The Serpent Under by Bonnie MacBird

The Serpent Under by Bonnie MacBird

by CarolNo Comments
I guess we need to look at The Serpent Under in a few different ways. First, Victorian London. MacBird does a fabulous job of bringing the foggy, damp, crowded city to life. We see the people, issues, and prejudices of the time. Second, our main characters. Holmes and Watson feel like the originals, if that makes sense. They have the mannerisms and partnership they always have. Yes, Holmes' attitudes towards women, Roma, etc. are more modern, but he was never conventional. And here it particularly works well since it doesn't allow him to just go along with the easy solution. We only get brief glances of Lestrade and Mycroft, which is appropriate. Heffie, a former irregular who now works with the police, is a good addition. She's tough and reliable and very good at working undercover. The dead woman's family and friends are all a bit odd and she seems to have been the only truly likeable one of the bunch. Plot...
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The Diva Steals a Chocolate Kiss by Krista Davis

The Diva Steals a Chocolate Kiss by Krista Davis

by CarolNo Comments
I had a book on next up on my to-read pile that was a little too dark for Valentine's Day, so I looked for something light and fun and free to listen to first. A cozy mystery with chocolate sounded perfect and it was available through my library. I've read several of the Domestic Diva mysteries and they're always enjoyable. This time around Sophie is in charge of the 60th Anniversary event for Amore chocolates, including a tasting at the owner's mansion. Unfortunately, the owner, Joe Merano, is missing and his family is trying to keep it quiet. Then, during clean-up after the tasting, Sophie finds a dead body- not Joe, thankfully- in the guesthouse. Sophie is one of those too good to be true women. She's smart and spunky, a great cook, a spontaneous entertainer, a loyal friend. She's maybe dating a lawyer, is friends with her former former love interest/detective, and is still close to her...
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How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristen Perrin

How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristen Perrin

by CarolNo Comments
Annie Adams has been living at Gravesdown Estate for several months. She inherited the mansion and land when she solved the murder of her great aunt Frances. That mystery is covered in the first book of the series and I think you almost need to have read How to Solve Your Own Murder in order to understand the history and relationships in this one. It's a small town full of secrets and gossip, and just because you've known someone your whole life doesn't mean you can trust them. Annie is already feeling unsettled - the house is big and cold, the townspeople are not overly friendly, when she meets Peony Lane, the fortune-teller whose prediction guided most of Frances' life. Peony has a fortune for Annie, but she won't tell it unless asked. She also gives Annie some advice about looking into a decades old accident. Not much later, Peony is found dead, murdered in Annie's solarium. Annie, of course, gets wrapped...
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In the Shadow of Agatha Christie edited by Leslie S. Klinger

In the Shadow of Agatha Christie edited by Leslie S. Klinger

by CarolNo Comments
This collection of classic crime fiction by "forgotten" authors, from 1850-1917, highlights some of the female writers of that period who were the forerunners of the great Golden Age crime authors. Each of the featured authors is given a short biography, putting them and their work in context, which is followed by one their short stories. Like many anthologies, this one is a mixed bag. Some I thoroughly enjoyed, some were neither her nor there, and at least one I thought was more than a little silly. Several authors are ones I've heard of/ read before, but many were new to me. I've marked a few to pick up more works by. Overall, it's a good collection of women crimes writers at the time. The writing styles are varied as are the types of cases and crimes involved. The stories included are: Catherine Crowe - The Advocate's Wedding DayElizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell - The Squire's StoryMary Fortune - Traces of CrimeHarriet Prescott...
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My Fatal Valentine by Leighann Dobbs

My Fatal Valentine by Leighann Dobbs

by Carol2 Comments
It's Valentine's Day and, of course, Juniper Holiday is throwing another of her over the top holiday parties. This time there's a raffle and the grand prize is an all-expense paid date with one of the hottest guys in town. But of course, there's a murder - the grand prize winner is found dead in the bathroom. It's a fun little mystery. Juni is determined to solve the case, but she also needs to step carefully because Detective Mallard's job might be on the line. As much as the two bicker, she doesn't want to ruin his career, especially because her goddaughter and he have a bit of an attraction going. The story moves along quickly. At first we have a couple of suspects, but little else to go on. Juni tries a bit of magic and talks to the ghosts, but it takes some old-fashioned detective work to get to the solution. I listened to the audio and I must have gotten...
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How to Piss Off Men by Kyle Prue

How to Piss Off Men by Kyle Prue

by Carol2 Comments
How to Piss Off Men is not a book I would usually pick up, but I was looking for a How To book for one of the challenges I'm doing. "Funny" books don't usually work for me, but maybe I was just in the right mood, or it was short enough that I actually found it amusing. The author/narrator is funny and sincere. Not all of the "insults" are particularly original and some I didn't quite get, but it's not just ways to insult men. Although it is that, it's also an invitation to men to look at why those comments/questions make them angry. I think the author also sees it as a call to continue to tear down the patriarchy. I listened to the audio which the author narrated himself. I think it made the jokes funnier than if I read them in print and the musing more heartfelt. It also included a conversation between Prue and his mom at...
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