Thursday, September 08, 2011

Books Can Be Deceiving by Jenn McKinlay

Title: Books Can Be Deceiving
Author: Jenn McKinlay
ISBN: 9780425242186
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime, 2011
Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages
Genre: Cozy/Amateur Sleuth, #1 Library Lovers mystery
Rating: B-
Source: Paperback Swap

First Line: "Oh, I just love that Maxim de Winter," Violet La Rue said, her knitting needles clacking together as if to emphasize her words.

Lindsey Norris has found a job she loves-- being the director of the Briar Creek Public Library-- in a town she's come to love, and she has to admit that her apartment is great and she's making lots of friends. Everything is just peachy, even if her co-worker (AKA "The Lemon") is determined to put a sour note or three in Lindsey's cheery song.

That changes when a New York editor shows up in town for some R&R. Lindsey's friend Beth has been working for years on a children's book, and she's finally persuaded to show her work to the editor.  Beth's boyfriend, already a famous author, gets in the way, and when Beth goes to confront him, she finds his body and becomes the prime suspect in his murder. The local sheriff is convinced of Beth's guilt, so Lindsey has to work fast to prove her friend's innocence.

Sometimes I wish we could call a moratorium on big-bellied, stupid, belligerent sheriffs, but there must be enough of them in real life that I wouldn't be able to pull it off. Yes, there is one in this book, but-- thank heavens-- the state sends in a detective to keep the idiot in line.

The setting in a small town by the sea in Connecticut is very well done, and I definitely wouldn't mind going there for a visit. As befits all the best cozies, the cast is what reigns supreme in this book. Lindsey and her circle of friends drew me right in, and even the old sour puss, Ms. Cole, had me keeping my eye on her. There's also a handsome hunk of man that knows his way around a boat, and he's not about to repel all boarders when Lindsey's around.

About the only thing that bothered me in this book was the fact that I didn't really get to deduce whodunit because, by the time Lindsey and her friends started checking into the victim's background, it was close to the end and all the characters really weren't on the scorecard yet. Be that as it may, I still found this an enjoyable book filled with characters that I want to read about again. My favorite line? "Nobody threatens my library."





5 comments:

  1. I liked this one too and I'd back your moratorium on the TSTL sheriffs. Glad you enjoyed it.

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  2. It sounds like this series has a lot of potential.

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  3. Kaye-- Well, two thumbs down on TSTL sheriffs from the two sunshine states. Think we can get others to join us? :)

    Kathy-- It does. I'm looking forward to the next one!

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  4. although I don't often think of Conn. as a seaside state, I remember a trip up took up along the coast a few years ago and there are some lovely little towns along the coast there. So i may have to check this out..lol

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  5. Caite-- I guess the question is why neither one of us thinks of it sa a state with a coastline! LOL

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