Thursday, October 7, 2021

Review: A Perfect Bind (A Beloved Bookroom Mystery) by Dorothy St. James (Blog Tour/Tour-Wide Giveaway)

 

A Perfect Bind (A Beloved Bookroom Mystery) by Dorothy St. James


About A Perfect Bind

 

A Perfect Bind (A Beloved Bookroom Mystery) 

Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series 

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Berkley (September 28, 2021) 

Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages 

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0593098609 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593098608 

Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08SJLRBJN

Librarian Tru Beckett, ardent defender of the printed word, is about to find out that keeping murder checked out of her beloved library is much harder than she thought... 

Tru Beckett succeeded in building a secret book room in her now bookless library, where book lovers from lovely Cypress, South Carolina, can rejoice in the printed word. Now she's working hard to maintain the little library downstairs while keeping her "real job" upstairs in the bookless technology center. The last thing she needs is a mysterious vandal who seems intent on breaking into her secret book-filled sanctuary and creating chaos. The nasty interloper doesn't steal anything, but brutalizes the books, damaging them and knocking them off shelves. 

A patron of the secret book room tells Tru that there have been creepy goings-on at the library for years, especially in the basement where the secret book room is located. He's heard rumors of a poltergeist that haunts the library, determined to scare off readers. Tru is certain it's hogwash, but she's at a loss to think of who might be vandalizing the beautiful books she fought so hard to protect. And when a dead body shows up right behind the library, Tru is certain that it's not a ghost but a cold-blooded killer that she and her trusty tabby Dewey Decimal will need to uncover.

My Review

Librarian Tru Beckett loves her books.  She, also, loves her library, but recently management decided to make it a bookless library using only technology.  Being an advocate for book lovers, Tru decided to open a secret book room in the library’s basement.  Keeping it a secret in a small town like Cypress, South Carolina is no easy feat.

Suddenly Tru’s book room becomes the victim of vandals.  She can’t understand how someone could want to destroy her nice book sanctuary.  One town member suggests poltergeists, but Tru’s not buying that one.  When a dead body shows up behind the library, she’s sure this isn’t the work of poltergeists but something much more sinister.

Tru Beckett is a wonderful amateur sleuth and heroine in this cozy mystery series.  I probably like her so much because she loves books, as I do, and she has a cat, as I do.  A cat named Dewey Decimal is the perfect tabby to prowl the library for killers and other bad guys.

Tru is quite busy trying to maintain her book room’s secrecy, find the vandals, and find a killer.  At the same time she keeps running into the local detective who wants her to stay out of his investigations.  She can’t do that, especially if it turns out to be connected to her secret room.

This cozy is filled with quirky and unique characters.  The friendship between Tru, Flossie and Tori is fun and sweet.  They truly care about each other.  The characters come to life with each page.

The story moves at a fast-pace with many possible suspects.  I did suspect the real culprit but I wasn’t sure of the hows and whys behind it.  It was most enjoyable to figure it out along with Tru.  Although, it’s the second book in a series, the murder mystery is contained in this book.  However, I strongly suggest starting with the first book so you can read how the secret room came about.

I’m really looking forward to the next book in this delightful series.


For reading challenges:
Craving for the Cozies Reading Challenge 2021


FTC Disclosure: I voluntarily reviewed a free Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.  All opinions expressed are my own.

 

About Dorothy St. James

Dorothy St. James is the author of the White House Gardener Mysteries and the Southern Chocolate Shop Mysteries. She lives in the Lowcountry of South Carolina with her sculptor husband. Dorothy is a member of Mystery Writers of America (MWA) and the International Thriller Writers (ITW) and Sister’s in Crime (SInC). This is her second Beloved Bookroom Mystery.

Follow Dorothy Online


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2 comments:

  1. I have yet to pick up this series but it sounds so fun! I'm glad to see that book 2 lived up to the 1st book.

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