Author: Stella Bixby
Title: Bowling Blunder
Series: Magical Mane Mystery: Book 2
Release Date: March 16, 2021
Genre: Mystery
Star Rating: 5/5
Age/Trigger Warnings: Safe for YA readers as the deaths are not graphic in nature, there's no spice, etc.
Spice Review: 0/5 - this book is clean like a Hallmark movie made for Disney+. It has a bit of flirtation but that's it.
Storyline Review: Another wonderful fun mystery! If you haven't read the first book in the series, Downward Death, you need to as there is a good bit of character building in the first one and only a few reminders of the first book in this one. I welcome a good "whodunnit" and Stella always keeps me guessing. I feel like I came close to knowing who did it and eventually guessed it right around the time it clicked with Ellie & Jake. That makes me satisfied with the book. I have to admit, this is a great series that gives you the light hearted Hallmark feel with a little flirting and enough drama to keep things interesting. The story was wrapped up nicely but still left it open for another installment in the series.
Character Review: Ellie is back again and crushing it with her "magical mane". She claims she's not a witch but has to deal with the superstitious people and a little bit of judgement. If she's great at something, people claim she's magical. I love and appreciate how this character has grown and changed from the last book, from being someone who lives out of her van, Mona, with her pig, Penelope, to someone who has friends in a small farm town. New in the story is Xander, a flirtatious new guy in town and possibly a warlock. This character's development is very subtle and I'm eager to see what his story is in the next book. He's got a bad boy vibe and an electric touch when he and Ellie touch. I wonder what that is leading to in future books!
Writing Review: Stella is a wonderful writer. I didn't see any errors, and the story flowed nicely. It reads like it's been professionally edited. Majority of the characters were developed in the first book so there's no issues with the back stories. There was a lot of interesting details, but there has to be in a murder mystery.
Additional Notes: If you want a small town, murder mystery series that takes it easy on your emotions, I definitely suggest reading this series. Stella is a wonderful writer and this book is safe for YA readers. Can't wait to read what's next!
You can find more information about Stella Bixby and her other works on the following links:
Website: www.stellabixby.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StellaBixby/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/stellabixby
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17649323.Stella_Bixby
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