Kate Carlisle

This series, with both books and mystery, never fails to thoroughly capture my attention and cause me to read slowly to try to make a new one last longer. Brooklyn and husband Derek are celebrating Christmas at their newly finished second home in Dharma, where her parents and assorted family live. They receive a call during the family Christmas Eve party to learn the laird they met in Scotland, Cameron, has proposed to their friend Claire. They want to be married on New Year's, so it's off to Scotland for Brooklyn, Derek and her parents. I liked the setting of the castle at the holidays, and the mention of so many novels involving Christmas. The inclusion of many Scottish holiday traditions was also very interesting. The castle has plenty of nooks and towers to facilitate secrets and clues as Brooklyn and Derek are introduced to some new characters, one of which winds up dead.… (més)

This is the seventeenth book in the Bibliophile Mystery series and Brooklyn and her husband Derek are invited to Scotland to take part in the wedding of their friends Claire and Cameron who is the laird of Castle MacKinnon. They want to get married on New Year's Day and it is already Christmas.

Brooklyn, Derek, and Brooklyn's parents arrive at Castle MacKinnon to celebrate and find that there is also a mystery to solve. Twelve books, each about some aspect of Christmas and with widely varied values, are missing from the castle library. But that isn't the only problem Claire and Cameron are facing. The local women's club has started a campaign to ostracize Claire and a local young woman is determined to steal Cameron away before he can marry Claire.

Then there is the whole issue of the new librarian at the castle who seems to have an agenda of her own. She's much more interested in becoming rich than taking care of the library. Brooklyn immediately suspects her of being the one to steal the books in order to sell them.

While searching the castle for the missing books, Brooklyn and Derek find the body of a young man named Willy stuffed on one of the closets. Willy worked on the estate and was known to everyone. Brooklyn has a number of possible suspects for murderer.

And when Bitsy, the rival for Cameron's affections, is found with an arrow through her heart the day after she and Claire competed in an archery competition, it looks like Claire would be the perfect suspect. However, Brooklyn knows she didn't do it and searches for the murderer before the happy couple needs to postpone the wedding again.

This was a fun story. I haven't read any of the other books in this series, but the hints thrown out about other times Brooklyn finds herself solving mysteries make me want to read more.… (més)

The Twelve Books of Christmas by Kate Carlisle has Brooklyn and Derek traveling to Oddlochen, Scotland for the wedding of two friends. They also need Brooklyn’s help in locating twelve books that have disappeared from the castle’s library. I look forward to reading the latest A Bibliophile Mystery each year. Brooklyn and Derek are great characters. I like that Derek does not discourage Brooklyn’s sleuthing (he usually is right by her side). The vivid descriptions brought the castle and its surroundings to life. I like how there was a Christmas tree in every room including the library. Like Brooklyn, I could spend weeks holed up in the castle’s library. The mystery was the weak point of the story (but it did not hinder my reading pleasure). The clues were a wee bit obvious. I enjoyed learning about the twelve books and how they related to Christmas. There was a couple that I had not heard of previously. I liked Derek’s unique lockpick set (I want one for myself). It was interesting learning about Scottish Hogmanay traditions. I loved the gifts that Brooklyn created for her family and friends for Christmas. They were unique and I like that they were book themed without being books (it is shocking, but there are some people who do not appreciate books as gifts). The Twelve Books of Christmas is the seventeenth A Bibliophile Mystery. It can be read as a standalone as the author provides the necessary background information on the main characters. I liked the ending, but I was sad for the story to end. The Twelve Books of Christmas is an enchanting tale with an invite to nuptials, a private plane ride, spooky sounds, absent books, a murdered man, mouthwatering meals, and Scottish traditions.… (més)