This was a delightful and fun cozy mystery that once again shows just how much life we have left even in our 80’s!

I’ve come to enjoy and appreciate novels where older women are shown as brave, strong, and more than capable of adapting! And more than that, they love having fun!

This book is available now!

At a wedding hosted by the uncle of the wedding party, guests are looking for a stolen item at his estate.

Without providing any spoilers, this book gives off some weird vibes.

Rounding up, probably between 3 & 4 stars. Unfortunately I lost my place in the book and stumbled upon information towards the end of the book; so I ruined the ending for myself.

I feel old enough to fit into the "Old Girls Behaving Badly" category, but I really can't see myself in the shoes of either of the main characters.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books Publishing for approving my request to read the advance read copy of Old Girls Behaving Badly in exchange for an honest review. Release date is May 13, 2024.

Cute easy read with elements of mystery that was just a fun read. Made me happy. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher.

4.5 stars - What a fun read!!

Dot and Gina are such fun lead characters! And Juliet was a fun addition to the mix. They reminded me of a modern day Mrs. Marple, when a simple caretaking job turns into solving a mystery. It's fun to sleuth along with the trio. Overall, this is a fun, uplifting read with key themes of friendship and living life to the fullest, no matter how old you are. It's never too late to start over and find a new purpose in life.

Old Girls Behaving Badly was a fun read, with “older” women enjoying each other’s company. It was a fun and uplifting read with a sprinkle of cozy mystery elements in it. The story follows two older ladies going wild; one of them is Gina. Gina’s husband of 43 years has decided to leave the marriage, which sets off a rollercoaster of events for Gina. She then starts to take a 'part-time' job, which is to accompany an older woman during a wedding. She takes the chance, trying to come to terms with what has happened and finding herself.

When 71 year old Gina's husband decides their marriage is over she is distraught - not having worked for nigh on 40 years, she doesn't know what to do with herself. Finding an advert for a companion to an 89 year old lady for a week at a family wedding, Gina throws caution to the wind and applies. Dorothy is not your typical almost 90 year old, and nor is the family situation in which Gina finds herself. Tasked with finding a stolen painting in the host's vast estate, Gina and Dorothy are drawn into adventures and life is more exciting than it has been for many a year. Lovely adventures and a mystery to solve. #netgalley #OldGirlsBehavingBadly

Old Girls Behaving Badly was a fun read with “older” women enjoying each other’s company and taking some risks in order to find a stolen painting. This all takes place in a showy yet spectacular house. I found it fun to imagine the two conniving women in the midst of many high society events. The elegant house was also fun to picture. I enjoyed this book and will look for other books by Kate Galley.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this advance copy. I am sharing my own thoughts in this review.

Gina's husband, after 43 years of marriage, decided he needed to find himself & left her in a state of shock. She decided not to sit & mope but at 71 years old, she got a job as a companion. Little did she know that meeting 89-year-old Dorothy would change her life.
A wedding being held at a Norfolk estate is not what Gina thought it would be, as Dot has an ulterior motive!
Thoroughly enjoyable read. Love Gina & Dot, great characters that you couldn't help admire. Good to see older characters.

Enjoy!

A really refreshing and enjoyable read which I couldn't put down. It was so addictive that just wanted to keep on reading all day long. Loved it. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

There’s a meme going around which reads, “Your time on earth is limited. Don’t try to age with grace. Age with mischief, audacity, and a good story to tell.” Gina and Dorothy, the two women at the heart of this novel are perfect representations of that thought. Gina is 71 when her husband asks for a divorce and, in an attempt to rebuild her life, answers an ad to be a companion for an older woman. The woman in question, Dorothy, is in her eighties and while her faculties seem fine, she did have a fall that has her children concerned.

What I liked about this novel is that it’s a love story but not in the romantic sense. Rather it’s the story of each of these women learning to love themselves, and the loving friendship they form through the course of the novel, which also has a wedding, business betrayals, adult children having issues about their parents’ divorce, and many other every-day dramas.

Author Kate Galley has given us a pair of vivid central characters, who are refreshingly authentic and timeless in the way the best writing always is. As someone who is inching ever closer to being Gina’s age, I was tickled to see older women portrayed with vitality and curiosity. As someone who lives in Florida, where there is a very large population of retirees, I see such women every day, and both of these characters felt like the same people I sit next to in the nail salon, or are at the next table and whatever lunch spot I take my mother to.

Also worthy of note was the pacing. This book moved well – it’s a relatively fast read, but felt much shorter than its 280 (in print) pages, never dragging.

Over all, this is a solid novel, perfect for summer reading, and it kept my interest all the way through.

Goes well with: strawberry shortcake.

Fun, uplifting and a great read, what more can you ask for. Ladies of a certain age, on their own and out to live life to the full.. Enjoy this book as I am sure you will, just as I have done. 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley, author and publisher for this ARC

I really enjoyed this story. It was a positive, fun and uplifting read. It follows two older ladies going wild. Gina’s husband of 43 years has decided to remove himself from the marriage which sets off a rollercoaster of events for Gina. All about trying to come to terms with what has happened and finding herself. A great fun read for everybody. Recommend

Old Girls Behaving Badly, by Kate Galley, is a well written story of two older women doing unexpected things. Gina Knight, 71, has had a major life change when her husband of 43 years decides to find himself, leaving behind a Dear Gina letter and divorce papers. Now, when she should be enjoying her golden years, she finds herself without her husband, her home, or a means of support.

As Gina explores want ads, she finds an advertisement for a companion for 89 year old widow Dorothy Reed. While Dot does not agree with her family that she needs a carer, when she learns of Gina’s background in art history and restoration she does an about face. Gina will be accompanying Dot on a weeklong wedding celebration at a country estate owned by the ostentatious Leonard Price, uncle of the young woman Dot’s grandson is marrying. However, the week turns out to be anything but restful when Dot engages Gina to find a painting Dot is sure Leonard had stolen from her home. The theft ended in tragedy when Dot’s husband took a nasty fall chasing the thief, resulting in his death.

In a story of quirky characters, elaborate settings, and way too many secrets, Kate Galley has penned a very unique story told with humor and heart. There is a very special message to neither shortchange the elders or the youth, and how such low expectations can aid in those folks getting the upper hand. I did enjoy this book and do recommend it.

This was definitely not what I was expecting when I opened the book and got lost in the pages. But it was delightful and I loved every moment in the story. Getting to know Gina and Dot was fun and I loved watching how Gina began to realize she had more to offer than her soon-to-be ex-husband told her. The characters are well developed and I enjoyed watching Dot try to manipulate Gina but in a gentle way. The family dynamics were interesting and all of the drama will keep you invested in the story. I do hope there will be a sequel so I can see where Gina goes next and how she handles another caregiving stint.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

Gina, a seventy-one-year-old woman recently abandoned by her husband after forty-three years of marriage, finds herself in need of a new role and a fresh start. Answering an advertisement for a live-in companion, she meets eighty-nine-year-old Dorothy, a sharp and spirited lady who convinces Gina to help her solve the mystery of a stolen painting. This theft, Dot believes, indirectly led to her husband's death.

A thoroughly entertaining light read, whether you’re looking for a good mystery, a heartwarming story, or simply a fun and engaging book, "Old Girls Behaving Badly" is a perfect choice. I am hoping there is another instalment of Dot and Gina in the foreseeable future!

This is the second Kate Galley book I have read and I really enjoyed both of them.

The story follows Gina, in her 70s and newly single after her husband leaves her. She applies for a job as a companion to 80 something Dorothy, employed to spend the week looking after her at a family wedding.

But Dorothy has an ulterior motive and needs Gina to help her out.

Old Girls Behaving Badly by Kate Galley is a quick, fun read.

Gina finds herself recently on her own as her husband left her suddenly. She takes a job as a companion to an older woman. The job develops into a caper as the lady wants Gina to help her solve a mystery.

The story is engaging and cute. It is not truly fraught with tension or danger but manages to be entertaining, nonetheless. I found myself chuckling several times at the cheeky dialogue.

Despite an apparently light storyline there are also deep themes of loss, love, identity, family and the power to reinvent yourself at any age.

The story ends in a way that leaves it open for other books about Gina and Dorothy. I would happily read a sequel.

Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood book for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Told in alternating viewpoints by Gina and Dorothy, we get to see these two women becoming friends. Gina is seventy-one and has just been told by her husband that he no longer wants to be married. No real reason other than the fact that he's bored with his life and thinks she's boring as well. So, while she's trying to figure out what her next steps are (with little help from her daughter who seems to blame Gina though her son is somewhat more sympathetic,) she sees an ad for a companion.
Dorothy's granddaughter is getting married and, though she is generally just fine on her own, her family want someone to keep an eye on her; she just had a fall and she is older.
Dorothy does her best to run off all of the potential caregivers but she clicks with Gina. But she doesn't want Gina as just a companion, she wants help getting back a painting that was stolen from her husband. The person who she believes took the painting is the same person hosting the wedding at his estate, Leonard. So the opportunity has presented itself.
But there may be more than just a stolen painting that Leonard has that includes shady dealings. And it's those dealings that may be leading to the many "accidents" happening to Leonard. Before the book is over, will there also be someone dead?

Three and a half stars
This book comes out May 23, 2024
ARC kindly provided by Boldwood Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

At the age of seventy-one and after over forty years of marriage, could there be anything more demoralising than to be told by your departing husband that you’re “beige and unexciting”? Faced with forced changes to her life, Gina answers an advertisement for a live-in companion – something eighty-nine year old Dot’s family think she’s in need of, but she’s equally determined she doesn’t. But, with her background in art history, she does think Gina’ll be just perfect to help her solve a mystery – the theft of a painting that resulted in her husband’s death – and bring the villain behind it to justice.

All of which comes as rather a surprise to Gina – who finds herself in a grand house on the Norfolk estate where they’re attending a family wedding party, desperately searching for evidence. Dot watches her back – she’ll text her if she’s in danger of discovery, if she can remember to charge her phone – and she also has some dubious “help” from Dot’s tech-obsessed teenage granddaughter Juliet.

As a cosy mystery, I thought the whole story was brilliantly told – mostly from Gina’s perspective, in her clear and likeable voice, as she frequently finds herself well outside her personal comfort zone, but with occasional chapters through Dot’s critical eyes. There’s a suitably large cast of characters – all really well drawn – many of them with well-hidden secrets and other agendas, and plentiful red herrings and surprises along the way as Dot’s plan comes ever closer to fruition.

But in addition to the mystery itself, this book was tremendous fun. Host Leonard is a magnificently over-the top character intent on making the wedding party one to remember, with activities planned for every waking hour – and that’s how Gina finds herself roaring cross-country on a quad bike with Dot clinging on the back. The second chance elements of the story aren’t the usual romance – instead, there’s a focus on moving forward, finding friendship, recovering self-belief, and being able to look forward to what the future might hold. And there’s certainly a considerable emphasis on never being too old for some fun – in fact, for just about anything you could think of.

As well as being an intriguing and page-turning mystery with a distinctly uncertain outcome, this really was such an uplifting read, with a few emotional moments and plenty of gentle laughter along the way – and if the author decides to continue Gina and Dot’s adventures together, I’ll be looking forward to reading more. An unexpected delight – and a book I’d certainly be happy to recommend to others.

Lovely easy summer holiday read. Eccentric characters proving that you are never too old for anything. Good detective mystery and characters to live and hate in equal measure.