What a mystery! It was multiple mysteries one murder, a train, a blizzard and a boat. The narrator did an amazing job with the voices. The story held my attention and kept me on the edge of my seat all the way to the end. Our intrepid sleuth did an above and beyond job to solve this mystery. There is so much to this story but I don't want to give any of it away because it was like the perfect domino set up that creates an amazing picture. The amount of clues and false trails is in just the right proportions. In addition to my going a step farther and looking up the Hitchcock movie, Strangers on a Train and the novel by the same name written by Patricia Highsmith.

"Fatal First Edition" is the latest installment (book 14) in a series I haven't read at all. But I found that it worked fine as a standalone story, even though I'm sure loyal fans of the series will love keeping track of their favorite characters as well.

In this particular story, library director Lindsey Norris and her husband, Sully, end up enmeshed in a murder investigation while returning home on a train from an industry conference, and a rare first edition is the cause of all the ruckus.

Unfortunately, whoever the actual murder is, they're trying to set Lindsey up for the crime, and they'll stop at nothing to get what they want.

Between a murder on a train, a missing rare book, a kidnapped husband, and a brutal snowstorm, there's a lot for Lindsey to contend with! Good thing her friends are always willing to lend a hand.

If you enjoy cleverly plotted murder stories, you'll want to check this one out.

Thank you to Jenn McKinlay, Dreamscape Audio and NetGalley for the advance review copy.

This was a fun edition to the Library Lovers Series. I geeked out when the mention of Brooklyn Wainwright (from my favorite cozy mystery series) and loved that it got included. I was very grateful that the "Strangers on a Train" was only mentioned for the book and didn't end up reflecting on the plot. This was a case of mistaken identity and a winter blizzard that really drove the story of this, and we didn't get to interact with a lot of the usual characters. They were there, but not often. The wrap up at the end kind of fell flat for me, but it got all put together and every one loved happily ever after (minus the murderer.) If you like books and mysteries this is great quick read.

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ARC. I did not realize this was part of a long series, but I am glad I read this books, so I can go back and read from the begging. Lindsey and Sully make a great team and the mystery was so fun to read. I loved the death on the train, so exciting. I did not see the end comimg.

I jumped into this series with this book which worked out fine but now I want to read the entire series! Jenn McKinlay never, ever disappoints! All of her books are on my TBR and she is on my always-read list! Can't wait for the next one in this series!

#FatalFirstEdition
#NetGalley

This book is the 14th in the Library Lover's Mystery series by Jenn McKinlay. I haven't read them all and feel like you could read this as a standalone novel. The characters are fun and I would encourage readers to read other books in the series to get to know them better. This book was a fun diversion from the series, as Lindsay and her husband Sully are on a train on their way home from Chicago, where they attended an archivist convention. The book begins at the convention, where Lindsay discovers a rare first-edition book, personalized and autographed by the author to Alfred Hitchcock!

I really enjoyed the train part of the story, as it's a unique setting and also kind of a romantic dream of mine to travel cross country that way. I liked the description of the room and dining car and the general feel of that part of the story. The conference director and many participants are also on the train after the conference. The conference director is found dead in the train and the rare book goes missing, and everyone ends up in Briar Creek, CT, Lindsay and Sully's hometown where the murder investigation begins.

I really enjoyed the narration of this audiobook and I enjoy these stories in this series. I loved the different location and would encourage others to read or listen to this book.

This was a really fun book. I enjoyed that there were heist elements in what was a pretty great cozy mystery story. The character you follow is compelling and interesting, and I loved the dynamics in town.

I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a cozy mystery, especially the bibliophiles and cinephiles out there.

"Fatal First Edition" by Jenn McKinlay is a cozy mystery. It's her 14th in the Library Lover's Mystery Series, and it's my first time reading one of them, or, in fact, any of her books. It worked well as a stand-alone, and I found it quite entertaining. I'd gladly read any of the others in this series.

The only thing I noticed coming in late as a newbie in this series was the camaraderie between some of the characters that I was just meeting, but who clearly knew each other well.

The story starts at a Book Archivist Convention in Chicago in January, current time period. Lindsey is a librarian. Her husband, Sully, has joined her in this trip. After one lecture, she finds a convention bag under her chair with a book on it. It's a signed first edition of Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith. She turns it in.

On the train ride home, we meet several of the archivists from the convention like arrogant Lydia. Later, the director of the convention, Harold, is found dead in his sleeping compartment. All the train passengers have to be held and questioned at the nearest train depot. They are in Connecticut, and a big blizzard is happening.

Sully disappears. It's a big mystery to find him.

Lindsey and Sully have a rambunctious dog named Heathcliff and a laid-back cat named Zelda. There are also the CrAfternoon friends who like to get together to make crafts and be social.

There is death, but not too bloody or gory. It's a good mystery.

Characters - 5/5
Writing - 5/5
Plot - 4/5
Pacing - 4/5
Unputdownability 4/5
Enjoyment - 5/5
Narration - 5/5 by Allyson Ryan
Cover - 5/5
Overall - 4.6 rounded up to 5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape Media, and Jenn McKinlay for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This is a great new addition to this series. I will read anything and everything by Jenn McKinlay, but especially this series. Lindsey and Sully have my whole heart.

When librarian Lindsey Norris and her husband, Sully, go to a library conference in Chicago, Lindsey is excited to spend some time learning more about book restoration. Her home library in Briar Creek, Connecticut, has just acquired a collection that will need extra time and attention. But as the talk with restoration expert Brooklyn Wainwright comes to a close, Lindsey reaches under her chair for her bag and finds another bookbag. She looks around to see if it belongs to someone else, but there is no one nearby, and no one in the room seems to be looking for a missing bag.

Inside the bag, Lindsey finds a first edition of Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train. And on the title page is an autograph from the author, signed to director Alfred Hitchcock, who directed the film based on the book. Lindsey knows that not only is that book incredibly rare, it’s worth a lot of money. She hands it over to the man running the conference for safekeeping, until the owner surfaces.

After the conference, Lindsey and Sully go back to Connecticut by train, along with a lot of the other conference attendees who live on the East Coast. But when the conference director is murdered on the train, Lindsey can’t help but wonder if the Highsmith book had anything to do with his murder. \

The train stops at the next station so that the authorities can investigate. The stop happens to be Lindsey and Sully’s, so they get to go home. But all the other conference attendees that were on the train also have to get off. The police put them up at the local inn, especially since there is a snowstorm coming that will make any more travel unsafe.

As Police Chief Emma is starting her investigation, questioning everyone who was at the conference and on the train, Sully goes to ferry supplies to the small island where his parents live before the storm gets too bad. But as the hours go by and Lindsey hasn’t heard from Sully, she knows that something is terribly wrong.

As Lindsey tries to figure out where Sully is, she realizes that there is most likely a killer stuck in town. So she has to fight the weather to try to find who the killer is, so she can make sure to get Sully back in time. But it’s going to take the help of her library crafters and best friends to come up with coup de grace that will bring the killer to light.

Fatal First Edition is Jenn McKinlay’s fourteenth book in her popular Library Lover’s Mystery series. The story of the library conference, the rare Patricia Highsmith first edition, and the murder on the train take this cozy mystery to a fun and interesting level. But it’s the addition of the massive snowstorm that really adds the danger, raising the stakes so high for Lindsey and her friends. And longtime cozy fans may recognize the special guest in this novel, book restoration expert Brooklyn Wainwright (and her husband) from Kate Carlisle’s popular Bibliophile Mystery series.

I listened to the audio book of Fatal Frist Edition, narrated beautifully by Allyson Ryan. Listening to the first part of the book, the conference and the train ride, was a lovely treat. Once they got to Connecticut and there was a snowstorm in addition to a murderer, I could really feel the tension. I thought it felt pretty intense for a few chapters, more intense than I usually feel during a cozy mystery. But as always, it was beautifully written with strong characters. I loved the focus on Patricia Highsmith, and while the villain was not a big surprise, I was happy to see how everything came together in the end.

A copy of the audio book for Fatal First edition was provided by Dreamscape Media through NetGalley, with many thanks.

*3.5 Stars On My Instagram Account*

"No more Hitchcock movies before bed."

Wise advice, especially for Lindsey and Sully, in the comfortable Fatal First Edition by premier cozy mystery author Jenn McKinlay.

Lindsey, the Connecticut Briar Creek's library director, and her boat captain husband Sully, are in Chicago for a library conference when they find a tote bag under a chair with a rare first edition inside it of acclaimed author Patricia Highsmith's Strangers On A Train, inscribed to the one and only Alfred Hitchcock, who directed the iconic movie based on this book. After the shock of someone losing this treasure they return it to Henry, the director of the conference.

We know it's not ending there. On the train ride home, Henry is found dead, the book now in Lindsey and Sully's possessions making them the number one suspects. Still that's not the main plot! Once they are home, Sully is kidnapped off his boat in a snowstorm; the kidnappers want the rare book in exchange for Sully, but the police have the book and Lindsey's warned not to go to the police. But she has her town to help her scheme to save her husband and this precious book.

Listening to voice actress Allyson Ryan is like visiting with a good friend that always makes you smile. She knows these characters since this is the 14th book in the series but is easily a standalone. She's comfortable with this writer's descriptive style so that you can relax, have some tea or coffee, maybe a glass of wine, and just enjoy this cozy mystery. This series needs to be picked up as a TV show on Hallmark Mystery Channel.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from Dreamscape Media via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Enjoyed the story and the mystery kept me guessing. I really like the MC and would love to visit the town.

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

This is the fourteenth book in the Book Lover’s cozy mystery series written by Jenn McKinlay. This is my favorite series of hers and one of my most favorite cozy mystery series in general.

I have read all of the books in this series, but this is my first book on audio. I was thrilled to receive an audiobook review copy from Dreamscape Media and NetGalley.

While it is the fourteenth book, it is one that you could jump right into. Lindsey Norris and her husband Sully start off in Chicago at the beginning of the book. After the conference that Lindsey attended finishes, they take the train back to the east coast along with many of the conference attendees. During the night someone dies in their train compartment.

Overall, I gave this mystery 4.5 stars. I enjoyed the narrator for the most part. However, the voice that she uses for one of the main male characters was just not good in my opinion. I will definitely be recommending this book and series.

What I liked:
* Some of my favorite characters
* The use of a classic book and author and film director
* A huge blizzard for distraction
* A VERY interesting twist [occam's razor indeed; much like Lyndsey, I too was fooled]

What didn't [unfortunately] work for me:
* Having lived in NW PA for most of my life and having experienced blizzards such as what happens in the book, MUCH of what happens while the blizzard is raging, is completely unbelievable. Add in the ice issue and no one would be riding a bike [amongst other things] thats for sure.
* The way the baddie is trapped had me stalking around hurrumphing - Lyndsey is usually smarter than this and it was off-putting and very annoying.
* While the first part of the reveal was excellent [and unexpected, as I never saw that coming], the second half, even with the twist, fell a little flat for me.

Overall, it was a decent read and it was fun to visit with some of my favorite characters again.

I was granted an audiobook ARC for this book and it was lovely to listen to Allyson Ryan narrate this book; she is one of my absolute favorites and I always look forward to listening to her narration.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jenn McKinlay, Allyson Ryan - Narrator, and Dreamscape Media for providing the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Library director Lindsey Norris and her husband, Sully, are attending an archivists' conference in Chicago. Lindsey finds a book under her seat that appears to be a first edition of Strangers on a Train signed from Patricia Highsmith to Alfred Hitchcock. Upon closer inspection, there were notes from Uncle Alfie for the screenplay. Honestly?! That is why I grabbed this book. Can you imagine...? Just thinking about that book, fictional or not, gave me goosebumps.

Anyway, the book seemingly disappears when the conference director is murdered on the train after the conference. Yes, a bunch of the east coast conference attendees road the train to and from Chicago. Why? Just go with it.

I actually was reminded of Dame Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. A bunch of people on a train where one passenger is murdered and a LOT of people had a motive. All the passengers are offloaded in Briar Creek and sent to the inn while the police investigated. Simultaneously, a blizzard shuts down the eastern US. And Sully is kidnapped. And Lindsey & Sully's house is burgled. Yep, there was lots going on here.

While the train ride was a bit... unrealistic in a current setting, the story was incredibly engaging. Every time poor Lindsey turned around, something else was happening. Believable or not, it made the book fly by. A quick, interesting albeit unrealistic read.

This series should be played out by now, but McKinlay keeps finding ways to invigorate it. This was no exception. The audiobook was "ear comfort" for me. Great narrator!

Fatal First Edition by Jenn McKinlay and narrated by Allyson Ryan is book number 14 in the "A Library Lovers Mystery" series and it is a great introduction to Jenn McKinlays characters and writing style. The audiobook is read beautifully and well suited to the range of characters

Library Director Lindsey Norris and her husband are at an archivists convention when someone shoves into Lindsey's chair, not once, twice but three times as they stalk away from the guest speaker. When the speech finishes, Lindsey looks under her chair to find a bag, and within it, an insanely rare first edition of Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train, inscribed to Alfred Hitchcock.

Lindsey shows the book to the speaker, famous restoration specialist Brooklyn Wainwright who is flabbergasted at its rarity. The book is returned to the exhibition and Lindsey and Sully depart to take the train home. However, if things were not weird at the exhibition, they are about to get really weird on the train with a murder and a motive seemingly right at Lindseys feet

Will Lindsey and Sully be able to clear their names? Who is the murderer and why frame Lindsey?

Great fun and a brilliant introduction to this series. I will definitely need to start from the beginning!

Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape Media, Jenn McKinlay and the narrator Allyson Ryan for this lovely ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

Book Antiquarian meets Murder on the Oriental Express!
On a visit to a rare bookish auction, the protagonist discovers an unexpected book that was a last-minute pullout of the auction. And while it all went pretty smoothly, a few dramas aside, on their way back - the man who kept the book with him for safekeeping is dead. And everyone on the train is a suspect 🫢.

The book is a light-hearted murder mystery and glides like butter if you are a true antiquarian at heart. The way the story discusses those rare books is infectious. I wasn't really a fan of the characters, but the mystery was enough to keep me hooked and booked.

I am glad it wasn't bloody and gruesome as I have a low tolerance for such scenes when described in a thriller. But the climax was well crafted with a few twists and undeniable lore for book lovers. Lastly, the book left me with a cozy feeling of a fond family with people so willing to help each other ( I would love to have such people in my life). The book leaves you with a tingling warmth and you should read it if you like the concept of books about books with a breezy mystery.

Thank you @netgalley @dreamscape_media @mckinlayjenn for the ARC.
Genre: #murdermystery #booksaboutbooks
Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐️

#FatalFirstEdition

A phenomenal cozy mystery!
I have not read other titles from the “Library Lover’s Mystery” series and this is book 14. The book does a great job of adding context without being boring, so I don’t feel you need to read the others to enjoy this title (but you will want to read the rest as soon as you finish this one).
The pacing is great and it has enough intrigue and interest to keep the plot going without being too gruesome or frightening.
Highly recommend! Great for fans of The Librarian of Crooked Lane, Murder by the Seashore, and Murder by the Book.

Jenn McKinlay is one of my favorite authors of cozy mysteries. It doesn't hurt that this series is set in a library. I also enjoy McKinlay's Cupcake bakery book series as well.

I have read all of the books in this series, and I enjoyed this book as well as the others. This one was a little bit different in that most of the book was set outside of the Briarwood Library community. Different also was the inclusion of a main character, Brooklyn Wainwright, from another cozy mystery series by another author, Bibliophile Mysteries by Kate Carlisle. (I enjoy that series as well.) It was a fun, but brief addition to the story. McKinlay is a veteran author, and has done another addition to the series.

The narration is done by Allyson Ryan, whom I believe has done the narration on both of McKinlay's series, Library and Cupcake. I appreciate having consistency in the narrators when I listen to an audiobook series.