Little Bookshop of Murder

Blackburn, Maggie. Little Bookshop of Murder. New York: Crooked Lane Books, 2020.

Summer returns to the beach town where she grew up and where her mother owned a "beach reads" bookstore. Her mother, a seemingly healthy woman died of an apparent heart attack. Summer begins to suspect one of her mom's friends played a role in her mother's death. Summer left the police detective's son at the altar so he does not take her suspicions seriously. When someone tries to burn the house, the fire chief takes her side. Summer, a literary snob and Shakespeare scholar, despises "beach read" material, so she's not sure what she will do with the bookstore. However, her job security in academia is tenuous so she weighs her options. Summer does give the book club selection a try and surprisingly finds herself enjoying it. Eventually Summer and the police get to the bottom of the investigation. I was disappointed the story line with the fire chief seemed to drop. While the novel is probably not the most plausible piece of literature, it was a fun read in COVID-19 times. I'll probably read the next installment to see if the fire chief makes an appearance or if the story line with him is abandoned completely. I received an electronic advance review copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.