librarians

Jess Lourey: August Moon

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Murder by the Month # 4 (re-release)

August Moon is the fourth installment in Jess Lourey’s twelve installment Murder by the Month series, recently re-issued. Librarian Mira James feels that she has outgrown the small town of Battle Lake, Minnesota. The catalyst for this: her latest attempt at romance has gone bust. Feeling like there isn’t any future for her in the small town, Mira plans to return to the Twin Cities to go to school. She has become a rather beloved figure in town and plenty, especially her employees, do not want to see her go, including her eccentric and highly entertaining, if not cantankerous, employee Mrs. Berns. While receiving books is her primary job, Mrs. Berns also sees it as her job to help Mira navigate social situations and stay on track at the library. Staying on track does not include Mira leaving, so finding a replacement becomes an adventure on its own. However, all of Mira’s plans get put on hold when her library assistant is murdered. Lucy Lebowski was a well-loved member of the community and Mira can’t stand to think that whoever killed her might get away. read more

M.E. Hilliard: Smoke and Mirrors

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Greer Hogan #4

Since the first book in this series (The Unkindness of Ravens), librarian Greer Hogan has been working through the aftermath of her husband’s murder.  While she’s upright and functional, his death feels unresolved, and she’s not so sure the right person is in prison. While she has a job, she’s taken on a temporary one in New York City, archiving the collection of a magician.  The gig comes with an apartment across the street, and the archiving job gives her the flexibility she needs for sleuthing.  It also comes with an assistant: the aptly named “Grim” (short for Grimaldi), a former magician himself, is helping out by archiving the straight up magic tricks part of the collection, while Greer herself sticks to books.  She decides to trust him early on and he proves to be incredibly useful. read more