The Body in the Bookstore is the first book in a new series by Ellie Alexander, one of my favourite authors. It introduces us to bookseller Annie Murray, the Secret Bookcase bookstore and the charming town of Redwood Grove, California.
Title: The Body in the Bookstore
Author: Ellie Alexander
Series: Secret Bookcase Mysteries
First Published: June 19, 2024
Publisher: Storm Publishing
Genres: Mystery
Acquired: from the publisher via Netgalley, from the author, from the publisher
*** Thank you to the publisher, Storm Publishing, for providing me with an e-copy of this book via Netgalley for review purposes. ***
Bookseller Annie Murray is thrilled when the mystery-themed book festival she sets up to revive the dwindling fortunes of her workplace and sanctuary seems poised for success. But events take a shocking turn when a body is discovered hidden behind the shelves, and it’s revealed that the victim is Annie’s old college acquaintance.
Determined to ensure the festival’s success and save the small town of Redwood Grove from a killer, Annie begins piecing together clues with the help of her friends. But as the list of suspects grows longer – a local boutique-owner, an envious old classmate, a bitter ex-boyfriend – Annie is drawn deeper into the case.
With the aid of her old criminology professor-turned-detective, can Annie unmask the murderer before they turn her festival into a real-life whodunit?
A great start to a new mystery series
Ellie Alexander is one of my favourite cozy mystery authors and I’m always eagerly awaiting the next book in her Bakeshop Mystery and Sloan Krause mysteries, so when she announced that she had a new mystery series coming out, I couldn’t wait to get more details! Can you imagine my excitement when she mentioned that the main character would be working at an Agatha Christie-themed bookstore (what a dream come true!)
Annie Murray is a wonderful protagonist – she’s a bookseller and event planner who loves mystery novels (um, I have also worked as a bookseller and as an event planner – just saying!) But Annie has a tragic past – her best friend, Scarlet, was murdered during the last days of college and Annie is still obsessed with finding Scarlet’s killer.
Now, her college is past is back to haunt her, as several of her college classmates are in town to attend the mystery festival. I loved meeting the people close to Annie, including her boss, Hal, her quirky co-worker Fletcher, and Annie’s best friend, barista Priya. We also get introduced to some of the other people who call Redwood Grove home, including pub owner Liam, who I am DEFINITELY hoping is Annie’s future love interest (although they have more of an antagonistic vibe at the start of this book.
So many things to love
The mystery itself was quite interesting. The victim was not a nice person and it was easy to understand why there were so many suspects. All their motives were believable and there were enough twists to keep me guessing until nearly the end. The story was very evenly paced and I honestly had a hard time putting this book down until the end.
Being a student of criminology meant that Annie had a solid grounding in police procedures, and she is allowed a lot of access to the investigation since the lead detective is her old college professor. I know every cozy mystery has to have a reason why the main character is barging in on the policework, but this time it actually feels plausible (plus, I’m not really a fan of the grumpy police vs the amateur sleuth who solves everything on their own stories).
My goodness – an Agatha Christie-themed bookstore (that has a Secret Bookcase – get it?), a flawed, but smart main character, solid friends, an interesting potential love interest, a detective who seems keen to have Annie involved, a mystery book festival… this series has definitely hit every checkbox for me! I can’t wait to read book two, A Murder at the Movies (which, which, conveniently, was released on the same day as this one!)
Quote from The Body in the Bookstore
