The Shamrock Case by Linda Weaver Clarke

Amelia Moore, the founder of the Moore Detective Agency, specializes in missing persons. With the help of Rick Bonito, her new partner, her business is flourishing. When Amelia is hired to search for her client's grandparents, the case takes them to Ireland. Kate must learn about her heritage. Who are her grandparents and could they still be alive after all these years? Why did her parents leave Ireland suddenly and move to America? Is there more to this case than meets the eye?  (Summary via Goodreads)


When you read a book, you do it to escape your life for a while and relax.  Linda Weaver Clarke does that and a whole lot more.  She takes you on an unbelieveable journey.

The Shamrock Case, the second book in the Amelia Moore Detective Series, finds Amelia and her assistant, Rick, taking on another interesting case.  An adopted 18 year-old wants to learn more about her heritage but she has very little to go with.  Amelia is drawn to Kate and her story and wants to do everything she can to help her.

As in The Bali Case, the first book in the series, the case takes Amelia and Rick on an adventure.  This time they are heading to Ireland to the known towns where Kate's parents lived before moving to Canada then the States.

You will get so swept up in Linda Weaver Clarke's writing that you will fell the rain as it soaks Amelia and Rick, you will smell the aroma of all the flowers all around, and wish you could taste the real Irish food that Rick loves to devour.

Not only are The Moore Detective Series books mysteries but they also have a growing love story.   You will get to witness the relationship between Amelia and Rick grow and develop.

There is so much more I could say about The Shamrock Case and Linda Weaver Clarke but I don't want to tell you everything and also I feel a bit jetlagged.  After all I just returned from Ireland.

Reveiw by Missi S. 

When Bunnies Go Bad: A Pru Marlowe Pet Noir by Clea Simon

Winter is hard in Beauville, where the melting snow can reveal much more than last season s dead leaves. So when a wealthy, obnoxious tourist and his ski bunny girlfriend surface in Pru Marlowe s little Berkshire town, she knows she should stay out of their way. The bad-girl animal psychic has to focus on more immediate concerns, including a wild rabbit named Henry, supposedly tamed and illegally living with an eighty-four-year-old lady in her home. Henry, who seems to be acting out and hiding, avoids responding to Pru. Yet when Pru discovers the tourist murdered and his girlfriend s high-maintenance spaniel falls to her care, she gets dragged into a complicated case of crime and punishment that involves some new friends, an old nemesis, and her own shadowed past. A recent museum art heist draws the feds into the investigation along with a courtly gentleman radiating menace, who represents secretive business interests in New York and shows a surprising awareness of Pru. Her on-again, off-again romance with police Detective Creighton doesn t stop him from warning her to steer clear of the inquiry. The spaniel, however, lures her in. Pru lives in a world where only her crotchety tabby Wallis knows the whole truth about her past, her flight from Manhattan, and her unique gift that surfaced abruptly one day. Fearing the worst, Pru now comes dangerously close to being exposed. With everything in motion, Pru, Wallis, and everyone they hold dear will be lucky to escape by a hare. ( Summary via Goodreads )


Pru Marlowe is an great character. I love this series and I am always excited to know when a new one is coming out. I have read book five and now six and I am eager to go back to the beginning of the series. 

The character of Pru is fun and love seeing what she is going to get into next! She has a unique gift of being able to hear animals speak. Ironically her business keeps her busy with her gift as well as gets her in trouble. She ends up finding a dead guy and is getting all kinds of messages from her cat Wallis and a dog named Pudge who happens to be the dead guy's girlfriends. And along the way she gets an interesting client by the name of Henry who is an Eastern Cottontail wild rabbit. What a job! But of course all the clues are not so simple to figure out from her four legged friends. Although she can hear animals speak it is different, they give her feelings instead of full sentences like you and I would communicate. YIKES! 

This is where the fun begins. She has a lot going on right now and her boyfriend Detective Creighton is telling her to back off! She can't because she is in the middle of it whether she likes it or not because of her new client and her dog, Pudgy. 


Will Pru be able to get out of this one or will this be her last dog walk??? 


This is a great cozy series and recommend it to all who love a challenging who done it.

Review by Penny M.

Incomplete Sentence (Miss Prentice Mystery #4) by E.E. Kennedy

Gregory Rasmussen, the infamous Rasputin Killer, never served the sentence handed down in absentia for a particularly brutal murder. He has eluded the law for years, but he is now believed to be in the North Country. When a resident is murdered at the local retirement home, speculation about the killer’s identity fills the headlines. Then another victim is found at Chez Prentice. 

Trapped in her snowbound B&B with elderly new friend Hugh Channing, father of the first victim, and her baby, Janet, Amelia Prentice Dickensen and her staff are asking themselves: Where is the murderer? Is he really the Rasputin Killer? Could one of their guests be the infamous psychopath, known for his power to charm and his fine singing voice? Will publicity surrounding the discovery of a dead body in the basement put the B&B out of business? 

Interspersed with humor and local Adirondack color, Amelia’s latest murder case is especially chilling.  (Summary via Goodreads)


This was the first book that I have read by E.E. Kennedy and although it is the 4th book in her Miss Prentice Mystery series, it was a GREAT read.  

I enjoy any book that involves a Bed & Breakfast and a small group of people.  E.E. Kennedy makes you feel right at home immediately.   I was so at ease and relaxed while reading the story, there was a part of the story where everyone was drinking hot cocoa and I felt like I could smell it and wanted some myself.  ( I didn't have any because I didn't want to stop reading. )

E.E. Kennedy kept me at the edge of my seat throughout the book with her 2 murders and the list of suspects.  There were three potential suspects and I couldn't begin the figure it out.  When I thought I had it figured out, something would happen and I was lost again.  

I also enjoyed that she involved a retirement home.  That brought memories of visiting my grandfater when he was in a nursing home years ago.  Fond memories.

I'm sorry that I was unable to read the previous books in this series but you can count on me reading them from here on out.  I just love Chez Prentice, Amelia and the rest of the gang and cannot wait to see what unfolds in the next book.

Review by Missi S.

Fogged Inn (A Maine Clambake Mystery #4) by Barbara Ross

Special.... 2 reviews for Fogged Inn.......

An autumn chill has settled over Busman’s Harbor, Maine, but Julia Snowden is warming up the town by offering lobster stew at the local diner. When her landlord discovers a dead body in the walk-in refrigerator, Julia must figure out who ordered up a side of murder.
 
Nothing’s colder than a corpse—especially one stashed inside a sub-zero fridge. The victim spent his last night on earth dining at the restaurant bar, so naturally Julia finds herself at the center of the ensuing investigation. Lost in the November fog, however, is who’d want to kill the unidentified stranger—and why. It might have something to do with a suspicious group of retirees and a decades-old tragedy to which they’re all connected. One thing’s for sure: Julia’s going to make solving this mystery her early bird special… (Summary via Goodreads)

WOW !!  Barbara Ross does it yet again with her latest book, Fogged Inn.  This is the 4th book in her Maine Clambake Mystery series and I have to say they just keep getting better.

Wth every new book in this series you get to know Julia, her friends and family more and fall in love with them all over again.    You see the relationship between Julia and Chris grow, you meet a group of older residents that are thrown together one night at the restaurant that Julia and Chris have opened for the long cold winter months, and of course, there is a dead body in the walk-in cooler.

As  you read this book you will be amazed at how Barbara Ross keeps you on the edge of your seat turning the pages faster and faster.  Also the way she links things and brings it full circle is mind blowing !!

I love Busman's Harbor.  I never want to leave it.  When reading these books, I feel like I am a resident and a friend of the family... be it a silent friend because they never listen to me.   Ross is very good at opening the reader's imagination......  Once you read these books, I promise you that you will never want to leave either.

I also LOVE how at the end of the book, there are recipes that came up in the story and Ross writes a little about the recipes telling you how Chris makes the dish..... like he is REAL....  

Reviewed by Missi S.



I love how Fogged Inn book four of A Maine Clambake Mystery starts. It gets you prepared for the cold winter that is fast approaching Busman's Harbor, Maine. You have a chilly night, icy fog, and a lobster stew on at Gus Too which Julia and Chris her boyfriend run at night for the dinner crowd. But this night is different. Guests are sparse because of the bad weather except for four older couples who came in to eat and use their gift certificates before they expired. And they don't seem to know each other which is weird because it is such a small town. Or do they???

The next morning Julia and Chris wake up to Gus, their landlord yelling up the stairs about a dead guy in the walk in freezer! No one knows who the dead guy is and to boot there had been an accident the night before that shut down Main Street. Also, they can't find the second driver? Are these events connected or is it just coincidence? Julia has caught herself in the middle of another mystery that she must solve before someone else ends up in a deep freeze. But little does she know that the events that just took place may have opened up old wounds and a tragedy long ago that some want to stay buried.

This book will have you on the edge of your seat with all the twists and turns as well as hungry. The recipes in the back of the book are to die for, no pun intended of course. 

I am looking forward to the next book in A Maine Clambake mystery.

Reviewed by Penny

Author Interview and Giveaway with BARBARA ROSS

Barbara Ross is the author of the Maine Clambake Mysteries, Clammed Up, Boiled Overand Musseled Out. Clammed Up was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel and was a finalist for the Maine Literary Award for Crime Fiction. Both Clammed Up and Boiled Over were nominated for the RT Book Reviews, Reviewer’s Choice Best Book Award for Amateur Sleuth (2013 & 2014). Fogged Inn will be published in February 2016.

Barbara blogs with a wonderful group of Maine mystery authors at Maine Crime Writers and with a group of writers of New England-based cozy mysteries at Wicked Cozy Authors.

Barbara’s first mystery novel, The Death of an Ambitious Woman, was published by Five Star/Gale/Cengage in August, 2010.  In her former life, Barbara was a co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of two successful start-ups in educational technology.

Barbara and her husband own the former Seafarer Inn at the head of the harbor in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. When they aren’t in Boothbay, she and her husband live in Somerville, MA.

That is what her website says about her but we are going to get to know her better and more personally.

How long does it take to write a book ? 

My first book took ten years! But now my contract with Kensington has a book due every nine months. 

When and why did you begin writing ?

I'm not sure I remember. I've always written, the usual juvenile stuff, co-editor of the high school literary magazine (which was weekly!) etc., etc. 

What inspired you to write your first book ?

My first book was The Death of an Ambitious Woman which was published by Five Star. It's about a female Acting Chief of Police in a large suburban city who becomes suspicious about the car crash that killed a stock broker who was also a young mother. I wrote it because I wanted to show a woman, in charge, with a lot of responsibility who was good at her job and happy in her home life. It was sort of a reaction to all the broken professional sleuths around at the time. 

Does your family read your books ?

Yes. I am lucky that way. All my family are book people. My husband usually reads the manuscripts and offers comments before I hand them in. My son, daughter and daughter-in-law all get Advance Reader Copies and read them and tell me what they think. 

What "technology" do you use for your writing ?

I write on a laptop, in Scrivener, which I love. 

Do you read ? If so, what kinds of books do you read ? Do you have a favorite author ?

I do. Oh gosh, so many favorites. Louise Penny, Julia Spencer-Fleming, Deborah Crombie, Kate Atkinson and my original inspirations, P.D. James and Ruth Rendell. 

What book are you reading now ?

I just finished a fabulous book called The Words in My Hand about Helena Jans, a maid in 1600s Holland who was the lover of Rene Descartes and gave birth to his children. It's only available in the UK and Germany right now, but it needs to be published here because it is fantastic. The author, Guinevere Glasford and I were work colleagues in a field totally unrelated to writing and I remember walking around Manhattan with her about seven years ago wondering if this would ever happen to either of u. 

What do you like to do when you are not writing or reading ?

I'm in Key West right now (though I have to go home at the end of the month). When I'm here, I reward myself with time in the pool when I make my word count every day. 

If you had to choose, which author would you consider your mentor ?

Oh, so many. Hallie Ephron is an incredible teacher. Hank Phillippi Ryan is one of the most generous people in the mystery community. Lucy Burdette has taught me so much about mystery writing and about the cozy genre. I couldn't be where I am without my sisters on the Wicked Cozy blog--Jessie Crockett, Sherry Harris, Julie Hennrikus, Edith Maxwell (Maddie Day) and Liz Mugavero. And my fellow Maine Crime Writers, especially Kaitlyn Dunnett, Lea Wait and another mentor, Kate Flora. 

What question do you wish someone would ask you about your books that nobody has ?

How do you like writing cozies?

I love the world-creating that goes with the community setting and the ability to develop characters over the course of a series. I will always be more attracted to mysteries about crimes committed by individuals for individual reasons over stories about conspiracies or countries or mental deviance.

I do chafe just a tiny bit at some of the restrictions, especially limiting the swearing. I write about lobstermen and fishermen and I don't think they'd say, "Oh, golly," if they found a body!

The hardest part is always finding the hook to get the amateur sleuth involved--but I enjoy that part of the challenge. 

Reader's questions....

How do you plan out your writing ?

Not well. LOL. I do what I call "scaffolding" which involves planning out scenes that are about ten scenes ahead of where I am currently writing. I usually know where I eventually want to end up, but there is a lot of murkiness along the way. I hate first drafts but love revising. 

Do you write everyday ?

I try to. I would say almost every day. Sometimes life intervenes. 

What made you decide to write cozy mysteries ?

My first mystery had a professional sleuth, but it was very much a village mystery. I wrote what I love to read. When I pitched my agent John Talbot, he was looking for cozy mysteries to sell. We went back and forth with ideas. When he said the word, "clambake," I said, "That's it!" 

What are your hobbies?

I seem to have turned my hobby of writing fiction into my career, so I have to say scrapbooking and I just, just, just started a little family genealogy.

Any pets?

Not currently. I grew up with a mutt who followed my dad home from the park when I was five and lived until after I left for college. We also had a cat who moved in from next door when one of the daughters of the house came home with a dog and two toddlers while her husband was overseas in the military. I had a cat when I was single and a young married, then a mostly golden retriever when my kids were young and finally a rescue cocker. I miss having pets, but I also love the freedom of being able to walk out the door and forget about the responsibilities of home.

 Have you always read mysteries?

Yes. Like a lot of female mystery writers, it all started with Nancy Drew. And then Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, P.D. James and Ruth Rendell. I read other things, of course, mostly fiction, but I love mysteries. 

What are some of your inspirations ?

For the Maine Clambake Mysteries I truly am inspired by the people and settings of coastal Maine. It's a remarkable place, geographically and historically. I feel like I will never run out of stories.  

And now nosey ME wants to know more about your personal life and your residences.....

You have 3 residences, 1 in MA, 1 in FL and 1 in Maine.... How do you divide your time between 

properties ?   
 

We rent in Key West. We're not THAT crazy. We're here January and February (and hoping for March next year), Maine in the summer, and Massachusetts the rest of the time. 

Do you have a favorite ?  Why ?

No, I really don't. That's the problem. I love the funkiness and walkability of Key West and Somerville, but I love to balance that out with the serenity of our porch overlooking the harbor in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. 

Tell me about the former Seafarer Inn in Maine.....( I LOVE NH and Maine )  Is it still an operating Inn ?

No, it's not an inn any longer. My mother-in-law bought the Seafarer on a total impulse in 1987. She stayed for an unscheduled visit one night and agreed to buy it the next morning! She was a math teacher in Massachusetts so running a B&B for the short Maine season fit perfectly with her schedule. But as she grew older the work got to be too much. My husband and I bought it from her then. She still goes to Boothbay Harbor in the summer, and she lives downstairs in our two-family house in Somerville in the winter. Fogged Inn is dedicated to her. 

Is Boothbay Harbor your inspiration behind your books?

Yes, I'm pretty open about that and I'm told people in town enjoy guessing the inspiration for different things. I made it fictional so I could move some things around and bring in some places from other Maine coastal towns. The inspiration for the Snowden Family Clambake is totally the Cabbage Island Clambake and I know fans of the series have visited there. The island and family are completely different, but the food is every bit as delicious. 

And lastly .... When can I come and stay at the Seafarer for a spell ??

Yes!  Just be aware it's not an inn. I am not a morning person. I've said I'd be willing to run a "Bed and Get-Your-Own-Damn-Breakfast, but sadly, there doesn't seem to be much of a market for it.

I'll let you sleep in then we can go to brunch....my treat !!!

Well looks like I have a trip to Boothbay Harbor to start planning..... How many books should I take ??? 

Check out her website for more about Barbara and her books.....

http://maineclambakemysteries.com/

Interview by Missi S.

Cold Cut Murder: Book Three in The Darling Deli Series by Patti Benning

The Winter Festival is in full swing as the town of Maple Creek prepares for Valentine's Day. Moira is chilled to the bone after discovering a body in her shop, and a frosty relationship develops between the deli owner and a new competitor in town, whose husband has a roving eye. ( Summary via Goodreads)

I am hooked on this series. It is well written and fast paced. Packed full of mystery, good food, and murder.

Moira is preparing for The Winter Festival in Maple Creek and is busy, busy, busy! She and her friend Martha notice a man that seems to becoming a regular. Moira has a feeling about this guy that has her unnerved. Especially after he asks her to the Valentines dance and she turns him down. Creepy!!! 

She is excited when Denise Donovan from The Redwood Grill comes in to introduce herself and invites she and Candice to the grand opening. They go and love the food! After her busy day and evening she goes to bed only to wake up the next day to a dead food critic in her deli. And things go from bad to worse when two more attacks occur and the common denominator is Moira! Thank goodness David installed a security system. But was it soon enough to save the next victim???

These books are so much fun to read. I love how each of the characters are evolving throughout the series. I can't wait to read the next adventure in The Darling Deli series.

Review by Penny M.

No Cats Allowed (Cat in the Stacks, #7) by Miranda James

In the latest mystery in the New York Times bestselling Cat in the Stacks series, librarian Charlie Harris and his Maine Coon cat Diesel must clear a friend when the evidence is stacked against her…
 
Springtime in Mississippi is abloom with beauty, but the library’s employees are too busy worrying to stop and smell the flowers. The new library director, Elwyn Dillard, is a brash, unfriendly Yankee who’s on a mission to cut costs—and his first targets are the archive and the rare book collection.
 
As annoying as a long-overdue book, Dillard quickly raises the hackles of everyone on staff, including Charlie’s fiery friend Melba—whom Dillard wants to replace with someone younger. But his biggest offense is declaring all four-legged creatures banned from the stacks. 
 
With enemies aplenty, the suspect list is long when Dillard’s body is discovered in the library. But things take a turn for the worse when a threatening e-mail throws suspicion on Melba.
 
Charlie is convinced that his friend is no murderer, especially when he catches sight of a menacing stranger lurking around the library. Now he and Diesel will have to read between the lines, before Melba is shelved under “G” for guilty… (Summary via Goodreads)


I have been in love with this series from book one. It was the first cozy I read. This is book seven and it just keeps getting better and better. I love the dynamic with Charlie and his lovable Maine Coon Diesel. I have a Maine Coon and can relate to all of the interactions and yes even talking to mine just like Charlie. 
Book seven is filled with a lot of adventure and turmoil. Everyone is unhappy with the new interim Director of the Library, Oscar Reilly. He is rude, obnoxious, and has no managerial abilities. Although he does know his finances since he used to work in the finance department. He was brought in to help with the messed up budget from the last Director Peter Vanderkeller who just up and left one day with thousands missing from the budget. Everyone wants this guy gone! Even mild mannered Charlie is having a hard time "turning the other cheek". Several coworkers have had run ins with Oscar and even complained to HR. Then Oscar is found dead in the basement of the library with evidence that puts one of Charlie and Diesel's best friend in the line of fire, Melba. Charlie knows his friend and knows she couldn't possibly be the killer. Now Charlie is on the case to find the real killer much to the dismay of his family. Will he be able to find the killer before he or she strikes again? 
This is my favorite cozy series and I have to admit it has to do with the writing but also Diesel. He is just too darn adorable. 

Who can't love a mystery with a lovable cat, library, and a whole lot of southern charm. This book will have you on the edge of your seat. I can't wait for book eight.

Review by Penny M.

A Disguise to Die For (Costume Shop Mystery #1) by Diane Vallere

No sooner does former magician’s assistant Margo Tamblyn return home to Proper City, Nevada, to run Disguise DeLimit, the family-owned costume shop, than she gets her first big order. Wealthy nuisance Blitz Manners needs forty costumes for a detective-themed birthday bash. As for Blitz himself, his Sherlock Holmes is to-die-for—literally—when, in the middle of the festivities, Margo’s friend and party planner Ebony Welles is caught brandishing a bloody carving knife over a very dead Blitz. 
 
For Margo, clearing Ebony’s name is anything but elementary, especially after Ebony flees town. Now Margo is left to play real-life detective in a town full of masked motives, cloaked secrets, and veiled vendettas. But as she soon learns, even a killer disguise can't hide a murderer in plain sight for long.  (Summary via Goodreads)

OMG !!!!  I could not wait to finish this book......so that I could tell you about it !!!  This book was blow me out of the water, shoot me to the moon and back AWESOME !!!

A Disguise to Die For is the first book in the new Costume Shop Mystery series by Diane Vallere and WOW does she know how to get the party started !!!  5 stars is not enough, 10 stars doesn't even do it....

Not only was there a murder which we all read cozy mysteries for, there was also the small town enviroment, there was even a dog and cat but what made it so fun to read was the shop it was centered around and the main character Margo.

Margo grew up in the costume shop, Disguise DeLimit, which is owned by her father.  Her mother died while giving birth to her so she was raised by her father and a long-time family friend, Ebony.  So when Ebony is standing over the body of a spoiled rich kid holding a knife, Margo jumps into gear to try to save Ebony and her innocence.  But Margo doesn't know how much time she has, she is only back in town temporarily to help her dad. 

As Margo starts looking in the case she finds out not everything is as it seems in this little town of Proper City.   She doesn't know who she can trust or believe.  As she finds clues and talks to people, she doesn't know where to turn or who to turn to. 

You will LOVE this book.  Margo is such a fun character, growing up in a costume store has made it hard for her to find her own identity so she dresses in costume every day and becomes the character.  She plays dress up every day.....how cool is that ??  Also she took a leave of absence from her job in Vegas as a magician's assistant, she drives a scooter and owns a cat.  

I usually don't read whats coming next at the end of the books.  But with this book I broke that rule.  I read the first couple pages of Book 2 in this series, Masking For Trouble and I am hooked !!!  I cannot wait for Masking For Trouble's release to see what is in store for Margo....

Review by Missi S.

Edgar Allan Cozy: Wicked Short Stories by Sheila Connolly, Sherry Harris, Sadie Hartwell, Edith Maxwell, & Barbara Ross

When cozy mystery writers meet Edgar Allan Poe, the result is Edgar Allan Cozy. Each story in this suspenseful new anthology is inspired by the work of Poe. "The Raven," "The Lighthouse," "MS. Found in a Bottle," "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Cask of Amontillado," and "Annabel Lee" have been updated and set in the fictional town of Raven Harbor, Maine. Edited by Sadie Hartwell.  (Summary via Amazon)

If you have a little time on your hands and are looking for a very entertaining story, Edgar Allan Cozy is the book you want to pick up.  The way the talented cozy writers put a spin on some of Edgar Allan Poe's stories and poems is such a treat !!

These stories are written in such a way that you will breeze through them.  But not before you laugh, get scared, get your heart racing and feel sympathetic. 

I, personally, am not a fan of poems but the way that Barbara Ross (Raven) and Sherry Harris (Anna, Belle, and Lee) write their cozy interpretations of Edgar Allan Poe's work is just amazing.  

Harris also show her talent with her interpretation of The Lighthouse which is remarkable as Poe's writing was only 3 diaries entries leaving more of a mystery.  Three diaries entries and she writes a short story out of it which is very cativating.  

Then in Found in a Bottle Sheila Connolly takes us through a hard time between a young couple.  Although it is a sad, dark, depressing setting, you are more focused on what the gentlemen is experiencing and .... seeing or not seeing ?

As you may know I am partial to Edith Maxwell's work and she does not disappoint in her modern day interpretation of The Tell Tale Heart with An Intolerable Intrusion.  I think for a minute I was actually hearing the noise described in the story.

And the twist that Sadie Hartwell writes in Within These Walls will blow the windows out !!  You will be so focused on one thing in the story that when you read the twist you may realize that you are holding your breath.....

I read this collection of short stories within an hour.....but I intend to read them again.  Hopefully a little slower but I cannot promise that.  Once you start reading you find yourself undet a wicked cozy spell that only breaks when you finish the book....or does it ????  Did you hear that ???  

To learn more about these amazing authors check out their website.....

https://wickedcozyauthors.com/