Category: Five Star Adult

BONUS REVIEW: The Star-Crossed Sisters of Tuscany by Lori Nelson Spielman

BONUS REVIEW: The Star-Crossed Sisters of Tuscany by Lori Nelson Spielman

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Over 200 years ago, when Filomena’s boyfriend stole a kiss from her younger sister, Maria, an enraged and jealous Filomena cursed Maria and every second-born daughter the family would ever have to never find love.

Emilia is the second-born daughter in her family. She lives and works around her family – her widowed father, her married older sister, her perpetually disapproving grandmother, her beloved great-uncle, and tons of cousins.

Out of the blue, Emilia receives a note from her great-aunt Poppy, the second-born daughter of her generation. Poppy is the one family member Emilia is forbidden to contact. Poppy is headed to Italy for her 80th birthday, and she wants Emilia to go with her. But Nonna Rosa would never allow it, even though Emilia is an adult of almost 30.

But Poppy is a force to be reckoned with, too. She insists if Emilia – and her cousin, Lucy, who is also a second daughter – come with her to Italy, they will throw off the family curse once and for all.

Review

Wow, this was good! I loved the personal growth for Emilia and Lucy. And Poppy’s story, told through periodic flashback chapters, was captivating! I wanted more, in all the best ways – more chapters, more time in Italy, more time with these characters. And I can’t stop thinking about the twists and turns and the way things turned out for these women.

Emilia’s family is infuriating. I was incensed, grumbling and cursing on her behalf any time her sister or grandmother was on the page. The writing here is so good I wanted to defend Emilia right from the beginning, before I really even knew her. The evolution of the family stories and curse pieces was excellent. While everything didn’t work out perfectly, the resolution was supremely satisfying.

I loved that Lucy was part of this journey. While she isn’t a point-of-view character, I enjoyed her development over the trip to Italy. She has a different reaction to the curse from Emilia. That contrast was fascinating!

I assumed from the curse that this would be a romance. There are elements of that, but really this is a journey with these three women. It’s about their self-concepts and identities as well as their family relationships. And every bit of it was fantastic! Do not miss this one! (Language, references to sex, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥♥ = Outstanding!

REVIEW: Chasing Vines by Beth Moore

REVIEW: Chasing Vines by Beth Moore

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

It started with a trip to Tuscany with her daughters. While there, Beth Moore became captivated by the vineyards, the vines, the vinedressers, and the grapes. What followed was a season of study that led to this book. It’s an exploration of vineyards and fruitfulness and scripture that you should not miss!

Review

This book was perfect for me in the early part of 2020. If only you could see all of my dogearred pages and underlined passages! I doubt there’s more than a handful of pages that don’t have something marked in some way. I learned so much about vineyards and vines, and that changed my view of scripture, both the John 15 passage that I expected to explore and so many others.

The voice of this book is textbook Beth Moore. There are passages where I could hear her voice as I read. There’s humor AND heart as well as truth and encouragement in this. Passage after passage applied to my life.

I dug into this like a text book. Which means I made a ridiculous number of notes and highlights. I want to go back and write it all down and ingest it like nourishment. My hope is that these concepts and insights would inform and change me at a deep level. I want to look back at all the ups and downs of my faith journey through the lens of this book.

{To be perfectly honest, I wrote this review back in March immediately when I finished reading the book. The rest of 2020 has driven many of its insights right out of my brain. Thankfully, I have my own annotated copy that I can read again!}

I can’t recommend this highly enough!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥+++*

*♥♥♥♥♥+++=Best of the Best

REVIEW: Murder Most Sweet by Laura Jensen Walker

REVIEW: Murder Most Sweet by Laura Jensen Walker

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Teddie St. John is an author living in Lake Potawatomi, Wisconsin with tons of friends and her family nearby. A cancer survivor, Teddie took early retirement from her government job and toured Europe before settling down at home to become an author of cozy mysteries. Life is too short to not do what you love.

Tavish Bentley is an author, too, visiting Lake Potawatomi for a book signing. Teddie ends up missing it due to a hot flash issue (early menopause thanks to her cancer). But she’s first on the scene to find Bentley’s ex-fiancée dead. And to discover the woman was strangled with a scarf someone stole from Teddie earlier in the day.

As a mystery writer, Teddie can’t ignore a murder mystery right in her home town. And as a suspect, she needs to clear her name before her publisher drops her for violating the morality clause in her contract. So she’ll be pressuring her friend the sheriff for details and keeping her ears open for clues. And maybe even going under cover! Whatever it takes to find a killer before they strike again.

Review

This was fabulous!! From the very first page, the writing and the voice grabbed me. In fact, in those early pages it felt like nothing I had read before. The voice is fresh and fun. I would love to be part of Teddie’s circle. (I am a Wisconsin girl, too, and from the area around where Lake Potawatomi is supposed to be.) Every reference to kringle (the Wisconsin stuff, not that stuff in the one Hallmark Christmas movie) made me crave it.

As if all of the Wisconsin pieces weren’t enough to endear this to me, Teddie is fabulous. She’s a writer, and a mystery writer at that. And her whole vibe over being a cancer survivor is brilliant. She discusses her mastectomy in a matter-of-fact way, sometimes with humor, which made her stand out for me compared to other mystery protagonists.

So, by all means pick this up for the perfect setting and awesome protagonist. But stick around for the great mystery. I had two favorite theories going into the home stretch, but I had to wait for the big reveal to find out which would be correct. Also, I don’t usually like mysteries where the protagonist is the main suspect. I find them extra stressful. But the balance here of suspects was terrific. The author paces the whole novel in such a way that Teddie can really dig into investigating a suspect. I loved it! She also does a great job of giving Teddie a reason for sleuthing that felt plausible.

I was thrilled to discover the second book in the Bookish Baker Mystery series – Deadly Delights – is already scheduled for summer 2021. And I also realized I have a review copy of the launch of the author’s second cozy series – the Faith Chapel Mystery series – waiting to be read. I’ll be reviewing Hope, Faith, and a Corpse in January 2021. In fact, as I looked into the author’s backlist I discovered that I have read her work before. She published at least two books with Thomas Nelson (Christian) publishing that I enjoyed years ago – Reconstructing Natalie (2006) and Miss Invisible (2007). I can recommend those books, too.

I am so pleased to support this fellow Wisconsinite and a great writer. Cozy fans should NOT miss Murder Most Sweet!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥♥= Outstanding, Excellent, Amazing

REVIEW: Paw and Order by V. M. Burns

REVIEW: Paw and Order by V. M. Burns

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Lyrical Underground in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Lilly Ann had convinced her bosses at the Chattanooga Museum to host the Eastern Tennessee Poodle Rescue Association’s fundraiser when their venue fell through. It would garner funds for the museum as well as goodwill as they helped out the charity.

Having wealthy recluse Archibald Lowry show up was a big surprise. Lilly Ann’s friend, Dixie, had been courting him as a donor for the Rescue, but no one expected him to show up for the fundraiser. It might have been better for him if he had stayed home, though. Before the event was over, Archibald Lowry was dead.

Now Lilly Ann is fostering Archibald’s poodle, and that seems to be bringing trouble to her doorstep. When someone repeatedly tries to steal the dog, and someone else ends up dead, Lilly Ann and her friends decide it’s time to kick off a new investigation.

Review

Other than the fact that this is a book about all manner of poodles, yet the dog on the cover is not a poodle, I have only great things to say about this mystery!

This is book 4 in the Dog Club Mystery series, but it’s the first one I have read. But I have already placed the first 3 books on my To Read list (along with the first book of the author’s other series – The Mystery Bookshop series – The Plot Is Murder!). This was so good, and I liked the characters so much, I don’t want to miss any of their adventures.

I prefer to start a series at the beginning, but I had no issues following the plot of this one. There are a number of core series characters in the Dog Club that I had to track carefully in the beginning since I had no context for them from the earlier books. But by the middle of this, it was no longer an issue. The author does a great job making sure readers can drop in wherever and still follow the story.

The mystery here is fantastic. I loved how Lilly and her friends banded together to investigate. The sleuthing was great, the pacing of the mystery was excellent, and the ending wrapped up most of my questions. This is a series I will definitely be following in the future!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: What's Your Enneatype? by Liz Carver and Josh Green

BONUS REVIEW: What’s Your Enneatype? by Liz Carver and Josh Green

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Fair Winds Press in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. ]

Summary and Review

From the book: “The Enneagram is a tool that helps us name what motivates people to do the things they do in the world.” (page 8 of e-book review copy) That’s a great description! This book comes from the folks behind the Instagram account @justmyenneatype. Some of the book’s graphics will look familiar to fans of the IG account (like me).

The book opens with a thorough introduction explaining what the Enneagram is and what it is not. There’s no test (this is a plus!). The book reinforces the idea that you do the reading (whether that’s this book or another resource), you eliminate the types that are certainly not you, and then you discern for yourself from the remaining types what seems the best fit.

There’s a great use of color and graphics throughout the book; each number has a carefully chosen color scheme. I loved the look of the book on my device, and I can’t wait to see a print version in person. The layout of the book for each type is uniform, so you can flip to the same feature for each number. The writing is engaging and conversational throughout.

Each section includes the following information for the type: wings, triads, stances, subtypes/instincts, self-care suggestions, and discussions of movement in health and stress as well a graphic of a health continuum in 6 areas. My favorite feature of them all was the description of what the world would be like if everyone was that number. It was a clever way to highlight the strengths and liabilities for each type.

I LOVED this! I have been learning about the Enneagram for about 3.5 years now, and I learned new things and got to think about things in new ways from reading this. This is now in my top tier of Enneagram resources alongside The Road Back to You, Millenneagram and Spiritual Rhythms for the Enneagram. This book releases August 4, 2020. 

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

You can go here to read all about the other Enneagram resources I have reviewed.

REVIEW: Lineage Most Lethal by S. C. Perkins

REVIEW: Lineage Most Lethal by S. C. Perkins

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Lucy Lancaster, genealogist, is preparing the last details on her research regarding the Sutton family. Her client, Pippa Sutton, is the last descendant of the wealthy family to carry the name. She’s called all of her distant relatives out to help Lucy with her project. Now, days before New Year’s, Lucy is going to complete her final interviews, present her findings, and enjoy a “vacation” of sorts at the Hotel Sutton.

While at the hotel, a sickly man stumbles into Lucy and passes her a Mont Blanc pen and a secret message before he dies.

Lucy contacts her grandfather, a collector, about the pen, and he tells her a startling story. He knew the dead man. And the pen was a clue about a secret mission Lucy’s grandfather was part of in WWII – when he was a spy.

Lucy barely has time to take in this surprising information before other people start to die. Are the deaths around Hotel Sutton connected to the WWII mission and the pen? Or has Lucy stumbled onto two mysteries at once?

Review

This is just as exceptional as the first book in the series, Murder Once Removed. The storytelling and the mystery are fantastic. I love the characters and the intricacy of the story. I was even able to puzzle out the killer, which is always so satisfying.

Lucy’s office mates/best friends and her FBI fella are not featured as prominently in this book, which was sad. I missed them. But their involvement was logical based on the story, so I can’t complain. The book was just as strong with them in the background as the first book was when they were more central. But I have high hopes for them to have a higher involvement in book 3.

Lucy is a fantastic protagonist. She’s so smart. She really knows her stuff with genealogy, but she never makes it too stuffy or too “inside” for those who only have a passing understanding. Everything in the book is well explained, and I never feel like I don’t know what is going on. The historic pieces of this particular book are also well explained – and fascinating!

If you missed book one, it is now available in mass market paperback (my favorite format). Do not skip it! I don’t think you have to have read it to understand this one, but it is just too good for mystery fans to miss it. Cozy mystery fans should be sure this series is at the top of their TBR lists.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby

BONUS REVIEW: The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary and Review

The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism originally published in 2019, and it sat on my reading wishlist forever. My local bookstore never carried it in 2019. And when I had the opportunity to order a new book, I almost always chose a fictional adventure instead. I knew this was not going to be a “feel good” read for me.

But when the paperback released earlier this year, my local store had copies ordered for a Black History Month display. I was picking up some other books on racism and white supremacy, and I grabbed this as well. It was time.

I can read a fiction novel in a day or two without trying hard. This took me almost a whole month to finish – not because it was bad but because the truth was so hard to read. And even though I finished this months ago, it is a timely read now, in the middle of 2020, too, not just during Black History Month.

This book changed me, changed my thinking and my understanding. It changes not only how I see the Church and the state of our country today, but also how I see myself. And I am challenged by the author’s call to live out James 4:17 – “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” It is not time for silence or for fear. It is time to put the words and actions of Jesus into practice.

This book covers the history of race in America from the Colonial era to today. Concepts of racial identity and oppression are explored in the history of the country and also in where the Christian Church stood on the issues of the times. While the author is very clear “all Christians” aren’t complicit, it’s still an unflattering portrait of the Church. And readers are forced to consider, from the “enlightened” 21st Century, if we would have been on the side of right if we had lived in those times.

I am grateful for the chapters on where people of faith should go from here. There are many great ideas. I am also challenged because I am tired. I feel the weight of these stories, and I’d love to move on to something more pleasant. And that is sin – to know and to hide from action. To see the truth and ignore it is a primary example of White Privilege. It dishonors my friends who are people of color who live this every day. It dishonors the call of Jesus to love my neighbor.

So, one of my actions is to write about and talk about and recommend this book. It’s not the only action I’ve taken this year, but it is one piece.

If you love history, if you are feeling challenged to face systems of White Supremacy – or your own privilege, if you are a person of faith, do not miss this book. This December you will be able to pick up a study guide that will go with a video series on this book. If you have a membership to MasterLectures from ZondervanAcademic (which I do – it’s awesome!), you can watch the video series there right now.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: To Kill a Mocking Girl by Harper Kincaid

BONUS REVIEW: To Kill a Mocking Girl by Harper Kincaid

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Quinn Caine is back in Vienna, Virginia after teaching English in villages overseas for a few years after college. She’s living in a house on her aunt and uncle’s property and doing book binding work at her parents shop, Prose and Scones. Even her brother has moved back to Vienna thanks to a new job. It’s good to be back in town with her people.

Part of Quinn’s “welcome back” is a run in with Trica Pemberley, one of her high school’s mean girls. Tricia and her twin sister, Trina, are local real estate stars in town. But Tricia’s boasting wasn’t about the housing market, but rather about the diamond on her ring finger. She seemed to think Quinn would care that she was engaged to Scott Hauser, a guy Quinn dated for a few weeks several years back. As far as Quinn was concerned, Tricia and Scott could have each other!

But when Quinn stumbles onto Tricia’s dead body, at least one local police officer thinks Quinn might have been jealous enough to kill her “rival.” Quinn, her friends, and her family know the idea is ludicrous. But to keep Quinn out of trouble, she and her cousin/best friend, Sister Daria, are going to track down a killer.

Review

Excellent! Everything about this was a delight – the characters, the setting, the potential romance, the mystery, the dogs. All of it.

The writing here is sharp. I loved the humor and the pop culture references. I laughed out loud many times. The romance, which is typical for cozy mysteries, has great chemistry and didn’t feel like the usual cozy relationship. My favorite pair, though is Quinn and Sister Daria. They have such an unusual dynamic. They grew up together, but Daria has changed so much while Quinn has been gone. I loved both the creativity of the relationship and the execution of it in the book. The scene where Quinn has dinner at the abbey is a perfect example of how fascinating this dynamic is.

The mystery here is SO well done! Quinn isn’t tracking suspects as much as she is tracking clues. The suspects come later as she tries to make the clues fit. It was easy to forget there was a second suspicious death, but it helped complicate the sleuthing when it came up. I was guessing all the way to the end, which was so satisfying. The hook – the book shop and Quinn’s book binding work – was a character development piece for Quinn and other characters more so than a major factor to the mystery, although it did play a role. I imagine it will be developed more in future books. And I am here for all of them. Cozy fans should NOT miss this one!

This book is available now as an e-book, but readers will be able to pick up a print copy after July 7th.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

 

REVIEW: A Spell for Trouble by Esme Addison

REVIEW: A Spell for Trouble by Esme Addison

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Alex has quit her job and gone to Bellamy Bay, North Carolina for vacation with her mother’s side of the family. The family her father refused to visit after her mother’s death. The people he forbid Alex from seeing. But with her father and her job gone and her future up in the air, family is just what Alex needs.

Alex, and her dog Athena, are staying with her aunt Lidia and cousin Minka. Minka’s sister, Kamila, lives in town as well. Aunt Lidia has an apothecary called Botanika, and Alex pitches in there to spend time with her family while she sorts out the upheaval in her life.

Randy Bennett comes to the store in search of a “good luck potion.” Lidia isn’t there, but Minka waits on him. But when Lidia walks in, she flies into a temper at finding Randy in her shop. She tosses his tea at him and bans him – again – from her store.

It’s weird enough that a customer would ask for a “potion.” Add to it Lidia’s temper; it looked like she lifted Mr. Bennett off the floor in her rage. Then there’s the gossip columnist who says Alex’s family are witches. But those problems are weird, and minor, compared to the death of Randy Bennett. The one Lidia is arrested for.

Review

This is a fantastic paranormal mystery! It’s similar in tone and feel to the Wishcrafters series, but with a paranormal hook that’s all its own. The water witch/mermaid piece is unique, and well designed, tying into actual legends from Poland. I thought the world-building here was great!

Alex and her family are characters I would love to know in real life. In fact, finishing the book was actually disappointing because it will be awhile before there’s a sequel. I can’t wait to spend more time in Bellamy Bay.

There’s the usual cozy mystery romance with a law enforcement officer here, or at least the potential for one. But there are actually hints at a possible romantic triangle. Usually I hate those, but this one was fascinating and well written.

The mystery here was top notch. I was guessing all the way to the end, which was so satisfying. There are some unresolved threads here to carry readers into book two. And I can’t wait to read Alex’s next adventure. Paranormal cozy fans – don’t miss this one!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: Broken Genius by Drew Murray

BONUS REVIEW: Broken Genius by Drew Murray

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Oceanview Publishing in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Will Parker was one deal away from becoming the next Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. But a tech error – maybe from the arrogance of youth or success, or from the distraction of his next big deal – leaves a young woman dead and Will yakking into a trashcan, overwhelmed with shame and disgust. He can barely focus on the fact that at that exact same moment an earthquake is about to destroy the business deal that would have changed not only Will’s life and company, but also the world.

So Will becomes a special agent with the FBI – his penance for what he feels was an egregious and inexcusable error. And his tech expertise sends him to the middle of Indiana to work with a Special Agent from Counter Intelligence on a murder at a small comic convention.

Why would a murder at a comic convention require someone from Counter Intelligence? Or someone from Cyber? Because the dead man was found with a radioactive case in his hotel room – an empty one. And the space inside is just right to be the tech that disappeared from Japan in the wake of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami. The tech Will was going to buy all those years ago.

Review

This was fantastic!! I loved this twisty, suspenseful mystery/thriller. Will Parker was the key to my enjoyment of this book. He’s smart and geeky. But he’s also good at his job for the FBI (even if he’s not a great shot).

There’s TONS going on here with the murder, dangerous tech up for bid on the dark web, kidnapping, and the convention, not to mention the ties to Will’s past and his ongoing guilt about what happened. It was all excellent. The layers to this reminded me of a David Rosenfelt mystery, but this is a more active story since it’s law enforcement rather than trial work.

I read several passages of this aloud to my husband because I was enjoying the story so much. Eventually he picked up  his phone and ordered a copy of the book. I know he’s going to love this one. Mystery/thriller/suspense fans, especially those who enjoy stories with law enforcement officers, should not miss this one. It was a delight to read. I hope there will be more Will Parker books in the future. (Language, violence, off-page sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥