Brooklyn Wainright is really looking forward to spending the holidays in Scotland. She and her husband Derek Stone have the honor to be requested to be witnesses of their dear friend Claire’s wedding. The laird of the castle of Loch Ness in Scotland has proposed to Claire, and she is more than a bit nervous. While there, there will be yet another mystery for Brooklyn to solve. Twelve very rare books have apparently been stolen from the castle library. Brooklyn and Derek are the perfect ones to take on this mystery. Brooklyn is a book restoration expert and Derek is a security expert.

While their expertise will indeed come in handy, Brooklyn finds herself distracted by unusual sounds she hears during the night. While this might just be folklore, she wonders if the Ghost of Christmas past just might be in those library stacks. But, possible ghost sightings and sounds aside, when a poisoning and then a murder takes place. Most definitely not the work of a ghost!

So, murder mystery, folklore, and even more about Brooklyn’s family history in this 17th book in the series makes this book an intriguing read. It definitely was a quick read, because of how engaging this book was. I love Brooklyn and Derek together and hope they have more adventures in store.

Many thanks to Berkley and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

I really enjoyed the setting of this one, a wonderful sounding castle in Scotland and even better the description of the library in the castle was swoon worthy.
Though this is the seventeenth book in the series, it's the only Christmas themed one and I'm all for Christmas books.
Book-restoration expert Brooklyn Wainwright and her husband are enjoying their holidays when they receive a call from Brooklyn's friend Claire in Loch Ness, Scotland. She is so excited at having just received a proposal from laird of the castle Cameron MacKinnon. With a New Years wedding to take place they want Brooklyn and Derek to be their witness.
When they arrive, they are tasked with helping to solve the case of twelve missing books, these are rare and irreplaceable books.
If that isn't enough their sleep is disturbed by loud bumping and crashing noises and several guests have hit their expiration dates a little early.
I want to visit the library in this Scottish castle, especially at holiday time.
The mystery was mostly about the missing books not the murder. The book moved at a decent pace though and I enjoyed the character development. The husband-and-wife team made for an interesting read especially with him being a security-expert and having all the investigative tools needed.

I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Fans of bestselling author, Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mysteries will welcome 17th installment of this fun series, The Twelve Books of Christmas . This is a fun cozy mystery, and it’s the only one in the series with a Christmas theme. Those who aren’t familiar will enjoy it too, since Carlisle gives enough background to introduce the characters. In this novel, Brooklyn Wainwright, the protagonist, and her husband Derek Stone are asked to be best man and matron of honor to their good friends Claire and Cameron. Cameron is the Laird of the castle in the small town of Loch Ness, Scotland, and he has asked Claire to marry him on New Year’s Eve. Unfortunately, some of the girls in the village have different plans for the handsome Laird, and Claire’s life is endangered. In addition, twelve valuable Christmas books are found missing from the castle library, and Claire has a bad feeling about the librarian.

Actually, the characters are well-developed, and seem like real people. The main characters are very likeable, and most readers will want to read the previous and subsequent novels to enjoy what they’ve done before. With the many scenarios happing at once, readers will be kept on the edges of their seats; Carlisle is an excellent storyteller.

All told, this is a great book to read during the Christmas holidays, or anytime for that matter. Carlisle captures nuances of the Scottish culture which is very appealing, and as little different from the norm. This is definitely a five star novel and will be enjoyed by all readers.

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

Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mystery series is another one that I have popped in and out of. I hope to eventually read them all, but I find that they are so easy to enjoy in any order when you’re in the mood for that truly bookish cozy mystery for the book lover soul. This week I read her seventeenth book in the series, The Twelve Books of Christmas and it is such a wonderful holiday mystery!

Review | The Twelve Books of Christmas

If you’re new to the Bibliophile Mysteries, they center around Brooklyn Wainwright, who is a book restoration expert and her husband Derek Stone, who is a former spy. When The Twelve Books of Christmas opens, they are hosting a large gathering of family and friends at their home in California.

The festivities (and holiday stress) are interrupted when Brooklyn receives a call from her friend Claire in Scotland. Claire and her fiancé Cameron McKinnon want to get married just after midnight on New Year’s Day and they’re hoping Brooklyn and Derek can be there for their ceremony. Brooklyn, Derek, and their parents can take Derek’s private jet, so the sudden travel plans aren’t an issue and the group heads to Scotland.

Claire warns Brooklyn that she has a mystery at the castle for her to solve when she arrives. There are twelve Christmas-themed books that went missing from the library at Castle McKinnon after they hired a librarian (Olivia) to help with some organization work. Brooklyn has a bad feeling about Olivia and her mother agrees. But it seems Olivia isn’t the only one who has bad intentions about Claire—there are a family in the village who begrudge Claire’s engagement to Cameron, believing that their eldest daughter Bitsy should be marrying him. They are doing everything they can to scare Claire off.

In addition to Christmas, the Castle and village are preparing for Hogmanay—the celebration of the Scottish New Year. Unfortunately this celebration also invites some of the people from the village to the castle for preparations. As holiday events kick off, Brooklyn and Derek also spend time searching the castle for the missing books. But their search uncovers something unexpected—a dead body in one of the towers. The body forces Claire and Cameron to postpone their wedding out of respect, but soon they have another body to contend with.

Brooklyn sets aside the mystery of the missing books to help solve the more pressing murders—but it may turn out that the mysteries are linked, if only she can figure out how, why, and most importantly…who.

Claire and Cameron originally appeared in another book in the series, though you don’t need to read both in order. Castle McKinnon is set on the shores of Loch Ness and the setting nearly jumped out of the book—a credit to Carlisle’s descriptive writing. Traveling through books can be one of the most fun things about reading!

Since the murder occurs at the castle, the murder mystery follows almost a locked room format where the potential suspect list is somewhat fixed. As they sleuth, they begin to find some of the twelve missing books, and I was so curious why exactly those twelve books had gone missing from the library. What did it all mean?

Creepy noises around the castle lead to a haunting, gothic vibe for this cozy mystery. Brooklyn’s sleuthing allows her to begin to clear suspects from the list, but then the second murder occurs at the castle. Brooklyn now has three mysteries on her hands, and it becomes clear that solving one will help solve the others. I always find it so rewarding when cozy mysteries can feature several intertwining mysteries effectively, and Kate Carlisle proves again and again that she is a master at this!

While this cozy mystery is set around the holidays and centers around Christmas books, this would work at any time of the year. Readers will love the setting in the ancestral castle in Scotland and find the mysteries compelling and the locked room format enticing. A perfect mystery to cozy up with!

When Brooklyn, a rare book restorer, and her husband Derek are called to Scotland to celebrate their dear friends’ wedding, they jump at the chance. Brooklyn also may be able to help solve the mystery of the missing books, but she’ll have to contend with murder as well.

This was an okay cozy mystery. My biggest complaint was that the ostentatious wealth of everyone involved got to be a little much. The characters were fun and engaging, but them being just so casually rich took some of the fun out of it.

The mystery was a good one, but the solution was a little predictable-not the why, but the who. I seem to remember liking this series, so maybe it’s just this particular entry that was merely okay for me.

The Twelve Books of Christmas: A Bibliophile Mystery
By Kate Carlisle
Berkley
November 2023

Review by Cynthia Chow

As much as Brooklyn Wainwright loves her family, she wasn’t entirely prepared to be hosting a Christmas Eve dinner for over 34 of her nearest and dearest. But she and her husband Derek Stone specifically bought a second home in Dharma, California to be closer to her family, and Derek’s brothers as well are flying in with their families for a visit. While book restorer Brooklyn is giving out handmade Butterfly Books as gifts, perhaps the greatest one she receives is the all-expense paid trip to Scotland for her friend Claire’s wedding. The Laird Cameron MacKinnon has proposed to Claire and they are inviting Brooklyn and her parents to stay in Castle MacKinnon for the New Year’s wedding, so despite the rush she is unable to resist. Claire even offers the lure of a library mystery puzzle to solve, as a dozen Christmas-themed books have gone missing from the castle library. So while Brooklyn and Derek’s last venture to Scotland did involve a murder and threats against their lives, they are still quickly on their way for a holiday vacation in a genuine Scottish castle.

As Brooklyn and her family tour Oddlochen and venture into the local pub, they learn that not everyone is happy with the upcoming nuptials of the castle laird. More than one lady had intended to make herself the mistress of the castle, and they are not shy about showing their disdain towards Claire nor their affection for Cameron. Brooklyn is more concerned about tracking down the missing Christmas books, which include famous titles such as The Velveteen Rabbit and less well-known ones like A Child’s Christmas in Wales. A near-miss attack upon Claire and then a death by poisoning have Brooklyn and her security specialist husband worried that the wedding may never take place, so they must focus upon the mysteries that are making the castle seem more gothic by the second. Noises in the attack, a pair of jealous sisters named Fluff and Bitsy, and the arrival of an Assistant Chief Constable all make Brooklyn’s holiday less of a cozy Hallmark special and more of a gothic suspense thriller.

This 17th in the series takes readers on a delightful Christmassy tour through an atmospheric Scottish castle and an even more enviable library. Who hasn’t wanted to ride a rolling ladder from bookshelf to bookshelf to reach the highest shelves? Here Brooklyn and her family not only track down both famous and more esoteric Christmas books, they also navigate through the capricious relationships of a Scottish laird. Bibliophiles will again have the pleasure of reading details of Brooklyn’s meticulous book repairing, not to mention learning more about the values of the sought-after Christmas tomes. Since readers are taken away from Brooklyn’s homes in San Francisco and Dharma, those new to the series will be more than welcome to dive into the latest in a long-running, beloved bibliophile series. Fans of Brooklyn and her love for books and book restoration will be especially rewarded though as they spend time with her quirky parents and experience a clever plot that successfully honors both classic and more modern mysteries. This is the perfect gift for mystery lovers and those looking for a cozy book-themed holiday read.

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra

First off, I cannot believe I am entering this series at book 17! What am I thinking? Well, let me tell you. It has long been my wish to read this series and I decided to jump right in with the newest book. Maybe not the smartest move as far as character development goes. But definitely glad I finally did. And so you know – I will most assuredly go back and start from the beginning!

The story begins with Brooklyn Wainwright and her hubby Derek Stone heading to Scotland to attend Claire and Cameron’s New Year’s Eve wedding at the Laird’s Castle (FYI – the laird would be Cameron – the groom). And Claire has another request of Brooklynn besides standing up for her at her wedding on New Year’s Day…try and find a dozen missing books from the castle’s library. Along for the wedding are Brooklynn’s mom and dad as well. Makes for a lovely vacation. Though visiting Lock Ness is very exciting, there is of course a murder (actually two!!!). The first death occurs with Willy (a friend of Olivia – the castle librarian). Willy helps with the gardening and fieldwork at the castle and is good friends with Angus. During the New Year’s Eve celebrations – there are words between Willy and Angus. And then the next day, while searching for missing books, Brooklyn stumbles upon a very dead Willy. And so it begins, the sleuthing with Brooklyn and Derek trying to figure out who would want Willy dead?

There are numerous potential suspects and as Brooklyn and Derek shift through the list, they keep locating more of the missing books (yeah!). As well, there are some creepy noises in the castle that spook Brooklyn. As time proceeds, suspects are cleared and just when the reader thought things were settling down (well – except for not figuring out the murderer of Willy) and a wedding just might occur – another murder happens. Will this wedding never happen? Never fear…Brooklyn will figure it out – or at least this reader hoped so – before she became a casualty herself.

In true cozy mystery style – the murder is solved, explanations abound with respect to the strange noises in the castle, a wedding finally happens and all is well in Scotland. I love it when all comes together in these books. Though I must say – took me a long while (actually – not until the very end) to figure out “whodunit” – for either of the murders. Just the way I like my cozies!

If you are a fan of Kate Carlisle, then you will surely enjoy this 17th addition to the Bibliophile Mystery series. With respect to the mystery, there is just the right amount of intrigue and number of suspects. The location could not have been more perfect.

Let us not forget the cover art. A work of beauty, if I do say so myself. With many of my favourite things: books, cats and Christmas decorations. And a lovely reading nook!I fully recommend The Twelve Books of Christmas by Kate Carlisle. Make a hot chocolate (or tea?), sit down in a comfy chair with a lap throw and get reading. The book will captivate you and pull you in so that all you want to do is read (okay – that is what happened with me. You may be different).

As an adult reader, I enjoyed this mystery, particularly the details about the setting and nearby places in the Scottish Highlands. I even added a stop to my upcoming family trip to Scotland this summer after reading this novel! As a high school librarian, I was hoping this would be a title to provide a holiday mystery for my students who want holiday reads but don’t want romance. I don’t think it will appeal to my high school readers, though. I appreciate many features of the novel, but the pace won’t capture many of my teenage readers.

Readers have had to wait quite a while for a holiday installment to the Bibliophile Mystery Series, and it sure didn't disappoint! A continually thwarted wedding, missing Christmas books, small town strife, historic Scottish traditions, and of course murder abound in this book. Carlisle's devoted fan base will love this one!

This is the 17th book in the Bibliophile Mysteries series, set in San Francisco and the Napa Valley. Brooklyn Wainwright is a book restorer who’s well known in her field. She’s married to Derek Stone, a former SAS member who runs his own security business. Just before Christmas, Brooklyn gets a call that sends them to a Scottish castle to watch their friends get married and solve a mystery of missing rare books.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed as in this review are completely my own.

Yes, that's right - Brooklyn can't even get through a Christmas season without being pulled into a mystery. She and Derek are invited back to Loch Ness to attend the wedding of their friends Claire and Cameron. And while they are there perhaps they can help locate a dozen books that have gone missing from the castle's library. Spending the holidays in a genuine Scottish castle seems like a great way to relax and enjoy Christmas and New Year's Day, but not when the murders begin.

Who could be behind the deaths? Is it part of a plot in the village to drive Claire away? Does it have anything to do with the loud and mysterious noises that fill the castle's halls at night? How did the missing books, which all relate to Christmas, vanish from a locked library? What is up with the very pushy young woman Bitsy who keeps trying to insinuate herself between Claire and Cameron? And why has Cameron's father not bothered to get in touch for the holidays or the wedding?

There seem to be more questions than Brooklyn and Derek can answer, even with the help of Brooklyn's parents and Derek's former partner Gwyneth. Readers will be looking for hidden undercurrents in each conversation, scrutinizing each scene for a clue that the characters have overlooked, and adding suspects to their list. Is there more than one criminal at work? Are the deaths and the missing books connected or do they have two separate perpetrators?

With all the descriptions of Scottish holiday traditions and delicious foods prepared by the castle's chef, the story is sure to be a pleasant holiday escape for readers of cozy mysteries - even if Brooklyn and the gang reach the solution before we do.

THE TWELVE BOOKS OF CHRISTMAS is the seventeenth book in the Bibliophile Mysteries by Kate Carlisle. Book restoration expert, Brooklyn Wainright, and her oh-so-handsome husband, Derek have been invited to a wedding in Scotland. At a Scottish castle on Loch Ness no less! First off, the setting is perfection and makes me want to revisit that beautiful country. Ms. Carlisle’s strong descriptive voice brings each scene and each character to life. The bride-to-be, Claire, is a character from a previous book and it was fun to see how her life has changed since we last saw her. One of the best things about each release in this series is the chance to catch up with old friends, like Brooklyn and Derek, and Brooklyn’s parents (who are featured in this book) and meet new friends as well. While this can easily be read as a standalone, if you enjoy getting to know a group of delightful characters and their backstory, then I highly recommend starting with the first book and bingeing on this entertaining series!

There are several mysteries going on at the Scottish castle when Brooklyn and Derek arrive. Twelve books—all having some sort of Christmas theme—are missing from the extensive castle library. Some are rare and expensive books, while others aren’t. Then the bride-to-be seems to be a target of violence and townspeople have turned their backs on her. And just what is thumping and bumping in the night and rattling chains? Is the castle haunted or are there bats in the belfry? And who murdered two guests? Are they connected and is someone trying to stop the wedding? I love how Brooklyn and Derek work together to solve the mysteries. They are respectful of each other and are good sounding boards for sussing out the clues. The plot is perfectly paced and I found myself reading the book all in one day… I couldn’t bear to put it down until I’d found out the very last secret hiding in the castle. With a heartwarming ending, I’m impatiently waiting for the next book… it can’t come soon enough!

I listened to the audio version of the book. Narrator Kimberly M. Wetherell did a superb job on capturing the essence of each character as well as the various accents, from American, to Scottish, to proper British. It added to the overall appeal to the story.

Kate Carlisle takes the Bibliophile mysteries to a Scottish castle where Brooklyn and Derek are guests for the wedding of their friends Claire and Cameron, the laird. The Twelve Books of Christmas are missing from the library and there is a plot to chase away the bride by scary members of the town. Lovely setting but nasty local types. Then a body drops; the plot thickens. Great holiday cosy.

Brooklyn and her husband Derek are asked to be guests at the wedding of her friend Claire and her fiancee Cameron in Scotland. There is also a mystery to solve concerning twelve missing books. What is happening in the town? And why is there so much hostility? A fun holiday read.

3.5 stars, actually.

Make no mistake: This is a favorite series of mine, and after reading this latest entry (the 17th), it still is. But I'll also say that if I listed them in rank order, this one wouldn't be anywhere near the top of the "best" list.

And why might that be? Mostly, I think, because it's more pomp than circumstance. The plot lacks pizzazz (or much of anything of substance), and there's way too much exposition and lengthy description of what people are doing, where they're going and what they're eating. Even the ending, while it did wrap everything up nicely, was a bit underwhelming.

Venting aside, though, it's still an entertaining read; I seriously doubt this talented author could ever write a dud. The story here begins as Brooklyn Wainwright, a book restoration expert, has moved to Sonoma wine country with her handsome husband, security consultant Derek Stone. In the midst of pre-Christmas celebrations, she gets a call from good friend Claire, who is in Scotland preparing to marry Cameron, a castle laird - and she wants Brooklyn and Derek to serve as their witnesses. Amid all the excitement, it's also decided that Brooklyn's parents (her mother is active in a local druidic Wiccan group) will tag along as well. Claire also hopes that Brooklyn will help solve a mystery: a dozen Christmas-related books, some quite valuable, have gone missing from the castle library - which is open to the public.

As might be expected, not everything goes exactly as planned; the young woman hired to maintain the previously neglected library doesn't seem up to the task; strange things go bump in the night, and the women of the town, located on the banks of Loch Ness, haven't exactly warmed up to the notion that Claire will be the lady of the castle - now or ever. On the plus side, thanks to the loyal keeper of the castle and her competent staff, no one will ever go hungry; at every opportunity, delicacies (and of course, tea) appear almost from nowhere.

But alas; also from nowhere appears a dead body - followed not long after by a second one. Those discoveries, needless to say, force a wedding postponement and an investigation that, of course, is joined by Brooklyn and Derek (though the former is still focusing on the missing library books). Also of course, that's where I must stop; revealing anything more could spoil things for other readers. That said, this is a cozy mystery; I've yet to read one in which things don't work out well for the main characters, and this one's no exception. And Brooklyn remains a bit of an anomaly among cozy heroines; she doesn't go off on tangents, plays nice with the police and doesn't have a "sidekick" to whom she listens instead of the voice of reason (and for that, I'm eternally grateful and a loyal reader). I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review this one.

I haven't read other books in the series, but this could be okay as a standalone, as there is a lot of info on catching up on the characters. I might've enjoyed it more if I'd read the prior stories. There are numerous characters to try and keep track of throughout, and not all were truly key to the plot. I liked the humor and the food descriptions, and I really enjoyed the Scottish castle setting. The reader is asked to suspend disbelief on occasion, as motives didn't always make sense. Overdetailing on minor details overshadowed the mystery overall.

Another great book in the series. I like that they went back to Scotland. It was great having Brooklyn's parents involved as well. The mystery kept me guessing.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Brooklyn and Derek are ready to celebrate Christmas with their friends and family at their new home in Dharma, in California’s wine country. They have invited over dozens of people, setting up rides in limousines and tables full of food and drinks for everyone who comes. And they are enjoying their evening when Brooklyn gets the phone call.

Dear friends of theirs in Scotland, Claire and Cameron, have decided to get married, and they want Brooklyn and Derek to come be their witnesses. Brooklyn doesn’t have much time to think about it, as they’re getting married in a week, just after midnight in the new year. They offer to fly Brooklyn, Derek, and Brooklyn’s parents over to Loch Ness, where they can stay in Cameron’s family’s castle.

But once they get to Loch Ness, Brooklyn can tell that not everything is happiness and warmth for the wedding. For one thing, there are twelve books missing from the castle’s library, some of them quite valuable. And for another, there is a strange energy coming from the castle’s librarian. In fact, several of the local women make Brooklyn feel uncomfortable. At first she thinks it’s just jealousy, that the local women are upset that the Laird Cameron had chosen Claire to be his wife. But when Claire tells Brooklyn about a couple of threatening incidents, Brooklyn knows that something potentially dangerous is going on.

As Cameron builds a big bonfire so the town can come celebrate Hogmanay at the castle, Brooklyn and her mother team up with Claire’s aunt Gwyneth to come up with a plan to keep Claire safe. She doesn’t necessarily need the help, as she is an expert with weapons (Claire originally met Cameron when he hired her to help with the many ancient weapons that had been neglected at the castle while his father had been in charge). But she is distracted by the wedding plans, so Brooklyn and her team put their plans into action.

A series of loud shrieks and clanking chains in the walls of the castle leave Brooklyn disoriented, but it’s the murders that cause the real disturbance. Brooklyn knows that Claire and Cameron can never really be safe and happy unless all the mischief is sorted out, so she puts her head down in order to find those twelve missing books, and maybe a killer as well.

The Twelve Books of Christmas is book 17 in Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mystery series. These books are filled with family and friends, good food and drinks, beautiful locations, some scheming and thieving and a little bit of murder. In this one, there is plenty of holiday cheer, for Christmas and New Year’s and for Scotland’s Hogmanay, as well as a little wackiness to keep things interesting.

I am a fan of Kate Carlisle and her knack for creating characters that are just fun to hang out with. But she also throws in some surprises and plenty of good energy. The food she describes sounds delicious and there is a genuine sense of celebration in this one, for the holidays and the wedding. There are also lots of interesting tidbits about Christmas stories and explanations of bookbinding and repairing techniques, adding bookish fun to the story. I really enjoyed The Twelve Books of Christmas, and I think other fans of Carlisle and of cozy mysteries will find this book to be a gift.

Egalleys for The Twelve Books of Christmas were provided by Berkley through NetGalley, with many thanks.

This was one of the first cozy mystery series that I ever read and I read the first few as soon as I got my hands on them but then it kind of fell off the radar a bit. In general it hasn't been my favorite series but this one was really fun. For starters the setting is fantastic. It's New Year's in Scotland and not just Scotland but a CASTLE in Scotland that has a library where books are randomly going missing. Oh and a castle that happens to border Loch Ness. And did I mention that the castle seems to have a ghost?

Claire and Cameron are old friends of Brooklyn and Derek and featured prominently in an earlier book which I'm not entirely sure I've read. There was enough information provided that I didn't feel like I was missing anything and the author did a good job of not just giving readers and info dump. I loved seeing Brooklyn's parents out of Dharma and enjoying their vacation and getting involved in the investigation. I also always enjoy seeing Brooklyn working on book restoration and enjoy seeing all the steps involved.

The mystery had a bit of a slow reveal. There's a lot going on between the wedding and getting settled and the New Year's celebration. While the missing books are introduced fairly early on the murder doesn't occur until much later into the book. However, I didn't mind this as I enjoyed the ride as Brooklyn and Derek get settled in and start figuring out what is going on.

This is a fun series with an interesting twist on bookishness and while it has been a long running series you could easily jump in with this book.

This is the seventeenth book in the Bibliophile Mystery series and Brooklyn and her husband Derek are invited to Scotland to take part in the wedding of their friends Claire and Cameron who is the laird of Castle MacKinnon. They want to get married on New Year's Day and it is already Christmas.

Brooklyn, Derek, and Brooklyn's parents arrive at Castle MacKinnon to celebrate and find that there is also a mystery to solve. Twelve books, each about some aspect of Christmas and with widely varied values, are missing from the castle library. But that isn't the only problem Claire and Cameron are facing. The local women's club has started a campaign to ostracize Claire and a local young woman is determined to steal Cameron away before he can marry Claire.

Then there is the whole issue of the new librarian at the castle who seems to have an agenda of her own. She's much more interested in becoming rich than taking care of the library. Brooklyn immediately suspects her of being the one to steal the books in order to sell them.

While searching the castle for the missing books, Brooklyn and Derek find the body of a young man named Willy stuffed on one of the closets. Willy worked on the estate and was known to everyone. Brooklyn has a number of possible suspects for murderer.

And when Bitsy, the rival for Cameron's affections, is found with an arrow through her heart the day after she and Claire competed in an archery competition, it looks like Claire would be the perfect suspect. However, Brooklyn knows she didn't do it and searches for the murderer before the happy couple needs to postpone the wedding again.

This was a fun story. I haven't read any of the other books in this series, but the hints thrown out about other times Brooklyn finds herself solving mysteries make me want to read more.