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From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

Violet Waverly is the proprietor of Charming Books, a magical bookstore in western New York whose magic comes from a birch tree growing in the shop. Violet, aided by the tree's magic, always knows the proper book a customer needs, and lately—this is the fifth in the series—she has used passages in books, supplied magically, to help in her investigations. When a woman comes to her shop a little too eager to sell a signed first edition of Thoreau's Walden, Violet is suspicious. Then the woman is found dead outside the venue where Violet has just married Police Chief David Rainwater. The death is ruled accidental, and Violet, a Thoreau scholar, not accepting the verdict, becomes determined to find the now-missing book. Soon another murder and an attempted murder occur, ultimately leaving Violet at the mercy of the killer. With details of Thoreau's life and the bibliohistory of Walden intertwined with the magic of the bookstore, this satisfying mystical cozy will appeal to fans of Esme Addison’s Enchanted Bay mysteries.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

The denizens of a magical bookshop solve yet another murder. Violet Waverly is the latest family member caring for Charming Books and the birch tree that grows inside, fed by a magic spring in the woods. The magic bookshop, located near Niagara Falls in Cascade Springs, New York, knows just what books a customer might like, and when Violet needs to close sales and solve murders, she gets help from Faulkner the crow and Emerson, her tuxedo cat. Violet’s wedding to police chief David Rainwater, an extravaganza completely planned by Grandma Daisy and Violet’s best friend, Sadie Cunningham, is fast approaching when a woman arrives at the shop seeking to sell a first edition of Walden signed by Thoreau. After Violet demurs until she can get an appraisal, the seller leaves and is soon found floating in the frigid Niagara River. Her death is ruled an accident, but the book has vanished, and Violet and David have their doubts about the verdict. Violet, an adjunct professor and expert on Thoreau, quickly discovers that the dead woman did not own the volume, which belongs to a woman who’s convinced that she’s a direct descendent of the reportedly childless Thoreau. Her obsession has alienated her son and anyone who might help prove her claim, but nevertheless she persists. So Violet and David postpone their honeymoon to investigate a case that spawns another murder, with plenty of candidates willing to kill for the valuable book. A charming combination of mystery and magic, with relatable characters and pets smart enough to spot a killer. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Publishers Weekly
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In Agatha-winner Flower’s whimsical fifth Magical Bookshop mystery (after 2019’s Verse and Vengeance), an obnoxious customer who won’t give her name tries to sell Violet Waverly, the owner of Charming Books in Cascade Springs, N.Y., a signed first edition of Henry David Thoreau’s Walden. Thoreau expert Violet, who suspects the book is stolen, turns the woman down. Two days later, just after Violet’s wedding to police chief David Rainwater, David fishes the drowned body of the customer out of a river. With their honeymoon on hold, Violet and David try to solve the mystery of the woman’s death and check out the claims of Imogene Thoreau, who says she’s a descendant of Thoreau and the book’s rightful owner. Violet, aided by a mystical essence that inhabits her bookstore, strives to interpret the spirit’s quotes from Walden that will lead her to the truth. The murder of an antiquarian bookseller raises the stakes. This is perfect reading for a winter’s night when a bit of magic mixes well with a strong dose of murder most literary. Agent: Nicole Resciniti, Seymour Agency. (Jan.)