Murder Spills The Tea (Tea by the Sea Mysteries Book 3)

Author:    Vicki Delany

Genre:     Mystery

Hardcover; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496737694

Kensington Cozies

304 Pages

$23.99; $9.06 Amazon

July 26, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The country's hottest TV cooking show is coming to Cape Cod.  And against her better judgment, Lily Roberts is entering America Bakes! with her charming tearoom, Tea by the Sea!  Filming is already proving disruptive, closing the tearoom during Lily's busiest season.  But tensions really bubble over when infamous bad-boy chef and celebrity judge, Tommy Greene, loses his temper with Lily's staff, resulting in an on-camera blowout with Cheryl Wainwright.  Just as Lily thinks the competition can't get more bitter, Tommy is found dead in Tea by the Sea's kitchen...murdered with Lily's rolling pin.

Suspicion immediately falls on Cheryl, but the temperamental star has racked up plenty of culinary clashes in the past, both on- and off-screen.  And nearly anyone associated with Tommy or the show could be the killer: be it one of Lily's fierce competitors, a member of the beleaguered film crew, or even one of Tommy's fellow judges -- struggling cookbook maven, Claudia D'Angelo or beauty contest winner, Scarlet McIntosh.  Now, while she's baking up a storm for the show, Lily must also whip up an impromptu investigation...before the murderer rolls someone else away.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Lily Roberts owns Tea by the Sea, a lovely tearoom centered right in Cape Cod.  Her grandmother Rose, transplanted from Yorkshire long ago, owns a lovely Victorian B&B nearby, and they live happily in the seaside town.  That is, until Rose and Lily's best friend Bernie enter her in a TV reality show, and she's been chosen as one of the contestants.  Now, the cast members are staying at the B&B and the crew is overrunning the tearoom and telling her what to  do.  Lily is not happy.

She's especially not happy when one of the judges, Tommy Greene, purposely trips her employee MaryBeth and MaryBeth's mother Cheryl has a few harsh words for him.  When Tommy is discovered dead the next morning in the tearoom, Cheryl is the main suspect.  But Lily is sure Cheryl's not a killer, but she's not sure about his castmates.  Even though the police tell her to leave it alone, she's not going to, and with the help of Bernie and Rose, she intends to find the killer before they get away with it...

This is the third book in the series and I have read them all.  I've become fond of the characters in this series, finding not a one of them evil or flighty.  (Except for Allegra, but she's new and no one could possibly like this woman).  The main characters are full of ideas about who might have killed Tommy, especially Bernie, who is able to get information due to her background as a forensic accountant.  

But the more information they have, the more they discover that Tommy was actually a nice guy who was devoted to his wife and family, making it harder to find out who might have had a grudge against the man.  Lily just watches the players in the TV cast, hoping that one of them will accidentally spill information.  And with them fighting amongst themselves, it's not long before she sees that there's more to them than what meets the eye.  Now all she has to do is find out who wielded the rolling pin...

I love this series, and while the killer didn't surprise me much (only because I read a lot of mysteries), at the very end we are given a glimpse of what the future might bring, and once again peace is brought to Cape Cod...for the time being.  I eagerly await the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Spills-Tea-Mysteries-Book-ebook/dp/B09KP4WN5C/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4954868724

More on Vicki Delany's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/d/vicki-delany/

Rum and Choke (A Chloe Jackson Sea Glass Saloon Mystery #4)

Author:    Sherry Harris

Genre:     Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496734389

Kensington Cozies

320 Pages

$8.99; $6.99 Amazon

December 27, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Florida Panhandle Barback Games are coming up and Chloe's been drafted to represent the Sea Glass Saloon -- competing in various obstacle-course events that conclude with rolling an empty keg up a hill.  The rivalries are so fierce that some of the participating bars even stoop to bringing in ringers.

Meanwhile, Chloe's friend Ann -- a descendant of the famed pirate Jean Lafitte -- asks her to come along for a boat ride as Ann dives into the Gulf of Mexico.  She's found some old papers that may identify the location of sunken treasure.  Instead, she finds a sunken body -- one of the ringers hired for the Barback Games.  Now that murder is in the mix, Chloe has to figure out whether one of the competitors went overboard...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Chloe Jackson goes to work one morning and discovers that her boss, Vivi, and her coworker Joaquin have signed her up for the Barback Games.  It's a competitive game, so much so that some of the other bars in the area have hired ringers -- professional athletes -- for the competition.  This doesn't sit well with Vivi, and she wants Chloe to go undercover and check them out.  But instead one of them, Enrique, seems to be checking out Chloe.

Once the three she's been visiting discover who she is, they come to the Sea Glass to confront her.  But her friend Ann Williams is there also -- and she recognizes Enrique from a long time ago when he assaulted her.  Things don't look good for either of them, so Ann leaves.  But later Ann asks Chloe if she'll come with her as support when she plans a dive to find an old shipwreck of her ancestor, pirate Jean Lafitte.  Instead of finding sunken treasure, she finds a sunken body, and now both Chloe and Ann are persons of interest in death.

Trying not to make things worse for herself, she continues to help Ann on her personal quest and finds not only murder, but intrigue, suspicions, secrets, and break-ins along with adventure and excitement.  Wanting to stay above the law, but caught in the web of Ann's life, she wants to be part of this exploration also.

Then there's also the fact that she's falling for Rip, and hard.  Does she tell him or allow things to go as slow as they have been?  Not wanting to keep her involvement in the shipwreck from him, but not wanting to break a promise to Ann has her warring with herself.  Which one will win out in the end?  And will she finally be charged in the murder?...

This is the fourth book in the series, and I have read them all.  This just might be the best one of the group.  I was as drawn to the action as Chloe was herself.  Watching her try to juggle her relationship, her involvement in the Barback Games and the lure of the excitement of finding a pirate ship was enough in itself, but the murder only added to it.  She's determined to find the killer, because if she doesn't, she could be sent away for complicity in the crime.  

There's so much going on, but it's all easy enough to keep straight; nothing overlaps so much that you can't follow the action.  And there's plenty of that.  My favorite, of course, would be looking for the pirate ship (who wouldn't want to?) but we must solve the murder first.  Who would want to kill this person?  It turns out that plenty of people would.  Their past seemed to follow them, and they left unhappy people behind (I will say no more as to not spoil the book for others as to whom the dead person might be).

We learn slightly more about Ann in this book, and I have always found her an intriguing character, so of course I was interested; but not enough to give us everything, leaving her with her secrets.  This is as it should be.

When the ending comes and the killer is revealed, it's both sad and understandable; while there is no excuse for killing, sometimes we need to think things out.  And yet -- the ending gives us something very good to look forward to, and makes us want to read the next in the series now.  If you haven't read this series before, you can start with this book, but it would be better if you read the first in the series, From Beer To Eternity.  Highly recommended.

I received an advanced copy from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

https://smile.amazon.com/Choke-Chloe-Jackson-Saloon-Mystery/dp/1496734386/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4943963687

More on Sherry Harris's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/sherry-harris/

Cold Wind (Alaska Wild Book 2)

Author:    Paige Shelton

Genre:     Mystery/Suspense

Hardcover; Digital Book

ISBN #:`9781250295316

Minotaur Books

304 Pages

$13.25; $7.99 Amazon

December 8, 2020

⭐⭐⭐

Beth Rivers is still in Alaska.  The unidentified man who kidnapped her in her home of St. Louis hasn't been found yet, so she's not ready to go back.

But as October comes to a close, Benedict is feeling more and more like her new home.  Beth has been working on herself.  She's managed to get back to writing, and she's enjoying these beautiful months between summer and winter in Alaska.

Then, everything in Benedict changes after a mudslide exposes a world that had been hidden for years.  Two mud-covered, silent girls appear, and a secret trapper's house is found in the woods.  The biggest surprise, though, is a dead and frozen woman's body in the trapper's shed.  No one knows who she is, but the man who runs the mercantile, Randy, seems to be in the middle of all the mysteries.

Unable to escape her journalistic roots, Beth is determined to answer the questions that keep arising:  Are the mysterious girls and the frozen body connected?  Can Randy possibly be involved?  And -- most importantly -- can she solve this mystery before the cold wind sweeping over the town and the townspeople descends for good?

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Beth Rivers is hiding.  Born and raised in Missouri, she's had a successful career as a writer of thrillers.  She just never knew that she'd be in her own nightmare of own.  Kidnapped from her St. Louis home and held for three days in a van before her escape, she carries more than the scar on her head as a reminder.  She carries scars inside her.  And the fear that her unknown captor will still locate her again.  The only person who knows her secret is the sheriff, Gril.  

She lives in a halfway house, now empty of other guests at the moment, and runs the town's newspaper, the Petition, and writes her books in a small shed not far from her home.  Her nearest neighbor is the library, run by Orin, another transplant with a past.  

When she learns from Randy, who runs the mercantile, that he heard strange growling noises behind his cabin -- away from town -- she wonders what it could be.  But the next day, the same noises are heard outside her shed, along with knocking.  She opens the door warily to two mud-covered young girls, and takes them to Viola, her landlady.

The sheriff doesn't know who they are, and neither does anyone else...until a Tlingit man comes forward and claims them as his daughters.  But Beth has questions.  Questions which escalate when the body of a frozen woman is found in a shed, and the shed is behind Randy's home, and turns out to belong to a trapper.

Now there's a whole lot of questions that need to be answered, but no one seems to have any.  Also, when Beth receives a call from the Detective on her own case regarding the identity of her kidnapper, it ties back farther than she could ever have imagined.  Now Beth needs to find out what's going on in Benedict, Alaska; and if her kidnapper has any clues to where she is...

This book is the first in the series that I've read by this author, but there's enough background that you can determine what happened in the first book, although I would recommend that you read it first.  I enjoyed the character of Beth, even if she did take chances I don't think she should have, and the other characters grow on you as well throughout the book.

We are given enough description of Benedict to know it's remote, it's beautiful, and it's cold.  Far enough from Juneau that you need to reach it by plane.  Far from civilization, but peopled with souls that have decided this is enough in their lives.  Beth, however, is there for another reason: to escape the horror that was her past experience, and hope to put herself back together again.  She doesn't want anyone to know the truth, in case her kidnapper finds out where she is.  Fair enough.

The book has a lot of twists and turns, and threads that keep tangling up and reaching in other directions, pulling at one place and yanking at another, until they all wind up together in a mystery that is difficult to put down.  The ending puts everything together, at least until...Beth's story continues.  There is no ending,  While I liked this book very much, I absolutely abhor cliffhangers, and unfortunately, the ending left me cold. 

I received this book from Amazon and the publisher but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Cold-Wind-Mystery-Alaska-Wild-ebook/dp/B084M26ST6/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4939518851

More on Paige Shelton's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/s/paige-shelton/

The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock (An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense)

Author:    Edward White

Genre:     Biography/Film

Hardcover; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781324002390

W.W. Norton & Company

378 Pages

$14.99; $9.99 Amazon

April 13, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

In The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock, Edward White explores the Hitchcock phenomenon -- what defines it, how it was invented, what it reveals about the man at its core, and how its legacy continues to shape our cultural world.

The book's twelve chapters illuminate different aspects of Hitchcock's life and work: "The Boy Who Couldn't Grow Up"; "The Murderer"; The Auteur"; "The Womanizer"; "The Fat Man"; "The Dandy"; "The Family Man"; "The Voyeur"; "The Entertainer"; "The Pioneer"; "The Londoner"; "The Man of God."  Each of these angles reveals something fundamental about the man he was and the mythological creature he has become, presenting not just the life Hitchcock lived but also the various versions of himself that he projected, and those projected on his behalf.

From Hitchcock's early work in England to his most celebrated films, White astutely analyzes Hitchcock's oeuvre and provides new interpretations.  He also delves into Hitchcock's ideas about gender; his complicated relationships with "his women" -- not only Grace Kelly and Tippi Hedren but also his female audiences -- as well as with leading men such as Cary Grant; and writes movingly of Hitchcock's devotion to his wife and lifelong companion, Alma, who made vital contributions to numerous classic Hitchcock films and burnished his mythology.  And White is trenchant in his assessment of the Hitchcock persona, so carefully created that Hitchcock became not only a figurehead for his own industry but nothing less than a cultured icon.

Ultimately, White's portrayal illuminates a vital truth: Hitchcock was more than a Hollywood titan; he was the definitive modern artist, and his significance reaches far beyond the confines of cinema.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

I love biographies of old Hollywood, before the acting became blue-screened and actors had to show their abilities or fall by the wayside.  Directors were a huge part of their success:  John Ford, William Wyler, King Vidor -- and especially Alfred Hitchcock, who made many important and thrilling pictures that spoke to me.  I have seen them all;  I have been fascinated by every one -- so much so, that I have made them a part of my film library.  I limit myself to classic films; and you cannot do without Hitchcock. 

In this biography, Mr. White parses the man down to his parts and counterparts, piecing each one to discover who exactly Alfred Hitchcock was.  He draws upon his birth and early years, showing us what his parents were like, and how it molded Hitchcock in his earlier years -- some things never leaving him, such as some things never leave us.  He moves onto his first years as a filmmaker, using both versions of The Man Who Knew Too Much to show us how he changed his script yet kept the heart of the film alive.

He speaks of Hitchcock's troubles with his weight; but the man loved food; he never ate to live, he lived to eat.  I never looked at his physical appearance too much; I guessed he would put the energy into his meals as he would his films.  Beauty is what it is, whether it is food, cinema, the world around us.  It just is.

Mr. White talks about his films, and how they relate to Hitchcock's thinking.  Hitchcock's favorite film is also my own, Shadow of a Doubt.  It has the brilliant actor Joseph Cotton, who can slip from being charming in one moment to seamlessly threatening in another.  I have always been mesmerized by this film, and watch it at least once per year.  Don't ask me why; the film itself is so well-made that it almost puts you in Santa Rosa and you become part of the action.  It's suspense at its best.

Hitchcock's films are nothing if they are not suspenseful.  They are so enticing to watch, that even if you have seen them over and over and you know what it coming, you still feel that frisson of thrill when the final scene comes.  It's the details, all the big and small ones, that make the film what it is.  And Hitchcock planned them all, from the costumes to the pacing to the dialogue.

What more can I say about this book except that Mr. White is thorough in his parsing of Alfred Hitchcock.  He shows him as the Man, and also as the Great Director.  It is an interesting note on both cinema and the director.  If you have not seen any of his films, I suggest you watch them.  You will never be the same.  Highly recommended.

I received this book from Amazon and the publisher but it in no way influenced this review.

https://www.amazon.com/Twelve-Lives-Alfred-Hitchcock-Suspense-ebook/dp/B08D1T47PK/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4930539264

More on Edward White's Books:    https://www.amazon.com/Edward-White/e/B00GAPBAFS/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_ebooks_1

Crime For The Books (A Jane Doe Mystery Book 3)

Author:    Kate Young

Genre:     Mystery

Hardcover; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781639101085

Crooked Lane Books

336 Pages

$26.99; $13.99 Amazon

October 11, 2022

⭐⭐⭐

 

Lyla Moody and her book club, the Jane Does, are hosting a Halloween party at Magnolia Manor, tailored after Agatha Christie's A Murder is Announced, but when the lights come on after the staged murder, a real victim lies dead with a gunshot wound in her chest.  The victim was an estranged relative of Elaine Morgan, operator of the B&B, who'd earlier been seen arguing with her about the fate of the property.  Suspicion immediately falls on Elaine, and she's arrested.

The Jane Does believe Elaine is innocent, and when they get the chance to team up with police officer Rosa Landry -- a member of the club -- they jump on it.  But then, the club discovers that two or more murders have been brazenly predicted online and in the Sweet Mountain Gazette -- and that one of the intended victims is Rosa.

Lyla thinks she knows who the killer is, but the only way to find out is by laying a trap using Rosa as bait.  But, like an Agatha Christie mystery, the truth is never what it seems.  Lyla and her trusty book club will have to sleuth out the killer before Rosa meets her final chapter.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Lyla Moody is a PI in training at her uncle's business, Moody Investigations.  She is also a member of the Jane Does Book Club, who read a different book each week and then meet to discuss it.  But this evening the club is hosting a Halloween party based on Agatha Christie's A Murder Is Announced, and it's themed right down to costumes from the 1950s.  When the lights go out, Lyla hears four shots, not three, and when they come on again, she spies Patricia Richardson dying from a gunshot wound.  She'd seen Patricia threaten her cousin Elaine Morgan earlier, with a gun in her hand.  But now -- this death is definitely a real murder, and the person who is running the investigation is Rosa Landry, because her boss is on his honeymoon.

But all is not what it seems, not even in Lyla's personal life.  And she has to decide how to solve the murder and keep Rosa out of harm's way, especially when it's apparent she's targeted as a future victim.  Using Rosa as bait, she only hopes she'll be able to save her life -- and maybe her own, too...

This is the third book in the series, and unfortunately, it didn't resonate with me at all.  I didn't really care for Lyla this time out; she seemed harder and not as bright as in the last two books.  I also didn't understand where the marriage of Courtney and Quinn came in when they weren't even dating in the last book.  How much time did we lose between the two, and why wasn't this explained?  

There were just too many characters this time around, and I have a hard time believing that the police will involve a civilian in their 'stings.'  Nothing like getting sued by the family if something goes wrong.  Although the involvement of Rosa was a nice touch, she too seemed a bit timid for a police officer, and never really managed to take charge of her investigation.

Then there is Lyla's personal life which made me say 'what???'  I have known many law enforcement officials who are married to each other and have good lives in their careers and raising children.  You don't have to choose between the two.   Maybe she should just stop dating cops if all the cops are so close-minded as to relationships (Lyla too).  Also, most PIs run under the wire; it's where they can do their best work.  They don't put themselves out there so everyone can say: "Hey!  There goes George, he's the private investigator on this case!"  Lyla seems to want everyone to know she's a PI.  Why?  Is it a badge of honor?  (FYI, PIs can't carry or wear badges.  It's against the law -- not that she's done this yet.  Just sayin')

But then the plot got confusing.  There were too many threads and it took too long to put them together, and even if you did, there was still something else going on.  By the time I got to the end I really didn't care anymore.  I absolutely loved the first two books in this series, but this one was definitely missing something, and when it ended, I was left feeling there should have been more.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Crime-Books-Jane-Book-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09Q82YZKP/ref=

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4923333278

More on Kate Young's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/y/kate-young/

A Sticky Toffee Catastrophe (An Ivy Creek Cozy Mystery Book 7)

Author:    Ruth Baker

Genre:     Mystery

Digital Book

ASIN #:    B0B675BPQ9

Clean Tales Publishing

119 Pages

$2.99 Amazon

September 30, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐

When a new developer in town sways the community to support his plans of building new complexes that would involve knocking down Lucy's bakery, she's not much pleased.  She's determined to fight tooth and nail to uphold her parents' legacy and retain Sweet Delight's presence in Ivy Creek's landscape.

When this developer drops dead in questionable circumstances at a local fair, it doesn't take long for tongues to stop wagging in her direction.  Negative public opinion towards Lucy is strengthened when pieces of evidence begin to point to someone she cares for as a prime suspect.

But Lucy knows they didn't do it.

So if they didn't do it, then who did?

Lucy is at her wit's end as it seems the investment she's plowed into her business will count for nothing and lead to huge financial hole if the citizens of Ivy Creek continue avoiding her bakery.

Will she sever her relationship with the prime suspect to stem the tide of dwindling customers to her bakery?

Will she watch in despair as a cunning killer tries to outwit the local law enforcement agency and send an innocent person to the slammer?

Lucy is determined to find out who did it but will she be able to solve this murder mystery in the nick of time? 

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Lucy Hale lives in Ivy Creek and owns Sweet Delights bakery which once belonged to her late parents.  She returned home after their deaths and has since rekindled friendships, made new ones, and lives with her Aunt Tricia and her Persian cat, Gigi.  She and Tricia run the bakery, along with the help of two employees, Hannah, a high school friend, and Betsy, a new hire. 

One morning a man enters the bakery and tells Lucy that he wants to buy it.  When Rex Landon is turned down, he tells her he's buying the land around her for an office park. But Lucy wants to save the land, and save the townspeople from having an upscale office park right in the center of town.  Most of the townspeople are unhappy, but no one knows what to do about it.

Lucy also has other things on her mind -- the upcoming Fairy Tale Fair, where vendors and guests dress in fairy tale attire and enjoy themselves.  Hannah decides to go as Robin Hood, complete with all the accoutrements.  While Hannah and Lucy are watching the band, Rex gets up to speak.  But suddenly everything goes dark, and when the lights come on, Rex is dead.  Now Hannah is a suspect in his murder, and with her business and her employee's life on the line, Lucy knows she must act to help her prove her innocence.

But to confuse matters, a woman named Charlene moves to town and starts to make advances toward Lucy's ex-boyfriend, Deputy Taylor Baker.  Lucy doesn't know if she wants to date him again, but she doesn't like this idea.  Between the two situations occupying her mind, will she be able to discover the truth, or will she fail in her pursuit of both?

This is the seventh book in the series, and I have read them all.  Each one is better than the last, since we learn about the characters and their pasts (and present) and the story line is always interesting.  In this latest, not only is Lucy concerned about the upcoming Fairytale fair, but the fact that there's a new woman in town, and she has her eyes on Taylor Baker, Lucy's ex-boyfriend.  But what can Lucy do?  She's made it clear she's not ready to start dating again, and Taylor has to take that at face value.

Then she's worried about her employee Hannah, who's also a good friend, being suspected in a murder investigation.  So Lucy once again sets out to discover who's trying to get her friend in trouble, and who the real killer is.  Someone must have hated this man enough to murder him, and Lucy wants to know who it is.  

When we get to the end of the story, and the killer is discovered, not only is Lucy in trouble, but Hannah also.  And it will take all of Lucy's wits to keep them both safe.  When the murderer is discovered, and justice is served (as we know it will be), the ending left me feeling warm and satisfied, which is what a cozy mystery should do.  I eagerly await the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher but it in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B675PBQ9?tag=amberstone81-20

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4934789584

More on Ruth Baker's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/b/ruth-baker/

Such A Pretty Girl

Author:    T. Greenwood

Genre:     Literature/Fiction

Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496739322

Kensington Publishing

282 Pages

$16.95; $9.99 Amazon

October 25, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Living peacefully in Vermont, Ryan Flannigan is shocked when a text from her oldest friend alerts her to a devastating news item.  A controversial photo of her as a pre-teen has been found in the possession of a wealthy investor recently revealed as a pedophile and a sex trafficker -- with an inscription to him from Ryan's mother on the back.

Memories crowd in, providing their own distinctive pictures of her mother Fiona, an aspiring actress, and their move to the West Village in 1976.  Amid the city's gritty kaleidoscope of wealth and poverty, high art, and sleazy strip clubs, Ryan is discovered and thrust into the spotlight as a promising young actress with a woman's face and a child's body.  Suddenly the safety and comfort Ryan longs for is replaced by auditions paparazzi, and the hungry eyes of men of all ages.

Forced to reexamine her childhood, Ryan begins to untangle her young fears and her mother's ambitions, and the role each played in the fraught blackout summer of 1977.  Even with her movie career long behind her, Ryan and Fiona are suddenly the object of uncomfortable speculation -- and Fiona demands Ryan's support.  To put the past to rest, Ryan will need to face the painful truth of their relationship, and the night when everything changed.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Ryan Flannigan lives quietly in Lost River, Vermont, with her 18-year-old daughter Sasha.  They've been happy, and the only thing that Ryan is worried about is Sasha going on a road trip by herself to visit her father in California.

But then the text came...the one she didn't answer.  Then another, and another, and finally a text that told her to read the attached newspaper article.  Ryan suddenly felt sick.  Her childhood friend Gilly was reaching out to her -- to tell her about the article so she would hear it from him.  It nearly crushed what was left of her soul.  Then, to find out why the article was printed -- along with a long-ago photograph of her, just before she became an actress -- sickened her inside.  She couldn't think; she didn't want to believe it.

But the worst was to find out that someone she loved was gone.  Forever.  And the reason why hurt her beyond hurt; beyond pain.  The only thing she could do was to protect Sasha from this.  Easier said than done.  Sasha already knew; and insisted that they go to the funeral in New York.  The place she never wanted to be again....

When I began this book I really didn't know what to expect, since I have never read anything by this author (sorry).  At first it seemed a book about a simple life, and a happy woman.  But then I realized that she was not.  She was damaged, and trying to raise her daughter to be happy, healthy, and whole.  The damage, such as it were, was done by her mother -- a mother who appeared to care for her and protect her; but she learned that her mother's ambitions were far more important, and she was willing to trade her daughter's talent as if it were her own.  It was Fiona who wanted to be the famous actress, and Ryan who would be in the background.

But now things had changed.  And while Ryan was discovering just how and why the photograph came to be in the possession of a noted pedophile.  Someone her mother knew but she herself only peripherally.  

Ryan's final journey to New York takes her back and forth between Lost River and Westbeth.  When she was a happy child at one and a hurt, confused pre-teen at the other.  Growing up but not growing up.  It's a difficult read at times, sad at others, and even comforting once in a while.  Ryan needs to finally find her own closure, and we follow her thoughts as she reminisces and thinks about the here and now.  Her love for her daughter and her friends.  Finding out the truth isn't easy; but then again, it never is.  No more so for Ryan.

When the ending comes we walk away with a feeling of calm, grateful that Ryan has finally found her peace.  The price was high, but she has everything she ever wanted in this present and future.

I received an advance copy of this book from Kensington Publishing and Between The Chapters, but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Such-Pretty-Girl-T-Greenwood-ebook/dp/B09RGFB7TV/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4918414716

More on T. Greenwood's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/t-greenwood/

Death by Arts and Crafts (An Abby McCree Mystery Book 6)

Author:    Alexis Morgan

Genre:     Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496739681

Kensington Cozies

304 Pages

$8.99; $6.99 Amazon

December 27, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

As the newest member of the Snowberry Creek City Council, perpetually overextended Abby McCree is picked to liaise between the council and the new planning committee for the town's first ever arts and crafts fair.  As far as gigs go, it's a fun one -- Abby's spending the weekend tooling around Washington State, checking out similar fairs with her two besties, coffee shop owner Bridey Roker, and ceramic artisan Dayna Fisk.

As Abby spreads the word about Snowberry Creek's fair, recruiting the industry's biggest movers and makers, the trip feels like a glittering success.  But then, someone is found murdered at one of the events and vendors begin disappearing amid suspicious circumstances.  Abby's determined to keep her hands clean, until Dayna finds herself stuck at the top of the suspect list.  Now, Abby must weave the clues together and clear her friend's name before the killer claims another victim -- maybe even Abby herself...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Abby McCree inherited her aunt's home and moved to Snowberry Creek after a messy divorce.  She's made friends and put down roots, and has become close with her tenant, Tripp Blackston, who resides in the mother-in-law house behind hers.

In fact, she's become so much a part of the community that she was coerced into joining the city council.  Now, as its newest member, she's assigned to travel to several arts and crafts fairs around the area in order to see if they, having committed to being a part of Snowberry Creek's first arts and crafts fair, will need anything the day of the fair.  Along with her are her two best friends, Bridey Roker, who owns the local bakery, and Dayna Fisk, who works in ceramics.  

All seems well when they begin their journey, and they have no problems until they finally reach a noted craftsman.  But she can only meet the man's niece, as he seems busy, and decides to return later.  But when she does, the tent is closed, and so she returns home.

Then Abby, back home, is visited by Homicide Detective Ben Earle and local sheriff Logan Gage.  They have questions about her being at one of the fairs -- it seems someone was murdered and her business card was found at the scene.  When she explains her actions, she's determined to stay out of this murder, which pleases the three men in her lives. But when a woman disappears and her friend Dayna is considered a suspect, things change.  But how can Abby be there for Dayna and stay out of the murder?  She's determined to figure it out -- but fate has a way of changing things all around...

This is the sixth book in the series and I have read them all.  I must say that this is my very favorite of them.  For some reason, when Abby was sad, I was also.  When she cried, I felt my own tears pooling.  Usually, I am not drawn into books as deeply as I was in this one, and it was indeed an emotional roller coaster.  Following Abby as she tries to navigate caring for her friend and staying away from the murder isn't easy, because Abby is having a difficult time herself.  Each time she tries, something else occurs that pulls her closer; it eventually begins to pull at her instincts, and we feel the uncertainty that she does as she tries to figure it all out.

But it is a final note that brings Abby to the truth, and when she does figure it out, she comes to the same conclusion as I did a bit earlier (only because, and I state this regularly, I read a lot of mysteries).  Watching Abby in the climax of the book only shows us how intelligent and resourceful that she is.  

When the murderer is discovered, the reasons for  it seem rather sad on one side and as old as time on the other (read the book and you will understand); and yet -- there is more to come and it brings both joy and calm and expectation for the future.  All is well once again in Abby's Snowberry Creek; and I am glad that it is so.  Kudos to Ms. Morgan for bringing us a terrific tale of mystery and intrigue.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and anxiously await the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Death-Arts-Crafts-McCree-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09YKX39YM/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4911860304

More on Alexis Morgan's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/m/alexis-morgan/

The Vanishing Type (A Secret, Book, and Scone Society Book 5)

Author:    Ellery Adams

Genre:     Mystery

Hardcover; Digital Book (Audiobook Available)

ISBN #:    9781496726445

Kensington Publishing

304 Pages

$20.49; $9.06 Amazon

April 26, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

While January falls outside in Miracle Springs, North Carolina, Nora Pennington is encouraging customers to cozy up indoors with a good book.  Even though the shop and her bibliotherapy sessions keep Nora busy during the day, her nights are a little too quiet -- until Deputy Andrews pulls Nora into the sci-fi section and asks her to help him plan a wedding proposal.

His bride-to-be, Hester, loves Little Women, and Nora sets to work arranging a special screening at the town's new movie theater.  But right before the deputy pops the question, Nora makes an unsettling discover -- someone has mutilated all her store's copies of The Scarlet Letter, slices angrily into the pages wherever Hester Prynne's name is mentioned.

The coincidence disturbs Nora, who's one of the few in Miracle Springs who knows that Hester gave up a baby for adoption many years ago.  Her family heaped shame on her, and Hester still feels so guilty that she hasn't even told her future husband.  But when a dead man is found on a hiking trail just outside town, carrying a rare book. the members of the Secret, Book, and Scone Society unearth a connection to Hester's past.  Someone is intent on bringing the past to light, and it's not just Hester's relationship at stake, but her life...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Nora Pennington owns a bookshop in the small town of Miracle Springs, North Carolina.  It's not only a bookshop, it's a meeting place for her friends in the Secret, Book, and Scone Society.  While her relationship with her boyfriend Jed is done and finished, she still has June, Estella, and Hester in her life -- three women who are damaged as much as she is, all in their own way.  But a surprise soon enters in the form of Deputy Jasper Andrews, who wants to propose to Hester in a special way.  When Nora hears of his plans, she's delighted and enlists the help of Estella and June.  The proposal, like the town, is going to be magical.

However, before the proposal, Nora is stunned when her employee Sheldon finds copies of The Scarlet Letter vandalized, with the word 'Hester' scratched out in each one.  But even this is not as disturbing as when Sheriff Grant McCabe finds a dead man with no identification on his person, but a book by Elmer Freeman, Miss Delphinium.  It turns out that Elmer Freeman was a pseudonym for Enid Elton, who wrote eight books in her series.  When another of the books turns up in Hester's bakery, Nora begins to suspect something else is going on.

When more of the books start appearing around town, it's apparent to Nora that these all relate to Hester.  Could her secret from long ago be found out?  Who would be sending the clues?  And why now, after all these years?  On top of this, a young friend is injured in a car accident, and Nora thinks it could be related.  But how can she tell Sheriff McCabe, just when it seems their friendship might be turning into something more?  Nora knows she has to act, and turning to McCabe, whom she must learn to trust, might help her find the puzzle pieces and put them together.  Or will Hester's life be forfeit instead?

This is the fifth book, and perhaps even the best, in the series  It gives us more insight into Hester's past, and shows that the friendship between the four women is a strong bond.  When there is a crisis or two, they pull together and act as each other's anchor.  It's both charming and heartwarming; it brings a sort of calm to the series, and the want to read the other books.  This one is indeed my favorite.

We have a puzzle to figure out, and I did figure it out early on, but watching Nora and her friends put their minds together to save Hester was worth everything.  Their determination to keep each other buoyed while they worked through their problems with humor, love, strength, and friendship was the heart of the book.

When the ending comes everything comes together nicely; but at a cost.  Some things are never meant to be regained, while others will stay with us forever.  Well done, Ms. Adams.  Highly recommended.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Vanishing-Secret-Scone-Society-Novel/dp/1496726448/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4571396061

More on Ellery Adams's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/a/ellery-adams/

Dead and Gondola (A Christie Bookshop Mystery Book 1)

Author:    Ann Claire

Genre:     Mystery

Paperback; Digital Book (Audiobook Available)

ISBN #:    9780593496343

Bantam Publishing

336 Pages

$17.00; $11.99 Amazon

November 1, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ellie Christie is thrilled to begin a new chapter.  She's recently returned to her tiny Colorado hometown to run her family's historic bookshop with her elder sister, Meg, and their beloved cat, Agatha.  Perches in a Swiss-style hamlet accessible by ski gondola and a twisty mountain road, the Book Chalet is a famed bibliophile destination known for its maze of shelves and relaxing reading lounge.  At least, until trouble blows in with a wintry whiteout.  A man is found dead on the gondola, and a rockslide throws the town into lockdown -- no one in, no one out.

The victim was a mysterious stranger who'd visited the bookshop.  At the time, his only blunders had been disrupting a book club and leaving behind a first-edition Agatha Christie novel, written under a pseudonym.  However, once revealed, the man's identity shocks the town.  Motives and secrets swirl like the snow, but when the police narrow in on the sisters' close friends, the Christies have to act.

Although the only Agatha in their family tree is their cat, Ellie and Meg know a lot about mysteries and realize they must summon their inner Miss Marple to trek through a blizzard of clues before the killer turns the page to their final chapter.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Meg and Ellie Christie run their family's bookstore in a small hamlet in Colorado.  They have a steady stream of local customers and tourists, and they're happy with what they do.  While having a book club discussion one morning, a man wanders in and looks around, insisting that he's there to meet someone named "Cece".  After they finally get him to leave, they don't expect to see the man later on, entering a gondola.  Since he left something at the bookstore, they want to return it to him.  But when they get to the bottom, it's discovered he has been murdered, and now they wonder who he is  --  there was no identification on him at all.

They also can't locate one of their employees, Ms. Ridge.  Worried about her, they discover no one saw her use the gondola down to town, and they hope she's alright.  But after several days, they file a missing persons report, and with the help of a local reporter named Piper, they get the word out.  Ellie knows something just doesn't feel right, with the death and Ms. Ridge's disappearance, but she can't really put her finger on it.  Then a friend she knew from school, Syd Zeller, asks for her help when the police suspect his father of the murder.  Now Ellie's up to her ears in mysteries, and not the kind in books...

This is the first book in a new series, and I must say that I enjoyed it immensely.  Ms. Claire has a way with words, and her descriptions of the area surrounding the bookstore is real enough that I could picture it in my mind easily.  The mountains, the snow, the cold; all is visible in her words.

She writes a good mystery with a good plot, and the characters are real enough, but hopefully will be fleshed out more in the next book.  The only character I didn't care for was Piper -- she was a little too pushy and abrasive; I would have liked her more if she had backed off somewhat.  But perhaps in the next book she'll relax a little.

The mystery was done so well that I had not even suspected the murderer; and that is rare for me.  The ending was indeed fun and ingenious; and I hope this talented author brings us another book to delve into quickly.  Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Gondola-Christie-Bookshop-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09RPJ6PM4/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4895693575

More on Ann Claire's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/c/ann-claire/

Superfood Juicing (Nutritious and Vitamin-Rich Recipes to Supercharge Your Health)

Author:    Nora Day

Genre:     Cookbooks/Juicing

Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781638077916

Rockridge Press

161 Pages

$15.99; $6.99 Amazon

June 7, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Juicing superfoods is an easy and delicious way to add more nutrients to your diet for greater health and overall well-being.  This book is filled with juicing recipes that make it simple to incorporate food like cinnamon, kale, and flax seeds into your daily routine so you can feel and function your best.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

I own several juicing books, and I have tried many recipes; of course, having favorites that seem to work well.  But I thought I would order this book and see what it has to offer.  What it does it quite nice.  The recipes are easy enough for anyone, the ingredients easily available, and the instructions and usage clearly printed.

There are so many recipes that it was difficult to choose one to start with, but since I had the ingredients on hand, I wanted to try the Blueberry Banana Booster (heart health, kid friendly, skin clarity).  Each recipe gives you notes on what the juices are for; and there's even a recipe for Vegetable 8 (I already drink V8 so that's a winner in my book).  There are immune boosters, cleansing and detox, and energy surge, among others.  The handy index in the back lists the recipes, so you can see that there are quite a few.  As I plan to try more for both my husband and I, this is a good way to get the nutrients into your body quickly and easily, and because I rarely eat breakfast, this is also a good way for me.

I received a free copy of this book through both the publisher and Amazon but this in no way influenced my review.

https://www.amazon.com/Superfood-Juicing-Nutritious-Vitamin-Rich-Supercharge-ebook/dp/B0B3HBLZ9Z/ref

More on Nora Day's Books:    https://www.amazon.com/Nora-Day/e/B088B4NP2M/ref