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Aurora Teagarden #1
Real Murders
A society of crime buffs discovers a mutilated body in their clubhouse kitchen and the town librarian suspects a fellow member because the crime closely resembled the club's ""murder of the month."" Reprint.
230 pages, Library Binding
First published December 1, 1990
3004 people are currently reading
22774 people want to read
About the author
Charlaine Harris
337 books36.8k followersCharlaine Harris has been a published writer for over forty years. Her first two books were standalones, followed by a long sabbatical when she was having children. Then she began the Aurora Teagarden book, mysteries featuring a short librarian (eventually adapted for Hallmark movies). The darker Lily Bard books came next, about a house cleaner with a dark past and considerable fighting skills.
Tired of abiding by the mystery rules, Harris wrote a novel about a telepathic barmaid that took at least two years to sell. When the book was published, it turned into a best seller, and DEAD UNTIL DARK and the subsequent Sookie books were adapted in Alan Ball's "True Blood" series. At the same time, Harris began the Harper Connelly books. Harper can find the bones of the dead and see their last minute.
When those two series wound to a close, the next three books were about a mysterious town in Texas, called Midnight.
A change in publisher and editor led to Harris's novels about a female gunslinger in an alternate America, Lizbeth Rose. The Gunnie Rose books concluded with the sixth novel.
She's thinking about what to write next.
Tired of abiding by the mystery rules, Harris wrote a novel about a telepathic barmaid that took at least two years to sell. When the book was published, it turned into a best seller, and DEAD UNTIL DARK and the subsequent Sookie books were adapted in Alan Ball's "True Blood" series. At the same time, Harris began the Harper Connelly books. Harper can find the bones of the dead and see their last minute.
When those two series wound to a close, the next three books were about a mysterious town in Texas, called Midnight.
A change in publisher and editor led to Harris's novels about a female gunslinger in an alternate America, Lizbeth Rose. The Gunnie Rose books concluded with the sixth novel.
She's thinking about what to write next.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,778 reviews
December 6, 2012
After reading all the Sookie books, and then starting this series out of curiosity, I've realized that Charlaine Harris needs to quit preaching through her characters.
Both female characters, Sookie and Aurora (not sure about the other two), have mentioned more than once about not having a boyfriend and being lonely and envying people who do date, both want babies, neither one feels comfortable sleeping around, both feel they should be more religious than they are, and it gets old really fast. (Both characters also own a white dress with yellow flowers, which amuses me more than it should. Does Lily Bard own one? I'll read one of those books and find out.)
There's nothing wrong with any of those things, but it's a big world. And personally, Aurora is boring enough that I feel she needs to sleep around, just so there's something interesting about her. I'd be happy even if it was just a one-night stand - anything to draw attention from the fact that she gets joy out of buying pleated pants.
And what is up with guys not noticing this chick til she discovers a dead body? She's boring, yes, but discovering a dead body doesn't automatically mean she's exciting now and her life is full of fun and adventure. It just means she found a dead body. The one guy, it's understandable - he just moved to town. But the cop, who's a member of Real Murders? You have your pick-up line right there! Ask her about someone you think is possibly some obscure murderer she's never heard about, duh.
Ignoring the preaching, whining, and Aurora, this actually isn't a bad book. The murders are interesting enough to keep your attention, I liked how everything pointed to an entirely different person, and I'm curious where the series goes from here, and if Aurora actually becomes interesting. Just a comment about her likes other than crime and cleaning. Harris has a personable writing style, where you feel like you could run into any of these characters on the street. Despite what I've written here, I do like her books for the most part, and will be keeping my fingers crossed this series only improves.
Both female characters, Sookie and Aurora (not sure about the other two), have mentioned more than once about not having a boyfriend and being lonely and envying people who do date, both want babies, neither one feels comfortable sleeping around, both feel they should be more religious than they are, and it gets old really fast. (Both characters also own a white dress with yellow flowers, which amuses me more than it should. Does Lily Bard own one? I'll read one of those books and find out.)
There's nothing wrong with any of those things, but it's a big world. And personally, Aurora is boring enough that I feel she needs to sleep around, just so there's something interesting about her. I'd be happy even if it was just a one-night stand - anything to draw attention from the fact that she gets joy out of buying pleated pants.
And what is up with guys not noticing this chick til she discovers a dead body? She's boring, yes, but discovering a dead body doesn't automatically mean she's exciting now and her life is full of fun and adventure. It just means she found a dead body. The one guy, it's understandable - he just moved to town. But the cop, who's a member of Real Murders? You have your pick-up line right there! Ask her about someone you think is possibly some obscure murderer she's never heard about, duh.
Ignoring the preaching, whining, and Aurora, this actually isn't a bad book. The murders are interesting enough to keep your attention, I liked how everything pointed to an entirely different person, and I'm curious where the series goes from here, and if Aurora actually becomes interesting. Just a comment about her likes other than crime and cleaning. Harris has a personable writing style, where you feel like you could run into any of these characters on the street. Despite what I've written here, I do like her books for the most part, and will be keeping my fingers crossed this series only improves.
April 11, 2017
Boring main character. Ugly love interests. (When someone is described as having a face with "character", you know he's not bringing the sexy). But, still a fun enough book because of the murders. The murders are all copycats of famous murders of the past.
I don't know if my murder radar was out or something, but I actually never suspected the killer in this story. I like when I'm surprised by murderers. It's makes it more exciting.
I never suspected this guy at all. I've been getting cozy with him and everything. My bad.
Also, I really like how Charlaine Harris writes small, southern town life. I guess I've officially forgiven her for Sookie Stackhouse's last books because I am going to read another of hers - Lily Bard.
I don't know if my murder radar was out or something, but I actually never suspected the killer in this story. I like when I'm surprised by murderers. It's makes it more exciting.
I never suspected this guy at all. I've been getting cozy with him and everything. My bad.
Also, I really like how Charlaine Harris writes small, southern town life. I guess I've officially forgiven her for Sookie Stackhouse's last books because I am going to read another of hers - Lily Bard.
July 29, 2011
I decided to read this on a plane trip because it seemed easy to read and get into without having to think too hard, which is good because I get sleepy on planes. I don't often read mysteries but I'm determined to read everything Harris writes. I like her other two mystery protagonists, Lily Bard and Harper Connelly, but I have to say I like Aurora Teagarden the least.
Aurora is pretty plain and boring, even without her being a librarian. She lives alone and doesn't even have a pet. She's 28 and wears jean skirts, blouses with flowers on them, and heels with bows on the back. Yikes. Clothing choices aside, I didn't really connect with Aurora. She has almost no personality and you never really get inside her head. Pretty much the only thing she's good at is butting in where she doesn't belong. I found this happened a lot with Lily Bard too so maybe this is something that's normal for a mystery series; I guess you have to give the character a reason for being in the book. With Harper, it makes sense that she's involved in a murder mystery. A librarian or a housekeeper? Not so much.
Even with all that, I still enjoyed the story. I liked that you weren't given that many clues and I was guessing until the end about the murderer. There were three people that I considered, but I was way off! The novel could have used some beefing up though, and the reason that it was such a quick read came from the fact that there was little to no character development or description of many of the surroundings. I'm hoping the rest of the books in this series improve on this greatly.
It sounds like I'm really ragging on this book but I did enjoy it. It definitely has it's shortcomings but I see some promising things that could be developed and I'll continue reading this series.
Aurora is pretty plain and boring, even without her being a librarian. She lives alone and doesn't even have a pet. She's 28 and wears jean skirts, blouses with flowers on them, and heels with bows on the back. Yikes. Clothing choices aside, I didn't really connect with Aurora. She has almost no personality and you never really get inside her head. Pretty much the only thing she's good at is butting in where she doesn't belong. I found this happened a lot with Lily Bard too so maybe this is something that's normal for a mystery series; I guess you have to give the character a reason for being in the book. With Harper, it makes sense that she's involved in a murder mystery. A librarian or a housekeeper? Not so much.
Even with all that, I still enjoyed the story. I liked that you weren't given that many clues and I was guessing until the end about the murderer. There were three people that I considered, but I was way off! The novel could have used some beefing up though, and the reason that it was such a quick read came from the fact that there was little to no character development or description of many of the surroundings. I'm hoping the rest of the books in this series improve on this greatly.
It sounds like I'm really ragging on this book but I did enjoy it. It definitely has it's shortcomings but I see some promising things that could be developed and I'll continue reading this series.
July 13, 2008
I like reading Harris' Southern Vampire series and I am a librarian so I thought I would give her Aurora Teagarden series a mystery (Aurora is a librarian). At first I was a little overwhelmed with the cast of characters introduced off the bat (12+ characters, some significant, some not so much...). I did like that the murder was discovered within the first chapter or two. It is a drag when the murder happens 1/3 of the way through the book...
Overall I enjoyed this book. I was hoping that Aurora would employ her super librarian skills to solve the crime, not so! The only librarian thing is that she is a librarian who longs for an exciting life (as much as librarians are stereotyped, this is yet another stereotype) and finds herself in the middle of a spate of murders in a seemingly quiet, small town.
I will probably read another eventually just to make sure that Aurora does not pull out a giant can of librarian kick ass...which reminds me, my giant can of librarian kick ass is almost empty...
Overall I enjoyed this book. I was hoping that Aurora would employ her super librarian skills to solve the crime, not so! The only librarian thing is that she is a librarian who longs for an exciting life (as much as librarians are stereotyped, this is yet another stereotype) and finds herself in the middle of a spate of murders in a seemingly quiet, small town.
I will probably read another eventually just to make sure that Aurora does not pull out a giant can of librarian kick ass...which reminds me, my giant can of librarian kick ass is almost empty...
January 3, 2025
CUIDADO CON CREAR UN CLUB DE LECTURA DEDICADO A…🤫
📚Sí, lo has leído bien, hasta un club de lectura puede volverse un deporte de riesgo si está enfocado a asesinatos famosos!
Vamos, que nunca se sabe quién será el siguiente muerto en salir a todo color en las noticias…😱
Tanto así que, ser bibliotecaria en el tranquilo pueblo donde vive Aurora Teagarden, es todo menos una profesión recomendable para la salud🤪
Es más, por eso de hilar o retorcer aún más el hilo, déjame decirte que un atractivo forastero se acaba de mudar al pueblo y que, cierto policía se deja mirar y que lo miren… (Lo que en lenguaje coloquial viene decir que Aurora va a estar muy entretenida con tamaños especímenes masculinos rondando a su alrededor🔥)
Eso sin hablar de los críme…nes…
Del club de lectura,
Y de su familia…
Unos ingredientes adictivos que tejen una historia plagada de misterio y suspense, con un toque de romance que te dejará con ganas de más😏!
📚Sí, lo has leído bien, hasta un club de lectura puede volverse un deporte de riesgo si está enfocado a asesinatos famosos!
Vamos, que nunca se sabe quién será el siguiente muerto en salir a todo color en las noticias…😱
Tanto así que, ser bibliotecaria en el tranquilo pueblo donde vive Aurora Teagarden, es todo menos una profesión recomendable para la salud🤪
Es más, por eso de hilar o retorcer aún más el hilo, déjame decirte que un atractivo forastero se acaba de mudar al pueblo y que, cierto policía se deja mirar y que lo miren… (Lo que en lenguaje coloquial viene decir que Aurora va a estar muy entretenida con tamaños especímenes masculinos rondando a su alrededor🔥)
Eso sin hablar de los críme…nes…
Del club de lectura,
Y de su familia…
Unos ingredientes adictivos que tejen una historia plagada de misterio y suspense, con un toque de romance que te dejará con ganas de más😏!
September 28, 2022
🍂🍁🍄
Watched the movie, loved the whole series (Hallmark), and now I just had to check out the book. Plus, cozy mysteries are so perfect for fall...
Full review soon.
Watched the movie, loved the whole series (Hallmark), and now I just had to check out the book. Plus, cozy mysteries are so perfect for fall...
Full review soon.
May 29, 2018
Not a huge cozy fan, but I like Charlaine Harris and it was a decently clever mystery. I had wondered about the murderer(s) but wasn't sure overall until the end.
I'll probably pick up the next one eventually. :)
I'll probably pick up the next one eventually. :)
April 11, 2012
*4.5 stars*
I don't often read mysteries nowadays, but I loved the narrator's voice so much, it sucked me right in. I love librarian Aurora Teagarden, her intelligence, her sense of humor, and her deeply grounded, common sense attitude combined with her barely-hidden desire for adventure. I love her mom and her community, and for once, I'm actually really enjoying the love triangle Aurora is in.
(Normally, I really dislike love triangles and just have to shrug and cope with them when they appear in books I love for other reasons. Of course that's purely a personal quirk of my own as a reader, not any criticism of fictional love triangles in general - but I wanted to get that attitude of mine out into the open so that it would be clear just HOW MUCH it says about this love triangle that even I, a love-triangle-hater, actually enjoyed it!)
There were parts of this novel that were so creepy and chilling and even downright horrible, they felt all the more shocking against the coziness of the setting and Aurora's funny, wry voice - but it all worked together amazingly well, and I will definitely be hunting down all the rest of the books in this series.
The only reason I'm giving it 4.5 stars instead of 5 is that there's one years-old piece of significant info handed to Aurora from her lifelong best friend as fresh news - and I just couldn't believe that they wouldn't have discussed it years ago, since they were already best friends when the event in question actually happened. But that's a really tiny nit in a book that I otherwise loved.
I don't often read mysteries nowadays, but I loved the narrator's voice so much, it sucked me right in. I love librarian Aurora Teagarden, her intelligence, her sense of humor, and her deeply grounded, common sense attitude combined with her barely-hidden desire for adventure. I love her mom and her community, and for once, I'm actually really enjoying the love triangle Aurora is in.
(Normally, I really dislike love triangles and just have to shrug and cope with them when they appear in books I love for other reasons. Of course that's purely a personal quirk of my own as a reader, not any criticism of fictional love triangles in general - but I wanted to get that attitude of mine out into the open so that it would be clear just HOW MUCH it says about this love triangle that even I, a love-triangle-hater, actually enjoyed it!)
There were parts of this novel that were so creepy and chilling and even downright horrible, they felt all the more shocking against the coziness of the setting and Aurora's funny, wry voice - but it all worked together amazingly well, and I will definitely be hunting down all the rest of the books in this series.
The only reason I'm giving it 4.5 stars instead of 5 is that there's one years-old piece of significant info handed to Aurora from her lifelong best friend as fresh news - and I just couldn't believe that they wouldn't have discussed it years ago, since they were already best friends when the event in question actually happened. But that's a really tiny nit in a book that I otherwise loved.
August 8, 2017
***2017 Summer Lovin’ Reading List***
3.5 stars
A typical Charlaine Harris setting for this mystery series, a small community in the South. As per usual, Harris nails the small town details, the over-entwined lives, the importance of reputation, and the somewhat rigid social roles that people get pigeon-holed into.
Not an overwhelmingly wonderful mystery, but enough to keep me reading quickly right to the end and enough to encourage me to put a hold on the second volume at the library. It also helps that the heroine, Aurora Teagarden, is a librarian, a career near and dear to my heart.
Like so many of Harris’ leading characters, Roe is used to being part of the background. Just like Sookie Stackhouse and Lily Bard, Aurora is overshadowed by the women around her that are deemed more attractive or more normal. Harris seems to enjoy giving these kind of women some power, some male attention, and room to explore what they might actually want from life.
3.5 stars
A typical Charlaine Harris setting for this mystery series, a small community in the South. As per usual, Harris nails the small town details, the over-entwined lives, the importance of reputation, and the somewhat rigid social roles that people get pigeon-holed into.
Not an overwhelmingly wonderful mystery, but enough to keep me reading quickly right to the end and enough to encourage me to put a hold on the second volume at the library. It also helps that the heroine, Aurora Teagarden, is a librarian, a career near and dear to my heart.
Like so many of Harris’ leading characters, Roe is used to being part of the background. Just like Sookie Stackhouse and Lily Bard, Aurora is overshadowed by the women around her that are deemed more attractive or more normal. Harris seems to enjoy giving these kind of women some power, some male attention, and room to explore what they might actually want from life.
September 2, 2024
I thought it was ok. Good fluff reading. Not a bad story and I already have the next book in the series checked out from the library, so I'll probably read that one too. It is about a small-town librarian who gets embroiled in copycat murders. The main character "Roe" is not really endearing or sympathetic. You don't dislike her, but you don't really care about her either. She's not funny, brave, or even curious. Her love interests (there are two) are not very well...interesting. Neither of them are handsome, dashing, or witty. They are just kind of there to give her someone to talk to. The premise for the murders is not bad. Someone is reconstructing famous murder scenes by killing random people in this small town. It kind of reminds me of an Agatha Christie novel. Plenty of suspects and no real way to figure out whodunnit.
February 5, 2022
I have a soft spot for this series despite its serious flaws and dated ideas of gender roles. It was originally published in 1990 and that does show.
However, it remains a nice cozy reread for a winter night.
However, it remains a nice cozy reread for a winter night.
May 27, 2025
3,5 ⭐
Mi cozy mistery del mes de mayo es esta primera entrega de la saga protagonizada por la bibliotecaria Aurora Teagarden.
Alguien está imitando crímenes célebres en una pequeña ciudad de Estados Unidos y los miembros del club Real Murders se ven envueltos en una trama oscura en donde no faltan los secretos, las sospechas y las hipótesis más descabelladas. Aurora, junto a Robin Crusoe, un escritor de novelas de misterio, se embarcan en la ardua tarea de investigar por su cuenta.
Hay una gran variedad de personajes que me marearon de principio a fin. Entiendo que es un recurso incluir varios para ir despistando sobre la identidad del asesino, pero a la larga, eso juega en contra porque de los tantos que aparecen, solo pude identificar a muy pocos.
No acerté con el sospechoso/sospechosa/sospechosos y eso sí es un punto a favor. La motivación me resultó poco creíble, pero en general, es una novela que cumple con la premisa de entretener.
Libro leído en conjunto con el Club de #comelibros
Mi cozy mistery del mes de mayo es esta primera entrega de la saga protagonizada por la bibliotecaria Aurora Teagarden.
Alguien está imitando crímenes célebres en una pequeña ciudad de Estados Unidos y los miembros del club Real Murders se ven envueltos en una trama oscura en donde no faltan los secretos, las sospechas y las hipótesis más descabelladas. Aurora, junto a Robin Crusoe, un escritor de novelas de misterio, se embarcan en la ardua tarea de investigar por su cuenta.
Hay una gran variedad de personajes que me marearon de principio a fin. Entiendo que es un recurso incluir varios para ir despistando sobre la identidad del asesino, pero a la larga, eso juega en contra porque de los tantos que aparecen, solo pude identificar a muy pocos.
No acerté con el sospechoso/sospechosa/sospechosos y eso sí es un punto a favor. La motivación me resultó poco creíble, pero en general, es una novela que cumple con la premisa de entretener.
Libro leído en conjunto con el Club de #comelibros
March 31, 2017
I really enjoyed the Lily Bard series but it took me awhile to start listening to another of Charlaine Harris's series. This one is quite a different situation than Lily Bard. A murder club?! Yikes! Reminds me of the murder club in Gillian Flynn's Dark Places. A murder club is definitely a dark thing. And seem to attract a wide array of people. I loooove that Aurora is a librarian! My dream job! I was guessing whodunnit the whole book. I watched the Hallmark movie after reading the book, quite a difference! And there was a bit of a spoiler in the movie that doesn't happen until the second book! The movie was okay and I really enjoyed the book.
March 20, 2022
Entretenido, sin más.
May 20, 2016
Sometimes you just need to read a book that gives you goosebumps. This was one of those books, filled with intrigue, mayhem, and copycat killers this book had me up half of the night last night reading and it was amazing.
The MC, Aurora was wonderfully written. When Aurora laughed you wanted to laugh, when she screamed you wanted to scream, when she fainted you wanted to faint. Ms. Harris did a simply wonderful job of writing Aurora as more than a fictional character, as an individual being, without revealing too much about her. There's still some things we don't know about Aurora and I can't wait to see if the next books reveal them.
The murders were wonderfully plotted and they made me get goosebumps at points. There is more than one or even two murders in this book and they're all copycat killings, which adds a certain spookiness to the story.
The author seems to be setting up for a love triangle, which would not be good, but overall a very good book. This will probably go on my end-of-the-year favorites and I will definitely be reading the next one. Recommend!
The MC, Aurora was wonderfully written. When Aurora laughed you wanted to laugh, when she screamed you wanted to scream, when she fainted you wanted to faint. Ms. Harris did a simply wonderful job of writing Aurora as more than a fictional character, as an individual being, without revealing too much about her. There's still some things we don't know about Aurora and I can't wait to see if the next books reveal them.
The murders were wonderfully plotted and they made me get goosebumps at points. There is more than one or even two murders in this book and they're all copycat killings, which adds a certain spookiness to the story.
The author seems to be setting up for a love triangle, which would not be good, but overall a very good book. This will probably go on my end-of-the-year favorites and I will definitely be reading the next one. Recommend!
May 29, 2022
Roe's First Mystery
3.5 stars - This is my first book from this author and I will be coming back for more. While I like the updates that Hallmark included in the made-for-TV series, I did enjoy the original story. There are several murders with just as many suspects as there are victims. I enjoyed all of the twists and turns and various potential love interests.
I borrowed a library copy of the audio book. The narrator is Therese Plummer. She did a good job as the narrator. My one editing comment is that this was obviously taken from a books on tape / CD recording. It was weird to hear the breaks to switch discs in the digital age.
Story: 3.5 stars
Narration: 3.5 stars
3.5 stars - This is my first book from this author and I will be coming back for more. While I like the updates that Hallmark included in the made-for-TV series, I did enjoy the original story. There are several murders with just as many suspects as there are victims. I enjoyed all of the twists and turns and various potential love interests.
I borrowed a library copy of the audio book. The narrator is Therese Plummer. She did a good job as the narrator. My one editing comment is that this was obviously taken from a books on tape / CD recording. It was weird to hear the breaks to switch discs in the digital age.
Story: 3.5 stars
Narration: 3.5 stars
November 15, 2016
A small town Real Murders club in Georgia gets a shake-up when suddenly their murder club is seeing someone is staging contemporary murders to mimic the more grisly and infamous murders of the past. Aurora Teagarden leads a quiet, though slightly lonely life as a librarian in her town. She is comfortable in the knowledge that she has a routine and knows her fellow townspeople well until the night she discovers a fellow murder club member's body killed in a horrific manner and the scene and situation emulates the same murder case she was getting set to present to her fellow members. Now she must look closely at her fellow members and wonder who is the sick person looking so normal.
Just as Aurora is starting to wrap her head around this brutal fact, she is faced with a box of poisoned chocolates and two suitors who both find her attractive. She is now the focus of town gossip because she keeps ending up right in the middle when new murders crop up. This fiend must be stopped and Aurora along with others including her delectable new neighbor, Robin Crusoe, determine to help the police with their knowledge gained from their hobby of studying murder.
This was a light murder mystery for all its gruesome murder situations. 'Roe' is a likeable heroine and the story is told from her perspective. She comes from a divorced home with her mom one of the leading southern ladies of the town who is gorgeous and graceful. Roe sees herself as average, but she isn't down on herself. She likes her life and is happy to work at the library and join with her fellow club members talking murder.
It was interesting to see the situation change for Roe as she gains two suitors. Robin is a famous mystery writer and guest professor at the university while Arthur is a fellow murder club member and police detective. It's early days so she is interested in both and enjoying having men interested in her.
The mystery itself was not easy to solve for me. I got an inkling late in the game, but was happily shocked when it was reveal time. Each murder is set up with victims who match the MO of earlier famous murder cases and the killer also leaves the weapon with innocent people to get the fingers pointing at each other. The victims and those who are framed are all connected to the murder club so they are all watching each other warily even as the police track down clues from crime scenes and witnesses.
I experienced this book in audio format and really enjoyed my first encounter with Therese Plummer as narrator. She did a great job with all the voices and her overall storytelling was engaging and captivating.
All in all, this was a wonderful start to a series. I particularly thought it was fun to dip back into times of less technology- no smart phones and laptops. I think mystery, cozy mystery, and romantic suspense fans would find this a good one to try.
Just as Aurora is starting to wrap her head around this brutal fact, she is faced with a box of poisoned chocolates and two suitors who both find her attractive. She is now the focus of town gossip because she keeps ending up right in the middle when new murders crop up. This fiend must be stopped and Aurora along with others including her delectable new neighbor, Robin Crusoe, determine to help the police with their knowledge gained from their hobby of studying murder.
This was a light murder mystery for all its gruesome murder situations. 'Roe' is a likeable heroine and the story is told from her perspective. She comes from a divorced home with her mom one of the leading southern ladies of the town who is gorgeous and graceful. Roe sees herself as average, but she isn't down on herself. She likes her life and is happy to work at the library and join with her fellow club members talking murder.
It was interesting to see the situation change for Roe as she gains two suitors. Robin is a famous mystery writer and guest professor at the university while Arthur is a fellow murder club member and police detective. It's early days so she is interested in both and enjoying having men interested in her.
The mystery itself was not easy to solve for me. I got an inkling late in the game, but was happily shocked when it was reveal time. Each murder is set up with victims who match the MO of earlier famous murder cases and the killer also leaves the weapon with innocent people to get the fingers pointing at each other. The victims and those who are framed are all connected to the murder club so they are all watching each other warily even as the police track down clues from crime scenes and witnesses.
I experienced this book in audio format and really enjoyed my first encounter with Therese Plummer as narrator. She did a great job with all the voices and her overall storytelling was engaging and captivating.
All in all, this was a wonderful start to a series. I particularly thought it was fun to dip back into times of less technology- no smart phones and laptops. I think mystery, cozy mystery, and romantic suspense fans would find this a good one to try.
November 4, 2022
While I've liked some of her other series (Sookie, Harper, Bard) I've not gotten along with this. The concept is great, surprisingly brutal (though not detailed) for a cosy mystery.
But I hated Aurora. She's just not very nice. The book is her pov yet there's an analytical distance about it, even regarding her 'good friends' and mother. She's very judgemental! Seems to constantly role playing. I know more about her fashion choices than anything else and despite her smug intellect she whines and makes incredibly stupid decisions.
Like with Sookie this mild character is suddenly desirable to men, and a threat to women. With zero chemistry between any suitor or reason for the appeal on either side beyond that a woman must want a man and babies.
But I hated Aurora. She's just not very nice. The book is her pov yet there's an analytical distance about it, even regarding her 'good friends' and mother. She's very judgemental! Seems to constantly role playing. I know more about her fashion choices than anything else and despite her smug intellect she whines and makes incredibly stupid decisions.
Like with Sookie this mild character is suddenly desirable to men, and a threat to women. With zero chemistry between any suitor or reason for the appeal on either side beyond that a woman must want a man and babies.
November 7, 2018
Small town Librarian is a member of a club that examines true crime tales. When somebody murders a member of said club in the fashion of the crime they are examining, members of the club are natural suspects. The librarian starts nosing around to clear her name, and save her life.
A little bit more tension than most cozies.
A little bit more tension than most cozies.
October 11, 2021
I do enjoy the tv series better! This isn’t really a cozy mystery more like a romance with a mystery background as she doesn’t really investigate
January 29, 2011
I really wish there was an option to deliberately say, zero stars. I love Ms. Harris' Sookie books so very much, that I thought I would love all her books. Well, that theory is now dead in the water.
While this book isn't her first book, it is her first series, and its horrible for lack of a better word. I'm not sure I can adequately relate my disappointment. The characters are flat. They're boring, you never really get a sense that its a person relating events to you. It's like you're reading the diary of a very scatter-brained and ill-educated person, who really never should have kept a diary to start with.
The crimes discussed in the book, besides obviously the one Aurora discovered, all seem to be from England. They're in Georgia for cripes sake, why are they referencing all these crimes from England? Is there a reason our long list of crimes in America wasn't good enough? Georgia started out as a prison colony, I'm sure they could have dug up something that happened in this country that could have suited it. This is just a pet-peeve of mine, when it comes to these stories. It made absolutely no sense to me what-so-ever.
The book is short, thankfully. The characters and plot aren't particularly imaginative, well-written or even interesting. It was basically one disappointment after another and I can't bear the thought of trying to read anymore of this series. Please excuse me while I go remove the remainder from my to-read list. Moving on to the Harper Connolly series now, which I hear may become a tv show. Let's hope the later works are better, and these Teagarden books were just like training wheels for the great books that came later.
While this book isn't her first book, it is her first series, and its horrible for lack of a better word. I'm not sure I can adequately relate my disappointment. The characters are flat. They're boring, you never really get a sense that its a person relating events to you. It's like you're reading the diary of a very scatter-brained and ill-educated person, who really never should have kept a diary to start with.
The crimes discussed in the book, besides obviously the one Aurora discovered, all seem to be from England. They're in Georgia for cripes sake, why are they referencing all these crimes from England? Is there a reason our long list of crimes in America wasn't good enough? Georgia started out as a prison colony, I'm sure they could have dug up something that happened in this country that could have suited it. This is just a pet-peeve of mine, when it comes to these stories. It made absolutely no sense to me what-so-ever.
The book is short, thankfully. The characters and plot aren't particularly imaginative, well-written or even interesting. It was basically one disappointment after another and I can't bear the thought of trying to read anymore of this series. Please excuse me while I go remove the remainder from my to-read list. Moving on to the Harper Connolly series now, which I hear may become a tv show. Let's hope the later works are better, and these Teagarden books were just like training wheels for the great books that came later.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 30, 2020
Rounded down from a 3.5.
This is the first of Charlaine Harris’ books that I have read. I actually quite liked the protagonist- Aurora Teagarden. She felt relatable to me, she is simple/ordinary. It helped make her character feel more real. I also loved that she was a librarian and found the scenes in the library most engrossing.
Real murders follows Aurora Teagarden and her fellow members of the real murders club. There is a killer amongst them, who is copying old infamous crimes.
I am a real crime buff, I just can’t get enough! Because of this, I absolutely loved that the killer replicated old murders, often ones I’ve studied in detail myself. I also liked that this book was nice and short. It was concise and didn’t feel like it was dragging.
That being said, I wasn’t overly fond of any of the characters other than Aurora. Her love interests in particular didn’t hugely grip me. There were times when I couldn’t understand why she was interested in them. I’m hoping that maybe the next book in the series will help sway me on this.
Overall, I really enjoyed the plot for this book, and I didn’t see the ending coming. But, I wasn’t 100% sold on the romance parts.
This is the first of Charlaine Harris’ books that I have read. I actually quite liked the protagonist- Aurora Teagarden. She felt relatable to me, she is simple/ordinary. It helped make her character feel more real. I also loved that she was a librarian and found the scenes in the library most engrossing.
Real murders follows Aurora Teagarden and her fellow members of the real murders club. There is a killer amongst them, who is copying old infamous crimes.
I am a real crime buff, I just can’t get enough! Because of this, I absolutely loved that the killer replicated old murders, often ones I’ve studied in detail myself. I also liked that this book was nice and short. It was concise and didn’t feel like it was dragging.
That being said, I wasn’t overly fond of any of the characters other than Aurora. Her love interests in particular didn’t hugely grip me. There were times when I couldn’t understand why she was interested in them. I’m hoping that maybe the next book in the series will help sway me on this.
Overall, I really enjoyed the plot for this book, and I didn’t see the ending coming. But, I wasn’t 100% sold on the romance parts.
July 30, 2015
Quick review:
Cover: Boring
Rating: R
Thumbs Up: 4
Overall: An entertaining read
Characters: Well Written
Plot: Try to stop a killer while dating
Page Turner: Yes
Series Cont.? Yes
Recommend: Yes
Book Boyfriend: Arthur
SUMMARY (50 words or less)
This is another Audible Daily Deal that I picked up. I liked this story well enough to move on to book two to be sorely disappointed.
For a full review and yummy pic, see my blog post at:
COMING SOON 7/31/15
Audio Review
Thérèse Plummer did a good job at narration. I didn’t have a hard trouble following all the different characters.
Cover: Boring
Rating: R
Thumbs Up: 4
Overall: An entertaining read
Characters: Well Written
Plot: Try to stop a killer while dating
Page Turner: Yes
Series Cont.? Yes
Recommend: Yes
Book Boyfriend: Arthur
SUMMARY (50 words or less)
This is another Audible Daily Deal that I picked up. I liked this story well enough to move on to book two to be sorely disappointed.
For a full review and yummy pic, see my blog post at:
COMING SOON 7/31/15
Audio Review
Thérèse Plummer did a good job at narration. I didn’t have a hard trouble following all the different characters.
February 10, 2023
This book is basically made up entirely of tropes that I just don't like. The worst were the two love interests who are very territorial males (ugh) and the fact that the main female character has complaints and/or dislike of every other female character.
Besides that, all of the characters lacked ... character. They felt like cardboard-cutouts of boring people. Very few details about the town either. The mystery was okay, but I just wasn't really invested since the characters were all so flat.
(I could also quibble about the way the library is run, but I'm a librarian so I notice these things. It's not like it's giving libraries/librarians a bad name, so I'll let that slide.)
Besides that, all of the characters lacked ... character. They felt like cardboard-cutouts of boring people. Very few details about the town either. The mystery was okay, but I just wasn't really invested since the characters were all so flat.
(I could also quibble about the way the library is run, but I'm a librarian so I notice these things. It's not like it's giving libraries/librarians a bad name, so I'll let that slide.)
October 17, 2014
I wanted to read this after hearing the Aurora Teagarden books were being made into a series of Hallmark made for TV movies. I figured the series must be fun if Hallmark was basing a whole set of movies on them, and I was right! This book was cozy, funny and well written. I liked the main character, who is a 28 year old librarian who belongs to a "real murder" club. When members of the club start dying in ways that are reminiscent of famous murders, she is thrust into the middle of the mystery. A fun read.
May 17, 2012
I have wanted to start this series for awhile. Real Murders by Charlaine Harris, is the first book in the Aurora Teagarden cozy mystery series. It doesn't disappoint. "Roe " is a member of the Real Murders club. They meet to discuss infamous crimes. But, someone is murdering the members and staging the murders to look like notorious crimes. Lots of suspects, drama, and a little romance packed into a small book. looking forward to the next one!
March 27, 2018
I absolutely love Charlaine Harris and The Sookie Stackhouse Novels, but I must confess I hadn't read any of her other series. So when I came across this first book in The Aurora Teagarden Mysteries, I knew I had to give it a try.
Aurora Teagarden is a twenty-eight-year-old librarian who belongs to a mystery club named Real Murders, which meets monthly to discuss famous real-life murder cases. On the night that Aurora 'Roe' was supposed to present the Wallace murders, she discovers the body of one of her fellow club member, Mamie Wright, displayed in a similar way to the crime the club was about to discuss. Unfortunately, the killing didn't end there and when another murder took place copying another famous murder case, Roe knew she had to get to the bottom of that mystery.
I really enjoyed this novel. I have to admit that it was hard not to compare Roe to Sookie. It was also a big change in Harris's style of writing compared to The Sookie Stackhouse Novels. Roe was not as well developed as a character as Sookie was.
Although this was a light and cozy mystery, It still kept me guessing until the end. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.
Aurora Teagarden is a twenty-eight-year-old librarian who belongs to a mystery club named Real Murders, which meets monthly to discuss famous real-life murder cases. On the night that Aurora 'Roe' was supposed to present the Wallace murders, she discovers the body of one of her fellow club member, Mamie Wright, displayed in a similar way to the crime the club was about to discuss. Unfortunately, the killing didn't end there and when another murder took place copying another famous murder case, Roe knew she had to get to the bottom of that mystery.
I really enjoyed this novel. I have to admit that it was hard not to compare Roe to Sookie. It was also a big change in Harris's style of writing compared to The Sookie Stackhouse Novels. Roe was not as well developed as a character as Sookie was.
Although this was a light and cozy mystery, It still kept me guessing until the end. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.
December 8, 2012
Like many readers, I love reading every book by Charlaine Harris. If I thought it would make her writing more prolific, I would donate $10 out of each paycheck to Ms. Harris..
That said, the Aurora Teagarden series is not the one I'd recommend to first-time readers. In it, I miss the darkness of the Lily Bard novels and the manic fun (and sex scenes!) of the ridiculously famous Sookie Stackhouse novels. However, it is nice to find a Harris novel I could recommend to Grandma - if Grandma liked murder mysteries. Aurora is chaste without being too dull.
My favorite thing about Harris's books - besides the fact that they're the literary equivalent of buying a box of Oreos and dunking every one in milk before eating them all, at night, by yourself - is that her heroines have very practical, moral systems for getting through life. They range from the very grim Ms. Bard to the mostly cheerful Sookie, but none of them give you the idea life is easy for them. Each one works hard to support herself and rewards herself in ways that all of us - even in the recession - can do.
That said, the Aurora Teagarden series is not the one I'd recommend to first-time readers. In it, I miss the darkness of the Lily Bard novels and the manic fun (and sex scenes!) of the ridiculously famous Sookie Stackhouse novels. However, it is nice to find a Harris novel I could recommend to Grandma - if Grandma liked murder mysteries. Aurora is chaste without being too dull.
My favorite thing about Harris's books - besides the fact that they're the literary equivalent of buying a box of Oreos and dunking every one in milk before eating them all, at night, by yourself - is that her heroines have very practical, moral systems for getting through life. They range from the very grim Ms. Bard to the mostly cheerful Sookie, but none of them give you the idea life is easy for them. Each one works hard to support herself and rewards herself in ways that all of us - even in the recession - can do.
January 6, 2020
3 Stars
As a fan of the movie I decided to give the book a shot and enjoyed it as much as the movie. Roe is great as the main character she smart and observant, the only character I really like better in the movie is Sally Allison, who in the movie is also a reporter, but younger and Roe's best friend.
I'd had the book for quite some time but didn't bother to read it because I'd enjoyed the movie, now I'm really glad that I did and will be getting more books in the series.
Cozies Reading Challenge
As a fan of the movie I decided to give the book a shot and enjoyed it as much as the movie. Roe is great as the main character she smart and observant, the only character I really like better in the movie is Sally Allison, who in the movie is also a reporter, but younger and Roe's best friend.
I'd had the book for quite some time but didn't bother to read it because I'd enjoyed the movie, now I'm really glad that I did and will be getting more books in the series.
Cozies Reading Challenge
February 2, 2009
I started this earlier this week but just finished it today. Already a bad sign. I thought when I picked this up that it was a mystery novel with a librarian protagonist which was written by someone who's other work I rather enjoyed. Apparently, that was not enough to avoid a bad egg.
This book was sparely written, in descriptions of the setting as well as development of the characters. One or the other I could have forgiven if blown away by the remainder, but not both. It seemed like a book that was written quickly over a long weekend instead of one carefully crafted. Not that it was a horrible book, but disappointing.
This book was sparely written, in descriptions of the setting as well as development of the characters. One or the other I could have forgiven if blown away by the remainder, but not both. It seemed like a book that was written quickly over a long weekend instead of one carefully crafted. Not that it was a horrible book, but disappointing.
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