Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Fourteenth Cozy

Title of the book: Puzzle Lady vs. the Suduko Lady by Parnell Hall

Cozy type: #11 in the Puzzle Lady Mystery Series

What caught my attention about this series: Again a novel idea of the crime solver is a crossword puzzle lady

Tidbit from the book: Pyrrhic Theory: A victory gained at too great a cost.


Twelveth and Thirteenth Cozy

Cozy type: Book 1 and 2 in the Deadly Past Mysteries by Marion Moore Hill. Deadly Will and Deadly Design.

What got me started with this author was her Scrappy Librarian series.
I got these books through ILL from my library.

I am again going to stray from the normal review. These two books were chock full of wonderful historical info from the early American Revolutionary time period. These books are the first 2 in a series centering around Millie Kirchner, a single Mom with a young boy Danny, who is working and trying to go to school to earn a degere in History. In Deadly Will, she finds out she is one of many relatives of Nathan Henry, who has bequeathed his legacy to his ancestors 200 years in the future. Out of 16 heirs, 10 show up in Philadelphia to claim a part of the money and a chance at a historical antique. In the span of the week they are to spend at Nathan Henry's house, heirs start getting bumped off, and panic arises.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Eleventh Cozy

Title of the book: Indigo as an Iris by Fran Stewart
Cozy Series: #5 in the Biscuit McKee Mysteries
Bought the book on Amazon and will donate it to my local library as no one seems to have a copy of it in the local area.
Why I choose this book: Again this is a series that I have sort of been following. Books are far between. This is the first one I actually bought.
Little Tidbit I learned from the book: A new concept - green cemeteries. The bodies are placed about three and a half feet deep in hand-dug graves. right among the trees. That way you don't have heavy equipment in there compacting the ground around the roots. It's all part of the natural cycle of life. The bodies feed the trees. There aren't any of those nasty chemicals that poison the soils in regular cemeteries. No caskets. The bodies are kept cold until burial and then wrapped in something of meaning, like a quilt, before burial.
Interesting paragraph from the book: Amazing Grace, as my father, a high-school music teacher, once explained to me, uses the pentatonic scale. It's a far older scale than the do-re-mi folderol. That's why the melody is so haunting. Maybe that's one of the reasons it's so overused at funerals. Just those five black keys, and all the pain, all the sorrow, all the anguish comes rolling out. Also all the hope and the wonder. Maybe not so overused at that.
My take on the book: Biscuit McKee is a librarian in a small town of Martinsville, Georgia. This book deals mostly with a case of mistaken identity involving a kidnapping with fatal results. With that as the main part of the story, a interesting family history and a side story of one lady, of the group of friends ,who decides to organize a cruise and gets a good deal on a group rate and invites close friends and relatives to go. We get letters going back and forth deciding if they can or not. On top of that, at the end of each paragraph, we have Biscuit and her cat Marmalade giving 5 things they are thankful for. Yes, the cat is reminiscent of Garfield, we can hear what he is thinking but no one else can. It's cute. I will be interested to see if more come about.
My rating on this book: Good read.
http://franstewart.com/

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Tenth Cozy

Title of the book: To Hell in a Handbasket by Beth Groundwater
Cozy Type: A Claire Hanover, Gift Basket Designer Mystery #2
I bought this book from Amazon and will donate it to my library since no one else seems to have it in the area.
Why I choose this book: Really, the idea that a basket designer solves murders is novel.
Tidbit of info from the book: This book is centered on skiing. What I didn't know is making a X with your skis is the universal call for help at ski areas. I also learned quite a few terms for different slopes and skiing methods. Which I can tell you won't do me any good, as you will never get me on a pair of skis.
Great paragraph: (Claire is walking on a trail in snowshoes.) A squirrel chittered at her from a tree. Claire looked up. She promptly stepped on the back of her forward snowshoe and did a face plant in a deep snowbank.
Pride goeth before a fall. (Heh, I thought it was funny enough to laugh)
My take on this book: Claire is on vacation with her husband and daughter, really with hopes to reconnect with her husband after the result of the murder in the first book. They decided to go to Breckenridge, CO and have her daughter's boyfriend meet them there. He brings his family, too. Only it becomes too apparent after the murder of the boyfriend's sister, that this family is connected to the Russian Mafia indirectly. Quickly Claire finds a witness to the murder and sadly he gets run over by a SVU right in front of her. I may have gotten a little confused at the end with who rats on whom and their plea deals.
Beth gives a couple of ideas for 3 different baskets in the course of the book but I somewhat would of expected maybe a little more hints at the end of the book. Just a thought.
My rating: A good read and hope she writes more. But it looks like she is starting a new series so I will check that one out. Rocky Mountain Adventure series starting with Deadly Currents, March 2011
http://bethgroundwater.com/Home.html

Ninth Cozy

Title of the book: A Darker God by Barbara Cleverly
Cozy series: A Laetitia Talbot Mystery #3
Checked out of the public library
Why I picked this: it has to do with archaeology and I read her first 2
I am not going to give a favorite paragraph or tidbit from this book. My mind was overwhelmed by the full-bodied, rich-writing of this archaeology, historical mystery. These are very intense, well written and fact based novels, seemingly a cross between Elizabeth Peters and Agatha Christy. Laetitia Talbot is a young women, in the 1920's, striving to be recognized in a male dominated profession in which she is well suited and with a good head on her shoulders for. Being an archaeologist. In this third book, she has returned to her mentor, after going into the field, to rest and recover. He has translated a play of Agamennon while writing a biography of Alexander the Great. Laetitia is roped into helping with the play, only to be present when her mentor shows up dead in place of the prop she designed for the death scene. One of the actors of the play is a police detective on loan from Scotland Yard in Greece during a cultural exchange, so to speak. Anyway, he takes charge of the murder scene and accepts Laetitia's Help. The mentor's wife is on the scene and seemingly does not seem over upset of the death. But interestly, she shows up dead the next day. Lots of sexual intrigue in this book, too.
My rating: these are must read books

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Eighth Cozy

Title of the book: Dark Alley by Evan Marshall
Cozy series: #3 in the Hidden Manhattan mysteries
What caught my attention: I started out with this author with his Jane Stuart series but when it appeared he was done with that, I picked up on this one.
I got this book through ILL with my library
Tidbit of Information: Mews is a street, usually private, lined with buildings that were originally stables but have been renovated as dwellings - apartments, condos, co-ops and townhouse - similar to courtyards.
Great paragraph from the book: A trash artist is heard to say: "I take what the world doesn't want and turn them into things of beauty...Most of the things we throw away should be used for something else. This would be a far more beautiful world if we did."
My take on the book: Our heroine of the story, Anna Winthrop, is a rich deb who decides that she is more interested in garbage than money. So she works her way up the ladder to become a NY Sanitation Supervisor. With her cop boyfriend, Santos, she solves this mystery of the death of one of her sanitation workers - in a mews. But he is only the beginning. Every time they turn around another body turns up in a mews or a courtyard. And they all feel something is significant with that. Lots of side stories kept the action going. I will continue to catch these books. Learn a lot about inner NY workings from these books.
My rating on this book: A should read. Next book City in Shadow Oct 2010
http://evan-marshall.com

Seventh Cozy

Title of the book: Wicked Craving by G A McKevett
Cozy series: okay technically not a cozy but... #15 in the Savannah Reid, Moonlight Magnolia Detective Agency
What caught my attention: Another series I read faithfully. Savannah is saucy.
Checked out the public library
Great paragraph: (I actually have 2 quotes from the book that made me laugh) Dr Lui, the medical examiner, says at one point at a crime scene: "I can find one stray blond hair on a brunette victim or a single carpet fiber and match it to a killer's car trunk. I think I can find a dead woman on a beach."
And Savannah is heard to say: " The only way to lose a bunch of unwanted excess weight without starving to death is to get a divorce. And even then that takes six months here in California."
Tidbit of Information from the book: This series is based in San Carmelita, CA, home to one of 21 missions that had been built along the Pacific Coast by Franciscan friars, two hundred years ago, of adobe walls that have withstood earthquakes, fires and even a tidal wave.
My take on the book: I love the curvaceous detective and her eclectic crew. And in this one, her Granny comes to visit and helps. Which is a hoot. The wife of a diet therapist, who claims you could diet just listening to his tapes, turns up dead at the bottom of a cliff. All does not seem what it seems here and there are no shortage of suspects. Including allot of the doctor's patients who have been seduced. And we have the usual sexual tension between Savannah and Dirk, which we all wish gets satisfied soon. At least Granny hopes so. I will continue to gobble these up as they come along.
My rating: A should read
www.sonjamassie.com

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Sixth Cozy

Title of the book: Unzipped by Lois Greiman
Cozy Type: Ex-Bartender/Shrink/Crimes Solver Mystery (My words)
What caught my eye about this book: Found out Lois Greiman was from North Dakota and the book synopsis sounded like a hoot.
I checked it out from my public library
Tidbit learned from the book: (Okay it is a little dumb but I had never thought about it before). Sweating like a pig is a misnomer because apparently pigs don't sweat.
Great paragraph from the book: (at the beginning of every chapter are clever little one-liners quoted by different characters in the book.) Here are a few:
Some people are street-smart, some people are book-smart but most people are just dumber than dirt.
There are none so troubled as one who thinks himself perfectly sane.
Chocolate may be cheaper than a psychologist but the latter doesn't generally adhere to you ass for the rest of your natural life.
Today's problems are yesterday's mistakes come back to bite you in the ass.
What I thought about the book: Chrissy McMullen, was we assume putting herself through college as a cocktail waitress/bartender and has now worked her way from Chicago to LA to start her psychotherapy business. One of her patients was a bad boy football star who has come to her for counseling supposedly for impotency. Apparently not the case when he dies in her office with a hard on sticking out of his pants. The police suspect her of the crime, of course, and she decides she needs to clear herself as a suspect. So off she goes to interview people who knew him, with the police detective, Rivera, not far behind. The relationship between two runs hot and cold as she constantly slaughters his name. Humorous, and of course they are interested in each other in the end. I am kind of iffy on whether to read more.
My rating: It was a good read.
www.loisgreiman.com

Fifth Cozy

Title of the book: Holly Blues by Susan Wittig Albert
Cozy type: by my calculations Book #18 in the China Bayles Herb Mysteries
Why I am reading this book: I have loved, loved, loved all the others and have to read this one
Had to send away to another library in the area to read it - I love Interlibrary Loan people!!!
Tidbit of info: Every one of Susan's books has great info about the herb the book represents. In this case holly. I had no idea holly was considered so magical. It has been said if holly is planted near a house that it is suppose to defend it from lightning and witchcraft. But in the same sense, holly sprigs have also been exchanged as tokens of friendship, offering a sincere wish that the recipient might enjoy a season free of bothersome bolts from the blue. Lots more can be learned at the beginning of every chapter in the book.
Great Paragraph: (Too many to choose from but I picked one that is also a wealth of info) ...I cam back and waited on two customers of my own (after being in Ruby's shop next door), which took a little time, because they wanted to find out about natural dyes, a fairly complex subject. I discouraged them from buying dried herbs, since from my experience, it's much better to work with fresh material you can grow or gather. I also suggested that if they wanted to try some easy vegetable dyes, they might experiment with onion skins and tea leaves for beige, coffee grounds for brown, red cabbage leaves for blue and purple, carrot tops and spinach leaves for green. Oh, and turmeric, a spice that makes a vibrant orange.
My take on the book: China Bayles runs a herb store, partners in a tea room, catering and a gourmet personal chef business in Pecan Springs, TX, plus she has a quaint little cottage in the back, amongst her herb gardens, that she rents out. One partner and best friend is Ruby who has a New Age store right next door to China. In this book, China's husbands' ex, and mother of his son, comes calling around Christmas time because she is supposedly in trouble. But what kind of trouble is not fully recognized until close friends and relatives start getting bumped off. Even though you are pretty sure through the book who the bad guy is, it is another great read.
My rating: All her books are must reads. Next one is Mourning Gloria (April 2011)
http://www.mysterypartners.com/China/, http://www.abouthyme.com/index.shtml, http://www.susanalbert.com/,

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Fourth Cozy

Title: Dead Air by Mary Kennedy
Cozy Type: A Talk Radio Mystery #1
Checked out of the public library
Why I picked this book: I actually thought the catch phrase on the front cover is what hooked me. "How's she going to talk her way out of this one?"
Tidbit of Info from this book: There were a few interesting ones that I would have liked to include but the one that I thought was amusing even if it may not be true. She writes: It is a standing joke in Hollywood that whenever actors want to beef up their resume, they use Matlock as a credit because they figure no one will ever check.
Great paragraph: (Okay a long one but cute). Pugsley( her pug dog) guided us through the last stretch of the evening's walk, and we headed for home after he enjoyed a long, leisurely sniff at a neighbor's bougainvillea bush. A dog behaviorist appeared on my radio show last month, and he explained that a dog sniffs a bush or tree the way you and I read the newspaper. It's endlessly fascinating to him. Who would think so much drama could be found on the base of a tree trunk or a lamppost? Love, hate, revenge, betrayal, all the makings of a Shakespearean play sitting withing sniffing distance of Pugsley's shiny black nose.
It's his way of scoping out the local news. Who's been on his home turf? Are they fearful? Friendly? Aggressive? Apparently dogs can tell all this from one sniff. .."Remember, it's only a walk around the block to you, but it's the highlight of your dog's day."
What I thought of the book: Maggie Walsh is a recent transplant from New York to sunny Cypress Grove, Fla. And she is the host of a radio talk show called On the Couch with Maggie Walsh, after being a psychologist in NY. She decides to have a New Age prophet on the show, Guru Sanjay Gingli, and soon realizes that he is a con artist. And apparently in more ways than one. That night after the show, he turns up dead. And her roommate was in the area when it happened. Maggie, with the help of her actress mom Lola, decides they need to prove that there are many people who had gotten cheated by the Guru in the span of his life and they all had motive to murder, as far as Maggie is concerned. The anecdotes about her mother's acting career are amusing and the story quite entertaining. Unfortunately, Maggie ends up with the hots for the police detective in the end.
My rating: Should read and will read future ones. Reel Murder in June 2010
http://www.marykennedy.net/

Third Cozy

Title: Chill Before Serving by Cynthia Lawrence
Cozy Type: States a Mystery for Food Lovers
Checked out from public library
What grabbed my attention in this book is of course the cozy type and the wine bottle on the label
Great paragraph: I actually hate to say it but there weren't any that jumped out at me.
Little Tidbit of info: Vitamins and herbal remedies aren't considered drugs so they are not regulated by the FDA but yet if taken in large doses, they can have severe effects on you and can react to medicines you are taking.
What I thought of the book: Catherine Deean works as a caterer in the restaurant business, with her partner Nick in LA. Cat and Nick recently hired a new chef that comes with baggage. Mainly he has been accused of murder. But it soon becomes evident that the past murder and the ones that happen later are not directed at the chef but something else. And that is what Cat tries to prove. In this cozy, she becomes involved with the newspaper journalist, who she has known for a long time. Someone different for a change.
My rating: It was a good read.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Second Cozy

Title: Raining Cats and Dogs by Blaize Clement
Cozy type: Dixie Hemingway Pet Sitter Series #5
Checked out from the public library
One of many great paragraphs from the book: (I kind of related to this paragraph and that is why I picked it) I was the only woman in the entire world who didn't have a list of friends she could call for an impromptu dinner. The only woman in the entire world who couldn't drop in a good friend and eat with chop sticks from cute little take out boxes like people on TV do. The only woman in the entire world who couldn't pick up spur-of-the-moment deli stuff to share with a close friend. Clever finger foods. Stuffed grape leaves. Delish spring rolls. At least cheese fries. It was flat depressing.
Interesting little tidbit from the book but I had many to choose from: A bloom of microscopic algae, red tide's technical name is Karenia Brevis,but by any name, it's nasty stuff that causes respiratory irritation and watery eyes for people and pets.My thoughts on the book: Dixie is a former cop, a result of her husband and daughter being killed, is now is a petsitter. While she solves mysteries. In this one, her supposed best friend's husband gets kidnapped and Maureen, her best friend, just wants to pay the ransom and get her husband back. She convinces Dixie to make the drop. But things don't end up so well. On top of that, she is tending her pets through fascinating problems and meets a young girl at the vet who catches her eye and a neighbor lady's. The young girl volunteers to help the neighbor with training a guide dog and ends up disappearing. And of course we have the ongoing relationship Dixie has with a homicide cop. It was a very enjoyable read and I am still a big fan of these books.
My Rating: Should read
Website: http://www.blaizeclement.com/

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

First Cozy

Title: Cook the Books by Jessica Conant-Park and Susan Conant
Cozy series: #5 in the Gourmet Girl
Checked out from public library.
Great paragraph: I checked another blog that I was nuts about, Chef's Widow, where the CW (as she refers to herself and to other women involved with rarely seen chefs) chronicles life with her chef and their two children. She's posted great videos of her kids and pictures of her few-and-far-between dates with her husband and she wrote honest, raw, sometimes painful accounts of her life.
Tidbit of info: The previous paragraph is from the book and real. The website is http://www.chefswidow.com/
About the book: Chloe's boyfriend, Josh, has left his chef position, when his restaurant closes, and decides to move to Hawaii to be a personal chef. Chloe is beside herself as she feels she cannot follow him and he won't stay for her. So she finally moves on with her life and answers a ad on Craigslist for a asst writer for a cookbook. She gets an immediate call after submitting her resume and gets hired. Her job is to take all the misc scraps of info and manage to put a book together for the son of a famous chef. A whole lot of pressure going on there. Death comes when she is asks to find certain recipes, from her ex-boyfriend of all people. But when she finds out how to get them from his friend, he turns up dead in a mysterious fire. And then the same thing almost happens to her best friend, she realizes she has to solve the case. Good unexpected ending and with good vibes for the future books.
My rating: Should read
Side note: Recipe for Baked Tomato Nests in the back of the book sounded really yummy.
Website: http://sites.google.com/site/conantparkmysteries/home

Better than Twilight

So here is the last book from April before I launch the cozy month of May. Catchy, heh. Talking about the title, this had the ring of Twilight in it but it is not about vampires. Even better.
Title of the book: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl.
Checked it out of my library.
What caught my attention about the book: YA Twilight-like book featuring a new kid in town, who appears different, and the referring to past and present, down south.
Great paragraph from the book: (The two main characters go to the library to research)
The library itself was beautiful. I had spent so many hours in it as a kid. I'd inherited my mother's belief that a library was sort of a temple....this particular library was one the few buildings that had survived Sherman's March and the Great Burning...It smelled like again wood, creosote, plastic book covers and old paper. Old paper, which my mom used to say was the smell of time itself.
Tidbit if info: (There were actually a lot of tidbits to choose from) Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR, is where you have to prove you were related to an actual patriot from the American revolution to be eligible for membership. Sisters of the Confederacy, lesser cousin of the DAR, you have to prove your southern Civil War roots.
About the book: Lena has moved to Gaitlin, SC, to stay with her eccentric uncle at Ravenwood, after her parents die. Ravenwood has sort of a scary past and has been around as one of the founding families of town. Ethan senses her discomfort and befriends her as if fate. What is interesting is the unraveling of the power of Lena and her coming into her being "claimed" on her 16Th birthday as a Dark or Light Caster, like a witch. Ethan comes along for this eye opening experience and falls for Lena hard. Good story of good versus evil with some school bullying thrown in. This story was much move believable in relation to Twilight in that sense.
Rating: It is most definitely a must read. Loved it!

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrVl6pq1gNE

Website: http://beautifulcreaturesthebook.com/

Next book out Oct 2010: Beautiful Darkness

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Another St. Just mystery

Title of the book: Death at the Alma Mater by G M Malliet
Checked it out of the public library
What caught my attention: First I like this series and have read the previous ones and second I am waiting to see where the relationship between Inspector St. Just and Portia is going.
Great paragraph from the book: St. Just greeted Malenfant (the coroner) as he emerged from the tent and asked, "Time of death?"

Malefant gazed iconically at his old friend for a long moment before speaking.

"Always the same with you, isn't it?" he said, removing the latex gloves. "No matter how long since we've seen each other. Just, 'time of death?' he wants to know." Malefant, despite his years in England, remained thoroughly French in manner and habit, the more so when agitated. "You may have observed," he continued, "that my holiday at present lacks certain... amenities. For one thing, it is not taking place in France. Puzzlingly, I remain here, in my summer holiday costume, miles from the beach." (Malefant was called in because the coroner on call was sick and he hadn't left town yet.)

Tidbit of info: Lighting up, in scullers terms, is the time at shen the sun sets to 94 degrees below the zenith.
Thoughts on the book: I will definitely continue to read the future books, as the relationship with Portia and St; Just is heating up rather nicely. I really like the humor in these books but I also found the interrogation of the suspects a little slow. This books finds itself at one of the Cambridge colleges where Portia is finishing her thesis. On this particular weekend, alumni of this college are invited back in order to solicit money from them to cover the upkeep of the school, which they all seemed to realize why they were asked back. There is a underlining conflict between some of the alumni, where a gentleman and his current wife are attending along with his ex-wife which proves to be interesting especially when the ex-wife turns up dead. The events leading to her death turn out to be surprising in the end.

My rating: Should read.

http://gmmalliet.weebly.com/

Evolution here

Yes, that is the name of the game. Evolution. And this blog is going to evolve. Or expand. Which ever way you want to think about it. So here is the scoop. I am formatting the blog a newer way and focusing on why I picked the book, where I got it, a paragraph that caught my attention, a tidbit I learned and of course what I thought about it and my rating. I am also going to try to help myself whittle down my TBR piles so I have come up with theme months. For this month, April, I have only a few books left to read before I start this May's which will be cozies. I have a lot of them.
First post - new theme:
Title of the book: False Mermaid by Erin Hart
Caught my attention: American Pathologist trying to solve sister's murder between Ireland and Minnesota.
How I got it: Public library
Great Paragraph from the book: Fortunately Roisin had fallen in love with the sound of the fiddle, just as her father had with all its shades and feelings. No amount of technical ability could substitute for that. She had become a hunter of those quicksilver flashes of genius that enters the soul and came out the fingers - the enchantment. All he (her father) could do was to show her his own way of recognizing those rare moments, how to receive them when they came. ( from scene in Ireland during a fiddle contest and the father is a friend of the main character)
Tidbit learned from book: Proserpinaca is semi-aquatic and called mermaid weed - which means the lower part grows under water, the upper parts in air. Floerkia, false mermaid, grows in seeps and marshes and other wet places but isn't semi-aquatic, but looks quite similar to mermaid weed.
Thoughts on the book: It is kind of a psychological thriller having to do with a five year old murder of the main character's sister, supposedly caused by the husband but couldn't be pinned to him. So he moves on, gets another wife and we look to see if it will happen again. There is a really interesting twist in the plot when the pieces of evidence start coming out from strange places.
Rating: Must read.
I would like to hear your thoughts on my new blogging, if you would be so kind. Thanks!!!

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Lonely Hearts Club

Okay so I am not a die hard Beatles fan that I would name my child after a song but that's what the parents in this did. All their kids. But the one this story is about is Penny Lane Bloom. This young adult book by Elizabeth Eulberg was really fun to read and I kind of sympathized with the main character. I, too, felt that the guys in my high school were too lame to date and awkward. Maybe that's why I dated guys from other schools. But Penny went so far as to start a club for girls who are going to wait till after high school to date. It proves to be so popular that the school administration feels threatened. But that was not the purpose of the group. It proves to be a very effective support group for all types of girls through all sorts of life experiences. I found refreshing was these girls were able to overcome the peer group issue and not have to worry about what other girls would say if you did something different. Ultimately, Penny does find that the boy that is the closest to her was the one. Anyone should read this book. http://www.elizabetheulberg.com/
Also this week I read the second book in the series by Carolyn Haines. Sarah Booth Delaney, in Buried Bones, was more on top of her game on her second real case. This one involving a artist slash writer who decides to write a tell all with a cowriter who really wasn't experienced. With the help of her great-granny's nanny's ghost, she solves the case of who done it for the sake of a girl friend of the deceased. I am really liking these books more and will be talking about how you should read the series with me. And the ending was to die for with the hunk. Yeah!!!
Next post will include my new style of reviewing and a monthly theme, mostly for my disapline.

Monday, April 19, 2010

The First Annual Grand Prairie Rabbit Festival by Ken Wheaton

Father Steve Sibille finds himself in a little church in Grand Prairie, LA and seeming to questioning his faith. To get the congregation involved in the community, he comes up with the concept of a rabbit festival to draw them together. With the help of the previous vicar's illegitimate daughter and a priest that quits the faith as a result of his struggle with homosexuality, he inspires his flock to plan the celebration and the fundraisers beforehand. On top of this, a pentecostal minister arrives in town, with family in tow, to set up shop with a new church just down the road. The one-uppance between the two is amusing and I thought the struggle of Father Steve to be endearing. The ending is a shock and not quite what I expected. It was a nice read for you to try. http://kenwheaton.wordpress.com/

Accidentally Demonic

I was so excited when I found a copy of this book at the library. I have read all the other Dakota Cassidy's Accidental series and I think this, unfortunately, will be her last one. In this book, the person who has the accident is Wanda's sister, Wanda being one of the accidentals from one of the first three books. Casey accidentally gets demon blood spilled on her in a nightclub, by a vampire of all people. She was there as a kind of buffer for a pair of rich sisters, who have a penchant for getting into trouble, when they are drinking. After the blood gets spilled, she wrecks havoc on some paparazzi, and then the cops, which lands her in jail and calling her sister for help. Wanda and her friends try to help her deal with the transformation along with the hunky vampire. But of course nothing is as it truly seems. And there is the battle to be won. I have truly enjoyed these books and feel sad that they are coming to an end. You absolutely should read all of these books. http://www.dakotacassidy.com/

Stray Affections

Here was a wonderful spiritual book by Charlene Baumbich. It proved to be a very relaxing book for me to read over the weekend. The book centers around Cassandra Higgins, who seems to have the perfect life. Every year she goes to the Collectors Convention to pick up unique animal knick-knacks with her friend. But this year she has to go by herself, which proves to be difficult. What she discovers is a wondrous snow globe with a girl and three dogs. After she buys the snow globe she is accidentally bashed by a women with a large purse, not once by twice and then gets her wallet stolen. Once home, she peers into the snow globe only to have the girl and dogs disappear right before her eyes. So starts her struggle with old wounds from her childhood and the magic that comes from above to steer her in the right direction. Truly a story of reading more into a persons words than what they really meant. It was a warm, good read and fulfilling. http://www.dontmissyourlife.com/index.html

Monday, April 12, 2010

A Nantucket Love Story

This is the sub line on a really sweet Christian romance book I just finished called The Seaside Letters by Denise Hunter. And there are others, I see, and will find. Anyway, in this one, it is a very interesting situation that exists for this couple. Sabrina is new to Nantucket after a lousy end to a engagement six days before the wedding. The groom was now in love with her cousin, of all things. So she escapes to the honeymoon spot, in Nantucket, and then decides to start over there. She starts waitressing and meets Tucker. But you see she is burnt bad and is not looking for relationship. But he is smitten. He eavesdrops on a conversation she has with a coworker about a local website to chat in and finds her there two days later and lo, they start a cyber friendship. He knows who she is, she knows who he is but she doesn't know he knows who she is. Confused? They do this for a while until he wants to trick her into admitting she is who she is. It is a fascinating process that he goes through to try to get her to reveal herself in person. With a little twist in the story, which I won't tell. This was a good read. Try it out. http://www.denisehunterbooks.com/

Never Say Sty

Does the title give you a hint? You probably could guess that this book has to do with swine. In fact it centers on pot-bellied pigs. In this newest book in the Kendra Ballatyne Pet-Sitter series by Linda O Johnston, we get little tidbits of info about pot-bellied pigs. Kendra is now doing pretty good in her life, with doing legal work primarily for pet issues and pet-sitting for her favorite pets and now being a producer of a animal reality show stemming from a dispute with a animal trainer for movie roles. So the show is sold, funded by a hunky guy who owns a large pet shop enterprise and whom Kendra falls for, and the judges are picked. However after the initial taping, one of the judges gets murdered. So we find ourselves following Kendra figuring out if it was show related or something in his past that caused it. I will admit that this book did not give as much info on pot-bellied pigs as her previous books with their critters but still I learned something. And that is what I like to have happen. Learn something and be entertained and use my imagination and fantasize. The end was logical but wasn't easily figured out. I give it a should read. http://lindaojohnston.com/

100 posts

I just realized that I have done my 100th post. Wahoo! Who would have thunk. I am so tickled at my doing this blog and being able to give someone, anyone, a small glimpse at books they may never of known existed or give them incentive to try something different. I do have a varied sense of what I read. I took a survey the other day about book covers and yes, they do influence the reason I will choose a book. So if the book looks good on the outside, I check out the blurb about it. Then if that sounds good too, I will put in on my list. That's where my Amazon wish list comes in handy. I have 5 different wish lists: to keep track of what I want to read, what I would buy, what is coming soon and old books to find at some time. Plus gift ideas for family and friends. My family can be rest assured that they will get books for their birthdays and Christmas, whether they want them or not. But they usually do. So I will continue forth with my next book review. Hope you will like it.

Friday, April 9, 2010

The Bad Book Affair by Ian Sansom

This book consisted of mostly a jolly banter between the main character, Israel Armstrong, a little Jewish guy who runs the local mobile library in northern Ireland, and Ted, his driver. The book centers around a goth looking girl, the daughter of a politician in running, who comes to the library and requests a Under the Shelve book. That's what the books are called that are not recommended for reading under the age of 18. The one she asks for is American Pastoral and Israel doesn't have a problem lending it to her as she seems very mature. Of course it gets around that he did and unfortunately the girl comes up missing and people try to pin her checking out the book on the reason why she is. During all this Israel is struggling in his life as he is creeping up on thirty, just lost his girlfriend and lives in a henhouse of all places. This is book number 4 in the series and may be losing steam, I think. It was a good read though. http://www.iansansom.net/

Butter Safe than Sorry

So continues the hilarious exploits of Magdalena Yoder, Mennonite descent innkeeper now married to a Jewish doctor, and her four year old son, Jacob. Another series I have followed from the beginning from Tamar Myers. In this one, she is at the bank with her son when 3 Amish men come in to rob the place. Only they did not fit the typical Amish profile but were wearing disguises, which Jacob picked right up on. Observant like his Mom. The robbers don't get away with anything, thanks to Mags and her son but then the events turn to the worse with her sons life in danger. The bank teller gets murdered for a strange reason as well as a local seamstress, for another strange reason. But all will be clear when you figure out who the culprit is. It was a quirky tale involving her guests at the inn and with kind of a sad ending, I thought. I recommend reading the series and this was a good read. http://www.tamarmyers.com/index.html

Monday, April 5, 2010

Easter Weekend reading

Sorry to do this but this will be a catchup blog of what was read over the weekend. 3 books. Imagine that. Even though I still wonder some times why I am doing this. Do I have more followers yet? Nyet. I, unfortunately have many friends who don't read and are not interested in this blog. And the ones who do read books read different ones than I do usually. But not all. I guess I will have to bribe the ones who are my sisters, in chick lit and cozies, so they will subscribe. Chocolate anyone?

I will start with the book I liked the most. Tragedy at Two by Ann Purser. This is the recent books in the Lois Meade series. Lois has a house cleaning service in rural England. Her past time is helping the local inspector, who is enamored with her even though she is married, with murders especially ones that affect her family. In this story, the murdered victim is her daughters partner/boyfriend. What's interesting is all the twists and turns she goes through to finally solve this mystery involving gypsies. This is a should read. http://www.annpurser.com/

The next one I read was a new find called Them Bones, a Sarah Booth Delaney Series #1, by Carolyn Haines. Sarah is a southern belle in Mississippi who is broke and is danger of losing her family home. So she is desperate to make some money. So she kidnaps someones' dog and holds them for ransom. Only it doesn't quite end up the way you would expect. First it works but I think only because the person who's dog she kidnaps ask her to do the money drop. How fortuitous for her. This leads to a series of "jobs" she gets asked to do finding people and such. And all this while she has a ghost of her great grandmother's nanny goading her along. It was quite a cute read and I think I will continue in the series. http://www.carolynhaines.com/

And lastly I read the second book in the Chet and Bernie series, books by Spencer Quinn. What is different about his book is that you get the story from the standpoint of the dog, Chet, who helps his owner Bernie with his private investigating job. I will tell you it does get a little strange when Chet's mind wanders, as you would suspect a dogs does. But it is interesting to suspose what the dog is thinking and catches. In this book, they are hired to be bodyguards for a dog, registered for a fancy dog show, that got death threats. Of course they are thinking this was the easiest money they will make. But the dog turns up missing right away and the owner turns up dead. But not for the reasons you think, especially knowing it is a dog eat dog world. Sorry, had to put that in. So these are nice reads and I am checking them out at the library. Check out the dog's blog. http://www.chetthedog.com/?tag=spencer-quinn

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Tips from Tulip Christian Mystery series

I stumbled upon a quite good, cute mystery series of 3 books by Mindy Starns Clark. And I got them all read this weekend. She calls them the Tips From Tulip series and can also be referred to as the Smart Chick series. So these delightful cozies center around Jo Tulip, who comes from a rich family but likes the mundane life she leads doing a newspaper column started by her grandmother. Kind of like a Hints by Heloise column. The titles of the books are: The Trouble With Tulip, Blind Dates Can Be Murder and Elementary My Dear Watkins. What is most interesting is how well Jo deals with tramatic experiences in her life while in the process of solving crimes. Not just murders. So during the course of the books she gets left at the altar by a man paid by her parents, almost loses her newspaper column due to newer technology, goes on a blind date which the guy has an asthma attack and dies and finds herself avoiding a killer who wants her dead for her money. That she doesn't have yet. All of this while she discovering her soul mate is the boy who lives next door and has been her best friend forever. Too top all of this, there really is a Tips for Tulip. http://wwwtipsfromtulipcom.blogspot.com/ I put these books up the upper limits of should reads. Wish there were more. http://www.mindystarnsclark.com/

Friday, March 26, 2010

Unhallowed Ground by Heather Graham

I am fast becoming a big Heather Graham fan. In one of her most recent books, Unhallowed Ground, we find another paranormal type romance. But yet it isn't. Eeehhhh. This book takes place in St. Augustine Fla and centers around Sarah, who is a historian working as a docent at a museum while she is busy renovating an old historic house that she has always loved. Now the house has a morbid past, with being a mortuary a time or two with the morticians hiding bodies in the walls to reuse the fancy coffins and having a voodoo witch supposedly living there also. What starts the story out is missing girls, and when they are eventually found, drained of blood. Of course you think vampires but not the case. Where the romance in the story is between Sarah and Caleb, who is a private investigator who is a little psychic. He has come down to Fla to find a missing girl from a year ago and to help search for the recent one. And he keeps finding bodies as he is sort of drawn to them. Like he was to Sarah's house. And on top of that we have a mystery with a relative of Caleb's that is associated with the house. Fab book I didn't want to put down and y'all must read it. http://www.eheathergraham.com/

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Here Lies Arthur

Okay so I like to read young adult books. And this was a pretty good version by Philip Reeve, of Arthur from the viewpoint of a young girl, rescued by Myrddin(Merlin), after a raid on a farm by Arthur and his men. In this version Arthur is portrayed, not like the good person from the Disney Sword in the Stone, which is one of my favorite movies, but more realistic and truer to the times. The girl is disguised as a boy, for safety reasons, and follows along with Myrddin until she starts to become obviously a girl to some people. Then he conveniently gets her into Geneviere's ladies and takes a step more into the background. So we watch her evolve from the boy, to a girl, and even back to a boy, for the sake of opportunity to ride into battle. Good descriptions of battles and mentalities without getting overly descriptive. But what is fascinating is the ability of Myrddin to weave the actual events in Arthur's life and twist them into a fabulous tale to tell around the fireplace with magical results. I heartily recommend that you should read this version. http://philipreeve.blogspot.com/

The Lost Enchantress

This book was right up my alley. It is a paranormal romance by Patricia Coughlin. Yes, I did feel it a rather typical story of this type. You know that one I mean. The woman is just learning how powerful she is or that in fact she has powers. But yet doesn't really believe it or come to terms with it. And then there is the guy who is magically linked to her in some way. So in this story, Eve knew she had something but denied it. Ignored it. Until she happened upon an auction and was intensely drawn to a necklace with an hourglass pendant. Come to find out she was destined to find that and get it no matter what. In comes the guy who is the bidder against her. And we find out he figures in as having been cursed by the pendant and needs to get uncursed. And she can do it with the power she apparently has but doesn't know how to use. But he does and proceeds to instruct her. I really liked this story and enjoyed it very much. Of course, a happy ending and think you should read it.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Shades of Grey

The first in the new Dulcie Schwartz mystery series in which the ghost of her dead cat helps her out. Sort of. Really more like guides her around things. It all starts off with her coming home to find her temporary roommate stabbed and the dead cat warning her not to go in. But she does anyway, of course, while thinking she is going crazy. What is interesting is how the whole story with the death and computer hacking at her work and at the university, where she is trying to finish her thesis, all ties in well together. Lots of clues and her research on her topic provide a good story line and a good read. I would probably read more of these books if they came to the library. http://www.cleasimon.com/

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Spinning Forward

An interesting novel written by Terri Dulong. What drew me to the book is it had to do with knitting, of course. And the fact it was a "starting over" chicklit. So the story goes, Sydney Webster' husband has died in a car crash and has left her up the creek due to his gambling debts. She had had no clue to their finances. Upon being evicted from her home, she goes to stay with a dear friend in Cedar Key, Fla. Alison owns a bed and breakfast and has an inviting addition called the Tree House, which she offers to Sydney. Once Sydney gets a grip, she finds a job as a waitress and stumbles into an opportunity to open a knitting/spinning store, which she applies calls Spinning Forward. What was different about this story is Sydney spins animal fur, like from cats and dogs, so you can knit things with it. But where the story gets intriguing is that the birth mother she just decided to start looking for, is there in Cedar Key. A rather standoffish woman, that takes a long time to win over, and then to find out she is dying. That was the hankie part. So Sydney starts a new business, finds her mother, loses her, and finds out she can love again at 50, once she lets herself go emotionally. A real feel good story and you should read it. http://www.terridulong.com/

Friday, March 12, 2010

Bay City Paranormal Investigation revisited

I decided to continue with this series of books, which I read the first book a week or two ago, by Ally Blue. Why, I am not totally sure, but the concept of being like Ghosthunters really drew me in. So I have now completed reading the next four books in the series and have mixed feelings. Most of the books only really center on the paranormal event of a portal from another dimension. And gay guy sex. I now know way too much about having gay guy sex. I feel like kind of a voyeur. At least by the fifth book, she stopped describing the sex acts in great detail and there was a little more story. So I can tell you the paranormal part is a little on the lean side but if you are into guy sex, this is a good set of books to read. That's all I am going to say.
Well, on to the next book.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

At Home on Ladybug Farm

A very cute story from Donna Ball following the first book, A Year on Ladybug Farm, which I devoured too. Three women, retired from their busy lives and jobs, are now going into year 2 on the gorgeous sounding, farmstead in Shenandoah Valley, VA. With the help of a orphaned teenage boy and one of the women's daughters, they have many new fun ventures, and adventures, into renovating the farm and making it self sufficient. It is a encouraging story of making dreams come true. I was rolling on the floor, reading the scene of the Easter dinner with the pastor, when the daughter decided to spring her new idea for the farm: 144 baby chicks, with some escaping and visiting the set table. And additionally, when they decide to sand the wood floors. It is definitely a fun read, watching unexplored talents coming through and having opportunities of showing off the ones they have. Reading about the different eras in the history of the house and helping explain the interesting treasures they find in the walls and barn. I think you should read these books and hope another is on its way. http://www.donnaaball.net/

Monday, March 8, 2010

Pirate Latitudes

This is a book published posthumously from Michael Crichton. I was more impressed with this one that it didn't come off, like Timeline, as a definitely gonna be a movie book. This book has a lot more historical info intertwined with the story. More lively and colorful character development. I learned a lot about the times and a feel for the politics. The book centers on the ambitious privateer/pirate attack on a Spanish fort/outpost, that has a treasure laden galleon sitting in their harbor, by Charles Hunter and his eclectic crew. The fort is considered impregnable, which proves to be wrong, and the whole idea a folly by most pirates standards. It has a Pirates of the Caribbean feel, which may be why he did not submit it for publishing before. I have loved all the books I have read by Crichton and regret there will be no more. He is a 'should read all his books' author.
PS - I am now working on past seasons of Bones so reading is still a little behind. And I will warn you, Ghost Whisperer is next.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Sea Glass by Maria V Snyder

The second book in the Opal, the glass magician, series after Storm Glass. I had read her Study series, which I will admit I liked better, and can't wait for the next one. In this book, the sea glass actually played a small role. When Opal is at the coast awaiting training a new set of orb glass blowers, one of the Stormdancers, who capture the storms in the orbs, finds a bunch of sea glass on the shore. She is a beachcomber extrodinaire and gets mezmerized by the sea glass that apparently has magic in it. Opal is the only one who can diffuse the volatile glass before it gets out of hand. In this book, she is a one of a kind magician, in many aspects with glass and blood magic. Everyone who finds out about her, wants her. I did get a little frustrated at her trust issues as I guess you were suppose to. You were mislead to believe she had her act together but makes many mistakes which causes lots of action. The ending very well leads into the next book. This was a good read. http://www.mariavsnyder.com/

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

The Girl on Legare Street

I am most definitely hooked on this suspenseful, supernatural series by Karen White. I had loved The House on Tradd Street and just devoured The Girl on Legare Street. Melanie, or Mellie if you want to get on her bad side, is a realtor relocated back to the Charleston, SC area. She is in the process of renovating a historic house, left to her by a brief acquaintance, when she finds herself unwillingly drawn into helping her mother do the same to her childhood home. Her mother, with the same hereditary psychic ability as Melanie, had mysteriously left 30 some years ago to pursue a career in opera singing. But Melanie is reluctant to help her mother, as she still hurts from the rejection she experienced long ago. As the renovation starts, the ghosts come out of the woodwork. One protective and one vengeful. The key to the puzzle, so to speak, is the front window of the house which has a deceiving design in it, depending at what time of day you look at it. What lightens up the story is the unlikely romance Melanie has with an author named Jack, who knows her secrets and tortures her emotionally, constantly. I vote that this is an absolutely have to read. Not a dull moment in the book. http://www.karen-white.com/
I have not been reading much for the last couple of days. I checked out a couple of seasons worth of NCIS from our public library and am catching up on episodes that I missed.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Hush, hush

So I came across a very enticing young adult book called Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick. In this day and age of everyone writing about vampires and such, it was a pleasant surprise to find a book somewhat reminding of one of my favorite TV shows, Supernatural. It has to do with fallen angels and how they can redeem themselves. This is a pretty engrossing book about a high school teenager named Nora Grey. Nora is sort of a loaner, keeping to herself and really having only one best friend. Vee. Where she usually gets to sit with Vee in all her classes, biology proves to be her undoing when the teacher decides on a new seating arragnement. Nora is then teamed up with a dark and brooding boy, who proves to be an enigma. Her homework: to write a biography of him. And of course he does not want to supply information readily. The story has lots of intense breath-holding scenes in which scary things happen to her or do they really? This is definitely a should read and will recommend my library to buy it. I was able to borrow from an out of state library.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Killer Crab Cakes

Newest book in the Fresh Baked Mystery series by Livia J Washburn. I have read all the other books in the series and keep up to date. What was different in this book was that Phyllis, and her retired school teacher friends, go to the Texas Coast to watch over her cousin's bed and breakfast while she is gone. More of a vacation than work, really. I wasn't for sure who it was until over half way but was a little put off with who the chief of police tried to blame who did it. The evidence was almost too slim. But the chief of police and his daughter, also on the force, were receptive to perceptions from Phyllis and her friends. Usually they aren't. Interesting setting of the story and also recipes at the end that sounded delish. But I think it works better when Phyllis' son, who is a law enforcement officer, can contribute. Another good read series. I think I am beginning to like her literary series more, which I mentioned last week. More places to go and things to learn. http://www.liviawashburn.com/

Ellie Engleman, Dog Walker Mysteries

Oh boy I found another new cozy series I like. The first book, Hounding the Pavement by Judi McCoy, was cute and different. What I thought was a little bit hard to believe was how she just all of a sudden can talk to dogs. And they talk back. Ellie is newly divorced from a jerk who ran her life and one of the first things she does is get a dog, because she couldn't have one with the ex. But this isn't just any dog. It is her old dog reincarnated. Because of her newly found talent with communicating with dogs, she decides to become a dog walker. In New York City. Don't envy her that. Well, one morning she goes to pick up one of her first clients, only to find the dog's owner dead and the dog gone. She does help solve the case, and puts herself in danger. The means of death is a new one. But you have to read it to find out. And maybe the other thing that was cliche was that she falls for the homicide detective. Otherwise a good read and worth continuing to catch future books. http://www.judimccoy.com/

Monday, February 22, 2010

The Mirror and the Mask

Another Jane Lawless mystery, set in Minneapolis, MN, written by Ellen Hart. I have read all the books in this series and really like them. Jane is a restaurant owner/ amateur detective. Her father is a well known lawyer and her best friend commands the repertory theatre. In this twisty-turny, missing-person story, we meet Annie Archer who has come to town to find her step-father. She walks into Jane's restaurant, looking for a job and Jane ends up volunteering herself, and her private detective friend Nolan, to help her find him. Only Annie doesn't always confide in all the details correctly. While Annie goes off on her own agenda, Jane locates the step-father. Lots of interesting details about him unfold and right off the bat, his wife gets murdered. On top of her kind of walking into the solution of who did it, Jane loses her girl friend lover and Cordelia, her best friend, gets her niece back. That was a nice touch. Ellen Hart also has the Sophie Greenway culinary series, which equally are should reads. http://www.ellenhart.com/

Friday, February 19, 2010

Another Lois Battle Book

I really liked Bed and Breakfast that I decided to try another Lois Battle book from the library. This one had another catchy name, The Florabama Ladies Auxiliary and Sewing Circle. The whole story hinges on the closing of a women's personal garment factory called Cherished Lady. The whole crew of sewers comes to work one day only to find the factory will be closing and moving it operations out of the country. So this leaves many displaced women with no other skills than sewing looking for a new jobs. The local college gets funding for a displaced homemakers program to help give the women an education to work their up in life. That's where our main character comes in: Bonnie Duke Cullman, a in-the-process-of getting-a divorce middle aged woman who didn't have much skills herself before she started this new job in a new town. Bonnie helps the women get interested in taking classes and starting a support group that ultimately becomes the sewing circle of the title. Loosely. I did have a few comments taken from the book I want to remember and will find them and put them in. The women evolve and move on and tragedy does strike. This was a good read but not as good as bed and breakfast.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Witch and Wizard

I was intrigued by this title and the fact the James Patterson wrote it. It was overall a good story about a brother and a sister that find out they have magical powers, at the moment they get hauled off by the New Order, because they were probably not going to conform to the new regime. So we go with them on their journey into prison, with other troublemaking kids, watch them gradually get stronger and wiser, break out and become legendary. To be continued. This is definitely geared more towards young adults and kids, with the short chapters and mentality. I would say it was a nice read for me.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Huckleberry Finished

Second book in the Delilah Dickinson Literary Tour Mysteries by Livia J Washburn, a should read series. Personally accompanying a group, with a literary angle towards Mark Twain, Delilah becomes involved in a murder on a riverboat of one of her group. Between falling for a Mark Twain impersonator and helping solve a year old murder, she gets tangled up in figuring who killed who and who did what. Very twisty turny. I love these literary tour books and the historical info just enhances it in many ways. I am now in awe of all the interesting sayings of Mark Twain, such as 'Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities: truth isn't' and 'Let us endeavor so to live that when we die, even the undertaker will be sorry'. And a side mention that kind of added to the book, a Ghost Hunters episode that I caught this week was set at Mark Twain's house in Connecticut, where one of his daughters supposed died and still haunts. http://www.liviawashburn.com/

Ghost a la Mode: A Ghost of Granny Apples Mystery

I really, really liked this cozy mystery but will admit I thought that the name of the ghost, Granny Apples, was a little corny. This is a first in a new paranormal series from Sue Ann Jaffarian starring Emma Reynolds Whitecastle, a somewhat trophy wife going through a divorce, who recently discovered she is a little clairvoyant. Her great-great-great grandmother, Ish Reynolds, visits her, not too long after her best friend visits a psychic, and asks for Emma's help to clear her good name because she had been unrightfully hung for killing her husband. In the process of solving this over 100 yr old mystery, she uncovers a newly hatched gold mine plot and nearly gets killed. I liked the unfolding of the relationship with the current owner of the land, where the gold is supposedly, of Emma and Phil and the discovering of her abilities in strange places. There will be more in this series and I say you should read them. I know I will. http://www.sueannjaffarian.com/

Friday, February 12, 2010

Bay City Paranormal Investigations series

This series, by Ally Blue, starts with the book I just finished, Oleander House. Reminiscent of the Ghosthunter series on SYFY, in which I am a big fan. Sam Raintree is new joining this team as they investigate a old house in Mississippi. This book was a blend of intence paranormal events and a gay guy relationship, which I have not read many off. Sam hadn't mentioned he was gay when he joined the team but after he continually looks longingly at the head guy, who is married and yet he has gay tendencies and denies it, the fellow team members roll with it when discovered. The ghost hunting is fascinating and a little scary at the same time, especially since deaths are involved. I am looking forward to reading the rest of what has been written, 6 more, and will let you know. These are a good read I think. http://www.allyblue.com/home.html

A drunkard's path

The name of the book by Clare O'Donohue which is also the name of a particular quilt. Yes another quilting mystery. Nell Fitzgerald is living with her grandmother and decides to take an art class taught by a re known artist, as she likes to paint on her quilts. Only it ends up with dead women showing up in the river, one being a student learning right along side of Nell. Nell again figures out whodunit, which I admit I was one the fence on who for a long time, while trying to tread lightly on her new relationship with the police chief. At the same time, her grandmother is becoming involved with the re known artist, an interesting development, while Nell is worried about her grandmother being hurt by him being one of the suspects in the murders. My new tidbit I learned from the book is: Trapunto creates raised areas in your quilt by using cording or small amounts of batting pushed in from the back, which apparently looks harder than it is to do. Another will and should read series and am looking forward to more. http://www.clareodonohue.com/

Monday, February 8, 2010

Read books that come to mind and must mention

Here are a few books that I recently read that have stuck with me, good or bad.

Bed and Breakfast by Lois Battle. Good read published a few years past. I related to it a little due to the ex military factor and the stresses of moving.

Catered Birthday Party by Isis Crawford. It was a nice read but a birthday party for a dog that the owner didn't even like, was a little disturbing, especially when the owner gets poisoned at the party.

Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter by Lisa Patton. A should read, quite cute, about a southern belle who gets talked into moving to Vermont by her husband and setting up a bed and breakfast. The heroine overcomes lots of life changes and makes it through it all as a trooper.

According to Jane by Marilyn Brant. A should read, another 'about Jane Austin' book. A teenager has to read Pride and Prejudice for class and acquires Jane Austin with the book. She talks to her in her head. So goes her life with Jane giving advice and comments.

Madrigal: A novel of Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera by Jennifer Linforth. A should read, taking off where the Phantom of the Opera left off and did a 'what if this happened' kind of book. I was entranced with it.

Grave Secret, a Harper Connelly book by Charlaine Harris. A should read, about Harper who can tell you about buried bodies and how they died. And fresh ones too. They tell her their secrets. This is the 4th book so far and I have liked them just as much as the Sookie Stackhouse vampire books, which I have read all and love them.

13 1/2 by Nevada Barr. A must read. A big departure from her Anna Pigeon national park mysteries. This is a psychological type thriller and mixes in a little "real murders". I was kept on the edge of my chair right up to the unexpected ending.

Enough for now. Need to read.

I'm back and my sincere apologies

As you can see, my last posting was Nov 11. Now almost 3 months later, I am back in the saddle and you are probably wondering if I fell off the face of the earth. Actually, it sometimes feels like it. Somewhere just after the 11th, I went through a few interesting events in my life and kind of let this blog go by the wayside, which I regret. I have missed it tremendously. I have not stopped reading, my escape mechanism really, but couldn't seem to be able to put my thoughts into words for a while, while in the process of changing some medications and overcoming some stresses. And I can say, I am a better person for the experiences. I am determined to have a better year than last and made out some very interesting New Years resolutions and so far I am not doing too bad in that regard. Now comes the decision as to if I just want to let you know what I have read in the past, OMG, 3 months or just let it go and move on. I may mention a few titles in the next few posts that I totally recommend reading but otherwise, I am moving on. So be ready for my next book read in the next day or two. And have a good one!!!!