by: Amanda Flower
Series: Magical Bookshop Mystery
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release Date: December 6, 2016
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime
Magic, books, and cats collide in a village near Niagara Falls in the latest mystery from the author of Crime and Poetry...
In Cascade Springs, New York, Violet Waverly and her grandma, Daisy, are the proprietors of Charming Books, where the power of the written word is positively enchanting...
October in Cascade Springs means tourists are pouring in for the annual Food and Wine Festival, and Daisy hopes to draw those crowds to the store. She asks Violet and the local writing group, the Red Inkers, to give a reading of the works of Edgar Allan Poe on the shop’s front porch to entertain the revelers. Everyone eagerly agrees.
Yet their enthusiasm is soon extinguished when Violet discovers one of the writers dead in the shop moments before the event. After the shop magically tells Violet she’ll need to rely on Poe’s works to solve the murder, she enlists the help of her trusty tuxedo cat, Emerson, and the shop’s crow, Faulkner. But they must act fast before someone else’s heart beats nevermore...
REVIEW
October finds Violet Waverly still trying to learn how to be a “caretaker” for her family’s bookshop, Charming Books, and the secrets found within. It’s also time for the annual Cascade Springs Food and Wine Festival. This year, Charming Books is going to put on a Poe-try Reading, featuring the works of Edgar Allan Poe. To help with the readings, Grandma Daisy has enlisted the help of the Red Inkers, a group of aspiring writers who meet at Charming Books. To make the reading even more authentic, Violet’s friend Sadie Cunningham picks out vintage outfits for everyone to wear.
As the festival and reading kicks off, Violet finds Red Inkers member Anastasia Faber dead at the bottom of the stairs leading from her apartment into Charming Books. What looks like a tragic accident turns out to be murder.
All clues and evidence point to Sadie. But even Police Chief David Rainwater doesn’t believe Sadie is a killer. Anastasia was a very difficult woman to get along with and she rubbed everyone the wrong way, but who would want to kill her and why? Violet refuses to let Sadie get framed for a crime she didn’t comment. The bookstore becomes insistent that Violet read a couple of books, but will she figure out what the shop wants her to know before it’s too late?
Amanda Flower has once again done a fantastic job of telling a story. She takes Violet down a path of discovery, both with the mystery and personally. She’s written a standalone read, but at the same time has given readers of Crime and Poetry more information on the characters. I love the paranormal aspect of the story, with the magical bookshop and all knowing Faulkner the crow and Emerson the cat. Chief Rainwater seems to see more than he lets on. I would definitely love to see things heat up between him and Violet. I’m hoping this series continues because I can’t wait to see where Amanda takes readers and these characters next.
**Received a copy from the publisher and voluntarily reviewed the book.**
Rating: 4.5
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