You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero

You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero

by Carol2 Comments
If I had to guess, I'd say most people either hate or love this book. I feel like it's a hard one to be meh about. There is nothing new here. These lessons can be found in other self-help books and pop cultures. We are capable of manifesting our world. The basic idea is that our thoughts create our world to a large extent and for most people, our self-doubt does get in our way. When we let our insecurities rule, it can be difficult to think we deserve something and so we end up sabotaging ourselves. The thing is, most of her stories she says, she talks about the universe helping her out, but her friend set are well-off people who have means. She may be vibrating on a high level, but it helps that she's safe. If she buys a car she can't afford, she will not go hungry. If she can't find a place to rent,...
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A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas

A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas

by Carol4 Comments
I have a tendency to read most Holmes knock-offs I come across. A Study in Scarlet Women was free with Audible's new Plus program. Sherlock is actually Charlotte Holmes. Charlotte is socially awkward, but , of course, incredibly observant and intelligent. She creates Sherlock so she is allowed to solve mysteries and problems. Women at the time are not expected to be able to manage on their own, let alone to be smarted than the police. I like that Charlotte makes her own choices and is trying to live life on her own terms. She teams up with Mrs. Watson, a widow who used to be on stage, to set up the whole "consulting detective" business/Sherlock deception. I do love both of these women, tough, independent, but also vulnerable in their own ways. This time, the main mystery centers on three deaths, supposedly natural connections, but Charlotte knows they are related murders. And proving who the killer was matters, if only...
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Murder in Black Tie by Sara Rosett

Murder in Black Tie by Sara Rosett

by CarolNo Comments
Olive Belgrave is about to be homeless as her landlady is getting married and selling the boardinghouse. She packs up and heads back to Nether Woodsmoor to visit her family at Parkview Manor. Aunt Caroline and cousin Gwen are hosting a house party for a small group of friends and family, including Olive's father and his wife Sonia. Olive is happy to see her cousin Peter recovering from the trauma of the war but he isn't himself yet and when a guest is murdered, Peter becomes the number one suspect. Clearly Olive need to clear Peter's name. This is a 1920s country house party murder mystery chock full of period details, especially fashion. The history of Parkview being used as a hospital during the war and how the characters were involved with that was interesting. I like the limited cast in house party mysteries. Our murder victim, Vincent Payne, is a businessman in the antique map business, maybe not wholly...
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The Egyptian Antiquities Murder by Sara Rosett

by CarolNo Comments
I'm on a bit of a roll with these High Society Lady Detective mysteries. The Egyptian Antiquities Murder takes us to Mulvern House where Olive Belgrave meets with Lady Agnes about her uncle’s death, a death that has been ruled a suicide. Lady Agnes is sure her uncle was murdered. Many think an old curse was responsible for Lord Mulvern's death, but of course once Olive starts to investigate she realizes that Lady Agnes is right. Now Olive just needs to figure out whodunit and why. The author introduces us to several new characters. Lady Agnes wants to keep her uncles vision alive, unlike the other heirs. Her brother Gilbert and his wife Nora care mainly about the money and themselves making them suspects on Olive’s list. The Lord’s valet/butler received a generous bequest and retired so he too lands on her list. There are several others interested in obtaining the collection and the digging location that comes with it. There...
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Murder at Blackburn Hall by Sara Rosett

Murder at Blackburn Hall by Sara Rosett

by Carol2 Comments
Olive Belgrave is forced to take a job as a hat model to pay her bills, despite closing her first case and trying to make it as a detective. But before she can start her new job a publisher offers her a new position. He wants her to go to the English countryside and make inquiries about his bestselling author, who has disappeared. Olive travels to Blackburn Hall under the guise of a publishing house agent who is looking into a manuscript about etiquette. But soon after she arrives someone is murder, and in short order a second person dies. Olive must get to the bottom of things because the police suspect she's a killer, although why I'm not sure. She really has little connection to any one in the town. Hadsworth is full of suspects though, and plenty of secrets. Rosett does a good job at providing historical details. Full of interesting characters and a tightly woven mystery, I once again...
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One by One by Ruth Ware

One by One by Ruth Ware

by Carol1 Comment
They keep comparing Ruth Ware to Agatha Christie, so I keep reading her books and keep getting a bit disappointed. I will say One by One is definitely better than the other two I've read, and I enjoyed it for the most part. The setting in One by One is perfect. The group is at a ski chalet but there's an avalanche that isolates them from the rest of the world. The electricity is out, there's not cell phone service, and the door has buckled with the weight of the snow. And one of them is dead after having taken a dangerous trail down the mountain just as everything was being shut down. And then another person dies, pretty clearly a murder this time. I love the claustrophobic feel of the whole situation and the pressure of not knowing who the killer is, just knowing you're stuck in the house with one. There are a lot of characters in the...
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