Battered and Buried (An All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery Book 7)

Author:    Lena Gregory

Genre:     Mystery

Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781960511584

Beyond the Page Publishing

188 Pages

$14.99; $5.99 Amazon

March 19, 2024

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Never one to let a day off work go to waste, cafe owner Gia Morelli and a friend head out for a blissful kayaking trip through the local national forest.  But the peacefulness of the day is soon shattered when they come across Cole, her head cook, standing over a dead body.  Worse still, the victim was a lifelong enemy of Cole's, and clues found on the body point to the cook as the culprit.  When the police take Cole in and subject him to an intense grilling, Gia vows to do everything she can to prove his innocence.

As even more incriminating evidence surfaces -- including when the murder weapon itself is found hidden at the cafe -- Gia knows she's up against someone brutal enough to kill and devious enough to frame Cole for the deed.  With the police ready to make an official arrest and wrap up what they consider an open-and-shut case, Gia turns for help to an old friend who's not above breaking the law himself.  Because ifs he can't find the killer, Cole may go from serving up hot dishes to serving a life sentence...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Gia Morelli is working the day at her cafe when her friend and waitress Savannah tells her that a man wants to see her.  When she goes to the front, he complains about how bad the meal was.  No matter what she offers, he continues his rant, and when her cook Cole comes to the front, he makes derogatory remarks to him about his cooking, and leaves.  Gia later finds that the man, Rusty, is an old enemy of Cole's and Rusty's never happier than when ruining businesses so he can open the same ones in the same area.

When Gia discovers that Rusty wants to open a cafe down the street, she's dismayed.  But later, while kayaking with her friend Trevor, they see Cole and his friend Cybill on the shore and Cybill looks distressed.  When they reach her, they find that Cole found Rusty's body -- and now Cole is the main suspect in his murder.  Determined to prove Cole innocent, she and Savannah set out to find clues they can give to Gia's fiancé, a homicide detective and Savannah's cousin.  But doing this might be harder than they think, since the widow isn't talking, and neither is anyone else -- for now.

Sifting through clues as they can, Gia enlists help from a computer hacker, and what she discovers only makes things more tangled.  Will she be able to untwist the lies long enough to find a killer?  Or will she finally meet her end?

This is the seventh book in the series and just as good as all the others.  Ms. Gregory is a talented writer who is able to pull you into the story and experience life with the characters.  While never having been to Florida (not sure if I want to, either, after all the critters show up), I still get an idea of the area and how Gia's life is progressing; she's happy in her new life -- until murder slows her down.

When she finally starts putting things together, she's sure she has the end result locating a killer, until an unexpected situation arises that puts her back at square one.  While I knew the killer before Gia did, this did not diminish my enjoyment of the story at all.  I loved how it played out, and in the end, we get an epilogue that gives us something to look forward to in the next book.  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/Battered-Buried-Lena-Gregory-ebook/dp/B0CW18PPSQ/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6407515651

More on Lena Gregory's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

With a Spirit of Vengeance (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery #7)

Author:    Lena Gregory

Genre:     Mystery/Paranormal

Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781958384046

Beyond the Page Publishing

199 Pages

$13.99; $4.99 Amazon

June 28, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

When the spirit of Ophelia Wilson turned to clairvoyant Cass Donovan for help, Cass was able to prove Ophelia's innocence in the century-old murders of her family members -- and solve a contemporary murder in the process.  But Ophelia's spirit has returned, this time angrily demanding that Cass expose the identity of whoever did kill her family.  And then eerily, two descendants from the Wilson family tree are murdered, suggesting that Ophelia has the power to meddle in modern-day events to satisfy her rage.

As Cass struggles to solve the two recent murders and unravel the sparse clues about murders from a hundred years ago, she and those around her begin to suffer Ophelia's wrath -- including an attempt on the life of one of Cass's closest friends.  Relying on all of her own psychic powers, CAss has to confront the spirit's hunger for vengeance and track down a merciless killer before she becomes the next victim of both...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Cass Donovan is a clairvoyant who lives peacefully in the home she grew up in on Bay Island.  Most of the time, that is.  She has a full life, with a best friend named Bee, her dog Beast, and a romantic relationship with Luke, a police detective.  But one morning she walks into her shop and sees a vision that shakes her to her core.  She knows she needs to decipher what it means, but then she learns that a new tour group is coming to the island, and they want to keep the old insane asylum standing -- the one where Cass recently had a bad experience, and both she and the owner want it torn down.

But how far will these people go to keep it standing?  When there are two murders -- and Cass discovers that they are descendants of Ophelia Wilson, whom she proved innocent of killing her family members a century ago, she has to wonder if both are connected, and how.  Now it seems Ophelia has a new mission for her -- find out who killed her family members or more people might die...

This is the seventh book in the series and I have read them all.  I love the characters and how they interact with one another,  I do love that in this book Bee shows his love, in more ways than one, for Cass.  There are heartwarming scenes between the two of them that are worth the read alone.  

When Cass and Bee decide to visit relatives of Ophelia's they get a huge surprise, and in Bee's research he discovers things that neither he nor Cass do, and can completely change everything.  But in learning this, they have to figure something else out, too; it is this that brings the meat of the story into play and kept me reading this in one session.  Finding a killer is difficult; but when the killer is keeping secrets of their own, it proves nearly impossible.

The book was wonderful; the story highly intriguing, and the secrets well-kept.  It is only the purposefulness of both Cass and Bee that finally brings everything to light.  In the end, when the killer is revealed, we come across a ruthless person who has their own line of vengeance to follow.  Murder is never pretty, never worth it, never understood.  But the story is told well, and I cannot wait to read the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Vengeance-Island-Psychic-Mystery-ebook/dp/B0B3GG5P68/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4795546409

More on Lena Gregory's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Mistletoe Cake Murder (All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery Book 6)

Author:    Lena Gregory

Genre:     Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781516110506

Lyrical Press Publishing

202 Pages

$15.99; $5.39 Amazon

October 12, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Tis the season when Gia Morelli's holidays include both a wedding and yuletide festivities.  Until someone naughty delivers a most unwanted Christmas gift -- murder...

For a native New Yorker, palm trees and warm temperatures don't equal winter, much less Christmastime.  Nevertheless, Gia Morelli's friends have decked the halls and trimmed the trees to truly welcome her into their "family" with an old-fashioned Boggy Creek, Florida holiday season.  Even more joyous, Savannah Mills is getting married on Christmas Eve -- the greatest gift Gia could ever wish for her friend.

But when Gia and Savannah stop by the caterer for a final tasting a week before the wedding, they overhear another bride arguing with her son about her husband-to-be.  Moments later, the woman is sampling a piece of wedding cake -- gorgeously decorated with mistletoe frosting -- then suddenly dies.

Now Gia's caterer friends are the prime suspects in what appears to be murder by poisoning.  To clear their names and ensure Savannah has a merry matrimony will require Gia to conjure up a Christmas miracle...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Gia Morelli is almost as excited about the wedding of her best friend Savannah as the bride.  Almost all the preparations have been taken care of, but they need to go to the caterer to finalize Savannah's choices for the rehearsal dinner and the wedding.  When they arrive, a mother and her son run out of the caterer's building, arguing with each other.  It seems the son doesn't like the choice of husband, and claims he's only after her money.  They wait for the situation to die down, then they enter.  The caterer is also a friend, and she tells them that these people have been arguing all day.  But barely ten minutes pass when the women hear another woman scream, and they head to the source.  The mother is on the floor motionless, and no one is doing anything to help her.  Gia jumps into action giving the woman CPR, and Savannah calls her fiancé, police detective Leo Dumont. 

When the police arrive the woman is taken by ambulance to the hospital, but Gia learns that she later died.  Now Gia wants to know who killed the woman and why, but it appears that every one of the people in the room had a motive, perhaps even the caterers.  Determined to solve the mystery before Savannah's wedding, Gia sets out to discreetly question the suspects, hoping one of them will drop their guard and say the right thing...which is that they committed the crime.  That is, if the killer doesn't find Gia first...

This is the sixth book in the series and I have read all of them.  Ms. Gregory is a talented writer that brings you into her stories easily, and you wander through the pages along with the characters, trying to figure out who Did The Deed.  It's a pleasant romp through the mystery, and it keeps you interested while you watch Gia do her magic.

This book was especially fun because I love Christmas and everything surrounding it, so reading about all the preparations that took place before the wedding made me long for the holiday to arrive (but not too soon, mind you).  The descriptions were delightful and brought us into the winter wonderland that stood before the two women.

The suspects all had secrets, and it brought to mind a Sir Walter Scott quote: Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.  (Marmion; 1808).  All of the suspects are deceiving in one way or another, but Gia is trying to sift through the lies to discover the truth.  Luckily, she has her friends to help her, and Savannah always has her back.

But it's not as easy said or done.  No one wants to talk, and when they do, they accuse each other.  So Gia and Savannah are on their own (they can't tell Leo or Gia's boyfriend Hunt what they are doing, obviously -- even though Hunt knows anyway); and it's a lot of fun to watch them race the clock to find out the truth.

When they do figure out the killer, it does come as a bit of a surprise, but that is always a good thing; and although it's a motive as old as time, it's still rather sad to watch deluded people who think their reasons are good enough to keep them from the law.  In the end, I loved the entire book, including the final scenes, and I can't wait to read the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Mistletoe-Murder-All-Day-Breakfast-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08T6JHSZT/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4258025877

More on Lena Gregory's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

A Spirit Seeks Asylum (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery Book 6)

Author:    Lena Gregory

Genre:     Mystery/Paranormal

Trade Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781954717442

Beyond the Page Publishing

202 Pages

$13.99; $4.99 Amazon

July 13, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cass Donovan is confronted by ghoulish crimes both old and new when a defunct asylum is the site of a fresh murder and a long-hidden injustice...

The old abandoned buildings of the Twin Forks Lunatic Asylum have always fascinated and frightened clairvoyant Cass Donovan, but she never dreamed her psychic abilities would be put to the test there.  Then the new owner of the site tells her he plans to renovate it and turn it into a boarding school, and he'll pay Cass handsomely to determine whether the place is haunted!  Cass accepts his offer, but her search for hints of old ghosts soon has her looking for clues among the living when the man who hired her turns up dead.

Returning to the shuttered asylum looking for evidence of who may have wanted her client out of the way, Cass stumbles upon signs of yet another murder, even as she's besieged by an onslaught of haunting voices from the past.  When it comes to light that rival real estate developers have been hatching plans of their own for the property, Cass sees no shortage of motives for the murders, but she'll have to find a way to quiet the disturbing voices from long ago and focus on the here and now, because whoever's behind the killings has targeted Cass as their next victim...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Cass Donovan is an ex-psychiatrist who moved to Bay Island when one of her patients died, and her marriage fell apart.  She discovered that she has strong psychic abilities, and has since opened a shop where not only does she sell items that help others, but gives both private and group readings.

Her best friend Bee is trying to get Cass to start a vlog where she shows people what she does, and he's sure it will increase business for her.  But Cass can't get a solid reading, and so when the weather turns, he packs up his equipment and they head back home, where Cass is slated to do a group reading that evening.

It's at this popular group reading that she discovers she still can't get a full grip, like something is blocking her.  She feels as if  she's having trouble allowing her mind to truly open up.  But Bee insists she'll be fine, and so she proceeds.  During the reading however, a woman stands up and insists that 'sometimes the dead need to be left alone.'  With this cryptic statement, she leaves.  After the reading, a man tells Cass that he owns the old closed Twin Forks Lunatic Asylum and wants to open it as a boarding school for children.  Others who are on his board, and especially his wife, want him to sell it and leave it alone.  But he will only do so if Cass investigates the asylum and tell him whether it's truly haunted or not.  If it is, he'll give up his plans.  He tells her that he will pay her well to do so, and writes her a check.

Bee thinks it will be perfect for their vlog, and so the next day they venture out.  But while there, Cass definitely senses and hears something, and it's not long before they hear a shot, and look outside to see a man lying on the ground.  When she discovers it's her client, she wonders why he was there in the first place.  But even then her new visions don't leave, and Cass thinks she can find the murderer.  But first she needs to find out who had the best motive, and if they're going to kill again...

This is the sixth book in the series and I have read every one of them.  I do believe that they keep getting better and better, as Cass's psychic ability gets stronger with each book.  Each time I read one I declare that it is my favorite, and here we go again.  This one is definitely my favorite.  Cass not only finds herself investigating a murder once again, she finds herself in the protective 'custody' of Bee, her six-foot-plus best friend, who gives up working in his shop on his own schedule to watch over her.  We also get to meet Simone again, whom I took a definitely liking to in the last book and am glad to see that she's back once more.

But we also have the subplots involving her other friend Stephanie's new adopted son, Aiden, who is autistic; and a newcomer named Thea, who is a link to Cass's investigation, although you will have to read the book to see how.  

The plot was indeed suspenseful, and it kept me reading in one sitting, which is a very good sign.  It means that the book kept me interested enough where I didn't want to veer into anything else.  There were secrets long held, ghosts both old and new who wanted justice, and a cunning murderer who so far had been able to escape the eyes of police.  But when the ending comes, the climax is gripping and when it all ends, you wish that the book would go on.  I definitely loved this book and await eagerly for the next in the series.

https://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Asylum-Island-Psychic-Mystery/dp/195471744X/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4092954261

More on Lena Gregory's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Whole Latte Murder (All Day Breakfast Café Mystery 5)

Author:    Lena Gregory

Genre:     Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781516110490

Lyrical Underground

204 Pages

$15.95; $7.19 Amazon

April 27, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Summer in Boggy Creek has arrived, and Gia's best friend, successful real estate agent Savannah, is getting hitched.  Now she's enlisted Gia's sleuthing talents in a desperate search for the perfect wedding dress.  But when Savannah mysterious vanishes after showing a mansion to a bigwig client, Gia investigates the house Savannah was trying to sell.  The first clue she finds is Savannah's car in the driveway.  Inside the house, they stumble on Savannah's potential buyer -- dead.  Someone had apparently closed the deal -- with a two by four full of nails to the client's head.  Soon afterward, a woman's body is fished from the lake near the same house.  The townsfolk are not sweating bullets over the murders, and the heat comes down on poor Gia to find her missing friend, and track down the killer...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Gia Morelli owns the All Day Breakfast Café in Boggy Creek, Florida.  Her best friend Savannah is a real estate agent, and has been given the opportunity to show a mansion to Buster Clarke.  When Earl, the cafe's first (and regular) customer hears about it, he asks Savannah not to go.  When she won't budge, he asks her to bring someone with her.  But Savannah, insistent she knows what she's doing, doesn't take his advice.  When Savannah doesn't return at an allotted time when she was supposed to pick out her wedding dress with Gia, Gia gets worried enough that she enlists the help of her friend Trevor to go find her.

When they arrive at the mansion, they don't find Savannah, but they do find a very dead Buster.  They call the police, and Savannah's police officer boyfriend Leo, and cousin Hunt, chief detective, show up and are worried sick for her.  But Gia feels guilty and isn't about to let Hunt look for Savannah without her.  Now Gia needs to figure out who took her friend -- but when rival business people (and possibly underworld figures) the Clarkes and Espositios get involved, it soon becomes clear that something much larger is occurring -- and Gia might be right in the middle of it...

This is the fifth book in the series, and I must say that I enjoyed it so thoroughly that I read it in one sitting.  The action starts right at the beginning, and then twists all its threads to go in different directions that keep you wondering where they're going to lead.  Once you decide that you know where everything is heading, it changes, and there's secrets and surprises galore.  

One big surprise shows up later in the book, and it could change everything that's been going on, and the person to figure it out isn't Gia, which is another surprise.  But the threads finally come together, and you get to see the picture that is being woven.  When it all comes together in the end, it does so not without losses, but gives us something to look forward to in the next book.  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Whole-Murder-All-Day-Breakfast-Mystery/dp/1516110498/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3913480363

More on Lena Gregory's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

A Waffle Lot of Murder (All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery #4)

Author:  Lena Gregory

Genre:   Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:  9781516110483

Lyrical Press Publishing

208 Pages

$15.95; $7.49 Amazon

October 6, 2020

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

While the first hints of autumn grace Boggy Creek, Florida, Gia misses the colorful harvest traditions she left behind in New York.  On a scramble to make new fall memories -- and promote her irresistible pumpkin spice waffles -- things take a dark turn when she gets roped into the Haunted Town Festival, a spooky celebration held on deserted farmlands.  The desolate area conjures plenty of eerie vibes at night, but Gia and her best friend, Savannah, are nearly firghtened to death upon the discovery of the event organizer's body buried in the nearby woods.  More alarming, the rumor mill says the woman's shady dealings may have egged someone into sending her to an early grave.  Now, there's no shortage of creepy clues to feast on as Gia and her pals try to stop a killer with a very scary appetite...

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Gia Morelli owns the All-Day Breakfast Café in Boggy Creek, Florida.  She's been invited to participate in the annual Haunted Town Festival -- which means she'll be given a table to display her wares, and better yet, she gets a house to decorate in the spookiest fashion she can think of.  She says she doesn't have the time, but when her friends and employees urge her, offering to help and even appear as part of the scares, she says yes, knowing the proceeds all go to the animal shelter.

When she and Savannah go out to the farmlands to look at their house, they're supposed to meet Barbara Woodhull, one of the organizers.  But when Barbara doesn't show up, and Savannah finds Barbara's phone, they're wondering where she is.  But Barbara's best friend Genevieve 'Genny' Hart  meets them, she doesn't know where Barbara is.  But after showing Gia her 'house', Gia and Savannah hear police sirens.  It seems Barbara has been found dead in a shallow grave, and now there's a killer on the loose.

Gia vows to stay out of the investigation, not having ever met Barbara.  But when one of her friends gets involved and is attacked, all bets are off.  Gia tries her best to stay away, but things keep niggling at her, and even though she doesn't willingly put herself in danger, her only thought is to keep Savannah safe.  But even that might be harder when things escalate, and the killer knows she's on the trail...

This is the fourth book in the series, and a very good entry as such.  It takes place in the autumn, which is perfect for this time of year (I love to 'read the season' as it were), and the story line is quite interesting.  I like the idea of several smaller haunted houses instead of one, and you can choose which ones you want to go to.  This tale shows how far Gia's come since she moved to Florida: she's made good friends who will all go out of their way to help her when she needs it, and are even excited to be part of the festival with her.  

My only complaint is that while I know Hunt is now the police chief, I don't understand why he can't spend more time with her.  Police chiefs all over the country are married with families, and don't just take a moment here and there for their significant others.  I'd like to see a little more progress in this area.  But I digress...

The story pulls us in from the beginning, and when we start to learn more about Barbara, it seems she wasn't much of a nice woman after all.  Still, it leaves the fact that she's been murdered and now the police have to figure out by whom.  It doesn't help that Genny's friend Kayla is doing all she can to badmouth both the police and Barbara, and her relationship with Genny seems more of a domineering one than a friendly one.  Gia wonders about this, but isn't able to get Genny alone to talk with her.

When things start heating up, Gia discovers a key clue to the murder, even as that clue brings with it something else that isn't pleasant to her.  When the murderer is discovered, I knew who it was earlier in the book, but that didn't deter me at all from enjoying this mystery (I read a lot of these); and I found it intriguing how the author put everything together.  The pieces fell in place naturally, and while there weren't really a lot of red herrings, it didn't matter; the story itself was taut and enjoyable.  

I have to say that this is probably my favorite of all the books in this series and I look forward to the next.  (There are also some delectable recipes in the back that are perfect for this time of year, if you want to try them.)  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Waffle-Murder-All-Day-Breakfast-Mystery/dp/151611048X/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3569006187

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Grave Consequences (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery #5)

Author:  Lena Gregory
Genre:   Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9781950461516
Beyond the Page Publishing
202 Pages
$13.99; $4.99 Amazon
May 21, 2020

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cass Donovan is reminded that you can't believe everything you hear, especially when it comes from the dead...

When stories begin circulating of a centuries-old ghost haunting the Bay Island lighthouse, Cass is caught up in mystical happenings of her own, with countless voices from the beyond all clamoring for her attention with dire warnings.  But before she has a chance to learn whether there's a connection between the rumored ghost and her restless visitors, the lighthouse keeper mysteriously falls to his death, and Cass's reputation for communing with the dead lands her right in the middle of a police investigation.

Cass knows the victim was no saint, as he made little effort to hide his philandering ways from his wife or anyone else, and often acted out with no thought for the feelings of others.  But had he finally gone too far, or were there more menacing motives behind his murder?  As Cass begins building a list of suspects, including the man's supposedly grieving wife and mysterious new woman in town, she also turns her ear to those otherworldly voices, hoping for a clue.  And as she begins to close in on the culprit, she realizes too late that if she's not careful, she'll soon be communicating with the dead in person...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Cass Donovan left her old life and marriage behind in Manhattan and moved back home to Bay Island, where she owns a shop called Mystical Musings.  She not only sells gifts and items that she knows are right for people, she gives personal and group readings to others.  She's also recently discovered that her ability to communicate with the dead is growing, and she's not able to tune them out, so all the voices come at her at once -- although, gratefully, not at a constant run.

When one voice in particular keeps telling her something about the local lighthouse, she wonders what it might be.  So when her best friend Bee insists that she take the day off to help their friend Stephanie, she agrees.  Stephanie is obsessed with adopting a child, and it's gotten to the point she can't think of anything else, but she agrees to go with them.

While they head to the beach, they see a new tour bus, and learn that Fred DiCarlo, whose wife runs the lighthouse gift shop, is now going to run ghost tours, including the lighthouse.  While in the gift shop, Cass notices Fred's wife is upset and wants to find out why.  But she also discovers that there's an old exhibit of a journal from a woman who lived hundreds of years ago, which intrigues Bee.

Then, later at her shop, Cass meets a woman named Simone who asks for a reading.  When Cass starts her process, the voices come again.  Then suddenly Cass comes to a revelation, and it might just change everything for her.  Still, she can't sift through the voices, and something else is coming through that might put one of her friends in danger.

But then there's a death, and Cass witnesses it from the lighthouse.  Still, she doesn't think it will cause the problems that are about to enter her life; and with the help of Bee, who's keeping a watch on her, Cass struggles to maintain her equilibrium and sanity, and try to figure out what everything means.  All she has to do is stay out of the cross hairs of a killer to survive...

This is the fifth book in the series, and might be the best one yet.  I truly am enjoying the strong relationship between Bee and Cass, and he's rather like a big brother to her, watching out for her; and somehow, manages to get her huge dog to obey him when Beast pretty much ignores Cass, and that's humorous in itself.

The mystery begins solely at the beginning with the death, but it's not straight up.  There's an even older mystery of a young woman who lived at the lighthouse keeper's cottage with her family, and it leads to intimations of buried treasure somewhere near, even though no one has been able to find it.  But there's one or more people who are interested in that treasure, and Cass wonders if the man was murdered because of it.

What ensues is not only that tale, but Cass's increasing knowledge of what she can do with her psychic ability, and is trying to learn how to tame it.  Along with Stephanie wanting a child, and the gossip surrounding the murder leading back to her door, Cass has her work cut out for her trying to keep the rumors away.  

There isn't much more I can say without giving away spoilers, so I won't add much else except to say that when the murderer is discovered, it is a surprise and yet the motive is one that is believable; the climax is done nicely; and it leaves us wanting to read the next in the series.  Highly recommended. 

https://www.amazon.com/Grave-Consequences-Lena-Gregory/dp/1950461513/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3411922911

More on Lena Gregory's Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/          

Spirited Away (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery #4)

Author:  Lena Gregory

Genre:   Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:  9781950461066

Beyond the Page Publishing

218 Pages

$14.99; $4.99 Amazon

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

With the summer tourist season on Bay Island in full swing, shop owner Cass Donovan barely has a minute to breath, and things at Mystical Musings become even more hectic when a fight breaks out at one of her psychic readings.  Shaken by the fracas and discouraged that her sixth sense seems to be on the blink, Cass is even more dispirited to leasrn that one of the men involved in the altercation was later found dead...and that a close friend of hers is the main suspect.  Desperate to help her friend prove his innocence and consumed by haunting visions, Cass follows the clues from one possible culprit to the next, including some very mysterious tourists and not a few questionable locals.  And when the police turn to Cass to help them find out who committed the ghoulish deed, she knows she'll have to tread carefully, because her next grim premonition may be her last...

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Cass Donovan is an ex-psychiatrist who gave up her practice and her husband back in Manhattan and moved home to Bay Island to open a psychic shop that sells gifts and items that help people.  She has her two best friends -- Bee, a clothing designer who lives down the street, and Stephanie, an accountant who does her books and is married to Tank, a police detective.  She's also recently learned that her boyfriend Luke, another police detective, has moved to the island; but they aren't spending a lot of time together due to the fact that he's hot in the middle of art thieves who are hiding their treasures.

But Cass is tense and worried, partly because she doesn't know what's happening with her.  While she's always depended upon her intuition to help her out, lately she's felt 'otherworldly' forces at work and visions that come to her which are unsettling, to say the least.  She doesn't know what to make of it, and not knowing why has put her on edge.

It's the middle of the tourist season, and she's not happy that her air conditioning is on the fritz and can't get fixed until the next day, especially since she has a group reading to do that evening.  Still, she carries on even with the oppressing heat in the room but can't seem to get a read on anyone, being unable to concentrate.  When she finally does and blurts out something she normally wouldn't have done, not only do people get upset, it nearly causes a fight to break out between her handyman and mechanic Emmett and and another man she doesn't know.

When the second man, later identified at Dirk Brinkman, is found dead in the trunk of a car at Emmett's shop, he's suspected of the murder.  But Cass knows that Emmett wouldn't kill anyone, and while she's vowed to stay out the investigation, something -- or someone -- is urging her to get involved.  When the stakes turn higher than anyone expected, Cass has to decide whether to stay or put her own life on the line...

This is the fourth book in the series and I do believe that they are getting better as they progress.  Cass is discovering that her psychic powers are growing, and visions are beginning to appear to her, and she doesn't know what to make of it.  This time, she's only given a bit of information to work with and she tries to figure out what it means, all the while with Bee by her side, trying to help her but making no bones that he doesn't believe any of it, not does he believe in ghosts (but we the reader know otherwise).  

I love Bee.  He's brave, strong, and the best friend that Cass could have, sticking by her no matter what.  He's also funny and has no problem making fun of himself, which shows that he has enough self-esteem not to worry about other people.  It gives him an edge that's great.  Cass is gentle, kind, fiercely loyal to her friends, and opening up her abilities and allowing them to guide her, and I do like the fact that Chief Rawlins believes in her and is becoming a friend.  

Watching the story come together slowly is quite interesting, and when Cass starts to realize that the pieces are falling together, it's almost too late.  But she uses her own strength and intuition to give her the answers she's looking for, and the climax is definitely worth waiting for.  When the murderer is revealed it all makes sense, and we find that the motive is one as old as time itself.

When all is said and done, the ending was satisfying and gives us something to look forward to in the next book.  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Spirited-Away-Island-Psychic-Mystery/dp/1950461068/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3407493060

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Clairvoyant and Present Danger (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery #3)

Author:  Lena Gregory

Genre:   Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:  9780425282779

Berkley Publishing

293 Pages

$7.99; $7.99 Amazon

February 6, 2018

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Cass has always relied on her abilities to guide her, but after communications with a ghost land her in the middle of a murder investigation, she has to wonder if her gift is really more of a curse.

Cass knows she is meant to help track down the killer -- much to the chagrin of local law enforcement -- when the apparition leads her to a dead body on the beach near her psychic shop, Mystical Musings.  But the police are not the only ones who wish Cass would stick to reading palms.  Someone is trying to scare her off, and it will take all her powers of premonition to catch the killer before Cass herself becomes the next victim...

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Cass Donovan left her psychiatry practice in Manhattan after one of her patients committed suicide, and she found her husband cheating with her best friend -- a double whammy.  She's since used her powerful intuition and the fact that she notices small details to open a psychic shop, where she sells items to help people, and also gives group and private readings to people.

But Cass is also discovering that her psychic power is growing -- she's been able to see ghosts - or a form thereof - starting recently, and now she's beginning to have nightmares of a young woman who's asking for her help.  When an angry man shows up wanting her help, she does her best, but she's knows there's more to his story.

While walking on the beach with her dog Beast, he brings her a bone that appears to be human.  After finding the rest of the skeleton, she calls her police detective friend Tank, and he tells her to forget it and go home.  But then the news crews and lookie-loos start arriving; and a second body is found buried in the sand.  Things are escalating, and while Cass is really trying to stay out of it, she sees a portrait of a young woman in the window of a new art shop, and knows it's the woman from her dreams.  But when she returns to the shop, the owner says the portrait isn't for sale and has removed it.  Bringing her best friends Bee and Stephanie into the equation should bring her calm, but it doesn't.  After her shop is is searched and she's injured, Cass is determined to find out what's going on...if she doesn't get killed first...

This is the third book in the series and I have to say that they keep getting better.  While I wasn't impressed with the first, I definitely like the direction the stories are going.  Cass is learning that she really does have a bit of psychic abilities, and ghosts are appearing to her; but she's not sure what she's supposed to do with that information yet.  She's finding her way, much as the ghosts are finding theirs.  I love the fact that these are not poltergeists, but spirits that need help or are there to help her. 

She also has the eternal friendship of Bee, whom, while he doesn't believe in ghosts and doesn't want to hear anything about them (but I think he's just a tad afraid of them) still stands by her side no matter what's happening.  He's a true friend, and I think that he's one of my favorite characters in the books.  Stephanie, for her part, is a bit sad in this book and won't open up to Cass, although she really should have done so; yet it all becomes understandable.

The plot is nicely done, with the police trying to figure out who the two - one skeleton and one body - on the beach belong to, and Cass is becoming more positive she knows who at least one of the people that were found is a young woman who went missing not too long ago.  But being asked not to say anything to anyone is harder than she imagines, and Cass is wondering what is going on, but trying to get on with her life, as much as she can.  Interwoven into the story is Cass doing what she does best -- helping people who are in need of it.  These small side journeys show us the type of person she is, and one can't help wonder how her ex-husband could have been such a dolt in doing what he did (sorry; I had to throw that in).

When the story starts to come to a close, we figure it out close to the time that Cass does herself; even though the clues are there, they are hidden well enough that we don't really put it together until then, and I enjoyed that very much.  At the end, it all comes together nicely, with hints of what is to come in the next story in this series.  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Clairvoyant-Present-Danger-Psychic-Mystery/dp/0425282775/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3393305347

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Occult and Battery (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery #2)

Author:  Lena Gregory
Genre:   Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9780425282762
Berkley Publishing
290 Pages
$6.28; $7.99 Amazon
April 4, 2017

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The outlook is not so good for Cass's psychic shop, Mystical Musings.  With winter winds discouraging tourists from riding the ferry from Long Island to Bay Island, Cass hopes to draw in more customers by hosting a murder mystery weekend, complete with a séance, in a supposedly haunted mansion.

But Cass begins to lose her spirit when her ex-husband shows up, along with his fiancée -- Cass's ex-best friend.  Then, after one of the guests is found dead, a blizzard blows in, trapping everyone inside with a murderer.  Now Cass must divine who did the deed before her reputation and her livelihood fade away.

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Cass Donovan ditched her psychiatry practice and cheating husband to open Mystical Musings, and also gives private and group readings in her now psychic shop.  Presently she's coaxed her best friends Bee and Stephanie to take her to a spooky mansion on an island, in the middle of winter.  Once there, she tells them that she's convinced the owner, Priscilla Wellington, who's opening the home as a new B&B, to invite guests and she will have a seancé and give private and group meetings on the coming weekend.

The only drawbacks are the fact that her ex-husband Donald shows up with the reason for her divorce -- her ex-best friend Sylvia; and also the fact that one of the owners, Conrad Wellington, believes that the mansion is haunted with the ghost of a former owner and wants nothing to do with it.  Still, with the help of Stephanie and Bee, and her dog Beast, Cass presses on.  During the seancé, something strange occurs along with the loss of power, and everyone heads to their rooms.  But then there's a scream during the night, and Cass, along with Priscilla's brother Jim, finds a body, killed in exactly the same way as the long dead owner.  But Cass, with her innate curiosity, notices things that seem out of place.  And when Stephanie's detective husband Tank can finally reach the island, he sees them, too.

Now Cass knows that not only will she have to find an alternative place to give the readings or lose everything, but that there's a killer on the loose - and it's someone that was in the mansion along with she and her friends.  But will she be able to unmask a killer?  Or will the killer find her first?...

This is the second book in the series and I must say that I truly enjoyed it more than the first.  In the first book, I thought Bee was stereotypical, and Cass and Stephanie managed to get into situations that at least Stephanie should have known not to do.  But I am very glad I decided to pick up this series again and start over.

Cass is an interesting character; she never admits she's a psychic, but she knows that she notices things about people and her surroundings that others may miss.  If she wasn't in the business that she's chosen, she might have made a very good homicide detective.  The only thing that bothered me this time out is the fact that she stated she chose this business because she didn't want the responsibility for someone else's life.  If you do a reading for someone, you've taken some responsibility in their actions afterward (I know this because I read the Tarot).  Not as great an extent as her previous profession, but it is there nonetheless.

I absolutely adore Bee this time.  He's not only interesting, he's intelligent and loyal and has hidden talents that emerge just when you need them.  He surprises both Cass and the reader with these from time to time.

As far as the mystery goes, it was very good.  What's better than a haunted house without electricity?  I would have loved to have seen more of a ghostly presence, but that's just me.  I liked how the clues were presented, and even though I figured out the murderer before Cass, she put the pieces together with clues I missed myself.

The book kept me reading in one sitting, and can be read in an evening; it had enough characters to give us red herrings, but not enough to confuse us.  When the ending comes and everything is revealed, it is done nicely and I do like the fact that Cass finally got a sort of "release" for something that she needed to have.  I will definitely continue this series.  Recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Occult-Battery-Island-Psychic-Mystery/dp/0425282767/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3375823328

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

A Cold Brew Killing (An All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery #3)

Author:  Lena Gregory
Genre:   Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9781516104673
Lyrical Underground
265 Pages
$5.99 Amazon
November 6, 2018

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Gia has become good friends with Trevor, a fun, flirtatious bachelor who owns the ice cream parlor down the street from her popular All-Day Breakfast Café.  Trevor has the scoop on all sorts of local attractions and activities.  But when he bursts into her diner, trembling and paler than a pint of French Vanilla, she can tell something's very wrong.  Trevor points her toward his shop then passes out cold.  When Gia runs down to his shop, she discovers a chilling sight - a dead body in the open freezer.  But the ice cream man's troubles are just beginning.  The police suspect him of this murder a la mode, especially when details of his questionable past surface.  Gia believes in her friend and is determined to clear his name and find the real cold-blooded killer before someone else gets put on ice...

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Gia Morelli's life is starting to come together.  After moving to Florida and opening a café she's managing to eke out a decent living, has made some good friends, and even started a relationship with Detective Hunter Quinn, who's acting captain of the local police force.  Little does she know trouble is brewing: there's a heated mayoral race between Ron Parker and Mitch Anderson, and while it seems it's just another campaign, little does she know it goes far deeper than she or anyone else thinks.

One morning her part-time waitress Willow is preparing to leave with her mother Skyla when two strangers enter the café for breakfast, and while leaving, the wife recognizes Skyla.  She seems startled to see them, and though Gia wants to know why, she lets the subject drop.  It's also apparent that Skyla dislikes Mitch Anderson, but won't say why, and no one presses the issue.  However, Gia knows Skyla has things she's not saying, and she wonders why.

The next day, Trevor Barnes, who owns an ice cream shop down the street and is one of Gia's best friends, enters the shop while as a ghost and in a panic.  He insists there's a dead body in his walk-in freezer, and he doesn't know how it got there.  When it's discovered that the dead man is Ron Parker, and that Trevor has a past with him, he's suspected of the murder.  But Gia knows Trevor, and she knows he couldn't kill anyone.  While she thinks the police aren't looking hard enough, she wants to find out who wanted the man dead.  She also wants to know why, after Ron's death, Skyla seems to have withdrawn into herself, but no one can get close enough to find out.

But once she begins to learn a little more about Ron's past and his history with Mitch, she realizes that there are secrets someone wants to keep hidden, and if she doesn't find out the rest of the story, it might be too late for everyone involved...

This is the third book in the series, and a very good entry indeed.  While I somehow missed the second book after having read the first, the author doesn't reference things that occurred, so you don't feel like you're missing things along the way.

That being said, I liked the way the mystery was written.  While the body is discovered almost immediately (as it should be), the clues are hidden well throughout, and pieces of the story are gleaned from each character involved, leading us to the truth.  And what a truth it is; ugly, sad, and destruction of lives that never should have been.  Unfortunately, such are the truths of life.

In this book, we learn a little bit more about Trevor and Harley's pasts and that of her friend Sybil who haunts the woods near Gia's home.  It's things I don't believe anyone anticipated, but interesting nonetheless.  We also have Gia and Hunt finding their way in their new-ish relationship, even if there are bumps in that path, and it's handled nicely and quite believable.  With this new knowledge at hand, I fully expect the future books to be even more engaging.

Needless to say, I enjoyed the story, including the various subplots woven within, and the fact that they didn't detract from the tale by unwarranted drama.  There were plenty of twists and turns, and enough intrigue to keep you reading throughout in one sitting.

When Gia finds out the truth of the matter (and we know she will) it all came together nicely and the ending was satisfying, giving us a hint of what is to come in future books while finding closure for some of the characters in this one.  Recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Cold-Killing-All-Day-Breakfast-Mystery-ebook/dp/B079R5Y14L/ref

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2593251428

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Death at First Sight (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery #1)

Author:  Lena Gregory
Genre:  Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9780425282748
Berkley Publishing
304 Pages
$7.19; $7.99 Amazon
November 1, 2016

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Since she left her psychiatric practice in New York City to open up a psychic shop in her hometown on Bay Island, Cass Donovan has given her fair share of readings to conflicted customers.  But what she sees in Ellie Callahan's future doesn't bode well.

When Ellie's mother, Marge, publicly confronts Cass about the reading, the embarrassment makes her want to curl up and die.  And when she stumbles across Marge's body - and becomes a suspect in her murder - Cass is suddenly the star of Bay Island's rumor mill.

Cass is determined to prove her innocence and save Ellie from meeting the fate in her unfortunate vision.  But even with the help of her friends Bee and Stephanie, Cass will have to channel some serious sleuthing instincts to find the real killer...

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Cass Donovan owns a psychic shop on Bay Island, and one day she is giving a reading to a friend, but sees something disturbing in it.  Later she is confronted by the woman's mother, who tells her to stay away from her daughter.  When the woman, Marge, is later found dead by Cass, the police think she's to blame.  But since she knows she didn't do it, and she's still worried about her friend Ellie, she feels her only choice is to find the real killer and free herself from suspicion.

This is rare for me, but I couldn't even finish this book.  Cass is accused of a murder and immediately taken in for questioning although there was nothing to tie her to the crime.  Why do I say that?  Because she just found the body!.  The killer would have no way of knowing who would enter the building first, so did they just pick her name out of a hat and place evidence there?  I doubt it.

But the next thing she does is break into the dead woman's house!  That's right - breaks into her home and steals her dog, which doesn't make any sense why the dog was there in the first place.  Why didn't the police go over to the dead woman's house right after finding the body?  If they had followed procedure - which is to gather evidence and that includes going to a dead person's home to see if there were clues to why someone would kill them - they already would have known about the puppy and rescued it.  A person is murdered, but the cops don't go to the dead woman's house for clues.  Sure, sure.  It happens all the time in real life.  She also leaves her prints all over the house...while being suspected of the murder.  Not even her best friend - whose husband is a cop - knows enough to tell her that she's not going to go along with this if she does it.

Not to mention the fact that she's extremely clumsy and has constant headaches (when she gets stressed).  Which is practically the entire book.  She also can't handle confrontation.  Let's get this straight: she used to be a psychiatrist - but can't handle stress or confrontations.  Sure, that makes sense.  How did that work with her patients?  It can be a stressful job, and I’m sure that being a psychiatrist, she must have been put in more than one confrontational situation.  (But it explains why she has no backbone and didn't respond to Marge when she was being attacked).

Unfortunately, Cass is one of those women who are just Too Stupid To Live, and the book was just too boring for me to finish.  Two stars for the writing, but I won't continue with this series.

https://www.amazon.com/Death-First-Island-Psychic-Mystery/dp/0425282740/

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1988948392

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/

Scone Cold Killer (An All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery)

Author:  Lena Gregory
Genre:  Mystery

Trade Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9781516104659
Lyrical Underground Publishing
192 Pages
$15.99; $3.99 Amazon
January 23, 2018

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For Florida Diner owner Gia Morelli, there's no such thing as too much breakfast - unless it kills you...

When Gia Morelli's marriage falls apart, she knows it's time to get out of New York.  Her husband was a scam artist who swindled half the millionaires in town, and she doesn't want to be there when they decide to take revenge.  On the spur of the moment, she follows her best friend to a small town in Central Florida, where she braves snakes, bears, and giant spiders to open a cheery little diner called the All-Day Breakfast Cafe.  Owning a restaurant has been her lifelong dream, but it turns into a nightmare the morning she opens her dumpster and finds her ex-husband crammed inside.  As the suspect du jour, Gia will have to scramble fast to prove her innocence before a killer orders another cup of murder...

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Gia Morelli's life has fallen apart.  Her ex-husband was convicted of swindling people out of millions, and everyone thought she knew about it, hounding her constantly.  So she moved to Florida to be near her best friend Savannah and open a breakfast cafe.  She hoped that she'd be far enough away that no one would have ever heard of Bradley Remington.

But on her first days' opening, she she finds something in the dumpster...her ex-husband.  After calling the police, she not only discovers that her past has followed her, but that the detective in charge of the case, Hunter Quinn, is Savannah's cousin.  Shaken and demoralized,  she reluctantly accepts the help of those around her, but then things start to escalate.  Both her garage and cafe are broken into, and a mysterious woman confronts her about Bradley.  It seems people are after something Bradley left with her, but she hasn't a clue as to what they're talking about.  She left with only what she could take, and a paltry settlement from her divorce.  Yet someone wants something, and they'll stop at nothing to get it, even if it costs Gia her life...

This is a wonderful beginning to a new series.  Gia is a delightful character - she's tough yet vulnerable, and it shows in her thoughts and actions.  She's torn at the thought of her attraction to Hunt and yet not trusting men.  Her friendship with Savannah is strong, and she's torn at keeping her near or wanting to see her safe.  She's wary of anyone she meets but doesn't know if she'll ever be free of her past.  She's complex; but who wouldn't be, having gone through what she has?

The mystery was extremely well done, the characters well drawn.  Each one had a definite personality and it was very nice to see some backstory involved - a bit of history to all so that we can truly understand who they are.  I took an immediate liking to most of them, which is a very good thing in a book.

While I also wanted to know what it was that Bradley left with her, I defied my curiosity and carried through to the end of the book instead of peeking at it.  It made the story more enjoyable to discover along with Gia what everyone was looking for, and gave a nice bit of tension to the tale.

I believe that Ms. Gregory has found her niche with this new series.  The characters are animated, the scenery vivid, the mystery believable.  When we come to the end and the killer is revealed, it was both satisfying and convincing.  I only wish the sequel was at hand, since I didn't want it to end.  I look forward to the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Scone-Cold-Killer-Lena-Gregory/dp/151610465X/

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2273141930

More on Lena Gregory's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/