Busybodies: There’s a Mystery Around Every Corner

Busybodies: There’s a Mystery Around Every Corner is the collected omnibus of Busybodies 1-6. Released 15th Oct 2024 by Amazon Stories, it's 206 pages and is available in audio and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

This is a mixed bag of mystery stories written around "nosey" amateur sleuths solving crimes which pop up in their orbits. The stories vary in intensity, but all are lightly humorous, and all are more or less in the cozy subgenre. There are several collections with different themes (secrets/mysteries, thrillers, adventure/fantasy, etc). All are available free to prime/unlimited subscribers and all can be downloaded as singles or collections. 

In both graphics and layout, these collections are more colorful than expected, with each new story delineated with a full color cover page with cover art. The interactive table of contents is handy for flipping back and forth without having to read from cover to cover in order.

The audiobook narration contains 6 different story narrators, and the sound and production quality are high throughout. 

The stories themselves are a mixed bag. Several of them are by authors with massive followings, and a couple were less familiar. All were well written and enjoyable. For readers looking to test out new authors, this is an accessible and easy way to do that without committing to a full novel.

Four stars. Diverting and fun. (And really, that's the point!).

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.