Hitting the Books

At the start of McKinlay’s delightful ninth Library Lover’s mystery (after 2017’s Death in the Stacks), Lindsey Norris, the director of the Briar Creek, Conn., library, witnesses a hit-and-run, an attempt to murder tennis coach Theresa Huston, the fiancée of wealthy businessman Larry Milstein. Despite being overwhelmed with the adjustment of moving in with her heartthrob, former navy man Mike Sullivan, Lindsay can’t resist investigating, especially after the hit-and-run driver is found dead in a stolen vehicle loaded with audiobook CDs from her library. The Milsteins provide a number of leads. Larry’s college-age daughter, Liza, seems crazy about Theresa, but perhaps it’s an act to keep herself in Daddy’s good graces. Then there’s Larry’s previous wife, Liza’s mom, who disappeared when Liza was barely more than a toddler. Or maybe it’s that multimillion-dollar life insurance policy Larry insisted on taking out on Theresa before their wedding. Plentiful suspects and motives keep the pages turning in this suspenseful cozy. Agent: Christina Hogrebe, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (Sept.)