By Book or By Crook

 This is the first in a new to me series by Eva Gates.   She has set the series in a library in the Outer Banks in North Carolina.  The setting sounds like a fabulous location and I would love to have an apartment right on the beach such as the one Lucy lives in at Bodie Lighthouse.   The story captures much of small town politics and old family ties to those towns.  It also touches upon the local vs visitors relationships in touristy towns.  The diverse set of characters add to the story and as it unfolds we see more depth to some of the characters.  I look forward to seeing the relationships grow and reveal themselves as the series progresses.

The mystery itself was well structured with several subplots that blended well with the main storyline.   All in all it is a great start to what seems to be a promising series.

By Book or By Crook by Eva Gates
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an enjoyable cozy set in the Nags Head area of the Outer Banks of NC. This is the first in the series set in a library in the lighthouse. Mysterious happenings including the death of a library board member and the disappearances from a display of Jane Austen collection of books. Lucy as a new arrival gets her feet wet in her new position amidst all the mysterious occurrences. She has returned to the Outer Banks where she has summered during her childhood and has met up with family and friends and is reestablishing those relationships. The mystery is well written and it looks like it will be a good ongoing series.

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Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge  Book #54
2. Virtual Mount TBR #VirtualMountTBR2021   Book #60
3. Back List Reader  #Backlistreader  Book #71
4. Calendar of Crime  #CalendarOfCrime2021   
5. Cruisin thru Cozies free choice 34
6. Cloak & Dagger  #CloakDaggerChal  Book #58
7. Craving for Cozies  Book #50
8. Beyond the Bookends  story set in a library
9. Monthly Keyword #MonthlyKeyWordGXO Book
10. Medical Examiner Challenge  1 Toe Tags
11. Beachcomber Challenge  
• Crime Scenes 
• Row 1
• Library or bookstore
• Weapons
• Row 2 
• Pointy object
• Detectives- Lucy/Bertie/Butch
• Victims- Johnathon
12. Six Shooter Challenge  Target # 63 Shot #1
13. 52 books in 52 weeks  #29 librarians