Death Overdue by Allison Brook

Item: Death Overdue
Rating: 5
Author: karenbaron

Posted October 7, 2022 by karenbaron in #AutumnReadsWithTheBaroness, #HalloweenWithTheBaroness, #ThankfulBaroness, Mystery, Paranormal, Review, Series / 0 Comments

Death Overdue

by Allison Brook

Series: Haunted Library Mysteries #1
Series Rating:

Published by Crooked Lane Books on October 10, 2017
Genres: Cozy Paranormal Mystery
Pages: 336
Format: Audible Audiobook, Audio CD, ebook, Hardcover, Kindle
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon
Also in this series: Buried in the Stacks, Dewey Decimated, Read and Gone, Checked Out for Murder, Death on the Shelf, Overdue or Die

Carrie Singleton is just about done with Clover Ridge, Connecticut until she's offered a job as the head of programs and events at the spooky local library, complete with its own librarian ghost. Her first major event is a program presented by a retired homicide detective, Al Buckley, who claims he knows who murdered Laura Foster, a much-loved part-time library aide who was bludgeoned to death fifteen years earlier. As he invites members of the audience to share stories about Laura, he suddenly keels over and dies.

The medical examiner reveals that poison is what did him in and Carrie feels responsible for having surged forward with the program despite pushback from her director. Driven by guilt, Carrie's determined to discover who murdered the detective, convinced it's the same man who killed Laura all those years ago. Luckily for Carrie, she has a friendly, knowledgeable ghost by her side. But as she questions the shadows surrounding Laura's case, disturbing secrets come to light and with each step Carrie takes, she gets closer to ending up like Al.

Now it's due or die for Carrie in Death Overdue, the delightful first in a new cozy series by Allison Brook.

Death Overdue by Allison Brook has us seeing Carrie Singleton starting to make a home for herself.

Who killed Al Buckley? Was it the same killer that took Laura Foster’s life?

Carrie Singleton

Carrie Singleton is a bit of a free spirit never settling down in one place for too long. Well, that is until she returns home to Clover Ridge, Connecticut. Uncle Bosco also gets her the head of programs and events job at the library. A lot of information gets thrown at us in this first book, but I loved how everything was placed. Carrie as a person has her flaws but I’ve liked how so far, she’s trying to allow herself to have certain things like friends and of course a job. I know that as I venture through the rest of this series, I will like Carrie.

The Mystery

Carrie Singleton’s first big event is for retired Detective Al Buckley to talk about the case that has haunted him for the past fifteen years. The murder of Laura Foster that he never got to put to rest. He thought that he knew who the guilty party was but needed more proof before saying anything. By doing his talk he ends up getting killed. Carrie is on the case with, of all people, Jared Foster. Yes, the first victim’s second child. The two of them have decided to solve both cases and get both Al and Laura justice all these years later. I didn’t think the killer was who it was, but it did make sense as I am now looking back at it and how the killer always was asking questions to Laura or Jared.

Five Stars

Death Overdue by Allison Brook is the first book in a series that I am looking forward to continuing reading. I know I read the third and most recent book Buried in the Stacks and Dewey Decimated, before I read this one and I’m okay with that. That’s the thing about reading books in a cozy mystery series is that you don’t have to read them in order to enjoy them. You can read them in whatever order you want to. Unless of course the author deliberately talks about the last book that was written before that book then it might be a bit awkward. There’s an easy fix of just reading that one after the one you are currently reading.

Ms. Brook made me to believe the whole time I was reading this book that I was experiencing the fall time in Connecticut with the characters. I love it when authors do that. My rating for Death Overdue by Allison Brook is five stars, and a recommendation for anyone that reads cozy mysteries to give A Haunted Library Mystery series a chance! You won’t regret it.

Haunted Library Mystery Series

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Death Overdue by Allison Brook.

Until the next time,

Happy Reading!

About Allison Brook

Allison Brook is the pseudonym for Marilyn Levinson, who writes mysteries, romantic suspense, and novels for kids. She lives on Long Island and enjoys traveling, reading, watching foreign films, doing Sudoku and dining out. She especially loves to visit with her grandchildren on FaceTime.

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