To solve or not to solve?When a visiting professor is found dead, English major Pepper Brooks is caught in the middle of the investigation. Literally. While the detectives focus on crime scene forensics, Pepper can’t ignore the Shakespearian clues left by the killer.With the help of a handsome library clerk, a dog named Hamburger, and the words of The Bard himself, this unlikely sleuth might just … unlikely sleuth might just close the book on this case.
Readers, this is the first in a literary-themed cozy series. If you love classic literature, feel like there’s nothing better than the smell of books, see a library as a place of solace, and don’t mind an adorable puppy named Hammy hanging around, you’re going to love these books. And if Shakespeare’s not your jam, no worries, each book features a different classic author. 😉 Happy reading!
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Literally Dead By Eryn Scott Book ReviewA Pepper Brooks Cozy Mystery
Bridget Ball
23 min ago1
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Pepper Brooks, a college student at NWU, seems to have it all: a wonderful roommate in her off-campus apartment named Liv, a cute Boston Terrier named Hamburger, and a passion for English classic literature. On her way to a talk by a guest speaker, Dr. Davis Campbell, a Shakespeare enthusiast, Pepper finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery when he winds up dead in the office of Pepper’s teacher and mentor, Dr. Ferguson (Fergie to Pepper), along with a cryptic Shakesperian note, and the suspects run wild.
This book has a wonderful cast of characters and suspects: “library guy” Alex (Pepper’s reluctant crush), Professor Evensworth (Evilsworth to Pepper and her friends), “Naked Newt” the town’s quirky entrepreneur with an oddly morbid sense of humor, and Fergie, Pepper’s mentor and English professor with a zest for drama and hidden past. Set in a small New England town called Pine Crest, where everyone knows everyone, this book gives you all the fall feels!
I will admit this book reads like a Nancy Drew with a ton of references to her peppered throughout the novel (see what I did there). You may solve the mystery before the whole thing is over, but the characters are so rich and the budding romance with “library guy” Alex will keep you interested until the end.
I give this book:
5 books for literary genius
2 ghosts for spookiness
3 screams for suspense
I suggest reading this book at night, preferably with a cozy fire while drinking a half mocha half got chocolate like Pepper drank in the novel. I found this book for free with Kindle Unlimited as a set of three. I will be reviewing the next two in the set in the future!
Everyone have a wonderful Monday and Don’t Stop Your Reading!
OMG. This book had me at the first chapter.
I love love love everything about this story. A true amateur sleuth, bumbling around, flinging accusations, knowing with everything she has that she knows who the killer is. It’s fantastically written. I love Pepper so much, and excited to get to know her throughout these books.
I did not expect the final twist at all, caught me by surprise, but made total sense looking back at all the clues. It was such a well laid out mystery, my anxiety was in over drive for most of the book!
The small town setting, mixed with a college town reminded me of my own college days, it’s just perfection. All of it.
You’ll love this book if you love bumbling sleuths who make mistakes, provide a few embarrassing laughs, and have a strong support system.
A good little romantic cozy mystery.
This story was more than just a good mystery. A little romance and quotes from some of the literary greats were an added bonus.
This was a well-written, entertaining, fun and easy read. If you enjoy a good mystery with a young adult as the heroine, then this is a book you will not want to miss reading.
This review is for the audio book.
I enjoyed Erin’s stoneybrook mystery series so much that I just had to give this new series a go to. Glad I did, it is just as much fun and a great start to a new series. I liked the characters and the spark between them, romance is in the air? It doesn’t detract from the mystery and In some way enhances it because he it the police chiefs son and keeps letting information slip. The home life was fun, I especially liked the naming of the dog. Also growing up reading Nancy Drew I loved all the comments about what she would do, Shakespeare plays also plays a part in the story. The only down side is how quick the main character was to accusing the suspects without gathering all the fact first, it did mean there was plenty of suspects to accuse and kept you guessing. All in all a fun light hearted humorous mystery.
Pepper stumbles over the guest speakers dead body in her favourite professor office. The suicide not was a line from Macbeth but surely an English professor wouldn’t write it down wrong would he? The police already suspect murder before Pepper points it out but In doing so, she points the finger at the professor. The two professors had a history and Pepper fears that if she doesn’t step in and investigate the professor might be arrested for the murder. With help from an unlike source, the campus library in the form of the new staff member and the books, Pepper must piece together the clues left behind by the killer just like her childhood hero Nancy Drew.
I liked the narrator and thought she did a good job with the voices, even the ones needing accents.
4 Star review Literally Dead (Pepper Brooks Cozy Mysteries #1) by Eryn Scott
Audio Review:
Although I have listened to several books written by Eryn Scott, this is a new series to me. I was a tad anxious as the heroine is in her early 20’s and a student, not a trope I usually enjoy, however there was no need to be worried.
The narrator Margo Chervony is new to me and I enjoyed her performance as she brought this cozy mystery to life for me. One of the unusual and most enjoyable things about this book was the literary references to Shakespeare which I found highly entertaining as Pepper sifted through the clues.
This was a a book filled with secrets, miss communication and clues to satisfy my detective spirit. The intrigue and suspense kept me on the edge of my seat as I listened to this story.
There are several twists, turns and surprises in Literally Dead as Pepper, Olivia and Alex follow the clues and I have to say that I was taken by surprise on a couple of occasions.
I cannot wait for more in this series.
The amateur sleuth in this book was about as ditzy as they come. If you can get over that, it’s a fun read!
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Light cozy with a little romance. College student Pepper has had a rough year since her dad died of a heart attack, but one professor helped her muddle through but now is the chief suspect in the murder of a colleague. Pepper teams up with a young man close to graduation whose father is the lead detective on the case. Unfortunately, Pepper has a tendency to leap before she thinks and that causes lots of problems. A nice read and not overlong and complete with lots of Shakespeare quotes!
I have the audio and Margo Chervony does the perky teen very well!
The ‘who done it’ totally surprised me at the end! Very enjoyable read with different then your normal characters.
Love this entire series. I like Pepper. She’s very authentic. I love how the author brings in literal novels.