Member Reviews
Another great installment for this series! Fantastic characters that you can't wait to visit with again are well developed and set in a small town, particularly it's library as the main character is the head librarian. This may be the best book yet in the series and all have been plotted in intriguing, interesting and entertaining manners that keep your interest peaked and turning pages! The author does a great job of weaving the characters life stories through the plot in an organic way that creates a smooth unfolding of the storyline. If you haven't read the series, you need to definitely do so as you are missing out on an excellent cast of characters and mysteries, but you could read this one as a stand alone if you wanted too. I would personally recommend starting with the first book as the characters develop so much stronger if you read the entire series! I absolutely can't wait for the next book to see how things unfold in the characters lives!
Amy got herself involved in the twisted tale when her best friend’s grandparents ask her to do a favor for them. Not knowing what she was getting into, she soon found herself in the sights of a murderer. This tale has the right amount of romance and mystery blend, with its deep pockets of secrets entwine within an excellent storyline, that is filled with great characters. A lovely relaxing read.
I found this to be another enjoyable read in the series. I love the setting of both the town, and the library. The relationships between the characters is good and continues to develop.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Bound for Murder is a mystery about a librarian who gets involved in solving murders in her home town. A body is found at the farm of her friend's grandparents. This mystery will take you back to the 1960s with communes, free love, and LSD. While many of the commune's inhabitants have moved on to lead more "normal" lives, not everyone can forget some of the things that happened there. The story does take an unexpected turn before the crime is solved.
The writing is amateurish. It reads like it is someone's first attempt at writing. I would not highly recommend it. I was allowed to read it through Net Galley.
This is the fourth book in the Blue Ridge Library series. I have not read the first three books. The book stood on its own and provided enough backstory for me to understand the existing relationships. I feel like I could go back and read the prior books without being too spoiled.
Amy is a small town librarian who has a bad habit of getting mixed up with murder investigations. She works with her best friend (Sunny) who is running for mayor, lives with her aunt, and is engaged to her next door neighbor. When the body of a man who disappeared in the 1960’s is found on Sunny’s grandparent’s farm, Amy’s promise to help the grands once again puts her in the murderer’s sights.
I loved the focus on the characters’ relationships and the multi-generational cast. This cozy mystery kept me guessing until the end, and I loved that! The author left lots of character questions open for new books in the series while cleanly closing the case at hand. The book has a few places where the central characters’ history accurately reflect the times in which they would have lived and thus make us question them. In my opinion this makes them real and I appreciate the accurate portrayal of growth and progress.
I am thankful for the advance electronic copy I received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
First, I love this series. Amy is the head librarian in a small town. They seem to have a lot of murders take place there. Her fiancee' Richard lives next door. Her best friend Sunny is running for mayor. Remains are found on Sunny's hippie families farm. Can be read as a stand alone book. Enjoy meeting up with the town people.
I enjoyed this book although there were a few things that bothered me. Mostly that the middle of the book seemed not about investigating the mystery but about the life and family of Amy. Which as good as the story is it doesn't move the plot along at all. I was a bit frustrated by this. Still it's definitely worth reading. #BoundForMurder #NetGalley
While I enjoyed the book, I did struggle a bit because I hadn't read any of the previous books in the series. I loved the aging hippies and the talk of the commune and all of it's troubles. I didn't guess who the killer was so that is a plus. I'm going to go back and read the first 3 books in this series.
I usually love this series and there really isn't a particular reason that this one fell a bit short for me. Amy and Sunny are drawn into an investigation that centres around a skeleton dug up at Sunny's grandparents' farm, briefly used as a commune in the 1960s. The bones turn out to belong to a cousin of their friend Walt, who believed the man had gone to LA, leaving his family and friends behind, to chase a musical career and then, as happened during the time, disappeared, or perhaps died anonymously in the big city.
Shortly afterwards, however, there are two more deaths - all connected somehow to the dead man and the long-ago commune. Questions start to get uncomfortable and there is some implication that Carol and PJ, Sunny's grandparents, may somehow be involved.
The story is good, as usual, and the characters much the same. No one does anything particularly out of character, or strange. We finally meet Sunny's grandparents and learn a little about them, rather than their being relegated to background figures. This certainly adds a bit more depth to the arc of the series.
I think part of my disappointment is that I guessed the murderer shortly after their introduction, although not the motive behind it, so the twist at the end was quite good in that respect. There was also a slightly clunky scene with one of the suspects towards the end which wasn't up to Ms Gilbert's usually smooth writing par. And, as someone who doesn't really care about weddings, that aspect of the book didn't hold any interest for me either.
I didn't feel this was the strongest in the series, although it wasn't by any stretch awful or even bad. It's most likely just me, and I will look forward to the next in the series because overall, it is one that I have thoroughly enjoyed thus far.
Bound for Murder is a mystery about a death involving a member of a hippy commune back in the 60s. Amy Webber, the library director at Taylorsford Public Library, attempts to solve the murder of the hippie who lived on the commune along with her best friend’s grandparents. As she works at solving the murder, she is also planning her own wedding and helping her best friend run for mayor.
I should have loved this book. It had a librarian as the amateur detective (reading since the age of 5, I have always been fascinated by the library and librarians). A commune is at the center of the mystery (being raised in the 70s, I’m a hippie at heart). Several descriptive pages devoted to the county fair (I can always be found at several county fairs throughout the summer). A quilt at the center of solving the mystery (I’m a quilter, and I did find the memory quilt described in this book quite interesting). Yet, I didn’t enjoy this book.
I will admit that the identity of the killer took me by surprise, but it wasn’t enough to make me change my mind that this was just an average mystery book. I think not having read the first 3 books in the series, probably made this book less enjoyable. However, there was nothing about this story that interested me enough to go back and read the series from the beginning. I really didn’t know the characters or their quirks. The plot was light on material and I found I didn’t really care about any of the characters. Nor was the narrative able to keep my attention for longer than a few pages at a time.
Having said all this, if you like quick and easy reads with a minimal plot, you will probably enjoy this book. If however, you like your mysteries with more depth and characters you can
actually care about, skip this one.
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review an early copy of this book.
I didn't realise this book was part of a series, when I requested to read it via netgalley. The story itself took a long time to interest me. Probably because I hadn't read the previous books, so a lot of the conversations baffled me. Once I got to around chapter 12, I was invested enough to keep on reading until the end. I was disappointed that I figured out the culprit before any real action had taken place. This book is ok if you're a fan of amateur sleuths, but not great for fans who want a real mystery to get lost in. 3/5 from me as a standalone, but probably better if you've read the first 3 books.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book!
I have read the first book in this series, but not books two or three. Reading this new one makes me want to go back and see what I missed, because this was excellent. A cold case with half the suspects missing or deceased, and the rest aren't talking. It was always going to be hard to work out what happened but the eventual resolution was very satisfying. It involved more than one character and time line in the end which just added depth and made it even harder to guess.
There is a good, solid romance here and it's not your usual sleuth/detective one. That made it extra refreshing and memorable. There are some great friendships too, but it will be interesting to see how Sunny goes with her new venture.
A really good cozy and not like one you've read before. Five stars.
I enjoyed this latest story in this library series. It made me realize I missed one in between. Amy is finally engaged, but that is a minor part of the story. The main crux is that there is a skeleton discovered on her friend's grandparents' farm. This leads to an investigation by Amy into who the body was and who would want him dead all those years ago. She gets involved to help her friend, Sunny. It is not too hard to find clues as many of the people involved are still in town today. The story moves along at a good pace and you don't ever feel like it lags at all. The people in the town are well written and like they could be real people. This helps with keeping your attention within the story and wanting to know how it ends. I do think the author lets us down just a bit with an action that she has Amy do late in the story that doesn't keep true to her character. I mean come on, she could'nt have gotten that far and then do something that stupid. But otherwise it is a good read and solid offering in this series.
Victoria Gilbert.
Bound for Murder.
Wow the fourth book was definitely worth the wait, I couldn’t put it down.
Returning to Blue Ridge Library with Amy and friends in Taylorford.
A very well written mystery, love the characters, weaving the mystery between the 60s and present .
Who are the people keeping secrets thinking they are hidden in the past .
Loved it all.
Thanks to Crooked Lane and NetGalley for advance copy for a honest review.
Murder for the Books was one of my favorite read of last year. I LOVED her style of romance, mystery, secondary characters, and intrigue. I have been gobbling up this series and was so excited when I got approval for this book - I don't think I could have waited until it was officially published! I read this book in one sitting - I had to keep reading. There was no way I was going to bed without finishing this book. Another win from Victoria Gilbert!
YouTube Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIb2t244Xgo&t=492s
Bound for Murder is the fourth in the series and the first I have read. I will go back and read the other books. Well written and interesting characters.
This is the fourth book in the Blue Ridge Library mystery series. This book works as a standalone novel but I do recommend the other books in the series as well. Victoria Gilbert has created a wonderful town and wonderful characters. The mystery is also charming, I do enjoy when I am able to figure out small pieces of the larger mystery before the end.
Easy to read and to follow. This is the 4th book in the Blue Ridge Library Mysteries and can be followed relatively easily even if you have not read any of the others in the series. In spite of the twist I found it harder to stay engaged. However, all of the story llines fell right into place and were wrapped up by the end of the book.
This is the fourth in the Blue Ridge Library series. I haven't read the first three but the author did a good job introducing us to the characters while keeping the story moving forward. Amy Webber is the librarian and her best friend Sunny works with her. A skeleton is found on Sunny's grandparent's property and while the person was killed in the 60's, the discovery of this body and other deaths drag the mystery into the present day. Amy gets involved in the investigation, often finding and putting herself in danger.
The mystery was well presented and the end was satisfying. Each of the characters had their own voice and I identified with several of them. I'd been looking for a quality cozy mystery and hadn't heard of this series before. I'll be returning to Taylorsford again soon!
Thanks Netgalley for the ARC. The review is based on my own opinions.
What happens to senior "hippies"? Well, in Bound for Murder, a 1960's commune is filled with intrigue, jealousy, "free love" and murder and becomes the setting for a past and present day mystery.
When the remains of a talented musician/songwriter are found on the commune property, Amy Webber is determined to prove that her best friend's, Sunny Fields, grandparents Carol and P.J. we're not involved in the murder. Making matters worse, the grandparents are being unusually secretive and with Sunny campaigning for Mayor, it doesn't look good for the Fields family. Amy decides to use her research skills, as the town librarian to help her bring justice to a life that was cut short and to help her friend.
The book was enjoyable and the mystery kept me guessing. I liked the investigation into the people who lived at the commune and what their lives were now. Amy is a strong-willed main character who was sincere in her desire to help. While that determination was admirable, it also put her in dangerous situations, I wish she had been more forthcoming with law enforcement. The ending was satisfying and I'm intrigued by the Kurt character! Overall, it has a great mystery and I will definitely read the next book.
I received an ARC from NetGalley for a fair and honest review of this book.