Out of Nowhere, by Susan Dunlap

Out of Nowhere: A Zen Mystery Set in San Francisco by Susan Dunlap

My rating: 3 of 5 stars, I liked it.
#7 in a Series.

Darcy is back! This time, trouble has come after her newly returned brother Mike. What was Mike up to in the 20 years he was missing? How well does Darcy really know the brother she adored?

This story is as full of twists and turns as the streets of San Francisco as Darcy digs into Mike's past to find out who wants to hurt him, and why.

It did take me a few chapters to get into, but then I was hooked. From hit and run attempts to gas leaks to actual murder, this book's got it going non-stop.

Hopefully, Ms. Dunlap won't make us wait too long for the next book!

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.*


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A Tough Nut to Kill, by Elizabeth Lee

A Tough Nut to Kill by Elizabeth Lee
My rating: 1 of 5 stars, Did not finish.

First in a series. Pen name for Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli.

"I was already steeped in the heavenly smell of baking pecan pies and pecan drop cookies when I hurried down, worried, from my apartment over the Nut House, the store our family owned, to find my meemaw, Amelia Hastings, known to everybody in Riverville, Texas, as Miss Amelia, behind the counter, embroiled in her weekly tussle with Ethelred Tomroy."

Holy run-on sentence, Batman! Take a breath! That's your introduction to the book. The very first sentence. One word to describe this book? Wordy.

That first sentence/paragraph set the tone for the entire book for me. I just couldn't get past it. Or the very next one, which was almost as long. It only stopped to tell you that the speaker stopped to take a breath, haha. The entire book was like that. Loooooooooooong sentence, short sentence, looooooooooooooooooooong run-on sentence. Distracting. Enough so I couldn't get past the first chapter, so I never did get to the mystery.

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Reining in Murder, by Leigh Hearon

Reining in Murder by Leigh Hearon

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


First in a series.

Horse trainer and rescuer, Annie Carson gets called to a fatal traffic accident to take care of a horse that survived. A horse that ends up being the only witness to a murder.

I love the animal aspect, Annie obviously really cares about them. My one complaint is that like a lot of animal activists, she tends to treat animals better than she treats the people around her. For a 43 year old woman, Annie comes off a bit immature (her reaction to the murder victim's husband was a little bit high school, haha) and a little thin-skinned.

The mystery part was interesting enough, and Annie's attitude improved toward the end of the book, though she was still a bit... smug, I guess is the best word.

Hopefully in book 2 the author will round out the characters a bit, smooth off some of the rough edges, make Annie a little bit more likable. Luckily, I won't have that long a wait, since book 2 comes out in October.
 



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Kernel of Truth, by Kristi Abbott

Kernel of Truth by Kristi Abbott

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


First in a series.

I was skeptical about this book. The cozy market is flooded with books about any tiny niche you can think of, and a popcorn shop was never on my radar. And I confess, I don't like popcorn. But this book surprised me.

The Whodunnit was a bit predictable, I had that part figured out from nearly the beginning, but I didn't completely know the why, so it was still a fun read. I love Sprocket and his human, Rebecca, isn't bad either, though she did come off as a bit immature. But I will say that if we never see Rebecca's ex again, that will be fine with me.

I will definitely be waiting for the next book in the series.



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Reading binge

I've been on a bit of a binge lately.  I'm going to have to stop soon and get my thoughts down for some reviews.

Reading List:
Reining in Murder, by Leigh Hearon
Kernel of Truth, by Kristi Abbott
Hearse and Gardens, by Kathleen Bridge
A Story to Kill, by Lynn Cahoon (NetGalley)
Out of Nowhere, by Susan Dunlap (NetGalley)

And those are just the ones that I have read (or am still actively reading) in the last week!  The TBR pile on my coffee table doesn't seem to be getting any shorter.  And we won't talk about all the books waiting on my Kindle...

There are a few more books on NetGalley I would love to request, but I have 3 more books on my new shelf to read, so I am holding off on requesting anything more until I have at least finished a few and left reviews.

By the way, the sock I was knitting on during the Readathon?  It's about to hit the frog pond.  After 2.5 repeats, I realized that the blasted chart in the pattern is not only upside down, but reads from right to left as well.  *Sigh*  This is why I usually hate charts. I shall be stealing a sheet of graph paper from my daughter and re-writing it before I start again.

Success!

I may not have made it all 24 hours, but the hourly Challenges I could join in on were great fun, and I did get a lot of reading done (a dead washing machine and a trip to the laundromat helped a bit there, even if I am still not happy about the washing machine part!).

I got finished:
Last Wool and Testament, by Molly MacRae
Dead End Street, by Sheila Connolly (review to be posted soon-ish, it's already up on Goodreads).
Pleating for Mercy, by Melissa Bourbon

I started Kernel of Truth, by Kristi Abbott and Hearse and Gardens, by Kathleen Bridge (What?  They're in different rooms of the house, bedroom versus living room reads, haha).

I did NOT finish knitting my sock  Knitting and being tired does not mix, so I just read more instead.

Thanks very much to Franz Chapman for pulling the Readathon together and to all the authors who donated both items and their time for things like Q&As.  You all ROCK!

Hour 12!

Challenge: find cozies that have certain attributes:

a cozy set in a beach town- Lynn Cahoon, Tourist Trap mysteries

a cozy that includes recipes- Cleo Coyle, Coffeehouse mysteries

a cozy that has a ghost in it- Molly MacRae, Haunted Yarn Shop

a cozy where the protagonist is a business owner- Duffy Brown, Cycle Path Mysteries

a cozy that has a color in a book title or series name- Blood Orange, China Bayles series, Susan Wittig Albert

a cozy with a cat(s) that have special abilities- Sofie Kelly, Magical Cats

Readathon

They're still going strong @SaveOurCozies #Readathon! 

Me, I took a bit of a nap around 3:30 am, but I was back at it by 7.  But now I have to put the books down and deal with a broken washing machine for a bit.  *Crossing my fingers that it's an easy & reasonable fix*

I'm in the middle of Dead End Street, by Sheila Connolly.  It feels more cozy then mystery at the moment.  Nell was involved in a drive by shooting in which one woman is killed, but so far she's more focused on the epiphany she had after her near death experience than on finding the shooter.

Despite that, I am enjoying the book.  The characters are always fun to visit with.

Hour 3

I'm still listening to Molly MacRae's Last Wool and Testament, "The colors and textures displayed in the windows and the enticing glimpses of more skeins and fibers farther in lured even the most resolute," and any one who knows fiber crafters knows, we're not all that resolute, haha.

That sentence is actually what first hooked me on the Haunted Yarn Shop series, I wanted to move into the Weaver's Cat, lock, stock and barrel ;)

I love books that combine crafts with mysteries, and if that craft has to do with yarn?  I'm all over it! 

Hour One

Listening to Molly MacRae's Last Wool & Testament as I knit on my sock.  Up next (when I am too tired to knit and in danger of dropping stitches) is Melissa Bourbon's Pleating for Mercy on my Kindle.

My companion for the night is Mortimer Moose.  He's soft, and he doesn't hog the couch!

And so it begins.

Well, soon anyway.  Because the @SaveOurCozies #Readathon starts at Midnight!  I will be all over the place, Twitter (@Morticia_Hills), Facebook, and here.  No idea what I will have to say, but I will be reading (and listening) to some old favorites who have all been impacted by the recent Berkley cuts:
Melissa Bourbon - Magical Dressmaking series
Molly MacRae - Haunted Yarn Shop series
Christy Fifield - Haunted Souvenir series
Paige Shelton - Farmer's Market series

and more, maybe?  I have more ready to go, if needed.  I have a sock on my knitting needles to knit while I listen (or not, knitting while tired is a bad thing for me!), snacks and plenty of water.  There is always coffee to be had if necessary, and I'm about to start a pitcher of iced tea brewing, though that will likely be what keeps me moving tomorrow during the day.

Edited to add: Ok, so I won't really be all over the place.  I am mostly doing Twitter & a few posts here.

Unwanted, by Jennifer Estep

Unwanted by Jennifer Estep

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


Novella, #14.5 in the Elemental Assassin series, follows after the events in Bitter Bite. Not a stand alone story, as it's full of spoilers if you haven't read Bitter Bite.

This short is told from Finn's point of view. He's feeling extremely guilty for falling for his mother's con in Bitter Bite and the events that happened as a result. His co-workers blame him as well, leaving Finn feel unwanted.

Finn's boss puts Finn in the path of one of the victims' widow and he realizes that something is off and he owes it to her and her late husband to fix it.

This was a good, quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed. It's always fun to see things from another character's point of view, and I, like many readers, love Finn.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.*

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A Dark and Stormy Murder, by Julia Buckley

A Dark and Stormy Murder by Julia Buckley
My rating: 2 of 5 stars, it was OK.

First in a series.

I had high hopes for this book, looking at all the 5 star reviews (though frankly there are some reviewers out there who seem to give everything 5 stars...), so I am kind of disappointed.

What I liked: The main characters. I like Lena and Camilla. They clicked for me.

What I didn't like: We were threatened with a love triangle.

What I did like: It was resolved at the end of the book, rather than left to drag on, and on, and on...

What I didn't like: This was a big one. Enough that I bumped the rating to a 2 star. The mystery within the mystery was interesting, but the ending pissed me off. Mystery partly solved, but now it's a bigger mystery and it might as well have, "To Be Continued" at the end of the book.

I'm sorry, but I find "cliff-hanger" endings to be a cheap money grab. Worried your series might not continue? Need to insure that the reader picks up the next book? Leave the ending open! The reader won't mind waiting nearly a year to find out what happens next, right? Yes, yes, I will mind. A lot. Previous series that have done this have lost me for good, (I'm looking at you, Debbie Macomber!) doing exactly this.

This series has now been relegated to my library list. I will pick up the next book, and give it a chance, but I'm not paying for it.

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Éclair and Present Danger, by Laura Bradord

Éclair and Present Danger by Laura Bradford

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

Book 1 in a new series.

Was this a mystery or a romance? There was a murder at the start, though it really gets swept under the rug for the most part, as the main character spends most of her time pulling together a new business and keeping her friends from pushing her at the first man available. And can I say for the record, the attitude of her friends, that she couldn't possibly be happy without a man in her life, really bugged the crap out of me the entire book?

I liked the premise (though starting a home baking business pretty much overnight seems a stretch, and if Winnie couldn't afford to keep her bakery open, where'd she get the money to kit out her ambulance?), it's a fun idea, even if most of the names of the desserts were on the corny side. And I liked Winnie. I mostly liked the rest of the characters, but found them to be a bit behind the times, shall we say. Even Renee, a young divorced mom, pushes men at Winnie, constantly. And we get that Lovey the cat doesn't really like Winnie. Enough already.

All in all, it's better than the previous book I read by the author, the first in her Amish mystery series, which was all too predictable, stereotypical and implausible. I will give book 2 a chance. But the mystery really needs boosting. Even if it's a cozy, the mystery still needs to be front and center. Less about Winnie's dating life and more "who done it?" And I didn't figure out who the killer was until the very end, purely because the killer was barely a blip in the book! And then Winnie has one of those too stupid to live moments that made me want to slap her.



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Kilt at the Highland Games, by Kaitlyn Dunnet

Kilt at the Highland Games by Kaitlyn Dunnett

My rating: A rare 4 out of 5 stars


Book #10 in the series. 

I've missed a few of the previous books in the series, so I'm going to say you can read it as a stand-alone story without feeling lost. The author gives enough background detail to allow the new reader to feel at home, without being repetitive for long time readers.

I absolutely enjoyed this one. The Highland Games are back in Moosetookalook and Liss MacCrimmon Ruskin, owner of the Scottish Emporium shop, is getting ready for it when the bookstore across the street from her home burns down and the family that lives there disappears. More mayhem follows, and the family's disappearance has to take a back seat to murder.

It's always nice to visit Moosetookalook and check in with Liss, her friends and family. The characters are well-developed and (mostly) likable. And the plot keeps the reader interested and anxious to find out what happens next.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.*



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The Quilt Design Coloring Workbook: 91 Modern Art--Inspired Designs and Exercises by Thomas Knauer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I'm new to sewing, looking to get into quilting, so new quilting books always catch my eye.

This one even more so, as it has, "more than 90 full-page ready-to-color design prompts invite quilters to try new color combinations and pattern experiments," as they create their own modern quilt. I'm more of a traditionalist, but I loved the bright colors and the different use of space and shapes.

There's art history, color theory, how to use space and balance (or not) and most fun of all, a lot of coloring to do! If you want to try designing your own non-traditional quilt, this is the book for you.

This ARC was provided to me by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review



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Haunted Bridges, by Rich Newman

Haunted Bridges: Over 300 of America's Creepiest Crossings by Rich Newman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I love ghost stories, and this book didn't disappoint, in that it was filled with them. I kind of wish the author had presented fewer stories, in more detail.

I liked the layout, with each type of haunting receiving its own chapter, ie. hangings/lynchings, suicide bridges, crime scenes, etc. But there's only a short snippet about each bridge and the location. The book actually seems more like a haunted tour guide, encouraging the reader to go see the sites for themselves. The layout made it easy for me to put it down for a while and then come back to it when I had a little bit of time to read.

It was interesting enough, and I enjoyed the book, but don't go into it expecting a series of blood-chilling tales, it's more a factual reciting than a series of spooky stories.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in return for an honest review*



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Shots in the Dark, by Allyson K. Abbott

Shots in the Dark by Allyson K. Abbott

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Book 4 in a series.

I like Mack and her buddies, and I like the premise that Mack has a little extra something that she uses to help solve crimes with her bar buddies. They make for a fun read.

This time around, Mack and her friends are trying to help a wrongly convicted man. It was an interesting plot, and moved right along. The secondary plot is more of a cliffhanger, designed to get the reader to come back for the next book(s). I'm not a fan, cliffhangers feel like a money grab and I've actually stopped reading series that try them in the past. The previous book annoyed the heck out of me and this one isn't much better.

My other issue with this book is that I have never been a fan of the love triangle trope. I need Mack to make up her mind, NOW. Mack either wants to be with Duncan (the guy she's actually dating) or she wants to be with Mal, the other guy she's attracted to. The waffling gets on my nerves and really detracts from the story for me.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.



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Die Like an Eagle, by Donna Andrews

Die Like an Eagle by Donna Andrews

My rating: 4 of 5 stars(4.5 stars, really!)

I have to start by saying, I love Ms. Andrews' Meg Langslow series. When I saw the book on NetGalley I was super excited. I honestly try to wait until closer to publishing date to read the ARCs I am given. Die Like an Eagle comes out Aug. 2, I was approved early on June 9. By the end of the day I had finished it, because I could not put it down! Lucky for me, Blogger allows me to schedule publication of this post to a little closer to publication date.

First off, can you believe this is book 20 in the series? And I still can't read one without laughing out loud. This time, Meg and her eccentric family are involved with a coach-pitch Summerball team. But before they and the rest of the Summerball league can enjoy opening day, the annoying league president's look-a-like half brother ends up murdered and stuffed in a porta-potty. Meg quickly figures out that more than that stinks, as she looks into the president's business practices and relationships.

As always, Meg's family provides amusement, if mostly in the background for this book. But the laughs were still plenty and the story kept moving, with never a dull moment. If you haven't read the series, this one can be read as a stand alone story. However, it's worth going back and starting at the beginning, Murder With Peacocks, you won't be sorry you did.

*I was given an ARC of this book by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review*

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The Bluebonnet Betrayal, by Marty Wingate

The Bluebonnet Betrayal: A Potting Shed Mystery by Marty Wingate

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Book 5 in a series.

An American ex-pat in England, Pru Parke, is temporarily tasked with over-seeing the Austin Rock Garden Society as they bring a Texas Bluebonnet themed display to the Chelsea Flower Show. Once the head of the ARGS, Twyla Woodford, can get there she'll take over. But when Twyla finally arrives, Pru's relief is short lived, as the next morning Pru finds Twyla dead in their display.

This book can be read as a stand alone, but I think I would have enjoyed it a little more had I read the previous books. However, the main characters are well developed and likeable. The Texas garden crew, not so likeable, as they don't really seem interested in the work involved setting up the display, but are more into playing tourist. They don't really seem to have cared much for Twyla, either. The small local crew set up by Twyla all seem to have a personal tie to the victim, giving them possible motives.

Pru and her husband, Christopher, a retired police detective, must work together to find out who killed Twyla and why.

All in all, a good read. All books in the series are only available as ebooks, but are very reasonably priced.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.



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