Book Description
Julia Bird’s picturesque Cotswolds life is everything she’d dreamed of. Until, that is, she discovers a dead body in the library…
Julia Bird had imagined the quiet of rural life would be soothing after years in the city, but she finds she can’t just sit still.Determined to throw herself into village activities, she joins the library just in time to attend a talk by celebrated local author Vincent Andrews.
Charming, devilishly handsome and talented, Vincent teases the crowd with a reading from his forthcoming novel. Set in a village bearing strange similarities to Berrywick, with characters the audience start to recognise, Vincent hints of dark secrets to be revealed, to gasps of outrage from the room. The meeting ends in uproar, and, just hours later, Vincent’s dead body is discovered behind the bookshelves…
As one of the last people to see him alive, Julia feels morally bound to help the police investigate. With her trusty Labrador, Jake, at her side, she decides to do her own sleuthing and quickly discovers that Vincent’s personal life is messy, his finances are in disarray and his book sales are declining. But most of all, remembering her neighbours’ faces at the book reading, Julia wonders if one of them could have lost the plot enough to kill…
As Julia interrogates the suspects, she walks straight into another scene of murder and mayhem, and realises Vincent’s manuscript is now missing. There’s someone out there who’s deadly serious about keeping their secrets unpublished. Will Julia be able to stop them, before anyone else gets hurt?
Brilliantly twisty, this completely thrilling cozy mystery is perfect for fans of M.C. Beaton, Helena Marchmont and Clare Chase
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Murder In The Library' by Katie Gayle.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Katie Gayle, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 7th September 2022.
This is the second book I have read by this author. It is also the second book in the 'Julia Bird Mysteries' series but can be read as a standalone. I have read the first book in this series 'An English Garden Murder' and would highly recommend it.
I was originally drawn to this book by its eye catching beautiful cover and intriguing sounding synopsis and title. I am a huge fan of Katie Gayle and if this is half as good as 'An English Garden Murder' it is guaranteed to be a page turner. The synopsis stated that 'Brilliantly twisty, this completely thrilling cozy mystery is perfect for fans of M.C. Beaton, Helena Marchmont and Clare Chase.' I am a huge fan of M.C Beaton and Clare Chase so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of 37 chapters. The chapters are medium to long in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in the Cotswolds, England 🏴 , UK 🇬🇧. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture. I have actually visited the Cotswolds on many occasions and find it to be an absolutely gorgeous place so am looking forward to seeing if I recognise any of the gorgeous settings.
This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonists is Julia Bird. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything.
This book is extremely well written with vivid descriptions that leave you smelling that library smell and Jake barking. The cover and synopsis suit the book perfectly.
Such an easy, fun cosy mystery that had me hook, line and sinker!!!
Another fantastic success from the very talented Katie Gayle!! Congratulations!!
I absolutely loved reading this book which took place in such a stunning environment I felt like I had disappeared on holiday for the day. It was a shame it was only a day but that's how long it took me to zoom through the pages after not being able to put it down. The fact that the murder was set in the library was even better!! I genuinely felt like I was in the storyline and I was devastated to come to the end and have to "unpack my suitcase". The storyline is multilayered with mystery upon mystery to keep the reader completely absorbed throughout without a moment to get bored. It was filled with murder, animals, mayhem, mystery, tension, twists, friendship, books and absolutely everything you could ever ask for in a cosy mystery. The fact that it was filled with animals, chickens and one Jake to be precise and included a book club and a library murder was right down my street being a huge book and animal lover myself. This was a fantastic addition to what is promising to be an addictive series and I am glad I've seen it from the start!!! I was not expecting the killer twist so a huge congratulations there!!! I have read so many books it seems to be getting harder and harder to shock me but you definitely managed it after leading me down the garden path several times!!
Do not pick this up until you have cleared your schedules as you will not be able to put it down!!
Although this is the second book in the series I had would have had absolutely no problems reading it without the first book. Any details or events that have previously happened are mentioned in just the right amount of detail to let a new reader know what has happened and yet not too much to bore a previous reader.
I absolutely LOVED meeting Julia and Jake again along with everyone else who made this cosy mystery perfect the way it was. I have become completely invested in each of the characters and Katie and Gail portray village life and characters perfectly. I had really clicked with Julia immediately who was a perfect choice for this cosy mystery and have really enjoyed "meeting" her again. I have a feeling she is going to make a great addition to my literary friends. I am looking forward to meeting her again in the next book in this fantastic series and seeing how her friendship and relationships with the other characters continue to develop especially with the naughty but lovable Jake (definitely my favourite!!), the very handsome Sean 007 and the book leader Tabitha. I'm looking forward to seeing what they all get up to in the not so distant future!!!
Congratulations Kate and Gail on an absolutely addictive addition to what is promising to be an addictive series!!! Here's to a fantastic and many more successes 🥂
Overall an addictive cosy mystery set in a stunning area that you won't be able to put down!!
Genres covered in this book include Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mystery, Private Investigator Mystery, Humorous Dark Comedy, Cozy Animal Mystery, Thriller, Cozy Mystery and Mystery amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of M.C. Beaton, Faith Martin, Claire Chase, Verity Bright, Betty Rowlands and anyone who loves an addictive cosy mystery!!!
259 pages.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle or £7.99 on paperback via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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@KatieGayle @Bookouture @Bookworm1986 @bookworm86 @KatieGayleBooks @katesidley @gailschimmel
Author Bio:
Katie Gayle is the writing partnership of best-selling South African writers, Kate Sidley and Gail Schimmel. Kate and Gail have, between them, written over ten books of various genres, but with Katie Gayle, they both make their debut in the cozy mystery genre. Both Gail and Kate live in Johannesburg, with husbands, children, dogs and cats. Unlike their sleuth Epiphany Bloom, neither of them have ever stolen a cat from the vet.
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Buy Link:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B09ZF2C3FBsocial
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