Mystery Monday

 A Smoking Bun (A Bakeshop Mystery #18) by Ellie Alexander.  (St. Martin's,            20 February 2024).  

It's winter in Ashland, and Juliet's in-laws are coming to visit.  She's planning to give them an authentic Ashland winter experience, complete with snowshoe tours and winter picnics. 

An unpleasant encounter with a rule-breaking guide named Fitz Baskin puts a damper on their snowshoe tour, but they hope Ashland's unique Downhill Dummy race (in which makeshift dummies are strapped to skis and hurled down difficult ski run) will make up for it.

Unfortunately, one of the dummies speeds down the hill and lands on top of Baskin.  It's determined that he is dead.  Did the impact with the dummy kill him, or was he already dead?

Ellie Alexander's mysteries are always well-constructed,  and her characters are engaging.  Additionally, her descriptions of Juliet's baking and cooking processes are fascinating!

Ellie Alexander (who also writes as Kate Dyer-Seeley) is a Pacific Northwest native with a deep love for the region, which is why she sets her books there.  Ellie also writes the Sloan Krause mystery series, set in Leavenworth, Washington.

Cozy Monday

 Yes, it's that time again!

Here are my 10 favorite cozy mysteries published in 2021, listed alphabetically by author
.

Murder in the Cookbook Nook (Book Retreat #7) by Ellery Adams.  Kensington paperback, 27 April 2021.

Six chefs are preparing to compete in an outdoor tent at Storyton Hall in Virginia for prizes that will boost their careers—but is there someone who can't stand the heat? It looks that way when one of the contestants is found dead in a pantry packed with two centuries' worth of cookbooks, among other treasures and rarities.

Could there be a connection to other recent events in town, like tampering with the costume of a local mascot? Jane isn't sure, but after someone serves a second course of murder, the kitchen must be closed and the killer must be found . . 

Murder Most Fowl (Meg Lanslow #29) by Donna Andrews.  St. Martin's Press hardcover, 3 August 2021.

Meg Langslow’s in for a busy summer. Her husband is directing a production of Macbeth, and most of the cast and crew are occupying spare bedrooms in their house. She also has to keep an eye on Camp Birnam, where a group of medieval reenactors are commemorating the real-life Macbeth by setting up what they fondly believe is an authentic medieval Scottish military camp.

And then there’s Damien Goodwin, a filmmaker who has been hanging around, trying to document the production. When Goodwin hosts a showing of some of the footage he’s taken, he manages to embarrass or offend just about everyone. The next morning Meg isn’t exactly surprised to find that someone has murdered him.


But who?  Unfortunately, whoever murdered Goodwin also destroyed all the electronic devices on which his video was stored. So Caerphilly’s chief of police—and Meg—must rediscover the same secrets the filmmaker did if they want to catch a killer.

Murder by the Bookend (Antique Bookshop #2) by Laura Gail Black.  Crooked Lane Books, 7 September 2021.

The quaint warehouse district of Hokes Folly, NC, is hopping despite the drizzly November chill. The occasion? The mountain town’s beloved antiquarian bookstore, Twice Upon a Time, is throwing a bash for its grand reopening. But bookseller Jenna Quinn’s peace of mind is shattered when the local library’s Director of Antique Books turns up dead in the parking lot–his head bashed in by a glittering pair of vintage glass bookends.

Alas, finding the killer won’t be so easy, even though this is not Jenna’s first murder investigation–indeed, she inherited Twice Upon a Time from her slain uncle. The suspect list is voluminous–the late librarian had not-so-friendly run-ins with numerous guests–but suspicion eventually centers on three unsavory individuals who left the party shortly before the victim did.

God Rest Ye, Royal Gentlemen (Her Royal Spyness #15) by Rhys Bowen.  Berkely, 12 October 2021.

Georgie is excited for her first Christmas as a married woman in her lovely new home. She suggests to her dashing husband, Darcy, that they have a little house party, but when Darcy receives a letter from his Aunt Ermintrude, there is an abrupt change in plans. 

Aunt Ermintrude hints that the queen would like Georgie nearby. Georgie had not known that Aunt Ermintrude was a former lady-in-waiting and close confidante of her royal highness. The letter is therefore almost a royal request, so Georgie, Darcy, and their Christmas guests all head to Sandringham.

Little Black Book (Bibliophile #15) by Kate Carlisle. Berkley, 29 June 2021.

Brooklyn and her hunky husband, security expert Derek Stone, have just returned from a delightful trip to Dharma, where the construction of their new home away from home is well underway, when a little black book arrives in the mail from Scotland. The book is a rare British first edition of Rebecca, and there’s no return address on the package. The day after the book arrives, Claire Quinn shows up at Brooklyn and Derek’s home. Brooklyn met Claire when the two women worked as expert appraisers on the television show This Old Attic. 

Claire reveals that during a recent trip to Scotland she discovered her beloved aunt was missing and her home had been ransacked. Among her aunt’s belongings, Claire found the receipt for the package that wound up with Brooklyn and Derek. Claire believes both her own life and her aunt’s are in danger.

But just as Brooklyn and Derek begin to investigate, a man who Claire thinks was following her is found murdered, stabbed with a priceless jeweled dagger. With a death on their doorstep, Brooklyn and Derek page through the little black book, where they discover clues that will take them to the shadows of a medieval Scottish castle on the shores of Loch Ness.

Deadly Ever After (Lighthouse Library #8) by Eva Gates.  Crooked Lane Books, 11 May 2021.

They’re getting married! Lucy Richardson and Connor McNeil have announced their engagement. Their friends throw a party for the couple at Coquina Beach, close to Lucy’s beloved Bodie Island Lighthouse Library.

As they’re packing up the presents and the (few) leftovers from Josie’s Cozy Bakery, who should arrive, but Richard Eric Lewiston III, Lucy’s former almost-fiancé and his overbearing mother Evangeline. Push comes to love when Evangeline makes no secret of why she’s here: to get Lucy and Ricky back together.

Lucy isn’t temped in the least, and Ricky is nothing but embarrassed at his mother’s desperate ploy. Before returning to Boston Evangeline throws a dinner party at Jake’s Seafood Bar for a reluctant Lucy and her family. Lucy hopes to get the dinner over with and see Evangeline and Ricky returning to Boson. But when a body is found at the restaurant’s kitchen door, Lucy is again forced to unwillingly put on her detective’s hat and do what she can to save her family and her engagement. 

A Fatal Footnote (The Open Book #2) by Margaret Loudon.  Berkley, 6 July 2021.

The wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Upper Chumley-on Stoke has all the makings of a fairy tale, complete with a glowing bride and horse-drawn carriage. But it wouldn't be much of a story without a villain, and as American Gothic novelist Penelope Parish is coming to learn, happy-ever-afters are as fraught in this charming British town as they are in her books.

When the Duke's former girlfriend is found murdered at the reception it's up to Penelope and her newfound family at the Open Book bookshop to catch the killer before they strike again.

Killer Research (Library Lover's Mystery #12) by Jenn McKinlay.  Berkely, 2 November 2021.

Ms. Cole, a librarian and current candidate for town mayor, is shocked when she opens her trunk to discover a murder victim who just so happens to be a guy she dated forty years ago and the founder of the baking empire Nana's Cookies. As the town gossip mill turns, a batch of rumors begins to circulate about Ms. Cole's rebellious youth, which--along with being a murder suspect--threatens to ruin her life and her budding political career. But Ms. Cole is one tough cookie who will not go down without a fight.

Has the campaign for mayor turned deadly? It is up to Lindsey, Sully, and the rest of the crafternoon pals to see how the cookie crumbles and figure out who is trying to frame Ms. Cole for murder and why.

The Broken Spine (Beloved Bookroom #1) by Dorothy St. James.  Berkley, 19 January 2021.

Trudell Becket, book-loving librarian, finds herself in a bind when the library where she works is turned into a state-of-the-art bookless library. In a rare move of rebellion, Trudell rescues hundreds of her library's beloved books slated for the recycle center. She sets up a secret book room in the library's basement and opens it to anyone who shares her love of the printed book.

When the town councilman, who was the vocal proponent of the library's transformation into a "futuristic technological center," is crushed under an overturned shelf of DVDs, Trudell becomes the police's prime suspect for his murder. She was the only person in the library at the time of his death, or so the police believe. But that's not true. For the past month, Trudell had been letting a few dozen residents into the building through the basement entrance so they could read and check out the printed books.

But if she tells the police about the backdoor patrons who were in the library at the time of the murder, she'd have to explain about the secret book room and risk losing the books. In order to protect herself from being arrested for a murder she didn't commit, Trudell--with the help of a group of dedicated readers--decides to investigate. She quickly discovers you can't always judge a book by its cover.

The wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Upper Chumley-on Stoke has all the makings of a fairy tale, complete with a glowing bride and horse-drawn carriage. But it wouldn’t be much of a story without a villain, and as American Gothic novelist Penelope Parish is coming to learn, happy-ever-afters are as fraught in this charming British town as they are in her books.

When the Duke’s former girlfriend is found murdered at the reception it’s up to Penelope and her newfound family at the Open Book bookshop to catch the killer before they strike again.

when Georgie pays a visit to the queen, she learns that there is more to her request than just some simple eavesdropping. There have been a couple of strange accidents at the estate recently. Two gentlemen of the royal household have died in mysterious circumstances and another has been shot by mistake during a hunt. Georgie begins to suspect that a member of the royal family is the real target but her investigation will put her new husband and love of her life, Darcy, in the crosshairs of a killer.

Cozy Monday - 5 New Series!

Color Me Murder (Pen & Ink  #1) by Krista Davis.  (Kensington Publishing trade paperback, 27 February 2018.)

By day, Florrie Fox manages Color Me Read bookstore in Georgetown, Washington D.C. By night, she creates her own intricately detailed coloring books for adults, filling the pages with objects that catch her eye. There’s plenty of inspiration in her new apartment—a beautiful carriage house belonging to Professor John Maxwell, Florrie’s boss. He offers the property to Florrie rent-free with one condition—she must move in immediately to prevent his covetous sister and nephew from trying to claim it.

When the professor’s nephew, Delbert, arrives, he proves just as sketchy as Florrie feared. But the following morning, Delbert has vanished. It’s not until she visits the third floor of the store that Florrie makes a tragic discovery—there’s a trap door in the landing, and a dead Delbert inside. The esteemed Professor Maxwell is an obvious suspect, but Florrie is certain this case isn’t so black and white. Doodling clues, she begins to consider other colorful characters on the scene, all with a motive for murder. With a killer drawing closer, Florrie will need to think outside the lines . . . before death makes his mark again.
(Includes A Front and Back Cover for You to Color!)


Crime & Punctuation (Deadly Edits #1) by Kaitlyn Dunnett.  (Kensington Publishing hardcover, 29 May 2018).  

When perky novice writer Tiffany Scott knocks at her door holding a towering manuscript, Mikki expects another debut novel plagued by typos and sloppy prose. Instead, she finds a murder mystery ripped from the headlines of Lenape Hollow’s not-too-distant past. The opening scene is a graphic page-turner, but it sends a real chill down Mikki’s spine after the young author turns up dead just like the victim in her story . . .

Mikki refuses to believe that Tiffany’s death was accidental, and suspicions of foul play solidify as she uncovers a strange inconsistency in the manuscript and a possible motive in the notes. Then there’s Tiffany’s grandmother and husband, who aren’t exactly on friendly terms over the local area’s planned rejuvenation efforts . . .

Unable to convince police that they are focused on the wrong suspect, Mikki must rely on her keen eyes to catch the truth hidden in Lenape Hollow. As she gets closer to cracking the case, only one person takes Mikki’s investigation seriously—the cunning killer who will do anything to make this chapter of her life come to a very abrupt ending . . .


Murder, She Knit (Knit & Nibble #1) by Peggy Ehrhart.  (Kensington Publishing mass market paperback, 27 March 2018).

Pamela is hosting the next Knit and Nibble meeting and can’t wait to liven up her otherwise empty home with colorful yarn, baking, and a little harmless gossip. She even recruits Amy Morgan, an old friend who recently moved to town, as the group’s newest member. But on the night of the gathering, Amy doesn’t show. Not until Pamela finds the woman dead outside—a knitting needle stabbed through the front of her handmade sweater . . .

Someone committed murder before taking off with Amy’s knitting bag, and Pamela realizes that only she can spot the deadly details hidden in mysterious skeins. But when another murder occurs, naming the culprit—and living to spin the tale—will be more difficult than Pamela ever imagined . . . 

Scot Free (Last Ditch #1) by Catriona McPherson.  (Midnight Ink trade paperback, 8 April 2018). 

Lexy Campbell fell in love and left her native Scotland for a golden life in California―hitched to a hunk, building her marriage counseling practice, living the dream. Six months later she's divorced, broke, and headed home. There's just one last thing. Lexy's only client―sweet little old Mrs. Bombarro―is in jail for murdering her husband with a fireworks rocket.

Lexy knows the cops have got it wrong; all she needs is a few days to prove it and somewhere cheap to sleep at night. But checking into the Last Ditch Motel leads Lexy to a whole new cast of characters with troubles of their own.

Tart of Darkness (Chef to Go #1) by Denise Swanson.  (Sourcebooks Landmark mass market paperback, 3 April 2018). 

Right when Dani thinks she’s hit a dead-end in her career, she unexpectedly inherits an enormous old house in a quaint college town. This gives her the perfect opportunity to pursue her true passion—cooking! So Dani opens Chef-to-Go, preparing delicious, ready-made meals for hungry students attending the nearby university, as well as providing personal chef services and catering events for the local community. To help support her new business, she opens her home to a few students, renting them rooms and becoming almost like a big sister figure in their lives.

But just as Dani is relishing her sweet new life, the friend of one of her boarders is murdered, and Dani becomes one of the primary suspects! She’ll have to scramble to clear her name and save her business before the killer reappears—perhaps to silence the new chef forever.

Cozy Monday

Twelve Angry Librarians (Cat in the Stacks #8) by Miranda James (Berkley Prime Crime hardcover, 21 February 2017).

Charlie Harris enjoys being the interim library director at Athena College, but he's happy to only be "interim".  Having to deliver the welcome address to the Southern Academic Libraries Association annual conference, being held at Athena is very stressful, though, as Charlie does not enjoy public speaking.

To add to that stress, Charlie's nemesis from library school, Gavin Fong, is the keynote speaker.  To be fair, Gavin has always rubbed most people the wrong way, being an insufferable and conceited and certain he knows everything.

And he seems to still take pleasure in baiting Charlie, who eventually reaches the end of his patience and takes a swing at Gavin.  When Gavin is found dead the next day, Charlie is at the top of the suspect list.

Of course, we all know he's innocent, as does Chief Deputy Kanesha Berry.  But CD Berry has to find concrete evidence of Charlie's innocence.  Though there's no shortage of people who wished Fong harm, finding the real culprit is a difficult task.

This is an extremely well-constructed mystery.  Clues and red herrings are perfectly placed, and the identity of the killer should be a real surprise.

Charlie and his Maine Coon cat Diesel, as well as their family and friends, are a charming group, and spending time with them is a delight!

The publisher has generously offered a copy of Twelve Angry Librarians to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on Monday, February 20th.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!

FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.

Cozy Monday - Holiday Gift Ideas

So you have a friend who loves cozy (or traditional) mysteries, and you wnat to get them a holiday gift.  

BUUUUT, you have no idea what they've already read or watched, so what do you do?

Here are a few ideas:


Crackling Candles 

Yes, candles that crackle like real wood fire as they burn!

Woodwick's candles come in a plethora of colours, scents and  sizes.  You can get them from their website (where you can get a coupon code if you sign up for their newsletter), but they're also available at Bed Bath and Beyond, though they may be difficult to find in stores.  





Heated Reading Pillow 

This takes the armchair-style bedrest to a new level!
Not only is it heated, it has a massage function.  It also has pockets for reading materials, glasses or pens.  This model from Sharper Image even has a gooseneck reading lamp! Also available at Brookstone without the lamp.








Reading Shawl 

Basically just an oversized shawl with pockets, you can find this in various fabrics.  
This fleece one is available in five colours, and can be monogrammed for an additional couple of dollars.  
There's one made of merino wool here, for about twice as much.  If you like the wool idea, but not the price and can knit quickly, there's a pattern here.




Fingerless Gloves

For those (like me) with perpetually cold hands, fingerless gloves (to facilitate page-turning) can be inexpensive enough for stocking stuffers or to give in multiples.
Googling "fingerless gloves" brings up a zillion possibilites, including these fancy ones screen-printed with text from classic novels.
Again, if you're crafty (and quick), you can find easy patterns such as this one on Google or Ravelry (for which you must create an account.).

Cozy Monday

Better Late Than Never (Library Lover's Mystery #7) by Jenn McKinlay (Berkley Prime Crime hardcover, 1 November 2016). 

It's wonderful to visit Lindsey Norris, director of the Briar Creek Public Library, again.  

We arrive at the library just in time to witness Briar Creek's very first library amnesty day, 24 hours during which library patrons can return overdue books with no fines being charged. Lindsey and her staHff are overwhelmed by the sheer volume of books returned; it's necessary to empty the overflowing bookdrop several times, and all of the book trucks are filled.

To reward her staff for all the work the've been saddled with, Lindsey is running a contest: the person who finds the most overdue item gets a free pizza.  Paula Turner, a recenly hired clerk, comes across a copy of The Catcher in the Rye that is twenty years late.

Out of curiosity, Lindsey searches the library's records (of course they go back that far!) and finds that the peron who'd checked out the book was a local high school teacher named Candice Whitley.  

She's shocked to learn that Candice was murdered, and on the very day that the book was checked out.  Certain that the book can help to identify the killer, Lindsey turns it in to the police chief.

But the small Briar Creek police force is strained to the limit by a spate of burglaries, and Lindsey knows that a late library book will certainly be given little attention, so she decides to ask a few questions herself.

But there's plenty going on in the small town besides murder and robbery investigations. New babies, new friends, new romances... it's astounding!

The back of the book contains craft ideas, recipes, and an excerpt from the fifth

 book in Ms. McKinlay's Hat Shop mystery series, Assault and Beret, due in January.

The publisher has generously offered a copy of Better Late Than Never to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on Monday, November 14th.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!

FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.

Cozy Monday

Death at First Sight (Bay Island Psychic #1) by Lena Gregory (Berkley Prime Crime mass market paperback, 1 November 2016). 

Burnt out from practicing psychiatry in New York City, Cass Donovan moved to back to her hometown of Bay Island to set up shop as a psychic.  

While doing a reading for Ellie Callahan, one of her regulars, Cass feels an odd sort of shadow passing in front of her.  The only other time she'd had that sensation, someone had died, and Cass has no idea what it could mean this time around.  

Late for a rehearsal for her friend's fashion show, Cass nevertheless stops to get coffee on the way.  But Ellie's domineering mother, Marge Hawkins steps into the line behind her, and begins to loudly berate her for deceiving Ellie.

When she finally arrives at the theatre, she learns that Marge had changed the long-planned date of the fashion show.  Bee, whose designs will be modeled for distributors, angrily declares that the world would be a lot better off with out Marge.  

The next day, Cass arrives at the theatre early, and finds Marge sitting in the orchestra pit, dead.  She waits anxiously for the police to arrive, hoping that her friend  "Tank" Lawrence will be the officer on duty.  But Sherriff Langdon, not a fan of Cass's, answers the call, and immediately suspects Cass of the murder.  

Langdon treats Cass as though she's guilty before he even questions anyone else. Cass, who knows there's no shortage of people who disliked Marge, decides that the only way to prove her innocence is to conduct her own investigation, much to the disapproval of her friends.

Cass is a smart, engaging protagonist, though a bit impetuous, and I look forward to getting to know her and her friends in the next installment of the series, Occult and Battery (publication date not yet announced).


The publisher has generously offered a copy of Death at First Sight to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on Monday, November 7th.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!


FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.

Cozy Monday

No Farm, No Foul (Farmer's Daughter Mystery #1) by Peg Cochran (Berkley Prime Crime mass market paperback, 6 September 2016).

Widow and mother of two, Shelby McDonald runs Love Blossom Farm in the small town of Lovett,  Michigan.  She also writes a blog called The Farmer's Daughter, in which she describes her experiences, discusses the process of growing vegetables, and shares original recipes.


Apart from missing her late husband like crazy, she has a pretty good life, even with her pre-teen daughter Amelia already being difficult.

But the bucolic peace is destroyed when the new minister's wife is killed during a church fund-raiser that Shelby hosts.  Prudence Mather was not an easy woman to like, so there are plenty of suspects, but then Shelby's best friend Kelly becomes one of the prime suspects and asks Shelby to poke around a little and see what she can come up with.

Already upset about the murder sullying the peace of her home, Shelby agrees, and gets to work.

Many of the chapters begin with the charming device of blog entries that Shelby drafts in her mind about events as she's experiencing them.  Shelby is an intelligent and accomplished protagonist who is easy to identify with.

Recipes for some of her creations are included at the end of the book, )but the one I really wanted, for the cottage cheese pie she keeps making, is missing).

The publisher has generously offered a copy of No Farm, No Foul to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on Monday, September 19th.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!

FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.

Cozy Monday

All the Little Liars (Aurora Teagarden #9) by Charlaine Harris (Minotaur hardcover, 4 October 2016).

Aurora Teagarden has always been my favorite of Charlaine Harris' protagonists (sorry, Sookie), so of course I was excited to hear that there was a new Aurora book being released, more than a decade after the last one (Poppy Done to Death, 2003).  

All the Little Liars picks up shortly after Poppy, which ended with mystery author Robin Crusoe proposing to Aurora, who had just discovered that she was pregnant.  It's about three weeks after the wedding, and the couple have just returned from their honeymoon.

They're preparing to share their news of the pregnancy with their families, and Aurora is adjusting to the physical changes she's experiencing.  Her younger half-brother Phillip is still living with them, and will be starting at the local high school in January.  Aurora is pleased with the way Phillip is adapting to life in Lawrenceville, which is considerably more stable than living with his parents ever was.

When Phillip tells Aurora he needs to talk to her about something, she's on her way out the door, but she assures him that they'll talk when she gets home.  But between dealing with issues at work, appointments with the doctor, and talking to her mother, she forgets until the next day. 

Phillip texts Aurora to tell her that he's hanging out with his friend  Josh, so she's not worried.  But when Josh's mother calls in the early evening, asking if she'd heard from the boys, Aurora feels a premonitory shiver.  Neither Phillip nor Josh are answering their phones, so after Aurora and Robin drive around town and don't find them in any of the usual places, Aurora insists on calling the police.  

It turns out that not only are Josh and Phillip unaccounted for, but Josh's twin sister Joss, as well as a younger girl named Liza, the daughter of the local Episcopalian minister.  

Impatient with the Lawrenceville PD's lack of progress, Aurora and Robin investigate on their own, and learn some horrific things about their neighbors.  

Fans of Charlaine Harris will love this book, especially those, like me, who really missed Ms. Teagarden. 

 

FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher for sending me an Advance Reading Copy of this book to review.

Cozy Monday

A Dark and Stormy Murder (Writer's Apprentice Mystery #1) by Julia Buckley (Berkley Prime Crime mass market paperback, 5 July 2016).  

As soon as I read the epigraph to the first chapter, an excerpt from fictional novelist Camilla Graham's novel The Salzburg Train, I knew I would love this book.  The tone of the passage evoked for me the Mary Stewart romantic suspense novels that I read and reread when I was a teen.  

Protagonist, aspiring author Lena London feels the same way about Camilla Graham's work.  She has her favorites of the many books Graham wrote (almost one a year from 1972 to 2010!) which have become her comfort reads.

So when her friend Allison calls and tells Lena that Camilla belongs to her knitting group, Lena at first thinks Allison is joking.  Allison assures Lena that she is absolutely serious, and then informs Lena that she has told Camilla about her.  In fact, Allison even sent Camilla a copy of Lena's graduate thesis, a novel inspired by Camilla's work. AND, Camilla liked it so much she told Allison that she'd like to meet Lena, and offer her a job.

Thus, Lena serendipitously becomes her idol's assistant/ghostwriter, moving lock, stock and feline into Camilla Graham's house, which the author believes will make working cooperatively much easier.  

On her first day in the small town of Blue Lake, Indiana, Lena discovers the body of a local waiter named Martin Jonas on the beach below Camilla's house.  

Just like that, Lena is involved in the same type of mystery as the heroines of Camilla's novels.  This gives her a great background to investigate a crime that the local law enforcement would like to pin on the recluse who lives next door, who has become a friend of Lena's.

The clever Julia Buckley has managed to create snippets from some of Camilla's books, which Lena often mentally compares to events in her own life, and reacts accordingly.  Not only that, each chapter is preceded by an epigraph from The Salzburg Train, the novel that Lena is assisting with.

Fans of Mary Stewart, Phyllis Whitney and Helen MacInnes will devour this book, and will probably (like me) be anxious for the next!



The publisher has generously offered a copy of A Dark and Stormy Murder  to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on Friday, July 22, 2016.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!


FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.

Cozy Monday

Read to Death (Read 'Em and Eat #3) by Terrie Farley Moran (Berkley Prime Crime mass market paperback, 5 July 2016).

I love a book that teaches me stuff!

I had not known that Thomas Edison spent time in Florida, so obviously I didn't know that he'd owned an estate there, complete with beautiful gardens.

Sassy Cabot and Bridgy Mayfield, who run the Read 'Em and Eat bookstore and café in Fort Meyers, have several book clubs for area readers.  Since their Cool Reads/Warm Climate club has just finished reading The Florida Life Of Thomas Edison by Michele Albion, they decide to take the members on a day long field trip to the Edison and Ford Winter Estates, now a National Register Historic Site.

They rent a van and because he's friendly and garrulous, they request Oscar Frieland as the driver.  Oscar does tend to flirt, however, and this time it annoys some of the women. Sassy and Bridgy change the subject and the tension decreases, but someone was still upset.

After they return to the café, and are settling the clubbers with tea and snacks, Bridgy realizes she's left her expensive sunglasses in the van, and rushes out to get them before Oscar leaves.  She finds him bleeding, with a pair of scissors stuck in his neck.  

Because she's the one who found the body, Bridgy comes under severe scrutiny from the police.  Worried that her friend is being suspected of a crime that she didn't commit, Sassy does her best to find another person for the police to focus on.

The relationship between Sassy and Bridgy is amazing.  The  two women  live and work together, and still have a healthy friendship.  And, they've built a thriving business and strong support group far from their hometown.  

It's a joy to read about the way they run Read 'Em and Eat, the innovative ideas for book clubs.  Reading about the delicious food is hunger-inducing though.  Thank goodness recipes are included!



The publisher has generously offered a copy of Read to Death  to one of my readers.  Please comment below before 12:01 a.m. on July 18, 2016.  Entries from the US only, please.  
Please don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win!


FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this book.