The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C. M. Waggoner is a delightful mix of urban fantasy, mystery, and humor. The story follows a group of quirky librarians who secretly hunt demons in their small village. Waggoner’s writing is engaging, with well-developed characters and an intriguing plot full of suspense and wit. The blend of supernatural elements and everyday life creates a fun, unique world that is both charming and thrilling. Fans of fantasy with a lighthearted touch and a hint of mystery will find this book an enjoyable read.

I wasn't able to finish the book because my Kindle broke and I don't have the memory on my phone but from what I did read I really loved it! My patrons at my library are also loving it as well and it is being checked out all the time!

Sometimes a book just does not work our for a reader. The elements are there - librarian protagonist who owns a cat who ends up solving mysteries not through superpowers but by picking out details missed by the professionals. Nice premise, but when you toss in rich friend killing off husband and disappearing while murders keep cropping up, a new priest getting involved, the cat starts talking (or is the cat possessed?), and the reader starts loosing the cozy mystery vibe and starts sprinting for the hills. I liked the idea of the book, but the book itself failed to live up to its hype for this reader.

This book was an absolute delight. I actually have it earmarked for book club pick. We'll paced, fun. I really enjoyed Sherry as our unreliable, reliable librarian narrator.

This book wasn't for me. I really wanted to like it but I couldn't get into it and sadly was not able to finish. I might try and pick it back up again when the mood strikes. I think it was a bit too slow going in the beginning and it needed to hit the ground running a bit more so people can know what they're reading.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

“It really was annoying, she thought, when the job for which she’d been formally trained and which she was paid to perform by the local government got in the way of her unpaid amateur homicide detection.”


The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society was a pretty fun book to listen to. In this, you will meet Sherry Pinkwhistle. She's a librarian by day and solves crimes at night. Well, okay, legally she doesn't solve crimes because it's not her actual job. But one can have a hobby, right?

Sherry reminded me of many amateur sleuth characters all wrapped into one. So, it's kind of hard to pinpoint where she falls into the best amateur sleuth ranking in my mind. She had her share of pros and cons, but again, it's one book—so it's hard to place. All I know is that she was one busy lady throughout this book because her town was a cesspool for murder. Maybe cesspool isn't the right word, but it's the one that popped into my head.

In the end, this was fun, and I liked the characters. I would've liked more twists and turns, though.

I found this book good in theory but the demons and then other city/world were hard to wrap my brain around. Overall it was interesting and I would read something else like this if it was fleshed out a little more.

While the premise was nice, the writing was... not what I expected. I wanted more from the characters because I felt that what was on the front cover and the front flap was not what we were given.

Absolutely delightful. It plays with the tropes of cozy mysteries by having the main character aware that they're "acting" in one, and that an outside force is causing it.

"The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society" was an interesting mash-up of cozy mystery, paranormal fiction, and fantasy. A good, quick, quirky read.

A had a little difficulty to get into this book, but it did manage to get better, The main character, Sherry, is a bit of a "Miss Marple/Poirot" wannabe. She's a librarian and an amateur sleuth. And of course she has a cat. The cat, whose name is Lord Thomas Cromwell, gets "possessed" and the banter between him and Sherry is hilarious!
The book gave me vibes of a cozy mystery. Well worth a read even if it's only to hear the banter with Lord Thomas Cromwell!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by CM Waggoner!

I didn't finish this book. It didn't grip me from the beginning, and other books caught my eye, so I never wound up coming back to this.

auto 3 stars for DNF, didn't stop because I hated it but didn't finish it because it wasn't engaging

It is a cozy mystery with a twist of the supernatural and slightly demonic. This book has an audience, I may not be the audience, but those who like quirky cozy mysteries will enjoy this book.
Sherry is a librarian who also has a knack for solving murders. Her town has been experiencing an unusual amount of murders, and a bit of a time warp. When someone close to her is murdered, she is reluctant to solve the murder, but a demon tries to convince her otherwise. And her cat, who sometimes talks, tries to assist (who can resist a talking cat).
I have to admit when I first started reading this book, I wasn't sure if it was a book I wanted to finish. But, surprisingly, I decided I wanted to see how this book would end. It was quirky, and I laughed out loud in plenty of parts. If this genre is your interest, then you should enjoy this book. The book has a cast of cooky characters, twists, and turns, with the final big reveal. And it seems to set up a new mystery. Sherry is a likable character, and readers will enjoy her POV. The story is medium-paced and feels appropriate.
It is a book I would recommend to cozy mystery book readers.

Overall 3.25 Stars.

I'm kind of in a phase where I want to read every book that has library or bookstore in its title. So I accepted this book for review without looking too closely at it. It wasn't until I was doing some re-organization of my review pile that I realized that it said "demon-hunting" and I was like oh no, did I get some kind of dark fantasy novel.

Short answer - no it isn't dark fantasy. It is a fantasy novel though I would probably consider it more of a twist on the paranormal cozy mystery genre. While I read a lot of cozy mysteries, I don't read very many paranormal cozy mysteries (they are usually reserved for Halloween reading). The paranormal cozy mysteries I have read usually feature a witch (occasionally another type of paranormal being) as the amateur sleuth.

In The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society, the sleuth is a normal middle-aged librarian who soon finds out her town isn't exactly normal.

In the beginning, she solves the crimes easily and makes several references to Murder She Wrote. And it is a little like a sitcom in how everything wraps up so nicely. Within a few pages, I was thinking this feels like The Truman Show (the movie starring Jim Carrey). I was not sure if I should include that reference in my review because I was afraid it would date me or my readers might not know the reference. However, when a few chapters later one of the characters had the same realization (that it felt like The Truman Show), I knew I was safe using it.

The plot was unique among the cozy mysteries I read which was a nice change.

I liked the main character. The murder mystery was kind of secondary to the mystery of why the town is demon-possessed (and how to get rid of the demon). Both mysteries are wrapped up by the end of the story.

I'm not sure if this is the start of a series. The main character makes a comment at the end of the book that very well sets them up to tackle another mystery. At the same time, it works well as a stand-alone novel (another thing that is unique to cozy mysteries in my experience).

If you are looking for a non-typical cozy mystery, this is a great book to pick up.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Saturday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2025/02/2-entertaining-novels-you-will-want-to.html

I chose this book for my book club. It was a perfect choice! An amazing story with twists and turns that adds a supernatural flair to a mystery. Have you ever wondered how a small town in Maine could keep so many amateur sleuths so busy? What if the reason is deeper than you think? This is brilliantly written with interesting characters. It's the kind of story that leads to so many questions.
Thank you NetGalley and berkleypublicity@penguinrandomhouse.com

Sherry Pinkwhistle is the village librarian. She's also become the local, amateur detective, solving a number of murders. But the number of murders happening in her small New England town, is disturbing to her. Nobody else in town seems to think it's out of the ordinary but Sherry is convinced there's something supernatural afoot.

But when Sherry's cat, Lord Thomas Crowell, becomes possessed by an ancient demon (and also, possibly, the spirit of the real Lord Crowell) and begins talking to her, she's more certain than ever something must be done. Along with a ragtag assortment of friends (who are not all yet convinced) and the town's newly installed priest (who isn't at all prepared for such things), Sherry creates the village's demon-hunting society. But is there anything they can actually do? Well ... "'According to my cat,' Sherry said, 'it's mostly about whether we believe that it will help.'"

This was a reasonably fun cozy mystery. I'm generally not much of a fan of the cozy mystery genre (there are some exceptions) but the supernatural element here definitely helped to elevate this for me.

You know you're going in to a light-hearted adventure when you're introduced to a character with the name of "Pinkwhistle". That's a Dickens-like moniker. And the general plot hangs on to this whimsy all the way through.

I found the characters to generally be a bit flat. Sherry Pinkwhistle has a bit more depth to her, given her role, and the young priest was fun, but now, days after I finished this, I couldn't tell you anything about any of the other characters. They didn't seem important at the time, and seem less so upon reflection. It seems just a little bit strange to have a "society" but you can't picture the majority of the members.

I liked the premise and I liked the writing well enough that I would be interested in reading more, but I would really hope that we would get a little more depth to the central characters and a little more 'reality' to the extras. Concept and plot are important, but a series hangs on its characters.

Reading this was enjoyable, but I wasn't expecting, or looking for anything too serious - and that's what I got. This wouldn't be high on my recommendation list. This is a SOLID three and a half star book.

Looking for a good book? The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C.M. Waggoner is a very light, cozy, supernatural mystery. Emphasis on 'light'.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This was... something. I liked the beginning. I liked the end. I liked the cat. But the middle dragged so bad. I was invested, and then I was reading just to be done. I don't think it's a book that will stick with me at all. Like, it was silly, but otherwise, entirely unremarkable. Kinda disappointing, but at least I can say I read it.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

A super fun romantasy with that gave all the cozy feels I was hoping for, with just enough stakes to keep me invested.

As a librarian, I found The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society to be an absolute delight! It’s a charming, cozy mystery with just the right touch of supernatural elements. The vibes reminded me a lot of Murder, She Wrote, but with a fun twist—demon hunting! The quirky little town of Winesap was such a perfect setting for the story, and I couldn’t help but smile when I discovered it’s near Albany, which is close to where I live.

The characters were engaging, and the mystery kept me hooked throughout. It’s the perfect read for anyone who loves a mix of cozy mystery and supernatural fun. Overall, I had a wonderful time with this book, and I’d highly recommend it to fans of light-hearted mysteries with a dash of the occult.