A Fatal Yarn: Secrets of the Castleton Manor Library

Secrets of the Castleton Manor Library #17

by Allie Pleiter

=-It's Betty Townsend Week, and Dinah Harper, author of the best-selling mystery series, and her loyal fans descend on Castleton Manor in Lighthouse Bay, Massachusetts. They're also fervent admirers of knitting and rabbits, so they bring their yarn and bunnies along with them. The pet-friendly manor regularly hosts a variety of animals, but librarian Faith Newberry has never seen so many long-eared guests. She worries they'll become rabbit food for her curious cat, Watson. When someone is found dead, Faith suddenly has a bigger problem to worry about.

Genres: Cozy Mystery, Cozy

193 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2018

About the author

An avid knitter, coffee junkie and firm believer that “pie makes everything better,” Allie Pleiter writes both fiction and non-fiction working on as many as four novels at a time. The bestselling author of over fifty books, Allie has enjoyed a twenty-year career with over 1.5 million books sold. In addition to writing, Allie maintains an active writing productivity coaching practice and speaks regularly on the creative process, publishing, and her very favorite topic—The Chunky Method of time management for writers. Visit her website at www.alliepleiter.com to learn more.

Reviews

[Angel (Bookn.All.Night) · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK this has to be one of my favorites of this series! This was full of bunny chaos and catastrophe 😂😂

When I grabbed this one to read today, I didn't even realize it was Easter-themed. Color me surprised when I cracked it open and learned that Castleton Manor would be hosting a retreat for an author that has a book series with a mystery-solving heroine who also owns a rabbit.

Color me even more surprised when the Bettys (fans of the book series) show up with Angora rabbits in tow. Watson, Faith's tuxedo cat, was none too pleased with this turn of events, especially when he ended up confined at home and unable to wander freely.

Things quickly turn sinister when Faith comes to open the library at the manor and instead of a quiet morning with her beloved books, she is met by a dead body. Pair that, with some bunny mishaps and a shearing disaster and this made for a really fun installment.

My absolute favorite part of The Castleton Manor Library series is Watson and his inner dialogue scattered throughout the books. He is not only the most handsome and most intelligent creature at the manor, but he is also a cat detective set on protecting his human.

I only have a few more books in this series and I will definitely be sad when it ends. If you have ever wanted to try a cozy mystery, GRAB this series. It's what made me fall in love with this genre. If you're a cozy mystery fan already, what are you waiting for 😂

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this was an unusual story. Rabbits every where and they had to be protected from Watson. He was banished to the cottage. At first it was hard for me to follow the characters, Dinah and Ron were easy but the rest a bit challenging. Rabbits make a mess so it is hard for me to understand how the manor was kept clean since they were allowed to run free. I am sure maintenance was kept very busy. So the “Betty” knitted Watson a sweater. Talk about humiliation! He didn’t even try to escape the cottage. However, he had a friend help him out and after the sweater was off he made sure it would never be put on him again. It was hard for Watson to help solve the mystery this time but eventually he figured it out. This one had me laughing at times.

I love these books and look forward to the next one.

[Short, Sweet and Cozy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Secrets of Castleton Manor Library series! The characters are very likable and the cozy mystery kept me guessing. Faith Newberry is the librarian at the manor. An author, Dinah Harper, is visiting with her publisher, editor and fan club- The Bettys after her book character. Dinah and The Bettys brought their bunnies and knitting. There are some competitions. The Betty’s have two feuding factions-one older long time group and a younger group. One of the attendees is found dead in the library. Faith and her book club friends have secrets and rabbit fur to sort through to find the culprit. There are several things going on which kept the story interesting. Faith’s cat Watson was funny and helped find clues. Faith was invited by Wolfe Jaxon to a lunch and a gala. It is nice to finally have them spending a little time together. This is a very enjoyable cozy mystery. #SecretsOfCastletonManorLibrary #AFatalYarn

[Peggy Zeigler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like these kinds of books, a murder mystery where there are several obvious suspects and then the one person you don't expect comes out of left field. I enjoy the Annie Attic Mystery books fdor this reason, not a lot of description of blood, guts and bad languages, even though I still read some like that, it's nice to take a break from that. If you have not read any, this one is about a librarian at an upscale hotel. They do mostly weeklong conventions, this one about a famous mystery writer, rabbits and knitting. Oh and did I mention there is a book club, a handsome owner of said hotel and a tuxedo cat who helps with the mysteries? Very enjoyable series. ( Secrest of the Castleton Manor Library.)

[Debby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a story that was hopping! Literally. An author whose character in a series has a pet rabbit and this gathering of her fans, the Bettys, come with their rabbits in tow. I enjoy this series because the crime usually happens early, there is often more than one mystery, and suspects abound. The killer is usually the one you refuse to believe. A very good story to curl up with and past the time.

[Loraine Nunley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars

I so enjoy putting on my comfy shoes and visiting with Faith and Watson at Castleton Manor. This pet-friendly event center welcomed rabbits which provided loads of conflict but especially some sympathetic/yet laughable moments for both cat and owner. The mystery was interesting but the main characters are the reason I come back for each book.

[Lbs Carly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average cozy. A little forced regarding the setting.

[Jennifer Robb · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars (rating shown may differ depending on site). A friend (AC?) started me reading this series with books 1-10, but I requested this book from the local library.

I'm guessing Betty Townsend created by Dinah Harper is a fictional series. The series has recently made a change (to New York during WWI) so the conference has a group of long-time fans (who are portrayed as mostly older) who preferred the previous books (and are upset that a long-time editor was fired) and a group of younger fans who are excited about the new direction. And then there's Dinah who's trying to have them all get along. Like Betty, most fans love rabbits and knitting (especially with angora yarn). I did enjoy learning a bit about angora and how it's made into yarn--and seeing what the knitters could do with it in a short time for the knitting contest.

The main crime is the murder of the new editor which occurs in Faith's library. However, as the book progresses, other crimes come to light: rabbits expected to win ribbons are shorn, rabbits are let loose in the library causing damage, and Betty's telephone exchange numbers become an issue that leads to a discovery. I despaired, along with other characters, at the damage to Castleton's library caused by the rabbits (not that it is the rabbits's fault--they were put in there by someone.)

Unusually for me, I did suspect the correct person (for at least one of the issues), but I thought I must be wrong because it was so obvious, I figured it was just a red herring that I was falling for. I did also guess a bit of the reason behind some of the things that happened.