#ThreeTaintedTeas #NetGalley

Three Tainted Teas is the third book in Lynn Cahoon's Kitchen Witch Mystery series.  I enjoy a nice witchy cozy and in this addition to the series, shifters are added to the world of Magic Springs, so I think this books series is now officially a paranormal cozy series. While there are plenty of cozies that have a witch and her cat and a coven or two.  Not too many cozies expand into a more fulsome paranormal world.  I enjoy paranormal so I was pleased with the additional magical creatures in this book. 

I enjoy that Mia views all of the different magical folk as all the same species at the end of the day. This is a good perspective, she also adheres to a strong set of core beliefs that cause her to think before using her magical skills..unlike some of the spells first ask questions later witches and warlocks around her. 

In this book, weddings are on everyone's minds including Trent and Mia. Trent seems ready to make a larger commitment to Mia and I for one, can't wait for her to catch up to his view of their potential future! Mia is a planner and an organizer and while some readers might find it a little boring to read about her planning the day-to-day, this reader finds it very relaxing to read. Plus all the yummy food talk, it's a nice balance.  Murdery stuff/party planning/food talk! 

4 Starts to #ThreeTaintedTeas Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC! 

You can get this book on Tuesday April 26th! 

Here is the publisher's description for your reference: 

New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon returns with the third installment of her enchanting Kitchen Witch Mysteries starring aspiring witch and culinary entrepreneur Mia Malone, who must dispel a deadly plot to wreck her clients’ wedding!
 

Aspiring witch and culinary entrepreneur, Mia Malone, must dispel a deadly plot to wreck her clients’ wedding in this charming continuation of New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon’s Kitchen Witch Mystery series.
 
Business is bubbling at Mia’s catering service and cooking school, Mia’s Morsels, but toil and trouble are not far behind. Mia just accepted her toughest gig yet: last-minute wedding planner for Magic Springs’ own Romeo and Juliet. Though the small town is fairly accepting of magic, two families have been locked in a vicious feud spanning generations. Unfortunately for both families, they’re about to become in-laws! Amethyst and Tok are excited to wed in a few weeks and somehow Mia must ensure the event is flawless.
 
But when she goes to pick up paperwork from the couple’s previous wedding planner, Mia discovers the woman murdered in an apparent attempt to stop the contentious union. Now, not only is Mia a prime suspect, as the new planner she may also be the killer’s next target. Backed by her squad, her charms—literal and figurative—and a protective amulet from her Grans, it’s up to Mia to save the star-crossed couple’s wedding, her professional reputation…and maybe even her life!

How do you feel about a Cinderella Retelling? An Offer From A Gentleman

Ah yes, season two of Bridgerton on Netflix pulled me in all the way and now I can't sit idly by waiting for Shondaland to make the next book come alive.  So I bought book three the other day, and now I've finished it and am waiting for the next book to come available as I have it on hold at my library.

Exciting news, while I was typing the above paragraph, I got the notice from my library that Romancing Mister Bridgerton is ready for me to pick up!  Yippee! I'll pick it up and then, I think I'll have time to dive into it by the weekend. 

Now back to An Offer from a Gentleman.  Enjoyable, some good will they/won't they action If you like a good sickbed situation you get it. The problem of Sophie's birth is a big obstacle and I thought Julia Quinn deals with it in an interesting way, Mama Bear powers for the win! 

Much of the book takes place outside the ball season, so it will be interesting to see what the Netflix version of this will look like. Also, I think many of us who have come to Bridgerton via the show wonder if this book could possibly transform into a queer story where Benedict finds his HEA with a man? I'm sure the creative powers behind the show could manage it and make it some fantastic viewing. In general, I'd say I don't hold out much hope that this will happen, but I'd love to see it. 

4 Stars for Book 3 in the original Bridgerton series! 

I'm so happy this series continued after the initial run.

 My only complaint about the final book in this series was that the very end had a flash-forward and I was left really wanting

to know what happened between the end and the flash-forward.

So I'm so pleased that in 2020 Kim Harrison went back to writing about Rachel Morgan. Million Dollar Demon is the second book in the second set of The Hollows.  Boy did I enjoy this book. I love that Rachel has become a leader, she has confidence and most importantly she has truly realized she doesn't have to solve or save the world by herself.

If you've read the first 13 books and haven't started this second series now is a great time to catch up as the next book Trouble with the Cursed  will be out in June.

If you haven't read any of this series. Go out and get Dead Witch Walking and start on an amazing journey in Contemporary Fantasy!

5 stars

The book description from GoodReads: 

"To save the city, Rachel Morgan will need to show some teeth in the next Hollows novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison.

The new master vampire of Cincinnati has arrived . . . and she wants Rachel Morgan out. No matter where Rachel goes, Constance is there--threatening Rachel's allies, causing city-wide chaos, and, to add insult to injury, even forcing Rachel out of her current quarters. Ever since Rachel found a way to save the souls of vampires, the old undead's longtime ascendancy has been broken. Now Constance sees eliminating Rachel as the key to consolidating her own power.

Rachel has no desire to be enthralled or killed--and she's terrified of what may become of the city if Constance forces a return to the ancient ways. But even a witch-born demon can't stand against the old undead--at least, not alone. And if Rachel refuses to claim the role of Cincinnati's master demon, the city will tear itself apart, taking her and all those who stand beside her with it."

The Sunday Post, Hoppy Easter!

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

Happy Easter to those who celebrate!  Here is a flashback to an Easter when the kids were small. Now the big kids are enjoying our annual egg hunt. I fill the eggs with money so, it's a popular egg hunt.  I have it set up so they only get X amount of egg each so no one gets more money than anyone else. (it's $20 per kid) 

Dinner is going to be my favorites: Ham, potato salad, asparagus, a veggie tray, and cookies for dessert! PLUS deviled eggs!  Yum!

This week was another week of up and down cooler than expected temperatures and little sunshine. I have all my fingers and toes crossed that changes this week!  The best of the past week for me was that I had my 6-month follow-up CT scan (the anxiety leading up to the actual test sucked in the extreme) and got the results in less than 24 hours everything was unremarkable --ie normal! WAHOO!!! 

How was your week? And how do you feel about Peeps? 

Reviews coming up this week:

 

The Sunday Post! She found the dress!

 

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

Hi Everyone! Did you have a good week? I hope so! I finished reading some fun books, had a doctor's appointment in which the after-visit summary described me as pleasant, and my daughter found her prom dress.

fingers crossed that it arrives quickly and that we have time to get it altered should it need to be altered. The dress she tried on here was a size too big so maybe we'll get lucky and it won't need altering. She also agreed with me that it would be pointless to purchase heels to go with this dress as no one is going to see her feet and she might wind up putting a heel through some of this tulle! 

The color is lovely, don't you think? 

Like A Sister by Kellye Garrett

 

Having enjoyed  Hollywood Homicide immensely, I was looking forward to the day it was my turn to check out Like A Sister from my library. Now this book is considered a thriller, not a cozy mystery, which is fine because I enjoy both genres.

Thrillers are usually tense, and this book does have tension--but there isn't the ticking clock countdown most thrillers have, and this book has more humourous lines than a thriller usually has, Like a Sister contains elements found in cozy mysteries in a thriller situation. 

One example of the descriptive humor in this book:

"Ms. Scott, you beat us." Green was behind me, joined by a standard-issue young white guy. The type who looked like he made daily use of his Planet Fitness membership but never whipped the machine down after. "My partner, Detective Zizza." 

This book was a fast read, I really don't like putting down thrillers if I can help it. I have heard that the audio version of this book is fantastic. As I said above, I borrowed the book from my library after having to wait a month on the holds list. The first option my library had was the physical copy of the book, so I grabbed it. 

This book is good it is entertaining and I rate it a 4.

I will say I have a couple of questions about the how of the murder and the why. I could have really used an additional paragraph or two from the killer explaining how they did it and why they felt they needed to--I think they could have resolved the issue easily without killing anyone. Two of the other suspects could have committed the murder more easily and with good very good motives.

I wonder if Kellye Garrett wrote any drafts with one of the other suspects as the killer but then decided to go with who is ultimately the murderer. This book could really have at least three different very plausible endings. I kind of wish this was a choose your own adventure book with several endings!

In any case, I look forward to what Kellye Garrett writes next! 

One of My Favorite Series Has a New Book Coming out Soon

 Thanks very much #NetGalley for the opportunity to enjoy an ARC of the latest book in Allison Brook's Haunted Library Mystery Series-- Dewey Decimated.  This book is the sixth installment of this very enjoyable cozy series featuring a library and a ghost and Smokey Joe the library kitty. This book will be out on September 6th, so if you have not read the series you can start ready it and be ready for this when it is released!

I am finding lately that many of the cozies I am reading feature a cold case,  I don't mind this at all as it is nice to see our sleuths find answers and it reduces the rapid-fire murders happening in their towns. 

As usual, I enjoyed spending time with Carrie and the crew in Clover Ridge.  I could have used more time with Carrie and her best friend Angela hanging out. We have in this book a new character who annoys Carrie--and the reader--the investigative reporter that won't quit.  Then we also have a new ghost AND a major construction project at the library, so Carrie is really pulling her hair out. In the area of overarching mysteries, we learn a little more about Evelyn's situation and Dylan is more forthcoming with Carrie about how he grew up. 

I found the town council aspects of the story to ring true to how politics works in a small town. The mystery and the who and the why of the killer worked for me.  I am looking forward to the next book and have my fingers crossed maybe we will get to see Dylan and Carrie get married!  

Glimmer Lake Trilogy by Elizabeth Hunter

 

I don't remember where I saw this book recommended, but I thought it was worth checking out so I added it to my Kindle. This was my first time reading Elizabeth Hunter. Before I knew it, I was finishing up the third book in this delightful series.  Suddenly Psychic starts off with a major car accident that kick starts the stagnant lives of Robin, Val, and Monica. Robin is an almost empty nester who feels more like a roommate to her husband than a wife. Val is a single mom of two with an ex-husband who behaves more like a teenager than a co-parent. Monica is struggling with her new title of widow.   Sounds like your typical women's fiction right? 

Not quite, as you might guess from the title, Suddenly Psychic the car accident changes these old friends.  Each one develops a psychic ability. Book one focuses on Robin, the second on Val, and the last on Monica. The town of Glimmer Lake features in the series and it is everything you would want in a small town located in the Sierra Nevada mountains. In each of the books, the main character learns how to come to terms with her new ability, and together they are able to solve long-forgotten mysteries that are affecting the town's present day. 

And we get some nice light romance!  The books are short and available for free with a Kindle Unlimited subscription.  I highly recommend planning a weekend trip to Glimmer Lake.

I'm looking forward to reading more from Elizabeth Hunter, I enjoy her writing and she has books in a variety of genres!

Brigerton, Harry Styles, and Prom #TheSundayPost

  

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

If you are reading this I might be out shopping with my daughter for her Prom dress. We were supposed to go a couple of weeks ago but then I had the not Covid cold. My daughter says she doesn't have a dress style or color in mind, so that could make this easier? or harder?  Remains to be seen! Wish us luck!  I will report back on what dress is found!

This week I read some good stuff that I am looking forward to talking about--a trilogy by Elizabeth Hunter for example and I watched Brigerton season 2. Have you seen it?  I quite enjoyed it.  I thought the lead couple Anthony and Kate Sharma nailed the Enemies to Lovers trope.  Lots of longing, and a big payoff. I enjoyed it so much that now I can't wait to see what happens next season with Benedict's story so I bought the paperback on Friday at Love's Sweet Arrow Bookstore. 

Also since I live with one of Harry Styles' biggest fans, I made sure to listen to his latest single as soon as it was out this past week.  I quite enjoy it  

How was your week?  Read, watch, or listen to anything you enjoyed?

Coyer Read Along Destined for An Early Grave --Spoilers!

 Join the Read-along HERE

Okay let's talk about Destined for an Early Grave!  

I didn't like about 70%  of this book.

For chunks of this book, I was so annoyed by Bones and Cat, they were being so ridiculous.  Part of it was the lack of communication, I'm not much of a fan of when our main characters have major problems resulting from one or the other not talking something out. For me, I also don't enjoy reading Cat and Bones literally beathing the shit out of each other as foreplay. Also, it was so annoying that Cat assumed Bones was having sex with a ton of people in New Orleans when just a couple books ago he went years without sex when she left him and went with Don.  

And speaking of Don, Cat is going to feel really bad when she finds out he is dying from cancer and she was to afraid to talk to him.  The irony of a half breed vampire being so conflict avoident.  And speaking of the secret government agency group, overall, as a reader I am confused (This is definitely a me problem, not a reflection of Jeanine Frost's writing) about who I should care about in this series when it comes to secondary characters.  We had a couple of books where Cat's goverenment crew was central and we started to get to know them, but now they are mostly missing from this book. Will that continue?  Are we supposed to now learn to care about the vampires and ghouls, is Cat's life now just about fully vampire world? I struggle with as you can see. I mean I like Vlad and more of him is great, but what about the ghoul Liza, am I supposed to care about her? Will she be back or is she basically a red shirt like the random members  of Bones' crew --Band Aid and Hopscotch in this book. 

While I am getting tired of everyone wanting Cat, I did enjoy Gregor, he was a great villian. 

Tate showed up in the book at the 49% point, just went I was remarking to myself that it was great not having him in the book. Ugh. You know how I feel about him!

Fingers Crossed! 

Fortunately for me, things finally took a turn around the 75% mark of the book and Bones and Cat finally had a conversation and got on the same page. Amen!  I am pleased to see that Cat's conversion is wonky that will make for good storytelling, as well as the twist for Justina. I hope the next time I'm reading about Cat and Bones that the stoy doesn't focus on someone once again trying to covet Cat. I hope this time there is a different sort of big bad that they have to defeat. 

Next in the series we are reading First Drop of Crimson which features Cat's friend Denise.  I'm looking forward to a different POV in this series!

What do I rate this book. I'm not sure if I would say it is a 3 because Cat and Bones were so annoying or if it's a 4 because Ms. Frost made them so annoying to me. Good writing is about evoking emotions. 

Sometimes The Audio Reader Makes The Series!

 You may recall that I recently rated the first book in this series a 3, which is low for me when it comes to rating books. Because the book ended on a cliffhanger, and because of the incredible job Jessica Almasy does bringing all of the characters to life. 

I am glad I continued this series.  It's fun, Daisy has shown growth and is becoming a strong protagonist.  The voices Jessica does for the ghosts are fantastic. If you have listened to the Mystic Bayou Series by Molly Harper, I think you will also enjoy this series.  

One of the keys to enjoying this series is to see these books as a true traditional serial. Each book is fairly short and ends on a cliffhanger; you *have*  to read on to the next book to find out what happens next. 

The series is included with a Kindle Unlimited subscription or an Audible subscription.  As I have already gushed, I love the reader, so I do the audio version of this series.  It's a pleasant distraction when I am working out or cleaning the house. 

The growth of character and the fantastic Jessica Almasy moved this series from  3 to a 4!  A fun adventure! 

The Cracked Spine --This Month's Cozy Mystery Club Selection

Have you read this cozy mystery? It's this month's book selection for the Cozy Mystery Book Club! If you have read The Cracked Spine by Paige Shelton or if you don't mind spoilers, join us for the book club live stream on Tuesday, March 29th at 6:00 pm EST.  The link is below:

 

I enjoyed this book and will be reading on in the series!  Here are my bullet points of what I enjoyed:

*Great setting, A bookstore in Scotland, what's not to love! 

*There is a budding romance that doesn't involve the sleuth and a police detective. 

*Our sleuth quickly finds a real home and a community that embraces her

*Paige Shelton gives us a plenty of potential suspects but we are able to keep the characters straight.

* Delaney doesn't spend a bunch of time in her head worried about her weight!

*Possible hint of otherworldly happenings as one would expect in Scotland

*Men in kilts!

There is plenty of room for us to learn much more about the characters we met in the story, I liked them and I thought the mystery was good, but I don't feel that connection to Delaney or the other characters that move a cozy from a 4 to a 5. I hope that book two will give me that connection.

Overall a nice, cozy read! 4 out of 5 stars

#The Sunday Post Had a Cold Not Covid

 

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

I missed some blogging due to a cold. The cold wasn't bad but was stressful for me because I worry about any and all illness stuff. So I was like is it a cold? is it Covid? The rapid tests I took, said it was a cold. 

This week I'm back to feeling better. While I was sick I watched:

*Bridgerton (season 1) 

*The Last Kingdom--It was so good. I highly, highly recommend watching this series on Netflix since it is now 5 completed seasons, trust me! It's fantastic

*Severance on Apple+ This show is very good, it has a unique look that makes it more interesting to watch. This one is out on a weekly basis. We also watched Suspicion on Apple, that one is done being released, Tom liked it more than me.

MOVIES: Fresh, Windfall, and Deep Water. Deep Water is described as a romantic thriller. Let me tell you, it's not romantic at all and I would say it's 4 out of 10 on a thriller scale. Windfall takes place all on this gorgeous estate in Ojai, California.  I liked the movie score and the beauty of the estate. I didn't care very much about what happened to 3 of the 4 characters. Fresh is a horror movie. That one stuck with me the longest. So out of these three, I would say Fresh is the best story.  

How was your week? Read or watch anything too?

Here is what I'll be talking about this week:

Another fun book by Stella Bixby! #FestivalFiasco !

 

This is book number six in Stella Bixby's Magical Mane Mystery series. This series is a witch-focused paranormal cozy series, so if you like magical cozies that are short and reasonably priced, this is a series for you!

Aside from the whole murder thing, spending time in Cliff Haven is always fun. This time around Ellie is in the running for Mayor of a Day and it is a killer competition--pun intended!  Ellie is learning to control her magic, which is wonderful, her fake dad is still looking to get married.  I am still holding out hope that in a strange twist we will learn that fake dad is Ellie's real dad.

I'm still holding out hope that one day we will learn Xander's whole story and that Ellie and Xander will become a couple--but maybe my hopes are misplaced.

There is a big reveal in this book so if you've been reading this series, I think you'll be pleased with one of the relevations. Oh wait, there are actually two big revelations that are pleasing!  

A fun escape from my daily life! Thank you for an ARC of this book Stella Bixby! 

I 

A Fatal Booking By Victoria Gilbert Thank You #NetGalley!

 Here is the description of this book from the publisher: 

"Victoria Gilbert’s third Booklover’s B&B Mystery, a treat for fans of Mary Daheim and Kate Carlisle, finds owner Charlotte Reed and her former spy neighbor, Ellen Montgomery, pitted against a tea-party poisoner.

Booklover Charlotte is delighted to welcome an eclectic group of guests to Chapters Bed and Breakfast for a book club retreat focused on fairy tales and classic children’s literature. But when one of the guests is poisoned at a Mad Hatter tea party, Charlotte realizes she’s fallen down a rather unpleasant rabbit hole
 
The victim – an opinionated busybody whose jewelry store sold original designs, along with some possibly “hot” merchandise – had plenty of enemies, spurring Charlotte and Ellen to offer their well-honed investigative skills to assist the local police. But as they delve deeper into each of the guest’s stories, they realize all of them had a motive, and the means, to close the book on the unfortunate victim.
 
Enlisting the aid of a few local residents, as well as their new ally, agent Gavin Howard, Charlotte, and Ellen vow to reveal the truth, even if the path to any sort of happy ending is strewn with deadly danger."

First of all, to answer the question, yes you can read this book without having read the first two. The main mystery of this book is who killed the victim and then there are subplots involving the background of the victim as well as some of the suspects.  I think it would be fair to say that this book is almost a closed-room mystery. The suspects except one are all guests at the BnB. I wasn't sure who the killer was until our sleuth was sure, so this book kept me guessing.

I enjoyed the literature discussions in the book, Victoria Gilbert interweaves the right amount of book talk in the story, and who doesn't love a good (method of killing --you have to read to know, I'm not going to spoil you) murder. 

Charlotte is also thinking about going back to school to teach, so that makes you wonder how the next book in the series will go.  As with the first two books, Charlotte works with the town detective and Ellen the retired spy next door. The climax in this one is some action hero stuff, which is fun. It reminded me of some of Lucy Stone's adventures in Maine. (Leslie Meier cozy series) 

Four Stars to A Fatal Booking by Victoria Gilbert!

Thanks to Net Galley for the digital ARC of this book, all the opinions are mine!

#TheSundayPost I Totally Forgot About The Time Change

 

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

I think we should just stay an hour forward now and skip going back an hour in the fall. What do you think? I think I forgot it was time for the time change because this week it snowed twice and yesterday temperatures were in the teens (or about -7 Celcius) A real winter week for early March. 

This weekend I watched Turning Red on Disney Plus and The Adam Project on Netflix.  Both movies were entertaining and cute, I recommend them for families or anyone that just wants a movie they can relax and enjoy, forget the cares of the day and all that. 

I also went with my oldest child to the movie theater and we saw The Batman. I thought it was very good, Robert Pattinson was miserable and broody.  They made him look terrible, he was pale and beaten down, with bloodshot eyes.  I mean people loved him as a pretty vampire and in that respect he is unrecognizable. The chemistry of Catwoman and Batman is as strong as it was when Michelle Pfiefer and Micheal Keaton played the roles. My only complaint about the movies is that there is no need for it to be 2 hours and 57 minutes. They could have gotten it down to 2 hours.  

What did you do for fun this week?

Books I am reviewing this week:

And another book TBD! 

At Grave's End #READALONG Spoilers Below FYI!

 

I used my audible credit to purchase the audiobook for At Graves End the third book in Jeaniene Frost's Night Huntress Novel.  

In the last book, I was dismayed that Cat and Bones had a quick vampire marriage and not a real proposal and wedding--so I was happy that at the beginning of this book a proper proposal happens.  Not too long after that Cat winds up detained because she actually believes her Mom wants to help with the wedding planning AHAHAHAHAHA. I guess Cat's hope for her mom's acceptance is going to spring literally eternal. 

There is a long scene of detailed torture in the book which I could do with about half the details. But that isn't the most horrifying thing that happens to Cat and Bones in this book.  When Bones levels up and can start reading Cat's mind, now that is a true nightmare! I don't want anyone being able to read my mind, esp my husband, how is that going to keep a marriage together--sometimes my brain has some cranky thoughts! Plus other vampires can hear her thoughts as well, she needs to work on learning how to shield her thoughts. 

I was happy to hear that Vlad is now on the scene, I think he gets his own book or something later on in this series, that will be fun!  I appreciated Jeaniene Frost trying to make Justina a more likable character, it just goes to show that Ms. Frost is a wonderful writer because she really knows how to push my buttons.  I dislike Tate *more* than Justina now and that's really saying something! 

In this book Cat's stunted emotional growth again shows up when she says stuff like she can't believe Don didn't tell her the truth. Ah, the dude didn't tell you you were his niece or that your life had been extended from vampire blood, so why are you surprised he didn't tell you the truth about something else! 

I was distracted as I listened to the final battle of the book and honestly, by the end of the book I couldn't remember why exactly Patra and Mencheres were in a war. I think this happened to me because juxtaposed with reading this book I was watching the news and seeing the carnage one man has unleashed in Ukraine, has me pondering how dumb war is and what crap it is that one person can destroy so many other people.  

Join the Read-along HERE

 I hope book four kind of, for lake of a better description, plumps up the supporting cast, I'd like to get to know other characters better (except Tate) so that I would be more investing in the overall story being told--if there is an overarching storyline?  Maybe there isn't and I should be reading this as each book is almost a stand-alone?

If you have read or are reading this series, please post below and share your thoughts!

Mango, Mambo and Murder By Raquel V. Reyes

 

A new book series by Raquel V. Reyes! Raquel did a wonderful job of putting together a very entertaining cozy mystery with just the right amount of mouth-watering food talk.  What makes this book different than many cozies is that Miram is the mom of a toddler. Usually, our sleuths are single and in their 20s or they may have older or grown kids. I enjoyed reading Miriam and Manny's daily interactions.

As a fan of the show Veronica Mars (but not the reboot) I really enjoyed Detective Pullman referring to Miriam as Veronica Mars, he is right, she inserts herself into the investigation, asks uncomfortable questions, and then puts herself in danger. Yes, she is a Veronica Mars!  I loved that Miriam has a best friend with a voice of reason. Hopefully, Miriam will listen to Alma from time to time so she doesn't get herself hurt in future stories! 

I greatly enjoyed the subplot where Miriam is able to share her knowledge as a food anthropologist via a youtube show.  Now that leads me to wonder since she is getting recognized by strangers by the end of this book--will that affect how she is able to sleuth in future books?  It could be used as a way she can get information from people or into places she wouldn't be able to get into otherwise, but it also means people will notice her more.  What a fun development, I am really looking forward to seeing where Raquel V. Reyes takes us next. 

My last comment, I really, really hope that moving forward the series doesn't have drama between Miriam and Robert.  I would like her marriage to be solid so she has that safe place to fall back to whenever future murder investigations stress her out.

As you can tell, I found this book to be very engaging, I enjoyed meeting Miriam, and reading her adventure as well as all the cooking scenes. I'm ready to read book two today! 

5 Stars to Mango, Mambo and Murder

#NetGalley #MangoMamboandMurder 

It's A Wonderful Midlife Crisis by Robyn Peterman

I'm not sure if this book qualifies as a paranormal cozy mystery or a paranormal closed door (so far) mystery or a ghostly rom-com?  In any case, what you must know if you decide to read this book is...

IT ENDS ON A MAJOR CLIFFHANGER SO GET THE SECOND BOOK WITH THE FIRST! 

Seriously, I don't want you throwing your book around, so heed my words and get books 1 and 2 together.  I got this book via my Audible subscription so I was able to get the next book before the end credits of the first book were done playing in my ears.

On to the story. I was drawn to this book because of the name. Delightful right?  And the cover is gorgeous.  Our main character Daisy wakes up one day and can see ghosts and spends an unusual amount of time not questioning why it is happening.  But once you learn more about Daisy's character it is pretty clear she has put some major blinders on herself. She has a real knack for not questioning any of the things she should question and questioning things that are as they should be.  So as a reader you are always a few steps ahead of Daisy, which worked out okay for me. I will say Daisy doesn't live up to the title, she is supposed to be 40 but she is written as someone in their late 20s--which is fine if the title would've been It's a Wonderful Quarter-Life Crisis.

I like the world-building and the secondary characters. I am going to read book two to get the answer to the cliffhanger and to see if Daisy lets the blinders fall off her mind. If you are thinking of giving this book a try, I highly recommend getting the audiobook, the narrator is delightful and this is a book that I don't necessarily think is one that you want carve out time to sit down and read when you can listen while you work or workout!

3 Stars! 

 

Happy Tax Refund Time! #TheSundayPost

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

It's that time of year when the early filers are getting their tax refunds!  Cheers and may your bank account stay full for a nice long while! It's also Fish Fry season around here and while I have given up potatoes for lent, so I'll be skipping any french fries (or chips ) with my Fish N Chips, I'm still looking forward to some beer-battered cod! 

This week I caught up on some reading and have reviews ready to go for this week! Phew!  How was your week?

Top O' The Month to You- March Coming In Like A Lion Tuesday! #TheSundayPost

 

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. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme 

Happy Sunday to you. I hope you are having a good day wherever you are--I'm a bit behind on my reading because this week I spend a lot of time on social media reading and watching how Ukraine is doing. I pray they prevail. 

Thursday I went and got Paczki because this Thursday is Fat Thursday in Poland (and parts of Germany and other countries in the region) My favorites are the Glazed Raspberry.  On the box it says:

Each Country calls it something different. In Germany, It's a Berliner. In Romania, it's called Gogosi, and in Ukraine, they call it a Pampushky. Where we live there are a lot of Polish Immigrants so we have many paczki options! 

A great recipe here if you want to make your own!

The Second Book in Tracy Gardner's Avery Avers Antique Mystery Series! Thanks NetGalley!

And we are back to spend more time with Avery Avers and her families'  appraisal business.  One reason this series is interesting and enjoyable is that Avery's family business lends itself to lots of great mysteries surrounding the art and artifacts they are called upon to assess.  This book starts off with some forgery and potential thievery before we get to the murder. Avery of course is in the thick of it. 

The antique and appraisal business is my favorite part of this series, I think in those interactions is when Avery is at her best and the most interesting. I came away from this book still a little sad for Avery. She has a budding romance with Art, which is fine, I guess. I don't really like Art because he didn't tell her things he should have told her for far too long-- he makes decisions for Avery instead of with Avery. Hopefully, he has turned a page, and moving forward he will stop that behavior.  Now back to what makes me a little sad, Avery really, really needs some friends.  I hope in book three Avery has a friend's interest. 

Oh another note, for those of you who enjoy some romance in your cozy mysteries, Tracy Gardner is very good a writing those scenes!

In this book, there is a hint of a potential overarching villain and I hope that I am reading the tea leaves correctly because I like the idea of an ongoing international thief.  So I have my fingers crossed on that! 

3.75 stars for this book*

*If you enjoy antiques or historical art --do yourself a favor and read this series, you will enjoy it!   

 

Miss Tilley Lives! The lastest book in the Lucy Stone Series!

Here we are, book number 28.  I had to wait until my turn to get this one from the local library. So I'm not alone in reading this series.  There are other Lucy Stone fans around me. 

I was really happy to see that Miss Tilley, the oldest person in Tinker's Cove and possibly the world is still alive and kicking. Although she has had some health setbacks and is at an assisted living facility.  The reason for the murder is interesting, and there is a nice subplot about possible Medicare fraud. Lucy spends much of the book at the Assisted Living Facility so we meet some new people, but there's still time for breakfast at Jake's and scenes with Phyllis and Ted.

Sweet Zoe who was introduced as a baby in book one is now graduating from college and looking for her first apartment. In this book, she has taken over the title of the most annoying child. a title once held by all her older siblings in other books. 

This was an enjoyable entry in the series. I liked the easter egg and bonnet talk and as always I enjoy Maine weather talk. I don't know how many more books there might be left in this series, but I hope there are a few more to come! 

Ukrainian Easter Eggs