A Sprinkling of Murder

I absolutely loved this story, the characters were great! I love how it all turn out, the setting is brilliant! I loved the mystery in it I’m looking forward to the next one in this series. I highly recommend reading this series.
This is the 1st in this new series.

Courtney Kelly has loved fairies since she was a child although she stopped seeing them for a while after her mother’s death when she was ten. Now she has a fairy garden store in Carmel bringing the love of fairies to others. But when Courtney finds another store owner dead on her store’s patio, things look bad for her. So, she begins her own investigation in order to prove her innocence.

First in a new series, this book was a delightful read. It was well-written with wonderful characters and drew me in from the beginning. I really enjoyed this magical read and especially loved the fairies; I would really like to see more of them and look forward to the next book. I highly recommend this book.

This was just an OK read for me. This is the first book in a new cozy series. Courtney believes in fairies and loves creating fairy gardens. She owns and operates Open You Imagination, a garden shop specializing in fairy gardens. When a neighboring shop keeper is found dead in her shop and she becomes a suspect she sets out to solve the crime with the help of her fairy and friends. I enjoyed some of the characters and the Carmel, California setting. The mystery was OK and there were enough suspects but there was no suspense, even at the end. More time was spent on making fairy gardens than on the mystery and it slowed down the story. Every time “learning the craft” was mentioned my eyes glazed over. I will still read the next book in the series since I enjoy this author’s other books and I hoping this is just first book syndrome. There are some wonderful recipes in the back.

This was a fun fantasy-like book. I loved the characters and the setting of the small California town. Courtney’s fairy, Fiona, was spunky and lots of fun. I love the idea of fairy gardens and reading this book made me want to create one. When Courtney’s neighboring shop owner is killed in her store, she becomes one of the prime suspects. Courtney sets out to clear her name with help from Fiona. It seems that many of the townspeople are hiding secrets, but it’s hard to figure out a motive for them. I enjoyed reading this delightful new series and I had fun trying to figure out who the killer was while learning more about fairy gardens and the magic of fairies. I look forward to reading more of these books and seeing what’s next for Courtney and Fiona and hopefully a relationship between Courtney and Brady!

This is the first book in Daryl Wood Gerber’s new cozy mystery series. It is her venture into the fairy realm. As a lover of all things fae, I was a bit nervous. She did amazing with it. Courtney owns a tea shop and garden store where she encourages creativity among her patrons. She sees fairies and in this book has a fairy in training helper, Fiona. After a dead body is discovered in her store, her landlord, Courtney becomes a suspect in his murder. She decides she must clear her name by investigating the murder herself. While that is going on we get to read plenty about fairies and making fairy gardens.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It captured my imagination and now I really want to make a fairy garden of my own. The mystery has enough suspects to keep you on your toes. I won’t go much into that because I’m always afraid of giving away too much. Part of the enjoyment of cozy mysteries is trying to solve the mystery before the big reveal. My lips are sealed and my fingers taped shut. The characters are a mix up ones you love and hope to see more of and those you dislike but know they will probably return because they are town people. That’s fine with me. The troublemakers keep you on your toes.
Ms Gerber has wonderful writing skills. Recently she has written in the thriller mystery genre. I was curious to see if she would be able to write two very different yet similar genres with equal skill. The answer to that is yes. I didn’t see any flaws or mixups in reading this book. It was delightful and cozy from the start to the finish. If you have ever dreamed of fairies I think you will find enough in this book about fairies to enchant you.

‘A Sprinkling of Murder‘ begins the new ‘Fairy Garden Mystery‘ series with an intriguing, fun, and enjoyable introduction to this world. I’ll admit that I was hooked on this world early on and I can already say that I’ll be following this series for as long as it runs. A touch of Paranormal, lots of Cozy Mystery to solve – why wouldn’t a Mystery lover devour this new series? I certainly plan to.

There was a time when Courtney believed in the magic of fairies, could even see and converse with them. Yet, that all disappeared when her mother died when Courtney was about 10 and she moved onto what everyone else considers the ‘real world’ of facts, realities, and no more magical moments in the garden with the fairies.

Until… as she approached her thirties suddenly she was seeing the fairy world once again. Perhaps it was when she opened her fairy garden shop ‘Open Your Imagination’ that the magic flowed once more. How doesn’t really matter – the timing couldn’t be more perfect for the fairy that Courtney once spoke with returns with a message that trouble is on the way… and it certainly was when a dead body is found at her garden shop. And Courtney is the main murder suspect. Time to do some sleuthing of her own in order to prove her innocence – but not everything or everyone is as they seem, for among this community a murderer lurks, and it isn’t Courtney.

I try not to give away spoilers in any review but I’m especially vague on Cozy Mysteries or Paranormal Mysteries titles. ‘A Sprinkling of Murder‘ was such a delightful introduction into this world. First, I love anything with a touch of the Paranormal, Second I also love and have created fairy gardens so that’s another plus, and Third I simply love a really good mystery in a world that is well-built with interesting characters to meet, interact with and suspect of foul deeds over the length of the book. I found all of that and more in ‘A Sprinkling of Murder‘.

There is definitely world-building here, there has to be at the start of a new series, a new world. I liked Fiona, she’s rough around the edges as a fairy, but I did like her and look forward to more in the future. The murder victim wasn’t entirely liked by the community but shifting through the numerous suspects we meet, tossing out this one and that one was a fun time for me. With a few twists, and delightful new world, and intriguing characters I fell in love with this story and would definitely recommend it. The next title is due out in March of 2021 – a long time to wait, but I’ve no doubt that the end result will be well worth it.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher, Kensington Books via NetGalley. That does not change what I think of this story. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

A Sprinkling of Murder earns 5/5 Fairy Wings…Entertaining Fun!

“Do you believe in fairies?” [Insert loud clapping.] Daryl Wood Gerber is a favorite author, and her first book in a brand new series, a Fairy Garden Mystery, is a delight! “A Sprinkling of Murder” introduces Courtney Kelly, who saw her first fairy at a very young age, and now at twenty-nine years old has left her father’s landscaping firm and opened her own fairy garden shop…Open Your Imagination. She also added a weekly tea shop combined with a book club; it was becoming a popular event. But, it’s the dead body of a neighboring dog-groomer that doesn’t seem to fit in her idea of a fairy garden…and as a person under suspicion, Courtney will use all she has, including an “always in trouble” fairy,” to clear her name.

Written using the traditional cozy formula that has made me a fan, I love the theme, the cleverness and wit, the fairy lore created, and using a first-person narrative from Courtney’s perspective. The descriptive writing style and entertaining banter highlight a murder mystery I had difficulty solving myself, and a plethora of characters I’d look forward to following. The “magical” element is not childish; it is fun, somewhat unique, and easily perceived as a realistic friendship and partnership. It’s just one of the friends is a fairy…a fairy with an interesting personality, background, and penchant for trouble. Do you believe in fairies? I do! I do!

Yeah! Daryl Wood Gerber added several recipes for sweet and savory treats; each is “From” one of the characters in the story and includes a fun introduction from their perspective. Daryl also includes a “gluten-free” version for some of the recipes. Yummmy!

In order to see a fairy, one must believe they exist, according to Courtney Kelly, twenty-nine-year-old owner of Open Your Imagination, a fairy garden and tea shop located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. Courtney’s first fairy sighting was at the age of five in her mother’s flower garden. Courtney shared a love of fairies with her late mother; her relationship with her father Kipling “Kip” Kelly is somewhat strained since Courtney left his landscaping business to start the shop.

Courtney doesn’t run the shop alone; Joss Timberlake is Courtney’s assistant. And since Open Your Imagination is a fairy garden shop, there is also a resident fairy. Fiona is her name and she is a fairy-on-probation after irking the queen fairy with one too many pranks. Fiona remains unseen to most of the shop’s patrons, even though a few exhibit evidence they may sense her presence when they bat away what they assume to be an annoying insect buzzing around their heads.

The shop is a magical place to be, on several levels, until Courtney discovers the body of Mick Watkins, owner of Wizard of Paws, the grooming business in the same courtyard as Courtney’s shop, sprawled in Open Your Imagination’s courtyard in the early hours of the morning. Before the police arrive, Courtney, with Fiona’s help, discovers a secret entrance to the courtyard, adding another mystery to the one lying dead in the shop’s courtyard.

Detective Dylan Summers and his partner Officer Rodriguez are the first officers to arrive on the scene and before long Courtney realizes she’s a suspect in Mick’s death; Mick’s wife Emily accuses Courtney of killing him. Courtney knows she didn’t do it, but she doesn’t have a good alibi. So, who is the killer? Pauli Petra, the councilwoman rumored to be having an affair with Mick? His wife, Emily? Logan Langford, Courtney and Mick’s landlord? Logan wanted to break Mick’s lease and evict him from the property, but Mick fought back. Courtney, with help from Joss, Courtney’s best friend Meaghan, and Fiona take it upon themselves to solve the murder mystery, much to the dismay of the Carmel Police Department. Will Courtney solve the murder or will the killer silence Courtney first?

I had some trouble getting into the book at first. The police officers came across as a little too harsh and I found it off-putting. But I stuck with it and I’m glad I did. At some point, I was pulled into the story and quickly finished it. What I like about Gerber’s book is the way she brings up a “what if” question: what if…minds were opened to the magical in adulthood the same way they were in childhood?

A Sprinkling of Murder is the first book in the new Fairy Garden Mystery series by Daryl Wood Gerber. Gerber is a prolific writer. She has written the Cookbook Nook series and several standalone novels under her real name and has written the Cheese Shop Mystery Series under the pen name of Avery Adams.

Courtney Kelly saw fairies until she was ten years old. Then her mother died, her heart closed up and she could no longer see the fairies. But they didn’t forget her. Now 30 Courtney owns Open Your Imagination, a magical store in Carmel-by-the-Sea, on the California coast, where fairy gardens and tea and whimsey are available. Courtney’s heart has opened again and her fairy Fiona is her companion and champion.

When Courtney discovers the body of Mick Watkins, her neighbor across the retail courtyard, in the fountain of her shop, she becomes the prime suspect. But there are more than a few people who had issues with Mick. With the help of Fiona and her friends in Carmel, Courtney resolves the mystery surrounding Mike’s death and learns more about the power of fairies.

How can anyone not love a story with a fairy as one of the main characters? References to literary fairies abound, the death was not grizzly and Carmel is a beautiful setting. All in all, a delightful read.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. The opinion is my own – and I’m reading everything I can by Daryl Wood Gerber.

A Sprinkling of Murder by Daryl Wood Gerber is everything I hoped it would be and more! From the moment I saw the cover of this magical read, I knew I was going to love it. Courtney is the owner of Open Your Imagination, a fairy garden store. She has lots of fun events, from book clubs with tea (and live harp music!) out on the patio to learning activities where participants can make their own fairy garden. One minor detail: Courtney can see fairies. Or, at least, her fairy Fiona.

Courtney is loving her life – she adores her home and is enjoying every aspect of owning her business. That is, until the night she finds a fellow shop owner dead in her courtyard. With the help of her trusty fairy, Fiona, Courtney works to clear her name from the suspect list. I was riveted with this story. I couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next. I adored all of the details about fairies and the fairy gardens. Ms. Wood Gerber has outdone herself with this first installment in this cozy series. I wasn’t sure how the story was going to play out – there were plenty of red herrings for mystery lovers like me. The magical paranormal details of the story added a fun element that made the book extra enjoyable. I cannot wait for more in this series. It will be an auto-buy for me!