Belinda Blake and the Snake in the Grass (An Exotic Pet-Sitter Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Lyrical Underground (June 25, 2019)
Paperback: 192 pages

Synopsis

When exotic pet-sitter Belinda Blake moves into a carriage house in tony Greenwich, Connecticut, she’s hoping to find some new clients. Instead she discovers a corpse in the garden—and a knack for solving murders . . .

Pet-sitter Belinda Blake doesn’t rattle easily, but move-in day has been eventful, to say the least. The python in her care tried to slither to freedom—just as she met Stone Carrington V, her landlords’ disarmingly handsome son. With the constrictor back in its cage, she heads out to the garden, only to discover a designer shoe poking out of the boxwood hedge—attached to a woman’s dead body.

The victim, Margo Fenton, was a Carrington family friend, and no one in their circle seems above suspicion. Between client trips to Manhattan and visits to her family in upstate New York, Belinda begins to put the pieces together. But though she’s falling for Stone’s numerous charms, Belinda wonders if she’s cozying up to a killer. And soon, daily contact with a deadly reptile might be the least dangerous part of her life . . .

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Review

What a way to start a new series – red herrings galore, hidden killers, and mysterious motives.  All of these lead to an unexpected ending.

Exotic pet sitter – someone has to do it and Belinda is up to the task.  While we learn a little bit about her past, she seems quite happy not being stuck in a traditional type job and is building up a pet sitting business for those pets that traditional pet sitters may not want to take on, like a ball python snake.  I can’t even imagine taking care of  snake, but I suppose it helps that Belinda’s father is a veterinarian and she probably grew up around various types of animals.

Belinda has just moved into a cottage on a larger estate in Greenwich and she is barely there a day when she discovers a dead body.  Most people would probably move out faster than the Energizer Bunny, but she takes it all in stride and starts to investigate alongside Stone the Fifth, the son of the manor.  I was surprised at how quickly Stone and Belinda seemed to connect to start investigating the murder, it seemed like that part of the story was rushed.  That said, Stone and Belinda make a great team and play well off of each other around potential suspects and witnesses.

Speaking of suspects….I think I briefly suspected the killer but not long enough for this character to stay in the “guilty box”.  In fact, I strongly suspected another character and was taken by surprise when the ending came about and the killer was revealed.  The author does a great job of throwing multiple characters under the bus as suspects and hiding the true one.

There is a little bit of potential romance between Belinda and Stone, but there is also another character, Jonas, that might come into play as well.  However, Jonas lives by her parents in upstate New York so not sure how that might work out considering the distance…but guess we will find out in the next book!

Overall we enjoyed this book and look forward to the second in this series.  We give this 4 paws up.

 

About the Author

Heather Day Gilbert, an ECPA Christy award finalist and Grace award winner, writes contemporary mysteries and Viking historicals. Her novels feature small towns, family relationships, and women who aren’t afraid to protect those they love. Like Belinda Blake, Heather plays video games, although so far she hasn’t done any exotic pet-sitting or hunted any murderers.

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Death by Dissertation (Cassandra Sato)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Nebraska
Emerald Prairie Press (April 17, 2019)
Paperback: 355 pages

Synopsis

Ambitious Cassandra Sato traded her life in Hawai’i for a dream position as Student Affairs VP at Morton College in tiny Carson, Nebraska. She expected the Midwestern church casseroles, land-locked cornfields, and face-freezing winters would be her biggest challenges, but it’s her job that’s rapidly becoming a nightmare.

A deaf student is dead and the investigation reveals a complicated trail of connections between campus food service, a local farmer’s beef, and the science lab’s cancer research. Together with her few allies, Cassandra must protect the students caught up in the entanglement.

Dealing with homesickness, vandalism, and a stalker, Cassandra is trapped in a public relations disaster that could cost her job, or more. No one said college was easy.

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Review

This was a good start to a new series about a woman from Hawaii that takes a job in Nebraska….now you have to be thinking like I was…are you kidding?  WHY?!  But later in the book, we learn why and the support she had to make the move to advance her career.  Of course, things aren’t going quite as she would have expected when a student is found dead on campus.  This book tells the journey of trying to solve the murder, keep her job, and stay alive.  Yes, you read that right, stay alive.  She has a stalker that means business.

This book is very detailed and I thought the author did a good job on character development and providing just enough information to keep the reader engaged but not so much detail that a reader might lose interest.  The mystery surprised me a little bit at the end but not too much.  There was something about this character that just stood out to me but I didn’t know this character was also the killer.  Just seemed like there was something off.

I felt for Cassandra and the prejudice she ran into in the smaller town of Carson, Nebraska.  Yes, she was different than the rest of the town but you would have hoped they would have embraced her and welcomed her diversity.  Perhaps in future books.

The book did seem to move at a slower pace until the end where it really picked up steam until the killer was revealed.  There are some comedic moments especially when she visits the farm to check on the cows wearing a suit and heels.  Someone should have told her to change clothes or at least shoes.

There are some potential love interests for Cassandra should she choose to let loose and live a little and not focus so much on her career.  Sure the career is important but so is living life.

The only strange thing I noted when reading this book was when Cassandra would slip into this Creole dialect.  I didn’t know that there was such a dialect as Hawaiian Creole but apparently so.  Some of the phrases were odd, especially when she mentioned getting “chicken skin”.  I can only assume she was referring to what most of us might call “goosebumps” but she did use goosebumps in the book so not really sure what she meant.  There is also 1 f* bomb in the book which surprised me as that is not a word commonly used in a cozy.

Overall we enjoyed the book and we give it 3 1/2 paws.

About the Author

Kelly Brakenhoff is an American Sign Language Interpreter whose motivation for learning ASL began in high school when she wanted to converse with her deaf friends. As an American Sign Language Interpreter with more than twenty years of experience, Kelly’s worked in college classrooms for fifteen different majors. From traipsing across muddy farm fields to stomach-churning medical procedures, and stage interpreting for famous figures, Kelly’s community interpreting interactions number in the thousands. Unfortunately, once she’s stepped away from the job, she usually forgets 90% of what happened. Which helps her keep confidential information safe, but also makes it really hard to grocery shop for more than 5 items without a written list.

Kelly wants to live in a world filled with peace, love, and joy, where people who can hear learn enough sign language to include deaf people in everyday conversations and work. Where every deaf child has early access to language and books with characters like them, and dark chocolate is cheap and plentiful.

When she’s not interpreting or writing, you can find Kelly cheering for her favorite Husker teams or training for half-marathons because she really likes dessert.

Her first mystery, Death by Dissertation, released April 22, 2019.

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Spirited Away (A Bay Island Psychic Mystery)
Paranormal Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Beyond the Page Publishing (May 16, 2019)
Paperback: 218 pages

Synopsis

In the new Bay Island Psychic Mystery, psychic Cass Donovan is thrown into the middle of a macabre murder she never saw coming . . .

With the summer tourist season on Bay Island in full swing, shop owner Cass Donovan barely has a minute to breathe, and things at Mystical Musings become even more hectic when a fight breaks out at one of her psychic readings. Shaken by the fracas and discouraged that her sixth sense seems to be on the blink, Cass is even more dispirited to learn that one of the men involved in the altercation was later found dead—and that a close friend of hers is the main suspect.

Desperate to help her friend prove his innocence and consumed by haunting visions, Cass follows the clues from one possible culprit to the next, including some very mysterious tourists and not a few questionable locals. And when the police turn to Cass to help them find out who committed the ghoulish deed, she knows she’ll have to tread carefully, because her next grim premonition may be her last .

 

Guest Post

Bay Island

The Bay Island Psychic Mystery series takes place on a small island nestled between the north and south forks of Long Island, New York. Although Bay Island is a fictional setting, it shares many characteristics with Long Island. The small farms Cass passes, the actual town of Bay Island, the beaches, and the lighthouses can be found throughout many small towns all over Long Island. Even the old, abandoned Madison Estate, a haunted mansion that makes an appearance in Death at First Sight but becomes the main focus of book two, Occult and Battery, is reminiscent of several old abandoned houses scattered across Long Island.

Like Long Island, Bay Island depends heavily on the tourist trade and the weekend visitors who fill the Long Island Rail Road cars and the Long Island Expressway every weekend all summer long. Unfortunately, come winter, tourists and weekend residents don’t visit as frequently, making the winter months more difficult for local business owners.

Because of its dependence on tourism, Bay Island is more impacted by the seasons than many areas, and each book in the series takes place during a different season. Each season brings its own, unique circumstances, which have a tremendous impact on the characters and the plot.

Book one, Death at First Sight, takes place during the fall, while tourists still visit and strangers in town are not uncommon. Traditions that are common to Long Island are mentioned throughout the story, such as driving out east on the north shore and visiting local farm stands for roasted corn and apple cider, apple picking, and pumpkin picking. The crunch of dead leaves beneath Cass’s feet becomes a major obstacle to overcome.

Book two, Occult and Battery, takes place during the winter. In an effort to increase her income when the tourist trade dies off, Cass sets up a psychic weekend, complete with séance, in the old, abandoned Madison Estate. Then a blizzard blows in, stopping ferry service to Bay Island, knocking out the electricity, and trapping Cass and her guests in the supposedly haunted mansion with a killer. The storm plays a major role in the plot, leaving behind deep snow, icy roads, and cutting Bay Island off from the rest of the world until ferry service can be restored. Even Cass’s dog, Beast, is affected by the snow, as Cass has to put off his much needed training until spring.

The third book in the series takes place in the spring, when tourists start to return to Bay Island and business finally starts to pick up. Shop owners begin to prepare for the mad rush of summer, and a new art gallery opens on the boardwalk. But the beaches are not yet crowded, as they will be during the summer months, so when strange things start happening while Cass is walking down the beach to Mystical Musings, no one is around to help. And when she and Beast stumble across a body in the dunes, Cass is on her own.

In the newest Bay Island Psychic Mystery, Spirited Away, summer has arrived on Bay Island, bringing throngs of tourists and a heat wave just as Cass’s air conditioning unit goes on the fritz. With everyone on edge because of the heat, Cass’s group reading goes drastically wrong, and one of her good friends ends up accused of murder.

The Bay Island Mystery series relies heavily on the seasons and the unique situations brought about by being set on an island that is close to civilization, relies heavily on the tourist trade, and yet is only accessible by ferry.

 

About the Author

Lena Gregory is the author of the Bay Island Psychic Mysteries, which take place on a small island between the north and south forks of Long Island, New York, the All-Day Breakfast Café Mysteries, which are set on the outskirts of Florida’s Ocala National Forest, and the Puzzle Solvers Mysteries, which take place in a small town on eastern Long Island.

Lena grew up in a small town on the south shore of eastern Long Island, where she still lives with her husband, three kids, son-in-law, and five dogs. Her hobbies include spending time with family, reading, jigsaw puzzles, and walking. Her love for writing developed when her youngest son was born and didn’t sleep through the night. She works full time as a writer and a freelance editor and is a member of Sisters in Crime.

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Giveaway

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Synopsis

-Houston, 1961
Texas’ slickest politician loses his presidential bid to a good-looking naval hero from Massachusetts. President Kennedy wants to put a man on the moon, and the Freedom Riders are raising morale for local civil rights activists.

Sleepy backwater Houston finds itself short on air conditioning just when things are heating up. In a seedy downtown office, a well-dressed out-of-towner hires P.I. Harry Lark to tail two D.C. visitors looking to build NASA a space center.

The more Harry finds, the more he suspects he’s working for the wrong side, and vows to wash his hands of the case. Meanwhile, Harry’s twelve-year-old daughter Dizzy is puzzling over a mystery of her own—she’s running a lost-and-found out of a suburban garage and is unexpectedly hired to find a missing dad who’s supposed to be dead and buried.

When Harry’s client turns up dead in his office, and mobsters start hounding him for cash, Harry realizes he needs all the help he can get—even if it comes from his daughter. As Harry and Dizzy’s cases converge, one thing is clear: someone wants Houston to look like a lawless Wild West Cowtown.
Together, Harry and Dizzy are going to find out who.

 

Review

If you like gritty PI books set in the 1960s when private investigators were a different breed, then this is a book you will want to pick up and read.

This book has all the characteristics of a Sam Shade novel but add in a 12 year old girl that is channeling Nancy Drew, the hot city of Houston, and the mafia and this all sets the scene for some fascinating reading.

The book switches POV from Harry to Dizzy.   At first it was a little confusing until I understood the relationship between the two and because the story would jump around in time a day or two based on the POV.  The stories intertwine and I enjoyed how the stories merged into one and that despite the times, Harry did not discourage Dizzy from doing what interested her, even shooting guns. This is Texas after all!

The story also hits on racial issues as this is the beginning of desegregation and there are several scenes that highlight those fighting for equal rights.  Crooked politicians and the space race round out the plot lines in the book.

I was pulled into this story wondering how it was all going to play out and as the storylines merged, along with Harry and Dizzy’s interactions, I couldn’t wait for the climax and I was not disappointed.

Some of my favorite lines from the book:

“We still had plenty of vice and crime, of course, but it was the homegrown, loony Lone Star variety.”

“You pulled off Barbie’s head?” I asked. Further proof that my daughter was not a typical girl.

The mismatched file cabinets looked like they had been salvaged from Davy Jones’s locker.  There was something on the floor that resembled green carpet, but in places it had given up trying to cover the floorboards altogether.  The venetian blinds had slats missing and slats hanging at odd angles like drunken sailors.

“It’s like stirring up a nest of fire ants.  You’re bound to get stung, and it doesn’t matter how many ants you step on, there’ll be more ants.”

This was an engaging book and we give it 4 paws up.

 

About the Author

D. B. Borton has published eleven mystery novels in two series, the Cat Caliban series (Berkley, Hilliard and Harris) and the Gilda Liberty series (Fawcett). She has published academic work on film, women’s literature, and the supernatural; she is co-author of Haunting the House of Fiction: Feminist Perspectives on Ghost Stories by American Women and Ghost Stories by British and American Women. She also wrote for Ms. magazine.

A native Texan, Borton became an ardent admirer of Nancy Drew at a young age. At the age of fourteen, she acquired her own blue roadster, trained on Houston freeways, and began her travels. She also began a lifetime of political activism, working only for candidates who lost. She left Texas about the time everyone else arrived.

D. B. currently teaches writing, film, and literature at Ohio Wesleyan University.

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Chicken Scratch

by

Becki Willis

Genre: Cozy Mystery / Romance / Women Sleuths
Publisher: Clear Creek Publishing
Date of Publication: March 13, 2015

Number of Pages: 314

Scroll down for the giveaway!

 

Named 2016 Best Mystery Series by Texas Association of Authors.

When Madison Reynolds finds herself widowed and penniless before forty, she does the only thing she knows to do – she packs up her teenage twins and moves back home with her eighty-year-old grandmother. Life in The Sisters, Texas has not changed much since she’s been gone, but at least her best friend Genesis is there to soften the transition back into small-town life.

To make ends meet, Madison opens In a Pinch Temporary Services. Her first real client is Ronny Gleason, but when she shows up for the first day of work at the Gleason Poultry Farm, Madison makes a gruesome discovery. The dead body she finds belongs to Mr. Gleason. When a local man is arrested for murder, Madison takes on the job of proving his innocence. Even though she is not a private investigator, both mothers are desperate: Lucy Ngyen to clear her son’s name, and Madison to pay her bills. But as she begins asking questions around town, her interference is not welcome.

With a daughter determined to go back to Dallas, a son settling into small town life, a feisty grandmother who knows all the town gossip, bill collectors calling, and now someone trying to keep her silent, Madison has no time for re-kindling her high school crush with police chief Brash deCordova. She has her hands full just trying to stay alive.

If she survives her amateur investigation, Maddy has a decision to make. Will she go back to her life in Dallas, or will she build a new life here in The Sisters?

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You know a book is going to be good when it starts off:

“Finding a dead body was never good.  Finding the dead body of your newest client – particularly on the first day of the job – was decidedly worse.”

Welcome to The Sisters, Texas.  Where rumors run rampant, small town bias is still alive, but where you will find some of the nicest people…well most of them anyway unless they are a killer!   Madison’s daughter, Bethanie, sums it up quite nicely:

“This is Juliet, the most boring town in the state of Texas.  Of course, there were more rumors. It is, after all, the favorite pastime of rednecks near and far.”

This story has so much going for it – small Texas town, dysfunctional/quirky characters, a killer on the loose, old loves, close friends, and family.  I quickly grew to like Madison and her best friend Genesis. They have the kind of relationship that everyone should have, a best friend that will go to the ends of the earth for you…and maybe even jail should you get caught doing something a little crazy!  Considering everything Madison has gone through, that friendship is one of the things that holds her together as she puts her life back together with her children.  Madison has flaws but I see great potential for growth in her character over the rest of the series.

The mystery was well written and I was quite surprised when the killer was revealed because I don’t think there were any (or very few) clues to point us in this character’s direction.   I have to say I will never look at a chicken quite the same way and learned things about raising chickens that I never knew.  Considering Madison’s job is running a sort of temp agency, I think she realizes that perhaps this isn’t the sort of career she wants to pursue full time.

There is the beginning of a potential relationship between Maddy and her crush from high school, Brash.  There are some assumptions on Maddy’s part regarding Brash which throw her for a loop until correct information is provided to her.

I also appreciated the history regarding the two towns and how they came to be in existence.  There was enough history to visualize and understand, but not so much that it detracted from the basic plot line.

There are a few things that I am predicting for the next book and eagerly await finding out if I am right or wrong.  We give this book 4 paws up and if you are looking for a cozy series, definitely check this one out.

 

 

Becki Willis, best known for her popular The Sisters, Texas Mystery Series and Forgotten Boxes, always dreamed of being an author. In November of ’13, that dream became a reality.

Since that time, she has published numerous books, won first place honors for Best Mystery Series, Best Suspense Fiction, Best Women’s Detective Fiction, and Best Audio Book, won the 2018 RONE Award for Paranormal Fiction, and has introduced her imaginary friends to readers around the world.

An avid history buff, Becki likes to poke around in old places and learn about the past. Other addictions include reading, writing, junking, unraveling a good mystery, and coffee. She loves to travel but believes coming home to her family and her Texas ranch is the best part of any trip. Becki is a member of the Association of Texas Authors, Writer’s League of Texas, Sisters in Crime, the National Association of Professional Women, and the Brazos Writers organization. She attended Texas A&M University and majored in Journalism.

Connect with Becki below. She loves to hear from readers and encourages feedback!

 

Website ║ Twitter ║ Goodreads  ║ Email

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June 20-30, 2019

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Check out the other blogs on this tour

 

6/20/19	Chicken Scratch, #1	StoreyBook Reviews
6/20/19	When the Stars Fall, #2	Tangled in Text
6/21/19	Stipulations & Complications, #3	Max Knight
6/22/19	Home Again: Starting Over, #4	Reading by Moonlight
6/23/19	Genny’s Ballad, #5	Bibliotica
6/24/19	Christmas in The Sisters, #6	The Clueless Gent
6/25/19	The Lilac Code, #7	Hall Ways Blog
6/26/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	Book Fidelity
6/26/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	Carpe Diem Chronicles
6/27/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	Chapter Break Book Blog
6/27/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	The Librarian Talks
6/28/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	Forgotten Winds
6/28/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	Nerd Narration
6/29/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	That’s What She’s Reading
6/29/19	Wildflower Wedding, #8	Sydney Young, Stories

 

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Deco Dames, Demon Rum and Death (Jazz Age Mystery Series)
Cozy Mystery
5th in Series
Decodame Press (December 28, 2018)
Paperback: 249 pages

Synopsis

When young Galveston Gazette society reporter Jazz Cross hears rumors of grave robbers at the Broadway Cemetery, she and photographer Nathan Blaine investigate, hoping to land a scoop. The newshawks witness meetings held by clandestine gangs and enlist the help of her beau, Prohibition Agent James Burton, who attempts to catch the elusive culprits red-handed.

Meanwhile, the supernatural craze takes Galveston by storm, and Jazz is assigned to profile the society set’s favorite fortune teller, Madame Farushka. Sightings of a ghost bride haunting the Hotel Galvez intrigue Jazz, who sets up a Ouija board reading and séance with the spiritualist. Did the bride-to-be drown herself—or was she murdered?

Luckily, Sammy Cook, her black-sheep half-brother, has escaped the Downtown Gang and now acts as the maître d’ for the Hollywood Dinner Club, owned by rival Beach Gang leaders. During a booze bust, the Downtown Gang’s mob boss, Johnny Jack Nounes, is caught and Jazz worries: will Sammy be forced to testify against his former boss? Worse, when a mystery man turns up dead, Sammy is framed for murder and Jazz must solve both murders and help clear Sammy’s name.

As the turf war between rival gangs rages on, Jazz relies on her wits and moxie to rescue her brother and her friends before the Downtown Gang exacts its revenge.

Excerpt

Nathan and I arrived a few minutes early, to allow him time to set up his camera equipment. Madame Farushka, dressed like a Cleopatra clone with flowing scarves and arms of jangly bracelets and huge hoop earrings—probably real gold, with her fees—seemed to enjoy playing dress-up. With a dramatic flourish, she flung open the double stained-glass doors and led us down the dark hall past a beaded curtain entrance into her parlor, filled with massive carved Victorian furniture and ugly gargoyle bronzes.

A new Ouija board sat in the middle of a round oak table, with four chairs evenly spaced apart, a candelabra in the center. Madame rose to untie the thick silk cords and closed the heavy burgundy velvet curtains trimmed with long fringe, blocking out any twilight in the already-dark room.

Nervously I eyed the flickering candles. Sure, they helped set the supernatural mood, but to me they represented a fire hazard.

The flames cast an eerie glow: shadows and misshapen faces and figures of statues and religious icons seemed to magnify and flash like images in a fun-house mirror.

I got the shakes, feeling as if I’d stepped onto the set of The Phantom of the Opera. All we needed was an enormous swaying crystal chandelier to complete the Gothic scene….

Lily briefly described her encounters with the ghost bride, Marilyn, but didn’t mention murder. She glanced at the Ouija board, exclaiming, “I’m so excited. How exactly do these work?”

After Madame explained the rules—we must remain silent during the reading while she asked the questions—we solemnly took our seats, scooted our chairs closer and placed our fingers on the celluloid triangular-shaped planchette, or pointer. Then she chanted in low tones: “Oh, dear spirit, why do you haunt the Hotel Galvez? What unfinished business must you resolve?”

The planchette was still. No vibration, no movement. I stole a peek at Nathan, who tried not to laugh. The women seemed so intent on the Ouija board’s powers that I felt guilty, and obediently shut my eyes. Madame again attempted to summon the bride. “Tell us, spirit, why did you seek out Lily? Do you have a message for her, for all of us? Why is your soul so troubled?”….

Madame Farushka’s eyes were closed and she swayed back and forth to a silent rhythm. Tilting my head, I signaled Nathan to start taking photos. No one paid attention as he quietly moved around the dark room and took a few shots. His flash added to the atmosphere, the puffs of smoke creating a cloudy haze.

The planchette vibrated and kept sliding across the board. Wary, I watched Lily and Madame for any evidence of trickery or manipulation, but everything appeared above board, so to speak. Slowly the planchette picked up speed and floated across the Ouija’s surface, spelling out a familiar, frightening word: M-U-R-D-E-R.

About the Author

Ellen Mansoor Collier is a Houston-based freelance magazine writer and editor whose articles and essays have been published in a variety of national magazines. Several of her short stories have appeared in Woman’s World. During college summers, she worked as a reporter for a Houston community newspaper and as a cocktail waitress, both jobs providing background experience for her Jazz Age mysteries.

A flapper at heart, she’s worked as a magazine editor/writer, and in advertising and public relations (plus endured a hectic semester as a substitute teacher). She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Magazine Journalism and served on UTmost, the college magazine and as president of WICI (Women in Communications).

She lives in Houston with her husband and Chow mutts and visits Galveston whenever possible.

“When you grow up in Houston, Galveston becomes like a second home. I had no idea this sleepy beach town had such a wild and colorful past until I began doing research, and became fascinated by the legends and stories of the 1920s. Finally, I had to stop researching and start writing, trying to imagine a flapper’s life in Galveston during Prohibition.”

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The Corpse Wore Stilettos
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Red Adept Publishing, LLC (April 30, 2019)
Print Length: 246 pages

Synopsis

SHE WORE A DONNA KARAN MARKED FOR REPOSSESSION

Since Kat Waters’s father took a trip to the slammer on what she’s sure are trumped-up racketeering charges, life’s been tough. All their assets are frozen, and she’s down to the last few pairs of Jimmy Choos she can swap for rent. To keep her family out of the homeless shelter, the former socialite took a job at the local morgue—a job she’s about to lose when the body of a murder victim goes missing on her watch.

HE WORE A CAPTIVATING SMILE

While Kat’s processing the latest victim in the prostitute serial killings, ex-Special Forces soldier Burns McPhee strolls in with an air of confidence, expecting access to the Jane Doe. While Burns tries to flirt his way into examining the latest victim, whom he thinks is connected to the death of his best friend, someone else steals the body right out from under them.

THE CORPSE WORE STILETTOS

Dodging questions from the cops and kidnapping attempts from a body-snatching psycho, Kat and Burns forge a deal. He’ll clear her name and keep her safe if she gets him information on her peculiar coworkers, one of whom he’s certain is involved with the body heist. But digging up secrets can lead to a lower life expectancy. The unlikely team will need all their talents not to end up as the morgue’s next clients while they hunt for a murderer, the missing corpse, and a pair of diamond-studded stilettos.

 

Review

This new cozy series kept me guessing and laughing until the end.  The characters are quirky, hunky, and a bit frightening, but all of these just add to the story and will keep you riveted to your seat.  I know I didn’t want to put the book down even when my eyes were drooping at night.

This was one of my favorite lines in the book and really sets the book up for the rest of the characters and what might possibly happen next.

“Damn, you’re like a moron crime magnet.”

I’m not sure who my favorite character is in the book because they all contribute to the wackiness of the book.  DC is Kat’s best friend (or at least my interpretation) and he is a mess and a half and he sometimes steals the spotlight from Kat.  Grand reminds me of Grandmother Mazur in the Janet Evanovich books – she is old and will do what she wants and she is probably more together than the rest of us.  I had to chuckle every time she went “shopping” at their family home.  Oh and the drag queen that buys Kat’s shoes when she needs money, now there is a story I’m sure!

There is a potential romance between Kat and Burns McPhee so hopefully, there are more books to come that pursue this storyline.  Kat deserves a break after her fiance dumped her once her father was arrested for racketeering.

I was totally gobsmacked when the killer was revealed and the whole reasoning behind it all.  I never saw that coming but looking back there were a few subtle clues that might have clued someone in that something wasn’t quite right with this character.  There is a cliffhanger on several fronts so I am hoping that the author doesn’t leave us hanging too long with the next installment.

We give this book 5 paws up and suggest you rush out and pick up your own copy (or enter the giveaway below).

 

About the Author

As the owner of a boutique chocolate factory in Atlanta, MJ O’Neill loves to write lighthearted, romantic mysteries with a sweet twist. She has a degree in business communications from North Carolina State University. When she’s not spinning a sweet yarn or creating delicious confections, she spends time with her husband, their kids, a hyperactive cocker spaniel named Devo (after the band), a princess tabby cat named Twilight (before the book stole her name) and a collection of stray fish. The whole gang can be found tooling around the back roads of the South in their RV where MJ uses the downtime to hatch her next sweet plot.

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Sconed to Death (A Cat Latimer Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
5th in Series
Kensington (May 28, 2019)
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages

Synopsis

Cat Latimer pursues a scone-cold killer who iced a top chef in a local bakery . . .

Cat has a full plate at her Aspen Hills Warm Springs Resort, as a group of aspiring cozy mystery authors arrives for a writers retreat. So when baker Dee Dee Meyer stirs up trouble by filing a false complaint with the health inspector against the B&B—all because she insists Cat’s best friend Shauna stole her recipes—Cat marches into the shop to confront her.

But Dee Dee’s about to have her own batch of trouble. Greyson Finn—a celebrity chef and, until today, one of Denver’s most eligible bachelors—has been found dead in her bakery. Cat’s uncle Pete, who happens to be the chief of police, warns her not to engage in any half-baked sleuthing. But as her curiosity rises, Cat’s determined to discover who served the chef his just desserts—before the killer takes a powder . . .

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About the Author

Lynn Cahoon is the award-winning author of several New York Times and USA Today bestselling cozy mystery series. The Tourist Trap series is set in central coastal California with six holiday novellas releasing in 2018–2019. She also pens the Cat Latimer series available in mass market paperback. Her newest series, the Farm to Fork mystery series, debuted in 2018. She lives in a small town like the ones she loves to write about with her husband and two fur babies.

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Murder at Royale Court (A Cleo Mack Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Lyrical Underground (June 4, 2019)
Paperback: 228 pages

Synopsis

Harbor Village is a vivacious retirement paradise known for its beachy locale and active senior scene. But ever since murder moved in, the idyllic coastal community is becoming a little less lively . . .

With the first annual antique car show cruising into the tranquil bayside oasis of Fairhope, Alabama, there are bumpy roads ahead for Harbor Village director Cleo Mack. As an automobile-themed lecture series gets off to a rough start, she finds herself balancing one too many responsibilities—and dodging advances from a shady event sponsor. It’s enough to make Cleo feel twice her age. But the festivities reach a real dead end when she discovers a body at the Royale Court shopping center . . .

When an innocent man lands in the hot seat for murder, Harbor Village residents look to Cleo to crack the case. Aided by an eclectic group of energetic seniors, Cleo races to identify the true culprit from a growing list of harmless Sunday drivers—before a killer revs up for another hit and run!

This ebook includes an exclusive knitting pattern!

 

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Guest Post

Thank you for inviting me to write about the second Cleo Mack mystery, MURDER AT ROYALE COURT. I’m totally focused on cozy mysteries this week, after my first-ever visit to Malice Domestic, the conference held by Sisters In Crime for mystery lovers.  The four-day conference takes place in Bethesda, Maryland, early in May, and you should go if you ever have a chance.

I met a lot of writers whose books I love to read, like Mary Marks and V.M. Burns, Allison Brook, and J.C. Kenney and Kate Young. And J.C. Eaton had come all the way from Arizona. There was one surprise I didn’t expect: many people are using pseudonyms. Kensington’s lovely publicists, Larissa and Michelle, were there, working like mad.

The fans were as nice as the writers. A midwife who trained in Scotland offered to help me get the details right if Cleo ever gets a new grandchild. And a chemist from Cape May offered to guide me through the world of poisons. I regret that I didn’t know him when I was writing the third Cleo Mack book.

Metro was just manageable with kind assistance from others (Thank you, Courtney!), and I had a charming driver for the return trip to DCA-Reagan. He told about his two favorite celebrity fares—Senator John McCain and the most gentlemanly Eddie Murphy.

But I can’t say that Malice was an unmitigated pleasure. The two-hour direct flight to Washington turned into 8 hours aboard the plane, but I did learn that keeping the window shade up and focusing on breathing kept claustrophobia at bay. And I did, eventually, manage to hoist myself up onto that absurdly tall stool, to be interviewed at the New Writers’ Breakfast. I realize now that I missed an opportunity to make a name for myself (remember that short woman who had to ask for a ladder?), but I got home with anonymity intact. And I’m already thinking about next year.

 

About the Author

Born and raised in Alabama, G. P. Gardner earned BS and MA degrees in Psychology from the University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa, AL) and an MBA from Jacksonville State University (Jacksonville, AL). She also attended the University of Georgia (Athens, GA), where she studied biopsychology and primatology. But her heart belongs to Talladega College—an HBCU and the first educational institution in Alabama to admit students without regard to race—where she taught business. Her writing life began with short stories, some of which were published in regional literary journals and some of which won prizes. She enjoys the classic mystery writers as well as contemporary whodunits but reads widely. She is a knitter and once owned a knit shop in Fairhope, AL. She studied mystery writing with Terry Cline, another Fairhope resident. Murder in Harbor Village is the first in her series about social worker Cleo Mack.

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The Alchemist of Lost Souls (A Bianca Goddard Mystery)
Historical Mystery
4th in Series
Kensington (April 30, 2019)

Synopsis

A dangerous element discovered by Bianca Goddard’s father falls into the wrong hands . . . leading to a chain of multiple murders.

Spring 1544: Now that she is with child, Bianca is more determined than ever to distance herself from her unstable father. Desperate to win back the favor of King Henry VIII, disgraced alchemist Albern Goddard plans to reveal a powerful new element he’s discovered–one with deadly potential. But when the substance is stolen, he is panicked and expects his daughter to help.

Soon after, a woman’s body is found behind the Dim Dragon Inn, an eerie green vapor rising from her breathless mouth. To her grave concern, Bianca has reason to suspect her own mother may be involved in the theft and the murder. As her husband John is conscripted into King Henry’s army to subdue Scottish resistance, Bianca must navigate a twisted and treacherous path among alchemists, apothecaries, chandlers, and scoundrels–to find out who among them is willing to kill to possess the element known as lapis mortem, the stone of death . . .

 

Excerpt

Spring is a trickster. A stage monkey with churlish disposition. One day she unrolls a carpet of verdant clover laden with buttered poms; then the next she rolls up the carpet like a cartographer and his map; spoiling a glorious display with cloud piss and cold. The weather was not the only thing to succumb to a return of wintry temper. Albern Goddard had too.

His scholarly gown had been replaced with a more practical knee-length version of moth-eaten wool liberally dotted with stains from his chemistries. His beard had lost its length and was trimmed close to his chin. He stared at the ground just beyond his feet, consumed in thought, and turned onto Thames Street. He might have been run over by a wagon and would never have realized it.

No clutch of brats interfered with his stride. This was not a day for loitering or making merry. Business was business and Albern Goddard had serious matters on his mind.

Chief among them was his daughter, Bianca.

He’d never been to her room of “Medicinals and Physickes,” as she preferred to call it. The corner of his mouth turned up. How presumptuous. But in fairness, it would not do for her to label it a room of alchemy. That would land her in a vat of boiling oil, for no woman would dare undertake the dark art without fear of retribution.

So, let her call it this contrived name. It was but the same in his mind.

 

About the Author

Mary Lawrence lives and farms in Maine and worked in the medical field for over twenty-five years before publishing her debut mystery, The Alchemist’s Daughter (Kensington, 2015). The book was named by Suspense Magazine as a “Best Book of 2015” in the historical mystery category. Her articles have appeared in several publications most notably the national news blog, The Daily Beast. The Bianca Goddard Mystery series also includes Death of an Alchemist, Death at St. Vedast, The Alchemist of Lost Souls, and the fifth title for 2020.

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