Death on the page

Shelby Cox and her Aunt Edie Cox are co-owners of two bookstores, one in the village of Alexandria Bay, on the St. Lawrence River, the other on nearby Blye Island. While Edie is recovering from knee surgery, Shelby takes charge of an author, Savannah Page, coming to do a signing at both shops. But there's a wrinkle: Savannah wants to spend a night in the Blye Castle, alone, a request the Heritage Society reluctantly grants. Page, a true-crime writer, wants to do a book on the smuggler allegedly killed in the castle. But when staff get to the island the next morning, they find Page dead, at the bottom of a secret passage. As the investigation begins, castle staff notice that the plans for the castle, which had been on display, are missing, along with other small objects. The crusty police chief, Tekla Stone, as well as her Coast Guard Investigative Services boyfriend, warn Shelby to stay out of the investigation. Fat chance. Fans of Lorna Barrett's Booktown mysteries or Eva Gates' Lighthouse Library novels will enjoy this sprightly second in a series.--Karen Muller Copyright 2020 Booklist

In Lang's plodding sequel to 2019's Trouble on the Books, bestselling true crime author Savannah Page, who's researching a book on Prohibition-era mobster Joe Cabana, agrees to do a signing at the two shops co-owned by Shelby Cox--one in Alexandria Bay, N.Y., the other in Blye Castle on Blye Island in the Saint Lawrence River, where Cabana died--on condition that she can spend the night in the purportedly haunted castle alone. At the first signing, a waitress aggressively accuses Savannah of having stolen the idea for the Cabana book from her. The morning after Savannah's second signing party in the castle shop, she's found dead in the castle. Curious to solve the murder, Shelby bustles around asking questions and accusing various bystanders of the crime. A spontaneous confession resolves the mystery. Despite all the surefire ingredients for a cozy, including a cat, a chocolate shop, and a knockout boyfriend, this entry never really engages readers through either characterization or plot. Those seeking serious amateur sleuthing will have to look elsewhere. Agent: Kim Lionetti, BookEnds Literary. (Mar.)

An upstate New York bookshop owner can't keep her mind off murder.After living most of her life in Boston, Shelby Cox returned to Alexandria Bay in the Thousand Islands to discover that the mother she'd thought dead had actually deserted the family for a banker from Georgia. Now Shelby runs the seasonal bookstore in romantic Blye Castle on Blye Island and helps her Aunt Edie, who refuses to discuss her mother, in the main Alexandria Bay store, which they co-own. She's already been involved in one murder investigation (Trouble on the Books, 2019), much to the dismay of Police Chief Tekla Stone and Shelby's boyfriend, Coast Guard Investigative Services Agent Zack Griffin. Since Edie's taking it slow after knee surgery, Shelby is finding it a challenge to manage a book signing by popular true-crime author Savannah Page. Thanks to the help of Savannah's fiance, Liam Kennelly, the event goes uneventfully until a determined-looking woman named Jenna Dunlap angrily accuses Savannah of having stolen her idea and her research about the unsolved murder of Joe Cabana, who died on Blye Island. Savannah is staying at Blye Castle that night, having gotten permission from the society that runs the place, and when she's found dead at the bottom of a flight of steps leading to a secret passage, her laptop missing, Shelby just can't stop herself from snooping. Savannah's drop-dead-gorgeous agent, Bryce O'Connell, shows up and quickly gets interested in Erica, Shelby's best friend. Several small items missing from Blye Castle, including the architectural drawings showing the secret passages, make Shelby wonder whether someone was looking for a way to steal in and kill Savannah. Rachel Michaels, another wannabe true-crime author, claims she was due to meet with Savannah to get tips about writing. Shelby has several suspects and even more people warning her to keep out of the investigation, but it's not in her nature to give up.A meandering plot overpowers the charming characters and beautiful Thousand Islands setting. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.