The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective by Jo Nichols
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**4.5-stars**
With a story as fun and cozy as this cover, The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective gave me everything I was hoping for and then some. I did not expect to love this as much as I did, but I was pulled in and held so tightly.
The audiobook is a fabulous way to go with this one, as the dual narration of Meg Price and Jim Meskimen helped fuse humor and heart even more so into the story.
The comp to The Thursday Murder Club in the publisher’s synopsis is definitely apt, but whereas with those books, the main characters are all mostly elderly, this story features more of a range of ages and backgrounds.
I feel like their differences, firstly, make them easier to remember, but also made the dynamics among them so heart-warming, interesting and funny.
I adore the Thursday Murder Club series, don’t get me wrong, but I actually think it took me less time to learn this cast of characters and to fall in love with them. Sophie, Mrs. B, Ocean, and all the others, are just so darn lovable.
The mystery was also super compelling and I loved watching them all bumbling around trying to figure it out. They all wanted to protect one another, often with calamitous results.
It’s got a real wacky found family vibe, and the Southern California setting was also an enjoyable backdrop. Overall, I think this is such a fun and carefree Cozy Mystery that I’m definitely hoping will turn into a much longer series.
Thank you so much to the publishers, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I had a fabulous time with this!!