cozy mystery – Page 80 – Cuddle Up With a Cozy Mystery

The Cat of the Baskervilles–review

March 12, 2018March 12, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the third book in the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series by Vicki Delany. I haven’t read the first two yet but am definitely planning to do that. I really enjoy this author’s Year Round Christmas series and this newer series is no exception. I think it’s excellent just by reading the one book which works totally fine as a stand alone for anyone like me who has not read the first two books yet.

My Goodreads review:

The Cat of the Baskervilles: A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery by Vicki Delany

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ohhh this was so good! I literally couldn’t put this book down. This was actually the first one of this series I’ve read so I was just curious enough to read it first. As with other books this author has written, this can stand perfectly on its own. The author gives enough backstory so that new readers aren’t lost but there aren’t any spoilers from other books’ mysteries.

Gemma Doyle is helping her friend Jayne cater a fancy tea for the local theater group that happens to have a famous old actor playing Sherlock Holmes. When the actor turns up dead later and all fingers point to Jayne’s mom Leslie, Gemma once again decides she has to do some private investigation in order to come to the truth. Her friend Grant who owns a rare book shop is around to help her at times all the while that Jayne is trying to make her see that police detective Ryan still likes her a lot even though his partner Louise isn’t very nice to Gemma. Gemma is convinced it’s because she (Gemma) and Ryan were close once and either Louise is jealous or she’s bitter that Ryan got lead detective instead of Louise getting it. Gemma is always worried Louise is trying to find a reason to get him demoted.

After some investigations, leads and the premier play night, everything is revealed at the end in true Sherlock style and the ending is a very nice one!

I’m so anxious now to read the other two books in this series since I have really gotten to know and like these characters. I hope this series continues for a long time. The idea of Gemma and Jayne owning a bookstore/tea room is such a fun one and now that Gemma is a little more in tune to how Ryan still feels about her. It’ll be interesting to see how that works out.

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Southern Discomfort–review

March 9, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the first book in a new series that just came out this week, Southern B&B by Caroline Fardig. I love how it’s set in the South in Savannah, GA, has a B&B and also that B&B has a resident helpful ghost we learn is Uncle Frank who gives cryptic clues. I hope that Quinn eventually gets to see him like Papa Sal and Delilah can.

My Goodreads review:

Southern Discomfort by Caroline Fardig

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was such a fun start to a new series! Set in Savannah, GA, Bellandini sisters Delilah and Quinn run the family B&B along with their grandfather, Papa Sal. When their friend Drew’s brother Jason is killed in their friends’ family restaurant and is arrested for the murder, Quinn can’t leave it alone especially since she thinks the police suspect her as well.

Two heads are usually better than one so Delilah gets involved in the investigation as well, along with trying to match make between Quinn and their old but now new neighbor, Tucker. Can they find the real killer before Drew and possibly Quinn are both sent up the river for good?

I really enjoyed all these great main characters! Papa Sal is just the kind of grandpa anyone would want even though he does take advice from his dead brother Frank’s ghost, or so he says he sees him. I loved how when push came to shove, Delilah had her younger sister’s back and dug into the investigation with her. They would tease each other good-naturedly but always were looking out for each other.

I feel like we got to know the characters with just the right amount of backstory and information, definitely not an overload. Delilah and Quinn were people I would want to be friends with. Quinn playing in bar band gigs on the side was an interesting touch, not really something expected out of a B&B part owner.

It was fun how clues that Uncle Frank gave actually worked out–I’m hoping we see, er I mean hear more from him in future books. I was happy to see things develop smoothly between Tucker and Delilah–it’ll be interesting to see what kinds of adventures these people get into next!

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Raspberry Danish Murder–review

March 1, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the latest book, #22, in the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke. I have to say that this book makes it evident that this author truly loves her readers. I won’t say anymore and I’ll advise like I did with my previous post that if you haven’t read any of the later books, only the older books, you might not want to read the review because it’s hard to talk about a book if certain things can’t be mentioned at all, make sense?

My Goodreads review:

Raspberry Danish Murder by Joanne Fluke

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved this book! The ending was just what I was hoping for! I’m trying not to give anything away but even the book descriptions of these last few books in this series are sort of spoiler-like if all a person has read has been the first books. I had only read books in the beginning but I knew what was coming and I was just curious to find out! So I didn’t mind knowing. Now I can go back and read the rest of the series.

If you have not read any later books in this series (from about 18 or 19 on) you might not want to read this review. I promise not to give away the ending but the book can’t be talked about unless I well, talk about it. 😉

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It was two weeks after Ross had left and the police had nothing as to why. Hannah was trying to go about life as usual with her sister Michelle staying at the condo with her and her good friends, Mike and Norman keeping her sanity intact.

The Ross mystery continues through the end of this book but something is revealed then that will explain why he’s gone. Hannah’s trip to the bank reveals that she is now a very wealthy woman who is also the new owner of Ross’s car.

When Ross’s assistant eats drugged candy that came from Ross’s desk, both Hannah and Mike start wondering if the candy went to its intended victim or was Ross the intended victim. Was he tipped off that someone might be trying to kill him so he left? Only Ross knows for sure!

In the meantime Hannah and Michelle with the help of Norman and sometimes Andrea continued to look into the murder.

Since Thanksgiving and Christmas were getting closer, the Lake Eden Inn is having a holiday gift convention and Hannah is invited to take a booth (for free) plus be able to keep her profits so that ended up being a win-win for the Cookie Jar, which seems to have plenty of regular help.

In this book we get to see more of Andrea’s daughter Tracey, a 7-year-old who is working on her career path to be a baker like her Aunt Hannah. Cute kid and smart too! Norman is as sweet as ever and I always get a kick out of Mike and his food-dar as the girls call it since he seems to have a 6th sense as to when to show up at the Cookie Jar or the condo for meals or new baked items.

The take down scene was epic and also very funny. I could totally picture it happening since I happen to be a fan of TV movie Hannah as well so it’s easy to picture the on-screen characters doing the scenes in the books. PK’s murder got wrapped up nicely, the perp got hauled to jail and the cookie booth at the convention did extremely well in three days. At the very end, Mike came with some important news for Hannah about Ross.

If you’re as big of a Hannah fan as I am, you’ll do a happy dance, I promise! It’s very apparent that Joanne Fluke loves her fans! I can’t wait for the next book!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance e-copy of this book.

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Banana Cream Pie Murder–review

March 1, 2018March 1, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the 21st book in the Hannah Swensen series. If you are a die-hard read-in-order person and don’t know anything about the later books in the series, I would suggest not reading the review. Even the book descriptions for these later books could be considered spoilers. Just lettin’ you know! 😉

My Goodreads review:

Banana Cream Pie Murder by Joanne Fluke

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

SPOILERS INSIDE but not about the killer–if you haven’t read all or most of the previous Hannah Swensen books you may want to skip reading this review.

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Hannah Swensen Barton is on an amazing honeymoon cruise with her new husband, Ross, when at home her mom Delores finds her good friend Tori dead, murdered. Tori also happens to be Mayor Bascomb’s older sister. Of course when Hannah gets home she’s determined to investigate like usual but Mike doesn’t seem to mind as much as he did when they first met.

Meanwhile Hannah’s sister Michelle is now directing the Lake Eden Players’ play that will come out around Thanksgiving and staying with Ross and Hannah. Hopefully Hannah can figure out what happened to her mom’s friend and it’s going to take some checking around in Tori’s apartment which ends up being kind of a fun scene with Hannah, Michelle and Norman doing the snooping.

I had only read the fairly early books but I knew what was coming in this book since I heard that Hannah had gotten married previously. One thing that bugged me a little bit was that Hannah couldn’t figure out how to retrieve her voice mail which seems a little weird for the Hannah I knew in the earlier books. It honestly didn’t detract from the story from me though. I did enjoy the investigation. I always liked the chemistry between Hannah and Mike so I do plan to read the rest to see what happened to drive them apart (obviously Ross but apparently that happened quickly) if they’d ever gotten together to begin with (like they have in the TV movies which I realize have to be different from the books for various reasons).

I always get such a kick out of Delores and now even moreso that she is married to the local doctor. Andrea and Bill have two little girls now, Tracy and Bethie. Bethie is pretty adorable.

The mystery surrounding Tori’s death was really good and Hannah worked her usual magic in finding the killer. I hadn’t guessed who it was until a couple of clues were given towards the end.

Just about every chapter has one or two recipes at the end and boy do they sound scrumptious, especially the one for the banana cream pie. At the end of this book, there is also the first chapter of the next book that you can read.

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Death Is Like a Box of Chocolates–review

March 1, 2018March 1, 2018 Tari Hann

This was a fun mystery and who doesn’t love chocolates? At least these weren’t the kind that can put weight on me because I definitely didn’t have any real ones hanging around when I was reading (oh darn!) lol.

My Goodreads review:
Death Is Like a Box of Chocolates by Kathy Aarons

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you never thought you could get hungry reading about a murder, think again. The descriptions of the chocolates and making them as well as some recipes will make you crave chocolate while reading this (unless for some reason you just don’t like or eat chocolate). There were lots of fun twists and suspects in this book and I’m glad our online book club chose it to read for February.

Michelle Serrano and her bestie, Erica, own the store Chocolate and Chapters. Michelle is a chocolatier and makes delectable confections while her friend runs the bookstore part of the operation. It’s almost Memorial Day weekend which means the Arts Fest and the first ever Fudge Contest are coming up soon. In the middle of all the planning fun, there’s a damper put on the festivities planning when the body of a friend and fellow small business owner turns up in Michelle’s chocolate kitchen. Since the woman was a photographer, the two amateur sleuths, Michelle and Erica start wondering if she has some photos that someone was willing to kill her to keep from showing them. Then to add to Michelle’s stress, famous star chef, Hillary Punkin, is supposed to make an appearance at their fudge contest.

Erica’s brother Bean aka Ben is a famous reporter come home for now. Since Michelle used to have a crush on him and I’m sure he had one on her too, they hit it off even though Michelle doesn’t really want to admit it. The local cop Bobby and Erica have some history as well but I hope that in the next two books maybe they can get pas their differences since later in the book they did talk about what happened before their graduation.

I loved how this little cat would just appear sometimes. Michelle called him Coco but he must have been more of a community kitty because it turned out he was called by two other names by two other local businesses.

The mystery was so good I didn’t want it to end. There were a a couple other intertwined mysteries along with the actual murder (and a second body). I had guessed different parts but didn’t have the whole picture so it was fun to read it as it all came together and made sense. The ending was exciting and justice was served up, literally. You’ll have to read it to see how the fudge contest went and also to see what Hillary thought of Chocolates and Chapters! I was sad to hear there are only two other books in the series so I will have to savor them slowly just like fine chocolates.

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Purrfect Murder–review

February 18, 2018February 18, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the first book in the Hazel Hart series by Louise Lynn and I thought it was a really fun start to the series. It takes place in Cedar Valley which I presume is supposed to be somewhere in Nevada since the main character is a photographer and she realizes people could book photographers in Reno. I have the second book on pre-order!

My Goodreads review:

Purrfect Murder by Louise Lynn

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was really a lot of fun, some good twists, lots of suspects and clues but I have to confess, I figured out who the killer was just not all the twistiness at the end and the total why of it. I credit my high school French for it though 😉

Hazel Hart has just moved back to her hometown of Cedar Bay, NV. She formerly worked for the LAPD as a forensic photographer. She also left to rid herself of her lying, cheating ex, Dylan. She’s got a great photo studio business, her mom, widowed sister and 8 year old niece live close and also have businesses in town. Her bestie, Celia, runs the bakery so there’s pretty much everything she could want.

The same day she spots a mysterious figure in one of her nature photos she was taking of a bear is the same day the newly elected Sheriff Cross comes to town. Not getting off on the best foot with him (he insulted her hat and claimed she jumped line at Celia’s) she’s especially worried when the groom of the engagement couple she was shooting, turns up dead in her Old West studio. She’s certain the new sheriff will want to blame her and she’s worried about losing business from her studio being closed. So like any good cozy sleuth, she takes matters into her own hands and investigates. Hopefully she can clear this up before people forget about her or schedule with another photographer…or worse case, someone else turns up dead.

I really enjoyed these characters! Celia is so funny and such a good friend. Hazel’s little niece is adorable and she loves anything police related–I got a kick out of her, she was like 8 going on 15 and sounded fairly intelligent. Esther is a good mom having lost her husband 5 years ago and trying to keep her bakery going. Hazel and Esther’s mom was so quirky and crazy, her explanation for everything was the ghost did it (this isn’t paranormal though, totally logical explanation). Along with Anthony Ray, Hazel’s somewhat intuitive cat, her mom ended up being instrumental in bringing down the perp who killed two and was ready to kill again.

It was nice how Sheriff Cross softened up a little towards the end. I have the second book pre-ordered so I’m really anxious to see if he and Hazel become better friends in the next one. At least they didn’t end up arguing or being sarcastic with each other. Ha, if they ever have kids they can tell them “Yep your mom and I met when I made fun of her hat!” 😉

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Death by a Whisker–review

February 17, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the second book in the Cat Rescue series by TC LoTempio. I really enjoyed this book a lot and happy to be able to read and review a copy I got via NetGalley and the publisher. I can’t wait for the next one in the series. The whole idea of the cat adoption along with an event is so much fun. Although it wasn’t very fun for the person that got killed in this book…

I used an image of a ragdoll cat in honor of Annie in the story who was somewhat instrumental in catching the perp. Google had it listed as ok as far as usage rights.

Goodreads review:

Death By A Whisker by T.C. LoTempio

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was another fun visit to Deer Park and the Friendly Paws Shelter. I enjoyed this one as much and maybe a little bit more than the first one–it was a twisting and intriguing mystery, full of possible suspects. The characters were already well-developed so that always makes it easy to go right and remember who was who.

The shelter was holding another cat adoption in conjunction with a book signing at Tara’s bookshop but at the last minute the author couldn’t come. Instead, they managed to get Ulla Townsend, a famous shopping channel diva and former resident of Deer Park. The book sales would benefit the shelter since part of them would be donated. Ulla was not a very nice person so it’s no surprise when she ended up dead but due to previous bad blood and a video that surfaced, Syd was worried their assistant at the shelter, Maggie, would go down for the crime. Worst of all, Maggie was missing!

Will’s new detective partner was just as annoying as the previous one but I was glad something good came out it at the end when everything was wrapped up and the perp was hauled off to jail. I had guessed something was off with one of the characters, then later put it together but I think that was due to the author’s series of clues she left the reader. It was really exciting at the end how it went down and of course Syd helped Will solve another murder with a key piece of evidence.

Leila still cracks me up! Who wouldn’t love to have a friend like her? She’s smart, funny and very faithful to her friends. Syd’s sister Kat wasn’t featured quite as much, but we did see quite a lot of her in the first book so that was ok. I loved how all the kitties that were at the book signing eventually ended up with furever homes. Syd’s kitty Toby once again clued Syd in a few times, almost like they have little conversations with each other. He is so darn cute with his meowy comments, even on her outfits!

I’m really enjoying this series and I can’t wait for the next book to come out!

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Slayed on the Slopes–review

February 15, 2018February 15, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the second book in the Pacific Northwest mystery series by Kate Dyer-Seeley. I can’t believe how I’ve been compelled to read these right in a row, lol. I’m really enjoying each mystery and am glad it gets wrapped up but there’s a side mystery that continues.

Goodreads:
Slayed on the Slopes by Kate E. Dyer-Seeley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This series just keeps getting better! There are two mysteries here, the main one and an ongoing one so now I’m totally engrossed in what is going down with the side mystery. I won’t spoil it and say what it has to do with but if you read the first and second books you’ll know.

Meg’s assignment this time was self-imposed. She came up with the idea to run a story on an offshoot group of the Crag Rats, the mountain rescue team that she heard about then worked with all summer so she could be more confident climbing and doing outdoor sports. Meg is to attend their trainings to get firsthand interviews with the members of the team. What she didn’t count on was the murder of the guy who was financing the whole thing.

As usual, Meg’s reporter instincts kick in and she can’t help looking into the murder while trying to keep up with her story as best as she can. There’s another close call at the end but everything gets wrapped up except for the ongoing side mystery which is just getting better and better.

A new character we got to meet was Henry. He seemed like a pretty nice guy but I’m still Team Matt as far as a love interest for Meg goes, if it ever happens at all. They’re already in a good place and are best friends so I’m content with that for now. We learned in the first book that Jill was an artist but her boyfriend was such a snooty guy that she was afraid to admit she liked to paint. I liked that Jill was able to overcome this and undergo a little change for the better.

I really didn’t see it coming with who the killer was. I had toyed with the idea but dismissed it in favor of someone else. The plot twists and turns were exciting especially towards the end and the reveal. I’m really thinking I need to keep reading this series because I’m so curious about that side mystery!

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Scene of the Climb–review

February 14, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the first book in the Pacific Northwest series by Kate Dyer-Seeley (most will recognize her as Ellie Alexander, author of the Bakeshop series and her new Sloan Krause series). I wasn’t sure just by reading the description or seeing the cover if I’d like it since I’m not a bit athletically inclined and definitely not a sports fan of any kind. But I was pleasantly surprised and plan to keep reading the series.

For anyone actually interested in the sport of climbing or trails, there is some information after the story about the different sites in Oregon used in the book. There are also some tips for beginners (like Meg!) to get started in the sport.

My Goodreads review:

Scene of the Climb by Kate E. Dyer-Seeley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Even though I’m about as far from being the outdoors type as you can get, once I got into this book, I really enjoyed it. I liked that it wasn’t overwhelmed with outdoor facts, just enough to describe the area in Oregon where this was taking place.

Meg Reed, daughter of famed journalist Charlie Reed has finally landed a journalism job, one her dad would have been proud of at Northwest Extreme magazine. One tiny little thing though, Meg is a total novice when it comes to outdoor adventures, only having hiked with her dad when she was younger. When her handsome boss Greg assigns her a primo assignment to cover Race the States, a first time adventure race which is ending in Oregon, Meg hopes she can live up to his expectations.

When Meg is on the trail and one of the contestants’ bodies comes sailing over the cliff, she’s sure it has to be murder and despite Greg, Sheriff Davis’s and even her good friend Matt’s warnings to not investigate, she just can’t help it. She’s her father’s child after all!

Her dad had died in a bike accident which had seemed odd at the time since he was always so careful. There is reason to believe it may not have been an accident, so I an going to enjoy seeing this little mystery spread out over the books, as I read in someone’s blog recently.

The regular characters were all well-developed and likable, um maybe not so much Jill’s boyfriend but he’s tolerable just kind of snooty. I think my favorites were Matt and Gam (Meg’s grandma). Matt is loyal to a fault and clearly adores Meg but she can’t bring herself to think of him in that way. Gam practices Reiki healing and is always wanting to help Meg.

I had slightly suspected the killer but the twist and reasoning came as a total surprise to me. It was definitely an exciting journey to the finish of this book! I’m reading the next one right away since we’re discussing it in a Facebook book club later this month.

This book may not have turned me into an outdoor adventures fan any more than I already was, but it did tell a great story!

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Dead in the Water–review

February 13, 2018February 13, 2018 Tari Hann

Here’s the first book in what I think is already a great new series and I haven’t even read the other two books yet. The series is Scarlet Cove and one of the authors is Agatha Frost, well-known for her Peridale series along with her friend Evelyn Amber. I love that the main sleuth is just a little bit older than the usual 20s-30 somethings, she’s 42, a retired police officer and yes that’s a beagle picture up above because she gets to adopt a sweet beagle.

My Goodreads review:
Dead in the Water by Agatha Frost

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What an awesome, well-written beginning for a new series! I really enjoyed this story of a retired (well, a young retiree at age 42) police officer named Liz Jones who had recently lost her husband and decided to start her life over in Scarlet Cove on England’s south coast.

I knew I was going to love her new friend Nancy the moment they met. Nancy was just the type of person anyone would like to have for a friend: happy, always matchmaking and as everyone else in Scarlet Cove, loved gossip.

When the town’s head fisherman was found dead by Liz one day, Liz got a gut feeling it wasn’t just an accident like everyone had said. Frank had liked drinking a little to much so it was easy to put off as an accident. Liz’s detective training just can’t help but kick in.

Along the way she met some new and interesting people, asked a lot of questions, had some fun in the meantime. After finding yet another body, the cases were eventually cracked. Oh, and I loved how she adopted the fisherman’s little beagle, Paddy, that was going to be sent to a shelter.

This had a good and happy ending for most of the people in the story and I am so anxious to read the next installment!

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