mystereity's reviews
1164 reviews

This was our pick for the April Cozy Mystery Book Club read, and the beginning of the second series out of 4 we're going to tackle. For the first book in a new series, it was pretty solid.  I think it will shape up into a great series. 

I liked Sierra, her reactions and thought processes as she tried to sort out everything going on felt very true to life. While the plot kept me guessing (I had a suspect in mind early on, and second guessed myself more than once!) in the middle, it felt like it was just shuffling along until around 2/3 of the way through the book when it picked up again. Along with that, it felt like a lot of the detail was only there as filler and yet there was very little in the way of character development beyond Sierra. Mostly, the reader is just "shown" the characters, mostly superficially and for some, a little generically.  The suspects, the family, even the victim realy didn't have enough meat to help me "get to know" the characters.  Although the rich detail set the scene very well, I think the characters could've used a bit more, to add dimension to the story. That's something I'll be looking at as the series goes on.


Hmm, this review makes it seem like that was more I didn't like about the book than what I did like and that's really not the case.  I love the small town of Aerieville (even the name is evocative!) and I'm looking forward to watch it come to life as the series goes on.  So as the first in a series, it was pretty good, although it could be better.

When I saw this one on Netgalley, I knew I had to read it when the blurb mentioned a parade of protest sheep and what a great idea! I should get some protest sheep so I can spread my message that Cozy Mysteries need their own classification separate from Suspense/Thriller/Mystery and yes, this is a hill I will dye on (heh!) supported by my protest sheep. This book also fit into my Spring Fever theme read for a spring themed craft cozy.

In this one, Collinstown is welcoming spring with a See More Than Seafood festival and Libby has lined up Julie Wilson, a vegan fiber expert who achieves amazing colors for her plant based yarns, to be a speaker and to demonstrate her dyes and techniques.  Julie is known to be an outspoken advocate for veganism and has managed to annoy/anger/provoke others, especially farmers, with her outspoke anti-animal product views. Trouble quickly ensues with a parade of protest sheep down the main street in town, confrontations and finally, with Julie found dead.  With so many suspects with motive for murder, Libby takes up the reins to flush out a killer.  

I've haven't read any of the other books in this series, so I can safely say it can be read as a standalone or an entry into the series. I always love finding a new world to dive into and Collinstown sounds like a charming getaway (I'm not going to lie, I'd be lined up in front of Margo's shop waiting impatiently for goodies) with lots of great little shops and restaurants to wander through.  Sign me up! I loved the characters, Libby is the kind of woman everyone would love to have for a friend and her close knit group of friends and shopkeepers made for a friendly, cozy read.  I have to admit, I guessed most of the who in the whodunit but I stuck around for the big reveal to fill in the rest of the blanks.  What a tragic story, I felt the same way Libby did when the whole story came out.  Just senseless.

Overall, this was very enjoyable and I will definitely be picking up the other books in the series.

 

I was unprepared for how good this book was going to be. You know what I mean? You know the author writes quality books, the blurb fascinates, the cover is perfection so you eagerly crack open the pages (figuratively of course, I would never crack my beloved iPad) and fall into a new world you never want to leave. This whimsical masterpiece is cozy mystery bliss.

What I liked most is the mystery in this book; cozy mysteries are usually about investigating a murder but this one was investigating the past – family, relationships, heartbreak and reconciliation and all the turmoil and pain that gives way to a new beginning. Poetic, no? So gratifying to see it all come together and the healing begin.

Now living in NYC, Emily gets a call that her grandmother died and she must return to the California coast to fulfil the tasks set out in the will. When she gets there, she’s presented with a mysterious job she must accomplish – edit the forsaken manuscripts. I’m sorry, what? Emily has no idea what that means (which is where the mystery comes in!) and so it begins, the slide into the heart of the mystery; untangling the events that kept Emily and her father estranged from the rest of the family. As the book progressed, more of the story came out and it was heartwarming, tragic and cathartic all in one. Truly, this was a great piece of writing.

I loved that the mystical elements were so well balanced and integrated within the reality of the story that it felt natural, I don’t know that my reactions would’ve been any different from Emily’s as she navigated and assimilated her new role as Book Therapist and when you add in all the beautiful scenery (I could almost smell the scent of salty sea air, piney forests and slug slime!) a diverse cast of characters, and a compelling narrative of healing the pain of lost loves, this book will keep you in its tight grip long after you finish. I don’t know if this book will become a series or not (fingers crossed) but I very much want to return to Cascata and the new community I desperately want to be a part of.

Thank you to Netgalley, Sweet Lemon Press and Ellie Alexander for the opportunity to read this amazing book. 

To Fetch a Felon is the first book in a series I didn't know I needed in my life but I'm happy it is! Charming, fun and clever, it was a brilliant start to a new series.

Emma decides to quit her unfulfilling finance job in London and move to Cornwall to open a tea shop. Armed with her nan's delectable recipes and her corgi Oliver (who can "talk" to her telepathically) Emma arrives in Trevena and immediately angers Victoria, a woman who is committed to stopping any kind of development of the village by controlling much of the real estate in the area. The next day, after baking some delicious scones to try and win Victoria over, Emma arrives at Victoria's house and finds her dead.  With many suspects and many motives, who killed Victoria and why?

I loved pretty much everything about this book; the quick pace, the lovely village and the quirky villagers, Oliver's hijinks, and the twisty plot. I thought the investigation (and I use that term loosely, Emma didn't so much investigate as much as she just went around town talking to different people) felt realistic and believable.  I did wonder why Emma "hears" Oliver but not other animals like Percy or cats?  Also loved Oliver's backstory about being found arguing with a moose.  I could instantly picture it in my mind! 

Absolutely stinkin' adorable and I can already tell this is a series I'm going to love. 100% recommend for cozy lovers!

This was our Book Club pick for February, picking up where book 1 left off. With all the introductions out of the way, this book flowed so much better and it wasn't long until I was caught up in it.  

I loved the plot; a new hotel under protest from a fringe group, the death of Rory's friend, Jasmine, whose medical condition was largely known only to her friends and family. Rory is outraged when the police closes the case as a suicide and starts investigating. There were many suspects, no clear motive and lots of shenanigans to muddy the waters.  I'll admit, I had a different suspect in mind, so when the killer was unmasked, I was surprised. I also liked the introduction of the previously unknown girlfriend of Rory's crush Martin the Dashing D.  I loved how it threw Rory off her game a little bit, and I can't wait to see where it goes in book 3.  

Here's what I don't get

there were a lot of people doing a lot of illegal things that were all seemingly swept under the carpet because apparently Jasmine's murder and an old hit and run were the only crimes anyone was interested in? What? Rory's friend admits to many acts of vandalism with their fringe group and Jasmine, Rory and Liz were like "meh, sounds good bruh we get it"?  WHAT? Friend or not, I'd have blown them in to every law enforcement agency I could find.  Not to mention Nixie. Embezzling, allowing someone else to be convicted for her crimes, absolutely no repentance other than "boo hoo my husband died and my son is an ass, so I did what I did" and everyone was like "awww omg I'm so sorry that's ok, it's fine" and yeah, that left a bad taste in my mouth. THERE WAS EVIDENCE why didn't anyone look into it? *throws hands up in disgust*

Overall, I liked this one more than the first, but every bit as good as the 4th (which I read last Halloween) and I know book 3, A Palette for Murder will be a lot of fun to read next month for Book Club.

If you don't know who Hans Holzer is, he was one of the first "ghost hunters" and had a prolific career.  A few years ago, TRVL channel released The Holzer Files paranormal tv show and I loved it so much, I had to start reading through his works.  I picked this one up because I love Holzer's writing style but this one didn't live up to the Holzer name.  All the entries were very brief and really, not very mysterious.  But I did enjoy the trivia and travels, so while this book wasn't all that I was hoping for, it was a good read

Just...okay.   I like this series and I love the characters, but the plot surrounding the reality show turned me off (i’m really not into that stuff) and it was just a matter of hashing in rehashing over and over and the murderer wasn’t really caught so much as just randomly admitted to the murder. I enjoyed the read, but I’m a little disappointed that it wasn’t as captivating as the earlier books in the series are. So, just three stars