Murder Marks the Page by Karen Rose Smith

Item: Murder Marks the Page
Rating: 4
Author: karenbaron

Posted March 10, 2024 by karenbaron in Mystery, Review, Series / 0 Comments

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Murder Marks the Page

by Karen Rose Smith

Series: Tomes & Tea Mysteries #1
Published by Kensington Cozies on March 26, 2024
Setting: Belltower Landing, New York
Genres: Cozy Culinary Animal Mystery
Pages: 272
Format: Audible Audiobook, ebook, Hardcover, Kindle, Paperback
Source: NetGalley
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Nook

The first in a new series spun off from the Daisy Tea Garden Mysteries, Daisy’s daughter Jazzi Swanson has opened her own book and tea shop, providing a variety of literature and flavored beverages for a rural New York community. But Jazzi has not only inherited her mother’s gift for brewing tasty drinks—she also has a nose for sniffing out murder.

New York State’s Belltower Landing is a lakeside resort town where tourists spend their summer days boating, floating, and paddle-boarding on the water. It’s also the perfect place to cuddle up with a good book and enjoy a cup of tea, courtesy of Tomes & Tea. Owned and operated by Jazzi and her best friend Dawn Fernsby, the book bar is beloved by vacationers and locals alike, but browsers grabbing brews in the off season aren’t enough to help them make ends meet.

Between brainstorming social media publicity ideas for the shop and fending off flirtatious men she has no interest in or time for, Jazzi befriends a woman named Brie who has recently made contact with her biological father. As an adopted child herself, Jazzi is more than happy to give Brie emotional support, especially as her wealthy father’s wife and children see her as a threat.

But Brie is also looking to start a family of her own. Unfortunately, all the potential princes she’s met through a dating app turn out to be frogs. Then, when Brie is found murdered, Jazzi finds herself playing detective. With a list of suspects ranging from jealous half-siblings to less-than-suitable suitors, Jazzi may need to consult some of her shop’s bestselling mysteries to help her uncover a killer . . .

Includes delicious recipes!

Murder Marks the Page by Karen Rose Smith shows us how Jazzi investigates a murder.

Can Jazzi keep her bookstore running?

Jazzi Swanson

Jazzi Swanson is the adopted daughter of Daisy Swanson and is a very reluctant sleuth. She only becomes one when Jazzi feels like the police may need some help. Jazzi tries her hardest not to become like her mom in solving a mystery and focus on her bookstore. I am impressed that Jazzi and her best friend, Dawn, opened up a bookstore that also sells tea. Jazzi wants this business to work since she loves her job and wants to help bring people to love actual copies of books instead of ebooks.

Jazzi is hard to like initially, but she grows on you as you progress.

The Mystery

Another one of Jazzi’s friends finds the dead body of Brie. After that, everything for Jazzi was a bit hard since she felt like she and Brie would’ve been good friends, which made it sad for her. Jazzi tries her best not to become involved. Yet, she ends up trying to solve the mystery. Sadly, the police force also has another mystery to solve. Their case happens to be robberies that were going around. I have to say that I caught on to Whodunit early on in the book.

Four Stars

I am giving Murder Marks the Page by Karen Rose Smith four stars and recommend you try it. This was my first book by this author, and I am willing to give Ms. Jazzi Swanson another try after this one.

Remember to look at the recipes in the back. I can’t name the recipes, as my ARC copy doesn’t provide them.

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Murder Marks the Page by Karen Rose Smith.

Until the next time,

Happy Reading!

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About Karen Rose Smith

USA Today Bestselling Author Karen Rose Smith’s 110th novel will be a 2024 release. She writes both cozy mysteries, romance novels and women’s fiction. One of her romances was aired as a TV movie on the UP tv network. Her passion is caring for her six rescued cats. Her hobbies are gardening, cooking, and photography. An only child, Karen delved into books at an early age. Even though she escaped into story worlds, she had many cousins around her on weekends. Families are a strong theme in all of her novels. She’s recently working on her Tomes & Tea cozy series, a spin off from her Daisy’s Tea Garden mysteries. If you’d like to chat with her, you can find her on Facebook, Twitter, and on TikTok just by clicking on the links below.

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