One Feta in the Grave by Tina Kashian #BlogTour #BookReview #Giveaway

One Feta in the Grave by Tina Kashian

I am so delighted today to provide a review for you at my blog stop for One Feta in the Grave (A Kebab Kitchen Mystery) by Tina Kashian on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour. Scroll down to enter for your chance to win the Giveaway!

Book Details

One Feta in the Grave (A Kebab Kitchen Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Kensington (February 26, 2019)
Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
ISBN-10: 1496713516
ISBN-13: 978-1496713513
Digital ASIN: B07DBPQQFJ

Book Blurb

As summer comes to an end in her Jersey Shore town, Lucy Berberian continues to manage her family’s Mediterranean restaurant. The Kebab Kitchen also has a food tent at this year’s beach festival. But now a local businessman is under the boardwalk—dead by the sea …

With a sand castle contest and live music, Ocean Crest bids a bittersweet farewell to tourist season. Summer will return next year … but Archie Kincaid won’t. The full-of-himself store owner has been fatally shot, soon after a screaming match with Lucy’s best friend. Katie’s far from the only suspect, though, since Archie had some bitter rivals—as well as some relationships no one knew about. It’s up to Lucy to look into some seedy characters and solve the case before the wrong person gets skewered …

Recipes included!

My Review

Lucy Berberian, a successful Philadelphia attorney, has returned to Ocean Crest, New Jersey, to claim a managerial position with her family’s Mediterranean restaurant, Kebab Kitchen. Ocean Crest is gearing up for the annual beach festival which features beach-front tents of shore and water-related clothes, equipment, toys, gifts, and a sand sculpture contest. Lucy has organized the food and wine event involving her family’s restaurant, which features the specialty plates by their head chef, Azad Zakarian, an early boyfriend. Lucy’s best childhood buddy Katie is helping with judging duties and quickly confronts a problem with Archie Kincaid, owner of one of the gift shops, when he allows his nephew to enter the competition against the rules.

When Lucy takes a break with a walk on the beach, she discovers Archie’s body under the boardwalk.  Archie was fairly new to the New Jersey shore village but not very well liked and had managed to alienate a number of neighboring merchants. Detective Clemmons, with whom Lucy has had previous run-ins, is on the investigation and not pleased to see that Lucy has discovered (yet another) body. Because Katie was observed in a second altercation with Archie, suspicions immediately begin with her. Officer Bill Watson, Katie’s hubby, cannot be on the case which might involve his wife and privately requests that Lucy keep her eyes and ears open to any clues that might help with the investigation. As it turns out, Archie had created more enemies than she’d initially realized.

Lucy has gotten reacquainted with Michael, who also has a small enterprise on the boardwalk renting bicycles and periodically invites her out for a ride on his Harley. Descriptions of the delights of the motorcycle rides definitely had my attention, as I could SOOO relate, although I rode my own, and also a top-rated bike, a Beemer. Dang, gave me such wonderful memories as I relived the thrill of twisting the throttle and feeling that power, smelling the countryside, and enjoying the freedom!

Okay–well, back to the book! All those names of Greek dishes had me mystified, fascinated, and interested in a taste session, as I do enjoy Mediterranean cuisine. Although this was the third in the series, I feel it could function as a standalone. The well-plotted book takes a while to look at each clue and then rehashes it and each one leading up to that point. I found Michael engaging, but didn’t get into the triangle thing with him, Lucy and Azad. (She definitely had the hots for Azad. I found him annoying.) Sub-characters I enjoyed were Katie (very down to earth), the gypsy, and the kitty, who, whether stray or not, knew how to survive just fine. The mystery itself took a back seat to the culture and the food, and the ease into the antagonist was not wholly unexpected and made the most sense.

I was given this ebook download by the publisher and NetGalley and appreciated the opportunity to read and review for this book tour. Recommended for those who enjoy an easy, clean cozy mystery.

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Giveaway

Don’t miss your chance to sign up for this Giveaway of (4) Winner’s Choice – Print or Digital Copy of One Feta in the Grave (A Kebab Kitchen Mystery) by Tina Kashian (Print U.S. Only) by clicking on the Rafflecopter giveaway link.

About the Author

Tina Kashian - authorTina Kashian spent her childhood summers at the New Jersey shore, building sand castles, boogie boarding, and riding the boardwalk Ferris wheel. She also grew up in the restaurant business where her Armenian parents owned a restaurant for thirty years. She worked almost every job—rolling silverware and wiping down tables as a tween, to hosting and waitressing as a teenager.

After college, Tina worked as a NJ Deputy Attorney General, a patent attorney, and a mechanical engineer. Her law cases inspired an inquiring mind of crime, and since then, Tina has been hooked on mysteries. The Kebab Kitchen Cozy Mystery series launches with Hummus and Homicide, followed by Stabbed in the Baklava and One Feta in the Grave by Kensington Books. Tina still lives in New Jersey with her supportive husband and two young daughters. Please visit www.tinakashian.com and join her Newsletter to enter free contests to win books, get delicious recipes, and to learn when her books will be released.

Author Links

Purchase Links

Amazon –   iBooks –  Barnes & Noble –  Kobo –   Google Books

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants:

February 26 – Laura`s Interests – REVIEW

February 26 – The Book Diva’s Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST  

February 26 – A Holland Reads – SPOTLIGHT

February 27 – Babs Book Bistro – REVIEW

February 27 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – GUEST POST

February 27 – My Reading Journeys – SPOTLIGHT

February 28 – Ruff Drafts – SPOTLIGHT

February 28 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

February 28 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

March 1 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW

March 1 – Christa Reads and Writes – GUEST POST

March 2 – Cinnamon, Sugar and a Little Bit of Murder – REVIEW

March 2 – Cassidy’s Bookshelves – SPOTLIGHT

March 2 – Brooke Blogs – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

March 3 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW

March 3 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW

March 4 – Here’s How It Happened – SPOTLIGHT

March 4 – Baroness’ Book Trove – REVIEW

March 4 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

March 5 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

March 5 – A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW

March 5 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW

March 6 – I’m All About Books – CHARACTER GUEST POST

March 6 – Readeropolis – SPOTLIGHT

March 7 – The Montana Bookaholic – REVIEW

March 7 – The Cozy Pages – REVIEW

March 8 – A Chick Who Reads – REVIEW

March 8 – MJB Reviewers – REVIEW

March 9 – Socrates Book Reviews – REVIEW

March 9 – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW Great Escapes Book Tours

 Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this cozy mystery!

©2019 V Williams V Williams

Steamed Open by Barbara Ross #BlogTour #Spotlight #Giveaway

Steamed Open by Barbara Ross

I am so delighted today to provide a spotlight for you at my blog stop for Steamed Open by Barbara Ross on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour. If you haven’t had the chance to read a Maine Clambake Mystery, now is your chance! Can you taste it?

Scroll down to enter your chance to win the Giveaway!

Book Details

Steamed Open (A Maine Clambake Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
7th in Series
Kensington (December 18, 2018)
ISBN-10: 1496717945
ISBN-13: 978-1496717948
Digital ASIN: B07BV3RCDG

Book Blurb

Steamed Open by Barbara RossIt’s summertime in Busman’s Harbor, Maine, and the clamming is easy—or it was until a mysterious new neighbor blocks access to the beach, cutting off the Snowden Family Clambake’s supply. Julia Snowden is just one of many townspeople angered by Bartholomew Frick’s decision. But which one of them was angry enough to kill?

Beachcombers, lighthouse buffs, and clammers are outraged after Frick puts up a gate in front of his newly inherited mansion. When Julia urges him to reconsider, she’s the last to see him alive—except the person who stabs him in the neck with a clam rake. As she pores through a long list of suspects, Julia meets disgruntled employees, rival heirs, and a pair of tourists determined to visit every lighthouse in America. They all have secrets, and Julia will have to work fast to expose the guilty party—or see this season’s clam harvest dry up for good.

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Giveaway

Enter the Giveaway for your chance to win one of three (3) Print Copies of Steamed Open (A Maine Clambake Mystery) by Barbara Ross in this Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author

Barbara RossBarbara Ross is the author of the Maine Clambake Mysteries. The first book in the series, Clammed Up was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel, the RT Book Reviews, Reviewer’s Choice Best Book Award for Amateur Sleuth and was a finalist for the Maine Literary Award for Crime Fiction. She is co-editor/co-publisher of Level Best Books, which produces anthologies of crime stories by New England authors. She writes at her home overlooking the harbor in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. Barbara blogs with the Wicked Cozy Authors and Maine Crime Writers. Readers can visit her website at MaineClambakeMysteries.com.

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N  – Kobo 

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants:

January 7 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

January 7 – Mallory Heart’s Cozies – REVIEW

January 7 – Ruff Drafts – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE

January 8 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews -REVIEW

January 8 – Cozy Up With Kathy – CHARACTER GUEST POST

January 8 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

January 9 – Laura`s Interests – REVIEW

January 9 – Readeropolis – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE

January 9 – A Holland Reads – SPOTLIGHT

January 10 – My Journey Back-The Journey Back – SPOTLIGHT

January 10 – Valerie’s Musings – GUEST POST

January 10 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

January 11 – Rosepoint Publishing – SPOTLIGHT

January 11 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW

January 11 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE

January 12 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT  

January 12 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

January 12 – A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW

January 13 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW

January 13 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT Great Escapes Book Tours

 Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to spotlight this cozy mystery!

©2019 V Williams V Williams

A Midwinter’s Tail by Bethany Blake #BookTour #BookReview

A Midwinter's Tail by Bethany Blake

I am so delighted today to provide a review for you at my blog stop for A Midwinter’s Tail by Bethany Blake on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour.

Book Details

A Midwinter’s Tail (Lucky Paws Petsitting Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Kensington (November 27, 2018)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-10: 1496717333
ISBN-13: 978-1496717337
Digital ASIN: B07B7C8XQY
 

Book Blurb

To bark or not to bark . . .

Professional pet sitter Daphne Templeton loves the holidays in Sylvan Creek, Pennsylvania. And nothing gets her into the spirit more than the town’s annual Bark the Halls Ball. The whole community will be there to wag their tails, especially this year’s special guest—Celeste “CeeCee” French, founder of a national chain of pet care franchises, who’s returning home to announce plans for a bright new flagship store.

But not everyone’s celebrating CeeCee’s homecoming. Daphne’s friend Moxie Bloom, owner of Spa and Paw, a unique salon for people and their pets, has plenty to growl about. So when CeeCee is found face down under Sylvan Creek’s town Christmas tree, stabbed with a distinctive pair of professional-grade pet shears, suspicion lands squarely on Moxie. Despite Daphne’s promises to Detective Jonathan Black, she quickly reprises her role as amateur sleuth. Ably assisted by her basset hound sidekick, Socrates, she must hurry to prove her friend’s innocence before a killer barks again . . .

Includes recipes for homemade pet treats!

My Review

A Midwinter's Tail by Bethany BlakeIt’s Christmas time in beautiful Sylvan Creek, Pennsylvania and pet sitter Daphne Templeton is gearing up by providing lots and lots of treats for the community yearly event Bark the Halls Ball. She will be taking her basset hound Socrates and accompanied by BFF Moxie and possible romantic interest Detective Jonathan Black. It is a very pet-friendly town and she is a proud owner of storefront Lucky Paws Pet Sitting Service and Flour Power. She also has a surly black Persian named Tinkleston, whom she calls Tink.

At the annual showing of “It’s a Wonderful Life,” a successful local graduate, CeeCee French, comes back to town to make the announcement that she will open a large outlet of her pet supply franchise in town. The announcement is shocking and not met with a lot of excitement and she is later found murdered and left under the town Christmas tree. As the owner of the Spa and Paw, it is Moxie who is the first person of interest and as the well-plotted and even paced story is laid out, several others later as well all with equally plausible motives.

This is an amazingly well projected anthropomorphic narrative with Daphne frequently speaking to her animals and their obvious telegraphed responses. I’ve often looked at my own Bichon Frise and thought I knew looking into those eyes just what she was thinking and sure I knew her response as well. We’ve often commented, she may not speak English, but she certainly has no problem communicating. In this case, Daphne certainly had a dog whispering touch with those animals left in her care.

I enjoyed the well-developed characters and although this is apparently the fourth in the series had no problem following the protagonist or the support characters. Also noted the many cliffhanging chapter endings, necessitating the reader jump to the next chapter. I did, however, have a small problem with Moxie and Sebastian, her white rat allowed a bit too much freedom. Additionally, I am not usually a fan of romantic tension in a well-executed mystery.

I received this ebook download from the publisher and NetGalley for a book tour and greatly appreciated the opportunity to read and review what appears to be a delightful cozy mystery series with some engaging characters. Recommended for the younger set who enjoy a cozy mystery they’ll have to work to solve and then may not guess correctly.

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About the Author

Bethany Blake - authorBethany Blake lives in a small, quaint town in Pennsylvania with her husband and three daughters. When she’s not writing or riding horses, she’s wrangling a menagerie of furry family members that includes a nervous pit bull, a fearsome feline, a blind goldfish, and an attack cardinal named Robert. Like Daphne Templeton, the heroine of her Lucky Paws Mysteries, Bethany holds a Ph.D. and operates a pet sitting business called Barkley’s Premium Pet Care.

Author Links 

Webpage  BookBub    Twitter    Facebook

Purchase Links

Amazon  B&N  Kobo    Google Play   IndieBound   BookBub  

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants

November 26 – Island Confidential – SPOTLIGHT

November 26 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW, GIVEAWAY

November 26 – A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

November 27 – Here’s How It Happened – CHARACTER GUEST POST

November 27 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY

November 27 – Cozy Up With Kathy – GUEST POST

November 28 – A Blue Million Books – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 28 – The Power of Words – REVIEW, GIVEAWAY

November 29 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

November 29 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

November 29 – View from the Birdhouse – REVIEW

November 30 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST

November 30 – Babs Book Bistro – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE, GIVEAWAY

November 30 – MJB Reviewers – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, GIVEAWAY

December 1 – My Devotional Thoughts – REVIEW

December 1 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW

December 2 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

December 2 – Readeropolis – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE

December 3 – Carla Loves to Read  – REVIEW

December 3 – A Holland Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST

December 4 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT

December 4 – The Cozy Pages – REVIEW

December 4 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – GUEST POST

December 4 – Mysteries with Character – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

December 5 – Melina’ Book Blog – REVIEW

December 5 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST

December 5 – Sneaky the Library Cat’s Blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW Great Escapes Book Tours

Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this cozy mystery!

©2018 V Williams V Williams

The Darkness Prequel Tour – A #CrimeFictionTreasureHunt #DarkOfNight #DarknessSeries by C. S. Duffy @CSDuffywriter

I was thrilled to be invited to participate in an extra special blog tour–a Glasgow set serial killer thrillers. Talk about your twists! This unique tour started a new chapter with each new book blogger in Claire’s prequel to the “Darkness” series as well as give you the opportunity to discover a new book blogger. The tour extended across two weeks and fourteen exclusive and independent bloggers.

The Dark of Night trilogy by CS Duffy are fast-paced thrillers! Each day you can read an excerpt in a serialized version of the prequel at a different blog. If you missed the start of the blog tour, take a look at the blog schedule (below) and begin with Chapter One at Chapter in My Life

About the Books:

Last paragraph from Chapter 13A Knight’s Reads

Lorna opened her laptop and drummed her fingers on it, her heart hammering as she tried to think of the right search terms. Half an hour later, she had found the connection between Stuart Henderson and the murdered nurse. She just didn’t understand why the old lady had lied to her.

Dark of Night - reader quotes

Chapter 14: 

‘I don’t resent any of the things that have been done to me,’ said Stuart Henderson with a deep, melancholic sigh. He peered at the camera from behind those odd wee glasses. For a moment, his bemused expression put her in mind of the time when answering machines first became common and her Granny would leave messages consisting of her bellowing at the top of her voice WILL YOU JUST TELL MY DAUGHTER-IN-LAW THAT GRANNY STEWART PHONED. BYYEEEE!

Then Lorna remembered that he’d only been in prison for seven years, and had been some kind of a wonderkid developer before that. Stuart Henderson knew fine what a webcam was. But he wanted her to see him as a doddery wee man, she thought. Interesting.

‘You mean things that the police did to you?’ she asked.

‘The police, the courts, my lawyers. A lot of the papers said they were out to get me but I don’t think that was the case. I think they did their jobs as best they knew how. True, they could have done better.’ He shrugged, smiled at the camera, an endearing, don’t-you-worry-about-little-old-me smile that made Lorna’s skin crawl.

‘What do you think they could have done better?’ she asked.

Stuart laughed, a thin, reedy laugh that jangled Lorna’s nerves. Though she knew he was thousands of miles away under lock and key, an uneasy feeling kept prickling at the back of her neck. It took a superhuman effort not to run and double check that her doors were locked and that Stuart Henderson wasn’t hiding under her bed.

‘Well they could have caught the guy who actually did these reprehensible things,’ he sing-songed, as though talking to a baby. ‘Just an idea.’

‘What do you think he is like?’

‘Who?’

But a flicker of interest sparked into Stuart’s eyes.

‘The guy who actually did these reprehensible things.’

‘Oh aye, him. How should I know what he’s like?’

‘You told me earlier that nobody knows more about this case than you do. So you should have an idea of what the real killer is like.’

‘So I should,’ Stuart muttered, staring up at the ceiling. He had been brought in to some kind of interview room. Lorna could just about see the dark grey walls around the edges of the shot, and every time Stuart moved his hands she heard his shackles clink and clank. After months of emails back and forth with the prison authorities and Henderson’s legal team, Lorna had been thrilled to finally secure the interview. It had just been a few minutes, and she was fighting the urge not to slap her laptop shut so he couldn’t see her anymore.

He wasn’t what she had expected. Though she had seen plenty of pictures of him beforehand, it was still disconcerting to come face-to-face with someone who looked like any wee Glasgow guy, yet was also a monster. Lorna could have sat opposite Stuart Henderson on the subway, been cornered by him in a pub slurring rubbish chat up lines, bantered with him in a late night café as they waited for their kebabs, and she would never have known she was staring into void of humanity. He kept sniffing and she wanted to snap at him to get a hankie, then she remembered that he was chained to his chair so that he didn’t rip the face off any of the guards supervising him.

‘Maybe I was mistaken,’ she said lightly. ‘Thinking you knew all about it.’

‘What do you want to know about him?’ Stuart snapped, and Lorna jumped.

‘Where did he start?’

Stuart rolled his eyes like a sullen teenager. ‘All this is a matter of record.’

‘I don’t think so.’

Stuart stared at the camera. Though Lorna knew it wasn’t actual eye contact, that he couldn’t in fact even see her, she shivered.

‘I think he must have started before the crimes we know about,’ Lorna said softly. ‘Long before. Killers like him, the ones who are precise and exacting and get away with it for years like he did, they don’t just spring into being fully-formed. They’ve practiced, they’ve trained. They’ve worked their way up to it.’

Stuart nodded slowly. ‘You just might be onto something there.’

‘Tell me about his first crime.’

Stuart thought a long while. Lorna hardly dared breathe. Then he smiled.

‘He was only a wee boy,’ he grinned, as though about to spill a delicious secret.

If you want to read the entire Chapter 13, check out yesterday’s installment on A Knight’s Reads or read all chapters beginning with Sharon’s post at Chapter in My Life!

Darkness Prequel Tour Schedule 

THE DARKNESS BUY LINKS:

UK Store:

Dark of Night: Episode One:  http://amzn.eu/d/62DeGhx

Dark of Night: Episode Two: http://amzn.eu/d/9ftE9Wp

Dark of Night: Episode Three: http://amzn.eu/d/5AFct03

Just Before Dawn: Episode One: http://amzn.eu/d/5jJwPju

US Store:

Dark of Night: Episode One: http://a.co/d/3eh05dK

Dark of Night: Episode Two: https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Night-Episode-CS-Duffy/dp/197351995X/

Dark of Night: Episode Three

https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Night-Episode-CS-Duffy/dp/1982959916/

Published in September, 2018, Claire continues the suspense thriller storyline in Just Before Dawn Episode One, Darkness Book 4.

C S Duffy - authorAbout The Author:

C.S. Duffy writes psychological suspense thrillers with a healthy dose of black humour. Her background is in film and TV. She has several projects in development in Sweden and the UK and her other writing has appeared in Elle Canada and The Guardian. She is the author of Life is Swede, a thriller that was originally written as a blog – leading several readers to contact Swedish news agencies asking them why they hadn’t reported the murder that features in the blog. She is the author of Dark of Night and Just Before Dawn, a thriller series set in Glasgow which was selected for a Spotlight slot at this year’s Bloody Scotland.

Find me at:
http://csduffy.com/
https://twitter.com/csduffywriter
https://www.instagram.com/csduffywriter/
https://www.instagram.com/writer.on.the.go/

What a brilliant and fun way to get to know and read her series and enjoy our fellow bloggers. This was engaging and entertaining, Claire, thank you!

©2018 V Williams V Williams

House of Ashes by Loretta Marion #BlogTour #BookReview #Giveaway

House of Ashes by Loretta Marion

I am so delighted today to provide a review for you at my blog stop for House of Ashes: A Haunted Bluffs Mystery by Loretta Marion on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour. Scroll down to enter your chance to win this super Giveaway!

Book Details

House of Ashes: A Haunted Bluffs Mystery
Supernatural Mystery
1st in Series
Crooked Lane Books (November 13, 2018)

Hardcover, 336 pages
ISBN-10: 1683318439
ISBN-13: 978-1683318439

Book Blurb

A family patriarch’s dying proclamation, an enigmatic disappearance, and a century-old curse converge in the shadows of a majestic home on Cape Cod’s craggy coast.

Thirty-seven-year-old painter Cassandra Mitchell is fourth-generation to live in the majestic Battersea Bluffs, a brooding Queen Anne home originally built by her great-grandparents, Percy and Celeste Mitchell, and still standing despite tragedies that have swept the generations. Local lore has it that there was a curse placed on the family and the house is haunted, though opinions are divided on whether it’s by malicious or benevolent spirits. Cassie believes the latter―but now she stands to lose her beloved home to mounting debt and the machinations of her dream-weaving ex-husband.

Salvation seems to arrive when a nomadic young couple wanders onto the property with the promise of companionship and much-needed help―until they vanish without a trace, leaving behind no clue to their identities. Cassie is devastated, but determined to discover what’s happened to the young couple…even as digging into their disappearance starts to uncover family secrets of her own. Despite warnings from her childhood friend, now the local Chief of Police―as well as an FBI agent who pushes the boundaries of professionalism―Cassie can’t help following the trail of clues (and eerie signals from the old house itself) to unravel the mystery. But can she do so before her family’s dark curse destroys everything in its path?

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My Review

House of Ashes by Loretta MarionCassandra Mitchell is the great-granddaughter of Percy and Celeste Mitchell who built the gorgeous Battersea Bluffs mansion in Whale Rock, Massachusetts, Cape Cod where she now lives alone. She is 37 years old and tenaciously clings to the family Victorian despite its history, local folklore, and apparent supernatural experiences.

The author sets up a time warp storyline that begins with the events that set the stage for the tragic deaths of her great-grandparents. There is an apparent curse that has followed them from England and has followed generations of their male descendants. Cassie has weathered a disastrous marriage and impending divorce and her scoundrel ex pretty much spent every dime he could lay his hands on before he split. She is presently facing foreclosure and looking at the possibility of having to ask her older and geographically estranged sister for another loan. She refuses the idea of selling.

Not without some form of income, she does what she can to bring in food money though she inherited an artistic gift from her mother which she has been too depressed to exercise. Sinking deeper into the funk that has enveloped her in the situation, she meets a young couple, Ashley and Vince, on her property, accompanied by a German Shepherd, and impressed with them and taken by the moment invite them to stay with her for a while in exchange for their work on the carriage house.

Ms. Marion flips both chronological timelines as she brings in further details of Cassie’s family, both current and 80 years ago. Chapter headings clearly tell in which timeline the narrative is heading and it doesn’t take long to get into the rhythm. It is Cassie’s belief that her great-grandparents frequently visit her, signaling their presence by a distinctly pleasant odor, depending on the situation.

The couple suddenly disappears without explanation which sets off a chain of investigations that begins with local law enforcement and extends to the FBI. There is an attraction to the FBI agent, and Cassie appears to be in full rebound mode. The romance of Cassie and her suitors weaves in and out of the well-plotted story adding tension to the already increasing pressure to find the kids and confirm their well-being.

She is consumed with the problem of figuring out what happened to the kids after they’ve nearly completed the remodel of her carriage house and made a place in her heart. She flits between responsible and irresponsible as she gleans little clues to follow and discovers she didn’t know them, really at all. Not where they came from, not where they may have gone or what happened to them. Happy with having the couple around, they had created in her the urge to paint again and she is facing a large gallery showing by a friend and local art gallery owner who had previously handled some of her mother’s paintings.

I had a little difficulty getting into the well-developed protagonist’s shoes. She has that artist’s aura about her, tormented but talented. Headstrong and smart, she seemed to make less than informed decisions, while craftily planning her next move toward solving the mystery of the couple. The dog, Whistler, has become as much a part of her life as did his owners and she is happy to care for him, as he is now protecting her.

I received this ebook download from the publisher and NetGalley for this book tour and greatly appreciated the opportunity to read and review. Recommended for any who enjoy a mystery, supernatural or paranormal qualities, thriller and suspense, and strong women sleuths.

Giveaway

Sign up for  your chance to win (1) GRAND PRIZE – One $50 Barnes & Noble gift card Two signed hardcover copies of House of Ashes (one for the winner and one for a friend) Two signed paperback copies of The Fool’s Truth (one for the winner and one for a friend) Plus two book bags (one for the winner and one for the friend) (U.S. Only) in this  Rafflecopter giveaway 

About the Author

Loretta Marion - authorAn author of fiction, Loretta Marion’s writing bridges the genres of mystery and suspense and women’s fiction, always with hints of romance and humor, sometimes delving into the psychological and paranormal. She creates strong but flawed and struggling characters as appealing as the rich atmospheric settings in which the stories take place.

Loretta is a true bibliophile and has loved reading and creating with words since she was a young girl. And that affection for the written word followed her like a shadow throughout her life as she put pen to paper crafting marketing and advertising copy, educational brochures and newsletters. But her passion for writing fiction evolved from the unlikely world of hospice. As a volunteer, she set out to establish a Legacy Story program to honor and preserve the rich heritage of the fascinating people who were soon to leave this world. The meaningful experience inspired her to create her own interesting characters and stories. Her debut novel, The Fool’s Truth, was a twisty and suspenseful mystery with whispers of romance. Her newest novel, HOUSE OF ASHES – A Haunted Bluffs Mystery, is the first in a series published by Crooked Lane Books.

Though born and raised in the Midwest, Loretta fell in love with New England and has made it the setting for much of her writing. When not whipping out words on her laptop, she is traveling, enjoying outdoor pursuits, or is curled up with a delicious new book. Loretta lives in Rhode Island with her husband, Geoffrey, and their beloved Mr. Peabody, a sweet, devoted and amusing “Corgador” (Corgi-Labrador cross).  (www.LorettaMarion.com)

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants:

November 1 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

November 1 – Readeropolis – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 2 – Moonlight Rendezvous – REVIEW

November 2 –  A Blue Million Books – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 3 – fundinmental – REVIEW

November 3 – Island Confidential – SPOTLIGHT

November 4 – The Book’s the Thing – REVIEW, GUEST POST 

November 5 – That’s What She’s Reading – REVIEW, GUEST POST 

November 5 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – SPOTLIGHT

November 6 – Valerie’s Musings – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 6 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

November 7 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW

November 7 – Ruff Drafts – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 8 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

November 8 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT  

November 8 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 9 – Mallory Heart’s Cozies – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST

November 9 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

November 10 – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW

November 10 – Curling Up by the Fire – REVIEW Great Escapes Book Tours 

Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this supernatural mystery!

©2018 V Williams V Williams

Thread Herrings by Lea Wait #BlogTour #BookReview #Giveaway

Thread Herrings by Lea Wait

I am so delighted today to provide a review for you at my blog stop for Thread Herrings (A Mainely Needlepoint Mystery) by Lea Wait on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour. Scroll down to enter your chance to win the Giveaway!

Book Details

Thread Herrings (A Mainely Needlepoint Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
7th in Series
Kensington (October 30, 2018)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-10: 149671671X
ISBN-13: 978-1496716712
Digital ASIN: B079KSZ92D
Book Blurb

Angie’s first auction may turn out to be her last—when she bids on a coat of arms that someone would literally kill to possess . . .

Tagging along to an estate sale with her fellow Needlepointer, antiques shop owner Sarah Byrne, Angie Curtis impulsively bids on a tattered embroidery of a coat of arms. When she gets her prize back home to Haven Harbor, she discovers a document from 1757 behind the framed needlework—a claim for a child from a foundling hospital. Intrigued, Angie is determined to find the common thread between the child and the coat of arms.

Accepting her reporter friend Clem Walker’s invitation to talk about her find on the local TV news, Angie makes an appeal to anyone who might have information. Instead, both women receive death threats. When Clem is found shot to death in a parking lot, Angie fears her own life may be in jeopardy. She has to unravel this historical mystery—or she may be the next one going, going . . . gone . . .

My Review

Thread Herrings by Lea WaitThis was my introduction to Lea Wait’s series and my first experience with the author and I must say it was an incredible journey! Ms. Wait really knows her antiques, the business, needlepoint, embroidery, and the remarkable history behind samplers and mourning art. The beginning of each chapter included an amazing recounting of a coat of arms embroidery (usually by a child), also noting some familial information including birth and death dates. I had no idea there was such a wealth of antiques out there that lovingly represents beautifully detailed pictograph ancestral histories.

Haven Harbor, Maine, protagonist Angie Curtis is invited by her antique shop owner buddy, Sarah Byrne, to accompany her to an auction. It will be her first experience with an auction and the author does a fine job of detailing procedures, standards, and setting up Angie to view and possibly bid on embroideries that would be perfect for her own Mainely Needlepoint shop. During the preview, Angie spies an embroidered coat of arms that catches her fancy, though heaven knows it’s in sad shape and easily won. It’s when Angie gets her prize home and removes the frame that she discovers a billet (receipt) for Charles from the London Foundling Hospital in 1757 on a lovingly embroidered ribbon. The billet is meant to match with the other half at the hospital in order to reclaim the child.

Granted, this is the seventh in the series, though I read it as a standalone, story-driven plot. Angie has no doubt been described in minute detail in previous books, along with her boyfriend Patrick, friend Sarah, and the members of the Mainely Needlepoint group who help to provide historical and genealogical information, including Ruth and her grandmother (the latter of whom raised her). A former classmate, Clem Walker, is a TV personality who persuades her to appeal to the public for information regarding the mysterious child, Charles, since the embroidery offers no further hints to the child or family. Fascinated, Angie begins to research and investigate.

Unfortunately, it isn’t long before they both receive death threats and shortly Clem is murdered and her grandmother’s new hubby injured when he attempts to move her car. Angie is forced into hiding on the advice of Pete Lambert, Haven Harbor’s Police Chief and State Police Officer (Homicide) Ethan Trask. She takes her kitty and finds a semi-safe harbor with Patrick and his kitty while she continues to quietly push for new information.

I must admit to being fascinated myself with the historical aspect of the well-plotted storyline. So many ways to glean information, but I’d have never thought it could have been preserved in this exquisite manner. The antagonist is worked out through persistent and dogged analysis and is not entirely a surprise, however, the motive and conclusion comes off a tad weak. While the motive wouldn’t make sense to a normal person, this person is obviously not.

Certainly an opening that grabs the interest quickly and manages to weave informative and educational tidbits into an engaging and well-developed plot. The Maine winter descriptions, while brutal, certainly lent an ambiance to the storyline. Patrick as a character is not as strong as Angie, as he continues to appeal to her to leave the investigation to the police. I received this ebook download from the publisher and NetGalley for this book tour and greatly appreciated the opportunity to read and review. I thoroughly enjoyed the well-researched history and heartily recommend to any who participates in needlework or crafting of any kind. (Though I still knit and crochet, it’s been a LONG time since I’ve done any needlepointing or embroidery!). Will also interest any who read cozy mysteries, suspense, and women sleuths. I’m looking forward to Book 8!

Add to Goodreads

Giveaway

Sign up for your chance to win one of (3) Print Copies of Thread Herrings (A Mainely Needlepoint Mystery) by Lea Wait in this Rafflecopter giveaway.

About the Author

Lea Wait - authorLea Wait lives on the coast of Maine. A fourth-generation antique dealer and the author of the Agatha-nominated Antique Print Mystery series, she loves all things antiques and Maine. She also writes historical novels for young people set in (where else?) nineteenth-century Maine. Visit her at leawait.com.

Follow Lea on Facebook and GoodReads

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Kobo

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants:

November 1 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

November 1 – Cozy Up With Kathy -SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 2 –  Teresa Trent Author Blog – SPOTLIGHT

November 2 –  A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – REVIEW

November 3 – The Power of Words – REVIEW

November 3 – FUONLYKNEW – REVIEW

November 3 – Mysteries with Character – SPOTLIGHT

November 4 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW, EXCERPT

November 5 – Here’s How It Happened – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 5 – The Montana Bookaholic – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 6 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

November 6 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 7 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book  – REVIEW

November 7 – Christa Reads and Writes – REVIEW

November 1 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

November 1 – Cozy Up With Kathy -SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 2 –  Teresa Trent Author Blog – SPOTLIGHT

November 2 –  A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – REVIEW

November 3 – The Power of Words – REVIEW

November 3 – FUONLYKNEW – REVIEW

November 3 – Mysteries with Character – SPOTLIGHT

November 4 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW, EXCERPT

November 5 – Here’s How It Happened – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 5 – The Montana Bookaholic – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 6 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

November 6 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

November 7 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book  – REVIEW

November 7 – Christa Reads and Writes – REVIEW Great Escapes Book Tours

 Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this cozy mystery!

©2018 V Williams V Williams

Assault and Beadery by Mollie Cox Bryan #BookTour #BookReview #Giveaway

Assault and Beadery

I am so delighted today to provide a review for you at my blog stop for Assault and Beadery by Mollie Cox Bryan on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour. Scroll down the page to enter this exclusive Giveaway!

Book Details

Assault and Beadery (A Cora Crafts Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Kensington (September 25, 2018)
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN-10: 1496716442
ISBN-13: 978-1496716446
Digital ASIN: B078QM4V66  

Book Blurb

All of Cora Chevalier’s dreams are coming true. Since moving to Indigo Gap, North Carolina, the busy crafting maven has been blessed with a great boyfriend, a lovely home, and a booming craft retreat business. But on the eve of her first Crafty Mom’s Escape Weekend, tragedy strikes again in Indigo Gap. This time, it’s curtains for Stan Herald, the disagreeable director of the local theater group, who’s murdered on the opening night of their new production. Worse, Cora’s friend Zee is accused of the crime.

Cora is determined to prove her friend’s innocence, but Zee’s mysterious past is making that difficult. And with a list of suspects longer than a double spool of satin cording, getting a bead on the real culprit won’t be easy. With her friends Jane and Ruby at her side, Cora must string together the clues and solve Stan’s murder before the killer gives an encore performance.

Includes crafting tips!

My Review

Once again, my first experience with the author and the series. This being the fourth in the series, however, is not a real problem as it could easily function as a standalone, characters and location are well developed.

Indigo Gap is described as a small mountain community and tourist destination offering beautiful scenery, quaint B&B’s, cafes, and streets all named in exotic blue colors. As I viewed Cora, Jane, and Ruby, partners in the Kildare House in Indigo Gap, NC, it seems to me Jane is the stronger and would be prime protagonist, although it appears that Cora is supposed to be primary lead. Cora lives in the attic apartment of the historic Victorian home of Irish immigrants and former forest barons with her cat, Luna. Jane and her young daughter, London, live in the carriage house adjacent, although for this special retreat weekend, their third, the little girl is away visiting grandparents.

They fill their investment by holding specialized retreats, this one with special guest leader, Lena, who will introduce projects in beading (including French beads, clay beads, and rose beads) along with other crafting ideas involving felting and author cards. The home is apparently enormous and in addition to the bedrooms have rooms specifically designed and dedicated for specific crafts. The description of the home had me wishing I could take a tour! That is, until you get to the kitchen, which in their rehab process was put on the back-burner (a serious no-no in rehabbing). The retreat has invited moms to a special after-summer getaway and respite from their children and they’ve ended up with an eclectic group of women, some preferring to knit. (I’d love to know how much they paid and what it included!)

In addition to preparing to receive their guests, they got involved with the local community playhouse and helped to paint backgrounds for the production slated to open. Unfortunately, the director is found deceased on the stage and their B&B neighbor and friend Zee found beside him with a bloody knife. They know Zee couldn’t have done it, but how well do they know her–really?

I had these observations: I appreciated the atmosphere of the little town, the pride of the locals in their community, and even some of the (over) descriptive instructions of the projects. The protagonists had made major changes in their lives and appear to be conquering difficult histories. The projects, many with detailed instructions given at the back of the book, take up a lot of the narrative. However, Cora emerges as a rather weak-kneed protagonist fighting panic attacks, revisiting situations, and conversations once too often. They tended to call their officer friend, Detective Brodsky–a lot–no secrets–nothing held back there! He’s married, but Cora has a boyfriend who is always among the missing except for one sneaky night (huh?). The weekend retreat seemed to last more than a Saturday/Sunday, there was a lot of free time where the girls could go sleuthing, and no one ever fixed a meal. (Lots of restaurant referrals.)

It is cozy paced and well-plotted, just a little slow for me. Red herrings are thrown in, then dissed, and the antagonist was not a surprise. The craft moms are all aware of what is going on and no one seems to slow their attendance in the next class or appear concerned over whether or not the antagonist is someone in their midst.

I was given this download by the publisher and NetGalley for this book tour and greatly appreciated the opportunity to read and review. Recommended for any heavy into crafting, particularly beading, or for someone you know would appreciate those hints and ideas–a little mystery with the craft projects!

Giveaway

Enter here for your chance at winning one of three (3) print copies of Assault and Beadery (U.S. only). Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author

Mollie Cox Bryan - authorMollie Cox Bryan is the author of the Cumberland Creek Scrapbooking mystery series and the Cora Crafts mystery series. She is also author of two cookbooks, the regional bestseller Mrs. Rowe’s Little Book of Southern Pies and Mrs. Rowe’s Restaurant Cookbook: A Lifetime of Recipes from the Shenandoah Valley. An award-winning journalist and poet, she currently blogs, cooks, and scrapbooks in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia with her husband and two daughters. Scrapbook of Secrets was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel. Visit her on the web at molliecoxbryan.com.

Author Links:

Website – http://molliecoxbryan.com/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/molliecoxbryanauthor

Pinterest – https://www.pinterest.com/molliecoxbryan/

Twitter – https://twitter.com/molliecoxbryan?lang=en

Purchase Links – Amazon   B&N   IndieBound   Kobo   BookBub

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants:

September 25 – The Power of Words = REVIEW

September 25 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – GUEST POST

September 25 – Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers -SPOTLIGHT

September 26 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 26 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too! – SPOTLIGHT

September 26 – Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews – REVIEW

September 27 – The Self-Rescue Princess – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

September 27 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

September 28 – T’s Stuff – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 28 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST

September 29 – A Holland Reads – REVIEW

September 29 – MJB Reviewers – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 30 – cherylbbookblog – REVIEW, RECIPE

September 30 – Mallory Heart’s Cozies – REVIEW

October 1 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW

October 1 – Varietats – GUEST POST

October 2 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

October 2 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 3 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 3 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW  

October 4 – Valerie’s Musings – GUEST POST

October 4 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT  

October 5 – A Blue Million Books – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

October 5 – Island Confidential – SPOTLIGHT

October 6 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW

October 6 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

October 7 – The Montana Bookaholic – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST

October 7 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

October 8 – Here’s How It Happened – SPOTLIGHT

October 8 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT/RECIPE Great Escapes Book Tours

 Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this cozy mystery!

©2018 V Williams V Williams

In Cold Chocolate by Dorothy St. James #BlogTour #BookReview #Giveaway

In Cold Chocolate

I am so delighted today to provide a review for you at my blog stop for In Cold Chocolate: A Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery by Dorothy St. James on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour. Scroll down the page to enter the Giveaway for your chance to win this delectable treat!

Book Details

In Cold Chocolate: A Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Crooked Lane Books (September 11, 2018)
Hardcover: 350 Pages
ISBN-10: 1683317432
ISBN-13: 978-1683317432
Digital ASIN: B078M3N9TC

Book Blurb

In Dorothy St. James’s third delectable Southern Chocolate Shop mystery, a new batch of chocolate and troubles of the heart cause a string of disasters for the Chocolate Box’s new owner, Charity Penn.

The vintage seaside town of Camellia Beach, South Carolina seems like the perfect place for romance with its quiet beach and its decadent chocolate shop that serves the world’s richest dark chocolates. The Chocolate Box’s owner, Charity Penn, falls even further under the island’s moonlit spell as she joins Althea Bays and the rest of the turtle watch team to witness a new generation of baby sea turtles hatch and make their way into the wide ocean.

Before the babies arrive, gunshots ring out in the night. Cassidy Jones, the local Casanova, is found dead in the sand with his lover Jody Dalton—the same woman who has vowed to destroy the Chocolate Box—holding the gun. It’s an obvious crime of passion, or so everyone believes. But when Jody’s young son pleads with Penn to bring his mother back to him, she can’t say no. She dives headfirst into a chocolate swirl of truth and lies and must pick through an assortment of likely (and sometimes unsavory) suspects before it’s too late for Penn and for those she loves in Dorothy St. James’s third rich installment of the Southern Chocolate Shop mysteries, In Cold Chocolate.

My Review

In Cold Chocolate by Dorothy St. JamesCamellia Beach, SC is definitely heating up. It’s August and the baby sea turtle nests are set to start hatching under the watchful eyes of the local sea turtle rescue volunteers. Charity Penn, owner of the Chocolate Box, is excited to join her best buddy, Althea, to watch for the hatching. Unfortunately, they end up in the crossfire of some deadly shooting, wounding Penn, and sending Jody Dalton to jail for the murder of Cassidy Jones. Jody is caught, dead to rights (so to speak) with not one but two smoking guns. Open and shut case, right? Sure looks that way, but Jody is the mother of Gavin, the son of her new heartthrob, Harley Dalton, and she promises Gavin she’ll have her mother out of jail before school starts. Uh oh…

Okay, this is the third in the series but could be viewed as a standalone as there was enough fleshing of the protagonist to learn who she is. Harley just a little less so. It’s one of those small towns where everyone knows everyone else’s business and not all the townspeople are strong supporters of Ms. Penn. Her heritage has been called to question and she is currently in a legal fight to settle once and for all the inheritance from her grandmother(?) Mabel which included the Chocolate Box.

In the meantime, Penn has poured her heart and soul into learning the business and remodeling, rehabbing, the building. She is building a strong and faithful customer base and has introduced a few new ideas to the shop, which apparently also allows coffee drinks. Her grandmother (if she is truly that) had a partner,  Bertie Bays, Althea’s mother and Penns roommate, who is valiantly trying to teach Penn the recipes for the exceptional Amar chocolate beans they use for their delicious dark confections.

Granted, there is a lot going on in this narrative, and some of it slows the well-plotted mystery. The victim is someone so despised that most of the town is probably happy to see him gone and doesn’t really care who is responsible. Harley and his son share the apartment upstairs next door to Penn and Bertie and Harley is also the attorney representing Penn.

There are a number of minor or support characters who round out the population of this small coastal town with a proximity to Charleston. The scenes are described well-enabling visions of the seaside community and the information on the sea turtles interesting. There is a sub-subplot going on with her little insecure five-pound black, brown, and white snappy papillon she was given by her ex that needs a LOT of training and all the training seems to include a box load of treats. (Seems to me half the time the dog is being rewarded for bad behavior, but he does make some successful progress through the novel.)

What appeared to be annoying on the surface, that of a 37-year-old woman abandoned as a child, damaged and flawed protagonist, raised by uncaring and abusive adults, who is constantly battling negative thoughts serves as an epiphany when you finally get inside her head for that ah ha comprehending moment. Maybe she is justified in being who she is! There were sympathetic characters and nasty relatives. Lots of little hints and it wasn’t too hard to figure out the antagonist. As the twists hit, as they inevitably must, they fly in the face of what you expected and actually were a surprise, including the big one at the conclusion–most satisfying.

There is some lag in the middle, and a surprising number of edit misses including missing words (or duplicates) and sentence structure problems. I was given this download by the publisher and NetGalley for this book tour and greatly appreciate the opportunity to read and review. Recommended for any who love small town southern-based cozies, chocolates (including recipes), dogs, and the saga of the sea turtles.

 Giveaway

Click on the link to sign up for your chance to win one (1) Delicious 12-piece Godiva Patisserie Truffle Chocolate Flight (US Only) in this special  Rafflecopter giveaway 

Rosepoint Publishing:  Four of Five Stars Four of Five Stars

Dorothy St. James - author

Mystery author Dorothy St. James was raised in South Carolina. She makes her home on the outskirts of Charleston, South Carolina with her husband, a neurotic dog, and a fluffy cat. Though writing has always been a passion for her, she pursued an undergraduate degree in Wildlife Biology and a graduate degree in Public Administration and Urban Planning. She put her educational experience to use, having worked in all branches and all levels of government including local, regional, state, and federal. She even spent time during college working for a non-profit environmental watchdog organization.

Switching from government service and community planning to fiction writing wasn’t as big of a change as some might think. Her government work was all about the stories of the people and the places where they live. As an urban planner, Dorothy loved telling the stories of the people she met. And from that, her desire to tell the tales that were so alive in her heart grew until she could not ignore it any longer. In 2001, she took a leap of faith and pursued her dream of writing fiction full-time.

* Dorothy St. James is the alter-ego of award-winning multi-published author, Dorothy McFalls. She enjoys writing in several different genres. Her works have been nominated for many awards including Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, Reviewers International Organization Award, National Reader’s Choice Award, CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Award, and The Romance Reviews Today Perfect 10! Award. Reviewers have called her work: “amazing”, “perfect”, “filled with emotion”, and “lined with danger.”

Author Links:

Website: www.dorothystjames.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dorothystjames

Twitter: www.twitter.com/dorothymcfalls

Purchase Links:

Indie Bound    Amazon      Kobo      Google Play      Barnes & Noble      BookBub

Thank you for visiting my stop on the tour and please visit the other stops listed below!

Tour Participants:

September 12 – Valerie’s Musings – REVIEW

September 12 – A Holland Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST

September 12 – Writing Pearls – REVIEW

September 13 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW

September 13 – Island Confidential – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 14 – The Power of Words – REVIEW

September 14 – Babs Book Bistro – SPOTLIGHT

September 15 – Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

September 15 – Community Bookstop – SPOTLIGHT

September 16 – Readeropolis – RECIPE

September 16 – Mallory Heart’s Cozies – REVIEW

September 17 – A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW

September 17 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – RECIPE

September 18 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

September 18 – T’s Stuff – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 19 – Jane Reads – GUEST POST

September 19 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – CHARACTER GUEST POST

September 20 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW

September 20 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT

September 20 – Mysteries with Character – RECIPE

September 21 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW

September 21 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

September 21 – MJB Reviewers – REVIEW

September 22 – Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews – REVIEW

September 22 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

September 23 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST

September 23 – Handcrafted Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

September 24 – The Montana Bookaholic – REVIEW

September 24 – Socrates’ Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

September 24 – Sneaky the Library Cat’s Blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

September 24 – Here’s How It Happened – SPOTLIGHT

September 25 – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW

September 25 – View from the Birdhouse – REVIEW

September 25 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT Great Escapes Book Tours 

Thanks to the publisher, NetGalley, and Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this cozy mystery! ©2018 V Williams V Williams

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Roars and Echoes

Where the power of my thoughts comes from the craft of writing.

Sareh Lovasen

Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Historical Fiction