The Book Club Murders by Maggie Allswell Narrator: Jilly Bond
Series: Book Club Murders #1
Published by Bookouture Audio on May 22, 2026
Source: NetGalley
Genres: Mystery
Length: 8 hrs 40 mins
Pages: 318
Format: Audiobook
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What Judy’s book club doesn’t know about murder mysteries isn’t worth writing about. Nothing beats cracking a fictional case over some wine and salt and vinegar crisps. But can they put their puzzle-solving skills to the test when the local librarian dies in a real-life murder?
For widower Judy, her murder book club is the highlight of the she gets to hear all the local gossip and even discuss a good fictitious poisoning or two. But when local librarian Wendy disappears, Judy follows in the footsteps of her fictional detective heroes only to find her dead in her home, clasping a copy of Romeo and Juliet…
The police rule it a tragic accident, but Judy knows that her friend hated Shakespeare, and suspects foul play. Gathering her fellow book lovers together, soon they discover that several townspeople had motive to want Wendy dead. Was it Nigel from the tavern, who may have been Wendy’s secret boyfriend? Or could it be Bryan, the local bookshop owner, tangled in a bitter rivalry with the library?
The plot thickens at a charity murder mystery night held at Nigel’s tavern. Suddenly more murders come to light, both real and very badly staged. And when Nigel makes an astonishing revelation, the book club agree it’s a plot twist no-one saw coming. Can Judy and her book club solve the mystery before they too fall victim to a killer plot?
I genuinely disliked this book. The set up is good – a book club that typically reads serial killer book finds a real life murder that needs solved. Wendy, a local librarian, is dead – the police have decided it’s a suicide, but Judy, the book groups oldest member, is sure it was murder and convinces everyone that they need to investigate. I even like the characters for the most part. The group consists of mostly women and one man. They are a variety of ages and have a variety of occupations, several of which are useful in their hunt for clues.
I was annoyed with how the author portrayed Judy. She’s only in her sixties and works at least part time, but she can’t even text? There are several text/ WhatsApp messages throughout the book. I listened to the audio and the narrator actually handled them well. And I honestly don’t know any women of that age who have to use a scooter due to their knees. Does Judy have some kind of condition that makes walking terrible or do they just use scooters more in Britain than the US?
The mystery itself doesn’t last long. The killer becomes obvious, quickly. That’s also about when it veers from away from being a cozy mystery too. I’m sorry, but when you bill yourself as a cozy, you cannot have a pet dog get killed. The twist at the end, which was not actually at all surprising, doesn’t fit the genre either. The author has a bit of a heavy hand. We don’t really get to guess at anything, her “clues” are just so glaring.
Other comments:
- Not a lot actually happens. There’s a lot of talking, but not much of anything else.
- The narrator was competent but not great. Most of the male characters sounded the same, slow and a bit dull.
- Sarah, Judy’s daughter, didn’t ring true to me. I don’t know how she could be so trusting.
About Maggie Allswell
Maggie Allswell is the cozy mystery pen name for the bestselling British women’s fiction author Tracy Bloom.
Tracy started writing when her cruel, heartless husband ripped her away from her dream job – shopping for rollercoasters for the UK’s leading theme parks – to live in America with a brand new baby and no mates. In a cunning plan to avoid domestic duties and people who didn’t understand her Derbyshire accent, she wrote NO-ONE EVER HAS SEX ON A TUESDAY.
It went on to become a No 1 bestseller and publishing phenomenon. So now Tracy has a new dream job, making people laugh and sometimes cry through her writing and has had many more novels published successfully around the world. She now lives back in Derbyshire with her now wonderful husband and two children!
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