Grave War (Alex Craft, #7)

Grave War
by Kalayna Price
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 9781984805959
Series: Alex Craft #7
Publication Date: November 26, 2020
Pages: 384
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Ace

Grave witch Alex Craft has forged an uneasy truce with the world of Faerie, but she's still been trying to maintain at least some semblance of a normal life in the human world. So it's safe to say that stepping up as the lead investigator for the Fae Investigation Bureau was not a career path she ever anticipated taking.

When an explosion at the Eternal Bloom threatens to upend the fae who make their home in our world, Alex finds herself in charge of the most far-reaching investigation she's ever tackled. And it's only her first week on the job. With the threats mounting and cut off from half her allies, Alex can't wait on the sidelines and hope the fae's conflicts stay contained within their borders.

The final book of the series, this is the one that wraps up the whole thing. I couldn’t put it down, but I can’t say I totally loved it, but that’s because it didn’t end the way I’d have chosen, and I felt that there were endings left undone, or not really done to any satisfaction. At least mine. But it was well written, and well plotted and I got a huge amount of satisfaction at having called the major plot twist from the very start of the series. View Spoiler » So there was that.

It’s a series I’ll miss, and re-read, but I’m happy the author got to end the story on her terms.

Ladies’ Night

Ladies' Night
by Mary Kay Andrews
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 9781250019677
Publication Date: June 24, 2013
Pages: 456
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Grace Stanton's life as a rising media star and beloved lifestyle blogger takes a surprising turn when she catches her husband cheating and torpedoes his pricey sports car straight into the family swimming pool. Grace suddenly finds herself locked out of her palatial home, checking account, and even the blog she has worked so hard to develop in her signature style. Moving in with her widowed mother, who owns and lives above a rundown beach bar called The Sandbox, is less than ideal. So is attending court-mandated weekly "divorce recovery" therapy sessions with three other women and one man for whom betrayal seems to be the only commonality. When their "divorce coach" starts to act suspiciously, they decide to start having their own Wednesday "Ladies' Night" sessions at The Sandbox, and the unanticipated bonds that develop lead the members of the group to try and find closure in ways they never imagined. Can Grace figure out a new way home and discover how strong she needs to be to get there?

Heartache, humor, and a little bit of mystery come together in a story about life's unpredictable twists and turns. Mary Kay Andrews' Ladies' Night will have you raising a glass and cheering these characters on.

Definitely not one of her best books, but not nearly as poor as I was led to believe. Admittedly, it’s set in my home town, which never fails to delight me as my home town only read made it on to the map in the last 15 years or so. But I enjoyed following the main character’s vision and her hard work on restoring the Cracker house, and I thoroughly enjoyed the romantic interest’s background of owning Jungle Jerry’s, a fictional but entirely accurate take on Sarasota Jungle Gardens, right down to the parrot that rides a bike.

Nostalgia definitely bumped the rating on this book at least a star; the villains were too villainous to be real – although in Florida non of them were impossible – and the plots were superficial at best. I always hold up her non detective fiction against her an early work of hers, Hissy Fit, and this falls far short of that incredibly readable story, but it’s not, as I said, her worst. Living as far from home as one can get and still be on the planet, I thoroughly enjoyed the virtual trip home, so, 4 stars.

Seven Kinds of People You Find in a Bookshop

Seven Kinds of People You Find in Bookshops
by Shaun Bythell
Rating: ★★★★½
isbn: 9781788166584
Publication Date: November 5, 2020
Pages: 137
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Profile Books

In twenty years behind the till in The Bookshop, Wigtown, Shaun Bythell has met pretty much every kind of customer there is - from the charming, erudite and deep-pocketed to the eccentric, flatulent and possibly larcenous.

In Seven Kinds of People You Find in Bookshops he distils the essence of his experience into a warm, witty and quirky taxonomy of the book-loving public. So, step inside to meet the crafty Antiquarian, the shy and retiring Erotica Browser and gormless yet strangely likeable shop assistant Student Hugo - along with much loved bookseller favourites like the passionate Sci-Fi Fan, the voracious Railway Collector and the ever-elusive Perfect Customer.

Having read his first two books, I was surprised when this arrived at how small it was. But good things / small packages and all that. It may be a small, slim volume, but it’s spot on and hilarious. I’ve never owned a bookshop (yet) but I recognise these people from time spent in bookshops – and a library or two – everywhere. I found myself reading most of it aloud to my husband, and we took turns naming those we know who fit Bythell’s descriptions a little too well, inside or outside a bookshop.

MT self-identified with type 3 of the Homo qui desidet or Loiterer, sub-type The Bored Spouse (though in his defense, he just buys his books way too fast). I was relived not to have identified with the American sub-type of Family Historian, since I leave all that stuff to my mom, who is a first generation American, so comes by it honestly, at least. I’d like to think I fall firmly in the bonus category of Cliens Perfectus as I generally enter a bookshop, talk to nobody, browse everything, and almost never leave without a stack, and the idea of haggling is one I find personally abhorrent, but then, doesn’t everyone think they’re the Perfect Customer?

All in all, a fun way to spend a few hours as long as you have a healthy sense of humor about humanity.

A Murderous Relation (Veronica Speedwell, #5)

A Murderous Relation
by Deanna Raybourn
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 9780451490742
Series: Veronica Speedwell Mystery #5
Publication Date: March 10, 2020
Pages: 308
Genre: Historical, Mystery
Publisher: Berkley

A royal scandal’s connection to a brutal serial killer threatens London in this new Veronica Speedwell adventure from New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn.

Autumn 1888. Veronica Speedwell and her colleague Stoker are asked by Lady Wellingtonia Beauclerk to stop a potential scandal so explosive it threatens to rock the monarchy. Prince Albert Victor is a regular visitor to the most exclusive private club in London, and the proprietress, Madame Aurore, has received an expensive gift that can be traced back to the prince. Lady Wellie would like Veronica and Stoker to retrieve it from the club before scandal can break.

Worse yet, London is being terrorized by what would become the most notorious and elusive serial killer in history, Jack the Ripper—and Lady Wellie suspects the prince may be responsible.
Veronica and Stoker reluctantly agree to go undercover at Madame Auroreʼs high-class brothel, where a body soon turns up. Secrets are swirling around Veronica and the royal family—and it is up to Veronica and Stoker to find the truth, before it is too late for all of them.

A fan from the start of the series, I always thought the mc being based on a real historical figure gave the books that little extra something, but when I finished this one, as much as I enjoyed it, I thought ‘the author certainly took some creative liberties in this one’.

Which shows how much I know about history; every part I found fantastical turned out to be based on true events. So all I can say now is, poor Prince Albert Victor; even if some of the more spurious speculations about him took place long after his death, his memory seems unfairly tarnished.

Veronica and Stoker’s story was a good time though. The plot was well crafted, though not a mystery, really. This was much more about foiling a two-pronged conspiracy, and while murder was done, there was no mystery as to who did it. Raybourn also used the storyline’s backdrop of Whitechapel and the Jack the Ripper murders to spotlight the social inequities of the Victorian age.

And finally, after 5 books, there is finally some advancement between Veronica and Stoker, which, while the romance isn’t the thing for me, is a relief, because I find tension of any kind, too long strung out, to be tedious in the extreme.

It took me too long to get this book because of the pandemic, but the upside is the next one has already been announced, so I know I’ll have another to look forward to soon.

Howl of Wolves (Sam Clair, #4)

A Howl of Wolves
by Judith Flanders
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 9781250087836
Series: Sam Clair #4
Publication Date: May 15, 2018
Pages: 295
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Minotaur Books

Book editor and amateur sleuth Samantha Clair attends a play filled with gruesome deaths--one of which is real.

Sam Clair figures she'll be a good sport and spend a night out at the theater in support of her upstairs neighbors, who have small parts in a play in the West End. Boyfriend (a Scotland Yard detective) and allround good sport Jake Field agrees to tag along to what is apparently an extra bloody play filled with dramatic gory deaths galore. So Sam expects an evening filled with faux fatalities. Until, that is, the curtain opens to the second act revealing a dummy hanging from the rafters, who's been made up to look suspiciously like Campbell Davison, the director of the production.

When Sam sees the horrified faces of the actors onstage, she realizes that this is indeed not a dummy, but Davison himself and this death is not part of the show. Now everyone wants to know who killed Campbell Davison?

As Sam learns more about the murdered man, she discovers that he wasn't all that well-liked amongst the cast and crew, so the suspect list grows. The show must go on but Sam knows a murderer must be apprehended so she sets out to find out what happened and why.

Flanders writes a great mystery, whose main character has a dry wit that I enjoy.

Howl of Wolves is centred around a theatre production, which isn’t one of my favourite settings, but it worked. I enjoyed watching Sam put facts and observations together without wedging herself in where she didn’t belong, or going around the backs of the police. The murderer might have been several people but wasn’t obvious enough to ruin the surprise.

I’d like to hope that there will be a fifth book, but it’s been awhile since this one was published. No more Sam and Jake adventures would be a disappointment.

Devil’s Bones (Sarah Booth Delaney, #21)

The Devil's Bones
by Carolyn Haines
Rating: ★★★
isbn: 9781250257864
Series: Sarah Booth Delaney #21
Publication Date: September 14, 2020
Pages: 355
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Not one of the best ones by a long shot. The story meandered, felt disjointed – something that was not helped by the secondary plot introduction – and the killer was telegraphed from the first scene they were in.

Normally, I love this series and I love these characters, but between the meandering and the lack of mystery behind a string of murders, there wasn’t much to keep me engaged. The author also seemed more melancholy and wistful than usual, with less of the humour I enjoy so much.

All together, it resulted in a poor showing for book #21. Hopefully #22 regains the series stride.

The Paper Bark Tree Mystery (Crown Colony, #3)

The Paper Bark Tree Mystery
by Ovidia Yu
Rating: ★★★
isbn: 9781472125248
Series: Crown Colony Mystery #3
Publication Date: June 27, 2019
Pages: 327
Genre: Historical, Mystery
Publisher: Constable

Su Lin is doing her dream job: assistant at Singapore's brand new detective agency. Until Bald Bernie decides a 'local girl' can't be trusted with private investigations, and replaces her with a new secretary - pretty, privileged, and white. So Su Lin's not the only person finding it hard to mourn Bernie after he's found dead in the filing room. And when her best friend's dad is accused, she gets up to some sleuthing work of her own in a bid to clear his name.

Su Lin finds out that Bernie may have been working undercover, trading stolen diamonds for explosives from enemy troops. Was he really the upright English citizen he claimed to be?

Meanwhile, a famous assassin commits his worst crime yet, and disappears into thin air. Rumours spread that he may be dangerously close to home.

Beneath the stifling, cloudless Singaporean summer, earthquakes of chaos and political unrest are breaking out. When a tragic loss shakes Su Lin's personal world to its core, she becomes determined to find the truth. But in dark, hate-filled times, truth has a price - and Su Lin must decide how much she's willing to pay for it. 327

I enjoy this series for the setting, the time, the history and the characters, but The Paper Bark Tree Mystery was a poor entry structure wise. The plot was good, but marred by the fragmented delivery; characters would transition from point A to point S without the reader knowing anything about B-R, making for a disjointed and often confusing read. Ultimately, this is the fault of whomever edited it, but it’s a shame because the story and the series has so much going for it and a lot of potential ahead. I’ll read the next one if there is a next one, but I hope for a much smoother narrative.

Wicked Hour (Heirs of Chicagoland, #2)

Wicked Hour
by Chloe Neill
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 9780399587115
Series: Heirs of Chicagoland #2
Publication Date: December 3, 2019
Pages: 352
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Berkley

Vampires were made, not born—until Elisa Sullivan came along. As the only vampire child in existence, she grew up with a heavy legacy, and tried to flee her past. Then circumstances drew her back to Chicago, and she stayed to keep it safe. With shifter Connor Keene, the only son of Pack Apex Gabriel Keene, at her side, she faced down a supernatural evil that threatened to destroy Chicago forever.

After the dust from the attack has settled, Elisa is surprised when Connor invites her to a usually private Pack event in the north woods of Minnesota, and by the warm welcome she receives from some of Connor’s family, even though she's a vampire. But the peace doesn't last. The shifters tell tales of a monster in the woods, and when the celebration is marred by death, Elisa and Connor find themselves in the middle of a struggle for control that forces Elisa to face her true self—fangs and all.

I was a big fan of the Chicagoland Vampires series, but wasn’t quite so sure about the spin-off until I finished the first book (which started slow). Then I was hooked. Wicked Hour was even better than the first book combining a group of established friends from the first book with a great setting, snarky dialog, and an interesting mystery. What is the mysterious beast in the north woods of Minnesota?

The two main characters of this series are a vampire and a werewolf in love with each other, so I expected the inevitable conflict between species to be one the author might milk for at least a couple of books. So imagine my glee when she didn’t take that trope-tastic route but instead had her two main characters act like rational adults.

Where the author did skirt the line was the amount of animosity Lis was up against from the werewolf clan. At times it felt too manufactured to be believed, although towards the end the author made it work by turning it inward and making it about something larger than Lis’s vampirism.

All up it was an excellent sophomore entry in a promising new series I look forward to continuing.

Mama Rides Shotgun (Mace Bauer, #2)

Mama Rides Shotgun
by Deborah Sharp
Rating: ★★★
isbn: 9780738713304
Series: Mace Bauer #2
Publication Date: October 1, 2009
Pages: 336
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Midnight Ink

Mama's fixin' to get hitched to Husband #5. But first, she coerces her daughter, Mace, to saddle up for some country-gal bonding on the Florida Cracker Trail.

The trek takes a deadly turn when Lawton Bramble—wealthy rancher and one-time beau of Mama's—keels over in his Cow Hunter Chili. Lawton had a horde of enemies and a famously bad ticker. Could a grudge-wielding rival have "spiced" the cattleman's chow?

With (or maybe despite) the help of her sisters and her sexy ex-beau, Detective Martinez, Mace sets out to corral a low-down varmint who's determined to kill again.

Re-read update: This book did not hold up well on re-read. I had the same issue with the re-invention of the first book’s history, and the rest of it, even though I didn’t remember who the murderer was, I found extremely tedious and meandering.

Here’s hoping the third book holds up better.

Mick Abruzzo: The Second Wire

Mick Abruzzo: The Second Wire
by Nancy Martin
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 9781483533490
Series: Blackbird Sisters #9.5
Publication Date: June 1, 2014
Pages: 70
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Self-published

The son of New Jersey's last remaining mob boss, Mick Abruzzo wants to live in the real world with a legitimate job, a wife and happy family. But when his family needs him, Mick feels obligated to help. This time, it's his presumed-dead brother, Little Frankie Abruzzo, who needs help getting out from under a pushy bookie. But the simple job of getting Frankie out of debt soon escalates into bad business that threatens the life Mick wants with his lover, Nora Blackbird.

At the start of book 10 A Little Night Murder (I think) it’s obvious there’s some backstory missing; something that was going on between book 9 and 10. This short story fills in the gaps. It’s not strictly necessary, but for a reader invested in the series, it’s satisfying to have.

As a bonus (because not all between novel novellas are equal) this is a very well written, fully formed story about Mick’s struggles to get out of the family business and stay legit. Martin always wrote Mick as a real person, struggling against his upbringing to be better and this story gives the struggle centre stage.

Really well done and reminds me why and how much I miss this series.