This is the third entry in the wonderful "Blue Ridge Library Series" by author Victoria Gilbert. I have read the entire series and find it delightful as one of my favorite new cozy series. Thank you for the ARC which does not influence my review.
In Taylorsford Virginia a woman does missing from a nighttime town May Day bonfire event . The event was to boost tourism and the disappearance has caused the Mayor distress over the suspicion that is rampant with everyone in town. Library director Amy Webber is at the event with her own presentation and has suspicions . She feels the event may be related to a past history event of the town with similar clues. When Amy finds out that the primary suspect is her neighbor she decides to intervene in the investigation. The missing women is found but with another body in the mountains and cannot recall what happened to her .
This is a great mystery series with a well crafted sleuth and a fun whodoneit. . I enjoy the setting of Virginia which the author has a talent for vivid descriptions for the readers enjoyment . The likable charcters all add to the series with depth . I look forward to the next in series. I highly recommend this cozy mystery series for all who enjoy a fun sleuth .

Fun escape. Haley runs the local library, but she has a penchant for solving murders. A young woman who has been missing for a while is found next to her dead professor. What happened? They were researching some local lore and mysteries. Was someone trying to stop the research? Was someone interested in the legend about a hidden stash of gold? While Haley is involved in the murder, she is dealing with ex-boyfriend and current boyfriend issues.

This was an entertaining read. Easy to read, fun characters and the folklore was interesting. I enjoyed the book, but it wasn't a page turner for me. I would put it down and not pick it back up for a few days. This meant I had trouble keeping track of all the characters. My problem, not the author's. If you enjoy cozies and just want to chill. This is the book for you.

Past Due for Murder is the third book in the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series. We meet up again with Amy Webber as spring is blooming and she’s helping to organize a research project and presentation with local folklore expert. All goes well until a university student goes missing, and a dead body is found, and Amy’s boyfriend is a person of interest and he has no alibi.

I really enjoy reading this series. I’ve read every book in the series so far and I’ve loved them all. All of them are suspenseful and exciting. The characters really stay with you and make you laugh and smile. The mystery was very twisty and well-plotted; it kept me immersed until the last page.

My favorite part of the book was the developing relationship between Amy and Richard. It’s such a cute relationship, and I adore them! The ending scene between them was so beautifully done that I can’t wait until the next book!

I enjoyed this book and would recommend it. The only thing I got tired of was Amy irrational upset over Richard's seemingly indifference to their relationship. The folklore in the book was great The interaction of Amy's and Richard's parents was very insightful. I like this series, and I do like Amy and Richard. The characters in the book are well-written and believable.

I like this series. It’s a solid addition and I enjoyed getting back to these characters. I would recommend it to others. It’s a quick fun read and I look forward to the next.

Blue Ridge Library Mysteries #3

Library Director Amy Webber is one determined heroine. Like fools who tread where angels fear to go, Amy perseveres even in the face of danger; and danger never scares her off. In the past year, she has faced multiple killers and much personal danger, but that never stops her. This is a heroine to admire! At the moment, her relationship with beloved neighbor Richard appears to be a little rocky, or at least he is being secretive. The composer who once badly broke her heart with his controlling ways and psychological abuse is back in the area, complete with new lady (the one in the wings when he was still seeing Amy). Richard's parents are coming to visit (oh, dear); and now a Clarion University student has gone missing in the mountains. Another professor at Clarion, a noted folklorist, is stirring up trouble about the composer and about an elderly mountain denizen of a long-established area family. Then troublemaking turns to death, and Amy is caught up in the thick of both multiple mysteries and danger.

Author Victoria Gilbert keeps readers engrossed and turning those pages in the BLUE RIDGE LIBRARY MYSTERIES.

This is a series that I really enjoy. I read this book in one day because I had to know what happened next. The characters are believable and likable. Their personalities are multi-faceted just like real people's are. The plot has several threads that twist and turn and eventually untangle in a satisfying way. The folk lore and songs added an interesting touch that made me eager to read more about the topic. The ending of the book was very satisfying. I'm eagerly awaiting the next episode of the series.
I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

3.5 out of 5 stars

It was quite a challenge reading this book. It took me weeks to finish reading this ARC. This was a new to me author. I really wanted to like the book. It did not grab my attention in the beginning. I had to push myself to finish reading. It started to become interesting later in the book. I received a free digital ARC from the publisher for a honest review.

Lots of action for librarian Amy Webber in Victoria Gilbert’s third Blue Ridge Library mystery with murder, a missing girl and a contentious meeting between parents on the agenda.

First, Lacey Fields, one of her boyfriend Richard’s students disappears. Folklorist Mona Raymond asks Amy if her ex-boyfriend, Charles, ever admitted stealing her work for his Grammy winning album Moon and Thistle Cycle. Next, Lacey is found hurt next to Mona’s dead body and Amy finds herself playing sleuth once again.

Providing distractions to Amy’s investigating efforts are three personal issues: Charles now lives in Taylorsford and seems to be trying to get back together; Amy senses Richard is being a little distant; and Richard’s parents and her parents are coming to visit the same weekend and Aunt Lydia invites them all to dinner.

Ms. Gilbert skillfully uses personal relationships, exploring character depth, to balance this clever mystery. Bottom line: Past Due for Murder is a compelling read.

3.5 stars

This third entry in the Blue Ridge Library mystery series works fine as a standalone. Librarian Amy Webber likes her job and life in a small Virginia town. She has a new boyfriend, dancer/choreographer Richard Muir, and has settled in comfortably. So she's understandably unhappy when her old boyfriend, egotistical musician Charles Bartos, moves to town. Not only that, but his new girlfriends is the same woman he cheated on Amy with. But Amy has a forgiving nature, and when the girlfriend is the victim of a fatal hit and run, she honestly feels sorry for Charles.

Meanwhile, a local student goes missing for a few days and then is discovered seriously injured and lying next to a murder victim. Amy can't help but start looking into the crime when both her old and new sweethearts appear possibly implicated.

Amy is a likable and mostly strong character. There was a bit too much romantic angst in this one for my tastes, but I enjoy this series and this one had lots of plot twists and turns. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in return for my honest review.

I loved this so much! Each book in this series gets better and better and the world becomes richer and more complex. If you are looking for a cozy series with a bit more meat to it, look no further. Highly recommended.

—-

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was not paid for this review.

Wonderful cozy mystery! I found this book to be an entertaining fast read. The characters continue to evolve with each book and the story had enough twists and turns to make me happy. I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

Spring has come to Taylorsford, Virginia, and the mayor has revived the town’s May Day celebration to boost tourism. Library director Amy Webber is helping to organize a presentation by a local folklore expert. Then, a university student disappears during a bonfire. When the police start looking into the woman’s whereabouts, Amy’s boyfriend and neighbor Richard Muir becomes a person of interest. Amy finds out that the missing girl was one of his students and he was one of the last people to see her. When the missing student is found unconscious in the mountains, with a dead body lying nearby, can Amy find the truth before Richard is arrested?
This was a good mystery with an exciting plot that seemed a little drawn out in the end. I think the story could’ve ended three chapters before it actually did. I also felt that the beginning was too abrupt, and someone unfamiliar with the characters would find it confusing. I couldn’t wait, though, to find out whodunit, and was surprised in the end. I would like to find out what happens next in this series. I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily reviewing it.

I  received a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.


This is the third installment of the Blue Ridge Library Mysteries. I enjoyed the character development we see in this book. Can't wait for the next one!

This is the third Blue Ridge Library mystery and Amy Webber finds herself involved once more. Amy is the director of the public library and a gifted researcher. She's helping Mona, a folklorist, and her students do some research on some local myths. She's also having some questions about the way her boyfriend Richard is acting. Amy doesn't have a lot of self-confidence because of the way her former boyfriend Charles treated her.

Charles, who is a famous pianist and teacher at Clarion, and his girlfriend Marlis built a mountain retreat near Amy's town. He is grieving because Marlis was recent the victim of a hit and run accident. He seems to want to rekindle things with Amy.

When one of Mona's students goes missing, tensions rise. Amy learns that their were conflicts among the students. Mona also has a long-standing conflict with Charles who she believes stole some of her research to develop a song cycle for which he has become famous and rather wealthy too.

As Amy learns more about the missing student, she also learns about a mystery that is somehow connected to Mona's research. Two young women - and a bag of gold - went missing after the local May Day celebration in 1879. Some say one of the women, fleeing an unwanted marriage, left because she didn't want to marry and started a new life somewhere else. Others say they were captured by the fae and are dancing in their endless dance.

When the missing student is found with a head injury next to Mona's dead body, the case gets even more complex. And Amy finds herself in danger again as she tries to find out the truth.

This was an engaging cozy mystery with an interesting main character and a great setting.

Past Due For Murder is a cute cozy mystery. I like the library being involved in the story. It's entertaining and a fast read. No big surprises. Fans of cozies will enjoy. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

To me, there's not much better than a library (or book)-themed cozy and this Blue Ridge Library series, of which Past Due for Murder is the third and latest installment, perfectly fits the bill.

Amy Webber is the library director at a small town library in Virginia. As is true with cozies, she finds herself solving mysteries. No surprise there. What is surprising is how well-drawn the surrounding cast of characters are in this series and how clever the plots are, with many twists and turns.

This series gets better and better with each book. Long may this series run. Highly recommended to cozy mystery fans!!

While I appreciate being provided a copy of this book by the publisher and NetGalley, unfortunately I'm not a fan of this book. This is the 3rd book in a series and I was able to get a decent sense of the characters and setting having not read the first 2 books. Everything seems pretty typical for a cozy mystery, but the story and people didn't captivate me. The main character actually got on my nerves a bit from her insecurity and emotional over dramatics. The story sadly just didn't keep my interest.

I have enjoyed all three titles in this series thus far. Amy is a realistic character to whom I can very much relate. The mystery is very well thought out and keeps the reader guessing. I'm looking forward to reading further titles in the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series!

Past Due for Murder by Victoria Gilbert is the 3rd book in the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series, and another enjoyable read. Amy Webber is the library director in Taylorsford, Virginia and the town are reviving May Day celebration to attract tourism. Amy is busy getting ready by researching a presentation for a local to give. When a university student goes missing, and Amy's neighbor becomes the prime suspect, Amy is determined to get to the truth. Once I started this book I could not stop reading it. It was a quick read that kept me guessing. I look forward to the next book in the series. I recommend this book/series for all cozy mystery book lovers, you will not be disappointed.

I received this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.