I pre-ordered this book at some point earlier this year and forgot all about the pre-ordering. I recently got around to reading it and it is a five-star book for me. The Lucy Stone series is marketed as a cozy mystery series and to be sure there are craft and cooking themes in many of the books, but the series is more in the vein of a classic Agatha Christie-style mystery.
In this book we say goodbye to an old friend, not Ms Tilley, I'm almost certain she is immortal. There are some heavy themes in this book including frank discussions of mental illness. Leslie Meier excels in writing books that address the current moments in society and how that affects the imaginary town of Tinker's Cove. Lucy Stone and the other residents feel like real people and it's very easy to immerse myself in her books. It's like visiting family.
I read the books out of order, there isn't any romantic subplot, Lucy has her same group of friends, and the children grow up. If you prefer romance-free cozies, this could be a good series for you.
