A Staged Death ~ Audiobook Review for Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours

A STAGED DEATH

A Lady Librarian Mystery, Book Four

BY SAMANTHA LARSEN

Narrated by: Marni Penning

Cozy Mystery / Historical Fiction

Audiobook Published March 31, 2026

Audio: 8 hours, 30 minutes

ABOUT THE BOOK

A cozy historical mystery set in the 18th century—perfect for Bridgerton fans!

1787, Bath. Mrs. Tiffany Lathrop has catalogued the entire library at Astwell Palace and is feeling rather dull when Mr. Thomas Montague invites her and her husband Samir to visit Bath. Thomas begs Tiffany to help reconcile his mother Catharine, the Marchioness of Harwood, on his engagement to the famous actress Miss Rosalyn Arden—a beautiful young woman with bright red curls and eyes of mismatched color.

Eager to see his beloved, Thomas stops at the Theatre Royal with Tiffany and they discover a dead body wearing a red wig in Rosalyn’s dressing room. The body is that of Miss Julia Shakespeare, Rosalyn’s understudy and the person who has been blackmailing members of the acting company. Not only are the actors behaving suspiciously, but so are Rosalyn’s newly reconciled relatives that cast her off nine years before when she jilted Sir Frederick Bingham, who then married her younger sister.

If all the world is a stage, then someone acting innocent must be the murderer. Can Tiffany solve the mystery before the final curtain?

BUY THE AUDIOBOOK

Audible 

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BOOK REVIEW

I don't spend time on plot summary, so please read the synopsis above.

HALL WAYS AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: I'm smitten with this series (even though I still haven't gotten back to read book two). I love the premise, I love the characters, and author Samantha Larsen knows how to tell a twisty, turny, terrific tale to keep readers guessing from start to finish.

Normally when I read (or read with my ears), I take all kinds of notes about the story. But in listening to A STAGED DEATH, the fourth book in the fabulous A Lady Librarian Mystery series, I wrote nothing down. It was just pure listening enjoyment. 

One of the highlights of reading this series is the Author's Note at the end of each book. Larsen separates fact from fiction and shares her dives down research rabbit holes. This is fascinating but also lends an additional air of authenticity to her stories. 

In A STAGED DEATH, readers get their armchair travel to 1787 Bath, England, and the theatre, where shenanigans ensue and a plethora of questionable characters are introduced. Larsen excels at writing fully fleshed-out, quirky characters for readers to love, loathe, or laugh about. Lady Catherine, who's been a part of the stories from the beginning, is becoming more and more interesting, and it's fun to watch her throw her power around in a time when many men just weren't having it from females.  Catherine's friendship with Tiffany is further cemented in this installment, too, and the leveling is refreshing. 

ABOUT THE AUDIOBOOK: The narrator, Marni Penning, is outstanding. As I mentioned in prior reviews, she truly performs the parts with delightful voicing of young and old, male and female, nefarious and innocent -- and snooty! She excels at snooty! Her pacing and delivery are perfect, and the audio is glitch-free. (I listened at 1.1x on the NetGalley app.)

Happily, each installment stands alone, but I recommend starting at the beginning with A Novel Surprise, if for no other reason than to watch the relationship develop between main character Tiffany and bookshop owner & constable Samir. Coming from someone who tends to avoid romance, this is huge. The author manages to sprinkle just enough details of their interactions that we're hooked on seeing these two flourish together -- even if minor things like murders, accusations, and prison seem to put a strain on things. 

In case it's not obvious, I highly recommend this series to readers who enjoy a marvelous mystery that does its own thing within classic cozy tropes. A STAGED DEATH is the best book yet.

I received the audiobook download via Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours, and I should have posted on that blog tour; however, LIFE interfered. My sincere apologies to the author and tour host. Visit the tour page for links to other participants' reviews and special features. I loved the book and can't wait to see what's next in this series. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Samantha writes cozy mysteries under Samantha Larsen and historical romances under Samantha Hastings. She met her husband in a turkey sandwich line. They live in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she spends most of her time reading, eating popcorn, having tea parties, and chasing her four kids. 

She has degrees from Brigham Young University, University of North Texas, and University of Reading (UK). She's the author of: The Last Word, The Invention of Sophie Carter, A Royal Christmas Quandary, The Girl with the Golden Eyes, Jane Austen Trivia, The Duchess Contract, Secret of the Sonnets, The Marquess and the Runaway Lady, and A Novel Disguise. 

Website ** Facebook ** Instagram ** X ** BookBub

READ MY AUDIOBOOK REVIEW OF BOOK ONE, A NOVEL DISGUISE ON:

GOODREADS, AMAZON, OR AUDIBLE. 

CLICK TO READ MY AUDIOBOOK REVIEW OF BOOK THREE, A POETIC POX

A Poetic Pox: A Lady Librarian Mystery ~ Audiobook Review

A POETIC POX

A Lady Librarian Mystery, Book Three

BY SAMANTHA LARSEN

Narrated by: Marni Penning

Cozy Mystery / Historical Fiction

eBook: 275 pages; Published January 29, 2026

Audio: 8 hours, 47 minutes; Published July 22, 2025

ABOUT THE BOOK

1786, England. It is the twelve days of Christmas and Mrs. Tiffany Lathrop is happily juggling her duties as a new mother and a librarian to Catharine, the Duchess of Beaufort. Her employer receives a mysterious letter from an old paramour, the Marquess of Harwood, who is the biological father of Catharine’s son. He promises to leave his estate and fortune to Beau if he can see the boy before he dies.

Her elder son Thomas Montague has a terrible cold, so Catharine asks Tiffany to accompany her and Beau. When they arrive at the dilapidated abbey, they discover a dead body—only it isn’t the marquess, but his valet! Lord Harwood is alive, but unconscious with suspicious looking pox marks on his hands. Tiffany wonders if the marquess is really dying, or if it is all poetic revenge? Especially when she discovers the secrets that haunt Rosedean Abbey.

Between breastfeeding and dirty diapers, Tiffany must discover who killed the valet and attempted to murder the marquess before anyone else dies.

BUY THE BOOK

Kindle *** Audiobook 

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BOOK REVIEW

I don't spend time on plot summary, so please read the synopsis above.

HALL WAYS AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Between the title, cover, and the audiobook sample I listened to, there was no way I wasn’t going to dive into A Poetic Pox as soon as possible and stay there until the last word had been uttered. Sometimes, you just *know* when a book is a perfect fit, and I’m happy to report that my gut didn’t do me dirty in choosing A Poetic Pox for my next listen. Reminiscent of one of my favorite characters, Lady Sherlock of Sherry Thomas’s series of the same name, main character Mrs. Tiffany Lathrop is sharp as a tack, witty, and defies societal expectations and behaviors. What fun!

A Poetic Pox includes a plethora of characters to keep up with and few relationships are straightforward. In this respect, it might be easier to read with the eyes as opposed to the ears. My solution was to just jot down names and details - then mark them out and update them; the author definitely keeps readers on their toes with surprising reveals, one after another. Possibly, the new eBook version will have a cast of characters. 

“I would not paint all women as sinners or saint. Life is far too complicated for such simplistic morality.”

Set in eighteenth-century England during the days leading up to The Twelfth Night, A Poetic Pox gives readers a peek into societal norms and class and gender differences of the time. One interesting aspect of the book is how the characters are breaking those boundaries. Another interesting aspect is the factual history of the smallpox epidemic, and author Samantha Larsen doesn’t shy away from depicting the horrors of it and the medical treatments of the time. *shiver* It’s clear she’s done her research. (Side note: we’re currently watching Ken Burns’s American Revolution series on PBS, so seeing the parallel impact of the disease on this side of the pond at the same time.) Add in a hint of the paranormal, secret passages, a decaying abbey, and dodgy characters-a-plenty, A Poetic Pox is practically unputdownable with its worldbuilding.

“Why did Tiffany yearn for more than what her Lord had so generously given her?”

While the novel is historical fiction, Larsen also reminds readers of women’s issues and themes that are timeless: the guilt of a mom who wants more than just motherhood; the difficulty of finding balance; the ruminations about life and purpose. There are regular – and likely quite intentional – interruptions in the story while Tiffany has to nurse or change the nappy of a demanding baby. These parts often offered some comic relief and tenderness against the horrors of death and disease.

Going in, I didn’t realize that A Poetic Pox is the third book in the A Lady Librarian Mystery series because I didn’t have any trouble following the story as a stand-alone. However, I am very interested in knowing the backstory of how Tiffany became a private librarian at all, given the period, how she first met Samir Lathrop, a bookseller who is now her husband, and of course, Lady Catharine’s full, sure-to-be-juicy story. (I’ve already downloaded the audiobook of the first book in the series, A Novel Disguise, and can’t wait to get started and get all the tea.)

ABOUT THE AUDIOBOOK: The narrator, Marni Penning, is outstanding and truly performs the parts with delightful voicing of young and old, male and female, nefarious and innocent. Her pacing and delivery are perfect, and the audio is glitch-free. (I listened at 1.1x on the Audiobooks.com app.)

Hang on to your petticoats! A Poetic Pox provides a wild, twisty plot with surprising reveals that come one after another, like aftershocks to an earthquake. But fear not: the author brings it back around to give readers a happy, hopeful ending – and plenty of anticipation for a next installment. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Samantha writes cozy mysteries under Samantha Larsen and historical romances under Samantha Hastings. She met her husband in a turkey sandwich line. They live in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she spends most of her time reading, eating popcorn, having tea parties, and chasing her four kids. 

She has degrees from Brigham Young University, University of North Texas, and University of Reading (UK). She's the author of: The Last Word, The Invention of Sophie Carter, A Royal Christmas Quandary, The Girl with the Golden Eyes, Jane Austen Trivia, The Duchess Contract, Secret of the Sonnets, The Marquess and the Runaway Lady, and A Novel Disguise. 

Website ** Facebook ** Instagram ** X ** BookBub

READ MY AUDIOBOOK REVIEW OF BOOK ONE, A NOVEL DISGUISE ON:

GOODREADS, AMAZON, OR AUDIBLE. 

READ MY AUDIOBOOK REVIEW OF BOOK FOUR, A STAGED DEATH