Whoa! What have I gotten myself into? Reader, here’s what happened:

I got a job as an archivist at a fancy manor house in the hills of North Carolina. You should see this library! It houses the most wonderful collection of books I’ve ever seen.

So, on my first day of work, I see a first edition copy of Jane Eyre. There’s a glowing L on the cover. I put my hand on it; and the next thing I know, I’m standing in the middle of a street in Victorian England and a woman is saying something hateful to me. I know it’s hateful from the look on her face. I speak English. And being from North Carolina, I’m fairly well-acquainted with accents, but I have no idea what this woman said.

I think I must’ve fallen in the library and hit my head. Maybe I’m unconscious. Maybe I’m in a coma. Maybe this whole thing is a dream. But the cobblestones beneath my feet feel awfully real. And the aroma of fresh horse poop is about to make me gag.

This man comes up and takes my arm. I look over at him, and I know him. I mean, I don’t know him, but I realize he’s Mr. Briggs, the solicitor from Jane Eyre. How did I come to that conclusion? Reader, your guess is as good as mine, but I was right. He takes me to the jail to see Edward Rochester, who has been accused of killing his wife.

Wait a minute. I’ve read Jane Eyre. I know Edward didn’t kill his wife. What’s going on here?

When we walk into the jail, the jailer pinches me, tells me I don’t belong there, and he has a silverfish in his mouth! Reader, I am seriously worried about dental hygiene in merry olde England in the days of yore. But then I find out that the silverfish in the jailer’s mouth is an indication that he is a silverfish and that silverfish are eating the manuscript—that’s why the book no longer makes sense. And I learn that I must discover who really did kill Bertha Mason Rochester in order to set Edward free and to get myself back to North Carolina.

Had I known what I was going to be in for today, I might’ve stayed in bed and pulled the covers up over my head this morning. But, then again, it might be fun to explore the world of Jane Eyre, provided I get to leave it soon.

An Eyre of Mystery, A Literatia Mystery #1
Genre: Cozy with Fantasy elements
Release: July 2022
Purchase Link

Classic literature is at risk of disappearing from the world. . .

When Gia accepts a job as a library archivist at a manor house in North Carolina, she has no idea what she’s in for. On day one, she finds herself outside her comfort zone when she accidentally travels through a magical portal to the world of Jane Eyre. She finds Edward Rochester imprisoned as he awaits his death sentence for killing his wife. But Gia has read the book, and she knows Edward is innocent of murder.

Soon, she realizes that there are sinister mystical forces working to rewrite the narrative, hoping to destroy the manuscript altogether. To restore order and reset the book to its original state, Gia must discover who actually killed Bertha Rochester and framed her husband for the crime.

But few of the people she meets are who they claim to be and they all have secrets. . .including Edward.

About the author
G. Leeson is short for Gayle Leeson, who is known for her cozy mysteries, most recently, the Ghostly Fashionista and Down South Café series. As Amanda Lee, Gayle also wrote the embroidery mystery series. She went with her first initial for this new series to clue readers into the fact that this book—while having many characteristics of a cozy mystery—doesn’t exactly conform to the genre in that it has fantasy elements, such as portals to parallel worlds and shape-shifting silverfish. Gayle is currently working on the next book in the series, A Tale of Two Enemies, where Gia has to travel to the world of A Tale of Two Cities. Read the first five chapters of An Eyre of Mystery by clicking this link: https://BookHip.com/SFPWRLD.

All comments are welcomed.