A new day!
A new home!
A new job!
A new life!
I can not wait to get downstairs and get started on my very first day as the assistant director of the Bodie Island Lighthouse Library.
My name is Nichelle Gilcrest. I’m 54 years old. I’m from Rochester, NY, and this is my first job as a real librarian. I married my high school sweetheart, Steve, far too young. The marriage went sour fairly quickly, but we stuck it out for the sake of our twin daughters, Isabelle and Simone. But, eventually his cheating got to be too much and too blatant, and once the girls were educated and out in the world with jobs and relationships of their own, I decided it was my time. My time to live my life as I’ve always wanted.
I divorced the cheating rat, went back to college, and got a degree in library science, and to my total amazement I landed this job in this wonderful place. And even better – the job comes with a tiny apartment on the 4th floor of the lighthouse tower. What a commute! The 100 steps should help keep me in shape!
The timing was perfect, as the long-time library director, Bertie James, retired and her job was passed to the assistant director, Lucy McNeil, when Lucy to returned from maternity leave, now having two delightful little twin boys of her own, Isaac and Lucas. So far, I’ve only met Lucy online, but she seems lovely and I’m confident she’ll be here with help and guidance as I settle into the job.
Although somewhere something was mentioned about solving mysteries and working with the police as part of the job? I’m sure whoever said that was kidding. Ha Ha. If it does happen, I have Lucy to go to for advice.
Nags Head, North Carolina, where I’ll be living, has highly unpleasant connotations for my family. But I reminded myself that what happened here, happened a long time ago. I’m confident I’ll be able to put it out of my mind and just enjoy being here.
First things first! It’s my first day on the job and I scarcely slept a wink last night. I’m in charge of getting the day started. Coffee on. Computers booted up. Alarm shut off and doors unlocked. Quick check that everything is in place.
That done, I can throw open the front door and take good deep breaths of that fresh salty air, feel the sea breeze in my face, and hear birds flying above the marsh.
But wait… What’s that on the front steps? Surely it can’t be…
WHOSE BODY IN THE LIBRARY
Series: A Lighthouse Library Mystery, Book 13
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: June 2026
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Purchase Link
A new librarian’s first day goes terribly wrong when she finds a dead body on the front steps of the library.
In the thirteenth installment of the beloved Lighthouse Library mysteries, a new character takes the reins.
While Lucy McNeil is enjoying her new job as the mother of twin boys and library director, new librarian Nichelle Gilchrest has just arrived at the Bodie Island Lighthouse Library, reporting for duty. But life throws a wrench on Nichelle’s first day when she finds a body on the steps—a body that bears a startling resemblance to her father, who disappeared on a fishing trip to the Outer Banks thirty-eight years ago.
Fingerprints confirm the dead body is indeed Nichelle’s father, now living in Nags Head under the name Brian Saunders. Brian had been befriending older lonely women in exchange for money, but was he working alone?
Detective Rhonda Thomas is on the case, and the suspect list is only getting longer. Sorting through the wronged women and their relatives, Detective Thomas discovers Nichelle’s own brother, Brad, had been in Nags Head a few days before the murder happened and has been lying about his whereabouts.
Hoping to clear her brother’s name, Nichelle decides to investigate what happened. With seasoned sleuth Lucy’s gentle encouragement for the amateur, Nichelle is in for an exciting and dangerous first week at the library.
About the author
Vicki Delany is one of Canada’s most prolific and varied crime writers and a national bestseller in the U.S. She has written more than sixty books: clever cozies to Gothic thrillers to gritty police procedurals, to historical fiction and novellas for adult literacy. She is currently writing the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series, the Year-Round Christmas mysteries, the Tea by the Sea books, and the Lighthouse Library series (as Eva Gates).
She is a past chair of the Crime Writers of Canada and co-founder and organizer of the Women Killing It Crime Writing Festival. She is the recipient of the 2019 Derrick Murdoch Award for contributions to Canadian crime writing, and will be the Cozy Guest of Honor at Bouchercon in Calgary in 2026. Vicki lives in Prince Edward County, Ontario.