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107th out of 235 books
—
254 voters
Mind Over Murder (A Raven's Nest Mystery #1)
Cousins and best friends, Clara and Stephanie Quinn run The Raven's Nest Bookstore, where people go to find their most coveted reads. But they have no idea it's the psychically-gifted Clara who's reading them...
The bookstore has made an enemy of the town crier, Ana Jordon, who claims that the store's occult collection is "poisoning" the town's youth. Meanwhile, the store's...more
The bookstore has made an enemy of the town crier, Ana Jordon, who claims that the store's occult collection is "poisoning" the town's youth. Meanwhile, the store's...more
Paperback, 262 pages
Published
September 6th 2011
by Berkley
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When I was young, about 12 or 13, I tried my hand at writing a two-fisted detective story. I was no Mickey Spillane. I'm still not. I gave it to a man I respected to read and review, and he told me it was juvenile. I don't believe that he was trying to be hurtful, but I only remember one word: juvenile. At the age of 13, I believe it is to be expected that my writing be juvenile. I say this to explain that I don't say this next bit lightly. I found this book to be written in a very inexperienced
...more
This book was really just a "meh" kind of cozy mystery - not terrible but not terrific either.
Clara Quinn has moved back to her small home-town in Maine from several years living in New York. Hoping for a more peaceful life, she takes a job working in the town bookstore, which happens to be owned by her cousin Stephanie, who was Clara's partner in crime when both were girls.
When the owner of another local store is found murdered in the bookstore's back room, everyone is on edge. Because Stephani...more
Clara Quinn has moved back to her small home-town in Maine from several years living in New York. Hoping for a more peaceful life, she takes a job working in the town bookstore, which happens to be owned by her cousin Stephanie, who was Clara's partner in crime when both were girls.
When the owner of another local store is found murdered in the bookstore's back room, everyone is on edge. Because Stephani...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Clara Quinn recently returned from New York to her hometown of Finn’s Harbor, Maine. Her cousin, Stephanie, ropes her into helping out at Steph's bookstore. Stephanie is all about the weird and paranormal, probably because of the legend of the "Quinn Sense" - psychic ability which Clara got, but Steph did not. The bookstore is a regular bookstore, but their next door neighbor, Anna Jordan, focuses only on the occult items and vows to shut down the story. Clara can’t shake the feeling of dread sh...more
Clara Quinn has recently returned from New York to her hometown of Finn’s Harbor, Maine. She is reluctantly helping her close friend and cousin Stephanie Quinn Dowd with her bookstore. When you walk through the door, it’s obvious “The Raven’s Nest” isn’t an ordinary bookstore. There is a stuffed raven perched on a light fixture, a life-sized figure of a fortune teller with her crystal ball, and colored crystals hanging from the ceiling. While the store does carry occult books, it also sells cook...more
Clara Quinn has returned home to Finn's Harbour. After having her heart broken in New York she just wants to return home and have a quiet life for a while. However, it seems her "Quinn Sense" has other plans for her. Clara has inherited the family's psychic abilities that they call the "Quinn Sense", but Clara has been trying her best to ignore it. However when shopkeeper, Ana Jordan, is killed and her body is discovered in her cousin Stephanie's stock room, Clara has to use her Quinn Sense to t...more
Set in Finn's Harbor, Maine, Stephanie Quinn Dowd owns The Raven's Nest Bookstore. Her cousin, Clara Quinn, has returned to Finn's Harbor unexpectedly without much of a plan. Stephanie has convinced Clara to help her out at the bookstore until she finds another job.
These cousins have always been close but it is not just being family or friendship that keeps them together. It is what Clara calls the family curse. Clara has "Quinn Sense". Little voices in her head that make observations, enable Cl...more
These cousins have always been close but it is not just being family or friendship that keeps them together. It is what Clara calls the family curse. Clara has "Quinn Sense". Little voices in her head that make observations, enable Cl...more
This was a cute first in series and I will pick up the second one when it comes out. Readers meet Clara Quinn, who has recently moved back to Finn's Harbor, Maine from New York. Her cousin, Stephanie Quinn, is also featured and I think she will have a bigger role in future books. In this one, the neighboring store manager, Ana Jordan, is murdered and one of the girls who works at the bookstore is thought to have done it. Clara is on the case. This book also has a touch of the paranormal. Clara h...more
MIND OVER MURDER is the first book in a new cozy mystery series set in the small coastal town of Finn's Harbor, Maine. Stephanie Quinn Dowd owns the local bookstore. Her cousin Clara Quinn has just moved back to town after living in New York City for many years. Stephanie convinces Clara to help out in the bookstore while she's getting reestablished in Finn's Harbor.
The peace and quiet of small town life that Clara was hoping for is very short lived. Ana Jordon, the shop owner next door, is foun...more
The peace and quiet of small town life that Clara was hoping for is very short lived. Ana Jordon, the shop owner next door, is foun...more
First Line: "Stephanie Quinn Dowd, you've got to be kidding!"
Clara Quinn has returned to her hometown in Maine after living in New York City. While she looks for another job, she agrees to work at the Raven's Nest Bookstore to help the owner, her cousin Stephanie.
The bookstore has an enemy-- Ana Jordan-- a fellow businesswoman who believes that the bookstore's occult section is leading the town's youth astray. Molly, number one employee at the Raven's Nest Bookstore, has made no bones of the fac...more
Clara Quinn has returned to her hometown in Maine after living in New York City. While she looks for another job, she agrees to work at the Raven's Nest Bookstore to help the owner, her cousin Stephanie.
The bookstore has an enemy-- Ana Jordan-- a fellow businesswoman who believes that the bookstore's occult section is leading the town's youth astray. Molly, number one employee at the Raven's Nest Bookstore, has made no bones of the fac...more
I mostly liked this cozy mystery. It meets the criteria of interesting characters, set in a town I wouldn't mind visiting, good-versus-whacked-in-the-cranium-mean, with the added bonus a tinge of paranormal.
One issue was that the whacked-in-the-cranium-mean person got whacked before I had a chance to really see why she was so mean and no one liked her.
The story was a little choppy, but I still wanted to find out what was going to happen next and see if it flowed any better as the book continued...more
One issue was that the whacked-in-the-cranium-mean person got whacked before I had a chance to really see why she was so mean and no one liked her.
The story was a little choppy, but I still wanted to find out what was going to happen next and see if it flowed any better as the book continued...more
This is the first in the A Raven's Nest Bookstore Mystery series.
Clara Quinn has moved back to her childhood home of Finn's Harbor, Maine. Her cousin, Stephanie, has convinced her to help out in her book store until she decides what to do with her life. Also working at the bookstore is Molly, a college student. Clara also has was they refer to as the Quinn Sense, the ability to see into the future and read people's minds.
Molly has a heated verbal confrontation with the owner of store next door,...more
Clara Quinn has moved back to her childhood home of Finn's Harbor, Maine. Her cousin, Stephanie, has convinced her to help out in her book store until she decides what to do with her life. Also working at the bookstore is Molly, a college student. Clara also has was they refer to as the Quinn Sense, the ability to see into the future and read people's minds.
Molly has a heated verbal confrontation with the owner of store next door,...more
In Kingsley's mystery novel, Clara Quinn has returned to Finn's Harbor along with her inherited ability to see into the future and read other's thoughts. She's now working for her cousin at her bookstore, Raven's Nest. Ana Jordan, the town crier, has become critical of the shop's occult store collection believing it's poisoning the youth of the town. Molly, an employee of the bookstore has made no secret of her dislike of Ana, and when Ana is found dead, Molly is the number one suspect. Together...more
This is a debut book in a new series that has a lot of potential to be a great series. I, will admit, that for the first 1/2 of the book, I felt the 'Quinn Sense' to be just the normal internal dialog that we all have going on in our sub-conscious, then the book began to hit it's stride and separate the sub-conscious from the sixth-sense. This helped me get into the book easier.
I love paranormal aspects such as ESP, or Ghosts, or several others. I feel Ms. Kingsley will hit her pace, setting, an...more
I love paranormal aspects such as ESP, or Ghosts, or several others. I feel Ms. Kingsley will hit her pace, setting, an...more
I feel this book could have been better, and I do want to give this author another chance, because there are some good elements to the story. I would like to get a better picture of the characters and of the town that it is set in. I am hoping for a better read the next time round. We could certainly use more physical description of the characters and the mystery could be unfolded more neatly. I did like what the mystery was, however I think that I would have liked to have more description and...more
A good start to a new series taht could be fun. Clara Quinn has recently moved home to Maine and while she's looking for work, she's agreed to work in her cousin Stephanie's bookstore. The two didn't have siblings so they grew up like sisters. Until Clara moved to New York and stopped acknowledging her "Quinn sense," the little voices that tell her when somone is lying. But she's going to need those voices because the shop owner next door has been murdered and Stephanie's employee, Molly, is the...more
This was an okay book. Clara moves back to her hometown and her cousin, Stephanie who owns the local bookstore, convinces her to help out there until she finds a job. There is a woman next door who hates Stephanie and is nasty to veryone. She ends up dead and Stepahnie's assistant is accused. Clara is coaxed into helping find the real murderer because, apparently, she has inherited the family psychic trait. There is nothing really in the story that uses this trait. There is a guy thrown in that...more
The first in a new cozy mystery series that combines basic amateur detective work with a dash of ESP thrown into the mix. The main character, Clara, has moved back to her hometown from NYC after a bad relationship. She takes a job in her cousin's bookstore and then a murder occurs and a co-worker is suspected. Clara is forced to use her long suppressed ESP ability to help solve the case and save her own neck. The characters are engaging and there are enough loose ends, character-wise not plot re...more
Review originally published at The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
In Mind Over Murder, the first in Allison Kingsley's Raven's Nest Bookstore mystery series, Clara Quinn has recently returned from New York City to her small hometown of Finn's Harbor, Maine. While helping out in her cousin and best friend Stephanie's new bookstore, Clara overhears an argument between Molly, a bookstore employee, and neighboring shop owner and busybody Ana Jordan over the occult books carried by the Raven's Nest. When Ana is fo...more
In Mind Over Murder, the first in Allison Kingsley's Raven's Nest Bookstore mystery series, Clara Quinn has recently returned from New York City to her small hometown of Finn's Harbor, Maine. While helping out in her cousin and best friend Stephanie's new bookstore, Clara overhears an argument between Molly, a bookstore employee, and neighboring shop owner and busybody Ana Jordan over the occult books carried by the Raven's Nest. When Ana is fo...more
In the little town of Finn's Harbor, Maine, Stephanie Quinn Dowd's new bookstore, the Raven's Nest, is doing quite well; so well in fact that she needs additional store help. She begs her cousin Clara to come and work for her even though Clara has no retail experience. What she does have is a degree in literature and the "Quinn Sense": the inherited ability to see into the future and to read minds; two skills that will come in handy very soon.
At this point in her life, Clara is not too keen magi...more
Returning to her hometown after a breakup, Clara starts work as a salesperson in her cousin's bookstore. On her first day the town bully is murdered in the store's backroom. Her cousin urges her to use the Quinn Sense to solve the murder. The writing was repetitive but I like the character of Clara enough to be interested. Her cousin Stephanie was kind of a bore. The murder was so-so. I gave it three stars because I am optimistic that the next book in the series will be better.
I wanted to like this book more than I did. But Clara is a difficult protagonist to get behind as she isn't telling her reasons for her behaviors - something happened in NY, but we don't know what yet. Then there were some editing errors that bothered me - in a conversation the timing of events were incorrect. (view spoiler)...more
Clara, our primary character, has returned to small-town, coastal Maine from NYC. She's inherited a little psychic gift from her ancestors, and she's never been happy about it. Her cousin's nemesis is killed, her co-worker is accused, and Clara must put the gift to use. But after all the years of suppressing it, will she be able to?
Clara's a bit prickly. All the other traits of a good cozy are there: small town, cozy book store, Maine and the sea, possible new love interests, family et. al. It'...more
Clara's a bit prickly. All the other traits of a good cozy are there: small town, cozy book store, Maine and the sea, possible new love interests, family et. al. It'...more
I read exactly half of the book then flipped to the end and read the last chapter. It was so squeaky clean with boring characters, so much of the book was chatter between characters and it was just not interesting for me! I was excited for this book since it came packaged with an awesome cover and the synopsis on the back seemed intriguing. You saw minimal amounts of the paranormal and the characters acted quite old fashioned and prudish, it was dry reading. There were sudden changes in the poin...more
I found the book very readable, but unfortunately, I figured out whodunit by about page 85. And having decided who the killer was, I noticed all the clues after that. I wondered why the main characters didn't see it too. But I do like the idea of a series set in a bookshop. I can only hope the mystery in the next book of the series is a little harder to work out!
What? A bookstore mystery without a cat?
Boring. Prissy people talking everything to death and doing nothing. And the "Quinn sense" is really boring, too, so either ramp it up into a real "sense" (oxymoron) or leave it out.
Having Yasmine Galenorn blurb it is not a good recommendation for me.
Overall: cozy, not to say suffocating, but readable.
Boring. Prissy people talking everything to death and doing nothing. And the "Quinn sense" is really boring, too, so either ramp it up into a real "sense" (oxymoron) or leave it out.
Having Yasmine Galenorn blurb it is not a good recommendation for me.
Overall: cozy, not to say suffocating, but readable.
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it was well written and i enjoyed reading it. very easy to get into. however, it was i felt predictable and I would have liked a little bit more action from the "quinn sense" than what we got. also the romance part could have a played out a little better and would have made the character seem warmer. i look forward to the next book in the series.
Extra 1/2 star 'cause I didn't dislike Clara and I liked the setting.
Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the book. Stephanie came across as selfish and insensitive, all the harebrained schemes made me want to yell at the book and after all that talk of the "Quinn Sense", it never really showed up.
Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the book. Stephanie came across as selfish and insensitive, all the harebrained schemes made me want to yell at the book and after all that talk of the "Quinn Sense", it never really showed up.
It was a cute, light read with enough of an original sort of premise that it avoided being completely cliche. It definitely follows the pattern of every other book like it, but the characters are sweet, and it was a fun way to eat up an hour or so. It's a series I'll probably keep up with.
Good series starter. Lots of room for character growth. Was really hoping for a bit more of the paranormal element that I was hoping for when I read the synopsis so I hope to see more regarding the "Quinn Sense" in future installments. A light read that was perfect for the lazy, rainy day when I read this book.
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LOL!
Feb 26, 2012 05:11pm