Friday Memes: The Ruthless Lady's Guide to Wizardry by C. M. Waggoner

 Happy Friday everybody!

Book Beginnings on Friday is now hosted by Rose City Reader. The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Beginning:

Dellaria Wells had misplaced her mother.

Friday 56: 

The sisters both sat up a bit. "That would be fine," Mura said. "Would you really be willing to help clean up the place?"

This week I am spotlighting The Ruthless Lady's Guide to Wizardry by C. M. Waggoner from my review stack. Here is the description from Amazon:

Sparks fly in this enchanting fantasy novel from the author of Unnatural Magic when a down-and-out fire witch and a young gentlewoman join forces against a deadly conspiracy.

Dellaria Wells, petty con artist, occasional thief, and partly educated fire witch, is behind on her rent in the city of Leiscourt—again. Then she sees the “wanted” sign, seeking  Female Persons, of Martial or Magical ability, to guard a Lady of some Importance, prior to the celebration of her Marriage. Delly fast-talks her way into the job and joins a team of highly peculiar women tasked with protecting their wealthy charge from unknown assassins.

Delly quickly sets her sights on one of her companions, the confident and well-bred Winn Cynallum. The job looks like nothing but romance and easy money until things take a deadly (and undead) turn. With the help of a bird-loving necromancer, a shapeshifting schoolgirl, and an ill-tempered reanimated mouse named Buttons, Delly and Winn are determined to get the best of an adversary who wields a twisted magic and has friends in the highest of places.

ARC Review: A Curious Incident by Vicki Delany

A Curious Incident
Author: Vicki Delany
Series: A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery (Book 6)
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (January 12, 2021)

Description: It's up to Gemma and Jayne to root out the killer in national bestselling author Vicki Delany's sixth Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery when the winner of a garden tour trophy is left pushing up daisies.

I am not a Consulting Detective," Gemma Doyle reluctantly tells 10-year-old Lauren Tierney, when the little girl comes to the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium to beg Gemma to find her missing cat, Snowball. Gemma might not be able to follow the clues to find the cat, but her dog Violet follows her nose to locate the missing kitten in a neighbor's garden shed. Gemma and Violet proudly return Snowball to her grateful owner, and Gemma basks in praise for a job well done. But a few days later Lauren is back with ten dollars in hand, wanting to once again hire a consulting detective, and this time for a far bigger job: Her mother has been accused of murdering her garden club rival.

Sheila Tierney's garden, which everyone said was the one to beat for the West London Garden Club trophy, had been vandalized the night before the club's early summer tour. Sheila confronted her former friend and gardening partner Anna Wentworth in a towering rage, and the women nearly came to blows. Later that night, after having won the trophy for best garden, Anna is found murdered and Sheila Tierney is the police's prime suspect.

Despite herself, and despite the disapproval of her police detective boyfriend Ryan Ashburton, the game is once again afoot, and Gemma finds herself and Jayne Wilson using their powers of deduction to ponder yet another curious incident.

My Thoughts: Gemma Doyle tries to convince eleven-year-old Lauren Tierney that she isn't a consulting detective and can't help her find her lost kitten Snowball. But Lauren's aunt Irene has told Lauren all kinds of stories about her friend. Gemma really doesn't want to help Lauren but she also doesn't want to disappoint a child. She promises to keep on the look out for the cat. Imagine her surprise when she locates the cat while walking her dog Violet. 

So, naturally, when Lauren's mother is accused of murdering her rival in the West London Garden Club, Lauren comes to ask for Gemma's help. The only problem is that Gemma isn't at all convinced that Lauren's mother Sheila didn't kill Anna Wentworth. She didn't get a very good impression of Sheila when she returned Lauren's cat. Her opinion is that Sheila is both self-centered and neglects her daughter. 

Her uncertainty of Sheila's innocence is only one problem. Things are going better with her police detective boyfriend Ryan Ashburton. She doesn't want to jeopardize their relationship by interfering in his case. However, her curiosity is aroused and she keeps stumbling onto clues that her boyfriend doesn't have. 

There are plenty of other suspects. Sheila's husband has been accused of having an affair with Anna and he is certainly estranged from Sheila. Than there is Anna's husband who has been out of work for a year but still manages to make frequent trips to Las Vegas. Or maybe the gardener who helped with Anna's award-winning garden was just a little too close to Anna. 

The more Gemma investigates the more secrets she uncovers and someone has certainly noticed. When her friend Jayne drinks some lemonade intended for Gemma, she becomes very ill and needs to have her stomach pumped and is hospitalized. Gamma becomes even more determined to find out who murdered Anna.

This was an engaging story. I really like Gemma who has a talent for observation when watching others but isn't equally knowledgeable about herself. I like her relationship (or lack of one) with bookstore cat Moriarty and her devotion to her dog Violet. 

This is the sixth book in the series and there are some hints about earlier cases. I don't think that it is necessary to have read earlier books to enjoy this one. I think that many people will want to catch up on Gemma's other adventures after meeting her here.

Favorite Quote:

"...someone snuck into Sheila Tierney's garden in the middle of the night Saturday and cut every one of her roses down to bare branches. They wrecked the rhododendrons, beheaded the begonia, decimated the daisies, slashed the snapdragons, pillaged the pansies. And tore up part of the lawn and knocked over the statues for good measure."

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

ARC Review: Deep Into the Dark by P. J. Tracy

Deep Into the Dark
Author: P. J. Tracy
Publication: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (January 12, 2021)

Description: New York Times bestseller P. J. Tracy returns with Deep into the Dark, a brand new series set in LA and featuring up-and-coming LAPD Detective Margaret Nolan and murder suspect Sam Easton.

Sam Easton—a true survivor—is home from Afghanistan, trying to rebuild a life in his hometown of LA. Separated from his wife, bartending and therapy sessions are what occupy his days and nights. When friend and colleague Melody Traeger is beaten by her boyfriend, she turns to Sam for help. When the boyfriend turns up dead the next day, a hard case like Sam is the perfect suspect.

But LAPD Detective Margaret Nolan, whose brother recently died serving overseas, is sympathetic to Sam's troubles, and can't quite see him as a killer. She's more interested in the secrets Melody might be keeping and the developments in another murder case on the other side of town.

Set in an LA where real people live and work--not the superficial LA of Beverly Hills or the gritty underbelly of the city--Deep into the Dark features two really engaging, dynamic main characters and explores the nature of obsession, revenge, and grief.

P. J. Tracy is known for her "fast, fresh, and funny" characters (Harlan Coben) and her "sizzling" plots (People); the Monkeewrench series was her first, set in Minneapolis and co-written with her mother. Now with Deep into the Dark she's on her own—and it's a home run.

My Thoughts: Deep Into the Dark was an engaging mystery with well-developed characters. It introduces Detective Margaret Nolan who is a homicide detective. It also stars Sam Easton who is a former soldier who was badly injured in Afghanistan and who is now trying to rebuild his life with a badly scarred body, PTSD, and gaping holes in his memory. 

Sam has recently separated from his wife Yukiko who could no longer deal with Sam's issues. Sam works as a bar back at a club in LA and divides his time between work and visits with his psychiatrist. When a fellow employee begs for shelter after being hit by her abusive boyfriend, Sam takes her in. And, when the abusive boyfriend is murdered, the two soon become suspects in the case.

Suspicion grows even more when Sam's wife is found murdered after Sam had dropped by to check on her because of a bad dream and found out that she was cheating on him. Sam left without confronting her but this new information only added to the stress and hallucinations that he was already suffering. He is getting very tired of being visited by his fallen comrades in his very frequent nightmares.

Nolan, who recently lost a brother while he was serving overseas, wants to give Sam the benefit of a doubt but her partner really likes him for both murders. As they investigate these murders, they are also peripheral to another series of murders which feature a number of women and which took place near the club where Sam works. 

The story was entertaining and was also a complex mystery. I liked all the characters but had a special fondness for Sam who is fighting so hard to get over all the problems he brought home with him from Afghanistan. 

I recommend the story to mystery lovers.

Favorite Quote:

"You see people's lives change forever, for the worse, every day, don't you?"

"That's part of the job. Helping them is another part of the job. The good part, the best part."

"Finding the bad guys."

"Finding justice. We owe it to the living and the dead."

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

ARC Review: Portrait of Peril by Laura Joh Rowland

Portrait of Peril
Author: Laura Joh Rowland
Series: A Victorian Mystery (Book 5)
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (January 12, 2021)

Description: For fans of C. S. Harris comes Laura Joh Rowland's fifth Victorian mystery where Sarah must confront her own ghosts--and face her most elusive and deadly adversary yet.

Victorian London is a city gripped by belief in the supernatural--but a grisly murder becomes a matter of flesh and blood for intrepid photographer Sarah Bain.

London, October 1890. Crime scene photographer Sarah Bain is overjoyed to marry her beloved Detective Sergeant Barrett--but the wedding takes a sinister turn when the body of a stabbing victim is discovered in the crypt of the church. Not every newlywed couple begins their marriage with a murder investigation, but Sarah and Barrett, along with their friends Lord Hugh Staunton and Mick O'Reilly, take the case.

The dead man is Charles Firth, whose profession is "spirit photography"-- photographing the ghosts of the deceased. When Sarah develops the photographs he took in the church, she discovers one with a pale, blurred figure attacking the victim. The city's spiritualist community believes the church is haunted and the figure is a ghost. But Sarah is a skeptic, and she and her friends soon learn that the victim had plenty of enemies in the human world--including a scientist who studies supernatural phenomena, his psychic daughter, and an heiress on a campaign to debunk spiritualism and expose fraudulent mediums.

In the tunnels beneath a demolished jail, a ghost-hunting expedition ends with a new murder, and new suspects. While Sarah searches for the truth about both crimes, she travels a dark, twisted path into her own family's sordid history. Her long lost father is the prime suspect in a cold-case murder, and her reunion with him proves that even the most determined skeptic can be haunted by ghosts from the past.

My Thoughts: This story begins at Sarah Bain's wedding to Thomas Barrett where she's thinking her worst problem is fearing that her new mother-in-law will stand up with objections. She and Sarah have never gotten along since she thinks her son can do much better than Sarah.

But finding a dead body is the crypt under the church is a bigger problem and leads to Sarah and Barrett's next mystery. Sarah knows the photographer who is Charles Firth and who was the man who gave Sarah a discount on her first photographic equipment. She lost track of him and is now surprised that he is big in the field of spirit photography and who has made a good living taking photos of ghosts.

The spiritualist movement in big in London. There are scientists who are supposedly using devices to prove the existence of ghosts; their are photographers who are capturing images of the ghosts. And there are people who are campaigning to debunk spiritualism and prove the mediums and photographers are frauds.

This gives Sarah a number of suspects to investigate while trying to solve the murder of her old mentor. Of course, Sarah is also trying to prove that her father who is a fugitive from justice who has been accused of rape and murder was in fact innocent. Unfortunately, the actual murderer was her mother's illegitimate son with the assistance of her mother. She gets a number of leads to help her prove this but none of the witnesses want to come forward. Sometimes it's because the revelations will destroy new lives. Other times it's because it will ruin the witnesses' reputations. 

Sarah is also concerned about her friend Hugh who is on a path to self-destruction after a homosexual relationship ends. Hugh has gone missing and no one can find him. Worry is taking time from her other investigations.

Even worse, when a second victim is found, her friend Mick is found standing over the body with bloody hands. Sarah's old enemy Inspector Reid is right on hand to arrest Mick and railroad him into a quick trial.

This was an excellent entry into this series. It was filled with great detail about the Victorian period. It also had a lot of action. I liked learning more about Sarah and seeing her battle her own demons.

Favorite Quote:

The knowledge that somebody had once cherished me helped me bear the many years when nobody did, until Hugh and Mick became my friends.

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? (Jan. 4, 2021)

 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.

I will be combining my YA and adult reading and purchases on this one weekly roundup.

Other Than Reading... 

This was another excellent, quiet week. It snowed 5 inches on Wednesday but wasn't really a problem. Without wind, it was just a nuisance event. It covered the roads and slowed travel just a little. I wasn't planning to go anywhere in any case. I don't think I left the house all week. 

My brother is out this morning trying to sweep the snow off the solar panels so that we can make some power if the sun ever comes out. He's using a roof rake and hoping he can clear them. He's a little concerned that there might be a layer of ice under the snow from the pre-Christmas blizzard. 

I really enjoyed listening to and reading the Vorkosigan series again all in one big lump. I read them as they were published with at least a year between them before. I only made one mistake in the order I reread. CAPTAIN VORPATRIL'S ALLIANCE really should have been read before CRYOBURN.

Now I'm on to reading new books including my February review books which include new titles by some favorite authors. I'm also planning to listen to the rest of the Chronicles of Elantra series. 

2020 Report

2020 will be mostly remembered for being the year I discovered audiobooks. Starting in February I listened to 171 of them. It was also a big year for rereading. I reread 160 books - mostly as audiobooks. 

I read a total of 308 books this past year which totaled 117, 809 pages. I reviewed 89 books this year. Only 10 of the books I read actually came off my TBR pile which I define as books I had prior to the start of 2020.

I added 355 books to my collection in 2020. 196 were Kindle books and 98 were audiobooks. 95 were Review books on my Kindle. As of today, 137 of my new additions are still marked TBR but 26 of them are review books which already have places on my reading calendar.

I still have 2254 books marked To Read including quite a number that have been unread since I started my LibraryThing account in 2008. As I look over that list, I see that many of them are books in a series but that don't start that series which means that I would probably need to start the series at book one in order to successfully read the ones on the TBR pile. It might actually be easier to just pull those which are print books and donate them to get them off my stack. Unfortunately, I already have one medium sized cardboard box and three full paper grocery bags in need of finding a new home sitting in my home library and nowhere to donate them.

Read Last Week

If you can't wait until the review shows up on my blog, reviews are posted to LibraryThing and Goodreads as soon as I write them (usually right after I finish reading a book.)

I don't plan to write reviews for my Vorkosigan reread. Some of the later ones have already been reviewed on my blog way back in the misty past. These were just for fun and to revisit a world and characters I really like.

• Winterfair Gifts by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine; Audiobook) -- This novella takes place at Miles and Ekaterin's wedding and brings together again characters from Miles's time with the Dendarii Mercenaries. It really stars Taura and Armsmen Roic since the two of them solve a mystery that could derail the wedding. 
• A Civil Campaign by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine; Audiobook) -- This story directly follows KOMARR but shifts the setting to Barrayar where Miles is secretly courting Ekaterin. At least, he is keeping it a secret from her but not from anyone else. It also introduces Butterbugs and has a political fight for seats in the Council of Counts. It was in turns funny, romantic, and political.
• Diplomatic Immunity by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine; Audiobook) -- This story takes place on a belated honeymoon for Miles and Ekaterin which is interrupted by a mission from Gregor to solve a problem with the Komarran Fleet in Quaddiespace. One thing leads to another until things escalate to an almost-war with Cetaganda. I especially liked seeing Ekaterin growing into herself.

• Cryoburn by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine; Audiobook) -- Miles is investigating for Emperor Gregor on Kibu-Daini and, naturally, the investigation uncovers lots more than was expected leaving Miles to do his usual over-the-top things and solve the problem and change the world. I won't be reviewing this one since this is a reread for me.
• Captain Vorpatril's Alliance by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine; Audiobook) - This reread and first listen finally stars Lord Ivan Vorpatril who has be a side character in the Vorkosigan books since the beginning. I liked that Ivan finally finds a woman who is right for him and a job that really suits him. This was quite humorous in a way that Bujold usually isn't without skimping on the action.
• Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine; Audiobook) - This final Vorkosigan book circles back to the beginning by starring Cordelia. It was a wonderful story about grief and healing, finding new love, and finding a new future. 

• The Flowers of Vashnoi by Lois McMaster Bujold (Mine) - This novella stars Lady Ekaterin Vorkosigan and takes place in Vorkosigan District. I liked that Ekaterin got to star in this story. I won't be reviewing it.
• Spellbreaker by Charlie N. Holmberg (Mine) - This Kindle First historical fantasy got set aside for my Vorkosigan reread which doesn't mean it wasn't an intriguing story. I liked the characters especially Elsie and thought the worldbuilding was intriguing too. My review will be posted on January 23.

Currently

• Cast in Flight by Michelle Sagara (Mine; Audiobook)
• Beneath the Keep by Erika Johansen (Review; Feb. 2)

Next Week

• Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano (Review; Feb. 2)
• Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood (Mine; Audiobook)
• Hide in Place by Emilya Naymark (Review; Feb. 9)

• The Iron Raven by Julie Kagawa (Review; Feb. 9)
• Rafael by Laurell K. Hamilton (Review; Feb. 9)
• A Lady's Formula for Love by Elizabeth Everett (Feb. 9)

Reviews Posted

• All the Colors of Night by Jayne Ann Krentz
• Cast in Silence by Michelle Sagara (Audiobook)

• Changer of Worlds by David Weber
• A Rising Thunder by David Weber (Audiobook)

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

Bought:

• Junkyard Cats by Faith Hunter (Kindle Deal)
• Stealing Fire by Jo Graham (Kindle Deal)
• Red Herring Hunt by V.  M. Burns (Kindle Deal)

I have the first book and want to finish this series.

• The Consuming Fire by John Scalzi
• The Last Emperox by John Scalzi (Kindle Deal)

• Network Effect by Martha Wells - I have the novellas but haven't read them yet and couldn't pass up this Kindle Deal.
• King's Ransom by Suzanne Brockmann - Used to love this series and want to continue it.

Two new collections.

• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas - I've read some of these but want to reread and catch up.
• The Bone Season Bundle by Samantha Shannon 

Review:

• Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg (March 9)

What was your week like?

Book Review: Changer of Worlds by David Weber

Changer of Worlds
Author: David Weber & Eric Flint
Series: Honor Harrington Anthologies Book 3
Publication: Baen Books; 1st edition (December 4, 2013)

Description: Lady Dame Honor Harrington—starship captain, admiral, Steadholder, and Duchess—has spent decades defending the Star Kingdom of Manticore against all comers. Along the way, she has become the legend known as "the Salamander" from her habit of always being where the fire is hottest . . . and also a national bestseller (Ashes of Victory: #7, The Wall Street Journal).

But it's a big universe, and Honor's actions affect a lot of lives, not all of them human. And their actions affect her—a lesson "Ms. Midshipwoman Harrington" learns years before rising to command rank when a desperate battle against "pirates" who aren't quite what they seem begins her brilliant career.

Closer to home, in "Changer of Worlds," a secret that the alien treecats have kept from their human friends for hundreds of years is about to come out . . . and completely change the relationship between the two species forever.

Meanwhile, Eric Flint weighs in with "From the Highlands." Honor can't be everywhere, so when the People's Republic of Haven tries to stage a political assassination on Earth, Anton Zilwicki—husband of one of the Star Kingdom's most revered military martyrs, and father of a young woman who is clearly a chip off the old block—steps into the breach . . . and takes the opportunity to settle some old scores along the way.

And finally, Esther McQueen and Oscar Saint-Just square off for their final confrontation in Noveau Paris in "Nightfall."

My Thoughts: Ever since I started reading the Honorverse novels, I had been feeling that there were stories that had to be told. There were many references to incidents in characters' backstories that weren't told in the novels. 

I was particularly intrigued by Helen Ziwicki's past and the incident that happened in Old Chicago when she was a young teen. I finally found that story in this anthology. "From the Highlands" by Eric Flint finally filled in the missing details about that adventure. I liked it very much and I especially liked seeing a very young and inexperienced Victor Cachat. This incident also begins Berry Zilwicki's story which is told in much more detail in other books. 

This anthology also contains the story that begins Honor Harrington's military career when she goes on her snotty cruise to hunt pirates in Silesia. She encounters bad officers who are out to get her and excellent officers who set her feet on the correct path. The story was filled with adventure and excitement.

"Changer of Words" was told almost completely from the treecat's point of view and talks about their decision to let the two-legs know all about their abilities and potentials. I liked the references back to the story told in A BEAUTIFUL FRIENDSHIP.

The final story was my least favorite since it is set on Haven and has a lot to do with political maneuvering among the Peeps.

These stories were wonderful at filling in some background that I had been curious about. I don't think they would stand alone particularly well unless they worked as teasers to get readers into the whole Honor Harrington series. But this devoted fan loved knowing more about some beloved characters. 

Favorite Quote:

Lieutenant Santino had the watch, and he sat in the command chair at the center of the bridge looking for all the world like a competent naval officer. His forearms rested squarely upon the command chairs arm rests. His squared shoulders rested firmly against the chair's upright back, his manly profile was evident as he held his head erect, and there was an almost terrifying lack of intelligence in his eyes.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Friday Memes: Changer of Worlds by David Weber

 Happy Friday everybody!

Book Beginnings on Friday is now hosted by Rose City Reader. The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Beginning:

"That looks like your snotty, Senior Chief."

Friday 56: 

In fact, the tradition of sending snotties to do the scut work was one of the Navy's long-standing traditions, part of the semi-hazing which was part and parcel of initiating midshipmen into the tribal wisdom, and Honor didn't really mind it particularly. For the most part, at least.

This week I am spotlighting one of the anthologies in David Weber's Honorverse. I chose Changer of Worlds which is the third anthology. Here is the description from Amazon:

Lady Dame Honor Harrington—starship captain, admiral, Steadholder, and Duchess—has spent decades defending the Star Kingdom of Manticore against all comers. Along the way, she has become the legend known as "the Salamander" from her habit of always being where the fire is hottest . . . and also a national bestseller (Ashes of Victory: #7, The Wall Street Journal).

But it's a big universe, and Honor's actions affect a lot of lives, not all of them human. And their actions affect her—a lesson "Ms. Midshipwoman Harrington" learns years before rising to command rank when a desperate battle against "pirates" who aren't quite what they seem begins her brilliant career.

Closer to home, in "Changer of Worlds," a secret that the alien treecats have kept from their human friends for hundreds of years is about to come out . . . and completely change the relationship between the two species forever.

Meanwhile, Eric Flint weighs in with "From the Highlands." Honor can't be everywhere, so when the People's Republic of Haven tries to stage a political assassination on Earth, Anton Zilwicki—husband of one of the Star Kingdom's most revered military martyrs, and father of a young woman who is clearly a chip off the old block—steps into the breach . . . and takes the opportunity to settle some old scores along the way.

And finally, Esther McQueen and Oscar Saint-Just square off for their final confrontation in Noveau Paris in "Nightfall."