The Novel Murders

When an old man comes into her store and buys something too large to carry home on the bus, Jennifer (Lori Loughlin)agrees to deliver it for him. But when she gets to the man's apartment she finds him dead and before she can call the paramedics they arrive. Whilst Detective Lynwood (Kevin O'Grady) initially suspects a heart attack the autopsy shows something suspicious involving nicotine poisoning, it reminds Jennifer of something she once read in a book, an Agatha Christie novel. The next murder that occurs is based on A study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle, and third murder is from The Spiral Staircase By Mary Roberts Rhinehart.

The subplots: unlucky in love Danielle (Sarah Strange)has become intrigued by Maggie (Fiona Vroom), a clairvoyant, who seems to be spot on with what she knows about her whilst Jennifer's son, Logan (Connor Stanhope), wants to go camping with his father, Jason (Steve Bacic).

Excellent entry to a terrific series- the idea of a killer using murder methods from mystery novels is inspiring and the plot has plenty of hooks and it's quite compelling. Halfway in I knew who the killer was, and even the misdirection failed to sway me, but it's so absorbing, fun and fast-paced that it didn't matter. The subplot doesn't come in the way.

7.3 stars.

Almost as good as the previous one, but lacking only in the area of how I felt once it was over. I think the story itself is more elaborate and the characters are much more interesting, but something about the presentation, maybe the timing and even some of the acting was more mundane. There are so many nuances to these mystery series on Hallmark, they are all so similar. Once in a while there is a standout amongst the crowd. 'Mystery 101' for example, almost every episode is extremely entertaining and almost riveting. 'Garage Sale' is more akin to an older style of mystery show, not as engaging, more lighthearted and less serious. The mystery went off without a hitch, although I think we all knew who the antagonist was, we just didn't want to admit it to ourselves...

This script is similar to one in the Amanda Teagarden series, where someone is killing people by recreating famous cases.

In this one, someone is killing people by recreating fictional murder cases.

When Jennifer (Lori Laughlin) delivers something from her store to an elderly man, she finds him dead, and his death brings to mind something she read. Then the next murder happens.

I have to say, while none of these Hallmark mystery movies are fabulous, I like this series the best. I like the fact that Jennifer and her partner have an antique/collectibles store and we get to see and hear about the merchandise. I like the warmth exuded by Jennifer and her family.

The stories...well, this one has a few suspects, and it's not cloying like some of the Hallmark Christmas shows. (Someone told my sister how much she loved the Hallmark Christmas shows, so my sister decided that's how she would spend the Christmas season. She watched one and that was it.)

It also doesn't have the hyper energy of Candace Cameron Bure, who plays Amanda Teagarden. I watch anything that says "mystery" on it. This is enjoyable.

This was a wonderful and literary murder that starts with an elderly gentleman interested in the figure of a bird. He ends up dead much the same way as the murder victim in an Agatha Christie novel and would have been ruled death by natural causes if it hadn't been for Jennifer's suspicions. When a life coach is murdered ala Sherlock Holmes it is obvious that Jennifer is on the right track and she becomes a consultant for Frank! Finally, no changes to the cast (except our medical examiner is strangely missing).

Together Frank and Jennifer solve this murder. Great mystery and I learned that Agatha Christie worked as a pharmacist in WWI which is why she uses a lot of poisons in her murder mysteries. This is a strong recommendation to cosy mystery fans.

The Garage Sale Mystery Movies characters are loosely based on a trilogy written by Suzi Weinert. She wrote the first book at age 72 and had it published at age 75. The third book was published when she turned 80.

Lori Loughlin starred in the first Garage Sale Mystery Movie in 2013. As of August 2017, eleven movies have aired.

The Novel Murders is the sixth entry in the series. As an antiques dealer/sleuth Jennifer Shannon is inquisitive but not pushy or intrusive. She has a good relationship with the police and the love and support of family and friends.

We have seen this plot before in Castle TV Series: Flowers for your Grave (murders were copied from his books); and Hallmark's Aurora Teagarden Mystery: The Real Murders (the Real Murder Club members were murdered - copied from true crime books.)

In The Novel Murders, the murders are taken from famous classic mysteries. This is probably my favorite Garage Sale Mystery.

The Garage Sale Mystery Movies are really great cozy mysteries that the entire family can enjoy. I highly recommend all of them.