A Cape Cod shop owner and her book club must find a crafty killer in this charming new series from the Agatha-nominated author of the Country Store Mystery series. Summer is busy season for Mackenzie “Mac” Almeida’s bicycle shop, nestled in the quaint, seaside hamlet of Westham, Massachusetts. She’s expecting an influx of tourists at Mac’s Bikes; instead she discovers the body of Jake Lacey. Mac … Massachusetts. She’s expecting an influx of tourists at Mac’s Bikes; instead she discovers the body of Jake Lacey. Mac can’t imagine anyone stabbing the down-on-his-luck handyman. However, the authorities seem to think Mac is a strong suspect after she was spotted arguing with Jake just hours before his death. Mac knows she didn’t do it, but she does recognize the weapon—her brother Derrick’s fishing knife.
Mac’s only experience with murder investigations is limited to the cozy mysteries she reads with her local book group, the Cozy Capers. So to clear her name—and maybe her brother’s too—Mac will have to summon help from her Cozy Capers co-investigators and a library’s worth of detectives’ tips and tricks. For a small town, Westham is teeming with possible killers, and this is one mystery where Mac is hoping for anything but a surprise ending…
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I loved the debut in the latest series from Maddie Day. I felt like I was IN Cape Cod, a location I love and missing, being based on the West Coast now. The characters were completely engaging and the mystery compelling. Can’t wait for the next book in the series!
Macenzie “Mac” Almeida has returned to Westham, Massachusetts, after several years away, and she is settling back into the town where she grew up. She’s enjoying time with her family, her bike shop is thriving, and she enjoys her weekly meetings with the Cozy Capers, a book club that reads exclusively cozy mysteries. Returning from their meeting one night, Mac stumbles over the dead body of Jake Lacey. Jake didn’t have the best reputation in town, and Mac had her own disagreement with the man over a repair he had been hired to do for her. Worse yet, she recognizes the knife as one her brother owns. With the rest of the Cozy Capers jumping in to try to help solve the crime, will they succeed?
Ever since this series has been announced, I’ve been looking forward to it, and the debut didn’t disappoint. I always love vacation destination settings, and this one is fun; now I want to visit Cape Cod. Plus, what cozy mystery fan isn’t going to want to read about a club that loves the same sub-genre we do? We are introduced to a large selection of series regulars here, and it took some work to keep them all straight, but I’m sure that will get easier as the series goes along and the various supporting characters get enough page time. The suspects don’t have the same issue, and it is easy to remember their motives. There are several secrets and potential motives for murder, but by the time Mac figures things out, everything is clear to us and her. While this isn’t a traditional culinary cozy, Mac’s boyfriend owns a bakery in town, and we get several recipes at the end of the book.
This is a great start to a new series! I was really excited to read this book and it did not disappoint. I really liked the main character, Mac and her friends. Looking forward to reading the next in the series.
Good clean mystery!
Read 8.26.2021
I loved this cozy mystery–one of the best I’ve read in a while! The characters are fun and well-drawn, with real-life flaws that make them relatable. A fast-moving plot kept me turning pages well into the night. Great setting, too. I will definitely be following this series.
I really enjoy this author’s Country Store Mysterie series, so when the author launched this new series I was excited to start this one as well. I enjoyed getting immersed into this new series. It’s set on Cape Cod and I liked getting a feel for the place as well as the characters.
The book follows Mac. When she returns home one night from her cozy mystery book group meeting she stumbles (literally) over a dead body. She and her friends have eyes and ears all over town and have seen some strange things before the murder and keep their eyes out after it. They form a group of amateur sleuths determined to solve the mystery. I liked how while the focus was on Mac, she had a whole group of characters around her who helped with the sleuthing as well. As this was the first book in the series there is some time spend getting to know the characters and setting, which I enjoyed.
The mystery was a decent one. The mystery had a lot of questions about who did it and why, that only got resolved toward the end. The mystery wasn’t as engaging as I had hoped, but I think that’s mostly because it’s the first book in the series. I did like how it kept me guessing for most of the book, but the reveal didn’t surprise me. I did feel that the progress of clues was quite slow, only toward the end the motive and killer and most of the other questions related to the mystery get answered, so the earlier part of the book feels a bit slower because of that. Nevertheless it was an interesting mystery and there are some interesting developments.
I liked Mac as main character and how we get to see a bit of her daily life as well as her work at the bike shop she owns. I thought it was fun she owned a bike shop as that isn’t something I read about before. I also liked she had a pet bird, a parrot. There are some fun scenes with her parrot. It also was a nice touch that there isn’t any developing romance as Mac is already in a relationship, although in such cases I am always wondering if that stays that way. So far they seem like a solid couple.
I liked the big group of side characters and as the book progresses we get a bit of a feel for each of them. This book is a lot about establishing the characters and I look forward to seeing more of them in book 2. I didn’t really care for the meta like theme of this being a cozy mystery about a cozy mystery book group. While it has some nice references that cozy mysteries readers will get it always feels a bit off to me with the character referring situations and books similar to the one they’re part of. I liked the setting of cape cod and how the author made this town feel alive.
To summarize: I enjoyed this book. It was a good start to this new series, at times it does feel a bit like a first book with how it has to introduce all the characters as well as the setting. There is a big group of side characters and it was nice getting a feel for everyone. I liked main character Mac and how she had an unique job as a bike shop owner and has a pet parrot. The mystery was a decent one, with plenty of questions, but most of those stayed open till the end. It kept me wondering, but I wasn’t surprised at the reveal of who the murderer was. I didn’t really care for the meta theme of them liking cozy mystery books, but I did like how Mac has a whole group of characters who help her sleuth. I liked my stay in cape cod and spending time with these characters. All in all this was a solid start to this series and I look forward to the next book in the series.
Mackenzie Almeida is a bike shop owner in Cape Cod. When she literally stumbles over a body, she enlists the help of her cozy mystery book club to find out what is happening in her little town.
I loved this book so much! I now definitely have a desire to belong to a cozy mystery book club that meets weekly! I loved Mac as a character. She was such an awesome person. I liked the rest of her family and the rest of the town. It was so much fun to read about. I enjoyed the mystery. It kept me guessing the whole time. It’s also refreshing to not have a love triangle in this one. I feel like that’s all I’ve been reading recently and it was nice to have a break from them. I seriously cannot wait to read the next one!
First book of a new series and if the next book is as good as this one, it’s definitely a winner.
A fun new series set in Cape Cod! I really enjoyed Mac and her cozy capers cozy mystery book club. It was nice to see a group of people who all love cozy mysteries and are a variety of ages. I wish I had a cozy mystery book club I could attend in person! Mac finds the body of a local handyman in her yard and the murder weapon appears to belong to her brother. The cozy capers group gets involved in trying to figure out who the killer is just like in their mystery books. There are several strangers in town that could be suspects and Mac and her friends investigate all of them. I really enjoyed Mac and her boyfriend, Tim, being their for Mac’s brother and trying to get him back on his feet again. I have to say that I did not figure out who the killer was and I enjoyed getting to that point of the reveal. I look forward to more adventure with Mac and her friends in this cozy Cape Cod town!
Murder on Cape Cod begins an excellent new series by Maddie Day. I’m especially drawn to books with a New England setting, and the author’s descriptions are so vivid that I could feel myself there. I’ve visited the area in which this story is set and it is beautifully conveyed.
Another strength is characterization. The story is set against the backdrop of Mac’s bike shop, so very interesting and different from culinary or knitting mysteries, not that those are bad. But different is good, and nothing fits the Cape Cod area better than bicycling. Mac herself is an appealing protagonist, smart and logical. Secondary characters are interesting – such as the Cozy Capers, a a group that reads cozy mysteries and uses some of their skills to aid in the investigation. The murder becomes personal when Mac’s brother, a recovering addict, becomes a “person of interest.”
The mystery is well crafted, not simple to solve – at least for me. I loved the Cape Cod setting and series characters. I will enjoy getting to know them better as the series progresses.
Recommended.
MURDER ON CAPE COD by Maddie Day
The First Cozy Capers Book Group Mystery
Mackenzie “Mac” Almeida appreciates her life as a small business owner in the Cape Cod hamlet of Westham. Her bicycle rental and repair shop is always busy, she has a wonderful boyfriend, and her cozy mystery book club keeps her mind active. Walking home from a book club meeting she stumbles in the fog, only to realize that she’s tripped over the dead body of the local handyman. She also realizes the knife in the dead man looks just like the custom one her half brother owns. Her book club friends are eager to solve a murder mystery, just like their books, while Mac has reservations. But, to protect herself and her brother she decides to organize her fellow sleuths and look into the matter. With so many people discretely investigating, no one could get hurt, right?
The first Cozy Capers Book Group Mystery introduces us to a charming new protagonist. Mac is down to earth, resourceful, and willing to cooperate with the police. A best friend who owns a taffy shop to walk with every morning, an enterprising librarian, a minister father, an astrologist mother, a social grandmother, and a variety of friends create a great foundation to not only support each other, but solve a mystery together. I love dogs and adore cats, but it’s nice to see a different type of companion animal in a mystery. Belle, an African Grey parrot. is both sassy and loving, providing an extra layer of character development. Another fun aspect to the series is that Mac’s book club is for cozy mysteries! It not only references current books in the genre, it also shows the prejudice some cozy readers face from certain book people!
While MURDER ON CAPE COD is definitely a cozy mystery, and not a bit dark, not everything is perfect in this cozy world. I appreciate the real life touches added to this book, including ex cons and having a main character who is a recovering alcoholic. I also enjoyed meeting characters who happen to have varied ethnic backgrounds, from Cape Verdean to Wampanoag!
MURDER ON CAPE COD brings together a diverse cast of characters in an appealing tourist town. Intelligent snooping by friends and family ensure both a successful investigation and a great start to a new series.
Recipes Included.
FTC Disclosure – The publisher sent me a copy of this book in the hopes I would review it.
This is the first book in the A Cozy Capers Book Group Mystery. Summer is busy season for Mackenzie “Mac” Almeida’s bicycle shop, nestled in the quaint, seaside hamlet of Westham, Massachusetts. She’s expecting an influx of tourists at Mac’s Bikes; instead she discovers the body of Jake Lacey. I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. It was a fun read. I enjoyed learning the ins and outs of a bike shop and the awesome relationship of the town. Can’t wait for Mac’s next adventure!
This story grabbed me from the beginning and the characters were very interesting. I liked Mac and her family and the bike store makes a great setting for gathering information and brings a lot of characters into the story. The story moved along at a good pace and I saw many possibilities as to who the killer could be. There were many story lines that can be explored more in future books, and I am looking forward to learning more about the other members of the Cozy Capers Book Group. I also want to know why Suzanne, the book store manager, doesn’t want to carry cozy mysteries in the book store. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.
I loved the Cape Cod setting where a bicycle shop owner stumbles upon the dead body of a handy man with whom she has just had a confrontation. Then she recognizes the murder weapon as her brother’s fishing knife, and he’s no where to be found. The setting is descriptive, the characters delightful, and with help from the members of the Cozy Capers book club, the mystery gets satisfactorily resolved. Gets a little ho-hum in places, but overall, entertaining.
Great start to a new series – I really enjoyed reading about Mac and the Cozy Capers Book Club! A+
Murder on Cape Cod is a great start to a new series for author Maddie Day and I am looking forward to more books. Ms. Day has wonderfully descriptive writing style that allows her to create a world and craft characters that are so clear to the reader. The characters in this series are well defined for a first book in a new series. The protagonist, Mac, is a mature, no-nonsense business woman who has returned home to open her own bicycle shop. I love that she lives in a tiny house and has a parrot who is quite vocal. She is surrounded by family and her cozy mystery book club all of whom a interesting, quirky and each bring something to the story. In this first book, I think the reader gets to know Mac’s family better than the book club just because of the nature of the mystery. As the series progressed, I feel that the book club characters will become just as well known to the reader. The mystery starts within the first five pages of the book and is carried throughout the story. I thought the pace of the book was spot on with no lulls, just clues, secrets and possible motives laid out for the reader’s considerations. The only criticism I had was that the reveal felt a bit rushed, like the killer’s motive was not fully explored.
All in all, this was a great start to a new series. It has everything we come to expect from Ms. Day – descriptive writing that allows the reader to become surrounded in an engaging story with a charming setting and well written characters. I will definitely be back for more.