I never thought I’d say a book had too many librarians in it. However, let’s face it. By the time readers get to the seventh Lighthouse Library Mystery, Eva Gates’ A Death Long Overdue, they’re invested in Lucy Richardson, her relationship with the mayor, and her life in the small Nag’s Head, North Carolina community. As in many beloved cozy series, the mystery itself is often an afterthought.

Lucy Richardson’s boss at the Bodie Island Lighthouse Library is celebrating. Bertie James’ class of fellow librarians is holding a fortieth class reunion, and the opening night reception will be held at the library. Lucy and her co-workers put together an exhibit of historical memories of librarianship, including photos, an old computer, a commemorative letter opener, a book that was once part of the collection, The Celestine Prophecy. The women seem to enjoy the displays and reception, until Helena Sanchez, the former director, arrives.

Bertie never really knew her predecessor, so when she heard she was in town, she invited her to the reception. But, those who knew and worked with her didn’t really like her. Even Lucy’s aunt said she almost quit the Friends of the Library because of Helena. She was critical, fired one of the women in attendance, and had sharp remarks for others. Lucy hears some of Helena’s comments, and she’s close enough to see Helena’s reaction when she looks at the check-out slip for The Celestine Prophecy. Some name on it seems to upset her.

But, Helena sticks around until the end of the reception, and even goes on the walking tour afterwards as Louisa Jane, the local storyteller, leads them down the boardwalk to the marsh. But, when everyone gathers afterwards, Helena is missing, and Lucy remembers a splash. She and the children’s librarian wade into the marsh to recover Helena’s body. And, Lucy tells Detective Sam Watson she thinks Helena was murdered. When the letter opener and the check-out slip that Helena saw go missing, Lucy is determined to find out which librarian hated Helena Sanchez enough to kill her.

Although Helena Sanchez was retired for a number of years, the names on that check-out slip brings her murder home to Nags’ Head, back years before Bertie arrived at the library, back to a time when all those women celebrating their fortieth reunion were young with life’s possibilities ahead of them.

I always feel bad when I comment about issues with a book dealing with librarians. First, there were too many librarians, and it was hard to remember who was who. But, for me, as a librarian in the U.S., I struggled with a term used over and over in the book. Maybe it is used elsewhere, and I just didn’t realize it, or maybe it was used when I first started out in librarianship. In this book, the check-out slip in the pocket of the book, the card on which patrons signed their names when they checked out, was called a withdrawal slip. I’ve never heard that term, and withdrawal, to me, means the book was taken out of circulation permanently, not checked out from the library. I actually misunderstood when I first read the term, and thought it just indicated the book was withdrawn from the library. I didn’t know why anyone would get upset over a withdrawn book. My mistake, and maybe non-librarians won’t make the same mistake I did. And, maybe it’s just an unfamiliar term to me. Mark that one up to my failure to communicate.

The joy in returning to this series actually stems from the residents, the characters that live on the island. Lucy, her cousin and her aunt, and her co-workers, are all welcoming to the community. It’s fun to catch up with Lucy and her ongoing relationship with the mayor. Even that was a problem in this book, though. Lucy may be astute as an amateur sleuth, but she was totally oblivious when it comes to Connor’s intentions. Everyone in the community knows, except Lucy. Duh.

I’m probably not the only reader who returns for the people in this series, rather than the mystery itself. That’s definitely true for A Death Long Overdue.

The website for this series is https://www.lighthouselibrarymysteries.com/

A Death Long Overdue by Eva Gates. Crooked Lane Books, 2020. ISBN 9781643854588 (hardcover), 372p.

*****
FTC Full Disclosure – I received a .pdf to review for a journal.