Month: October 2017

Ghost on the Case: A Bailey Ruth Ghost Novel by Carolyn Hart

Ghost on the Case (Bailey Ruth #8)

Bailey Ruth Raeburn is back, racing against the Heavenly clock in an all-new mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of Ghost Times Two.

Bailey Ruth finds herself comforting a distraught sister when she’s sent to Adelaide, Oklahoma, on her latest mission. Susan Gilbert receives a $100,000 ransom demand for her younger sibling. When the caller wants Susan to pay a visit to her wealthy boss and take the cash from his safe, Bailey Ruth follows Susan to the home. But she finds herself in a quandary, knowing that robbery is hardly a Heavenly pursuit.

While Susan waits to hear back from the kidnappers, Bailey Ruth attempts to piece together how the criminals targeted Susan and how they know about her boss’s money. At a luncheon the previous week, Susan’s boss asked her to open the safe so all the attendees knew it was filled with cash. Could one of the rich man’s closest confidants be behind the abduction?

Bailey Ruth is positive she can use her detective skills to figure out which luncheon guest arranged the kidnapping. But an unexpected twist in the case soon has Bailey Ruth seeking a murderer who has plans to send more victims to the great beyond…

Bailey Ruth is back! As an emissary from the Good Intentions Department of Heaven, Bailey Ruth is assigned Susan’s case. And quite the mystery this is. As Bailey tries very hard ( okay maybe not too hard) to stay behind the scenes and not appear to anyone, she tries to gather clues and facts about everyone who was at the luncheon and if they had a motive to murder!

Bailey Ruth is just a fun character. Even when she has trouble with remembering the precepts of her office. It’s just a fun read.

I also noticed on this same day last year I reviewed the 7th book in this series! This is the 8th.

Out Now!    xx Patricia

THE QUICHE AND THE DEAD BY Kirsten Weiss ( A Pie Town Mystery #1)

The Quiche and the Dead (Pie Town Mystery #1)

Is Val’s breakfast pie the quiche of death? Owning her own business seemed like pie in the sky to Valentine Harris when she moved to the coastal California town of San Nicholas, expecting to start a new life with her fiance. Five months–and a broken engagement–later, at least her dream of opening a pie shop has become a reality. But when one of her regulars keels over at the counter while eating a quiche, Val feels like she’s living a nightmare. After the police determine the customer was poisoned, business at Pie Town drops faster than a fallen crust. Convinced they’re both suspects, Val’s flaky, seventy-something pie crust maker Charlene drags her boss into some amateur sleuthing. At first Val dismisses Charlene’s half-baked hypotheses, but before long the ladies uncover some shady dealings hidden in fog-bound San Nicholas. Now Val must expose the truth–before a crummy killer tries to shut her pie hole.

Oh my! An entire shop of pie. A dream come true. Val has poured everything she has into Pie Town, even going so far as sleeping in the tiny back room.

When good friend of the shops dies in his booth after some quiche, fingers are pointed and Val doesn’t think the police are taking this as seriously as they should.

Against her better judgement, she follows Charlene down a rabbit hole of investigations, conspiracy theories and narcoleptic cats. All for the chance to nab a real killer and get business going back in Pie Town. Plus Charlene just may hold the answer to her living situation so she lets herself get sucked into Charlene’s outlandish stakeouts and plans.

I liked Val a lot. Not so much on the ex! What a jerk! The combination of Val and the elderly Charlene chasing criminals and stumbling over bodies works. And it’s a good thing it does, because this little town is full of liars, schemers and killers!

I’m looking forward to the next one already. And some more of the hunky cop!

Netgalley/Kensington   Release Date: October 31st.

 

Don’t Tell A Soul by D.K.Hood

Don't Tell a Soul (Detectives Kane and Alton #1)

Small town. Big crimes. Dark secrets.
A wave of panic rushed over her as her heart pounded hard enough to break her ribs. ‘Not a soul knows where I am,’ she thought as she took in the darkness around her. 

Sheriff Jenna Alton and her deputy David Kane arrive in the town of Black Rock Falls, each hoping to escape their past for a new beginning. But instead, they find a town living in terror, and a killer on the loose…

Samantha Woodward was last seen driving towards Black Rock Falls to buy a house for her family. They haven’t heard from her since, and they fear for her life.

John Helms headed to town to watch a big game, but nobody knows if he made it or not. He was never seen again.

When a body is found, and Jenna’s life is threatened, she and her deputy become caught in a race against time to find a brutal killer, and to unlock the secret that lies at the dark heart of the town before it is too late…

This was a fast paced thriller with a tight timeline. Small towns harboring horrific secrets. And some grisly murders.

I had some issues with the main characters. When we first meet Sheriff Jenna Alton, someone has slammed into her cruiser and left her spinning in the snow. When a face shows up at the window she isn’t aware the man coming to her rescue is her new Deputy Sheriff Kane.

She is strong, former FBI undercover, a woman who has been given a new identity and plopped down in a tiny Montana town after her partner was killed by the drug kingpin she testified against. She is a strong, capable officer and woman.

It seemed like when she met Kane, she turned into a simpering female who was now leaving her alarms off, her curtains open and not carrying her phone. Helpless. Until he rushes in to rescue her from certain death.

I was all prepared for a crime thriller with a strong female lead and that’s not what I got.

Netgalley/Bookouture October 30th release.

Nora Roberts and The Dirt Road Dixie Roadshow!

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Saturday! I’m so glad you finally got here! There are a gazillion Fall Festivals today. But before that can begin, it’s Nora Roberts time! At Full Circle Books today so head on over and meet her and other great authors!

If you can make it check out the Dirt Road Dixie Roadshow featuring Pop Up Shops. Shopping, Eating, stuff for the kids and the pets! On Garth Brooks Blvd. in Yukon!

xx Patricia

 

 

Seashells,Spells and Caramels: Book 1 of the Spells and Caramels Cozy Witch Mystery Series by Erin Johnson

Seashells, Spells & Caramels (Spells & Caramels #1)

Imogen’s spent her twenties in Seattle, saving every penny and missing every party, to follow her dream of opening her own bakery.

When that dream goes up in flames, she accepts a spot in a mysterious baking contest—one she doesn’t remember entering. She travels to a bustling, medieval village off the coast of France and discovers an enchanting world of magic and mystery, and learns that she, too, possesses powers.

Unable to so much as cast a spell, Imogen struggles to keep up with the other witches and wizards who have come from all over the magical world to the Water Kingdom’s big competition. She juggles relationships with a sweet new friend, a snarky baking fire, and a brooding, handsome baker. As Imogen falls for this bewitching world, she fears she won’t master her magic in time to win the job of Royal Head Baker, and will be forced to return to the shambles of her non magical life.

It only gets worse, when a competitor drops dead in the middle of the big white baking tent, and Imogen’s the prime suspect. Now, she’ll not only have to survive the vampire and psychic judges, but also clear her name by finding the real murderer, before they strike again.
With a killer on the loose, a missing prince, and the Summer Solstice Festival fast approaching, Imogen will have to bake like her life depends on it- because it just might.

 

I don’t usually accept author requests. But when the author contacted me about this one, I thought well, the cover is cute and Imogene sounds like an interesting character so I gave it a read. And I really enjoyed it!

Full of quirky characters with different magical powers that they have had a long time to hone, Imogene is just discovering she has some pretty special abilities as well. She just has no idea how to use them!

With a little help and advice, she finally makes friends with her fire and gets to baking. When one of the contestants is murdered, Imogene needs to make sure her name is clear and that the contest continues. Imogene has no back up plan, its win the contest or back to her boring and unfulfilling life.

Magic and Baked Goods? Yes, sign me up. This was a fun read. When you read hard-core fiction and non-fiction regularly, a story such as this sweeps all the drama away and just leaves you smiling and laughing.

Well Done Ms. Johnson!  This book will be available on the 29th of this month.

 

 

 

 

 

Freddy and Jason and Michael and More!

Looking for some spooky reads this month? All of these look good to me. I’ve read Hell House, all the Anne Rice books, The Halloween Tree and Red Hill. All appropriately hellish.

It’s Thursday so back to work we go. Thunder game was awesome last night and we won. We woke up to Cold. I don’t know what degree of cold, but enough to send me back to the covers of my beloved bed. They say it should creep into the 70’s by afternoon. They also say Saturday night it’s going to freeze. I’m going to be in denial about that, just like last year. And it worked out just fine.

There were so many great reads that came out in October and November is going to be a big month too. So reading is the plan for the rest of the day.

I hope you are enjoying your day and if you aren’t happy where you are…move. You aren’t a tree.

xx Patricia

 

 

The Lost Child by Patricia Gibney

The Lost Child (Detective Lottie Parker, #3)

They placed me in here and threw away the key. I look down at the gown they’ve put on me. I want my own clothes. I don’t know how long I’ve been here.

An elderly woman is found murdered in her own home, and Detective Lottie Parker and her partner Detective Boyd are called in to investigate. When they discover that the victim’s daughter is missing as well, they start to fear for the safety of the whole family…

Two days later as a nearby house is set on fire and with the body count rising, Lottie and her team begin to unpick a web of secrets and lies, as the murders seem to link back to a case investigated by Lottie’s father before he took his own life.

With little knowledge of what really happened to her father, Lottie knows this is a case that could give her some answers. But how much does she want to know? And how far is Lottie prepared to dig to uncover the truth?

This is the third book in the series with DI Parker. Lottie. Lottie has more issues than Vogue. With three kids and one grandson at home and Lottie working crazy cop hours and her husband dead, drinking and popping pills is just one of the many things in her life she is trying to get under control. And she is trying.

When she and Boyd catch this case nothing about it makes sense. There are so many twists and turns and What?? moments in this one I’m surprised I didn’t get whiplash!

Once I started this one I had to finish it. I had to find out if we are finally going to get to see Lottie with her head on straight, the truth about her father’s death, maybe a little romance along the way. And I was not disappointed. Shocked? Oh yes!

This one will keep you on the edge and trying to figure out who is a killer and who is just plain crazy.  And as it goes in life, secrets kept always come to light and Lottie may not want to know some of these secrets.

Well Done!

Netgalley/Bookouture  October 27, 2017

Bones To Pick, A Brie Hooker Mystery by Linda Lovely *Release Day Tuesday*

:Bones to Pick, A Brie Hooker Mystery #1 by Linda Lovely

Poor Brie! A Vegan on a goat farm!  This was a first for me with this author. Now that I know she also has another suspense series, it won’t be the last.

With a cast of characters that include Brie, the vegan chef, and her twin aunts who own the Udderly Kidding Dairy, her mom and dad, the handsome vet, the hot moonshine seller, the interesting Mollye ( with an e) this southern mystery was a very fun read.

The characters are well-developed and all had strong presences. The story begins as one of the aunts unexpectedly dies. Brie moves in with her Aunt Eva to help her with the farm and we don’t have to wait long for the bodies!

At the funeral a skull is unearthed by a pot-bellied pig and the action is non-stop from there.

Brie has her hands full trying to clear her aunts name and keep up with hundreds of goats while she tries to keep from getting killed!

I can’t wait for the next one in this series.

Netgalley/HeneryPress/Release Date is October 24, 2017

Don’t Let Go by Harlan Coben

Don't Let Go by [Coben, Harlan]

Synopsis:

With unmatched suspense and emotional insight, Harlan Coben explores the big secrets and little lies that can destroy a relationship, a family, and even a town in this powerful new thriller.

Suburban New Jersey Detective Napoleon “Nap” Dumas hasn’t been the same since senior year of high school, when his twin brother Leo and Leo’s girlfriend Diana were found dead on the railroad tracks—and Maura, the girl Nap considered the love of his life, broke up with him and disappeared without explanation. For fifteen years, Nap has been searching, both for Maura and for the real reason behind his brother’s death. And now, it looks as though he may finally find what he’s been looking for.

When Maura’s fingerprints turn up in the rental car of a suspected murderer, Nap embarks on a quest for answers that only leads to more questions—about the woman he loved, about the childhood friends he thought he knew, about the abandoned military base near where he grew up, and mostly about Leo and Diana—whose deaths are darker and far more sinister than Nap ever dared imagine.

Harlan Coben is a master of this genre. His characters are one of the things that I love about his writing. They are all painfully human and real. Nat is a good one.

When Maura’s fingerprints turn up in a rental car, with a dead cop on the street. A dead cop who also was part of their high school group, Nat wants to know what’s going on and goes to the only real friend he has, Augie, whose daughter died with Nat’s brother.

Nat is completely clueless as to what happened but he knows people are dying and they all have one thing in common. You’ll have to read it to find out that one!

Nat is determined to find out what happened that night, no matter what the consequences. And trust me there are plot twists everywhere you look. As usual once I started the book I read it straight through while biting my fingernails.

There isn’t a whole lot I can say about Mr. Coben. I’ve read every one of his books and watched his ‘The Five’ on Sky TV. It’s also now available on Netflix and it is so good I’ve watched it three times.  How did I watch it on Sky when I live in the US? Well that’s when you have good friends who will Skype you and let you watch!

Great Sunday to read a Thriller and this a good one to start! Oh and guess who makes a guest appearance in this book? Yep! Myron!!