This was a cozy mystery with scoops doo vibes and lots of empowering female friendships. The pace of the book was good, the main character was likeable enough and the story kept you guessing. I would recommend this and look forward to reading the authors next book.

Although I liked the ending and the twists, this book did take a bit of time to get into. The characters felt a bit flat and I didn't really connect with any of them, despite the fact that the plot itself was good.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

In this delightful blend of mystery and wit, Dakota Green, a sarcastic stable hand with zero patience for pageant politics, is reluctantly thrust into the world of glitter and gowns to fulfill her late mother’s wish and save her family home. What should have been a straightforward beauty pageant quickly turns into a whirlwind of drama, secrets, danger, and mystery when the pageant owner vanishes and Dakota’s Aunt DeeDee becomes the prime suspect.

With a compelling mix of humor, heart, and high-stakes drama, the story channels Miss Congeniality vibes in the best way. Dakota is a refreshingly relatable heroine, armed with dry wit and fierce determination as she juggles catty contestants, a dashing but infuriating sheriff, and a race to clear her aunt’s name.

Whether you’re here for the mystery, the laughs, or Dakota’s hilarious attempts at pageant grace, this book is a sparkling gem with plenty of twists to keep you guessing. A must-read for fans of murder mysteries with a side of sass and sequins, it left me eagerly anticipating Dakota’s next adventure!

Thank you to NetGalley, Storm Publishing, and author Kristen Bird for the opportunity to review the advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Read this book in a couple of days, the different characters and the way the scenes were described really helped me imagine the setting and immerse myself in the story, really easy cosy read

THIS WAS PERFECTION,

I'm not into cozy mystery that much but this one was perfection all over the books.

Totally recommend on your TBR

I did not like this book. I didn't like the writing style or the premise of the book.
I do not think I am the right target group for cozy mysteries. I don't think this should be considered a thriller.

Goodness, what an adventure, from start to finish, I sat in one spot turning pages, watching and waiting.
This book is loaded with surprises from start to the last page!. I did not guess much, and certainly not
what I would, call, ‘the blow out conclusion!’
I absolutely recommend this really fun, entertaining book. My thanks to Storm Publisher via
NetGalley for the download of this wildly entertaining story!

A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem is the first book in Kristen Bird’s A Dakota Green Mystery series.

Dakota Green is taken off guard when she finds out that before her mother’s death, her mother arranged for Dakota to compete in a local beauty pageant. Her mother’s hope was that Dakota would win so that she wouldn’t be saddled with the debt from her medical bills.

I signed up for this book, but I was a bit afraid to read it. I thought it might go one of two ways. Either I would hate the main character because she would be a stereotypical beauty queen type and the book would be a slog, or the main character would be a fish out of water and the story would be very enjoyable. I’m happy to say this book was the latter, and I really loved it.

I loved the characters in the book. The contestants were refreshingly friendly and supportive of each other, rather than cutthroat and mean, like I expected them to be. (I will admit, I expected the stereotype.)

The mystery also kept me guessing. So many people had secrets, that any one of the seemed like viable suspects for the crime. The resolution of the case was a surprise, and even after that, there was a final surprise before the end of the book.

I enjoyed A Beauty Queen’s Guide to Murder and Mayhem, and recommend it to anyone who loves a cozy mystery with strong themes of family and friendship.

Stable hand Dakota Green would rather compete in the Hunger Games than Aubergine’s annual beauty pageant. But her late mother's last wish is about to see her trading her muck boots for Jimmy Choos – and uncover a decades-old mystery of a missing beauty queen.

This is a wonderfully humorous book, with a lot of heart, as well as a murder mystery.

When Dakota Green enters the local annual beauty pageant that her dying mother had entered her into, she is amazed at what unravels, not only the mystery that unfolds, but her thoughts and perceptions of her competitors.

I really enjoyed this book and was hooked from the first page, the writing style was very down to earth and full of wit, which endeared me to the characters.

I would class this as a cosy mystery, but so wonderfully written with characters who I loved spending time with and hope there are more from them too.

I will definitely be reading more books by Kristen Bird, her writing style is such a good mix of mystery, wit and intrigue with great characters, with depth and heart.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers, Storm Publishing for this ARC.

I will publish on Instagram & Amazon on release date

My first read by the author, this leaned more on the side of a cozy mystery than a mystery thriller.

We meet Dakota Green, a woman more accustomed to handling horses and barn chores than walking in heels. So how peculiar that shortly into the story she is in the middle of the town beauty pageant, as a CONTESTANT..

Knee deep in debt, Dakota needs the prize money, so with new highlights in her hair she musters up the courage to enter. Quickly things pivot when the owner of the pageant goes missing and suddenly all contestants are no longer just beauty queens, but suspects.

I really liked Dakotas chemistry with the sheriff and her attempts at amateur sleuthing. No romance, and mostly silly hijinks, this was a light and enjoyable read for anyone who loves Ms. Congeniality.

Dakota Green's late mother's wish was for Dakota to enter a beauty pageant. She currently works as a stable hand and has no clue what the pageant world entails, but if the cash prize will stop the debt collectors and allow her to save her family home, she's in. Dakota quickly enters a wild scene that's a little more than she bargained for. Her aunt is in jail, there's a missing pageant owner, and Dakota doesn't know who she can trust.

I really enjoyed this cozy mystery and was pleased to discover that it is a series. A Beauty Queen's Guide to Murder and Mayhem is full of quirky quips and was such a quick, fun read. I thought I had this one figured out but there was a twist at the end that got me! Super excited to read book two in this series!

humor, satire, first-in-series, new-series, Virginia, local-law-enforcement, local-history, small-business, small-town, rural, beauty-pageant, family, friends, friendship, relatives, snarky, theft, missing-persons, amateur-sleuth, grief, grieving, crushing-debt, witty, situational-humor, verbal-humor, unpleasant-contestant, investigations****

In debt up to her ears due to her mother's medical costs and student loans for an uncompleted veterinary degree, Dakota is railroaded into entering the local beauty pageant against her will. There are old unsolved mysteries and a current theft and missing person that need to be resolved amidst the snarkiness of dealing with old frenemies. Lots of laughs.
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected review copy from Storm Publishing courtesy of NetGalley.
#stormbooks_co #NetGalley #goodreads #bookbub #librarythingofficial #barnesandnoble **** Review #booksamillion #bookshop_org #bookshop_org_uk #kobo #Waterstones #DakotaGreenMysteriesBk1 #ABeautyQueensGuidetoMurderandMayhem by #kristenbirdwrites #bookstagram #bookclubs #bookclubsofinstagram #bookseries #bookseller #booksbooksbooks #bookish #bookclubfavorites #bookclubs #bookclubreads #bookclubbooks #houstonreads @murderbooks #BeautyPageants #missingPers

This was the exact shot of uplifting, hilarious dopamine I needed on a meh day.

Dakota Green is a tomboy, more comfortable mucking out the stables than walking in high heels. Almost one year on from her mother's death, a mountain of medical bills is still breathing down the back of her neck. The bank has no more forgiveness to give her on her late mother's mortgage. But her mother refused to leave her high and dry, and with aid of Dakota's implacable Aunt DeeDee, she's left Dakota a plan that will set the family finances right. She just has to win Virginia's most prestigious beauty pageant. What? Like it's hard? Well, it's a little hard. Especially when people start disappearing...

This was such a fun quick read. The characters were quirky without being too much. There's a hunky local sheriff. The mystery was decently complex for a cosy and I'm looking forward to the next book!

As the title suggests, this novel is a fun read with a few interesting mysteries and a very likable heroine, Dakota Green.

Dakota is still grieving for her mother, who died of cancer 11 months before the start of the novel. After caregiving and spending all their money on experimental treatments, Dakota is forced to enter a beauty pageant to win money to save her family home. Although other family members were part of pageant culture, Dakota is very reluctant to compete and only agrees out of desperation. Her witty observations of other contestants, a hint of romance, her warm relationship with friends and her aunt, and the mysteries all add up to most entertaining read. I intend on o reading the next in the series.

This book was a suspenseful, wild little ride. I wasn’t sure what to expect with the beauty pageant aspect, but I enjoyed it! The drama of the pageant mixed with a whodunit murder mystery was great. I also thought I had it all figured out but there were a few twists at the end that I never saw coming. I’ll be checking out the next in this series for sure!!

I'm not a fan of beauty pageants and neither is the main character, Dakota Green. This book Cracked Me UP! xD
There are SO many Likeable characters and the sarcastic humour was right up my alley! I especially adored the girl who kept using interesting words, because big words are hard and i can totally relate LOL
This is the first book in an upcoming series that i'll have an eye out for. I love the Southern small town vibe and am looking forward to seeing what other shenanigans Dakota Green gets herself thrown into and how that big reveal plays out ...this was a Fantastic setup for a second book, Loved it! The coziness, touch of silliness, and interactions between the Interesting and Likeable characters made this book the Perfect weekend read!
Many Thanks to Storm Publishing at NetGalley for this ARC! xox

I was invited by the publisher to review this book. Dakota is anything but a pageant girl, but she enters into that world to save her family home. She quickly gets consumed by the pageantry lifestyle of heels and glitz - and then there is the disappearance of the pageant owner. Dakota then is tasked with figuring out this mystery, and tries to absolve her Aunt DeeDee from being blamed.

This was a really fun read because the setting was rather unique. I liked the idea of placing a character outside of their comfort zone, and in the end learning to grow as a person and rocking that world. I really enjoyed getting to know about the secondary characters in this book, as they all stood out as strong and memorable. I would have loved more development here and there, but since this is Book 1, I am hopeful that the storylines develop more in the next book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Kristen Bird, and Storm Publishing for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

This was such a fun read!! I am a fan of Bird's previous works, which are all more "serious" mysteries, so I was excited to read her foray into the fun and cozy genre. I think she succeeded with the first installment in the Dakota Green trilogy, and I'm already ready to read the next book. As a fan of her writing, I have really seen her skills grow over the course of her books, and I think that is reflected in this one as well, even though it's a bit more "fun" than her other mysteries. I really enjoyed being swept into the pageant world and Dakota's experience, as everything was so immersive and jumped off the page. Bird writes with such an authentic voice for both her Southern settings and her strong Southern women featured as characters. The side characters were just as vivid as Dakota, and I especially enjoyed getting to know Summer and Jemma because they provided a lot of spark and sass. Some of the characters, specifically the Finches, were a bit over the top for my personal liking, but I do think their quirkiness added quite a bit of heart and humor. I thought the mystery itself played out well with a couple of twists I wasn't expecting! My one note would be that the pacing of events in both the pageant and the mystery unfolding seemed a bit too quick as a whole, but hey, there's a certain level of disbelief expected in this sort of book! As long as you just enjoy the antics and don't think too much about the logistics, it is a fun read full of charming and witty characters. I will be happily looking forward to what Dakota gets up to in the next book, especially with the cliff hanger ending!

After reading all of the 4 & 5 star reviews on this book I just had to give it a shot. I felt like I was reading a completely different book. I do think this book is a fun, quirky type of whodunnit but not a 5 star read for me. Overall entertaining and a good palate cleanser type of book. If you like the Finlay Donovan series of books, this one gave me a similar feeling.

Also? I love the cover :)

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*

((Don't judge this book by its cover!!))

In the eleven months since her mother's untimely death, Dakota Green has been struggling. Underneath the weight of her mother's residual medical debt, the threat of foreclosure on her familial home, the end of her dream to graduate vet school, and the unbearable loss of her beloved mother, Dakota has been drowning. So when she discovers that one of her mom's last wishes was for her to compete in the local (and nationally renowned) beauty pageant, Dakota is suddenly faced with a choice. Does she go through with the plan and swallow her pride, or does she give up on the chance to lose the substantial prize money that could pull herself (and her aunt) out of debt?

Well, there really isn't a choice, is there?

Thrown into the world of rhinestones and makeup, Dakota has a great support system and surprises herself by making fast friends with her fellow competitors. However, things turn sideways when a crown (and a man) go missing, thrusting Dakota's aunt into the spotlight and not in the good way. Suddenly juggling learning dance choreography and trying to solve several mysteries, this cowgirl may have gotten in way over her head.

Unexpectedly fresh and heartfelt, A BEAUTY QUEEN'S GUIDE TO MURDER AND MAYHEM, placed first for me! Bird did a wonderful job of balancing the rough-and-tumble personality of her heroine with the glitz and glamor of the pageant world. Dakota, while resistant to pageantry in the classic "I'm not like other girls" way, I was pleasantly surprised by her character growth and open to change. The mystery was fun and multilayered-- and it fell together in a satisfying ending.