Audiobook Review: Blue Dahlia by Nora Roberts

Blue Dahlia
Author: Nora Roberts
Narrator: Susie Breck
Series: In the Garden (Book 1)
Publication: Brilliance Audio (June 10, 2008)
Length: 10 hours and 46 minutes

Description: Against the backdrop of a house steeped in history and a thriving new gardening business, three women unearth the memories of the past in the first novel in #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts’ In the Garden Trilogy.

A Harper has always lived at Harper House, the centuries-old mansion just outside of Memphis. And for as long as anyone alive remembers, the ghostly Harper Bride has walked the halls, singing lullabies at night…

Trying to escape the ghosts of the past, young widow Stella Rothchild, along with her two energetic little boys, has moved back to her roots in southern Tennessee. She isn’t intimidated by Harper House - nor by its mistress. Despite a reputation for being difficult, Roz Harper has been nothing but kind to Stella, offering her a comfortable place to live and a challenging new job as manager of the flourishing In the Garden nursery.

As Stella settles comfortably into her new life, she finds a nurturing friendship with Roz and expectant mother Hayley and a fierce attraction to ruggedly handsome landscaper Logan Kitridge. He’s difficult but honest, brash but considerate - and undeniably sexy. And for a sensible woman like Stella, he may be just what she needs...

My Thoughts: BLUE DAHLIA begins the In the Garden trilogy by Nora Roberts. Stella Rothchild is a widowed mother of two young boys who transplants herself to Southern Tennessee to be nearer to her father and his wife. She takes a job as manager for Roz Harper who owns the In the Garden nursery. 

Stella and her boys live with Roz as they begin their new lives. Stella finds the job challenging and just what she needs for her new start. One fly in the ointment is Logan Kitridge who is the landscape designer associated with the nursery. They butt heads immediately but fall in love too which comes a surprise for the organized, plan ahead Stella. 

However, she loves working for Roz and with Hayley who is a young sort of relation of Roz's who has come looking for a job while pregnant. Hayley has recently lost her father and is also looking to build a new life. 

Things would be great for all of them except for the existence of the Harper Bride who is a ghost. She is especially concerned with young children. It is Stella's boys who see her first as she sings to them in their bedroom. Roz has long been familiar with the ghost but is now eager to find out who she is. 

This was an excellent story. All of the characters were well-defined. The romance fit in nicely and the ghost was an added bonus. 

I bought this one January 25, 2026. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst

The Faraway Inn
Author: Sarah Beth Durst
Publication: Delacorte (March 31, 2026)

Description: A teen girl decides to spend her summer helping her eccentric great aunt manage her quaint Vermont inn—only to discover that the fixer-upper is hiding a magical secret—in this cozy and irresistible new young adult fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop.

This stunning first edition of The Faraway Inn features gorgeous designed edges!

“Frosted with whimsy and sprinkled with joy, The Faraway Inn is a testament to why Sarah Beth Durst is the queen of cozy fantasy!”—Tricia Levenseller, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Darkness Within Us

When sixteen-year-old Calisa arrives at her great-aunt’s B&B in rural Vermont for the summer, she’s shocked to find a rundown inn rather than the cozy bed-and-breakfast she was expecting. Grumpy and eccentric, Auntie Zee is determined to keep anyone from messing with her beloved inn . . . even though she clearly needs the help.

To convince her great-aunt to keep her around, Calisa sets to work fixing up the inn, enlisting extra help from the groundskeeper’s (handsome) son. But the longer she stays, the surer she is that there’s something strange about the B&B—and its guests. Something almost . . . otherworldly.

The inn is keeping a magical secret—but to protect the place she’s come to love, Calisa must unravel the truth before it’s too late.

My Thoughts: This Young Adult fantasy takes place in Vermont at the Faraway Inn. Brooklynite Calisa is eager to get away from her broken heart caused by her boyfriend's betrayal by joining her great-aunt at her inn in Vermont.

Calisa arrives to find an inn that looks to be on its last days and a great-aunt who isn't eager to see her. However, she is eager to make a place for herself at this strange inn. She meets Jack who is the groundskeeper's son and who is worried about his dad's disappearance. The strange things begin almost immediately when Calisa opens a broom closet and sees only black, has a wind blow in her face, and hears a howling scream. Her aunt quickly slams the door and tries to convince her it wasn't real.

That is only the first strange thing that happens. She is determined to make a place for herself at the inn since she isn't ready to face things back in Brooklyn. She finds herself cleaning, making pancakes, and learning to bake cakes to go along with the teapot that seems to make tea without human intervention. 

She meets the quirky guests and is adopted by a small lizard that one of them inadvertently brought along with them. Then there's the statue that keeps moving around...

When her great-aunt disappears, Calisa and Jack need to find her and find themselves visiting many worlds through the various doors at the inn. Calisa manages to find herself along the way and learn what is really important to her. 

This was a sweet, adventurous story with wonderful characters and great worldbuilding. 

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

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (March 23, 2026)

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...

This was an odd reading week. I didn't finish my first two books until Wednesday which is really unusual for me. I guess I spent too much time doom scrolling and watching baseball. It was exciting to see Venezuela win the World Baseball Classic even though they did beat the US team. Also, Spring Training is winding down, and the real season will begin for my Atlanta Braves on Friday night. There are still a couple of games to watch or listen to this week. 

I am currently reading three books. I started The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton by Jennifer N. Brown (Review, April 14) and said "Oh, dear." It begins in 1527 with an ignorant young farm girl having a vision during a fever which brings her to the attention of the Catholic Church which is desperately trying to keep Henry VIII from leaving the Catholic Church. I didn't think I could deal with either the politics or the spirituality. 

So, I went to my calendar and picked the next book - Cat on a Hot Tin Woof by Spencer Quinn, started reading it, and went "Oh, dear" again. I'm not a big fan of talking animals and discovered that this one is narrated by a dog with a dog's eccentric viewpoint.  

Then I went looking in my TBR pile for something to sub in if DNFing either left a hole in my calendar. I found Naked Comes the Phoenix which is a serial novel written by a lot of female mystery authors with a percentage of the profits going to breast cancer research.

I gave The Lost Book... another chance and found that it was a dual timeline with the second being a contemporary scholar who has discovered Elizabeth Barton's book. I'm at 22% I'm also at 22% of Naked... which has been enjoyable so far. Cat on a Hot Tin Woof is at 8% and I hope I get into the rhythm of it soon. Otherwise, it will be quite a slog. 

Hopefully, I'll finish these before Wednesday this week and move on to the next books on my calendar. I'm looking forward to Fire Must Burn since I've enjoyed all the earlier books in that series. 

Read Last Week

• Blood Trail by Matt Query & Harrison Query (Review, April 7) -- Interesting combination of techno-thriller and horror story. My review will be posted on April 1.
• Carving Shadows into Gold by Brigid Kemmerer (Audiobook, Mine since February 18, 2026) -- Middle book in an epic fantasy trilogy. My review will be posted on April 7)
• The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer (Review, April 7) -- Excellent fantasy for book lovers. My review will be posted on April 2.

• Black Rose by Nora Roberts (Audiobook, Mine since March 11, 2026) -- Second romance/paranormal in the In the Garden trilogy. My review will be posted on April 9.
• The Antique Hunter's Death on the Red Sea by C. L. Miller (Review, February 18) -- Second in a cozy mystery series. My review will be posted on April 3.
• Red Lily by Nora Roberts (Audiobook, Mine since March 11, 2026) -- Finale of the In the Garden Trilogy. Great characters and a nice conclusion to the series. My review will be posted on April 16.

Currently

• Cat on a Hot Tin Woof by Spencer Quinn (Review, April 14)
• The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton by Jennifer N. Brown (Review, April 14)
• Named Came the Phoenix edited by Marcia Talley (Kindle, Mine since April 15, 2025)

Next Week

• Fire Must Burn by Allison Montclair (Kindle, Mine since January 16, 2026)
• Thistlemarsh by Moorea Corrigan (Review, April 21)
• Sparking Fire Out of Fate by Brigid Kemmerer (Kindle & Audiobook, mine since February 18, 2026)

• Liar's Creek by Matt Goldman (Review, April 21)
• Still See You Everywhere by Lisa Gardner (Kindle, Mine since July 8, 2025)
• Love You More by Lisa Gardner (Kindle, Mine since March 2, 2026)

Reviews Posted

• Daughter of Egypt by Marie Benedict (Review Copy)
• The Survivor by Andrew Reid (Review Copy)
• A Deadly Inheritance by Kelley Armstrong (Review Copy)

• Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz (Audiobook)
• Untouchable by Jayne Ann Krentz (Audiobook)
• Magelight by Kacey Ezell (Audiobook)

Want to See What I Added to My Stack Last Week?

Review:

• I Am the Monster Under the Bed by Emily Zannikas (Review, September 15)

Bought:

• Owlflight by Mercedes Lackey (Chirp Audiobook, $3.99)
• Owlsight by Mercedes Lackey (Chirp Audiobook, $3.99)
• Owlknight by Mercedes Lackey (Chirp Audiobook, $3.99_

• A Terrible Fall of Angels by Laurell K. Hamilton (Kindle, Gift Card)
• The King's Ransom by Janet Evanovich (Kindle, Gift Card)
• When You See Me by Lisa Gardner (Kindle & Audiobook)

What was your week like?

Audiobook Review: Magelight by Kasey Ezell

Magelight
Author: Kasey Ezell

Narrator: Jennifer Jill Araya
Series: Magelight (Book 1)
Publication: Baen (May 6, 2025), Podium Audio (September 16, 2025)

Length: 16 hours and 6 minutes

Description: Fleeing her sheltered life, a noblewoman must trust a warrior, a forester, and a thief to unlock her true power and face her destiny.

Embrace Your Power and Forge Your Destiny

All her life, Aelys of Brionne had been weak. As the noble daughter of one of the empire’s most powerful magic-wielding families, it should have been easy for her to live her dream of bonding with a warrior protector and joining the Imperial Battlemage Corps. But when her weakness robs her of her dreams, her best friend, and the man she loves, Aelys makes the only choice she can see: she takes her fate into her own hands and she runs, leaving her safe, protected world behind.

Now she must find a way to work with three dangerous strangers—a warrior, a forester, and a thief—to escape the bandits stalking her, fight through the dangers of the untamed forest, and make her way back home, where her family and her destiny await.

Only . . . her violent protectors might be the key to the power and freedom she’s always craved. Can Aelys find the strength to choose her own destiny and become the sorceress she was born to be? Or lose herself on the path to power?

My Thoughts: MAGELIGHT is the first book in an epic fantasy series. Aelys of Brionne is the daughter of a powerful family. She has the dream of using her magical talent to become a Battlemage for the Empire. However, her weak magic makes that dream impossible. Even though she graduates from the academy, she isn't chosen by the man she wants who picks her best friend instead. The betrayal sends Aelys fleeing for home.

Meanwhile, three men who were best friends as boys, but whose lives have taken different paths after their village was destroyed meet again. Romik was first an arena fighter who bought his way out to be a mercenary soldier before growing disenchanted with the life. Daen had become a Forester even though his low birth should have made that career impossible. While he is an exceptional archer, he has never been accepted by his highborn "brothers." Vil has been sold into prostitution in the city but murdered his first customer and escaped. He has made his life as thief in that same city. 

The three men meet at a country inn and swear their brotherhood just before Aelys arrives pursued by bandits. They rescue her but find themselves in an inn that has been set on fire by the same bandits. They survive because Aelys is able to form bonds with all three of them which increases her magical power enough to save them. Needless to say, none of the three men are happy or comfortable with the concept of being bound to her. 

The story concerns their adventures while bringing Aelys back to her home and with dealing with their new bonds. For the first third of the book, I didn't like Aelys at all. She spent it crying, apologizing, and feeling guilty. However, the men recognized her deep inferiority complex and bolstered her each in their own different ways. They couldn't do much about the guilt though since she knew she should not have bound them to her. 

I enjoyed the worldbuilding in the story and the personalities of the main characters. I look forward to reading their further adventures. 

I bought this one February 2, 2026. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Untouchable by Jayne Ann Krentz

Untouchable
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz
Narrator: Amanda Leigh Cobb
Series: Sons of Anson Salinas (Book 3)
Publication: Recorded Books (January 8, 2019)
Length: 8 hours and 40 minutes

Description: A man's quest to find answers for those who are haunted by the past leads him deeper into the shadows in this electrifying novel from The New York Times best-selling author of Promise Not to Tell.

Quinton Zane is back.

Jack Lancaster, consultant to the FBI, has always been drawn to the coldest of cold cases, the kind that law enforcement either considers unsolvable or else has chalked up to accidents or suicides. As a survivor of a fire, he finds himself uniquely compelled by arson cases. His almost preternatural ability to get inside the killer's head has garnered him a reputation in some circles - and complicated his personal life. The more cases Jack solves, the closer he slips into the darkness. His only solace is Winter Meadows, a meditation therapist. After particularly grisly cases, Winter can lead Jack back to peace.

But as long as Quinton Zane is alive, Jack will not be at peace for long. Having solidified his position as the power behind the throne of his biological family's hedge fund, Zane sets out to get rid of Anson Salinas's foster sons, starting with Jack.

My Thoughts: The main characters of this finale to the Sons of Anson Salinas trilogy are Winter Meadows and Jack Lancaster. Jack has been a consultant to the FBI and an author. He is drawn to investigating cold cases especially those dealing with fire. He is also a lucid dreamer. 

Winter Meadows is a skilled hypnotist who has been hired to held Jack deal with his nightmares. She has attracted a stalker.

Winter and Jack team up to defeat the stalker who has some links to Jack's old enemy Quinton Zane. Zane has decided to return to the United States but needs to get rid of Jack, his brothers, and their foster father before he can feel safe. Encouraging Winter's stalker is the start of his campaign.

Zane has also hired a couple of mercenaries to assist with his plans. They have their own agenda but killing Winter and Jack will fit in. 

This was an engaging romance with some nice suspense. A character who appears in some of Krentz's other stories - Arizona Snow - makes an appearance in this one. Jack's psychic abilities and Winter's too are traits often seen in the author's books. 

This was a nice conclusion to the trilogy.

I bought this one January 25, 2026. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: A Deadly Inheritance by Kelley Armstrong

A Deadly Inheritance
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Publication: Tundra Books (March 24, 2026

Description: After discovering she's an heiress to a billion-dollar corporation, seventeen-year-old Liliana finds herself at a new boarding school where she must navigate secret societies and a deadly competition. Not to mention two handsome boys.

The Reappearance of Rachel Price meets The Inheritance Games series in this new YA thriller from bestselling author Kelley Armstrong.

In the wake of her mother's death, Liliana Chamberlain's estranged (and very wealthy) grandparents swoop in. Or their lawyer does. Her grandparents aren't ready to meet her, but they want her to have the life her mother walked away from, starting with Westdale Academy, the elite boarding school her mother attended. It should be a Cinderella dream come true, but Lili has serious misgivings. Yet she doesn't have a choice, being under eighteen and dead broke.

Westdale Academy is a school of secrets as well as intriguing classmates, including Hollywood golden boy Theo Dubois and the mysterious Maddox Moreno. As she gets to know them all, Lili realizes there's more to the school than elite-level networking. Something deadly.

For the new girl at school, investigating the deaths of past students — including Maddox's own sister — is a very dangerous game. Do those deaths have something to do with why her mother fled Westdale at the cost of her inheritance?

When a fun night out turns bloody, Theo is the prime suspect, and Liliana must race against time to connect the past with the present and discover the truth behind her inheritance.

My Thoughts: Liliana Green is just trying to hang on after her mother's death. She already has a full ride scholarship to a state college, but she has to graduate from high school. She's sold everything loose and eating from the healthy snacks bowl at school. She also dodging Child Protective Services because foster care won't help her college plans. 

One day a stranger knocks on her door and tells her that she is the heir to a billion-dollar corporation through her mother. She has grandparents that she's never met and who don't apparently want to meet her either. The family lawyer becomes her guardian and convinces her to attend a very exclusive boarding school - the same one her mother attended. 

Dumped into a situation that is strange in many ways, Lili finds herself making friends with two very different hot boys and dodging what might be murder attempts. She also makes friends with a number of the girls who are her classmates. She also finds herself in the running to be the Optima - the best of the best. 

Lili is determined to find out why her mother left school. She always thought that her mother got pregnant and left with her lover. But the timelines don't quite mesh. There must be some other secrets to explore including the deaths of several other students over the years. The most recent death is that of one her new boyfriend's sister. Another was a classmate of her mother's. Both were the leading Optima candidate of their classes. 

This was an engaging story that has so many of the YA tropes - a boarding school, an unexpected inheritance, hot boys who both fall for her. I liked the way all the tropes were handled. I also liked the mystery and that Lili was sharp enough and determined enough to solve them. 

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

ARC Review: The Survivor by Andrew Reid

The Survivor
Author: Andrew Reid
Publication: Minotaur Books (March 24, 2026)

Description: A hijacked New York subway train, an anonymous killer, and a young man trapped by his hidden past converge in a breathless, breathtaking thriller

Do not turn off your phone
Do not get off the train
I know who you really are

Fired and walked out by security on his first day at his new job in New York City, Ben Cross thought his day couldn't get worse. But he couldn't be more wrong. Getting on the 1 train headed uptown, Ben starts receiving text messages from an anonymous killer, showing that they've already killed someone, then pointedly killing another as they got off the train to prove they aren't bluffing and to ensure Ben follows orders. But Ben wasn't picked at random―he has a history that no one is supposed to know.

At the same time, A NYPD detective, Kelly Hendricks, is on punishment duty with the transit police. The first one on the scene after the first murder, she gets on the train to find out what is really going on.

Switching rapidly between Cross and Hendricks, as the hijacked 1 train heads from South Ferry to 181st, the secret to the killer lies in Ben's own history―why he's been targeted and punished.

My Thoughts: This was a tense and twisty thriller. Things begins when new hire Ben Cross is walked out of his new job by security on his first day. Naturally upset and almost broke, he wonders how he will get back home. The subway wins despite his claustrophobia. 

No sooner has Ben sat down that he begins to get text messages. They are definitely threatening telling him to stay on the train and not turn off his cell phone. The messages escalate. He's told to find a passenger and keep him from leaving the train. When Ben fails, he sees the man shot on the subway platform.

The shooting brings in the police in the person of Detective Kelly Hendricks of the NYPD. She's been assigned to the transit police after she objects to being patted on the ass and threw the patter, a superior officer, into a table of refreshments. She knows her career has hit a roadblock but she's still a cop. 

Believing that the shooter got back on the train, she leaves to try to catch up to the subway and arrives at a further station just in time to be present for an explosion the kills a woman and wounds many. Ben had been told to keep the woman on the train but had failed to convince her. Kelly does manage to get on the train as it leaves the station. 

The bombing brings in Homeland Security in the person of Agent Paul McDiarmid and his assistant Hoyt. McDiarmid's agenda is to make himself look good. If that takes multiple casualties, he views it as the cost of doing business. 

The story is told from all three viewpoints, Ben, Kelly and McDiarmid are all trying to figure out who is causing this chaos and what they want. Ben thinks he knows that it has something to do with a past he had hoped was deeply buried. 

This was an engaging thriller that was packed with tension and secrets. 

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