Secrets and Scrabble Books in Order

At the center of the Secrets and Scrabble books is Ellery Page, an aspiring screenwriter, champion Scrabble player, and reluctant amateur sleuth who thinks he is making a practical life change when he moves to Pirate's Cove, Rhode Island. Instead, he inherits a struggling mystery bookstore, a crumbling old mansion called Captain's Seat, and more murder than any sensible person should ever have to deal with.

Pirate's Cove is the kind of village that looks built for postcards. That is part of the joke. Josh Lanyon uses all the cozy furniture, cobbled streets, local festivals, eccentric townspeople, gossip, old houses, seaside legends, and then keeps dropping bodies into the middle of it.

The ongoing draw is Ellery himself. He is smart, funny, a little dramatic, and not nearly as good at minding his own business as he keeps promising to be. His life in the village slowly deepens through the series, especially as his connection with Police Chief Jack Carson grows from wary attraction into something steadier, though never uncomplicated. Watson the dog, the bookstore regulars, and the rhythms of island life give the books a warm, lived-in feel.

Each mystery has its own hook. Murder at Pirate's Cove starts with Ellery finding a rival bookseller dead in his shop. Mystery at the Masquerade leans into village tradition and ghostly theatrics. Scandal at the Salty Dog plays with haunting rumors. Later books bring in music festivals, diving, storms, and family history.

The tone stays cozy, but the stakes are real. Ellery gets hurt. Jack gets frustrated. Town secrets have a way of turning personal. Even so, these books are less about grim violence than about charm, timing, and the pleasures of watching a smart amateur work through a puzzle while trying not to fall any harder for the local chief of police.

If you want Josh Lanyon at her most playful, this is a very good place to start.