A Sprinkling of Murder

Written by Daryl Wood Gerber

Narrated by Sandra Murphy

Fairy garden store owner Courtney Kelly believes in inviting magic into your life. But when uninvited trouble enters her shop, she’ll need more than a sprinkling of her imagination to solve a murder . . .

Since childhood, Courtney has loved fairies. After her mother died when Courtney was ten, she lost touch with that feeling of magic. A year ago, at age twenty-nine, she rediscovered it when she left her father's landscaping business to spread her wings and start a fairy garden business and teashop in beautiful Carmel, California. At Open Your Imagination, she teaches garden design and sells everything from fairy figurines to tinkling wind chimes. Now she's starting a book club tea.

But the light of the magical world she's created inside her shop is darkened one night when she discovers neighboring dog-grooming business owner Mick Watkins dead beside her patio fountain. To make matters worse, the police suspect Courtney of the crime. To clear her name and find the real killer, Courtney will have to wing it. But she’s about to get a little help from an unexpected source . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 30, 2020
• ISBN: 9781980075646

Daryl Wood Gerber

Agatha Award-winning and nationally bestselling author Daryl Wood Gerber writes the popular Aspen Adams novels of suspense as well as standalone thrillers. As a mystery author, Daryl pens the bestselling Fairy Garden mysteries and Cookbook Nook mysteries. As Avery Aames, she wrote the Cheese Shop mysteries. Intriguing Tidbit: Daryl has jumped out of a perfectly good airplane and hitchhiked around Ireland by herself.

Reviews for A Sprinkling of Murder

[maydacat_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Not everyone can see fairies, but Courtney can. She had the ability as a child, lost it for awhile, but regained it. Now she owns a fairy garden shop, and helps others build their own fairy gardens. Whether they can lure a real fairy depends on the person! Courtney’s resident fairy is Fiona, who is a problem fairy of sorts, and needs to learn to behave herself. But she is working on getting her adult wings, finally. Each day is a new and wonderful experience, until, of course, a dead body is found by Fiona in the garden shop. She loses no time in waking Courtney to tell her. Now, Courtney must figure out how to inform the police without saying her fairy told her! It just gets more complicated from then on, and without Fiona’s help, Courtney may just be up a creek without a paddle. It’s a lovely story, and the fairies add just the right amount of magic. The mystery is an intriguing one, and kept me guessing. The characters are delightful, and I must say, Fiona is my favorite. Having a little magic in one’s life is an inspiring thing, and reading about it is a nice escape from the humdrum realities of life. Dream on!

[arthistorychick · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A Sprinkling of Murder by Daryl Wood GerberBook #1: Fairy Garden Mystery SeriesSource: NetGalley and KensingtonRating: 2½/5 stars**MINI-REVIEW**The Bottom Line: Once again, I find myself in the minority when it comes to star ratings on a book. I struggled through this book from page one to the very end and that made me angry because I really wanted to love this read. It has everything I normally love in a cozy mystery and even has a dash of the paranormal, but somehow none of this came together for me. I found most of the characters to be rather flat, the plot to be rather cliché, and the addition of the fairies to somehow be beyond the real of possibility, even in a fiction book. To be completely honest, I am not sure why this read didn’t work for me, but as I finally made it to the end, I realized, I won’t be giving the series a second chance. I think this may simply be an instance of “not for me” but I can absolutely see how this book is appealing to other readers.

[kris_anderson-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A Sprinkling of Murder by Daryl Wood Gerber is the debut of A Fairy Garden Mystery series. Courtney Kelly owns Open Your Imagination, a fairy garden and tea shop, in Carmel-by-the-Sea. She has a sweet cat named Pixie who comes to work with her. Open Your Imagination has its own resident fairy named Fiona. Only those who truly believe can see her. Courtney is awakened during the night by Fiona about danger at the shop. She arrives to find Mick Watkins, owner of Wizard of Paws, dead by the fountain on her patio. Detective Dylan Summers considers Courtney a person of interest since her alibi of being online in the Fairy Garden Girls Dig It chat room cannot be confirmed. Courtney, with help from Fiona and a few friends, digs into the case to prove her innocence and find the guilty party. A Sprinkling of Murder is an enchanting cozy mystery. I thought the story was well-written with delightful characters. I enjoyed the descriptions of Carmel-by-the-Sea with the cute cottages and variety of shops. It really is a fairy tale town and perfect for a shop featuring fairy gardens. I liked that this series has the unique concept of fairy gardens. I just loved the vivid descriptions of these diminutive, creative creations and cannot wait to create one in my front yard. Courtney Kelly is a friendly character with a rich imagination and a green thumb. She is also smart and determined. Courtney is a good sleuth because she pays attention to details and is good at deduction. She comes up with some good theories regarding the crime. Her cat, Pixie is a adorable, but my favorite character is Fiona, a righteous fairy. Fiona is one spunky fairy who adds humor and whimsy to the story with her antics. I hope we learn more about fairies and their world in future books. The mystery was well thought out with a variety of suspects. Courtney asked good questions and kept Detective Summers in the loop (though he did not appreciate her theorizing). I enjoyed reading A sprinkling of Murder and I am looking forward to devouring future books in A Fairy Garden Mystery series. There are recipes at the end including one for the caramel blondies featured in the story (there is a gluten free recipe too). A Sprinkling of Murder is a whimsical cozy mystery with a fierce fairy, a cute cat, fun fairy gardens, a murdered Mick, a defensive dad, and a prying planter.

[joannefm2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Courtney left her father's landscaping business to create her dream: a fairy garden business in Carmel. So far she's doing well enough to hire an employee, elfin Joss. She also offers classes on how to make your own fairy garden as well as others. Her business is thriving and so is she. One morning her neighboring business owner Mich Watkins enters, and she's afraid he's going to start trouble, but he doesn't; in fact, it seems as if he's looking for someone. But he tells her that their landlord is on the warpath and wanting the tenants out because he wants to sell their shops to a developer -- and Courtney wonders if it's true. But Courtney has a secret of her own -- she has her very own fairy, Fiona. Fiona, unfortunately, is on probation for some unnamed act and hasn't earned her full set of wings. Fiona is also a righteous fairy (there are four different types), which means she needs to bring resolution to embattled souls. What this means Courtney has no idea, but she's grateful for Fiona's help -- that is, until Fiona tells her early the next morning that she needs to get to her shop right away. Courtney finds the body of Mick in her garden, dead.After calling the police she figures out how Mick got in, but not why. What's worse is that Courtney is now a suspect in the murder, and the detective on the case doesn't think her alibi is strong enough. So with Fiona's help, and that of her friends Joss and Meghan, Courtney is on the trail of a killer...This is the first in a new series and I honestly didn't know what to expect. I will say upfront that I don't read books about witches and such; I'm just not interested enough to invest my time. But this book had a beautiful cover (yes, I am sometimes swayed by them), so I decided to take a chance and am glad that I did.The concept of one having their own personal fairy is a new idea for a book, and quite an intriguing one. Also the fact that the fairy is quite adept at helping solve a murder without going against her own rules. I found the mystery was done nicely, with a few clues here and there, but also giving Courtney the chance to seek them on her own.I do like Courtney's character. She never puts herself in harms' way. and she's more concerned with getting herself off the hot seat than putting someone else in it. She's not going around accusing every person she meets of murder, and that's a good thing.The descriptions of fairy gardens were done well enough that it is explained what they are; and perhaps someone who reads the book might want to create one of their own. While this book was peopled with many characters throughout, it wasn't difficult to keep them straight, and there were a few red herrings thrown in for us to sift through. While I had figured out the murderer early on (I read a lot of mysteries) it was still fun getting through the journey until we got to the end of it and Courtney, with help of course, figured it out and put everything together.In the end, it all came together nicely and while there was no nail-biting climax, it was still done well enough that I want to read the next in the series. Highly recommended.

[kimkimkim-7 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I believe in Fairies. I believe in Magic. But I needed Fiona, the resident fairy in-training, to sprinkle fairy dust all over me to believe in this story. I stepped into “Open Your Imagination” fairy garden and tea shop with the belief of a child, with my eyes turned to the sky and my imagination wide open. It didn’t work. Trying desperately to suspend all cynicism while the protagonist muddled through a murder investigation and watching her unbelievable novice sleuthing was nothing short of “are you kidding me?” I had difficulty finding anything resembling reality in the murder investigation by any of the players. The ever-present, unimportant and distracting descriptions of tea, cookies, cakes, sneakers, and coveralls was an eye roll and a half. Too many characters, too much description, too much supposing and too little believable. The recipes however were a big happy surprise. I am obviously in the minority in my opinion and the fault probably lies with my expectations. I do want to thank NetGalley and Kensington for a copy.

[cyderry · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Courtney Kelly is the owner of the fairy garden/tea shop Open Your Imagination where she shares her love and belief of fairies. Some people want to believe or think that they believe, but only certain staff members are privileged enough to actually see Fiona, a fairy currently on probation by order of the fairy Queen. Fiona, to get off probation must work to help others, so when Courtney finds her neighbor murdered in her courtyard, Fiona and Courtney work together to figure why and who.What a wonderful start for this new series! I love the characters and the delightful way that the magical essence of feisty Fiona is "sprinkled" throughout! Can Courtney solve the murder before the police arrest her?Can't wait for the next sighting of Fiona!