Death Overdue (Haunted Library Mystery 1), by Allison Brook

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I've had Death Overdue, by Allison Brook on my TBR list for a while. The idea of a haunted library intrigued me, but I was saving it for Halloween month. I am so glad I finally read it. The first installment in the Haunted Library series did not disappoint.

The story takes place in the small town of Clover Ridge, Connecticut around Halloween and eventually Thanksgiving. Carrie Singleton accepts a job as head of programs and events at the local library. Unfortunately, a murder occurs during the first event she planned. Al Buckley, former homicide detective, thinks he finally knows who killed Laura Foster 15 years earlier when he was on the case. While speaking with the audience, Al Buckley suddenly dies before he even comes close to announcing who he believes Laura's murderer was. It is soon revealed that he was poisoned, so now there are two murder cases to solve. Carrie is determined to solve these two mysteries, with the help of a delightful ghost who is a former librarian.

There is so much to love about this book. It has everything I look for in a cozy mystery and more. It's a fairly easy read and the flow of the story is perfect. It keeps moving at a good pace. The character development and the relationships that change throughout the book are wonderful to witness. Sometimes in cozies all the main characters get along so well right from the very beginning, which works in many books, but this is a refreshing change. I loved seeing how the main characters evolved. 

The two murders to solve is another aspect that sets this apart from some other cozies I've read. Are these two murders related? Was it the same killer or is there another one on the loose? I had my suspicions early on with one of the characters, but then I changed my mind, only to revert back to my original thought. I can say in the end I was partially correct about my original suspicions, but I did not completely untangle the mystery. When it was all revealed, everything came together and made sense. 

This is technically not a culinary cozy. There are no recipes in the back of the book. However, there is plenty of talk about scrumptious food from different ethnic backgrounds throughout the book. Some of the foodie talk, about the Indian food in particular, sounded so delicious (I've eaten what was talked about, so I know for sure they are delicious), that I read those sections of the book multiple times. I really appreciated the author's knowledge of different ethnic foods and the foodie talk was woven into the story perfectly. As they discussed the cases, they would comment on how delicious certain foods are. The culinary aspect is a nice touch without overpowering the mystery.

I love that Carrie is an event planner. It's a career I once considered pursuing. It seems like such a fun job and she's really good at it. My local library is a fairly large building with several meeting rooms. They often host classes and events, so I could relate to that. I'm excited to read the rest of the series to find out which other events Carrie plans.

There was one use of foul language in this book that did surprise me. It was fairly early in the book and I was hoping there wouldn't be more of it. I am pleased to say it only happened once. I hope there won't be more of it in future installments of the series. I prefer cozies that are clean.

Death Overdue did leave me with some questions, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. These questions leave me excited to continue reading the series and hopefully find out the answers. I want to learn more about certain characters and the history of their relationships. I'm especially interested in learning Evelyn's (the ghost) backstory. The next one in the series, Read and Gone has a Christmas theme, so I think I will plan on reading that one very soon.

In the meantime, if you're looking for a good cozy mystery I highly recommend Death Overdue, by Allison Brook. It's especially perfect for this time of year.