Tag: mystery

REVIEW: The Jinx by Jennifer Sturman

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Rachel Benjamin and her friends are back in this sequel to The Pact. Rachel and her boyfriend, Peter, both have business in Boston, so they can enjoy some quality time together in their bi-coastal relationship. It’s also Rachel’s annual reunion with her college friends. She’s looking forward to a lot of social time on her business trip!

But the odds are stacked against her as a friend and client asks for Rachel’s help right before someone tries to kill her. Is it the serial killer who’s been attacking prostitutes in Boston for months? Or the stalker sending creepy love notes? Or is it connected to the hostile takeover aimed at her friend’s business? Rachel will have her hands full as she tries to get to the bottom of things!

Review

The mystery in this one was outstanding! There were at least four things going on that Rachel was trying to figure out which meant I had a lot of puzzling out to do. And I only managed to figure out about 1.5 of them!

My only complaint was that there were moments early on when Rachel bothered me. I felt like her response to her boyfriend’s business obligations was shrill and not very understanding for someone in a high pressure job herself. It was off-putting. As the story evolved, I warmed up to her again. I started to think that maybe that behavior was part of the author trying to make her human and relate-able. That would also explain her penchant for deciding someone is a killer on something of a whim and then going all in on her (flawed) accusation.

I felt like this was a better mystery and better story than the first book. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in book three, The Key.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

REVIEW: The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Avery has always thought she was a pretty ordinary girl. Sure, she has violet eyes that draw way too much attention, so she covers them with colored contacts. And her mom’s job keeps them moving around the country at a breakneck pace. So she has few close friends and she keeps to herself so it’s less painful when they inevitably have to leave again. But otherwise, totally ordinary!

But “ordinary girls” don’t get mugged at the prom or whisked to Paris without a passport or go clubbing in Istanbul.

They also don’t get attacked at knife point at a private Prada fitting or get shot at while climbing down a fire escape. So maybe Avery’s not as ordinary as she always thought.

Review

I really enjoyed this first book in what has become The Conspiracy of Us series. It’s like The 39 Clues for young adults. There are various families that are controlling factions, there’s clue-hunting around the world, and an ancient history piece thrown in as well. The chemistry between two of the main characters as well as the knife and gun violence and kidnapping are what ages this up to the YA crowd. And it all works!

I was completely pulled into the story from the start. I still have some unanswered questions and this ended with an intriguing cliffhanger. So, book two, The Map of Fates, is now a must-read.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: The Pact by Jennifer Sturman

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

An almost wedding mystery. Rachel Benjamin and her college girlfriends made a pact, once upon a time, to save one another from bad relationships. When Emma’s deplorable fiance dies the night before the wedding, Rachel has to wonder if one of her friends followed through on The Pact.

If it wasn’t one of the girls, there aren’t many other choices. The only people at the property were wedding party members or family. Who would have taken such drastic steps to keep Emma and Richard from getting married?

Review

I read this series years ago, but didn’t remember much about it so I decided to read it again. Because I remembered so little, I was able to (unsuccessfully) try to guess at the culprit as if I was reading it for the first time.

The main characters  – the five college friends – are written well as distinct personalities. I hope the rest of the books in the series will give me a better sense of all five of them, as well as their significant others. I wanted to know more about them as I read this.

The mystery was delightfully twisty. I liked that it kept me guessing all the way through. There were plenty of possible culprits. And the motives were realistic and plausible. Rachel is an interesting sleuth. When she thinks someone did it, she goes all in! I’m looking forward to re-reading the other books in this series. This book did include some foul language.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

New school Holmes and Watson.

Several generations removed from their famous relatives, teens Charlotte Holmes and James Watson meet at a Connecticut boarding school. At first it’s a simple meeting of their generation’s version of the famous families. But soon they are questioned in a murder and then an assault. The cases resemble classic Holmes cases, and Charlotte and James are framed exquisitely well. The teens will have to use all their best observation and deductive reasoning skills to keep out of jail – and to stay alive.

Review

As a mystery fan but not necessarily a Holmes fan, I wasn’t sure I’d like this one, but I wanted to give it a try. I was pulled in right away by this idea of kids with famous ancestors trying to decide how much they wanted to live up to the family history. Was she going to be the brilliant addict, seeing things no one else noticed? Would he be the writer, telling engrossing stories? Where they destined to be friends? Or were things more complicated than falling into old roles?

I thought the author did a great job of merging pieces of the classic characters and stories with her contemporary protagonists. I kept reading in part to see how things would play out between Charlotte and James.

The other reason I kept reading was the mystery. It was complicated and layered. I was left guessing all the way through. And the author left enough points open at the end to leave me wondering what might happen next.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

Book two releases next week – The Last of August.

REVIEW: The Inn at Ocean’s Edge by Collen Coble

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Claire goes to Folly Shoals to help her dad close a business deal. But the flashbacks start right away. Panic attacks. And she sees a woman get attacked. Then Claire is attacked, too.

Claire learns that she wen t missing from this same hotel when she was a little girl. She has no memory of what happened – and her own family never told her about it.

With the flashbacks and attacks increasing, it becomes clear that more is going on than Claire could begin to guess. Is she strong enough to keep pushing until she knows the whole truth? And is she strong enough to handle what she discovers?

Review

This is the first book I’ve read by Colleen Coble, although I’m familiar with her work.

The description of this story grabbed my attention right away. In fact, I saw this book, didn’t buy it, and then thought about it for two weeks. I had to know what happened! I kicked myself for not just buying it when I first saw it. So I ordered it.

I liked the characters in this one. Claire is strong and determined. I wanted to see her survive all of the revelations from this story.

The mystery was very good. I had no idea where the story would go by the time all the secrets were revealed. I was sort of stunned in the end. The plotting was creative. The faith pieces of the story were subtle and well integrated into the plot. I would read more books by Colleen Coble.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Embassy Row series by Ally Carter

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

The final book of the Embassy Row series released in December 2016. Here is a summary of all the books in the series.

Book 1 – All Fall Down: Grace arrives at the US Embassy in the country of Adria feeling uncertain and out of place. She’s sure that everyone feels sorry for her, either because her mother is dead or because she is “crazy.” She knows what she saw, though. She knows there was a scarred man there the night her mother died. And she knows she’s seen that same man in Adria!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

Book 2 – See How They Run: Reeling from the revelations of All Fall Down, Grace learns more history of Adria as she tries to protect her secrets and her friends, as well as find a killer. But the revelations of book two are just as stunning as book one! I’d love to say more but I don’t want to spoil anything!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

Book 3 – Take the Key and Lock Her Up: Grace is on the run, but the powers that be will not let her stay in hiding. She knows she will have to find secrets long buried – or compromise everything and everyone she cares about – if she wants to survive.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

Review

This is a great series! I feel like the series improved as it went on. Book one pushes the reader to decide what to think – and what to believe – when it comes to Grace and her past. And Grace can be hard to like at times because you just aren’t sure what to believe. Hang with the story because it is worth it.  Book two broadens the scope, showing Grace’s history in a larger context. This also makes the deeper mysteries more important. Book three puts all the pieces together and runs headlong into the final conflict. A lot happens in this book and the pace is pretty frantic. Take the Key and Lock Her Up is my favorite of the three books.

This is terrific, clean YA – lots of suspense and intrigue with mild romance. I highly recommend it!

 

REVIEW: Framed: A TOAST Mystery by James Ponti

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

A Theory of Small Things Mystery.

Florian Bates. “Young Sherlock” and originator of TOAST, the Theory of All Small Things.  With observational skills like Shawn Spencer of the TV show, Psych, Florian uses TOAST to figure things out. Like the whereabouts of stolen paintings from an art museum. But a twelve-year-old gifted enough to work with the FBI is still a twelve-year-old. And a kid who puzzles things out from small clues can be misled by  well-placed small clues. And those kind of mistakes can lead Florian into danger!

Theory of Small Things mystery

Review

What a fantastic start to this mystery series!! Florian is a great character! He’s bright and creative as well as endearing and likeable. His best friend, Margaret, is a perfect match for him – smart enough to keep up with Florian yet with enough separation from the mystery to see danger potential. She has a mystery of her own to solve which starts in this book but will carry into a future story.

The mystery was really well done. Layers and red herrings keep the story going all the way to the end. Fun, laugh-out-loud moments added to the enjoyment. I look forward to reading MANY more TOAST mysteries in the future!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Alien Nation by Gini Koch

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

First Lady, Kitty Katt-Martini, has negotiated the unexpected road to the White House fairly smoothly, all things considered. She’s foiled multiple bad-guy plans du jour. She spun the last attack so it blew back on the hateful aliens at the core of so many plots against them. She’s “Megalomaniac Girl,” and she knows how to think like the bad guys and figure out how to save the day!

But the Mastermind is still at large. Enemies from previous engagements are lurking, waiting to strike until they think they’ve been forgotten. And many humans around the world are still uneasy – if not downright hostile – about aliens being in charge of anything.

So when Kitty and the gang get the word that several previously unknown alien races are fleeing to Earth for asylum, there’s no guarantee that they’ll be able to triumph once again. So many things could go wrong. And if they can’t get things together on Earth, or manage the new arrivals smoothly, what’s going to happen when a ravenous horde of aliens follows the refugees with intent to devour everyone on Earth?

science fiction romance

Review

I have no idea how Gini Koch manages to churn out two 500+ page books a year in addition to her other writing, promotion, and personal activities! But I am so glad she does. These books are dense, chock full of action, sarcasm, humor, plots to foil and enemies to defeat. And I love every one of them!

This is book 14 in this science-fiction/romance/mystery/action series. I highly recommend reading them in order to get the most out of the character development and the “big reveals.”

My favorite aspect of this series is the characters. Kitty is one of my favorite characters of all time. She is sassy and smart. She defends the voiceless and the oppressed. She holds onto the hope that she can turn some of their enemies to the side of good – and she does. The cast around her is huge (another reason to read the books in order so you know who is who and how they connect to the main storyline), full of fantastic characters with their own well-defined skills and personalities. A lot of the humor in the stories comes from these relationships and the history between the characters, so the better the reader knows the characters, the more fun he/she has with the story.

This particular book is a celebration for long-term fans because some of the long-running plot lines seem to come to a satisfying conclusion. , Readers won’t know for sure, though, which enemies and plans are still in play until we see what happens in the next books in the series. Book 15, Alien Education, releases May 2, 2017 (release dates subject to change).

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Behind Chocolate Bars by Kathy Aarons

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

A yummy chocolate truffle mystery! Michelle and Erica start sleuthing again when one of Erica’s comic book club teens is accused of murder. Faith or Faelynn or whatever name she went by was all bad news, but there’s no way this kid killed her. Michelle and Erica are determined to track down the truth – but they have their hands full. There’s a Halloween Festival, things going on in their personal lives, and a whole lot of suspects!

Behind Chocolate Bars by Kathy Aarons

Review

I read a mystery not long ago that was fine but flat. There was no spark. No zing. This  book definitely has zing! The setting – a chocolate and books shop – is different and fun. The characters are a believable team. Even the non-mystery portions of the story with family members and boyfriends are completely engaging. I love reading a book that doesn’t take any work to enjoy.

There are a lot of series regulars to keep track of in this book. Add to it the murder suspects. Readers will need to stay focused to keep track of everyone. The mystery was intricate and therefore satisfying. I figured things out a few pages before the main character. I love when I can puzzle it out.

Finally, this series makes me start to fantasize about trips to our local chocolate shop. They don’t get as creative and fancy as the book does, but it doesn’t matter if the treats are exactly the same. You will definitely be craving chocolate by the time you are done reading!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

 

REVIEW: The Long Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

This is book two in the Fixer series. The Fixer was my favorite book of 2015. The Long Game is shaping up to be my favorite book of 2016!

Tess Kendrick is back, ready to stick up for the little guy. Still trying to figure out her place in her family. Wondering who to trust in Washington – and even at her own school.

I’d love to tell you more but this story is so twisty, it’s hard to share but not spoil. Just trust me. This was amazing. Mystery. Suspense.  All kinds of awesome.

the-long-game

Review

I adore Tess Kendrick. Her dry humor and snark are fun. I love her commitment to take up for the underdog, even if it puts her against very powerful people. I love her friends, especially Asher who is a delight. He is one of my favorite characters in all of literature. So sarcastic and funny!

When I started this book, I loved it because it was some of my favorite characters doing things I loved to read about. It was fun. It was comfortable in the best possible way. A smooth transition from book one to book two.

Then BAM! Everything – action, betrayal, danger – amps up to 11. Suddenly I found myself reading a very different sort of story. It was tense. It was unbelieveable. And it was awesome! I am hoping to have time to read it again over Thanksgiving or Christmas break. I can’t wait to sink into that story again!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

Jennifer Lynn Barnes is one of my go-to authors. If you’ve never read her stuff, start with The Fixer and then The Long Game. Then, if you love her work like I do, try her series, The Naturals. The final book in that series came out earlier this month, so you can read them all, back to back, without waiting.