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A Library Lover’s Mystery, No 1
Jenn McKinlay
Berkley
July 2011/ ISBN 978-0-425-24218-6
Mystery/Amateur Sleuth/Cozy
Amazon
Reviewed
by Laura Hinds
Jenn McKinlay, author of the Cupcake Bakery Mysteries, has taken
a decidedly different direction with this first book in the Library
Lover’s Mystery series. And it really is a great fork in the
cozy mystery road that promises a wonderful future for her fans’
reading pleasure.
Lindsay Norris has had some major changes in her life recently.
First, she is newly single after her love-life took a bad turn,
then she lost her job due to budget cuts. She’s new on the
job as director of the Briar Creek Public Library in a small Connecticut
town where her old grad school roommate works as the children’s
librarian. The new job is going smoothly, save for one of the old
guard librarians, the sour-faced Ms. Cole (aka the lemon), who finds
every change Lindsay makes at the library distasteful and isn’t
shy about telling her so
.
Beth has been working on a children’s book about a hamster
that lives at the library, and when a famous New York editor comes
to town, Lindsay urges her to show her the book. Meanwhile, Beth’s
boyfriend, Rick, is himself a children’s author with some
fame –and a connection to this editor that shocks Beth to
her core. He’s been stealing her ideas! When Beth and Lindsay
go to confront him and instead find his murdered body, trouble boils
to the surface when Beth is the chief suspect!
This book has it all- a lovely library, a Crafternoon Club that
meets at the library to knit and discuss their current read, recipes
and knitting patterns too! The story is lively and interesting,
and the characters are down-to-earth and likeable. There’s
even an elderly library board chairman who is also a practicing
yogi and routinely stands on his head in a corner of the library.
I really loved the story and look forward to future books in the
series. It is a unique book that shows not only the author’s
story-telling skills, but her ability to imagine people, scenarios,
and places in vivid details that come through loud and clear to
the reader. To clarify my opening statement that McKinlay has taken
a decidedly different direction with this book, I’d like to
add that I love the Cupcake Bakery Series too, but this new series
has all the charm and cozy feel of a sure to be a hit new series
loved by bookworms and librarians who have just a little less of
a sweet tooth!
The book is appropriate for all ages tween and up, would be a great
summertime read, and is an excellent selection for a book club.
There is even a reader’s guide included.
Reviews of other titles in this series
Books
Can Be Deceiving
#1
Due
or Die #2
On
Borrowed Time #5
Hitting
The Books #9 |