The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C.M. Waggoner
Read by Cindy Pillar
Publication Date: September 24, 2024
Summary from Goodreads:
A librarian with a knack for solving murders realizes there is something decidedly supernatural afoot in her little town in this cozy fantasy mystery.Librarian Sherry Pinkwhistle keeps finding bodies—and solving murders. But she’s concerned by just how many killers she’s had to track down in her quaint village. None of her neighbors seem surprised by the rising body count…but Sherry is becoming convinced that whatever has been causing these deaths is unnatural. But when someone close to Sherry ends up dead, and her cat, Lord Thomas Cromwell, becomes possessed by what seems to be an ancient demon, Sherry begins to think she’s going to need to become an exorcist as well as an amateur sleuth. With the help of her town’s new priest, and an assortment of friends who dub themselves the “Demon-Hunting Society,” Sherry will have to solve the murder and get rid of a demon. This riotous mix of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Murder, She Wrote is a lesson for demons and murderers Never mess with a librarian.
Confession:
I liked this book but I was also somewhat disappointed by it. I was hoping for a bit more action and for an actual demon-hunting society to get formed and chase down those demons, but that didn’t really ever happen. Mostly it was just all about Sherry and her fight against a supernatural being, who isn’t technically a demon, and how she defeats them. But except for that I ended up kind of liking this book.
Cindy Pillar, the reader, did a very good job of bringing the characters in this book to life. She has a very nice voice and did a good job creating voices for all of the characters. I especially liked the voice she used for Lord Thomas Cromwell. It sounded just like I imagined a cat being possessed would sound like. I will definitely keep an eye out for more books with her as a reader.
I liked Sherry, she is sassy, smart, very inquisitive and she has a knack for solving mysteries. I enjoyed following along with her as she solves the murders that occur in this book. I felt bad for her when her sort of boyfriend died and could feel her grief even when the demon was trying to influence her into solving this crime. We do spend a lot of time in Sherry’s head, but luckily it is a nice place to spend time in. Sherry has her own personal issues from her past that are slowly revealed over the course of the book. But she doesn’t let them affect her present even when things start to get really weird.
Even though we don’t really get a demon-hunting society, Sherry does surround herself with some good friends who help her out. I enjoyed all of them, and if this does become a series look forward to seeing them all again. I loved the young priest, Father Barry, who was very hesitant about this whole demon thing. And Sherry’s best friend was also a fun person who always seemed to know what the right thing to say to Sherry was. Great group of people who I wished had more to do with the whole demon thing.
A special shout out to Lord Thomas Cromwell, Sherry’s cat, who is possessed by a ‘demon’ so that he could talk to Sherry and help her defeat the Being that was causing all of the murders. He was hilarious and I loved it every time he showed up.
The story starts off well. It is very much your typical cozy mystery, where there is a small town where lots of murders seem to happen. It totally reminded me of Murder She Wrote. But then things get a little bit weird as Sherry starts to suspect that there is really something else going on here. The demon shows up about half way through the book and gets a lot of attention for awhile, and then sort of falls to the wayside until the end. There really isn’t any demon hunting, and no Buffy type action. But the ending was solid. I liked how Sherry ended up dealing with the demon, or whatever you want to call it. The pacing also got a little bogged down in the middle, but was still ok.
Over all this was a solid, fun cozyish mystery. I liked the characters, and while the plot was a little bit out there, it was still a lot of fun. If you want something cozy, especially a story about an older librarian who solves crimes, this is a book you might want to give a chance. It won’t be for everyone, and those of you looking for a Buffy type book should give it a pass, but it is a lot of fun.
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