Listen, Do You Want to Know a Secret: A Swinging Sixties Mystery

by Teresa Trent

Everyone has a secret, and in 1964, Dot Morgan’s new job at KDUD Radio is filled with them. Her boss, Holden Ramsey, is a terrible flirt, but he’s also engaged to a beautiful socialite. When Dot finds out he’s hiding involvements with other women, these secrets lead to a grisly murder. Can Dot figure out who is murdering the women in Holden’s life before she finds herself next on the hit parade?

Genres: Mystery

227 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 2, 2024

About the author

Teresa Trent is a writer and the voice of the Books to the Ceiling podcast. Her book series include The Swinging Sixties, The Pecan Bayou and Piney Woods Mysteries.
You can also visit her blog Books to the Ceiling or follow her podcast Books to the Ceiling on Facebook.

Reviews

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to thank NetGalley, Teresa Trent and Level Best Books for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

3,5⭐ - I love reading mysteries, especially cozy mysteries. Another thing that peaked my interest was the colorful cover, which is very retro.

I found this a very cozy read, with likeable characters based in the sixties although the author writes about sexism/racism during that time, I felt that the mystery part was a little lacking.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute addition to the series. Dot still is a little brusque in her investigation method and I’m not really sure why anyone answers her questions; she really has no authority. I really liked the glimpse into the radio station and recording industry. The description of race relations at the time added a little heft to the story. The budding relationship with Ben took an interesting turn and I look forward to see how that develops.

I received a copy from #NetGalley and #LevelBestBooks for an honest review.

[Katie K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. I liked the references to the 60s era and the ambience that was created. It was a very easy read, and kept me fairly engaged throughout. Pretty straight forward and predictable in some spots, but overall a cute cozy mystery. Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. ⭐⭐⭐✨

[Shan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many thanks to Level Best books for this giveaway copy.
This is the 3rd in a series (Swinging Sixties Mystery) but I read it as a stand alone. No confusion in not reading the other ones. I love when that happens!
This book surrounds a radio station in the 1960's. There are some hints (not enough to be considered significant) around race in this book. I really wish there would have been more historic stuff from that era in this book. But it kept the book short and sweet. Dot is kind of a ditz and I don't understand why characters spill their guts to her but she is a sweet little detective for this type of book.
It was a quick read and just a cozy little mystery. I didn't try too hard to figure out the perpetrator so that made it a pretty enjoyable, pick this book up to read at night before bed, kind of book.
Throw this one in the beach bag or grab for the car/plane ride. You won't regret it. Easy enough.

[Kacee Cavazos · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a mystery set in the 1960’s following Dot who works at a radio station.

The premise of this book really intrigued me. I liked the concept of a mystery surrounding a 1960’s radio station and I really enjoyed all of the music references from that time period. This story had a strong start but unfortunately fell a little flat for me and it was hard for me to fully get into.

The writing was also a little bit disjointed at times but ultimately I just had trouble connecting to the main character. I do feel like someone who is really into 60s music and mysteries set in that time period might enjoy this one but it just wasn’t for me.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an eArc in exchange for an honest review*

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is a trip down memory lane. This book in the series focuses on music. So many song titles and artist names bring back wonderful memories. Trent also brings out some of the cultural issues of the day, such as the difficulty Blacks experienced in getting recording contracts. They also faced prejudice like being accused of a crime when there was no evidence. There is also quite a bit about weddings and preparing for one in this novel. Who doesn't remember punch made from 7-Up and lime sherbet?

There is a murder but it really takes a back seat to the romance issues of Dot, her friends and her boss. It is a good novel for readers who would like to be immersed in the radio station and recording scene of 1964 as there is not much of an emphasis on solving the murder. There is a little suspense near the end.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book through Partners in Crime Book Tours. My comments are an independent and honest review.

[Rudrashree Makwana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such an interesting read. The characters were interesting and mysterious. Everyone was harbouring a secret. The mystery kept me at the edge. The writing is flawless. Love the 1960s setting. Every character had a purpose in this book.

Dot Morgan lands a job at KDUD Radio. Holden Ramsey is her boss and engaged to a socialite. Dot becomes suspicious of his involvement with women and she try to find out the truth , the secrets unveils with the truth. Holden Ramsey and his family were so mysterious. You can expect grisly murder and buried past. While, to solve one murder, the truth from the past also unveils. The ending was unpredictable and unexpected.

Many Thanks to the Author & Publisher

[Nanette Fandino-Diaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book brings the culture of the 1960s to life with the mention of American Bandstand, the Beatles playing the Ed Sullivan Show, and the sexism and racism of the time. The author provides a sneak peek into life at a radio station and the music recording industry.

When a murder happens Dot becomes an unlikely investigator with questioning methods that lack any polish. The author developed likeable and colorful characters that one can relate to. This is the third book in the series but can easily be read as a standalone novel.

[HippieWitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take it back to the good ole oldies. Highly recommend

[Jody Reads Smut · Rating 4 out of 5]

In "Listen, Do You Want to Know a Secret" Dot has a new job at the KDUD Radio station, her boss Holden Ramsey, is a terrible flirt, but he’s also engaged to a beautiful socialite. When Dot finds out he’s hiding involvements with other women, these secrets lead to a grisly murder.

I enjoyed Trent's second book in the Swinging Sixties Mystery series "If I Had A Hammer". I loved going back to the '60s again, Trent completely immerses you within that era of history. I was very much impressed by the writing and the characters of this story. The reader will find a lot of mayhem and murder to keep themselves amused throughout, plus a little bit of amateur sleuthing and mystery-solving. This was an interesting and yet fascinating read, hence, I would recommend it to all mystery lovers!

Thank you to Partners In Crime Book Tours, and the author for allowing me to read and review this book.

[Mamadukes · Rating 5 out of 5]

DOT CAN’T CATCHA BREAK!
LISTEN, DO YOU WANT TO KNOW A SECRET by Teresa Trent is BOOK 3 in the Swinging Sixties Mystery Series and it seems that everyone is hiding something!

It’s 1964 and Dot Morgan lands a job at KDUD radio. Her boss, Holden Ramsey is a huge flirt who plays terrible music, is a HUGE Mama’s boy, is engaged to socialite Magnolia Daniels but continues his flirting ways with his newest hire, who also learns that there are other women in Holden’s life. One of the other DJs, Gerald Watson, has some back door secrets of his own Dot lives with her cousin, Ellie Monroe, who is a wedding dress designer and engaged to her betrothed, Al, Dot believes she has a great relationship with her boyfriend, Ben Dalton who works at the small paper in Camden, Texas but aspires to move to a newspaper with a higher readership. When he gets his big chance, will he take it? Dot has also recently discovered that her mother is writing a steamy romance novel with her father being none the wiser. And local resident, Joyce Bishop has loudly and repeatedly claimed that Holden murdered his former fiancé. It’s not a big secret, she’s just very persistent and very loud. She’ll tell anyone who’ll listen. With all of these people hiding so many things, is it any wonder that Dot feels like the repository of all things kept under wraps?

When a violent crime takes place, should Dot tell SOMEONE all/anything of what she knows? Or should she just let the cops figure things out on their own?

As stated, this is Book 3 in the series but with the trip down memory lane and the nostalgia it invoked, it was a trip I thoroughly enjoyed. I can’t wait to go back and read the first two.

Thank you to Netgalley and Level Best Books for this ARC opportunity. All opinions are my own and given voluntarily.

[pawsreadrepeat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you Teresa Trent and Partners In Crime Tours. I'm excited to be a part of this tour.

I enjoyed the second book in this series “If I had a Hammer” so much that I jumped at the chance to read the third book. In “Listen, Do You Want to Know a Secret”, Dot has a new job at KDUD Radio, and everyone has a secret. Her boss, Holden Ramsey, is a terrible flirt and he’s engaged to a socialite. When Dot figures out, he’s hiding his ladies on the side, these secrets lead to a grisly murder. Can Dot figure who is murdering the women in Holden’s life before she finds herself the next target.

I thoroughly enjoy Teresa’s Swing Sixties series. This book takes us back to 1964 and the author does an excellent job of plunging the reader into the nostalgia of the era and by bringing the culture to life through words. I continue to be impressed with the characters and their development.

I was hooked from the beginning. Dot is one of my favorite characters and the dynamics with the supporting characters kept me engaged and rolling on the floor with laughter - ok, maybe not really – though I did find myself catching odd glances as I read this in my favorite coffee shop. Additionally, Dot et al’s. amateur sleuthing kept me turning the pages late into the night. This book is a quick read and is a fun cozy mystery.

Overall, this book had it all – mayhem, murder, and mystery – weaved together to create another intriguing story. I look forward to reading more from this author and will be anxiously awaiting book 4!

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice little mystery .. not too complex but it does a good job portraying the 1960s. Dot makes an interesting character and it ends with a promise of more adventures for her.
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway for this honest review.

[Daniella · Rating 2 out of 5]

Simple story set in the sixties with no subtext.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this to be an enjoyable read.

[Louis R. Conklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great read! I enjoyed the characters and how they handled the difficulties of the 60's. Their desire to make their little town a better place to live made me smile and feel hopeful!. Keep up the good work, I look forward to another good read! Mary

[June Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I last visited Dot in Texas, she was just beginning her life as an adult. She wasn't having an easy time of it, either, not quite feeling like she was ready to take on the world but yearning to do so. Dot has grown up a bit since then. While she's still the uncertain, cautious person she was, she has both a boyfriend and a job. Even better, at a time when the Beatles were bursting on the scene and changing the music world, she's working at a radio station. Now, true, she's the receptionist and has little say over anything, let alone the music choices of the station. Station manager Holden Ramsey clings to the past, playing Perry Como and Sinatra type music, the type his mother likes. Not that it isn't good music. It just wasn't what a young audience was yearning to hear. Dot takes song requests over the phone and tries to get "modern" music played but, well, her uncertainty and caution, not to mention fear of losing her job, still guide her when it comes to making waves. Let's just say, the station isn't budging.

On the romance level, while Dot enjoys having a boyfriend, she's also cautious and reluctant to rock the status quo. As a result, she pretty much has come to just expect boyfriend Ben to be there, nice and safe, no changes in their relationship. Then, things happen. A grisly murder connected to the Holden allows fledgling crime reporter Ben to write a story for the local paper that gains the attention of a big Dallas paper. Will Dot's bad fortune, the potential closing of the radio station and loss of her job, lead to a major break in Ben's career? It looks like things may be over between Dot and Ben when he's offered a job at the better known paper. How will Dot, who remains naive about, uh, let's call it romance in general, deal with this upheaval.

Equally stressful, will Dot be able to sort out who murdered the Holden's ex-girlfriend? She'd been creating scenes everywhere, accusing him of murdering a former girlfriend. People dining heard the commotion, so it's inevitable he'd be the focus of investigation. Much to Dot's amazement, she finds herself being attracted to the man, even knowing he's engaged. Oh, the roller-coaster emotions of attraction. In the meantime, she's dealing with being a substitute maid-of-honor for the Holden's bride-to-be, talk about awkward, being stunned to discover her mother's ambitious, rather startling project, and even filling in without notice as radio DJ. Oh, and meeting Ray Charles. That's a whole other story within the book.

Bottom line, lots going on here, from name dropping of musical artists, viewing the Beatles on the Sullivan Show, doing her mostly mindless job, to suddenly finding herself behind the microphone. All this while, amazingly enough, coping with the upheaval of her romantic life and the discovery of another side of her mother. Oh, boy, yeah. The '60s were definitely an era of change and upheaval for many, including Dot. I liked her, of course, even while rolling my eyes at her, wondering if I was ever that naive. Nah, surely not. Well, maybe. Big changes coming her way. Dot makes me want to hug her and tell her everything will be okay, quickly reminding her only if she manages to steer clear of murderous souls from now on. Is that likely? Nah, unlikely. She may be naive but she's curious and smart, not one to pretend something isn't happening. Thanks #NetGalley and #IBPA - #IndependentBookPublishersAssociation for inviting me back to Texas for a sneak peek at what's going on in Dot's world. Sorta like taking a time machine back to the 1960's, albeit a murderous one. Great music, though!

[Maude St-Pierre · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book as an ARC from NetGalley. The book moved along swiftly which I appreciated, but it was not focused on the mystery part of it all enough. I am used to immersive thrillers and mysteries where the mystery is the only thing followed in the book. With the multiple relationship dramas, I kind of lost the whole mystery point of the book. I loved the music element and being constantly brought back to that era. I also found that the story ended with some loose ends, which I would've preferred them all tied up.

[Karen Siddall · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engaging main character and a unique 1960s setting set this historical cozy apart.

Listen, Do You Want to Know a Secret is the third book in author Teresa Trent’s fun and addictive Swinging Sixties Mystery historical cozy series, and I was delighted to catch back up with Dot and the rest of her crowd. From its engaging characters and nostalgic, evocative setting, I was once again swept back in time.

The main character, Dot Morgan, is a bright young spark, fresh out of secretarial school and trying to find her place in life. Although conforming to the ideals of the times, those times are a-changing, as they say, and Dot is poised to go with the best of these intentions. Besides the murder mystery, the story features the state of evolving race relations, and Dot shows what I felt was an uncharacteristic naivete (for her) of the state of affairs in her small town of Camden, Texas. Not that it wasn’t impossible, though, as there were a lot of heads in the sand still at this juncture, but I just felt Dot seemed to be more aware. Dot is employed at one of the two radio stations in town, and the author is able to draw upon the transitioning music industry and the pop cultural phenomenon of The Beatles to complete the authentic “look and feel” of the time period. I laughed about the DJ from the rival station repeatedly pranking her by phone when he was on the air but quickly got annoyed on her behalf! Still, I found myself smiling over the well-drawn ambiance of the time and thoroughly enjoyed this new story from its beginning to the final reveal.

I recommend LISTEN, DO YOU WANT TO KNOW A SECRET to cozy mystery readers who enjoy a more recent but still historical setting.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.

[Susan McAulay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This was a whodunit that did keep me guessing until the end. I really enjoyed the historical aspect of the setting of this novel, in the 1960's with modern music as the "backdrop." I would have liked to have seen more made of it. Toward the end, the music became more of a theme, with the battle between the current music and the music of yesteryear, but it was not as prominent at the beginning.
It was a quick read and the characters were compelling, though I would have liked a little more showing versus telling with the main character. However, the book was an enjoyable read.

The one thing that most likely made this a three star versus a four star book for me was that the book did not seem to know what it wanted to be. It seems to promote itself as a cozy mystery. On the other hand, it raised issues of race and civil rights. I think that either it should have been a cozy mystery without raising those issues or there should have been more made of them, which would have been my preference because I read plenty of cozy mysteries but not many that take place in this era and it affecting the story. There was more made of it at the end and it was mentioned at other points in the book but given that this was in Texas in the 1960s, it needed to be woven more into the book.

[Mark Baker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dot Morgan has been the secretary at a local radio station for several months. She enjoys the job, although she’d be happier if they played top ten hits like the Beatles instead of the old crooners. Then one day, a strange woman comes in and accuses Dot’s boss of killing his first wife. When that woman is murdered a couple of days later, Dot can’t help but wonder if it was true. Can she find the truth?

This sounded like an intriguing mystery, and I enjoyed the first two, so I was looking forward to reading this one. Sadly, it disappointed. The mystery was very underdeveloped, and the climax just left me with a new question. Instead, the book felt more like a soap opera, focusing on the love lives of the characters, both series regulars and new. While I did like the sub-plots involving returning characters, the other storylines didn’t really interest me. Meanwhile, we also got some lectures on how things were at the time. A little bit would have been appropriate, but it got to be too much. In the end, unless you are a diehard fan of the series, I recommend you skip this one.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ebook copy of this 'Swinging Sixties' installment!

This was a fun mystery set in a year which I have studied a LOT: 1964. What first drew me to this book is the fact that the title is taken from a Beatles song. Everyone who knows me is overly aware of my intense Beatlemania, so I'm sure that it comes as no surprise that I wanted to dive into this story. Although I have not read the previous two books in Trent's series, I had no difficulty with the storyline or characters.

I quite enjoyed my time within these pages. It was often cheesy, but hey, sometimes that is exactly what you need! I will be checking out the rest of Trent's works!

[Theresa Petty · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a bit of a “cozy mystery” set in the 1960’s
It wasn’t really my jam. The plot was interesting, but the delivery lacked. I’m sure I didn’t love it because I don’t normally read this type of writing style.
The dialogue and description were a bit naive. The characters were fun though.
Either way I give this book 2.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC