Death on the Page (Castle Bookshop Mystery #2) by Essie Lang

Thousand Islands bookstore owner Shelby Cox sleuths the slaying of a true-crime writer who may have learned too much about a murder case that should have stayed shut.

There are a thousand stories in New York's scenic Thousand Islands, and Bayside Books co-owner Shelby Cox stocks them all. But lately, the Blye Island bookseller's life is more about investigation than inventory. True-crime writer Savannah Page caps off two successful signings at Bayside Books with a night in Blye Castle. She's there to research Joe Cabana, a colorful Prohibition-era mobster who owned the castle--until he was found dead in the island Grotto.

But crime becomes all too true for Savannah. Her body turns up the next morning, in a secret passage at the bottom of the stairs. The last thing Shelby Cox wants is to sleuth another murder, but she's intrigued about how a killer could have reached the island after hours. She's not at a lack for suspects either. It could have been anyone from Savannah's fiancé, Liam Kennelly, who argued with her the evening before, to island caretaker Matthew Kessler, recently cleared of his wife's murder. Can Shelby keep regular store hours, elude the police chief, and assemble the clues into a hard-bound case without getting permanently shelved?  (Summary via Goodreads)



When I started reading Death on the Page by Essie Lang I was instantly in love.  You cannot help but love Shelby Cox and her life.  The girl lives on a houseboat with a cat !!  She works in a bookstore in a castle on an island !!  

Shelby Cox and her aunt co-own two bookstores in the Thousand Island area, one on Blye Island in a castle and the other is in town.  Shelby works mostly at the bookstore on Blye Island unless something big is going on at the main store which in Death on the Page there is.  Both stores are having a true crime author do a book signing for her latest book and the signings are on a Friday night at the main store and Saturday afternoon at the other store.  True Crime author Savannah Page is also going to spend the night at the castle to do research for her latest cold case project after the signings.

Shelby gets pulled into the case when the author has gone missing on the morning after she spends the night at the castle.  When she is discovered at the bottom of some steep stairs in a hidden passageway, Shelby's curiosity gets the better of her.  And no matter what everyone says, she cannot stay out of it....especially when people of interest keep crossing her path.

While you are reading Death on the Page, Lang's style of writing opens the reader's imagination and you can see everything so clearly....so clearly that you will wish you were actually with Shelby on the houseboat and at the castle bookstore. You will, however, be glad you are safely on your couch in your own home when she gets too close to the killer......

I highly recommend this book.  There are so many things to fall in love with and I for one cannot wait until the next installment of the Castle Bookshop Mystery series.....



Review by Missi M.
  

Sleuth on Safari (A Traveler Cozy Mystery #1) by A.R. Kennedy

A bargain deal on a safari + one dead body = An adventure no one could plan for.

Naomi and her estranged sister are off on a trip of a lifetime—an African safari, a bucket list trip for Naomi on which she got a last-minute deal. Naomi thinks traveling with her sister will be the worst part of her African safari until she finds one of their fellow travelers, the unlikable Dr. Higgins, dead. She gets more adventure than she bargained for when she starts investigating what she thinks is murder but the luxury lodge says was a tragic accident. She only has a few vacation days, and a few game drives, to find the killer.    (Summary via Goodreads)

Sleuth on Safari by A.R. Kennedy was so fun to read !!  

In Sleuth on Safari we are heading on safari with Naomi and her sister Charlotte and a group of other strangers, however, by the end of the trip we will know some more than we wish we did !!!

While Charlotte relaxes reading her medical books and attends all of the scheduled activities, Naomi has other things on her mind when one of the other guests is found dead in his room on the second day and Naomi is the one to find him !! Everyone else seems to accept that Dr. Higgins was killed by hyenas but things don't add up to Naomi.  

Naomi goes about the safari watching everyone, guests and employees, at the lodge trying to figure out who among them could be the killer.  This isn't an easy task considering she doesn't know any of them and there doesn't seem to be a reason why someone would have killed Dr. Higgins other than he was a grumpy man and no one liked him.  Also you cannot roam around the area without a member of the staff to ensure your safety from the animals that may be lurking.

It looks like someone is going to get away with murder as the safari trip winds down and everyone is getting ready to depart back to their normal lives until someone lets something slip and Naomi is right there to catch the killers mistake !!!!

I loved reading this first book in the Traveler Cozy Mystery series and cannot wait until the next trip that Naomi goes on.....  I highly encourage readers to take the plunge and dive into Sleuth on Safari....you will feel like you are actually in Africa with all the cool animals around you.....however, you will be complete safe at home on your couch !!!


Review by Missi M.

Murder Makes Scents (Nantucket Candle Maker Mystery #2) by Christin Brecher

Stella Wright loves creating candles at her Nantucket store—and she also has a burning passion for justice. Now, after visiting a perfume conference, she must solve a vial crime . . .

Stella and her globe-trotting mom, Millie, have come home from a perfume industry conference in Paris, where their trip was marred by witnessing the stabbing death of a young man. It’s a relief for Stella to be back on her picturesque island, with the comforting company of her cat, Tinker. But lingering danger may have followed them back across the ocean.

After someone breaks into her candle store, the Wick & Flame, Stella starts feeling spooked. And just as things threaten to ignite, Millie suffers a blow to the head. Stella receives an anonymous note claiming that her mother smuggled a secret formula out of France—and threatening her life if it isn’t returned. Now Stella’s picked up the scent of a cold-hearted criminal and an intriguing puzzle, and things are about to get wicked . . .  (Summary via Goodreads)



Who would have thought that a murder in Paris would have an impact in Nantucket ??  But that is exactly what happens in Murder Makes Scents by Christin Brecher.  Murder Makes Scents is the second book in her Nantucket Candle Maker Mystery series and I was a fan after reading the first book in the series, Murder's No Votive Confidence.

In Murder Makes Scents main character Stella Wright is in Paris with her mom, Millie, at a perfume industry conference where Millie is doing a panel.  Right before they are leaving they witness a gentleman die right in front of them.....with a knife in his back !!!

Little do they know but that murder is going to follow them to their little island town.  Strange things start to happen and Stella goes on high alert and when she confronts someone she thinks is a bag guy but turns out to be a special agent looking for a special vial containing a very important scent they think Millie has, things get more intense.  Add to that a lot of strangers hanging around Stella and Millie, Stella doesn't know who to trust and who to suspect.

Of course Stella isn't going to trust anyone including her friend Andy who happens to be a police officer making it very hard for her to figure things out.  Then her mother gets into an accident landing her in the hospital and the special agent that is suppose to protect them ends up dead, Stella does what she does second best.....first is her ability to make heavenly scented candles.  

The reader cannot get enough of Stella, her family, her friends and her little town.  You will want to run to your room and start packing for a visit.  Luckily Brecher has a knack with her writing allowing the reader to open thier imagination and sit back and get lost in this book.  And you are never in any kind of danger what-so-ever !!!


Review by Missi M.

Serf and Turf (Silicon Valley Mystery #3) by Marc Jedel

He's afraid of losing his girlfriend. But maybe he should be more concerned about the dead body she's crying over?

Marty Golden can barely string a voicemail message together, let alone keep up with his new love. This quirky uncle's hectic Silicon Valley lifestyle needs a reboot when a youth league soccer game becomes a murder scene. And nothing can stop him from donning his amateur sleuth uniform when he discovers his sweetheart used to have quite a thing for the dead guy ...

With a not-so-helpful paw from Buddy the Labrador, he does his best to sniff out a long list of possible suspects. But between gossipy soccer moms and the costume-clad members of a Renaissance Faire, Marty's theories fall harder than a jousted knight.

Can Marty solve the case before the trail and his new flame grow cold?   (Summary via Goodreads)




Serf and Turf by Marc Jedel is the third book in his Silicon Valley Mystery series and I am a huge fan !!  You don't have to read the previous books in this series but I high recommend it !!

You cannot help but fall in love with main character Marty Golden.  He's devoted to his sister and nieces, he has an interesting job as a software engineer working for a start-up company that runs driverless cars, he is fumbling through his new relationship with his girlfriend Meghan, and he loves to daydream that he has a top secret relationship with the police and he helps them solve murders.  Well he kinda does solve the case but even he doesn't fully understand how he does it.

In Serf and Turf the case is even more personal when his girlfriend, Meghan, knows the deceased and she asks Marty to help her find out who did it.  Once Marty gets the green light or even a hint of the go ahead, he sees "red" and charges full force ahead.  This could be good or bad but when it involves Marty we know it's going to be bad before it gets good.....and we wouldn't want it any other way !!

In the Silicon Valley Mystery series Marty gets in trouble with everybody....his sister, his nieces, his girlfriend, anyone he suspects to be guilty, anyone he talks to, his co-workers and especially Seargeant Mace Johnson who Marty bothers constantly !!!  Even though Marty rubs everyone the wrong way and he doesn't always ask the right questions and listen to the answers, he always gets to the bottom of things.

Readers are going to fall in love with Marty and the Silicon Valley Mystery series and love getting lost in this series.  I highly recommend hanging around with Marty, he will have you on the edge of your seat !!!


Review by Missi M.

Chutes and Ladder (Silicon Valley Mystery #2) by Marc Jedel

When a camping trip uncovers a murder, this amateur sleuth is stuck putting out the fire …

Marty Golden enjoys time with his nieces, but he wanted to spend the weekend with his new girlfriend — not chaperone a Girl Scout camping trip. Once he stumbles upon the corpse of a friend in the woods, the outdoors adventure becomes an open-air disaster. When the police label it an accidental death, the meticulous Marty vows to investigate the murder. After all, it’s poor manners to let your friend’s death go unsolved.

On the hunt for clues the cops ignored, Marty uncovers a disturbing connection to himself. And as he digs deeper, a misbehaving pup, a kooky cousin, and a maniacal ninja put his survival skills to the test.

Will Marty unravel the mystery before the killer, or his imagination, gets to him?  (Summary via Goodreads)

You have to love Marty's devotion !  Marty Golden is the main character in the Silicon Valley Mystery series by Marc Jedel, he is a software engineer working for a company that has driverless cars.  It's like a taxi company except you place an order for a ride on the Rover app and a car comes to your location and takes you where you want to go and its all computerized.....but that's not the best part of Marty's life....Marty has this overactive imagination and his mind wonders at the most inappropriate times getting him in hot water at times.

In Chutes and Ladder, the second book in this series, Marty gets roped into taking his one niece to an overnight camping trip for the Girl Scouts after his sister hurts her ankle and is unable to go.  Lucky for Marty he doesn't have to spend the night in the woods with a bunch of girls because he is sent on a rock finding errand and stumbles over a dead body !!  Unfortunately Marty discovers that he knows the deceased.  Larry is one of his poker playing buddies and also an engineer.  

In the first book in this series, Uncle and Ants, we got to see how Marty's mind works and we met Sergeant Mace Jackson who Marty has on speed dial and thinks that he and Mace are a team.  Well that fun continues in Chutes and Ladder when Marty, again, gets involved and won't stop.  And when his cousin Samantha's friend dies after a skydiving accident, Marty knows there is something up and will stop at nothing to do what HE thinks he does best and do some "investigating"......  

You will LOVE the way Marty's mind works and how he "justifies" what he is doing for the police.  You cannot help but want to continue reading to see what is going to happen next because you know if it involves Marty, you are not going to want to miss it !!  And even though it is a book and you are reading it, you won't be able to stop yourself from reading one more page or one more chapter until you are at the end and can sit back and breath again ....because Marty will have you sitting on the edge of your seat holding your breathe hoping things work out !!!

Review by Missi M.

  

Uncle and Ants (Silicon Valley Mystery #1) by Marc Jedel

Mysterious attacks. Mischievous nieces. Can a clueless uncle catch a tech-savvy killer … and be home before bedtime?

When a freak accident hospitalizes Marty Golden’s sister and condemns him to babysitter duty, he thinks it’s just another case of hardwired bad luck in Silicon Valley. Until a suspicious murder suggests the mishap was no mere coincidence. Something must be done. 

Too bad this quirky, fashion-backward uncle isn’t exactly hero material.

Convinced his sister is in mortal danger, this amateur sleuth follows clues to an oddball array of suspects. Armed with nothing but an eye for detail and powers of self-delusion, Marty tangles with gangsters, a cantankerous school secretary, and a perplexing woman he can’t help but fall for. Glitches in his investigation seem like a piece of cake compared to dinner-prep and bedtime stories with his two precocious, pre-teen nieces.

Can Marty catch the culprit, save his sister, and get his life back in order before he gets unplugged ?  (Summary via Goodreads)


You cannot help but get lost in Uncle and Ants by Marc Jedel.  Uncle and Ants is the first book in his Silicon Valley Mystery series and it is a hit from the first chapter !!!

Main character Marty Golden is a software engineer working for Rover, a company that provides rides for people. It's like a taxi service except that the car is programmed to drive and doesn't have an actual person driving the car.  His life is kinda simple and boring until he gets a call that his sister was in a car accident.  A drone crashed into an ice cream truck and his sister's car was involved.  Marty goes to the hospital to check on his sister but there is some confusion when he goes to the wrong room (wrong name on the door?).  When he finally locates his sister, he is introduced to a cop but before he can find out much about his sister, the accident and her condition, the school where his two nieces goes calls him to pick them up.

Marty thinks something isn't right with his sister's accident and when he goes back to the hospital to find out more concerning her condition, he finds out that the woman in the room that has his sister's name on the door was found murdered.  This makes Marty even more concerned and believes that someone wants his sister dead.  Unfortunately he has NO idea why.  His sister and nieces have only been in town a few months and his sister works in human resources so he cannot understand why someone would want to harm her.

Marty takes it upon himself to look into her accident and goes through her computer and phone and starts by talking to everyone that she met with recently.  Things get worse when his sister's apartment is broken into and one of the people that she met with had their apartment broken into also.

Marty will do whatever it takes to keep his sister and nieces save....even if it means he may have to lie, cheat and break the law.....

Readers will love getting lost in Uncle and Ants.  You will love the way Marty mishandles every situation he gets into while keeping his nieces safe.  You will be on the edge of your seat at times, laughing at times, and maybe holding your breath also.  I "betcha" you will love it and want to jump right into the second book in this series, Chutes and Ladders.  I KNOW I am !!


Review by Missi M.

Matchmaking Can Be Murder (An Amish Matchmaker Mystery #1) by Amanda Flower

Matchmaking can be murder . . . 
 
When widowed Millie Fisher moves back to her childhood home of Harvest, Ohio, she notices one thing right away—the young Amish are bungling their courtships and marrying the wrong people! A quiltmaker by trade, Millie has nevertheless stitched together a few lives in her time, with truly romantic results. Her first mission? Her own niece, widowed gardener Edith Hochstetler, recently engaged to rude, greedy Zeke Miller. Anyone can see he’s not right for such a gentle young woman—except Edith herself.
 
Pleased when she convinces the bride-to-be to leave her betrothed before the wedding, Millie is later panicked to find Zeke in Edith’s greenhouse—as dead as a tulip in the middle of winter. To keep her niece out of prison—and to protect her own reputation—Millie will have to piece together a patchwork of clues to find a killer, before she becomes the next name on his list . . .
 
Praise for Amanda Flower and her Amish cozies
 
“As it turns out, Amanda Flower may have just written the first Amish rom com.”— USA Today
 
“Flower has hit it out of the ballpark . . . and continues to amaze with her knowledge of the Amish way of life.”— RT Book Reviews
 
“At turns playful and engaging . . . a satisfyingly complex cozy.”— Library Journal   (Summay via Goodreads)


I became a fan of Amanda Flower with her Magic Garden Mystery and Amish Candy Shop Mystery series and know that after reading Matchmaking Can Be Murder, the first book in her Amish Matchmaker Mystery series, I am going to be a devoted fan of this series as well.

There are a number of things in this new series to love.... First you have the main character, Millie Fisher, who is an Amish woman living on her own with her two goats and is known to be a matchmaker in her Amish community.  Miller is close to her niece Edith who is also an Amish woman, widowed with three young kids running her family business, Edy's Greenhouse.  Edith's twin brother Enoch left the Amish way, moved away but has returned and there is still some tension in the family.  Edith is engaged to be married to another Amish, Zeke Miller but the day after she calls off the engagement, Zeke is found murdered in the cactus room of the greenhouse.  Millie runs into an old friend Lois in the village who happens to not be Amish and the two of them decide to work together to solve Zeke's murder because Zeke was also carrying on with Lois's granddaughter Darcy.  Millie and Lois drive all over the Amish community and the village which has both Amish and English-run businesses trying to learn more about Zeke and his dark side.  

You cannot help but enjoy reading a book that intertwines the Amish way of living along side the English way of living especially when there is a murder involved.  The Amish life is simple and easy going and stress free to a point and when you add a murder....YIKES !!!  Then you add an English person living a more complex life working with an Amish person, you know you have a great combination !!!  Reading how the two work together is a very captivating tale and you will thoroughly enjoy it !!!

The reader will instantly fall in love with Matchmaking Can Be Murder especially if you have read any of the books in her Amish Candy Shop Mystery series.  Even though the series are separate, Flower writes them within the same village and has some of the same characters in both series.  It is like reading the same series written by a different author.  


Review by Missi M.

Gone, Kitty, Gone (A Cat Groomer Mystery #4) by Eileen Watkins

The fur is really going to fly when groomer Cassie McGlone drags in a catnapper . . .

With her new van, Cassie has expanded her Comfy Cat business to include mobile cat grooming. Next stop: a cat expo at a hotel just outside her hometown of Chadwick, New Jersey, where Cassie will give a grooming demo using shelter cats to encourage adoption while her veterinarian boyfriend Mark will offer a program on cat care and health.

The highlight of the expo will be a major cat show featuring pop sensation Jaki Natal. Almost as famous as his owner is her pet Gordie, a Scottish fold, who's become a social media darling. But when adorable Gordie goes missing and his sitter is found murdered, Jaki is having kittens. While the cops are more interested in solving the murder of a human, Jaki insists Cassie help expose the catnapper and return gorgeous Gordie to the fold. Now it's Cassie's turn to solo as she plays a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with a culprit who's not afraid to pounce . . .

Praise for Feral Attraction

"Watkins' series is distinguished by the incorporation of facts about cats relating to each case, making her writing educational as much as it is entertaining."
--Kirkus Reviews

"This delightfully cozy mystery is a perfect rainy day read. So curl up with your cat and dig in!"
--Modern Cat

"This entry is a cat lover's delight"
--Publishers Weekly   (Summary via Goodreads)


What a nail biting, holding your breath, on the edge of your seat reading material !!  Gone, Kitty, Gone is the fourth book in Eileen Watkins Cat Groomer Mystery series and BOY,OH, BOY .... is it a GREAT book !!

One thing that makes it easier to read is that I am a cat lover.  I, like main character Cassie McGlone, have three cats so reading a story with a cat theme is my kind of story.  Although it makes it more enjoyable to read, part of the story line will complicate that.....but in a good kinda way.

In Gone, Kitty, Gone Cassie is going to a weekend long cat expo where she will be demonstrating how her grooming side of her business, Cassie's Comfy Cats, worked.  And she also roped her boyfriend, Mark, into doing some demonstrations and having a table set up for his veterinary practice.  Cassie's mother and her boyfriend will also be attending as Harry's cat will be in the competition.  There is also going to be a celebrity singer there with her social media famous cat, Gordy.  Jaki Natal grew up in the area so she was very cooperative in being at the event and doing a concert to raise money for the cats.

Unfortunately things go downhill pretty quick when Gordy is taken during a power outage and a security guard is found dead in a stairwell.  Jaki heard how Cassie has helped the police in the past when they had animal involved crimes so she asks Cassie to help find her beloved cat.  Of course Cassie had already been on alert and keeping an eye open but once she got "officially" asked to work the case, she goes above and beyond to look into things.....

Gone, Kitty, Gone is such a fun read !!  I loved hanging out at the expo with Cassie and with the story being based around a cat expo really captivates the readers attention....even if you aren't a cat lover.  One cannot help but love Cassie, her business, her relationships, the way she goes about her life and helping others.  You just know that with Cassie on the case, it's going to be okay.....but the ride to get there will have the reader on the edge of their seat.......

And can I just say..... Don't you just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the kitty on the cover ???  OMG !!!


Review by Missi M.
  

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Tuk-Tuk (A Bob Lowe Investigation #1) by Zach J. Brodsky

Stolen tuk-tuks. Scandal in the Ladies' Bridge Club. A lost disco-dancing superstar. If you've got a problem and you don't know which way to turn, then Bob Lowe is your man; Bangkok's newest expat private investigator.
Ex-womaniser and sometime drunk, Bob is desperately trying to clean up his act. His bumbling methods may not be conventional but with his trusted friend and translator, Pat, by his side he may just have finally found his calling in life.
If you enjoy quirky mysteries with a touch of humour and the bizarre then check out the first book in the Bob Lowe Investigation series.

Bob Lowe may have only been semi-serious when he decided to become Bangkok's newest expat private investigator, but before he has time to think he's on the trail of a tuk-tuk thief. As he uncovers something deeper he's hired to check on a cheating boyfriend and clear up a scandal in the Ladies Bridge and Lunch Society. Meanwhile an ex-disco dancing star sets Bob on a journey to find a long lost friend.
Bob Lowe is trying to put his drunken womanising days behind him and follow a path to ‘New Lowe’. Set up as a private investigator with a 'no job too small' strategy Bob takes on anyone who can or might be able to pay him. His bumbling methods may not be conventional and often owe more to lack than judgement but with his trusted friend and translator, Pat, by his side he may just have found his calling in life.
If you like your mysteries with a big slice of the bizarre and a strong hint of humour, you will love The Mysterious Case of the Missing Tuk-Tuk. The first in the Bob Lowe PI Series.

They Mysterious Case of the Missing Tuk-Tuk is Zach J Brodsky's second novel, after the success of Bangkok Delusions which introduced the infamous Bob Lowe to the world.

About Zach J Brodsky

Zach J Brodsky spent much of his youth traipsing around the world where he was fascinated by observing people and creating absurd back stories in his mind about their lives. The result was the creation of an endless list of characters. He roamed around East and Southern Africa in the early 1990s sneaking into what was Zaire to spend some time with mountain gorillas, and later travelled extensively in South East Asia and the West Coast of the USA. Zach experimented with traditional employment for many years before deciding to base himself in Bangkok where he began to observe all the oddities that Bangkok has to offer, ultimately motivating him to try and patch some characters together in creating his first full novel "Bangkok Delusions".

Zach continues to roam the globe milling around South East Asia and quietly observing places and events that might inspire a new storyline.  (Summary via Goodreads)


There's no doubt about it....you are going to fall in love with Bob Lowe when you read The Mysterious Case of the Missing Tuk-Tuk by Zach J. Brodsky.

Now it will take the reader a little time getting use to being in Bangkok but hanging around with Bob Lowe will make it easier and you will have a lot of fun !!  Bob Lowe is living there, currently on his friends living room couch while he gets his private investigating business going.  Bob has made his own business cards and is leaving them on the tables in an area known for it's bars and "evening ladies".  By doing this Bob finds himself a handful of unbelievable cases and while following through on one he becomes good friends with the gentleman and ends up renting a room from him.

You will have a lot of fun hanging around with Bob as he navigates his private investigation business and you will look forward to meeting up with him again in the future.  I highly recommend picking this book up and getting lost in the story for a while.  It's a trip worth taking and you don't have to leave the comforts of your own living room !!!

Review by Missi M.

Murder at Plimoth Plantation (Larcom Mystery Series) by Leslie Wheeler

It's the week before Thanksgiving, and history textbook writer Miranda Lewis has deadlines to meet. But when a routine check-in call to her young niece ends in tears and a hang-up, Miranda hurries to Plimoth Plantation, where her niece works as an interpreter.

At the recreated seventeenth-century village in Plymouth, Massachusetts, Miranda encounters protesting Indians, quarrelling Pilgrims, and tension aplenty. The day after her arrival, the explosive atmosphere turns violent when someone beheads the interpreter who portrays Miles Standish. With suspicion falling on her niece, over-heard arguing with the victim the night before, Miranda sets out to uncover the truth. Along the way she discovers more than she expected. (Summary via Amazon)

"He had to die'".... That is the very first sentence in Murder at Plimoth Plantation by Leslie Wheeler.  That first sentence grabs the reader....how can you not want to continue reading the story to see who had to die and why. What lead to that sentence even being written ??

I, for one, had to read the story because I obviously had to know the answer and I am sure that I am not the only one that would read that sentence and have to continue.  And boy does that first sentence take the reader down a road that will surprise and amaze them.

Miranda Lewis is the main character in Murder at Plimoth Plantation and after calling her niece, Caroline to check on her, she catches her in a disturbing mood but won't tell Miranda why.  After sobbing and hanging up on her, Miranda has no other choice but to go to her and see for herself what is going on.

Caroline works as an interpreter and recreator of someone living on a planation during the seventeenth century.  When Miranda shows up to talk to Caroline, Caroline says that she will talk to her during her break but disappears before that can happen.  Miranda is on high alert now and just wants to talk to Caroline to see what is going on.  Unfortunately before Miranda can get the full story from Caroline a co-worker of Caroline's is murdered and things point to Caroline as a suspect.

Miranda will do whatever it takes to find out the full story and prove her niece's innocence.....and will go down some dark roads and dwell into the past to get the answers she needs !!!

Wheeler will take the reader on a very captivating and mind blowing journey.  It will amaze the reader as you get lost in the tale and will be thoroughly shocked to find out the story behind it all and you will be very shocked at how Miranda does it and with who !!!

Review by Missi M.

A Silent Stabbing (A Lady & Lady's Maid Mystery #5) by Alyssa Maxwell

As England recovers from its costly involvement in the Great War, Lady Phoebe Renshaw and her lady’s maid, Eva Huntford, find the steady comforts of their lives unsettled by a local case of murder . . .

Eva is excited for a visit from her sister Alice, who lives in Suffolk with her husband and three children. But when Alice arrives alone, desiring a break from her family, Eva becomes concerned. Her dismay deepens as Alice starts spending time with a former beau, Keenan Ripley, who owns the nearby pear orchard. At the same time, Phoebe's sister Julia, now a widow and pregnant, is in a fretful state, and Phoebe struggles to be helpful to her.

When Keenan's brother Stephen, the new head gardener at the Renshaw estate, Foxwood Hall, is found impaled by a pair of hedge clippers, the police—including Eva's beau, Constable Miles Brannock—suspect his closest kin. Stephen had been eager to sell their orchard to an American developer, but Keenan had fiercely resisted. A table set with two teacups and scones suggests Keenan had company the morning of the murder—and Eva fears her sister was with him.

If Alice were to provide Keenan with an alibi, her reputation and marriage would be ruined. She denies being there but is clearly withholding secrets, much to Eva's consternation. Now, to protect her sister, Eva and Phoebe set off to expose the gardener's real killer, putting their own lives at risk . . .   (Summary via Goodreads)



Every time I read a book written by Alyssa Maxwell it becomes my new favorite !!  I love going back in time with her books and reading about a simpler time is some ways but a more difficult time in others....it's kind of hard to explain but I'll try.

A Silent Stabbing is the fifth book in her Lady and Lady's Maid Mystery series and the reader is hanging around with Lady Phoebe and her lady's maid, Eva.....and if you are a fan like me, you know they are going to be in the middle of things !!

While Eva is dealing with her sister Alice returning home for a visit without her husband and children causing her family to worry, Lady Phoebe and her grandfather find their new head gardener murdered and his assistant missing.  Lady Phoebe and Eva decide to look into things when the police arrest the deceased brother for the crime and they know, in their hearts, that he is innocent.

You cannot help but love the relationship that Lady Phoebe and Eva have as well as everyone in their circle.  They all take care of each other and look out for others.  Lady Phoebe and Eva will do whatever they can to help others and if someone is hurt or murdered, they will go above and beyond, even putting themselves in harm's way.

Reading a story set back in the 1920's where times were very different than they are now can be enlightening.  As there were no cell phones, computers and woman had very different roles in society it is a much simpler time unless there is a crime, especially murder.  With a murder there is no way to quickly warn people, there is no DNA to test to solve the case, and finding the murderer can be very difficult.  Even though things are done very differently and it seems like it is much harder to do, Maxwell makes it so much fun reading about it.  You cannot help but love the way Lady Phoebe and Eva go about helping the police and the outcome is always a huge surprise !!

I love traveling back in time with Maxwell as the guide.  I love hanging out at Foxwood Hall with Lady Phoebe, her family and their staff.  I love what lady Phoebe is doing for her community and those affected by the war and that she has such determination in everything that she does !!!  You will fall in love with this series and never want to leave Foxwood Hall.


Review by Missi M.