Mrs. Ryan Moser's Book and Movie Reviews: Review and Giveaway: Bleeding Heart Librarian by: Jackie Layton

Bleeding Heart Librarian JustRead Blog Tour

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Bleeding Heart Librarian by Jackie Layton, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: Bleeding Heart Librarian
Series: A Texas Flower Farmer Cozy Mystery #3
Author: Jackie Layton
Publisher: Level Best Books
Release Date: May 6, 2025
Genre: Cozy Mystery

Emma Justice is friends with the local librarian and brings her extra flowers once a week. On a hot July morning, when people are gathered outside the closed library past opening time, Emma calls the police. The librarian’s body is found in the building and beside the body is a pink and white bleeding heart plant.

Tess Carranza was a lovely person dedicated to children and patrons of the library in Lutz, Texas. Tess recently confided to Emma about her fear someone was using the library to gather information to commit crimes. Emma didn’t get the entire story from Tess before her death, but now she’s determined to stop the crime and catch Tess’s killer.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Jackie Layton is the author of cozy mysteries with Spunky Southern Sleuths. Her stories are set in Texas, Georgia, and South Carolina. She lives on the coast of South Carolina, where she enjoys walks on the beach and golf cart rides around the marsh. Reading, gardening, and traveling are some of her favorite hobbies. Jackie always keeps a notebook handy to write down ideas for future stories. Many of her ideas come from people watching and watching Dateline and American Greed.

Connect with Jackie by visiting jackielaytoncozyauthor.com to follow her on social media and subscribe to email newsletter updates.

Review

This year was the first time I had really dipped my toes into the world of cozy mysteries, and this book did not disappoint. Bleeding Heart Librarian is the first book I have read written by Jackie Layton, and it did not disappoint. It checked all the boxes on my expectations and hooked me from the start. I look forward to reading some more.

The character development was great. I loved seeing Emma trying to figure out her flower farm dream as a single mom. Also, getting a second chance at love. Jake also has development, trying to navigate his future while pivoting from his dream.

The storyline was the perfect cozy mystery storyline. I appreciated that I did not guess the ending. There was a lot of spider webbing with multiple murders, so trying to figure out if it was a serial killer or someone else was a fun dynamic.

The relationship between Emma and Jake was a sweet, low-spice, kiss-only romance.

The faith element was a little on the light side. There is mention of prayer in a kind of passing manner.

*I received a complimentary copy from the author and voluntarily chose to review it. All opinions are my own.

Tour Giveaway

(1) winner will receive a Texas-and-flower themed prize bundle which includes an ebook of Bleeding Heart Librarian, a $5 Starbucks card, lip balm and holder, a blue and white bag, a fabric coaster, a designer Wet-It swedish cleaning cloth, a journal, a car coaster and an alarm key chain!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight May 19, 2025 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on May 26, 2025. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!