Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
When in doubt, go to the library…and solve the murder mystery!
Greta Plank, library director in the small, lakeside town of Larkspur, Wisconsin, prefers her rose-tinted glasses extra rosy, thank you very much. It’s how she copes with the hard stuff in life…like her sister’s death and her ex-boyfriend’s deception. But Greta’s cheery resolve takes a hit when she stumbles upon a dead body on her way home from work. What she assumes is a terrible accident Greta soon learns is something more sinister, and to make matters worse, a new-to-town detective cites her as not only his primary source for the case, but his top suspect.
To clear her name and save her reputation, Greta decides to do some off-the-books clue cataloging of her own. After all, asking questions is what she does best. With the help of her fellow librarians and her lawyer mom, Greta flips through the pages of the murder, uncovering details about Larkspur’s real estate market and the deceased’s rare book collection as she tries to understand why anyone would have authored his death.
With friends and neighbors stacking up as both victims and suspects, Greta must cross reference the facts and put a hold on her idyllic worldview if she wants to get the full story without paying the fine of her life.
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It's Christmas, 1866, and amateur sleuth Charles Lenox, recently engaged to his best friend, Lady Jane Grey, is happily celebrating the holiday in his Mayfair townhouse. Across London, however, two journalists have just met with violent deaths — one shot, one throttled. Lenox soon involves himself in the strange case, but must leave it behind to go north to Stirrington, where he is running for Parliament. Once there, he gets a further shock when Lady Jane sends him a letter whose contents may threaten their nuptials.
In London, the police apprehend two unlikely and unrelated murder suspects. From the start, Lenox has his doubts; the crimes, he is sure, are tied. But how? Racing back and forth between London and Stirrington, Lenox must negotiate the complexities of crime and politics, not to mention his imperiled engagement. But as the case mounts, Lenox learns that the person behind the murders may be closer to him — and his beloved — than he knows.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, Hogswatchnight, when the Hogfather himself dons his red suit and climbs in his sleigh pulled by—of course—eight hogs, to shower gifts across Discworld. But when the fat man goes missing, someone has to sit in. It’s up to Death to take up the reigns—otherwise the sun won’t shine tomorrow . . . or ever again.
Who would want to harm Discworld's most beloved icon? Very few things are held sacred in this twisted, corrupt, heartless—and oddly familiar—universe, but the Hogfather is one of them. Yet here it is, Hogswatchnight, that most joyous and acquisitive of times, and the jolly, old, red-suited gift-giver has vanished without a trace. And there's something shady going on involving an uncommonly psychotic member of the Assassins' Guild and certain representatives of Ankh-Morpork's rather extensive criminal element. Suddenly Discworld's entire myth system is unraveling at an alarming rate. Drastic measures must be taken, which is why Death himself is taking up the reins of the fat man's vacated sleigh . . . which, in turn, has Death's level-headed granddaughter, Susan, racing to unravel the nasty, humbuggian mess before the holiday season goes straight to hell and takes everyone along with it.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
I wish Terry Pratchett was still around so I could thank him for helping to save my sanity this week. Or at least for making the insanity of my life a little more enjoyable whenever I was able to get any reading done. I would give this a million and five stars if I could. Somehow I'm pretty sure he knows and is looking down with a smirk.
MURDER IN THE COZY SNOW-CAPPED MOUNTAINS
And heart-warming romance to boot!
Heartbroken after her beloved husband’s death, Claire Andersen — proud foster mom, dog mom, and culinary artisan — decides to try her hand at a new beginning, renovating an old B&B in idyllic Galway, Maryland on the edge of the enchanted Appalachian Mountains. She knew her fresh start would be exciting, but she never expected it to be tinged with enthralling adventure, romance that’s sweet as sweet can be … and murder!
Adorable and resilient, former NYC chef Claire Andersen is no stranger to second chances. She and her stock trader husband George had decided long ago to trade in their life of ambition for one of quaint & quiet adventure — by opening up a cozy neighborhood coffee shoppe on the ground floor their Brooklyn brownstone. He was the coffee-connoisseur, she was the baker extraordinaire. Claire was so happy, she could just die. But fate had other plans — it came for her husband instead.
After George’s passing, Claire decides (with a nudge from her doting foster daughter Al) to trade in her life of brews and baked goods for breakfast — bed and breakfast, that is! And what better setting in which to start over than Galway, Maryland — a charming, snowy mountain town (and favorite cross-county ski destination of Claire’s youth).
All is well in Claire’s new B&B venture — and with her new oven constantly in use, it’s mouth-watering, even — until her first guest is murdered in-house. It’s not long until one of the suspects Claire questions about the murder winds up dead, too. Suddenly, Claire finds herself starting over yet again — and trading in her hostess hat (she’d just dusted it off, too!) for a secret life as an amateur sleuth.
But it’s not all B&B business and bodies: Claire also finds herself in the throes of not one, but two potential romances — each more toe-curling and butterflies-in-the-stomach inducing than the other.
Alongside her trusty new pal Evelyn (who’s feisty enough to make anyone blush) and her faithful bloodhound Rupert, Claire races the clock to get to the next victim — before the killer does. And she knows she’d better hurry. Because if the killer catches her first, she might run out of second chances.
Author's Note: This book contains a non-binary character whose preferred pronouns are they/them. If the notion of a non-binary character (and its resultant use of grammar) is offensive, then this book is not for you!
Identical twin sisters Alex and Hannah are the owners of Murder and Mayhem, a mystery bookshop that sells their famous poison-themed Killer Chocolates. But now, there’s a real killer in their midst. Shortly before Christmas, their septuagenarian neighbor, Jane, confides to Alex that a murderer from a true-crime show has taken up residence in the village. Unfortunately, she’s also shared her suspicions with town gossip Netta. The next morning, Alex shows up at Jane’s house to watch the show, but instead discovers Jane's body, with a box of Killer Chocolates nearby.
The sheriff quickly zeroes in on two suspects: Alex, a beneficiary in Jane’s will, and Zack, a handyman who was seen leaving the crime scene. But Alex maintains her innocence and sets out to draft a list of other potential suspects — townsfolk who’d recently been seen arguing with Jane.
When Alex gets hold of Jane’s journal, she begins to understand the truth. But a bearer of ill tidings is arriving early this year — and Alex just might not make it to Christmas.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
Amazon's description is pretty thorough so there's really no reason for me to recap. This was a great start to a new series and I'm already assuming that the second will be even better ... and I'm already hoping to nab it on NetGalley at some point. If not, I'll still get it because I really need to know what happens next the small town of Harriston, Montana."If being nosy was a criteria for murder in Harriston, half the town would be dead."
Colorful Christmas lights dapple the family homes in the idyllic lakeside town of Sweet Haven when Jennifer Dean, a young librarian at the local elementary school, is brutally murdered. There are witnesses and her boyfriend Travis Blake confesses to the crime… but something doesn’t quite add up. Blake is a third generation Army Ranger, awarded the Silver Star for his heroism in Afghanistan—how could a beloved son of this tight-knit burgh commit such a grisly deed?
As a community of military families a few miles down the road from an Army base, no one in Sweet Haven wants to investigate a war hero like Blake, not even the top brass at the police department. In steps Cameron Winter, a rugged and lonesome English professor haunted by the ghosts of his own Christmas past, whose former lover asks him to prove Blake innocent. The Sweet Haven murder reverberates in his mind, echoing a horrific yuletide memory from his youth, and Winter knows there are darker powers at play here than a simple domestic dispute. If he can solve this small-town mystery, just maybe he can find peace from his inner demons as well.
The thirty-sixth novel by two-time Edgar Award winner Andrew Klavan, When Christmas Comes is a seasonal tale of tradition, family, and murder; its chilling twists are best experienced curled up beside a burning Yule log.
Everyone's invited...everyone's a suspect...
During the languid days of the Christmas break, a group of thirtysomething friends from Oxford meet to welcome in the New Year together, a tradition they began as students ten years ago. For this vacation, they’ve chosen an idyllic and isolated estate in the Scottish Highlands—the perfect place to get away and unwind by themselves.
The trip begins innocently enough: admiring the stunning if foreboding scenery, champagne in front of a crackling fire, and reminiscences about the past. But after a decade, the weight of secret resentments has grown too heavy for the group’s tenuous nostalgia to bear. Amid the boisterous revelry of New Year’s Eve, the cord holding them together snaps, just as a historic blizzard seals the lodge off from the outside world.
Two days later, on New Year’s Day, one of them is dead. . . and another of them did it.
Keep your friends close, the old adage says. But how close is too close?
DON'T BE LEFT OUT. JOIN THE PARTY NOW.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
I am pretty sure that the only upside to being abandoned on my birthday during what was supposed to be a great vacation weekend was that I had opted to throw The Hunting Party in my carry-on bag and was, in the absence of anything else to do but drink and wallow, able to read the whole thing in one very long and very stressful sitting.
What do you do when a sociopath loves you? Rising star FBI profiler Laurel Snow is about to find out …
Calling Laurel Snow’s relationship with her newly discovered half-sister challenging is an understatement. Not only does Laurel suspect Abigail is behind the mysterious disappearance of their father, but her erratic behavior also makes life in Laurel’s small hometown interesting, to say the least. Still, when Abigail claims someone is now out to kill her, Laurel’s instinct to protect her sister goes into overdrive. Then things get even more dicey as dead bodies start turning up in the icy waters of the Sauk River and there’s only one connection among them: Abigail . . .
Having Fish and Wildlife Captain Huck Rivers bringing in those bodies with his dive team only complicates matters. Huck is as impulsive and fiery as Laurel is coolly analytical, which makes their alliance risky at best. But standing up to such a demonically brilliant killer is going to take all the help Laurel can get. Because Laurel’s attempt to save her troubled sister’s life might cost her own . . .
“Another jam-packed tale of action, intrigue, and endearingly awkward social interaction…Zanetti excels at marrying solid plot and rapid pacing with distinctive characterization.” – Publishers Weekly
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
It’s out of the cupcake tin, into the fire for Holly White’s best friend, Caroline. Can Holly clear Caroline’s name in time to go caroling?
When a body turns up in a larger-than-life candy bowl filled with peppermints on the town square, Holly White is horrified to learn her best friend Caroline is the main suspect. Everyone in town, including Mistletoe, Maine’s sheriff, saw Caroline fighting with the victim on the night of his death. Worse, a custom kitchen knife, engraved with Caroline's initials was found with him.
Now, just ten days before Christmas, Holly’s up to her jingle bells in holiday shenanigans and in desperate need of a miracle. Juggling extra shifts at her family’s Christmas tree farm and making enough gingerbread jewelry to satisfy the crowd is already more than she can handle―and now she has to find time to clear her best friend of murder. Add in her budding relationship with the sheriff, and a personal stalker dressed as Santa Claus, and Holly’s ready to fly south until springtime.
But her Sherpa-lined mittens come off when Caroline is taken into custody. Can Holly wrap up the case in time for Christmas...even after she gains the true killer’s attention? Find out in ‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas, Jacqueline Frost’s second pine-scented Christmas Tree Farm mystery.
When Holly White’s fiancé cancels their Christmas Eve wedding with less than two weeks to go, Holly heads home with a broken heart. Lucky for her, home in historic Mistletoe, Maine is magical during Christmastime—exactly what the doctor prescribed. Except her plan to drown her troubles in peppermints and snickerdoodles is upended when local grouch and president of the Mistletoe Historical Society Margaret Fenwick is bludgeoned and left in the sleigh display at Reindeer Games, Holly’s family tree farm.
When the murder weapon is revealed as one of the wooden stakes used to identify trees on the farm, Sheriff Evan Grey turns to Holly’s father, Bud, and the Reindeer Games staff. And it doesn’t help that Bud and the reindeer keeper were each seen arguing with Margaret just before her death. But Holly knows her father, and is determined to exonerate him.The jingle bells are ringing, the clock is ticking, and if Holly doesn't watch out, she'll end up on Santa's naughty list in Twelve Slays of Christmas, Jacqueline Frost’s jolly series debut.
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"In 'Keystone Kops'–style scenes set around the morgue, a muddy mountain, and the hardware store, bones and books disappear and reappear…[On Spine of Death] is a quirky story for those who enjoy funny cozies."―Library Journal
Bestselling author Tess Harrow and her teenage daughter Gertrude have decided to make Winthrop their home. Their cabin is fixed up and now they're turning to the family hardware store that Tess inherited from her late grandfather into the town's first independent bookstore.
But when renovations unearth bones from a cold case and send them toppling―literally―onto Tess's head, the work comes to a grinding halt. With the whole town convinced that her grandfather was a serial killer, Tess has to call in a fellow horror author for reinforcements. Together, they'll come up with a perfect story to make all the clues fit…and solve a mystery more than thirty years in the making.
Anthea Halliwell’s once-bright future is cruelly taken from her the moment she is accused of stealing a necklace dripping with rubies and diamonds and attempting to sell it.
Her beloved Captain Crispin breaks off their engagement at the first hint of scandal and marries her friend instead. Then to make matters worse, her father gambles away their fortune.
Heartbroken and penniless, Anthea is forced to beg handsome Gideon Rodrigo for help. But she never expects him to propose.
It may be a marriage of convenience for Anthea, but Gideon will do anything to clear his wife’s name.
Gideon enlists the help of John and Lydia Savidge, who have their own reputation for solving crimes.
While tongues wag and suspicions mount, John and Lydia suspect more than theft and slander are at play.
And someone is killing to keep their secrets hidden . . .
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
To be completely honest, I'm kind of stuck at the beginning of Chapter 20 (out of 27) because my brain is a bit livid over a conversation about religion near the end of Chapter 19.
I loved the first book in the series and quite enjoyed the second, but I'm going to need some time for my brain to cool down and stop telling my fist to punch Thea in the jugular before I finish this one. It's really too bad because I thought it was well on its way to being even better than the first, but the Kindle I'm reading on is brand new and I would hate to become so irate that I damage it somehow.
Three stars, though, for the first 63% ... which could easily have been 5 stars had it not been for flowers and mushrooms.