annieb123
Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.
Death Rings A Bell is the fourth book in a cozy mystery set in academia written by Linda Hope Lee. Released 19th Oct 2022, it's 254 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats.
This is a well written and engaging cozy with light thriller elements featuring a librarian as amateur sleuth. It's the fourth book in a presumably ongoing series, but works very well as a standalone mystery. As with most cozies, liberties are taken with procedure and the investigative resources available to librarian sleuths. The action driven plot flows fairly well and the denouement and resolution are satisfying, if slightly contrived.
The protagonist is upright and intelligent and manages to hold down a full time job as a librarian in addition to juggling her extracurricular activities investigating crime and lecturing at her Alma mater's annual literary festival. In this case, it's the death of her mentor and former professor with whom she'd recently reconnected.
With four books extant in the series, this would be a good choice for a series binge or buddy read. They're all well written and enjoyable.
For fans of Kate Fansler (not a librarian, but an English professor) written by Amanda Cross, these are less cerebral, but in somewhat the same vein.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.