Candy Slain Murder, by Maddie Day

Candy Slain Murder by Maddie Day 

My rating: 3 of 5 stars, I liked it.

Book 8 in the series.

It's Christmas time in South Lick.

I really like this series. For one thing, Robbie actually spends time at her business, not just snooping around. And Robbie is likeable, and a down to earth person who genuinely cares for her friends.

This book had an old murder, a new murder and a mysterious stranger too. All in all, it had an interesting plot, and I was really hoping that the stranger turned out to have honest motives, so I wasn't disappointed.

My one complaint is the amount of local slang used. Do people in Indiana really talk like this all the time? I grew up in the Midwest and we might have had some local slang, but for the most part just talked like normal. This quirky addition kind of makes all the local folks feel a bit too "local yokel" and I find it distracts from the story.

All in all, I liked it and I look forward to seeing Robbie and South Lick again soon.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via, NetGalley*

View all my reviews

Death on the Green, by Catie Murphy

Death on the Green by Catie Murphy
My rating: 1 of 5 stars, I was disappointed with this book and the series.

Book 2 in the series.

This series has been a huge disappointment. I love the author's Urban Fantasy series, but this just left me bored to tears. It's a shame too, because there's not a lot of LGBTQ+ represented in the Cozy genre, so Megan could have been ground breaking, instead she was just blah. And some of the situations she was placed in were actually bordering on icky. Dressing up so a client can oogle you? She's a limo driver, not a sex worker.

It took me days to finish this book as I kept putting it down for something else every time I got bored or annoyed with the characters/plot.

I gave both books in the series a try, but I think I'm done. I'll stick with re-reading the author's Urban Shaman series instead.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via, NetGalley*


View all my reviews

Little Bookshop of Murder, by Maggie Blackburn

Little Bookshop of Murder by Maggie Blackburn 

My rating: 1 of 5 stars. The author put me off almost immediately. DNF.

Book 1 in the series.

This book had all kinds of good things going for it, a bookstore at the beach? I'm there.

Unfortunately, I just couldn't get into this book. The main character was kind of a condescending ass, (and frankly, by extension, the author as well) going so far as to mention that she teaches "real literature" and that most other books are just fluff. Umm, that's why we're reading your new cozy, author. We like fluff and we don't need you to talk down to us through your main character!

I pretty much put the book down right after that and called it DNF.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via, NetGalley*

View all my reviews

Murder in a Bayou Boneyard, by Ellen Byron

Murder in the Bayou Boneyard by Ellen Byron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars, I really liked it.

Book 6 in the series.

It's Halloween in Pelican, y'all! The Crozats are doing Halloween right with several other plantation B&Bs, celebrating Pelican's spooky past, in an effort to drum up business. What they don't plan on is a rougarou terrorizing tourists and locals alike.

There's a lot going on in this book, from a visit from long lost Crozat family members to a business stealing vacation rental app to wedding planning for a double wedding. Throw in several murders and the action doesn't ever stop. This was a fast, fun, read and I didn't put it down again until I finished.

As usual, Maggie and the rest of the Crozat crew are super fun to visit and really make me want to visit Cajun county in person if the world ever returns to "normal." Until then, I will look forward to visiting virtually with more Cajun Country mysteries!

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via, NetGalley*


View all my reviews

Checked Out For Murder, by Allison Brook

Checked Out for Murder by Allison Brook 

My rating: 2 of 5 stars, it was just okay.

Book 4 in the series.

This series has everything I would normally love, a library, a ghost, a cat and a mystery. Unfortunately, it also has characters I don't love. The main character, Carrie, was especially annoying in this book, and the mystery was quite slow to unwind.

This may be the last book I read in this series.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via, NetGalley*



View all my reviews

For Whom the Book Tolls, by Laura Gail Black

For Whom the Book Tolls by Laura Gail Black 

My rating: 2 of 5 stars, it was okay.

Book 1 in a new series.

In a typical first, we meet the main character, Jenna, as she stumbles upon a murder. We learn about her as the book goes on. I had trouble connecting with Jenna, she doesn't come off as super likeable. And the bully police detective didn't help me like the book any more. Too bad, because I love bookstores and this should be a wonderful series.

I'm going to chalk most of the issues up to being first in the series and hope that subsequent books are more likeable.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided to me by the publisher, via NetGalley*

View all my reviews