The title, and even the blurb, for Susan Mallery’s The Bookstore Diaries are a little deceiving. I liked the characters and the premise of the novel, however the diaries themselves are not the main focus of the story. They do change several lives, but the blurb makes the book sound more scandalous and secretive than… Continue reading The Bookstore Diaries by Susan Mallery
Tag: California
The Shop on Hidden Lane by Jayne Ann Krentz
It’s been a while since I read one of Jayne Ann Krentz’ psychic books, but now that I read The Shop on Hidden Lane, I’m going to have to go back and pick up the books in her Fogg Lake Trilogy. It’s Bruce, the dog in this one, who is sending me back to the… Continue reading The Shop on Hidden Lane by Jayne Ann Krentz
Fallen Star by Lee Goldberg
Despite the threat of Russian mobsters and snipers, Eve Ronin and her partner Duncan Pavone of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department refuse to give up on their latest homicide, one that turns into a multiple homicide case. Readers can read Lee Goldberg’s Fallen Star without having read previous books in the series, but Goldberg warns… Continue reading Fallen Star by Lee Goldberg
The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective by Jo Nichols
I don’t know if I’d say the ending of The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective by Jo Nichols is ambiguous or sort of a “Choose Your Own Ending”. But, it’s an unusual cozy mystery of found family, a book filled with misfits and lost souls. Mrs. B owns a small group of six Craftsman-style cottage in… Continue reading The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective by Jo Nichols
Hidden in Smoke by Lee Goldberg
In the third thriller in his Sharpe and Walker series, Hidden in Smoke, Lee Goldberg brings back a character from the first book, Malibu Burning. But, Goldberg and I both want to emphasize that you can start with this book, although it’s more fun if you read the first one. Walter Sharpe is an experienced… Continue reading Hidden in Smoke by Lee Goldberg
Pony Confidential by Christina Lynch
A month ago, I reviewed Paula Munier’s The Night Woods, and mentioned that the theme was related to The Odyssey. Here’s a second mystery, with an even larger connection, Christina Lynch’s unusual Pony Confidential. I’m not crazy when I say how good this mystery was, with alternating chapters narrated by a pony and the woman… Continue reading Pony Confidential by Christina Lynch
Ashes Never Lie by Lee Goldberg
Although Lee Goldberg’s Ashes Never Lie is the second novel featuring his arson investigators Walter Sharpe and Andrew Walker, the author manages to incorporate his other series characters, Eve Ronin and Duncan Pavone, into this complex story. He adds a corpse at the scene of a fire, only to discover the foursome work well together.… Continue reading Ashes Never Lie by Lee Goldberg
Fatal Intrusion by Jeffery Deaver & Isabella Maldonado
Two bestselling authors, Jeffery Deaver and Isabella Maldonado, team up for the first in a new series featuring two people with unusual hunting skills. But Carmen Sanchez and Professor Jake Heron also have an unpleasant history. Carmen Sanchez is a former FBI agent who now works as a Homeland Security Agent as an investigator. Normally,… Continue reading Fatal Intrusion by Jeffery Deaver & Isabella Maldonado
The Gatekeeper by James Byrne
I was lucky enough to read James Byrne’s forthcoming book, Chain Reaction, the third in the Dez Limerick series of thrillers. That book will be released January 28. In the meantime, I went back and picked up The Gatekeeper. I still have the second, Deadlock, to read. I’m hooked on Dez. Desmond Aloysius Limerick was… Continue reading The Gatekeeper by James Byrne
A Very Woodsy Murder by Ellen Byron
Ellen Byron is the award-winning author of the Cajun Country mysteries, the Vintage Cookbook cozies, and, as Maria DiRico, the Catering Hall ones. Now, she puts her experience as a TV sitcom writer to good use with the first Golden Motel Mystery, A Very Woodsy Murder. Dee Stern’s career as a sitcom writer in Hollywood… Continue reading A Very Woodsy Murder by Ellen Byron