My name is Suzanne and I have lived in Tennessee my entire life. I am marred with 3 kids and 3 grandchildren. My family is my! I love to read so I decided to support the authors I love by writing reviews. I also post my reviews to Goodreads and Amazon.
Besides reading, I love to spend time with my family, travel, Corvette road trips & working out. I hope you enjoy my blogs.
Other Characters: Gabe, Justin, Ellie, Bree, Zoey, Della, Lucas, Nathaniel, Sydney, Bert, Jack
Stars: 5
The second book in the Scarlett James Cozy Mystery series was just as good as the first. Scarlet once again finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery, so of course, she has to play amateur sleuth.
Gabe, the Chief of Police and Detective Sydney are investigating the suspicious death of a young girl thought to be a runaway. In addition to Scarlet’s amateur detective skills, her gal pals must put their sleuthing skills to use.. As the plot unfolds, a twist reveals who the murderer is and the motive for committing such a heinous crime. This book kept me on the edge of my seat from the beginning to the very end.
This is definitely a ‘can’t put down’ read. I read most of it in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down. I recommend reading the first book in the series, Death is Better at the Lake, before reading this one, because there is another mystery in the book that is ongoing.
This was my second read by this author, and I look forward to reading more.
Other Characters: Jasper Hall, Gabe, Justin, Julie, Ellie, Lily, Bree, Zoey, Della,
Stars: 5
Death is Better at the Lake is the first book in the Scarlet James Cozy Mystery Series. This is the first book I have read by this author and, I have to say, I am hooked. I love her writing and the mystery she weaves.
Scarlet is a literary agent in Chicago and she just broken it off with her boyfriend because of his betrayal. She got an urgent phone call that her grandmother, who practically raised her, has fallen, so she immediately heads home to Spring Lake, Iowa. While her grandmother is in the hospital, Scarlet stays at her house and gets together with some long time girlfriends.
She is worried about her grandmother but still able to enjoy her friendships with her girlfriends, that is until her ex shows up. She immediately puts him in his place and he leaves. Everything is going fine until her ex ends up dead and Scarlet is the prime suspect. Scarlet is determined to prove that she didn’t kill her ex.
I really loved all the characters in this story. The author has really developed the characters in such a way that I can really picture them. The protagonist is a strong independent woman who is determined to prove she is innocent.
The author will take you on lots of twists and turns until the Climax of the book. If you love a good cozy mystery with lots of twists and lovable characters, you will love this book. I can’t wait to read the next book.
Other Characters: Claire, Maxie, Addie, Sally , Shane
Pets: Cooper
Stars:5
Once again, we visit the quaint little town of Lobster Bay, Maine in the 2nd book of the series. This time the focus is on Jane Miller and her Bed & Breakfast, Tides, which has been in her family for generations.
Since Jane had to make the tough decision to put her mom in an assisted living home, the burden of running Tides has fallen on Jane. Unfortunately Tides is losing money. Jane promised her mom she wouldn’t sell it so she has to figure out how to save Tides.
When Jane is literally knocked over by a friendly dog, things seem to change. She also gets a little help from her friends and her estranged sister shows up.
If you love books about friends, family and community you will love this story. Read to find out if Jane is able to save Tides or does she have to sell. I am really loving this series and can’t wait to read book #3.
Wow, Just wow. That is how this book left me feeling. Rachel never disappoints. This book had me captivated by the very first word until the very end.
Jill’s best friend, Monica , dies way too young. To Jill’s surprise, she is in Monica’s will, but there is a catch. Monica left her a bucket list that she wants Jill to complete. She has to complete each task and then blog about it. Monica’s lawyer will keep up with the blog to confirm that each task is completed.
Jill has anxiety and she is not adventurous at all. Her husband died suddenly 15 years ago and it takes everything in her just to get out of the house. Of course her best friend Monica was the complete opposite and would go on all sorts of adventures. This is Monica’s way to get Jill out of her comfort zone.
This book was very relatable. I loved all of the characters but I could really relate to Jill in so many ways.
It is hilarious, sweet, romantic and all about discovering things about yourself that you didn’t know existed. I highly recommend this book.
Quote from the book:
“Anxiety is a thief. It steals your focus. It steals your fun. It steals your peace. It steals large chunks of your life as you zero in on your symptoms and your thoughts instead of paying attention to everybody around you. For the first time in my life, I’m determined to defeat it. I’m determined to tell it to sit in the back seat while I take us on the rides. Instead of letting anxiety drive, my new goal is to put it in the trunk.”
Takes Place: The small quaint town of Hart’s Ridge in the Blue Ridge mountains
Main Character: Taylor Gray, Anna
Pets: Diesel who is shared by Taylor and Sam
Stars: 5
This is the 4th book in the Hart’s Ridge series. Once again, we visit Taylor Gray’s dysfunctional family. This time the focus is on Anna, whose husband has left her and has secrets of his own that will begin to unfold. We see a different side of Anna who is becoming a bit more human and relatable. She is learning how to get out from underneath a controlling husband and finding out that she really didn’t know the man she was married too.
While we are visiting Anna, Taylor has a new mystery of her own. Her friend Sissy has disappeared, and no one seems to know what happened to her. I have loved Taylor since book one of this series. She is strong and independent and when she is working on a case, she is determined to solve it. This story is no different except that it involves a close friend so it hits a little to close to home. It has become personal. This story takes a few twist and turns before we reach the climax. I did find the mystery a little too predictable, I kept waiting for another solution but it didn’t happen. Other than this I found the book to be very good.
The ending might have you a bit teary eyed. It is very emotional so have your tissues ready. If you like a whodunit and a family who, through everything, are closer than ever, then you will love this book. I recommend this entire series and I can’t wait until book #5.
Other Characters: Jane, Sally, Hallie, Addie, Maxie
Stars: 5
This is the first book I have read by this author and I will be reading more. I really enjoyed this first book in the Lobster Bay Series.
Claire is divorced with a grown daughter trying to navigate the world as single again. She loves to bake and runs the only bakery in town. She has thrown her heart and sole into her bakery business and is doing great until a competitor opens a bread bakery across the street. She is threatened and fears that this competition could destroy the business she has worked so hard build. Not only this but there are some issues with the building’s faulty pipes. She has tried to hold off till she can get a loan but they seem to just be getting worse.
Everyone in town seems to like the owner of the new bread bakery, except for Claire. All she sees is that he is a threat to her business.
We also meet Claire’s 2 best friends, Maxi & Jane who are dealing with their own issues. Jane’s mother has Alzheimer’s and is dealing with decisions on the best way to care for her mother. Maxi and her husband are recent empty nesters and are trying to navigate their marriage now that there aren’t any kids living under their roof.
If you love a sweet heartwarming story of friendship, community with some romance thrown in, then you will enjoy reading this story.
Main Character: Callie, Sam, Braden , Banner, Monika
Other Characters: Desiree, Weston, Mrs Finney, My Purdy, Brian, Elyse, Trent, Ethan, Tonya, David, Raul, Lynn, Pamela,
Pets: Woody and Carl
Stars: 5
This is the 5th book in the Callie Cassidy Mystery series and I think it is my favorite. I received this book as an ARC and this is my honest review.
In this episode of the mystery series, we visit again with Callie, photographer/amateur sleuth, so you know there will be a mystery to solve and she will be right in middle of it.
The author really took us on a roller coaster ride with this book. It all starts with the long anticipated wedding of Tonya and David. Tonya, Callie’s best friend, is gorgeous in her gown and the groom is dashing as ever. Braden, one of the Ratliff twins, has his first job as a wedding photographer. He is nervous and excited but Callie has every confidence in him
Everything is going great until the twin’s (Braden & Banner) father, Brian Ratliff shows up with his current flavor of the month, Desiree. Brian appears to be drunk, he is obnoxious, stumbling and verbally abusive to everyone even his own sons. Callie has taken Braden & Banner under her wings and is sort of a surrogate mother to them so she doesn’t take too kindly to Brian being abusive towards them. Nobody likes Brian and they just want him to leave. Even his own sons don’t like him.
So when Brian ends up unresponsive and in the hospital from an apparent poisoning, the suspect list is long. When evidence shows up that points the finger at Braden, Callie teams up with a feisty new reporter, Monika to try to prove he didn’t poison their father. Callie sees something very disturbing, which gives us another possible suspect. Callie and Monika take the information to the cops and are convinced they know who did it but there just isn’t enough evidence and there is another twist to the story. She is convinced there has to be another explanation. But what could the explanation be?
This book takes you on a lot of twist and turns before reaching the climax. The only motive seems to be that no one liked Brian so that means the cast of suspects is long. I was totally involved in this story from beginning to end. This author has a way with words and just hooking you into her stories. It is definitely a book that you can’t put down. I have been a fan of this author since her very first book and this book did not disappoint.
Even with a dad in a coma and murder victim mystery, we get to visit with Callie’s parent’s at the Knotty Pine Lodge that they own. Then there is Callie’s boyfriend, Sam and her Golden Retriever, Woody & tabby cat Carl. There is even some comic relief.
If you love a whodunit with a lot of twists and turns & a little bit of humor thrown in, then you will definitely love this book.
This is the first book I have read by this author and I will be reading more. This is a good story about family secrets and how to maneuver your life when secrets have been kept from you your entire life.
Louisa is planning her wedding with her fiance Henry. She loves her fiance but she isn’t sure she wants the big webbing and she is afraid to tell him. Her grandfather died years ago and she loved him with all of her heart. It was hard for her to move past that. Now her grandmother has died suddenly and she has to go to Savannah to take care of the funeral and her house. Louisa was raised by her grandparents and never knew her real parents. Her best friend goes with her to help her in Savannah but she tends to push her fiance away. Louisa struggles with trust.
There are some big secrets that have been kept from Louisa so now that she is all alone in the house where she grew up, she is determined to find out these secrets.
Why was she raised by her grandparents? What happened to her real parents? There are the secrets her grandparents have kept from her? Will Louisa and Henry get married? The author takes us on a few twists and turns until all these answers are revealed.
Once I got into the book, I couldn’t stop reading. I had to know all of these answers. I recommend this book to anyone who likes family drama and a good mystery about family secrets.
Pets: a big cat named Rufus and 2 dogs named Molly, Ramos
Stars: 3
I was really looking forward to the 22nd book in The Inn at Holiday Bay series and I must say I was a little disappointed. It seemed to be all over the place with a lot of characters. I needed a score card to keep up. And the mystery concluded with a suspect who wasn’t even part of the plot and seemed to come out of nowhere. I like a whodunit that I can try to figure it but this would have been almost impossible to figure out.
The story starts with a missing bilingual parrot that Beck has been hired to find. This story kinda dropped and we didn’t hear about the parrot again until much later in book. I had almost forgotten about it.
Vanessa is out of town and has left her feisty Aunt Lou to take care of the bookshop. Someone is leaving one star reviews for several of the small business around town. At first it is just an inconvenience and a bit unsettling since the reviews seem to be bogus. Then these same small business start to be vandalized. It seems like the person giving bad reviews is also responsible for the vandalizing. For now, this still seems to be more of an inconvenience and the loss of some profits due to some businesses having to temporarily close until the can repair any damage. That is until there is a fire at one business and, the police find a body. Now it becomes a mystery to find out if this was murder or or did someone accidentally end up dead.
Colt, the chief of police and Abby’s boyfriend, is out of town so the women business owners in town take it upon themselves to try and solve this mystery. With the help of the town bartender/computer hacker, they trace the reviews back to someone in town. Is this person also the one who is vandalizing the business and have they actually committed homicide? Or was it an accident that someone died in the fire? Is all of this connected in some way to the reviews? You will have to read to find out.
Other highlightsin the story are Colt dealing with issues concerning his nephew, a couple gets engaged, Georgia and Tannerreevaluateeevalute their relationship, a new character may be staying in Holiday Bay.
This was not my favorite in the series and I struggled at times to finish it but I did. I will still read the next book in the series once it is released but if this had been the first book in the series, it would not have convinced me to finish the series.
If you read this, give me your thoughts in the comments.
This is another great read in the Blue Heron Series. I am really enjoying the characters in this book which takes place in Moonbeam ,Florida.
Tara’s high school reunion is coming up and she can’t decide of she wants to go but her brother Walker talks her into it. Her ex neighbor, friend and classmate, Joey, shows up early for the reunion and stays at the Blue Heron Cottages. He hasn’t been back to Moonbeam in a couple of decades and has decided to come to the reunion and wants to reconnect with his friend Tara.
Joey shows up at the restaurant that Tara works at and her parents own. Joey lived next door to Tara and they were best friends and inseparable growing up. Tara is excited to see Joey and their friendship picks right back up as if no time has passed between them. Things are going great with Joey and Tara until an old crush, Lance shows up for the reunion. Tara had a huge crush on him in high school but he never asked her out. He evidently hasn’t changed that much and is still good looking so Tara still gets butterflies when she sees him. She still has dreams of her teenage crush asking her out. When Tara and Joey run into a Lance, she gets her wish. Lance asks her to dinner! She can’t believe it and is so excited. Joey is a bit hurt that she is still hung up on Lance. Do you think this date turns out as well as she has imagined? You will have to read to find out if things work out for Tara and Lance or if destiny has other plans.
In my opinion, this story is a bit unrealistic that she would still have a crush on someone after 20 years but overall, I loved the story.
It is a sweet, clean romance of finding expectant love and realizing people don’t really change and they aren’t exactly who you imagine they are.
If you love a clean romance with great characters, then you will love this series.
Chapters & Lattes 