The Book of Candlelight

The Book of Candlelight (2000) Ellery Adams (Secret, Book, & Scone Society)

It feels like it won’t stop raining in Miracle Springs. Although the rain is good for business, Nora’s store is a mess, and she needs more “shelf-enhancers” so she bikes over to the local flea market to search for finds.

When she later finds one of the vendor’s dead, she and her friends are drawn into other mystery.

I do love the characters in this story. Nora has an ugly past, but is trying to be a good person in her new life, and I do like the little peeks into how she attempts to do so.

Nora didn’t want to confess that she was trying to avoid alcohol. She liked its numbing power far too much, and she was tired of being numb. She was ready to feel again.

I also adore all the book dropping that happens.

Nora paused her research to ring up the mother’s selections of Sandra Boynton’s Moo, Baa, La La La, Margaret Wise Brown’s Goodnight Songs, and Hello Bugs! by Smriti Prasadam. The toddler was holding Hello Bugs! with a death grip and eyes that warned of an impending tantrum. But Nora needed to scan the bar code, so she patted the counter and spoke to the child. “Why don’t you sit up here? You can zap your book with a red light. Want to try?”

I also adore the new character, Sheldon.

Nora didn’t think she’d ever had a better hug. She told him as much.

“That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.

ALSO!!! Ace rep!

“I don’t have romantic partners,” Sheldon said. “I’m a starfish. Have been my whole life.”

“A starfish?”

“Someone who isn’t interested in sex. If None of the Above were added to the LBGTQ acronym, that would be me. I’d be the N.”

Nora had never met an asexual before. “I came across a term for that in a book I read a few years ago. Was it ‘Aces’?”

“Aces. Ace of Hearts, whatever.” Sheldon rolled his eyes. “I look a bit like the King of Hearts, don’t I? Either way, I live alone.”

That was a lovely surprise. I enjoyed the book and the mystery, although there was a section that I thought repeated itself. I look forward to the next book.

Publisher: Kensington Books
Rating: 7.5/10

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