Let me start by saying thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a free advance copy of this book in return for an honest review. Some books don't click for me and this was one of them. I felt that this author tried to be "too cozy" and in turn lost a lot of potential that the book had to offer. Small town murder in an old hippy commune. Pretty good stuff, but you always got the feeling there was too much dialogue, too little true character development, there were main characters I cared little for and a desire to hit a certain page requirement that caused us to drift off into fluffy and inconsequential chapters. One of the worst books I received from NetGalley, made even more disappointing by a pretty good mystery wrapped up in fluffy nothingness.

Amy Webber is a library director in a small town. She loves doing research and has helped the police in the past. Amy’s best friend Sunny is running for mayor of their town of Taylorsford, VA. When human remains are found on Sunny’s grandparent’s farm they enlist Amy’s help. Can she help solve the mystery before Sunny’s grandparents are arrested?

This is my first book in this series although it’s the fourth book in the series. I was able to enjoy the book as a stand-alone mystery. This is a well-written book with a mixture of humor and suspense. The plot is interesting and the characters are realistic. There are several suspects, these characters have a range of different personalities from quirky to annoying. The storyline moves at a quick steady pace with numerous twists and turns to keep the reader guessing until the end.

I voluntarily agreed to read a copy of this book supplied by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced.

Fun cozy mystery - great for the beach. I've read several others in the series and have enjoyed them all. A few quibbles - what's the obsession with panty hose? Seems out of date - but for the most part enjoyable.

Arc received from Netgalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this book! The villain did seem a little cartoonishly eeeevil at the end but it's such a minor flaw.

I hadn't read the other books in the series, but it didn't really affect my ability to follow this mystery. The premise (murderous secrets of an old hippie commune being unearthed by a small-town librarian) was interesting. As I am about the same age as the protagonist and her friend, I could in some ways relate to her, although most elder millennials I know would avoid using landline phones or chatting up eccentric strangers in person like the plague. Anyway. The plot moves quickly. This would be a great beach or plane read!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a digital ARC!

Reviewing this book as an ARC for Netgallery. A cozy library mystery that takes place in the Bluerigde mountain town of Taylorford Virginia. Amy the Librian has a nack for solving murders.. This time she races to help her best friend Sunny solve a murder on Sunny's grandparents farm. Found the book to be heart warming read with twists and turns.Felt like you were coming home to enjoy friends you've known for a long time. You can read the book as a stand alone. That being said I think it helps to be familiar who the characters are. Without reading her other three books it hard to get the banner back and forth.. Enjoy this book by a crackling fire with a glass of wine.

This is book #4 in the Blue Ridge Library series and it is an exciting addition to this series! Amy is the town's librarian and her assistant and best friend is Sunny. Sunny ' s grandparents operated a commune on their farm decades ago. While dredging a pond, they find a skeleton who belonged to a former commune resident. They need to get to the bottom of this to clear Sunny ' s grandparents so it doesn't hurt Sunnyside bid for Mayor. It gets exciting about halfway in and was hard to put down!

Amy Webber, director of the public library, is trying to help her BFF Sunny Fields who is running for Mayor, but the news that a body has been uncovered on her grandparents farm may make Sunny's political future not so sunny. The Fields' farm was once a commune and now the former inhabits are dying mysteriously - are they accidents, robberies gone wrong, or all tied together. Amy puts her research skills to work trying to find the answers..

Some of the characters seem to be a bit stagnant, saying one thing but doing another. This wasn't the best of the series by far.

Cozy mysteries have become my escape. When I get home from work, before I do anything else, I decompress with a book, and lately these murder mysteries are my genre of choice. Hmmm, that doesn’t sound so good!?!
If I choose to read a book #4, I am pretty much locked into the series, it would take something catastrophic for me to abandon it now. Luckily enough, no catastrophes, just another solid episode in the life of the Blue Ridge librarian!

This is the 4th installment in the Blue Ridge Library Series. Amy Webber is the town’s library director and her assistant is Sunny Fields. Sunny is the granddaughter of the local organic farmers (and former commune members in the 60’s). Sunny is running for mayor and when news hits that a body or skeleton is found on her grandparents farm things begin to turn ugly. The grands as they are called are suspicious of the police and are tight lipped about who the body might be. Amy begins investigating who it might be and she is thinking it was the body of a musician who went missing Jeremy and is also cousin to Walt (friend of her Aunt Lydia). The grands ask Amy to talk to some of the former commune members so they know the police might be coming to ask them some questions. Shortly after the body is identified as Jeremey and Amy talks to a local woman she is killed. Are the two murders related? Amy once again cannot stay away from investigating even when she is getting messages (notes carved in the library etc..) to back off. She should be working on planning her wedding to Richard but she cannot stay away from this mystery. I like Amy and her tenacity as well as her loyalty to Sunny and her family. Enjoyable addition to this series.

Welcome back to Taylorsford! In particular, the library and its director, Amy Webber and her dear friend Sunny, the only two actual employees of the small library.

Amy is actively not planning her future wedding to Richard and Sunny is running for mayor. As Amy is listening to more unsolicited advice about her nuptials, Sunny receives a phone call from her grandparents, Carla and P.J., telling her a digging company has found a full skeleton on their farm! Carla and her husband have an organic farm and in the '60s for a short while had a commune. 

Amy knows this kind of publicity will ruin her friends' chances at the mayor's job, so of course, she does what Amy does best. Research. Snooping. Asking questions that could put them all in danger. Because someone wasn't so hippy happy back then it would seem!

We definitely found out some things we did not know about some of the flower children from the old commune, who are living right there in town! Not all of them, but the main players it would seem.

There are a lot of surprises in this one and I most definitely did not finger the correct suspect! Did you?

Well Done!

NetGalley/ January 7th, 2020 by Crooked Lane Books

The latest addition to Victoria Gilbert's A Blue Ridge Library Mystery series concerns a decade old murder and the impact it has on the current cast of characters. For the most part the characters are likeable, however the current of distrust Amy carries is wearing old as it relates to Kurt. There is always something simmering below the surface that indicates something horrible is about to happen although it never does, in fact quite the contrary. For me, this is not suspense or tension well done. I am invested in these characters and do look forward to more. I just hope Amy gets an attitude adjustment and Sunny finds some relationship happiness.

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

This book is full of humor and suspense. Set in the Blue Ridge Mountains with Amy as the library director in a small town. This is the first book I’ve read in this series and the first book by this author. I had no trouble reading it, as it stands alone well. I am going to go back and read the others, just because I love series and don’t want to miss anything.
Great weekend read!

Amy Webber is the director of the Taylorsford Public Library, and her employee Sunny is also her best friend. When the county has to do some digging on Sunny's grandparents' farm, they find human remains. Amy is asked by the grandparents to contact former members of their long-ago commune and let them know that the authorities might be coming by to question them. Her grandfather says as how he just wants to give them a heads-up, so Amy agrees.

But the remains turn out to be those of a young black man who disappeared after supposedly going to California. But if that's the case, why was he here? And why didn't he let anyone know he was returning? She also has the interest of an investigative reporter dogging her every steps, the current mayor's wife trying to sabotage Sunny's campaign by spreading rumors, and no time to plan her wedding. Amy knows she'll have to keep things on the down low if she doesn't want to be underground...

I really don't know what to think about this book. The idea of someone being murdered many years ago, someone who lived in a commune, was interesting. Now present day, they find his body and people who were in the commune at the same time are being killed off.

But I began to wonder why Amy was being targeted. She never found out anything from any of them that could be used as evidence, all of it was about Jeremy Adams, the dead man, and peoples' reactions and relationships to him. She wasn't learning anything earth-shattering; nothing that could help the murder investigation.

Below are spoilers which I've hidden so please read them at your own risk:

THE SPOILER IS HIDDEN SO THAT ONE CANNOT READ IT WITHOUT CLICKING ON THE BUTTON.

It still bothers me - after three previous books - that Amy doesn't mind Kurt protecting her and her family, but treats him like a criminal, when he's long left those days behind him and become a wealthy and respected art collector who's refined and treats people well. She's decided it's fine to keep secrets from the police but then tells Kurt that if he doesn't spill the beans, as it were, she's going to the police herself. It's not her story to tell. That's the best way I can put it. She's awfully judgmental about Kurt and his past, but doesn't want to hear it when someone from the commune tells her that Sunny's grandparents probably tried hard drugs. I fully expected her to put her hands over her ears and say, "lalalalala" any minute. Hypocrite, much? She preaches 'do as I say, not as I do.'

She also has no business judging Kurt for his past when she gives P.J. and Carol (the grandparents) a pass for theirs. He's done NOTHING to harm her, and has even helped and protected her. She makes it difficult to like her. Amy actually says of Carol and P.J.: "...knowing P.J. and Carol, I can imagine them covering up an accidental death if they thought they were protecting a friend or the commune." But then continues to look at Kurt askance and with suspicion every time he opens his mouth. All this shows is that Amy is a judgmental, holier-than-thou prig. How can anyone find her likable after this?

IT would also be nice if there were more local color than just Lydia's garden. We have plenty of details on the color of peoples' eyes, but what does that matter in the long run? We didn't even find out what month it was until 81% of the book was gone. I would have liked to have learned more of the surrounding area or the town itself.

In the end, it wasn't a bad book, but we pretty much knew who the murderer was from the beginning, just because of certain things that were said, and I won't say any more than that except to say it was a decent enough cozy; just not enough to draw me into the story.

FYI, Amy saying 'wine is the best medicine' tells me that she might have an addiction problem of her own. Drinking doesn't solve problems; it just temporarily masks them. The problems will still be there when you sober up. In fact, the only thing anyone did for enjoyment was drink. Surely there's more they can do in town than just go to dance recitals and drink; but on the other hand, the local liquor store owner must be a millionaire. Just sayin'
END OF SPOILER.

This was a fun, cute cozy mystery! I love the theme throughout, and I will definitely be continuing with the series.

I really enjoyed this title! I most definitely will be adding this series to my library.

Ms. Gilbert writes an intriguing book that uses reference librarian tools to weave a fast passed story. As the fourth book in the series, I am excited to see where she leads her main character as she continues this series. Amy Webber is a fantastically written main character that is relatable and loveable. I wish I worked for Amy, or more accurately wish I was Amy.
The plot was unique and kept my interest, clearly different from other cozy mystery series I have read. enjoyed the 60's counter-culture movement references and the modern-day plot twists that left me excited to finish the story. For once I was just as surprised to find out who the killer was, I didn't see it coming. I highly recommend this title.

I have read all the previous books in this series, but this one didn't engage me as the others did. The premise of a 60's commune just outside of town with many aging hippies still living in the area is solid and interesting. What I didn't like was a constant mental dialogue by Amy regarding either the person she was dealing with (like Kurt) or yet another possible murderer and the lame reasons for suspecting the person of the crime. I felt the whole book was unfocused rather than logical clues. I also was disappointed in the ending. The reappearance of a character that had been dropped early in the book, the way too speedy rescue without any clues, the glossing over of the criminal being caught, an the fast forward to an ending that didn't feel natural. This was not Ms Gilbert's best book, although I was glad to have the chance to read it.

I do appreciate Net Galley and Crooked Lane Books for giving me an arc copy to read. Opinions expressed are strictly my own.

I enjoyed this book. The characters are well developed and it is an interesting plot but I felt that I was missing something by not having read the previous books.
The author did a good job of covering back story but I would have found the characters more accessible if this wasn’t the first time I met them.
The story line was interesting and I have to say I was surprised at the ending....I read a lot of mysteries and I usually have suspicions.
I would recommend this book....it’s a good, homey read.

This was a hard book for me to "get into". I don't know if I was just to busy or what. Amy is at it again. An old skeleton is found on Sunny's grandparents property. Back in the 60's they operated a commune and rumor has it that the skeleton is that of a former commune member. There are several possible suspects and motives. I was surprised with the ending and motive.

The characters are fun and the story is easy to read. If you want to relax and getaway for an hour or two, this book will do that.

Library director Amy Webber is all too happy to do a little digging on a cold case for the cop ex-boyfriend of her mayoral candidate best friend - especially since the body was discovered on her best friend’s grandparent’s farm (and former hippie commune). However, it soon becomes clear that whoever the killer was, he or she is not done yet.

The German crime series Tatort is the longest-running show on German television. It started in 1970 and continues to be beloved and eagerly anticipated to this day. The key to its success is neither its writing (very solid), nor its acting (totally fine), but that it is redolent with local color. It follows around sixteen sets of investigators in the same number of locales throughout Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and everyone tunes in to the episodes filmed in their home states and hometowns with a certain relish and local pride. And they watch the other episodes to get a good look at what’s local to the locals in the other locations.

That sense of place is a big part of what makes a really good cozy mystery as well. When I pick up a cozy, I want to feel like that one small town is different from all the other small towns, like there’s a reason for me to be here in this place besides murder.

And that sense of place that defines Tatort, that is a crucial ingredient in a fabulous cozy mystery, is almost wholly lacking in this novel. As another Blue Ridge girl, I really wish I had loved this book. But there was nothing that made Taylorsford stand out - nothing that made it its own place. Nothing that even really made it seem like it was set in the Blue Ridge. Taylorsford could be any small semi-rural (it is not noticeably rural in nature, apart from the fact that we are told it is) town in any English-speaking country. Even the fair seemed completely generic, and while most fairs these days have a certain sameness, there’s always something (also, why was it so big? If Taylorsford is so small, I’d expect it to have a small fair - this one was practically State Fair size. So many tents!). There was clogging, at least.

(I try to repress my memories of clogging as much as possible - apparently cloggers these days get to dance in jeans, rather than enormous petticoats and plaid pinafores with ruffled satin dance pants. SO unfair.)

It’s not that it was a bad read. The pacing was solid, and if the plot was fairly predictable (tip: make sure that your baddie doesn’t vanish midway through the book if you want to surprise your reader with the revelation of his guilt), it was entertaining enough. I had some nits to pick stylistically (why do we know the color of everyone’s eyes? why so many details that a) do not add to the story and b) do not make sense for our narrator to know?), but Gilbert calmed down after the first fifty pages or so, so while we know when the library was built (1919 - why? this adds nothing. I’m mad.), we don’t get every pointless detail about the history of the farm where the body was discovered. I suspect the details were added in to get that local color I was complaining about being missing, but they all seem extraneous, rather than building towards a unified vision.

The characterization was also fine. It’s not a great sign when you get to the end of the book, sit down to write a review, and can’t quite remember the main character’s first name, even though it was used frequently throughout the book, but none of the characters was actively irritating except the ones who were meant to be (however, again, overdrawn), and I quite liked some of the old ladies. It wasn’t especially complex and it never felt like any of the characters had an especially interesting motivation or history, but honestly, that’s pretty true to life.

I did like the details about being a librarian! One of the reasons I really enjoy cozy mysteries is that they often dig into other professions or hobbies that I know nothing about, so I can learn from them, and I did learn about the art of being a librarian from this novel.

So, if you want to spend an afternoon curled up on your sofa drinking tea and reading a book, this is a fine way to do that. It won’t stick with you and it won’t change your life, but it’s a pleasant enough experience and that’s not a bad thing for a book to be.

tl;dr - ultimately forgettable cozy mystery containing nothing offensive - or very interesting. Decent way to spend an evening reading after work. Content warnings for drug use.