Librarian Tru Beckett, ardent defender of the printed word, is about to find out that keeping murder checked out of her beloved library is much harder than she thought...
Tru Beckett succeeded in building a secret book room in her now bookless library, where book lovers from lovely Cypress, South Carolina, can rejoice in the printed word. Now she's working hard to maintain the little library downstairs while keeping her "real job" upstairs in the bookless technology center. The last thing she needs is a mysterious vandal who seems intent on breaking into her secret book-filled sanctuary and creating chaos. The nasty interloper doesn't steal anything, but brutalizes the books, damaging them and knocking them off shelves.
A patron of the secret book room tells Tru that there have been creepy goings-on at the library for years, especially in the basement where the secret book room is located. He's heard rumors of a poltergeist that haunts the library, determined to scare off readers. Tru is certain it's hogwash, but she's at a loss to think of who might be vandalizing the beautiful books she fought so hard to protect. And when a dead body shows up right behind the library, Tru is certain that it's not a ghost but a cold-blooded killer that she and her trusty tabby Dewey Decimal will need to uncover.
Character Guest Post - Dewey Decimal
Meow. Dewey Decimal is my name. I’m a tabby cat with a mysterious background. Well, I know my background, but I’m not sharing that information with the humans in my life. Nor am I telling you about the meaning behind the skull markings that my tabby stripes make on the top of my head. Why? Well, I enjoy being a cat of mystery. It makes me more appealing.
I literally ran into Trudell Becket’s life in the middle of the night when she was breaking into the library where she worked. I could tell right away that she would need my help. I darted around her legs and skirted through the library’s back door before she could stop me. I had to play it cute around her until she decided she would keep me around.
Like Tru, I notice things. Only because I’m a cat, I do a better job at noticing them.
She needs me.
Someone has been breaking into the secret bookroom Tru has set up in the library’s basement. Whoever it is has been making a mess of the books, tossing them everywhere, making scratches on the walls. I don’t like it. The basement bookroom has become like a second home to me. It’s comfortable there…when it’s not messy like that.
I solved what was going on and why the break ins were happening about a week ago. I’ve been trying to show Tru and her friends what I know. But they’re humans. Need I say more?
Oh, you’re human too? I didn’t mean to…I mean, no offense. You wouldn’t happen to have some tuna fish in your pocket, would you? No? Oh, well. It couldn’t hurt to ask, right?
Anyhow, I’ve been trying to show Tru and her friends what I know about the vandals. But she hasn’t learned to listen to me. And she doesn’t speak cat. It is a difficult language that only creatures with advanced intelligence can master, so I don’t really blame her for her deficiencies. She’s proving smarter than most humans I know. I hope she’s figure out what I’m trying to tell her before someone else gets hurt.
A Perfect Bind
A Dead Body.
A Library in Shambles.
And a Town Drowning in Rumors.
About the Author: Dorothy St. James is the author of several cozy mystery series. She lives in the Lowcountry of South Carolina with her sculptor husband. Dorothy is a member of Mystery Writers of America (MWA) and the International Thriller Writers (ITW) and Sister’s in Crime (SinC). This is her second Beloved Bookroom Mystery.
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