This is the second book in the Victorian Village series by Sheila Connolly who also writes several other series including the Museum Mysteries (her main character Nell makes a phone appearance in this book–she actually appeared in the first book) and Orchard Mysteries. This is the first series I’ve read of hers, but I definitely want to read the others.
The murder was a little bit lower key than what I’m used to in a cozy, because no one really knew anything about the man who was killed, since he was an outsider. It took a little while to connect him to something, but the ending was satisfying, and it was wrapped up. The ongoing story will no doubt be the process they need to go through in Asheboro if they want to turn it into an authentic Victorian village that tourists will want to visit.
My Goodreads review:
Killer in the Carriage House by Sheila Connolly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The timeline in the book was picking up fairly soon after the last one, and now it was time for Kate to propose her idea for a Victorian Village to the town council and town gathered that night. She knew she’d have her work cut out for her, but she didn’t expect to find another dead body so soon. Kate and her friend Nell’s grad student Carroll found a young guy dead in the library. Later in the book, they found out what if any, his connection was to the Barton papers that Carroll had rescued from the Barton Mansion attic.
I enjoyed this trip back to Asheboro, MD and could just picture the town, even though it’s not supposed to be much to picture at this point. I had a suspicion about who the killer was, but I had no idea why. Kate and Josh seemed to be growing a little closer, her ex-boyfriend Ryan who owned the B&B where she was staying was just a good friend now (he came in handy as an attorney for their project), and Kate’s bestie Lisbeth was involved in the project too. Kate, Josh and Lisbeth did the main sleuthing though, and they do make a great team. I hope that Josh decides not to cut ties with Asheboro when his caretaker’s position is over. It’ll be interesting to see how they pull off the Victorian Village project in the time frame that Kate was hoping for, so I’m anxious to read on in the series!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.
Cuddle Up With a Cozy Mystery 