charley-baltimore Aside from a dead body or two, this series is on the conservative side and fun to watch. I like the lead actress even if the writing isn't sherlock holmes. One thing I hope they will fix is the overly critical (and somewhat irritating mother). Love the actress who plays the mother but her character gets annoying due to all the snide remarks toward her daughter, who has a real mind for crime! More fun to see mom join in with the murders club and find a new angle with mother/daughter IMO. Worth watching.

jeannel2003-618-511281 I am a mystery buff (favorite authors include Sue Grafton, Paretsky, Kellerman (Faye), Braun, Evanovich, Cannell, Christie, George and Hammett) who enjoys a wide range of genres. I appreciate cozies because they offer relief from blood, gore and rough language and usually are very witty. Thus, I enjoy the Hallmark Movies and Mysteries offering of the Aurora Teagarden installments. I have not read these books, but the movies are fun and uplifting. I also love romance and there's some of that in these movies as well. The series launches with "A Bone to Pick," which focuses on a mysterious inheritance for our heroine, consisting of a house, a human skull and murder mystery to solve. While Aurora ("Roe" to her friends) is a librarian she is also a passionate member of the Real Murders Club, so she is a dedicated amateur sleuth who is not above circumventing the law on occasion to solve a murder mystery. This, of course upsets her proper and professional mother who is a well-known real estate broker with her own successful agency and hates the Real Murders Club; her best friend, who is a newspaper reporter; her former boyfriend who is a detective along with his very pregnant detective wife who is no fan of Roe's; and the police captain who is even less a fan. However, Roe has an ally, another who is also a member of the Real Murders Club and who is in love with Roe's mother, who hates the Club. Roe's mother also is interested in helping her daughter to find "Mr. Right," and settle down. So we have a fun and feisty collection of characters against which background Roe sets out to solve the murder mystery she inherited.

Stephen Abell Being English, the title of this movie threw me at first... "The Aurora Teagarden" sounds like a place you would go for a nice cuppa cha while sitting in beautiful floral surroundings... But no "Aurora Teagarden" is the name of the leading character - poor girl.That aside, this is a good way to pass an hour and a half. Aurora "Roe" Teagarden, played nicely by Candace Cameron Bure. is a member of a mystery group dedicated to "Real Murders". One of the members, Jane Eagles (Barbara Wallace), invites Roe round to her house so she can borrow a book on female killers, as this had been her "Real Murder" discussion subject. A few days later she learns of Jane's death and is surprised to find herself in the will as the beneficiary of her house. It's when she finds the hidden human skull that a mystery starts to reveal itself to her... and her friends...It's hard to say why I enjoyed this film because some things annoyed me, such as Lexa Doig's character, Sally Allison, who is grating on the nerve and at times I wondered why the two were friends, let alone besties. This isn't Doig's fault though as she did a more than an admirable portrayal of a strong, independent, and intelligent woman on Andromeda. But here, she's not such a likable character. Though that may be the strong point of this series as it's not relying on characterisations as much as others do in this genre; they're a little more like everyday people, rather than "feel-good" representations.Another thing which was annoying was how simple the mystery was, I had pretty much had it solved at the skull, as I would think most would since previous scenes are so heavy handed at giving you the clues. I couldn't really believe that it took Roe so long to figure it out. This is more like a Columbo movie as it's not really about the mystery it's more about the trip to get to the reveal. At least there's still some mystery here, unlike Columbo.All of the cast give a solid and equal performance and portray their characters well; none outshines any of the others. Director Martin Wood does a nice job of keeping the pace steady throughout, which works well with this type and style of story.If you like your characters to be more "normal" in your mystery movies then you will like this; if you don't mind about the easy solve mystery because you prefer the drama more then this will really be your cuppa cha'. At least worth one viewing... on a wet and miserable day - English Summertime - when you can't make it out into the Teagarden.

Brandon Maynard Candace Cameron Bure, always likable, plays amateur sleuth and librarian Aurora Teagarden. An acquaintance of hers from the Real Murders Club dies and leaves her estate to Aurora.Aurora immediately finds a human skull in the window seat of her new home and with the help of her friend, sets out to solve the mystery of who and what happened.Consequently, Aurora's ex, who is now married to another woman and about to be a father, is the cop working the case with his wife. Predictably, they are clueless and it is up to Aurora to find the real killer.I haven't read the books yet, but I look forward to now, as well as seeing the next movie in the series. Candace Cameron Bure and Marilu Henner as her mother definitely made this movie worth watching.