Book Review - Death on the Lanai (Golden Girls Cozy Mysteries) by Rachel Ekstrom Courage

My Review

The Golden Girls receive an invitation to a mysterious party, along with a beautiful butterfly brooch.  There is no indication which lady the invitation is directed to, so they travel together to a little island to attend the party together.  Blanche is delighted to find the host is her long ago beau from NYC named Declan;  he was an artist while she was a Rockette when they were both young.  She is happy to reconnect with him at the party, and surprised to see he has paintings of her at his home.  There is a power outage at his house and the next morning they wake up to find that Declan has died mysteriously.  The Golden Girls work together in this winding, spooky old house to solve the mystery.

I wanted to read Death on the Lanai because I read and loved the first mystery in this series.  I am an avid mystery fan and this is such a fun, fresh idea for a series.

The author does a remarkable job at the characters' voices.  I can't even imagine how many The Golden Girls episodes she must have watched to have the characters down so pat!   The zingy humor I remember from this series (one of my favorites!) is here, but there is also a well constructed mystery.

I love the mystery trope of a murder at a house party, with all the guests naturally becoming suspects.  Add in a remote island setting and a massive power outage!  It was interesting to see how Blanche, Rose, Dorothy, and Sophia work together under these trying circumstances to sleuth and solve the mystery.

Death on the Lanai is a delightful read, and I recommend it - and the first book in the series (Murder By Cheesecake) - to other cozy mystery fans, and especially for readers who love The Golden Girls.

Book Review and Giveaway - A Murderer’s Guide to Mardi Gras (Vintage Cookbook Mysteries) by Ellen Byron

My Review

Ricki James-Diaz is looking forward to a fun Mardi Gras season, with great sales in her vintage cookbook shop and being part of a Mardi Gras krewe for the first time.  Then the krewe's captain ends up dead and his wife (a friend of Ricki) is a suspect.  Ricki ends up sleuthing, as she juggles work, friends, and her boyfriend Virgil (who is being crowned king).  Then things get really dangerous . . .

I wanted to read A Murderer's Guide to Mardi Gras because I absolutely love this series.  It's one of my favorites:  vintage cookbooks, New Orleans, and an appealing cast of characters.

This was a fun read!  I have enjoyed this entire series but I think this book is my favorite.  I really liked the Mardi Gras setting.  I've been to Mardi Gras and loved the "behind the scenes" glimpses we get in this book.

A Murderer's Guide to Mardi Gras is an exciting mystery story.  We have the current mystery along with growing danger for Ricki as she investigates the murder.

As always, I enjoyed Ricki's family, her friends, her boyfriend Virgil, and her pets (two dogs and a cat with the cute name Red Beans).

I love the vintage cookbook references and tidbits in this book (and the others in the series).  I collect (and sell!) vintage cookbooks and often find myself looking up a cookbook that I read about in this series.

I enthusiastically recommend A Murder's Guide to Mardi Gras to other cozy mystery fans.  You will love the New Orleans Mardi Gras setting and the well done mystery storyline with just the right amount of twists and turns!

Book Synopsis

It’s cozy. It’s culinary. It’s Mardi Gras madness! It’s the fifth book in this fabulous mystery series with a vintage flair from USA Today-bestselling and Agatha Award–winning author Ellen Byron.

Step 1: Join a Killer Krewe

It’s carnival season in New Orleans, and Ricki James-Diaz and her friends from Bon Vee are dressing up for Mardi Gras. They’ve joined the notorious krewe of Chew to support Ricki’s chef boyfriend, Virgil, who is to be crowned this year’s king. It’s all fun, throws, and over-the-top outfits until the krewe’s captain is found strangled with his own medallion.

Step 2: Survive the Festivities

The prime suspect is Ricki’s friend, the deceased’s wife who discovered he was cheating on her. It seems a straightforward case, but Ricki isn’t so sure. The krewe’s leader had many enemies including his mistress, his krewe co-founder who he ousted, and his college friend whose girlfriend he stole. One thing’s clear, Ricki’s at the center of yet another murder investigation. And if she’s not careful, her first Mardi Gras could also be her last . . .

Perfect for fans of Joanne Fluke, these delightful mysteries bring New Orleans to life with fun characters and delicious recipes. This series is a must-read for culinary cozy lovers!

Author Bio

Ellen is a bestselling author, Anthony nominee, and recipient of multiple Agatha and Lefty awards for her Cajun Country Mysteries, Vintage Cookbook Mysteries,  Catering Hall Mysteries (as Maria DiRico), and Golden Motel Mysteries. She is also an award-winning playwright and non-award-winning writer of TV hits like Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly OddParents, but considers her most impressive achievement working as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart.

A native New Yorker, Ellen is a graduate of Tulane University and lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, daughter, and a rotating crew of rescue pups. Visit her at http://www.ellenbyron.com/.

Author Links

Newsletter: https://www.ellenbyron.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellenbyronauthor/ https://www.facebook.com/CateringHallMysteries/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ellenbyronmariadirico/

BookBub:  https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ellen-byron https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maria-dirico

Goodreads:  Ellen Byron (Author of Plantation Shudders) | Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19130966.Maria_DiRico

Purchase Links – Amazon –Bookshop.org – B&N – Hudson Books – 

Giveaway

Book Review - The Half Life by Rachel Beanland

My Review

In the early 1970's, Eileen O’Malley meets Paul Archer in Charleston.  After a whirlwind courtship, they marry and move to a small island in Italy, where Paul is a Navy officer on a Navy ship, dealing with submarines that carry nuclear material.  Paul is busy long days, and Eileen immerses herself into the community of officers' wives.  She meets a local journalist, Teo, by chance;  he is investigating what is happening with the American military presence on the island.  They click immediately and she gets to know his friends, who are wary of the military involvement.  Things begin to change, and Eileen questions what she wants and what she should do next.

I wanted to read this The Half Life because the 1970's setting intrigued me.  The plot description was unique and interesting - a military wife far from home on an idyllic Italian island.

This was such an immersive novel!  The author does a beautiful job at capturing the island of La Maddalena, and I found myself experiencing a world I'd never considered.  The island is beautiful, with some warm people, like Eileen's Italian tutor, Francesca, with wonderful food and beautiful scenery ... but there is also a discontent and danger bubbling beneath the surface.

As Eileen gets to know Teo and his Italian friends who are scientists and protesters, she also finds herself caught in a web of secrets and lies between this world and her life with her husband Paul and the military wives she has befriended.

I read this book quickly because I couldn't put it down.  It is a wonderful summer read, and a treat for historical fiction fans.  Highly recommended!

   

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book. 

Book Review - The Secret Society of Librarians by Kate Thompson

My Review

The Secret Society of Librarians is a historical novel set during World War II.  In London, Joyce Kindred is a librarian who finds her library has been bombed.  It is during the Blitz, and she starts a mobile library with the help of a young Jewish refugee named Adela.  In Poland, Dorotha (older sister of Adela) can no longer work as a librarian in the Polish Ghetto due to the oppression of the Nazi party.  She creates a small secret library.  Dorotha and Joyce are part of a group of friends from library school, and the story involves their network of friends.

I wanted to read this book because I have enjoyed Kate Thompson's other WWII novels (especially The Little Wartime Library).  I read a lot of historical fiction, and am interested in the 1940's time period.

This novel is told in alternating viewpoints by Joyce and Dorotha.  They face struggles both personally and as librarians, but they were very committed to the motto of their group of librarian friends:

"And thanks to Virginia Woolf, it came to her. “What about ‘Libertatem per Lectio’?” Joyce asked, her eyes shining. “It stands for ‘freedom through reading.’”  (eBook location 191).

Joyce shelters in the London underground along with Adela and an older friend they look out for.  The book depicts the frightening bombing that happened during the Blitz.  In one dramatic scene, Joyce and her beau are visiting St. Paul's Cathedral with its huge and winding library passages and they leave just to find the city being bombed.

The hardships that Dorotha faces are unimaginable, and heartbreaking to read.  She loses family, work, and lives with hunger and deprivation beyond imagination.

These women hold on to their ideals - the importance of books and reading, kindness and compassion for others, and a long lasting friendship. They are truly heroic figures.

I recommend The Secret Society of Librarians for historical fiction readers, and especially for anyone with an interest in World War II fiction.

Thanks to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book.

Book Review and Giveaway - All Aboard for Murder (A Golden Motel Mystery) by Ellen Byron

My Review

All Aboard for Murder is a cozy mystery set at the Golden Motel, a renovated retro motel in California’s Gold Country.  Dee Stern runs the motel with her ex-husband turned best friend, Jeff Cornetta.  It’s Halloween and they are anticipating a big spooky season at the motel.  They don’t anticipate murder though.  Moses Sprockles, who runs the town’s old railroad, is discovered dead.  Dee begins sleuthing, with a number of suspects, including a pair of spoiled former child stars who are staying at the motel.

I wanted to read All Aboard for Murder because I love this series.  It’s one of my favorites!  I really love the retro motel setting, and the California Gold Rush town is fun.  

This is a fast paced mystery with a lot of characters.  The author has included a Cast of Characters section listing all the characters and their place in this little corner of the world.  It’s very helpful!

I like Dee as a sleuth.  She’s smart and as she states herself, “I’m obsessed with people’s backstories.  You know, people’s pasts.” (eBook location 2760)

Her coworker Ma’am adds, “That’s what makes you a good writer.  And a good snoop.”  (eBook location 2761).

I like the extended cast that recurs in this series, including Dee’s father Sam, who plays Prospector Pete for family groups visiting the motel; her folksy older coworkers Ma’am and Mister Ma’am; her hound dog Nugget; and of course Bud the Bear!

I enthusiastically recommend All Aboard for Murder for other cozy mystery fans.  Anyone interested in Mid-Century motels or folksy American road trips will absolutely adore this mystery.  Do yourself a favor and read the entire Golden Motel series - it is great fun, and you will enjoy seeing the characters interact over the different books.

Book Synopsis

Dee Stern is starting to feel at home running her Golden Motel in the quaint California village she moved to, leaving behind her LA life as a sitcom writer. But a killer sees the town’s Halloween celebration as a golden opportunity to write a script for murder . . .

It’s October in Gold Rush country and all manner of tricks and treats are happening in the lead-up to Halloween. October also happens to be the birthday of Angus Sprockles, the man responsible for the town being designated a historic landmark, and the residents are celebrating his memory as well. His only living descendant, Moses Sprockles, runs the narrow-gauge railroad—once used to ferry lumber from the mountains to the sawmill, now a tourist attraction. The Sprockles Railroad is hosting a Halloween-themed fundraiser for the Historical Society.

But when a body is found on the tracks, it’s not a Halloween prank. It’s Moses himself, seemingly felled by a fallen tree branch. Dee’s dad Sam is convinced his friend is the victim of foul play and urges his daughter to apply her sleuthing skills. Dee’s train of thought leads her to suspects ranging from a former child star and one-hit wonder, the owner of a nail salon with her claws in everything, and even the mayor. When a self-proclaimed ghost hunter throws his hat in the ring and claims to know who did it, the investigation really goes off the rails. No matter how crazy things get, Dee is determined to blow the whistle on a runaway killer with a one-track mind.

Author Bio

Ellen is a bestselling author, Anthony nominee, and recipient of multiple Agatha and Lefty awards for her Cajun Country Mysteries, Vintage Cookbook Mysteries,  Catering Hall Mysteries (as Maria DiRico), and Golden Motel Mysteries. She is also an award-winning playwright and non-award-winning writer of TV hits like Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly OddParents, but considers her most impressive achievement working as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart.

A native New Yorker, Ellen is a graduate of Tulane University and lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, daughter, and a rotating crew of rescue pups. Visit her at http://www.ellenbyron.com/.

Author Links

Newsletter: https://www.ellenbyron.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellenbyronauthor/ https://www.facebook.com/CateringHallMysteries/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ellenbyronmariadirico/

BookBub:  https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ellen-byron https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maria-dirico

Goodreads:  Ellen Byron (Author of Plantation Shudders) | Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19130966.Maria_DiRico

Purchase Links – Amazon – Kensington – Bookshop.org – B&N – Hudson Books – Target – Walmart 

Giveaway