Tuesday, February 28, 2017


I'm never sure who is more excited about new release day, the authors or the readers. Either way, we can agree that it's an exciting day for us all!


Cat Latimer’s Colorado bed-and-breakfast plays host to writers from all over. But murder is distinctly unwelcome . . .

To kick off a winter writing retreat, Cat and her handyman boyfriend, Seth, escort the aspiring authors to a nearby ski resort, hoping some fresh cold air will wake up their creative muses. But instead of hitting the slopes, they hit the bar—and before long, a tipsy romance novelist named Christina is keeping herself warm with a local ski bum who might have neglected to tell her about his upcoming wedding.

Next thing Cat knows, her uncle, the town sheriff, informs her that the young man’s been found dead in a hot tub—and Christina shows up crying and covered in blood. Now, between a murder mystery, the theft of a rare Hemingway edition, and the arrival of a black-clad stranger in snowy Aspen Hills, Cat’s afraid everything’s going downhill . . .

MY REVIEW


FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT was indeed almost fatal to me. I could have died from lack of sleep from not wanting to put this book down!

Book one in the Cat Latimer Mysteries, A STORY TO KILL, was so good, I found it hard to believe that author Lynn Cahoon could improve upon it. Well, that shows you how much I know, because, FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT was superb! All of the character building, and wonderfully descriptive scenes from the first book, added such an rich essence to this tale, I felt like I was back at a favorite getaway instead of between the pages of a book.

As superb as Ms. Cahoon is at plotting, planning, and writing a mystery, it’s amazing to know she has only been writing them a few short years (but she was a writer before she started mysteries). As with book one, she drew me deep into FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT, sending me on wild goose chases, and keeping my mind so busy looking for answers, she managed to fool me until the reveal.

If you’re looking for a well written, entertaining, keep you up all night reading it mystery, you’ll find it for sure in FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT!

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Everyone swears by Yeast of Eden, the Mexican bread shop in town. But tonight, the only thing on the menu is la muerte . . .

Struggling photographer Ivy Culpepper has lots of soul-searching to do since returning to seaside Santa Sofia, California. That is, until the thirty-six-year-old enters a bread making class at Yeast of Eden. Whether it’s the aroma of fresh conchas in the oven, or her instant connection with owner Olaya Solis, Ivy just knows the missing ingredients in her life are hidden among the secrets of Olaya’s bakery . . .

But Ivy’s spirits crumble when a missing classmate is suddenly discovered dead in her car. Even more devastating, the prime suspect is Olaya Solis herself. Doubting the woman could commit such a crime, Ivy embarks on a murder investigation of her own to prove her innocence and seize the real killer. As she follows a deadly trail of crumbs around town, Ivy must trust her gut like never before—or someone else could be toast!
MY REVIEW


A mouthwatering tale of bread, murder, and more bread.

I’ve been looking forward to reading KNEADED TO DEATH. I’m a self-professed breadaholic, so this book was on my radar right away. And, the descriptions of the different breads did not disappoint, and indeed succeeded in making my stomach growl. It seems like I could smell each yeasty loaf as it came out of the oven. Yum!

I had a love/I’m-not-sure-about-her relationship with protagonist Ivy Culpepper. My opinion seemed to change every chapter or so. Ivy did have an awful tragedy in her life set six months before the book’s beginning, so I’m aware she wasn’t supposed to be all happy-go-lucky. And I did love that she found peace through baking, and using her camera. Hiding behind that lens can help heal a world of hurts. I’ve done it myself, so there was a bit of a connection there with her.

There were many unique characters in KNEADED TO DEATH. I enjoyed the Solis sisters, and that they slipped a lot into their native Spanish from time to time. However, I wish there had been a few more translation moments for the readers.

The mystery was pretty solid, with plenty of suspects to keep me on my toes. The reveal of who murdered a fellow classmate in Ivy’s bread making class took my completely by surprise. There was also a twist brought in. There was another twist brought into the reveal as well.

All in all a good start to a new series. I look forward to book two, and trying to connect more with Ivy.   

KNEADED TO DEATH comes with two tasty recipes at the back of the book.

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Everyone swears by Yeast of Eden, the Mexican bread shop in town. But tonight, the only thing on the menu is la muerte . . .

Struggling photographer Ivy Culpepper has lots of soul-searching to do since returning to seaside Santa Sofia, California. That is, until the thirty-six-year-old enters a bread making class at Yeast of Eden. Whether it’s the aroma of fresh conchas in the oven, or her instant connection with owner Olaya Solis, Ivy just knows the missing ingredients in her life are hidden among the secrets of Olaya’s bakery . . .

But Ivy’s spirits crumble when a missing classmate is suddenly discovered dead in her car. Even more devastating, the prime suspect is Olaya Solis herself. Doubting the woman could commit such a crime, Ivy embarks on a murder investigation of her own to prove her innocence and seize the real killer. As she follows a deadly trail of crumbs around town, Ivy must trust her gut like never before—or someone else could be toast!

MY REVIEW


A good start to a new series.

I very much enjoyed DEATH BY CHOCOLATE LAB during the first several chapters. It was a very quick read, (I love short chapters in a book), and I found myself flying through the pages, learning about protagonist Daphne Templeton, and her sister Piper, Daphne’s petsitting business Lucky Paws (thus the name of the series), and meeting canine characters, Socrates and Artie, as well as a few townsfolk.

As I mentioned above, during the first eight or so chapters, things moved rather swiftly, making it hard for me to put the book down. However, there were slow scenes further into the story that, honestly, if the chapters had been long ones, I would have found it hard to get through them. I know most authors have a word count that must be observed, (depending on the publisher), but there were parts of the book that would have been better if they had been trimmed back.

All that being said, I think author Bethany Blake can make the Lucky Paws Mysteries into a great series. She has created some likeable characters that I look forward to seeing grow as she continues to flesh them out, and her cast of pups already have a place in my heart. Blake is a good writer, and I very much want to read the next in the series when it releases.

If you are a lover of adorable dogs, I suggest you give DEATH BY CHOCOLATE LAB a try. If you do, be sure to check out the back of the book for recipes for dogs and humans (though some of the dog recipes sounded like something I’d eat), and read an excerpt for book two the Lucky Paws Petsitting Mysteries, DIAL MEOW FOR MURDER.

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A romantic seven-day cruise is the perfect start to bakery owner Hannah Swensen’s marriage. However, with a murder mystery heating up in Lake Eden, Minnesota, it seems the newlywed’s homecoming won’t be as sweet as she anticipated . . . 
 
After an extravagant honeymoon, Hannah’s eager to settle down in Lake Eden and turn domestic daydreams into reality. But when her mother’s neighbor is discovered murdered in the condo downstairs, reality becomes a nightmarish investigation. Victoria Bascomb, once a renowned stage actress, was active in the theater community during her brief appearance in town . . . and made throngs of enemies along the way. Did a random intruder murder the woman as police claim, or was a deadlier scheme at play? As Hannah peels through countless suspects and some new troubles of her own, solving this crime—and living to tell about it—might prove trickier than mixing up the ultimate banana cream pie. 

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That ghost sure looks . . . familiar
Only a handful of people know that Emma Lee Raines, proprietor of a small-town Kentucky funeral home, is a “Betweener.” She helps ghosts stuck between here and the ever-after—murdered ghosts. Once Emma Lee gets them justice they can cross over to the great beyond.
But Emma Lee’s own sister refuses to believe in her special ability. In fact, the Raines sisters have barely gotten along since Charlotte Rae left the family business for the competition. After a doozy of an argument, Emma Lee is relieved to see Charlotte Rae back home to make nice. Until she realizes her usually snorting, sarcastic, family-ditching sister is a . . . ghost.
Charlotte Rae has no earthly idea who murdered her or why. With her heart in tatters, Emma Lee relies more than ever on her sexy beau, Sheriff Jack Henry Ross…because this time, catching a killer means the Raines sisters will have to make peace with each other first.

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Deputy coroner Mattie Winston is starting to feel like she’s in way over her head . . .

As the single mom of an energetic toddler and an investigator working for the medical examiner’s office in small-town Sorenson, Wisconsin, Mattie is used to her life being a juggling act. But now that she’s moved in with Detective Steve Hurley and his teenaged daughter Emily, and has started planning their wedding, her home life is looking more like a three-ring circus. And with her boss and friend, Izzy, suddenly having a health crisis, she could not be more grateful for the newest staff member in the ME’s office, Hal Dawson.

All too quickly her gratitude turns to shock when a floating body found trapped against a dam turns out to be Hal, but the cause of death isn’t drowning—his throat’s been slashed. Hal was supposed to be fishing on his day off with his girlfriend. And when their empty boat is found in a nearby lake, the whereabouts of the woman becomes an even more urgent question.

To find out what really happened to her coworker, Mattie may need to rock the boat. But a killer is just as determined to keep the truth from ever surfacing, even if that means making Mattie the next one to go under.

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All six of these great titles are available today!


As always, please leave a comment and 
let me know what you think!

Follow my blog by 
clicking on the link in the 
upper right hand corner of this page.

Monday, February 27, 2017


DEVONSHIRE SCREAM
Book 17 in the Tea Shop Mysteries
by Laura Childs


The New York Times bestselling author of Ming Tea Murder serves up heists, homicides, and herbal blends in the latest in the Tea Shop mysteries.
 
Catering a trunk show at Heart’s Desire Jewelry is a shining achievement for Theodosia and the Indigo Tea Shop. After all, a slew of jewelers, museum curators, and private collectors will be there to sip some of Theo’s best blends. Unfortunately, the party is crashed by a gang of masked muggers who steal the precious gems on display, and then disappear almost as quickly as they arrived—leaving a dead body in their wake.  
 
Theo gets involved in the case after her friend Brooke, aunt of the victim and owner of Heart’s Desire, begs for help in figuring out who committed the brutal burglary. Though the FBI believes this smash and grab is the work of an international gang of jewel thieves, Theo is convinced that the felon is someone much closer to home...


INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES AND TEA TIME TIPS! 

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MY REVIEW


Laura Childs has bagged me again with this fantastic mystery steeped full of action and intrigue!  

Talk about a book starting off with a bang. DEVONSHIRE SCREAM had me gasping in shock only a few pages in. Seriously, I sat up straighter in my chair, and remember saying out loud, “No way!” 

DEVONSHIRE SCREAM takes the reader through a jewel hyst and murder, and carries us through as investigation brewing with ever increasing questions, all leading to an intense conclusion that left me absolutely breathless!

Book after book, author Laura Childs continues to write brilliant stories in this delightful series. Each new story is fresh, entertaining, and fun.

Returning fans, and new readers of the Tea Shop mysteries are in for a wonderful treat with this latest installment.

Make sure to check out the back of this book for recipes, Tea Time Tips, Tea Resources, and an excerpt of LITTLE GIRL GONE, a thriller y Laura Childs writing under her own name, Gerry Schmitt!


DEVONSHIRE SCREAM
by Laura Childs
releases in paperback
March 7!

Pre-order today!


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let me know what you think!

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Sunday, February 26, 2017


THE SILENCE OF THE FLANS
Book 2 in the Emergency Dessert Squad Mysteries
by Laura Bradford

Available March 7! 
Pre-order your copy today!


The second delectable Emergency Dessert Squad Mystery from the national bestselling author of Ã‰clair and Present Danger.
 
Baker Winnie Johnson does her best work when the heat is on. As owner of the Emergency Dessert Squad, she has a deft touch in the kitchen and a soft spot for lost causes. So when her business professor beau, Jay Morgan, expresses misgivings over having to fail one of his fourth-year students, Winnie cooks up a sweet solution. 
 
She’ll offer an extra credit opportunity in exchange for a little help with her growing business. But when her protégé’s first dessert delivery poisons a student journalist, the publicity threatens to burn Winnie’s business to a crisp. Now the entrepreneur-turned-detective must uncover the ingredients behind a recipe for murder before she crumbles under pressure...


RECIPES INCLUDED

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MY REVIEW


EMERGENCY ALERT! The Emergency Dessert Squad Mystery series is one of the tastiest cozy mystery series I’ve read!

I have had a craving to read THE SILENCE OF THE FLANS since I read the last page of ÉCLAIR AND PRESENT DANGER, book one in this delightful series. As always, author Laura Bradford has penned a tale that was totally worth the wait!

I’ve read all sorts of books ranging from awful to fabulous. Fabulous is the description that has fit every book I’ve read by Laura Bradford (including her pen name, Elizabeth Lynn Casey). She has a way of making me feel I am living a story as I read it. I can envision myself in every scene, watching it play out before my eyes. This wonderful book was no different.

Humor, decadent desserts, and a first rate mystery are what you’ll find between the covers of THE SILENCE OF THE FLANS. Everything great about the first book in this series is multiplied tenfold in this delicious installment. This was a solid mystery. Harder to figure out than some I have read. However, if you listen to your inner Nancy Drew, you may come pretty close to guessing it. But Ms. Bradford won’t make it easy for you. ;-)

Creative and unique, THE SILENCE OF THE FLANS is everything cozy readers are looking for in a book, and so much more!

Make sure to check out the fun recipes at the back of the book. And, read an excerpt of book three, DIAL M FOR MOUSSE!


March 7!


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Saturday, February 25, 2017


MURDER SHE WROTE:
DESIGN FOR MURDER
Book 45 in the Murder, She Wrote Mysteries
by Jessica Fletcher, Donald Bain, & Renée Paley-Bain


In the newest in the USA Today bestselling series, Jessica Fletcher visits New York City during Fashion Week, only to discover that someone has rather fatal designs...

KILLER COUTURE


Jessica is in Manhattan to attend the debut of new designer Xandr Ebon—formerly Sandy Black of Cabot Cove. He’s introducing his evening wear collection to the public and—more important—to the industry’s powers that be: the stylists, magazine editors, buyers, and wealthy clientele who can make or break him.

At the show, the glitz and glamour are dazzling until a young new model shockingly collapses and dies. Natural causes? Perhaps. But when another model is found dead, a famous cover girl and darling of the paparazzi, the fashion world gets nervous.

Two models. Two deaths. Their only connection? Xandr Ebon. Jessica’s crime-solving instincts are put to the test as she sorts through the egos, the conflicts of interest, the spiteful accusations, and the secrets, all while keeping an amorous detective at arm’s length. But she’ll have to dig deep to uncover a killer. A designer’s career is on the line. And another model could perish in a New York minute.

MY REVIEW

(From my original review of the hardcover version released April 5, 2016)


High fashion murder meets its match with Jessica Fletcher!

I can only dream that some of my favorite cancelled TV shows had been blessed with a new breath of life in novels such as this series.

The Murder, She Wrote books were always to me a series my late mother enjoyed as much as the television show that spawned them, and books my older sister still looks forward to reading. Not having been a fan of the show due to a childhood fear of actress Angela Lansbury (Don’t ask), I saw no reason to read the books. Now having read several in the series, I can see why Murder She Wrote is still going strong.

MURDER, SHE WROTE: DESIGN FOR MURDER is another fascinating, well plotted book that I found difficult to put down. High fashion and murder go wonderfully together as the theme for this story. Throw the brains of Jessica Fletcher into the mix, and you have a fantastic mystery that you’ll be talking about with your friends.

So, to my Mom, sister, Mr. Bain, and most of all, Ms. Lansbury, I have been converted, and am now a Murder, She Wrote fan.

Paperback Edition
Available for Pre-Order

Releases March 7!


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let me know what you think!

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Click on the link in the 
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Friday, February 24, 2017


It's
Cozy Food Friday
and a

*****!!!GIVEAWAY!!!*****

That means it's time to share a recipe from 
another great cozy mystery or cozy mystery author!

Today I'm featuring 
FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT
Book 2 in the Cat Latimer Mysteries
by Lynn Cahoon


Cat Latimer’s Colorado bed-and-breakfast plays host to writers from all over. But murder is distinctly unwelcome . . .

To kick off a winter writing retreat, Cat and her handyman boyfriend, Seth, escort the aspiring authors to a nearby ski resort, hoping some fresh cold air will wake up their creative muses. But instead of hitting the slopes, they hit the bar—and before long, a tipsy romance novelist named Christina is keeping herself warm with a local ski bum who might have neglected to tell her about his upcoming wedding.

Next thing Cat knows, her uncle, the town sheriff, informs her that the young man’s been found dead in a hot tub—and Christina shows up crying and covered in blood. Now, between a murder mystery, the theft of a rare Hemingway edition, and the arrival of a black-clad stranger in snowy Aspen Hills, Cat’s afraid everything’s going downhill . . .

FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT
Releases
February 28!
Pre-order your copy today! 

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About Lynn


Lynn Cahoon is the author of the NYT and USA Today best-selling Tourist Trap cozy mystery series. GUIDEBOOK TO MURDER, book 1 of the series, won the Reader's Crown for Mystery Fiction in 2015. She's also pens the Cat Latimer series. A STORY TO KILL, and FATALITY IN FIRELIGHT are available in mass market paperback. She lives in a small town like the ones she loves to write about with her husband and two fur babies. Sign up for her newsletter at  www.lynncahoon.com

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*****!!!GIVEAWAY!!!*****

Lynn is giving away a print copy of 
FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT

Giveaway is open to US and Canada.

Use the Rafflecopter form at the end of this post to enter.

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On to the recipe!

PEANUT BUTTER BLOSSOM BARS
Photo courtesy of Google Images (c) Betty Crocker

From Lynn: I adjusted the original recipe to use my go to peanut butter cookie recipe rather than a mix.

Ingredients

·         ½ cup butter (Softened)
·         ½ c peanut butter
·         ½ c sugar
·         ½ c brown sugar (light)

·         1 egg
·         ½ tsp vanilla

·         1 ¼ c flour
·         ¾ tsp soda
·         ¼ tsp salt

Plus -
·         ½ cup Hershey's™ Mini Kisses™ Brand milk chocolates
·         3 teaspoons white sparkling sugar
·         16 Hershey's™ Kisses™ Brand milk chocolates, unwrapped

Photo Courtesy of Lynn Cahoon

Directions

   Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom only of 9-inch square pan with cooking spray.

   In large bowl, mix butter, peanut butter, and the sugars until creamy.  Add egg and vanilla and stir. Then add all the dry ingredients together, then stir.

 Photo Courtesy of Lynn Cahoon

   Stir in Mini Kisses™.

   Press dough in bottom of pan. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of the sparkling sugar on top.

Photo Courtesy of Lynn Cahoon

   Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until golden. Immediately top with unwrapped Kisses™ in 4 rows by 4 rows. 

   Sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon sparkling sugar. Cool completely on cooling rack, about 1 hour. 

   Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows with one of the Kisses™ in center of each bar. 

   Store in airtight container.

Photo courtesy of Google Images (c) Betty Crocker

Oh. My. Goodness.

Can't you just smell these baking?

I want to be eating them right now!

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Please keep reading and check out my 
installments of 
Book Beginnings on Fridays
and
The Friday 56

Both are from 
FATALITY IN FIRELIGHT



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Book Beginnings on Fridays is a meme hosted by Rose City Reader
Share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading

My Book Beginnings

The world outside still clung to the previous night, the shadows not quite releasing their hold to the breaking light over the mountain ridge outside Aspen Hills, Colorado.

The Friday 56 is a meme hosted by Freda's Voice
Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader (If you have to improvise, that's okay.) *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you. *Post it.

My Friday 56 

"Ooohhh, do I hear a bit of jealousy?"


February 28!

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GOOD LUCK!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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As always, please leave a comment and 
let me know what you think!

Follow my blog by 
clicking on the link in the 
upper right hand corner of this page.