Thursday, February 8, 2024

Review: The Silence of the Library by Miranda James

 



About the Book


Genre
Cozy Mystery

Format
E-Book

Publisher
Berkley

Release Date
January 28, 2014


Synopsis from Goodreads:

Everyone in Athena, Mississippi, knows Charlie Harris, the librarian with a rescued Maine coon cat named Diesel. He's returned to his hometown to immerse himself in books, but a celebrated author's visit draws an unruly swarm of fanatic mystery buffs ... and one devious killer.

It's National Library Week, and the Athena Public Library is planning an exhibit to honor the centenary of famous novelist Electra Barnes Cartwright—creator of the beloved Veronica Thane series.

Charlie has a soft spot for Cartwright's girl detective stories (not to mention an extensive collection of her books!). When the author agrees to make a rare public appearance, the news of her whereabouts goes viral overnight, and series devotees and book collectors converge on Athena.

After all, it's rumored that Cartwright penned Veronica Thane stories that remain under wraps, and one rabid fan will stop at nothing—not even murder—to get hold of the rare books.

My Review

Librarian Charlie Harris is thrilled to learn his library will be hosting an exhibit of his favorite childhood author.  He’s even more excited when the famous author agrees to make a public appearance.  Her books are collectors' items and when word gets out about her appearance, collectors flock to the library even before the exhibit begins.

Even more exciting, the author supposedly has written five more stories in her most popular girl detective series.  Publishers and fans alike are anxious to get their hands on them.  

When a dead body is discovered, everyone wonders just how far these collectors would go to get their treasures.

This is the fifth book in the series and, as always, I absolutely loved it.  I always love my visits to Mississippi and spending some time with Charlie and his Maine coon kitty Diesel.  I still have some catching up to do with this series.  I’ve read a couple of the newer books, but I’m very excited to still have some of the early books to jump into.

With each book you get to know Charlie, his friends and his family a little better.  Of course, there is also his beloved Diesel, who is a character in his own right.  Diesel doesn’t talk and we never hear his point of view, but he does lend a helping paw every now and then.

The story moves along at a fast pace.  The characters are written so well and realistic.  They practically jump off the pages.  The ending is unique.  I didn’t see that coming.

This is such a fun series.  The next one up for me is Arsenic and Old Books.  Sounds like another enjoyable adventure.

For reading challenges:
The Purrfect Reading Challenge 2024
What An Animal Reading Challenge 2024
Literary Escapes Reading Challenge 2024 (Mississippi)
Cruisin’ thru the Cozies Reading Challenge 2024
The Backlist Reader Challenge


Disclosure:  I borrowed this one from the library.  I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.


3 comments:

  1. I have really loved the most recent books in this series but for some reason never read the earlier books in the series. This sounds like such a fun one!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks good. I love the cover. XO

    ReplyDelete

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