life there without fawning over it. It has a wonderful cast of characters and gives us strong female friendships. I just loved this book. show less

I really ended up loving this book and want to thank a friend who recommended it to me.

The protagonist of this novel is Kate Everett. Widowed for five years she finally decides to down-size from her huge house to a nice townhouse to get ready for the second stage of her life. However, things don't go as planned with Kate still thinking about what could have been with her first love from college popping up into her life and her family causing her fits.

There are so many novels out there with show more characters in their fifties trying to figure out what's next but this once I thought did a great job accurately portraying what life is like for older women and men.

I thought the character of Kate was just fantastic. I wanted to hang out and drink with her and one of her besties Cheryl and just laugh at things. Especially with Kate's insights about women in romance novels always opening bakeries, businesses, or other things and somehow finding themselves. I have not read a romance novel that has actually made me laugh out loud so much in such a long time I just ended up promptly buying her other book "Better Off Without Him" and can't wait to devour that book as well.

What made it really work for me though is that Kate did not take the "easy" option but the one that worked for her. Things did not magically get right in her life she had to work at it while also being honest about her marriage to her deceased husband.

I definitely recommend this novel! show less

am quite tired of reading about the love lives of perky, gutsy, kick-butt 20 -something’s and have been wondering just where the sexy, clever books are for us women (and men) of ‘that certain age’. Well I am wondering no more. I just hope that this author keeps writing about women and men who have actual life experience and aren’t afraid to use it!



If you took Olivia Goldsmith or Suzan Isaacs and took out the mystery, you would have a good idea of Ms Ernst’s “voice”. This is a show more tale of a woman of a certain age and her journey through divorce and jumping back into the dating game. While this could have been a trite book since the subject has been done so many times before…it wasn’t. The author has a unique perspective on both what it feels like to be alone and lonely after a divorce and what a kind and close-knit community can do to, and for a woman once she has put herself back into the game. The characters are well written and entirely believable. The idea that Mona had money of her own but wasn’t filthy rich was a happy extra. The writing was nicely tight with no superfluous angsting of any of the characters. Plenty of good, clearly written dialogue and tight plotting. A fun and funny story line and wonderful secondary and tertiary characters.



The idea of “life imitating art” is certainly apt since Mona, a romance writer, has gotten the idea that she wants to write a book outside of her norm and soon she finds that her life is imitating her heroine. There are some sex scenes but nothing neither offensive nor overly descriptive. The secondary characters are almost better than the story line and I would love to see another book with Mona, Ben, Aunt Lily , her daughters the wacky neighbors and her assistant.



Please write a sequel! show less