Thursday, January 9, 2025

ARC Review: The Incident of the Book in the Nighttime by Vicki Delany

The Incident of the Book in the Nighttime

Author:
Vicki Delany
Series: A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery (Book 10)
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (January 14, 2025)

Description: Bookshop owner Gemma Doyle heads to London for a wedding, but when a body is found in connection with a rare book, Gemma sets out to sleuth the slaying in bestselling author Vicki Delany's tenth Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery.

Gemma Doyle and her friends have packed their bags and headed to London for her sister Pippa’s wedding. Waiting for her in the hotel lobby is none other than Gemma’s ex-husband, Paul Erikson. Paul has a rare book he wants her to see—calling it “the real deal”—so Gemma agrees to meet him at their old shop, Trafalgar Fine Books, the following day. But when Gemma arrives, accompanied by Grant, a rare book dealer, they find Paul dead in his office.

Paul had been down on his luck, but Gemma never expected this. Had he borrowed money from people he shouldn’t have? And where is the valuable book he was so anxious for Gemma to see? It’s nowhere to be found in the shop. Because of their previous relationship, Gemma feels she owes something to Paul and vows to find his killer.

As Gemma and her best friend Jayne Wilson follow Paul’s trail of friends, enemies, clients, and ex-lovers through London to Yorkshire, she realizes the puzzle of Paul’s last days is more twisted than she originally thought.

This mystery is anything but elementary, and Gemma and Jayne have to use all their wit to get to the bottom of it before their time in London—or in life—is over.

My Thoughts: Gemma and her friends Jayne, Ryan, Andy and Donald are in London to attend Gemma's sister's wedding to their friend Grant. Things are going well until she meets her ex-husband Paul in the hotel lobby. He convinces her to come to his shop to see something he calls "the real deal."

Gemma reluctantly agrees and arrives at the bookstore that was once hers with a couple of friends only to find Paul dead in his office, an obvious victim of murder. Although she doesn't want to investigate, she can't help her curiosity or her powers of observation.

Finding her ex's address book, she sets herself and friends off on a quest to question those who knew him better. She believes that the "real deal" he was talking about is a rare book and is surprised when her distant cousin, known to be financially embarrassed, is on the list. 

Gemma has asked just one thing. She doesn't want Gemma to involve the secret government department she represents, but somehow, before things are over, Gemma and her department are intimately involved. 

This was another excellent addition to the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery series. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

ARC Review: Track Her Down by Melinda Leigh

Track Her Down

Author:
Melinda Leigh
Series: Bree Taggert (Book 9)
Publication: Montlake (January 14, 2025)

Description: For Sheriff Bree Taggert, a gruesome double murder exposes the secrets of the dead in a shocking novel of suspense by #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh.

A teenager returns home from work and finds her parents shot to death in their bed. Responding to the call, Sheriff Bree Taggert realizes the crime wasn’t a burglary gone wrong. The couple was executed. The sole survivor: their traumatized teenage daughter, Claire Mason.

Bree teams up with investigator Matt Flynn to work the case, but together they uncover more questions than answers. When Claire is stalked at the park, it’s clear the killer isn’t finished―and she’s the next target.

As Bree and Matt sift through the past―suspect by suspect―a tangled web of deception emerges, and the truth becomes harder to see. Because the victims’ entire lives were a lie. And the only way to protect the vulnerable girl is to unravel her parents’ secrets.

My Thoughts: The ninth Bree Taggert mystery starts with an alligator sighting which is quite unusual for upstate New York. Bree dismisses it since the man who reported it had a bit too much alcohol, but a previous case did involve trafficking exotic animals. 

The main case in this one is the murder of two people in their beds which was discovered by their daughter Claire Mason, a schoolmate of Bree's nephew. As Bree, Matt, and her deputies investigate, they soon learn that the Masons were leading a secret life. Instead of being lawyers, they were scammers who made a good living by bilking small amounts of money from numerous people. 

But the real bombshell comes when it is learned that Claire is not their daughter. She was kidnapped at a five-year-old complete with prints on file. And it looks like someone is targeting Claire for some reason. Then, more secrets are discovered including the source of the alligator. 

This was another exciting entry into the Bree Taggert series. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Audiobook Review: The Good, the Bad, and the Emus by Donna Andrews

The Good, the Bad, and the Emus

Author:
Donna Andrews
Narrator: Bernadette Dunne
Series: Meg Langlow (Book 17)
Publication: Dreamscape Media (July 22, 2014)
Length: 9 hours and 52 minutes

Description: Meg's paternal grandfather has hired Stanley Denton to find her grandmother Cordelia. Stanley has found a trail to his long-lost love in a small town a short drive away. He convinces Meg to come with him to meet her, but unfortunately, the woman they meet is Cordelia's cousin. Cordelia died several years ago, and the cousin suspects she was murdered by her long-time neighbor.

Stanley and Meg agree to help track down the killer. Grandfather even has perfect cover: He, along with most of Meg's family and friends in Caerphilly, will stage a rescue of the feral emus and ostriches that infest this town. But then the neighbor is murdered, and not only Cordelia's cousin but also the entire contingent of emu-rescuers are suspects.

My Thoughts: Stanley Denton asks Meg to go along with him when he is hired by her grandfather to track down his long-lost sweetheart Cordelia who was the mother of Meg's father. Unfortunately, Cordelia has recently died in a fire and her cousin Annabelle is certain that she was murdered by their neighbor. She'll tell Meg all about her cousin if Stanley agrees to investigate the death.

Before Stanley can switch clients, they need to consult with Meg's grandfather who decides to go along since the area is also facing an emu problem. An emu ranch went bankrupt, and the emus were let go. Now they are causing problems at the neighboring national park. Meg's grandfather alerts his network of animal rescuers, and they all converge on a field outside Annabelle's house for camping and emu wrangling. 

This situation gives Stanley and Meg the perfect cover for their investigation. Things go sideways when the possibly murderous neighbor is also found murdered. 

This was another engaging episode in the long-running Meg Langslow series. I enjoyed the humor and loved the twist at the end.

I bought this one at Chirp March 22, 2023. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: The Clockwork Dagger by Beth Cato

The Clockwork Dagger

Author:
Beth Cato
Series: Clockwork Dagger Novel (Book 1)
Publication: Harper Voyager (September 16, 2014)

Description: Full of magic, mystery, and romance, an enchanting steampunk fantasy debut in the bestselling vein of Trudi Canavan and Gail Carriger.

Orphaned as a child, Octavia Leander was doomed to grow up on the streets until Miss Percival saved her and taught her to become a medician. Gifted with incredible powers, the young healer is about to embark on her first mission, visiting suffering cities in the far reaches of the war-scarred realm. But the airship on which she is traveling is plagued by a series of strange and disturbing occurrences, including murder, and Octavia herself is threatened.

Suddenly, she is caught up in a flurry of intrigue: the dashingly attractive steward may be one of the infamous Clockwork Daggers—the Queen’s spies and assassins—and her cabin-mate harbors disturbing secrets. But the danger is only beginning, for Octavia discovers that the deadly conspiracy aboard the airship may reach the crown itself.

My Thoughts: This steampunk fantasy combines romance and mystery. Octavia Leander is a medician = combining medicine and magic. She's on her way to a new post aboard an airship where there are a couple of attempts on her life. 

Enter Alonzo Garrett, one of the Queen's Clockwork Daggers - spies and assassins, who is working as a steward and assigned to bring her back to Mercia or, maybe, to kill her. Octavia's roommate is also hiding things from her past which Octavia discovers when she heals her from an attack that was aimed at Octavia. 

I enjoyed all of the steampunk goodies including Garrett's prosthetic leg. I also thought the worldbuilding was excellent. Octavia attributes her healing powers, which are beyond those of any other healer, to her belief in the Lady and the Tree. I liked the political rivalry between the Wastes and Octavia's homeland of Caskentia. 

This was an entertaining beginning to a steampunk series. 

I bought this one May 2, 2024, as a Kindle Daily Deal. You can buy your copy here.

Monday, January 6, 2025

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (January 6, 2025)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

Want to See What I Added to My Stack? links to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Marlene at Reading Reality.

Other Than Reading...

Happy New Year to everyone! This week was mostly quiet. I did leave the house for a haircut and a dinner out - both on the same day. Otherwise, I spent my time wrapping up 2024 and making plans for 2025.

I also more than made up for last week's book drought by adding 5 review books, three audiobooks, and fourteen Kindle books to my collection. Most of the Kindle books came to me as a result of the BookBub email. 

This week's plans include an eye doctor appointment on Friday and possibly shopping for new glasses. There isn't any cooking in the plans for this week since my brother casually mentioned to his team leader that he doesn't mind working until 11 PM closing and thus three of his five shifts this week have him closing and all of his shifts next week do. I'm sure cooking will happen, but I have no fixed plans for what will be cooked. 

All of my planned reading for the week comes from my Review stack. I do plan to listen to at least two audiobooks but will pick them from my collection depending on mood. Likely, they will be rereads or I might get ahead on my February calendar and listen to the ones I have on the calendar for later in the month.

2024 Reading Report

I read 442 books in 2024. My monthly average was 37 books. 301 of the books were from my collection including 162 rereads some of which I read multiple times. I also read 141 review books. I listened to 213 audiobooks for a total of 2,461 hours. I found it interesting that almost half of my reading in 2024 were audiobooks. 

Coincidentally, I also added 442 books to my LibraryThing collection including 109 audiobooks and 133 Review copies. 152 are still on my TBR shelf only because I did some recategorizing and removed review copies and rereads from my TBR shelf. Rereads are Kindle or audiobook copies of books I already have and presumably have read in my print keeper collection. 

My total TBR pile as I enter the second week of 2025 is 2591. I have 43 review copies on my calendar and unread for 2025. I also have 156 audiobooks that I haven't read yet out of a collection of 809.

Here's my January 1 State of the Stack post. 

Read Last Week
  • Head Cases by John McMahon (Review; January 28) -- First in a new thriller series starring a special unit of the FBI. My review will be posted on January 23.
  • The Gathering Edge by Sharon Lee & Steve Miller (Audiobook Reread) -- Fifth book in the Theo Waitley story arc. 
  • Dead Inside by Kate Bold (Mine since April 23. 2024) -- First in a series which introduces loose cannon FBI Agent Kelsey Hawk who is assigned to small town in North Dakota and finds herself in the middle of a murder case. My review will be posted on January 25.
  • Of Murder and Men by Lynn Cahoon (Audiobook; Mine since November 4, 2024) -- Third in the Cat Latimer Cozy series. My review will be posted on January 28.
  • Death Echo by Elizabeth Lowell (Mine since July 9, 2024) -- Fifth book in the St Kilda Romantic Suspense series. My review will be posted on January 28.
  • Bonded in Death by J. D. Robb (Review; February 4) -- Another excellent book in the In Death series. My review will be posted on January 29.
  • Murder on the Serpentine Bridge by Andrea Penrose (Audiobook; Mine since January 10, 2024) -- Sixth book in the Wrexford & Sloane Historical Mystery series. My review will be posted on January 30.
  • Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey (Audiobook; Mine since December 26, 2017) -- Reread of a classic science fiction title. 
  • An Excellent Thing in a Woman by Allison Montclair (Review; February 4) -- Seventh in the Sparks & Bainbridge Historical Mystery series. My review will be posted on January 30. 
Currently
Next Week
Reviews Posted
Want to See What I Added to My Stack Last Week?

Review:
Bought:

Audiobooks:
Kindle:
What was your week like?

Saturday, January 4, 2025

Audiobook Review: Lavender's Blue by Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer

Lavender's Blue

Author:
Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer
Narrator: Cris Dukehart & Eric G. Dove
Series: The Liz Danger Series (Book 1)
Publication: Brilliance Audio (February 6, 2024)
Length: 11 hours and 54 minutes

Description: From the NY Times Bestselling duo that wrote Agnes and the Hitman, the first book in the Liz Danger series.

LAVENDER’S BLUE: Would it kill you to go home and see your mother?

Liz Danger has returned home after fifteen years to deliver a giant teddy bear for her mother’s birthday (color: Guilt Red) when a cop with a great ass picks her up for speeding, fixes the missing lug nuts on her back wheel, pulls her out of a ditch, doesn’t give her a ticket, and helps her avoid her family. This is a man with real potential. The rest of the day goes downhill, starting with her finding out that the only man she’s ever loved is getting married to Lavender Blue, the most beautiful woman in southern Ohio. Really, the best thing in her day is that cop with the lug nuts.

Vince Cooper still isn't sure about being a cop in Burney, Ohio, a place he just moved to six months ago, since Burney is full of some fairly odd people spaced between long stretches of boredom. Still, considering the dangerous, difficult life he had before Burney as an Army Ranger and New York City cop, boredom is good. Then he picks up Liz Danger for speeding and life gets a lot more interesting. And when he picks her up again in the local bar the next night, he starts to realize that “interesting” doesn’t begin to describe what’s going to happen to him if he pulls Liz into his arms and his life

As Liz navigates her dysfunctional family, her flamboyant boss phoning in from Chicago, her still-interested ex, her bridesmaid dress from hell, a dachshund with issues, a disaster of a wedding, assault, murder, and three hundred and ninety-three teddy bears, Vince shows up to get her through, even though he knows that the real peril for him in Burney is the one who came with her own warning label, Liz Danger.

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this first book in the Liz Danger series. I liked the combination of humor and mystery. I also liked that alternate chapters were from each of the main characters' points of view.

Liz Danger left Burney, Ohio, fifteen years earlier and has a job as a ghost writer which means lots of traveling. She mostly lives and writes in her car. She's home now because she got a call from her aunt ML telling her that her mother needs her. She arrives along with a six-foot-tall stuffed bear in Guilt Red for her mother's birthday gift. She finds that her bear will be joining 393 other stuffed bears at her mother's. 

Liz also learns that the boy she loved in high school is getting married to the lovely Lavender Blue. Through a variety of weird circumstances, she finds herself drafted as maid of honor complete with an unfortunate dress choice. Then Lavender dies a very short time after her wedding and Liz finds herself a suspect. 

All Liz wants is to leave town, connect with the eccentric woman she's ghostwriting for, finish the book, and collect her bonus. 

The first person Liz meets when she comes to town is Vince Cooper who pulls her over when she hits the town limits. His excuse is that she has a tire ready to fall off. Luckily, he just happens to have the necessary lug nuts. Neither is looking for a relationship, but one quickly forms between the two of them. 

Vince chose Burney, after being an Army Ranger and New York City cop, because there hadn't been a murder on record there. He wanted a less stressful life. But he's suspicious about a recent car accident and then the accidents start happening to Liz and his quiet job becomes a lot less quiet.

I loved the quirky characters in this story including the neurotic blond dachshund. There were also a lot of real issues too. Liz's relationship with her mother needs readjustment. As the daughter of an alcoholic, Liz has a strong need to fix things for the people around her that gets her into trouble. 

I bought this one January 19, 2024. You can buy your copy here.

Friday, January 3, 2025

Friday Memes: Lavender's Blue by Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer

 Happy Friday!


Book Beginnings is hosted by Gillion at Rose City Reader. She asks that the first sentence is posted along with the author and title of the book and the reader's initial thoughts on the sentence, the book, or anything else it inspires. 
Carrie at Reading Is My Superpower.org also provides a linky for sharing first lines and connecting with others. This meme asks that the chosen books be PG or marked as Mature if they are not. 

The Friday 56 was hosted by Freda at Freda's Voice. This meme is currently on hiatus but many of us are still including a sentence from page 56 or from 56% of the ebook. Anne @ Head Full of Books is picking up the slack until Freda is ready to return. I think this link will get you to the correct place

Beginning:
On a cold April day, thanks to an awful card my awful Aunt ML had set me, I was driving down Route 52 along the Ohio River toward my hometown for the first time in fifteen years. 
Friday 56:
JB's Bar is a very old bar -- since 1912 it says on the old mirror above the row of bottles on the old mirror above the row of bottles on the back shelf -- located on the main street of Burney next to the Red Box on the corner. The two places were the center of the town. Drink and food, what more do you need?
This week I am spotlighting Lavender's Blue by Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer. I bought this one when it was a BookBub daily deal last January. I added on the audiobook for $1.99. Here is the description from Amazon:
From the NY Times Bestselling duo that wrote Agnes and the Hitman, the first book in the Liz Danger series.

Liz Danger has returned home after fifteen years to deliver a giant teddy bear for her mother’s birthday (color: Guilt Red) when a cop with a great ass picks her up for speeding, fixes the missing lug nuts on her back wheel, pulls her out of a ditch, doesn’t give her a ticket, and helps her avoid her family. This is a man with real potential. The rest of the day goes downhill, starting with her finding out that the only man she’s ever loved is getting married to Lavender Blue, the most beautiful woman in southern Ohio. Really, the best thing in her day is that cop with the lug nuts.

Vince Cooper still isn't sure about being a cop in Burney, Ohio, a place he just moved to six months ago, since Burney is full of some fairly odd people spaced between long stretches of boredom. Still, considering the dangerous, difficult life he had before Burney as an Army Ranger and New York City cop, boredom is good. Then he picks up Liz Danger for speeding and life gets a lot more interesting. And when he picks her up again in the local bar the next night, he starts to realize that “interesting” doesn’t begin to describe what’s going to happen to him if he pulls Liz into his arms and his life.

As Liz navigates her dysfunctional family, her flamboyant boss phoning in from Chicago, her still-interested ex, her bridesmaid dress from hell, a dachshund with issues, a disaster of a wedding, assault, murder, and three hundred and ninety-three teddy bears, Vince shows up to get her through, even though he knows that the real peril for him in Burney is the one who came with her own warning label, Liz Danger.

LAVENDER’S BLUE: Would it kill you to go home and see your mother?



Thursday, January 2, 2025

Audiobook Review: Fatality by Firelight by Lynn Cahoon

Fatality by Firelight

Author:
Lynn Cahoon
Narrator: C. S. E. Cooney
Series: Cat Latimer Mystery (Book 2)
Publication: Tantor Audio (February 28, 2017)
Length: 7 hours and 57 minutes

Description: To kick off a winter writing retreat, Cat and her handyman boyfriend, Seth, escort the aspiring authors to a nearby ski resort, hoping that some fresh cold air will wake up their creative muses. But instead of hitting the slopes, they hit the bar - and before long, a tipsy romance novelist named Christina is keeping herself warm with a local ski bum who might have neglected to tell her about his upcoming wedding.

Next thing Cat knows, her uncle, the town sheriff, informs her that the young man's been found dead in a hot tub - and Christina shows up crying and covered in blood. Now, between a murder mystery, the theft of a rare Hemingway edition, and the arrival of a black-clad stranger in snowy Aspen Hills, Cat's afraid everything's going downhill....

My Thoughts: The second book in the Cat Latimer mysteries centers around the second group of authors who come to the writer's retreat. This time one of the authors takes up with a local who winds up dead with her as a suspect.

Cat knows this writer of sweet romances couldn't also be a killer. So, she's on the case. Of course, she's also still trying to solve the mystery of what her late husband Michael was doing that caused him to blow up their marriage. 

And just to add interest, the library has suffered the theft of a rare, signed Hemingway novel which her authors discover when they go out for pizza. Cat also learns that the college where she and her husband taught is the preferred college for children from mafia families which comes as news to her. 

Besides a mysterious hired assassin, Cat also draws the attention of Dante who is the uncle of a current student and connected to the mafia in some way. He encourages her to stop investigating what her ex was involved in which Cat ignores. 

This story solves the current murder but only provides clues on the whole Michael problem. I'll have to keep reading this eight-book series. 

I got this one from Audible Plus. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Schooled in Murder by Victoria Gilbert

Schooled in Murder

Author:
Victoria Gilbert
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (January 7, 2025)

Description: A mystery writer must solve a real murder case before an innocent girl is condemned in this series debut from acclaimed author Victoria Gilbert, perfect for fans of Ellery Adams and Lorna Barrett.

Jennifer "Jen" Dalton is an author and educator at Clarion University in Virginia. She loves her job, but some of her petty coworkers look down on her for writing genre fiction. As members of the English department, they wish to encourage students to pursue higher literary aspirations. When a humiliating confrontation between an uppity professor and one of Jen’s students, Mia, escalates, no one thinks much of it. Until his dead body is found along with evidence incriminating Mia.

Jen knows Mia couldn’t have killed him, but Mia’s suspicious disappearance might as well be a proclamation of guilt. With the sleuthing skills Jen has acquired writing murder mysteries, she’s determined to solve the case and clear Mia’s name.

Along with the help of her fellow sleuthers—Christine Kubiak, a cafeteria manager; Zachary Flynn, the charming but annoying campus psychologist; and Brianna Rowley, a librarian—Jen must catch the real killer before there’s another murder on the books.

My Thoughts: This series debut stars Jen Dalton who is an author of mysteries and who is in charge of the writing center at Clarion University. When one of her mentees is accused of murdering her belittling English professor, Jen is on the case for a real-life mystery. 

As she investigates along with her friends Cristine Kubiak who is a cafeteria manager and Brianna Rowley who is a librarian, she learns to appreciate the dangers of the situations she puts her fictional characters into since she is putting herself into danger for real. 

I enjoyed her budding relationship with Zachary Flynn who is a psychologist first assigned to counsel her after the murder. I liked that he tried to be the voice of reason when Jen had her more dangerous ideas. 

Jen had lots of intriguing suspects including the wife and the mistress of the murdered professor. Then there was her friend who is an English department rival of the deceased and even the head of the college who might have wanted the professor dead. 

This was a nice introduction to Jen Dalton and her friends and an enjoyable mystery.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Wednesday, January 1, 2025

State of the Stack #160 (January 1, 2025)

This is my monthly post which details progress made on review books. I want to thank the authors and publishers who have contributed their books. 

Read This Month 

Dates indicate the date the review was/will be posted.
  1. The Incident of the Book in the Nighttime by Vicki Delany (January 9)
  2. A Death in Diamonds by S J Bennett (January 14)
  3. A Killer's Code by Isabella Maldonado (January 14)
  4. Mask of the Deer Woman by Laurie L. Dove (January 15)
  5. Star-Crossed Egg Tarts by Jennifer J. Chow (January 16)
  6. Dead Money by Jakob Kerr (January 22)
  7. Head Cases by John McMahon (January 23)
DNF
  1. She Doesn't Have a Clue by Jenny Elder Moke (January 21)
Read Previously, Posted This Month 

Dates indicate when the review was posted.
  1. Booked for Murder by P. J. Nelson (December 4)
  2. The Next Grave by Kendra Elliot (December 5)
  3. Shattering Dawn by Jayne Ann Krentz (January 1)
  4. Schooled in Murder by Victoria Gilbert (January 2)
  5. Track Her Down by Melinda Leigh (January 8)
New This Month 

Date indicates when the book will be released.
  1. Change of Heart by Cristina LePort, MD (February 4)
  2. I Died for Beauty by Amanda Flower (February 25)
  3. The Girl from Greenwich Street by Lauren Willig (March 4)
  4. Twice as Dead by Harry Turtledove (March 18)
  5. The Lady Sparks a Flame by Elizabeth Everett (March 25)
  6. Dead Post Society by Diane Kelly (April 1)
  7. The Wind Weaver by Julie Johnson (April 8)
  8. One Death at a Time by Abbi Waxman (April 15)
  9. How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristen Perrin (April 29)
  10. Cold Burn by A. J. Landau (April 29)
  11. Death at a Highland Wedding by Kelley Armstrong (May 20)
  12. The Busybody Book Club by Freya Sampson (May 27)
  13. The Secret of the Mansion by Julie Campbell (June 3)
  14. The Red Trailer Mystery by Julie Campbell (June 3)
  15. Grave Words by Gerri Lewis (June 10)
All TBR Review Books

February
March
April
May 
June