Homemaker

Prairie Nightingale #1

by Ruthie Knox, Annie Mare

When a former friend and devoted mother vanishes, a confident homemaker turned amateur sleuth follows an unexpected trail of scandals and secrets to find her.

Prairie Nightingale is both the midlife mother of two teenage girls and a canny entrepreneur who has turned homemaking into a salaried profession. She’s also fascinated with the gritty details of other people’s lives. So when seemingly perfect Lisa Radcliffe, a member of her former mom-friends circle, suddenly disappears, it’s in Prairie’s nature to find out why.

Given her innate talent for vital pattern recognition, Prairie is out to catch a few clues by taking a long, hard look at everyone in Lisa’s life—and uncovering their secrets. Including Lisa’s. Prairie’s dogged curiosity is especially irritating to FBI agent Foster Rosemare, the first interesting man Prairie has met since her divorce. His square jaw and sharp suits don’t hurt.

But even as the investigation begins to wreak havoc on Prairie’s carefully tended homelife, she’s resolved to use her multivalent homemaking skills to solve the mystery of a missing mom—and along the way discover the thrill of her new sleuthing ambitions.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Romance, Mystery Thriller, Cozy, Contemporary

297 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2025

About the author

Ruthie Knox is the critically acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen novels. She writes both mystery and romance, usually with co-author Annie Mare. You can find Ruthie's books under the pen names Ruthie Knox (mystery and het romance), Mae Marvel (queer romance), and Robin York (New Adult romance). Ruthie and Annie are married and live with two teenagers, two dogs, multiple fish, two glorious cats, four hermit crabs, and a bazillion plants in a very old house with a garden.

Reviews

[Kari E. · Rating 2 out of 5]

modern mystery

It had enough to get me through it. They covered all the bases of modern issues. Feminism, LGBT, Autism awareness, racism, toxic masculinity, etc. It seems pushed and thrown in at times unnecessarily. Not interested in sequels.

[Vanessa Sumner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely Fabulous, like the show. Just fabulous from start to finish. I laughed and laughed and laughed. I definitely want to keep reading this series!

P.S. To everyone saying how unrealistic this family is- yall are the same people who read romance novels about alpha wolf shifters with knots at the base of their dicks. Please get a life. Allow authors to have fun and explore whatever they want. I’m not sure why everyone is so wigged out about a woman having a lesbian daughter and an autistic daughter at the same time. If you watch Season 3 of Love on the Spectrum, one family has a lesbian daughter and an autistic bisexual daughter, and they are interracial to boot! Just because you are white as driven snow and hetero with 2.3 children and no neurodivergent diagnosis does not mean your life is the only type of life. I am pansexual and my sibling is trans and on the spectrum. We are real people. We are living real lives and it’s nice as hell to read a book about people like us! We are erased from the popular fiction narrative all the time and you guys have a billion books about people like you. So shut the fuck up. Thanks ✌️

[Pattybf · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. Stopped at 25%. Found the writing style more young adult than mature fiction. Why would you name your main character Prairie Nightingale? Almost did not read for that reason alone. Author doesn’t know who from whom - pet peeve. Glad I did not pay for this one. Disappointing. Did not live up to the hype.

[Marcia · Rating 1 out of 5]

46% in and i stopped reading. good story line. it got too woke and that's not my thing. I think in book reviews and descriptions, it should spell out controversial content is in the book. sorry. I want to read for an escape, not be lectured nor brainwashed. sick of the negativity. too bad. I would've enjoyed the story.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my free Amazon First Reads selection for May.

I feel this rating may seem too low. Maybe 3.5 stars is more accurate? I did enjoy this book quite a bit, despite all the issues I had with it: a bit too much of the quirkiness, a bit too much suspension of belief (beyond the normal amount you have to have for cozy mysteries where an amateur sleuth outsmarts law enforcement and they not only condone it but give her super-secret info on a case), improably enlightened male characters, almost unbearably precocious children and a predictable outcome and anticlimatic ending to the to the mystery.

(This isn't a review. It's just me riffing on the books, stream-of-consciousness-style.)

The overly-quirky named Prairie Hawk Nightingale is the CEO of the 724 Maple Project. What is that, you ask? It's her home address. She hands out business cards that read "Prairie Nightingale, Homemaker". In her divorce from the CEO of a tech startup, she not only got to keep her house but was also given a trust with enough money in it that she was able to hire a staff to take care of all the homemaking duties she had as a stay-at-home-mom. She has a personal assistant/housemanager, housekeeper/cook, gardener and handywoman. They have weekly staff meetings. Prairie describes herself as "very busy", but the only things she seems to have to do are take her 2 daughters to and from school and stick her nose in other people's business. Oh, she gets texts from her personal assistant that she has to attend to (which just seemed to be reading them and turning on a printer one time?). She mentions at one point she does do the laundry...but hasn't done it in awhile, causing her daughters to wear ill-fitting and dirty clothing, while she suffers from wearing a too-old thong. I think her job is supposed to be funny? Or maybe DEEP and PROFOUND? But the 724 Maple Project is pretty much dunzo by the end of the book, because apparently this magical trust fund is large enough that she can open a detective agency with a paid staff. Living the dream!

The mystery is pretty cut and dried. A local mom is missing. She's involved in a scammy MLM that she's been investigating and it married to a controlling man with a violent past. Despite a bunch of red herrings, it was OBVIOUS from the jump what happened to her. But only our fearless Prairie could solve the mystery! (OF COURSE)

The tone is light and breezy, except when the authors decide to drop in DEEP and PROFOUND NUGGETS OF WISDOM ABOUT NAVIGATING A PATRIARCHAL SOCIETY AS A WOMAN AND MOTHER. The main male characters are either already enlightened (in the case of practically perfect in every way FBI agent Foster Rosemare) or on the road to enlightenment (ex-husband Greg).

The one thing that really stuck in my craw is Prairie's ostracization from the other women in town. She uncovered that a local OB-GYN was sexually assaulting patients and he was subsequently sent to jail. And all the WOMEN are pissed at her because of it? I'm sure it's supposed to be an unspoken comment on internalized misogyny or something like that...Look, I used to work at a hospital in the most MAGA county in one of the most MAGA states. This place is so conservative that Amish would seem like woke libs. There are two Christian colleges within 15 miles of each other. An OB-GYN was caught doing the same thing as the one Prairie brought down and the women-hating-women in real life were HAPPY and THANKFUL he got arrested, not pissed off like in the book.

A big pet peeve of mine in a mystery is when it wraps up with 10% or so left in the book. The last bit of this book was there just to set up the rest of the series (Prairie setting up her detective agency and hiring her first employees). I will probably keep reading the series because it does have promise. The prose is compulsively readable. The mystery was GOOD (just wrapped up witha whimper instead of a bang), so I have hopes going forward.

[EmG ReadsDaily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly entertaining, fun and feminist mystery, featuring amateur sleuthing, scandals, an MLM-type setup, a budding romance, as well as the gritty details of parenting and midlife.

I enjoyed Prairie as a complex protagonist and the wonderful cast of supporting characters. I appreciate the nuanced depiction of Prairie's autistic daughter, as well as the amicable divorce. I am looking forward to the next Prairie Nightingale mystery.

I enjoyed the audiobook, which was narrated well by Mia Hutchinson-Shaw. I hope that she also narrates any future stories in the series.

[R. L. C. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nonsense

Totally unrealistic. Characters are not very interesting or likeable. Basically a soap opera with added political correctness. I should have quit earlier but I try to give every book a chance as a respect to the author.

[Andrea Anderson-Bain · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars
Enjoyed this mystery! Definitely shed some tears. But also laughed a lot. A good mix of everything and all the emotions packed into one story. The characters started to feel like “home” every time I opened the book, and I love when I get that feeling from a book! More to come soon 🫶

[Maria Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Homemaker by Ruthie Knox and Annie Mare (who also used to write as Mary Ann Rivers) is a departure for both authors as they shift from contemporary romance to mystery. But don’t worry – there is a still a little romance here to keep any fan of their work fully engaged even as the mystery plays out (and a great mystery it is!).

Prairie Nightingale is a divorced mom of two teenage girls. She has a good co-parenting relationship with her ex-husband, Greg, who still plays a prominent part in his daughters’ lives, and has turned her profession of homemaker into a business. As part of the divorce settlement, she had Greg (who is wealthy due to all the supportive work Prairie put in to enable him to pursue his career) set up a trust in which they are partners, and Prairie used the money to separate out the roles she had singlehandedly been performing and hired others to fill some of them. She has a staff (a cook, a housekeeper, a logistician) and can now devote her time to other pursuits. Those other pursuits? Well, mostly they involve taking an interest in the lives of those around her. It was her questioning of a missed donation to a school fund that ultimately led to the discovery of a local doctor who was abusing his female patients. The resulting fallout and scandal from that caused her mom-group of friends, those with children going to the same school as her kids, to shun her. But it doesn’t stop her from noticing things when she’s waiting outside the school and seeing all of her former friends.

One of those things is that a former mom-friend, Amber, has a really fancy and expensive new purse. It doesn’t match the rest of the details that Prairie sees, that Amber has an older phone model with a cracked screen, and a broken taillight on her car, and Amber eventually tells Prairie that it was a gift from another mom-friend, Lisa Radcliffe. Now Lisa is practically a local celebrity in that she’s making a ton of money through a multi-level-marketing program selling Kitty Blue clothes. Lisa is at the top of the pyramid, a distributor for the clothing, and many of the mom-friends were recruited by her and are also selling Kitty Blue merchandise. But none of them seem to be raking in the money in the same way that Lisa is.

Later that day, a police notice goes out that Lisa has gone missing. According to her husband, Chris, she had gone out after dinner the night before and hasn’t come back. She’s officially a missing person. The family is frantic. Prairie soon discovers that other women also received expensive gifts from Lisa in the days before her disappearance. Is this a planned disappearance? A suicide? Or is it something even more sinister? Prairie will have to use all her amateur sleuthing skills to find out the truth.

I wasn’t really sure what I was getting into when I picked this up, I just knew it had Ruthie’s name on it so I was going to read it. Well, I knew it was a mystery, but I hadn’t read the back copy so I didn’t have any preconceptions. And I’m glad I didn’t know, because it’s not the type of story I would normally read, but by the time I realized that I was totally invested in the story.

Prairie is a very interesting, very feminist character. I wasn’t sure if I liked her at first, but she grew on me. There’s a lot in the first several chapters about how much women do for men that goes unappreciated, how controlling men are, and just general anti-men bias (or at least that’s how it felt to me). But the points the author makes are good and thought provoking (as I’m sure is the intent).

I promised in the intro that there is some romance and there is, due to the presence of FBI agent Foster Rosemare. One of the sneaky things Prairie does just after Lisa has gone missing is to organize a vigil for her safe return. It quickly becomes a large event, with other people in charge, which was exactly Prairie’s intent, because her purpose in holding the vigil is to scan the crowds and see who shows up. She soon realizes that she has been spotted by a good-looking besuited man who is doing the same thing she is, and when he approaches her and they introduce themselves, a spark of interest flares between them. This leads to some coffee shop meetings that are combination dates/case working sessions as Prairie continues to delve into the missing mom mystery and how the Kitty Blue business might fit into it all.

The pace quickens as clues are uncovered and I definitely stayed up reading way too late because I had to know how it was all going to end! Suffice it to say the truth is uncovered, and a relationship starts to blossom. Prairie’s family and friends are all part of the story and are characters that make it richer. I know there is going to be a sequel and I’m invested in how Prairie and Foster will continue their relationship and also what kind of case she’ll get her hands on next!

This review also appears at All About Romance: https://allaboutromance.com/book-revi...

[Paul Lissauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot more than is suggested by the cutsie cover picture

I got this on Amazon First Reads and expected a lightweight mystery story. The authors put so much human feelings and nuance into this story that I unexpectedly became thoroughly engrossed. I especially liked the view into what women face in their subbburban married lives, and the unthinking manner in which the males in their lives behave. All these things made a much more complete story and one I very much enjoyed. I am a grandfather-aged male now thinking more about this and very glad that I read an excellent mystery story that had so much more than just the mystery itself.

[D.L. Morrese]

No Star Rating — DNF

A suburban mom who sells tat for a pyramid scheme company goes missing. Another suburban mom, who is a kind of her frenemy, attempts to investigate.

I put this one aside unfinished at about 20% because it had all the appeal of baloney on white bread. I found none of the characters engaging, interesting, or likeable. The nosy protagonist, a self-styled sleuth and gossip collector, was simply too irritating to spend any more time with. This was a Kindle freebie on Prime, but it definitely wasn't for me.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fascinating and weird at the same time. Lesbian daughter, divorced mom whose ex-mil lives with her and autistic daughter as well as indigenous communities and a commune living childhood. It felt like the authors were trying to include every single group of person possible so not to offend or exclude anyone. It was just bizarre. The story got lost in all of the weirdness.
The mystery is good but expected, as was the romantic aspect of the story. I won't read book two. I'm sorry I read book one.

[Afreen]

I stopped before I got to 20%. It’s a DNF for me, and honestly that rarely happens to me with book. I can count on my hands how many books I DNF.

It was literally putting me to sleep every night. I couldn’t read more than 10 pages and I’d get sleepy. It wasn’t interesting or maybe I just wasn’t interested. Anyway I told my husband it was putting me to sleep and he said, “not finishing it is always an option” lol. So here we are.

[Beth · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m confused if this is supposed to fall under mystery or cozy mystery? Nothing cozy about it, and nothing meaty enough to make it a contemporary contender. I almost DNFd this book a few pages in but I was reading it for a challenge, so I DNFd it when it confirmed what we already knew of who the killer was.

Prairie Nightingale has to be the most unlikeable character I’ve come across in a long time. Nobody in town likes Prairie, and I think you’d be hard pressed to find a reader who enjoys her.

She calls herself a homemaker but she literally has a personal assistant, chef, handywoman, and other hired help to run her life. Her days are filled running staff meetings for the hired help, picking up her daughters from school, occasionally throwing in a load of laundry if she remembers, having coffee with her best friend, and meddling in other people’s business but yet all we hear about is how busy she is. Out of touch much?


The author also crammed in every contemporary topic imaginable into 300 pages.

Grew up in a commune? Check
Amicable divorce and even lives with her MIL? Check
Two daughters, 1 a lesbian and 1 with autism? Check
a cat and a dog? (Because we have to represent each equally, of course) Check
Her name was obtained through cultural appropriation and pointed out by a teenagar who happens to be from an indigenous people and the president of her LGBTQI alliance and a teenage sleuth/ popular true crime podcaster? Check
Opinions on controlling men? Check
Opinions on the justice system, particularly toward the healing for women? Check
MLM scandals? Check

It was a lot to cram into one story line and it didn’t all fit seamlessly.

Now should we talk about the FBI agent who just happens to develop the hots for Prairie and tells her to stay out of meddling in the case and then starts sharing info with her and unofficially sending her on assignments? 🙄

I can’t even talk about the “ mystery” itself because it was hard to find in the midst of all the other unnecessary storylines, not that there was much mystery to who dunnit.

[Jen Ryland (jenrylandreviews & yaallday)]

Comic mystery perfect for Finlay Donovan fans.

Prairie Nightingale (lol) is a bit of a pariah in her Midwestern community. She's politically liberal, recently divorced, extremely outspoken, and curses too much. When a woman in her community mysteriously disappears, "Pray" is determined to get to the bottom of it. And of course she meets Emma, who has a podcast (Emma is sort of the Vero in this scenario).

I loved that Prairie had teen and tween daughters, who were so much more fun and snarky (and self-reliant) than poor Finlay's small children. Loved the Midwest setting.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an advance copy for review!

Subscribe to my amazing newsletter HERE at JenRyland.com Let's be friends on Bookstagram!

[Mary Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that sticks with you. Everything about it is fantasy perfection. What if divorce could be like this, if parenthood could be like this, if attraction could be like this. It’s so affirming. And then there’s this great feminist led mystery and falling in love thrown in for fun.
It’s everything I needed in a book even though I never knew I needed it. I’m a fan, and I’ll definitely read the rest of the series!

[Chantelle Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.3 stars (Kindle). I'm actually embarrassed at how long it took me to read this novel. In my defense, it's my "bedtime book" + I've been extraordinarily tired of late. That being said, this book DID drag a bit...or at least didn't capture my attention enough to keep me awake long enough to want to binge read. Some really lovely writing in places, particularly in the last 10% of the story.

[Keeshell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciate books that explore social issues, but this one felt forced.

[Deb Darling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not crazy about this book, although it had some funny lines.
IMO it focused too much on how little her husband did and how he didn't appreciate her. If you've ever lived paycheck to paycheck then I don't think a man providing a great living is necessarily a bad thing. Maybe I'm sensitive because I'm especially proud of what a great Dad and husband my oldest son has become.

[Rainbow Goth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was quite enjoyable, offering a delightful escape into the realm of modern cosy mysteries. I appreciated the subtle yet impactful elements of feminism woven throughout the storyline, which added depth without overshadowing the plot. Additionally, the portrayal of autism in girls was handled with sensitivity and accuracy, showcasing a nuanced understanding that resonated with me.

While there were moments when the narrative felt a bit forced or overly ambitious, overall, it was a light, engaging read that I found easy to immerse myself in.

[Carlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this a my kindle first book this month and am so glad I did. This was a great mystery, but more than that it introduced a terrific bunch of characters in this first in a new series. I immediately wanted to read book #2 but it won't be issued till May of 2026...a whole year from now 😦! Hope i get a reminder.

[Anne - Books of My Heart · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart
 

Review copy was received from NetGalley, Purchased. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Prairie Nightingale series is a collaboration between two of my favorite authors.   It's a new mystery series about a professional homemaker turning into a private investigator.  I absolutely LOVE it.

Prairie is a divorced mother of two girls.  The younger is definitely gifted. The older is going through her rebellious teen phase.  She co-parents with her ex Greg and he is very successful and not a bad guy, just one who really didn't pay attention to Prairie, other than as his personal attendant. His mother Joyce, lives with Prairie and helps with the girls along with her assistant, cook, etc.  It's fascinating and great.

Prairie grew up in sort of a commune and was homeschooled. After that she worked and raised the children, to put Greg through graduate school.  She is smart and observant.

The current issues for Prairie started when she headed the PTO fundraising and found out the main donor was a sexual predator.  One of the victims Megan is now her best friend.  But she is shunned by other mothers.  A woman she liked, Lisa, has now gone missing. Prairie's curiosity and natural observation skills have her looking into it. She meets the local FBI agent assigned to the case and that's fun.

Everything about this is fun and different.  The perspective is very much a women's perspective.  The characters are real and fresh.  I can't wait for more!


Narration:
The narrator is new to me, although she does also narrate the sapphic romances these authors have written (I read the ebooks for those.)  I was very comfortable with her voices and the differences for the age and gender felt comfortable.  I listened at my newer 1.75x speed.

Listen to a clip: HERE

[Vella Strickland · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this book, so I was neither surprised nor disappointed. A novel with feminism, LGBTQ, autism, cultural awareness, an amicable divorce where the protagonist (Prairie Nightingale) retains the house AND the mother-in-law, and a murder thrown in just to flesh out the "mystery". I used quotation marks because although there were a few red herrings along the way, the killer was so predictable that there was practically a neon sign flashing over his head.
I wasn't able to figure out what Prairie does other than drop off and pick up her children from school, yet she always claimed to be busy! By the end of the story, she's decided that her forte is investigation (not just plain nosiness), so the entire book is a set up for the sequel, which I'm sure will include "Prairie Hawk Investigations". Homemaker was one of my free reads for May, but I'm not sure whether I'd be willing to pay to read any more in this series. Maybe it gets better as the character ripens.

[mari]

DNF @ 43%

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really, really, really tried with this one, but oh my god talk about annoying, unlikable, unredeemable main characters. "Homemaker" and yet she does nothing but go around bothering people all day for gossip regarding a missing person because all of her housework is taken care of a team of hired individuals. She even has a business card like okay maybe I should get a business card for being a stay at home student who reads and looks at celebrity subreddits all day 😭. Also the whole premise is just weak and takes great inspiration from LuLaRoe (yes all MLMs are the same but the whole set up in this is just too similar down to the rotten storage containers). Not once did I find myself caring enough about what could have possibly happened to the missing mom because the main character spends so much time just stroking her own ego. We also keep getting told the same information repeatedly as she goes around catching other characters up on what she learned. We as the reader already know what's going on, we don't need to be reminded every other page.

I'm sorry this book just made me so angry and I had really wanted to give it a chance enough to finish. Others seemed to have really liked this book so maybe I'm truly just a #1 hater.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderfully written novel. The characters and dialog felt completely genuine, which is something I constantly struggle with when reading outside my normal sci-fi/fantasy genres (especially romance).

The mystery angle wasn't particularly mysterious, but neither was it implausible and it avoided the heavy foreshadowing to the point of tedium prevalent in the romantic mystery genre. Prairie's interactions with her daughters was particularly enjoyable for me, but I liked her relationships with other colleagues as well, and how her behavior affected them as other than NPCs.

I'm going to check out #2 now that she's formed the Avengers (or at least the Defenders)

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 this book had SO much potential. the case and the characters were overshadowed by needing to touch on every hot topic in our society. i liked prairie being able to continue to be a homemaker after her divorce. i appreciated the relationship she had with her ex husband and ex mother in law the premise of looking into her friends disappearance was believable. all of that gets lost in the throwing in of every hot topic.

[Kelly - Words We Love By · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun surprise! Homemaker is the perfect start to a new cozy mystery series with all the elements I love...relatable characters, mom-life chaos, and a determined amateur sleuth with heart. Prairie Nightingale is sharp, funny, and refreshingly real. The writing was excellent, and the audiobook narration pulled me in right away. I loved every minute of it and can’t wait to see what Prairie investigates next!

[Danielle Seals · Rating 2 out of 5]

Being generous with 2 stars.
The characters are not interesting; Prairie is the most awful unlikable character. If you’re going to create an unlikable character, at least make us love to hate them. This book shoved every modern issue into play - too many that it just didn’t work. Lastly, I must have the definition of homemaker mistaken because this supposed “homemaker” has hired help for everything.
Will pass on the rest of the series.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️. I loved this book - a murder mystery with some fun and goofiness in it, but also went into so much depth about motherhood, and womanhood, and the mental load of mothers/women, expectations from men, voiced and written so well.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just loved this. What a great start to a new series.