Book Review: Christmas Nights at the Star and Lantern (Heritage Cove #6) by Helen Rolfe  @helen_j_rolfe

Christmas Nights at the Star and Lantern
(Heritage Cove #6)
by Helen Rolfe 

  
 A wonderful story of love, friendship and opening your mind and your heart to new possibilities that will enchant fans of Holly Martin and Heidi Swain.

The Copper Plough is at the heart of village life for the residents of Heritage Cove, and never more so than at Christmas, when the tree glows in the alcove and the smell of mulled wine carries out onto the street. So when new owners for the beloved pub arrive and decide to shake things up, not everyone welcomes the changes with open arms.

Local bakery owner Celeste is ready to keep an open mind. But she’s shocked to discover that one of the new landlords is Quinn, a former Navy sailor with whom she had a short but powerful romance years earlier.

Fate may have brought Quinn and Celeste back together, but life seems determined to keep them apart. Can the villagers learn to embrace the newcomers this Christmas? And will Quinn and Celeste find a way back to each other before snow falls over Heritage Cove?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

Family comes in all shapes and sizes. And maybe this is the shape of ours. I can’t see anything else I want more.

My Review:

 

I enjoy this author’s work, her writing is entertaining and easy to slot myself into. I often felt as if I was sitting at a table while sipping a libation and watching it occur. The characters were realistically constructed and worth investing in and caring for. Each one was uniquely quirked and flawed, yet knowable and endearing. I look forward to returning to this series for more of the same.

Helen J Rolfe writes romantic fiction and contemporary women’s fiction and enjoys weaving stories about family, friendship, secrets, and community.

Location is a big part of the adventure in Helen’s books and she enjoys setting stories in different cities and countries where she thinks her readers might like to escape to.

Book Review: Christmas at Corgi Cove by Annie England Noblin    @aenoblin

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Rosie Reynolds had come to lakeside Corgi Cove as a lost, lonely girl abandoned by her own mother, but there she discovered a true place to call home. She loves her Corgis, Bonnie and Clyde; loves the lakeside life; and loves her aunt and uncle most of all. But when she discovers their struggling inn is about to be bought out by some big city chain, she hatches a plan: to win a contest naming theirs the best Christmas-themed inn in the USA. It’s a long shot, but she knows if the whole town pulls together that they can do it.

But she didn’t count on Everett St Claire, who emerged from his gleaming, black BMW, straightening his tie and asking himself how did a big-city guy like him find himself in a speck on the map like Corgi Cove? And how fast could he get back to the city? After all, it couldn’t be that difficult to convince one elderly couple to take the money to retire.

He didn’t count on getting sucked into life on the lake. Sure, the people might be…eccentric, and Rosie might seem like a pain in the backside, but there was something alluring about the place. And with the holidays nearing, and the deadline looming, Rosie and Everett were about to discover the magic of a Christmas at Corgi Cove.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

She wanted to be happy. Really, she did. She just didn’t know how to get there.

My Review:

I always enjoy this smooth scribe’s work, her writing is a pleasure to read, easy to fall into, and unfailingly engaging. She always manages to cleverly incorporate naughty yet endearing animal antics in between small-town eccentrics and quirky humans and places all within the most unusual of communities while still managing to give them real-world problems to overcome and personal issues to hamper them. Annie England Noblin’s amusing tales have tails.

Annie England Noblin lives with her son, husband, and three dogs in the Missouri Ozarks. She graduated with an M.A. in creative writing from Missouri State University and currently teaches English and communications for Arkansas State University in Mountain Home, Arkansas. She spends her free time playing make-believe, feeding stray cats, and working with animal shelters across the country to save homeless dogs.

 

Book Review: Christmas at the Cat Café by Jessica Redland @jessicaredlandauthor

Christmas at the Cat Café
by Jessica Redland

 

It’s the most wonderful time of the year on Castle Street, and there’s a paw-some new business opening….

It had always been Tabby’s dream to work with cats and an inheritance from her beloved nanna has finally made that a reality. Idyllic Castle Street in Whitsborough Bay couldn’t be a better place for pastry chef Tabby to open a cat café with her boyfriend, Leon.

But when Leon leaves her in the lurch, the pressure mounts for Tabby. With Christmas fast approaching, she has to open the café on her own – a daunting prospect, especially when she’s been hiding her health issues from the ones she loves.

Faced with local resistance to the café – and somebody seemingly determined that she won’t succeed – Tabby will need her friends, family and cats more than ever to recover her broken Christmas spirit and pull together for a Christmas miracle.

Will the cat café bring the festive joy to Castle Street as Tabby had hoped or will it be a cat-astrophe? And can the magic of Christmas on Castle Street mend Tabby’s broken heart as well as her business?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I thought I knew him so well, but so much of what he’d done this year bewildered me. Perhaps I shouldn’t be mourning my loss. Perhaps I should be celebrating a lucky escape.

This is my big dream but, right now, it feels more like a nightmare.

I was planning to do the classic stereotypical man thing of shopping on Christmas Eve and panic-buying rubbish gifts.

My Review:

 

Christmas, cats, frequent mentions of baked goods, and Jessica Redland’s writing, I knew I’d like this one since I’m a kitten rescuer myself. The characters were gentle people and their storylines focused on real-life issues and were chaste enough for my elderly mother’s book club and easy to follow, although ever so slowly paced. I found myself growing impatient with the repetition of her health concerns, although understandably, dealing with a chronic illness can be all-consuming. There were a few surprise turns, a slow-burn romance, and a bit of a mystery to solve before ending with a much anticipated and appreciated HEA.

 

 

Jessica Redland writes uplifting stories of love, friendship, family, and community set in Yorkshire where she lives. Her Whitsborough Bay books transport readers to the stunning North Yorkshire Coast and her Hedgehog Hollow series takes them into the beautiful countryside of the Yorkshire Wolds.

 

Book Review: The First Girl (Detective Katie Scott #11) by Jennifer Chase

The First Girl
(Detective Katie Scott #11)
by Jennifer Chase

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The cold night breeze slams the barn door shut with a sickening crash. The girl curled in the corner wakes with a start. Her gold butterfly necklace catches the pale moonlight as she clutches it tight, thinking of her family. Will she ever escape? Or is his the last face she’ll ever see?

Detective Katie Scott stares in horror at what she and her service dog Cisco have discovered: seven shallow graves, the bodies of young women each wrapped carefully in a blanket and buried in makeshift coffins. Miles of abandoned farmland stretch out from the treeline behind her. Has Katie uncovered the horrifying graveyard of a monster who has been stealing Pine Valley’s daughters for years?

Katie quickly identifies one of the victims as Abigail Andrews, a beautiful young woman who disappeared fifteen years ago. Katie is heartbroken that she’ll have to tell Abigail’s mother her darling girl is gone.

When Katie is ambushed working late at the scene, fired upon by an unknown assailant, she knows she must be close to finding the killer. But the shooter vanishes into thin air. And when a new young woman is taken, dark haired and dark eyed like the others, Katie realizes her time is running out. Can she stay alive long enough to track down this twisted murderer before another young life is stolen too soon?

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

This place reminds me of a horror film where the protagonist’s car breaks down… and then you know the rest.

 

My Review:

 

This one was cringe-worthy, well-contrived, and kept me guessing throughout the entirety, and I just love it when that happens. I’m a bit late to the party as this is my first time reading this clever scribe’s twisty tales, but I never felt at a loss jumping into the series at book number 11 as it had strong legs and danced well on its own.

 

Jennifer Chase is a multi award-winning author and consulting criminologist. She has authored eight crime fiction novels, including the multiple award-winning Emily Stone thriller series along with a screenwriting workbook.

Jennifer holds a Bachelor degree in police forensics and a Master’s degree in criminology. These academic pursuits developed out of her curiosity about the criminal mind as well as from her own experience with a violent sociopath, providing Jennifer with deep personal investment in every story she tells. In addition, she holds certifications in serial crime and criminal profiling. She is an affiliate member of the International Association of Forensic Criminologists.

Book Review: Summer Hates Christmas by Rachel Dove @writerdove

Summer Hates Christmas
by Rachel Dove

 

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Summer Hastings HATES Christmas. She loves sunshine, the beach and running her travel agency, sending people off to their dream destinations – even if she doesn’t get to see the world for herself. For Summer, Christmas sucks! So, when handsome and charming Noel Pritchett moves his pop-up Christmas shop in to the store next to hers, Summer sees red.
Noel loves Christmas…and he quite likes Summer too, if only he could break through the anti-Christmas armour she has surrounded herself with. Just why does Summer hate Christmas so much? And can Noel be the one to prove to her that it really is the most wonderful time of the year?
An enemies to lovers, grumpy sunshine, rom com from bestselling author Rachel Dove.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Life was pretty good here at times. Times like this, when the air of opportunity and promise seemed so fresh and ripe, there for the taking. She loved the scent of delusion in the morning.

Her mother had less of a carbon footprint than the ants they got in the kitchen every summer. One ant, even.

His mum took a sip of her tea, sitting back amongst her plumped cushions. She looked as though she was drinking the blood of her fallen adversaries whilst sitting on a throne of crushed bones and skulls.

‘I’m sorry, dearest girlfriend, of course you are nothing but sweetness and light. I was the one in the wrong… And furthermore, I am declaring now that you will always be beautiful, and I will always be wrong.

 

My Review:

 

While entertaining and uniquely quirky, this tale wasn’t always an easy read, a few of the characters were prone to nasty tirades and were rather vile at times. I didn’t fully appreciate the main character of Summer until near the end of the book as she was prickly, had a short fuse and a sharp tongue, and wasn’t someone I would choose to share air with. Yet this crafty wordsmith still had me invested in the story and curious as to how it would unfold.

 

I am a wife, mother of two boys, avid reader and writer of words. I sometimes sleep, always have eye bags and dream of retiring to a big white house in Cornwall, with 2 shaggy dogs, drinking wine on my seafront balcony whilst creating works of romantic fiction. All done with immaculate make up and floaty dresses.

In the meantime I nearly always remember to brush my hair, seldom have time to look in a mirror and write many, many to-do lists. I write fast paced sexy medical romances for Mills & Boon, and contemporary fiction and romantic comedies for HQ Digital and Boldwood Books. I always have a few books in progress, and am always jotting down new shiny ideas to torment myself with.

Book Review: The Christmas Guest by Peter Swanson @petermswanson

The Christmas Guest
by Peter Swanson

 

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New York Times bestselling author Peter Swanson pens a spectacularly spine-chilling novella in which an American art student in London is invited to join a classmate for the holidays at Starvewood Hall, her family’s Cotswold manor house. But behind the holly and pine boughs, secrets are about to unravel, revealing this seemingly charming English village’s grim history.

Ashley Smith, an American art student in London for her junior year, was planning on spending Christmas alone, but a last-minute invitation from fellow student Emma Chapman brings her to Starvewood Hall, country residence of the Chapman family. The Cotswold manor house, festooned in pine boughs and crammed with guests for Christmas week, is a dream come true for Ashley. She is mesmerized by the cozy, firelit house, the large family, and the charming village of Clevemoor, but also by Adam Chapman, Emma’s aloof and handsome brother.

But Adam is being investigated by the local police over the recent brutal slaying of a girl from the village, and there is a mysterious stranger who haunts the woodland path between Starvewood Hall and the local pub. Ashley begins to wonder what kind of story she is actually inhabiting. Is she in a grand romance? A gothic tale? Or has she wandered into something far more sinister and terrifying than she’d ever imagined?

Over thirty years later the events of that horrific week are revisited, along with a diary from that time. What began in a small English village in 1989 reaches its ghostly conclusion in modern-day New York, many Christmas seasons later.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

It’s looking like I’m in more of a murder mystery now than a romance. Or maybe I’m in both. It’s all very exciting, plus a little bit creepy.

When you’re young you think there are so many possible roads, but when you’re my age, you’ve been on the same road for a long time, and there’s no getting off of it.

 

My Review:

 

Well, that was unexpectedly twisty! I fell right into this one from page one and never saw any of this coming. While it was a short read it felt just right.  It was brilliantly paced and populated with a collection of disconcerting yet seductively captivating characters that kept me a bit tense, yet invested and tethered to my Kindle. Peter Swanson has mad skills.

 

 

 

Peter Swanson is the New York Times bestselling author of The Kind Worth Killing, winner of the New England Society Book Award and finalist for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger; Her Every Fear, an NPR book of the year; and Eight Perfect Murders, a New York Times bestseller, among others. His books have been translated into 30 languages, and his stories, poetry, and features have appeared in Asimov’s Science Fiction, The Atlantic Monthly, Measure, The Guardian, The Strand Magazine, and Yankee Magazine. He lives on the North Shore of Massachusetts, where he is at work on his next novel.

Book Review: The Vintage Village Bake Off by Judy Leigh @judyrleigh

The Vintage Village Bake Off
by Judy Leigh

 

 

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Now in his seventies, Robert Parkin is stunned to find himself the unlikely sex symbol of the village gardening club.

Living in happy solitude with his cat Isaac Mewton in the Devon village of Millbrook, entertained by his mischievous chickens and goats, Robert has never figured out the rules of romance. But as the local ladies vie for his company, it soon becomes clear that Robert’s Victoria Sponge cake is the lure, and as his baking prowess grows, so does his confidence.

Cheesecakes, meringues, puddings, Robert can do it all, but his real masterpieces are his scones – ginger, rosemary, coconut, fruit, his recipes are inspired and soon come to the attention of the local media. Which county does the best cream tea – Devon or Cornwall? It’s time for an age-old debate to be settled with a competition.

Robert’s sisters Bunty and Hattie are both at crossroads in their lives, so news of their brother’s baking competition is the perfect excuse to bring them to Millbrook. And as the siblings relish each other’s company, and Robert relishes being at the heart of his community, a summer of scones may just light the way to long-lasting happiness for them all.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

She stood grimly between Aunt Maud and Aunt Dorothy, who sported matching sour faces, pillar-box-red lipstick and jackets with fur collars that looked as if rats had died simultaneously around their necks.

Robert was perplexed. Women were an unknown land that he’d seldom visited and he didn’t know where to buy a map.

 

My Review:

 

One, Two, Three, Four – There’s going to be a SCONE WAR!

Another fun and delightful read from Judy Leigh, I can always count on her for giggle-snorts as well as several good belly laughs during perusal. This missive has three senior citizen siblings reconnecting after a lifetime of poor choices for one, lack of choices for another, and handfuls of missed opportunities for the third. They fell into their second chances and found “gardening groupies” at seventy, we should all be so lucky!

Ms. Leigh’s clever humor and observant insights sparkled throughout with quirky villagers, battling journalists, vamping widows, and witty monikers given to chickens such as Hen Solo, Jabba the Cluck, Princess Lay-a, and Dora the Eggs-plorer; goats named Vincent Van Goat and The Great Goatsby; and a cat named Isaac Mewton. I dare anyone to keep a straight face while reading. In fact, I’m tossing out a double-dog dare!

About the Author

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.Judy Leigh is the bestselling author of Five French Hens, A Grand Old Time, and The Age of Misadventure, and the doyenne of the ‘it’s never too late’ genre of women’s fiction. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset.

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Book Review: Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan

Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop
by Jenny Colgan

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Your most delightful holiday read: the sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller The Christmas Bookshop, from beloved Scottish author Jenny Colgan.

Christmas comes early–far too early–to McCredie’s little Old Town bookshop in Edinburgh. It’s summer, but an American production company has decided that McCredie’s is the perfect location to film a very cheesy Christmas movie. After all, who can resist the charmingly narrow historic street with its Victorian grey stone buildings and warmly lit shop windows?

Carmen Hogan, the bookshop’s manager, is amused and a bit horrified by the goings-on, but the money the studio is paying is too good to pass up. She uses the little windfall from filming to create new displays and fend off a buyout offer from an obnoxious millionaire who wants to turn McCredie’s into a souvenir shop selling kilts made in China and plastic Nessies. Still reeling slightly from a breakup, Carmen’s not particularly looking forward to the holidays. But just as snow begins to fall and the lights of Christmas blink on, all sorts of lovely new possibilities present themselves…for McCredie’s bookstore, and for Carmen herself.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Bronagh in the magic shop had a theory that immaculately groomed, rich, working Edinburgh women with well- behaved children were all witches, because there was no other way of doing it.

Phoebe had a frowzy face, always looking slightly suspicious of the world, as if she’d tried it all already and it hadn’t pleased her.

…he felt himself, misshapen and awkward, a paradox of desires, as the loose threads of the world pulled and stretched him every which way.

He was the kind of guy, Carmen thought, that if you disagreed with him in any way would, depending on how much he wanted to sleep with you, either call you “feisty” or ask if you were on your period. It seemed unlikely there was a middle ground. His eyes flicked her up and down in a way she couldn’t bear and made her want to kick him and run away, the way the children weren’t allowed to.

When someone is trying to wind you up and succeeds in winding you up it is one of the worst feelings on earth. You feel irritated and cheated all at once.

Every day, it seemed, she lost something. She hadn’t felt like this with the others; she’d always been excited to see them move on to the next stage: walking, talking, exploring. But if she could have a vampire bite Eric she would have.

It was Jackson McClockerty, of course, dressed in bright red Stewart tartan trousers that made his bum look frankly enormous, as if it was about to float into the air like a pair of balloons.

My Review:

 

Jenny Colgan always hits all the feels between generous servings of well-honed humor and acute observations. This one was as insightfully written as it was cleverly amusing. I was giggle-snorting with glee at the author’s snarky humor and oddly fractured characters, with the frozen city of Edinburgh at Christmas also having a starring role. The writing was easy to fall into, emotive, and highly descriptive. I live in the tropics yet I felt the constant chill of their drafty rooms and Arctic winds as I read.

 

About the Author

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Jenny Colgan is the New York Times-bestselling author of numerous novels, including The Bookshop on the Corner, Little Beach Street Bakery, and Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery, all international bestsellers. Jenny is married with three children and lives in London and Scotland.

Book Review: Notes on a Murder by B.P. Walter

Notes on a Murder
by B.P. Walter

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Everyone is capable of murder. Are you?

It started with an invitation to dinner. An evening of good food and good company at a luxury villa. But as the night progresses, the party takes a dark turn.

The host makes you an offer, a party favour he calls it: another guest has committed a heinous crime, you can end their life, stop their terror. He tells you there will be no consequences; do you believe him?

Your decision will change your life. Choose carefully.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I open my mouth. Then decide it’s best not to go into it. If there’s one thing life has taught me, it is not to play one’s cards too soon.

Well, I hate to state the obvious, but “gay people” aren’t one homogenous mass who all think the same thing. Maybe you shouldn’t believe everything you read on Twitter. Although at least you said “gay people” and not a bundle of letters.

 

My Review:

 

This one kept me guessing to the very end, and oh, how I do love it when that happens. This was my introduction to this twisty scribe. He has conjured a batch of odd and quirky characters who were itchy/scratchy and continually prodded and sparked my curiosity. I will most definitely be coming back for more.

About the Author

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B.P. Walter is the Sunday Times bestselling author of psychological thrillers. He was born and raised in Essex, England and after spending his childhood and teenage years reading compulsively, he worked in bookshops then went to the University of Southampton to study Film and English. He is an alumnus of the Faber Academy and formerly worked in social media coordination. His debut novel, A Version of the Truth, was published in 2019, followed by Hold Your Breath in 2020, and The Dinner Guest, which was chosen as a Waterstones Book of the Month, in April 2021. His most recent novels are The Woman on the Pier and The Locked Attic.

Book Review: Murder on the Cornish Cliffs (A Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery #16) by Verity Bright  @#veritybright  @Bookouture 

Murder on the Cornish Cliffs
(A Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery #16)
by Verity Bright

 

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A festive invitation from an old family friend, the promise of gingerbread at the village inn, snowy walks on the Cornish coast with Gladstone the bulldog… But wait, is that a body on the beach?

Winter, 1923. It’s nearly Christmas and Lady Eleanor Swift has received a rather strange letter from an old friend of her uncle. Mr Godfrey Cunliffe has asked her to stay in Cornwall for the holidays – but only because he believes his gardener is trying to poison him! With not a moment to waste Eleanor hurries down to his picturesque manor house with her butler Clifford and handsome beau Detective Hugh Seldon. But they arrive too late to stop the crime…

Lying dead at the bottom of the steep cliffs, however, is not Mr. Cunliffe, but the gardener himself. And his plans for restoring the gardens to their former glory are missing. Jerome St. Clair has gone from suspect to victim. This certainly puts a twist in the tinsel!

As snow begins to fall, Eleanor quizzes the family. Mr. Cunliffe’s alibi is as fragile as the glass baubles hanging from his towering Christmas tree. Eleanor quickly realizes everyone from the handyman to the housekeeper is keeping secrets, and she’s convinced that Mr. Cunliffe is still scared for his life.

When Gladstone the bulldog pulls a charred corner of the missing garden plans from a fireplace festooned with a gold-ribboned garland, Eleanor thinks the clue she needs is hiding out on the grounds. But when someone tries to run her over with the huge lawnmower, she knows she must wrap up the mystery fast before her Christmas is canceled for good…

Murder on the Cornish Cliffs is a fun, twisty, and absolutely gripping historical English cozy mystery, perfect for fans of T.E. Kinsey, Catherine Coles, and Agatha Christie.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

Now face to face, she couldn’t help arriving at the uncharitable conclusion that he must have been drawn nose first, and then the artist had lost heart.

 

My Review:

 

This is such a fun and enjoyable series that keeps me guessing as well as pleasantly entertained. This installment was the longest and most complicated mystery yet. I would never have come to this conclusion as I had been suspecting the wrong person for most of the book. This adventure was completely away from home and without her ladies for backup, yet her ever-prepared, flawlessly presented, and perfectly kitted butler was more than up to the task of keeping Eleanor alive and squabbling with clever wit and high style.

About the Author

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Verity Bright is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing partnership that has spanned a quarter of a century. Starting out writing high-end travel articles and books, they published everything from self-improvement to humor, before embarking on their first historical mystery. They are the authors of the fabulous Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery series, set in the 1920s.
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