Amy
Webber is running the small library in Taylorsford, Virginia,
where she is now living with her aunt. It is a quiet town
in the mountains and is brimming with local history. She’s
left her previous job after a romance with a colleague soured,
leaving her hurt and humiliated.
There
is an attractive man, Richard Muir, living in the house next
door to her aunt, and Amy is determined not to fall for his
charms, despite her Aunt Lydia’s obvious attempts at
matchmaking. Richard wants to get to the bottom of an old
mystery, in which the original owner of his house was poisoned,
and the woman his great-uncle loved was accused of the murder.
That
crime takes a temporary backseat, however, when modern-day
murders begin happening in town, leaving residents panic-stricken.
Amy and Richard’s research into the past, though, stirs
up trouble, pointing to some of the town’s leading families,
including Amy’s own, and it all seems connected to what
happened generations ago.
This
murder mystery is a breath of fresh air in the genre that
is populated with many small-town librarians who sideline
as amateur sleuths. Melding the past and the present, and
adding romantic tension along with a hint of the paranormal
can be a difficult balance for any author, but Victoria Gilbert
has done a masterful job.
The dialogue
is snappy enough to keep things rolling right along, and the
characters are realistic and engaging. I enjoyed the Virginia
setting, with enough details provided that I could picture
Taylorsford clearly. The plot moves at the perfect pace, neither
revealing too much, too soon or leaving readers overwhelmed
with trying to sort clues and red herrings.
This
is a December release and is available for pre-order now.
I’d recommend ordering copies for holiday gifts, but
don’t forget to get one for yourself! I love getting
in on the start of a new series, especially one with as much
potential as the Blue Ridge Library Mysteries, don’t
you?
Reviews
of other titles in this series
A
Murder for the Books [review
1] [review
2]
Shelved
Under Murder
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