Murder by the Seashore by Samara Yew

Available October 17, 2023

Rating: 5 books

Oceanside, California is a quaint seaside town with loads of lovely little shops. Scarlett Gardner moved there to open a bookshop with a boyfriend who promptly ran off with the money. So imagine Scarlett's surprise when she discovers a dead body and finds out the deceased woman had bequeathed her entire inheritance to Scarlett. Some people are happier about this state of affairs than others, but who among them was responsible for murder?

This book checks all the boxes for me. Independent young woman as a main character, fun and quirky BFF/roommate, kind older lady friend who works with the main character and kind of takes her under her wing, curmudgeonly police detective sternly warning the main character to stay out of it. Oh, and books. Lots and lots of books. And people who like to read. There's a potential love interest, a grouchy fellow business owner who may be a bit on the dangerous side, and a fun apartment. Oceanside has a great little diner, enough shady characters to keep things interesting, and the beach complete with historic pier.

It appears that this is the author's first book. I'm impressed! Hopefully this series will continue and maybe the author will write a few more to go along with it. If so, I will definitely be up for reading them all!

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.