Minnie and Eddie find a body in the middle of the road. The time has come for her to move in with Rafe but the house is still not done. The link between the murders is only a little obvious, Nice continuation for the series. ( )

Checking Out Crime by Laurie Cass is the 9th A Bookmobile Cat Mystery. It can be read as a standalone for those new to the series. Minnie Hamilton is a librarian in Chilson, Michigan who drives around the county with assistant librarian clerk, Julia Beaton and Minnie’s cat, Eddie. They deliver good cheer, treats, and cat cuddles along with books. After a long day in the bookmobile, Minnie is driving home when she rounds a corner and finds a man lying in the middle of the road. When Minnie learns the man was murdered, she begins investigating with help from a new friend. I just loved the addition of Detective Hal Inwood’s wife, Tabitha. She is a delight and pairs well with Minnie. The mystery was interesting. The reason for crime was unique (at least for me). There are a couple of suspects along with misdirection. I like how Eddie helps with the investigation by steering Minnie toward clues. Investigating the crime is interspersed with library duties, dates with Rafe, time spent with family, cuddling with Eddie, and worrying about where she is going to live before the snow flurries arrive. There is also much discussion about Minnie’s lack of an engagement ring. I like the cast of characters in this series. It was nice to catch up with Minnie’s family, her co-workers, friends, and the rest of the townspeople (Eddie too). I love how Minnie chats with Eddie and his adorable little responses. You can tell that the author is a cat owner. I enjoyed the heartwarming ending of Checking Out Crime that left me smiling. Checking Out Crime is a sweet cozy mystery with mysterious murder, a chatty cat, cycling cramps, a loquacious assistant, a housing predicament, and a bounty of books. ( )

I have loved Minnie since the first moment I met her as librarian at a public library in Chilson, Michigan. And how could anyone not fall in love with Eddie from the first moment he decided the bookmobile routes needed his supervision and assistance so became a stowaway that led to him being a permanent rider for all bookmobile travels? He has the most adorable and responsive Mrrs!

As with any book in the series it can be read as a stand-alone but I would highly recommend reading this series in order as then the changes for Minnie, family and friends will be ever more meaningful and they were definitely worth the wait!

As mentioned in my book review of "Tailing a Tabby" the 2nd book in the series, "The joy of this book is truly cover-to-cover as although the book cover doesn't have to impress me to capture my attention to a novel or to draw me in to the story, in this series, they are definitely a bonus feature of enchantment and pleasingly colorful."

As soon as my pre-order arrives I can't wait to read it but then I also want to savor the time as now it will seem an eternity until the next visit. It's simply one of those favorite series that you want to go on forever. ( )

cats, small-business, small-town, librarian, library, amateur-sleuth, murder, murder-investigation, Michigan, cozy-mystery, law-enforcement****

Nice sleuthing and more.
On the back road in the dark in the converted school bus bookmobile Minnie and her sister are talking when a car nearly hits them head on while driving at speed. Shortly thereafter they come upon a man lying in the road and try to resuscitate him. After the sheriff's deputy came they found the man's bicycle and helmet but it way days later that they found out it was murder and needed to sleuth. Add in a library cat with an attitude, an impending move from her houseboat to her fiance's house in mid renovation, deciding on a set of rings, and library politics to keep anyone's interest from beginning to end.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley. Thank you! ( )