the author – Page 7 – Carol's Notebook

Buried Secrets by Leighann Dobbs

June 4, 2018June 3, 2018 by Carol2 Comments

I really enjoy the Blackmoore Sisters Mysteries. In Buried Secrets, they head West on a treasure hunting trip with Luke, one of the sisters' boyfriends and his team. I like that the people around the women recognize, and believe in, their powers. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about the sisters leaving their hometown, but since they took all of the recurring characters with them, it didn't really matter much. The girls piece together what happened Dead Water's past and get right in the middle of some present day illegal activities. Overall, it's a bit predictable, but there was a least one twist I didn't see coming. I would suggest starting the series at the beginning. They're light, quick read that are just fun. There are a lot of characters though, and a variety of powers, so I think starting with #1 allows you to get introduced to them all and get to know them. I'm looking forward to the next in the...

Murder on Saint Patrick’s Day by P. Creeden

March 17, 2018March 21, 2018 by Carol4 Comments

Murder on Saint Patrick's Day is a quick little mystery, perfect for today. Emma and her dog Molly are picking up a friend's teenage daughter after a concert at a local cafe when the lead singer of the band collapses and dies on his way to the hospital. Emma's observational skills once again help out her dad, the Sheriff, and they figure out who the killer is. The mystery was good. It's a short story, so everything moves a bit quickly, but I like the characters and the clues fit in well. I liked a band being involved in the mystery this time, it made it feel very St. Patrick's Day-ish....

Murder on Valentine’s Day by P. Creeden

February 14, 2018 by Carol2 Comments

I have to assume that I'm not the only person out there who's perfect read for Valentine's Day includes a murder, right? "Murder on Valentine's Day" was a good choice. Emma, our amateur sleuth, is sent to the home of the richest person in town to pick up a cat, even though she tends to be allergic to them. I sympathize with her; I love cats but they make me sneeze and my eyes itch and swell. The cat's owner is dead, apparently of a heart attack, but of course it was actually murder. This is a short story, so we only have a couple suspects, but the author does a good job at planting the clues, even if the motive was a little weak for me. Emma manages to put the clues together, and convinces her dad, the sheriff, whose house he needs to search, but she does put herself in a bit of unnecessary danger. I like Emma. Like...

Murder on New Year’s Eve by P. Creeden

January 5, 2018 by Carol8 Comments

Murder on New Year's Eve was a fun, short mystery, perfect to start the year with. If you read the blurb above, you know it was murder, of course. Emily's youngish, 20, but her dad, who she has lived with since her parent's divorced when she was about 11, is the local sheriff, so she's been around crime scenes and cops most of her life. When she's helping solve the case, she's intelligent and observant. When she's working with her foster dog, a St. Bernard, she's patient and caring. When she's thinking about her crush, Colby, she seems like she's 13 and I want to roll my eyes, but maybe that's part of being 20 in a small town, shelter by a sheriff father. Given that it's only about 40 pages, I though the mystery was well done. There were enough clues and it was pretty clever. It wrapped a little quickly, but it had to. The characters were well-developed, we...

Heart Note by Cassandra O’Leary

November 27, 2017November 24, 2017 by Carol3 Comments

I love a sweet holiday romance and "Heart Note" fits the bill. Lily is adorable and Christos is sexy as all get out. Sparks start flying from the minute they meet, and I honestly liked them both. It was light-hearted and fun. Their romance is believable, and their are a couple of steamy-ish parts, but nothing to make you blush. They are just a good couple. The other ladies who work at the perfume counter are enjoyable too. One's very Parisian and the other is a bit of a gossip, but I can see why they are all friends. The mystery aspect of the plot was a bit lacking, but that's not really the focus anyway. The bad guy gets caught, Christos has to save Lily from a moderate amount of trouble, but it definitely doesn't overshadow the romance. The story takes place at Christmas in Australia, which makes it a bit different for me. It's summer there this time of year, so...

A Visit to Bar Harbor, Maine – Guest Post by Heather McCoubrey, author of Back to December

November 1, 2017October 23, 2017 by Carol6 Comments

Today, Heather is taking us to visit one of the setting locations from Back to December. When Cooper invites Anna to go away for a weekend, he takes her to a little town called Bar Harbor, Maine. Bar Harbor holds a special place in my heart: two days after my wedding, my husband and I packed a moving truck and moved from Virginia to Maine. Between my husband, my sister-in-law and myself, we drove three vehicles north--the moving truck broke down twice and we had to constantly pull over to fill it with oil. We arrived in Maine in the early hours of the morning and spent the night in a hotel. The next morning, we woke to do the final walk-through, and on approximately four hours of sleep, we closed on our house. We spent the next two days unloading the moving truck and then we decided to it was time to finally take our honeymoon. So we left our brand...