[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Summary
One week before her wedding, when Violet’s thoughts should have been on Christmas or her groom, she was distracted by an unpleasant visitor to her shop, Charming Books.
The rude and insistent woman had wanted Vi to buy a book. It *looked* like a signed first edition of Walden, something Vi would have loved to have owned. But the woman was so unpleasant and demanding – and in a terrible hurry. Something seemed fishy. So Vi said she needed an appraisal. And the woman left.
It’s a shock then when Vi and Rainwater find the woman’s body right after their wedding – but maybe not so surprising that the book has gone missing.
Review
This has been my favorite Amanda Flower series from the start. No matter how long it has been since I read the last book, I fall right into the stories and the characters as if it’s been no time at all.
One of the fun pieces of this series is the magical bookshop. What avid reader wouldn’t want to visit a bookshop that knows just the right next book for you? While none of the bookshop’s crime-solving tomes have been favorites of mine so far in the series, the premise is right up my alley.
The mystery was wonderfully plotted as always. I was completely caught up in the character I wanted to be the killer that I was distracted from hints I caught early on and then forgot. The whole case was completely satisfying.
Amanda Flower fans and fans of this series hardly need my encouragement to pick up a new mystery from the prolific author. (I can think of 7 series she has going or starting this year.) But you have that encouragement anyway – this was a fun read! Newcomers could probably start here without issue – and I’d encourage you to do so if you love cozy mysteries with great characters (including some fun animal ones) and a touch of magic.
Rating: ♥♥♥♥*
*♥♥♥♥ – Great! Might re-read.