C. M. Wagonner has written a mystery blended with a supernatural twist. It was an interesting story; however, the twist really didn't come until much later in the book which did throw me off a little.

The characters are well-developed; but I didn't feel any connection with any of them. The story moves smoothly and the few twists in the mysteries were easily explained away by Sherry Pinkwhistle's investigative skills to solve the murders. Sherry eventually begins to realize that their is something strange going in her small community which leads her to do more investigating which is when the supernatural twist comes into play. I confess that I honestly didn't understand why the "demon" chose Winesap, NY and Sherry for her personal entertainment venue.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars.

Loved this book! Very well done and well written to keep the reader engaged. Great for Halloween season!

Whimsy is the best word to describe this book. Early on, Sherry is shown to relate people in her town to characters. It's almost like this book should be called "If We Were a Story Book." Friends and colleagues are seem through different eyes. For example, the sheriff becomes the mouse sheriff bearing the same name. That concept is whimsical but almost doesn't fit with FMC. Which brings me to my next word choice to describe this book. Sherry is a bit of an enigma but not always in a good way. She maintains some habits that one might expect in a younger girl only to turn around a talk about regency historical romances. In some ways, she is a complex character. We know she must be sharp and observant as she has helped solve other murders but she is also a little silly like her early on talk about her hair not reflecting her character.
The mystery or murder of the week is certainly not your typical procedural murder of the week as demons and a talking cat have been thrown into the mix. Add those demons and talking cat to a town already rife with too many murders and you have a unique concept. You have a unique concept that I wanted to like especially with the plug that this is Buffy meets Jessica Fletcher. That statement is sort of true but not to the extent i would have hoped.
With that said, I struggled rating this book. Sometimes rating a book 1-5 is hard because not all books fit a specific number. Therefore, I would give this book a sold 3.25-3.45 which rounds down to 3 when in reality it is a 3+.
Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read this ARC.

A cozy mystery set in a strange little town that has a demon problem.

Sherry, a local librarian, is really really good at solving mysteries. Her small town seems to experience an exorbitant amount of murders and luckily, Sherry is quite the detective. Sherry discovers that there are greater forces at play in her little town.

This is an interesting, fun read but unfortunately the execution of the book wasn’t my favorite. The characters were odd to me and did not quite fit the story. The story itself, despite excellent writing, felt just thrown together. Overall I liked this book because the concept was really great but the story just didn’t quite come together.

Middle-aged librarian Sherry Pinkwhistle leads a fairly normal existence aside from her recreational detective work since, although her town is small, the number of murders there is not. She discovers one day that something strange is going on, and she, the local priest, and a few friends start eliminating the ancient and demonic forces that are at work in her small village.

Although I thought the idea behind the book was incredibly intriguing, I wasn't as impressed with how well it was executed. The story seemed a little haphazard because it threw the reader directly into the action. That was incredibly unsettling for me since it felt like I was walking into an already-running scene. Though I'm not sure whether I could relate to the main character, she was an interesting figure.

The writing in the book is excellent, and I believe it would make a comfortable read for the approaching fall seasons.

C.M. Waggoner’s latest title combines fantasy and mystery genres to create a page-turning who-done-it.

Town librarian and amateur detective Sherry Pinkwhistle has recently moved to a small upstate NY town where murders keep happening with alarming frequency. None of the other townspeople seem to be concerned with the large amount of murders but Sherry suspects a supernatural element may be at the center of these deaths. Not only will she need her amateur sleuth skills but now she also needs an exorcist.

A charming group of characters creates a pool of potential culprits. With references to the mystery television show Murder She Wrote, Waggoner combines humor, fantasy and mystery for a fun and quick read. Thanks to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for the advanced reader’s copy.

The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society is a cozy murder mystery. I think the premise was really interesting, but unfortunately I didn't find the execution up to par. I felt the pacing was too slow and there seemed to be a lot of detours just to info dump. It's hard with books that blend genres to find the right balance and I think this could be a 5 star read for someone else, but it wasn't my cup of tea.

This fun cozy romp through a demon infested village sends a not young librarian on what seems to be a never ending series of murders to solve. When her boyfriend is murdered and her cat starts to talks, she pulls out all her Miss Marple and Poirot chops to clear her name.

For readers who crave a delightful blend of mystery, fantasy, and humor, The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C.M. Waggoner is a perfect fit, offering a charming and stirring tale of a plucky librarian-turned-amateur-sleuth who must navigate the dark secrets of her quaint village, all while uncovering the truth behind a series of supernatural murders.

I was lucky enough to win an e-ARC of THE VILLAGE LIBRARY DEMON-HUNTING SOCIETY by C. M. Waggoner from a Shelf Awareness giveaway. Thank you for the early look, and enjoy the rest of your summer!

This was a fun murder mystery book with some fun paranormal goings on! I loved the characters and it was a quick easy read. I cannot wait for hopefully more books with this cast of characters! I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

Every book has its reader. Alas, I am not the reader for this book. I found it rather twee, beginning on the first page with the Mary Sue-ishness of the main character and her cat, Lord Thomas Cromwell. I am a bit over the quirky librarian trope.

While I expect there’s a good story here, I could not get past the first couple of chapters. There’s definitely an audience for this, but it’s not this old lady.

Sherry is a librarian in a small New York town, and has ended up with a side gig as a detective solving murders. But when a good friend ends up being the next victim, she begins to realize that it's very odd how many murders happen in their very tiny town. Why hasn't she, or anyone else, questioned what is happening? And then her cat begins talking to her, telling her she has to investigate this murder or else. Sherry and her friends are forced to consider if there is a supernatural presence at work, but what can they do?

I thought this was a genius spin on murder-of-the-week series, where we finally ask the question, why are so many people here becoming murder victims? I was kept on my toes the entire time, never sure of what was actually happening. A must read for anyone who enjoys cozy murder mysteries, and a touch of fantasy!

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for making this ARC available!!

What a fantastically funny read!! I throughly enjoyed The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society! Weird things are happening in the small town of Winesap, and it takes a delightfully funny librarian to figure it all out. First of all, being a librarian myself, I LOVE a great librarian protagonist, and Sherry is loveable. In fact many of the characters are, and diverse as well. From the good lokking newly minted and insecure priest, to the beautiful art gallery owner. I mean what could they all have in common? Well demon problems of course!
I did keep feeling like I was in a small English town, rather than New York, but I disnt mind.
The plot was twisty, and I honestly didn't figure most things out until they were revealed. Some of the clues were glaring, but I believe intentionally so, and done so as you still didn't quite have all of the pieces. My only real complaint was that i would have liked more society-ing, as the other members of said society didn't play as much of a role as I would have liked. Maybe in a sequel? This was definitely a five star read for me.

DNF @30%

I don't like the writing style and I don't care about the characters or the plot at this point.

3.5/5 ⭐️
Well that was interesting. On one hand it felt like a mix of being in the head of someone with severe ADHD that is also on an acid trip. But on the other, I finished it. I didn’t dnf which is good for me at this current time.
I think this had potential if the narrative was reined in a bit. I think it’s attempts to be cozy manifested as many strange, info dumping asides. But I think it could’ve been a good murder mystery story starring an older lady. But I think the whole demon thing was unnecessary. Especially when the main murder was solved with logic. There was no point for the whole supernatural demon stuff to be here. If you cut it, the story would’ve been stronger for it. Oh, and I wasn’t a fan of her constantly referencing the pop culture the book is very obviously trying emanate. Like constantly referencing Miss Marple in a book that has a town and a character practically copy paste.
In general, wasn’t terrible. Could’ve been better. But I wouldn’t talk someone out of reading this.
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

I ADORED this! Combining murder, the way old mysteries with Jessica Fletcher were, a talking cat, and a demon: boom, the best cozy mystery I’ve read this year. The characters were phenomenal, the humor was great, and comes complete with all those cozy feelings old murder mysteries give. This was so great. Everyone should read it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for the copy of this ARC! This book will be out in late September! Be sure to add it to your TBR!

I usually read romance books but decided to switch up my reading genres with this one and I'm so glad I did!
I would describe this book as a cozy paranormal cheeky mystery and absolutely loved it. I've never read a book quite like it before and I really hope that this is the beginning of a series. If not, it's a fantastic standalone!

I loved how the story built to the conclusion, with clues planted along the way that once everything is explained, it all made sense. The characters were interesting and well-developed, and I was fully invested in following along with their journey.

A really fun read - I hope others pick it up and try it out!

A rollicking who-done-it, with a "spinster cat-lady" Librarian who saves the day. Great details about the workings of an actual library.

3.5 stars for me.

This was interesting and weird. I felt like it was almost two different books mashed together. The first murder felt like it should have been a novella. I enjoyed this part, though finding the killer felt too quickly and easy.

The main character, Sherry, was pretty likeable, I enjoy that she’s a librarian. I enjoyed the friend crew who helps out, it’s quite a motley group of people. Most of the book had cozy vibes but it was hard to feel invested in the story. I was expecting a cozy, urban fantasy mystery. What I got was a decent mystery, but with a disjointed sense of fantasy. The demon problem felt added on, without a clear reason to be there.