A Body at the Book Fair by Ellie Alexander Series: A Secret Bookcase Mystery #6
Published by Storm Publishing on June 16, 2025
Source: NetGalley
Genres: Cozy Mystery
Pages: 236
Format: eARC
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In the gripping conclusion to The Secret Bookcase series, Annie Murray races to untangle the ultimate plot twist…
Life is good for she’s found healing at the Secret Bookcase, her beloved Agatha Christie-themed mystery bookstore in the cozy town of Redwood Grove, and is on the brink of launching her very own detective agency. But she's still haunted by one unsolved the murder of her best friend Scarlet ten years ago.
When Annie heads to Santa Clara for their annual book fair, she’s looking forward to meeting fellow booklovers. And she’s also got a secret she’ll be close to Silicon Summit Partners, the powerful investment firm she just knows had a hand in Scarlet’s death. But when an industry colleague is murdered at the book fair, Annie is first on the scene to investigate. The suspect list reads like a book lover’s who’s a celebrity author with a suspicious agenda, a rival with a grudge, and even a kindly grandmother pursuing her lifelong dream of owning a bookstore.
With her fellow bookseller and crime-fighting partner Fletcher playing Watson to her Holmes, can Annie catch the killer before they strike again? And will it distract her from her mission to finally bring her best friend Scarlet’s murderer to justice?
This is the final installment of the Secret Bookcase Mysteries – although don’t worry, we’ll get a spin-off, The Novel Detectives series. This time around, Annie and Fletcher are in Santa Clara for a book fair and Liam and Pri are coming along too. It just so happens that the fair is near the company that Annie blames for her best friend, Scarlet’s, death, ten years ago, and Annie has a plan to get the evidence she needs. While we do get some background info on the cold case, this one probably works better if you’ve read others in the series. Of course, there’s also a murder at the book fair. One of the presenters is killed by his own VR device, and Annie is there when it happens.
The book fair sounds amazing and makes me want to go to a bookish event soon. The two mystery plot are balanced well. We have several suspects for the current murder – the dead man was not a nice guy or honest businessman. I didn’t really love how the solution to Scarlet’s case played out, but I’m glad it’s resolved. I’m not a huge fan of over-arching mysteries in my cozies.
The characters are fun to spend time with and it’s a light read. I’m looking forward to catching up with Annie and her crew again.
About Ellie Alexander
Cozy mystery author, Ellie Alexander, is a Pacific Northwest native who spends ample time testing a multitude of pastry and other recipes in her home kitchen or at one of the many famed coffeehouses nearby. When she’s not coated in flour, or hard at work on the next book in one of her cozy mystery series, you’ll find her outside exploring hiking trails trying to burn off calories consumed in the name of research.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges: