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Booked for Revenge–murder in the kitchen
Booked for Revenge
by Karen Rose Smith
Belltower Landing is the setting for this cozy mystery which gives the characters an opportunity for outdoor activities like hiking, paddle boarding, and boating. It is also perfect for having a tourist season. Jazzi and her friend Dawn have combined resources to create a combination tea shop and bookstore. The young ladies also conserve financial resources by living together in an apartment above the shop. In a thread of personal conflict, Dawn’s parents live in the same town and are not happy with this business venture or with the girls’ common interest in finding their birth parents.
The main focus of this book, however, is “The Gentlemen’s Bake-Off.” Tomes and Tea is involved because, as one of many creative promotional ideas, the duo will advertise and sell books written by the judges. They also host a book signing. When there is a murder, Jazzi slowly starts investigating. She has kept her relationship to her mother Daisy quiet to avoid getting drawn into just this type of situation. In her hometown, Daisy has a reputation for solving crimes.
There are many suspects—judges, other competitors, or even someone completely unrelated to the baking competition. I didn’t guess the murderer until the end of the book when the identity becomes quite evident. There are other threads that muddle the investigation, including a hidden camera, loud disputes, and missing evidence.
A little romance comes into play as Jazzi’s friend Parker, an IT specialist, shows signs of interest in Jazzi as more than a friend. Oliver, with an Australian accent, owns The Wild Kangaroo pub, and often shows up when Jazzi needs support. Dawn is drawn to Abe, an EMT/firefighter who is frequently on the scene with medical help.
I enjoyed this cozy mystery for the whodunit puzzle, the interesting characters, and the budding romances. There are a pair of kittens that are fun too. The bookstore setting is a magnet for me, and I am glad to see the young ladies making a success of their enterprise.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #2 in the Tomes & Tea Mysteries series, but could be read as a standalone.
2. This series is a spinoff from the Daisy’s Tea Garden Mysteries series. There are references to characters in that series, but the author always provides background information to the relationship so there is no confusion. Jazzi, the protagonist in this series is the now-grownup daughter of the protagonist in Daisy’s Tea Garden books.
3. Clean
Publication: April 29, 2025—Kensington
Memorable Lines:
Tomes and Tea’s book club was a little different than most. They didn’t discuss one novel at a session. Readers brought in whatever their latest read was to talk about. This way tourists could drop in and join in too.
“Through the years, I’ve found it’s just as easy to be friendly as impatient. And the interchange can brighten a fan’s day as well as mine.”
The Fisherman’s Lady–Scottish classic
The Fisherman’s Lady
by George MacDonald
edited by Michael Phillips
First published in 1875, entitled Malcolm, with a sequel arriving in 1877, The Fisherman’s Lady is a challenging read and a classical romance by a prolific writer of many genres. C.S. Lewis claimed MacDonald as his favorite writer saying, “I never wrote a book in which I did not quote George MacDonald.” The language is, of course, of an older age and reflects MacDonald’s background: Scottish minister, and author of fiction and nonfiction, including poetry. Contemporaries include Lewis Carroll, G.K. Chesterton, Charles Dickens, and Mark Twain.
Much of the dialogue in The Fisherman’s Lady is written with a Scottish brogue adding to the difficulty for the modern reader. Initially, I purchased a Kindle version that included both Malcolm and The Marquis of Lossie. Next, I located a printed version of The Fisherman’s Lady edited by Michael Phillips. He simplified the original by omitting some of the passages, but he also left some of the Scottish dialect for an authentic flavor.
Some readers categorize this novel as having a “gothic style.” It does contain some gothic elements from that Victorian period—a castle; dark, locked rooms; potential hauntings; crumbling stairways; the past affecting the present; twisted family ties; missing people; unusual sounds; and dreams.
The plot starts with sudden impact as it focuses on a corpse. Then, it proceeds slowly as characters are introduced. There are a lot of important figures in the book, and the editor lists them and a note about most of them, along with an area map. The story gains momentum and interest for the reader with lots of hooks leading into the following chapters. The protagonist is Malcolm, a fisherman who lives with his adopted father Duncan, an elderly, blind piper. Malcolm is a happy young man, honest, and a hard worker. He is devoted to the man who raised him whose only fault appears to be a quick temper over an old feud with another family. On the other side of the social strata is the Marquis of Lossie and his daughter, the beautiful Lady Florimel (Flory). Questions hang throughout the book concerning Malcolm’s parentage and that of the “Mad Lair,” a hunchbacked dwarf who has been badly mistreated by his mother.
Malcolm and Flory become friends, but they do not develop a romantic relationship because they both realize that social boundaries make any such bond between them unrealistic. Malcolm, however, would do anything for Flory, desiring to serve her long-term.
There are a few really evil women in this book. The way the upper class treats servants, laborers, the poor, and the disabled is upsetting, but a reflection of the times.
I enjoyed most of the book as far as it went, but I was disappointed in the sudden cut-off of the tale with no satisfactory conclusion for the characters. Most modern tales with sequels tie up the main threads in the first book but provide a motivation to encourage the reader to continue on to find out what happens to the characters in the next stage of their lives. This book contains a major event and then just ends with little attention to the aftershocks. The editor does include a brief paragraph to assure the reader on certain key points, but that statement was not part of the original text.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Historical Romance, Classic
Notes: 1. The first part of a two part set of books about Malcolm.
2. Includes Christian themes and shows characters trying to come to grips with their faith.
3. Clean
4. Includes preface by the editor and three appendices providing historical notes.
5. I have not yet decided if I will read the sequel, The Marquis of Lossie, or not.
Publication: Original in 1875—Henry S. King Publishers in Great Britain, and George Routledge & Sons in New York, and J.B. Lippincott in Philadelphia
This version edited by Michael Phillips in 1982—Bethany House Publishers
Memorable Lines:
Whatever may have been the projected attitude of the marquis, the moment he stood on the piper’s floor, the gentleman in him got the upper hand and his behavior to the old man was not only polite but respectful. At no period in the last twenty years had he been so nigh the kingdom of heaven as he was now when making his peace with the blind piper.
But Lady Florine had never studied anything yet, had never even perceived that anything wanted studying—that is, demanded to be understood. What appeared to her most odd, most inconsistent, was his delight in what she regarded only as the menial and dirty occupation of cleaning lamps and candlesticks; the poetic side of it, rendered tenfold poetic by his blindness, she never saw.
“No, no; never run from a lie. And never say, neither that you didn’t do the things except it be laid straight to your face. Let a lie lay in the dirt. If you pick it up, the dirt’ll stick to you, even if you fling the lie over the dike at the end of the world. No, no! Let a lie lay as you would the devil’s tail!”
Death by Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins–complex plot and lots of action
Death by Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins
By Sarah Graves
Jake and Ellie own the bakery and coffee shop the Chocolate Moose. They are great friends and would do anything for each other; and in Death by Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins, they get into some extreme situations that require them to take their faithfulness to the limit.
The pair is known in the Maine port town as amateur sleuths, and their husbands tolerate their sometimes dangerous investigations. Jake is the main character, so we see this story from her point of view. We also learn a lot about her multigenerational family of nine all living under the same roof.
The mystery part of this book ignites when the duo is hired to provide treats for an event at the old Stone House. The owners are a handsome reality star and his disgruntled wife. Be prepared for multiple murders, fires, and kidnappings. There is a lot of dangerous action in this cozy mystery, but it is fascinating to follow Jake and Ellie as they track down criminals. There are a number of suspects; the “wicked web” expands as the plot proceeds adding on miscreants and motives that are quite unexpected. There are a number of dogs, of various breeds, who play a role in the story. Jake owns two and gathers a third one, a small, white, fluffy dog, into her fold. This little dog’s involvement proves crucial.
I enjoyed Death by Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins. Very little of the story occurs in the bakery as tourist season is over, but Jake and Ellie do have to do some baking that ties directly into the mystery. The port setting in this series is always a good backdrop for a mystery, and with each book in the series, I learn a little more about Maine and living near the ocean.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #8 in the Death by Chocolate Mystery Series, but could be read as a standalone. As with most lengthy series, if you don’t start at the beginning you will miss some character background and development.
2. Some swearing.
Publication: April 28, 2025—Kensington
Memorable Lines:
“I love it,” he said, and I could see in his face that he really did. Downeast Maine takes some people that way, the whole land-sky-and-sea thing waking the sense of wonder that—much to their surprise, sometimes—has always been in their hearts.
A sparkling kitchen is at the heart of every good day, Bella always said. Of course she also thought it was at the heart of eternal salvation, world peace, reversing climate change, and the solution to the famed three-body problem in mathematics.
Good old Eastport, where keeping an eye out has developed into an art form of which gossip is the performance aspect.
Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave–mystery with a lot of humor
Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave
by Elle Cosimano
Having read the first book in this series, I was somewhat prepared for this one, but I had clearly missed a lot of character interaction between the first and the fifth. The main characters are still there: Finlay, a struggling single mom/author, and Vero, the family nanny and Finlay’s friend. Finlay does not get much writing done in this mystery as she is too wrapped up in trying to discover a murderer and prove it was not her philandering ex-husband. Along the way she uncovers other crimes and gets herself and Vero in trouble with law enforcement, including her boyfriend Nick, a detective.
There is a lot of humor that keeps this cozy mystery from being too dark. Finlay takes in her neighbor, Mrs. Haggerty, well known as a busybody, when she lost power and water. Adapting to sharing accommodations causes lots of issues in the household. Finlay’s preschool children Delia, suspended for taking care of a bully when the teacher didn’t, and Zach, a two-year old in need of potty training, are present throughout the book. Cam is a teenager who finds himself on his own in life, but uses his excellent computer hacking skills to Finlay’s advantage and manages to pay himself through deductions to her Venmo account and some home cooked meals.
I spent the first part of the book reorienting myself to the characters and background. Things got complicated in the middle with lots of tangled threads. It was not my favorite part of the book. The end was fantastic with lots of action and surprises. If you like the Finlay Donovan series, I think you will enjoy this one. Finlay learns to trust her boyfriend Nick. She and Vero get bogged down in a web of lies and crime—theirs and that of other characters in the story. There is a lot to like about this book, but if you are new to the series, I don’t suggest you start with Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Mystery, Fiction, Humor
Notes: #5 in the Finlay Donovan series. This would be a good series to start at the beginning and read in sequence as there are so many continuing characters.
Publication: March 4, 2025—St. Martin’s Press
Memorable Lines:
I was sick of people talking about me and the kids as if Steven’s mistakes defined us. I didn’t want Delia to grow up as the cheater’s kid or the murderer’s kid.
I would never have recognized Mrs. Haggerty’s Mark V. The car’s body had been painted a garish shade of purple. Flecks of glitter sparkled in the finish, and the new chrome grille glistened in the sun. Eggplant Ecstasy had been hand-lettered across the hood in fancy looping script. The tires were brand new with wide, white walls, and a disco ball hung from the rearview mirror, spraying the interior of the car with rainbow-colored light.
“A boy named Cooper has been harassing Delia on the playground. She gave him six stitches and a couple of bruised ribs”….“And then I kicked him in the tentacles,” Delia said “just like Vero showed me.”
Blind Trust–suspenseful with Christian themes
Blind Trust
by Laura Scott
narrated by Emily Sutton-Smith
Eva Kendall is an accomplished dog trainer in Queens, NY. She is employed in a training facility where she works with Coco, a dog intended to be her future service dog when she loses her eyesight to a degenerative eye disease. She is accosted and Coco is dognapped, beginning a series of crimes as the dognapper wants his “package” back. This attack is how Eva meets Finn Gallagher and his K-9 partner Abernathy. Finn has a reputation as a charmer who dates a girl twice and moves on before anyone can develop feelings. Things are different when he encounters Eva. They both have issues to work through if they are going to have a relationship—Eva, her disability, and Finn, abandonment by his mother.
There are many complications in the plot and the mastermind behind the criminal network is not obvious. My favorite character is Mikey, Eva’s sweet, three-year-old nephew whose mother passed away only two weeks prior. The dog Abernathy (Ab to Mikey) is the perfect blend of comfort to Mikey and protectiveness and obedience in his role as Finn’s K-9 partner. Although Eva, to her embarrassment, can not provide visual descriptions of her attackers, her other senses are heightened. She can describe their voices and the odors she associates with them, valuable clues to their identities.
In this novel of faith, romance, action, and suspense, Finn is a man of faith and models prayer for Eva and Mikey. Eva recovers her dependence on God, despite her impending blindness, and begins to pray on her own.
Emily Sutton-Smith’s narration is very good with all of the voices. She brings the characters to life, especially little Mikey.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Christian, Fiction
Notes: This book is part of the True Blue K-9 Unit, but I read it as a stand-alone with no problems.
Publication: June 23, 2026—Harlequin Audio
The Lion Women of Tehran–power of friendship
The Lion Women of Tehran
By Marjan Kamali
No one can summarize the fascinating story told in The Lion Women of Tehran better than Marjan Kamali who says in her Author’s Note: “I follow the friendship between two girls who come from very different families and stations in life but who forge an indestructible bond when they are seven. Together they share the joys of childhood, the ups and downs of adolescence, the fractures of betrayal when they are young women, and the relief of redemption as their fate takes them across oceans and borders. All along, one of them, Homa, fights tirelessly for Iranian women to be free.”
The Lion Women of Tehran tells the story of multiple regime changes in Iran along with the hope for a better life and the disappointment when each new ruling class results in more hardship for the citizens than the one before. The novel’s setting is a powerful backdrop to this tale of the repression of women. Minor, even accidental, infractions such as a hair that escapes a hijab could result in imprisonment and torture. Men were not immune to jailing by the security police, either, with political prisoners receiving long, harsh jail sentences.
Ellie and Homa meet as children and despite difficulties over the years, they remain friends. These two characters capture the interest of the reader immediately and hold it as the novelist spins out a tale with many twists and turns. A chapter will end with a poignant line that lets you know that something important will happen in the next chapter or with a hook that grabs and won’t let go. I read this page turner quickly because I had to keep reading in hopes of discovering resolution to the various problems. The main final action occurs in 1982, but the author jumps ahead in time to 2022 to a concluding chapter and an epilogue. That technique seems rather abrupt, but it answers many questions satisfactorily without drawing the novel out needlessly with details that would detract from the main themes of the book—friendships that last and the strength of women in the face of adversity.
The chapters are well labeled to show whether the point of view is Homa’s or Ellie’s. Perhaps more importantly, the year and sometimes the month are noted. This notation is significant because there are gaps in the timeline and events are not always sequential in the storytelling.
The Lion Women of Tehran is a powerful work of fiction that deserves a top place in literary discussions. The prose is well-written and the plot is well-crafted. Marjan Kamali brings Iranian culture to life and presents an Iran that is not shared in news reports.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Historical Fiction
Publication: July 2, 2024—Gallery Books
Memorable Lines:
In the middle of the schoolyard with everyone watching, with the lunch break ticking away and stomachs grumbling, with the leaves on the ground fragile and breakable beneath our feet, my old friend wrapped her arms around me. She hugged me as though seven years had not passed…it was she Homa. The girl who was always her full self without apology, without explanation, without shame.
I walk in a city now littered with burning cars and trash cans ablaze, a city boiling in fury, a country desperate for change and freedom. My heart is heavy. I am once again cloaked in grief. As I walk, the voice in my head whispers again. And I cannot help but be chilled from head to toe: If the revolution succeeds, what if what follows is worse?
We are tired. Tired of the many ways we are continually told to shut up and obey. Tired of being worried about constant arrest because a strand or two of our hair might peek out. Because a patch of our skin might show. Tired above all—above all in God’s almighty planet—of being bombed. Night after night after night.
The Alchemist: A Modern Classic Fable of Spiritual Healing, Self-Discovery, and the Power of Dreams
The Alchemist
by Paulo Coelho
illustrated by James Noel Smith
translated by Alan R. Clarke
In this fictional account of an Andalusian shepherd, you will find a hodgepodge of philosophy, spirituality, and a variety of religions. Both the writer and the main character Santiago have their childhood roots in Catholicism, but both add in a blend of mysticism, Islamic beliefs, magic, and omens cloaked in a veil of wisdom. The Alchemist is the kind of book that readers will love or hate depending on their backgrounds and what they are searching for—in life and in a good book. The story is an adventure as Santiago goes on a pilgrimage of sorts, trying to live out his Personal Legend. In the process, he learns about the Language of the World, which all things, animate and inanimate, speak, and the Soul of the World in which everyone is a part of everyone else. The goal of his Personal Legend, treasure at the Egyptian pyramids, introduces him to a wise man who calls himself a king, a gypsy, a crystal glassware dealer, caravan operators, thieves, an English seeker of wisdom, and an actual alchemist. He learns first-hand about the desert, oases, love, and tribal warfare.
The Alchemist is fairly short (175 pages) and mildly interesting, but well-written. I don’t consider it a “treasure” or “masterpiece” as some readers describe it. The main attraction of the book, for me, is the beautiful artwork. From tiny sketches to a few full-color, two-page spreads, the art echoes the text with atmosphere that draws me in, keeps my attention, and enhances my enjoyment of the book.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Philosophy, Fiction, Spirituality, Self-Help
Publication: 1988—first published in Portuguese
1993—Harper One (translated to English)
Memorable Lines:
He was sure that it made no difference to her on which day he appeared: for her, every day was the same, and when each day is the same as the next, it’s because people fail to recognize the good things that happened in their lives every day that the sun rises.
“I’m like everyone else—I see the world in terms of what I would like to see happen, not what actually does.”
“When a person really desires something, all the universe conspires to help that person realize his dream.”
The League of Tribes—Publication Day!
I am delighted to announce the publication of my husband’s first novel. It is available on Amazon as a paperback or in a Kindle version. Visit his website drjohnhiggins.com to learn more about the book and the author and see some of the illustrations included in the book.
Suppose you were by accident of time-space transported 13,000 years into the past of a wilderness area you have been visiting with your son. For a time, your survival depends largely on a small band of Ojibwe natives. In this book, the protagonist, Dr. Jackson, is an advanced engineering professional. At its core the book reimagines the purpose of civilization in a way that seeks to improve the lives of those it encompasses. Realizing ultimately that he can never return home, he gradually adopts his new culture and new family relationships. His final fifteen years are invested in seeding two important changes to help his adopted people in the future. He introduces domestication of the horse, avoiding premature extinction and securing the horse an early and permanent place in the native culture. He travels widely and then develops a durable school to prepare for the eventual arrival of Europeans: their avarice, disease, and advanced technology as well as their more positive characteristics. Can such a small seed in time amount to much effect?
A Sky Full of Stars–family secrets
A Sky Full of Stars
By Fay Keenan
When Dr. Charlotte James, a historical astronomical archivist at the University of North West Wessex, said goodbye to the last of the departing undergraduate students she supervised in dormitory housing, she moved for five weeks to Brambleton. With incredible timing, because she had just broken up with a boyfriend who returned to the U.S., Charlotte was offered a temporary job archiving the remaining documents at the Lower Brambleton Observatory, which was being decommissioned. A housing development is scheduled to replace the observatory when archiving and demolition of the structure are complete.
Although the site is remote, Charlotte is provided nice housing in an annexe to Lorelai Ashcombe’s cottage. It is within walking distance of the observatory with a nice area for her cocker spaniel, Comet, to play. Lorelai raised twins Tristan and Thea (her grandchildren) when their parents, both astronomers, died in a car accident. Mystery shrouds the observatory as well as the Ashcombe family. Many years later, they are still trying to recover from the trauma of the unexpected deaths. Charlotte’s discovery of an important document may change the way certain family members are perceived.
Tristan and Charlotte have a rocky start as he is very protective of his grandmother and fearful of her taking in strangers. It doesn’t help that their first accidental meeting occurred when Comet decided to explore the observatory site fenced off in preparation for demolition. The enemy to lover trope appears early in the book, and Tristan and Charlotte’s initial, bristly response to each other is fairly quickly resolved. Then the story branches out to Charlotte’s finds at the site’s records room and her interaction with various family members. A resident and aficionado of Bristol, she finds she also enjoys the quiet and beauty of Brambleton and the new friends she makes in the area. The denouement of the novel showcases a lot of breath-holding action followed by a satisfying conclusion.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Romance, Women’s Fiction
Notes: 1. #1 in the Brambleton Series
2. Contains one steamy scene, but nothing graphic. There is some swearing, but not a lot and mainly during a crisis scene.
3. In the U.S., we call an addition to a building an “annex.” In Great Britain, it is called an “annexe.” Likewise, “realize” becomes “realise.”
Publication: March 18, 2025—Boldwood Books
Memorable Lines:
“Some things deserve to be torn down,” Lorelai replied, and this time there was no mistaking the dark edge to her tone, more pronounced than it had been last night when they’d first discussed the development. “It’ll be for the best when that place is gone. And then, maybe everyone can at last move on.”
Charlotte was more than used to encountering rogue pieces of information; documents that implied one thing but on further investigation revealed another; suggested truths that became elegantly constructed falsehoods after further investigation and research.
She hadn’t realised how accustomed she’d got to the quiet until she was back in the noise of the city.
Ambush–exotic animals
Ambush
by Colleen Coble
Paradise Alden returns home to Nova Cambridge, Alabama, to find some things the same and others completely different. She has the same feelings for Blake Lawson that she had in high school, and he reciprocates, but they have some emotional negotiating to do first. Paradise had a tough time in the foster care system, but is now a veterinarian. Blake was a Marine combat paramedic, but received a discharge to help his mother raise his two adorable stepbrothers when their father died suddenly in an accident. They meet up again at the family owned Sanctuary Wildlife Preserve where Paradise has been hired by Blake’s mother, Jenna, as an exotic animal vet and all-round help. Paradise is also recovering from a nasty wound she received from a black jaguar. She loves large cats, but needs to conquer her fear of the big animals.
Colleen Coble’s tale is definitely suspenseful, the type that will keep you turning pages, but not keep you up all night. In this mystery, there are a sequence of at least nine events aimed at hurting The Sanctuary or its workers. Negative attention is drawn to the wildlife park when a protestor is found dead on the premises. If possible, things just go downhill from there. As it becomes apparent that these are not isolated incidents, the main characters are convinced that someone is out to destroy The Sanctuary Wildlife Preserve, but who and why? A number of people in the area are suspected, but lech and bully Deputy Creed Greene is laser-focused on pinning it all on Blake.
Although the main puzzles and mysteries in this book are solved, there are still many threads that will lead to more excitement and discovery in the next books in the series. This novel has Christian overtones as Blake’s family models the love of Jesus so effectively that both Paradise and another hurting character are led to trust in God despite past traumas. It is clean and the romance is gentle. I’m looking forward to continuing this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Mystery, Suspense, Romance
Notes: 1. #1 in the Sanctuary Series.
2. #2 was published in November, 2025 and #3 is expected in July, 2026. I’m looking forward to both of these.
4. Clean in all aspects.
Publication: March 4, 2025—Thomas Nelson
Memorable Lines:
Being courageous led to more courage, while being afraid led to more and more fear.
“I never realized having the resource of prayer was such a big deal. It’s somehow comforting to know events are outside my control and that’s okay. It makes me realize I never had the control I thought I had.”
Blake wasn’t someone who spoke flowery words of love—he was a man of action who showed his love for those close to him with every decision he made.
education pathways 