Written Off by Barbara Cornthwaite

My Review

Written Off by Barbara Cornthwaite is the third book in the cozy series Wilkester Mysteries. I reviewed the first book, Brought to Book, last October but I have not read the second book, Snuffed Out, and have some gaps in my knowledge of the series timeline.

This third book is less a mystery than a character study and way to process racism and hate crimes. Normally, I’d be rather unhappy about that. After all, this is a cozy mystery series, not a literary look at today’s societal ills. However, 2020 was a year that needs processing and Ms. Cornthwaite chose her medium (a novel) to do so.

Hate crimes affect us all and it will probably, as a theme, appear in many books for the next few years. Ms. Cornthwaite does her due diligence and shows both sides of the coin, so to speak, on how to “fix” it. There’s no one answer, unfortunately, as everyone has a differing opinion. That being said, her main character, Katrina, stands fast to her beliefs. This adds another layer to the already interesting character study Ms. Cornthwaite wrote.

Once again, Katrina is an awesome character. She’s a lit professor and has a love of reading that rivals my own (and possibly Chautona Havig’s). Ms. Cornthwaite allows Katrina to grow in her faith, her relationship, and her personal beliefs. They were all tested and I think they came out stronger in the end.

As with the first novel, this is a Christian cozy that glorifies God and includes Him throughout the story. If you prefer a cozy without a strong Christian message, this is not the book for you.

I’d recommend this book for any literature lover but more for those who enjoy character studies and thematic exploration with a touch of mystery and romance.

It’s a good book, don’t get me wrong, but it does not fulfill the series overall story question, e.g. whodunnit. For that reason, I’m giving it a 3-star rating. I did like it but I expected something different.

GoodReads Rating: ★★★☆☆ I liked it.

By the way, I have downloaded Snuffed Out, book 2 of the series, on Amazon Kindle Unlimited and will be reading it too. I’ll post that review to Goodreads so keep an eye out for it! If you don’t follow me on Goodreads, you can do so here.

About the Book

Book:  Written Off

Author: Barbara Cornthwaite

Genre: Christian Cozy Mystery

Release date: May 2021

“Break a leg?”  They’ll be lucky if they don’t all break their necks!

After years of waiting, Katrina finally has her happily ever after. All is right with her world . . . until hate crimes begin happening in the charming college town of Wilkester. Even more disturbing is the fact that the perpetrator seems to be connected with the writing class Katrina teaches. How can she prevent her rosy visions of the future from turning into broken dreams?

Find out in this third book of the Wilkester Mysteries.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Barbara Cornthwaite lives in the middle of Ireland with her husband and children. She taught college English before “retiring” to do something she loves far more; her days are now filled with homeschooling her six children, trying to keep the house tidy (a losing battle), and trying to stay warm in the damp Irish climate (also a losing battle). She is surrounded by medieval castles, picturesque flocks of sheep, and ancient stone monuments. These things are unappreciated by her children, who are more impressed by traffic jams, skyscrapers, and hot weather.

More From Barbara

What Kind of Lessons Could a Mystery Possibly Teach Me?

It’s been a couple decades since I taught a college English class, and writing the Wilkester Mysteries with Professor Katrina Peters as the main character brought back happy memories of teaching. Not enough to want to go back to it—homeschooling my own kids is much more rewarding—but enough that I had to stop myself from writing much longer lectures into the stories! These are my first contemporary novels, and it was nice to write a story without the hours and hours of historical research I usually have to do. But whatever time period stories are set in, people feel the same emotions and have to learn the same spiritual lessons.

Katrina loves literature and can’t help seeing her own life as a story. The only problem is that she keeps thinking she knows what the Author is doing, and she has definite ideas about what the plot should be. She is not unlike myself: over and over I’ve thought I knew what God was doing in my life. And if He was short on ideas, I had quite a few that He was free to use! But He has rarely been doing what I thought He was, and for some reason, He never seems to use my ideas about what could happen in my story.  Both Katrina and I need to learn the lesson that God’s wisdom is beyond ours, His storytelling is much deeper and richer than ours, and His plots are never predictable!

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, May 31

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 31

Locks, Hooks and Books, June 1

April Hayman, Author, June 1

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, June 2

Losing the Busyness, June 2

Texas Book-aholic, June 3

CarpeDiem, June 3

Remembrancy, June 4

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, June 4

She Lives To Read, June 5

For Him and My Family, June 5

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, June 6

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, June 6

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, June 7

Inklings and notions, June 7

Labor Not in Vain, June 8

Genesis 5020, June 8

Aryn The Libraryan 📚, June 9

Blogging With Carol, June 9

For the Love of Literature, June 10

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, June 10

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, June 11

Joanne Markey, June 11

Through the Fire blogs, June 12

Mary Hake, June 12

deb’s Book Review, June 13

Daysong Reflections, June 13

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Barbara is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon gift card and a paperback of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/10ca5/written-off-celebration-tour-giveaway