A little silly but cute mystery, nothing earth shattering but it had enough twists to be interesting. ( )

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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WHAT'S THE GOOD BYLINE ABOUT?
I'm running late, and don't have the time to come up with my own synopsis, so I'm just going to borrow this from :

Meet Riley Ellison, a smart, quirky young heroine with Southern charm to boot. Riley feels adrift in her small hometown of Tuttle Corner, Virginia, newly single and bemoaning the decline of print journalism, which has dashed her long-held dream of succeeding her grandfather as an obituary writer at the local newspaper. When her childhood best friend commits suicide with no warning, the grieving family asks Riley to write her obituary. As she investigates why such an ambitious young woman might want to end her life, Riley begins to consider that her friend Jordan may have actually been murdered. In the meantime, her love life becomes complicated when her ex Ryan returns to town just as things are heating up with a hot newcomer—who may have had something to do with Jordan’s death.

A COUPLE OF THINGS I JUST DON'T GET
I don't get how big Tuttle Corner is—there's a lot about it being a small town, but when it comes to crime, the influence of the paper Jordan worked for, and just how "famous" an obituary writer from a small-town newspaper can be. But, you know what? I just didn't care—the story and characters are engaging and charming enough that it falls into the range of the old MST3K theme song line, "Just repeat to yourself, it's just a [book], I should really just relax"

Now, there are several chapter epigraphs about the art of obituary writing, I've never really given it much thought (although there's something in the back of my mind saying I've read/heard/seen something about it years ago). It's really an interesting concept--I'm a little curious about the idea now.

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT THE GOOD BYLINE?
Back in 2019, I took part in a thing called the Indie Crime Crawl—a celebration of Independently Published Crime Fiction. Someone (I can't remember who, but I wish I could) talked about this book and series during it. I bought it as a result, and then just didn't find the time to read it until now. Shame on me.

This reminds me of Karen E. Olson's Annie Seymore mysteries from about ten years ago and made me think about tracking down those books as soon as I finish this series.

This was a fun story, just complex and tense enough to satisfy the Crime Fiction reader. The style and characters are light and breezy. The rom-com part of this works well. The charm of this book is all about Riley--and she's got more than enough to win over any reader and keep them coming back for more.

I will be. ( )

This is a fairly quick read, a mystery in a small town with big personality characters. I feel like I came into the book with a false expectation that Riley was in High School due to the initial romantic context and the cover design and that expectation ended up being very incorrect, which was a disadvantage to me, as a reader... who was not expecting some of the choices Riley made... Nonetheless, I like the series and am looking forward to the next book! ( )

Riley Ellison and Jordan James used to be best friends. They even had a column in their high school newspaper, writing "obituaries" of over used phrases, unwise fashion trends, etc., inspired by Riley's grandfather, a famous obituary writer.

Then life moved on. They graduated. Their friendship broke up over a guy, Ryan, who became Riley's long-term boyfriend and whom she expected to marry. Riley is 24, and works in the local library as a library assistant. Jordan is a reporter at the local newspaper, the Tuttle Times.

Then Riley's grandfather commits suicide. Ryan breaks up with her and goes to Colorado, where he has a new girlfriend. The residents of Tuttle Corner feel affection for her, but also pity. She decides to rejoin life. She signs up for an online dating service, and tries to reconnect with Jordan. And thus she discovers that Jordan has just committed suicide. Except the suicide note doesn't sound anything like Jordan. It's not long before Riley, who never accepted that her grandfather really committed suicide, is investigating Jordan's unlikely suicide.

What follows is a strange adventure for her. Ryan is back in town. She meets an interesting guy, AJ, through the dating service, even though their first date is a disaster. An investigative reporter at the Tuttle Times has his own questions about Jordan's death, and he and Riley team up--even though the reporter, Will Holman, is a very odd character himself.

It turns out there's an awful lot going on in Tuttle Corner that Riley never suspected. Taco trucks aren't just selling tacos. Something is odd in the police department, and Jordan may have been looking into it. Someone is threatening the head librarian, trying to force him to accept bookmobile trucks that will be fully paid for by the donor, who is willing to be quite violent about it. AJ's background is murkier than he lets on, and he might be connected to the events leading to Jordan's death.

There's a lot here that seems unlikely, but Riley and her friends are likable, and the story is fun and lively. Dog note: There is a dog, and no, the dog does not die.

Not much substance, but it's fun.

I bought this audiobook. ( )

A young woman starts out writing the obituary for a high school friend who apparently committed suicide, but of course things take some unexpected turns. I thought this was a charming mystery -- good pace, humor, interesting characters. A fun read. ( )