Don't Cross Mo Ellery ⭐⭐⭐💫

Don't Cross Mo Ellery by Birdie Horne

NetGalley About Summary

A laugh-out-loud mystery following the indomitable hot mess Mo Ellery, whose job as a school crossing guard pulls her into an unhinged murder investigation.

Mo Ellery’s 29th birthday is a disaster. After one small accident—the exposure of her boyfriend’s genitals (well, maybe not that small) on a work video call—she manages to get fired, dumped, and kicked out of their overpriced Chicago apartment. Luckily, a sign appears to guide Mo to her new life: “Looking for flexible part-time work? Become a school crossing guard!” It’s everything Mo has been looking for: health insurance. How hard can it be?

A few weeks later, Mo is adjusting to her new low-paying job, her bisexual reawakening, and her new neighborhood’s wacky characters. There’s Claudia, an old woman who refuses to let Mo help her cross the street, and Marlowe, a tween cell phone prodigy whose antics terrify her. But Mo’s greatest nemesis is Poodle Dude, a guy with an SUV full of poodles who speeds through her intersection each morning. . . until the day he speeds into a sinkhole. Mo tries and fails to shield innocent eyes from his bloody corpse, but succeeds in accidentally becoming the guardian to his three poodles.

And that’s not the worst of it: some of the locals are convinced that Poodle Dude was murdered. Their allegations are obviously ridiculous, but Mo, desperate for distractions—and for several hot neighbor-suspects—reluctantly agrees to help. But Mo the detective is just as chaotic as Mo the underemployed adult, and the three entitled poodles are not helping. When a second local dies under mysterious circumstances, it’s going to take all of Mo’s broadly applicable and transferrable skills to find the killer.

Murderers beware. . . DON'T CROSS MO ELLERY!

Genre: Fiction, Mystery & Thrillers, LGBT
Goodreads added: Humor, Romance

 The How/Why: Influenced by NetGalley FB Group

⭐⭐⭐💫  

🎉🎊 Overall Storytelling?

  • Setting the Stage. Atmosphere, Vibe 🎉🎉🎉🎉
  • Likeable Characters:
    Protagonist 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
    Supporting Cast 🎉🎉🎉
    Extras     🎉🎉🎉
  • Unlikeable Antagonist 🎉🎉
  • Executing the premise 🎉🎉🎉🎊 (comedy to slapstick)
  • Lives up to the promise 🎉🎉🎉🎊 (mystery not thriller)

🎣🎏 Did it grab and keep my attention? 🎣🎣🎣🎣

🗣️Would I recommend it to anyone? Maybe 🤷 If you like slapstick with a side of MŪrdɇr 

🕮 Would I want a sequel? No ➖ 

📚 Would I want to read more books by this author? Yes ➕ probably, this was their first collaboration so we'll see what they have up their sleeves in the future.

⚠️💣💥 📢 Content Warnings? MŪrdɇr & DɇaṪh, Gorɇ/Descriptions of C0rƤŞeŞ, ɆxƤlïcït Sɇxuɐl C0ntent

🌶️🫑Spice? Google says 3/5 🌶️'s I'll let you know
Update: I'd agree with 3 🌶️🌶️🌶️

🌪 Plot Twist? Yes / if yes, Predictable? Yes

👟 Pace? Good

💻 Tidbits ~ Hot Mess Mo is a Crossing Guard at the Crossroads of Life.

From the About Summary, no di￠k pi￠s during a work Zoom meeting when you supposed to be working from home. 🙈 And she's fired... Then her boyfriend of 10 years dumps her and she has to move out. 

Desperate, Mo takes a job as a school crossing guard. A reckless driver dies in a sinkhole and Mo is pretty sure it was no accident at all, but a MŪrdɇr. 
The victim had canine companions and Mo ends up taking custody of Oodles of Poodles. 

Mo is and overthinker with her brain two steps ahead of her common sense. She's also the Queen of Jumping to Conclusions. Not exactly the best qualities for an amateur sleuth but some how the pieces are falling into place for her. 

This book is a little spicy, exploring scenes with both with her ex-boyfriend and her new girlfriend! 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Favorite Characters: Mo's mom and dad. 💏👫💕Adorably quirky! 

I deducted one star for the humor frequently jumping from witty to slapstick. 
I deducted half star because instead of the charming quirky characters I was expecting, their constant poor choices became cringy to follow. 

Fun Facts: If you want more by the author(s): Birdie Horne is a pen name of co-authors Eden Robins and MW Garguilo. MW Garguilo is also known as Mary Winn Heider.

🎧 Narrator: Cia Court *AMAZING*🥳

🎧9.31 hours  🕮 336 pages

Recently Published 8-11-2026

Thank you NetGalley and HarperAudio Adult for the free ALC in exchange for my honest review.


34 and counting

Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 25, 2026 at 1:45 PM

    Fantastic review! You have perfectly captured Moe‘s chaotic energy and your point about humor crossing the line from funny to cringy slapstick is excellent constructive feedback.
    H.A.

    ReplyDelete

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