Family History Mysteries Buried Past Review

When her closest friend is sick and needs a bone marrow transplant, a genealogy detective puts her skills to work to track down his father. In the Family History Mysteries Buried Past on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, digging up the past leads to mixed emotions for two brothers.

About Family History Mysteries Buried Past

Sophie (Janel Parrish) is a forensic genealogist who helps clients track down people through the use of DNA, and researching family trees. When her friend Jonathan's (Morgan David Jones) leukemia returns, he needs a bone marrow transplant to save his life. When his mother Dorothy (Sherry Miller) fears that she and Jonathan's twin brother Jackson (Niall Matter) may not be a match for him, she hires Sophie to help.

Jonathan and Jackson were raised to believe that their father died in a car accident when they were little. But, their mother tells Sophie that she thinks he may be alive. Nine years after his death, Dorothy's friend thought she saw him in Boston. When she shared the news with Dorothy, she hired a private investigator to track him down. When the investigator came up empty, she went on with her life and assumed that her husband Clark really did die in the crash.

With Jonathan's life on the line, Sophie sets out to find Clark. With the help of Jackson, she uses her resources and detective skills to follow the few leads that they have on Clark. The search gives Sophie and Jackson an opportunity to do something productive as they stress about Jonathan. But, it also gives them a chance to spend time together and rekindle a childhood crush.

Family History Mysteries Buried Past Review

Family History Mysteries Buried Past first aired on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries on January 7, 2023. It was the first new movie of the year, and what a way to kick off the new year! This movie was so much fun to watch, I really enjoyed every aspect of it.

Let's start with the story. I love a good mystery, so it was fun to watch the story unfold and figure out what happened to Clark. But what made the mystery even more entertaining was the use of genealogy. Genealogy sites, and researching family trees is such a popular hobby for people and I find it fascinating to see how the puzzles in a mystery can be figured out through DNA. But the movie does a good job of keeping it light. We get just enough info to teach us how the process works, but it doesn't drown us in too much info.

On top of being an interesting mystery, the movie also has some romantic elements to it. However, this is not a typical Hallmark love story which is something that I really liked. Sophie and Jackson had crushes on each other when they were in high school, but neither one acted on it. So here they are as single adults who have an opportunity to reconnect. While the movie doesn't focus on their love life, it does leave the door open for a future romance.

Family History Mysteries Buried Past reminds me a bit of the Martha's Vineyard Mysteries with Jesse Metcalfe. Two friends who reconnect after years of being apart, while also working together to solve mysteries. I don't know what the plans are for the Family History Mysteries, but I'm hopeful that this will become a regular series. I'd love to see more of Janel and Niall. I think that the two make a great pair, and I would enjoy seeing them get together. I think there are also plenty of great stories that could be told with Sophie's genealogy business.

Another reason why I'm hopeful for more is that this movie is based on the Family History Mysteries Series by Brynn Bonner. She currently has four books in this series, so here's hoping that Hallmark turns them all into movies.

Recap of Family History Mysteries Buried Past

Family History Mysteries Buried Past is a great way to kick-off the New Year and I highly recommend watching this movie. On top of an amazing cast, this story is something different and I really enjoyed that. And with Nikki Deloach as an Executive Producer on the movie, you know that it is a quality movie from start to finish.

Watch Family History Mysteries Buried Past on Philo or Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.