A Murder for the Books

by Victoria Gilbert

Amy Webber finds being the newly hired director of the Taylorsford Public Library very different from her previous position at the university.  However, she’s trying to forget that position, as she left crawling from the spotlight after making a scene when discovering her former partner wrapped within the vibrating strings of his lead violinist. The small town begins to waken when Amy discovers a missing, elderly patron dead in the building that houses the archives.  Old tales of the town begin to surface and rumors of major development begin to shake it further.  As the heat gets turned up at City Hall, things heat up for Amy when meets her aunt’s new neighbor and the two set out to get to the bottom of the mess.  Amy just hopes they can do it without anyone else getting hurt, herself included.

This story is reflective of what is happening in many of the small towns across the U. S.  Everyone wants a piece of the pie but at what price?  As the larger cities price themselves out of the affordable living range, many are flocking to the smaller towns in search of a quiet, friendly place to set down roots and raise their children.  Gilbert gives us a taste of that little piece of pie but shows us that it can be sprinkled with pits and sours.  She reveals the greed and avarice that can rise from the feelings of familial entitlement.  Her characters are mostly good hearted, small town folks.  Her bad eggs are pretty rotten.  This is a good little cozy mystery with a dark core.  I look forward to more from Taylorsford and its library director.  Well done.

I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for approving the Advanced Reader’s Copy for my honest review.

Pub: Crooked Lane Books

Pub Date: December 12, 2017

ISBN:  9781683314394