Join Connie Winters as she meets her in laws for the first time!
It’s New Year, and Taylor Morton’s family are gathering a manor house for a reunion nobody will forget.
Taylor warns Connie about his dysfunctional family, headed by bitter family matriarch Eliza. Surely, they can’t be that bad, thinks Connie… and quickly realises she was wrong.
Taylor’s three brothers and their competing … wrong.
Taylor’s three brothers and their competing spouses pass the time bickering and fighting. Old grudges are revealed, threats are made, and tension fills the air.
Not everyone will survive the famiy trip, and when the dead body is discovered, there’s no shortage of suspects.
With Sheriff Taylor Morton unable to face investigating his own family, it’s down to Connie to consider which of the awful in laws committed the crime.
Test your wits in this closed room cozy mystery! This is seventh in the Mystic Springs series but can be read as a standalone. Enjoy this clean read that is free from bad language, sex, and gore.
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Family Reunion Turns Deadly
What’s more fun than a family reunion for New Years Right? Wrong.
Taylor & Connie’s visit with his crazy family is anything but fun. They all right & seem to dislike one another. They argue constantly & then not one but two family members end up dead. Is it murder? Who could kill their own family members? Can Connie figure it out before someone else is killed? The ending will surprise you. Pick up a copy to find out how it all plays out! Great addition to the series. I look forward to the next book.
Miss Marple did a wonderful job creating a cast of characters that you love to hate. Yet she managed to give each one a reason to sympathize with them. The clues are laid out like bread crumbs, and the reader is led to more than one empty bread box before the truth is reveiled. The reveil is done in classic Christy style, and you will be surprised at who the murderer is. I enjoyed the book, and only gave 4 stars because the beginning was a bit overwhelming as you were introduced to all the characters at once. Again, classice Christy style. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good “who-done-it”
This book is a departure from other Mystic Springs books as we are introduced to Taylor’s family. They’re quite the bunch! Mona Marple has filled this book with well developed characters and a tangible angst.
The family gathers together following the demand of the matriarch who holds the purse strings to the fortune that her children wish to inherit. The tension between family members is high as they snipe, insult and berate each other, but the real question soon becomes who would actually decide to murder a family member and why?
Connie’s keen ability to observe and piece together the truth really shine in this book. The story is almost a locked room mystery with plenty of villainous characters and lots of plot twists that lead to the conclusion.
A tale of the poisonous effects of power
Mrs Marple is such a wonderful, gifted author. She creates this atmosphere full of tangible tension. It was almost as if that tension could have leapt off the page right into my life and that was skillfully done! And what a lovely dedication!
This book is about Connie again, but no Sage, and I kind of missed Sage. This book is not as light-hearted as books 1-4 were. No Sage to liven things up, but that wouldn’t have fitted in this book anyhow. Taylor’s family. Connie’s first time to meet them. There is a lot of bickering going on. A lot of hate, anger, fighting. And it was great to see how those different personalities unfolded. A lot of psychology in this book. An interesting take on varying dispositions and I loved that! What does power do? What can power bring, or destroy?
A well-written book, that was easy-to-read and that I found hard to put down. There was a clever twist that I didn’t expect. The murder doesn’t happen until halfway through, but it needed that build-up. After that, the investigation was quick, but very satisfying. My favorite part of the book. Very enjoyable!
Wow killer ending. Loved the story. Connie is perfect as the ghost seeing psychic. The relationship between Connie and Taylor is so peaceful and almost gentle. However, the rest of Taylor’s family is crazy. You have to read the story to believe what they are all capable of doing. The story is solid and the world building is very well done. The characters are well fleshed out and very realistic, you feel like you know them from somewhere. But I have to say if that was my family, I would hide. Highly recommend this book. Mona Marple does not disappoint, her books are fantastic.
Mona Marple does it again this is a great cozy mystery. This one has a 20-40’s style feel whodunit lock door Agatha Christy style. This is a great read I highly recommend.
I received a copy of this book from the author and am voluntarily giving my honest opinion
This was an interesting book. It was almost like a clue movie. They are all in a house together and then the murder happens. There are so many unlikeable characters who all hold different secrets and makes them all likely suspects. It was a very different spin on the murder setup. I found it very entertaining
Another fun book by Mona Marple. It’s written in the sort of old school manner of Agatha Christie with the amateur sleuth revealing “whodunit” in the end, but with some interesting twists.
I have only been following the Mystic Springs ‘family’ for the last few books. I don’t don’t know the full backstory for Connie and Taylor, but in the last few books I know they are a devoted couple, dealing with twins – yikes! So now we meet Taylor’s family. The truly evil grandmother (to the twins, Taylor’s mother) with her threats of will changing gathers all of her offspring and their families together at the family manse. Supposedly, the entire family knows that only married couples are eligible to inherit, so already Connie and Taylor are not all that invested in what appears to be the Matriarch’s final holiday. But, for the 2 brothers who are married, things start to fall apart almost immediately when one spouse is murdered. In a closed-room mystery, Connie uses her powers of observation to pinpoint the murderer while trying to maintain a sense of humor in the midst of absurdity.
This a different style for Marple. It is a locked room mystery with Mystic Springs ties. We are introduced to Taylor’s family via a family get-together. Most of the characters are very unlikeable with a single positive trait, especially Eliza the matriarch. This, however, is by design as it adds to the suspense. Definitely an Agatha Christie style whodunit and I enjoyed the novel.
This can be read as a standalone but I highly encourage people to read the entire series.
I received a complimentary eARC copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
From Chapter one, this book caught and held my attention. I think this is the best of the Mystic Springs series yet! There are plenty of suspects and the thing I like most in mysteries, a plot twist. This book will definitely keep you engaged.
Connie and Taylor spend New Year’s weekend with his highly dysfunctional family. Connie has never met them before and Taylor stays away as much as possible, but his mother insists that they come as she has an important announcement for the family. This story is a little darker than I have read in Ms. Marple’s books in the past, and I struggled with it early on. I’m glad I finished it though and really liked the second half when Connie was in sleuth mode. Overall a good read.
Connie and Taylor have traveled to spend New Year’s weekend with his family.
As there is so much nastiness in Taylor’s family. Connie tries to keep a low profile.
When one of the wives is found dead, Connie takes the lead to try and solve the murder.
So much baggage in this dysfunctional family, secrets that certainly make it possible for any of them to be a killer.
An interesting story that will have you trying to figure out the clues.
I received an ARC prior to publication and decided to voluntarily review it.
Another 5-star book by this wonderful author. Connie and Taylor have travelled to be with his family for the New Year weekend even though he knew how awful they are. She soon finds out how right he is. His mother admits to not liking anyone. She proclaims she will be dead before the weekend is over. There will actually be two people dead and Connie figures out who did it. But, will she be able to stop the culprit before someone else dies? Read this wonderful book and see what happens.
Every book in this series turns out better than the last. I don’t know how the author manages that. In this book we meet Taylor’s family. They aren’t pleasant..to each other or anyone else. They meet, though, at the request of the matriarch, perhaps the most unpleasant of all. You might think all this unpleasantness would make for dreary reading. You might be wrong.
I was fascinated by the family members. So much so that I ended up reading the book twice, back to back. I love analyzing people and their choices of behavior. So the first time reading, I kind of got hung up in analyzing each person. I was highly entertained. The second reading was more of a verification of my thoughts. I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. Yes, it has a paranormal aspect but it’s not large. Someone who is not into paranormal may find this book interesting. It’s slightly darker than the previous books, which I think made it stand out more. The last death mentioned literally had few tears being shed. People aren’t always how we think they are.
I am excited to see where we go from here. Please read the book. If you are new to the series, you will do fine. My recommendation is to read them all but you can enjoy this as a stand-alone.
Spend a family-friendly morning or afternoon with the strange Thornton family when they gather to celebrate the New Year at Houndswood Manor. I had an ARC and this voluntary review is my own opinion.
This may be my favorite Mystic Springs book. A locked “room” mystery. Eliza, the matriarch of the family has gathered all of her son’s and their families at her home for New Years. They are sure there is an ulterior motive. She doesn’t like anyone enough to just want to spend the holiday with family. When Lola, Christopher’s wife is found dead by apparent suicide, Connie must convince the family it seems more like murder, and then discover who did it. Everyone is a suspect, literally. The family is constantly bickering and can’t be in the same room for very long. They are more concerned about who is in Eliza’s will then someone being murdered. I liked Connie’s deductive skills, and all of the quirky personalities of the family members. Surprise ending.
I received an advanced reader copy and voluntarily provided this review.
Connie has tried to keep an open mind when her husband tried to explain how dysfunctional his family is.. Well, maybe she should have listened. And then to add a murder into the mix. What a dandy way to start out the New Year… NOT!!! Which family member committed the murder or better yet, which one didn’t? And how is Taylor, the sheriff, supposed to investigate his family when they all are probably guilty of something? Delightful reader and kudos to Ms. Marple for yet another wonderful read.
Connie has joined Taylor for a family New Year’s Eve get together. Taylor has 3 brothers who are married and have multiple children. Eliza the grande dame of the family has called them together. Connie finds that the family has a lot of baggage. No one gets along. When one of the wives is found dead, Connie takes the lead to solve the murder.
This was an interesting story. It’s essentially a locked room mystery. Connie manages to wade her way through the mess.
I loved New Year in Mystic Springs! This is a closed room murder mystery. It is so interesting and fun. I really enjoyed getting to know Taylor’s crazy family. I loved following Connie solve the crimes. This book and the style of the reveal have an Agatha Christie feel. The book is well written with detailed characters. I like the style of writing and how it is in multiple characters point of view. This is a fun and quick book to read. I really enjoyed it.