Review: Bound to Execute by A.C.F. Bookens

Posted January 6, 2022 by Lola in Mystery, Review / 2 Comments

Review graphic

Bound To ExecuteBound To Execute (St. Marin’s Cozy Mystery #3)
by A.C.F. Bookens

My Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Cozy Mystery
Age Category: Adult
Type of romance: MF

Blurb:
The things Harvey Beckett doesn’t know about her neighbors could get her killed.

In the perfect days of early May, bookshop owner Harvey Beckett is looking forward to evenings of walking Mayhem, reading in the before bed, and maybe even enjoying a snuggle with her favorite mechanic.

But a meandering dog walk pushes pause on those plans when she and Mayhem stumble upon the body of the much-detested local bank manager. Harvey and her friends discover that there’s a lot going on behind the scenes in quiet St. Marin’s, a lot that people are hiding.

Can Harvey help, or will her helping only end up creating more trouble for everyone around her?

My Review

A while ago I picked up this series as I am enjoying this author’s Stitches in Crime series. I am now slowly making my way throughout this series as well. Returning to St. Marin’s is a joy in this third book. The series has a cozy and comforting vibe. The small town setting with friendly people is such a great place to spend time. It already feels comforting picking up another book in this series even after a few books. Bound to Execute is another great read in this series and I really enjoyed it.

Harvey gets involved in another murder mystery in this book when she finds the body of the bank manager. A lot of people didn’t like her, but who had reason to kill her? This mystery seemed pretty straightforward first, but it got more complicated as it progressed and had some great twists and turns. I really enjoyed seeing this one progress. It also was interesting how Harvey didn’t do a lot of sleuthing in this one, but was still involved as the sheriff asked for her help. I like how the set-up was a bit different from previous books that way, but there was still plenty of mystery as well as daily life scenes and bookstore scenes. I didn’t like the part where she had to lie to her friends, but luckily that got resolved relatively quickly. I was surprised by who did it, but I liked how it made sense and there are some hints in that direction too.

I really like reading about Harvey, she’s just an amazing person. She’s maybe a bit too curious for her own good and wants to know everything, but she’s also very trusting and friendly and willing to go out of her way to help others. Actually a lot of people in this series are that way and it’s just so heartwarming and awesome to read about. There are some great scenes of Harvey and her friends helping others and it’s just really nice to read about characters being kind and helping others.

Harvey has a big group of friends around her and it’s fun reading about them. Everyone has their own role and personality in the story, so even with the big group of characters it’s fairly easy to remember who was who. I liked seeing more of her two friends who moved to town in the previous book. I really enjoy reading about these characters.

To summarize: This was another great read in this series. Returning to this series already feels comfortable and I enjoyed this book. The mystery is a good one that starts out seeming simply, but there are plenty of twists and turns along the way. The murderer came as a surprise to me, but there are enough hints that it makes sense too. Harvey is an awesome main character, she’s very curious and also very friendly and likes to help other people. I liked reading about Harvey and her friends and the nice things they do for others. I really enjoy this series and hope I can read book 4 soon!

4 Stars

Links:
Goodreads
Bookbub
Amazon
B&N
Kobo

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.

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2 responses to “Review: Bound to Execute by A.C.F. Bookens

    • I am really happy I discovered this author her books always feel so comfortable and fun. And I liked the twists in this mystery.

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