Christmas – Carol's Notebook

In the Wick of Time by Valona Jones

January 4, 2024March 18, 2024 by CarolNo Comments

I really wanted to like In the Wick of Time. it has so many good points - good setting, Christmas, quirky characters, even a bit of magic, but it was just lacking for me. Tabby and Sage are not women I want to hang out with. Well, Tabby maybe, at least she seem semi-sensible most of the time. Sage, however is selfish and whiny. The magic in this world was a little confusing. Tabby and Sage are energy users, I think, but other people cast spells and enchantments. Apparently the cops know magic exists, but Tabby's boyfriend doesn't - or maybe he does, I'm not sure. There was also one scene between an energy vampire and Sage that made me uncomfortable and wasn't really dealt with. The mystery itself was fine, even if the killer's motive was pretty weak. I don't think I'll pick up any more in the series. ...

A Chapter on Murder by Sue Minix

December 21, 2023December 21, 2023 by CarolNo Comments

A Chapter on Murder is the third book featuring author/ bookstore owner/ amateur sleuth, Jennifer Dawson. This is the first I’ve read in the series and it worked fine as a stand-alone for me. Although maybe I would have liked Jen and her friends and family a bit better if I had started at the beginning. I can’t put my finger on why, but I never quite warmed up to our main character. Jen has a lot going on this Christmas. Her bookstore desperately needs more business if it’s going to stay open. She’s working on the third book in her series and is determined to have a rough draft ready before the release date of her second. She and her boyfriend’s relationship has been running into some rocks. To top it all off, she finds a dead man outside the door of her bookshop. When a good friend is arrested for the crime, Jen decides it’s up to her to...

An Eggnog to Die For by Amy Pershing

December 19, 2023December 19, 2023 by CarolNo Comments

I have a weakness for Christmas cozies, and this one has food, seasonal drinks, decorations, a cute dog, and, of course, a murder. An Eggnog to Die For is the second of the Cape Cod Foodie Mysteries but it worked fine as a stand-alone for me. Food writer Samantha Barnes has a lot on her plate this holiday season. Her parents are arriving soon, telling her Christmas in Florida is just not the same. She has articles to write and videos to make for her job at the Clarion. She also has a Christmas Eve dinner planned, a Feast of the Five Fishes, including eggnog for her family and friends. And then, to top it all off, she finds the body of the man playing Santa for the town's Christmas celebration while filming at a new trendy local restaurant. I liked Sam. She's smart and a bit snarky. She does notice things others don't and discusses the case with her boyfriend,...

Murder Under the Mistletoe by Sherry Lynn

December 15, 2023December 15, 2023 by CarolNo Comments

Kinsley, a landscape artist, owns SeaScapes, a business she runs from her cottage behind her aunt's inn. The town of Harborside hires her to decorate for Christmas and throughout the year, but when local alderman Chris Chesterfield—dressed up as the Grinch, right down to the green face paint—falls off the pier and into the icy Atlantic the night of the annual Boat Parade & Fireworks, Kinsley becomes a person of interest. Lots of people knew Kinsley and Chris didn't get along, and several had witnessed them arguing on the day of his death. I liked Kinsley and her friends and family. They're believable and I like how they all have to do their jobs in addition to working on the case. Kinsley's brother. Kyle. is home for the holidays on leave, but I didn't love the questions around how their parents died. I'm just not a fan of that whole overarching family mystery arc. The mystery was fine with...

Baking Spirits Bright by Sarah Fox

December 11, 2023December 11, 2023 by CarolNo Comments

Baking Spirits Bright is a pretty typical cozy mystery, which I mean in a good way - I enjoy the formula. We have a cute small town setting, a culinary theme, a cop as the potential love interest, two mischievous cats, and this time around it's Christmas. I did not read the first in the series, but I didn't feel like I missed much. Becca has moved back to her hometown and is busy preparing holiday sweets for the family chocolate shop. Her best friend and sidekick, Dizzy Bautista, convinces her to enter the annual Baking Spirits Bright competition, but the excitement of the contest is dampened when one of the bakers is murdered. Even though her friend, Sawyer Maguire, who is on the local police force, tells Becca to stay out of it for her own safety, Becca can’t help but launch her own investigation into the death. The dead woman was not a nice person, so we have plenty...

The Twelve Books of Christmas by Kate Carlisle

November 30, 2023December 14, 2023 by CarolNo Comments

I've read a couple of the previous Bibliophile Mysteries and enjoyed them well enough, so since I'm a sucker for Christmas cozy, I picked up The Twelve Books of Christmas. This time around Brooklyn gets a call on Christmas Eve from her good friend Claire, who is in Scotland. Claire is preparing to marry Cameron, a castle laird, on New Year's Day and wants Brooklyn and Derek to be there. So the couple, along with Brooklyn's parents, fly to Scotland. Claire also hopes that while she's there Brooklyn will help solve a mystery- a dozen Christmas-related books, some quite valuable, have gone missing from the castle library. Of course, there's trouble. Most of the women in town, including the castle's new librarian, seem to be anti-Claire. Then, Brooklyn and Derek find a dead body in one of the castle's closets. They, of course, have to investigate the murder in addition to the missing books - which may or may not be...