The Stolen Letter started promisingly and then dropped off.

I requested the full version of this book after reading the beginning in a sampler. I loved the excerpt! I have tried at least a dozen times to pick this book back up and continue through. However, it failed to keep my attention and it just got too strange.

Sadly, this is a DNF for me. I made it about half way, and I just cannot motivate myself to keep going. Maybe it is a book I will try again in the future.

I received an eARC from St. Martin's Press through NetGalley. All opinions are 100% my own.

Loved this book! I’ve read Paige Shelton before & she does not disappoint. Makes me feel I need to go back & read this series from the start. I love Scotland & books, so how can you go wrong? Definitely a book to read & an author to try!

This was a fun and well-written cozy mystery set, in part, in a bookstore. I loved the characters and the storyline. Cozy mysteries are my go-to when I need a read that I know won't disturb me.
I'd love to see this one on PBS sometime!
Thank you for my review e=copy!

This is the fifth book in the Scottish Bookshop Mystery series. It isn’t necessary to read previous editions to fully understand what is going on with the characters and how they relate to each other, so it does work well as a standalone.

I enjoyed the interactions between the main character, Delaney, and her coworkers. Delaney cares very much about her new husband and the people she works with, and she loves her job. I have enjoyed reading small details about the wondrous objects she is discovering as she works her way through her boss, Edwin’s, collection of fascinating objects he has found over the years. This time around she is exploring the origins of a tapestry that may have been owned by Mary, Queen of Scots. This also becomes tied in with the case of a man who is victim of a car bomb and the mysterious reason anyone would want The Crooked Spine to be closed.

As with most other cozy mysteries, this is a clean book. There isn’t any swearing or sex. I’m always grateful for the absence of those things. The mystery is neatly wrapped up by the end. The book does have a theme of reincarnation that runs it.

Delaney Nichols has gone from Kansas transplant to a valued member of the Cracked Spine bookshop in Edinburgh, Scotland and is now married to the man of her dreams. When Delaney runs into a slightly older version of herself, while on her way to the bookshop and Edwin finds the bookshop itself under consideration to be condemned by the city, the mystery begins!

I've loved each of the books in the Cracked Spine series. Each book shows Delaney growing comfortable in her new city and working for the kind and mysterious, Edwin McAllister. The bookshop and it's treasure trove of books, artifacts and history adds to the mysteries. Delaney and the quirky, but lovable, characters who work at the bookshop are at their best in this mystery. The mystery kept me reading and the ending was satisfying!

I'm already looking forward to the next book!

I received an ARC from NetGalley. The opinions expressed are my own.

Once again, Paige Shelton has written a fun cozy mystery! I love the bookshop setting, and the mystery was not predictable.

This is an enjoyable mystery with a little royal history thrown in. The characters are well written, well developed, and likeable. The main mystery has a few suspects, plenty of clues, and a few red herrings to make the journey to the surprising conclusion worth it. I did find it a little implausible to have the Queen of England making a cameo at the town's board meeting. I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley for my honest review.

Title: The Stolen Letter

Author: Paige Shelton

Series: Scottish bookshop mystery book 5

Chapters: 36

Pages: 304

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Rating: 4 stars

Publisher: Minotaur books


The Stolen Letter is book 5 i in the Scottish bookshop mystery series and Delaneys settles into life in Scotland.

When a new mystery has Delaney rushing to save the bookshop and keeping history from repeating its self.

While not my favorite of the series I did enjoy this one and I’m looking forward to the next one in the series.




I received a copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

The Stolen Letter, the fifth in A Scottish Bookshop Mystery Series, finds Delaney Nichols, a newlywed, just back from her honeymoon excited to finally be back to work at The Cracked Spine, a bookstore she loves to be at. However, as she is hurrying to her bookstore, she runs into a lady who has a stack of books. As Delaney bends down to help the woman pick up the books, she glances at her and finds she looks exactly like her – 20 years younger, but almost identical. As they talk on their way Delaney gets to know Mary and Mary invites Delaney to dinner that evening, along with others in the bookshop. Delaney learns that according to Mary, they both look a lot like Mary Queen of Scots who was beheaded centuries ago, and then that Mary believes she was Mary Queen of Scots in a past life. Unfortunately, the Cracked Spine is scheduled to close soon due to councilmen saying the building doesn’t stand up to code, and when Delaney finds out that Mary’s husband (who was just killed in a suspicious car explosion) was the one pushing for it, she becomes suspicious and starts to investigate.

Delaney is a delightful character, and while from the US, has become happy in her new home in Scotland. Shelton does a good job of developing her, as well as the others from the bookshop and Mary and her friends. There is a lot of Scottish language, and it almost seems readers will feel like they are in Scotland. It makes it fun and adds charm to the novel. While Delaney doesn’t get into too much trouble, there is suspense which builds throughout.

Shelton is a good writer, and makes this series fun. Most readers will want to read the others in the series because they are well-written fast reads.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

The Stolen Letter is the 5th Scottish Bookshop cozy mystery by Paige Shelton. Released 7th April 2020 by Macmillan on their Minotaur imprint, it's 304 pages and available in hardcover, mass market paperback, audio, and ebook formats.

These are self contained mysteries and as such work well enough as standalones. The ensemble casts' interrelationships have developed over the course of the books, there'll be some missing backstory, but the author is adept at giving the necessary information, so it's not absolutely necessary.

For lovers of very light bookstore cozies, these will likely be a good fit. There is a historical mystery subplot and tie-in to Elizabeth I and Mary Stuart's contentious relationship and the latter's subsequent betrayal and execution. There are also several interwoven subplots concerning a modern day murder, skullduggery, and the threat of the titular bookshop's closing.

All in all, it's a diverting, very light, readable cozy mystery with a whimsical ensemble cast. Some of the plot developments are a bit over the top (including a deux ex machina that made my eyes roll into the back of my skull, but ok).

Three and a half stars. The author is a talented and capable storyteller, and I do love bookstore cozies, rounding up for the fun story.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

3.5 / 5.0 stars

This sixth book of the Scottish Book Shop mystery series, is a charming and delightful addition. The writing is solid and clever, the language clean and the corpse modestly described. What more could one ask for in a cozy?

Our stalwart Kansas born bookseller and heroine, Delaney Nichols, has just returned to Edinburgh after her honeymoon with pub owner, Tom Shannon. They're still in the process of navigating their new normal and everything is anything but. On her way to the Cracked Spine bookshop, she encounters Mary Stewart, her doppelgänger, (although a bit of an older edition), who believes that she herself, is the reincarnation of Mary, Queen of Scots. She even knows things intuitively that only the queen would know, or so she believes. Both Delaney and Mary are curious about the other and stunned at the uncanny resemblance. A burgeoning friendship begins and dinner plans are soon made. Meanwhile, Edwin MacAlister, owner of the Cracked Spine, has received a disquieting phone call stating that owing to the bookshop's unstable structural condition, a vote to demolish the store was being placed before the Council shortly. What? No notice, no advance warning, no inspection report? Surely, there's an administrative oversight here. Well the bookshop staff go into overdrive to try and get to the bottom of the problem. The voices in Delaney's head are getting riled up and trying to steer her through the quagmire. Has she mistakenly placed herself in the direct path of a killer?

If you're charmed by all things Scottish, enjoy a bit of history and are a fan of cozies, then this book is surely a good one for you. Though this book can stand on its own, the reader would do well to start at the beginning of the series with, "The Cracked Spine". As for me, I can't wait for the next book in this delightful series, "Deadly Editions", which is due out in April of 2021.

I am grateful to author Paige Shelton and publisher Minotaur Books for having provided a complimentary e-copy of this book. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.

I unfortunately did not take the time to finish this book. It seemed promising at first -Scotland! A bookstore! Mystery!, but I was put off by the doppelgänger aspect. I was all a little out of my preference of reading material.
I thank you for the opportunity to have access to the title early.

Paige Shelton continues the Scottish Bookshop mysteries with The Stolen Letter. Delaney Nichols has returned from her European honeymoon and is ready to return to work at the Crooked Spine bookshop when she meets Mary Stewart, her lookalike , who believes that she was Mary Queen of Scots in a past life. After dinner with Mary and her husband Henry, Delaney discovers Henry, city councillor, has plotted to condemn the Crooked Spine bookshop the take possession. Henry is killed in a car bomb. Whodunit? Who laid the fake paperwork to condemn the store? Lots of red herrings. Great Scottish cozy.

Delaney Nichols is returning from her honeymoon, on her way back to her dream job as as an archivist at The Cracked Spine in Edinburgh, when she literally runs into herself -- or, if not herself, exactly, an older near-twin. Mary Stewart just happens to be on her way to that very bookstore to sell a pile of books about Elizabeth I.

While Rosie, Delaney's co-worker, begins to examine the boos, Delaney excuses herself to make some coffee in the ancient warehouse next to the historic bookstore. She loves the warehouse, with its huge assortment of antique books, objects, and a desk that is old enough to have been used by the Tudor Queen herself. Rosie, in the meantime, gets to know Mary, and displays a palpable air of bemused disbelief. Why? Because Mary Stewart believes that she is the reincarnation of the doomed Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, martyred by Elizabeth I, and she has proof that goes beyond her dreams, memories, and uncanny resemblance to the martyred Mary. She'll show Rosie and Delaney that proof at dinner that night with her husband, Henry, and Delaney's new husband, Tom.

Before that can happen, however, Rosie has bad news to share: The Cracked Spine may need to be shut down. Permanently. The ancient buildings have been inspected and found wanting in too many intractable code violations. Owner and collector Edwin McAlister has been served notice by The Lord Provost, with whom he has tangled in the past over the destruction of ancient trees, although he has not seen the inspection report himself. He asks Delaney to locate the building's Burgess Tickets - historical papers that gave citizens the right to operate a business, vote, and take part in the community. Edwin believes those papers will save the bookstore from demolition.

To distract herself, Delaney returns to the archival work she loves, dating very old, fragile bits of a tapestry that depicts the biblical story of Abraham. As she examines the threads, dyed with extracts from insects and flora, she notices a detail that had earlier escaped her attention: a tiny depiction of a coat of arms that reads "Semper Eadam" (Always the Same) - the motto of Elizabeth I herself! Could these old threads help to secure the bookstore's future? And is Henry's subsequent death, violent and sudden, be somehow tied in as well?

If you love all of the details of English history, from the embroidery of queens both successful and doomed and the details of the plants used to dye textiles, from the doomed queen's favorite violet marmalade to a rumored cache of Elizabeth I's lost letters, this book is definitely for you. Although it has the hallmarks of a cozy (including an adorable dog and a lovable but unfocused collector), it also includes a treasure-trove of the ancient customs that govern modern-day Scotland, and the hidden-from-sight lives of others who believe they are the reincarnations of people from the notable past. It's a much richer brew than many cozies. Give it a try.

4 stars. It would have been 5 had there been fewer subplots and easily-found lost objects. Thanks to NetGalley for providing the Advanced Reading Copy for me to read and review.

In this latest installment in the Scottish Bookshop mystery series, Delaney becomes involved with a woman who claims to be a reincarnation of Mary, Queen of Scots. She also just happens to be a Delaney look-alike! The main plot line evolves around the proposed demise of the beloved bookshop The Cracked Spine, due to structural issues. As might be expected, there is more to the situation than one might think. Delaney and her colleagues from the bookshop undertake a plan to get to bottom of the proposed closure, and end up solving a mystery surrounding a letter, as well as investigating a murder. The characters are likeable, and the book lacks overt violence, strong language, and adult situations. Readers who enjoy cozy mysteries, bookshops, and Scotland will find this a worthy read.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Newlywed Delaney is shocked to—literally—run into an older version of herself. When the woman turns out to be Mary Stewart, claiming to be Mary, Queen of Scots reincarnated, Delaney is intrigued. Coincidentally, Mary’s husband is trying to shut down the bookstore where Delaney works.

Eager to stop the closure of her beloved bookstore, Delaney searches for the records necessary to prevent its condemnation, but the murder of Mary’s husband suggests someone else may have had a grudge against him..

Set against the charming backdrop of Edinburgh, THE STOLEN LETTER is a charming cozy mystery. Delaney and her colleague Rosie are engaging characters, but many of the secondary characters are sort of flat. Ive not read the other books in the series, but it seems like an enjoyable premise. As an archivist, I had some minor issues with some of the claims, but lovers of history and books will enjoy the mystery. #TheStolenLetter #NetGalley

Description
New York Times bestselling author Paige Shelton returns with the next installment of The Scottish Bookshop Mystery series, The Stolen Letter

Delaney Nichols is confident she’s doing what she loves—case in point, just one day after returning from her fabulous European honeymoon, she’s eager to get back to the Cracked Spine, the bookstore where she works. But as she disembarks her bus and hurries toward the shop she and another woman collide, sending a stack of books the woman is carrying to the ground. Delaney’s hapless victim’s name is Mary, and the two women can’t help but notice that they bear an uncanny resemblance to one another. According to Mary, they both also look like the long-beheaded Mary Queen of Scots. Even stranger, Mary believes she is the reincarnation of the Scottish queen. But peculiar as Delaney’s doppelganger is, she doesn’t have time to dwell on it: on her arrival to the bookshop, she learns the Edinburgh city council wants to close the Cracked Spine, citing code violations, and she’s determined to stop them. But when Mary’s husband dies in a car explosion—and Delaney learns he was the very member of city council who proposed that the city take a closer look at the bookshop’s construction—she starts to wonder if her meeting with Mary wasn’t an accident. Edinburgh has become as filled with intrigue and deception as any European court, and Delaney is determined to get to the bottom of this royal mystery.

My Review
Book 5 in the "A Scottish Bookshop Mystery" - The Stolen Letter is yet another winner!

Paige Shelton knows how to weave intrigue with colorful characters while describing Edinburgh so vividly that it makes you want to be there right now.

Delaney has just returned with her husband from her honeymoon. Excited to return to the bookshop she works in she does not see another woman carrying books and they run right into each other.

The interesting twist to this plot is the other woman Mary and Delaney are a dead ringer to Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary is claiming to be the reincarnation of the Queen. But, of course, that is not all that happens in the story. Delaney finds out that the city council want to close down the bookstore and one of the members is Mary's husband. Before Delaney can find out anymore he is killed in a car accident.

The characters are well-written, the plot is enjoyable, and it kept me interested until the very end.

I highly recommend The Stolen Letter!!

In the fifth book in this wonderful series, Delaney Nichols, a transplanted Mid Westerner, has returned from her honeymoon and is looking forward to being back in the Cracked Spine bookshop. Her life is just right - she's married to a great guy, Tom Shannon and she loves her job and has some great friends. What could mess that up? Well, when she bumps into a woman named Mary on the street, her life takes a strange detour. Would anyone believe that, first of all, the woman is a dead ringer for Delaney as well as Mary, Queen of Scots and she claims to be the incarnation of the queen. If that isn't enough to wrap your head around, things heat up for the bookshop. The local city council are on a mission to shut the store down siting code violations. No way will Delaney and the other employees and friends of the shop let that happen.
Soon a death becomes part of the situation - it turns out that the aforementioned Mary is married to the member of the city council who started the move to shut down the shop. Now he's dead in a car explosion and the puzzle becomes a lot more complicated. Can Delaney, Rosie, Edwin, Tom and the friends of the Cracked Spine untangle the puzzle, solve the crime and save the bookshop? This was one of those special mysteries that kept me reading well past my bedtime and transported me to the lovely city of Edinburgh without needing to pack and find my passport.
My thanks to the publisher, Minotaur and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I requested and received an e-ARC of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review.

I love book stores, mysteries, and Scotland and this book has it all! I really enjoyed this mystery; it was my first time reading a book from A Scottish Bookshop Mystery series but I will be reading more. There is a hint of paranormal in the book and I love how the author brought Mary Queen of Scots and both Queen Elizabeth's into the story. Thoroughly recommend this book!

#TheStolenLetter #NetGalley

If you like bookstores, Scotland, and murder you will enjoy this cozy mystery. This book was a great distraction from daily life. I felt as if I were actually in Scotland.