Tag: Fiction

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Nobody Told Me by Kay Bratt

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Nobody Told Me
  • Author: Kay Bratt
  • Series: Hart’s Ridge #6
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Hart’s Ridge
  • Main Character: Taylor, Lucy
  • Other Characters: Jarret, Shane, Sam, Anna, Cate
  • Pets: Dogs Diesel & Ginger along with some other Rescues at the farm
  • Stars: 5

This is book six in Kay Bratt’s Hart’s Ridge series. I have loved this series from the very beginning. I just love the Gray sisters and their family dynamic. Even though they have their problems, they are always going to stand up for each other.

In this installment, the focus is more on Taylor & Lucy. We find out more about Lucy’s troubled past which she is trying to escape. Some things are happening that Lucy is blamed for, but Shane believes something else is going on, so he investigates. Is Lucy’s past about to catch up with her!!

The small town in rocked by the news of a local teen’s disappearance, who was later found dead. It is assumed he was drinking and wandered into the lake and drowned, but could there have been foul play!! Deputy Taylor Gray is determined to find out. Lucy’s dog, Ginger, also has a bit of a starring role.

As usual, the author takes us on a fast-paced roller coaster ride to solve these mysteries with an ending I didn’t see coming. And who doesn’t love a book with dogs!! I definitely recommend this series. Even though you can read these books as a standalone, it’s better to read them in order, as the series mentions many characters, and you get to know the Gray girls. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

The author usually takes her stories from real life. She explains in a note at the end of the book about the real life Jarrett and how he was the inspiration for this story in the book.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

The Death Contingency by Nancy Lynn Jarvis

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: The Death Contingency
  • Author: Nancy Lynn Jarvis
  • Series: Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries #1
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: Santa Cruz
  • Main Character: Regan, Kaivan
  • Pets: a Cat named Harry
  • Stars: 1

This is the first book I have read by this author and if this is an example of the rest of her books, I won’t be reading more. I think this is the lowest star I have ever given to a book, probably because if it is going to be a 1 star, i just don’t finish it. I think I finished this one because I just knew there would be a twist at the end but I was wrong.

Regan is a Real Estate agent and is due to meet with another agent, Kaivan. Regan’s clients are buying Kaivan’s uncle’s house and they are meeting to sign the papers. Kaivan’s Uncle, Cyrus Ansari, is late. They keep waiting and he never shows up. Kaivan doesn’t seem too worried because it isn’t unlike his uncle to take off for a few days without word so he is never reported as missing until he is found dead floating in the ocean. At first they think it was an accident but then it is ruled as murder. Regan decides to play amateur sleuth to find the killer when she stumbles upon another dead body. Now she is trying to find a connection between Uncle Cyrus and this dead woman.

I really wanted to like this book. The idea of a real estate agent as the amateur sleuth intrigued me and I thought it would be interesting. There was a bit too much real estate and not enough sleuthing going on. It felt like the author was just trying to make her word count by going on and on with descriptions of houses she had listed. It got to be a bit boring so I would skip pages. I really thought about not finishing the book but kept reading for a twist in the end. What a letdown when there wasn’t a twist, and the killer was predictable. There wasn’t enough character development. It seemed to spend more time on real estate and not enough time on the mystery. The ending just seemed to fall flat, and I felt like I wasted a few hours of my life reading it.

Well on to my next book!

Happy Reading!

Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Next Girl Missing by L.A. Larkin

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Next Girl Missing
  • Author: L.A. Larkin
  • Series: A Sally Fairburn Crime Thriller #1
  • Genre: Thriller, Mystery
  • Main Character: Sally Fairburn
  • Other Characters: Paul Fairburn, Bryan Topham, Detective Clark, Detective Richard Foster, Aiden Foster, Theo Durrant,
  • Stars: 5

This is the first book I have read by this author and I will be reading more. I loved it from the very first word to the very last. I was so captivated by it that I just couldn’t put it down.

Saly is a former cop now working as a victim’s advocate. She lost her daughter five years ago and is still reeling from that. She is divorced from a controlling abusive husband and now her main focus is her 14-year-old son. Additionally, the memory of 6 girls who were abducted from her community 4 years ago still haunts her.

They convicted Theo Durrant for a series of crimes and they suspect him of being the poster killer who is responsible for the disappearance of the six girls. Imagine Sally’s shock when Theo requests that she go to the prison to visit him because he has information about the Poster killer. She wasn’t going to go until she saw a poster of herself. This really upset her since the poster killer always put up a poster of each girl before he took her. When she goes to visit him, Theo claims he is not the poster killer, but he knows who is. He won’t tell her who it is, but he gives her two hints. When Theo is later killed in prison, she realizes her own life could be in danger. The local cops reopen the cold case. When there is a stalker who won’t leave her alone and her son also becomes a target, she is determined to find the poster killer before he kills again.

During Sally’s search for the truth, other secrets are revealed.

This book is exciting and keeps you guessing from the very first page. It takes the reader on a roller coaster ride until the killer is revealed. There is a lot of action and suspense with an ending I didn’t see coming.

If you love a great suspense with a surprise ending, you will love Next Girl Missing.

Happy Reading,

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Sunshine & Sweet Wine by Kathi Daley

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Sunshine & Sweet Wine
  • Author: Kathi Daley
  • Series: Bistro at Holiday Bay #4
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Holiday Bay, Maine
  • Main Character: Shelby, Dawson
  • Other Characters: Beck, Colt, Alex, Kennedy, Amy, Tricia, Nikki, Georgia
  • Pets: Golden Retriever named Cooper and 2 cats Marley and Hennessy
  • Stars: 4

This is the 4th installment in the Bistro at Holiday Bay Series. This series is a spin off of The Inn at Holiday Bay. I like the Inn best but I do like this series. This book is good and kept my interest, the only reason I gave it a star is because the ending was a bit of a let down. There was quite a bit of anticipation and I wanted to know what happened but then it seemed to leave me wanting a more intriguing ending.

In this installment, there are a few mysteries. Dawson is the bar manager and the Bistro. He has been gone a few days and returns to find that his prize Harley has been stolen. Whoever stole it, drove it through a guardrail to the bay below but they have not found the thief. There is a server who works at the Bistro who hasn’t shown up for work in a few days and no one can reach her. Where could she be?

Beck’s Mystery was the most interesting. Beck is a private investigator who uses a booth at the Bistro as his office. His newest client is receiving suspicious packages that appear to be from her mother, who has been missing and presumed dead for 50 years. Who could be sending her packages? Is someone trying to scare her? Could her mother still be alive? There are a lot of possibilities.

Dawson has been presented with an offer of a lifetime. Will he accept it and leave his job at the Bistro?

With all the mysteries going on, could there also be a possible romance in the making?

The characters are well thought out and 3 dimensional and I have become invested in their stories. The mysteries really piqued my interest, but the ending was just a bit of a letdown. I was expecting more of a twist. It won’t keep me from reading the next book in the series.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Berry Purple Betrayal by Emily Oberton

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Berry Purple Betrayal
  • Author: Emily Oberton
  • Series: Hadley Home Design Cozy Mystery #3
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: Darlington Hills, VA
  • Main Character: Hadley Sutton
  • Other Characters: Irma, Carmella, Reid, Dennis, Lydia, Vincent, Terence, Aunt Deb
  • Pets: dog named Chip and a cat named Razzy
  • Stars: 5

Another great book by Emily Oberton. This is the 3rd book in the Hadley Home Design Mystery series and I loved it as much as the 2nd.

In this installment, Hadley once again finds herself in the middle of a murder, but this time she is the prime suspect. She has to race against time to prove her innocence. While she is trying to prove she didn’t commit murder, her friend Carmella has a mystery of her own. Carmella and Hadley are searching for the culprits who vandalized the high school where Carmella is the principal. During Hadley’s investigation into the murder, it turns out that there were several people who had a motive for murdering the victim. But could Hadley’s investigation get her killed!!

This book has so many twists and turns and the list of suspects just keeps growing as Hadley Unravels family secrets. If you enjoy small-town mysteries with a great protagonist, quirky characters, multiple suspects, surprises, and a bit of romance, this series is for you. This may be my favorite of the entire series. This is the last book in the series at this time but I am really hoping there will be more.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Pearl White Peril by Emily Oberton

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Pearl White Peril
  • Author: Emily Oberton
  • Series: Hadley Home Design Cozy Mysteries #2
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: Darlington Hills, VA
  • Main Character: Hadley Sutton
  • Other Characters: Aunt Deb, Reid, Vincent, Willy, Dennis, Carmella
  • Pets: A dog named Chip and a cat named Razzy
  • Stars: 5

This is the second book in the Hadley Home Design Cozy Mystery series and I loved it. It had everything I love about cozy mysteries. I started reading this book with a bit of skepticism since the first one was so obvious. But since there were a lot of things I liked about the first one, I wanted to give this series another chance. I am so glad I did.

I really like the protagonist, Hadley. She’s intelligent, but risks her life at times. Perhaps not the wisest, but I still love her. Hadley relocated to Darlington, VA after her boyfriend broke up with her. She landed a job staging rooms for photo shoots and loves her job even though her new boss can be cantankerous and rude. Everything is going great until Hadley finds a dead body in her boss’s Kitchen. Of course, her boss, Vincent, is the prime suspect.

Hadley is afraid she will be out of a job if her boss goes to prison, so she works hard to prove her boss’ innocence. Her investigation leads her into some dangerous situations that could get her killed. As she gets closer to someone, could he be the killer!

This book takes the readers on a bit of a roller coaster ride with a series of twists and turns to find a killer. I really thought I had the killer figured out, but there is a twist at the end that I didn’t see coming. This is the type of mystery I love.

If you love a cozy mystery in a small town with a fun-loving protagonist, quirky characters, pets, and twists and turns to find a killer, you will love this book.

Happy reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Lemon Yellow Lies by Emily Oberton

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Lemon Yellow Lies
  • Author: Emily Oberton
  • Series: Hadley Home Design Cozy Mysteries #1
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: Darlington Hills, VA
  • Main Character: Hadley Sutton
  • Other Characters: Kent, Erin, Aunt Deb
  • Pets: A dog named Chip and a cat named Razzy
  • Stars: 4

This is the first book I have read by this author. I really liked this book and the only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is because I found the ending too predictable.

Interior designer Hadley Sutten has a bad breakup with her boyfriend who is locally famous so she sees him everywhere. She needs a break and needs to be somewhere familiar. Her favorite aunt’s hometown of Darlington, VA is the perfect place to escape to after a breakup. She lands a job interview in Darlington so she packs her bags and leaves her home in New Orleans. Hadley has plans to start her own design business, but in the meantime ,she needs a job. While waiting for her job interview, she meets Kent, who hires her to furnish his outdoor living space for his fiance’s surprise birthday party. Along with working in his backyard, she has also agreed to house-sit and take care of his dog while he is away on a business trip. Who would hire an interior designer that they just met to house sit? I guess that is why they call it fiction.

When Hadley meets his fiance, it doesn’t go well. The fiance is a bit stuck up and doesn’t seem to like anything Hadley is doing to the backyard. The plot thickens when the fiance goes missing. There are a lot of lies and secrets as it leads us to the truth.

The cast of suspects is growing & Hadley’s life could be in danger as she uncovers some secrets that gets her closer to the truth.

I love all the twists and turns in this book and it was so engaging, I couldn’t put it down. I loved Hadley even though she was a bit naïve and trusting. I was going to give this book 5 stars until the ending. I like a mystery that is hard to solve and leaves you surprised at the end. In this entire book, I knew who the most obvious suspect was, but I was hoping for more of a big twist at the end and it didn’t happen. If you read this book, let me know in the comments what you think.

Happy reading!

Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Any Day Now by Robyn Carr

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Any Day Now
  • Author: Robyn Carr
  • Series: Sullivan’s Crossing #2
  • Genre: Romance, Drama
  • Takes Place: Sullivan’s Crossing
  • Main Character: Sierra, Connie (Conrad), Sullivan
  • Other Characters: Cal, Maggie
  • Pets: Molly
  • Stars: 5

In this installment of the series Sullivan’s Crossing, we meet Cal’s sister Sierra. If you remember from the first book, What we find, Cal is a drifter who eventually marries Sully’s daughter, Maggie. They are now having a baby and Cal’s little sister, Sierra, comes for a visit.

Sierra is escaping a troubled past and hoping it doesn’t catch up to her. She finds solace with the residents of the small Colorado town and Sullivan’s crossing. I love her bond with Sully who ends up being a surrogate dad. Then there is Connie (Conrad) who helps her move on from her troubled past. Her bond with her brother just grows stronger and she begins developing a sisterly bond with Cal’s wife, Maggie.

This is a story of starting over, family, building relationships, and learning that your past doesn’t define your future. Then there is the rescue dog that Sierra adopts. Sierra saves Molly from an abusive situation and she becomes the therapy that Sierra needs. Everyone falls in love with Molly, even the readers.

Between Connie, Sully, Cal & Maggie, Sierra finally finds the family she needs.

I love this book. I love the location, the characters and, of course the dog. The author really knows how to describe the scenery as if you are there and the characters so you really know them. This book is definitely worth reading and now I can’t wait to read book #3.

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

—Confucius

Happy Reading!

Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance

What We Find by Robyn Carr

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: What We Find
  • Author: Robyn Carr
  • Series: Sullivan’s Crossing #1
  • Genre: Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Romance
  • Takes Place: Sullivan’s Crossing, Colorado
  • Main Character: Maggie, Sully, Cal
  • Stars: 5

I have to admit, I read this book because a TV series based on it is coming to the United States in the fall. I really want to see the series so I decided to read the book first. This is the second book I have read by this author so since I loved the first one, I decided to read this one.

This is a story of second chances and finding happiness. Maggie is a neurosurgeon who is facing a lawsuit when a high-risk emergency procedure results in the death of a teenager. She wants to escape her high-stress job, so she goes to a place she can feel secure. She goes to see her dad in Sullivan’s Crossing, named for her great-grandfather. Sully, Maggie’s dad, manages the campground and general store his family has owned for generations. Maggie just wants to relax and feel at peace when another tragedy strikes that has her staying longer than she originally intended.

A mysterious drifter named Cal, shows up at the campground and Maggie is very suspicious of him. There is some obvious chemistry, but they both have a past they are trying to escape and secrets they are keeping. As the story unfolds, you will learn about their secrets and how it has affected them.

This is a beautifully crafted story with a beautiful setting and characters you will fall in love with

If you love a sweet contemporary story of moving on from a painful past and learning to start over and trust again, you will love this book. I am excited to read the rest of the story to see where it takes Sully, Maggie, and Cal.

Just living is not enough… One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.

—Hans Christian Andersen

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Once upon a Mystery by Kathi Daley

Chapters & lattes
  • Title: Once upon a Mystery
  • Author: Kathi Daley
  • Series: The Bookstore at Holiday Bay #1
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Holiday Bay, Maine
  • Main Character: Lou, Velma
  • Other Characters: Eden, Alex, Hazel
  • Pets: Lou’s Cat Toby
  • Stars: 2

I was really looking forward to this series since I am a fan of her other series, The Inn at Holiday Bay & Bistro at Holiday Bay. Bistro as well as this series is a spinoff of The Inn at Holiday Bay.

I was disappointed in the first book of this series. If you have read The Inn at Holiday Bay then you know that Lou came to Holiday Bay to help out her niece, Vanessa, who owned the local bookstore. Lou is a widow who has been at a loss since her husband passed away. She feels like she no longer has a purpose so when her niece Vanessa offers to sell her bookstore, Lou jumps at the chance. She leaves her life in Minnesota and moves to Maine.

This book had a lot of potential but somehow dropped the ball. There is a death and a mystery surrounding that death but there wasn’t enough suspense surrounding it. The climax was a big letdown.

There also wasn’t enough Character development. The story spent more time on Lou remodeling the bookstore, reflecting on her husband’s passing and the changes in her life that I found myself being a bit bored with the story. There were too many characters, and I really couldn’t connect with any of them. The mystery wasn’t even much of a mystery and it was barely mentioned, except in the beginning and then again at the end. I like a mystery with twists and turns and this one just didn’t have that. I like to finish a book either feeling good and uplifted or have that wow feeling because I never saw it coming, and this one did not deliver.

This is not a series that I am looking forward to seeing where the characters go next. I will probably give book number two a chance, but if it isn’t any better than this one, then I won’t finish this series.

I feel like there have been enough books in Holiday Bay and maybe she should move on.

Happy Reading!