Book Review: And Then There Were Nuns by Kylie Logan (League of Literary Ladies #4)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great mystery and characters

Cons: One aspect of setup never explained

The Bottom Line:

Ten nuns on island

Does someone want to kill them?

Fun take on Christie

Who Would Kill a Nun?

I have been waiting impatiently for a return trip to South Bass Island so I could revisit the League of Literary Ladies.  This group of friends who bonded in a book club are so much fun and the island sounds great as well (except for the murder rate, of course).  And Then There Were Nuns is that return trip, and I’m thrilled to say it was wonderful.

There is a new retreat center on the island, and a group of ten nuns is coming for a one week retreat.  Bed and Breakfast owner Bea Cartwright has been asked to provide the meals since the kitchen in the retreat center isn’t quite ready yet.  The nuns are a diverse lot from all over the country.  The only thing they have in common is their ministries in their local communities designed to help those less fortunate.  In fact, they really hardly know each other.

Which is why it is surprising when one of the Sisters doesn’t show up for their first dinner.  When Bea and the rest of the Sisters search, Bea finds her dead.  Is one of the remaining nuns hiding a motive?  Or will the killer go after one of the remaining Sisters next?

This is the first time in the series that the classic work of literature paralleled with the mystery plot wasn’t the book that Bea and her friends in the League of Literary Ladies were already reading.  In case you hadn’t guessed from the title, we are getting a new twist on Agatha Christie’s classic And Then There Were None, a book I’m actually familiar with.  I enjoyed watching for these parallels, although the book and mystery take off in some wild and different directions.  There was one parallel to Christie’s story that was included here but then never fully explained for this book.  I have my suspicions as to the who and why, however, and this is a minor issue in an otherwise great mystery.

Now, if you aren’t already familiar with the Christie book, you should know that it is spoiled here.  That’s because, as the parallels become obvious, Bea tries to use that to figure out what is happening in this story.  There’s nothing here that you won’t be able to follow, however.  Anything you need to know is explained, but the story moves in some great new directions.

In fact, if you’ve already read the Christie book, you don’t need to worry about being bored.  The mystery borrows a few things from Christie, but this is a unique mystery with its own twists, surprises, and clues.  I had no clue what was happening until just a few pages before Bea figured it out.  The ending was wonderful, too.

While I’ve mentioned the League, I’ve mainly talked about Bea.  That’s because she is really the main character here, and Chandra, Kate, and Luella are supporting players.  They still get plenty of page time and do contribute to the story.  Additionally, they get their own sub-plot as Chandra seems to be going out of her way to antagonize the others.

The rest of the cast is in top form as well.  Plus there are all those nuns.  A few of them are more background characters, but it is easy to keep them all straight as the book progresses, something I worried about with a cast I knew would be this large.

And for those who have been reading all along, we finally learn the hinted at secret Bea has been hiding.  It’s a good one.  But another regular character has just as big a secret of his or her own.  And that’s all I’m saying.

Whether you are new to this league or a fan since the first came out, you’ll be thrilled with their newest adventure.  And Then There Were Nuns combines fun characters and a creative mystery for a page turning success.

Need more literary mysteries?  Here are the rest of the League of Literary Ladies mysteries in order.

NOTE: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Giveaway!

Thanks to the publisher, I have one copy of this book to give away.  Because it is a physical book, the contest is limited to residence of the US.

Just leave me a comment with your e-mail address so I can get in touch with you if you win.  I will pick the winner next Tuesday, March 15th, so please leave your comment before 12:01AM Pacific Time on 3/15.  You will have until midnight on 3/20 to get back to me, or I will choose a new winner on 3/21.