Review by Booklist Review
When librarian Jane Hunter is forced into an early retirement, she takes a job with young, wealthy Cameron Clewe, cataloging his collection of papers from Golden Age mystery writers. Cam doesn't like to leave Aircroft, his estate, but he often opens the house to charities and friends. On Jane's first day of work, following a gala at Aircroft, she discovers a body in the library. It's Ashley Allen, Cam's newly ex-girlfriend, and all the evidence points to Cam as the one who hit her with a candlestick hard enough to kill her. Jane isn't sure who to trust, but she agrees to help Cam prove his innocence, and soon she discovers that a lot of people had a reason to dislike Ashley. But who would want her dead? Retired librarian and crime writer Gilbert starts a new series, Hunter and Clewe, featuring an intrepid, bibliophile heroine; her secretive, wealthy boss, and a cast of interesting characters, none of whom are above suspicion. Gilbert leaves open a secondary mystery about an old photograph found at Aircroft. Fans of bibliophile cozies will enjoy this.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
The author of the "Blue Ridge Library" mysteries launches a new series, an homage to Sherlock Holmes and Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. Jane Hunter is hunting for a job after being forced into retirement at the university library where she worked for 35 years. Then Cameron Clewe hires her to inventory and catalogue his library, beginning with his extensive collection of rare mysteries. When Jane meets her new boss, she's surprised to learn the owner of the Aircroft estate is only 33. He also has anxiety issues and doesn't do well in social situations--his argument with his latest girlfriend Ashley is evidence of that--so it's puzzling that he's holding a fundraising gala; it turns out he lets his friends use his house for events. Then he disappears. When Jane finds Ashley's body in the library the day after the gala, Cam is the prime suspect. He asks Jane to be his Watson, to help him find the real killer. It turns out a number of people might have wanted Ashley dead, including some family members. VERDICT Fans of Vicki Delany's "Sherlock Holmes Bookshop" mysteries will appreciate this new amateur detective team.--Lesa Holstine
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A librarian teams up with a wealthy young man to solve a murder. Cameron Clewe has hired Jane Hunter to inventory and catalog his large collection of items relating to classic mysteries in order to make them available for study. Despite his apparently perfect life, Cam is socially awkward, perhaps because his wealth has never brought him love. Jane thinks that his assistant, Lauren Walker, has feelings for Cam, who's recently broken up with wealthy, spoiled Ashley Allen. Cam often lets his beautiful estate be used for fundraisers, and when Ashley is found dead at the latest one, he naturally becomes a suspect. But there are plenty of other suspects, including Cam's chef, whom Ashley had promised to back in a new restaurant before she changed her mind. She did the same thing with a local artist and had an ex-boyfriend who was none too fond of her. Since both Jane and Cam love to solve puzzles and are steeped in mystery lore, they band together to solve the murder. Even Ashley's relatives don't appear very sad about her death, maybe because she'd been slated to inherit a large family estate they could use themselves. Scrutinizing Ashley's past, Jane learns that she was involved in a scandal when a member of the sorority of which she was president was badly injured in a hazing accident. In addition, she discovers that Cam has plenty of secrets in his own life while researching the family who used to own his estate. It takes a lot of digging to uncover the person who really wanted Ashley dead. An offbeat pairing of sleuths enlivens this new mystery series. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
