Delaney’s boss, Edwin, sends her to a friend’s estate, to investigate a relic found on the grounds. It may be a priceless Crusader Sword. When she arrives, she discovers a legal team is there, too. While the ownership of the relic is being disputed, a scream is heard, and a murder victim is found. And then things really get complicated. An illegitimate offspring has ties to the royal throne. A secret journal may hold proof, but it disappears. Delaney has her work cut out for her. It’s a well constructed mystery, dating back to King Edward VIII. And Delaney must decide how far beyond the law she is willing to go. Great characters people this interesting and entertaining story. ( )

The Poison Pen is the ninth book in the A Scottish Bookshop Mystery series by Paige Shelton.

Edwin, the owner of a Scottish bookstore, asks Delaney Nichols to visit with his old-time friend, Jolie Lannister. Jolie has found what she feels might be a legendary Crusader Sword that she wants to turn over to Edwin. When Delaney arrives at Jolie’s estate, she finds Jolie is in a discussion with her lawyer, Bowie Berry, and Giles Haig, an auctioneer and his assistant. Jolie is a hoarder, and Berry plans on using that to prove Jolie’s competency. Haig is there to evaluate Josie’s estate. Jolie sends Berry and Haig on their way and takes Delaney to a nearby shed to show her the sword. If the sword is a Crusader Sword, it belongs in a museum, as Scottish law says it is illegal for private citizens to own historical items. As they are returning to the house, they come across Homer, Jolie’s gardener, standing over the dead body of Haig’s assistant. Homer was holding the knife that had killed the assistant. Jolie asks Delaney to investigate the death, and she contacts Inspector Winters to help with the investigation.

When Jolie was a child, a story that was going around was that Jolie was a “love child” of Edward VIII. An aide to Edward VIII reportedly wrote a journal supporting this story. Still, the journal has gone missing, and Delaney wonders whether this might have anything to do with the murder of Haig’s assistant.
I love this series; the books are well-written and plotted. The characters are well-developed, believable, and engaging.

I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this engaging series. ( )

The Poison Pen by Paige Shelton is the ninth A Scottish Bookshop Mystery. It can be read as a standalone as the author provides the background information needed for new readers (or those who have missed a book or two). We get to meet an old friend of Edwin’s who is amusing and eccentric. Jolie adds humor to the story. It was interesting learning about Crusader swords. I like how the author incorporates streets and buildings from Edinburgh. Jolie’s mother claimed that her daughter was the legitimate heir to the throne. History of the monarchy was included. You can tell the author did her research for this installment. I liked that Elias was more involved in this story. Delaney finds the mystery interesting. She searches for clues and asks questions. Delaney digs into the past and finds some intriguing information. Delaney will need to assemble the pieces if she is to identify the killer. I liked the whodunit, but I did not find it a challenge to solve. There was a detail that stuck out and it came up more than once. I enjoyed the reveal. I did, though, find the pacing in The Poison Pen to be too leisurely (needed more action). The Poison Pen is a Scottish cozy with a Crusader sword, a humorous hoarder, book talk, ancestry anecdotes, and a new Treasure Trove director. ( )

This was a fun read featuring mayhem, murder, stolen treasure, and a hoarder who thinks she is the rightful heir to the English throne. 😊 When Delaney Nichols left Kansas and moved to Scotland for a job at the Cracked Spine Bookstore, she didn’t expect to fall totally in love with the country, the job, and the handsome tavern owner, Tom, across the street. The very wealthy bookshop owner, Edwin, doesn’t just own a bookstore. He owns an extensive group of collectibles – some exceedingly valuable, some sentimental, and some just because. It is Delaney’s job to catalog that collection and to get it organized.

One of Edwin’s old flames, Jolie Lannister, asks Edwin to come to her estate, West Rosebud House, to evaluate a sword found on her estate. Edwin asks Delaney to go in his place and make the evaluation – because if the sword is what Jolie thinks it is, they are in a conundrum. Edwin would want it very, very much – yet – according to Scotland’s laws – they should turn it over to the Treasure Trove Unit of the government. What to do? What to do? There is no need to worry about that because before Delaney leaves the estate, there has been a murder, and the police have been called. Oops!

Delaney, of course, cannot contain her curiosity about all of the people involved – and the murder. Before the end, we have the full complement of characters – Tom, Rosie, Hamlet, Joshua, Artair, and Edwin working to solve the case along with Inspector Winters. Is the villain the lawyer who seems a bit shady? Is it the auction house owner? Is it the new director of the Treasure Trove Unit? Is it Jolie or someone from the estate? Is it none of them? Is it all of them? Is it some mixture? Oh! My! Goodness!!! To find out who did it and why, you’ll have to read this fun and entertaining book.

I can recommend this book and this series, and I hope you’ll read it and love it as much as I did. Happy Reading!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. ( )

When called to the home of an old friend of Edwin's, Delaney is expecting to look at on old sword discovered on the grounds. She doesn't expect to find a body.

As Delaney investigates, she has to deal with a woman who has a problem with telling the truth, a shady lawyer, and a director of the Treasure Trove Unit who has his own agenda.

This is the ninth mystery starring Delaney who is an American transplant to Scotland who loves her job dealing with antiquities at the bookshop Edwin owns. She has a tendency to discover bodies wherever she goes. Over the course of the series, Delaney has made a number of friends who make appearances in this story including Inspector Winters who is her friend in the police.

The story is set shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth which plays into the story both because Delaney occasionally has voices in her head which offer her clues. Usually, the voices are from works of literature. In this one the voices are Elizabeth's from some of her speeches.

I enjoyed the story because I like Delaney and her circle of friends. The mystery had some nice twists and turns too. ( )