Whine and Dine

Redwoods Country Mystery, #2

by

Marc Jedel

Return to the humor, charm, and murders of Redwoods Country!

Whine and Dine is the second book in veteran author Marc Jedel’s excellent Redwoods Country Mystery series, and proves to be a fabulous follow-up to last year’s debut, Rivers and Creaks. While all Andy Shirley wants is peace, quiet, and a lot of alone time, his ownership of the Quilt House Inn requires a much more hands-on effort. Thankfully, he has Nadia, the housekeeper and chef, to handle the day-to-day, and Charlie, the plumber/electrician and daughter of his new friend, Police Chief Joann Blaylock, on speed-dial for the more complicated jobs he can’t handle himself. But when Charlie’s friend is suspected of murder, Andy reluctantly agrees to join forces with her to clear her friend’s name, in exchange for a hefty discount on some upcoming plumbing repairs, of course. 

The story hits the ground running with a dramatic arrest on the porch of the inn and the discovery of the murder victim in the small, nearby town of Monte Rio, happening almost before the dust settles from the detective’s car leaving the inn’s parking lot. Andy, a retired copy editor with a penchant for puns, is a cranky, grumpy wannabe recluse, and his inner monologue and dialogue with literally everyone absolutely sparkle with wit. The pairs’ unofficial investigation is fun as they attempt to stay on Charlie’s mother’s good side while getting the job done. The secondary characters not only provide solid support but are also a quirky, colorful bunch, especially Nadia Radu. I was fortunate to be able to kick back and read the whole book in one delightful evening; the pages and time flew by. 

I recommend WHINE AND DINE to cozy mystery fans, especially those who enjoyed the series kickoff and the author’s other series. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

GRQ

by

Steven Bernstein

Not your average, straightforward financial suspense story.

GRQ (Get Rich Quick) by Steven Bernstein gets really quirky fast. Part stream-of-consciousness and part suspense, where the narrator continually breaks the fourth wall, it is the story of a manipulative financial advisor, a get-rich-quick opportunity, and his desperate client, Marlon, on the day his house is being repossessed. Can Marlon scrape together all the cash he has left, even emotionally pressuring his relatives and in-laws into buying into his dream of a cryptocurrency killing? Or will he take what he’s got and walk away, hoping for another chance with the wife he’s boldly lied to about their circumstances for years? 

The story’s delivery is unique, with short, first-person chapters from the financial advisor that reveal his backstory and confess his scheme to make money off his hapless clients. Those chapters alternate with how Marlon came to be where he is today, revealing shocking details along the way. The wife, Viola, is complicit in their situation by failing to take a more active interest and ‘trusting’ Marlon to take care of her from the start. 

The novel is fast-paced, with great galloping swaths of pages containing only a single line of text in an extra-large font, bullet points that prove the narrator’s current point. Marlon makes his final stand from the fallout shelter built into his home, the suspense of his risky move ratcheting up by the minute as Los Angeles is wracked by a series of earthquakes, with the BIG ONE just waiting to hit. 

I recommend GRQ to readers looking for financial suspense stories and something really fresh, unique, and punchy. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.

Certain Sensibilities

by

Sondra Rice Newman

Touching and tender May-December romance.

Certain Sensibilities is a contemporary women’s fiction novel by Sondra Rice Newman that tells the unique and touching love story of a May-December couple. While their age gap is extreme, these two kindred spirits, soulmates, have the courage to build a life together, knowing their time will be short but trying to make every day special and count. 

Cary, the young male protagonist, is 34 years old when he meets 89-year-old Elizabeth Gardner, a new resident at the care facility where he works. They share common interests and certain sensibilities that draw them to one another, and feel a connection unlike any either has ever experienced is forged. That connection allows them to open up to each other, showing their vulnerabilities, revealing unfulfilled hopes and unmet dreams, and confessing to past failures and indiscretions. Cary missed out on the opportunities to pursue his desired education and career, while Elizabeth regrets losing touch with a girl from her past to whom she feels she owes an apology. Together, they finally work to realize some of those desires. 

The story is quiet and gentle and unfolds from both his and her point of view. The comfort they draw from having each other in their life is a joyful and satisfying tale. However, Elizabeth has some health struggles that both know she is not going to overcome, so each outing, conversation, and plan for the future has that knowledge lurking in the background. What begins as a meeting of the minds becomes a deep-felt and tender love. However, while they are as intellectually and emotionally close as a couple can get, their relationship never becomes sexually intimate. The story is a touching and emotionally satisfying treat. 

I recommend CERTAIN SENSIBILITIES to readers of women’s fiction, especially those with an interest in older woman-younger man relationships and gentle end-of-life stories. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tours.

The Twelve Suspects of Christmas

A Provence Mystery

by

Ana T. Drew

A long-forgotten cold case may add up to murder!

The Twelve Suspects of Christmas is a spin-off cozy mystery set in the Provencal world of the author’s culinary-themed Julie Cavallo Investigates series. It features elderly grandmothers Rose Tassy and Annie Malian. The two sassy senior sleuths work together to uncover the truth behind the decades-past suicide of Annie’s first love. 

The main characters, Rose and Annie, are the grandmothers of Julie Cavallo and Gabriel Adinian respectively, the leads in the foundation series; both appear in this story and lend a hand or two when needed. However, the investigation is all on the two older women and told from their viewpoints. While Rose has been studying to become a licensed PI in the future and guides their steps and interviews, Annie was personally involved with the victim back in the day, provided background details, and can interpret some of the clues. The pair gets off on the wrong foot with each other at their first meeting, so their collaboration is sometimes uneasy and uncomfortable initially. I liked how they secretly acknowledged their antipathy toward the other but still managed to work together successfully and loved watching them gain confidence with each other and eventually become friends. Annie also has quite a surprise waiting when the two women are menaced by one of the bad guys. BEST. SCENE. EVER. 

The case itself is from the early 1960s, and I enjoyed Annie’s occasional flashbacks to that time and place when she was a young woman in love. The author creates ample and opposing angles for their investigation and how the victim may have run into trouble, hence, the twelve suspects of the title. Each possible avenue of investigation was intriguing and followed plausible lines of inquiry, with some clues coming to light after twists in the plot. Yet, with the plethora of suspects available, it was still easy to keep them all separate and sorted without confusion. The strong subplots made for an intriguingly robust and complex mystery in a compact length. 

I recommend THE TWELVE SUSPECTS OF CHRISTMAS to cozy mystery readers who enjoy stories with a culinary theme, books set in France or Provence, and fans of the original series. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tours.

Merry Merry Merry Murder

Cuddle Farms Mysteries, #1

by

Paty Jager

Nice holiday-themed start for a new cozy mystery series.

Merry Merry Merry Murder is the debut novel in author Pay Jager’s new cozy Cuddle Farm Mysteries series and features a widow returning to the hometown she grew up in to reunite with her family and start her life without her beloved husband. After the accidental death of her husband two years earlier, Andi Clark had experienced deep grief, and her dog, Cocoa, turned out to be the key to her healing. Realizing she could provide the same type of comfort to others, Andi learned more about therapy animals and decided to move back home to her family’s farm, rebuild her life, and start her own business, taking trained therapy dogs where they were needed most, like schools, hospitals, and retirement facilities. Thus, Cuddle Farms was born and soon expanded to include a miniature donkey, goat, and chicken, as well as Andi’s three dogs: Cocoa, Athena, and Lulu. 

The holidays officially kick off in town on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, with a Christmas market followed by their traditional tree-lighting ceremony later that night. But during the evening’s festivities, the body of a local woman is discovered, strangled with a string of Christmas lights, and Andi is determined to find justice for the victim’s little girl, whom Andi had overheard confiding to Athena about seeing her mother kissing Santa Claus, a man not her father. 

Andi finds out it’s hard to come home after so many years away. People have changed, life has moved on, and there are long-hidden secrets. The dead woman, Lauren Sheffield, is at the center of many of those secrets, and there are plenty of good suspects who have clear motives for wanting her out of their lives. Andi jumps into the case feet first because she wants an inroad with the new sheriff as an investigator: skills she’d developed over the twenty years she was away while helping her husband discreetly solve international murder cases involving privileged, high-placed, or government officials. From the sheriff’s perspective, she’s a nosy civilian but has local knowledge and connections he still lacks as a newcomer in town. So, although he cautions her to stay out of his investigation, he relies on her for the information she digs up. Along the way, Andi finally begins to reconnect with her old high school friends and expand her impact with her therapy animals. 

The murder occurs early in the story, and the author does the heavy lifting of building the world of Auburn, Oregon, while Andi asks questions. The murder victim had quite a well-deserved reputation as a seductress, and many local couples had been drawn into her games. With so many guilty husbands and wronged wives, the suspects are thick on the ground, and Andi has her work cut out for her just ruling out the most likely. The story meanders a bit with so many distractions, but when the truth begins to come out, the pace really picks up. With questions about her family’s dynamics that still require answers and the hint of a possible romance in the future, I look forward to the next book in the series. 

I recommend MERRY MERRY MERRY MURDER to cozy mystery fans, especially those who enjoy a holiday-themed story. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.