Audiobook – Carol's Notebook

Murder on Devil’s Pond by Ayla Rose

July 17, 2024July 17, 2024 by Carol1 Comment

Hannah Solace has returned home to renovate and manage Hummingbird Hollow B&B, which she owns with her sister, Reggie. The plan is to make the inn a haven for their guests and the gardens a haven for pollinators. She has become close to the neighbor, elderly Ezra Grayson, who knows all there is to know about the flowers and plants she's trying to grow. to be a fount of information regarding any plant, tree, or flower. Hannah is devastated when when she finds his body and realizes he was murdered. She feels like she is the prime suspect for a number of reasons, so starts snooping around on her own. I liked Hannah and can appreciate what she's trying to do at the B&B. She's been gone from town for ages and was a bit of a troublemaker when she was young and that gives a bit of nuance to her relationships. The detective investigating the case, Ezra's lawyer, the...

How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin

July 15, 2024July 15, 2024 by Carol1 Comment

I enjoyed How to Solve Your Own Murder, but it does strain belief a bit. When Frances was a teenager, she receives a bone-chilling fortune that she'll be murdered one day. She then spends the rest of her life trying to both prevent it and figure out who her potential killer is. Of course, 60 years later, she is killed in her own home. Now it's up to her great-niece Annie to find the killer and earn her inheritance. According to Frances' will, the fate of her entire estate depends on who uncovers the truth: Annie, Saxon, Annie's uncle (?) who believes it is rightfully his, or Detective Crane, who would really rather not have amateurs messing around with his case. Annie does have Frances' diary from when she was a teenager, detailing the time of the fortune-telling and her friend, Emily's disappearance. How much is the current mystery rooted in the past? The diary entries were revealing and it was...

Murder at an English Pub by Alice Castle

July 3, 2024July 3, 2024 by CarolNo Comments

Following the death of her husband, recently retired doctor, Sarah Vane, has moved next door to her best friend, Daphne, in the small town of Merstairs on the Kent coast. The two women have been friends since their schooldays, and both are delighted with the new arrangement. Daphne has recently purchased a beach hut and offers to let Sarah store some boxes there, but first it needs cleaned out a bit. While the two are working on it, they discover a body in a trunk, clearly murdered. Turns out the dead man was a mostly well-liked local bar owner. Sarah, of course, decides she has to snoop around. I'll grant you the cops don't seem incredibly competent, but Sarah barely knows the people in town aside from Daphne who isn't a real suspect. I felt her reasons for jumping headlong into the investigation seemed a little weak. The small town setting with quirky characters is a cozy mystery staple, but...

Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis

June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 by CarolNo Comments

The Floating Hotel is the Abeona, a spaceship hotel touring the galaxy. It's definitely light on technology. The Abeona itself is rather retro, with lots of wood and paper and pneumatic tubes There seems to be only one woman on the maintenance team and we never really know many details of how the ship works, just that it does and has been doing so for decades. Every chapter in Floating Hotel is written from a new character's POV. Most of them are staff or returning regulars, and each has a past, or purpose, that has led them to the hotel. We learn their backstories and see how they spend their days. The stories and characters gradually build a picture of the vibrant life on the hotel, while weaving in a few mysteries as the plot meanders along. I enjoyed the book, right up until the end. I wish the mystery portion could have somehow worked out differently or maybe been worked through...

Curds of Prey by Korina Moss

June 14, 2024June 13, 2024 by Carol5 Comments

Yep, Cheesemonger Willa Bauer has found another dead body. This time around, the murdered man is Nelson Trumbull, the nephew of the mayor and the fiancé of Summer Harrington, whose parents are the wealthy and influential new owners of All Things Sonoma magazine. He was killed at Summer's bridal shower, where Willa was providing the cheese bar, and Roman becomes a chief suspect. Roman, it turns out, dumped Summer at the altar a few years earlier and was seen arguing with Nelson. And he doesn't have an alibi. The mystery was well-paced and the new characters fit well or at least as well as entitled rich people can in a cozy mystery. We have several clues and potential suspects, but Willa definitely has to watch her step. It's not only her own reputation (and life) at risk, but also her shop, if she understands Mrs. Harrington's threats correctly. The characters are great. Willa is warm, friendly, and definitely growing as a...

Gone for Gouda by Korina Moss

June 13, 2024June 12, 2024 by CarolNo Comments

Gone for Gouda is the second of the Cheese Shop Mysteries. This time around Willa and the other small business owners of Yarrow Glen are gearing up for the harvest festival and parade. In addition, Willa is hosting a book and cook event for Phoebe Winston, a celebrity vegan chef, at her cheese shop, Curds & Whey. Phoebe, it turns out, is quite a diva and the even is going to take more effort and money than Willa expected. Then, photos show up online of the chef eating ribs and just a few hours later she's found dead in her rental house. And Archie, Willa's employee, was the last person caught on the security system's camera. The mystery was solid. Phoebe had connections to several people in town in addition to her assistant, Thomas, who came with her but is staying at the Inn, not the rental house. Willa can't just stand back and let the police blame Archie. This time,...