Tag: cozy mystery

REVIEW: Class Reunions Are Murder by Libby Klein

REVIEW: Class Reunions Are Murder by Libby Klein

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Poppy McAllister feels like the rug has been pulled out from under her. Not only is she grieving the loss of her husband and rethinking some of the choices in her life. She’s also facing a 25 year high school reunion. Confronting her past – and former tormentors – would be one thing if she was feeling on top of her life. But she’s probably up two dress sizes after months of grief-eating, and her personal care routine has seen better days.

And then, to add insult to injury, one of her high school tormentors winds up dead. The police officer in charge of the case seems determined to see Poppy arrested for the crime.

This is the absolute WORST time to run into her high school boyfriend or deal with her angry Aunt Ginny who may need full time care. But an unexpected conversation with her cellmates at the jail launches Poppy’s life in a new direction. She’s done letting life just happen to her. She’s taking charge, starting with solving the murder at her high school reunion.

Review

This was a treat from start to finish. I felt bad for Poppy at the start. She has had some hard knocks. But she wasn’t whining or obnoxious about them. And I liked her even more when she started to take some ownership over her circumstances.

The murder was nicely complicated. The victim was pretty typical for cozy mysteries. There were plenty of reasons someone could want her dead. I was able to figure out the culprit, but needed help with some of the motive. And a few of my other guesses on things were way off base. But I enjoyed trying to solve all the puzzles.

Aunt Ginny’s situation was the most satisfying part of the book for me. And the effort to work that out pulled Poppy and Ginny together which was also great.

I picked this up because I love reunion stories – so many interesting things can come up when you get a diverse group together after a period of time – family or classmates. This was all I had hoped for when I bought it. The food allergy/Paleo diet pieces were interesting and gave this a different layer to add to the traditional cozy features (amateur sleuth, love triangle, etc.). I’m looking forward to reading books 2 and 3 to see where the relationships and the cooking/dietary pieces go.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: Trouble on the Books by Essie Lang

BONUS REVIEW: Trouble on the Books by Essie Lang

Posted on by Jaymie

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

Summary

Shelby Cox is helping run her aunt’s book store branch at Blye Castle while her aunt recovers from surgery. It’s a nice change of pace from her job in publishing. And now that she’s back in the town where she was born, she hopes she can learn some things about her mother who died when Shelby was three.

Shelby’s run in with Loreena Swan was pretty mild. Loreena, curator of the exhibits at the castle, seemed to think she should be in charge of everything. When Loreena tried to get heavy handed about the book store, Shelby firmly put her in her place. But that doesn’t mean she isn’t spooked when she finds Loreena dead.

Shelby is eager to see the crime solved, especially since she found the body. The local police chief has a history with her aunt Edie and seems to have Edie’s friend Matthew in her sights as her main suspect. Edie begs Shelby to look into things to protect Matthew. But the more questions Shelby asks, the more she seems to be the one who will need protecting.

Review

I have mixed feelings on this one. In general I liked Shelby and the other characters, and the mystery is solid. The castle setting is fun and different, and I like the book store angle.

My first struggle was to believe that any of the mystery was urgent. Loreena’s death happens early on and no ones seems to have very strong feelings about her or reactions to the death. Sure, it’s a crime so it needs to be solved, but there’s no urgency. I know Shelby wants to help her aunt’s “friend,” but that motivation still didn’t have any emotional punch to it. Even the police chief’s history with Aunt Edie, while described as contentious, was not really shown to be that way.

Then I was frustrated with Shelby’s search for information on her mom. Everyone, especially Edie, stonewalls Shelby at every turn. And the questions she is asking are really no big deal on the surface. Why wouldn’t anyone just answer? And Shelby was passive and understanding every time that happened. She has every right to ask her questions, and she should have been furious that simple questions were dodged at every turn. Obviously people were hiding something, but Shelby didn’t seem to put that together and wasn’t nearly upset enough about that. This was another plot point that seemed to be missing the emotional stakes I expected.

Finally, there were several places in the story where I saw what I considered to be continuity errors like a character not mentioned in a scene or discussion, but mentioned in a list of suspects to question right after, as if connected to the discussion even though his name never came up. At another time, Shelby knows information that doesn’t actually come up until several chapters later. I know I was reading an early, uncorrected review copy, but usually continuity pieces like that have already been sorted out before the ARC is released. I trust the publisher has addressed these issues in the final copy of the book. Hopefully this is just a quirk of being an early reader.

There are a couple threads started in this book that would make for interesting stories later in the series. I’ll probably give this series another try when a second book is released to see how things develop both in the story and in the writing.

Rating: ♥♥♥½

REVIEW: Criminal Confections by Colette London

REVIEW: Criminal Confections by Colette London

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Hayden Mundy Moore has been spending a lot of time at Lemaître Chocolates in her role as a consultant. Her work is supposed to be hush-hush. No one wants to admit they need her expertise. So when Christian Lemaître invites Hayden to the resort spa for a chocolatier’s retreat, she goes under the guise of building her business while she wraps up her report and recommendations for Lemaître.

When Hayden’s friend, Adrienne, dies at the retreat, everyone thinks it’s from an accidental overdose. Adrienne was under a lot of pressure at Lemaître. But when someone attacks Hayden when she surprises them during a rifling of her hotel room, Hayden starts to think there’s something more going on at Lemaître.

Corporate takeovers, romantic liaisons, company secrets, and business competitions are plentiful in the local chocolate scene. Is Hayden connected enough to figure out how and why Adrienne died? Or will she become another victim?

Review

This was a solid mystery with some quirky elements. The characters are the source of the quirk. At the start, I wasn’t sure I could read a whole book in Hayden’s voice. She has a unique style and early on her use of repeated metaphors was tiring. But as the story moved on, I got used to Hayden’s style and even got to like her. Her relationship with her “plus-one/bodyguard” and her financial adviser are odd. There are frequent references to history with both that go largely unexplained in this book. I started to wonder if I missed a book in the series.

The mystery was good. The suspects all had their own secrets, agendas, and quirks which made it hard to pin down a lead suspect. I only figured things out a few chapters before Hayden (who actually didn’t put it together even when she was face-to-face with the culprit.).

I’m curious enough to try book 2 in this series. The chocolate theme was fun; that’s what prompted me to try this in the first place. I’m hoping book two will fill in the gaps on a couple of the characters and solidify a strong connection with Hayden.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Murders and Metaphors by Amanda Flower

REVIEW: Murders and Metaphors by Amanda Flower

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

There were a lot of wineries in the Niagara region of New York, and Cascade Springs was no exception. And since it was her home town, it was the perfect place for Belinda Perkins to  hold her book signing.

And as the only bookstore in town, Violet and Grandma Daisy’s store, Charming Books, was the natural choice for handling the details of the signing. Yes, it meant Violet had to spend an evening at the Morton Vineyard, but the signing would be good for business.

At first, Violet didn’t realize she knew Belinda Perkins. She was a well-known and popular author when it came to wine. And her opinion could make or break a vineyard – like she broke the nearby Bone and Hearth Vineyard. But Violet knew Belinda from her own childhood in Cascade Springs. She was the older sister of one of Violet’s closest friends, Lacey. What Violet didn’t know was that the Perkins girls had had a huge falling out after Violet left town. At the signing, Lacey tried to approach Belinda to make amends. But Belinda flew into a rage and ordered Lacey to leave. When Belinda’s body is found later, Lacey becomes a murder suspect.

Review

This is my favorite of Flower’s many mystery series. I’ve also read her Amish Candy Shop series and the Magic Garden series. (Her Instagram feed at @amandaflowerauthor is also delightful!) I adore the characters, the town and of course the magical bookshop in this series. All three of the books in this series so far have been well-done and really kept me guessing!

There are some interesting extra wrinkles in this book – an obnoxious private investigator following Violet around, new additions to the writers’ critique group that meets in the shop, and an exploration of the book Little Women. I loved all of it – the ongoing character development, the celebration of books and reading, the fun animal characters. The whole book was a treat to read.

I felt like there were a couple pieces of the mystery that weren’t as fully spelled out as I wanted – a clue that maybe should have been a bigger deal to the police and a suspect with an excellent motive who was almost a non-factor in the investigation. These are minor observations that did nothing to diminish my enjoyment of the mystery in the big picture. The culprit was a nice development. I had toyed with that solution but never committed completely, so I enjoyed the final reveal. It handled several threads of the story nicely.

I highly recommend this book, and the whole series! Book one is Crime and Poetry and book 2 is Prose and Cons.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: Murder Wears a Little Black Dress by Debra Sennefelder

BONUS REVIEW: Murder Wears a Little Black Dress by Debra Sennefelder

Posted on by Jaymie

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

Summary

Kelly is back in her home town, Lucky Cove, following the death of her grandmother. Kelly’s grandmother left her a consignment shop. The timing is actually pretty perfect as Kelly just lost her New York fashion job and needed somewhere to land. But Kelly’s uncle is pressuring her to sell the place, and her one employee is resistant to any changes Kelly wants to make in the store.

And then there is the “murder dress.” A local “psychic” comes into the store, tries on a little black dress, and has a vision of murder. Before Kelly can get a handle on things, the story drives customers away, and she becomes the suspect in a different murder.

Kelly is determined to get to the truth before someone else is killed or her grandmother’s business is ruined. But a fashion buyer might not be well equipped to find a murderer, no matter how many Nancy Drew books she read as a kid.

Review

I enjoyed the mystery in this one! The solution was a nice surprise, and the whole case kept me guessing. While there is a supposed psychic in this as well as an impromptu seance that Kelly disbands rather quickly, there isn’t a “paranormal” vibe in the story. It’s a fairly straightforward cozy mystery.

The characters developed slowly for me. There’s a lot of history with some of them from long before this particular story, but I didn’t feel like it was thoroughly explained. It didn’t impact the mystery, but considering the impact of the event on the whole town, I wanted the full scoop. Supposedly the “whole town” blamed Kelly for an accident in her youth. But the details on how they determined Kelly was “at fault” by NOT being there and why some characters even had a stake in the event wasn’t clear. And then there wasn’t a lot shown in the story to back up this idea that the “whole town” blamed Kelly. It was just stated a lot.

I was happy to see some of the secondary characters call Kelly out on her rescuing behavior and poor boundaries as this case developed. She didn’t know any of the folks involved in the case, but she is all in on protecting someone who seems to only cause her trouble. Kelly’s friends are very forgiving even after calling her out. I hope in future books she’ll be a little more careful. This was another part of the story that diminished some of my reading enjoyment. Boundaries are a big deal.

I’ll stick with this series at least through another book to see how the story and characters develop, especially since the romance angle was only teased in this book. As I stated earlier, the mystery itself was great!

Rating: ♥♥♥½

REVIEW: A Lady's Guide to Etiquette and Murder by Dianne Freeman

REVIEW: A Lady’s Guide to Etiquette and Murder by Dianne Freeman

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

In 1899 England, Frances was fortunate to have her own money. With her husband dead for over a year, she was out of her mourning period. She had the means to leave the family estate – and her in-laws who only wanted her money – and set up her own house for herself and her daughter. But things were not going to be that simple.

First of all, her new home is next door to a man who had been part of the most devastating and embarrassing moment of her life. Second, her sister was coming from America for the London Season, and Frances was to be her chaperone for finding a suitable husband. Third, her brother-in-law decided to sue for Frances’ personal funds, saying it became part of the estate when she married. The suit freezes her accounts and puts her independence in jeopardy. And if all that wasn’t enough, throw on a theft, a break in and a murder!

Review

This was perfect from start to finish! It lived up to all of my highest hopes when I first saw that cover. This book delivered everything I want from a new mystery series.

I adored Frances. She has great strength and courage. She’s learned a lot from her time in London society, and she uses that to her sister’s benefit as well as her own. She has a fantastic assortment of supporters – friends, family and staff – to help with the personal issues as well as the criminal ones.

The mystery was excellent – interesting and twisting. I was guessing all the way through. There were so many layers to this, my attention never wavered. I can’t wait to read through this again.

This is everything I love in a great book! I can’t wait to read more in this series. Book two – A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder – releases next summer.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Lethal Licorice AND Premeditated Peppermint by Amanda Flower

REVIEW: Lethal Licorice AND Premeditated Peppermint by Amanda Flower

Posted on by Jaymie

Lethal Licorice – Summary

Weeks after the death of her grandfather, Bailey King is representing him in the Amish Confectionery Competition in their home town of Harvest, Ohio. She’ll be competing with her licorice, taffy, peanut brittle, and fudge. Bailey is hoping to win the fudge contest at least, since chocolate is her forté, but winning the whole contest would be excellent PR for their candy shop, Swissmen Sweets.

Several of the Amish contestants are unhappy that Bailey is in the contest. She isn’t Amish, even though she is following all the same cooking rules as the other contestants. No one is as bitter about Bailey’s entry in the contest as Josephine Weaver. So when Josephine turns up dead, Bailey is a murder suspect again.

But she’s not the only suspect. Josephine’s niece is pushing against the rules of her strict Amish district. She and Josephine may have had words. And then there’s the matter of Josephine’s candy shop – who will inherit her successful business and prime location? And what about her antagonistic shop neighbor? Bailey is determined to dig through the motives of these other suspects, find the real culprit, and clear her name.

Lethal Licorice – Review

This was a great second mystery in this series. You can read my review of book one here. I am enjoying the Amish/English differences and the conflict that arises from them. Bailey and her grandmother are great characters, although the young Amish women around them – Emily, and now Charlotte, are my favorite characters.

The mystery was great. I was guessing all the way to the end. But honestly, I was just as interested in the ins and outs of the Amish community in the story as I was in figuring out the murderer. My only complaint in the whole novel was about the poor lost pig. At one point, Bailey gets a clue about the location of the missing pig – more than 24 hours after he disappeared – but she doesn’t call someone while she deals with murder stuff, or go on her own to check out the clue. While it all works itself out in the end, it was a jarring delay considering the animal was likely without food or water while missing.

Overall, I am loving this series!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

 

Premeditated Peppermint – Summary

It’s Christmas in Harvest, Ohio, and Bailey King and her grandmother are preparing an assortment of peppermint treats for the Christmas Market to showcase their store, Swissmen Sweets. The plans for the event are all in place – the live nativity, the parade, and the Amish businesses selling their wares. What is NOT in the plan is Bailey’s New York ex, Eric Sharp, coming to town.

Eric has convinced his television crew to come to Ohio and film an Amish Christmas – including Amish candies from Swissmen Sweets and a romantic reconciliation with Bailey. The fact that Bailey doesn’t want anything to do with Eric’s plan doesn’t seem to be getting through to anyone. But when the show’s executive producer is found murdered, Eric needs Bailey for more than his TV show. He needs her to find the killer before he’s arrested for a crime he didn’t commit.

Premeditated Peppermint – Review

This is such a fun series! The mix of English and Amish characters, many with strong personalities, makes for great interactions. The only down side is the way those strong personalities tend to bulldoze right over Bailey much of the time. Her best friend, Cass, is one of my favorite characters because she puts herself between Bailey and those other characters. Of course, she can be just as guilty of pushing Bailey into all sorts of crazy scenarios. But because she is protective most of the time, her meddling isn’t as frustrating. I would like to see Bailey stand up for herself a little more as the series goes on.

The mystery in this book was solid. There were dueling motives for the murder, and Bailey tackled both with some great sleuthing. There are some interesting developments for the overarching story of the series in this book, too. I’m eager to see where those developments lead for book four – Toxic Toffee – out in the spring of 2019.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: In Peppermint Peril by Joy Avon

REVIEW: In Peppermint Peril by Joy Avon

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

Callie Aspen is back in Heart’s Harbor, Maine to stay with her great-aunt Iphy for the holidays. Her great-aunt’s shop, Book Tea, has some holiday events to work, and Callie is happy to help out. Her first event is a tea at Haywood Hall. Callie grew up around the mansion and grounds with her friends. When handsome Stephen DuBouvrais proposed to her friend, Sheila, Callie decided to make herself scarce from Haywood Hall, thinking it might hurt less that way.

Haywood Hall is mostly as Callie remembers. The groundskeeper from her childhood – Leadenby – is still there as is Dorthea Finster, the owner of the home. Stephen and Sheila are back for the holidays, too, as Stephen is part of Dorthea’s extended family. In fact, Dorthea planned the party so her family, a few friends, and some prominent folks from town would be there when she shared the contents of her new will.

Sheila, though, has co-opted the event to turn it into a marriage proposal for her daughter, Amber. Except Amber doesn’t want to get married. When the ring, which was hidden in the cake, disappears, the party starts to fall apart. In the ensuing turmoil, Leadenby is murdered.

Who took the ring? Who killed the groundskeeper? Are the two cases related? What was Dorthea going to announce at the party? Does that have anything to do with what happened? Callie can’t help asking questions to get to the truth.

Review

Overall, this was enjoyable. I liked the characters, especially Callie, Falk the deputy, and his extended family. The side plots around the central mystery were great.

The mystery itself was good, too. There were plenty of suspects and secrets swirling around to keep me guessing. I liked that there were two crimes to sort out because they could be related or could be completely separate, adding some extra sleuthing for Callie.

This book doesn’t give a lot of setting description for the town. And for the whole book, Callie was just a guest in town. If the series wasn’t named for the aunt’s shop, it might have been a series with a changing location. But by the end of the book, though, Callie seems to be planning to make Heart’s Harbor her new home.

There were some little things that threw off my reading groove – a slow start (I almost gave up), some head jumping (where I found myself asking how Callie knew what other characters were thinking – the author might have intended this sort of omniscient point-of-view, but it threw me), Callie  sometimes had information it seemed odd for her to have (As a visitor to town, how did Callie know where the mayor lived?), and there were some other gaps. These are minor in the scheme of things, and may have been addressed before the final publication of the book. I was able to push past those questions and stalls and get through a satisfying mystery in the end. I will definitely be checking out book 2 in the series to see how things continue.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Death and Daisies by Amanda Flower

REVIEW: Death and Daisies by Amanda Flower

Posted on by Jaymie

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

Summary

Fiona’s been in Scotland only for a couple months. It really should not have been enough time for her to have a nemesis already. But Reverend MacCullen has made his dislike clear since day one. And if he was difficult early on, he’s become almost hateful now. He has had a grudge against the MacCallister family for ages, although Fiona has no idea why. She knows he thinks the rumored magic of the Duncreigan garden is evil. He wouldn’t even allow Fiona to attend services at the church he pastors! He blocked her at the door in front of half the congregation. When the Reverend is found dead, of course Fiona is a murder suspect once again.

The Reverend was a hard man to like, so there are other suspects, too. And Fiona is determined to find them before her new business is ruined by the whispers about her and the Reverend’s murder.

Review

This was a solid cozy mystery with a few paranormal elements (magical garden, mysterious visions, reincarnation). It was nice to spend time again with Fiona and the people of Aberdeenshire. Fiona’s sister, Isla, added a nice dimension to the story – a companion for Fiona and a means to round out the mystery with some more character details. The romantic side plot for Fiona continues to slowly develop.

The mystery was good. After book one I figured it was just a matter of time until the Reverend was murdered. He was a hateful person when it came to Fiona, although his attitude was explained to a degree in this book. The suspects were good -and dangerous. Fiona really had her hands full with this case.

The side stories focused on Isla more than the garden this time around, although there was one big reveal in the book regarding Fiona’s inheritance. The epilogue sets up book three to deal with that plot point.

This was a solid mystery, and fans of book one should not miss this one. I am finding, though, that I am not clicking with the characters in this series as much as I have with Flower’s Amish Candyshop series, for example. While this was good, I’m not sure I will definitely pick up book three, although the reveal in this book could drive me to the third just to see what happens.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: 'Twas the Knife Before Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

REVIEW: ‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

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

While Holly’s loved her life growing up in Mistletoe, Maine on her family’s Christmas tree farm, Reindeer Games, her best friend Caroline’s life in town has always been more complicated. Holly grew up enjoying the freedom of her family’s property. Caroline is the mayor’s daughter. Her life has been a series of lectures and expectations and obligations. The most recent was the event she had to attend with Judge Waggoner’s son, Derek.  She didn’t want to go in the first place, and then he tried to get a little too familiar. The video of her telling him off went viral and news hit the front page of the paper. The only bigger news came 24 hours later when Derek was found dead.

Holly remembers how dangerous last Christmas was when she was on the hunt for a killer. Even if she could forget, her family and friends won’t let her. She’s been told to stay away from this investigation. But when the evidence stacks up against Caroline, and someone leaves Holly threatening notes to leave it be, Holly is convinced she has to get to the truth for Caroline’s sake – and her own.

Review

I fell in love with this series last year, and book two has lived up to the excellence of the first one. I adore the fictional  Mistletoe, Maine! What a terrific setting! The town shops sound delightful, and I love the activities at Reindeer Games. I’m excited about the changes happening at the Christmas tree farm for Holly’s family – they add lots of avenues for new stories in the future.

Holly and her family and friends are people I’d love to know in real life. I chuckled many times at the conversations between the characters. Cookie is a hoot, and I loved the interplay between Holly and Ray as well as Holly and Caroline. The author added a nice wrinkle to Holly’s relationship with the sheriff that may extend into the next book.

The mystery was excellent! Lots of juicy gossip led to several viable suspects. There was a lot more danger for Holly in this book. This added a layer of suspense to the whole story that I don’t often find in cozy mysteries. It made for a great reading experience. There’s also a touch of Christmas magic in this one that I loved.

I highly recommend both books in this Christmas mystery series! Excellent characters and well-crafted mysteries make for an enjoyable reading experience and help set the mood for Christmas!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥