Lena London’s best friend Allison helps her get the job of a lifetime. Lena will be an assistant to her idol, author Camilla Graham, and will get to help her write her new book. Lena has read and enjoyed Camilla’s books so much that her graduate thesis was a novel inspired by Camilla’s work, so the job is a perfect fit for Lena.  One of the perks of the job is being able to stay in Camilla’s Victorian home, not far from Allison in Blue Lake, Indiana. Lena needs a job and this exciting opportunity also gives her the chance to leave Chicago and move on from a break-up with her boyfriend.

However, Lena soon learns nothing is perfect. Camilla’s dark and gloomy house would fit right into a scene from one of her gothic mysteries. Also, when Lena becomes friends with one of Camilla’s neighbors who has a mystery of his own, small town tongues start wagging. To make things worse, Lena discovers a body on Camilla’s property and gets caught up in a dangerous murder investigation.

A Dark and Stormy Murder is the first in a new cozy mystery series. Sometimes the flow of the first book in a series gets bogged down in introductions to numerous characters and their backgrounds, but this book in engaging right from the beginning. There is a small, but interesting cast of characters and the reader gets to know Lena, Camilla, Allison, and the other characters well by the end of the book without being overwhelmed by too many characters with complicated backstories. The result is a nicely paced, suspenseful cozy that reads like a modern gothic novel, and the book stands out from the typical cozy. Another nice touch are the bits of the novel Lena and Camilla are working on that are used to begin each chapter.

The book has a great combination of setting, atmosphere, and characters. Lena is an intelligent, likeable main character and her quick friendship with the famous, but down-to-earth author Camilla is fun to read. Lena’s unlikely friendship with a Camilla’s mysterious neighbor is intriguing and romantic, even as the reader questions his motives. This well-written book has a heartwarming ending that is satisfying and yet still gives the reader a cliffhanger creating anticipation of the next book in this wonderful new series. 

~ Christine