Books from the Backlog - Peril at Owl Park

Today I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books for Books from the Backlog.  I really enjoy the chance to feature a book that's been hiding in the piles of books for far too long!

Goodreads:  Aggie Morton, Mystery Queen: Peril at Owl Park by Marthe Jocelyn

Blurb:  Aspiring writer Aggie Morton is looking forward to Christmas. Having just solved a murder and survived her own brush with death in her small town of Torquay on the coast of England, Aggie can't wait to spend the holidays with her sister Marjorie, the new Lady Greyson of Owl Park, an enormous manor house in the country; Grannie Jane and her fellow sleuth and partner in crime, Hector Perot. Owl Park holds many delights including Aggie's almost cousin Lucy, exciting and glamorous visitors from Ceylon and disguises aplenty in the form of a group of traveling actors, not to mention a secret passageway AND an enormous, cursed emerald. Not even glowering old Lady Greyson (the Senior) can interfere with Aggie's festive cheer. But when Aggie and her friends discover a body instead of presents on Christmas morning, things take a deadly serious turn. With the help of a certain nosy reporter, Aggie and Hector will once again have to put their deductive skills and imaginations to work to find the murderer on the loose.

Why It Needs to Come Off the Shelf:  A middle grade mystery based off Agatha Christie's childhood and set during Christmas.  Now seems like the time!

TBR Tarot - A Book to Kill For

At the end of 2022 Wendy over at Literary Feline posted about these fantastic TBR Tarot Cards she had picked up on Etsy and that sounded too good to resist so I immediately ordered my own set.  So when I'm not feeling strongly about what to read next I pull out my cards and pick a book based on the prompt.  Here is a book the fates chose for me recently.

Prompt:  Choose a Book Where the Author's Surname begins with "L"

Goodreads: A quiet book lover falls for a rugged carpenter... who doesn't even like to read?!?

Maggie Bell loves working at a bookshop in the charming town of Fair Haven, Connecticut. After her beloved boss passes away, his son, Joshua Whitfield, comes into town and turns Maggie’s world upside down. He wants to turn part of the store into a cafe and sell books about vampires and silly romances. Maggie is horrified. But when an electrician is killed in the middle of the bookshop renovations, Joshua is the prime suspect. Maggie must put their differences aside to clear his name. She finds herself becoming more and more attracted to Joshua. Can a mousy bookworm really fall in love with a rugged carpenter who doesn’t even like to read?

My Thoughts:  I had this whole series on my TBR so when the prompt came up, I jumped at the chance to give this series a try.  It's a bookish cozy - what's not to love?  Well, it turned out I wasn't the biggest fan of Maggie.  I love a bookish main character who loves to read but Maggie is so judgmental and narrow minded I was kind of rooting for the bad guy to take her out.  I did like Joshua and the mystery did keep me guessing.  I would probably give this author another try but I don't think I want to spend any more time with Maggie.  My Rating: Just Okay (2 Stars)

Top Ten Tuesday - Winter TBR

Today I'm linking up with Top Ten Tuesday hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl which is all about lists.  Since lists are one of my favorite things this is one of my favorite linkups!  Today's topic is my Winter TBR.  I love making these seasonal TBRs!  I'm not the best at getting everything read (though I'm getting better) but I always enjoy making the list.

1.  Nothing Ever Happens Here by Seraphina Nova Glass - I've had this author on my TBR for awhile and am really looking forward to reading this one.

2.  Beast of the North Woods by Annelise Ryan - I've read the previous two books in this series about a cryptid hunter and can't wait for this newest one!

3.  Shattering Dawn by Jayne Ann Krentz - I look forward to Krentz's new book every year and can't wait for this one.

4.  The Dressmakers of London by Julia Kelly - I've really enjoyed what I've read from Julia Kelly and this one looks gorgeous.

5.  Better Than Friends by Jill Shalvis - I'm so behind with Shalvis's books but I'm trying to catch up and this newest book looks like a great read.

6. The Rainfall Market by You Yeong-Gwang - This looks gorgeous and wonderful and magical and like perfect cuddling up in a warm house reading.

7.  The Joy of Slow: Restoring Balance and Wonder to Homeschool Learning by Leslie Martino - This one caught my eye, and I'd like to read this soon to start out the next semester of homeschool inspired a bit.

8.  Someone to Hold by Mary Balogh - I read the first book in this series and loved it and really am wanting to continue with it.

9.  Long Time Gone by Charlie Donlea - This is the book that brought Donlea to my attention, and I have loved what I've read so it feels like I should finally pick this one.

10. The Berlin Letters by Katherine Reay - I've really enjoyed the previous books I've read by this author, and this has been on my radar.  It's another book that looks like it'd be good cold weather reading.

What are you hoping to read this winter?

Overdue Reviews - Made For You + Almost Famous Women

 Goodreads:  Made for You by Jenna Satterthwaite

Blurb:  Hi. My name is Julia. I’m a Synth. And I’m here to find love…
Synthetic woman Julia Walden was designed for one reason: to compete on The Proposal and claim the heart of bachelor Josh LaSala. Her casting is controversial, but Julia seems to get her fairy-tale ending when Josh gets down on one knee.

Fast forward fifteen months, and Julia and Josh are married and raising their baby in small-town Indiana. But with haters around every corner, Julia's life is a far cry from the domestic bliss she imagined. Then her splintering world shatters: Josh goes missing, and she becomes the prime suspect in his murder.

With no one left she can trust, Julia takes the investigation into her own hands. But the explosive truths she uncovers will drive her to her breaking point—and isn’t that where a person’s true nature is revealed? That is…if Julia truly is a person.

Told via dual timelines, Jenna Satterthwaite’s twist-filled debut deftly explores the exhilarating point where artificial intelligence, reality TV and bone-chilling murder mystery meet.

My Thoughts:  I downloaded this one by accident as it is not a genre that I typically read but the cover caught my eye, and the blurb looked interesting, so I thought I'd give it a try.  The premise was definitely interesting and not one I've seen before.  The writing did grab me and I liked Julia as a main character.  That said this was definitely my genre and I had a hard time really getting into the story.  Because of that I'm not going to rate the book but if the premise interests you I definitely recommend trying it.

Almost Famous Women by Megan Mayhew Bergman

Blurb:  The fascinating lives of the characters in Almost Famous Women have mostly been forgotten, but their stories are burning to be told. Now Megan Mayhew Bergman, author of Birds of a Lesser Paradise, resurrects these women, lets them live in the reader's imagination, so we can explore their difficult choices. Nearly every story in this dazzling collection is based on a woman who attained some celebrity—she raced speed boats or was a conjoined twin in show business; a reclusive painter of renown; a member of the first all-female, integrated swing band. We see Lord Byron's illegitimate daughter, Allegra; Oscar Wilde's troubled niece, Dolly; West With the Night author Beryl Markham; Edna St. Vincent Millay's sister, Norma. These extraordinary stories travel the world, explore the past (and delve into the future), and portray fiercely independent women defined by their acts of bravery, creative impulses, and sometimes reckless decisions.

My Thoughts:  This was an interesting concept and I do enjoy short story collections.  I liked exploring a snapshot in time for people who are adjacent to fame somehow.  Bergman is good at capturing a personality and feelings in a moment in time.  That said I think I would have liked a bit of an explanation as to just who was who and who they were connected to as there were times I got lost down that particular rabbit hole and wasn't focusing on the story itself.  My Rating: Liked It (3 Stars)

These books were received in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are my own.

Third Girl - Read Christie Challenge 2024 Review

Goodreads: Third Girl by Agatha Christie

Rating: Really Liked It! (4 Stars)
Source:   Publisher

Description:  Three young women share a London flat. The first is a coolly efficient secretary. The second is an artist. The third interrupts Hercule Poirot’s breakfast confessing that she is a murderer—and then promptly disappears. Slowly, Poirot learns of the rumors surrounding the mysterious third girl, her family, and her disappearance. Yet hard evidence is needed before the great detective can pronounce her guilty, innocent, or insane.

Genre: Mystery - Classic 

Why I Picked This Book:  This was the November pick for the Read Christie Challenge 2024.  

My Impression: I'm so glad this was the November pick because I remember it as not being a favorite but really ended up enjoying it.  Ariadne Oliver has a pretty big part, and I always enjoy her appearance in books.  The mystery is pure late 60s Christie with girls with lots of eyeliner and stringy hair and boys with velvet and curls.  Poirot is tolerant of the boys but not so fond of the ill-kempt girls.

The mystery is an interesting one as for quite some time there is no evidence that a murder was ever committed.  It's just clear that something is going on that isn't on the up and up.   Poirot and Oliver are busy with their investigation to figure out just what is going on and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride.  

That said this is definitely not on of Christie's best.   In her later books she tends to rely heavily on coincidence and her endings are quite as tied together as they are in her earlier books.  This is definitely the case with this book as well.  I enjoyed the read, but it is definitely not Christie at her best.  That said, if you're looking for a Christie that's a bit different or have yet to meet Ariadne Oliver this is a fun read - just don't hold it to the standard of Christie's earlier books.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Of course!  I'm already looking forward to my December Christie read and I'm excited about the 2025 Read Christie Challenge

Would I Recommend this Book? Yes - though with the understanding that it isn't Christie's best.  

Friday Fives - Five Christmas Reads on My TBR

 

I'm in a list making kind of mood so I thought I'd start making random fve lists.  Sometimes they'll be bookish other weeks not so much. This week I'm looking at 5 Christmas-y reads on my TBR.

1.  Christmas with the Queen by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb - I love the cover and have thoroughly enjoyed everything I've read by both of these authors.  

2.  The Santa Suit by Mary Kay Andrews - This has been on my TBR since it came out and it looks like a wonderfully Christmas-y feel good read.

3.  The December Market by RaeAnne Thayne - I love Thayne's Christmas reads and this looks nice and cozy.

4.  Murder on the Christmas Express by Alexandra Benedict - I have to include a mystery - especially one that plays homage to a Christie classic.

5.  A December to Remember by Jenny Bayliss - Sisters who don't get along, an antique store, a father they didn't really know, forced togetherness around the holidays - why haven't I read this yet?

What Christmas-y reads are on your TBR?

Books from the Backlog - Christmas at Holiday House

Today I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books for Books from the Backlog.  I really enjoy the chance to feature a book that's been hiding in the piles of books for far too long!

Goodreads:  Christmas at Holiday House by RaeAnne Thayne

Blurb:   This New Year will bring widowed nurse Abigail Powell a fresh start in a different city. Excited about the chance to create an unforgettable Christmas for her young son in picturesque Silver Bells, Colorado, Abby has been hired to take care of her dear friend’s recuperating grandmother. But sprightly senior Winnie insists she doesn’t need looking after. What she does need is help decorating her historic mansion, Holiday House, for a seasonal town fundraiser. Abby warms to the festive task, but she’ll have to contend with her own personal Grinch: Winnie’s prickly grandson, Ethan Lancaster.

Ethan Lancaster is good at a lot of things. Relationships surely aren’t one of them. His ex-fiancée convinced Ethan he was incapable of love, and he believes her…up until the moment he impulsively kisses Abby. What is it about this vibrant woman and her sweet son that knocks his world off-kilter? He knows they’re leaving town after Christmas. He just didn’t expect they’d be taking a little of his heart with them. But as he and Abby work together on the magical Holiday House through the record cold weather, visions of a different future dance in his head…one filled with warmth, love and a new beginning for them both.

Why It Needs to Come Off the Shelf:  No one does cozy Christmas stories like Thayne and this looks like a good one.