Audiobook review: Overdue by Elizabeth Spann Craig
Overdue is the second story in the small-town library-centric Village Library Mysteries. The tale picks up not long after the first title, with Ann discovering the body of a library board member in the basement of the building. Soon Ann finds herself in the center of the investigation, helping the police as she uncovers clues.
After enjoying the first title in the series, I was excited to start Overdue; however, shortly into the book, I felt the writing was off and character traits that I noticed in the previous book really started bugging me.
I found it odd as Ann speaks to different people regarding the murder, she’s leaving out parts of the conversations without self-acknowledging it. Since the story is shared via Ann’s first person POV, the reader is in her head. If she is aware she’s hiding things, she would think about it and we would know it. But the way the story is written, it seems like there are continuity issues and different scenes don’t fit together. Also, it’s odd how everyone is making a huge deal over Ann discovering two bodies in such a short time, yet the same thing happened not that long ago (book 1).
The murder is pretty straightforward. I did figure out fairly quickly the who and why of the murder, but I still enjoyed watching Ann put it together. She’s very observant and always finds ways to get answers without appearing intrusive. That said, sometimes her detective work feels gossipy, especially when she makes a point of telling the reader she doesn’t like to gossip.
Unfortunately, Ann really started to annoy me as the story progresses. Ann is a pushover. She hates blind dates (for a good reason!), yet she won’t say no when she’s ask to go on one, and the date is cringy. She is overworked, but she never mentions to her boss that she needs help or time, or when he piles on more jobs. Some of the side characters are also annoying. Many of the characters feel one-dimensional; they have their “quirk” or “thing” and that’s all they are.
Narration: Overdue is shared via the first person POV of Ann. Overall, Nordlinger has an upbeat voice, with a touch of deepness, making it age appropriate and fitting for Ann. Nordlinger often softens her voice to project calm and caring. Dialogue is altered based on gender and age. In general, there aren’t big differences between characters but enough that I can generally tell when different people are talking. After a while, I noticed that sometimes Nordlinger speaks with a matter-of-fact sounding voice, which can be direct and a little void of emotion.
In the end, Overdue is a decent mystery, but I am not a fan of the characters.
My Ratings
Story: C-
Narration: B-
Jen
About the Book:
Carmen King is a busy woman. Not only does she sit on the library board and dabble in the Friends of the Library, but she juggles quite a few relationships at once. Apparently, this doesn’t go over well with at least one of her boyfriends—Carmen is found dead at the bottom of the library staircase.
Librarian Ann Beckett not only finds Carmen’s body, but finds herself entangled in Carmen’s mysterious death as she sets out to learn why Carmen’s death, from the killer’s perspective, was overdue.
Author: Elizabeth Spann Craig
Narrator: Romy Nordlinger
Series: Village Library Mysteries #2
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Audiobook Release Date: February 18, 2025
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Length: 6 hrs 12 min
Source: publisher
Audio Speed: 1.4x
