Hold Tight by Harlan Coben

Hold Tight by Harlan Coben
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you have read any of my reviews, you might already know that once I discovered writer, Harlan Coben, I have falling in love with his ability and stories. I love the way he writes, how done to earth and real life his books seem to be and how engaging they are. So when I found this book at the local Goodwill store, I was in seventh heaven!

On the surface, this seems like a book that any parent would read and be involved in. Tia and Mike Baye are spying on their own son, well at least his online activity. He has seemed so changed and different since his best friend committed suicide recently that they feel the need to spy to see what is going on and hopefully prevent another suicide in their community. What they discover is that what is going on is much deeper than just a teenage boy committing suicide, there are so many more levels and so many more people are involved, and a young child is faced with trying to protect his family without understanding the truth of what is going on!

I was sucked in from page one. I understood the parents, I felt for them and I understood why they made that choice, not that I agreed with it, but I could feel their pain and concern and why they felt this was the option they needed to go with. Again, as in other books, as the story progresses you hear some names you already know, they were mentioned in this book or that book, background characters, but it gives that homey feel, like in my small town where it seems like every person you run into knows another person you know and such. It just really makes it so much more believable. But the twists and turns that the story ends up taking is nothing I could have imagined, or thought of, but yet it was realistic.

If you haven't read a Harlan Coben book, I would recommend this one as a great starting place. Try this one, let me know, but I feel very confident that you will enjoy it and be hooked on the author the way I am!

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Just One Look by Harlan Coben

Just One Look by Harlan Coben
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not long ago I discovered the author Harlan Coben through the First-Reads program here on Goodreads, and I was blown away by his writing and story-telling abilities. So much so, that I began a mission to find more books by him and to read them. I found this book at my local Goodwill store and was so excited, I was thrilled to read another Harlan Coben book.

Let me start by saying that this book did not fail to live up to my high expectations! I was engrossed in the book from the very beginning, and haunted by the innuendoes and twists that this story took, never realizing the final outcome until I read it, and even then, I went back to re-read some places to see if I had missed something that would have lead me to the ending, which I never found. It was so well-written and encaging. I can't say enough about the author and his ability. I have recommended this book to a number of people already.

Grace and Jack Lawson seem to be a normal, average middle American couple with two children until the day that Grace picks up some pictures at the photomat, and in the pictures is an old pictures, maybe 20 years old, that seems to have her husband in the group. Where did that come from? And why? The picture changes everything, recalling a time about 20 years earlier when Grace was involved in a life changing event, and somehow, this picture seems to be mixed up with that. As Grace questions, Jack disappears, and as an investigation continues, the former lives of Jack and Grace are uncovered and intertwined into a wild and unbelievable set of happenstances.

I found some characters that I had read in another book, and yet this is not a series, it's just that the books seem to be set in nearby locations and towns, so some characters carry over from one book to another, mostly backgrounds, but others as well, and it becomes like watching real life in that you meet a person and come to find out that they know someone that you know from another event. It is actually neat, and it really makes it that much easier to connect with the books, and the story and the characters, they seem so real!

If you have never read this author, you have just got to try one book. I have found that if I have no idea what to read next, all I have to do is pick up one of his books and I have an a perfect fit. He is an amazing writer and story teller.

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A Crafty Killing (A Victoria Square Mystery, #1) by Lorraine Bartlett

A Crafty Killing by Lorraine Bartlett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Crafty Killing is the first in the Victoria Square Mystery series, and if the first book is as good as the rest, this is going to be one wonderful series.

Katie Bonner is young, and had big dreams, dreams of a bed and breakfast for her and husband Chad, and he was on board, then he got into Artisan's Alley, which was an antique and craft market, although some vendors wanted no crafts and others did, it wasn't doing too well, but Chad saw visions for it. It created some in fighting between Chad and Katie, and just when it looked like she might be starting to listen to his thinking, he was killed in a car crash. Katie inherited Chad's part of Artisan's Alley and didn't really do anything with it, until the fateful day that Ezra, the owner of Artisans Alley was found dead, now Katie, still in shock and grief over losing Chad, is confronted with owning a whole building she resents, still feeling it caused Chad's death, and having to take over that building and make it work.

Along with trying to make the store profitable and a success, she has to mend some bridges with the community that Ezra burned, and she starts understanding Chad and his desire to get into this now, instead of waiting for the time when they could open a B&B, and trying to figure out what really happened to Ezra, only to find another dead body in the building. Now she really needs to know what is going on, and the one person that befriends her only turns out to be more and more involved in it all as she goes along. When will it end, will she ever figure it out, and will she quit resenting the building and let it become her dream?

I just wanted to hop in the book and hug Katie at times and at other times wanted to slap the whining little girl. I felt she was so wrapped up in the dream of the B&B, that she couldn't or wouldn't listen to Chad about other options and things that might actually be more their style and to their advantages than a B&B. I loved the twists and turns in the plot and how it all turned round in the end, it was not who you ever expected in the beginning, and still to the end it was not who I expected.

It was well-written and I found myself feeling like I was there, rooting for this town and the creative area of town, and just really even dreaming myself of where it could go and what it could become. I am looking forward to the next book in the series, really wanting to see where it goes and how it changes.

I hope that I was able to share enough to get you interested in the book, but not too much as to spoil the story for you, but I do hope you will take a chance and read this one, you won't be disappointed. Thanks!

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Feint of Art (An Annie Kincaid Mystery) by Hailey Lind (Juliet Blackwell)

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Feint of Art by Juliet Blackwell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Feint of Art is the first book in the Annie Kincaid Mystery series which is written by Hailey Lind, which just happens to be a name created when Juliet Blackwell and her sister write together. Now, I happen to love Juliet's books, and I am not sure what name her sister writes under normally, or if she does, but I would be happy to say that she is just as good as her sister, if this book is any indication. I loved it!!

The story revolves around our main character, Annie Kincaid, she is the grand-daughter of a master art forger, spent time learning from him and passing some pretty good forgeries herself, but she went straight, now owning a studio that deals in faux finishes and murals and even some restoration of a old piece, which I am thinking who better to clean up and fix a master than a forger, really. She is scrapping by, but their are still people in the art world that want nothing to do with her, but more of them want her knowledge, because when it comes right down to it, when you spend a great deal of money on a painting that is suppose to be an old master you want it verified, and if I was verifying an old master, who better than a master forger to tell me if it is real, or one of their works. Of course, they all want it kept on the down-low that they are using her services and she is fine with that for now.

The story begins with Anne being called by an old flame to verify a new painting at the gallery he works for, only for Anne to have to tell him it is a fake. The old flame makes plans to met back up with her in a couple hours and she waits at the coffee shop only to be stood up, what else is new. So on her walk back to her truck, she sees police lights and finds out that the security guard that let her out just an hour ago is dead and there is no sign of her old flame anywhere. When she can't reach him still days later, she begins to look into what is going on out of concern for the guy, which leads her into a whole mess of things she never imagined!

This was just so well-written and so easy a story to follow, I just loved it and I look forward to more in this series, because I was blown away by all the art information that was tucked into the book, it never seemed like a "teaching moment" but more like real conversation and it was so neat and interesting. I really liked it and I hope you will take a chance on the book and give it a read!

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Deadly Notions (A Southern Sewing Circle, #4) by Elizabeth Lynn Casey

Deadly Notions by Elizabeth Lynn Casey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Deadly Notions is the fourth book in the Southern Sewing Circle Series, which is a cozy mystery series. One of my favorite feel-good type of books to read when I am down is a cozy mystery, and when it is set in a small town in the south, even better; add in a little sewing and I am in a wonderful place.
This summer I set down one rainy afternoon, while the kids were playing games together on the computer and read this little number.

I have loved this series from the start, and am always anxious when I get ahold of the next book in the series, and it just happened to come in the mail from a swap so I was able to spend the time involved in the book, while it rained.

Tori is the head librarian at the Sweet Briar library, and transplant from Chicago. The Sewing Circle took her in the minute she arrived and have been helping her learn the souther ways to her new home town, like never, ever bring lemonade to a meeting, even if you did squeeze if by hand, all southern ladies drink sweet tea. But this time, the sewing circle has it's hands all tied up helping Melissa with a birthday party for her daughter Sally, but this can't just be a normal birthday party, no it has to meet the high standards and expectations of one mom in the group, Ashley Lawson, who just happens to be a wonderful dress designer, and would do anything in the world to make her daughter, Penelope, the net big thing. She has a way of talking down to all the other moms, and their party attempts, and heaven forbid you don't invite her child, well lets just say she has power in that tongue of hers. The bigger problem is that all this worship of her small daughter has lead to a massive chip on Penelope's shoulder, and none of the kids really like her, but they are forced to deal with her, or worse her mother.

With the Sewing Circle's and Tori's help, including the use of the library as a location it turned out to be quite the party after all, and everyone went home happy. Hummm, I wonder if our local library would be willing to let people use the reading room for dress up and book reading for a party? It actually sounded like a really cute and fun party idea for a seven year old. Until the next morning, when there are police at the library and Ashley Lawson is dead. The problem, there wasn't a soul at the party that didn't say something negative about the Mom, but none of them would have wanted to hurt her would they? Now it becomes Tori's job, along with those wonderfully helpful and noisy ladies of the sewing circle to find out who really killed Ashley and protect Melissa, one of their own and host of the party.

I am telling you, this is a delightful book. Lots of touches of southern charm, mystery, intrigue, twists and turns, followed with more southern charm. As the series continues, the relationships of the women of the sewing circle are deepened, even Rose and Tori and getting along better, and understanding each other better. And then there is the relationship between Tori and milo, even that is growing, in spite of some miscues and sabotage in this book. It was so much fun to follow the twists and turns and the rocks and bumps and finally to the end, where everything worked out for the best.

I just love this series, and I hope I didn't say too much about it to spoil the reading, but yet enough to encourage you to take a chance a try the book. I love to share good books I have found, and I hope you find it enjoyable too. Now, off to find the next book in the series!

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A Blush with Death (A Bath and Body Mystery, #2) by India Ink

A Blush With Death by India Ink
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Blush with Death is the second book in the Bath and Body Mystery series by India Ink. I read the first a long time ago, then found the second and third at a used book store the other day, so now I can move on.

Venus Envy is a bath and body shop in Gull Harbor, WA. Auntie owns the shop and employes her niece Persia Vanderbilt as her custom fragrance blender.
Persia has a sensitive sense of smell that allows her to pick up on subtle undertones in a fragrance. This works well in her Aunt's shop where she custom blends fragrances for her customers. but also for the line of body products, lotions, oils, bath salts and such that they sell at Venus Envy.

Things were going great until Bebe Wilcox moved to town and opened a competing shop. The problem with Bebe is that she doesn't want to play by the rules, she wants to be top dog right now, and the only way to do that is to run Venus Envy out of business, which she works hard at by spreading rumors about the products at Venus Envy, that the are inferior and shoty materials were used to make them, which is not true of the Venus Envy products, but is true of Bebe's products. Then the roses are sabotaged. Auntie and Persia grow their own roses, and in fact went to all the trouble to make sure that they were certified as organic, but the gardner finds pesticide residue on the roses, so he rushes samples to a friend at the University lab and he gets results back quickly and to Auntie and Persia, someone deliberately put a strong pesticide, and a large amount on the roses. In fact so much that all the roses will have to be dug out, and at least three feet of soil under them and all replace, but it will take two to three years before the roses are mature enough to harvest their petals for the Rose Water that is a hugh seller at Venus Envy!

There isn't enough proof to get police chief, Kyle to do anything, so Auntie and Persia take matters into their own hands by staging a public argument and Persia moving out for show, then getting a job at Bebe's to snoop!

This is just an awesome book. There are recipes in the book for a number of the oils that are talked about in the story. It's a well-written book and the characters are real and easy to relate to in some ways, and different than people you might know in your own life, but at the same time you can relate to them. I really enjoyed the book, and the concept of the upscale Bath and Body shop in a small town. It's a fun read.

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Sentenced to Death (A Booktown Mystery, #5) by Lorna Barrett

Sentenced to Death (A Booktown Mystery #5) by Lorna Barrett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Booktown Mystery is probably one of my favorite series, and so when I was able to get my hands on book number 5, Sentenced to Death, of course I was all over reading it!

It;s Founder's Day, a celebration that Bob Kelly had cooked up to drive more tourist traffic into town and promote the town. Of course Bob couldn't be bothered to do the leg work or give the opening speech, so Tricia's good friend, Deborah Black is doing it all. There is a plane pulling a banner behind it that is circling all around the town square, some loops are pretty low, and it has Tricia worried. Then Deborah climbs into the gazebo to give her opening speech, but she has to stop three time for the noise of the low flying plane to move out before she can go on. As she is talking Tricia notices the plane looks to be nose-diving the gazebo, and there isn't any sound, the engine is dead, and before anyone can say or do anything, the plane crashes into the gazebo. The pilot and Deborah are both gone in the blink of an eye.

As the days pass on, and Deborah's husband David sells his wife's store even before she is buried, refuses any help from his wife's family aside from leaving his young son with his wife's mother and never having a thing to do with him, then plans a funeral within days of getting his wife's body only for people to show up and realize there is no service, just a mingle time. Tricia has had enough, and she proceeds to give David a piece of her mind about his behavior, then she decides that something is wrong with this picture. She begins to investigate, and it takes her on a multi level trip through the lives of the pilot and his wife, Deborah and David, and the daycare center were little Davey broke his arm just a couple weeks prior.

Another in the series of well-written and enjoyable books by Lorna Barrett. I find myself wanting to be in a town like Stoneham, to be a part of the lives of the people around there. It just draws you in and makes you want to read and enjoy the books. looking forward to the next book in the series.

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Chapter & Hearse (A Booktown Mystery, #4) by Lorna Barrett

Chapter and Hearse by Lorna Barrett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really like this Booktown Mystery series. So I picked up books 4 and 5 of the series, and finished them as quickly as I picked them up!

Book 4, or Chapter & Hearse, starts out with a launch party of Angelica's new cookbook, but no one shows up, except this larger than life cut-out of Angelica. Bob Kelly, Angelica's boyfriend since she moved to Stoneham, is suppose to be there, but his car is parked in from of History Repeats Itself, and never shows up for the party. Tricia has never really like Bob all that much, so she finally decides that she is going down to History Repeats Itself and give Bob a piece of her mind, but before she can get there, she hears a loud whoosh, and the next thing she knows she is lying on her back, in the street with the firefighters and paramedics helping her up and moving her away from what used to be History Repeats Itself, it was the victim of a gas explosion, the store is gone and worse yet, the owner Jim Roth is dead. Bob Kelly is being carted away to the hospital, but he is being uncharacteristically tight lipped and refusing to talk to anyone, including the police.

Angelica leaves on a promotion tour of her book, and strange things keep happening to her, and finally Tricia can take it no more and starts investigating on her own. The twists and turns, and two different yet intertwined stories are going on at the same time, and it turns out that they all are related to Jim's death, actually his murder, turns out the gas meter was tampered with, it was no accident.


Another awesome story, well-written and enjoyable by Lorna Barrett. Will review the 5th next, then I can't wait for the next to come out!

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Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris (A Harper Connelly Mystery, #1)

Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I really enjoyed Charlaine Harris as an author, so i thought I would check out this series, the Harper Connelly Mystery series.

Harper and her step-brother Tolliver, travel around using Harpers unique gift to solve mystery's. At the age of fifteen, Harper was struck by lightening in her bathroom, and when she survived, she was left being able to find dead people. Not only can she find them, but she "sees" the last moments, telling her their cause of death, but she is not able to see who did it.

The people Harper and Tolliver met on their travels are mixed, some see her gift as a curse some a blessing, some like it and other hate her for it, but then again, what else would you expect of people. Some people are more open minded and open to things of this nature, and others, who don't understand it, just aren't willing to accept it.

Harper has been called to a small town Sarne to find a missing girl. Her boyfriend at the time was found dead in a field, and no one realized that she might be with him for a number of days. His death was ruled a suicide. Walking the field, Harper was able to tell them where the girl was and how she died, and the fact that the boyfriend most definitely did not kill himself. Her job done, she was ready to move on, only to be called back to Sarne. Harper finds herself having to solve the mystery of what is going on, why these deaths and what secret all these people held in order to get herself and her brother free of Sarne so that they can move on.

I found the book well-written and enjoyable. I wanted to get to know Tolliver and Harper more, to learn about them, in fact I found myself feeling for Harper, rough life add a strange gift, and it can be lonely, and I wanted her to find happiness. It was such a draw, and I found I wanted to journey with them, learn more about them, even fight for Harper.

Can't wait to gt ahold of the second book and continue learning about them.



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A Bone to Pick by Charlaine Harris (An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, #2)

A Bone to Pick by Charlaine Harris

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


So after finishing Book one of the Aurora Teagarden Mystery series, it wasn't bed time and so I started on book two!

A Bone to Pick is the second book in the Aurora Teagarden Mystery and in this we find Roe attending her mother's wedding to a former Real Murders Club member, then attending the wedding of her former boyfriend and Real Murders club member, Arthur Smith, only to be shocked by the very visibly pregnant bride, then the funeral of a friend and former Real Murders club member. To add to her bewilderment, she is contacted by the attorney only to find out that the friend left everything to her! Everything being a house, a sizable bank account and a mystery.

Roe decides that she must solve the mystery, it is what Jane would have wanted and she proceeds to work on that. All the while trying to decide if she wants to give up her comfortable, and rent free townhouse for the ownership of the little house on Honor Street, only to find out that the house across the street is the new home of Arthur and his wife! As Roe ponders and puzzles her way through another mystery, she answers questions and makes decisions for her life and her future.

Again, this is so well written that it draws you in, I could almost see myself walking around the little house on Honor Street, I could feel the eyes of the neighborhood, and feel for Roe. I was pulled into the story and into her life and I wanted it to keep going. I wanted to know more and to find out more about Roe, even after the mystery was solved. Guess that means I have to find book three!



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Real Murders by Charlaine Harris (An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, #1)

Real Murders by Charlaine Harris

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I enjoyed author Charlaine Harris's Vampire books with Sookie Stackhouse and so I decided that I wanted to try some more of her books, so I got ahold of some of the Aurora Teagarden Mystery books.

Real Murders is the first book in the Aurora Teagarden Mystery series and begins with the monthly Friday night meeting of the Real Murders Club. This is a group of people that get together to study, read and analyze old murders, argue for the conviction or against, or present suspects if never solved. It is all very scholarly, and they are an unlikely bunch that probably wouldn't be friends otherwise. This week, Aurora is leading the discussion of the Wallace Murder in England in 1931. Funny thing happens on the way to the meeting, as Aurora enters the VFW Hall, where they hold their meetings, the phone on the wall rings, and someone asks for Julia Wallace. Ok, now that is enough to freak out little Aurora, or Roe to her friends. She mentions it to another member but they shrug it off, and along the meeting goes, as each member arrives, until Roe is getting concerned. Maime Wright was suppose to open the building, and her car is here but she isn't. Finally Roe decides to check the other rooms for Mamie, only to find her in one room, murder in exactly the same way and staged exactly like Julia Wallace! ACK!

Roe is a down-to-earth librarian and she has never been around anything like this in her life before, and it becomes unsettling to her. Then when a box of poisoned chocolates how up on her door step, addressed to her mother, Roe is even more concerned. What is happening to their little town and why her?

As Roe continues through, she thinks about what is going on and puzzles and ponders over the murder, first one, then a second and so on. As a scholarly person, she puts bits and pieces together that seem logical to her in her studious mind, but not so logical to the police, only for her to find the true murderer before the police do.

I would not consider this a cozy mystery, it' just a mystery. It is well written. I come to like Roe, I feel for her as a person and what she is going through, and I want to see her come out on top. I enjoy the Southern life and the charm of that place in the book, and it is a good book and a good read. She is not a nosy-body, she just puzzles and ponders, she isn't really out to investigate but she just can't get it out of her mind. She is a likable character.

I enjoyed this book, and moved on to the next in the series.



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Town in a Wild Moose Chase by B.B. Haywood (A Candy Holliday Murder Mystery, #3)

Town in a Wild Moose Chase by B.B. Haywood

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The third book in the Candy Holliday Mystery series is "Town in a Wild Moose Chase". Once again, Candy is sucked into a murder investigation without really wanting to be there, but she is the one to find some of the most important clues.

The scene is the small town of Cape Willington, where her father retired to become a blueberry farmer, a dream of his and her mother's only her mother died before they could make it come true, so her dad, Doc, and Candy are making the dream a reality. It takes lots of hard work, and at least four part time jobs for Candy, one is a reporter on the town newspaper, which is only published once a week in the winter.

It's time for the Winter Moose Fest, and this year a surprise, a white moose is spotted around town, in fact he seems to be leading Candy to a number of the answers in the mystery. The highlight of this years Winter Moose Fest is an Ice Sculptor Contest, and it brings with it some strange characters to town.

We also come to find that one of Cape Willington's founding families, who have had issues in the past and been involved in past cover-ups and murders, is pulling strings on the town, almost like a puppet-master and he wants Candy to know the truth in the last moments before he leaves town. Turns out that Candy and her boss and sometime boyfriend, Ben both have alot of the same questions and are looking into the same people, but each is scared to share with the other, afraid it sounds a little crazy, only for them to find out that they are actually on the same page. Will they finally share all and really dig into the mysteries of the town or not remains to be seen come the next book, but for now they are getting there and they are each worried about the other.

As I read the book, it's not just the mystery that is occurring at the present time that draws you in, but the history of the town, they way things have played out in the past, the way families have feuded and mended or not mended over time, they way this on is considered the founders while the other, interlopers. There is just something about bad blood, old feuds and history that make this really interesting, over and above the current day mystery that is playing out. It's like there are two completely different levels of story going on at the same time in the book.

I look forward to the next book in the series, no teaser from the next book in this one, but plenty of Maine recipes in the back of the book!



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Wicked Weaves by Joyce & Jim Lavene (A Renaissance Faire Mystery)

Wicked Weaves by Joyce Lavene

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


A year-round, permament Renaissance Faire that is more like a real village, what could be a better basis for a new Cozy Mystery series.

It sounds good, but it just never made it for me. You have the VIllage itself, which I never really understood or could get into, the whole idea of people making a living in the village and acting all the time, just didn't get it for me, it just never felt real, it felt contrived.

Jessie is the lead character and I just couldn't believe in her, she seemed scatterbrained and unbelievable. I just could not get into her, she seemed too contrived, too made up not life-like. I just couldn't relate to her.

Mary was the basket weaver that she was working with this summer, and she was of the Gullah tradition, which was never really talked about, there was a few little mentions here and there, and it yet it influenced so much of Mary's life, it should have been explained more than it was.

There were some informational quotes about basket making that were neat, but they were few and far between and even them couldn't keep me interested in the book. In fact, it was all I could do to actually finish the book.



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Sealed with a Kill (A Decoupage Mystery, #3)

Sealed with a Kill by Lucy Lawrence

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Book Three of the decoupage mystery series is another excellent book set in the small village of Morse point.

On a walking tour of the lake, a number of visitors to Morse Point on a "Leaf Peepers" tour, lead by Brenna, find more  than just leaves, they discover a dead body.  At first Brenna thinks she will be able to walk away from it, but it turns out that the dead person is Tenley's father's business partner. Well, so much for leaving it alone and letting Chief Baker take care of this one.

Along with the investigating, we get to learn more about the characters in the book. We watch as Matt and Tenley continue to grow their relationship, and this time they are ready to stand up to Tenley's parents and not allow them to destory the relationship.

other relationships are also growing, the relationship between Nate and Brenna starts to change.

A great book, a great story and so exciting. Loved this whole series.



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Cut to the Corpse (A Decoupage Mystery, #2)

Cut to the Corpse by Lucy Lawrence

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Book two of the Decoupage Mystery finds all the same residents of Morse Point, including a few new members.

Jake Haywood and Tara Montgomery have just gotten engaged and somehow Brenna and Tenley have become friends of the bride-to-be. One night the girls head out for a bachorette party with some of Tara's friends, and although Tenley and Brenna go home early, the night gets wild. Brenna has to pick up Tara the next morning to met with tara's mom only to find Tara in bed with Jake's best friend Clue, and it gets even worse, Clue is dead.

Leave it to Brenna to stick her nose into the investigation and figure out the who and when and what.

The relationship between Brenna and Nate, and then Brenna and Dom are explored and see how they develop. Also, Matt and Tenley take the next step in their relationship, thanks to Brenna and actually go out on a date.

Of course it ends up being another well written and enjoyable book by the author. Ready to read the next.



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Stuck on Murder (A Decoupage Mystery, #1) by Lucy Lawrence

Stuck on Murder by Lucy Lawrence

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Author Jenn McKinlay, who writes the Cupcake Mystery Series and the Library Lovers Mystery series, is also the author of this, the Decoupage Mystery Series, although she writes it under the name of Lucy Lawrence. Since I had read the Cupcake Mystery Series and the Library Lovers, and enjoyed them very much, I looked for others by the same author.

Brenna Miller is a former big city gal, who has moved to the tiny village of Morse Point, where outsiders, no matter how long they have been there, are still not trusted. Nothing bad has happened in fifty years in Morse Point, until the Mayor is found in a trunk in the lake. There are those that want to blame Brenna, even though she had nothing to do with it, because she is an outsider, but even more want to blame her landlord, Nate Williams, who although he has been there for year is still an outsider.

Brenna has a hidden history that happened to her back in Boston, making her scared of an violence and untrusting of the police. We slowly learn this history in the book, and realize her fears and her motivation for investigating herself.

It is a well written book, and I enjoyed the story and the village of Morse Point. I look forward to reading books two and three to learn more about the town and the people. There are some real characters, and then there is a budding or smoldering romance between local Matt and Brenna's best friend Tenley, and Brenna's own attraction to her landlord, Nate Williams and Dom Cappicola, a former mob family man who is trying to take the family business legit.

So much to discover and enjoy.



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Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell (A Witchcraft Mystery, #1)

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Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I discovered author Juliet Blackwell awhile back when I found her Haunted Home Renovation Series, and I loved that first book so much, that I researched the author to see what else she might hve written, and discovered this series, A Witchcraft Mystery.

I loved this book. Lily is our lead, a powerful witch, that we know very little about, so we discover just a little about her history, with so many more mysteries in her as a person herself yet to discover.  Bronwyn is actually a wiccan, a normal human who practices witchcraft as a religion, but not a real witch and not powerful. Bronwyn shares space in the store with Lily and can already tell what Lily is, before and without Lily telling her. She becomes something of a friend to Lily, the first of her life. Maya is a student at the Fine Arts College that is recording histories of people, and in that role finds a number of vintage clothing stashes for Lily. Se also, although being skeptical of the whole paranormal world, another friend to Lily.

In this, the first of the series, Lily and Maya met with an elder lady who isn't all that she seems, and while they are visiting to look for clothes, a young girl down the street is "abducted". Lily takes it upon herself to try to figure out what is going on and to get the girl back.

It is a well-written and charming story that weaves it's way around, introducing a number of people, giving us just a touch about them, not too much but just enough to keep us interested. So looking forward to the next book to see where each of these people go, the history and pasts that they bring to the story and where they are headed. I find myself wanting to discover more about the people.

Another great book by Juliet Blackwell.



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A Flicker of Doubt (A Candlemking Mystery, #4)

A Flicker of Doubt by Tim Myers

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The fourth book in the Candlemaking series starts with Harrison enjoying a relaxing trip in his kayak on the Gunpowder River, only what he things is a tree stump he bumps in the water turns out to be his former girlfriend.

While the police are sure it was a suicide, Harrison is sure it wasn't, and with the help of his good friend Markum, he sets out to figure out what happened.

This is another good read in this series, introducing us to some new people, letting us learn more about some of the people we already know, and weaving a tale that bounds the shops in River's Edge closer together yet again.

There is still some good candlemaking advice in this book, but fewer long sessions on a particular type, just more general advice.

Still, it is worth the read.



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Tutu Deadly (A Jenny T, Partridge Dance Mystery)

Tutu Deadly by Natalie M. Roberts

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


My oldest daughter is a dancer and into musical theater. So when I saw this book listed on the Cozy-Mystery group by someone that they had just read it, i knew I had to see what it was about.

The lead character is Jenny T Partridge, and she owns a dance studio, albeit a small scale studio. She has psycho dance moms coming in and out all day, complaining that their daughters are better than they really our, deserve more front-center time, etc, etc.  On this day, she has been confronted by a psycho mom who thinks her daughter is a dancer, when she clearly could care less about dance and more about picking her nose, who proceeds to pee herself and the dance floor.  As she is cleaning up the mess, a police detective walks in and asks Jenny about a mom, who she comes to find out is dead. Jenny faints on the spot.

This is different in a number of ways from most Cozy mysteries that I have read. In most books, the lead is a capable and confident woman who purposely sets out to find out what is going on, Jenny has no desire to find out what is going on, to just live her normal life, but that is not to be.  Jenny comes across in the first few chapters as almost a brick short of a full load, so to say. She can't get a simple common expression correct and seems to be oblivious to half the world around her.

I think it was Chapter 3 or 4 when I fnally stopped getting the feel that Jenny was brainless, but just oblivious. If it wasn't for the hunky detective that shows an interest in her, and the best friend James that has no clue how to handle his mother, who is actively planning his and Jenny's wedding even though James is gay, I would have no interest in another book, but the ending of this has me on pins and needles to find out what happens with the detective and james.




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Books Can Be Deceiving (A Library Lover's Mystery, #1)

Books Can Be Deceiving by Jenn McKinlay

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I have been reading another series by Jenn McKinlay, her Cupcake Bakery Series, and I am waiting on the next book in that series, so I checked out information on the author and found she had a few other series, so i got ahold of this one from the library.

A Library Lover's Mystery, the lead character Lindsey is the director of the library, which reminds me of the Southern Sewing Circle Mystery Series, as the lead in that series is also the director of the library, but they are completely different stories.

One of the first things Lindsay did when she took over the library was to form a Crafternoon club, much to the dismay of the older library staff person, Mrs. Cole. A crafternoon club is a group that was part book club and part craft club. They met at the library once a month and read a book, which they discussed at the meeting, while crafting. In this book, they were knitting.

Lindasy's best friend from college, Beth has been the children's director at the library for ten years, and when the director position opened up she encouraged Lindsay to apply. Which came at a perfect time in her life, when the university was cutting staff, and her library position was downsized and at the same time lindsay found out her finance was leeping with someone else.

Now, in the quaint town of Briar Creek, Lindsay is settling into life, until a children's book publisher comes to town, and Beth is encouraged to show her the book Beth has been working years on. Problems start when Beth's boyfriend of five years, a children's author himself,Rick finds out. he is livid and breaks things off with Beth, and the next day when Beth shows her book to the editor she finds out why. Rick has submitted Beth's book as his own and it is set to publish that fall!  Beth and lindsay set out to confront Rick, only to find him dead!

The local small town sheriff, who has never had a murder in town, sets his sights at Beth as the murderer and refuses to even listen or look at anyone else. Good thing there is a state investigator in the case, and that Lindsay refuses to let her best friend take the fall for something she didn't do.

I felt it was a good book, well written and enjoyable to read. I loved the way the author develops the characters. I loved the first series I read by her, so I had high hopes for this series, and so far it doesn't disappoint.  I am looking forward to reading more in this series and even more book by this author.




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