Secrets and Scrabble #6
Fakes, folk music, and ghost fires
When legendary folk singer Lara Fairplay agrees to make her comeback debut at Pirate’s Cove’s annual maritime music festival, everyone in the quaint seaside village is delighted—including mystery bookstore owner and sometimes amateur sleuth, Ellery Page.
Better yet, Lara is scheduled to perform a recently discovered piece of music attributed to “The Father of American Music,” Stephen Foster, which will hopefully bring large crowds and a lot of business.
Several mysterious accidents later, Ellery is less delighted as his suspicion grows that someone plans to silence the celebrity songbird forever.
Josh Lanyon has once again proven she is not only in her element when writing mystery but she is in fact a Queen of "who done it?" storytelling. Lament at Loon Landing may fall under cozy mystery due to it's lack of descriptive detail on the violence end but for me "cozy" is just straight out mystery and boy does Loon Landing keep you guessing right up to the big reveal(or perhaps reveals in this case but you'll have to discover that for yourself😉). Keeping me guessing is at the top of my must-have-to-make-a-good-mystery-great list and Loon Landing is definitely on the great list.
For those who have been reading Secrets and Scrabble as released know that book 7, Death at the Deep Dive, was released before Lament at Loon Landing(book 6). The author having done this hasn't ruined anything in the spoiler front other than a few minor character and relationship growing.
Speaking of characters, Ellery and Jack continue to be brilliant together. That's not to say they don't have a few hiccups where I want to knock their heads together and in Loon Landing they butt stubbornneses😉, not over Ellery's detecting but where the evidence leads. I won't say more about the mysteries in this entry so as not to spoil it for anyone but just know that their determination to find answers takes a couple of turns neither expected. On the relationship front the men keep moving forward in a way that is not only entertaining but realistic.
The city of Pirate's Cove is truly beginning to feel like home, both for Ellery and this reader. It's a village that may have a dangerously high crime rate that has a knack of pulling the book owner in but it's also a village with a wide variety of characters, some loveable, some likeable, some tolerable, and there are some who you really hope will be the next murder victim😉😉. And of course then you have Watson. Watson is a little yapper of a dog who Ellery discovered, or maybe better said who discovered Ellery and he brings a whole new level of adorability and many, many moments of "awwww, I want one" to the story.
I'd have to say friendships are tested in Lament at Loon Landing more than any of the other Secrets & Scabble entries, some of which may not survive or maybe grow stronger but that too adds another level of realism to this dangerous tourist destination. It's like I say about my favorite mystery television series, Midsomer Murders(super fun British mystery series for those who aren't familiar I highly recommend looking it up), "Why does anyone still live in Midsomer County?" well I find myself saying "Why does anyone stay in Pirate's Cove?". Perhaps they are all a glutton for punishment, maybe not punishment but definitely glutton for danger. But then again, truth be told I'd probably stay in Pirate's Cove just for the people😉.
Lament at Loon Landing is a winning gem of mystery, romance, friendship, and danger that I highly recommend. If you haven't been reading the series so far, I strongly suggest starting at the beginning. There are a few comments regarding previous cases but it's the relationship journeys that are ongoing and will help the reader connect stronger to said characters when experienced from Ellery's arrival at Pirate's Cove in book 1, Murder at Pirate's Cove.
Chapter One
Whoooo…. Whooooo…. WHOOOOO!
Ghostly wailings seemed to issue from the blackened rafters of the Crow’s Nest bookshop.
“What the hell is that noise?” Pirate Cove’s Police Chief Jack Carson stared ceilingward, his blue-green eyes wide with alarm.
Ellery Page, mystery bookshop owner and Jack’s boyfriend, took his oat milk-laced coffee from Jack’s unresisting hand. He said glumly, “The building is haunted.”
“Since when?”
“Since the Sing The Plank organizers announced there’ll be an amateur talent stage at the festival.”
“Ah.”
They listened in silence for a moment to the muffled twang of a banjo and plink of a…ukulele?
WHOOOOO… Whoooo…. Whooooo….
“Despite evidence to the contrary, the only souls suffering the torments of the damned are yours and mine.”
Jack grinned, sipped his coffee. “Is this going on during business hours?”
Ellery nearly choked on his coffee. “Don’t even joke!”
“Sorry. Have either of them ever performed before an audience?”
“It seems so. Kingston and his late wife were active in their local folk music club and Nora used to perform regularly at Pirate Cove’s Traditional Music Society.”
Jack’s brows rose. “I didn’t know we had a Traditional Music Society.”
“We don’t. Not anymore. I have my suspicions.”
Jack chuckled, started to speak, but was interrupted by Watson, Ellery’s black spaniel puppy, who dropped his squeaky toy and began to howl.
Aaah-oooooooh… Ow… Ow… Ow… Aaah-oooooooh…
Ellery sighed. “Right. That started yesterday. I’m not sure if he’s protesting or auditioning.” He called to the puppy, “It’s okay, buddy. It’s almost over.”
“Speaking of almost over.” Jack’s tone was regretful. “I’ve got to get down to the station.”
“Coward.”
Jack shook his head, leaned across the sales counter and kissed Ellery lightly. “I came for the drinks not the band.”
Ellery laughed.
Jack headed for the door, bending to tap Watson’s upturned nose with his finger. Watson cut off his serenade mid-note, looking ever so slightly sheepish. “Working late tonight?” Jack asked Ellery.
Ellery nodded.
“Are you staying at my place or heading out to Captain’s Seat?”
“Your place if that’s okay.”
“Best news of the day.” Jack winked and went out.
The brass bell on the front door swayed, chiming a fond farewell.
It was the autumn equinox and summer was officially over.
September on Buck Island was lovely. The sun cast its lazy spell over glittering water and silky sand. The skies were blue, the breezes balmy, and the crowds had thinned.
Considerably.
Which was the not-so-good news if you were in the business of selling stuff to tourists.
The Crow’s Nest clientele was not primarily of the tourista variety, but there was no denying the influx of summer visitors had plumped up their coffers considerably.
If autumn on Buck Island was anything like winter, trade was going to get pretty lean pretty fast, and Ellery was reluctantly considering whether he did in fact need two full-time employees, in addition to himself, to meet the needs of their fairly slim customer base.
He was fond of both Nora and Kingston, so the idea of letting either go—and really, there was no question of who was on the chopping block—brought him zero pleasure.
“What if we carried a few book-related gift items?” Nora mused as they drank their coffee and gazed out at the largely empty harbor.
Nora Sweeney was Ellery’s right-hand man. Er, woman. A small but stalwart seventy-something Buck Island native, she favored skirts and sensible shoes, and she always wore her long, silver hair in a ponytail.
“Why? We’re a bookstore.”
Nora shrugged. “A few extra dollars here. A few extra dollars there. It all adds up.”
“If we start selling gift items, it’s liable to look like we’re trying to compete with some of the gift shops, which is not going to go over well.”
He was thinking specifically of Janet Maples and Old Salt Stationery. Janet had only recently begun to warm up to him.
As usual, Nora understood him perfectly. “What if our book related gift items were mystery-themed?”
“Hmm.”
“I’ve been looking through that pile of catalogs in the junk room—”
“You mean, my office?”
“Er, your office, and I’ve come up with a list of possibilities.” She fished around in her pocket and handed over a long and crumpled list.
Ellery smoothed out the paper and squinted at Nora’s cramped writing. “Cozy mystery coloring books? Murder mystery dinner party game? Cozy mystery day planner? Nancy Drew jigsaw puzzles? Mystery-themed Christmas ornaments?”
“The holidays are coming.”
“You say that like it’s a good thing.” Nora looked at him in surprise. “I’m kidding,” Ellery said, although he wasn’t entirely sure about that. Jack had mentioned in passing that his family really, really wanted him to come “home” for Christmas this year.
Nora said, “There are key chains, pins, earrings…”
“There’s a lot to choose from,” Ellery agreed. “My concern is the financial outlay.”
“You have to spend money to earn money.”
“You have to have money to spend money,” Ellery retorted.
“We could start with a few choice items and see how it goes.”
Ellery sighed. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Nora’s idea. But, having only recently pulled out of the red, he was understandably cautious. Last year, he’d had his savings to fall back on. This year, he had no savings left with which to weather the inevitable inevitables.
Nora studied him, said, “Or not. Kingston’s come up what I think is a very good idea for bringing in new customers.”
“Kingston has?” Not that Ellery didn’t think Kingston was full of good ideas. He was just surprised to hear Nora touting them. Not so long ago, Nora had viewed Kingston as a rival and competitor if not outright villain. Slowly but surely, that had changed, which was yet another reason Ellery really didn’t want to have to break up the act.
Nora said—in the tone adults use to try to convince toddlers that vegetables are delicious mealtime treats, “What if we were to offer a children’s story hour on weekends?”
Ellery gazed at her in alarm. “We who? We don’t sell children’s books. Do they even make mysteries for children?”
“They do, dearie, but we wouldn’t have to limit ourselves to mysteries.”
“We’re a mystery bookshop.”
“Yes. We are. We’re also the island’s only real bookstore. Which presents us with a unique opportunity to serve Pirate Cove’s littlest customer base.”
“Littlest and most financially strapped.”
Nora laughed. “If there’s one thing people like to spend money on, it’s their children. And, even more so, their grandchildren. Pirate’s Cove doesn’t have endless amusements for little ones.”
“These kids are the descendants of pirates. Maybe they prefer brawling and boozing.”
Nora snorted. “While the children are listening to such classics as Pete the Pirate and The Pirates Next Door, their parents can browse our mystery-themed gifts or pick up something they might like to read.”
“And who exactly would be conducting this story hour?” Ellery asked warily.
“Kingston.”
“Kingston?” Ellery relaxed. “Oh. Well, in that case, yeah. That’s not a bad idea. In fact, it’s kind of a good idea. Are we going to purchase copies of these story books?”
“A few. I’m sure we’d sell a handful or so.” Nora eyed him knowingly. “In fact, you could probably come in an hour or so later on Saturdays. Kingston and I can easily handle the sales floor during that period. Especially during our slow season.”
Ellery considered the possibility of a little extra time with Jack. “Actually, Nora, that’s a great idea.”
Nora beamed. “I’ll let Kingston know you’ve given us your seal of approval.”
Dylan Carter, one of Ellery’s closest friends in Pirate’s Cove, phoned shortly after Ellery returned from lunch on the pier.
“What do you say to lunch?”
Watson, with his tendency to bark at the ever-present seagulls—as well as other dogs, babies in strollers, and every stray piece of trash the wind picked up, was not always the ideal mealtime companion, but he was Ellery’s most frequent, so it was disappointing to have to turn Dylan down.
“I’d have said sure, but I already ate.”
“Ah. I see.” Dylan sounded more distracted than disappointed. “Well, what about joining the rest of us for a drink or dessert? Or both?”
“The rest of us who?”
In addition to owning to owning the Toy Chest and managing the Scallywags, Pirate’s Cove’s local theater guild, Dylan was also one of the organizers of Pirate Cove’s annual Sing the Plank maritime music festival, but Ellery’s fear was that by the rest of us Dylan meant Summer Simmons, his girlfriend.
Dylan’s relationship with Summer had grown increasingly rocky over the past couple of months, and Ellery wanted to give wide berth to any potential public uproar.
But Dylan said, “Lara Fairplay and her entourage, for starters. The Sing the Plank organizers…”
“Lara Fairplay?” Singer-songwriter Lara Fairplay was headlining Sing the Plank, and while Ellery was not a huge fan of folk music, even he was aware that getting Lara Fairplay to appear at their relatively small festival was a huge coup for the island as a whole and the organizers in particular.
“Lara, her husband, her sister…Sue.” Dylan’s tone seemed to grow vague.
“Wait a sec,” Ellery interrupted. “Her sister, Sue or her sister and Sue. As in Sue Lewis, my arch-nemesis.”
Sue Lewis was the owner and editor in chief for the Scuttlebutt Weekly, Pirate Cove’s newspaper. Unfortunately, from their first meeting, Sue and Ellery had rubbed each other the wrong way—and things had gone downhill from there.
“Now, you don’t really think Sue is your arch-nemesis,” Dylan chided. “That’s ancient history, isn’t it?”
“I don’t consider Sue my arch-nemesis, no. She considers me her arch-nemesis.
“She really doesn’t. Sue’s…er…she’s a kinder, gentler Sue. You’ll see.”
“I’ll see from a distance,” Ellery said. “Seriously, though, I already took my break. I can’t just leave Nora and Kingston to—”
“Yes, you can!” Nora chirped from behind him.
Ellery scowled at her.
“We’re fine here. Go. Have fun!” Nora made shooing motions.
“See?” Dylan put in. “Nora’s got it under control.”
“Yeeeah. Just a reminder to you and Nora: I’m actually the one in charge here.”
Both Nora and Dylan chortled at this quaint notion.
“Okay, whatever, but I really can’t just—”
Dylan cut in with an apologetic, “The thing is, I have an ulterior motive in asking you to lunch.”
Ellery sighed. “Believe me, I already figured that much out.”
“But before you agree, you need to, well, see the lay of the land.”
“Before I agree?” Ellery gave a disbelieving laugh. “That’s taking things for granted.”
“Well, after all, everyone in Pirate’s Cove knows this kind of thing is like catnip for you.”
“What kind of thing?”
“Mysteries. Puzzles. Who-dunnits.”
“You want me to solve a mystery?”
“It’s a paying gig. We want to hire you.”
If anything, Ellery’s wariness grew. “You want to hire me to solve a mystery. What kind of mystery?”
Dylan hesitated. “I suppose it’s a little bit of a…a who-dunnit.”
Uh oh. “Who done what?”
Dylan said airily, “If you want to learn the answer to that—and other questions–you’ll just have to come to lunch. The Seacrest Inn at one o’clock.”
And with that, he hung up.
Bestselling author of over sixty titles of classic Male/Male fiction featuring twisty mystery, kickass adventure and unapologetic man-on-man romance, JOSH LANYON has been called "the Agatha Christie of gay mystery."
Her work has been translated into eleven languages. The FBI thriller Fair Game was the first male/male title to be published by Harlequin Mondadori, the largest romance publisher in Italy. Stranger on the Shore (Harper Collins Italia) was the first M/M title to be published in print. In 2016 Fatal Shadows placed #5 in Japan's annual Boy Love novel list (the first and only title by a foreign author to place on the list).
The Adrien English Series was awarded All Time Favorite Male Male Couple in the 2nd Annual contest held by the Goodreads M/M Group (which has over 22,000 members). Josh is an Eppie Award winner, a four-time Lambda Literary Award finalist for Gay Mystery, and the first ever recipient of the Goodreads Favorite M/M Author Lifetime Achievement award.
Josh is married and they live in Southern California.Her work has been translated into eleven languages. The FBI thriller Fair Game was the first male/male title to be published by Harlequin Mondadori, the largest romance publisher in Italy. Stranger on the Shore (Harper Collins Italia) was the first M/M title to be published in print. In 2016 Fatal Shadows placed #5 in Japan's annual Boy Love novel list (the first and only title by a foreign author to place on the list).
The Adrien English Series was awarded All Time Favorite Male Male Couple in the 2nd Annual contest held by the Goodreads M/M Group (which has over 22,000 members). Josh is an Eppie Award winner, a four-time Lambda Literary Award finalist for Gay Mystery, and the first ever recipient of the Goodreads Favorite M/M Author Lifetime Achievement award.
Lament at Loon Landing #6
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