Murder by Page One

A Peach Coast Library Mystery from Hallmark Publishing

By: Olivia Matthews

Narrated by: Janina Edwards

Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

Marvey’s a librarian from Brooklyn who makes book-themed jewelry as a hobby, looks after her cranky cat, and supports events for readers and authors. She’s still adjusting to quirky small-town life in Georgia - and that’s before she discovers a dead body in a bookstore. 

When her new best friend becomes a suspect, Marvey develops a new hobby: solving a murder mystery. With her talents for research, her knowledge gleaned from crime novels, and a whole lot of determination, she pursues the truth. But as she gets closer to it, could she be facing a deadly plot twist?

This first-in-series cozy mystery includes a free Hallmark original recipe.

©2021 Olivia Matthews (P)2021 Dreamscape Media, LLC

A Wonderful First Book in a Cozy Series

I really enjoyed this book. I can just imagine how hard it was for our lead character, Marvella, who goes by Marvey, to move from her family in Brooklyn to a small town in Georgia to take a library job that will allow her to do much more than she could do at the large library at home.

Her closest friend in the new town, Jolene, who goes by Jo,is the owner of the local book store, To Be Read, and also from out of state. When she hosts a book signing at her store for multiple authors, the one that is recently published is killed in the back room. Jo is the chief suspect. It’s up to Marvey and Spence, the wealthy owner of the local newspaper, to clear Jo’s name before To Be Read faces severe business losses.

The story is well developed and kept me on the edge of my seat. I was surprised when the killer was revealed.

I enjoyed getting to know the lead characters as well as many other secondary characters. These characters were well developed and several were surprising. I liked how I learned more about the murder victim throughout the story and how her character was revealed. Marvey’s cat Phoenix is also an interesting character.

Both Marvey and Phoenix are having some difficulties adjusting to the change in locale and social customs. New Yorkers are used to getting to the point in conversations while Georgians do more small talk, asking about families, etc before getting to the point, New Yorkers have some different words for things such as “soda” which is known as “coke” in Georgia. Marvey started keeping a little notebook of southern sayings and their meanings. These differences lead to some comical moments. Spence is always reminding Marvey “When in Rome”

I listened to the audiobook. I felt the narrator did a great job bringing the story to life!

A Recipe of Fabulous

Murder by Page One was so delightful, I can’t say enough how much I enjoyed this book! The pacing was perfect as we followed Marvey as she worked hard to save her friend from a murder conviction she knows her friend did not commit. Just a hint of a possible romance with the hunky Spence just adds to the recipe for a great book! The narrator is spot on and wonderful. Can’t wait to read/listen to the next installment! I’ll definitely be putting in a preorder. Loved it!

LOVE LOVE LOVE

THIS WAS A GREAT INTRODUCTORY BOOK FOR WHAT I HOPE IS A LONG RUNNING SERIES. THE CHARACTERS ARE RELATABLE, WITH JUST ENOUGH QUIRKINESS TO BE ENTERTAINING BUT NOT CORNY. THE DIALOGUE IS INTELLIGENT, AND THE SETTING INVITING. I DO HOPE BOOK 2 WILL BE AVAILABLE SOON.

Pleasant Cozy for your enjoyment

If you like cozies, then you will find this one to be right up your alley! The characters are interesting and the setting sufficiently quaint. The lead character seems like a much older lady than her 28 years, but ok... She is book-smart, artsy, and she even has a pet cat that the readers will enjoy meeting. There is plenty of food description and references to daily peach cobbler consumption. The narrator's voice was perfect and sufficiently Southern and rich in tone. Overall, I can't find too many specific issues with this one. As is often the case with this genre of books, one must overlook common sense and not get weighed down by the improbabilities in the storyline. You have to go with the flow and enjoy the ride. Overall, I would recommend this book and series, especially to cozy fans. Me, myself? I'm not a fan of cozies but was intrigued by this particular author, so I gave it a shot. As a Southerner myself, I felt it to be my duty! That done, I will now return to other forms of murder mysteries that are better suited to my tastes: psychological thrillers (the darker, the better!) and police procedurals.

Excellent First Book

This is a delightful cozy mystery. The best narrator I’ve heard for one of these types of series. And I appreciate that diversity was present throughout the book.

Pretty Good

Murder by Page One is an enjoyable cozy mystery with engaging characters and an interesting plot. The only thing I didn't like is that the story had a slow pace. But, overall I enjoyed this story and look forward to the next book.

cozy little cozy

enjoyable fun read. Good narration, good storyline. I'm looking forward to the next in the series

Good narrator.

Loved when she was able to diagnose what was bothering her pet. Too too cute.

Pretty good , clean fun and cozy with some laughs

I love the South and so many of its cultural aspects. This book had me smiling several times because of the creative and affectionate expression of many of the regional differences found in this great and diverse country many of us call home. The mystery was pretty good and all of the annoying characters were just that - annoying. The reader did a good job with her voices and inflections and I found it easy to keep track of the difference in who was speaking, even while listening and somewhat distracted.

Awesome

This is a awesome read. Hope there more books from author & hallmark . Can’t wait to listen to the next one.

Great story, bought to life by a great narrator!

This was my first audio book, and I wasn't sure if I'd get into it. It didn't take long, I really enjoyed the story, and Janina truly bought it to life with her ability to voice different characters. Just like the Hallmark mystery movies I love, the story kept me interested trying to figure out who the
murderer was, whilst including some humour. Though a murder mystery, the details are not too Graphic making them a more family friendly choice.

delightful

This novel introduces the charms of a small southern town through the eyes of a big city newcomer turned investigator. Transplanted librarian Marvey learns about her new home while trying to clear her friend of murder.