A book club’s evening is shattered when one member is found strangled on the study floor. The motive evolves into the Study of Secrets of the remaining three members of the club. Good thing that the college professor, intrepid researcher and part-time sleuth, Lila, is on the scene.
Lila is researching a lesser- known mystery author for a scholarly study of her work. When the long out-of-print writer, Bibi, invites Lila to stay on her estate in exchange for organizing her papers, how can Lila say no? While cleaning, Lila finds an unpublished manuscript in a locked desk drawer and she is ecstatic. She locks the book back in the drawer with the intention of returning the key to its author. However, it is time for the author’s book club meeting to begin.
There are many mysteries and even more secrets in the women’s lives. Even the accidental death of two of their husbands may not be as random as it looks. Will Lila unravel the mysteries? Will the reader?
The Study of Secrets is an engrossing, and challenging, race to the surprising denouement for armchair detectives like me. It’s great fun to not only solve the murder but also spot the witty nods to great mysteries of the past. I will definitely be adding other novels in this series to my to-be-read pile. If you’re a classic mystery reader, or a fan of Carolyn G. Hart’s Death on Demand mysteries, this is a book you shouldn’t miss! 5 stars!
Thanks to Henery Press, Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours, and Edelweiss+ for a copy in exchange for my honest review.
About The Study of Secrets
The Study of Secrets (A Lila Maclean Academic Mystery)
Cozy Mystery/Amateur Sleuths
5th in Series
Publisher: Henery Press (May 26, 2020)
Hardcover: 242 pages
ISBN-10: 163511618X
ISBN-13: 978-1635116182
Paperback: 242 pages
ISBN-10: 1635116155
ISBN-13: 978-1635116151
Digital ASIN: B085P3CF39
There could be nowhere more fitting for English professor Lila Maclean to spend her sabbatical than in a proper Victorian mansion. The whimsical Callahan House seems to have materialized from the pages of the mystery novels she is researching, with its enchanting towers, cozy nooks, and charming library. Unfortunately, it also features a body in the study.
Residents of Larkston have long believed that the Callahan family is cursed—the murder on the estate sets the town buzzing. Wild rumors are fueled by a gossipy blogger who delights in speculation, and further crimes only intensify the whispers and suspicions. A newly discovered manuscript, however, appears to expose startling facts beneath the fictions. When Lila steps in to sort the truth from the lies, it may cost her everything, as someone wants to make dead certain that their secrets stay hidden.
About Cynthia Kuhn
Cynthia Kuhn writes the Lila Maclean Academic Mysteries: The Semester of Our Discontent, The Art of Vanishing, The Spirit in Question, The Subject of Malice, and The Study of Secrets. Honors for the series include an Agatha Award for best first novel and Lefty Award nominations for best humorous mystery. For more information, please visit cynthiakuhn.net.
Author Links
Website: cynthiakuhn.net
Twitter: @cynthiakuhn
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cynthiakuhnwriter
Bookbub: www.bookbub.com/authors/cynthia-kuhn
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/cynthiakuhn
Blog: chicksonthecase.com
Newsletter: https://bit.ly/2MPiEMh
Purchase Links – Amazon – Nook – B&N Paperback
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