Book Review: Bury the Lead by Kate Hilton and Elizabeth Renzetti

When I first saw this upcoming release in the publisher’s catalogue, I got really excited. I’ve read books by both Kate Hilton and Elizabeth Renzetti and really enjoyed them, so that’s check number one in the ‘promising’ category. Check number two is that their first book together is a mystery set in cottage country – my favourite place! Bury the Lead takes place in fictional Port Ellis, which I imagine as a mixture of real-life cottage country locales Bracebridge, Port Carling, and Bala. This cozy mystery has received rave reviews all across Canada that are well deserved. With a smart protagonist who doesn’t take crap from other people, Cat Conway is a journalist we love to root for. As readers we also learn a bit about the demise of the print industry as she chases the next lead, all wrapped up in a very entertaining package.

Plot Summary

Cat has returned to small town Port Ellis after getting sacked from her job as a journalist in the big city. She’s also struggling with the demise of her marriage, and the fact that her teenage son doesn’t seem all that eager to see her again. Luckily she’s managed to find a job at the local paper the Quill & Packet, where she works with an eclectic but tight-knit group of folks who are doing all they can to keep it afloat. The small town is buzzing with the return of legendary actor Eliot Fraser who is starring in the summer season’s biggest play, but on opening night, he drops dead in front of everyone, apparently poisoned. There is no shortage of people who hated this man; from his young biographer whom he sexually harassed, to the other actors in the play whom he has stolen parts from, to the local baker he got fired from a lucrative catering gig, suspects are easy to find. Eager to re-start her career, Cat sets her sights on breaking open this huge story, but is hindered the incoming journalists from all over the world who have flocked to Port Ellis to report on the death of this famous man. When she starts receiving warnings and threats to back off, it’s obvious she is getting closer to revealing the culprit, but when her sleuthing threatens to reveal long-ago secrets from Port Ellis’s past, the peaceful calm she’s created for herself in her second life is threatened.

My Thoughts

The last book I read by Renzetti (a journalist herself) was all about feminism, and there is a definite streak of feminism in this book. It’s a subtle theme, but Cat is weary of men taking advantage of her in all aspects of her life; from the lecherous man she’s reporting on (Eliot had a history), to the way her ex-husband lords over her with his money, to the sting of why she lost that big city job in the first place, gender sits at the intersection of many of the conflicts this story touches upon. It’s not just men vs. women however, as many male characters recognize the disgusting behavior of other men. One of the most entertaining parts of the book is the celebration of life for Elliot, where drunkenly honest speeches are made about him:

” ‘ He was a famously ungenerous colleague. He loved nothing better than exerting power over others, undermining their confidence, making them doubt their own talent. Women were objects to him, and it was a miracle that MeToo hadn’t caught up with him yet. Just one more way in which he was lucky in life.’ Now Jonah raised a glass, and the audience, confused, followed suit. ‘Bon voyage, Eliot. Enjoy the toasty weather down there’ “.

p. 163-164, Bury the Lead by Kate Hilton and Elizabeth Renzetti, ARC edition

There are some darker undertones to the story that develop as the plot progresses; Cat does face real danger at times, and the stories of Eliot’s past are quite horrific. However, the tone of the book remains fairly light throughout. In a small town where the ultra-rich cottagers are juxtaposed with the patient and reasonable locals, a sense of humour goes a long way, and most of the characters have wry remarks (both internally and within dialogue) that I appreciated. Those in the newspaper industry especially are both self-aware enough to realize their careers are limited, but optimistic enough to try anyway:

“Our online readership was reasonably healthy, and it had seen a huge spike after Eliot’s death. The print edition was another matter. In a rare moment of defeatism, Dorothy had told me that the average age of subscribers was ‘one year away from death'”.

p.69, Bury the Lead, ARC edition

These little quips made me laugh out loud, but I was equally eager to return to the investigation as it progresses in the eyes of Cat and her rag tag group of fellow journalists. A fast-moving plot with charming characters and setting all came together to create the perfect balance in this novel, and I look forward to the second in the Quill and Packet series, whenever that is released.