Class Reunions Are Murder (A Poppy McAllister Mystery #1) by Libby Klein @LibbyKleinBooks @KensingtonBooks #bookreview #mystery

Title: Class Reunions Are Murder

Author: Libby Klein

Publisher: Kensington

Publication Date: January 30, 2018

Page Count: 341

My rating:  5 stars

About the book:

For fortysomething Poppy McAllister, taking a stroll down memory lane in Cape May, New Jersey, isn’t just awkward—it’s deadly.

Newly widowed and stuck in a middle-aged funk, Poppy has been running on cookies, infomercials, and one-sided chats with her cat for months. There’s no way on earth she’s attending her twenty-five-year class reunion—especially after receiving a very bizarre letter from Barbie, the popular cheerleader who taunted her all through high school. At least, not until Poppy’s best friend practically drags her to the event . . .

Using the dreaded homecoming as an excuse to visit her eccentric Aunt Ginny, Poppy vows to leave Cape May with pride and Spanx intact. Too bad Barbie is still the queen of mean at the reunion. And worse, that her dead body is lying right in front of Poppy’s old locker. Singled out as the killer, it’s up to Poppy to confront her past and clear her name. But between protecting her aunt from disaster and tackling a gluten-free diet, can Poppy crack the case before she’s voted “Most Likely to Die” by the murderer?

Includes Seven Recipes from Poppy’s Kitchen!

Class Reunions Are Murder by Libby Klein is the first book in the new cozy Poppy McAllister Mystery series. From the opening pages of this book I knew I was going to be in for a really good read when I was already laughing before the story had really even begun.

Poppy is single again after the death of her husband and just learning how to be on her own again while dealing with a meddlesome mother in law when she gets an invite to her class reunion. Now Poppy does not have the fondest memories of high school with her own version of the mean cheerleaders at the forefront of her mind she is determined not to go but breaks down when her best friend begs her to come along.

As torturous as the reunion sounds Poppy knows she really should return to Cape May to see her aunt who she hasn’t done the best of keeping in touch with over the years. After arriving Poppy finds Aunt Ginny has been having a bit of trouble with social services due to her eccentric ways and then to top it all off Poppy finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation after the dreaded reunion.

I don’t even know if I can truly express just how great this little cozy gem was, I just loved the entire book. All of those little elements that get me totally engaged in a cozy were in this one, a funny and engaging main character, a spunky elderly aunt, a crazy kitty for a companion and wrap all that up with a compelling mystery to solve between the laughs.

Poppy did not take but a few page turns to completely gain my attention and interest as a lead character. Here we have an “older” main character telling this story who is also on the plus size with a junk food addiction to ease her troubles and one heck of a character for a pet cat, I could totally relate to her almost instantly. The only thing I think might be a turn off for some is Poppy fat-shaming herself but I hate to say it but I’ve been there so her sarcastic nature hooked me right in.

This was also a book that I felt I got to know a lot of the other characters in the story rather easily and give the author two thumbs up for her character development. Often only a main character and possibly one or two others become as distinct but she did a wonderful job pulling me into this world and getting to know everyone. When all was said and done I was a huge fan and really look forward to many more books in this series.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Find this book online: 

Goodreads  /   Amazon

About the author:

Libby Klein graduated Lower Cape May Regional High School sometime in the ’80s. Her classes revolved mostly around the culinary sciences and theater, with the occasional nap in Chemistry. She has worked as a stay at home mom, climbing the ladder up the ranks to the coveted position of Grandma. She also dabbles in the position of Vice President of a technology company which mostly involves bossing other people around, making spreadsheets and taking out the trash. She writes from her Northern Virginia office while trying to keep her cat Figaro off her keyboard. Most of her hobbies revolve around eating, and travel, and eating while traveling.