The Secret, Book and Scone Society Novels by Ellery Adams
This year, I set out to try out books in a different sub-genre of mystery. For the past several years I’ve been reading mostly private detective and police procedural novels. I found that I needed a break from the blood, gore and graphic writing so I dove into cozy mystery novels. So far it’s been a great decision. It started with the Lady Hardcastle Mysteries by T.E. Kinsey, then I dove into Beyond the Page Bookstore Mysteries by Lauren Elliott. Since I was waiting for the next book in her series to publish I started reading The Secret, Book & Scone Society y Ellery Adams. The next in this series is set to publish on the same day as Lauren Elliott’s neew book so I’ll be happily curled up with two new books on April 25th!
Moving along…
SPOILERS! I can’t guarantee that what I write won’t have spoilers. I’m not a “book reviewer”, but I love books and I absolutely love this series centered around Nora Pennington, owner of Miracle Books after a horrific chain of events alters her path. Nora was a librarian with a home, friends and a happy marriage, or so she thought. After discovering her husband is having an affair she drowns her sorrow in alcohol, drives to the home of the mistress and confronts her husband. When he tells her he’s in love with the other woman and they’re having a child together, Nora rushes out, gets behind the wheel and is involved in an accident. She climbs from her car and sees that the other car is engulfed in flames. Pulling the driver free, Nora endures the flames to rescue a child in the backseat. She’s burned. He’s burned and life as she knew it ends. While recovering from her burns, Nora believes she has no reason to live until one nurse begins to help her heal through books.
Once she’s released from the hospital, she leaves her old name, old life and everyone she knows behind to start a new life in Miracle Springs. There she purchases an old train station and turns it into a quaint new and used book store. People from near and far come to Miracle Books for biblio-therapy. Nora believes that healing of the mind and soul can be achieved from reading books. It’s her gift and she offers it to all those in need. Miracle Springs draws people from all over the country, even the world because of the healing waters of the hot springs at the local lodge. People come to the small town in North Carolina in search of answers.
In town, Nora meets three women: June, an attendant at the thermal pools. Hester, owner/baker of The Gingerbread House and Estella, owner of Magnolia Salon. Each of the women has a secret from their past, just like Nora. Through books and friendship, they slowly let their guard down and reveal their secrets to each other in the reading circle at Miracle Books. Thus, The Secret, Book and Scone Society is born as the book readers set out to solve the murder of a visitor to their town.
Ellery Adams has created a wonderful circle of friendship, love, respect and trust with Nora, June, Hester and Estella. Later in the series we’re introduced to Sheldon and I immediately fell in love with him. These books are wonderfully written and the characters are well developed. I’d love to sit for hours in talk books with each one of them. The stories are interesting and there’s a bit of romance throughout the series as well. I’m not a fan of romance novels or romance mysteries because most of them are all about the romantic escapades. Mystery is what I come for and solving that mystery is what I want to do. Adams brings romance to the books but it doesn’t take front stage to mystery.
Switching to cozy mysteries is just what I needed. It’s also much better for my sleep. I’m so thankful that I found these books on Kindle Unlimited. The $10 monthly subscription fee is so worth it. Once I find a series I love, I can then buy the paperbacks and add them to my shelves. Yes, I love my digital reader and always will. It took my husband years to convince me to get one. It allows me to find what I love instead of guessing and purchasing a paperback I stop reading after a few chapters.
It’s Good Friday here and I got the house clean for the weekend. We’re playing Magic the Gathering on Saturday evening and then having brunch with the family on Easter. I’m looking forward to a relaxing and fun weekend with the people I love most. That’s what life is all about. That and books of course!
Happy Easter. Happy Passover. Happy weekend.
Betty
