Trouble on the Books is a new series for cozy mystery readers. The bookstore is set in a castle, totally dreamy and the proprietor, Shelby, lives on a houseboat. She arrived In town to help her aging aunt. She stumbles across a body, disturbing news about her mother, and a new love interest. All the ingredients are present for a successful series. The cover is very inviting.

Trouble on the Books, Essie Lang's first Castle Bookshop Mystery, was a charming read, and I enjoyed spending time with Shelby and her friends/family in Alexandria Bay. When a volunteer is murdered on Blye Island, the location of one of the bookstores Shelby and her aunt, Edie, own together, Shelby puts on her deerstalker (figuratively, lol!) to investigate. Lots of suspects and a surprising conclusion kept me guessing the identity of the culprit until the very end. Well done! 5 stars!

Shelby Cox is settling in running the second location of Bayside Books. She has learned that she is the half-owner along with her Aunt Edie. The second location is in a tourist attraction on Blye Island. As she is setting up the store for the opening of the tourist season, she has a run-in with volunteer coordinator Loreena Swan. She is surprised to discover Loreena's body when she goes for a quick walk after work before taking the shuttle back to Alexandria Bay.

The murder draws the attention of the local police, the State police, and the U. S. Coast Guard Investigative Service in the person of handsome Zach Griffin. Shelby's Aunt Edie, hobbled by knee replacement surgery, asks Shelby to ask around because Edie's new love interest Matthew Kessler is a person of interest in the crime.

Shelby is also working on another mystery. She wants to find out more about the mother who died when she was three causing her father to move away from the area and raise her in Boston. But everyone she asks finds various ways to stonewall her. She finds herself exploring local cemeteries looking for her mother's grave. Why she didn't do an internet search is a question that is never answered and is just one of the inconsistencies I found in the story.

Shelby gets it stuck in her head that the murder had to do with smuggling. She bases this belief on information that the owner of the island during Prohibition was a smuggler. She also believes that the Coast Guard wouldn't be involved if smuggling wasn't happening.

She has a wide variety of suspects as she gets to know the locals and make a place for herself as a bookstore owner. It seemed strange how many people were willing to answer her questions as she went about her investigation.

I had some issues with the story and with the characters. Shelby repeats, frequently, that she isn't a people person, can't judge how old someone is, and can't remember names of people she's introduced to. It made it confusing for me as a reader when I tried to figure out how old people were and what their relationships were. I'm also still wondering why she goes to a Greek restaurant with a potential love interest and orders Spaghetti Carbonara.

This is one of those books that starts with a slow pace keeping you entangled with what is going on, just waiting for the right time to pull you in and never letting you go until the last page is read. After having a minor confrontation with a co-worker, Shelby later finds her dead and when the caretaker becomes the prime suspect, Shelby’s aunt implores her to help find the real killer.

This was an enjoyable book with likable characters and a good plot. The backdrop of the castle added to the allure of the story and the more I read the more the suspect pool increased and it was the dissemination of clues and the journey that made this an enticing tale to savor. Who wanted Loreena dead? Why is the coast guard involved? And what about her mother? All this and more kept me glued to the pages as I had to know what was going to happen next. The mystery was nicely done and when I thought I had a handle on the person responsible, the author changed directions with strategically placed twists and turns that added to my reading pleasure. A good read and look forward to the adventures with Shelby and her friends.

This is the first in the Castle Bookshop series. The story features Shelby Cox who has come to Alexandria Bay to help her Aunt Edie who is recovering from knee surgery. Shelby is part owner of the bookstores with her aunt as Shelby’s Mom left her share when she died when she was 3. Shelby is hoping she can learn more about her mother as well since she has been not back to Alexandria Bay since she left with her father after her mom died. Shelby is getting ready to open the Castle bookstore on the small island which houses Blye Castle and Eddie and Shelby’s 2nd bookstore. Loreena is in charge of the castle or at least acts as she is and she is constantly giving everyone grief telling them what to do and Shelby decides to stand up to her or be bullied all season long. Shortly afterwards Shelby finds Loreena face down in the Grotto dead. The state police, local police and coast guard all show up to investigate. Matthew Kessler the groundskeeper is brought in for questioning and Edie asks Shelby to do a little snooping to help Matthew (Edie and Matthew have been seeing each other). Shelby figures after being in town for four months it might also be a way to get to know more about the people. Shelby clearly ruffles some feathers along the way and ultimately does help uncover the murderer and also finds out her Mother is not dead. Good first start and looking forward to the next one.

Trouble on the Books is an enjoyable mystery! I am always excited to start a new cozy series and this book didn't disappoint. I felt a connection with it because I'm a booklover and the series surrounds a bookstore. That's a win-win for me! While I did enjoy it though, I was hoping for a bit more backstory. I like the feeling of "getting to know" the characters in the first books of series and I feel it was lacking in this one. This won't deter me from reading the next book though.

This is the first in the Castle Bookshop series. The story features Shelby Cox who has come to Alexandria Bay to help her Aunt Edie who is recovering from knee surgery. Shelby is part owner of the bookstores with her aunt as Shelby’s Mom left her share when she died when she was 3. Shelby is hoping she can learn more about her mother as well since she has been not back to Alexandria Bay since she left with her father after her mom died. Shelby is getting ready to open the Castle bookstore on the small island which houses Blye Castle and Eddie and Shelby’s 2nd bookstore. Loreena is in charge of the castle or at least acts as she is and she is constantly giving everyone grief telling them what to do and Shelby decides to stand up to her or be bullied all season long. Shortly afterwards Shelby finds Loreena face down in the Grotto dead. The state police, local police and coast guard all show up to investigate. Matthew Kessler the groundskeeper is brought in for questioning and Edie asks Shelby to do a little snooping to help Matthew (Edie and Matthew have been seeing each other). Shelby figures after being in town for four months it might also be a way to get to know more about the people. Shelby clearly ruffles some feathers along the way and ultimately does help uncover the murderer and also finds out her Mother is not dead. Good first start and looking forward to the next one.

'Trouble on the Books' is the first book I have read by this author and I was fascinated by the setting. I had no idea that this region of the country existed and I truly enjoyed learning more about it. That being said, the main character Shelby was hard for me to like. She had so many issues with infantile overreactions to circumstances. The mystery didn't flow well for me, it was sold too hard. I had figured out many of storylines well before the end, most notably the one with her mother. The one good thing it had going for it was Shelby's involvement with Zack, and what future mysteries need to be solved. I'd like to have another chance at appreciating Shelby and the Castle Bookstore.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Truly enjoyed this mystery. There were a lot of twists and turns in the plot, which kept me guessing til the very end. Loved the characters and the location. Thank you Essie Lang for this wonderful book. Can't wait to read more from this author.

Shelby Cox moved to Alexandria Bay, New York, to help her Aunt Edie run two bookstores, discovering that she owns a fifty percent share. Edie is recovering from knee surgery and therefore leaves Shelby in charge, and she's enjoying her respite from the small publishing house she's where she's been working as an editor. She doesn't, however, enjoy working with Loreena Swan, curator of exhibits and volunteer coordinator at Blye Castle on Blye Island, the location of their second bookstore. In fact, Loreena and Shelby have a run-in when Loreena attempts to tell Shelby how to run the bookstore.

But when Shelby decides to take a stroll around the castle she finds herself in the grotto...along with a very dead Loreena. When the authorities set their sights on Matthew Kessler, caretaker of the island, Edie asks her to intervene and see if she can figure out who wanted Loreena dead, since she's convinced Matthew had nothing to do with it. It turns out Matthew's an ex-true crime writer, and when his wife was murdered years ago, he came to the island. No one was caught in that case, and Edie's afraid that the police will falsely arrest him for killing Loreena.

Shelby also has some questions of her own about her late mother. Since she and her father left Alexandria Bay when she was three, after her mother's death, she knows nothing about her. But no one - including Edie - seems to want to tell her anything, or claims they don't know. So Shelby has two reasons to ask people questions. But will she find out the truth, or will a killer find her first?...

This is the beginning of a new series, and I liked the premise, since it appeared to be interesting, and thankfully, different from the formula. Shelby isn't running away from a relationship, and she hasn't lost her job. There's no 'evil nemesis' out to get her, and (relieved sigh) there's no love triangle. All things I really dislike in mysteries. So, with that to get me started, I was happy to pick up this book. Although I will state I did have a bit of trepidation at the beginning when Shelby stated she had a healthy fear of water, but then I found out she lived on a houseboat. Hmmm...thankfully, it was never mentioned again, and I found no other contradictions in the story.

Anyway, Shelby is used to living on her own and caring for herself, so while her aunt wants her to move into the home where her father grew up, she'd rather be on her own, hence renting the houseboat. I don't think I'd ever get used to sleeping on the water, but I can see where she found it to be restful. She's finding her way in their town and trying to make new friends, but when her aunt tasks her with finding out the truth, it's not easy to ask questions and hope to keep from ruffling feathers.

There's also a certain Coast Guard investigator named Zack who shows up every now and then; Shelby of course is attracted to him, but I'm glad to say she doesn't act like a tongue-tied schoolgirl when he's around, and he manages to convey interest in her without giving any appearance of doing so. It will be intriguing to watch this progress in future books.

I found the mystery quite well written; while it seemed Loreena had her share of enemies, none of them hated her enough to kill her, which made it all the harder to discover who wanted her dead. There were no evil deeds by the woman, and while she managed to rule the roost, as it were, the clues were hidden nicely within.

I also liked the back story of finding out the truth about her mother; I would like to see more pursuit of this in the next book also. Secrets and lies are never a good thing, and someone is always bound to be hurt in the long run.

When the killer was discovered, and the reasons why, it made sense (in the mind of the killer, at least) and I found the climax put together quite well and I was happy to see that Shelby held her own in the matter, and could think on her feet, as it were. The murderer came as a surprise, which bodes well for the next in the series. I read a lot of mysteries, and one doesn't want to figure out the solution too soon. I feel that this author has a decent career ahead of her if this book is any indication. Recommended.

I was drawn to the setting of this novel (a bookstore in a castle!), and I feel like the author could have done more to utilize the castle in the storytelling, perhaps dabbling in the gothic. As it stands, the reader does not get to explore the castle much, and the bookstore inside is just an ordinary bookstore (when it could have had secret passages, or beautiful old stone walls hiding a secret compartment, or a creepy backroom behind a forever-locked door, etc.). The circumstances of the murder are interesting, but the pacing of the novel is slow. Shelby spends a lot of time musing about things instead of doing them, and many of the conversations she has (and errands she runs) don't do much to further the plot. The characters are fairly two-dimensional, the bad guys are obvious, and I'm not sold on Shelby's motivation for trying to solve the murder.

The novel could also use more editing. For instance, the description of the murder scene in the third chapter is confusing because it sounds as if Shelby is screaming because she sees a piece of fabric in the water. I had to read the passage a few times before I realized she saw a body and not just a "fuchsia cloth." In chapter 28, we're told that Shelby had given Taylor the day off, and in the next paragraph, Shelby sends Taylor home from work early because she's so tired. So was Taylor at work or not? Then toward the end of the novel, when Shelby and Zack are conversing on her houseboat, a character named "J.J." materializes and notices that Zack looks more alert; at first I thought it was a typo for Shelby's cat J.T., but why would the cat notice Zack's alertness?

The premise of the story has promise, and I love the setting, but perhaps the author needed more time to both develop her characters and exploit the narrative opportunities presented by the lovely town and castle she created. I'd recommend this novel to cozy fans looking for a mystery to read at bedtime: it's a book with all the components of a good cozy, but it won't compel them to keep turning the pages late into the night.

Trouble on the Books is a good start to a new cozy mystery series. I'll admit that it took a bit for me to connect with the characters, even the main character, Shelby Cox. I eventually grew to like her, but I'm still not sure how I feel about Aunt Edie. I don't like giving away parts of the plot in my reviews, but I will say that the way Edie acted towards Shelby when the latter asked her about her mother was quite ridiculous. That really didn't help me like the Aunt Edie character. As for the murder mystery, I honestly didn't guess who did it because the author really didn't give the reader many viable suspects or motives. I was kind of let down by the big reveal, but I did enjoy the overall story and the way it was written. I'm hoping the next book in the series has a better conclusion and I'm looking forward to reading it.

Note: I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for my fair and honest opinion.

Another fun bookstore cozy set in a bay area town. Some enjoyable characters and a good plot. Who wouldn’t love owning a bookstore in a castle on an island and…living on a houseboat? The whole setting has always been my dream. This was an easy relaxing read and although I was a bit frustrated as you’ll see in the next paragraph, I did not put the book down.

Sometimes, I think authors do not know how to explain why their amateur detective characters keep endangering their lives rather than leave the work up to the police. I can see how this is a problem. If you were a paid detective that’s another matter but just sticking your nose in again and again is a really difficult thing for an author to explain. Sometimes the explanation seems to go on so much it’s sort of a “thou doth protest too much” thing. Is it because you are nosy or because a loved one might be sent to jail “oh no!” Is it because you think you’re a fairly good detective or maybe because you happened to fall into such a situation earlier and so now your friends from the knitting club think you should look into this new murder? I’m not making light about this. It’s a problem. Many cozies and amateur detective stories have this problem from Nancy Drew to Jessica Fletcher on Murder She Wrote. Making it seem plausible didn’t seem to happen here either, but I liked the main characters so much, I tolerated all those thoughts in the back of my mind.

Essie Lang is a newly published writer, and I may have found some things about this particular book I thought weren’t thought out well enough, but this is an excellent beginning and I hope Book 2 comes soon.

Trouble on the Books is the first in a new series. It's a typical cozy mystery. The story is engaging and fun. The characters are likeable and adorable. The story is a lovely read for a relaxing day. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Although not the best mystery I've read recently this wasn't bad. I think it might make a decent book club choice, especially for cozy mystery readers. The location setting wasn't easy to determine - was this in the USA or the UK? It could be either. I need to go back and finish the book.

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

This was a nice story for a rainy afternoon. It was slightly predictable but definitly a fun read.

This book is a debut series by Essie Lang. Shelby Cox., a bookstore owner who moves to Alexandria Bay to help her Aunt Edie run one of her book stores as she recuperates from surgery. Shelby is the one that endangers her self as she asks questions about the castle coordinators death as she is the one who finds the body. Shelby manages to get herself into trouble as she goes about asking questions. It is almost to the end when you find out who did it. Shelby also came back to that area to find out about her mother who died and then she and her father moved a way. That is another story within the story and does Shelby find love. Well, you will have to read it to find out.

Shelby has gotten herself involved in a murder mystery four months after her arrival in Alex Bay, and as luck would have it, there are a lot of interesting scenarios being thrown about by the good folks of the Bay and Shelby herself as to what could have happened and who done it. Now, she has caught the murderer’s attention, Stopping her investigation would be the ideal thing but the murderer has made it personal for her by targeting her, so of course, she cannot quit now. An intense, intriguing, interesting and very entertaining read.

I enjoyed this book. Part of the draw for me was the I love going to Alexandria Bay and so I was familiar with some of the real places the author describes. It suffered a little bit from "first book in a series syndrome" and it took a while for the plot to pick up to keep my interest, but once the story got going, I was more engaged with the plot. Overall, good character development and a pretty well plotted cozy mystery. I'll be picking up the next book in the series to see if it's promising start continues.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Every time i put it down (well kindle style) I wanted to pick it up again. A good deep plot with interesting characters. Loved the idea of a bookstore but with a twist full of past events. Brilliant writing well done Essie. Look forward to more.