Murder at Gulls Nest: A Novel

by Jess Kidd

Overview

From Jess Kidd, the bestselling author of Things in Jars who “is so good it isn’t fair” (Erika Swyler, nationally bestselling author), the first in a cozy mystery series about a former nun who searches for answers in a small seaside town after her pen pal mysteriously disappears.

I believe every one of us at Gulls Nest is concealing some kind of secret.

1954: When her former novice’s dependable letters stop, Nora Breen asks to be released from her vows. Haunted by a line in Frieda’s letter, Nora arrives at Gulls Nest, a charming hotel in Gore-on-Sea in Kent.

A seaside town, a place of fresh air and relaxed constraints, is the perfect place for a new start. Nora hides her identity and pries into the lives of her fellow guests. But when a series of bizarre murders rattles the occupants of Gulls Nest it’s time to ask if a dark past can ever really be left behind.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781668034057
Publisher:	Atria Books
Publication date:	04/08/2025
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

Jess Kidd is the award-winning author of Murder at Gulls Nest, The Night Ship, Himself, Mr. Flood’s Last Resort, and Things in Jars. Learn more at JessKidd.com.

Editorial Reviews

02/10/2025

Kidd (The Next Ship) pivots to cozies with this delightful series launch about a nun who forsakes her vows to search for a former novice. In 1954, Sister Nora Breen’s friend and former trainee, Frieda Brogan, abruptly stops sending her letters. Frieda’s last known address is the Gulls Nest, a forlorn boarding house in the English town of Gore-on-Sea, and a frightened Nora asks to be released from her monastery after 30 years to track Frieda down. Nora takes a room at the Gulls Nest, ingratiates herself with its ragtag collection of boarders, and soon realizes she’s not the only one concealing a secret past. As she starts to dig into Frieda’s stay there, other boarders begin to die under unusual circumstances, making her wonder whether Frieda might have met a similar fate. At first a thorn in the side of Detective Inspector Rideout, who’s assigned to investigate the deaths, the intelligent and outspoken Nora gradually gains the policeman’s respect. Elegant prose, vivid characterizations, and a fascinating protagonist add up to a thoroughly enjoyable mystery. Readers will be eager for the sequel. Agent: Amelia Atlas, CAA. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Kidd’s turn to cozy mysteries after several genre-stretching novels is a welcome one that tantalizes the prospect of more installments. As Nora adroitly observes, “There’s work to be done and deductions to be made.” —The New York Times Book Review

"Elegant prose, vivid characterizations, and a fascinating protagonist add up to a thoroughly enjoyable mystery. Readers will be eager for the sequel." —Publishers Weekly

"It’s a pleasure to watch Nora adapt to the secular world, use her immense empathy, and explore her rich inner life. It would seem that this is the first book in the series 'Nora Breen Investigates,' something that will delight traditional and cozy readers alike." —Brian Kenney, firstCLUE

"Have you read any @jesskiddwriter? She's such an INTERESTING writer with a real gift for detail and atmosphere. I was wildly charmed by #MurderAtGullsNest. Not out till March but there are 4 earlier novels. HIGHLY recommended." —Marian Keyes, internationally bestselling author

Praise for Jess Kidd

“Jess Kidd is so good it isn't fair." —ERIKA SWYLER, bestselling author of The Book of Speculation and Light from Other Stars

“A few pages in and I was determined to read every word Jess Kidd has ever written. “ —DIANE SETTERFIELD, for Things in Jars

“Jess Kidd is an author who shows a poet’s way with words and rhythm.” —Electric Literature

Praise for The Night Ship

"Kidd’s latest weaves a spell around the reader, transporting them across centuries, between a doomed ship and a dying island. The result is a true work of magic, and one that will haunt me for years." —V.E. SCHWAB, international bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

From the Publisher

2025-02-01
An undercover nun tracks the fate of a lost friend and solves a dastardly murder in an English seaside town.

A brief, murky prologue describes an unnamed woman trapped in a tunnel overrun with rats, with little hope of escape. Cut to determined Nora Breen, arriving at the down-at-heels coastal boardinghouse Gulls Nest on a mission. She’s set aside her decades-long identity as Sister Agnes of Christ to find her friend and former novice Frieda Brogan, who went to the seaside on doctor’s orders and raised Nora’s concern by abruptly halting their frequent correspondence. At the Nest, Nora meets a large and quirky cast of suspects-to-be, including the brusque landlady, Helena Wells; handsome young couple Teddy and Stella Atkins; elderly showman Professor Poppy, who has an unsettling attraction to his collection of Punch puppets; and Mrs. Wells’ precocious daughter, Dinah. She’s just getting to know her new housemates when the Frieda mystery is shoved to the back burner by the fatal poisoning of Teddy. Even after sturdy DI Rideout arrives to investigate, Nora doggedly continues to ask questions as well. Suspicion falls on Czech guest Karel Ježek, who’s gone missing. In fact, the deeper Nora digs, the more incriminating evidence she discovers about the entire Gulls Nest group. Nora’s surveillance of Irene, Helena’s assistant, leads to the first significant tidbit about Frieda’s disappearance. Lest there be any doubt that Nora’s further adventures will include the colorful residents of Gulls Nest, the story fades out with Rideout requesting Nora’s help on another baffling case.

A delightful series kickoff in a cozy community primed for more murder.

Kirkus Reviews