There’s a meme going around on Facebook that mentions words often used in mystery reviews, and then says what those words “really” mean. When I say that Ann Claire’s first Christie Bookshop Mystery, Dead and Gondola, is charming, I mean that the cozy mystery has appealing characters, an intriguing plot and setting, and I did not guess the killer.

Ellie Christie has traveled the world with book-related jobs. Now, at thirty-three, she’s returned home to Last Word, Colorado to take over the local bookstore, The Book Chalet, with her sister, Meg. They’re the fifth generation to operate the family bookstore, and Ellie and Meg share a love of books, especially mysteries. The Christie sisters even named their bookstore cat Agatha.

Ellie doesn’t yet know the newcomers in town, including Morgan Marin, a Hollywood legend who moved there, and has a popular online reading club. But, Morgan livens up the Saturday morning book discussion when she arrives in character, and wants to contact spirits with a Ouija board. Ms. Ridge, who organizes the Mountains of Mystery book club, isn’t happy. And, neither she nor Ellie are happy when a strange man shows up in the bookstore when they’re not yet open. When he leaves, his case and a book are still there. But, Ms. Ridge has also disappeared.

Ellie and Meg have a lot to discuss as they take the gondola down the mountain that afternoon. As they boarded, they saw the stranger from the bookstore, and wanted to tell him he left behind his book. But, they saw him stagger onto a gondola, and, by the time they reached the bottom of the mountain, he was dead. Just what the Ouija board had spelled, DEAD.

As the last ones to see the stranger alive, Ellie and Meg are prime witnesses for the new police chief, “Sunnie” Sunstrom. They’re also prime fodder for the local social media gossip that informs everyone in town that the Christie sisters might have seen a killer.

Dead and Gondola introduces a delightful family, Ellie, Meg, their grandmother, and Meg’s teen daughter, Rosie. There’s a quirky supporting cast, just what is needed for a cozy mystery. Best of all, Ellie doesn’t do anything stupid. In fact, early on she says, “I read mysteries. I would not be one of those ill-fated characters who skips off to dark spaces to check on bumps and thumps.” I like Ellie Christie. I hope to see more of her and her book-loving family.

Ann Claire’s website, and a list of her books under other pseudonyms, is at https://novelmystery.wixsite.com/books

Dead and Gondola by Ann Claire. Bantam, 2022. ISBN 9780593496343 (paperback), 322p.

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