Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for The Filbert Steps (The Telegraph Hill Mysteries) by Lila Blake! The Filbert Steps introduces Vivian Salvatore, a sharp-eyed, warm-hearted sleuth who notices everything and forgives almost as much. Perfect for readers who love older women sleuths, atmospheric San Francisco mysteries, neighborhood secrets, found community, and fair-play cozy mysteries with literary depth. 

Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews, and more! There is also a Giveaway for one $25 Amazon gift card for an international or U.S. winner. If the winner is in the U.S., they will also receive one paperback copy of The Filbert Steps when available. ENTER HERE! ⬅️

The Filbert Steps (The Telegraph Hill Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – California
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sutro House Press
Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 31, 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 301 pages
Digital
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8951746016
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0H52YDTRG

About the Book:

A body on the steps. A neighborhood that saw nothing.

Vivian Salvatore came back to Telegraph Hill with a cat, a divorce settlement, and a book she cannot seem to write.

At fifty-two, newly single and trying to rebuild her life, she has settled into the rhythms of San Francisco’s most beautiful staircase: coffee at the corner café, morning walks on the Filbert Steps, old neighbors on three corners, and the comforting illusion that everyone knows everyone.

Then, on a bright October morning, Vivian finds one of the city’s most ambitious developers dead on the third landing.

The police are ready to call it a fall. But Vivian spent twenty-seven years reading teenagers’ faces for a living, and she knows when a story does not fit. A coat buttoned wrong. A cigarette ground out where it should not be. Storefronts quietly sold to a post-office box in Delaware. And a neighborhood full of people who had reason to want one man gone.

As Vivian begins asking questions, she discovers that Telegraph Hill has been keeping secrets for years — about money, loyalty, grief, and who really gets to call a place home.

 My Review:

This is a character-driven mystery that reads more literary than cozy. With that being said, I encourage readers to give themselves time to start this book well. I initially started when I just had a few minutes between things, and I found myself not able to focus. The prose in this mystery requires a bit more attention, especially in the beginning. Thankfully I know myself as a reader and set it down and came back in the evening when it was quiet and I had a larger amount of time to read. 

I enjoyed meeting Vivian and especially enjoyed the setting of the book. The descriptions were atmospheric and came to life through the pages. I felt like I was there with Vivian in her neighborhood. While the mystery might at first seem straight-forward, the plot unravels in a layered way that kept this reader curious. The ending was well done and not one I guessed ahead of time.

About the Author:

Lila Blake writes San Francisco neighborhood mysteries about foggy stairways, old houses, found family, and the secrets people keep when a place begins to change. Her Telegraph Hill Mysteries begin with The Filbert Steps, a literary cozy mystery featuring Vivian Salvatore, a fifty-two-year-old former teacher rebuilding her life after divorce. Lila is published by Sutro House Press, an independent fiction imprint based in San Francisco.

Author Links: Website ~ Goodreads 

Purchase Links: Amazon

TOUR PARTICIPANTS:

• August 24 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – SPOTLIGHT
• August 24 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
• August 24 – Books1987 – SPOTLIGHT
• August 25 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – RECIPE
• August 25 – @bibliophile_foodie – REVIEW 
• August 25 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT 
• August 26 – Storybook Lady – REVIEW, AUTHOR GUEST POST
• August 26 – Sarandipity’s – AUTHOR INTERVIEW 
• August 27 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
• August 27 – Romance Novel Giveaways – AUTHOR GUEST POST
• August 28 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
• August 28 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
• August 28 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
• August 29 – Ruff Drafts – CHARACTER GUEST POST
• August 29 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
• August 29 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
• August 30 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
• August 30 – Book Hookup – REVIEW
• August 31 – Sarah Can’t Stop Reading Books – REVIEW
• August 31 – Sarcastically Yours, Jen – SPOTLIGHT

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