occult – Rosepoint Publishing

#ComingSoon – #romance #occult #cozy Looking For Some New Reading Ideas?

Amazing the way we choose the books we’ll read and how often, more than not, we choose because of the cover or the title. So I admit it, these three spoke to me, one way or another.

#comingsoon

The Secret Cove in Croatia (Romantic Escapes, Book 5) by Julie Caplin is a romance. Gasp! I know what you are thinking! Rosepoint doesn’t do romance. And normally that would be correct, except in this instance, Croatia is in the title. In 1995 we received an exchange student for his senior year of high school–from Croatia. (His country was at war and he promptly asked if he could stay. Now we call him our Croatian son.) So okay, I am #currentlyreading this one just released July 19th and will review on Friday, July 26th.

Book Blurb:

Sail away to beautiful Croatia for summer sun, sparkling turquoise seas and a will-they-won’t-they romance you won’t be able to put down!

When no-nonsense, down-to-earth Maddie Wilcox is offered the chance to work on a luxury yacht for the summer, she can’t say no. Yes she’ll be waiting on the posh guests… But island-hopping around the Adriatic sea will more than make up for it – especially when Nick, her best friend Nina’s brother, is one of them.

Sparks fly when they meet onboard and Maddie can’t believe self-entitled jerk Nick is really related to Nina. But in a secret, picture-perfect cove, away from the real world, Maddie and Nick discover they might have more in common than they realise…

The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe is an occult fiction/literary saga. Ooh, sounds witchy, huh? I couldn’t resist. Something about that premise just grabs me. And behold that cover! Do you like it, too? It actually released June 25th, but I’m reading for a book tour and will review on my blog date August 9th.

Book Blurb:

Connie Goodwin is an expert on America’s fractured past with witchcraft. A young, tenure-track professor in Boston, she’s earned career success by studying the history of magic in colonial America—especially women’s home recipes and medicines—and by exposing society’s threats against women fluent in those skills. But beyond her studies, Connie harbors a secret: She is the direct descendant of a woman tried as a witch in Salem, an ancestor whose abilities were far more magical than the historical record shows.

When a hint from her mother and clues from her research lead Connie to the shocking realization that her partner’s life is in danger, she must race to solve the mystery behind a hundreds’-years-long deadly curse.

Flashing back through American history to the lives of certain supernaturally gifted women, The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs affectingly reveals not only the special bond that unites one particular matriarchal line, but also explores the many challenges to women’s survival across the decades—and the risks some women are forced to take to protect what they love most.

The Garden Club Murder (A Tish Tarragon Mystery Book 2) by Amy Patricia Meade is a cozy culinary mystery and I admit it, I saw that dog and my heart melted–it’s a Bichon Frise. I knew that because I have one. No way could my sweet Frosty be despised, so obviously this antagonist totally messed up with his puppy training techniques.

Book Blurb:

Literary caterer Letitia ‘Tish’ Tarragon is preparing her English Secret Garden-themed luncheon for Coleton Creek’s annual garden club awards, but when she is taken on a tour of some of the top contenders with the garden club’s president, Jim Ainsley, Tish is surprised at how seriously the residents take the awards – and how desperate they are to win.

Wealthy, retired businessman Sloane Shackleford has won the coveted best garden category five years in a row, but he and his Bichon Frise, Biscuit, are universally despised. When Sloane’s bludgeoned body is discovered in his pristine garden, Tish soon learns that he was disliked for reasons that go beyond his green fingers. Have the hotly contested awards brought out a competitive and murderous streak in one of the residents?

One of these appeal to you as well? If you’ve already read one, let me know what you think. So far I’m enjoying the romantic storyline in Croatia, but this one’s an exception. I still don’t do romance.

#ThrowbackThursday – Ghostly Paws by Leighann Dobbs

#ThrowbackThursday

Renee began the Throwback Thursday meme on her blog, “It’s Book Talk“ to share some of her old favorites as well as sharing books published over a year ago. Sounded like a good reason to join! Means I’ll be going back over some of my oldies but goodies, my favorite authors, and some of my favorite stories from authors you might not have previously experienced. Hopefully, you’ll find either a story or author that interests you and you’ll check them out.

This week I am highlighting Leighann Dobbs, another terrific, prolific author who produced Ghostly Paws, a Mystic Notch Cozy Mystery Series (Book 1), which I reviewed on Goodreads. She has actually written six in the series. It was released on March 12, 2014. She consistently runs approximately 4.5 stars for any of her books sold on Amazon. Amazon classifies the novel as supernatural, ghosts, witches and goblins, and occult. I suspect it just might be the sweet, easy Halloween read you’ve been searching for! (Love the covers of the series!)

Originally posted July 14, 2016.

Book Blurb:

*** USA Today Bestseller and First Place Winner Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem Awards (Animal Mystery Category) ***

Middle age can be murder …

At least that’s how it seems to former crime journalist, Wilhelmina Chance, whose near-fatal accident has given her a strange side effect … she sees ghosts.

After a messy divorce sends her fleeing back to her hometown of Mystic Notch, nestled in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, Willa finds herself haunted by the tenacious ghost of the town librarian who insists Willa solve her murder.

Luckily, she has lots of help, including a quirky cast of small-town characters, the cat she’s inherited from her grandmother, and her best friend, Pepper, who claims her herbal teas can work magic.

But just when Willa thinks she’s discovered who the killer is, she finds out that things are not what they seem in Mystic Notch, and the case takes a strange turn that has Willa adding even some of her long-time friends to her suspect list.

Can Willa find the real killer in time to keep the magical balance in Mystic Notch on the side of good, or will evil prevail?

ASIN: B00IZ0ZY9E

My Review:

Ghostly Paws is a cozy read that should be enjoyed in an over-stuffed chair, with cool temps, crackling fireplace, and hot cup of cocoa (with mini-marshmallows, of course). Or for those who would enjoy a single recently professional protagonist much like the quiet woman next door (or yourself?); middle-aged, that is, with just a few, (huh hum!) slight but prominent quirks.

Getting older and dealing with the left-overs of a near-fatal accident has left Willa a little paranormal; seeing and talking to ghosts back in her northeastern hometown where she inherited her grandmother’s bookstore. The bookstore has a resident cat, Pandora, who is just the tip of the kitty iceberg (and once again proving I’ll give equal time to felines as well as canines). But this feline is not one of your regular bookstore cats, or maybe they are, just that being an average human I’ve missed those paranormal qualities.

Willa has a cadre of regular bookish clients, four of the town’s seasoned seniors. You can get that small town feel right away in the down-home dialogue between Willa and her acquaintances, friends, and the owner of a tea and herb shop next door whose concoctions sometimes backfire, providing more than one chuckle. Willa tends to wallow in that middle-age annoying behavior of obsessing over little details that derail where she should be looking instead.

This is my first experience with this author and a Mystic Notch mystery, but I loved the town and its people. Willa, bless her heart, has a history of journalistic criminology so she can’t resist sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong. Pandora, that Darned Cat, isn’t the only kitty around, but she’s obviously an alpha.

While the book is fun, fast, and frivolous, the author will hopefully smooth out Willa’s annoying quirks a little and reduce the number of repeats. I received the download from BookBub and greatly enjoyed the opportunity to read and review. Recommended to cozy mystery fans who enjoy a touch of paranormal or supernatural elements, anthropomorphic components, as well as a touch of romance (that I could have done without).

Add to Goodreads

About the Author:

USA Today bestselling author, Leighann Dobbs, discovered her passion for writing after a twenty year career as a software engineer. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband Bruce, their trusty Chihuahua mix Mojo and beautiful rescue cat, Kitty. When she’s not reading, gardening, making jewelry or selling antiques, she likes to write cozy mystery and historical romance books.

Her book “Dead Wrong” won the “Best Mystery Romance” award at the 2014 Indie Romance Convention.

Her book “Ghostly Paws” was the 2015 Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem First Place category winner in the Animal Mystery category.

Don’t miss out on the early buyers discount on Leighann’s next cozy mystery – get a TEXT alert straight on your cellphone.
– For Cozy Mystery alerts, just text COZYMYSTERY to 88202
– For Romance alerts text ROMANCE to 88202

More Throwback Thursday Blogs

Renee at Its Book Talk

Jill at Jill’s Book Cafe

Rebecca at The Book Whisperer

Lynn at Fictionophile

Sam at Clues and Reviews

Holly B at Dressedtoread

Deanna at DeesRadReads and Reviews

Amanda at Literary Weaponry

Annie at The Misstery

Mischenko at Read Rant Rock and Roll

Laurie at Cozy Nook Books

Ann Marie at LItWitWineDine

Susan at Susan Loves Books

Cathy at What Cathy Read Next

Cathy at Between the Lines

Amy at Novel Gossip

Diana at A Haven for Booklovers

Molding Men – Review

Molding Men by Ray Ronan

Genre: Currently #279 in Best Sellers Rank for Historical Fiction, German

Publisher: Amazon Digital Services, LLC

Publication Date: November, 2015

Submitted by author for review

Dark, foreboding cover easily gets across the supernatural/occult insinuation.

Interesting choice for the title. This dynamite, hard-driving suspense novel, “Molding Men” by Ray Ronan is a winner from page 1. Molding Men could as easily have been Molding Character.

The abominable living conditions created by war-torn Germany points to all the directions men take in response to the worst that man can do to man–or is it always human? What form can evil actually take? In this supernatural thriller, evil takes the form of Historian, Herr Brandt, as he weaves in and out of multi-plotted cataclysmic historical events combined with the fictional German family of Terrell Engels. It is no secret that Adolph Hitler, ergo his Nazi party, had a fascination with the occult and although other novels have been penned using the knowledge, this tale takes a unique twist. The story weaves in the fictional “Historian” character, whose principle is that he does not record history; he creates it. Continue reading “Molding Men – Review”