Purses, Curses & Hearses — Colleen Gleason

Jacqueline Finch is a lifelong book lover, which is why it was a literal gift from the Universe when she inherited Three Tomes Bookshop at the ripe old age of forty-eight.But she's had a few adjustments to make along the way, including the fact that her bookshop seems to be a haven for literary characters to come alive...and to stick their noses into things that aren't any of their business-including Sherlock Holmes's landlady, Mrs. Hudson, who is constantly bickering with the dour housekeeper from Rebecca, Mrs. Danvers.And then there are the three old ladies down the street, whose resemblance to Macbeth's Witches Three cannot be ignored.Nevertheless, Jacqueline is happy in her new life and everything seems to be going well...even when she discovers that Dickens's the Artful Dodger has come to life at Three Tomes Bookshop.Why Dodger is here and what problem he's meant to solve for some real-life person is the question-but in the meantime, Jacqueline has to figure out how to keep the light-fingered pickpocket from dipping his hands into her customers' pockets and purses!She manages to keep Dodger under wraps until a young woman bursts into the shop claiming her husband is trying to kill her. Jacqueline springs into action, but it turns out the threatened young woman wants a specific kind of assistance that Jacqueline has no idea how to provide...the sort of assistance not found in books...Things get even worse when Cinderella shows up at the shop and the Artful Dodger falls for her...and neither of them have any intention of returning to their books in a timely manner-if ever.Jacqueline's got her hands full, but with the help of the three crones and her two best friends, she's determined to muddle through...somehow.