ARC Review: Cursed City by Kate Golden

Cursed City
Author: Kate Golden
Series: Harker Academy (Book 2)
Publication: Ace (September 20, 2026)

Description: Welcome back to Harker Academy for Deviant Defense, where the line between hunter and hunted has never been thinner.

Viv Abbot will do whatever it takes to rescue Reid Graveheart, the reformed Brood demon she loves—even if it means teaming up with his violent, unpredictable older brother, Deacon. Her uneasy truce with him offers Viv something Reid never could: the chance to embrace her darkness.

As the search for Reid intensifies, Viv and her friends must maintain appearances on Harker grounds while wading into Astera's seedy underbelly with none other than the White Stag as their guide. But when a bounty on Viv's head puts those she cares about most in danger, Viv will be forced to go to lengths she never dreamed in order to protect them.

With enemies closing in from all sides and a ticking clock on her life, Viv must save the Half City from destruction while surviving a betrayal that strikes at the heart of everything she’s fighting for. Because in a world where monsters wear familiar faces and temptation cuts deeper than any blade, making it through her second semester at Harker will take more than skill—it will take everything Viv has left to give. Who can she really trust in a city that thrives on lies?

My Thoughts: The second book in the Harker Academy urban fantasy series has Viv on the run. She has had a spell embedded in her that will make her insane if she can't get it removed. It will also grant world-shattering power to anyone who kills her for it if it doesn't kill them first. She needs to rescue her missing demon boyfriend Reid, find a way to remove the spell, and stay away from the High Thane and his son Finn.

Viv has her group of school friends to help her and she has Deacon Braveheart, her boyfriend's brother. Deacon is also known as the White Stag or Cernunnos. He's morally ambiguous, violent, and unpredictable and often needlessly kind. 

Viv becomes fascinated with Deacon which makes her feel guilty which shows as anger most of the time. Of course, the syrabraxa embedded in her encourages the anger and the desire to kill even while it is driving her insane. 

Viv has lots of adventures in this richly developed fantasy world where many people wear two faces and danger is hidden in the ordinary. When events come to a head at a party held to announce her mother's plan to run for mayor, the battle rages in the catacombs beneath the event hall. 

Fans of urban fantasy will enjoy this series which has it all: wonderful worldbuilding, fascinating characters and even romance. 

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

ARC Review: The Dying Light by Ann Cleaves

The Dying Light
Author: Ann Cleaves
Series: Detective Matthew Venn (Book 4)
Publication: Minotaur Books (September 29, 2026)

Description: DI Matthew Venn peels back layer upon layer to discover the dark secrets one family is keeping in this searing new novel, brimming with energy and taut with claustrophobic tension.

A scorching heatwave marks the start of the summer in Devon. Detective Matthew Venn is called in to investigate a puzzling death, when the body of a young woman, Lottie, is found in the swimming pool of a luxurious holiday home. The girl’s best friend, Hannah, whose family owns the house, is missing. The girls had arrived a few days earlier to celebrate the end of their school exams, quickly stirring unrest in the small community with incendiary social media videos mocking the place as parochial.

When further tragedy strikes, Venn and his team begin questioning a community filled with secrets. The fact that Hannah’s father, Paul Armstrong, is a rising political star with powerful enemies draws intense media scrutiny to the case.

With the summer heat come holidaymakers, and it emerges that some of them may have stronger connections with the Armstrong family than first thought. Venn knows all too well that the real answers lie not in what people say, but in the silences that they keep.

Taut, atmospheric, and brimming with suspense, this searing new novel finds DI Matthew Venn caught between a powerful family’s secrets and a powder keg of local tensions.

My Thoughts: The fourth Matthew Venn mystery begins on a hot summer day when he's called to investigate a murder or perhaps an accidental drowning at the vacation home of a rising political figure. Lottie is dead and the politician's daughter Hannah is missing. The two seventeen-year-olds had come down ahead of Hannah's parents to celebrate the end of the school year. 

Lottie's body is discovered when the Armstrongs arrive to meet the girls. Hoping to be able to save her, they manage to really mess up the crime scene. A search begins for Hannah, and her dead body is also soon discovered. 

Now, Venn and his team have to discover what happened to Lottie and Hannah while facing pressure from Armstrong's political superiors. It also doesn't help that both Hannah and Lottie's families are keeping some sort of secret that may have something to do with the couple glamping at the farm next door.

The farm is the home of Hannah's boyfriend and also the site of a local music festival that Lottie had posted unkind videos of during the weekend. And the girls had had a run-in with the proprietors of the local gastropub who refused to serve alcohol to the underage girls. 

While Matthew is trying to unravel all the complicated relationships, he is also dealing with his husband Jonathan's up-coming visit with his birth mother. Matthew is trying to be supportive but his own insecurities about their relationship is leaving him with feelings of jealousy. 

I enjoyed this twisty mystery. I like Matthew's investigative style and the way he interacts with his subordinates Jen and Ross who are also intriguing characters. 

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

ARC Review: The Pumpkin Vice Cafe by Ellie Alexander

The Pumpkin Vice Cafe
Author: Ellie Alexander
Series: Bakeshop Mysteries (Book 24)
Publication: Minotaur Books (September 29, 2026)

Description: Another delicious installment in the Bakeshop Series set in Ashland, OR!

As autumn settles over the charming hamlet of Ashland, Oregon, ushering in cool, crisp breezes and a stunning show of color, everyone at Torte is keeping warm by whipping up a bevy of fall treats and spicy lattes. Jules is nearing her due date, and the whole town is abuzz―placing bets on when the twins will make their grand debut. Helen and the team are working on a secret surprise baby shower, complete with cupcakes, cookies, and a feast fit for royalty, or maybe just a mother-to-be.

Meanwhile, Lance and Arlo are busy planning their nuptials in what is sure to be as close to a royal wedding as Ashland has ever seen. But when the high-end wedding planner they hired is found dead in the frigid waters of Ashland Creek, what looks like a tragic accident, a slip on an icy bridge, quickly reveals itself as something much more sinister. Jules knows at once―this was no mishap. A killer is loose in Ashland, and they may be ready to strike again.

My Thoughts: Jules is in the last days of her pregnancy with twins and helping her friend Lance plan his wedding. When his new wedding planner is found dead - by Jules, she adds a murder investigation to her to-do list. 

She soon learns that Tippy had a number of enemies. She owed money all over the place and the vendors are angry enough to kill. Tippy is also getting ready to sue one of her clients who hasn't paid her for her daughter's lavish wedding. Then there is her assistant who hasn't been paid in months. The list of suspects is large and many of them are eager to be hired to work on Lance's wedding. 

The story is filled with wonderful descriptions of Ashland, Oregon, and wonderful foods all prepared by Jules' bakery/cafe Torte. The descriptions were so good that they made me hungry. The final copy of the book will include recipes.

Fans of cozy mysteries will enjoy the latest in the Bakeshop Mysteries.  

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? (September 21, 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 another nice quiet week. Fall weather has arrived with high temperatures ranging from 57 to 70. We also received .8 inches of rain this week which did little to relieve our state of extreme drought. It is currently 55 degrees and cloudy but with no rain in the forecast. Leaves are just starting to turn. I can see one gorgeous red-leafed something out my patio window but most of the leaves I see are still green.

My week of cooking didn't really turn out to really be my week since my brother made a big pot of chili on Sunday which was his day off. I did make an excellent lentil soup and a chicken pot pie with a biscuit topping. We still have leftovers of both. I think he's planning to make Shrimp Lo Mein for dinner today which will leave even more leftovers. I have the making for a homemade pizza which might be lunch today. 

I added two new review copies to my stack this week and read three leaving my TBR review stack at 38. I also couldn't resist a number of book deals this week and added 10 books to my 2026 TBR pile. I've already read one and am currently reading a second. All the rest of the new additions are on my 2026 calendar. I currently have 23 TBR books on my 2026 stack with this week's additions. 

This week everything I read was reviewed and scheduled on my blog. However, I've been skipping around a bit with audiobooks, so the reviews are not the next ones on my calendar. I have a bunch of review copies on my calendar but have been fitting in the audiobooks for a change of pace. After my current audiobook, I have only one more on my October calendar to go along with the 15 Kindle books (mostly review copies) that I still need to read for my October calendar. Of those 15, only one has the possibility of reading it as an audiobook which I haven't yet purchased. I might find myself getting further ahead and further out of balance by listening to some audiobooks on my November calendar. 

Read Last Week

• The Lady Jewel Diviner by Rosalie Oaks (Kindle, Mine since July 20) -- Historical Fantasy. It was nice. My review will be posted on October 3.
• The Case of the Christie Curse by Kelly Oliver (Kindle & Audiobook, Mine since June 14) -- Third in a historical mystery series. My review will be posted on October 13.
• Jay to the World by Donna Andrews (Review, October 13) -- Andrews' annual humorous Christmas mystery. My review will be posted on October 6.

• Secret Sisters by Jayne Ann Krentz (Audiobook, Mine since December 3, 2025) -- Contemporary romantic suspense. My review will be posted on October 20.
• Written in Starlight by Sloane Brooks (Review, October 13) -- Romantasy, sort of. Interesting premise. My review will be posted on October 6.
• Don't Look Back by Amanda Quick (Kindle & Audiobook, Mine since August 13 & September 16) -- Second book in the Marsh & Lake historical mystery trilogy. My review will be posted on October 9.

• Sizzle and Burn by Jayne Ann Krentz (Chirp Audiobook, Mine since March 7, 2025) -- Contemporary romantic suspense with a paranormal element. My review will be posted on October 15.
• Home for the Homicides by Elle Cosimano & Hannah Morrissey (Review, October 13) -- Funny mystery that contains ALL the romance tropes. My review will be posted on October 7.

Currently

• Late for the Wedding by Amanda Quick (Kindle & Audiobook, Mine since August 13 & September 19)
• Bark Humbug by David Rosenfelt (Review, October 13)

Next Week

• Please Enjoy Your Stay by Tara Goedjen (Review, October 13)
• The Christmas Competition by Zoe Allison (Review, October 20)
• The Key to a Killer by Olivia Blacke (Review, October 20)

• Enchanting the Fae Queen by Stephanie Burgis (Kindle, Mine since July 24)
• Joy to the Bones by Carolyn Haines (Review, October 27)
• Murder at Pellhurst Pond by Clara McKenna (Review, October 27)

Reviews Posted

• The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves (Kindle & Audiobook)
• Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts (Kindle & Audiobook)
• Dirty Thirty by Janet Evanovich (Kindle & Audiobook)

• Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett (Kindle & Audiobook)
• Murder on the Sacred River by Tasha Alexander (Review copy)
• Turning Darkness into Light by Marie Brennan (Kindle & Audiobook) 

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

Review:

• Save a Horse by Jen Doyle (Review, January 12)
• Big Cult Energy by Jack Friday (Review, June 1)

Bought:

New Audiobooks:

• To the Hilt by Dick Francis (Kindle & Audiobook, $7.30 for both)
• Direct Descendant by Tanya Huff (Kindle & Audiobook, $22.68 for both)

• Late for the Wedding by Amanda Quick (Audible Credit)
• Don't Look Back by Amanda Quick (Audible Credit)

New Kindle:

• The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune (Kindle, $2.99)
• At Close Range by Laura Griffin (Kindle, $1.99)
• The Shadow Friends by Tess Gerritson (Kindle, $3.99)

• Spark by Sarah Beth Durst (Kindle, $.99)
• The Same Backward as Forward by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Kindle, $2.99)
• Mistletoe Murder by Leslie Meier (Kindle, Prime Reading)

What was your week like?

Audiobook Review: Turning Darkness into Light by Marie Brennan

Turning Darkness into Light
Author: Marie Brennan

Narrator: Barrie Kreinik & Raphael Corkhill
Publication: Tor (August 20, 2019); Macmillan Audio (August 20, 2019)

Length: 11 hours and 35 minutes

Description: A scholar of dragons uncovers a dangerous conspiracy in this epistolary historical fantasy from the author of the Lady Trent series.

Turning Darkness into Light is perfect for those readers who appreciate a light touch, thoughtful characters, and antagonists who almost but not quite topple into one-dimensional props in a melodrama." —Locusmag.com

As the renowned granddaughter of Isabella Camherst (Lady Trent, of the riveting and daring Draconic adventure memoirs) Audrey Camherst has always known she, too, would want to make her scholarly mark upon a chosen field of study.

When Lord Gleinheigh recruits Audrey to decipher a series of ancient tablets holding the secrets of the ancient Draconean civilization, she has no idea that her research will plunge her into an intricate conspiracy, one meant to incite rebellion and invoke war. Alongside dearest childhood friend and fellow archeologist Kudshayn, Audrey must find proof of the conspiracy before it's too late.

My Thoughts: This story, told through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles, tells the story of Audrey Camherst who is a philologist and the granddaughter of the famous Lady Trent. She has been hired to translate some recently discovered tablets left by the early Draconian civilization. She has also been sworn to secrecy and, unknown to her, has had her correspondence read and the contents shared by the ward of her employer. 

She is being encouraged to translate as quickly as possible so that the translations can be published before a convocation which will deal with whether or not the descendants of those Draconian's should have citizenship rights. The politics are complex with some agitating for destroying the Draconians or at least keeping them to their enclave. 

Audrey is definitely not in sympathy with the most extreme viewpoints. She is good friends with dragon-scholar Kudshayn. She convinces Lord Gleinheigh to let Kudshayn work with her, Together the two work to translate the tablets which are a creation story and the race's great work. Kudshayn suffers something like a crisis of faith as the translation goes on because the tablets introduce other gods than those his people worship and seem to provide an alternate history of the Draconian people. 

Meanwhile, Audrey is trying to make a name for herself and live up to her illustrious family. She has already been burned by a scholar who romanced her in order to steal and publish her ideas before she could. He is also involved in the questions Audrey has about the provenance of the tablets she and Kudshayn are translating. Audrey and Kudshayn find themselves involved in conspiracies centering around the place the Draconians will have in society.

This was an interesting and engaging story. I liked the format. I also liked the worldbuilding and can see how my experience would have been richer if I was familiar the Lady Trent series. Even without that knowledge, I really liked this story.

I bought this one for $1.99 on May 16 and added the audiobook on August 16. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts

Midnight Bayou
Author: Nora Roberts
Narrator: James Daniels & Sarah Burr
Publication: Brilliance Audio (June 10, 2008)
Length: 9 hours and 14 minutes

Description: Declan Fitzgerald had always been the family maverick, but even he couldn't understand his impulse to buy a dilapidated mansion on the outskirts of New Orleans. All he knew was that ever since he saw Manet Hall, he'd been enchanted - and obsessed - with it. So when the opportunity to buy the house comes up Declan jumps at the chance to live out a dream.

Determined to restore Manet Hall to its former splendor, Declan begins the daunting renovation room by room, relying on his own labor and skills. But the days spent in total isolation in the empty house take a toll. He is seeing visions of days from a century past, and experiencing sensations of terror and nearly unbearable grief - sensations not his own, but those of a stranger. Local legend has it that the house is haunted, and with every passing day Declan's belief in the ghostly presence grows.

Only the companionship of the alluring Angelina Simone can distract him from the mysterious happenings in the house, but Angelina too has her own surprising connection to Manet Hall - a connection that will help Declan uncover a secret that's been buried for a hundred years.

My Thoughts: Declan Fitzgerald leaves his home in Boston, job in a law firm, and fiancée to purchase a rundown mansion outside of New Orleans and begins his new career as a carpenter and builder. The task is daunting not only because of the scope of the renovation but also because of the ghosts who haunt the house. 

Angelina Simone is a local bar owner whose grandmother is Declan's neighbor. She also has a family connection to Manet Hall. Angelina is also afraid of falling in love and trusting her heart to anyone. However, Declan takes one look at her and decides that she is the woman he is going to marry and build a family with. 

Together the two need to deal with the ghosts and Angelina's prejudice against love. Declan finds himself taken over by the ghosts which results in memory loss and sleepwalking which frighten him. 

The ghost's stories are told in flashbacks when a poor, Cajun young woman marries into a wealthy family whose matriarch really despises her. She is raped and murdered by her brother-in-law leaving her infant daughter and a husband who grieves her disappearance to the point of suicide. 

This was an excellent story about honoring the past without repeating it. The characters were intriguing and well-developed. The romance was nicely done. 

I bought this one June 29 for $5.31. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter
Author: Heather Fawcett

Narrator: Genevieve Cocke
Publication: Del Rey (February 17, 2026): Random House Audio (February 17, 2026)

Length: 11 hours and 25 minutes

Description: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A woman who runs a cat rescue in 1920s Montréal turns to a grouchy but charming magician to help save her shelter in this heartwarming cozy fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of the Emily Wilde series.

“Absolutely magnificent! Full of cats and magic, this is the kind of book you want to instantly reread. I loved every character, every cat, and every moment with all my heart!”—Sarah Beth Durst, New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop.

Agnes Aubert leads a meticulously organized life, and she likes it that way. As the proudly type-A manager of a cat rescue charity, she has devoted her life to finding forever homes for stray cats.

Now it’s the shelter that needs a new home. And the only landlord who will rent a space to a cat rescue is a mysterious man called Havelock—who also happens to be the world’s most infamous magician, running an illegal magic shop out of his basement. Havelock is cantankerous and eccentric, but not not handsome, and no, Agnes absolutely does not feel anything but disdain for him. After all, rumors swirl about his shadowy past—including whispers that his dark magic once almost brought about the apocalypse.

Then one day a glamorous magician comes looking for Havelock, putting the magic shop—and the cat shelter—in jeopardy. To save the shelter, Agnes will have to team up with the magician who nearly ended the world . . . and may now be trying to steal her heart.

Havelock is everything Agnes thinks she doesn’t need in her life: chaos, mischief, and a little too much adventure. But as she gets to know him, she discovers that he’s more than the dark magician of legend, and that she may be ready for a little intrigue—and romance—in her life. After all, second chances aren’t just for rescue cats. . . .

My Thoughts: Widowed Agnes Aubert runs a cat rescue organization in Montreal. She has a problem. Since a magical attack that made her building uninhabitable, she has been looking for a new rental within her budget for a new shelter. She's excited when she finds a new place at a too-good-to-be-true rent but snaps up the deal. 

However, she starts to notice strange visitors to the shop and soon becomes suspicious about her absent landlord. She really hates magicians for what they have done and especially hates Havelock Renard because he is called the Witch King and might have cast the spell that almost annihilated everything. 

She is surprised to learn that her landlord is Havelock and that he is not at all like he has been portrayed. He's absent minded and messy which is a sin to Agnes's Type A personality. He is also in a battle with his sister who wants a book she's sure Havelock has which will let her actually annihilate the world. 

Behind finding homes for street cats and reorganizing Havelock's shop, the two fall in love. But they will have to find a way to defeat not only Havelock's sister but the police who want to root out all magic and magicians in Montreal. 

This story is perfect for the cat lover since there are many cats with many personalities in the story. It is also a great story for fans of romantacy since it has a sweet romance the grows as the danger threatens all that Agnes and Havelock love.

I bought this one June 23 for $2.99 and added the audiobook August 13. You can buy your copy here.