TLC Book Tours Book Review: Princess Elizabeth's Spy

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal
Title: Princess Elizabeth's Spy
Publisher: Bantam
Publish Date: Oct 16, 2012
Buy: Amazon

Review Copy Provided By: TLC Book Tours & the publisher

Book Blurb: Susan Elia MacNeal introduced the remarkable Maggie Hope in her acclaimed debut, Mr. Churchill’s Secretary. Now Maggie returns to protect Britain’s beloved royals against an international plot—one that could change the course of history. As World War II sweeps the continent and England steels itself against German attack, Maggie Hope, former secretary to Prime Minister Winston Churchill, completes her training to become a spy for MI-5. Spirited, strong-willed, and possessing one of the sharpest minds in government for mathematics and code-breaking, she fully expects to be sent abroad to gather intelligence for the British front. Instead, to her great disappointment, she is dispatched to go undercover at Windsor Castle, where she will tutor the young Princess Elizabeth in math. Yet castle life quickly proves more dangerous—and deadly—than Maggie ever expected. The upstairs-downstairs world at Windsor is thrown into disarray by a shocking murder, which draws Maggie into a vast conspiracy that places the entire royal family in peril. And as she races to save England from a most disturbing fate, Maggie realizes that a quick wit is her best defense, and that the smallest clues can unravel the biggest secrets, even within her own family.

Review: I've been reading a lot of pre WWII cozy mysteries. Just a few days ago I posted the review for Elegy For Eddie and now there's Princess Elizabeth's Spy.

This book is fabulous.

I really loved the author's attention to detail in the historical aspect of the story. It was great to get a picture of Queen Elizabeth II in the days when she was just Princess Elizabeth.

It is a historical novel of intrigue that touches on the cozy side, but Maggie Hope is a little more than your typical cozy mystery heroine. She wants to work for the MI-5. She's a brilliant woman. She knows math and  code-breaking.

There are 2 murders fairly quickly on that keep the story flowing as well as the intrigue that surrounds Maggie's father. There's also a little bit of a romance that tries to brew between Maggie and her handler Hugh, once she starts to become acclimated to the fact her fiancee perished in the war, when his plane went down.

When reading this book, I felt like I was with the royal family.  Even though this book is fictional, I feel the author portrayed the family well. I loved the interaction between Elizabeth and Margaret. It can't be easy writing about people that are still alive! It makes me wonder what Queen Elizabeth thinks of this novel!

I can't wait til spring when the next book in the series comes out!

Rating: 5 flowers

Book Review: Better Off Wed

Author: Laura Durham
Title: Better Off Wed
Publisher: Avon
Publish Date: January 25, 2005
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: The murder of a particularly difficult mother-of-the-bride has cast a pall on wedding planner Annabelle Archer's latest triumph -- and suspicion falls heavily on her sometime-business partner and friend Richard Gerard. Annabelle knows that even her trusted wedding emergency kit won't be able to salvage their careers if she and Richard can't find the real culprit.

It's no easy task since the slain matron was perhaps the most hated socialite in D.C., but Annabelle navigates through the city's colorful wedding industry and powerful social scene on the deadly trail of a killer. Always the bridal consultant and never the bride, she's seen her fair share of bouquet tosses. But there's no telling what surprises a ruthless killer will throw her way if she gets too close.


Review: I love cozy mysteries and I always love finding new series where the main character has a different sort of job. Annabelle Archer is a wedding planner and when a brides super nasty mom ends up dead at the reception, Annabelle sets out to find the killer.

Of course!

I always wonder about the characters that just decide to do the sleuthing, especially when the cops don't appear inept. Reese didn't, in this case. I really liked that they didn't end up dating at the end of this book, though I'm sure they'll get together somewhere down the line.

The characters in the story were cute and funny. Richard, the caterer is an absolute hoot. It was hilarious when he was gushing over the wedding photos of his food! Then there's Kate, Annabelle's assistant who never quite gets her cliched phrases right.

What made this book an enjoyable read for me was that there weren't any family members around to make Annabelle feel bad about her unmarried state. Though Leatrice, her neighbor tries to point her off towards many good looking guys.

The mystery was really funny too. Mrs Pierce was quite a nasty tramp. She was probably one of characters that I'd vote most deserving of being offed in a cozy.

So many affairs. So much betrayal and blackmail!

It made for a great read! Hopefully the rest of the series will be this good!

Rating:  4 flowers

Innovative Online Book Tours Book Review: Too Many Cooks w/Giveaway

Author:  Shirley Ann Wilder
Title:  Too Many Cooks
Publisher: Boroughs Publishing Group
Publish Date: July 18, 2012
Review Copy Provided By: Innovative Online Book Tours and the author

Book Blurb: Bitter news leads a San Diego widow and widower to true love—and to a scheme to marry off their adult children, a plan that goes deliciously awry. Gaetano Lorenzo was the sweetest man that the widowed Estelle Bennett had ever met. That morning began terribly, with awful news, but now the owner and head chef of a local San Diego ristorante was offering up Italian delights: red wine, delicious food, walks on the beach, laughter when she’d never thought she’d laugh again…. Estelle felt twenty-five. She and Gaetano had found the recipe for love, and a simple variation might just get their adult children to settle down, too. A scoop of sugar, two ladlefuls of lust, a pinch of deception and a whole 24 oz.-can of danger— Suddenly, ingredients were coming from everywhere! But kitchens are crazy places, and variety is the spice of life. And for anything to get cooked, things have to get hot.

Review: I have to say, I've really been reading a lot of books that are food related lately. I'm not sure if this is a good thing for my waistline, because inevitably all of these books make me hungry.

 It is a quick read and a fun read, although it is a romance, there's some serious stuff going on as well. I love that its really two love stories in one, the relationship between the parents and then the children.

The book starts out concentrating on the relationship between Estelle and Gaetano. I really loved their story, because most romance novels seem to think that people over 50 sometimes fall in love, have sex and even, GASP get married. Though from the very beginning you know Estelle doesn't have Leukemia. This is a romance novel, after all, and Estelle deserves a HEA.

The other story is the love between Alex and Gina, Estelle and Gaetano's children! This starts out bad, gets worse, turns awful and then they fall in love. Of course, Gina gets kidnapped by a psycho client that became obsessed with her, and that really opens Alex's eyes to his love for her.

I liked Shirley's writing style and I loved the characters. This was a sweet short read that was totally fun.

Rating: 4 flowers

Author Bio: From the time she could hold a pencil, Shirley Ann Wilder wrote stories. Being the youngest of six children, she was overlooked many times but found wonder and magic in reading books. As a youngster she was especially fond of horse books and read every one of Walter Farley’s Black Stallion books.

That passion for horses carried over into her adult life and with her husband and four children, raised Quarter Horses and German Shepherds. Shirley’s other passion was writing, but it was put on hold until the three sons and one daughter were in high school.

After developing a severe allergy to the equine species and having to give up the major part of horse involvement, Shirley wrote a weekly column for a community newspaper and a monthly column entitled “On the Wilder Side” for the California Horseman’s News in the which she recounted the humorous episodes that happened during the Wilder Family’s horse era. Shirley also published in college literary magazines, but her real quest was to write novels.

 After taking numerous writing classes and amassing many unfinished manuscripts, one of her writing instructors suggested she join Romance Writers of America. Taking that advice she also joined the local San Diego RWA chapter has since completed six novels.  She served on the Executive Board as Co-President of RWA- San Diego for 2006 and 2007 and held several other chair positions. She credits her fellow writers for the support and encouragement that has kept her writing during recent difficult times.

Shirley Ann was widowed in January of 2008 when her husband died of stage four colon cancer after battling it bravely for three years and four months. Three of her grown children live near her in suburbs of San Diego and one son lives in Kentucky.  They have blessed her with four granddaughters and one grandson.

Buy: All Romance/Smashwords/Amazon/Apple iBooks

Innovative Online Book Tours Book Review: Faerie Cake Dead

Author: J.M. Griffin
Title: Faerie Cake Dead
Publisher:
Publish Date: Feb 19, 2012
Buy: Amazon

Review Copy Provided By: Innovative Online Book Tours and the author

Book Blurb:Tea, trust and trouble collide at Faerie Cake Junction. When divorcee, Luna Devere, owner of Faerie Cake Junction, meets general contractor, Devin Radford, chaos reigns. Devin instantly wreaks romantic havoc in Luna's life after she finds a corpse sitting in her tea shop as though awaiting service. The shop is surrounded by faeries who have befriended Luna. They know who left the dead man, but they aren't sharing. The sheriff is convinced Luna is daft and that she's the culprit. Devin wonders just how odd Luna is...even though he's drawn to her. And, Luna's ex-husband tries to incriminate her for reasons and purposes of his own. Will Luna survive? Only the faeries know.

Review:  I reviewed J.M. Griffin's Murder On Spyglass Lane awhile back and decided then that she was going to be an author that I wanted to watch out for. I'm glad I made that decision. I love cozy mysteries, and this one is a combination of two things I like, tasty treats and the paranormal, in this case faeries.

I also love quirky characters and that is Luna!

Her relationship with Devlin is a bit strange, I would have liked the characters to be more fleshed out so that their relationship might have been more plausible, but overall the story was cute.

My only gripe is that this story made me really hungry for cupcakes and there are none on hand. What a bummer. Actually this story will make you very hungry overall. The description of the cupcakes though will have any mortal salivating and probably a few faeries and pixies too.

It kept you guessing until the very end, whodunit, at least it did me, and the answer was a bit of a surprise.

This is a great story for those looking for a quick fun cozy! I can't wait for more of this series.

Rating: 4 flowers

Website: www.JMGriffin.net

Blog: http://mycozymysteries.blogspot.com

Video http://youtu.be/b4sfqSGRFJQ

Book Review: Foul Play

Author:  Tori Carrington
Title:  Foul Play
Publisher: Tor
Publish Date: May 29, 2007
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: Like Janet Evanovich or Jennifer Crusie, Tori Carrington mixes humor with danger and stealth with sex. The intrepid Sofie, a good Greek girl from working-class Astoria, Queens, is finding her feet as a budding private investigator and as a single gal in the big city. In Foul Play, Sofie's searching for a couple of hot prospects, one in her personal life and one professionally. The New York Mets might just be on their way to the World Series, but their newly signed pitching phenom has disappeared with the playoffs fast approaching. As for her personal life, Sofie's hooking up with a gorgeous Greek who is every bit as hunky as her long-time crush, Australian mystery man Jake Porter--and a lot more available.

Review: It is easy to compare Sofie with Stephanie, however as I continue to read this series, which so far has 5 books with a sixth due out this fall. This series becomes more likable with each new installment, maybe because with all the comparisons to Plum, Metro is really her own girl, and believe it or not, bumbling though she is at times, she's actually grown as a character with each passing book.

What set this book apart from the other 2 is the absence of Jake the Australian bounty hunter. He only made a small cameo in this story, other than his appearance in Sofie's thoughts. That absence gave Sofie the chance to hook up with Dino, who originally was meant for her sister. And speaking of characters that weren't in this book as much as the others, Pimply Pino wasn't around much either!

Again, I can't stress enough how much I like Sofie. I also like that though the story has one major plot, involving the baseball player, there are other things going on that make the book feel like a snapshot of Sofie's life.

One of the funny parts of the book is Sofie's decision to get a tattoo. Or rather not to get a tattoo but to say that to annoy her mother. She goes as far as getting a temporary lizard on her leg!

The main plot of the story, about Reni Venezuela is a bit haphazard. It is hard to believe that the mystery of what was going on with him ever got solved. That part of the book was tied up a little to neatly for me, considering all the other things going on. They worked together to point to the end result, but still it felt like it wrapped up a little to easily. 

I can't wait to pick up the next two books in this series.

Rating: 4 flowers

Book Review: False Impressions

Author: Terri Thayer
Title: False Impressions
Publisher: Berkley
Publish Date: Aug 3, 2010
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: Third in the Stamping Sisters mystery series. Professional rubber stamper April Buchert is shocked to discover that the brother of one of the Stamping Sisters faked his own death, only to really die in a tragic car accident-that was not an accident at all. Now this heated family drama could cause one cold winter if the killer isn't found.
  Review: Have you ever had a story that was absolutely perfect until the very end, when the author does something that just doesn't sit with you at all?

Well that's the case here.

The story is really intriguing, and April is a better than usual cozy heroine. She's spunky, but not obnoxious. Plus she has a boyfriend that she's pretty serious with. There's no one telling her she has to remarry. (April is a divorcee). I loved Mitch too. Especially his surprise at the Ice Festival that goes terribly wrong.

The mystery involves a family member who is involved in a local drug operation. (crystal meth) Not the usual subject for a cozy mystery. There's a lot in this short book about J.B.'s faking his death and how he had been trying to turn his life around. He was really a likable character and it is a shame he was one of the murder victims.

But that's not the thing that bothered me. Hey, it is a cozy mystery! Someone has to die! That's the whole point.

But did they have to kill of some likable secondary characters at the very end before the climax?

I don't want to give away who...but all I can say is when you hit the end your jaw will drop and then you'll throw the book at the wall.

The resolution of JB's murder is satisfactory though. It is a shame Terri had to end this book the way she did. I thought I was going to dive into this series, but I'm not sure if I want to now.

Rating: 3 flowers

Innovative Book Tours Book Review: Murder On Spyglass Lane

Author: J.M. Griffith
Title: Murder On Spyglass Lane
Publisher: Createspace
Publish Date: Jan 22, 2012
Buy: Amazon
Review Copy Provided By: Innovative Book Tours & the author

Book Blurb: Artist Sarah McDougall flees from New England to Florida's west coast thinking she can escape her unwanted psychic abilities. When she finds a dead body buried under the sand trap on the thirteenth hole of the golf course behind her home, Sarah realizes she was mistaken. Stuck with an ability that will nearly be her undoing and unable to shake the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach, Sarah turns to her neighbor for help. The swashbuckling pirate-like handsome man, has secrets of his own. The duo investigates the murder finding unexpected and surprising twists along the way that place Sarah in harms way more often than she ever thought possible.

Review: This was a cute short mystery. I guess it is a cozy mystery, but it lacks some of the elements that make most cozies popular, though I think it's possible if this becomes a series that it will pick up on them nicely.

I thought Sarah's character was unique. She could see visions. That's definitely a twist on the cozy mystery front and then there's Raven. He reminded me a little of Janet Evanovich's Ranger, more in his actions than anything else, but when you say he's pirate handsome..I think sexy, oh wait, now I'm thinking of Johnny Depp. Actually the author makes mention of Mr. Depp in the book, in relation to his Pirates character.

Le sigh

Its just a shame she couldn't spell his name correctly. That kinda annoyed me a little bit.

For a book that was a little over 120 pages, it dragged a bit at the beginning. There were some descriptions that made me feel this was going to be more of a thriller than a cozy.

I did like the ending. I hadn't expected the person who had actually done the killing, so that made me feel satisfied in my reading.

It was an ok read, nothing to exciting, but good for passing the time. I probably wouldn't revisit this story, but I would try the author again.


Rating: 3 flowers

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J.M. Griffin Online:
Website www.JMGriffin.net
Blog http://mycozymystery.blogspot.com
Twitter @mycozymystery

Book Review: Dirty Laundry

Author: Tori Carrington
Title: Dirty Laundry
Publisher: Forge Books
Publish Date: May 2, 20006
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: When Sofie Metropolis decided to stop being a waitress and start being a private detective, she had no idea what she was getting into. With only a few cases under her belt, Sofie has inherited a dead woman's mean-spirited Jack Russell; fallen hard for a mysterious, charming Australian bounty hunter; and gained a rep for an itchy trigger finger. She even shot one of her clients!

Sofie's mom suspects Sofie's dad is having an affair, and Sofie's seen enough cheating spouses to know that her father is keeping secrets. And though Jake Porter is more available than ever, Sofie finds herself torn between the Australian she barely knows and a handsome, available Greek who knows that the fastest way to Sofie's heart is through a bakery.

Searching for a missing dry cleaner who left behind a brand-new Mercedes and a not-so-brand-new wife, Sofie is attacked by . . . a plastic-swathed suit? Or was it one of Tony DiPiazza's goons? Tony being the junior-league Mobster who has his own reasons to want to get his finely-manicured hands on the dry cleaner's account books.

If Sofie's not careful, her favorite kicks are going to be replaced by a pair of cement overshoes . . . .
Review: I was sat on the fence with the first Sofie Metropolis book, but with Dirty Laundry I find myself really liking the series.

Sure it is like Evanovich's Plum series. There are a lot of parallel's including Sofie's use of the word "Probably." But for all those similarities, Sofie is different from Stephanie. She lacks a side kick and her family is way more quirky than the Plum household. She's also a girly girl, something which really can't be said for Stephanie.

In this book there's more cheating spouses, or so they think, a missing ferret and a missing dry cleaner.

Oh and then there's the mob! Tony DiPiazza, who wants to have "pasta" with Sofie, if you know what I'm saying. (wink wink, nudge nudge) I have to say one of the funniest moments of the book is when Sofie's apartment is broken into and Muffy is taped to the toilet. Poor little Muffy!

There's a lot of funny stuff with Sofie, and her crush on Jake Porter, which almost made it to the bedroom is worth turning pages for. Hunky Aussie guys are always worth turning pages for.

The first book had trouble finding its footing, but with Dirty Laundry, Tori Carrington definitely has a winner. I look forward to reading more from this series. Hopefully they can keep things fresh and funny for awhile!

Rating: 4 flowers

Book Review: Never Say Pie

Author: Carol Culver
Title Never Say Pie
Publisher: Midnight Ink
Publish Date: August 8, 2012
Buy: Amazon
Review Copy Provided By: Net Galley
Book Blurb: ook two in the popular (and delicious!) Pie Shop Mystery series

It’s summertime in Crystal Cove, California, and sales are brisk at the outdoor Food Fair. There’s fresh bread, artisan cheese, gourmet cupcakes, plus Hanna’s delicious pies. When despised local food critic Heath Barr is found stabbed to death, no one is sorry to hear the news—except perhaps Hanna, the main suspect. It doesn’t help that Hanna’s high school crush is the police chief. Hanna must track down a killer while up to her elbows in pie dough.

Featuring scrumptious recipes, including Double Chocolate Cream Pie and Butterscotch Pecan Pie

Review: I have to admit, I'm a sucker for cozy mysteries that involve food and this one is full of all kinds of yummy things. The main character and pie shop owner is Hanna who may remind some of you of Hannah Swensen and Sam a little like Mike.

This story is a quick read, as you meet all the people from Crystal Cove's Food Fair. Oh will the descriptions make you hungry! Cheeses! Sausage! Cupcakes! Yum!

When a food critic that was particularly unkind is found murdered, most everyone at the fair is suspect! Since Hanna was a recipient of one of the bad reviews and had tiff with Heath, she's a suspect and is working to clear her name.

Unlike the other "Hannah" The Upper Crust owner is more ditzy, which is why it is easy to understand Sam trying to keep her out of the investigation. I wish there was more of a spark between these two. Sam was Hanna's high school crush and they same to have a past that's more than just a crush. Sam seems clueless to Hanna's feelings. He's got secrets, but why keep them from someone who has been a friend for many years.

I hope things change between them, because Hanna needs someone in her life. This is a fairly new series, so maybe as it goes on, we'll see more friendships, etc, but right now it is just Hanna and her gram, who lives in a retirement village. I like their closeness, but again, Hanna needs to a have a friend to kind of tone her down. Her sleuthing is a bit crazy.

I look forward to seeing where Carol takes this series and I also can't wait to try one of the pie recipes!

Rating:  4 flowers

Book Review: Death By Darjeeling

Author: Laura Childs
Title: Death By Darjeeling
Publisher: Berkley
Publish Date: May 1, 2001
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: When a man is poisoned by tea, Theo is the prime suspect. Now she has to prove her innocence and track down the real killer-before someone else takes their last sip. Just the right blend of cozy fun and clever plotting.

Review: Death By Darjeeling is the first book in the Tea Shop Mysteries series by Laura Childs. I read one of the later books first and kind of liked it. I wanted to go back and read the first book to see how I really felt about the characters in this cozy series.

I've decided that I like them but I'm not sure if cozy really applies to this series, because even though this is a tea shop and there's a cute dog, called Earl Grey, the vibe of this series isn't very cozy.

The characters, with the exception of Haley are more than a bit snooty. But then again, Theodosia does run a tea shop so what can you expect.

Here are some of the things I like about this series:

1. The descriptions of the teas. I really learned quite a bit about tea reading this book, you know the kind of tea that isn't in little bags with strings attached.

2. It is hard to resist a dog named Earl Grey

3. There's no relationship craziness going on.

4. The descriptions of Charleston, South Carolina are beautiful. It really makes you feel like you are there.

It can be easy to nitpick cozy series, because like romance novels they have a formula. The secret to a good cozy is to have just enough quirky characters to justify a civilian diving into a crime scene and solving the case. With this series, you can believe it. Theo is a pretty smart lady, and since murders seem to follow her, why not solve them?

Laura does a good job at keeping you guessing about the killer too. I like that. I hate knowing who the killer is halfway into the story!

I only wish there were some humor in these books. I'll probably work my way through all of them, because I'm fascinated with the Indigo Tea Room, but I'll take my time doing it.

Rating:  4 flowers

Book Review: Sugar Cookie Murder

Author: Joanne Fluke
Title: Sugar Cookie Murder
Publisher: Kensington
Publish Date: Oct 1, 2005
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb:The holidays are the icing on the cake for bakery owner Hannah Swensen. Surrounded by her loved ones, she has all the ingredients for a perfect Christmas until murder is added to the mix...

When it comes to holidays, Minnesotans rise to the occasion and the little town of Lake Eden is baking up a storm with Hannah leading the way. The annual Christmas Buffet is the final test of the recipes Hannah has collected for the Lake Eden Holiday Buffet Cookbook.

While Hannah is baking the day s goodies at The Cookie Jar, the evening s plans begin to jell. Start with the best Lake Eden culinary creations, add two of Hannah s sometime boyfriends, a pinch of her ready-to-pop pregnant sister, and a dash of her mother and new significant other, an actual British lord, and what do you get? A recipe for disaster, but the juiciest ingredient is yet to come..

The recently divorced Martin Dubinski arrives at the buffet with his new Vegas showgirl wife all wrapped up in glitter and fur. His ex-wife, however, seems as cool as chilled eggnog. And when Hannah s mother s antique Christmas cake knife disappears, its discovery in the decolletage of the new and now late Mrs. Dubinski puts the festivities on ice.

With everyone stranded at the community center by a blizzard, Hannah puts her investigative skills to the test, using the ingredients at hand: half the town of Lake Eden and a killer. Now, as the snowdrifts get higher, it s up to Hannah to dig out all the clues and make sure that this white Christmas doesn't bring any more deadly tidings.

Review: This is a cute holiday mystery for fans of the Hannah Swensen series. It is also a two-fer if you ask me. It is half book and half cookbook. Not bad really, unless you are looking for a meaty mystery to carry you through a few hours.

If that's the case, you probably wouldn't want to be reading a Hannah Swensen anyway. These are cheesy fun cozies. If Harlequin had a cozy mystery line, Hannah would be part of it. Hmmm. Why doesn't Harlequin have a cozy line!

But back to the story at hand.

This story involves a recent divorced man and his showgirl bride. It is easy to tell that the bride is going to be our victim early on, because she's just so unappealing and unlikeable that she has to be the one that dies!  All this happens during a potluck supper for the holiday. (That's why there are so many recipes in the end. They are compiling a cookbook from everyone's potluck taste test recipes).

The characters of Lake Eden are so colorful and quirky. That's why I keep coming back. It has nothing to do with great mysteries, because like I said, these aren't really what these books are about. I mean come on! How many people get killed in the same small town? I would think the FBI would be starting to wonder!

I will give Joanne credit for making sure you won't guess her killer in most books, and this one was no exception. Just when you think you do know, you find out that you were wrong!

My only gripe with Hannah is her crazy love triangle. I love the average Joe, Norman. He's nice, he loves Hannah, he has cats.  Good guy! Mike, however is a ....hmmm. I think buttwad is an appropriate term. I cannot figure out why Hannah would stick with him this long.

It isn't as if he's someone like Ranger and Morelli. Nope.

Still, I enjoyed this one. A cute, festive read with lots of glorious things to cook.

Rating: 4 flowers

Book Review: Valentine Murder

Author: Leslie Meier
Title: Valentine Murder
Publisher: Kensington
Publish Date: February 1, 1999
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: It’s Valentine’s Day in Tinker’s Cove. And while the cupcakes Lucy Stone is baking for her children will have pink frosting and candy hearts, Lucy’s thoughts aren’t centered on sugary sentiments. She’s barely arrived at her first board meeting of the newly-renovated library when Bitsy Howell, the new librarian, is found dead in the basement, shot only minutes before story hour was to start. The agitated board members assume that Bitsy was killed by an outsider, until Detective Lt. Horowitz arrives on the scene and announces that the killer is among them.


Lucy was already aware that Bitsy’s uppity big city ways rubbed some people in Tinker’s Cove the wrong way. But she has a hunch that motives for the librarian’s violent death run a lot deeper. From Hayden Norcross’s elegant antique shop to Corney Clark’s chic kitchen, Lucy relentlessly snoops into the curious lifestyles and shocking secrets of Tinker’s Cove’s most solid citizens—secrets that will plunge her into a terrifying confrontation with a conniving killer.

Review: Lucy Stone mysteries are good for a quiet afternoon. Leslie's books are shorter than your average cozy. In fact they are really about the same length as most Harlequin Romances.

I love Lucy and her family and friends. They feel like real small town people to me, when I read these books, but I have to say there are a few things that bother me, not just with this book, but with some other cozies like this.

1. How do people find other people to kill in these small towns? I mean, I've lived in a small town for all of my 37 years and there haven't been that many murders here.

2. It is 1999 and Lucy doesn't understand the internet and the web? I had my first computer in that year and I felt like I was way behind the times! What's up with that.

3. How does she get away with not turning assignments in at the newspaper. Freelance or no, a deadline's a deadline.

All these things aside, this was a really cute story. A murdered librarian. a stolen pewter tankard, and a caterer who cheats with her recipes. The clues point to so many different people and believe it or not, for as cheesy as these stories are,  you won't guess the killer. However I had a hard time figuring out what happened and to whom towards the end.

A cute fluffy read, but not one of the best in the Lucy Stone series.

Rating: 3 flowers

Book Review: Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder

Author: Joanne Fluke
Title: Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder
Publisher: Kensington
Publish Date: January 2008
Buy:Amazon
Book Blurb: Discover the delicious mystery that started it all!
No one cooks up a delectable, suspense-filled mystery quite like Hannah Swensen, Joanne Fluke’s dessert-baking, red-haired heroine whose gingersnaps are as tart as her comebacks, and whose penchant for solving crimes—one delicious clue at a time—has made her a bestselling favorite. And it all began on these pages, with a bakery, a murder, and some suddenly scandalous chocolate-chip crunchies. Featuring a bonus short story and brand new, mouthwatering recipes, this limited edition of the very first Hannah Swensen mystery is sure to have readers coming back for seconds…

Hannah Swenson already has her hands full trying to dodge her mother’s attempts to marry her off while running The Cookie Jar, Lake Eden, Minnesota’s most popular bakery. But once Ron LaSalle, the beloved delivery man from the Cozy Cow Dairy, is found murdered behind her bakery with Hannah’s famous Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered around him, her life just can’t get any worse. Determined not to let her cookies get a bad reputation, she sets out to track down a killer.

Who would have the sheer audacity—and the motive—to kill the most punctual delivery man Hannah ever had? Topping the list is the high school football coach. What exactly was his wife doing, making the rounds with the milkman? Could Max Turner, owner of Cozy Cow Dairy, have had a secret he didn’t want to share with his top employee? The more Hannah snoops, the more suspects turn up. Why has Lake Eden’s most prominent prodigal son, Benton Woodley, just resurfaced? And what about the mysterious Mr. Harris who seemed interested in buying the property next to the dairy, but then disappeared? This is one murder that’s starting to leave a very bad taste in Hannah’s mouth. And if she doesn’t watch her back, Hannah’s sweet life may get burned to a crisp.

Review: This is the reissue of the first book in the Hannah Swensen series. It comes complete with the added short story Candy For Christmas. I have to say that I'm not sure what I love the most about the series, the characters or the recipes. I made the Chocolate Chip Crunches a few weeks ago and everyone raved about them. So Joanne gets props for having awesome cookie recipes. I plan on trying a few more from this book too.

The story is like most of the others in the series, only you get to see everything from the beginning. I've read a few of the books already and I have to tell you, it doesn't matter if you read them in order or not.

This book is pure fluff, and I don't mean that in a bad way. This is the kind of fluff you reach for when you've had a bad day and you need to just enjoy your reading time. I really liked getting to see the start of Hannah's relationships with Mike and Norman. I don't usually "ship" with these stories, but finally reading this book, I have to say, I'm Team Norman.

The murders were amusing, and being the dunce that I am, I never figured out whodunit until I reached the end. I always find myself laughing when the amateur sleuths go breaking in to places and they never get in trouble, even when they find bodies there!

This edition also includes a short story, Candy For Christmas. This was really a sweet story, no murder involved here, just a runaway girl and a whole lot of great holiday cookie recipes.

Lake Eden is one of my favorite places to visit, because Hannah and her family and friends are just so much fun to spend time with!

Rating:  5 flowers