by Cynthia Chow

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book and a link to purchase it from Amazon.

For Valentine’s Day, the Secret Bookcase bookstore is hosting a Blind Date with a Book event matching readers with unfamiliar, but hopefully soon-to-be adored, new reads. Ever closer to becoming the partial owner of the Agatha Christie themed bookstore, Annie Murray also has plans to fulfill her dreams of using her criminology degree to open a private detective agency. The precariousness of running a profitable bookstore is why Annie is open to mega-millionaire George Richard’s offer to connect her with professional matchmaker Aaliyah Kingston. Annie herself is already in a relationship with pub owner Liam Donovan, but Aaliyah is proposing a business event that would combine the bookstore’s book matching with couple matchmaking. Annie’s plans though take a deadly turn when she is led to a corpse by a pair of crows and the police quickly declare it to be a case of murder.

Some may be familiar with the concept of a Blind Date with a Book but couples meeting through scavenger book hunts and book pairing proves to be even more fascinating. Matchmaking takes a bit of a backseat to Annie’s investigation though, especially when a letter arrives linked to the murder case that derailed Annie’s early career plans and sent her on a mission to avenge her best friend. The one match that Annie does not want to happen occurs between her future business partner Fletcher Hughes and Victoria Carlton-Ivers, who as an employee of chain bookstore Book Emporium is a representative of everything Annie hates. Victoria is quick to point the finger at a new barista working for the coffeehouse owned by Annie’s best friend, and Annie has to admit that the chronically hungover millennial does seem to be acting a bit shady. Despite Annie not yet having her PI license, Redwood Grove lead detective Dr. Caldwell enlists her into teaming up as they look into George’s past and find the reason he recently admitted to having so many regrets.

Bibliophile mystery fans of this series will find much to enjoy in this fifth of the series, which centers the bookstore murder in a very pink-hearted, rose-filled setting. Most of the nuances matching perspective booklovers occurs off the page though, with scavenger hunts and hiking adventures serving as opportunities for Annie to question her suspects. She inches ever closer to solving the murder of her best friend Scarlet, who was killed in the midst of dissertation research into a cold case that only recently delivered yet another shocking clue. Annie is finally allowing herself to move past the trauma and guilt that derailed her entire life, opening herself up to Liam and the possibility to resume her intended career. Readers are sure to be surprised by the multiple twists of the ending, and they will be eagerly anticipating the next installment as Annie may finally find the answers to a case that has haunted her for years.

You can click here to purchase this book from Amazon.

To enter to win a copy of A Victim at Valentine’s, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “victim valentine” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen February 15, 2025. U.S. residents only, and you must be 18 or older to enter. If entering via email please include your mailing address in case you win. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

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Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.