Murder in the First Edition

Murder in the First Edition by Lauren Elliott may be the third A Beyond the Page Bookstore Mystery, but it can be read on its own. Addie Greyborne donates an 1843 first edition of A Christmas by Charles Dickens to the Christmas Charity Auction put on by the local hospital foundation. She takes the appraisal to her meeting with coordinator, Teresa Lang. Teresa is not in her office and neither is the rare book in its locked case. Addie finds Teresa dead at the bottom of the steps with alcohol on her breath. Addie believes it is murder since the book disappeared at the same time, but Police Chief Marc Chandler must deal with facts. Addie, of course, quickly begins investigating despite being warned off by Marc. I like the town of Greyborne Harbor and the descriptions of the shops including Addie’s Beyond the Page. It sounds like a cozy small town where gossip spreads rapidly. The Christmas decorations along with the snow enhanced the Christmas feeling. The one problem I have with this story is Addie Greyborne. I do not care for her the way she treated the two love interests. Both Simon and Marc are interested in Addie. She seems to be toying with them. I just do not like the way the two love interests are being handled. I also did not appreciate how she treated Jonathan Hemingway (her almost father-in-law). She should get all the facts before making assumptions. I know part of it is her grief over the lost fiancé, but Addie would not want to be on the receiving end of that type of treatment. I do like Serena, who owns the tea shop, and Addie’s assistant, Paige Stringer. The mystery was complex, and I liked how the deed was done. There are red herrings to distract the reader. It will depend on your sleuthing level on whether you solve this one completely before the reveal. Personally, I would have liked a surprising twist. I could have done without Addie being constantly told to stay out of the investigation (it gets tiresome after the third time). I like the book references and the wonderful descriptions of the rare books. I enjoyed the happy ending and I hope to see a different Addie in the next A Beyond the Page Bookstore Mystery. Murder in the First Edition is an enticing cozy mystery with a treasured tome, an inconvenient in-law, a bothersome blizzard, a vexed friend, and Christmas chaos.

I’d reviewed the first in this series in audio, and have the second book to listen to as yet – but I’ve jumped ahead to the third because the premise of this book, a first-edition copy of A Christmas Carol, and the holiday-tinged theme of the story just begged to be read now. And, with the exception of missing a tiny bit in Addie’s romantic life (or confusion as a result of it) the story was easy to get into, the mystery was cleverly plotted out, and there were plenty of characters for Addie’s ‘Miss Marple” persona to peruse. What surprised me most of all was that I had an idea of the culprits from the start – not something that is particularly common for me, and Elliott used the plotting to string out the conclusion and reveal in ways that both delighted me and I found intriguing, even if many were false leads. But it was the first edition book that caught my attention, and the donation of said book by Addie to the local hospital for a charity auction is the catalyst for the story. The local hospital is planning to expand and improve their pediatric wing, and while many local business donate to this hospital event every year, the inclusion of an authenticated and evaluated rare copy of a Dickens’ book is the star of the event. Of course, when Addie and her bestie Serena go to the hospital to deliver Serena’s contribution and the final appraisal papers, the woman who heads the event is not in – and is later found dead. With the book missing, and Addie’s dead fiancé’s father Jonathan showing up unexpectedly, it’s too much of a consequence. Especially when she sees another ‘book dealer’ – a man known in the trade for some shady transactions. Oh the twists were fun – and there was plenty of Christmassy feeling moments – from the bookshop being overwhelmed with shoppers, to gingerbread men and tons of snow. But, what kept me from absolutely LOVING this story was the romantic triangle (or square, really) that Addie seemed to struggle with – between her hurt feelings about Marc, her new ‘flirtation” with Simon (who sees her as far more than just a friend) and the fact that she can’t – or won’t – let go of her grief about David. Having Jonathan (David’s father) appear and look much like David, stirring all of her resentments about his absence and apparent ‘disinterest’ in staying in touch regularly – there were more times than not when she felt more like a thirteen year old girl than a grown woman past thirty. But, some resolutions did come about, although there will still be questions about who she’ll finally choose, she managed to get some answers from Jonathan, and perhaps is now ready to move on in time for finding a new start in the new year. Overall – this fits nicely with what I remember of the first book, and she’s not quite so “new’ in town - and I’m hoping that the next books will bring more mystery, more book-centric love, and plenty of answers for Addie in her new life. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Tooooop