The Secret, Book & Scone Society

I absolutely love this book! You get to follow along with four amazing women as they work together to find who is behind a mysterious death of a man, our main protagonist Nora meets in the very beginning of the book. The journey the four take is paced at a spectacular pace, where the events don't feel to drawn out but not overwhelmingly close together. The hints to the answer are hidden throughout the whole book enough to keep the reader's brain active and thinking, while not to obvious to the ending. This book is a nice quick read and is perfect for a nice evening with a cup of tea and a notebook to help keep track, if you like to follow along.

Nora is a representative of the people who are not “society's” opinion of attractive people with a burn scar that goes from her face down her side. I think the author handled this situation with grace and awareness of the affects the injury would have on a person. Although, I do not know the first-hand experience of having a visible scar, or the societal experiences that come with such an injury.

All in all, I would definitely recommend this to my friends, family, and other readers who like a good mystery.

In a way this book is too sweet for words, yet in another way I quite liked it. It's a B book that makes you happy nonetheless. The writing is a little awkward and sugary, but well meaning. Also: I listened to it, I have no idea if I coud have stomached the written version.

3,5 stars.

I loved this book! However, I think it's important to point out that I personally would not call it a cozy mystery.

A lot of cozy elements are there: small town, cute business, great friends. Because I knew nothing else about this book when I picked it up, I was a little taken aback by the darkness in the story. Don't get me wrong, darkness has its place – I did give the book 5 stars, after all! – but if you are looking for a cozy escape, this isn't the book for you. The narrator's outlook on the world is extremely mistrustful (with reason) and [slight spoiler ahead] the investigation includes sexual assault and some unsettlingly violent moments. In the end, it came together for me, but I still don't think it's entirely fair to ambush a reader with those elements if what they need is a lighter tale.

Excellent cozy mystery, great characters, cute location, decent mystery plot.

I read a lot of mysteries, especially cozy ones and this one is perfect! It's everything I was looking for and more!!!

Such a good book! I am in love with the world and the characters Ellery Adams has created in The Secret, Book & Scone Society. It's a mystery, a book about the importance of friendship, and it just drew me in. Can't wait to read more of the series!

The writing was excellent, but the plot was a little messy.

There is mystery, a little thriller, and a little romance. These women are amazing characters! I want to meet them and go visit their businesses. They seem so real and relatable. The mystery is intriguing and the bad guys are really bad, but there is empathy for them and the other characters. This one is fabulous!

3.5 stars

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. It was a bit more serious or darker than most cozy mysteries that I usually read. I think I wouldn't even classify this as a “cozy” mystery but more a just regular type mystery with a slightly cozy touch. In any case, I will say that one of my favorite things about this book was all the book and author mentions and the quotes. It was a bibliophile's dream and made for an excellent reading experience. Not to mention all the yummy sounding scones. I was a bit disappointed that the author didn't include any recipes. I think that would have been a nice bonus and would have made the book that much better.

I found it to be well written and paced. The plot was engaging and kept me turning the pages. The mystery kept me guessing until the end. I loved the interactions between the four women. I enjoyed learning their secrets and seeing their friendship grow. I loved the small town setting. The Gingerbread House and the personal scones. The bookstore and Nora's bibliotherapy. The caboose cottage. The book had a bit of a magical realism feel to it that I loved.



My only issue I did have with this one was I just didn't connect with Nora. I am not sure why because Nora is the central character, but I just found her lacking in emotions or personality. She came off a bit flat and if I am honest, a bit cold and standoffish. And perhaps that is precisely how she was meant to be written, but as I said, it left me feeling detached from her character. On top of that when we finally get to her secret at the end it had the unfortunate effect of disconnecting me further when I had just started to warm up to her. I think it wouldn't have bothered me as much if it hadn't included other people. But of course, these are characters not meant to be perfect. All four have flaws and are living with the repercussions of their actions so although her secret bothered me it may not bother others as much.

Overall though like I said above I did enjoy this one quite a bit and I look forward to heading back to Miracle Springs, North Carolina and seeing what these ladies will be getting up to next. There also seems to be some potential romances in the air, and I hope the author plans on building on those storylines as well. This gets a solid two thumbs up from yours truly.

“No one has ever lost by becoming addicted to stories—to the lessons learned by those who possess enough courage to put pen to paper.”

Miracle Springs is a small town hidden between the mountains in North Carolina where people come to heal. Nora is the owner of Miracle Books and she uses her bibliotherapy skills to introduce the right books to the right people and help them heal from whatever has broken them. Hester, the owner and baker from Gingerbread House is famous for her custom scones which bring back memories for each of the customer and make them smile. Estella, the serial dater is beautiful and helps everyone realize their own beauty and confidence through the work in her spa. June is an employee at the Thermal Pools, whose waters are supposed to be miraculous. All these women have secrets from their past which they are trying to forget but are forced to confront them when not one, but two murders rock this little town. They become fast friends, call themselves the Secret, Book & Scone Society and decide to find the culprits themselves because the local law enforcement seems incompetent or even complicit.

“Stories are just like people. If you don't approach them with an open mind and a healthy dose of respect, they won't reveal their hidden selves to you. In that event, you'll miss out on what they have to offer. You'll walk through life an empty husk instead of a vibrant kaleidoscope of passion, wisdom, and experience.”

I fell in love with the book from the first page. Even though this is supposed to be a cozy mystery, all the four women characters are well developed. They are all scarred by their past but it doesn't stop them from trying to help and better the lives of others. The mystery is also quite good and I really couldn't guess some of the villains till the end. But the best part of the book is the love that almost all characters share for books. Everyone is a book lover which is awesome. Miracle Books is an amazing store and the way it's nooks and crannies are described, I fell in love with it. I love everything about it – the books, the shelf enhancers, the coffees named after authors, Nora's collection of coffee mugs with amazing quotes on them and so on and so forth. I just want to go there, order a Louisa May Alcott coffee, pick up a cozy mystery and relax. What bliss would that be!!!

“It's always that way when you're looking at books. An hour goes by in a minute: you don't know where the hell the time went.”

Note: This book has so many book recommendations within the story that your TBR pile will become just unmanageable. But hey, it's just Books – the more, the merrier.

PS: Thank you so much Kensington Books and Netgalley for providing me an opportunity to read and review the ARC of this wonderful book.

This is a story that is clearly designed to appeal to bibliophiles, with its bookstore setting and a protagonist with a gift for choosing the perfect book. But, sadly for us bibliophiles, the tale proves to be a plodding, formulaic murder mystery afflicted by pointless descriptions and statements of the obvious. I wanted to like this but the writing is just so ham-handed and sloppy, I simply cannot bear it.

I received a copy of this book free from the publisher for review.