A Murder at the Movies is the second book in Ellie Alexander’s new Secret Bookcase Mystery series, featuring book seller and event planner, Annie Murray.
Title: A Murder at the Movies
Author: Ellie Alexander
Series: Secret Bookcase Mysteries #2
First Published: June 19, 2024
Publisher: Storm Publishing
Genres: Mystery
Acquired: from the publisher via Netgalley
*** Thank you to the publisher, Storm Publishing, for providing me with an e-copy of this book via Netgalley for review purposes. ***
After the success of her first event, which revived the fortunes of the bookstore she loves so dearly, Annie is excited to launch Redwood Grove’s first film festival. But when an infamous film critic plunges to his death during the premiere of a Hitchcock-inspired thriller, Annie’s instincts tell her that this was no accident. She soon discovers that many of the cast, crew and guests are harboring dark secrets; from the lead actress with a scandalous past, to a film historian obsessed with protecting his vintage reel collection.
Determined to unravel the mystery, Annie must sift through a tangled web of hidden agendas and deception to expose the killer before they strike again. Can she crack the case and save her film festival – or will she find herself in the spotlight?
Another great cozy mystery in this series
I’m quickly falling in love with Ellie Alexander’s latest series. Which isn’t surprising considering how much I love her other two series – the Bakeshop Mysteries and the Sloan Krause Mysteries. But this one is extra special. After reading my review of the first book in this series, The Body in the Bookstore, Ellie jokingly called me a “real-life Annie Murray” since I’ve worked in a bookshop AND as an event planner in the past. What will she think when she finds out I have ALSO worked for a film festival?! LOL. Yes, it’s true – I once worked in the marketing department of the Toronto International Film Festival but that’s where the similarities stop – no dead bodies for this girl (except in books, of course!)
So you can imagine my excitement to find out that this story takes place as Annie is putting together Redwood Grove’s first film festival. There are new debuts and old classics (hello, Hitchcock films!) and the new characters added a lot of interest to the story.
But, as always, it’s getting to know the “regular” characters that make a cozy mystery series really fun, and I’m having a blast learning more about Annie and her close circle, which now includes hunky pub-owner Liam. Because of the new characters involved in the film festival, some of the townsfolk that we met in passing in the first book take a backseat in this adventure, but overall, the characters were balanced out very well and it’s never overwhelming.
A fun, fast-paced mystery
The victim was fairly obvious from the get-go but there were so many reasons why someone would want him gone that it was quite a job sorting through suspects and motives. Annie is once again looped into the investigation by Prof. Caldwell and Annie’s background in criminology makes it easy to believe that she’s a competent investigator, not just an amateur sleuth.
Annie is also a big part of why I’m enjoying this series so far. She’s smart and logical, but also generous and kind. She’s not perfect though, and feels very real – someone I would definitely want to be friends with in real life.
Since I blew my way through the first two books VERY quickly, I’m overjoyed to learn that Book 3 will be out in just a few months! I can’t wait to see what Annie and her friends do next!
Quote from A Murder at the Movies
