Death on the Page by Essie Lang is the second novel in A Castle Bookshop Mystery series. It can be a standalone if you have not read Trouble on the Books. Shelby Cox co-owns Bayside Books in Alexandria Bay, New York with her aunt, Edie Cox. They have an auxiliary location in Blye Castle on Blye Island which is one of the Thousand Islands. It is the 35th anniversary of their bookstore and Savannah Page has agreed to do a signing of her latest true crime novel. Savannah also got the board of directors of Blye Castle to allow her to stay at the castle over the weekend. The author plans on researching Joe Cabana, a prohibition mobster, whose murder was never solved. Shelby arrives to open the bookstore on Sunday to learn that Savannah is dead at the bottom of a staircase in a secret passage. Shelby is curious about the secret passages and the author's death, so she begins asking questions. There are a variety of suspects from the castle's caretaker to the author's fiancé. Shelby asks questions of people involved in the case despite being told by her aunt, boyfriend and Chief Stone to stop being a nosey parker. The mystery is straightforward, and readers will have no problem solving the whodunit before the solution is revealed. When Shelby is not sleuthing, she is working at the bookstore, visiting friends or her aunt, spending time with Zach Griffin (the Coast Guard agent she is dating), or indulging in coffee at Chocomania. I wish the story had contained more action. I found the pace to be on the slow side (for me). I would like to see Shelby become more mature especially with regards to her relationship with Zach. It would be nice is the author fleshed out the main characters (Erica, Matthew, Aunt Edie, Zach). I also wanted more sleuthing at the castle. I felt the author lost out on an opportunity to make this an intriguing mystery with Shelby sneaking around the castle and finding clues in the secret passages. The ending seemed abrupt and lacking in a solid conclusion to the mystery (I have questions). Those readers who prefer more cozy than mystery will enjoy reading Death on the Page. Death on the Page has secret stairs, chocolate coffee, pocketed objects, injured individuals, tricky thieves, and a cagey killer.
Brenda H. (booksinvt) -
Death on the Page is the second installment in the Castle Bookshop Mystery series set between Blye Island and Alexandria Bay, NY and featuring bookshop co-owner Shelby Cox. Tourist season is winding down as winter approaches and the last activity scheduled for the bookstores are the book signings on the mainland and in the castle on Blye Island by famed mystery writer, Savannah Page.
The mainland signing gets off to a rocky start when a local woman approaches the author and accuses her of stealing her manuscript and then publishing the book as her own. Savannah has asked if she can spend the night at the castle after the island signing because she would like to learn more about the last owner, Joe Cabana. The reputed mobster turned smuggler is reported to haunt the island and Savannah thinks that staying upstairs in his rooms, which are normally off limits to the public, will help add to her story line. But, Savannah has a strange request - she doesn't want either her fiance or editor to stay with her, she just wants a security guard to stay upstairs with her and island/castle caretaker, Matthew Kessler who resides in his own home on the island.
When Savannah is discovered dead at the bottom of the stairs leading to the castle's secret passageways, nobody is quite sure what happened. But, Chief Stone who has had it in for Matthew from the start (see book one in the series) is happy to point a finger in his direction. Knowing that Matthew is not the killer, Savannah ignores the warnings of her boyfriend Coast Guard agent Zack Griffin and her Aunt Edie and finds herself drawn into a dangerous investigation.
A good addition to the series, this one gets off to a slow start and does bog down a little in the middle, but the last third of the book will attract and keep your attention to the final reveal. A unique location, the author providing more information about each of the secondary characters and a maturing romance will mean tuning in to see what Winter will bring to the the Thousand Islands.
The mainland signing gets off to a rocky start when a local woman approaches the author and accuses her of stealing her manuscript and then publishing the book as her own. Savannah has asked if she can spend the night at the castle after the island signing because she would like to learn more about the last owner, Joe Cabana. The reputed mobster turned smuggler is reported to haunt the island and Savannah thinks that staying upstairs in his rooms, which are normally off limits to the public, will help add to her story line. But, Savannah has a strange request - she doesn't want either her fiance or editor to stay with her, she just wants a security guard to stay upstairs with her and island/castle caretaker, Matthew Kessler who resides in his own home on the island.
When Savannah is discovered dead at the bottom of the stairs leading to the castle's secret passageways, nobody is quite sure what happened. But, Chief Stone who has had it in for Matthew from the start (see book one in the series) is happy to point a finger in his direction. Knowing that Matthew is not the killer, Savannah ignores the warnings of her boyfriend Coast Guard agent Zack Griffin and her Aunt Edie and finds herself drawn into a dangerous investigation.
A good addition to the series, this one gets off to a slow start and does bog down a little in the middle, but the last third of the book will attract and keep your attention to the final reveal. A unique location, the author providing more information about each of the secondary characters and a maturing romance will mean tuning in to see what Winter will bring to the the Thousand Islands.
