This is the first of a series set in a college town in Ohio. Our protagonist, India, is one of the librarians at the college library, the daughter of a couple who have made it their task in life to save every 'historical' building slated for demolition in their city, and the sister of an overachieving sister (Carmen) and brother (Mark). The brother is accused of murder and his little sister tries to help, eventually solving the murder. My problem with the book is that the family dynamics of her family were very hard to take. I come from a family of 6 children and my family would not have been nearly as hard on me as they were on India. The budding relationship between the detective and India was fun and seemed realistic. I'm hoping #2 in the series is better. ( )

Loved this book!!

I just found a new author to read! I loved this book. It was a quick fun story. India is a bridesmaid for her childhood friend Olivia, who comes from money!! India’s brother, Mark has loved Olivia and learns that she is getting married.

Mark crashes a 4th of July party at Olivia’s parents house. All he wants to do is talk to Olivia. He asks her to meet him at Martin, a local college. This is where things turn bad for Mark and India’s family.

Who murdered Olivia? That is what India has to solve in Maid of Murder!! ( )

India is a librarian at a small college. It pays the rent, but her real ambition lies in her painting. She is part of a somewhat unusual family. Her parents are activists and her mother is a minister, her bossy sister is married and the mother of a little boy, and her brother is mathematician who feels most comfortable with his theorems. The family keeps a lawyer on a retainer, to bail out her parents after they have chained themselves to their latest cause, something that has been occurring as long as India can remember. She is suposed to be a bridesmaid for her former best friend, but those plans abruptly end when the bride is murdered. Author Amanda Flower has created a charming background for some delightfully eccentric characters. The plot of this first book in the series may leave you with some unanswered questions, which hopefully will be explored in future installments. The mystery is interesting, if somewhat predictable, and quite entertaining, a good start for a promising series. ( )

Maid of Murder was an excellent read. It was easy-going, fairly slow-paced read for a murder mystery. The characters were interesting and the plot was well developed. Yet, it didn't quite have the thrill of a suspence reader, and it took me several days to read because I'd set it down and not pick it up for a while. Rating - 3 stars due to good story ( )

First, on the cover of this book Kirkus Reviews compares this new series to Donna Andrews' Meg Langslow series. This book in no way, shape, or form resembles a Meg Langslow book. The main characters' family was neither quirky nor eccentric, merely dysfunctional. I didn't find them charming at all. Her brother merely came across as sad and pathetic. The rest of the characters in the book were also not all that likeable - it felt as though the author just went that little bit too far with each of them. And the hint of a love interest is only described as having an incredibly annoying, braying, laugh. I'm supposed to want this attraction to happen?

The plot itself was good enough - a very effective red herring had me sure the murderer was someone else until the very end. I've already bought the second book, so I'll give it a read and hope that the first-book kinks have been worked out and the author as well as the characters, have grown. ( )