I received an uncorrected, advance reader, e-book copy of "Scrapbook of the Dead" by Mollie Cox Bryan, from Kensington Books publishers via Net Galley for an honest review.

[b: Scrapbook of the Dead|23360000|Scrapbook of the Dead|Mollie Cox Bryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1422215037s/23360000.jpg|42915888] by [a: Mollie Cox Bryan|345378|Mollie Cox Bryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1259962115p2/345378.jpg] was a pleasant surprise for me. My vision of scrap-booking used to equal that of cat-herd collecting; a hobby for bored and lonely old ladies. This mystery was a slap in the face to my preconceived notions.

"Scrapbook of the Dead" is a series of stories about an interesting town and various residents of Cumberland Creek. This is fifth in the series, but stands-alone well. This is my first Mollie Cox Bryan book, but will not be my last.

In short stories it is often difficult to have many well developed characters, and Ms. Bryan has done a good job with these characters. It has been a couple of weeks since I read this book, and I still think of the different people who live in Cumberland Creek.

This story was believable and addressed the human rights problem of immigrants being taken advantage of, in order to come to the U.S.A. so that they can have opportunities for a better life. I appreciate the way this topic was smoothly tacked into the story.

As a genealogist, I learned some valuable tips for preserving family history, and will always count it as a bonus that I read [b: Scrapbook of the Dead|23360000|Scrapbook of the Dead|Mollie Cox Bryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1422215037s/23360000.jpg|42915888] ( )

This is the fifth book in the Cumberland Creek series but it was the first in this series that I have read. If I had the opportunity, I would have read the others first so I could have had the background on the characters that was often referred to in the book. I enjoyed this book and read it in one day. I plan on reading the rest in this series.

The story starts out with a body being found in the freezer at Pamela's Pie Place and continued with many twists and turns. When they discover another body down by the river and find out it is the sister to the first victim, Annie, an investigative reporter for the town of Cumberland Creek and her friends, who love to scrapbook, find themselves investigating not one but two murders within 24 hours of each other. They all end up trying to figure out what is going on and how two deaths can occur in their small town.

There are a lot of different things going on with each of the characters in this book. First you have Annie who is planning to quit her job after this last story. You have DeeAnn who owns a bakery in town, has recently hurt her back and is unable to work due to all the pain she is in. Then you have the newlyweds, Jon and Bea. Bea is devastated to see the town changing so much and she seems to be in the dark. She does reconnect with an old friend though while trying to solve the mystery. There are other members of the group, Sheila, Paige, Vera and the odd Cookie as well as Randy.

Will this be Annie's last story? What will become of the small town of Cumberland Creek after two people are found dead? Are there really gangs and drugs? Is the employment agency involved in the disappearance of foreign workers? Will the scrapbookers be able to find out the truth before someone else gets hurt? If you want a cozy mystery that has adventure, mystery, and drama, then this book is for you. The end also includes some great scrapbooking tips.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

I was looking for a fun Halloween cozy and found this book. It couldn’t have worked out better. It appears I’ve bumped into these characters before. It was on a cruise ship, and yes, there was a murder for these good people to solve.

Now, we’re back on dry land in Cumberland Creek and there’s been yet another murder. There’s a human popsicle in the walk-in freezer at Pamela’s Pie Palace. And not long after, the murder victim’s sister is found next to the creek, dead of an apparent drowning. And both victims had a page from a scrapbook clutched in their hands. Coincidence? I don’t think so.

I had such fun sleuthing with this gang again. The characters ages ranged from young to senior and they kept me laughing and flipping pages to find out who the surprise villain was.

Yep, I was kept guessing as to who the bad guy was.

I’d have loved to have been a fly on the wall when these scrapbook fiends gathered together, pasting and cutting. The gossip flies and the clues emerge.

It’s the countdown to All Hallows Eve and everyone is looking at each other with suspicion. Spooky times in Cumberland Creek.

I hope you give this book and series a read. I sure had fun and plan to continue reading more about these crafty characters. ( )

An interesting story full of believable characters.
Not a fan of scrapbooking, but those of you that are this is for you. ( )

Scrapbook of the Dead by Mollie Cox Bryan is the fifth book in A Cumberland Creek Mystery series. Annie Chamovitz is a freelance reporter working on her last story as a freelance reporter in Cumberland Creek, Virginia. Randy Swanson found a dead body in the freezer of Pamela’s Pie Palace owned by Pamela Kraft. The young woman is Marina Martelino. She was found with a scrapbook page in her hand. Marina worked at Pamela’s Pie Palace as a baker. The next day her sister, Esmerelda is found dead. She also had a scrapbook page in her hand. Who wanted these two women (sisters) dead and why?

Both girls are from Mexico. The two women came to America through an agency as do many of Pamela’s kitchen employees. Annie, DeeAnn, Sheila, Vera, Cookie, Karen and the scrapbook group set out to solve the crime. Annie is surprised to find out that there is a large Mexican population in Cumberland Creek. She has not noticed it before this case (it’s a small town. How could she not notice? She is a reporter.) Will the scrapbooking group be able to solve the crime before the killer strikes again?

I have read previous books in the series, but this is the first one in over a year. I found it to be very confusing and hard to read. It jumps around from Annie to Sheila to Karen then Vera. It is hard to keep it straight. There are just too many people in the book (you have the main characters as well as their families). I wish just one person like Annie was the main character and a couple of side people or friends. The scenes changed quickly which added to the confusion. One minute you are with Annie and then Karen and then someone else. There is too much going on in the book. Besides the murder, we have Annie doing her last story, Karen dating someone that the group does not like or approve of, scrapbooking (I liked this part), Sheila’s not happy with her job, DeeAnn’s back injury and pill addiction, Cookie’s amnesia, and Emma Drummond agoraphobia. I just think that too much was packed into one story (because there are too many characters). I did like the scrapbooking and card making tips as well as information on digital scrapbooking. Overall, the book does have a lovely setting (Cumberland Creek, Virginia), interesting characters (just too many), and an interesting murder mystery. The author provides some twists along the way to solving the murder. I liked that the mystery was more complicated and not easy to solve. I give Scrapbook of the Dead 3.75 out of 5 stars.

I received a complimentary copy of Scrapbook of the Dead from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )