Murder Through An Open Door is book three in Melissa Bourbon’s “Magic Book Mystery” series. When I read “Every book tells two stories one written on the pages with pen and ink, and one woven into the paper, a story of the soul” I knew that I had to read this book. You give me a book with something about a curse that has lasted centuries and I promise you I will probably be drooling and begging to read it.
As I said, Murder Through An Open Door is book three in the series, and there has been a lot going on leading up to this book. This is the first book that I have read in this series, but I truly want to go back and read the first two books so that I can fully immerse myself in the storyline and get the full scope of Pippin’s story. Pippin, using her bibliomancy skills, and friends and family works to decipher the puzzle that surrounds a curse that threatens the descendants of her family and cousins. The women die in childbirth and the men die out at sea. The curse dates back generations, and so many have been lost due to them. Pippin is determined to find out what the key is to break the curse so that she and her twin brother can be finally be free to live their lives. But when a man who checked in to her inn winds up dead in her friend’s bookstore the questions bubble up as to what his connection was and why he wanted to see her.
When I started reading this book I got so excited. Once I had finished the first chapter, I got chills up my spine and quickly set to work devouring this book. Pippin is such an interesting character, and I absolutely loved the bibliomancy magic that the author weaves into these pages. You get the bibliomancy at just the right moments and I loved the excitement that I’d feel with the little revelations.
You get the mystery of the characters and the curse, but then you also get the mystery of what happened to the man found dead in the bookstore. I love multi-layered mysteries and this book more than fits the bill. This puzzles in this story are so well done. Pippin is working to find a solution to the curse, but she has to question – who can she really trust? There is one character that I am immediately put on edge by. He’s so mysterious! He appears and then he’s gone. Then there is the woman that Pippin keeps seeing all around town. I was constantly concerned for Pippin about her because she’d be some place and everytime Pippin would try to confront her the woman would quickly leave.
I truly appreciate the relationships between all of the characters in this book. I love that Pippin and her brother have such a good relationship with each other. Since I haven’t read the previous books I miss out on the drama that played out prior and threatened their relationship, but they’ve mended so I’m happy for that. Each of the characters are unique, but they come together to create an unforgettable novel. I love the little hints of romance that also bloom in this book. I don’t want Pippin living in fear of the curse, so seeing her begin to open up her heart made my own swell with joy.
I have to say that I appreciate how this book doesn’t just focus on the mystery of the murder and the curse in this story. You get such a feeling of humanity from these characters. You get the heartbreak when one character is told that her loved one is dead. The author paints a vivid picture of how this woman struggles with something that she can’t control – dementia. It breaks my heart to read her remember and then forget what has happened and not be able to fully deal with the tragedy. But I also appreciate how she also holds the key to unlocking what happened that day when things fell apart.
I am beyond excited for the next book in this series. I have to know what happens next!! There is so much to love about this book – the Irish elements/theme, the multi-layered mystery, the revelations, and the developing romance. I’m rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. I fully intend to read the previous books in this series so I can fully immerse myself in these characters. If you have read the previous books in this series, don’t miss out on this book. If you are looking for a new cozy mystery novel with delightful Irish elements then you’re going to want to read this book. A must read series, hands down.
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