It’s January, and Addie is busy with the Fire and Ice Festival. When a friend of hers falls from a ladder and is hospitalized, Addie is volunteered to care for her dog. Pleading an inability for such an undertaking falls on deaf ears, and she soon finds herself liking the task. When she goes to get supplies for the dog, she notices a rare and expensive book on a nightstand. The book soon goes missing, but what Addie doesn’t miss is a dead body in the alley. It’s a complicated time for her. She is still working out her feelings for Simon, dealing with Mark’s disdain, looking for the missing book, caring for a dog she is increasingly growing fond of, and trying to figure who is the murderer. There is never a dull moment in Addie’s life. This complex and intriguing mystery is one for the books! Well written with great characters, it’s a very entertaining tale. ( )

I love when I let go of a big sigh at the end of a book. It tells me not only did I enjoy the book but that the ending left me satisfied. I let out two with this book. That could be fitting as there are two mysteries to be solved.
In this book, the fifth in the series, someone close to Paige is found dead and Martha is a suspect. But was their death murder or an accident? Whatever the cause of death was may be the clue that determines which. With Martha looking like the best suspect, Addie needs to find out. The second mystery is a missing book. With a suspected value into the thousands, is the missing book connected to the death?
I really enjoyed this book. I love the characters. It was wonderful to see Addie become so close to Pippi. I was hoping to see her find her own fur baby by the end of the book. This story had plenty of suspects for the death as well as the book and there was the question of cause of death to keep you guessing. I’m not going to say how that all came out. You can find out when you read the book.
This is a wonderful book set in winter just after Christmas. I took two days to read it but I believe it could easily be read in one day. I would recommend some cocoa and warm scones to pair it with. A roaring fire, comfy clothes, blanket and reading buddy would complete the delight of an afternoon of reading. Enjoy!

*I was provided with an electronic copy of this book, for review consideration, by Kensington through NetGalley. I voluntarily reviewed this book. My opinions are based on my enjoyment during the reading of the book.* ( )

I'm a sucker for cozy mysteries that have bookstores (or similar) as part of them. I did enjoy this book. I didn't realize it was #5 in the series (though I was pretty sure it wasn't book 1) until I came on to start my review. I haven't read the previous books in the series and that may have contributed to my confusion as to who was who and how they were all related. (Particularly with Martha's family.)

There were several mysteries. The main one being who murdered Brett Palmer. And there were quite a few suspects--though the perpetrator ended up being someone I hadn't considered earlier in the book. The two sub-mysteries were: 1. was Gloria's fall really a fall or did someone upset her ladder and 2. who stole the first edition of "The Secret Garden" and where is it? We're never really told outright about Gloria's fall but I think it is answered in a "read between the lines" kind of way. The second question is addressed in a brief scene and we kind of incidentally find out what happened to the first edition at the end of the book.

I didn't like Kalea and couldn't believe that Addie put up with that behavior from an employee (family or not) for as long as she did. I also can't believe that Jared is willing to front her for a dress store just because he likes her. ( )

Addie Greyborne lives in a small New England town and owns a bookshop. One morning a friend's little dog shows up at her shop barking. When she runs across the street to the park, she finds his owner Gloria on the ground, having fallen from a ladder while decorating for the local festival. When it's determined she needs to have a hip replacement, Addie is determined as the best person to care for the little dog, and goes with her friend and next-door business owner Martha to collect things for the dog.

While at Gloria's home she also notices a copy of The Secret Garden on Gloria's night stand. When Martha tells her that it belongs to her daughter Paige, Addie's employee, Addie tells Martha that it might just be worth over $25,000, which stuns Martha.

But there are other things occupying Martha's mind and which Addie wants to ask her, but won't: like who were the men and woman she was arguing with outside her shop? And why was she threatening them? Unfortunately, the next day, when Addie goes to work, she and a homeless man named Bill find the dead body of one of the men behind Martha's shop -- and it promptly puts Martha in lead position as the suspect in killing him. When she's arrested for the murder, Addie promises Paige to do all she can to save her.

But Addie has other things on her mind, too: when she goes to Gloria's home to retrieve the book for her, it's missing. And there doesn't appear to be any forced entry. So where is the book? Is it related to the death? If the police won't listen, Addie has no choice but once again to try and find a killer. But maybe this time she'll wish she hadn't...

This is the fifth book in the series, and I do believe that it might be one of the best ones. Addie has more trouble than she wants with her cousin Kalea living with her -- honestly, this woman is a royal pain and I would send her back where she came from after the things she does; but then, that's only my opinion. Addie's too nice to her. I also don't like Ryley much; she really doesn't like Addie and allows it to color her professional work. Marc should rein her in. She's unlikable.

Other than that, I did like the mystery itself. It was interesting to see Addie trying to understand if the missing book was somehow connected to the murder, even though the police had to 'follow the evidence'. True; but sometimes you need to follow your instincts, too, which is what Addie does and why she's so good at figuring things out.

I did like all the little subplots and getting to know more about Martha's past and what has made her the way she is; it's always nice when you learn about the lives of the secondary characters; and I did like the hint that we may see more of Jonathan in later books. He enchanted me, but only because I like the cloak-and-dagger history of his life.

The story is rife with twists and turns that take the reader to other area's besides Addie's life; although we do see her still struggling with certain areas of her budding relationship with Simon, but it centers more on her not wanting to see Paige hurt or even caring for the little dog in her guardianship, as it were. There were clues throughout; you just had to look for them.

When Addie starts to get closer to finding the answers she wants, it comes from an unlikely source, and that's when she puts it all together. It was a satisfying ending that left me pleased with the book and looking forward to the next in the series. Recommended. ( )

A Page Marked for Murder is the 5th book in A Beyond the Page Bookstore Mystery by Lauren Elliott.
It’s the Fire and Ice festival and everyone is busy preparing for the season’s activities but when Gloria is found on a heap on the snow and obviously injured, Addie is now Gloria’s little pup’s mom for a short time.
Paige’s ex is back on the scene and is demanding to custody of their daughter. But there is no way Martha will let this happen and soon after there’s a death. Martha, Paige and Martha ex husband are all taken in for questioning but it’s not looking good for Martha.
Meanwhile, Addie notices that a valuable book is missing that is worth twenty five thousand and Addie is sure this has something to do with the death.
I loved this book, the characters and how the plot thickens.
There is no chance that Addie will ignore doing her sleuthing. She is always one step ahead on connecting the clues.
Just as you think you know “whodunnit”, you’d be dead wrong. There was no hint of who the suspect was until the very end. But the clues were written between the lines.
( )