THE CAT OF THE BASKERVILLES

5 stars out of 5

This is the third book in this highly entertaining Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery series; I've read one other and enjoyed it, so when I was lucky enough to be approved by the publisher to read and review an advance copy in exchange for an honest review, I was a happy camper. When it turned out to be even better than that other one, well, my smile widened.

The cozy mysteries follow the amateur sleuthing of Gemma Doyle, co-owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium in West London, Massachusetts. Another of the three owners is Jayne Wilson, who also owns and operates a tea shop/bakery that's attached to the bookstore. Originally from England, Gemma has a nose for details and, it seems, loves nothing better than sticking it into the business of the local police (sometimes unintentionally, sometimes not). That both annoys and pleases police detective, Ryan - a former lover who "dumped" her and left the area for another job. Now he's back and the attraction is there, but they've since been holding each other at arms' lengths.

As this begins, the community is excited to learn that a well-known but aging stage actor, Sir Nigel Bellingham, will be in town to star in a local theater production of Holmes's The Hound of the Baskervilles. As rehearsals begin, organizers decide to hold a fund-raising English tea at the home of one of the well-heeled theater-loving ladies - and Jayne convinces Gemma that their shops should handle the catering. Gemma is less enthusiastic, but she agrees. After all, it's a private event for about a hundred local hoity-toits - what could possibly go wrong?

Make that plenty - starting with the fact that Sir Nigel turns out to be a nasty old drunk. Still, everyone expects that his professionalism will surface long enough for him to get through the play; that is, until he's found quite dead at the bottom of a cliff on the property. To make matters even worse, if that's possible, the primary suspect is Jayne's mother Leslie.

Gemma is certain Leslie is innocent, and of course, she sets out to prove it while trying to keep her poking nose out of the sight of law enforcement. That proves next to impossible most of the time, which strains the already fragile relationship between Gemma and Ryan (as well as with Ryan's partner, who has butted heads with Gemma on more than one occasion and isn't fond of her meddling).

More details I must necessarily leave for other readers to discover, but I will say that anyone who enjoys an occasional respite from heavier reading (as I do) or simply the more lighthearted approach of an interesting cozy mystery won't go wrong by picking this one. Thoroughly enjoyable!

The Cat of the Baskervilles: A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery by Vicki Delany (Crooked Lane Books, February 2018); 304 pp.