{"id":31979,"date":"2025-11-11T11:00:36","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T15:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/?p=31979"},"modified":"2025-11-11T11:02:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T15:02:11","slug":"review-a-perilous-plot-by-lorna-barrett","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/2025\/11\/11\/review-a-perilous-plot-by-lorna-barrett\/","title":{"rendered":"Review \ud83d\udd0d A Perilous Plot by Lorna Barrett"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-31979\" data-postid=\"31979\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-31979 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n    \t\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_ec8w61 tb_first tf_w tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top gutter-narrow tb_col_count_2 tf_box tf_rel\">\n\t\t            <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-1 tb_3rr461 first\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module image -->\n<div  class=\"module module-image tb_bm9c61 rounded drop-shadow customBorderRad_top image-center auto_fullwidth tf_mw\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div class=\"image-wrap tf_rel tf_mw\">\n\t\t    <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"967\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=640%2C967&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-post-image wp-image-31980\" title=\"a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett\" alt=\"a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?w=993&amp;ssl=1 993w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=199%2C300&amp;ssl=1 199w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=678%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 678w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=768%2C1160&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=400%2C604&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/image-wrap -->\n    \n    \t<\/div>\n<!-- \/module image --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_ajhx61 customBorderRad_bottom repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Everything was going great for Tricia Miles, right up until her estranged mother, Sheila, arrives on her front step with an urn she says contains the remains of Tricia&#8217;s father.<\/span><br \/><br \/><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Shocked and saddened, Tricia and her sister, Angelica, attempt to get to the bottom of what happened. But their efforts for clarity are dashed when Shelia disappears the very next day, leaving without a word.<\/span><br \/><br \/><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Naturally, the sisters are upset\u2014especially after they take the remains to the local funeral parlor and discover that not only is the urn filled with kitty litter, but hidden inside is a valuable (and stolen) Rolex watch. Digging deeper, the sisters find their parents are in dire financial trouble and seem to be lurking around Booktown.<\/span><br \/><br \/><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Tricia and Angelica can\u2019t help but wonder how many more secrets their mother was keeping&#8230;and whether that includes murder.<\/span><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n                        <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-2 tb_oup561 last\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_ntlz61  repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-16466 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/3-hearts-1.jpg?resize=135%2C44&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"135\" height=\"44\" \/><\/p><hr \/><p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Sep 23, 2025<br \/><strong>Series:<\/strong>\u00a0<em>Booktown\u00a0<br \/><\/em><strong>Book: <\/strong>19<br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0Penguin Group<br \/><strong>Imprint:<\/strong>\u00a0Berkley\u00a0<br \/><strong>Price:<\/strong> $14.99<\/p><hr \/><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is the nineteenth book in the <em>Booktown Mystery<\/em> series, and I&#8217;ve read many of them. It has been up and down for me. I love the premise of this book, and there are some nice moments, but overall, it was disappointing. The main character is Tricia Miles, who owns a vintage mystery bookshop. She and her sister Angelica were told by their difficult mother that their father had died. However, they learn that their father may actually be alive and working on his next con.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">There is a death and a disappearance in this book, but unlike most of the books in this series, Tricia doesn&#8217;t do much investigating. She and her sister do try to find out if their parents are up to something, but it doesn&#8217;t really feel like a mystery. Furthermore, the book features several truly toxic characters. Tricia&#8217;s own mother has always been horrible to her and shows her true colors in this book. Her mother&#8217;s best friend says terrible things, as does someone who claims to be Tricia&#8217;s best friend!<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">There just wasn&#8217;t a cozy vibe to this &#8220;cozy mystery&#8221;. The exception is when Tricia and Angelica hold their weekly dinners for family and close friends who have become like family. These moments are touching, and I wish there had been more of them.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The book is a quick read, but the resolution leaves some loose ends. It&#8217;s possible some could be addressed in a subsequent book, but I was hoping for a more detailed ending that explained important events. Tricia and Angelica often talk about the meals they\u2019re going to be preparing, and there are some recipes at the end. There are some great books in this series, so if you\u2019re a new reader, I would suggest starting with some of the earlier books.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>~ Christine<\/em><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_4cp861 customBorderRad repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/47SmbAe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a><\/span><span class=\"s2\">\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/3LwIK60\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">iBooks<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett\/1146743843?ean=9780593819234\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">B&amp;N<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/a-perilous-plot\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Kobo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Lorna_Barrett_A_Perilous_Plot?id=5DE6EQAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Google Play<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n            \t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t<\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Everything was going great for Tricia Miles, right up until her estranged mother, Sheila, arrives on her front step with an urn she says contains [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31980,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[83,89,128,48],"tags":[146,223,367],"class_list":["post-31979","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-berkley","category-christine","category-penguin-group","category-reviews","tag-3-stars","tag-cozy-mystery","tag-mystery"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Review \ud83d\udd0d A Perilous Plot by Lorna Barrett - Smitten by Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/5a4181aeb9cd5641e30023b9b4d3e00d","name":"beverley","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d01d9a027fd24b3d94658206104dd5d7aaffba75b651e55c08358a9bc51b26a1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d01d9a027fd24b3d94658206104dd5d7aaffba75b651e55c08358a9bc51b26a1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d01d9a027fd24b3d94658206104dd5d7aaffba75b651e55c08358a9bc51b26a1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"beverley"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog"],"url":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/author\/beverley\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?fit=993%2C1500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"builder_content":"<img src=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg\" title=\"a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett\" alt=\"a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?w=993&amp;ssl=1 993w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=199%2C300&amp;ssl=1 199w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=678%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 678w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=768%2C1160&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett.jpg?resize=400%2C604&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 993px) 100vw, 993px\" \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Everything was going great for Tricia Miles, right up until her estranged mother, Sheila, arrives on her front step with an urn she says contains the remains of Tricia's father.<br \/><br \/>Shocked and saddened, Tricia and her sister, Angelica, attempt to get to the bottom of what happened. But their efforts for clarity are dashed when Shelia disappears the very next day, leaving without a word.<br \/><br \/>Naturally, the sisters are upset\u2014especially after they take the remains to the local funeral parlor and discover that not only is the urn filled with kitty litter, but hidden inside is a valuable (and stolen) Rolex watch. Digging deeper, the sisters find their parents are in dire financial trouble and seem to be lurking around Booktown.<br \/><br \/>Tricia and Angelica can\u2019t help but wonder how many more secrets their mother was keeping...and whether that includes murder.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/3-hearts-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"135\" height=\"44\" \/><\/p><hr \/><p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Sep 23, 2025<br \/><strong>Series:<\/strong>\u00a0<em>Booktown\u00a0<br \/><\/em><strong>Book: <\/strong>19<br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0Penguin Group<br \/><strong>Imprint:<\/strong>\u00a0Berkley\u00a0<br \/><strong>Price:<\/strong> $14.99<\/p><hr \/><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is the nineteenth book in the <em>Booktown Mystery<\/em> series, and I've read many of them. It has been up and down for me. I love the premise of this book, and there are some nice moments, but overall, it was disappointing. The main character is Tricia Miles, who owns a vintage mystery bookshop. She and her sister Angelica were told by their difficult mother that their father had died. However, they learn that their father may actually be alive and working on his next con.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">There is a death and a disappearance in this book, but unlike most of the books in this series, Tricia doesn't do much investigating. She and her sister do try to find out if their parents are up to something, but it doesn't really feel like a mystery. Furthermore, the book features several truly toxic characters. Tricia's own mother has always been horrible to her and shows her true colors in this book. Her mother's best friend says terrible things, as does someone who claims to be Tricia's best friend!<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">There just wasn't a cozy vibe to this \"cozy mystery\". The exception is when Tricia and Angelica hold their weekly dinners for family and close friends who have become like family. These moments are touching, and I wish there had been more of them.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The book is a quick read, but the resolution leaves some loose ends. It's possible some could be addressed in a subsequent book, but I was hoping for a more detailed ending that explained important events. Tricia and Angelica often talk about the meals they\u2019re going to be preparing, and there are some recipes at the end. There are some great books in this series, so if you\u2019re a new reader, I would suggest starting with some of the earlier books.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>~ Christine<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/47SmbAe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/3LwIK60\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">iBooks<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/a-perilous-plot-lorna-barrett\/1146743843?ean=9780593819234\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">B&amp;N<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/a-perilous-plot\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kobo<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Lorna_Barrett_A_Perilous_Plot?id=5DE6EQAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google Play<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31979","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31979"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31979\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31987,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31979\/revisions\/31987"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31980"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31979"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31979"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31979"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}