Synopsis

 

Things are heating up for Lila Macapagal. Not in her love life, which she insists on keeping nonexistent despite the attention of two very eligible bachelors. Or her professional life, since she can’t bring herself to open her new cafe after the unpleasantness that occurred a few months ago at her aunt’s Filipino restaurant, Tita Rosie’s Kitchen. No, things are heating up quite literally, since summer, her least favorite season has just started.

To add to her feelings of sticky unease, Lila’s little town of Shady Palms has resurrected the Miss Teen Shady Palms Beauty Pageant, which she won many years ago–a fact that serves as a wedge between Lila and her cousin slash rival, Bernadette. But when the head judge of the pageant is murdered and Bernadette becomes the main suspect, the two must put aside their differences and solve the case–because it looks like one of them might be next.

 

 

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About the Author

 

Mia P. Manansala is a book coach and the author of ARSENIC AND ADOBO (Berkley 2021), the first in the Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery series.

She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness, and her millennial love for pop culture.

She is the winner of the 2018 Hugh Holton Award, the 2018 Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award, the 2017 William F. Deeck – Malice Domestic Grant for Unpublished Writers, and the 2016 Mystery Writers of America/Helen McCloy Scholarship. She’s also a 2017 Pitch Wars alum and 2018-2020 mentor.

A lover of all things geeky, Mia spends her days procrastibaking, playing JRPGs and dating sims, reading cozy mysteries, and dreaming of becoming best buds with Wonder Woman and Kamala Khan.

When she’s not sassing her ever-so-patient husband, she’s cuddling her dogs Max Power and Bayley Banks (bonus points to those who get the name references) at her home just outside of Chicago.

Mia is quite the joiner, as she is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Crime Writers of Color, Banyan: Asian American Writers Collective, the Chicago Writers Association, and the Chicago Nerd Social Club.

 

Website * Twitter * Facebook * Instagram

 

 

 

 

What Happened on Box Hill: Austen University Mysteries 
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Louisianna
Bayou Wolf Press (February 1, 2022)
240 Pages

 

Synopsis

 

What would happen if you combined all of Jane Austen’s characters into one modern-day novel?

Murder, of course.

When Caty Morland’s roommate, Isabella, falls to her death on Initiation night, Austen University is quick to cover up the scandal and call it a tragic accident. But avid true-crime lover Caty remains convinced that Isabella didn’t fall; she was murdered. With the help of Pi Kappa Sigma President Emma Woodhouse, Caty organizes a dinner party with the most likely suspects, including familiar faces such as Darcy, Elizabeth Bennet, Knightley, and Marianne Dashwood. The theme of the night is murder, and Caty has three courses to find out what happened to Isabella–and to try to keep the killer from striking again.

 

 

Amazon

 

 

Review

 

This was such a fascinating twist on a cozy. While set in the present, the feel and Caty’s approach to solving the mystery felt very much like Agatha Christie or Hercules Poirot.

This book appealed to me on several levels. I loved the Greek organization aspect (sororities and fraternities) because I was one in college and while my experience was very different than what happens at Austen College, I could relate to those involved with the organizations and the different personalities that you might find in any organization, greek or not. I loved that Caty was into true crime and loved listening to podcasts and was immersed in that whole world. While that isn’t my jam, I know many people that love these podcasts, books, and shows. I think it might have made Caty a little more perceptive in her sleuthing. Plus, she met a guy that was into a specific podcast too.

I had to chuckle at first when Caty brings everyone together over dinner and tells them that one of them is a murderer. Despite her passion for true crime, I’m not sure she should have invited a potential murderer to a dinner party. But I think that is what makes this book charming, the innocence of Caty despite her best intentions.

The story does flip back and forth in time which gives us insight into events leading up to Isabella’s murder and who might have had cause to kill her. I actually liked that aspect because it gives us snippets for us to suss out the murderer ourselves.

Since I don’t remember much of Jane Austen, I couldn’t compare the characters of the two books. However, I don’t think that is necessary to enjoy this new cozy series and might even make it better if you aren’t trying to compare it to another book.

I think this will be a fun new series to watch and we give it 4 paws up.

 

 

 

 

 

Excerpt

 

Before her body had even begun to decompose, Isabella Thorpe had been almost universally branded by the press, the public, and her peers as a slut. Had young Isabella lived to see her newfound fame, she would have been tickled pink, instead of the grayish-bluish tint of her current color palette. She might have been delighted by the sight of her photographs plastered across the media, even if her carefully applied makeup and the outfit she’d spent hours choosing proved to be ultimately less than durable. Seeing her name pop up on all multiple threads and comments—some sympathetic, but others making her the punchline of a slew of wincingly morbid jokes—might have made her giggle, because the internet was forever and she was, like, totally famous now.

Even the word “slut” itself might not have given her much pause, because wasn’t she always yelling that at her sorority sisters as they laughed and danced and put on a show? It didn’t mean what it used to. It was a term of endearment now, empowerment.

But not, as it turned out, when it was being whispered behind her back—or, to be more accurate, over her dead body. Not when major news outlets were discussing, in detail, the number of people she’d hooked up with during her brief time as a freshman at Austen University; and boys were coming out of the woodwork to testify she’d been the aggressive one, pursuing them; and the same girls who’d laughingly grinded with her only weeks before were giving “special interviews” about how out of control she’d been. Anything for those fifteen minutes of fame.

It all started out innocently enough, this frenzied piranha-feeding of Isabella’s reputation. Before the school issued a formal warning to the students about commenting to the press, Isabella’s roommate, Catherine Morland, was ambushed as she left the sorority house. Petite, wide-eyed Caty looked terrified in the video clip that eventually went viral, and the wolves circled in on her, expecting her to be easy prey. Indeed, when asked about her relationship to Isabella, Caty was barely able to stammer out she was her “best friend” and that “Bella” had been girlfriend to her brother James. (Both claims were later torn to shreds in online forums, in which people speculated why a girl like Isabella who had a “boyfriend” also had an active Tinder profile, and why Caty would claim to be her best friend when she appeared in hardly any of her Instagram pictures.)

But the moment that pushed the video into viral fame was when one of the reporters asked Caty if she had any idea what happened to Isabella. Suddenly small, trembling Caty went still, looking straight into the camera. “Of course I do. She was murdered.”

That was when the president of Pi Kappa Sigma, Emma Woodhouse—tall, blonde, and with a formidable Southern-belle glare—swooped in to wrap a protective arm around Caty. “No more comment, y’all,” she insisted before guiding the younger girl to the safety of her waiting Mercedes. Online, however, no one could protect Caty or Isabella from the ensuing media circus.

Perhaps in the end, even Isabella would have shied away from this kind of attention—regardless that her name briefly became the top “Isabella” in search engines in North America and trended in hashtags, too. The kind of fame she daydreamed about in her lifetime came through merit or achievement. Miss Louisiana, for example, or winner of a televised singing competition, or top Pharma rep in the Southeast U.S. Division.

This kind of fame? It was not earned—it was taken, and turned against you. Voyeurs, gobbling up every gory, illicit detail, just so they could teeter to the edge of danger, then pull back at the last minute. All the while reassuring themselves they were okay, this could never happen to them.

Isabella could have told them differently, of course. This couldn’t have happened to her, either, until it did.

 

 

About the Author

 

Elizabeth Gilliland teaches English at the university level, putting as much Austen into her syllabi as she can get away with. In 2018, she completed her Ph.D. from Louisiana State University, where she wrote her dissertation on Jane Austen adaptations and fever-dreamed this series in a caffeine-induced haze. She is a proud member of the Jane Austen Society of North America, and excerpts of the Austen University series have won awards through JASNA and Jane Austen & Co/The Jane Austen Summer Program. She lives in Alabama with her husband and son.

 

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Giveaway

 

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Book Title: Dead Cereus by Kira Kanani Seamon

​
Category: Adult Fiction (18+), 276 pages

Genre: New Adult Cozy Mystery

Publisher: Kira Kanani Seamon

Release date: January 2021

 

Synopsis

 

Holy holly berries! “Hurricane Holly” creates shenanigans on the Olympic level. This mischievous charmer has found herself in many strange messes, but this one takes the carrot cake!

With her college scholarship already on frost alert, when Holly accidentally douses the college’s most distinguished donors, she sees her degree and her relationship with the hot Master Gardener quickly wilting.

Her only chance of remaining in Shellesby is to win a vaunted internship with a famous chocolatier. The only problem? The other candidate is Holly’s biggest rival, a stuck-up queen bee-and she just might have her sights set on Holly’s swoon-worthy boyfriend as well!

With a chance to win over the prestigious chocolatier when the rare night-blooming cereus plant is scheduled to open its petals at the Night Lights Gala, Holly is there-and so is a killer. Events unfold that not only place her scholarship on the line, but also her life…and that of her rival.

Holly finds herself racing the clock to save her arch-nemesis, secure her scholarship, and catch a murderer if she can!

Enjoy this lighthearted romp with its plethora of plants and wonderful characters by picking up a copy of Dead Cereus today! Can Holly stand the heat in the hothouse or is she headed for a spectacular meltdown?

This is an epic romance and a fantastic, unique mystery rolled into one hilarious story. With all the feels, this novel can’t help but implant itself in your heart and grow into one of your favorite reads. Put your petal to the metal and see what all the buzz is about. Dead Cereus is to die for!

Come for the mystery, stay for the food. Chocolate plays a big role in this book; you will ‘chocolate’ as you’ve never ‘chocolated’ before! Hot new debut author Kira Seamon makes botany cool again, one plant at a time.

 

 

Amazon

 

Read for free via Kindle Unlimited

 

Praise

 

Seamon is a master at creating atmospheric settings, and cozy mystery lovers will find it easy to fall under her spell. An appealing, witty heroine, a gem of a leading man, and well-constructed setting and plot make this one a must-read for both mystery lovers and fans of chick-lit literature. Readers will look forward to more of Holly and William’s adventures.

 

 

Review

 

This was quite an interesting book and different from most cozies that I read, but it has all of the characteristics of a cozy such as an amateur sleuth, a mystery to solve, and a small town setting.

Holly is on thin ice with the president of the college and has a tumultuous relationship with his daughter, Ivy. They compete with each other for everything and it doesn’t look like a truce is in sight. Not until she shares a special tea with Ivy that changes everything.

At first, I didn’t think that this was a cozy because while there is a murder we know who the killer is right off the bat. However, when something happens to Ivy, Holly rushes off to help her and seems to throw caution to the wind and not involve anyone else in her plans. Or she keeps them in the dark, like her boyfriend William. William is on her side but they have an odd relationship. While he will do anything for her and to protect her, sometimes he treats her like a child. Granted, Holly acts like a child a lot of the time and one of my favorite lines is when Williams tells her she is acting like an eight-year-old having a tantrum. This statement is very true and creates an unlikeable character in Holly, but she does have a big heart and wants to help those around her. Despite that, he does love her and they do seem to have a fairytale romance.

The setting is amazing and while I do not have a green thumb, I admire those that do. The descriptions of the plants, the greenhouse, the butterfly garden, and the herb garden were detailed and I enjoyed the fun facts about the various plants and flowers.

We enjoyed this story and the recipes at the end (don’t miss those!) and give it 4 paws up.

 

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Kira Kanani Seamon was born and raised in Hawaii. She attended the prestigious Punahou School as an award-winning honor student.

A polymath, Kira is a gold medal/state winner in piano performance and a national and two-time regional dance champion. In ten years of competing in dance competitions, she won 18 awards, including special awards from the judges and platinum awards. Additionally, she’s an award-winning photographer and has had her art accepted and sold in national and regional juried shows. She’s had over fifty newspaper cover stories about her art and is a fourteen-time grant recipient from cultural councils. She celebrated her first solo museum exhibit of her work in 2020.

Now living in Massachusetts, she was recently the inaugural artist-in-residence in Natick, Massachusetts. She received a personal letter from the Massachusetts Senate President and a Certificate of Recognition from the Massachusetts State Legislation in recognition of her grant from Framingham, Massachusetts. All of this culminated in her receiving the prestigious Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award, for which she appeared in the Wall Street Journal in 2020.

She took a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Machu Picchu, Peru with the Punahou Alumni Association, and her travel tale about that expedition is published in the 2021 September/October edition of the Writers and Readers Magazine. Additionally, her Peru photography is the editorial feature in the 2021 fall edition of DRIFT Travel magazine.

DRIFT Travel is an upscale travel and lifestyle magazine with each issue being emailed to 4+ million digital magazine readers worldwide. Additionally, DRIFT is also part of the PressReader magazine/newspaper digital platform that puts DRIFT in thousands of hotels, cruise ships, resorts, and airlines around the world, opening the door to an additional 300 million users annually.

Kira has never met a story from Greek mythology that she didn’t love and has kept a daily journal since her teens. Dead Cereus is her first novel.

 

Website ~ Facebook ~ Instagram ~ Goodreads

 

 

Giveaway

 

Win signed copy of DEAD CEREUS by Kira Kanani Seamon) (USA only) (ends Feb 24)

DEAD CEREUS Book Tour Giveaway

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honey Roasted (A Coffeehouse Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
19th in Series
Berkley (January 25, 2022)
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages

 

Synopsis

 

Clare Cosi is busy as a bee planning her honeymoon when murder buzzes into the Village Blend in this all-new mystery in the beloved New York Times bestselling Coffeehouse series by Cleo Coyle.

While struggling to find a romantic (and affordable) destination for her upcoming honeymoon, coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi whips up a honey of a drink made from honey-processed coffee. Clare plans to serve her outstanding new Honey-Cinnamon Latte at her spring wedding to her longtime honey, NYPD detective Mike Quinn. The culinary world is also abuzz about the amazing honey that Clare was lucky enough to source for her shop’s new latte. Produced by Madame’s old friend “Queen” Bea Hastings, the rare, prize-winning nectar from Bea’s rooftop hives commands a premium price, and top chefs compete for a chance to use it in their signature seasonal dishes.

One night, a swarm of escaped bees blanket the Village Blend’s chimney, and Clare discovers Bea’s unconscious body after she seemingly fell from her high-rise rooftop-hive setup. The police want to rule it as a tragic accident or possible attempted suicide, but Clare does not believe either theory. Like Madame, she knows this Queen would never abandon her hive. To sort out this mystery, Clare investigates a world of cutthroat chefs, culinary start-ups, and competitive urban beekeepers. But can she uncover the truth without getting stung?

 

 

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IndieBound * Penguin Random House * BAM

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

CLEO COYLE is a pseudonym for Alice Alfonsi, writing in collaboration with her husband, Marc Cerasini. Both are New York Times bestselling authors of the long-running Coffeehouse Mysteries—now celebrating eighteen years in print. They are also authors of the nationally bestselling Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, previously written under the pseudonym Alice Kimberly. Alice has worked as a journalist in Washington, D.C., and New York, and has written popular fiction for adults and children. A former magazine editor, Marc has authored espionage thrillers and nonfiction for adults and children. Alice and Marc are also both bestselling media tie-in writers who have penned properties for Lucasfilm, NBC, Fox, Disney, Imagine, and MGM. They live and work in New York City, where they write independently and together.

 

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Giveaway

 

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Out of Temper (Bean to Bar Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
‎Golden Tip Press (February 1, 2022)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 264 pages

 

Synopsis

 

Felicity Koerber’s bean to bar chocolate shop on Galveston’s historic Strand has been the scene of two murders – both of which she has been instrumental in helping solve. So when she gets invited to demo her chocolate skills aboard a cruise ship sailing out of the local port, she’s excited at the chance to get away from the shop long enough to regain her equilibrium. She even brings her best friend along, and makes plans for time at the spa. But when she gets on board, she finds out that she’s been booked for a mystery-themed cruise, and said best friend, Autumn, has to finally deal with the real reasons she quit writing mysteries. Only – if that wasn’t stressful enough – it doesn’t take long before there’s a real murder on the cruise, and someone Felicity knows becomes the prime suspect. When said suspect asks her for help, she can’t exactly say no, can she?

Felicity finds herself surrounded by cruise goers who all had connections to the victim – and finds that both Logan (her business partner, whom she recently kissed) and Arlo (the cop who was once Felicity’s first boyfriend, before she moved away from Galveston) are dealing with the case until more official help can arrive. How will Felicity survive the ensuing awkwardness?

One thing that helps: the retired police dog turned therapy dog she meets on board. Satchmo helps Felicity deal with being back on the water after tragedy in her past – and also helps her uncover a vital clue to the case. Can Felicity unmask the killer and keep a friend from being framed before all the suspects leave the ship?

 

 

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Character Guest Post

 

 

 

Hi Everyone!!!!  I’m Satchmo!  I’m a beagle, and if you’ve had a bad day, it’s my job to make you feel better.  Have you heard of a therapy dog?  Well, I’m in training to become one.  It’s just about the greatest job in the world to me!  I love people.  I know some dogs who don’t.  And some of them have their reasons.  But not me.  I’ve had some pretty great people in my life.  I’ve always been fed and taken care of, and I’ve always had something to do.

See, I’ve been working most of my life.  I used to work for the police.  I’m proud to say that beagles have some of the best noses in the business.  We can sniff out anything!  I used to work with a handler who teamed up mainly with homicide detectives.  It was really sad work, searching out people who were missing and sometimes never coming home again.  It kind of gets to you, after a while.  Maybe that’s why I got to retire.  Retirement is a concept I don’t completely understand.  I mean, I don’t work with the same handler, but now I have Bea, who’s teaching me to be a therapy dog.  So isn’t that the same thing?  And I don’t go to the police station anymore, but my nose still works overtime, catching the same smells.  Bea still works with the police, so she even brings home a lot of the same smells I knew from before.  So what does it mean to be retired?  I’m still me, after all.

Bea has brought me onboard a cruise ship.  It’s actually my third time to be on a boat.  One time was when I was working for the police.  That time was very sad.  I don’t really want to talk about it.  Just know that the bad guys got caught, I got treats, and everything was almost okay at the end.  Because when someone’s life ends, things are never quite the same, you know?

But the cruise ship!  It is spectacular!  Especially the floor where the big restaurant is.  You would not believe some of the smells coming out of that kitchen.  And right when we got here, there was a party, and someone dropped an entire plate of meatballs.  I was over there, snacking them up before the person could even figure out who to ask for cleanup.  Bea scolded me.  I’m supposed to wait for treats to be offered.  But seriously.  Meatballs!  Who could resist?

Right after that, I met Felicity.  She smelled of sadness and nervousness.  I got the idea that it was something about being on a boat that makes her uncomfortable.  Bea asked me to spend some time with her, and you know what?  I really helped!  She stopped freaking out about the boat moving.  And she gave me roast beef.  Roast.  Beef.  Mmmmmmm.  I only get to eat meat like that as a special treat, so I must have really helped Felicity.  I’m not even out of training, and I already have a success story!

Go me!  Who’s a good dog?  I am!  Right?  Tell me I’m a good dog!!

I never get tired of hearing that.

So right now, I’m hanging out with Felicity, and I smell a cat.  Right?  What’s a cat doing on a cruise ship?  It doesn’t make any sense.  But the cat starts running before I can find out, so I have to chase after it, to get some answers.  It’s more of a kitten really, and it runs a lot faster than it looks like it should be able to.  So I’m flat out running when I pick up a familiar smell in the air.  An unsettling smell, of iron and inky blackness.  A smell I don’t like.

But my training from the police kicks in, and I have to go towards the smell instead of away from it, like any reasonable canine.  And yeah, there’s a dead body.  And surprisingly, Felicity’s response is, “What?  Again?”  Like this happens all the time.  Which doesn’t make sense.  She isn’t part of the police.  She smells like chocolate.  Which I’m not allowed to eat.  Bea says it’s poisonous to dogs, but I’m not so sure.  It smells so good, sometimes I think she’s just saying that so she can keep it all for herself.  But if there’s even a chance she’s right – I’m not going near the stuff.  Especially not now, since we just found a dead body right near a whole display of boxes with chocolate’s deep, earthy smell.

I don’t know the dead guy, but he smells of coffee and sweat and ink.  It’s not pleasant, so maybe he wasn’t a pleasant person, but no matter who he was, he deserves justice.  I look over at Felicity, and somehow I can tell that she’s thinking the same thing.  I hope we can work together on this one.  But can a therapy dog and a chocolate maker solve a murder?  Find out in Out of Temper.

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Amber Royer writes the CHOCOVERSE comic telenovela-style foodie-inspired space opera series and the BEAN TO BAR MYSTERIES. She is also the author of STORY LIKE A JOURNALIST: A WORKBOOK FOR NOVELISTS, which boils down her writing knowledge into an actionable plan involving over 100 worksheets to build a comprehensive story plan for your novel. She blogs about creative writing techniques and all things chocolate at . She also teaches creative writing for both UT Arlington Continuing Education and Writing Workshops Dallas. If you are very nice to her, she might make you cupcakes.

 

Website * Blog * Instagram * Facebook

 

YouTube * Twitter * Amazon * Goodreads

 

 

Giveaway

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Synopsis

 

The residents of Haven, Wisconsin, have dined on the Fine Chao restaurant’s delicious Americanized Chinese food for thirty-five years, content to ignore any unsavory whispers about the family owners. Whether or not Big Leo Chao is honest, or his wife, Winnie, is happy, their food tastes good and their three sons earned scholarships to respectable colleges. But when the brothers reunite in Haven, the Chao family’s secrets and simmering resentments erupt at last.

Before long, brash, charismatic, and tyrannical patriarch Leo is found dead—presumed murdered—and his sons find they’ve drawn the exacting gaze of the entire town. The ensuing trial brings to light potential motives for all three brothers: Dagou, the restaurant’s reckless head chef; Ming, financially successful but personally tortured; and the youngest, gentle but lost college student James. As the spotlight on the brothers tightens—and the family dog meets an unexpected fate—Dagou, Ming, and James must reckon with the legacy of their father’s outsized appetites and their own future survival.

Brimming with heartbreak, comedy, and suspense, The Family Chao offers a kaleidoscopic, highly entertaining portrait of a Chinese American family grappling with the dark undercurrents of a seemingly pleasant small town.

 

 

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Review

 

I have mixed emotions about this book. It started off slow but then started getting interesting especially when Leo Chao is found dead. Couldn’t have happened to a “nicer” fellow. Actually, he was quite a narcissist and the town was truly better off without him. Anyway, the mystery portion is probably tied to how he could have died; was it an accident, or was it murder? I did find this quote described Leo quite well:

 

Your father was the consummate American id, an insatiable narcissist, a shameless capitalist who wanted to screw everyone.

 

This family was quite dysfunctional and I wasn’t sure I liked many of the characters. James was probably my favorite character of them all with Ming not too far behind. They weren’t without their own faults and issues, but they seemed a bit more normal compared to the rest of the family.

This town in Wisconsin has racist issues especially toward those of Asian descent. There are countless mentions of bullying of the boys when in school and even as adults, there is a scene that could be considered bullying if what was said is true. I don’t want to give away too much so you’ll have to read the book.

Dagou, the oldest son, only wants what is due to him based on his father’s promises when he came back to help run the restaurant. But considering Leo’s character and other comments he makes at the beginning, it is easy to see why he wasn’t liked and why Dagou was doing what he could to get what rightfully his, at least in his eyes.

Katherine is of Chinese descent but was adopted and raised by a white family. She tries to find a tie to her cultural background through Dagou and his family. While I think it is noble that she is searching for roots and where she fits in, I think she was trying too hard and needed to find a balance between her ethnicity and her adopted family.

There is a scene at the beginning where James helps an older man try and find his family but the man dies before they can get on the train. James ends up with this man’s bag but it just seems to go missing in the story until about 2/3 of the way into the book. There are brief mentions here and there, but I kept wondering what happened to that bag considering the hints that are shared tied to the contents.

The characters deal with trust, loyalty, mental illness, love, and loss throughout the book. There are reflections on racism, immigration, and cultural differences that we can all learn a little something from the topics.

Overall, we give this 3 1/2 paws up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Lan Samantha Chang was born in Appleton, Wisconsin, and attended college at Yale where she earned her bachelor’s degree in East Asian Studies. She worked in publishing in New York City briefly before getting her MPA from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and was a Wallace E. Stegner Fellow in Fiction at Stanford. She is currently the Elizabeth M. Stanley Professor in the Arts at the University of Iowa and the Director of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. She is the first woman, and the first Asian American, to hold that position.

Chang’s first book is a novella and short stories, titled Hunger (1998). The stories are set in the US and China, and they explore home, family, and loss. The New York Times Book Review called it “Elegant.… A delicately calculated balance sheet of the losses and gains of immigrants whose lives are stretched between two radically different cultures.” The Washington Post called it “A work of gorgeous, enduring prose.” Her first novel, Inheritance (2004), is about a family torn apart by the Japanese invasion during World War II. The Boston Globe said: “The story…is foreign in its historical sweep and social detail but universal in its emotional truth.” Chang’s latest novel, All Is Forgotten, Nothing is Lost (2011), follows two poets and their friendship as they explore the depths and costs of making art. The book received a starred review from Booklist and praise: “Among the many threads Chang elegantly pursues—the fraught relationships between mentors and students, the value of poetry, the price of ambition—it is her indelible portrait of the loneliness of artistic endeavor that will haunt readers the most in this exquisitely written novel about the poet’s lot.” Chang’s fourth book and third novel, The Family Chao, is forthcoming in 2022.

Chang has received fellowships from MacDowell, the American Library in Paris, the Guggenheim Foundation, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

As the fifth director of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Chang has been fundamental to the increase of racial, cultural, and aesthetic diversity within the program, and has mentored a number of emerging writers. In 2019, she received the Michael J. Brody Award and the Regents’ Award for Excellence from the University of Iowa.

 

Website

 

 

Synopsis

 

A new quirky young adult horror fantasy novel from the author of James Rhyder and the Cave of Dreams.

Sixteen-year-old Chase Addams just had the worst birthday of his entire life. He was terrorized at school by a death god, spent the evening in a haunted house, and even faced off with an urban legend in the flesh. If this wasn’t enough to ruin the average person’s day, it ended with his best friend and girlfriend, Asra Saitou, being dragged off into the abyss by a mysterious arm wreathed in flames. Chase soon discovers this kidnapping is part of a hidden war between the lands of the living and the lands of the dead. What’s even worse for the self-described uncoordinated, sarcastic, smartass is everyone thinks he’s something called a guardian —one of the heroic spirits who are summoned to not only fight in the war but keep the conflict from spilling out into the different realms of existence.

Now, Chase must come to terms with what it means to be a hero, avoid the terrors prowling in the lands of the dead, maneuver the politics of an interplanar war, and of course try to find Asra. All of this before a lurking darkness consumes both worlds. However, in this cosmic conflict, nothing is quite what it seems.

 

 

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Read for Free via Kindle Unlimited

 

 

About the Author

 

David Brooks is the author of over 100 middle-grade and young adult fantasy novels, only two of which have been written and released. That is to say, he is an author with an entire notebook bursting with ideas, and never enough time to get everything written. James Rhyder and the Cave of Dreams was his debut novel.

 

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Synopsis

 

Struggling artist Parker Derrick faces the death of her mother – and the emergence of villainous family members when she’s named the sole heir to her aunt’s North Arkansas estate. Surrounded by new friends and enemies, Parker must decipher who is really on her side…to help uncover a deadly secret.

 

 

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Review

 

This new author has written an intriguing tale that captured my attention and I ended up staying up to finish the book. While parts are predictable and there isn’t much of a mystery behind some events, I found the story to be more about family, second chances, and forgiveness.

Parker is a struggling artist that falls into a fortune left by a great aunt that she doesn’t really remember. On the heels of her mother’s death, this is a godsend for her as Parker doesn’t know what she wants to do now that her mother has passed and she isn’t needed in the small town of Lakeview anymore. She is on a journey to rediscover who she is because she isn’t having the best of luck as an artist and is at a loss what to do with her life. Luckily, the caretakers of the estate have been around for some time and are willing to show her the ropes and help her however they can. Lydia and Charles both have strong opinions and sometimes I feel like they might cross a line between being helpful and trying to control situations.

I enjoyed this story and was sad when one character turned out to be not so nice. I was hoping for a different outcome, but when the full truth is revealed it is rather shocking.

The story wouldn’t have any tension if it wasn’t for the family members that didn’t inherit anything and have decided that Parker is not deserving. It angered me how much danger they put people in and didn’t seem to care. And when some other truths come out, it is very sad to hear the lengths some will go to just for money.

A standout minor character is Cash, the beagle. He is adorable and I had to chuckle when Parker said he couldn’t sleep in her room with her and where is he a few nights later?  Yes, you guessed it, with Parker in her bed.

This is a good debut novel and I feel that the stories will only get better from here. We give this 4 paws up.

 

 

 

 

 

Excerpt

 

Striding towards the house entrance, she glanced around nervously as she stepped up the white concrete steps and felt the soft plunk-plunk-plunk of the wooden floor of the front porch beneath her shoes. Ferns were hanging from the rafters all in a row, blowing ever so slightly in the cool afternoon breeze, the soft creaking of their ropes the only noise she could pick up on. It was oddly quiet. Clearing her throat, she knocked a few times with the brass ring at the door and waited. Of course, there’s a brass knocker, she thought.

After a couple of minutes, there was no answer, nor could she detect any movement from inside. She pushed bits of hair behind both ears, a nervous habit that often comforted her. After another minute, still nothing. She knocked again for good measure, and after waiting around and attempting to peer into the dark windows for what felt like an embarrassing amount of time, she decided to try the door herself. Surprisingly, it came open with little effort, and she found herself stepping into the foyer. Three chandeliers lined the massive ceiling of the entrance, and the light was reflected in every single space of every front room by the absurd number of mirrors hanging on each wall. To the right sat a black piano, polished so vigorously that it gleamed as if covered in black oil. To the left, past a wall of delicate and willowy vases, there was a bevy of sofas, and classic chaise loungers, scattered across what she could only assume was the entertainment room. Next to the piano was a large pedal harp made of mahogany, and even this simple instrument was possibly the most extravagant thing she had ever seen up close. Parker walked over to it first, running her hands over the steel strings, marveling at its craftsmanship and wondering how old it must have been. Even amid such extravagance, it had to be the most prominent item in the room.

There were several eye-catching marvels – marble statues of naked goddesses, a large bust of a bearded man, a cherry-red buffet holding oversized china pieces- and simply too much to see at first glance. Parker had fallen entirely silent while taking in the sights, and she realized that she was still standing alone in the house, as far as she could see. There was the soft ticking of a grandfather clock somewhere in the vast expanse of the house, but otherwise no other noise. There was a winding wooden staircase to the left, gleaming red and as shiny as a new penny. The steps led up and around a corner, out of sight, and she felt tempted to follow them. However, uncertainty kept her rooted to the spot. Finally, it was apparent that no one had heard her come in. “Hello?” she called, the eyes of the nude statues seeming to glare at her for interrupting their blissful slumber.

Parker stepped down off the porch and could feel the soft grass being crushed underneath her feet as she walked towards the pavilion, drawn in by the glorious plants that surrounded it. Once underneath its shade, she sat down on one side of its bench and looked out at the creek. Everything, from the sway of the trees in the breeze, the faint groaning of the frogs, and the stillness that had settled over the area, had a dream-like quality to it. She looked back at the house and could see stained glass biblical figures staring down at her from the windows. Next to the house, she noticed a pumpkin patch. A row of its fruits was ready to be picked.

Suddenly, a dog ran up the pavilion steps quietly and joined her, startling her so badly that she nearly fell off her seat. It was a beagle, and he appeared to be very friendly, poking his head into her lap, forcing Parker to pet him. As soon as she ran her fingers through his fur, distant childhood memories came to her, of running across the soft green grass, hearing the bark of a dog and her mother’s laughter, touching the dog’s sleek fur, and feeling the hot sun warm her hair. She realized the memory was from the first time she had visited this place and was perplexed by how the beagle had triggered those emotions. The inexplicable joy that had erupted in her chest was initially overwhelming, and she dabbed at her cheek, feeling a warm tear sliding down.

 

 

About the Author

 

By day, he’s a mild-mannered nurse, loving husband, and father of three dogs – who just so happens to write stories in his spare time. Inherit is his debut novel.

 

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Ice Cold Murder (Charlie Kingsley Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Love-Based Publishing (January 25, 2022)
Number of Pages ~250

 

Synopsis

 

When Charlie agrees to accompany her friend Claire to her late grandmother’s reading of the will, she assumes she is simply there for moral support.

She doesn’t expect things to get so … strange.

It’s odd enough that it takes place over a weekend, but that’s just the beginning …

They also need to stay in Claire’s grandma’s supposedly haunted house with Claire’s estranged family.

Things get even worse when a huge storm snows them in. No electricity, no phone, and no way out.

Throw a dead body into the mix, and there’s no question it’s now the world’s worst family gathering. Ever.

At least Charlie brought lots of tea, which she’s going to need as she races to solve this closed-circle mystery before her friend’s dysfunctional family get-together results in anyone else being murdered.

Meet Charlie. Better known as “Aunt Charlie” from the award-winning Secrets of Redemption series. She’s back, making teas and solving cases in this funny, twisty, cozy mystery series set in the 1990s in Redemption, Wisconsin.

 

 

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Character Interview with Michele

 

Meet Charlie, the main character of Ice Cold Murder (interview conducted by author Michele Pariza Wacek).

 

Hi, I’m Michele, the author of Ice Cold Murder, Book 2 of The Charlie Kingsley Mysteries. Of all the characters I’ve written about, I can honestly say that Charlie is in a league of her own.

When she first came to me, she didn’t even have a name—she was simply the dead aunt who left Becca her house in her will in the beginning of It Began With a Lie (Book 1 of The Secrets of Redemption series).

Eventually, I gave her a name, Lottie, which wasn’t right (she definitely gave me an earful about it). And even though I don’t write paranormal books, she still ended up becoming a force to be reckoned with, appearing in Becca’s dreams to guide her and give her advice.

As I wrote the first three books in the series, Charlie informed me I needed to write her story, about how she first came to Redemption, Wisconsin. So, that became Books 4-5.

Once I published those, I assumed I was done with Charlie.

That was not the case.

A few months later, I got the idea for a Christmas murder mystery starring Charlie. The Murder Before Christmas was published on November 9, 2021, and it launched a whole new cozy mystery series called The Charlie Kingsley Mysteries. (Of course!).

To celebrate the launch of Book 2, I thought it was time to have a little public heart-to-heart with Charlie. So, without further ado, let’s jump in.

 

MPW: Thanks for doing this with me.

CK: Of course. You and I are in this together, after all.

 

MPW: That is true. So, when did you first realize I was … ‘underutilizing’ you? I guess that would be the best way to describe it …

CK: (Chuckles.) So, first off, I think ALL characters feel underutilized. But what it comes down to is the lengths the characters are willing to go to get noticed. For me, it was about persistence. You kept wanting to stray, and I had to keep reigning you back. Remember that fairy tale retelling project that went nowhere for ten months?

 

MPW: Um …

CK: You spent ten months writing the first book, and you barely got halfway through the first draft!

 

MPW: That isn’t one of my prouder ‘moments.’

CK: That’s an understatement. And you were just so stubborn. It took you getting an eye infection during the pandemic before you would slow down long enough to realize the project you should be working on was my story in The Secrets of Redemption series.

 

MPW: Okay, but give me some credit. I pivoted last summer to start on The Murder Before Christmas pretty quickly.

CK: Yes, you’re improving. Not perfect yet, but definitely getting better.

 

MPW: Speaking of The Murder Before Christmas, when did you realize the spin-off series was going to be a cozy?

CK: I always knew it was going to be a cozy. I’m not sure why it took you so long to get on board.

 

MPW: Well, for one, the original series was a psychological suspense.

CK: Yeah, but there are cozy elements in it. Especially in Book 2, This Is What Happened to Jessica. But they’re all mystery-driven—they take place in a small town with a repeating cast of characters, and they’re clean.

 

MPW: That’s true.

CK: So, with The Charlie Kingsley Mysteries, it just made sense to step fully into the cozy world.

 

MPW: When you put it that way, it does make sense. So, there are now two books in the series: The Murder Before Christmas and Ice Cold Murder …

CK: Don’t forget about the prequel short story, A Grave Error.

 

MPW: Yes, that too. Do you have a favorite?

CK: Hmmm. I like them both, but for different reasons. I was excited we were finally writing a Christmas mystery … I know we both wanted to do that for a long time.

 

MPW: That’s true.

CK: But Ice Cold Murder was a lot of fun, as well. After all, what’s more intriguing than being trapped in a supposedly haunted house with a dead lawyer and a dysfunctional family in the middle of a snowstorm? At least when it comes to solving a mystery.

 

MPW: I can’t think of anything better.

CK: Although if you ask Claire, she might have a different answer.

 

MPW: Yeah, that’s why we’re not asking her. And that leads me to my last question—do you ever get upset with me for all the bad things that happen to you?

CK: That question assumes you’re the one coming up with the bad things.

 

MPW: Wait … what?

CK: I mean, has it occurred to you that our stories are our stories and you’re just the one writing them down? Honestly, you’re kind of like a glorified secretary.

 

MPW: Um …

CK: Now, that isn’t to say I don’t get upset with you. But it’s mostly when you get stubborn and start working on other projects and listening to other characters when you should be paying attention to me.

 

MPW: Okay then. Good to know.

 

 

About the Author

 

When Michele was 3 years old, she taught herself to read because she wanted to write stories so badly. It took some time (and some detours) but she does spend much of her time writing stories now. Mystery stories to be exact, ranging from psychological thrillers to cozies, with a dash of romance and supernatural thrown into the mix. If that wasn’t enough, she also hosts a virtual book club you can check out and join (for free!) at MPWNovels.com.

Michele holds a double major in English and Communications from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Currently, she lives in the mountains of Prescott, Arizona with her husband Paul and southern squirrel hunter Cassie.

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Giveaway

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Synopsis

 

Let’s play a game.

You have 24 hours to win. If you break my rules, she dies. If you call the police, she dies. If you tell your parents or anyone else, she dies.

Are you ready?

When Crystal Donavan gets a message on a mysterious app with a video of her little sister gagged and bound, she agrees to play the kidnapper’s game. At first, they make her complete bizarre tasks: steal a test and stuff it in a locker, bake brownies, make a prank call.

But then Crystal realizes each task is meant to hurt—and kill—her friends, one by one. But if she refuses to play, the kidnapper will kill her sister. Is someone trying to take her team out of the running for a gaming tournament? Or have they uncovered a secret from their past, and wants them to pay for what they did…

As Crystal makes the impossible choices between her friends and her sister, she must uncover the truth and find a way to outplay the kidnapper… before it’s too late.

Author of All Your Twisted Secrets, Diana Urban’s explosive sophomore novel, These Deadly Games, will keep you riveted until the final twist is revealed.

 

 

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This book will be released on February 1, 2022. Pre-order it today!

 

 

Review

 

This YA psychological thriller might make you question what goes on in people’s minds! From the group of friends, to the “killer”, to the parents.

This is the first book by this author that I read and I was pulled into the story from the start as I watched this group of friends prepares for a gaming tournament yet a small twist in Crystal’s life changes her life forever. The story is primarily set in the present but there are some flashbacks to 5 years ago when a friend of Crystal’s goes missing. With those flashbacks, some of the twists might become apparent but not necessarily. This ragtag group of friends has mixed emotions when it comes to each other. Some get along great, and others have animosity towards each other. It makes you wonder why they hang around each other if they don’t like each other.

I have to wonder how I would react if I were in Crystal’s shoes and someone has kidnapped my sibling and says not to tell anyone. And then the tasks she has to perform seem innocuous at first but then become more and more dangerous, not necessarily to Crystal but her friends. Since the cast of characters is smaller, I wondered if it was someone we knew or not. I had some suspicions at first just because of timing, but I was wrong. I did determine who was behind it all but not until closer to the end. The twists kept me guessing until the very end.

And that ending? Did not expect that and makes me wonder, could there be another book that follows this one? Maybe, or we are just left to wonder how things play out for this group.

We give this a solid 4 paws up and if a psychological thriller is one of your go-to genres, then definitely check this one out.

 

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Diana Urban is an author of dark, twisty thrillers, including All Your Twisted Secrets (HarperTeen) and These Deadly Games (Wednesday Books, 2022). When she’s not torturing fictional characters, she works in digital marketing for startups. She lives with her husband and cat in Boston and enjoys reading, playing video games, fawning over cute animals, and looking at the beach from a safe distance.

 

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