Book Review: Well Read, Then Dead by Terrie Moran

In Terrie Moran's debut mystery series she creates murder and mayhem with a unique setting in Well Read, Then Dead. Mary "Sassy" Cabot and Bridget Mayfield are best friends and together run the Read 'Em and Eat Bookstore Cafe. Life is pretty tranquil in their sunny town of Fort Meyers Beach. It seems the most rowdy it gets is at the heated discussions of the book club, especially when fellow book club member Rowena Gustavson starts debating each book. However life in the small town is about to become very interesting when the the quietest member of the book club, Delia Batson, is found dead. Delia's cousin, Augusta, is absolutely distraught by her death, and asks Sassy for help on finding her killer!!

I want to pack myself on a one-way trip to the Read 'Em and Eat Bookstore Cafe. The second I walked through those doors in the first chapter of Well Read, Then Dead I was absolutely smitten. Everything from the delicious food and drinks to the tables that each sport on articles, photos and excerpts of all my favorite mystery authors! I was in book lover heaven. I knew any mystery that started with this setting had to be a good one and I was right!!

Sassy takes us into her life as owner of Read 'Em and Eat Bookstore Cafe and the lives of her friends and residents of Fort Meyers Beach. They're an eclectic bunch and it was a delight to meet them and try to solve a mystery.

Apart from the delectable treats and the cozy atmosphere of the bookstore cafe, what I loved the most were the surprises! Delia was the last person I expected to be the victim! When a story starts with a boisterous personality like Rowena, I for sure had her pegged as the victim. I couldn't fathom why anyone would want to kill Delia, and I knew both Sassy (and me!) had our work cut out for us trying to find the killer!!

I'm about 8 months behind everyone else that has been raving about this series. With so many cozies on my shelf I hadn't gotten to this one before now, and I really wish I had squeezed the time in to read it when it was released, last August. Terrie Moran delighted me to little itty bitty pieces with this mystery full of southern charm and friendship. I felt the anguish that Augusta felt at the loss of her cousin and the triumph that Sassy feels when she finally solves the case!

If you haven't picked up Well Read, Then Dead pick it up today. You will be delighted by the charm of the Read 'Em and Eat Bookstore Cafe and all the residents of Fort Meyers Beach.

Check out Well Read Then Dead by Terrie Moran at Amazon.

Book Review: Meow If It's Murder by T.C. Lo Tempio

T.C. Lo Tempio's debut mystery series features one highly intelligent amateur sleuth and one adorable, and handsome dark stranger. That dark stranger would be Nick, the tuxedo cat. One day Nick walks into Nora's life, when he walks into the deli she owns. From there they have a adventure, as Nora discovers that Nick belonged to a PI that was investigating a high profile case of accident death. Lora Grainger drowned while on a ship, and the case seems open and shut but Nora's crime beat reporter intuition are rising up again and she's certain something fishy is going on. With Nick at her side she sets to investigate and find exactly what happened to Lora.

As a fan of both cats and classic mysteries I have to say there was an absolute lot to love about T.C. Lo Tempio's debut. She hits the ground running with this first series, that has both a classic and modern mystery vibe.

The reader starts by peeking in on the victim just moments before her death. Lola Grainger is aboard a boat on a business "pleasure" trip with her husband, when she suspects someone is black mailing him. These early scenes reminded me very much of Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie, with murder most foul on the seas. The classic mystery comparisons continue when we meet Nora Charles and a tuxedo named Nick walks into her life. For those that are fans of both classic mystery books and movies will remember Nora and Nick Charles from The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett. From there T.C. LoTempio blends classic and modern together in an unforgettable mystery.

I really enjoyed the fact that Nora isn't just your regular run-of-the-mill nosy amateur sleuth trying to solve a crime. Being an ex-crime beat reporter now turned deli owner she has a natural instinct for crime, and it was enjoyable watching her use her high intelligence to solve the crime. Of course has a "lot" of help from Nick.

Nick absolutely stole the show for me. I'm the pet owner (sorry I mean, bossed around) of a tuxedo myself and I just adored Nick. While most people seem to think that the tuxedo is just a color description of a cat, I've learnt that there is definitely a personality to tuxedos and Nick personifies that greatness that is the tuxedo. Nick isn't just there to look pretty either. He helps supply Nora with clues along the way, with his handy use of scrabble tiles!!

I absolutely adored Meow If It's Murder from start to end. From both me and the felines in my house it gets five high paws, and we are excited to see what kind of adventures Nick and Nora get up to next!!

Check Out Meow If It's Murder by T.C. LoTempio on Amazon.

Book Review: Ladle to the Grave by Connie Archer

Connie Archer is back with another Soup Lover's Mystery with Ladle to the Grave. In Snowflake, Vermont, it's May and the residents are looking to welcome Spring in. However, Spring begins with a big bang, when a few locals participate in a Pagan festival, and one lady ends up dead! When the police determine the cause as poisoning from some herbs in a wine she drank, they start to point their finger at Lucky Jamieson's grandfather, Jack. Now Lucky will have her hands full between managing her soup shop, finding a killer and making a dress for her best friend's upcoming wedding!

Ladle to the Grave was my first trip to Snowflake, VT, but it certainly won't be my last. Living in a country that has six months of winter I'm a big soup person. There is nothing better than curling up with a book and a big bowl of warm, hearty soup in the middle of winter!! That warm, cozy feeling is how I felt reading Ladle to the Grave.

I really liked that Connie Archer started this book off with a murder. There was no slow opening chapters. No, she throws you right into the murder, leaving you to decide who could have wanted to kill this poor lady. Was it someone against the Pagan festival? Or was it something else? From there is a action packed story, as another death drops down on Lucky, and she races against time to figure out the killer before Jack ends up in jail!

Ladle to the Grave was a fun read. As this was my first introduction to the series, I liked that I could read it without feeling lost. Connie Archer sets up the characters nicely for those new to the series, without repeating facts from previous mysteries. I liked the ecclectic mix of characters in Snowflake, and certainly loved the virtual smells of the soups Sage makes in Lucky's soup shop, By the Spoonful.

All in all Ladle to the Grave was a very enjoyable mystery. With a tasty mystery, mouth-watering recipes to try, and even a wine to brew, it hit all the right spots, and I'm looking forward to reading more books in this series.

Check out Ladle to the Grave by Connie Archer.

Book Review: Suspendered Sentence by Laura Bradford

Suspendered Sentence is the fourth book in the Amish Mysteries by Laura Bradford. Claire Weatherly, owner of Heavenly Treasures, lives amongst the Amish and English in the town of Heavenly, Pennsylvania. She loves the quiet life in Heavenly, but it certainly isn't dull and boring. During the raising of a new barn, human bones are discovered and they are believed to belong to a Amish teenager, who ran away many years ago. With police officer, Jakob, and Claire on the trail, they try to piece together this cold case, and figure out who the killer is.

I live in a town, where there are no Amish about, but that doesn't stop my curiosity about them and the lifestyle they lead. In some ways they have a simple, beautiful life, where they help each other when help is needed. Of course when it comes to crimes they are reticent about having police involvement, and this makes Jakob's job more difficult.

The lastest installment in the Amish Mysteries is certainly a page-turning, unputdownable read. Laura Bradford beautifully describes the ups and downs of Amish life, in a almost lyrical style, and as her words drew me in, I found myself stepping alongside Claire, her Aunt, Diane, and police officer, Jakob, trying to solve the murder with them.

The events that lead to this murder surround the rumspringa. For those that aren't family the rumspringa is a rite of passage available to Amish youth around the age of 16 when they are allowed to see the world outside the closed Amish community. It ends when the youths return to the community to be baptized into the Amish church or decide to remain outside it. It's a interesting time in the life of the young Amish and I like how this rite of passage was weaved through the mystery, letting readers learn more about this.

As with the other books in this series, Laura Bradford doesn't disappoint with Suspendered Sentence. As befitting someone living in a Amish town, she is moving the relationship between Claire and Jakob at a perfect pace, and I enjoyed several toe-curling moments between them, and I look forward to seeing where the path leads for both of these characters.

I had a wonderful time visiting the fine folks of Heavenly, and I absolutely cannot wait to tag along for another adventure, when the next book is released.

If you are looking for a first class mystery, pick up the Amish Mysteries today. They are written so that you can pick up any book in the series, and just read, or to really do this series justice, pick up Hearse and Buggy, and enjoy four of the best mysteries on the market today.

Check out Suspendered Sentence by Laura Bradford on Amazon. 

Giveaway: A Wee Murder in My Shop by Fran Stewart

Today we're giving away A Wee Murder in my Shop, a new series by Fran Stewart. Check out our review here. 

GIVEAWAY: 

To enter: 

1. Leave a comment below. 

2. Giveaway is open to US only (sorry international folks, but we will have a international giveaway soon!) and ends on March 14, 2015 at midnight EST. 

3. The winner will be posted on the sidebar on Sunday March 15, 2015 and announced on our Facebook and Twitter accounts. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Book Review: Assault & Pepper by Leslie Budewitz

In Leslie Budewitz's new series, she's spicing up the Seattle scene with a delectable culinary mystery to appeal to all the senses!

After a corporate crash leaves Pepper Reece jobless, she opens up a spice shop, called Seattle Spice Shop. All is going well with her somewhat relationship with local restaurant owner, Alex Howard, and running her store. That is until she finds a dead body on her front step, and the dead person looks to be connected to one of her employees. With her nose to the ground, she's soon trying to catch the scent of a killer, that is if she can stay out of the way of her ex-husband, police officer, Tag Buhner.

I really enjoyed the first book in Leslie Budewitz's debut series, the Food Lovers' Village Mysteries with Death Al Dente, and I was excited to hear that she was also releasing a second series, surrounding a spice store.

Assault and Pepper is certainly a book for all the senses! Right from the first chapter I felt like I could almost smell the delicious scents that must waft in and out of the Seattle Spice Shop. The way the different spices, and recipes, are described I was practically racing to my local stores to try out lots of new spices!! With an atmosphere like this to begin with, the mystery that followed could have only made this debut novel better.

I found it interesting that Pepper starts off with a boyfriend of sorts, especially as in in most cozy mystery debuts we see the sleuth as single and looking for the love of her life. I won't spoil this story line for readers, but I thoroughly enjoyed the direction that Leslie Budewitz takes Pepper, in both her business and her personal life, and I absolutely can't wait to see what kind of adventure she has in store for her next.

The mystery was first class and it kept me guessing until the end. Leslie Budewitz certainly delivers in this new series: a first class mystery, delightful characters and when the mystery is all finished, there are mouth-watering recipes for the reader to try.

Check out Assault & Pepper at Amazon.

Book Review: Played By The Book by Lucy Arlington

In the fourth book in the Novel Idea Mysteries, Lila Wilkins, and the gang at Novel Idea Literary Agency are gearing up for a signing and dinner with their newest and biggest client, television show host Damian York, with his new gardening book. However gardening isn't just going on between the pages as the local gardening club gears up for a contest and Lila uncovers a skeleton in her backyard. With a cold case on hand, and a murderer looming it's up to Lila to help her police officer boyfriend solve another crime.

Ever since I read the first book in this series, Buried in a Book, I have been completely enamored with this series. As far as I'm concerned Lila has the perfect job! She is paid to read stories every day. Lila is a great main character. She always has her nose to the crime, and it doesn't hurt that she lives in the idyllic town of Inspiration Valley, and has some fantastic friends. 

I love that something is always happening in Inspiration Valley. You might think these small towns are sleepy, but that's not so. With a gardening contest that is so competitive, that someone might kill to win the "van Gogh" prize, romance and the possibilities of wedding bells in the air, and a murderer on the loose, every page of this latest addition of the series kept me on the edge of my seat. 

Played by the Book was another fabulous addition to a series that gets better with every book. If you're a book lover and haven't added this series to your reading pile don't hesitate to pick it up. It will be a series that you will treasure for a long time.

Note: I wanted to add a little note about Lucy Arlington. Lucy Arlington was the pseudonym for Ellery Adams and Sylvia May. Having these two tremendously talented authors behind this series was part of my reason for picking the series up to begin with. For this book the author behind the series was changed to Susan Furlong. I only discovered this when I was halfway through reading this book and read another review on this title. The transition has been absolutely seamless. If I hadn't read about the change in author I wouldn't have realized it by reading this book. Whether it's Ellery Adams and Sylvia May or Susan Furlong behind the words, they've done a fantastic job of creating a enjoyable mystery series that keeps readers engrossed from the first page to the last, and I can't wait to see where they will take the series next.  

Check out Played By the Book by Lucy Arlington at Amazon.