Audiobook – Page 36 – Carol's Notebook

When Christmas Comes by Andrew Klavan

December 21, 2022December 21, 2022 by Carol2 Comments

I was looking for a Christmas mystery, and I failed to do my research. This is not a warm and fuzzy Christmas story - which is fine, I do read mostly murder mysteries after all. It takes place around Christmas time, but our detective, English professor maybe ex-spy Cameron Winter, is not the type to enjoy the holiday. It's not that he's a Scrooge, he's just moody and longs for the Christmasses of his childhood at his nanny's house and the girl he had a crush on twenty years ago. He dwells on things a lot, which always annoys me and slows down the plot. He's also smart and handsome and almost every woman is attracted to him, including his therapist. Oh, and the woman who is asking for his help with this case is apparently someone he had an affair with when she was a student. The plot itself is good. A former military man is accused of and has...

Murder at the Mill by M.B. Shaw

December 20, 2022December 20, 2022 by CarolNo Comments

You have to feel bad for Iris. Her marriage is falling apart so she's rented Mill Cottage to escape to. Just as she's settling in and getting to know the neighboring Wetherby family, Dom Wetherby ends up dead, murdered. She's drawn into the case almost as a distraction from what's going on in her own life. The Wetherbys are far from the perfect family they present to the world. There are secrets and jealousies and entanglements. The characters are well drawn, each with strengths and weaknesses. There are several people with motives to kill Dom and enough red herrings to keep me guessing. The book was maybe a little long and Shaw really loves similes, but it kept my attention throughout. Iris is intelligent and observant but I do wish she had better taste in men. I also appreciated the Christmassy touches....

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

December 14, 2022November 15, 2022 by Carol2 Comments

I don't know where to start with The Villa. We have two storylines and the narrative jumps back and forth. In 1974, five people stayed at the villa. Two women came out of it with career-defining works. One man was killed. In the present day, Chess and Emily are spending the summer at the villa, each working on her next book. Emily becomes interested in the events from 1974 and starts researching and piecing together that story. The parallels between the 70s and the present day become clearer as the novel progresses. Friendships are tested. Tempers boil over. Secrets are revealed. Both storylines grabbed my attention. The book slowly leads up to the defining moments, moments that are both inevitable and shocking. I honestly didn't like any of the characters though, in either time. While the women especially, were strong and bold, they were also manipulative and did more damage to each other than the men in their lives did. I...

Death at Beresford Hall by Emma Davies

December 12, 2022December 12, 2022 by CarolNo Comments

Death at Beresford Hall is the 4th in the Adam and Eve series. It worked okay as a stand-alone, but I think I would have benefitted from knowing a bit more about Fran and Adam and their previous cases. We're kind of dropped in the middle of the action. Fran is undercover at a cooking show tv competition, posing as a writer gathering "behind the scenes" info about the show, with Adam there to assist. The show's star, Miranda Appleby, has been receiving threatening gifts and Fran and Adam are charged with finding out who is doing it. Things turn more complicated when Miranda manipulates Fran into stepping in as a contestant on the show. Then, of course, Miranda ends up murdered, killed with a cake knife. The "behind the scenes" peek at a reality cooking show was fun. There's plenty of jealousy and backstabbing and secrets. The clues were tucked in well, with several red herrings and enough suspects to...

The Case of the Disappearing Beaune by J. Lawrence Matthews

December 2, 2022December 1, 2022 by CarolNo Comments

How could I pass by Sherlock at Christmas? The Case of the Disappearing Beaune opens with Watson stopping by Sherlock's rooms to invite him to Christmas dinner. Sherlock, of course, refuses, but as he gives Watson his Christmas gift, a bottle of beaune, the pair realizes the wine has been replaced with sand. And Sherlock knows where that sand is from. Sherlock is sure it signifies a threat to the king, so off the two go, on a race through London to solve the case. For a short story, there were several twists and it showed off Holmes' detecting style well. We also encounter several old friends along the way. It's a sweet, light Christmas story with a rather surprising ending. It makes a perfect holiday story, but perhaps a slightly disappointing mystery....

Candy Cane Conspiracy by Cate Lawley

November 30, 2022November 29, 2022 by Carol2 Comments

Candy Cane Conspiracy is fun and cute. I did read "Tea with a Demon" first, which is a short story telling about the book Trixie and her grandmother are updating, All Things Magical and Bumpy Things in the Night. It's also the first time Trixie meets Sylvester, a very handsome, very gentlemanly, very knowledgeable demon who plays a major role in the Candy Cane Conspiracy. Trixie has moved to Idaho to escape her magical creature problem, but of course, it's not that easy. The local furry fairies who look a lot like squirrels have been bothering her. And then one day close to Christmas, she comes out of her house one morning on her way to work to discover that her bushes and trees are filled with candy canes, thanks to the fairies. Turns out there's been a murder in town. A local witch is dead, stabbed with a candy cane just like the ones in her yard. Sylvester, newly arrived...