Jack Reacher is idly looking for his father’s past in small Laconia, New Hampshire in Past Tense. There are two tales in this book: Jack’s search for his family and a young Canadian couple’s stay in a creepy motel. Both occur in Laconia so it is obvious the two talesContinue Reading
Charming characters in a unique setting enliven A Wrench in the Works, the sixth Fixer-Upper Mystery. Sisters Shannon and Chloe grew up working in their dad’s construction company. Shannon took over her dad’s company when he retired. Chloe moved to Hollywood and stars in a fixer-upper show. Chloe decides toContinue Reading
Three novellas in bestselling cozy mystery series all involving yule logs and set in the Christmas season are told in the Yule Log Murder. The Yule Log Murder is part of the Lucy Stone series. An assistant on a movie shoot is killed while transporting a yule log. It includesContinue Reading
Séances are for Suckers is a humorous take on old school romantic mysteries like The Moonspinners by Mary Stewart. Ellie is the youngest of a set of triplets. On her eighteenth birthday, her mother is killed and her sister descends into a vegetative state. Her brother is an elementary schoolContinue Reading
A long-dead body is found in the captivating, and true, Lady in the Cellar. In London in 1879, many people were looking to make their fortune by living together in boarding houses. In one, at Number 4 Euston Square, a well-to-do older woman’s body is found in the coal cellar.Continue Reading
Accomplished dual mysteries wrapped in an artful gothic atmosphere. Go to My Grave tells the story of two parties that went horribly wrong. “They were terrified. Every last one of them.” Donna and her mother spent their last dime opening The Breakers, a bed and every meal (rather than justContinue Reading
Whether you write mysteries, fantasy or science fiction, Putting the Science in Fiction is an exceptional way to avoid factual errors. But it is also just a great way to catch up with current technology trends. When your spaceship dramatically explodes into a fiery cataclysm, scientists everywhere are screaming (withContinue Reading
Ready for a paranormal thriller thick with an ominous atmosphere? Don’t miss Gideon Falls Vol 1. Father Fred is given a new flock and church in Gideon Falls. The prior priest, Father Tom, had died mysteriously. After dreaming of being visited by Father Tom, Father Fred chases him outside intoContinue Reading
Ask Me No Questions is an excellent start to a new gilded age female amateur detective series. Philomena Amesbury, Lady Dunbridge, has finally finished the obligatory 18-month mourning period for her husband. The Earl of Dunbridge, was, by all accounts, not a very good husband. Deciding that staying in EnglandContinue Reading
A Gift of Bones is a good small town private investigator cozy mystery. Eve is days away from giving birth when she disappears. A ransom demand is sent to her cousin. Private investigator, Sarah Booth Delaney, and her partner, Tinkie, are hired to find the missing woman. The missing woman’sContinue Reading
A multitude of suspects fills Nantucket Counterfeit, an enjoyable merging of a cozy setting with a police procedural. Horst Refn is the Artistic Director of the Nantucket Theater Lab. He is a ladies man and a possible blackmailer. Worse, he is found face down in his basement’s chest freezer—frostbitten andContinue Reading
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Seek is a continuation of the famous Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hide. We are obviously playing Hide and Seek. Attorney Utterson is set to inherit Dr. Jekyll’s substantial estate after the doctor is missing a full seven years. Two weeks prior to his inheriting, a personContinue Reading
An interesting character study of a lonely police detective forced to retire. The Darkness is another character as is the beautiful isolation of Iceland. Hulda is 64. She is dreading retiring to her lonely apartment when her superior tells she has been replaced effectively in two weeks. He allows herContinue Reading
A true crime memoir that reads like a thriller! The takedown of the notorious street gang, MS-13, is described in Operation Devil Horns. “A special agent is never—ever—off duty.” MS-13 expanded from El Salvador throughout Central America to Los Angeles and finally San Francisco’s Mission District. Local cops were unableContinue Reading
In Be Our Ghost, Kate and her grandmother, Liza, run a bed and breakfast in coastal Oregon. When a local businessman is found dead, they investigate to exonerate a local business owner. Soon they are uncovering oodles of secrets in this fine cozy mystery. Norman wants to open a largeContinue Reading
The Witch Elm was an acceptable family drama but not much of a thriller. Toby is a lucky privileged jerk. His girlfriend, Melissa, is a sweet bubblehead. After celebrating his ability to talk his way out of a possibly career-ending mistake at work, Toby goes home. There he surprises twoContinue Reading