
Little Bookshop of Murder
A Beach Reads Mystery
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $14.39
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Christa Lewis
-
By:
-
Maggie Blackburn
About this listen
Summer Merriweather's career as a Shakespeare professor hangs by a bookbinder's thread. Academic life at her Virginia university is a viper's pit, so Summer spends her summer in England, researching a scholarly paper that, with any luck, will finally get her published, impress the dean, and save her job. But her English idyll ends when her mother, Hildy, shuffles off her mortal coil from an apparent heart attack.
Returning to Brigid's Island, North Carolina, for the funeral, Summer is impatient to settle the estate, sell her mom's embarrassingly romance-themed bookstore, Beach Reads, and go home. But as she drops by Beach Reads, Summer finds threatening notes addressed to Hildy: Sell the bookstore or die.
Clearly, something is rotten on Brigid's Island. What method is behind the madness? Was Hildy murdered? The police insist there's not enough evidence to launch a murder investigation. Instead, Summer and her Aunt Agatha screw their courage to the sticking place and start sleuthing, with the help of Hildy's beloved book club.
But there are more suspects on Brigid's Island than are dreamt of in the Bard's darkest philosophizing. And if Summer can't find the villain, the town will be littered with a Shakespearean tragedy's worth of corpses - including her own.
©2020 Maggie Blackburn (P)2020 Dreamscape Media, LLCListeners also enjoyed...
-
Up to No Gouda
- Grilled Cheese Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Linda Reilly
- Narrated by: Mia Gaskin
- Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Back in Balsam Dell to heal after the death of her husband, Carly Hale is finally pursuing her lifelong dream — opening Carly's Grilled Cheese Eatery. After only five months, business is booming as Vermont vacationers and townspeople alike flock to lunch on her Party Havartis and other grilled-cheese concoctions. That is, everyone is but Lyle Bagley, her one-time high-school boyfriend who’s now the town bully — and he just bought the building that houses her eatery and wants her out.
-
-
Pleasant and light
- By Jenifer on 08-20-22
By: Linda Reilly
-
A Side of Murder
- A Cape Cod Foodie Mystery, Book 1
- By: Amy Pershing
- Narrated by: Patti Murin
- Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Samantha Barnes was always a foodie. And when the CIA (that’s the Culinary Institute of America) came calling, she happily traded in Cape Cod for the Big Apple. But then the rising young chef’s clash with another chef (her ex!) boils over and goes viral. So when Sam inherits a house on the Cape and lands a job writing restaurant reviews, it seems like the perfect pairing. What could go wrong? Well, as it turns out, a lot.
-
-
Enjoyed! Except for the perplexing ageism
- By Kelly Garland on 05-13-22
By: Amy Pershing
-
The Secret, Book & Scone Society
- By: Ellery Adams
- Narrated by: Cris Dukehart
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Miracle Springs is a place of healing. Strangers flock there hoping that the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. And, if none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That's Nora's special talent: prescribing the perfect novel to ease a person's deepest pain and lighten their heaviest burden.
-
-
Loved it
- By Bookwyrme on 11-10-17
By: Ellery Adams
-
Tagged for Death
- A Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery
- By: Sherry Harris
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Starting your life over at age 38 isn't easy, but that's what Sarah Winston finds herself facing when her husband CJ runs off with a 19-year-old temptress named Tiffany. Sarah's self-prescribed therapy happily involves hitting all the garage and tag sales in and around her small town in Massachusetts. But after returning from a particularly successful day searching for yard-sale treasures, Sarah finds a grisly surprise in one of her bags: a freshly bloodied shirt...that undoubtedly belongs to her ex, CJ, who now happens to be Ellington's chief of police. And Tiffany has gone missing.
-
-
frustrating book
- By Anonymous User on 01-08-23
By: Sherry Harris
-
A Death in Door County
- A Monster Hunter Mystery, Book 1
- By: Annelise Ryan
- Narrated by: Susan Bennett
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Morgan Carter, owner of the Odds and Ends bookstore in Door County, Wisconsin, has a hobby. When she’s not tending the store, she’s hunting cryptids—creatures whose existence is rumored but never proven to be real. It’s a hobby that cost her parents their lives, but one she’ll never give up on.
-
-
Scooby Doo in Door County (spoilers)
- By B. Stiner on 04-13-23
By: Annelise Ryan
-
Bayou Book Thief
- By: Ellen Byron
- Narrated by: Amy Melissa Bentley
- Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twenty-eight-year-old widow Ricki James leaves Los Angeles to start a new life in New Orleans after her showboating actor husband perishes doing a stupid internet stunt. The Big Easy is where she was born and adopted by the NICU nurse who cared for her after Ricki’s teen mother disappeared from the hospital. Ricki’s dream comes true when she joins the quirky staff of Bon Vee Culinary House Museum, the spectacular former Garden District home of late bon vivant Genevieve “Vee” Charbonnet, the city’s legendary restauranteur.
-
-
not for me
- By Beatrice on 06-21-22
By: Ellen Byron
-
Up to No Gouda
- Grilled Cheese Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Linda Reilly
- Narrated by: Mia Gaskin
- Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Back in Balsam Dell to heal after the death of her husband, Carly Hale is finally pursuing her lifelong dream — opening Carly's Grilled Cheese Eatery. After only five months, business is booming as Vermont vacationers and townspeople alike flock to lunch on her Party Havartis and other grilled-cheese concoctions. That is, everyone is but Lyle Bagley, her one-time high-school boyfriend who’s now the town bully — and he just bought the building that houses her eatery and wants her out.
-
-
Pleasant and light
- By Jenifer on 08-20-22
By: Linda Reilly
-
A Side of Murder
- A Cape Cod Foodie Mystery, Book 1
- By: Amy Pershing
- Narrated by: Patti Murin
- Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Samantha Barnes was always a foodie. And when the CIA (that’s the Culinary Institute of America) came calling, she happily traded in Cape Cod for the Big Apple. But then the rising young chef’s clash with another chef (her ex!) boils over and goes viral. So when Sam inherits a house on the Cape and lands a job writing restaurant reviews, it seems like the perfect pairing. What could go wrong? Well, as it turns out, a lot.
-
-
Enjoyed! Except for the perplexing ageism
- By Kelly Garland on 05-13-22
By: Amy Pershing
-
The Secret, Book & Scone Society
- By: Ellery Adams
- Narrated by: Cris Dukehart
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Miracle Springs is a place of healing. Strangers flock there hoping that the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. And, if none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That's Nora's special talent: prescribing the perfect novel to ease a person's deepest pain and lighten their heaviest burden.
-
-
Loved it
- By Bookwyrme on 11-10-17
By: Ellery Adams
-
Tagged for Death
- A Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery
- By: Sherry Harris
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Starting your life over at age 38 isn't easy, but that's what Sarah Winston finds herself facing when her husband CJ runs off with a 19-year-old temptress named Tiffany. Sarah's self-prescribed therapy happily involves hitting all the garage and tag sales in and around her small town in Massachusetts. But after returning from a particularly successful day searching for yard-sale treasures, Sarah finds a grisly surprise in one of her bags: a freshly bloodied shirt...that undoubtedly belongs to her ex, CJ, who now happens to be Ellington's chief of police. And Tiffany has gone missing.
-
-
frustrating book
- By Anonymous User on 01-08-23
By: Sherry Harris
-
A Death in Door County
- A Monster Hunter Mystery, Book 1
- By: Annelise Ryan
- Narrated by: Susan Bennett
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Morgan Carter, owner of the Odds and Ends bookstore in Door County, Wisconsin, has a hobby. When she’s not tending the store, she’s hunting cryptids—creatures whose existence is rumored but never proven to be real. It’s a hobby that cost her parents their lives, but one she’ll never give up on.
-
-
Scooby Doo in Door County (spoilers)
- By B. Stiner on 04-13-23
By: Annelise Ryan
-
Bayou Book Thief
- By: Ellen Byron
- Narrated by: Amy Melissa Bentley
- Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twenty-eight-year-old widow Ricki James leaves Los Angeles to start a new life in New Orleans after her showboating actor husband perishes doing a stupid internet stunt. The Big Easy is where she was born and adopted by the NICU nurse who cared for her after Ricki’s teen mother disappeared from the hospital. Ricki’s dream comes true when she joins the quirky staff of Bon Vee Culinary House Museum, the spectacular former Garden District home of late bon vivant Genevieve “Vee” Charbonnet, the city’s legendary restauranteur.
-
-
not for me
- By Beatrice on 06-21-22
By: Ellen Byron
-
Sadie Price FBI Suspense Thriller Bundle
- Only Murder (#1) and Only Rage (#2)
- By: Rylie Dark
- Narrated by: Kate Burns
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Special Agent Sadie Price, a 29-year-old rising star in the FBI’s BAU unit, stuns her colleagues by requesting reassignment to the FBI’s remote Alaskan field office. Back in her home state, a place she vowed she would never return, Sadie, running from a secret in her recent past and back into her old one, finds herself facing her demons—including her sister’s unsolved murder—while assigned to hunt down a new serial killer.
-
-
Captivating
- By Hollywood_Envy on 08-30-24
By: Rylie Dark
-
Sunbaked
- Pineapple Cay Stories, Book 1
- By: Junie Coffey
- Narrated by: Angela Dawe
- Length: 8 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Committing to the most impulsive decision she's ever made, Nina leaves her cheating ex-husband behind, puts her teaching career in New York on hold, and moves to Pineapple Cay - a land of white sand, cloudless skies, and turquoise waters. Her new life is off to a lovely start: she's got a private beach, a handsome neighbor, and a cushy travel-writing assignment.
-
-
crude language and unendearing characters
- By Debbie on 12-02-17
By: Junie Coffey
-
A Most Curious Murder
- A Little Library Mystery, Book 1
- By: Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli
- Narrated by: Marguerite Gavin
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jenny Weston moves home to Bear Falls, Michigan, to nurse her bruised ego back to health after a bitter divorce. But the idyllic vision of her charming hometown crumbles when her mother's little library is destroyed. The next-door neighbor, Zoe Zola, a little person and Lewis Carroll enthusiast, suspects local curmudgeon Adam Cane. But when he's suddenly found dead in Zoe's fairy garden, all roads lead back to her. Jenny, however, believes Zoe is innocent, so the two women team up to find the true culprit.
-
-
Easy read
- By Julie Smith on 05-06-21
-
For Whom the Book Tolls
- An Antique Bookshop Mystery, Book 1
- By: Laura Gail Black
- Narrated by: Susan Boyce
- Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fleeing some unsavory doings in her hometown of Charlotte, Jenna accepts her uncle's gracious invitation to stay with him in small-town Hokes Folly, North Carolina. In exchange, she'll help him out in his antiquarian bookstore. But soon after she arrives, Jenna finds her uncle's body crumpled at the base of the staircase between his apartment and the bookstore. Before the tragedy even sinks in, Jenna learns that she's inherited almost everything her uncle owned...which adds up to more than a million dollars.
-
-
I Wish There Were More
- By hutchinre on 10-02-20
By: Laura Gail Black
-
And Then There Were Crumbs
- A Cookie House Mystery, Book 1
- By: Eve Calder
- Narrated by: Christa Lewis
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kate McGuire’s life was sweet in Manhattan before she lost her restaurant job and fiancé both. But sometimes that’s just the way the cookie crumbles, and soon she finds herself starting from scratch in the island town of Coral Cay, Florida. It has everything she’s looking for: sunny beaches, friendly locals, and a Help Wanted sign in the bakery shop window. Once she convinces the shop’s crusty owner Sam Hepplewhite to hire her, Kate can’t tie on her apron fast enough. Little does she know that trouble, like warm dough, is on the rise.
-
-
Pleasantly surprised
- By Indydog on 01-13-20
By: Eve Calder
-
A Flicker in the Dark
- A Novel
- By: Stacy Willingham
- Narrated by: Karissa Vacker
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, her own father had confessed to the crimes and was put away for life, leaving Chloe and the rest of her family to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath.
-
-
Enjoyable story and narrative
- By Patricia on 01-14-22
By: Stacy Willingham
-
The Last Thing He Told Me
- A Novel
- By: Laura Dave
- Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he smuggles a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers—Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother. As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered, as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss, as a US marshal and federal agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was.
-
-
The worst book I have ever heard
- By Amazon Customer on 05-14-21
By: Laura Dave
-
I Found You
- A Novel
- By: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Helen Duff
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a windswept British seaside town, single mum Alice Lake finds a man sitting on the beach outside her house. He has no name and no idea how he got there. Against her better judgment, she invites him inside. Meanwhile, in a suburb of London, 21-year-old Lily Monrose has been married for only three weeks. When her husband fails to come home from work one night, she is left alone in a place where she knows no one and with the police telling her that her husband never existed.
-
-
Foul language
- By Carolyn D Mitchell on 03-04-20
By: Lisa Jewell
-
The Bodies in the Library
- A First Edition Library Mystery, Book 1
- By: Marty Wingate
- Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham
- Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hayley Burke has landed a dream job. She is the new curator of Lady Georgiana Fowling's First Edition library. The library is kept at Middlebank House, a lovely Georgian home in Bath, England. Hayley lives on the premises and works with the finicky Glynis Woolgar, Lady Fowling's former secretary. Mrs. Woolgar does not like Hayley's ideas to modernize The First Edition Society and bring in fresh blood. And she is not even aware of the fact that Hayley does not know the first thing about the Golden Age of Mysteries.
-
-
A Perfect Cozy!
- By A. Abboud on 09-20-21
By: Marty Wingate
-
Identity
- A Novel
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: January LaVoy
- Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Former Army brat Morgan Albright has finally planted roots in a friendly neighborhood near Baltimore. Her friend and roommate Nina helps her make the mortgage payments, as does Morgan's job as a bartender. But after she and Nina host their first dinner party—attended by Luke, the flirtatious IT guy who'd been chatting her up at the bar—her carefully built world is shattered. The back door glass is broken, cash and jewelry are missing, her car is gone, and Nina lies dead on the floor.
-
-
Loved the new book
- By Jaimie Scarrow on 05-24-23
By: Nora Roberts
-
A Killer Coffee Mystery Box Set: Books 1-3
- Tonya Kappes Books Cozy Mystery Box Sets
- By: Tonya Kappes
- Narrated by: Madeline Mrozek, Ariel Hicks
- Length: 14 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Scene of the Grind is the first book in USA Today best-selling author Tonya Kappes' new A Killer Coffee Mystery Series. The series takes place in the cozy southern fictional tourist town of Honey Springs, Kentucky. Roxanne Bloom (her friends, though few call her Roxie) quit her job as a lawyer, divorced her cheating husband, and moved to the quaint town of Honey Springs, Kentucky where she'd spent many of her teenage summers visiting her eccentric and fun-loving Aunt Maxi.
-
-
Terrible narration
- By Jacqueline DeLong on 01-14-24
By: Tonya Kappes
-
Camper and Criminals Cozy Mystery Boxed Set, Books 1-3
- By: Tonya Kappes
- Narrated by: Johanna Parker
- Length: 14 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Follow Mae West as she searches for clues to bring killers to justice in this Campers and Criminals Cozy Mystery bundle.
-
-
Maybe it's a Southern thing
- By UpAndAway on 09-02-21
By: Tonya Kappes
What listeners say about Little Bookshop of Murder
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jen K
- 10-21-21
Middle of the road mystery
I was asked to review the second book in the Beach Reads Mystery series, so I knew I needed to go back and read book one, Little Bookshop of Murder, first. I decided to pick up the audio version.
Little Bookshop of Murder suffers from the classic “first in a series” pitfall. The setting and characters have to be introduced and developed, and it overwhelms the book. The sheer number of characters in this book felt a little excessive. It took me well into the second half of the book to get them all straight. But the characters and town are interesting, and I was drawn in.
Summer is the main character. She’s back in her hometown after the death of her mother. Summer is positive that her mother’s death wasn’t natural and sets out on solving the mystery. Summer took a little while to warm up to. I think it’s the fact that she looks down on her mom’s bookstore, which focuses on “beach reads”—cozy mysteries and romances. Summer is a professor of Shakespeare, and for most of the book, she’s all snobby about books. While that view does adjust a bit, it’s off-putting and made it hard for me to get into her corner. As with most amateur sleuths, she bumbles around a bit until finally the pieces come together and the mystery is solved one step ahead of the police. And the mystery itself almost felt like just the vehicle for Summer to get to know the townsfolk… it was a bit thin.
Christa Lewis narrated the audiobook. I believe this is the first time I’ve heard her narration, and it was pretty good. She tried to do voices, or at least some variation, between the characters, which helped during the conversations. Her pacing was good, and she put enough emotion into the story to keep me hooked.
Little Bookshop of Murder was a decent start to a series. The characters and plot, as well as the narration, drew me in. But being a little overwhelmed with all the introductions and a pretty thin murder mystery left this book in the middle of the road for me. However, I will return to this series with Once Upon a Seaside Murder with hopes for a meatier story now that most of the town has been introduced.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- DESIREE POLLARD
- 08-04-23
Great Book!
Well written. Entertaining. I’ve never read this author, but I like her. A good who dune it!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tina Streets
- 02-21-24
Well Paced but reader could have been better.
The reader's voice was annoying. She sounded like she was whispering, moaning and out of breath. We enjoyed the pacing of the story, especially how the ending played out, but yeah, that reader really made it difficult to be fully immersed and took away from the story.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Carol H
- 08-13-23
Good story
This story held my attention. Enjoyed the lack of foul language. Very well written story.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tracey Hovey Campbell
- 01-30-24
Fantastic book
I love this story. It was well written and each character was fantastic. The narrator did an excellent job with each character’s voices. Looking forward to more in this series.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Karen Gustafson
- 04-29-22
Tedious
I really wanted to like this book by Maggie Blackburn A bookshop, a beach, an island, what’s not to love? The protagonist,Summer, is a mess. Her aunt and cousin are much more likable so there’s that. I wish I hadn’t wasted a credit on it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- It's Jess
- 09-16-23
Girl why?
I love a good bookstore mystery. But after listening to the protagonist CONSTANTLY shit on the genre of this book it was just too much. We get it, you like the classics and enjoy high brow literature. But yo mamma died by mysterious circumstances!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Debbie Lacey
- 10-03-20
GREAT NEW SERIES
I REALLY ENJOYED THIS FIRST IN A NEW SERIES. THE CHARACTERS ARE A RANGE OF AGES. THEY ARE INTERESTING AND PROMISE MANY INTERESTING STORIES TO COME. CHRISTA IS A PLEASANT NARRATOR AND PERFECT FOR THIS SERIES. BUY IT. READ IT. WHEN CAN WE EXPECT BOOK 2?
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Beatrice
- 10-13-20
5 Stars
I enjoyed Little Bookshop of Murder. The murderer seemed obvious from the beginning but the story was enjoyable and kept me interested until the end.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- HappyMom
- 03-05-21
Delightful
Entertaining and delightful! The perfect beach read. I can’t wait to read the next book from this author.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful