One Minute It's September, The Next Minute it's Mid October!

  

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

This month I have been trying better time management.  I'm getting up at 5:30 or 6:00 a.m. planning to get some motif writing done, however it's not happening. The time between when I get up and when I have to leave for work passes in the blink of an eye! I'm trying to tell myself to get up, make coffee, and write for 30 minutes. What happens is I get up, go downstairs to make coffee, unload the dishwasher, feed the dog, check work emails, etc etc. I bet you can relate. 

I went to a program at my local library this past week called Mourning and Spirituality in the Victorian Era. I took notes because it was very interesting and maybe someday I'll have a ghost character from the 1870s who spent most of her adulthood in full mourning. My take away about mourning in the Victorian Era is that is really sucked to be a woman. You had to be in mourning for so many people I don't know how anyone coped. 

I've started drafting my four small town romance book wish me luck! My biggest problem is I procrastinate my writing and get easily distracted. How was your week? Did you read anything good? I just got a refurbished MacBook and I am learning how to use it. 

When you were in full mourning you covered yourself head to toe in black and didn't wear any jewelry You had to wear a veil over your face when you were out in public and depending how you were related to the person who died you could be in mourning for 3 months to two years. Did you know people reenact this era and dress in mourning clothes? I did not. One last fact the fabric for full mourning was crepe and part of the process to dull crepe could involve dousing it with formaldehyde so these women were walking around breathing in some nasty chemicals on top of everything else! 

Homicide in Hardcover-- The Cozy Mystery Club September Book!

 

I listened to the audio version of this book. I couldn't find it via Libby so I used an Audible credit so I could listen to the book before the book club. The audio was good. I did get stuck when one character was in the scene.  He sounded so smarmy, I don't know if that was because of how he was voiced or written--but he is the love interest, so I am not sure about that!  

The main character Brooklyn grew up in a commune and is a book restorer.  Her mom and her best friend are quirky. The story has creative red herrings and will keep you guessing about who did it and why! 

One part at the end was in 'too dumb to live' territory, in my opinion. I will leave you to check out this quick cozy read and if you do, let me know what you think! As always with the first book in the series, the book can be a little shaking or have a lot of characters and then things really hit their stride as the series goes on, so if you enjoy the first book, more good stuff to come! 

Excellent Audio Reader and a Very Unique Thriller!

Add this book to your spooky season TBR!

Alyssa Cole is a writer I enjoy and if she has a book out, I'm going to read it. In this case, I read it with my ears. The narrator for this book is fantastic! This thriller is very unique. The heroine has disassociative identity disorder (known in the past as multiple personalities).  Because of the disorder, she isn't always the person who is in control. She slips in and out consciousness as her other head mates take over. The thriller takes place in a post-COVID world and it starts with the main head mate suddenly waking up in her body after being gone for several years. The next thing she knows she is on her way to start a new job as a castle caretaker on a mysterious island.

How can you not read this book, especially during the spooky season! The book has a low star rating on Goodreads, and I think this is sadly due to the concept of the main character not being in control of their own mind in a thriller is so unique it may have disappointed readers?  I give it five stars, the story really had me enthralled.

Our local grocery store had a great deal on squash this week, so I stocked up! I'll be roasting some very soon! 

 

The Sunday Post: Fall Has Arrived!

 

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

Fall has arrived. Yesterday it was 91 degrees (31 Celcius) and today we are supposed to have a high around 75 (23 Celcius) --plus it is supposed to rain!  We haven't had any rain in weeks and it it so dry. This is in part why my allergies have been terribly bad. I am really hoping we get some nice rain and I get allergy relief. 

I'm looking forward to chilly mornings!

I thought for sure I had posted a review of One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole on Thursday, but when I came here today, I realized I didn't! It will be posted tomorrow. Then on Wednesday, I have a post scheduled for Homicide in Hardcover by Kate Carlisle.  Friday I will have The Location Shoot up.  Next weekend we have a wedding on Saturday and on Sunday I am participating in a handcrafted event at a local brewery. I'll be selling my book!  Wish me luck!

What do you have coming up? 

Could You Use A Few More Books? Or Funds For Bookish Merch?

 

Who doesn't need a little more romance in their life?  Right?  So to that end, I'm participating in a big romance giveaway.  You can enter it here: https://www.bookthrone.com/september-viral-romance-giveaway

I finished reading a book I got from the Amazon First Reads program the other day. It's called "Divorce Towers." This was my first experience reading Ellen Meister. I enjoyed the book. Instead of one POV, there are three POV characters. The first is Addison, our main character. The second is Addison's seventy-five-year-old uncle Arnie, and the third is Carly, who is a domestic abuse survivor. The multiple POVs and the three plots overlap and come to a conclusion at the end of the book. Don't worry, there is a HEA. The book is a quick read; in addition to romance, there are mysteries to solve. Ellen Meister does a nice job with the Beverly Hills setting. 

At a couple of points in the book, conversations or events were summarized instead of taking place on the page, and I would have enjoyed being there for those conversations. It would have made the book longer, but also more entertaining. Overall, this is a fun book, an easy relaxing read. 

4 Stars!

The Sunday Post! Sundays Are For Not Leaving The House

 

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

How was your week?  It's been too warm during the day around here and there's no end in sight for ragweed pollen. I am not going to be sad when the ground freezes and kills off the pollen! This upcoming Friday I'm going to a concert with my eldest. I am hoping for cooler temps and no rain. 

Since last week my middle kiddo moved to the middle of Illinois because he got a job at at TV station near the University of Illinois. It's his first ongoing job in his field. He found housing at the last moment, thankfully since he is in a college town, the place was furnished. He loaded his ancient car, drove down, and started his job the same day.  We will be going down to meet him for lunch soon. A long-ago picture of middle kiddo.

Readingwise, I need to stop adding more books to my TBR and read some of the books already on there. But that's not going to happen!

Quick plug: If you like to read cozy romance books with a hint of spice, my first book "No Gouda Without You" will be 99 cents on Kindle tomorrow (September 16th)! Here is the link: https://a.co/d/3fS0O4t

 I am finishing up these books and will be writing about them soon: 

Let the Spooky Season Begin, Haunted to Death by Frank Anthony Polito!

If you like a cozy mystery that doesn't take itself seriously, Haunted To Death is a book you should pick up this fall. You don't have to read the first two books to enjoy the fun of this one. If you watched Scooby Doo as a youth, or as an adult with your own kids, you'll enjoy the Scooby Doo vibes. 

I enjoy how this series is campy. If you don't enjoy any camp, this book might not be for you. For the pet lovers, this book has lots of cute doggy content. As I have mentioned many times on this blog. I am a mood reader, so this book coming out in time for me to enjoy it in September as I look forward to October, is perfect.

This book is also an advertisement for Southern Michigan.  I have now added: Visit the Detroit metro area to my ever-growing cozy mystery-inspired vacation wish list. 
 

Last but certainly not least, this book features the solving of cold case, which is not usually how cozies go.  It's almost extra cozy that way!.

I gave Haunted To Death five-stars on Amazon. I bumped it up 1/2 a star because a couple of the reviews I saw were negative on the book and I wanted to balance those out.  They were unnecessarily harsh!

The Sunday Post! It's The Cold or Allergies Time of Year!

 

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

The temperatures in my neck of the woods have been downright tolerable lately.  I often say that if you want to visit Chicago, September is the best weather time of year to do it. I forget each year that it's also ragweed season and that I am allergic to ragweed. This weekend I've been playing the is it a cold or allergies? I have all the miserable allergy symptoms: itchy eyes, itchy ears, runny nose., sneezing frequently, sinus congestion, and worst of all, the dreaded itchy throat. I slacked off earlier this week and didn't take my daily allergy pill for several days. I guess now I am paying the price. I used to be able to take Benadryl for allergies but now I can't take it. It causes me to have restless legs and that is even worse than allergy symptoms. Okay enough of me! Do you have allergies? 

This weekend I finished reading Haunted To Death by Frank Anthony Polito. I am about halfway through reading Payback is a Witch by Lana Harper (physical book), I have three hours left of One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole on audio, and I"'m ten percent into Divorce Towers on Kindle. Divorce Towers was an Amazon First Reads. 

This is my 996th blog post. With only a few posts to go, I'll hit 1,000 posts! That's wild! I didn't imagine that when I started this blog way back when! 

The Search for a Proper Tagline and a New Release with Strong Sense of Place

This month I'm working on putting together my author website and getting a newsletter going. Did you know that many authors have taglines for their websites?  I didn't, but I do now, and let me tell you, authors are a creative bunch!  So many great taglines that nail their brand. 

I am in awe, and at the same time, I need to come up with my own gem! When I write the Marley Creek series my goal is to write a romance that gives the reader those Hallmark vibes along with some spice. Now the question is, will Hallmark appreciate me using them in my tagline? I'm just a teeny tiny writer in a sea of authors, so maybe it doesn't matter. I don't want to find out after I finish my website and get some fun merch made, so I need to go back to the drawing board.

Here are my rough drafts:

Cozy Romance With A Kick.

Cozy Romance Sprinkled with Some Spice.

Steamy Small Town Romances You'll Stay Home For.

Cozy Comfort Reads.

Cozy Vibes with a Dash Of Spice.

Please let me know your favorite! I need some feedback!

As I mentioned in The Sunday Post, I picked up a new release from Kindle Unlimited. This is the second book in this series. It's set in a town a few hours away from New Orleans and the book is filled with the sights, sounds, and tastes of Southern Louisiana.  Gelly the lead character in this book is a dancer so the book is also filled with many music references. Dance of Love has a HEA for the main characters in this book but has an overarching mystery so it's best read after the first book Learning to Love which is also on Kindle Unlimited. The third and fourth books in the series will be out before the end of the year!  

If you like books with an immersive setting, a light dusting of spice, and romantic suspense, check this series out! 

Here is a link to the book: https://a.co/d/9juFCZ5

Can We Start Fall Now Please? The Sunday Post!

   

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

What I'm reading this weekend: 

I don't know about you, but I am excited to have Monday off! A three-day weekend after a couple of weeks of school!  I'd be more chill about everything, but it's been so hot we haven't even had outside recess. I am ready for sweater weather! I am also ready to break out my fall-themed shirts. Going through my closet I realized I've added four new fall t-shirts over the summer!  I'm going to kick off fall by wearing my Halloween Town shirt.  Do you enjoy the autumn season?

Yesterday I brainstormed with an editor for my upcoming book It App-ened One Night. The brainstorming session was very helpful; now I know I can make this book a satisfying story. I would love for you to join my newsletter. I'll share a prequel to the Marley Creek Series, doing cover and blurb reveals, and ARC sign-ups. Plus I'm commissioning some fun stickers to give to my subscribers! 

Thanks so much! 

The Marley Creek News!

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Are You A Mood Reader? Is It Time for Fall Books?

 I, of course, have started reading fall books. The latest book I've gotten my paws on is Haunted to Death by Frank Polito. When it comes to fall books what are your must haves?  Here are some things I love to see in a fall book:

A fall festival!

Fall food or beverage talk, especially if it involves pumpkins and apples!

References to leaves falling or chilly nights!

Kids or pets or really anyone in costume!

Hints of magic! 

Would you agree with this list or is there something different that gives you all the cozy fall reading vibes?

Covers that have hints of fall are also always appreciated by me if it is a physical book! My love of the fall season is why my first book takes place in October. 

And lucky for me, this week I'm starting to write my next book which will take place a year after the first book. This time around my main character is Donnie. He owns a bakery that is also a bookstore. Can you imagine?  How amazing would that be? He doesn't realize it but he's about to find love! 

If you are in the USA, I hope you have a wonderful Labor Day weekend! I'll be writing and reading, and I'm planning to take some time to go to a craft market at a local brewery! 

Short but Packed with Paranormal Cozy Goodness! Available on KU!

 

This is the first book in Beth Dolgner's Nightmare, Arizona's Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series. It's on the short side, but I didn't find the story lacking or rushed. I enjoyed Olivia embracing her new environment and coming to conclusions about certain things we, the readers, knew right away. 

There are some good red herrings in this book and lots of room for growth. The location is fun. I read Beth's bio and discovered she lives near a Wild West tourist town, so this series is sort of set in a real town—minus all the paranormal elements, of course.

As soon as I finished this book, I returned it to KU so I could pick up the second book in the series. If you are looking for something fluffy and fun, this is an enjoyable read! 

Four Stars for this fun book!

This week our temperatures have been incredibly hot and we even had to cancel outdoor recess at school Last night the heatwave broke, but we also had major thunderstorms.  A large elm tree crashed down onto one of our neighbor's garage and car.  Fortunately, everyone is okay! The holiday weekend is almost here in the USA and I can't wait to do some reading and go for a run! 

Dead and Gondola: A Must Read For Agatha Christie Fans and The Cozy Mystery Book Club Book of the Month!

 

This book takes place in an imaginary Colorado ski town that gave me Apen vibes, but it could be a nod to any of the towns in Colorado where there is a cute downtown and lots of rich people who own third, fourth, or fifth homes there. 

I listened to this book on audio and I had some trouble staying engaged in the story during the first sixty percent. I didn't guess who the killer was and I was impressed by who the killer was, an excellent choice. The book has a lot of Agatha Christie references, so if you love Agatha Christie novels, you have got to read this book! 

Over all the book is a 4 star read for me. I didn't connect much with the main character, at this moment I can't remember her name, but the mystery was solved so well that the book goes from three to four stars for me. 

Want to hear more about this book?  Join us for the Cozy Mystery Book Club Live Stream tomorrow, Tuesday August 27th at six p.m. central time zone.

My friend and fellow author Kelly Reynolds is the co-host for this month's club! Fun! I can't wait ti hear what everyone thinks about the book. 

We have a three day holiday at the end of the week!  My school has a half day on Friday so me and the Hubs are planning to go to a local bar and grill for a happy hour lunch because who doesn't love a good deal! Do you like a discount dinner?

The Sunday Post-- I survived!

  

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

I survived the first week of pre-K, and I now have one week of working with the most delightful three- and four-year-olds!  Were there tears?  Yes. Where they mine? No!  Then when I got home from work I had a snack and took a nap. Seriously--and I bet the kiddos did the same. It's going to be such a treat to see how much the students change as the year goes on. I also look forward to getting better at my job! 

How was your week?  Can you believe this upcoming weekend will be Labor Day weekend?  I can. The summer I had was packed with travel, medical stuff, and thinking back it seems like I was working summer school ages ago. 

I just finished listening to Dead and Gondola in time to take part in the Cozy Mystery Book Club livestream on Tuesday. Speaking of the Cozy Mystery Book Club, I'm going to be doing a guest blog post for the 12 Days of Cozies in December! I'm so excited I have to turn it in by October 15! I plan to talk about a few Christmas Cozy Mysteries and share a cookie recipe I love.

In my own person book news, my latest book Is This Love Fur Real? was a sponsor on this weeks Fated Mates podcast.  You can hear it around the 45-minute Mark! Here is a link to the episode: https://fatedmates.net/episodes

Don't Let a Few Crisp Mornings Fool You!

Just in time for all the visitors to Chicago for the Democratic National Convention and the start of most schools in the area, we've had a week of blue skies, cool mornings, and best of all--low humidity.  But as someone who has spent most of my life here, I knew summer wasn't over!  

Next week our temperatures will be in the high 90F (aka mid 30C), yuck. Since I've been recuperating from the dental surgery, I haven't been able to run, and now I will need to be smart and not try to get back in the running groove when it's a thousand degrees outside.

Fans of Fall, we can turn on the air and try to carry on making soup and chili, but the weather isn't cooperating! I will focus on finishing a book set in the fictional town of Nightmare, Arizona. 

We have a fun new phenomenon in our area, local booksellers are teaming up with craft breweries for adult book fairs.  As a kid who loved book fair day, the chance to peruse books with a tasty beverage in my hand is a dream come true. I love this trend and I hope it continues!  

How about you? Did you love the school book fairs? Have you seen any adult book fairs in your area?