NetGalley – Carol's Notebook

A Murder at Midnight by Ellie Alexander

November 3, 2026November 3, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

I've been reading this series from the beginning and always enjoy them. This time around, Annie and Fletcher have agreed to let a ghost-hunting television show film at the bookstore right before Halloween. Quite honestly, they should have known it was a bad idea. When the crew arrives, the tension is palpable and it's no surprise when one of them ends up dead. The mystery was fine. The people working on the show gave you plenty to be suspicious about, with plenty of resentment and old secrets to go around. we have several clues and a couple red herrings. I didn't love how it was wrapped up, the method the killer used seemed a little unclear or maybe I missed something. We don't see as much of the usual friends this time around. The investigation is pretty much centered on the Sleeping with Spirits crew and the town suffers a major storm that same evening, so everyone's got their own...

Jay to the World by Donna Andrews

October 23, 2026October 27, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

Yes, I might be starting my Christmas reading a little early this year. No, I don't care. Jay to the World is #40 in the Meg Langslow series, but I haven't read even close to all of them. I like that you can jump in and out of the series without feeling like you've missed much. It's almost Christmas in Caerphilly, and we all know that means family, food, and chaos. Meg's mom, Margaret, has a lot going on - family and old friends are in town, she's working on a playhouse for two-year old Brynn, is decorating a room in the annual "Show House." It's all (almost) under control, until Margaret finds the playhouse vandalized and is attacked. It turns out she has several potential enemies in town, and it's up to Meg and the police to keep her safe and figure out who the bad guy is. I like how well Andrews balances the mystery and cozy aspects of...

Murders in the Marquee by Dana Mentink

October 5, 2026October 5, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

I didn't love Murders in the Marquee. The setting had potential, a fancy hotel in San Francisco in the early 1900s. The ducks, who paraded through the lobby on a daily basis, were cute. The rest of the book was kind of dumb. Our three amateur sleuths, Kitty, a hotel guest, Saul, the man who takes care of the ducks, and Henry, the elevator boy, were an unlikely team, given the era and Kitty's social class. Kitty herself is a bit annoying. Her clearly well-off and all she does is whine. I never really cared about Saul or Henry and felt like their personalities were rather superficial. The mystery was slow. All the clues added up in the end, but they're doled out one at a time and it's like the three have to deal with each clue before they're allowed to have the next. I will say I didn't pay attention to who the publisher was. This would definitely fall...

Murder in the Upper Crust by Mindy Quigley

September 25, 2026September 25, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

I love a good foodie cozy mystery and Delilah's pizzas sound delicious. This time around, she has reluctantly agreed to cater a wellness retreat led by an overly demanding mindfulness influencer. When a guest is found dead in her zen tent, it’s up to Delilah and her usual crew to track down the killer. There's a new police chief in town and she was quirky, I guess. I like it when the police and our amateur sleuths can get along and both are competent, but the way the chief brough Delilah into the case and setting up Capone undercover as a bartender in a town where literally everyone knows him, even if the retreat attendees don't, seemed odd. The mystery itself was put together well. We had several suspicious people, and a couple of motives floating around. I felt like Delilah could have put together a few pieces quicker than she did. I also don't love that her ex owns...

Split Screen by Lee Goldberg

August 25, 2026August 25, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

Split Screen is the 7th in the Eve Ronin series and I've read most of them. Eve is a homicide detective with the LASD. She's not universally like, to say the least. She got her promotion thanks to a video that went viral, uncovered some cops dirty secrets, and now has a tv show based loosely on her life. Her partner, Duncan, who she actually listens to and trusts is stuck behind a desk. There's a lot going on in this one. First, we've got a murdered doctor with an ex-wife whose new boyfriend swears he didn't do it and an actress dead of an overdose. Then, Erin, the actress playing Eve in the tv series, is shot in broad daylight, apparently mistaken for Eve. Add in a half-sister Eve didn't know she had who is in to something shady. And finally, we've got a crossover with Goldberg's Sharpe and Walker series, when a firearms training trailer explodes. It's fast-paced,...

Probable Caws by Donna Andrews

August 20, 2026August 20, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

The Meg Lanslow series is one I dip in and out of. I always enjoy them, but it never quite makes it to my must-read list. I think I actually liked this one more than the last couple, even if the solution was a little unbelievable. I actually thought we were going to get to see Meg doing some blacksmithing at the beginning of this one, but no. Hoof and Hearth, a horse rescue, has temporarily lost the pasture they'd been using for their horses due to a legal battle and have to move the whole herd to Ragnar's estate, so it's all hands on deck. The horses have barely got settled in on the first night, when a storm blows in. And Meg and her husband find a dead man in the barn. We've got several potential suspects and some good clues, but really it's the horses that stand out in this one. Several of them have clear personalities...