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Shady Pines Mystery #1
SECRETS FROM THE PAST: A Shady Pines Mystery
A mysterious young woman arrives in the small town of Shady Pines to renovate a beautiful old bed and breakfast, but is that her only reason for coming?
Misty Raven is on a mission, but she soon gets distracted when a body is discovered buried in the backyard of the bed and breakfast she just purchased. Could it be related to a murder that happened in the house fifteen years ago? While Misty searches for answers, someone doesn't want the truth uncovered and tries to stop her. When two more people are murdered, Misty realizes that she'll be next if she doesn't keep one step ahead of the killer. Can she solve the mystery before it's too late?
Amazon review - "Such a good mystery!! I had no clue who the killer was until the very end. Can’t wait till the second book becomes available."
Amazon review - " Wonderfully written mystery that moves along with captivating action and intrigue!"
Amazon review - "This book was an awesome read. It left you wondering what was going to happen on every page. Looking forward to the next book in this series."
Misty Raven is on a mission, but she soon gets distracted when a body is discovered buried in the backyard of the bed and breakfast she just purchased. Could it be related to a murder that happened in the house fifteen years ago? While Misty searches for answers, someone doesn't want the truth uncovered and tries to stop her. When two more people are murdered, Misty realizes that she'll be next if she doesn't keep one step ahead of the killer. Can she solve the mystery before it's too late?
Amazon review - "Such a good mystery!! I had no clue who the killer was until the very end. Can’t wait till the second book becomes available."
Amazon review - " Wonderfully written mystery that moves along with captivating action and intrigue!"
Amazon review - "This book was an awesome read. It left you wondering what was going to happen on every page. Looking forward to the next book in this series."
- GenresMystery
280 pages, Paperback
First published December 8, 2021
485 people are currently reading
330 people want to read
About the author
Jenny Elaine
22 books105 followersOther than writing, I love to travel, spend time with my family (which includes my dog, Opie!), read a book, go on adventures, and eat boiled peanuts. If you've read my books, I truly hope you enjoyed them!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
November 21, 2023
Say hello to Misty Raven. She has no family or home, but she loves old houses, and her mission is to restore them to their former glory. When she starts restoring an old house in a small town the last thing, she thought she'd find is a dead body. She's not willing to leave with the work only half finished, so true to most book heroines, she starts looking into the history of the house. of course, we know that this would never happen in real life but between the covers of a book anything is possible, so we have our mystery solving heroine in Misty Raven. (Love her name:) As we would also suspect...someone doesn’t want her discovering anything. Anyone that likes a good mystery or likes cozy mysteries will love this book. There's no heavy blood and guts...just an old dead body and a young woman determined to find out how she became dead in this house. I prefer a bit more "blood and guts" in my mysteries, but I really liked Misty, I love old houses...isn't the one on the cover of this book beautiful? So, I gave these one 5 well-earned stars.
April 21, 2024
Stunningly entrancing
Found this author by a recommendation on Amazon. And I am so glad I did. What a great read! Such a great story that I have to buy more of her books. Murder\ mystery at it's best. You will not be disappointed reading this book.
Found this author by a recommendation on Amazon. And I am so glad I did. What a great read! Such a great story that I have to buy more of her books. Murder\ mystery at it's best. You will not be disappointed reading this book.
May 26, 2024
A WONDERFUL FAST PACED MYSTERY!!!!!
I Just couldn't stop reading this book once I Started it!!! It kept me guessing until the very end, AND I THOROUGHLY ENJOYED EVERY PAGE!!! IT IS A GREAT STORY!!!! This book has truly made me a fan of this author's Work and I intend to look for more of her books!!!! I am really hoping for another book with these characters That I have ENJOYED So Much!!! I TRULY WANT TO READ MORE ABOUT THE ORPHAN Misty Raven and her friend's Tori, Brice and even Officer Lewis !!! Wonderfully thrilling mystery with a great ending that makes me want to read more of this author's books!!!!!
I Just couldn't stop reading this book once I Started it!!! It kept me guessing until the very end, AND I THOROUGHLY ENJOYED EVERY PAGE!!! IT IS A GREAT STORY!!!! This book has truly made me a fan of this author's Work and I intend to look for more of her books!!!! I am really hoping for another book with these characters That I have ENJOYED So Much!!! I TRULY WANT TO READ MORE ABOUT THE ORPHAN Misty Raven and her friend's Tori, Brice and even Officer Lewis !!! Wonderfully thrilling mystery with a great ending that makes me want to read more of this author's books!!!!!
September 29, 2024
A Grown up Nancy Drew Mystery
Entertaining and easy to read. Enjoyable like a Nancy Drew mystery I couldn’t put down when I was younger! I am looking forward to reading the next book!
Entertaining and easy to read. Enjoyable like a Nancy Drew mystery I couldn’t put down when I was younger! I am looking forward to reading the next book!
May 15, 2022
Wonderful book
I loved this book. The flow kept me turning the pages. I kept trying to guess the culprit. There were plenty of twists and runs to keep you on your toes. Very well written. Bravo 👏.
I loved this book. The flow kept me turning the pages. I kept trying to guess the culprit. There were plenty of twists and runs to keep you on your toes. Very well written. Bravo 👏.
June 1, 2025
so you get this old house, you're going to restore it. then you find a dead body. you have the town talking. you are having attempts on your life. you are warned to stop messing with a 15 year old problem. it is believable with good storyline and interesting characters. a good book.
September 9, 2022
This is so good.
I enjoyed this book quite a bit. I liked the main characters. The mystery was very well written and very good.
I enjoyed this book quite a bit. I liked the main characters. The mystery was very well written and very good.
October 11, 2022
couldn’t put down
Five star mystery with twists and turns galore. The ending is so surprising and the the lead into the next book is mesmerizing. Great read
Five star mystery with twists and turns galore. The ending is so surprising and the the lead into the next book is mesmerizing. Great read
December 28, 2023
A quick cozy mystery read. Liked the cast of characters and plan to get the second book in the series.
May 26, 2024
Suspenseful
I absolutely loved this story. I love the characters, It's one of these where you don't know what's going to happen next. Misty is a little too bold for her own good but she is awesome as are her friends. I can't wait to read the rest of the series.
I absolutely loved this story. I love the characters, It's one of these where you don't know what's going to happen next. Misty is a little too bold for her own good but she is awesome as are her friends. I can't wait to read the rest of the series.
June 15, 2024
Everbody has Secrets
Guess she stays in Shady Pines, A great mystery that moves quickly. How will it end? Worth reading the next book. Romance plays a small part of this a
story. The end is just the beginning.
Guess she stays in Shady Pines, A great mystery that moves quickly. How will it end? Worth reading the next book. Romance plays a small part of this a
story. The end is just the beginning.
October 21, 2024
Bed n Breakfast?
How about a little mystery with the B n B? You've bought it and then discover someone died in you new Bed n Breakfast!
How about a little mystery with the B n B? You've bought it and then discover someone died in you new Bed n Breakfast!
October 17, 2025
I downloaded this book from my Kindle Unlimited account. I am so happy I did. It's a mystery , more of a cozy mystery than not. The setting is in a small town where it seems everybody knows each other. The main character , Misty Raven, moves into the town to restore a B&B and soon becomes an amateur sleuth. The book pulled me in from the beginning and because of that, I was able to finish t it all in one sitting, which doesn't happen too often. I like how the ending tied things up and ended with a cliffhanger and because of that I am ready for book #2 in the 4 book series.
July 28, 2024
Loved this book! Fast, fun, left you guessing and with just a hint of romance! Looking forward to reading the next one! Will definitely read more of Jenny’s work!
And as a dyslexic it was easy for me to follow! The type size and font was easy for me to read as well! 👏👏 thank you!!!
And as a dyslexic it was easy for me to follow! The type size and font was easy for me to read as well! 👏👏 thank you!!!
January 11, 2025
great book!!! finished in one day!
Wonderful! Kept me interested from page one!!! Must read! Hope there is a second one! Going to look now! Fingers crossed!
Wonderful! Kept me interested from page one!!! Must read! Hope there is a second one! Going to look now! Fingers crossed!
January 30, 2025
Good cozy mystery!
I enjoyed this book and found it well written with plenty of twists. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
I enjoyed this book and found it well written with plenty of twists. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
March 11, 2023
wonderful mystery
Small towns are charming. So are large Queen Anne style homes for bed and breakfasts. In her novel Secrets from the Past, Jenny Elaine, unravels a cold case murder in a small town where everyone knows everything about everyone. The shock waves are palpable. Also, there would not be an intriguing storyline without a subplot which reveals hidden secrets between main characters. Well written.
Small towns are charming. So are large Queen Anne style homes for bed and breakfasts. In her novel Secrets from the Past, Jenny Elaine, unravels a cold case murder in a small town where everyone knows everything about everyone. The shock waves are palpable. Also, there would not be an intriguing storyline without a subplot which reveals hidden secrets between main characters. Well written.
September 27, 2023
Loved this book. This is the first of her books I’ve read I’m now on to book #2
March 25, 2022
SECRETS FROM THE PAST: A Shady Pines Mystery by Jenny Elaine.
At the start of this book, I was not sure if this was part of a series or the beginning of a series. I was not as engaged with the story as I could have been as the story telling is just that; the story is told to the reader in very simple terms. All the right ingredients are there and yet for me the story is flat. Small town, newcomer, nosy neighbours, intrigue, some unsavoury characters, murder, mystery. Some of the mysteries are solved by the end of the book and if the book ended then it would have been a solid read with some mysteries remaining. But then the story continues and the book is finished almost mid sentence. The end. For me this is an OK read. 3 stars.
As an aside, it takes more than 1 day for 1 woman to clean a really large bed and breakfast house that has been empty for 15 years and is falling apart. It annoys me that renovating an old house is portrayed as being done in days rather than many months by 1 woman with the occasional help from some friends and contractors/trades people.
At the start of this book, I was not sure if this was part of a series or the beginning of a series. I was not as engaged with the story as I could have been as the story telling is just that; the story is told to the reader in very simple terms. All the right ingredients are there and yet for me the story is flat. Small town, newcomer, nosy neighbours, intrigue, some unsavoury characters, murder, mystery. Some of the mysteries are solved by the end of the book and if the book ended then it would have been a solid read with some mysteries remaining. But then the story continues and the book is finished almost mid sentence. The end. For me this is an OK read. 3 stars.
As an aside, it takes more than 1 day for 1 woman to clean a really large bed and breakfast house that has been empty for 15 years and is falling apart. It annoys me that renovating an old house is portrayed as being done in days rather than many months by 1 woman with the occasional help from some friends and contractors/trades people.
April 13, 2023
So I think we all know how I tend to get obsessed over books. (Keeper of the Lost Cities, An Outlaw’s Redemption, Inkheart to name a few.) Well this author reached out to me and sent me her book to review and I totally LOVE IT!!!!!!!!
This book is about Misty Raven, a girl with no family, no home but she is on a mission to renovate old houses. When she starts fixing up an old house in a small town the last thing she expects to find is a body… But now she is too far in to leave and starts looking into a past that someone doesn’t want her to discover. Can she solve the murder before it’s too late?…
This book was sooooooo good! The writing was well done, I loved the characters and romance! And of course I loved the mystery!!!! (Seriously this book is perfect for fans of Enola Holmes and Port Danby books) This is a great book for girls 12 and up. It is very clean, except for the murders, violence and dead people… So, if you don’t mind a few twists and turns this is a great book for you!!!
Now there is some violence. (Obviously) There is mention of blood, people dead, some murders, a skeleton and suicide. But nothing is grossly described, just mentioned like, “There was blood”. That’s it. (Told you! SUPER clean. Girls 12 and up could read this no problem. There is no adult stuff in it, just murder and awesomeness!!!!!)
Over all, I need the rest of the series now!!!! I am totally buying Ms. Elaine’s books. (She has some historical fiction ones too!!!!!) And I suggest you do the same. Have a sunny, book-filled day!!!! -The Young Llama Reader.
This book is about Misty Raven, a girl with no family, no home but she is on a mission to renovate old houses. When she starts fixing up an old house in a small town the last thing she expects to find is a body… But now she is too far in to leave and starts looking into a past that someone doesn’t want her to discover. Can she solve the murder before it’s too late?…
This book was sooooooo good! The writing was well done, I loved the characters and romance! And of course I loved the mystery!!!! (Seriously this book is perfect for fans of Enola Holmes and Port Danby books) This is a great book for girls 12 and up. It is very clean, except for the murders, violence and dead people… So, if you don’t mind a few twists and turns this is a great book for you!!!
Now there is some violence. (Obviously) There is mention of blood, people dead, some murders, a skeleton and suicide. But nothing is grossly described, just mentioned like, “There was blood”. That’s it. (Told you! SUPER clean. Girls 12 and up could read this no problem. There is no adult stuff in it, just murder and awesomeness!!!!!)
Over all, I need the rest of the series now!!!! I am totally buying Ms. Elaine’s books. (She has some historical fiction ones too!!!!!) And I suggest you do the same. Have a sunny, book-filled day!!!! -The Young Llama Reader.
February 9, 2025
This is a short-ish book with virtual voice.
Misty buys an old bed and breakfast to restore and resell. She is warned that it is haunted by the woman (Cora) who was murdered there long ago. There were also 3 girls who left notes and went missing (25 years ago) along with their Spanish teacher.
Misty grew up in the foster care system and was never adopted. She has never had many friends or sense of family.
She meets Bryce and his cousin Tori who she becomes friends with. She finds skeleton remains of Harry, Cora’s fiancé in her yard under a thorny bush she dug up. She starts asking a lot of questions around town. It looks like several men were involved with Cora before her death. So there are a lot of suspects. The sheriff is not helpful, and makes her feel like she is wasting his time.
She figures out it was Craig and he comes after her nearly killing her. Craig was some younger than Cora and their affair was a secret. But she beaks it off with Craig so he killed her.
Misty thinks she remembers a woman carrying her to a church in a nearby town. Could that be her mother? Was her mother the Spanish teacher who disappeared so long ago?
I’ll have to read the next one to see if I can find out!
Misty buys an old bed and breakfast to restore and resell. She is warned that it is haunted by the woman (Cora) who was murdered there long ago. There were also 3 girls who left notes and went missing (25 years ago) along with their Spanish teacher.
Misty grew up in the foster care system and was never adopted. She has never had many friends or sense of family.
She meets Bryce and his cousin Tori who she becomes friends with. She finds skeleton remains of Harry, Cora’s fiancé in her yard under a thorny bush she dug up. She starts asking a lot of questions around town. It looks like several men were involved with Cora before her death. So there are a lot of suspects. The sheriff is not helpful, and makes her feel like she is wasting his time.
She figures out it was Craig and he comes after her nearly killing her. Craig was some younger than Cora and their affair was a secret. But she beaks it off with Craig so he killed her.
Misty thinks she remembers a woman carrying her to a church in a nearby town. Could that be her mother? Was her mother the Spanish teacher who disappeared so long ago?
I’ll have to read the next one to see if I can find out!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 10, 2022
So Good!!
This was a very good murder mystery!! Captivating storyline, interesting characters, and a run-down old Victorian house. I read this in several hours as I wanted to find out "who done" it and if Misty would solve the mystery of who her mother was. Lo and behold, the book ended, leaving me up in the air.... Now I'm going to have to buy the next book!! LOL
This was a very good murder mystery!! Captivating storyline, interesting characters, and a run-down old Victorian house. I read this in several hours as I wanted to find out "who done" it and if Misty would solve the mystery of who her mother was. Lo and behold, the book ended, leaving me up in the air.... Now I'm going to have to buy the next book!! LOL
November 20, 2024
Misty buys a run down empty house where a woman died 15 years previously. In the process of renovating she uncovers a buried body in the back yard. Are the two deaths related - murder and/or suicide? Someone doesn't want her to live in the house and her asking questions around town get her into trouble. There are some tense moments and Misty has a mission not related to the house. Her rescue dog Wally is sweet. This is the first book in the series.
September 22, 2022
Secrets from the Past
This book had mystery and plenty of action. You did not know who was the murderer till the end. I like the characters. It has light romance. I look for to the next book in the series.
This book had mystery and plenty of action. You did not know who was the murderer till the end. I like the characters. It has light romance. I look for to the next book in the series.
December 10, 2023
Great story
This book has such wonderful characters. It also has unexpected twists and turns. I am excited to start the next book in the series.
This book has such wonderful characters. It also has unexpected twists and turns. I am excited to start the next book in the series.
April 13, 2024
Great read
This book holds your attention til the end. Was late getting to bed as I had to finish the book before I could sleep. Well worth the read!
This book holds your attention til the end. Was late getting to bed as I had to finish the book before I could sleep. Well worth the read!
April 30, 2024
Good, quick mystery. Looking forward to the 2nd book.
February 16, 2025
Welcome to Shady Pines
I enjoyed this suspenseful murder mystery - I finished reading in one day!
Misty Raven has a hidden agenda but gets caught up into a small town’s murder mysteries surrounding the death of Cora that happened 15 years ago. It feels like all the murders are not being investigated properly. Misty is asking all the right questions but everyone has secrets. A bunch of coverups. I was caught off guard at the conclusion in book one - more like stunned!
🤔Misty’s earlier life is tragic leading into book 2 - Lost in the Past. I am ready to see what happened to Misty’s mom and why? What is her real name? Does anyone want to kill Misty now and why? Starting book 2 ☺️
I enjoyed this suspenseful murder mystery - I finished reading in one day!
Misty Raven has a hidden agenda but gets caught up into a small town’s murder mysteries surrounding the death of Cora that happened 15 years ago. It feels like all the murders are not being investigated properly. Misty is asking all the right questions but everyone has secrets. A bunch of coverups. I was caught off guard at the conclusion in book one - more like stunned!
🤔Misty’s earlier life is tragic leading into book 2 - Lost in the Past. I am ready to see what happened to Misty’s mom and why? What is her real name? Does anyone want to kill Misty now and why? Starting book 2 ☺️
March 21, 2026
Secrets From the Past
I liked the story. The premise was good. There were too many male characters and it made it a little confusing. It was distracting at times. Overall, the story is really good, it kept me interested.
I liked the story. The premise was good. There were too many male characters and it made it a little confusing. It was distracting at times. Overall, the story is really good, it kept me interested.
May 7, 2025
A cute little small town mystery! Didn't realize it was a series of books. I'm not sure if liked it enough to continue on with the rest but we'll see!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews