Ellery Adams delivers another excellent cozy mystery for bibliophiles!
This is a book lover's dream! Set in an idyllic Virginia writer's retreat called Storyton Hall, where secret and valuable works of literature are kept safe. Think unpublished works by famous authors, alternative ending Shakespearean plays, rare first editions, etc. These treasures are guarded by Jane Steward and her family and the Fins, who provide security. This is the 8th book in the Book Retreat Mysteries by Ellery Adams, and it is outstanding!
Jane is hosting a competition for poets, which will land one of them a contract with a greeting card company. When a contestant is murdered and her body set up to resemble a famous painting, Jane and her inner circle assist the authorities in catching a killer.
Well-written and overflowing with literary references, this is a delightful gem of a book and a clever whodunnit. I was kept guessing while admiring the scenery. And, the mysteries don't stop with murder, either. Because Storyton Hall and its inhabitants have secrets, too, including secret passages, rare manuscripts, and work in covert organizations. Jane is a very likable and competent sleuth, and a wonderful group of secondary characters surrounds her. But, I think the biggest compliment I can pay this book is that I did not want it to end! I had so much fun that I will definitely go back to the start of this series to get more of this magical place, and I eagerly await future installments!
Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the opportunity to review this ARC. I loved it!
My steep was the Maya Angelou Blend from Simpson and Vail's Literary Tea Collection. A black tea with hibiscus, orange peel, cloves, orange blossoms, and vanilla, pineapple, and orange spice flavorings is a complex and magical blend I always keep on hand starting from Fall through the holidays.
www.svtea.com
Synopsis: For bibliophiles who want to get away from it all, Virginia’s book-themed resort Storyton Hall offers the perfect escape. And in the latest witty installment from New York Times bestselling author Ellery Adams, a killer inspired by Lord Alfred Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shallot” doesn’t stanza chance when resort manager Jane Steward is on the case!
When corpses clutching poems begin turning up around Storyton Hall, resort manager Jane Steward is on the trail of someone exercising poetic license to kill…
As Jane eagerly anticipates the wedding of her best friend Eloise Alcott, Storyton Hall is overrun with poets in town to compete for a coveted greeting card contract. They’re everywhere, scrawling verses on cocktail napkins in the reading rooms or seeking inspiration strolling the Poet’s Walk, a series of trails named after famous authors. But the Tennyson Trail leads to a grim surprise: a woman’s corpse drifting in a rowboat on a lake, posed as if she were “The Lady of Shallot.”
When a second body is discovered,also posed as a poetic character, a recurring MO emerges. Fortunately, Jane is well versed in sleuthing and won’t rest until she gives the killer a taste of poetic justice…
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