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Book Review
Reviewed: 17 January 2026

The Plot is Murder

by: V. M. Burns

Mystery Bookshop, Book 1

  • Rating: full starfull starfull starfull starstar outline (4.0/5)

Life is stranger than fiction, even when it comes to murder

I absolutely adore Nana Jo and the Girls! Can I have them? All of them.
Normally, the first book in a series has its “flaws”, lack of character depth, holes, etc, but this one felt different to me. Sam’s backstory was different, Nana Jo, The Girls, the twin nephews, Stinky Pitt, and so many other characters were well done and I felt like we were becoming friends by the end of the story.

The story within a story. Not the first time I’ve read a story like this. Sometimes it seems forced, taxiing, or overwhelming, but not in this one. I found myself rooting for those characters as well. I, too, am a fan of British cozy mysteries like the one Sam was writing.

The book was published in 2017 and is still mostly relevant in 2026. I am eager to move on to the next, but I am also trying to finalize my thoughts on this one. There are so many of them! Some of my favorite things include: the nod to the British tea houses, Sam’s dogs Snickers and Oreos, Nana Jo and the Girls, the Mystery Bookshop itself (wish there was one near me), lack of overly negative people or situations, and so much more.

I will stop there for fear of spilling too much and spoiling the book for others.

Happy Reading!

Release Date: 28-November-2017
Cozy Mystery, Audiobook, Female Sleuth, Book Shop Mystery

Plot Summary

The small town of North Harbor on the shores of Lake Michigan is about to have a new mystery bookstore. But before the first customer can browse its shelves, the store’s owner is suspected of her own murder plot . . .

Samantha Washington has dreamed of owning her own mystery bookstore for as long as she can remember. And as she prepares for the store’s grand opening, she’s also realizing another dream—penning a cozy mystery set in England between the wars. While Samantha hires employees and fills the shelves with the latest mysteries, quick-witted Lady Penelope Marsh, long-overshadowed by her beautiful sister Daphne, refuses to lose the besotted Victor Carlston to her sibling's charms. When one of Daphne's suitors is murdered in a maze, Penelope steps in to solve the labyrinthine puzzle and win Victor.

But as Samantha indulges her imagination, the unimaginable happens in real life. A shady realtor turns up dead in her backyard, and the police suspect her—after all, the owner of a mystery bookstore might know a thing or two about murder. Aided by her feisty grandmother and an enthusiastic ensemble of colorful retirees, Samantha is determined to close the case before she opens her store. But will she live to conclude her own story when the killer has a revised ending in mind for her?