Death on Dickens Island is the first book in The Books On The Beach Mysteries series by Allison Brooke.
Delia Dickens has returned to Dickens Island after 12 years, to help her father bring their store into the 21st century, and to get to know the son she basically abandoned at 3 years old. When there are disagreements about how the town should use land they are hoping to acquire, and a young woman on the town council is killed, Delia is pulled into the investigation to clear the names of her aunt and uncle.
The book is told in first person, past tense, from the point of view of Delia Dickens, a member of the family for whom the island is named.
I had some problems with Delia, mostly because she dumped her three year old son on her parents for 12 years because it made her life in Manhattan easier. At one point she says she hadn’t meant to leave him for so long, but she never really shows much remorse over it, and is upset because her son is angry with her. To be honest, I thought he was pretty well adjusted considering her actions. You don’t accidentally leave your son for twelve years. That’s a choice.
Unfortunately I also found the mystery to be pretty predictable. There were no real surprises at any point in the story. I also felt like the ghost aspect didn’t really fit this story, and any information gathered from the ghost could have been conveyed through the journals. I think that would have fit better with this book.
I did like most of the other characters, and thought the dog, Riley, stole the show.
Overall Death On Dickens Island was just an okay read for me. It doesn’t inspire me to read further in the series, although I may give book 2 a try to see if it gets better. Sometimes the first book in a series isn’t the best one.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Death on Dickens Island will be available on October 21 2025.
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