In today's spotlight I'm joining 

Berkley Mystery

 

in celebrating the release of  

ONE FOR THE BOOKS

Book 11 in the Library Lover's Mysteries

by Jenn McKinlay

Wedding bells are ringing in the latest page-turning Library Lover's Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of Word to the Wise.

Love is in the air in Briar Creek as library director Lindsey Norris and boat captain Mike (Sully) Sullivan are finally tying the knot. The entire town is excited for the happy day, and Lindsey and Sully's plan for a small wedding evaporates as more and more people insist upon attending the event of the year.   

When Lindsey and her crafternoon pals head out to Bell Island to see if it can accommodate the ever-expanding guest list, they are horrified to discover a body washed up on the rocky shore. Even worse, Lindsey recognizes the man as the justice of the peace who was supposed to officiate her wedding ceremony. When it becomes clear he was murdered, Lindsey can't help but wonder if it had to do with the wedding. Now she has to book it to solve the mystery before it ends her happily ever after before it's even begun....

Weddings and murder. I’ve been in a few weddings (seven, if we’re counting) and there was a moment in every single one where it looked like a murder could happen at any second. Not to name names, but there was the groom who spent the entire reception in the bar drinking shots with his friends until the bride was ready to brain him, the bride who insisted that the bridesmaids matched exactly from fancy hairdo to dyed satin slippers – Mercy! – and, my personal favorite, the bride with an itinerary that was four pages long, I kid you not. Any deviation from the bullet pointed list was punishable by death. We lived in fear.

While plotting One for the Books, I knew one thing for certain. A wedding was happening, because it’s book eleven, and we’ve been waiting quite a while for these characters to get it together. Realizing the wedding would be a significant plot point, I spent some time cruising the old Internet for all of the bridezilla and groomzilla stories my poor brain could handle. If you are bored, let me tell you, there are some doozies out there. But, none of those narratives fit my story because Lindsey Norris and Mike (Sully) Sullivan are just not the sort to get all crazy about a wedding. As the town library director and a local boat captain, they are mature, reasonable adults who just want to have a small gathering of their nearest and dearest in a small venue where they come out of it as Mr. and Mrs.

That’s when inspiration struck! What if the troubles weren’t with the ones getting married but rather the person doing the marrying? Can you imagine if the man or woman charged with officiating your wedding ceremony turned up dead just days before the event? And, what if, this same person had been at a Christmas party the night before their demise costumed as an elf? I’m not sure where that particular detail came from in my brain but the image of Will Ferrell in tights would not be ignored, so that was that. Justice of the Peace, Steve Briggs, known to all in town as a likable guy who threw the biggest, brightest, and best Christmas party every year was found, still in his elf suit, washed up on a beach with a head would that indicated foul play.

Truthfully, there was almost too much material here. The murder puts a pall on the entire town, and Sully and Lindsey aren’t even sure if they want to forge ahead with their wedding. Managing the usual full calendar, typical of the holiday season, all while trying to solve the murder of a friend, who had more skeletons in his closet than either Sully or Lindsey could have imagined, and amateur sleuth Lindsey and her soon-to-be husband Sully are kept busy, busy, busy! But will they make it to the church on time and will there be anyone there to marry them if they do? There’s only one way to find out!

Here’s hoping you enjoy ONE FOR THE BOOKS. Thanks for letting me visit today.

Happy Reading!

Jenn McKinlay

How each book author Jenn McKinlay writes is even better than the one before is beyond me. No matter the series, she ups her game each and every time. Needless to say, it’s the same with this eleventh addition to her Library Lover’s Mystery.

ONE FOR THE BOOKS is truly one for the books. One that you should add to your TBR now. Like, right now. Seriously, go do it now, then come back and finish this review.

Oh good, you’re back! So, ONE FOR THE BOOKS is the continuing story of the good people of Briar Creek. And they are all excited for the upcoming wedding of two of the town’s favorite people, Lindsey Norris and Mike “Sully” Sullivan. But, there are not so good people in the town as well, because once again a murderer is in the community’s midst.

As I always do when I have a new Jenn McKinlay book, I set aside a day to read it, because once I start, I finish her books in one setting. I sailed through the pages of, ONE FOR THE BOOKS in record time. Just when I knew I was heading in the right direction to solve this tale, I was blown of course time and again. The perfect storm of mystery, mayhem, fun, excitement, anticipation, and that touch of something only Jenn Mckinlay has, fulfilled my every expectation and more.

Knowing the wonderful reading you have ahead of you, plus a craft project and a couple of great recipes thrown in for good measure, I’m envious of those of you who get to read, ONE FOR THE BOOKS for the first time. Now go, read it! Hurry! J  

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