Book Review: In the Event of Murder by Cynthia Kuhn (Starlit Bookshop Mysteries #2)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Emma and the rest of the characters

Cons: Weak mystery

The Bottom Line:

Event needs her help

Also, there is a murder

In uneven book

More Event Than Murder

It’s been a couple of years since we first met the characters in the Starlit Bookshop Mysteries from Cynthia Kuhn.  Since that was the case, I was interested to see how well I’d remember them when I picked up the second, In the Event of Murder.  It didn’t take me long to be back in their world, but sadly, the book struggled a bit.

The book opens on December 26^th as the town of Silvercrest, Colorado, is preparing for the annual fundraiser for the local library.  Since this is a huge part of their budget for the year, it’s a big deal.  And headlining the event this year are three of the stars of Chasers, an extremely popular mystery television series.  Emma Starrs, who is helping run her family’s bookstore in town, is as thrilled as everyone else at the events for the upcoming week, which end with the gala on New Year’s Eve.

However, the week has just started when murder rears its ugly head.  With the events for the rest of the week in question, Emma is asked to use her event planning skills to make sure the gala runs smoothly.  Emma agrees even though that means working for her nemesis.  As more problems pop up, Emma begins to wonder if even she can pull off the event.  Will she succeed?

As I said, I was back in Emma’s world pretty quickly when I picked up the book.  While there were a few references to things I didn’t remember, they weren’t critical to this book, so it wasn’t an issue.

You’ll notice my teaser was more about the event than the murder.  Sadly, there’s a reason for that.  The book focuses on the event and all the drama that Emma is dealing with trying to make sure it happens.  Unfortunately, some of those scenes were repetitive.  We do get a solution to the murder, but it feels rushed with some twists coming out of nowhere.

On the other hand, the characters are charming.  Well, mostly charming.  There are a couple that annoy, but it’s fine since they are supposed to annoy.  But Emma, her sister, and her aunt, are a great core cast, and I really enjoyed spending time with them.  The new characters came to life well for me as well.

I enjoyed spending more time with Emma and the other regulars.  However, the plotting of In the Event of Murder missed the mark for me.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.