A Killer Clue
by Victoria Gilbert
Jane Hunter, a librarian forced into an early retirement, works for Cameron Clewe who has hired her to catalog his books and other literary collections. Cameron is wealthy, generous, intelligent and very nice, but he does have quirks. He avoids crowds and becomes anxious in certain situations. Jane is a good, calming influence, gently reminding him of social cues such as saying “thank you.” He is in his thirties and she is sixty-one. Together they have formed an informal sleuthing team. Jane does not want to be involved with murder investigations, but she ends up doing just that. They are helped by various contacts, but one of the most valuable ones in this book is Jane’s landlord Vince, a retired investigative reporter.
The mystery in A Killer Clue begins with a rare book seller, Eloise, approaching the pair to exonerate her mother who recently died in prison. She had been found guilty of killing Eloise’s father. Eloise, unfortunately, discovers a murdered former detective in her bookshop. He was the one who was on the case that sent Eloise’s mother to prison. This is just the start of a novel with multiple threads and lots of twists and turns. It is also very bookish because in addition to Cameron’s library, there are two competing rare book stores featured.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #2 in the Hunter and Clewe Mystery Series. I have not read the first in the series, but I don’t feel like that hindered my reading of this book.
2. Clean
Publication: October 24, 2024—Crooked Lane Books
Memorable Lines:
I couldn’t change my past, but I could banish negative memories and focus on all the positive aspects of my current life.
I knew my reaction was because I’d felt ambushed. That had been a tactic my ex-husband, Gary, had frequently used on me—publicly forcing me to agree to some action or event because there was no graceful way to say no.

Sounds intriguing, LInda! I’ve put it on my list. (Now all I need is more TIME for reading all these tantalizing titles!)
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I know just what you mean, Nancy!
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Great review Linda, I think I would like this one!
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It is a cozy mystery, but different from the ones that focus on a potential couple and butt heads with the local law enforcement.
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I don’t like a lot of violence in novels. My debut novel, “The Bayou Heist” was about an innocent teacher getting involved in a heist. It had a charming location, and interesting people including a Cajun detective. I hesitate to call it cozy because there is a little crime and blowing up in the novel but ‘butting heads with the local law enforcement’ doesn’t happen as Faith becomes friends with the Cajun Detective. Anyway, I love it when readers support authors and read the whole book. It is so important to writers to have some support. So even if a review is negative or the books is messy, tell them why, let them know the good and the bad. Thanks for listening.
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I read your Sunday post and am sorry for all of your health issues. I will be praying for you and your husband. I will be on the lookout for The Bayou Heist. My library doesn’t have it, but I am sure there are other sources that do.
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Thank you for your prayers! Amazon and Barnes and Noble and Books a million, Walmart carry my novel. I appreciate you taking the time to read it. I do hope you enjoy it as it is part of a series. Thank you, again!
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This series has been on my radar, but I haven’t gotten to it yet. The premise sounds interesting.
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I have read other books by this author and enjoyed them so I wanted to give this one a try.
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