Ainsley McGregor Mysteries: A Case for the Winemaker (2024)

🍄🍄🍄🍄

When Candace Cameron Bure was with the Hallmark Channel, I really enjoyed her as Aurora Teagarden. So I was very excited to learn she would be starring in a new cozy mystery movie franchise on Great American Family. I have now seen the first one, Ainsley McGregor Mysteries: A Case for the Winemaker, twice and it's finally time for me to review it. I have not read any of the books in the series by Candace Havens that this movie franchise is based on, so my review is based only on the film.

Ainsley McGregor (Candace Cameron Bure) is a criminologist who has recently moved from Chicago to the small town of Sweet River, Texas. It is in Sweet River that she is about to open Bless Your Arts, a shop where artisans' creations are sold. She is also teaching a class in criminology at the local community college.

Things are going well for Ainsley until a dead body is found at a winery owned by her friend who becomes a prime suspect in the murder investigation. Ryan (Robin Dunne), Ainsley's brother, happens to be the town's sheriff and he is less than pleased that Ainsley is determine to get to the bottom of this case and prove her friend's innocence.

Overall, this is a strong start to what I hope is the beginning of several more Ainsley McGregor mystery movies. The first few minutes started out a bit bumpy, but it quickly improved. It briefly begins in present day, then briefly goes back in time one day, then jumps back to present day where we thankfully stay for the remainder of the movie. I didn't think those time jumps were necessary. The story could have been told in one continuous timeline and it would have flowed better.

Although I did identify the culprit early in the movie, it was solely based on a hunch. I do wish there were more clues throughout the movie leading up to the big reveal, but it was still a lot of fun watching Ainsley investigate and discuss the case with her friends.

If you like a bit of romance in your cozy mysteries, you'll be pleased to know there is a budding relationship in this one. Their scenes together felt a bit awkward to me in the beginning. Perhaps it was meant to be that way. The more Ainsley interacted with her potential love interest, the more comfortable I felt. I'm excited to see if and how their relationship develops in future installments.

I really loved all of the characters in this first installment. They are each unique in their own way and their interactions are so much fun to watch. I hope to see all of them in future movies in the series. One of my favorite relationships in this first installment was between Ainsley and Ryan. They have a typical brother and sister rapport. They tease each other sometimes, but it's clear that they care about each other. I love seeing adult siblings interact with each other in these kinds of movies. They are often some of my favorite character relationships.

A second movie in this series has already aired and I recorded it. In fact, it was that second movie that finally gave me the nudge to review this one. I didn't want to move on until I published this review. Now I can watch A Case for the Yarn Maker. I'm very excited to see what mystery Ainsley and her friends will investigate and speculate on next, and I'm also looking forward to seeing growth in the characters and their relationships. This movie also nudged me to add the book series to my ever-growing TBR list.

If you enjoy watching cozy mysteries, I highly recommend Ainsley McGregor Mysteries: A Case for the Winemaker. Although it is not a holiday-themed movie, it is set around Christmastime. So it's especially perfect for this time of year.