Murder at Harmony Crystals: A Marnie Devlin Cozy Mystery

by Sloane Foster, Barbara Boguski (Editor), Mariia Uvarova (Illustrator)

When crystals can't protect you from cold-blooded murder...

Marnie Devlin traded lesson plans for vintage lace when she opened Willow Whispers Boutique in charming Willow Springs, Missouri. But her keen eye for what people aren't saying—honed over decades in the classroom—draws her into darkness when the town's notorious blogger collapses at a new age shop's grand opening.

Her nine-pound Chihuahua, Taco, has a nose for trouble and a talent for finding evidence the police miss. When he uncovers a suspicious vial at the crime scene, Marnie realizes this was no accident.

The local pharmacist turns pale when questioned about his inventory. The pastor's wife can't hide her panic at the sight of a tarot card. Both had reason to want the victim silenced.

As Marnie digs deeper, she unearths a decade-old secret someone has already killed twice to protect—and they won't hesitate to make her the third.

303 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 23, 2025

Reviews

[Lynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marnie was busy running her antique clothing store when Martin the town troublemaker came in and started on her about taking advantage of people to get the vintage clothing. He was an equal opportunity evil blogger as he went after everyone's shops in their small town. Harmony Crystals is the new age store that was having its grand opening and everyone was there. Martin had some of the tea and fell dead. That's when Marnie, Ruby, Will, and Taco got busy and found the clues to figure out the culprit in their story. Great story!
I received an arc and this is my review.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this near midnight, bad mistake.
Thinking this would be a cozy that I could put down and pick up again the next day, I quickly got so engrossed in the small town gossip, politics and mayhem that it was nearly morning before I finished it.
And finishing it made me look for more about Willow Springs and former teacher turned vintage clothes and accessories shop owner. Retired doctor, scaled down investigative reporter, and a very well connected to the "locals" shop assistant rounded out her team.
Such a picture of small towns.
If you hadn't graduated from the local high school (twenty or more years ago), you were a newcomer.
Plot twists and scary revelations abound.
I highly recommend this book, but beware, don't start it at midnight.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder at Harmony Crystal was a wonderful story of past and present events that haunt the town and end in murder. A car accident that killed two people comes into play when their son is murdered. This was a nice mix of small town and excitement in this book. It had very likeable characters each with their own quirks and curiosities. It was an enjoyable and exciting read.

This was an unbiased review of an ARC read.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great read. It's hard to put down. Marnie has opened her store
in Willow Springs. She has spent most of her life as a school teacher and
can read people very well. She gets drawn into the darkness existing in
people's lies when the town's notorious blogger is found dead. With the
help of her Chihuahhua Taco she has to find the killer before anyone esle ends
up dead.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary ARC provided by Bookfunnel

[Emily Phelps · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars - A new author to me; I found the writing style and characters made this an easy and quick read! It is a wonderful story of past and present events that haunt the town and end in a couple of murders and Marnie and Taco, her Chihuahua, are on the case. I liked the other main characters, Will and Ruby.I also appreciated that Marnie is older with life experience behind her. It makes her sleuthing and detective skills more believable. Having been a high school teacher, she has the ability to read people well. I really enjoyed this and look forward to more of Marnie and Taco

[G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great cozy mystery in this series (they can be read standalone). Wonderful characters, a bit of small town quirkiness and nosiness, and a storyline that will keep you guessing along. Wonderfully written, this book will make you smile while you are figuring out the mystery.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cherie Melbourne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new author to me and I found the writing style and characters made this an easy read, when I had to put the story down to get some chores done, I easily picked up from where I let off.
The cast of characters were interesting with a couple rather amusing, I did feel the end tended to go on a little too long, especially if there is going to be more stories to this series.
I'll gladly read more from this author when I want something relative light.
I received a free advance review copy and I am voluntarily leaving my honest review.

[dale s nomura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

Just finished Murder at Harmony Crystals. Loved it. Great characters and Taco is the best. Can’t wait for their next adventure.