The Game Is a Footnote

Vicki Delany

eBook - 2023

Gemma Doyle and Jayne Wilson are back on the case when a body is discovered in a haunted museum in bestselling author Vicki Delany's eighth Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery. Scarlet House, now a historical re-enactment museum, is the oldest building in West London, Massachusetts. When things start moving around on their own, board members suggest that Gemma Doyle, owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium, might be able to get to the bottom of it. Gemma doesn't believe in ghosts, but she agrees to 'eliminate the impossible'. But when Gemma and Jayne stumble across a dead body on the property, they're forced to consider an all too physical threat. Gemma and Jayne suspect foul play as they start to uncover mo...re secrets about the museum. With the museum being a revolving door for potential killers, they have plenty of options for who might be the actual culprit. Despite Gemma's determination not to get further involved, it would appear that once again, and much to the displeasure of Detective Ryan Ashburton, the game is afoot. Will Gemma and Jayne be able to solve the mystery behind the haunted museum, or will they be the next to haunt it?

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Subjects
Published
[United States] : Crooked Lane Books 2023.
Language
English
Corporate Author
hoopla digital
Main Author
Vicki Delany (-)
Corporate Author
hoopla digital (-)
Online Access
Instantly available on hoopla.
Cover image
Physical Description
1 online resource
Format
Mode of access: World Wide Web.
ISBN
9781639101467
Access
AVAILABLE FOR USE ONLY BY IOWA CITY AND RESIDENTS OF THE CONTRACTING GOVERNMENTS OF JOHNSON COUNTY, UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, HILLS, AND LONE TREE (IA).
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

Co-owner of both Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium and Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room, Englishwoman Gemma Doyle reluctantly agrees to spend the night at Scarlet House, a historic home located in West London, Massachusetts, owned by the local historical society. Mysterious happenings at the farm have led some to believe the house may be haunted. Gemma, not believing in ghosts, thinks someone is playing practical jokes, but her interest in investigating is piqued when more unexplained events occur that night. However, she soon realizes it's no joke when one of the volunteers is found dead. Complicating matters, her shop assistant, Ashleigh, disappears, and Gemma's sister, Pippa, whom Gemma believes has a clandestine position in the British government, pays an unexpected visit. Gemma works to find Ashleigh while trying to determine Pippa's real reason for visiting. Plot twists, Sherlock Holmes lore, historical facts woven through the story, engaging characters, and the details of running a small business in a coastal town enhance this satisfying cozy.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

A request from the board of directors of Scarlet House, the oldest building in West London, Mass., which is currently being used as a historical reenactment museum, sparks Delany's eighth mystery featuring Gemma Doyle, owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium (after 2022's A Three Book Problem). Scarlet House's board members are concerned about a series of odd occurrences that some believe are evidence that the property is haunted; random objects have disappeared before reappearing in odd locations, and something spooked the animals in the barn belonging to the house late at night. Gemma's guess that the incidents were just pranks is disproved when one board member is murdered on the grounds, his neck broken in what first appeared to be an accidental fall. Gemma and her friend Jayne Wilson, who runs an adjacent business, Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room, investigate, endangering their lives in the process. A subtle clue reminiscent of one from a classic Conan Doyle story will please Sherlockians, and Delany plays fair with her cluing. The inventive plot bodes well for the series' future. Agent: Kimberly Lionetti, Bookends Literary. (Jan.)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review

Gemma Doyle, owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium in West London, MA, insists she is not a consulting detective, and she certainly isn't a ghost hunter. But her best friend's mother ropes her into investigating when Scarlet House, a 300-year-old living history museum, has a few problems. Items disappear and reappear in strange spots in the house, while the farm animals are in an uproar at night. After spending the night and hearing a scream and items falling, Gemma is convinced someone is causing trouble. She suggests that the board needs to change the locks and increase security. It's too late, though. When Gemma and her friend Jayne return to the property looking for Jayne's forgotten purse, they discover a body in the barn. Once again, Gemma is involved in a murder investigation. She's also looking for her bookshop clerk who disappeared and left the shop wide open. Murder, a missing woman, and then Gemma's sister, Pippa, a fixer for the British government, turns up. She's interested in the recent happenings at Scarlet House. VERDICT This entertaining Sherlock Holmes pastiche (sequel to A Three Book Problem) will appeal to fans of quirky characters and bookstore settings.--Lesa Holstine

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

A ghost hunt turns to murder. British expatriate Gemma Doyle owns the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium and, with her partner, Jayne Wilson, half of the adjoining Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room in West London, Massachusetts. An expert on all things Sherlock-ian, Gemma has used the Great Detective's methods in the past to solve crimes, so she's naturally asked to discover who's haunting Scarlet House, built in 1648 and currently owned by the historical society. The disappearance of several items that later turn up in odd places and the fact that the animals in the barn are carrying on for no discernible reason sound less like the work of spirits than of practical jokers, but Gemma reluctantly agrees to investigate. With Ryan Ashburton, her detective boyfriend, out of town, Gemma beds down for the night in Scarlet House with Jayne and Andy, her boyfriend, while animal caretaker Dave Chase, a retired veterinarian, and neighbor Craig Jones stay in the barn. Several odd and scary things happen, but it's not until Dave takes a fatal tumble from the hayloft that Gemma takes things seriously. It's rumored that the historical society is in financial trouble and that Scarlet House may be for sale. Though there are no glaringly obvious suspects, many people involved with the house seem to have conflicting agendas. When Gemma's older sister, Pippa, who has a hush-hush job for the British government, suddenly arrives, Gemma doesn't think for a minute that she's just come for a visit. Sherlock Holmes' methods work once more in a charming combination of history and mystery. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.