Murder on Devil’s Pond (Hummingbird Hollow B&B Mystery #1) by Ayla Rose #bookreview #mystery

**This post contains Amazon affiliate links which will allow me as an associate to earn a small commission on any purchase made through the link of the products I share. This commission in no way changes the pricing of any items for the buyer.**

Title: Murder on Devil’s Pond

Author:  Ayla Rose

Publisher: Crooked Lane Books 

Publication Date: July 9, 2024

Page Count:  300

My rating: 3 1/2 stars

About the book:

A quaint Vermont inn offers idyllic peace–until a body is found  on the property–in this charming series debut, perfect for fans of Ellen Byron and Ellery Adams.

When thirty-three-year-old Hannah Solace returns to her hometown to renovate and reopen the inn she co-owns with her sister Reggie, her mission is to give the old Victorian hotel an entirely new life. She’s even planting pollinator gardens around the inn–native flowers and fruit trees to lure honeybees and houseguests alike. 

Hannah’s fresh start is stymied by Reggie’s continual interference, unreliable contractors, a check-the-couch-for-coins budget, and townspeople Hannah left behind fifteen years ago. Her main source of camaraderie is Ezra Grayson, an eighty-year-old recluse who lives nearby. After an unsettling conversation with a disgruntled Ezra, Hannah is horrified to discover him dead on her property later that day. 

Ezra had always had plenty of people to complain about, especially locals trying to force him out of his property for its prime real estate. As buzz around town grows after his death, Hannah finds herself on the short list of suspects. Hannah starts digging and quickly discovers that secrets lurk beneath the charming surface of the town she once again calls home.

Murder on Devil’s Pond by Ayla Rose is the first book in the new cozy Hummingbird Hollow B&B Mystery series. As with most cozy mystery series each book of the Hummingbird Hollow B&B Mystery will contain it’s own mystery that will be fully solved within the book so they could be read as a standalone or in any order if choosing to do so. There will be some character development that will carry over from book to book for those who wish to read the series in order from the beginning.

Hannah Solace returned to her hometown of Jasper, Vermont with the goal of to renovating and reopening the inn in an old Victorian that she owns with her sister, Reggie. During the time spent getting the inn up and running Hannah made friends with her neighbor, eighty year old Ezra Grayson despite their being a fifty year age gape between them.

When Hannah discovers Ezra’s body after he’s murdered she is devastated to lose her friend but matters turn worse when she becomes a suspect in his death too. Hannah then vows that she will find who actually killed her friend clearing her own name while getting him justice.

The Hummingbird Hollow B&B Mystery series did have many of the things that I ask for when it comes to cozy mysteries such as a charming small town location, some quirky and interesting characters, possibly some cute critters to steal the show and a fun mystery to follow and try to solve. With all of that in the mix I did enjoy this first book of the series but with just getting to know the cast of characters and setting I rated this one at three and half stars and hope to get to know them all even more in the second book.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Find this book online:

Goodreads  /  Amazon

About the author:

Ayla Rose is an author and lawyer who lives in the Green Mountains of Vermont. When not writing, she enjoys kayaking, hiking, gardening, and spending time with her husband, sons, and the family’s three dogs.