Sarah Can't Stop Reading

The Mermaid Pool, a Lucky Librarian Mystery, by Patricia Penrose tells the story of Rory, a reclusive and set in her ways librarian living near Seattle. She spends her days helping library patrons and her evenings writing. Everything changes, though, when Rory wins a writing contest she didn’t enter. Her friends had submitted her mystery story without her knowledge.  Rory wins a special trip to a nearby island and a chance to collaborate with other authors. With a new hairdo and new makeup, Rory embraces the spirit of adventure, but the trip isn’t at all what Rory expected. 

This is a quick read with a locked room theme, as the weather traps Rory and the others who are part of the collaboration on the island. The setting is vivid, and I felt as if I were on the cold and windy island with Rory. The pace amps up from almost the moment Rory lands on the island and a complicated mystery with lots of action and suspense takes off. I wasn’t sure who to trust and hopefully there will be more stories featuring Rory in the future. She really came into her own in The Mermaid Pool.

246 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 8, 2023