The Best Little Motel in Texas, Lyla Lane (Review by Lara Ferguson)
Rating: 4.0/5 Stars
Lyla Lane’s The Best Little Motel in Texas is a delightfully offbeat mystery that blends small-town scandal, unexpected inheritance, and a cast of unforgettable women into a story that’s as heartfelt as it is hilarious. Set in the fictional town of Sarsaparilla Falls, the novel follows Cordelia West, a buttoned-up Dallas librarian whose carefully chosen life is upended when she inherits the Chickadee Motel from a great-aunt she doesn’t know she had. But the Chickadee isn’t a motel—it’s a brothel, and its residents, three spirited sex workers in their sixties known as the Chicks, are not going anywhere.
What begins as a very reluctant homecoming quickly spirals into chaos when the town’s fire-and-brimstone pastor is found poisoned in one of the Chicks’ beds. Cordelia, determined to avoid scandal and sell the property, finds herself entangled in a murder investigation, a tangle of town secrets, and a slow-burning romance with Archer, the pastor’s son.
Cordelia’s complex feelings about Sarsaparilla Falls, shaped by her difficult childhood and mixed history with the town, add layers of nostalgia, resentment, and reluctant attachment. Her return is not just a physical homecoming but an emotional reckoning, which deepens the stakes of the mystery and romance. This nuanced connection to the town enriches the narrative, making Cordelia’s journey one of both external conflict and internal growth, as she confronts her past while forging new bonds.
Lane’s writing is engaging as it deftly balances the funny and suspenseful. The Chicks—Daisy, Arline, and Belinda Sue—are the heart of the novel, each bringing sass, wisdom, and emotional depth to the story. Their unapologetic presence challenges Cordelia’s assumptions and forces her to confront her own past and prejudices.
The mystery itself is engaging, with a colorful lineup of suspects including a vengeful librarian, a shady developer, and a nurse with access to arsenic. Lane keeps the reader guessing while weaving in themes of redemption, community, and the power of chosen family.
Though the premise is outrageous, most of the emotional beats land with sincerity. Cordelia’s transformation from uptight outsider to fierce protector of the Chicks is both believable and satisfying. The Best Little Motel in Texas is a cozy mystery with bite—perfect for fans of character-driven stories that don’t shy away from scandal or sentiment.