Death by Dragonfly: A Grace Street Mystery

At the outset of Tesh’s winsome and amusing sixth Grace Street mystery (after 2017’s Baby, Take a Bow), Leo Pierson, an actor who looks like “the guy who always plays the kings and generals,” hires PI David Randall, who lives and works at a boarding house on Grace St. in Parkland, N.C., to recover several valuable items stolen from his Art Nouveau collection, notably an exquisite—and possibly cursed—glass dragonfly. Shortly after Pierson leaves the boarding house, Jordan Finley of the Parkland PD shows up and tells Randall that Pierson is a suspect in a possible murder case. Finley warns Randall to stay away from Pierson, but Randall forges ahead with the robbery investigation, aided by his friend and landlord, Camden, who has “considerable and erratic psychic ability.” Soon, people on the detective’s suspect list start turning up dead. The mystery plot is convincing and motives abound, but the vivid characters are the main draw, in particular the wryly observant Randall, who narrates the story with verve. Fans of cozies with a paranormal twist will be rewarded. (Dec.)