REVIEW: The Secret, Book & Scone Society

The Secret, Book & Scone Society
Author: Ellery Adams

Nora Pennington came to Miracle Springs, NC to heal from physical and psychological trauma from her past. Miracle Springs offers healing to everyone who visits. The natural hot springs and spa offer physical comfort. There is also spiritual and psychological healing through baked comfort scones at the Gingerbread House, and bibliotherapy at Miracle Books. Nora runs the bookshop, and always seems to know just the right books to help each customer. The shop is in the old railway depot. She lives nearby in an old caboose, refitted into a tiny house.

One afternoon she meets a visiting businessman who seems troubled about his past. She sends him to the bakery to get a comfort scone and then tells him to come to her bookshop. She wants to gather some books that can help him put his life on the right path. Unfortunately he never makes it to the bookshop. His body is found on the train tracks. Local police believe he may have jumped in front of the train. The man worked for the development company building upscale homes in town. He was scheduled to meet with other company officials about the housing development that very day. Nora just can't believe he committed suicide instead.

Nora soon finds herself bonding with 3 other women in town -- Hester, Estella and June. Not only do they investigate the businessman's death, but they form the Secret, Book & Scone Society. Their little group finds true friendship amid sleuthing, sharing personal secrets and finding comfort in trust, loyalty and caring.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. The story is a nice blend of women's fiction and mystery. I love how Nora's shop uses books to help people heal.  I also liked the idea of Hester baking custom scones to give comfort to her customers. The description of her scones and the lovely spices and ingredients she uses just sounds so delicious! The four members of the society are believable and well-developed characters. Each one is so different, yet they all come together as a perfect circle of friends.

I like that the story is set in Western North Carolina where I live. I recognized a lot of the places and regions mentioned in the story. :)

The mystery is nicely paced with some surprising twists, and it isn't overpowered by the emotional healing/friendship portion of the plot. The two intertwine together rather well. I usually avoid women's fiction because it often is just too sappy, overly emotional or melodramatic for me. This book avoids those extremes. The main characters Nora, Hester, Estella and June are nicely developed. They are all very different women, but they come together quite well as close friends.

Although this isn't the type of book I normally read, I enjoyed it immensely. This is a nice start to a new mystery series, and I will definitely be waiting for the next adventure of the Secret, Book and Scone Society!

Ellery Adams is the author of several mystery series. For more information on the author and her books, check out her website: http://elleryadamsmysteries.com/

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**