Murder Unabridged

By P.J. Nelson
** Publication Date 1 December 2026**
​4 stars


Somehow I missed the second installment of this series, but I’m so happy I’ve got the third done! The Old Juniper Bookshop series is so good. A cast of amazing characters that somehow keep finding themselves in the middle of murder investigations!


Maddie Brimley took over her late aunt Rose's bookshop several years ago. Since then she’s been part of three murder investigations. All three happened on her property, but none were her fault! This time a stranger appears at her door late one night, claiming to be the man who shot two people in the house back in the 1960s. Shot them right there on the green sofa Maddy is so fond of. 


He says his name is Trilby, and he’s a distant relative of Maddy’s. He’s come to talk to her late aunt, and when Maddy tells him she’s gone, Trilby is overtaken. Maddy invites him in for tea. Then she invites him to stay the night! By late morning, she is concerned that he hasn’t wakened yet. When she knocks on the door of the guest room, sure enough, he’s dead. The coroner (who is not a fan of Maddy’s) says the man was murdered. Murdered! Another mystery to be solved by the women of Enigma, Georgia.


These novels truly are so much fun. Maddy, her aunt Philomena, and the local minister have banded together to solve crimes before, so they are confident they can solve this one. Especially since Maddy is the prime suspect.


P.J. Nelson is supposedly a man, but boy does he write well in the female voice. Maddy is someone I would befriend in an instant. She owns a bookshop, after all. Philomena Waldorp is an older woman who is also a professor at the local college, and she owns part of the bookshop (Rose was her beloved.) Then there is the minister,  , who is quite the joker for a minister! They are a trio to be reckoned with. Add in the local sheriff, Billy, whom Maddy used to babysit, and Jennifer, Maddy’s college-aged store helper, and you’ve got a rocking good time in southern Georgia. 


The books have heart. They have suspense. They have humor. Overall they are just a great read and a quick one at that! No need to read the first two before this one, they can standalone. Once you’ve read one, though, I suspect you’ll want to read another!