Publisher: Crooked Lane Books

Published: September 7, 2021

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Source: NetGalley

Available Formats: Digital, Audio, and Hardcover

My Review: Jenna is teaching me that old and rare books are dangerous. Poor girl cannot catch a break. Her grand reopening proves to have a killer of an ending. Now she must find the killer before her livelihood and town are destroyed.

My favorite was the addition of Eddy, the victim’s dog. He was a treat. I hope his character presence increases in the series. He brings out an even sweeter side of Jenna.

You can read this book without reading the first but as always with a series, you get more if you start from the beginning.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, Crooked Lane Books, through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in the above are entirely my own.

From NetGalley: Antiquarian bookseller Jenna Quinn sleuths again when a pair of glass bookends puts an end to a librarian’s life, in this second installment of Laura Gail Black’s cozy series.

The quaint warehouse district of Hokes Folly, NC, is hopping despite the drizzly November chill. The occasion? The mountain town’s beloved antiquarian bookstore, Twice Upon a Time, is throwing a bash for its grand reopening. But bookseller Jenna Quinn’s peace of mind is shattered when the local library’s Director of Antique Books turns up dead in the parking lot–his head bashed in by a glittering pair of vintage glass bookends.

As they examine the murder scene, Jenna and her police detective boyfriend happen upon the only witness–the victim’s dog, who flees the scene leaving a trail of bloody footprints behind. If only dogs could speak, Jenna might be able to make quick work of the murder case and get back to stocking her bookcases.

Alas, finding the killer won’t be so easy, even though this is not Jenna’s first murder investigation–indeed, she inherited Twice Upon a Time from her slain uncle. The suspect list is voluminous–the late librarian had not-so-friendly run-ins with numerous guests–but suspicion eventually centers on three unsavory individuals who left the party shortly before the victim did.

Now, Jenna must edit her inventory of suspects from three names to one, before the bloodthirsty bookend-wielder becomes the author of Jenna’s demise.