TBR Tarot - Take the Honey and Run

At the end of 2022 Wendy over at Literary Feline posted about these fantastic TBR Tarot Cards she had picked up on Etsy and that sounded too good to resist so I immediately ordered my own set.  So when I'm not feeling strongly about what to read next I pull out my cards and pick a book based on the prompt.  Here is a book the fates chose for me recently.

Prompt:  Choose a Book with a Yellow Cover

Goodreads:  Take the Honey and Run (A Bee Keeping Mystery #1) by Jennie Marts

Blurb:  As a successful mystery author, Bailey Briggs writes about murder, but nothing prepares her for actually discovering the dead body of the founder of her hometown of Humble Hills, Colorado. Bailey grew up at Honeybuzz Mountain Ranch and was raised by her beekeeping grandmother, Blossom Briggs, aka Granny Bee, and her two eccentric sisters, Aster and Marigold—which is why she drops everything to come home and help Granny Bee after a bad fall.
A broken foot doesn’t stop her grandmother from ruling The Hive, her granny’s book club, or continuing to prepare and package her bee-inspired products. But when Bailey's grandmother’s infamous "Honey I'm Home" hot spiced honey turns out to “bee” the murder weapon and her granny is now the prime suspect, Bailey has no choice but to use her fictional detective skills to help solve the murder and ‘smoke-out’ the real culprit.

With the help of Bailey’s witty bestie, a pair of meddling aunts, the feisty members of The Hive, and her computer-savvy daughter, this amateur sleuth is determined to solve the case. A malicious attack and an ominous threat reveal that someone wants Bailey to butt out of the investigation, but there’s no way she’s backing down. She must use her skills to uncover the truth and catch the clever culprit before her grandmother ends up bee-hind bars.

My Thoughts:  Well this was a fun start to a series.  Bailey is a mystery writer and is quite sure she knows enough to solve a mystery and protect her grandmother from suspicion.  Unfortunately, murder in fiction isn't quite as high stakes as it is in real life and even more unfortunately the actual detective just happens to be Bailey's ex-boyfriend.  I really liked this setup.  The Hive is a lot of fun and I'm a big fan of any kind of group investigation.   I also really loved how much support Bailey has around her and her relationship with her grandmother and her daughter, Daisy.  Bailey isn't my favorite main character as of yet.  She's a bit immature and overconfident in her abilities.   I do suspect that she'll calm down a bit as the series goes on and I'm already looking forward to connecting with Bailey, Daisy, and the rest of the Hive again soon.  My Rating:  Really Liked It (4 Stars)