After 18 books, I am invested in these characters. I love reading about their lives and the added mystery is just a bonus. Tricia's new relationship is taking a little bit to get used to, but by the end of the book, I was cheering her on. The mystery had a strange wrap-up, but again, I read these more for the characters than the actual mystery. Looking forward to the next one!

Another solid entry in this series. Tricia and the much younger David, who began dating in the previous book, are a true couple in this one. When David’s library job is in jeopardy, Tricia steps up to solve the murder and saves his job at the same time. Despite the rather unusual crime rate, every visit to Booktown is enjoyable and this one is no exception.

This is the series I love to hate. I read them all and still think the sisters are a bit too pretentious and each plot rings just a little “too” - no difference with this one, and yet…like going back to a dysfunctional family, Tricia’s new romance with David seems a jump even for her but it’s a few new characters - but I’ve yet to really want to know many of them — Pixie Poe aside! I continue to want to know what happens in Booktown. Best surprise of all was the last line in this book setting up the next in the series. I shut the book on this one with just a little extra anticipation.

𝑨𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒆, 𝑻𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒚 𝒏𝒐 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒅--𝒐𝒓 𝒑𝒊𝒆𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒂𝒅𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒅--𝒘𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒑𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒅.

In book 18 of this long running series, bookstore owner Tricia Miles is tired of finding bodies. But when a beloved children's author is murdered after a book signing at the local library, Tricia knows she's back on the case.

I've read this series since the beginning, and the village in the book feels like home. I especially appreciate the character development as some authors allow their characters to grow stagnant. Tricia is dating a much younger man, and she's starting to have some questions about her sister's desire to buy another business in the village. The best part of all was the ending because I have so much anticipation to see where the next book goes!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the early copy. This book will publish July 16, 2023.

For those readers who love cozy mysteries, one of the key characteristics is that they are an "easy read". Most are solved with relative ease. The eighteenth novel in A Booktown Mystery series, Lorna Barrett has reconnected us with Tricia, Angelica, the various book themed shops and eateries, etc. The murder of an award-winning children's author after a book signing at the local library brings introduces readers to new characters while Barrett ensures that steadfast characters remain. There are twists and turns that provide red-herrings to who is the murderer that may throw readers. What made this novel stand out was the time Barrett takes to discuss the dangers of the use of plastics and the need for bees and beekeeping. At times, her writing veered into preaching on these subjects, which is not the norm for a cozy mystery. That in not way means I won't look forward to reading the next in the series on NetGalley. Thanks to publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity.