Not as Strong as the First Book
The first Lady Librarian Mystery was one of my favorite books from last year, so I was looking forward to diving into Once Upon a Murder, the second in the series. While I did enjoy it overall, it wasn’t as strong as the first one.
This book takes us back to a small English village in 1784. Tiffany Woodall is a spinster who has done something unheard of – she’s landed a job to support herself. She’s the librarian for the Duchess of Beaufort. She’s hoping that her life can return to normal now that the murder and other issues from a few months ago are behind her.
However, when she is running late to work one morning, she finds the body of Bernard Coram. He was the footman at the Duchess’s castle until Tiffany had a hand in getting him fired a few months before. The evidence points to the local bookseller, a man that Tiffany has developed feelings for even if he’s started to become distant. Can she figure out what happened?
Author Samantha Larsen has written many romances before she started this mystery series. I could easily see that background in the first book, and at times, the mystery took a backseat to the other things going on. However, those other things were just as interesting and kept me engaged the entire way through. That doesn’t quite work here.
For starters, the romantic storyline is much less compelling. I was happy that it wasn’t dragged out forever and I actually did find it believable (something I can’t always say when this is sprung on us). I just didn’t care all that much, figuring the characters would work things out in the end. However, this story and its complications take up much of the first half of the book.
Now, don’t get me wrong, Tiffany finds the body in the first chapter. And there are developments taking place all along the way. It’s just not until the second half that the mystery really takes center stage. Once it did, I was much more invested in the book. I liked how the mystery played out and found the ultimate solution very satisfying.
Then there’s the storyline I thought was going somewhere but didn’t. We really could have done without it.
The things that kept me reading the entire time was the characters. I found them just as engaging and charming as I did the first time around. I wanted them to figure out the mystery and their lives.
If you enjoyed the first book, you’ll be glad you picked up Once Upon a Murder. I am. If you haven’t, I highly recommend you start there before reading this book.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.
Thanks for sharing this review with the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge
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