Things Unsaid, by Diana Y. Paul by McKenna, Staff Reviewer Does anyone else remember reading The Glass Menagerie in high school? For those who don’t, it’s a play about a family that appears normal at first glance, but upon learning their stories, you soon realize the normalcy is just a facade. Much like The Glass […]
Ivy Meadows is back in Ivy Get Your Gun by McKenna, Staff Reviewer There are various elements that drive a story, and two of those are the plot and characters. A stellar storyline can often overshadow mediocre characters, and vice versa. In Ivy Get Your Gun, the storyline is fantastic. The actions unfolds quickly as […]
Visit the Fun menu tab above to win a free copy! Pekoe Most Poison, the latest in the Tea Shop Mysteries by Laura Childs A Laura Childs books is like getting a hug. Really. Her cozies follow the rules of the genre and offer a couple of nights of pure escape, surrounded by developed characters, […]
Dead Cold Brew Coffeehouse Mystery Series by Cleo Coyle Details. I love the details in Cleo Coyle’s books. Not just how good the hot, cheese-covered ziti smells or how smooth the dark espresso is, but unobtrusive moments of character details: from Clare quietly squeezing Madam’s hand in reassurance, showing us it’s Clare’s turn to be […]
Irish Breakfast tea. Check. Firm pillow and electric blanket. Check. Anticipation of turning that first page in Gerry Schmitt’s new Afton Tangler thriller, Little Girl Gone. Absolutely. Plot: The first chapter elegantly sets the story, mood, and tone. Ms. Schmitt neatly opens with a scene that should be normal but right away heads into […]
Lily Iona MacKenzie gives us a lovely story. After meeting Bubbles, the stereotypical older, tired grandmother character is tossed out the door. Bubbles not only defies tradition, she is the complete antithesis of the typical elderly character. “Her blue eyes aren’t glazed over with cataracts as with some older people but look bright—alive.” She is […]
The Wooded Path Nancy LiPetri Contemporary Fiction Oaktree Press It all looks pretty normal at first. The author takes us around a pleasant community in North Carolina. She directs our attention to lovely homes, pretty lakes, and thick forests. The appearance of things. But were we too busy looking around to notice anything else? How […]
A Study in Temperance Series: The Adventures of Ichabod Temperance Genre: Steampunk I had no idea Steampunk could be so fun. Heck, I had no idea what Steampunk was. So I thought I’d give A Study in Temperance a try. Written by Ichabod Temperance, this book is a flurry of activity and dastardly detecting. And a […]
Free Dakota by William Irwin No matter where you fall on the political spectrum, you’ve probably questioned the government at some point. But for Don, the protagonist of the story, questioning is his life. It all starts with a soda. Don, after being denied a sixty-four-ounce soda due to recent government regulations, begins a journey that […]
Hearing Voices in a Scottish Bookshop Doesn’t everyone? I enjoyed book one of this Scottish Bookshop Mystery so much that I will plead and hang out in front of the author’s house until book two comes out. In this new series, Delaney Nichols is laid off from her job as a museum archivist. She applies for […]
A Death Along the River Fleet (Lucy Campion Mysteries #4) by Susanna Calkins Publication Date: April 12, 2016 Minotaur Books Hardcover & eBook; 336 Pages Genre: Historical Mystery Just as I settled in to the well-drawn atmosphere, a bloodied, distraught, and questionable figure stumbles across the scene. This author has such a lovely ease […]
An Unfolding Trap British Mystery Jo A. Hiestand Wild Rose Publishing Since his infancy, Michael McLaren has been the target of his paternal grandfather’s anger. So when the patriarch sends an invitation to heal the rift, McLaren travels to Scotland, eager to meet and finally end the feud. But the welcome never happens. If Grandfather hadn’t invited him, […]
It’s such a treat to start a new Phillips mystery. In his newest release, Between Good and Evil, R. Michael Phillips excels at setting the stage for a good mystery. He gracefully brings new people into our lives, giving us time to get to know who is who. The dark yet very real worlds of his […]
Simply Charly, Simply Engaging! If you’re like me, you probably had to read Oliver Twist and A Tale of Two Cities for school. You may have used Oliver as a way to guilt your parents into giving you a second cookie by making a sad face and saying, “Please, can I have some more?” But […]
Antiques and Avarice is a cozy night of reading. I thoroughly enjoyed Antiques and Avarice by Jane Firebaugh. The main character, Olivia McKenna, is a spunky antiques dealer who finds a dead body. This makes her a suspect and a target. Det. Lt. Josh Abrams helps keep her safe as he investigates. She is a get-it-done kind of woman. […]
Cash Kills by Nanci Rathbun by Nanci Rathbun For a 50-something mom, Angie Bonaparte can sure handle the bad guys. Angie is a believable blend of tough stuff and compassion, and uses both for her clients. But just like organizing all the dishes to a huge Thanksgiving dinner, Nanci Rathbun stirs up tension and keeps […]
The Semester of Our Discontent, A Lila Maclean Mystery by Cynthia Kuhn English professor Lila Maclean is thrilled about her new job at prestigious Stonedale University until she finds one of her colleagues dead. She soon learns that everyone, from the chancellor to the detective working the case, believes Lila—or someone she is protecting—may be […]
The Blue Virgin: Nora Tierney Series by M.K. Graff This Nora Tierney series was intriguing from the very first page. The protagonist, Nora Tierney, is strong yet vulnerable, determined yet sometimes unsure, and so very likable. Graff’s clean, uncluttered style is smooth and polished, and there are no irrelevant details or conversations. The omniscient point of […]
The Free Market Existentialist: Capitalism without Consumerism by William Irwin Category: Adult Non-Fiction, 203 pages Genre: Philosophy / Politics Publisher: Wiley Blackwell Release date: October 2015 I am a fan of philosophy, particularly the wisdom of Sartre and Nietzsche, and enjoy Economics 101 (huge fan of Freakonomics). In The Free Market Existentialist, I was very curious to […]
The Masque of a Murderer by Susanna Calkins Historical Fiction Minotaur/St. Martin’s Press Right from the first pages, the author’s rich touches of setting and locale immediately had me engrossed in the story. I was drawn to the characters and their complex relationships, particularly between Sarah and her father. I also enjoyed the contrast between Sarah’s […]