Michaela | bumblebeeslibrary's Reviews > Just Another Dead Author

Just Another Dead Author, book 2 in the Berit Gardner series.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery, and really had no clue who the murderer was until the very end when they were revealed. I thought the setting was just perfect for a murder mystery, authors on a retreat who sort of don't even bat an eye when one of the famous authors with them dies under suspicious circumstances. I found it amusing that some of the authors were excited to be involved in a murder mystery as it is great for a book! Because this is a group of authors though, it also makes narrowing down a suspect quite difficult as some of them have done their own research into murder methods for their own stories. Which one of them could have taken that research and used it in real life? Also, the author who was killed, well quite literally everyone at the retreat dislikes him for some reason or another, so narrowing down motive is extremely difficult.

Berit is a great sleuther, and continues to help the investigation, even when the local police are less than thrilled with her continued involvement. Perhaps she is the actual killer and is just trying to throw everyone off her scent by investigating the murder herself? Admittedly though, Berit is part of the author retreat, and has 24/7 access to the other suspects, so the police can't deny that Berit is a great person to assist. As the retreat continues, and they are no closer to finding the suspect, another grave incident occurs, and now this is a double homicide investigation. With the retreat coming to an end, will Berit and the local police find the suspect before they all return home? There are quite a few twists and turns in the case that keeps the readers on their toes!

Some fav quotes:
""I wouldn't mind walking over his dead body to succeed," she said quietly. "If I ever got the chance, I would dance across it.""

""I don't trust thin people," John Wright said to a woman who looked like she had never eaten a single french fry in her life."

"The setting was so idyllic, Berit had to remind herself that one of them was a murderer. Evening sun, vineyard, murderer.. Clinking wineglasses, an old transistor radio playing Edith Piaf, murderer. Laughing people, smiling people, murderer."

"Do you know what my crime is, my real crime, the one I will be punished for if I ever get caught? I killed a rich white man. Perhaps the only life that has consistently mattered. Even historically."

""It's hardly going to hurt him now," Nicole reasoned. "He's just another dead author.""

Thank you so much to netgalley, poisoned pen press, and the author for a copy of this book!