A Match Made in Heaven, Book Three

Five of five stars

What you need to know right off the top is that though this is Book Three in the series, it does well as a stand-alone. There are enough seeds dropped in the narrative that I didn’t feel like I was missing out on any of the story. Which is a good thing because this is a good story!

Maureen is a caregiver. Right down to ensuring her loved ones eat well and always have goodies. Maureen’s kitchen is where they all gather. Maureen’s Inn is the hub of all the love, the family gatherings, and the home of her famous “Insomnia Cookies” where the cookie tin is always full, and the coffee is always hot. But it’s also Maureen who has a secret; a secret she’s never told anyone. A secret that threatens her chance at happiness.

Heaven is the kind of town we all wish we lived in. Where everyone knows everyone’s business and they all look out for each other. It’s in this backdrop that Jaeger always does some of her best writing. Baked With Love is no different. A well-written storyline, with characters you will love; this is a story that leaves you no option but to immerse yourself. The chemistry between Maureen and Lucas fairly sizzles off the page; you’ll find yourself by turns cheering them on and wanting to shake some sense into them both.

Baked With Love – a great book to curl up with on a wintry afternoon, you’ll get lost in the story and forget all about the world around you for a while. I highly recommend it.

Pick it up here: https://www.amazon.com/Baked-Love-Match-Made-Heaven-ebook/dp/B08M25TQV9/

[I was fortunate to receive a copy of the book from the author as part of the 2021 Winter Games Reader Challenge, with no obligation to review. The opinions expressed herein are entirely my own and given freely.]

Redclaw Origins, Book Two

Five of five stars

In 2020, I joined a FB-based Reader Challenge, The Winter Games, for the first time.  Bishop Takes Knight by McKenna Dean was one of the books I decided to try though it wasn’t really my genre.  I became a fan.

Here’s what’s different about Reclaw Origins:  like many a thriller, it involves undercover agents, intrigue, and mayhem.  Like not so many thrillers, it also encompasses the paranormal.  And that – at the time – was a departure for me.  Not anymore!

Join me in Book Two of this compelling series.  It reads perfectly well as a standalone, but I guarantee that these characters will figuratively force you to go back and learn more.

Rhett and Peter – Bishop and Knight – are off on an undercover assignment, out in suburbia, far from Rhett’s milieu of city life.  They’ve “bought” a house and are “setting up housekeeping” as man & wife. Because there are strange happenings afoot in this little slice of suburbia, and Redclaw means to get to the bottom of it. 

A bit madcap, Dean’s story amuses in equal measure to the surprise and shock that it packs.  And it keeps you riveted through it all.  Suffice to say that I ran it through – page one to page last – in one day.  There was no way I was leaving it till I knew how they resolved it.  With an unexpected flourish – at least I wasn’t expecting it – Dean has managed once again to keep me waiting with bated breath for the next instalment.  It promises to be a doozie!

Pick both of these great reads up here: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mckenna+dean&ref=nb_sb_noss_1

[I was fortunate to receive a copy of this book from the author through the 2021 Winter Games Reader Challenge, with no obligation to review.  The opinions herein are given freely and are entirely my own.]

FBI Agent Kate Walsh Thrillers, Book One

Five of five stars

It’s a Book Birthday – today is release day for this thriller from a master of mystery and intrigue – Stacy M Jones.  If you haven’t read any of her work yet, this is an excellent place to start.  Trust me!

Kate Walsh is home, on extended leave.  She’s thinking about packing it all in and going private.  Something her handlers don’t want.  But Kate needs peace, and quiet and to time spent in her own place, doing whatever she wants – or doesn’t want.

But Declan needs a place to stay.  And before they can even get into THOSE logistics – he’s been using her place while she’s been away – the office calls.  And the situation is literally in her backyard with a note left specifically for Kate!

She and Declan are off on what seems an impossible mission – find out who the killer is AND what he wants before more people die.  Can they do it?

I love this series and its characters.  I love the way Jones weaves a tale that takes you in and holds you there till the threads are all tied up.  Intrigue, red herrings, and more twisting turns than a mountain roadway; just when you think you’ve figured it out, it’s another dead end.

Pick it up, I know you’ll love Kate Walsh; and while you’re at it, pick up The Curators too – just so you’re in from the beginning of the tale.  I promise you WILL love it!   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08WLF6SN9

[I was fortunate to receive an Advanced Reader Copy of the book from the author, with no obligation to review.  The opinions herein are entirely my own and are given freely.]

A 1900s Lottie Lindbergh Cozy Mystery, Book One

Five of five stars

Meet Charlotte Eloise Lindbergh and her Westie Little Dickens.  Lottie – as her friends call her – is about to embark on the trip of a lifetime.  At the insistence of her recently deceased husband, Lottie and Dickens are set to board the maiden voyage of the ultra luxury liner Titanic.  Manning insisted that she must STILL go, even though he could not.

As she stands among the other passengers awaiting First Class boarding, she thinks she sees a pick-pocketing.  Something about the whole scene just doesn’t sit right with Lottie and the more she sees, the less she likes it.  The plot thickens as Lottie decides that she simply must get to the bottom of things.

Murder Afloat is a first in series; with a cast of characters that are as endearing as they are intriguing.  Set on the infamous ship that never completed its first transatlantic voyage, Riverton peppers enough true tidbits here and there – with a good few characters borrowed from the passenger lists of the ill-fated vessel.

As entertaining as it is enthralling, Murder Afloat keeps the pages turning, almost of their own accord.  An absolutely stellar opening act that leaves one hungry for the next.  I highly recommend this new-to-me author; if you’re a fan of an action-packed whodunnit set in historic times, this is definitely the series for you.

Grab it here, trust me, you’ll love it!   https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Afloat-Lottie-Lindberg-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08DXPVDRT/

[I was fortunate to receive an Advanced Reader Copy of the book from the author, with no obligation to review.  The opinions herein are given freely and are entirely my own.]

Books One thru Five

Five of five stars

How you know you’re addicted:  You receive three books for Christmas.  Books One, Two, and Four of a new-to-you series by a new-to-you author.  They sit in your living room taunting you over the holidays, but you KNOW in your heart of hearts that you need uninterrupted time to get to know this new sleuth and his creator.  So you wait.

Finally, the holidays are over, and you anticipate a couple of blissful days with nothing to do until your self-imposed work schedule starts up again.  And you dig in.

I meet Thumps DreadfulWaters after he’s experienced a heart-wrenching, life-changing loss.  He’s pulled up stakes, left everything behind, and finds himself – thanks to a mechanical issue with his old Volvo – in a podunk town.  But it’s far enough away from everything that he thinks it just may work.  And he starts the process of rebuilding a life.

DreadulWaters used to be a cop, a Deputy Sheriff, in fact.  Now, he’s a free-lance photographer that sometimes doubles as a forensic photographer for the local Sheriff.

When he’s called in to photograph a dead body found in a not-yet-open resort, he finds himself being dragged into the investigation.  There’s more to it.  Some things just don’t jive.  And despite himself, Thumps is on the case. And that’s where it all starts. With each new discovery, through each new book, King takes Thumps on an inexorable trajectory. First to doing the job that he’s left behind but is still in his soul; and second to what may ultimately lay his demons to rest.

This slightly irreverent, a little bit curmudgeonly character draws the reader in.  The other characters in the small town of Chinook tug at the heart-strings while injecting humour too.  Because, though all five of these books deal with terrible loss and the seamy side of life, King is adept at inserting humour into his narrative.  There are a few outright guffaws throughout this series and many hints of chuckles and smiles.

Remember back when I mentioned that I was anxious to get started?  Books One & Two were handily done that first day.  Books Four and Three – in that order – kept me busy the next day.  And Book Five took up the morning of the third day.

Yes, they are THAT good.  And like most of us insatiable readers, when I KNOW there are more volumes that I can read without waiting, I simply go for it.  I think you will too.

King is an American who now makes his home in Canada, so appropriately, you can find him on Kobo here:

For Kindle, DreadfulWaters – and others of King’s books – can be found here:

Lily Barlow, Book Two

Five of five stars

The first book in this series – The Mystery of Jane Dough – was no accident. Mystery in the Mangroves delivers the same laughter infused mystery, Vergot has done it again! There are only a handful of cozy / mystery authors who blend these two elements this well, you owe it to yourself to check out this one.

Quirky characters, quick-witted, and completely loveable; I truly enjoyed watching this new tale unfold, and it kept me captivated till the very end – no surprise there!

While Lily Barlow – a unique pile of contradictions – remains the main draw, Jack, Storie, and especially Miss Delphine, add that certain something that makes reading this one feel like coming home.

Another great read I highly recommend; then we can wait together for Lily’s next escapade to materialize.

Start getting to know Lily here: https://www.amazon.com/Lily-Barlow-Mystery-Jane-Dough-ebook/dp/B07L162NHP/

An Eliza Thomson Investigates Murder Mystery

Five of five stars

McBeath writes this Victorian series well. Two refined ladies of the upper class, adhering to MOST of the strictures of the day, yet very much their own people and forces to be reckoned with. Well, at least Eliza is. I was a bit disappointed this time to see that Connie was quite happy to revert roles now that her relationship with the good Seargeant is evolving. Thank goodness Eliza is having none of that!

There’s a dead body discovered during what should have been an enjoyable afternoon. There’s a murderer to unmask. There’s no time for wondering “what will he think?”

Eliza always manages to be one step ahead of the authorities, and I must admit one step ahead of me as well. A great read; like me, you won’t want to put it down. I highly recommend it!

Find Eliza and her exploits here: https://www.amazon.ca/Palace-Murder-Thomson-Investigates-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08LCK2BR4/

[I was fortunate to receive an Advanced Reader Copy of the book from the author, with no obligation to review. The opinions expressed herein are given freely and are entirely my own.]

The Father Tom Mysteries, Book Three

Five of five stars

I have been a fan of Father Tom and his Mysteries since The Framed Father. Mathis and his wife Susan are a writing team that know how to entwine their best qualities to produce masterful suspense.

Book Three in this outstanding series is no slouch! It packs a solid punch and will make the reader stop and think. The characters are engaging and human. As a reader, you become invested in what happens to them, and you want them to succeed, whatever direction they take.

And they’re off this time to find out what happened to Father Tom’s sister. In so doing, they discover that things were not at all what Tom thought. A journey of discovery and ultimately redemption awaits our two main characters as they delve into the seamy corners of life. In the process of “finding” his sister, Tom finds himself as well; and while the ending to this one may not have been what some were hoping for, it is, oddly, completely appropriate for these two.

Redemptive Return can easily be read as a stand-alone, but do yourself a favour and read the other ones too, you won’t want to miss a moment of this writer’s magic!

check out all the Father Tom Mysteries here: https://www.amazon.com/Redemptive-Return-Contemporary-Thriller-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B08M989XFK/

[I was fortunate to receive a pre-publication copy of this book, with no obligation to review. The opinions expressed herein are given freely and entirely my own.]

A Hailey Webb Mystery, Book One

Five of five stars

Starting all over is tough. Starting all over when you NEED the job, and it brings you into direct contact with a dead body and your recently jettisoned ex-fiance, is tougher. But Hailey Webb is made of stern stuff and she’s determined to make this new and not quite run-of-the-mill job work.

This is Book One in a new series by an author that I really enjoy, and Hot Off The Press does not disappoint. Twists, turns, treacheries, and more will keep you turning pages until the very end. Will you figure it out? I never do!

Great characters and an intriguing story were exactly what the doctor ordered for this super quiet Christmas season. I guarantee you’ll enjoy this one!

check it out here: https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Press-Hailey-Webb-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08RW4V148/

[I was fortunate to receive an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from the author with no obligation to review. The opinions contained herein are given freely and are entirely my own.]