Cozy Mystery Review: Peril in Pink | Sydney Leigh | Hudson Valley B&B #1

Everything is coming up rosé for innkeeper Jess Byrne until a murder on opening weekend gives her B&B’s killer vibe a whole new meaning.

Schitt’s Creek meets Only Murders in the Building in Sydney Leigh’s sparkling debut mystery, Peril in Pink. Also a tip before we get started–if you have Hoopla through your library, the audiobook is on there and I listened to part of this. It was fantastic in audio format! The humor came through perfectly with Traci Odom’s narration.

About the Book | Peril in Pink

Jess Byrne and her best friend Kat were on their annual girls’ trip when they realized they were both burned out and unfulfilled by their careers. Jess and Kat decided to transform an old boarding house that Jess’s grandmother ran in the 1960s and 1970s into an Instagram-worthy Bed and Breakfast. The property already featured a Queen-Anne style building, a huge property, and a large bool. Her brother Nate had already transformed the old garage into a café and bar called the Cool Vibes Café.

It’s opening weekend and Jess and Kat have pulled out all the stops to have a buzzworthy success. Jess invited her ex-boyfriend and musician Lars Armstrong to perform at the event. Unfortunately Lars arrives with his skeezy stepfather-turned-manager, Bob Strapp. Jess has never understood why Lars let his stepfather manage him, especially since he never liked him and his mother passed away years earlier.

When Bob is found dead hours after arriving, Lars is pinpointed as the prime suspect for the murder. Lars turns to Jess to help him prove his innocence. Jess can’t really envision Lars as a murderer, so she agrees to help. Unfortunately the media coverage her B&B is receiving isn’t exactly the kind she envisioned to promote her new business. The murder opening weekend threatens to smear The Pearl B&B with a bad reputation. Jess starts digging into the case, and is surprised to turn up evidence that suggests Lars may not be as innocent as she thought. Her unfortunate findings seem all but confirmed when Lars turns up at the scene of a second murder.

Jess enlists Kat, determined to get to the bottom of the murders—after all, they are fans of the hit true crime podcast My Favorite Murder. Things get more complicated the deeper they get into their investigation. Jess and Kat worry that if they don’t uncover the truth before the police arrest Lars for the murder, it might mean the end of their B&B dreams!

Review | Peril in Pink

I thought Peril in Pink was such a fun, breezy read. Leigh adds just the right amount of humor to keep it funny and light without being ridiculous. I love a cozy mystery—its fun to see what the author has dreamt up as the setting, the crime, and who the amateur sleuth is. The B&B setting was a blast and the book is peppered with descriptions of the B&B that made me want to book a stay there! As long as they can clear up these pesky murders, though.

True Crime fans will find the references to My Favorite Murder and other pop culture fun. I admit that I identify as a Murderino myself, though I don’t catch the podcast every week any more. A new cozy mystery series (and I’m assuming this is the first in a series, but could be wrong) needs great characters that keep the reader coming back, and Leigh delivered on that aspect

 Jess and Kat were wonderful—I loved their friendship, it almost felt like they had a special language the way they knew what the other was thinking sometimes. It’s helpful to have two of them pursuing the case because it felt more natural for them to run ideas, theories, and suspects past one another. Sometimes these interactions can be awkward, but that wasn’t the case here.

The mystery was engaging and moved along at a good pace (another things that can derail an otherwise good cozy mystery). There were plenty of suspects, potential motives, and red herrings to go around. Bob wasn’t exactly known for his likability, which meant plenty of people might want him dead. The second murder definitely through a wrench into things and it seemed hard to imagine someone wanted both of those individuals dead. The solution to the mystery was unexpected but made perfect sense once it was revealed.

This is a fantastic mystery if you’re looking for something fun to break up darker thrillers. Jess and Kat are stars, but don’t underestimate the side characters. This is a fresh and memorable mystery that had a brilliantly fun setting and delivered with compelling characters and a good whodunnit. I hope that this ends up as a series! Now that those murders are solved, I wouldn’t mind a stay at The Pearl B&B!

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books for my copy. Opinions are my own.

About the Author | Sydney Leigh

Sydney Leigh spent several years running a seasonal business, working in the summer so she could spend cold months in cool places. Now she writes modern cozy mysteries and thinks about murder. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, and served on the board of Crime Writers of Canada from 2018-2021.

Synopsis | Goodreads

It’s the grand opening of The Pearl B&B in Hudson Valley, and owner Jess Byrne has prepared the ultimate, Insta-worthy welcome, complete with her ex-boyfriend—reality singing sensation Lars Armstrong—performing live. As guests check in and mimosas are poured, Lars arrives with his stepdad-turned-manager Bob in tow. But things go south when Bob is found dead, and Lars is the prime suspect.

After a desperate plea from Lars, and knowing the reputation of her B&B is at stake, Jess agrees to help clear Lars’ name, but the more she digs, the less sure she is that he’s innocent. Especially when he’s found at the scene of another murder.

With the guests under lockdown, the B&B in the press for all the wrong reasons, and a killer on the loose, Jess is in over her head. With the help of her best friend and business partner Kat, Jess is determined to uncover the truth before Lars is put behind bars and The Pearl is permanently cancelled.