A Twinkle of Trouble (A Fairy Garden Mystery Book 5)

Author:    Daryl Wood Gerber

Genre:     Mystery/Fantasy

Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496744937

Kensington Cozies

304 Pages

$17.95; $9.99 Amazon

April 23, 2024

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Courtney is delighted when her tiny friend Fiona returns from the fairy realm, appearing at the base of a Cypress tree.  When her Ragdoll cat, Pixie, emerges from her own portal -- aka the cat door -- the three set off for a busy day.  Busier than usual, since Courtney has rented a small plot of land at the Flower Farm, where she hopes to grow her own supplies for her fairy-garden business.  Plus, the annual Summer Blooms Festival is coming up, and Courtney has booked a booth...

But the murder of Courtney's friend, Genevieve, casts a pall over the festival.  Ever since Genevieve sold her floral business, she'd been building a career as an influencer.  She was perennially opinionated -- but in her new role she'd become surprisingly vicious, dissing local entrepreneurs with nasty posts and unwarranted bad reviews.  That's landed a couple of Courtney's other friends on the suspect list -- including Flower Farm owner Daphne Flores.  And when a second victim is discovered, seeds of doubt about Daphne's innocence sprout in Courtney's mind.  With only a gem of a clue, Courtney will have to overturn every rock to get the dirt on the real killer...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Courtney lives in Carmel-by-the-Sea in California, and owns Open Your Imagination, a shop that allows people to make their own fairy gardens.  It helps that she has her own personal fairy, Fiona.  Fiona has recently returned from the fairy realm, and Courtney is happy to have her back.  Although not everyone can see -- nor believes in -- fairies, Courtney and others don't really care.

While hosting a group that are there to make their own little gardens, one of the women, Genevieve, learns that she is not invited to participate in the Summer Blooms Festival, and it rankles her.  She proceeds to insult other guests, and since she is known as an influencer, uses her online forum to diss other local businesses, as well.  As imagined, this doesn't sit well with people.  Although it is surprising when Genevieve is found dead, and Daphne Flores, one of the women whose business she insulted, is found standing over her.

When another person is found murdered, the police are honing in on Daphne.  Courtney has trouble believing her friend is a killer, but to be fair, she's not close with the woman and doesn't know all that much about her.  But Courtney is nothing if not persistent, and she continues to ask questions and look for clues that might point her to a killer -- a killer who might already be aware that Courtney could be dangerous if left alive...

This is the fifth book in the series and I must say that I have found them all delightful.  While I will not say whether I believe in such things as fairies or not, I will also say that I am positive that some people have no problem believing.  Which is why this book is so delightful (yes, I said it again).  Just like the title of her shop, it allows you to open your imagination and try to think what it would be like if there were many of them floating around us.

While, of course, the mystery takes first place as it should, we have a secondary tale in which Fiona's sister enters the human world to be mentored by her elder sister and other fairies that reside there.  We learn that even in the fairy realm there is sibling rivalry and arguments, but there is also fun and enjoyment.  It is a pleasure to share in these moments with the fairies.

But back to the mystery -- Courtney has no issues with asking people where they were on the nights of the murders, even though the police tell her to stay out of the investigation.  There are mixed signals, with the lead detective also telling her to keep her ears and eyes open and report anything she learns.  Hmm.  You can't have it both ways, sir.  So Courtney does what she does best, and gathers information any way she can (although she doesn't do anything illegal, which is good).  With each piece of data gathered she is eventually able to dismiss people from the suspect list, leaving her with only three of them; and figuring out which one it is could put her life in danger.

While I knew the murderer long before Courtney did (Again, I read a lot of mysteries) I did enjoy watching her figure it out.  Alas, it was nearly too late, but Courtney can think on her feet and she had no problem putting things in motion ahead of time.  In the end, it all comes together very nicely, and we are given a glimpse of what might be to come.  Highly recommended.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Twinkle-Trouble-Fairy-Garden-Mystery-ebook/dp/B0CFGF36NM/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6171382552

More on Daryl Wood Gerber's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/daryl-wood-gerber/

The Game Is A Footnote (A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery #8)

Author:    Vicki Delany

Genre:     Mystery

Hardcover; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781639101450

Crooked Lane Books

320 Pages

$26.99; $13.99 Amazon

January 10, 2023

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Scarlet House, now a historical re-enactment museum, is the oldest building in West London, Massachusetts.  When things start moving around on their own, board members suggest that Gemma Doyle, owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium, might be able to get to the bottom of it.  Gemma doesn't believe in ghosts, but she agrees to 'eliminate the impossible.'  But when Gemma and Jayne stumble across a dead body on the property, they're forced to consider an all too physical threat.

Gemma and Jayne suspect foul play as they start to uncover more secrets about the museum.  With the museum being a revolving door for potential killers, they have plenty of options for who might be the actual culprit.

Despite Gemma's determination not to get further involved, it would appear that once again, and much to the displeasure of Detective Ryan Ashburton, the game is afoot.

Will Gemma and Jayne be able to solve the mystery behind the haunted museum, or will they be the next to haunt it?

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Gemma Doyle, owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium, has special skills that allow her to discover things about others.  She has superb observation skills.  It's served her well in helping to solve more than one murder.  But now she's been asked to see if Scarlet House is haunted.  It seems things have been moving around at night when no one is there.  Not really wanting to, but since the asking came from her best friend Jayne's mother Leslie, she agrees to do so.  So she finds herself, along with Jayne and Jayne's fiancé Andy, spending the night in the old house.  The only other people there are out in the barn: a retired veterinarian who cares for the animals, and volunteer Craig Jones.  Gemma, who doesn't believe in ghosts, spends time walking through the house at various hours to see if there is any activity.  

But when there's noise in the kitchen, nothing seems to have been disturbed.  And when there's noise in the barn, it seems the animals have been spooked by something unknown.  Then a body is discovered on the premises and Gemma calls the police, with her boyfriend Detective Ryan Ashburton arriving to check it out.

Now, Gemma is once again in pursuit of a killer, with clues few and far between.  She'll need all her wits about her to solve this murder, even if the police don't want her involved.

Then there's a bit of a complication:  Gemma's sister Pippa shows up out of the blue, claiming she's taking a bit of a vacation while her employer is in Washington on business.  Gemma, ever alert as she is, knows something else is up with Pippa.  Pippa is Mycroft Holmes to Gemma's Sherlock, and together they might just be unstoppable...and now the game is afoot... 

This is the eighth book in the series, and I have read them all.  While in the first book I wasn't fond of Gemma, I have now grown to love her.  She's extremely intelligent, loyal to her friends and family, loves animals, her shop, and, of course, Ryan.  She's an extraordinary woman, and she doesn't actually accuse anyone without having facts to back it up.  She also has a sudden problem with one of her employees, and while she'd like to leave it alone, her curiosity gets the better of her and she needs the answers she's looking for.

But now Pippa has come on the scene, with the story that she's on vacation, but Gemma doesn't believe it one whit.  She knows there's something going on, and she's determined to figure it out.  What she finds out from Pippa isn't what she expects, and she's surprised at it.  Watching both Gemma and Pippa together is a lot of fun, and makes your brain work just a little bit harder to try and figure it out before they do.

It's a delightful romp of a book, bringing the staid British together with the emotional Americans, and watching the two combine and deliver conclusions at the end is quite worthwhile.  It leaves us wanting more and waiting impatiently for the next in the series.  I enjoyed this book so much that I have decided to revisit the great Holmes himself in A Study in Scarlet.  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/Footnote-Sherlock-Holmes-Bookshop-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09XM5M8SC/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4842911731

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

The Mourning Beads (A Maggie & Jasper Mystery Book 2)

Author:    Barbara Cool Lee

Genre:     Mystery

Digital Book

ASIN #:    B098PSN8M2

Pajaro Bay Publishing

149 Pages

$2.99 Amazon

July 19, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Can Maggie find the real killer when her teenage student threatens to strangle her mother with a jet-black necklace...hours before the woman is found dead?  And what deep, dark secret is movie star Reese Stevens hiding from the world?  Can Maggie help him face the truth?

Maggie McJasper is starting over in a little California beach town.  She has a bead shop, a nice circle of friends, and a handsome movie star who keeps flirting with her.  Life would be pretty great if she could just stop stumbling over dead bodies...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Maggie McJasper is starting life over after her divorce from a Hollywood mogul.  Unfortunately, when she got the beach mansion in the divorce, she also got its mortgage and bills.  So she has to rent it out of a Hollywood star who's also a friend.  But she's happy, living in a tiny house in the driveway; she has her bead shop and her dog Jasper, who takes up a lot of the room but whom she wouldn't know what to do without him.

After getting into yet another argument with Alexis, who owns the art gallery next door, she witnesses an argument between Alexis and her daughter Willow, and it doesn't end well, with Alexis slashing her own paintings with a knife.  But later, she's teaching a class on making mourning beads, with two of the of the customers being Willow, and Willow's boyfriend Grey.  Both are making bracelets to remind them that their relationships with their mother and father respectively, are dead to them.  It saddens Maggie, but there's nothing she can do to heal the relationships.

Later, Maggie finds Alexis's body in the alley and the natural suspect is Willow, since others heard their argument.  But neither Willow nor Grey can be found, and Maggie worries for them.  She doesn't believe they're murderers, but even Willow's father think they did it.  So how is she going to prove their innocence?

On top of this, Maggie's tenant, Reese Stevens, is having issues with his ex-girlfriend, who isn't happy that he's got custody of his son for summer visits.  When he gets Shane home, it seems the two of them don't have anything in common.  Maggie wants them to find a common thread, but she knows it will have to be something they work out between them.  Not to mention Reese is indicating he'd like to be more than friends, but Maggie isn't sure she wants to be part of that world again.

Setting her personal problems aside for the time being, Maggie is sure she can find out who killed Alexis.  She just needs time -- and to stay away from the real culprit...

This is the second book in the series, and I must say that I enjoyed it more than the first.  The characters are showing a little more depth, and we're getting to see the reasons behind their past and their current actions.  It makes for an enjoyable read.  Watching Maggie try and find a killer is rather fun, and looking for clues along with her make it all the more worthwhile.

When the killer is discovered, it comes almost at a strange moment, and with an 'aha' right beside it.  It makes the conclusion satisfying and you never really know what is inside the mind of a murderer.  There is also something to look forward to in the next book, and I will read it soon.  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Mourning-Beads-Maggie-Jasper-Caper-ebook/dp/B098PSN8M2/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4762281996

More on Barbara Cool Lee's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/l/barbara-cool-lee/

On the Hook (A Crochet Mystery Book 12)

Author:    Betty Hechtman

Genre:     Mystery

Hardcover; Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781683315650; 978168337982

Crooked Lane Books

336 Pages

$4.94; $15.95; $12.99 Amazon

May 8, 2018

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Molly Pink and the Tarzana Hookers are busy crocheting baby blankets for charity, but before long, they're tangled up in a mystery that may be their unraveling.  The Hookers are a tight-knit group, but some of the members harbor secret aspirations.  Adele dreams of becoming an actress, and her acting coach has filled her head with promises of a career as a crochet show host.  Elise Belmont has earned her real estate license and is itching to show her first house.  But when the house's tenant turns up dead from a pink squirrel cocktail laced with cyanide, the Hookers could be in double trouble.

It turns out that the dead man was Adele's acting coach, Timothy Clark.  And Molly gets wound up in the case after accidentally leaving a scarf she designed at the murder scene.  Detective Barry Greenberg, one of Molly's exes, quickly stitches together that the scarf is hers.  Lawyer Mason Fields (another of Molly's exes) has her head swimming in legalese.  For Molly, the only way out is by learning who really killed Timothy, and why.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Molly Pink is assistant manager at Shedd & Royal Books & More.  She's also their event coordinator, and a member of the Tarzana Hookers, a group of women who crochet together, usually making gifts for charity.  Her friend Elise Belmont confides that she has secretly gotten her real estate license -- because her husband Logan didn't want her to, thinking it might ruin his reputation as a realtor -- and wants to sell a house so she can show him that she's just as good as he is.  Conveniently, another friend (and both members of the hookers) Adele wants a home where she and her new husband can have some privacy away from his mother, because the three live in a condo together.

So Elise has a house she wants to show Adele, and Adele insists that Molly come along.  The three head out to an exclusive neighborhood, and shortly after arriving, Elise hustles them out because she received a text from her husband stating that he was going to show homes, and she's afraid that this will be the first one on the list.  However, in the rush, Molly's custom-made scarf (by her) is left behind.  And when Logan discovers the dead body of the owner, Timothy Clark, in the downstairs, it now becomes a crime scene.

When Detective Barry Greenberg -- Molly's ex -- realizes the scarf is hers, he tries to get her to admit it, but she won't, because she's promised Elise that she won't mention the visit to anyone.  Now she's stuck in the middle of another murder investigation, tap dancing around Barry, and asking another ex, criminal attorney Mason Fields, for help.  Then Molly starts receiving threatening notes, and she knows someone is watching her.  But are they real or just someone trying to get her to stop asking questions?  Unless Molly's careful, she might find that she's the next one in line to die...

This is the tenth book in the series, and I have read each one of them.  While some have been better than most, I did find that I enjoyed this one quite a bit.  Yes, it was definitely filled with Molly still trying to figure out if she wants a relationship or not, but having read them all, I understand her reasonings.  If others haven't, I understand their confusion.  While I absolutely hate love triangles, at least this wasn't exactly filled with that.

What I didn't like about the book is Molly's family just deciding to come over whenever they wanted and turn her house into a rehearsal hall.  She has enough problems at her home as it is.  Also, she should have gotten Barry's key when they broke up, and the worst is Adele - who somehow has gotten more annoying as the books go on.  Enough with the over-the-top crochet outfits.  Even I, a woman who loves to crochet, wouldn't even think of wearing it as everyday wear.  You actually would look ridiculous.  Also, why was Elise's husband calling her to tell her that he was showing a home?  Did he do this on a regular basis?  Check in with her every time he had a client?  It seemed odd...

At any rate, other than this, the book was interesting enough to keep me reading, and there were some fun scenes throughout.  But it seemed that some characters were bashing marriage, and I didn't understand that at all.  Marriage is compromise and respect for the other person, and you have to learn how to give and take.  If you don't do that, nothing about it will work at all.  Hopefully, her characters will learn how to do this.

As you can tell, this wasn't one of my favorites of the series but it was still very good.  However, as others have stated, the ending was odder than other books, with Molly telling us the fate of the people in the acting classes that Timothy gave (as if we really care about it) and the murderer came out of left field.  I prefer that we at least get a few clues here and there.  All in all, a nice cozy if you want to relax, but nothing too involved.  There are also crochet patterns in the back for those who are interested.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Hook-Crochet-Mystery-Betty-Hechtman-ebook/dp/B075QJSFVH/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4597973989

More on Betty Hechtman's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/betty-hechtman/

A Time to Swill (A Chloe Jackson Sea Glass Saloon Mystery #2)

Author:    Sherry Harris

Genre:     Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book (Audiobook Available)

ISBN #:    9781496723048

Kensington Publishing

207 Pages

$7.69; $6.99 Amazon

July 27, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Chloe loves her new life pouring beers and mixing cocktails at the Sea Glass Saloon in the Florida Panhandle town of Emerald Cove.  But on the job, the only exercise she gets is walking from one end of the bar to the other, so in the mornings she loves to run on the beach.  On this morning's foggy run, she spots a sailboat washed up on a sandbar.  Hearing a cry, she climbs aboard the beached vessel to investigate and finds not only a mewling kitten -- but a human skeleton in the cabin.

The skeleton is tied back to Chloe's friend Ralph, whose wife disappeared on a sailboat with three other people twelve years ago.  Believing his wife was lost as sea, Ralph remarried.  Now he finds himself a murder suspect.  Chloe is determined to find out who's been up to some skullduggery, but her sleuthing will lead her into some rough waters and some bone-chilling revelations...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Chloe Jackson moved from Chicago to Emerald Cove, Florida after her best friend Boone died in Afghanistan and left her everything -- which includes his home, boat, and 25% in the bar his grandmother Vivi owns.  After coming to a sort of truce with Vivi, Chloe is settling into her new life.  But while jogging on a foggy morning she hears what she thinks is a baby crying on a boat that seems to be stuck on a sandbar.  Swimming out to the boat, she finds it's not a child, but a cat, and while exploring she also finds a skeleton aboard.  When the boat catches fire, she dives off with the cat, hoping to make it to shore.  But a man with a boat rescues her, returns her to shore and disappears.

To make matters worse, Boone's father returns -- and claims he has a new will of Boone's that leaves him everything, including being half-owner of the bar.  But everyone knows Boone would never do that, but the problem lies in trying to find out proof, which Chloe intends to do.

Chloe finds herself in another murder this time -- but discovers that it might be one from long ago.  When she gives the police a ring she also discovered before bailing, she finds that it belonged to her friend Ralph's late wife -- and he might be a suspect.  Now she's looking for the good Samaritan that saved her, and the person who might have killed Ralph's wife.  Could they be one and the same?  Or is something else afoot?  And is someone trying to make sure she doesn't find anything else out?

This is the second book in the series and it is quite as good as the first.  Chloe is coming to love her new life, and Vivi is changing in her feelings toward Chloe.  There's also a hint of change in the air for Chloe with a new relationship, but it doesn't get in way of the mystery.  We also have the enigmatic Ann Williams around again, and Joaquin, of course; all of these people make for a very interesting book.

I loved the mystery -- which was more a mystery within one; and there's a subplot that is quite intriguing as well.  Watching Chloe try to navigate her new life and the things going on around her are worth the read; and the reappearance of Boone's father Steven brings angst to the group at the Sea Glass.  Vivi can't figure out a way to get rid of him, but Chloe is determined to do so.

But it's the backstory that is the most interesting -- of what went on twelve years ago and how it ties into things that are occurring today.  It's suspenseful and fun, and when the ending comes it's all worth the wait.  I truly enjoyed this book and can't wait to read the next in the series.  Recommended.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Swill-Chloe-Jackson-Saloon-Myster-ebook/dp/B08MBFK131/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4569384294

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

Live, Local, and Dead (A Vermont Radio Mystery)

Author:    Nikki Knight

Genre:     Mystery/Politics

Hardcover; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781643859453

Crooked Lane Books

304 Pages

$26.99; $13.99 Amazon

February 8, 2022

⭐

In a fit of anger, radio DJ Jaye Jordan blows a snowman's head off with a Revolutionary War-style musket.  But the corpse that stumbles out is all too human.  Jaye thought life would be quieter when she left New York City and bought a tiny Vermont radio station.  But now, Edwin Anger -- the ranting and raving radio talk show host who Jaye recently fired -- lies dead in the snow.  And the Edwin Anger fans who protested his dismissal are sure she killed him. 

To clear her name, Jaye must find the real killer, as if she doesn't have her hands full running the radio station.  DJing her all-request love song show, and shuffling tween daughter Ryan to and from school.  It doesn't make matters easier that the governor -- Jaye's old crush -- arrived on the scene before the musket smoke cleared.  Fortunately, Jaye has allies.  If you count the flatulent moose that lives in the transmitter shack, and Neptune, the giant gray cat that lives at the station.

If Jaye can turn the tables on the devious killer, she and the governor may get to make some sweet, sweet music together.  But if she can't, she'll be off the air...permanently.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Jaye Jordan moved to Vermont so that her daughter could live closer to her father David who lives in New Hampshire.  She's bought a radio station, and has changed programming to eliminate Edwin Anger and now plays late-night requested love songs.  Followers of Edwin aren't happy, and have taken to protesting outside the station (which is also her home).  So Jaye decides to teach them a lesson, taking one man's musket and blowing the head off a snowman in the town square.  (Never mind that there are people there).

When the body of Edwin is discovered inside the snowman, the sheriff wants to know who killed him.  He doesn't believe Jaye had anything to do with it, so she's not worried.  But now she's taken with the state governor, who's just as taken with her.  To watch her romance heat up, she needs to find out who's a stone-cold killer...

Oh, my, my, my.  We have yet another book of thinly-veiled personal politics masquerading as a cozy mystery.  This it does not do.  In fact, with all the Republican-bashing throughout the book, I wonder how the far-left leaning author could even sit up straight while writing.  This book is so filled with hate speech against the right that I found it ludicrous that the protagonist would even say that she 'didn't want hate speech on her program.'  Seriously?

It's not even a cozy mystery.  Yes, there is a dead body, but the police investigate everything -- and we all know in a cozy that the protagonist is right there with them, picking up clues along the way.  This book is: 1) a political rant; 2) a romance; and 3) with a murder thrown in so it can be labeled a cozy.  Which it is not, with all the foul language.

I read to escape everyday life, everyday politics.  And yes, I would have felt the same if this were a right-leaning book.  Politics have no place in a cozy mystery, especially not the author's own views.  Also, the writing was strange, to say the least.  It was as if we were reading the protagonist's thoughts as she went through day-to-day life, It might have been alright if I could even like the protagonist.  But I could not.  I couldn't even finish the book.  Unfortunately, I will not be reading any more of this author's books.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Live-Local-Vermont-Radio-Mystery/dp/1643859455/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4539729553

More on Nikki Knight's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/k/nikki-knight/