Has a curse fallen on the small town of
Taylorsford, Virginia? After a young woman goes missing during a spring
bonfire, library director Amy Webber must wade through the web of lies
only to find a truth that she may not want to untangle.
Spring has sprung in quaint Taylorsford, Virginia, and the mayor has revived the town’s long-defunct May Day celebration to boost tourism. As part of the festivities, library director Amy Webber is helping to organize a research project and presentation by a local folklore expert. All seems well at first—but spring takes on a sudden chill when a university student inexplicably vanishes during a bonfire.
The local police cast a wide net to find the missing woman, but in a shocking turn of events, Amy’s swoon-worthy neighbor Richard Muir becomes a person of interest in the case. Not only is Richard the woman’s dance instructor, he also doesn’t have an alibi for the night the student vanished—or at least not one he’ll divulge, even to Amy.
When the missing student is finally discovered lost in the mountains, with no memory of recent events—and a dead body lying nearby—an already disturbing mystery takes on a sinister new hue. Blessed with her innate curiosity and a librarian’s gift for research, Amy may be the only one who can learn the truth in Past Due for Murder, Victoria Gilbert’s third charming Blue Ridge Library mystery.
My Review
Amy Webber works at a library in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. In the midst of May Day plans, a local student goes missing and Amy gets involved in the mystery.
This is my first read in the Blue Ridge Library Mysteries series. It appealed to me because it is set in a library. I also love the Blue Ridge Mountains and found that setting intriguing.
Past Due for Murder is the third book in this series, but I had no problem learning the characters and catching up, so I feel this book worked fine as a standalone.
The mystery was interesting. I had it figured pretty early on but enjoyed seeing Amy solve the case -- before the police did! This is a particularly well paced mystery and I found it a quick read.
There is a character who is a folklore professor and story elements involving fairy folk in the mountains. I absolutely loved these details and felt they added so much to the book.
Amy is a smart, kind, relatable character, and I also enjoyed her relationship with her beau, Richard. There is even a pet rescue storyline involving an adorable kitten!
I greatly enjoyed Past Due for Murder and now need to go back and catch up with the other reads in the series. I recommend this book for fans of cozy mysteries, and especially for readers who also enjoy a library setting.
Raised in a historic small town in the
shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Victoria Gilbert turned her early
obsession with books into a dual career as an author and librarian.
Victoria’s first cozy mystery series, the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series, garnered her a three-book deal with Crooked Lane Books, which has since been expanded to five books. The first two books in the series have been optioned by Sony Pictures Television, and the first three were or will be produced in audiobook by Tantor Media.
Victoria also just inked a 2-book deal with Crooked Lane for a new cozy series, the Booklovers B & B series, set in historic Beaufort, NC.
A member of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and Sisters in Crime, Victoria is represented by Frances Black at Literary Counsel.
Victoria’s first cozy mystery series, the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series, garnered her a three-book deal with Crooked Lane Books, which has since been expanded to five books. The first two books in the series have been optioned by Sony Pictures Television, and the first three were or will be produced in audiobook by Tantor Media.
Victoria also just inked a 2-book deal with Crooked Lane for a new cozy series, the Booklovers B & B series, set in historic Beaufort, NC.
A member of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and Sisters in Crime, Victoria is represented by Frances Black at Literary Counsel.
Website/blog: http://victoriagilbertmysteries.com/
Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/VictoriaGilbertMysteryAuthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/VGilbertauthor
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/VictoriaGilbert
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/victoriagilbertauthor/
Purchase Links:
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debuted Dec. 2, 2014. Followed by #2, 
. #3, 
,
was released in December. She, Rocco and Maxx make their home in
Clifton, New Jersey, just twenty minutes from the Big Apple – New York.
Catch up with them at 
