Author: Paige Shelton
Series: A Scottish Bookshop Mystery (Book 10)
Publication: Minotaur Books (April 1, 2025)
Description: Written in Stone, the tenth installment in the Scottish Bookshop series by Paige Shelton, set in a specialty bookstore in Edinburgh called The Cracked Spine.
When Delaney wins a special Hidden Door Festival invitation to artist Ryory Bennigan's studio, she isn’t sure quite what to expect. What she finds is an elusive fellow obsessed with the Picts―complete with his own versions of their blue tattoos and vibrant red hair―recreating the stones they left behind. She also meets a visiting paleontologist, Dr. Adam Pace, from the University of Kansas attempting to sell an artifact that might just explain what the Picts' language really sounded like.
Or at least that’s what he claimed the artifact was for. Before the deal can close and Ryory can get a closer look at it, Dr. Pace is found dead.
With the police dragging their feet in the investigation, Delaney takes it upon herself to dig into Dr. Pace's past. Her research goes murky as she quickly discovers Pace’s shady background―selling fake dinosaur bones and running into some 3D-printing trouble back in Kansas. Could his past have come back to bite him in Edinburgh? And what does his questionable background mean for the mysterious Pictish artifact he was trying to sell to Ryory? Delaney will have to dust off her magnifying glass to uncover the truth behind this case… or risk becoming a pile of bones herself.
My Thoughts: The tenth Scottish Bookshop Mystery has Delaney attending a Hidden Door Festival with her husband Tom. She has received an invitation to meet reclusive artist Ryory Bennigan and tour his studio. She is very curious about her fellow redhead and his interest in the Picts.
When she and Tom arrive, their appointment is delayed by the presence of Dr. Adam Pace who is a visiting paleontologist from her alma mater in Kansas. After he leaves, the tour precedes until Ryory's assistant Ani is taken suddenly ill.
The next day she learns that Dr. Pace has been found murdered. She begins to look into the case and soon finds herself involved in dinosaur bones and bogus Pictish artifacts. It seems Dr. Pace was not always working on the right side of the law.
This was an engaging episode in this long-running series. I enjoy Delaney and the other staff at the bookstore including her enigmatic boss. Delaney's wide acquaintanceship in Edinburgh combined with Edwin's means that she has a chance to interview a wide variety of people, tour various museums, and learn about Dr. Pace's recent activities.
Fans of the series will enjoy this latest episode.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.
New series for me. Thanks for the review of a.
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