Murder Unmentionable

A Sweet Nothings Lingerie Mystery #1

by Meg London

Sweet Nothings has it silk ribbon, Venetian lace, the best bra fitter in town…and two unsolved murders.



Emma Taylor thought she knew what to expect when she abandoned life as a big-city fashionista to help her aunt, Arabella, breathe new style into Sweet Nothings, her waning lingerie boutique. As Emma settles back in to Paris, Tennessee—a world where pie is served with a parable and a pitcher of sweet tea is the cure for most of life’s ills—her escape seems smooth as silk.



But when the town acquires a touch of unneeded je ne sais quoi with the arrival of Emma’s philandering ex, an unseemly murder turns her world inside out. As the police’s top suspect, Emma is going to need more than fishnets to snare the real killer. And when she and Arabella refuse to let death threats wrapped in knifed nighties stall Sweet Nothings’ vintage lingerie fashion show, it becomes increasingly clear that any garter may hide a gun and that bullet bras might have to live up to their name…

Genres: Cozy Mystery, Mystery, Cozy, Fiction, Contemporary

303 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 4, 2012

About the author

Meg London is the pseudonym for Peg Cochran.

Peg grew up in a New Jersey suburb about 25 miles outside of New York City. After college, she moved to the city where she managed an art gallery owned by the son of the artist Henri Matisse. When her first daughter, Francesca, arrive, the new family moved back to the New Jersey suburbs where her second daughter, Annabelle, was born.

After her husband died, Peg remarried and her new husband took a job in Grand Rapids, Michigan where they now live (on exile from New Jersey, she likes to joke). Peg managed to segue from the art world to marketing and is now the manager of marketing communications for a company that provides services to seniors.

Her greatest love though as always been writing - particularly mysteries! She has two cozy mystery series from Berkley Prime Crime: The Gourmet De-Lite series set in Connecticut and featuring Gigi Fitzgerald, who provides gourmet diet meals to a select group of clients, and the Sweet Nothings Vintage Lingerie series, written as Meg London, set in Paris, Tennessee with Emma Taylor who finds murder and mayhem in this quiet country town.

As for pets - she has a schizophrenic cat (really!) named Frazzle and a Westhighland White Terrier, Reggie, who is desperately in need of losing a few pounds. But you know what they say: If your dog is overweight, it means YOU aren't getting enough exercise!

When she's not writing, Peg can usually be found cooking, which she loves. When asked to bring a dish to a potluck she invariably opts to bring dessert - partly because she loves making sweet dishes and partly because she and her husband always manage to be late so there's no point in putting them in charge of appetizers!

Reviews

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this first in a cozy mystery series. Girl from big city moves back to small town life and is confronted by death (and gossipy neighbors). It has a cute setup and that nice Southern flair (without the nasty things you find in the South). I would've rated it higher than 3 stars except for the fact that I guessed the murderer fairly early on. (That hardly ever happens.) I think I'll move on in the series and give the author the benefit of the doubt being her first.

[Melodie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad, definitely not good. Mostly so-so. I really hated the cheating ex-boyfriend. The French guy who speaks French half the time because it's suppposed to be "oh-so-sexy"??? YUCK!! Hate it! He got what he deserved! Liked Aunt Arabella, not so much Emma. Very obvious murderer. Best part of the book was the talk about the vintage lingerie. Might read another......then again maybe not.

[❂ Murder by Death · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first in a new series about a woman who moves back home to Paris, Tennessee to help her Aunt renovate and run the lingerie shop. There's a lot to like about this book - great characters, interesting setting, and a smattering of vintage clothing talk if you like vintage. If you don't, it isn't overwhelming at all. The author has done a really nice job setting up an alternate reality a lot of readers will want to visit and get to know better.

Unfortunately, I found the mystery part of the story to be lacking. The killer was obvious to me from the very start, and the amateur sleuthing felt awkward and well, if you'll pardon my use of the word when talking about murder mysteries, unrealistic. I felt myself skimming quite a bit, but that could be because I had no doubt as to whodunnit.

Lastly, my very biggest pet peeve inside a book - the hugely antagonistic attitude of the investigating police detective. Someone Emma dumped back in the mists of high school, who has apparently not not let it go well into adulthood. Why am I expected to believe that *anyone* can be so outright antagonistic, rude, and, well, stupid - never mind someone in the professional capacity of investigating detective?!? It's the 21st century and in the real world, a detective that rude would be brought up for misconduct and I expect at least that much realism in my cozies. I do not want caricatures or cartoon characters in my mysteries, thankyouverymuch. The books saving grace was he wasn't around very much - otherwise this would have been a 2 star read for me.

I'll look for the next book, because the world the author has drawn is a good one that interests me. I look forward to seeing the mystery plotting improve and hope that the detective is the next victim.

[Jae · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finding her boyfriend has cheated on her, Emma leaves her fast-paced life in New York and returns home to Paris, TN to help her Aunt Arabella revamp her lingerie shop, called Sweet Nothings. When she learns that Arabella has amassed a collection of vintage lingerie, Emma encourages her to rebrand as a vintage shop. The renovations are going well, and Emma is enjoying spending time with family and friends, but her happiness is short-lived when Guy, her cheating boyfriend, shows up in a bid to win her back. Emma resolves to remain firm, but the choice to reconcile is taken from her hands when Guy is murdered in Sweet Nothings. Now the police and locals are looking at Emma. Needing to clear her name and salvage the reputation of the shop, Emma starts looking into the crime herself.

Although this contained a lot of cozy mystery tropes, it was an enjoyable story. Characters are portrayed well, and I really liked Arabella's feisty friend, Sylvia. I sussed out the killer rather quickly, but it was fun to read along and see how it all played out. I could have done without the jackass police officer, but at least he wasn't a romantic interest for Emma.

Fun story, four stars

[OpenBookSociety.com · Rating 2 out of 5]

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi

Emma Taylor finally achieved the life she always wanted in the bustling city of New York. She had her small overpriced apartment, a great job as a fashion stylist, and a hunky French boyfriend. She had it all until she found out that her boyfriend has been cheating on her; repeatedly!

Now Emma is back in Paris, Tennessee helping her Aunt Arabella resurrect her struggling lingerie shop, Sweet Nothings. Emma is catching up with old friends, including her best friend, Liz, and Liz’s handsome brother, Brian, who just happens to be available to help with the renovations!

Everything is going perfectly when Emma’s cheating ex-boyfriend, Guy, shows up to try and woo her back to him and New York! And, when Guy ends up murdered inside of Sweet Nothings after-hours, Emma becomes the prime suspect. With the small-minded police detective in charge of the investigation, Emma quickly realizes that the only way to clear her name is to figure out exactly who the murderer is.

I really wanted to like this novel, honest! But, I just….didn’t. I found the book to be pretty mundane and boring. I was all geared up for a murder mystery, but the murder in this story seemed to be in the background and the preparations for Sweet Nothing’s grand opening took center stage. Not to mention I knew who the murderer was almost as soon as they were introduced to the story; right about the time that Emma found out that this person had been on vacation the week of the murder.

I struggled for a long time trying to decide why I just didn’t like these characters and I finally figured it out; they have no depth! You learn about the characters. The book tells you what they look like, what they do, and what they eat and drink (constantly), but none of them had any kind of real back-story. I think the author tried to give a little bit of their past, such as Brian’s ex-fiancé, but it just wasn’t enough. I could not relate to the characters and found the interactions between them to be dull and lacking. The character that I found most interesting was the first one to be murdered and even he was pretty one-dimensional.

And, it’s never a good sign when a book details a secondary character’s love life more than the main character’s! I really felt that this story was all about the senior citizen dating scene with Arabella and her two suitors. I wanted something to happen between Emma and Brian and then he called her Amy, which made it pretty hard to swoon for him. I also kept thinking they were going to redeem Guy’s character by finding out he brought Nikki to town to model for Sweet Nothing’s website, but that didn’t happen so he just died a cheater.

I’m sure that there is somebody out there that this book would be perfect for, but sadly that person just isn’t me.

http://openbooksociety.com/article/mu...

[Fred · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder Unmentionable is the first book in the Sweet Nothings Lingerie Mystery series by Meg London. It could very well be a revealing series.

Emma Taylor has broken off her relationship with Guy Morgan and has returned to her hometown of Paris, TN to help her Aunt Arabella to renovate her lingerie shop, Sweet Nothings. As Emma and Brian, who manages the hardware across the street, are beginning to start the renovations in walks Guy wanting to patch things up with Emma. Emma has no intentions of picking back up with Guy, but does agree to have dinner with him. That evening, as she enters the restaurant, she sees him with Nikki, one of the reason she broke up with him in the first place. She promptly leaves without being seen. But the next morning Guy's body is found on the floor in Sweet Nothings with severe head trauma. Then when the police arrive and the detective, Chuck Reilly, is an old boyfriend that Emma dumped in high school. He is one to carry a grudge, so he would like to put Emma in jail and throw away the key.

So with the help of school days friend, Liz, and Brian they set out to find the killer.

The book is loaded with wonderful characters, that to varying degrees help with the sleuthing. There's Sylvia who used to be a bra-fitter at Macy's and totes along her oxygen tank while having her cigarettes. Angel who runs Angel Cuts, who just might be a suspect. Another possible suspect is Deidre Porter who has married into the wealthy Porter family and might be living beyond her means.

Of course I can't forget Aunt Arabella and the two men who are seeking her favor. Then there is Pierre, Aunt Arabella's French Bulldog, who is just adorable. I do think that Pierre needs to give Brian a butt bite to wake Brian up about showing a little more interesting Emma.

Definitely looking forward to the next book.

[LORI CASWELL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emma Taylor has returned to Paris, Tennessee to help her Aunt Arabella update her lingerie shop, Sweet Nothings. The big-city fashionista thought she knew want to expect but she never expected to find a dead body smack dab in the middle of the shop. That it was the body of her philandering ex didn't make the discovery any more "sweet". She would give anything to have absolutely "nothing" to do with his untimely appearance but she has become the #1 suspect.
It will take more than whispering a few sweet nothings in the right person ear to catch the killer and clear her name. A bullet proof bra may come in handy.

Dollycas's Thoughts
What a fun start to the new sweet mystery series!!

Emma has her hands full juggling the new store decor and merchandise, the grand opening fashion show, and trying to catch a killer. Plus there is that cute handyman around all day.

All the characters were engaging and entertaining. I was surprised by the character the quickly became my favorite. Sylvia enters the store pulling her oxygen tank behind her. A "very diminutive woman" with a "paisley scarf wrapped around her head, large hoops dangling for her drooping earlobes", leaving a recently extinguished cigarette out on the walk. She turned out to be a spitfire with a few hidden talents. She was quite inspirational too. We all need a Sylvia in our lives.

I solved the mystery early on but the author has brought us a to place we will want to visit again and again. This is a nice, light mystery to read on a relaxing afternoon. Cozy lovers will really enjoy this series debut and will be anxiously awaiting the next installment.

[Jeannie and Louis Rigod · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, I want to make this very clear, I really liked this book. This was a debut in a brand new series and yes, I knew who had done the dastardly deed very early on, however, the motive wasn't clear to me and I enjoyed the journey learning it.

The characters were happy and you know what? That was a great change that I wish more writers would take. Not everyone comes from an unhappy marriage, childhood, or adulthood. Although our newest sleuth, Emma Taylor comes back to her childhood home to help her Aunt Arabella, nursing a bruised heart, she focuses upon the positive and not 'oh woe is me.' In fact Emma becomes interested in her Aunt's burgeoning romantic life. It gives her hope and Emma is able to see a 'new' possible romance in her own life with Brian, the brother of her best friend, Liz.

Emma, very naturally also focuses upon Arabella's lingerie shop, as that is why she is in Paris, TN in the first place. I was tickled that the shop did well.

The murder was a shock and the characters showed that feeling. Emma enlists the aid of her friends and family to solve the crime. She is not a Pollyanna but has, perhaps, a naive outlook towards people.

I really look forward to Ms. London filling out her characters and what situations they will next find themselves in.

[Kaye · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emma Taylor returns to her hometown of Paris, Tennessee from her big-city life in New York, to help her aunt Arabella to update and renovate her lingerie boutique, Sweet Nothings. She doesn't plan on settling down in Paris, but looks at the experience as temporary. Her idea is to renovate the shop, and re-create Sweet Nothings into a vintage lingerie boutique. While she's busy reuniting with old friends and making some new ones, her philandering French ex-boyfriend breezes into town and promptly gets murdered, inside the shop. Well, of course that makes Emma the prime suspect.

I loved this book. Emma and her aunt were fun characters, however the cigarette-smoking, oxygen breathing, Sylvia stole the show. With gallons of sweet tea, vintage lingerie, delayed armoires, and murder,this book was fun to read.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emma Taylor goes back home to Paris Tennessee to help her Aunt Arabella update her vintage lingerie shop. Emma was employed in the fashion field in New York City. Her ex-boyfriend follows her to Tennessee in anticipation of her returning back to him and NYC. Instead Emma ends up being accused of his murder.

I liked the characters in the book. The town had interesting little shops with interesting owners. It felt a little over done mentioning Emma's face turning red so many times in the book. The book turned into a 3.5 star book for me because it was so obvious who the murderer was from the moment the character was introduced into the story. I rounded up to 4 stars rather than rounding down to 3 because it was a good cozy mystery with interesting characters and small town atmosphere. It also read fast and held my attention.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book! From the southern setting, where the sweet tea was overflowing, to the relationship between Emma and her aunt (and all of her aunt's love interests!), this was just a fun read that I had trouble putting down. Emma is revamping her aunt's lingerie shop and trying to make it new and exciting to everyone in town. She lives over the shop but is usually working or out and about seeing old friends. When someone from her past is found murdered in her aunt's shop she is the prime suspect! I guessed the killer early on but still enjoyed the ride- which says a lot for how fun this book really is. Read it!

[Vicky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am over halfway finished reading this book and get drawn out of the story with discrepencies. Ms. London gets away with several things that a good publisher should have caught. The "thinking" of the characters, the conversations, are very basic and kindergarten. The thinking of the author is ridiculous at times. I plan to finish the book today although I know the "who did it" because that is quite obvious.

Now that I am finished reading it.....yep! I was right and the entire ending totally predictable. I can't believe what gets past a publisher these days when there are so many talented authors striving to get in the market.

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just finished this book and although I liked the setting of the vintage lingerie shop, I found the writing could use some improvement. Besides knowing who did it early on in the book, I didn't have a good feel for the characters and their dialogue was too simple. There were also errors that I am surprised that didn't get fixed before publishing. However, I will probably read the next book and give the series a second chance.

[Lauren Salamon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although the story was charming I knew who the killer was the minute the character was introduced. I enjoyed the side stories of the town and shop enough that I'll probably try one more in the series to see if it is less predictable.

[Felicia's Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is exactly what a cozy mystery should be. A small town setting. A girl returning home and helping her family. A cheating ex. A hot handyman. Food. Iced sweet tea or lemonade. A pet. the list can go on and on. The characters are very likeable. I did figure out who the killer was early on, but it didn't deter me from reading the rest of the book. I liked Emma, Arabella, Silvia, Brian and all the other characters. This book was very cute and I enjoyed reading about all the vintage lingerie details. I will continue to read this series. I would love to see how Emma and Brian work out and seeing who Aunt Arabella picks as her beau.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt this book was okay, but it bothered me that Emma and Brian weren't a very active investing team. They didn't hunt for clues and they really didn't do any searching. And I didn't like Chuck, who was investigating the murder. Right away he blamed Emma because of they're past history. He was rude and annoying. He felt all the clues went right back to Emma.
Also, I'm surprised to say that I guessed who the killer was. Some things just didn't adds up, about this

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mystery with the setting of a lingerie shop. There are a couple of Murders of friends from Emma's past and the uncertainty of coming back home to help her Aunt Arabella with the shops. There are several suspects and the ultimate killer was a bit of a surprise.

[Sonja · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a delightful start to a new series!

[Caren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable but I figured it out early on.

[Alazz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too predictable and too cliche. Characters were just not that interesting to sustain a plot you could guess within the first twenty pages.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story.

[Tamera Glenn Devine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Figured out who the killer was immediately. Kinda boring.

[Karin · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book could not decide if it was a romance or a mystery. It did not succeed as either one.

[Christine (KizzieReads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it was interesting to find out the why, the who was obvious from the start. The author kept giving a lot of hints and dead giveaways as to who it was.

[Tambra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving this story, Fun fresh new story to read. I cant wait to read the next 2.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

[Moondance · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emma Taylor stifled a gasp as she pulled the garment out of the drawer at Sweet Nothings, her aunt's lingerie shop.

Emma has returned to Paris, Tennessee after breaking up with her philandering boyfriend to help her Aunt Arabella in her lingerie shop. Emma has ideas to update the shop and increase the amount of vintage garments that are sold. Her high school crush, Brian is also back in Paris running the local hardware. He is instrumental in the renovations of the shop. Emma's ex, Guy breezes into town to try to win her back. Unfortunately he still has a wandering eye (among other things) and Emma rebuffs him. Emma becomes the main suspect when Guy is found murdered in Sweet Nothings.

I really, really tried to enjoy this book. I have a rather large collection of vintage clothing from the 40s and 50s including some lingerie. That aspect of the story I enjoyed. The mystery was not much of a mystery as I figured out who the murderer was when introduced. The police detective really aggravated me with his pettiness from real or imagined slights from high school. I wanted to smack him and tell him to get over it! Emma's best friend, Liz and her brother Brian are good characters. I just wanted a little more from them. My very favorite character was Sylvia. Oh my word! A little slip (pun intended!) of a chain smoking, oxygen tank dragging woman that made me smile.

I have the next book in the series and may give it a try to see if things improve. A great premise that fell a little short for me.

[Sapphyria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Murder Unmentionable is the first book in a new cozy mystery series, A Sweet Nothings Lingerie Mystery, by Meg London. It takes place in small town Paris, Tennessee. I've actually been to Paris, TN several times and have seen where the Eiffel Tower replica is located - it looks neat at night, too!

Murder Unmentionable stars the following:
Emma Taylor
Aunt Arabella
Guy Richard
Liz
Brian O'Connell

Emma is from the small town of Paris, Tennessee and until the beginning of this novel, she was employed in the fashion industry is New York. She returns to Paris when her Aunt Arabelle needs help updating her lingerie shop. Her reason for leaving New York isn't entirely based on her Aunt; she is also nursing a broken heart. Her french boyfriend, Guy, has been cheating on her and Emma makes the discovery not long before her Aunt's request.

After arriving back in Paris, Emma gets reacquainted with everyone and everything, including her best friend, Liz (her brother is Brian).
Emma soon receives word from someone back in New York that Guy is on his way to Tennessee. Not at all happy about his intrusion into her life, Emma does what she can to stay calm and cool. When she finds him dead on the floor of the lingerie shop - now closed for renovations - all fingers point to her. It's now up to her, Aunt Arabella, and Brian, the hot owner of the hardware shop across the street (who just happens to be helping with the renovations), to figure out what's going on.

I must admit that I sort of figured out the "who-dun-it" part pretty early on. I wasn't 100% sure, but the idea was there. When the person was revealed it wasn't really a shock. However, I still found the book to be a fantastic read. The author does a great job with setting up the story and executing everything (including Guy), there just needed to be something else done about concealing the suspect a bit better.

I found Emma to be a very pleasant character. One would never really guess that she was in the high society world of New York fashion. Her attitude was not snobbish nor did she treat anyone she met with rudeness. To clarify ~ I'm sure not all fashionistas are snobs but any that I've met, seen, or know about are.

I had really hoped to see more of a spark between Emma and Brian's character in this book. It didn't have to become a full blown relationship - afterall, this is the first book - but I would have liked to see a bit more chemistry. There is a bit of back story lacking, too, but I found that regardless of the almost non-existent past, the author did well in building the characters from page one through the end of the book.

I will certainly be moving on to the next book. I'm curious to see if Emma and Brian build a relationship together. Plus, I can't wait to see what kind of trouble Emma and her Auntie get themselves into.

Review Copy Courtesy Of: My Local Library

[Mary Havlovic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I kept reading a mixed variety of reviews this book was receiving and decided I wanted to read it for myself. The story takes place in Paris TN and centers around a young woman named Emma Taylor who has been working in New York as stylist at Femme magazine. Her aunt Arabella owns a lingerie boutique called Sweet Nothings. Arabella has a French Bulldog named Pierre, who also comes to the boutique on a daily basis. Emma returns to Paris to help her aunt Arabella breathe new life into the boutique and also to escape a failed romance with her ex named Guy. Upon her return to Paris, Emma meets up with former classmate and best friend Liz and her "big" brother Brian, who has also returned home to help out in his father's hardware store. Chuck Reilly, local police officer and boy Emma briefly dated in high school was assigned to investigate the crime committed at the lingerie boutique and decides to make Emma's life miserable. While Emma is being blamed for the crimes, she decides to investigate on her own to see who the real murderer is. This story contains several characters who might have committed the crime for various reasons. I liked this book but was frustrated with it's ending. The crime is solved but it leaves one hanging as far as relationships are concerned. I don't want to elaborate as this could be a spoiler alert. I do believe this book is worth reading and I am looking forward to the next book to see how she further expands on her characters and what other crimes are committed.

[bella · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the first book in the Lingerie Mysteries by Meg London, Emma Taylor has returned to Paris, Tennessee to nurse a broken heart and also to help her Aunt Arabella with her lingerie store, Sweet Nothings. Emma is determined to use her skills as a stylist to breath new life into Sweet Nothings. However before she can put her plan into action her ex-boyfriend, Guy Richards, turns up to try and win her back. When Guy turns up dead inside her Aunt's store the local police force start pointing their fingers at Emma. With a fashion show to put on for Sweet Nothings' grand re-opening Emma has her hands full trying to pull it off and solve the murder as well.

I do love cozy mysteries and I read a lot of them. However the more I read of them the more I'm liking those that are a little unique. Murder Unmentionable grabbed me right away with the little town of Paris, with its own miniature Eiffel Tower.

Emma is a really upbeat sleuth and I liked her how she was determined not to take her sleazy ex-boyfriend back and get on with her life! She has such a positive attitude, even when faced with a police officer, who she used to date in high school and has never gotten over being dumped!!

There is a lot to love in this mystery, where small town does not equal dull. The mystery was jam-packed with intrigue, as Emma and her co-horts try to solve the mystery before Emma faces jail time.

I devoured Murder Unmentionable quickly (in less than 24 hours!!) and I can't wait to pick up the second book in the series, Laced with Poison.