Cozy Monday

Books of a Feather (Bibliophile Mystery #10) by Kate Carlisle (Berkley Prime Crime hardcover, 7 June 2016).

Since spending several weeks at Dharma while their loft was being renovated in Ripped from the Pages, Brooklyn and her fiancé, security expert Derek Stone have returned to San Francisco.

Taking a break from settling into their "new" home, they attend a gala at the Covington Library, where Brooklyn's friend Ian McCullogh has recently been promoted to president.  The party is in honor of a huge volume of Audubon's Bird of America, on loan from an Arab sheik.  

Brooklyn's friend Genevieve Taylor, proprietor of a used book store, approaches her as she enters the Library, and asks her to repair and appraise a copy of Poor Richard's Almanack, which might well be a first edition.

Then, Ian introduces Brooklyn to Jared Mulrooney, local president of the National Birdwatchers Society, who is desperate for her to repair a small copy of Audubon's work that he'd spilled wine on.  Because he doesn't want other members of the Society to learn of the damage to one of their prized possessions, he asks Brooklyn not to tell anyone about it.

Later that evening, when Brooklyn is searching for Genevieve to say good night, she stumbles upon Mulrooney's body, and Brooklyn is once again thrust into a murder investigation.

Brooklyn is certain that Mulrooney was killed because of the book he gave her, but is certain that no one knows he gave it to her.

But someone breaks into their loft, and someone is following her.  Is it the same person?  Or is it two different people after the two different books?

Brooklyn and Derek, and her two "favorite" police detectives have their hands full trying to figure out what's going on.

Like the previous titles in the series, Books of a Feather is a gripping one-sitting read, and once again, I'm already eager for the next.



The publisher has generously offered a copy of Books of a Feather to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on June 20, 2016.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!



FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.

Want a Little History with Your Mystery?

New York Times bestselling author Kate Carlisle is a native Californian who worked in television production for many years before turning to writing. A lifelong fascination with the  art and craft of bookbinding led her to write the Bibliophile Mysteries, featuring Brooklyn Wainwright, whose bookbinding and restoration skills invariably uncover old secrets, treachery and murder. Her latest book is Ripped From the Pages, available now in hardcover and ebook.





One of the things I love best about mystery readers is their voracious hunger for knowledge.

They like to learn, and they like to learn about everything. Which gives me the pleasure of learning new things that I can weave into an interesting whodunit.

Oh, the joy—I, too, love to learn!

Each Bibliophile Mystery teaches readers something new about the hidden world of books. I've been fascinated with books my whole life, taking bookbinding classes at libraries and book arts centers whenever I get the chance.

Now those classes are a write-off. How cool is that?!

Because each mystery centers around a different rare book, I get to take readers on an entertaining jaunt through history. The books take place in the present, which makes bringing the past to life a fun challenge. For example, in The Book Stops Here, which was just reissued in paperback, you'll learn a little bit about how the life of Frances Hodgson Burnett, author of The Secret Garden, may have intersected with one of the most famous (and most notorious) people of her time.

In my latest book, Ripped from the Pages, Brooklyn and her beau, British security expert Derek Stone, are staying in a house in Dharma, the California commune where Brooklyn grew up, while their San Francisco loft is being renovated. They arrive just in time for the start of construction of a wine cave tasting room—and the discovery of an amazing treasure that was hidden behind a false wall at the back of the cave. One of their finds is an exceedingly rare first edition of Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne.

Another find is…well, here, you can discover it along with Brooklyn in this sneak peek from Ripped from the Pages:

Derek joined me inside the small enclosure, flipped on Stan’s flashlight, and pointed the beam toward the floor. 

That was when I saw the body again.

Although he was face down, it was obviously a man, and he was pressed up against the wall as though he’d sought out a secure resting place. I figured that was why we hadn’t seen him at first. We had been diverted by all of the treasures surrounding him.

He wore an old-fashioned brown suit and had short, dark hair. On the ground near his right arm was a well-worn brown leather suitcase.

“I wonder if he got trapped here during the ’ninety-seven earthquake,” Dad said.
“That’s almost twenty years, Jim,” Derek said, touching the dead man’s neck and studying the change in color. “This man’s skin looks and feels as if he died a few hours ago.”

“Maybe the absence of air helped preserve him,” I said.

“What’re you saying? You think he was mummified?"

As Brooklyn investigates the hidden treasure and the mysterious circumstances surrounding the stranger's death, she'll be drawn into one of the most volatile periods of history—and readers will, too. If you like to learn while you're being entertained, I hope you'll check into Ripped from the Pages. You can read Chapter One for free at www.KateCarlisle.com.



Do you love to learn? If you could take any class right now—money and time are no object—what would you study?

Cozy Monday

Ripped from the Pages (Bibliophile mystery #10) by Kate Carlisle (Obsidian hardcover, 2 June 2015).  

Brooklyn Wainwright and her boyfriend Derek Stone have have temporarily moved to Brooklyn's hometown of Dharma while their San Francisco loft is being renovated. Housesitting for her parents next-door neighbors gives them the opportunity to spend time with Brooklyn's large family while still allowing them some privacy.

They've barely settled in when they are invited to watch the beginning of the excavation of a cave on the Dharma winery property. The vineyards and winery are run by Brooklyn's father and her two brothers, who are planning to hold wine-tastings in the cave.  

But almost immediately they run into a snag:  they find a large room filled with art, books, furniture, jewelry and... a body.  This, of course, means that the operation must be postponed while the origin of all these things is investigated.

While Brooklyn is, understandably, upset about finding yet another corpse, she is also excited about the treasures in the underground room, particularly the books.  

Brooklyn is one of my favorite literary characters.  I would love to hang out with her, especially in this book, where we get to know more members of her family  (as well as some people she's known since she was a child) than ever before. Not only that, we are able to visit the businesses in Dharma owned by her sisters: Arugula, Savannah's restaurant,  and Warped, the  yarn & fabric shop owned by China.  

A map of Dharma and a list of characters would be wonderful inclusions, in this otherwise wonderful book.  



The publisher has generously offered a copy of RIPPED FROM THE PAGES to one of my readers.  Please comment below before midnight on June 15, 2015.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!



FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of the book.