My Readers Guide to the Marigold Cottages Murder Collective will have my quick take, a character list, spoilers and the ending explained. Let’s discuss this very fun cozy mystery book!
Readers Guide to the Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
Table of Contents:
- Jen’s Quick Take on The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
- Character Guide for The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
- Spoilers and the ending explained for The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
Jen’s Quick Take on The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
- The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective is a perfect fit for fans of The Thursday Murder Club and Only Murders in the Building.
- It also reminded me a bit of Freya Sampson, if you know her books.
- The residents of a cottage colony in beautiful Santa Barbara, California are shocked when a dead man turns up in the garden of their property.
- They are a diverse bunch in age and background, including the elderly proprietress, a single mom, a divorced workaholic, an agoraphobic, and a twenty-something suffering from PTSD.
- They finally come together as the murder and an aggressive property developer threaten their little community.
- This book is a gently comic cozy with low gore and a closed door romance.
- Publication date: August 19, 2025
- Thanks to Minotaur Books for the advance copy
Character Guide for The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
Residents of the Marigold Cottages Murder Collective
- Golda “Mrs B” Bakofsky: caftan-wearing owner of the Marigold Cottages
- Nicholas Perez: works for the city planning department
- Laurence Hamilton: agoraphobic
- Lily-Ann Novak: separated workaholic
- Sophie Gilman: dropped out of college after a stalking incident
- Ocean Mistral: single mom
- Riley and Miles: Ocean’s kids
- Anthony Lambert: prison record; works as a dishwasher
Other Characters:
- Sergeant Vernon Enible: detective assigned to the case
- Neil Hesse: Sophie stalker
- James Dedrick: a local real estate investor.
- Piotr Novak: Lily-Ann’s estranged husband
- Gregory Ybarra: rich property owner in the neighborhood
Spoilers for The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective and the Ending Explained
There are three murders (or attempted murders) at the Marigold Cottages:
- First victim: James Dedrick was hit over the head from behind (dead)
- Anthony is arrested for his murder, and then Mrs. B confesses to the murder
- Second victim: Lily-Ann is attacked by a masked man she thinks is her husband Piotr
- Third victim: Gregory Ibarra is hit over the head with a golf club
The MCMC solution that the MCMC gave the police:
- Piotr was in financial trouble and wanted to kill Lily-Ann before she divorced him. They had a prenup and he would only inherit her money if she died while they were married.
- Piotr’s plan was to frame Anthony for LIly-Ann’s murder
- James Dedrick came to the cottages to meet with Ybarra and discuss developing the property. James saw Piotr lurking outside the bushes. Piotr panicked and killed him.
- Ybarra witnessed the first murder and tried to blackmail Piotr, who killed Ybarra with a golf club which he brought. In the confusion he grabbed Ybarra’s club.
What really happened:
- James Dedrick saw a very drunk Sophie stumbling home to her cottage. He was going to attack her, but Mrs. B hit him over the head with a knobkerrie (an African club).
- She meant to just scare him off and didn’t know he was dead until the next morning when Sophie found the body.
- Gregory Ybarra witnesses the murder and tried to blackmail Mrs. B.
- When Anthony was arrested, Mrs. B confessed.
- Ybarra showed the murder video to Nicholas and blackmailed him into signing over the cottages to Ybarra after he inherited them from Mrs. B. (Nicholas was set to inherit in her will as he was the child her late husband had through an affair.)
- Ybarra then told Mrs. B that she would die in prison, as he was taking the video to the police.
- Anthony grabbed the golf club that Ybarra carried around to scare off dogs, and hit him over the head. Lily-Ann and Anthony smeared Ybarra’s blood on one of Piotr’s clubs and switched Ybarra’s club Piotr’s which had his fingerprints on it.
Qeustions? Think I got something wrong? Tell me in the comments!