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    Publishable By Death
    Publishable By Death
    Publishable By Death

    UNLIMITED

    Audiobook7 hoursSt. Marin's Cozy Mystery Series

    Publishable By Death

    Written by ACF Bookens

    Narrated by Sarah Pesek

    4/5

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    • Friendship

    • Community

    • Small Town Life

    • Bookstore

    • Personal Growth

    • Amateur Detective

    • Small Town Secrets

    • Small Town Charm

    • Friends to Lovers

    • Found Family

    • Amateur Sleuth

    About this audiobook

    Change is hard in a small Southern town, especially when it brings a side of murder.

    All Harvey Beckett wants to do is help the residents of St. Marin's find the perfect book for that moment, snuggle with her hound dog Mayhem, and be ignored by her cat Aslan. But when the small, waterside town's newest resident discovers the body of the community's persnickety reporter in her bookshop storeroom just before her grand opening, Harvey can't help trying to solve the crime, even when it might cost her business and her life. The more questions Harvey asks, the more secrets she uncovers.

    Will Harvey and her friends be able to solve the murder of the town reporter without her becoming a victim herself?

    Editor's Note

    Charming cozy…

    In this charming, modern cozy mystery, a bookstore owner gets involved with the murder of the town's much-loathed local journalist while also navigating opening her own shop, negotiating with her animals, and possibly finding romance. Harvey Beckett, the series’ protagonist, is relatable to anyone who’s struggled to find happiness and knows they deserve it. The resolution is satisfying, and Harvey is so likable you’ll think of her as a friend.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBryant Street Publishing
    Release dateMay 11, 2021
    ISBN9781094417912
    Author

    ACF Bookens

    ACF Bookens lives in the Southwest Mountains of Virginia, where she enjoys gardening and cross-stitching when she's not using her body as a human airbag for her toddler son. She and her son live with two old cats and an old dog in an antebellum farmhouse with stream nearby. Find her at bookens.andilit.com.

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    Reviews for Publishable By Death

    4/5

    469 ratings30 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be a light-hearted and positive mystery with interesting characters and a well-written narrative. The book captures the fun aspects of a small town while also addressing important historical truths. Some reviewers enjoyed the captivating and entertaining story, while others found it predictable or disliked the narrator's voices. However, overall, readers recommend this cozy mystery for its charm, intelligent characters, and enjoyable reading experience.

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5

      Dec 30, 2024

      Absolutely loved this book. Zero smit and. It was an easy listen but kept me interested the whole time. The only reason I gave it a 4star is because Maryland is NOT the south! I am front the south and it was so distracting to have the location have the essence of the south but not be accurate.
    • 5/5

      Dec 22, 2024

      Enjoyable, nicely written, and performed via audiobook. A sure pleasure in this gentle suspense book
    • 2/5

      Nov 9, 2024

      A little bit “see, I’m not racist!” There has to be other ways to share race and ethnicity than stating “Asian” or “white” when defining characters. I get why, I guess, but it was distracting. The story is fine though. Hopefully the rest of the series tidies this up. Also, so many characters have southern accents. Why? Aren’t they in Maine? Maybe because they’re supposed to be “small town”. The mispronounced names are also a little distracting. Not to mention the narrator seems to be yelling.
    • 5/5

      Aug 20, 2024

      Enjoyable and lovable read, sometimes the reactions of people are a bit odd, but a very comfy and cozy read!
    • 4/5

      Aug 18, 2024

      Fun story! I do love cozy mysteries. The narrator's overexhuberance was annoying though..
    • 5/5

      Apr 7, 2023

      I enjoyed this book very much
      Very well written thank you
    • 4/5

      Mar 31, 2023

      This is another great book to relax to. You have great interesting characters that maintain the storyline.
    • 3/5

      Aug 9, 2022

      Story was fine. Many cliches with 'nice happy' shallow character development.

      lowered my opinion of the story. The narrator did a decent recording only I found her voice young for a 44ish protagonist.
    • 5/5

      Jun 26, 2022

      A charming cozy mystery full of intelligent characters whose reading lists I envy!
    • 4/5

      Feb 15, 2022

      I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. Some reviewers did not enjoy the narration but I thought it was fine and fitted the main character.
    • 5/5

      Jan 19, 2022

      The story was captivating and entertaining. Recommend the series if you like mystery stories.
    • 5/5

      Jun 17, 2021

      Easy fun and enjoyable book. Good enthusiasm in the narrative.
    • 5/5

      Jun 2, 2021

      Fantastic story with wonderful characters. A must read for cozy mystery lovers
    • 5/5

      May 25, 2021

      I loved this read and author . I want another
    • 5/5

      Jan 6, 2022

      I need more of these books please!!!!! Light hearted and positive. In a mystery. I listened to this one after all the others so it was great to find the first, it I was sad there are no more for now. I’ll be on the look out for more.
    • 5/5

      Jan 5, 2022

      A character I can relate to…she’s a nerdy goofball like myself minus the crying spells but I understand her crying. The author captures all the fun things about a small town and yet is sensitive enough to write the hard truths about a “small” town’s past. Ms. Bookens ability to make the past (present) transgressions in American history not about politics & about facts is refreshing. We cannot & should not be afraid to admit what transpired in our American history. We have to teach the children so they can lead the way better. What happened; happened. Now, if a white woman in a book can understand it and explain it…well dang maybe she should lead a Ted Talk. I have no answers about CRT but what I know one thing for sure is these 2 things: 1. This book ROCKS! 2. This story made me feel as if I was finally seen on that day forty years ago on the infamous Jamestown trip all Tidewater kids take when I asked, “ Where did my people sleep?” The dressed-up colonial tour guide looked flustered and pointing off in the distance stated, “over there somewhere.” All of us matter and reading about the beautiful rich history of the Eastern Shore is refreshing and well worth reading this book. I further appreciate the author detailing what race every character is and her explanation for it is heartwarming. You are sure to enjoy Harvey and her friends. Harvey’s bestie is the bomb! The pets are so adorable as well. The narrator did decent on the voices but Daniel’s voice needs some work. It's accurate just slightly over the top as is Harvey's at times but it lends to her goofiness and her sensitivity. A great listen and I look forward to the second book.
    • 3/5

      Sep 4, 2023

      Meh Naration is not my tea!
      I liked the characters, but wow, did I really dislike the narrator giving everyone elderly voices. Like Daniel isn't 89 why is she giving him that voice. Anyways the story was sweet but very scooby doo, no shock or twist. Very predictable. Also description of people by race alone was annoying. Why not write what they actually look like instead. A tall blonde with blue eyes and fair skin or a short stout man with skin the color of coffee black with wide dark eyes & hair cut cropped to the head. Going to try the next one and just hope its better. Cozy mysteries doesn't mean it cant be good. It should be light funny & still engage a reader. This made me feel like (probably from narator) i was locked in an old folks home.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Dec 27, 2024

      Nope. I tried. Really tried. I’ve read other books by this author, decent storyline with a solid narrator. This one is horrible. The narrator is all over the place with voices for characters, and not consistent. Some of the voices and accents are just awful. The main character sounds like she’s a 14 year old not a woman in her 40’s. Might be a better story to read not listen to.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 1/5

      Nov 22, 2024

      I can‘t listen to this! Had to stop after 5minutes, the narrator is driving me crazy. :(

      2 people found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Jan 5, 2022

      The narrator was too sugary and enthusiastic. It jarred when listening. The heroine was a very irritating character !

      2 people found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Feb 5, 2022

      I'm in chapter 2 so far and trying really hard to like it. I think I could be entertained by the story. But the narrator really just... Seems to be overintonating everything. She sounds like she's be really successful and effective in advertising, or maybe even children's stories, but I would really prefer something much more calm for an adult audiobook narrator. If the writing can't interest me then overenthusiastic narration won't help it, and if the writing is good, then overenthusiastic narration detracts from it.I'm going to keep going and try to give it a real chance, and if I come to change my mind I'll come back and change this review.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Feb 1, 2024

      I’ve only started the book and already I’ve had to endure several sanctimonious mini-lectures. The virtue-signalling is jarring and gratuitous. I downloaded the book hoping for an enjoyable new series, not to be scolded by someone who thinks her role is to morally school the rest of us. I’ll keep going for a bit in the hopes that she’s got it out of her system and can get back to actually writing her story rather than attempting to play our moral better.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Jan 13, 2022

      Didn't work for me. I was prepared to like the protagonist as promised and enjoy the story. Neither happened.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Sep 25, 2021

      So annoying can’t get past chapter too. The characters are so basic.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 1/5

      May 15, 2021

      Horrible narrator enhancing the even worse writing. No go here.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 3/5

      Apr 15, 2023

      I like the characters, and the plot. I identified the killer early on, then began to have second doubts! Good job on that part! The narrator was okay, but I would not choose a book because she narrated. It leans a bit left for my tastes. I will read another.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 2/5

      Jul 31, 2022

      The book was ok but the virtue signaling is exhausting

      4 people found this helpful

    • 4/5

      Aug 17, 2021

      The book was fun, cozy, but the audiobook narrator distracted from the characters by giving almost everyone a southern accent that would have been more at home in Georgia or South Carolina.
      Many times, it felt like the author was trying to create a mythical, port town in New England that somehow also existed in the south, but the colorful descriptions and easy to follow plot makes this a good background book to listen to during a work day.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5

      Feb 11, 2024

      I loved it. Especially the humor and I think the narrator did a pretty good job. Well done. And thank you
    • 2/5

      Jul 20, 2021

      I have never, in all the 4,000-5,000 books I’ve read in my lifetime, have read a book where the author says the “color” or “race” of every single character in the book. It was very disconcerting to read “ and the white woman with red hair…”, and the “black young man…”. I mean to use it once or twice is not unusual if used in a descriptive way, especially in a mystery where race & or color are important to identification. But this wasn’t for that purpose. It just rubbed me wrong. I kept thinking after I read the character descriptions wondering if it really mattered.

      6 people found this helpful