Month: December 2018

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Book Review: Next In Line by Amy Daws

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What happens when the cute mountain man you made out within an ice fishing shack turns out to be your brother’s best friend?

A whole lot of awkward, that’s what.

NOW LIVE! 

Maggie’s mind is reeling when she discovers the guy she became tangled up with at Marv’s Bait & Tackle isn’t a stranger like she thought.

The big snag: Sam and Maggie’s chemistry is hot enough to melt ice, which makes keeping their secret far more difficult than either expected.

Especially when one of them decides they want this arrangement to be more than just a catch and release.

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Review

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

An older gentleman shoulders past me with his clear plastic tub, ready to collect his bait as though it’s the body of Christ being passed out by the pope himself. Several other men press up against my back, all anxiously awaiting their turn because finally…ice fishing season has begun.

 

Girls…my darling grandchildren clearly don’t need to watch you two have a catfight, so please, sit down and eat your feelings like normal mothers.

 

Why not make him your last fling before the ring?

 

The guy has zero sexual chemistry. He’s like an amoeba or something. Aren’t those the single cell animals that just have sex with themselves?

 

I keep thinking about what Maggie would be rambling about if she were out here. She’d probably ask about when fish sleep, and where they sleep, and if they sleep with their families, or if they’re just swimming along and all of a sudden blackout only to wake up the next day and discover they’ve lost their entire family.

 

“I was getting bait for a guy in here the other day, and he said I looked like a great master baiter. I said, I’ve only been working here a couple of months, and I didn’t even know being a master baiter was a thing.”… Marv’s face twists up in confusion. “I’ve heard of Promaster fishermen. But not master baiters. Surely, I’m a master baiter. I’ve been doing it my whole life.”… “You’re clearly a great master baiter,” Maggie replies with wide eyes. “But I wonder how much practice it’ll take for me to become one?”

 

My Review:

 

I quickly fell into the vortex of this smartly written and brightly amusing tale and was instantly besotted with the quirky and endearing characters. I smirked and giggle-snorted my way through this delightfully humorous story. I savored each and every perfectly chosen and magically arranged word, although they were most often this side of naughty with frequent f-bombs since it is surely a well-known fact that the highly talented scribbler known as Amy Daws brings the heat of a Scottish Bonnet pepper and clearly excels at cleverly bawdy humor. I want all her lovely words and had a difficult time paring my favorite quotes down to the massive list I included in this review due to the fact that I had highlighted several reams worth of her witty levity. Wait With Me and Next In Line were two of my favorite reads of the year, so it seems quite fitting that I close out 2018 with this rave review.

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Amy Daws is an Amazon Top 25 bestselling author of sexy, contemporary romance novels. She enjoys writing love stories that take place in America, as well as across the pond in England; especially about those footy-playing Harris Brothers of hers. When Amy is not writing in a tire shop waiting room, she’s watching Gilmore Girls, or singing karaoke in the living room with her daughter while Daddy smiles awkwardly from a distance.
For more of Amy’s work, visit: http://www.amydawsauthor.com

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Book Review: So Then There Were None: a Tale of Ten Little Bridesmaids (The Flower Shop Mystery Series Book 5) by Annie Adams

So Then There Were None: a Tale of Ten Little Bridesmaids 

The Flower Shop Mystery – Book 5

by Annie Adams 

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU / B&N

 

When she said she’d rather die than be a bridesmaid, she didn’t mean it literally…

Reluctant bridesmaid Quincy McKay hopes this island wedding breezes by in a hurry. But when the couple announces a murder mystery game, the amateur sleuth is willing to take her time to earn the prize money. She thinks the cash is as good as hers until one evening’s sinister turn makes it impossible to tell the difference between entertainment and cold-blooded murder…

With few friends among the wedding party, Quincy can’t help but label everyone a suspect. As the bridesmaids disappear one-by-one, it’s only a matter of time until the ruthless game calls her number.

Will Quincy unravel the plot before she perishes in paradise?

So Then There Were None: A Tale of Ten Little Bridesmaids is a thrilling standalone in The Flower Shop Mystery Series of cozy mysteries. If you like lots of laughs, hair-raising plots, and twists that keep you guessing, then you’ll love Annie Adams’ delightful homage to an Agatha Christie classic.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I didn’t have bosoms to speak of. At least, no one I knew ever spoke of them, probably because they weren’t that easy to detect with the naked human eye.

 

I followed the direction of his gaze to see what had caused his eyes to become the size of dinner plates. And I’m sure mine had done the same, because we were about to be surrounded by mountains. Mountains of flesh in this case, which bulged out the sides of tiny, taut triangles of fabric, held together by strings that must have been made from the same material as the suspension cables from the Golden Gate Bridge for all the load the tiny strands were supporting. The “Ees,” had all donned bikinis and not much of anything else… I glanced at Alex, who pretended to look in the opposite direction as the flesh-fest. “It’s okay, you don’t have to pretend,” I said. I lowered my voice. “I can’t expect you to be super-human. Although I think a large percentage of their bodies might not actually be human anymore.”

 

Her steps were measured, almost prancing. I looked back at Alex to see if he noticed too. I realized she was trying to tiptoe, so as not to draw any attention. Since that portion of the room was carpeted, there was no point to her sneaky walk and she just ended up looking like a character in a Bugs Bunny cartoon.

 

I couldn’t move. It wasn’t because I had hurt myself—seriously, that is. I was definitely experiencing some physical pain. But I was frozen, due to the most overwhelming embarrassment I had ever experienced in my life. This beat out wetting my pants in front of the entire elementary school and their parents at a Christmas choir performance, getting pulled over by Alex’s colleague in my underwear, and walking into a window, that I thought was an open sliding glass door, in front of an entire wedding party and having it all caught on film in their wedding video.

 

K.C. volunteered the information that she knew how to lash together a primitive raft using planks from the shed and everybody’s underwear tied together in case things escalated.

 

My Review:

 

This book started as a serialized story with ten installments and was cleverly combined into a long yet fast-paced cozy mystery novel. As there were ten bridesmaids and assorted friends and resort workers, there was a rather large cast of characters to keep up with, yet it didn’t prove a hardship as each was uniquely obnoxious and well fleshed out with intriguing and colorful details. The plot was active and action-packed and the pace was nearly nonstop as, after all, there were ten bridesmaids to kill off. I adore Annie Adam’s wry humor and clever wit; she kept me smirking even though the writing was tame enough for my elderly mother’s book club.

 

About the Author

Amazon

Website

Annie Adams is the author of THE FINAL ARRANGEMENT, book one in The Flower Shop Mystery series. She lives with her husband, two giant dogs, and two too giant cats in Northern Utah at the foot of the Wasatch Mountains. When not writing she can be found arranging flowers or delivering them in her own Zombie Delivery Van.

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Book Review: Look for Me (Detective D.D. Warren #9) by Lisa Gardner

 Look for Me 

(Detective D.D. Warren #9)

by Lisa Gardner

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU / B&N

 

In #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner’s latest twisty thrill ride, Detective D. D. Warren and “Find Her”‘s Flora Dane return in a race against the clock to either save a young girl’s life . . . or bring her to justice.

The home of a family of five is now a crime scene: four of them savagely murdered, one—a sixteen-year-old girl—missing. Was she lucky to have escaped? Or is her absence evidence of something sinister? Detective D. D. Warren is on the case—but so is survivor-turned-avenger Flora Dane. Seeking different types of justice, they must make sense of the clues left behind by a young woman who, whether as victim or suspect, is silently pleading, Look for me.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

College had been about getting out and getting away, not because I hadn’t loved my mom or her farm or the fox kits born each spring, but because I’d been eighteen, and when you’re eighteen, clearly you can’t want what you already have. Definitely, you gotta try for whatever is behind that other door over there.

 

It takes a villain to make a hero. And it took a monster to make me.

My Review:

 

This was a brilliantly contrived thriller! Ms. Gardner’s ingenious and intriguing storylines squeezed my heart while they captivated, taunted, and prickled my curiosity. The mystery was compelling and confounding while the characters were deviously nuanced and complicated. I totally appreciate a clever kick-ass heroine/ survivor/vigilante and this story provided several. The story was heartbreakingly realistic, cunningly paced, shrewdly staged, and unpredictable with so many possible suspects with ample motivation.   This was my first experience reading this author and could kick myself for noticing the previous eight books in this enticing series. I want them ALL.

About the Author

Website

Lisa Gardner is a #1 New York Times bestselling crime novelist. A self-described research junkie, she has parlayed her interest in police procedure and twisted minds into a streak of twenty thrillers. Her latest, NEVER TELL, comes out Feb. 19 2019 and features Detective D.D. Warren joining forces with vigilante Flora Dane to investigate the murder of known associate of Flora’s infamous kidnapper.
Lisa lives in the mountains of New Hampshire with two crazy pups and an ancient rescue dog. When not writing, Lisa loves to hike, play cribbage, and of course, read!

 

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Book Review: The Thing About Clare by Imogen Clark

The Thing About Clare

by Imogen Clark

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU / B&N

A dying wish. A devastating secret. Should the truth really stay buried?

The four Bliss siblings have a loving but complicated bond, but when their mother, Dorothy, dies seemingly without a will, this relationship is put to the test. As the mourning siblings try to make sense of the situation, one of them is caught with a secret: before she died, Dorothy entrusted her favorite daughter with her will and a letter—and told her to destroy them both.

Of course, it was Anna their mother turned to for this mission. Miriam, the eldest, is far too sensible; Sebastian, the baby, too sensitive; and Clare, the middle child, has always been too rebellious to rely on, and long ago cut herself out of her siblings’ lives.

But what Anna finds in the documents could change everything. Do the other siblings not deserve to know what it is about them that their mother was so desperate to hide? And if it is revealed, will the Bliss family ever be the same again?

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

An argument was never very far away from her sister. Even when they were kids, Clare could start a row in an empty room. It was funny how they’d all just grown up into older versions of how were they were as children.

 

It was barely recognisable as the beautiful cherub in the Bounty Baby pictures that Frank had convinced her to pose for in the early days of motherhood, back before she decided that her child was a test sent to her by the Devil himself. Indignation radiated from the baby’s every pore… The baby locked its gaze on to Dorothy’s like a heat-seeking missile, paused briefly to fill its lungs with a fresh supply of oxygen and began to scream again. How could something so small cause so much wanton destruction, wondered Dorothy.

 

Thank the Lord that her own parents hadn’t been around to see how Clare was turning out. She could virtually feel the breeze that was coming off her father spinning in his grave.

 

She’ll die an old maid, eating cat food and surrounded by back copies of the Reader’s Digest.

 

She was sixty-five for God’s sake. She should lower her expectations a little. Her own mother had considered herself old at this age but she still felt like a young woman. Well, she did in her heart. It was a slightly different story in her knees.

 

Frank had loved words. They had dripped from his lips like honey from a spoon. Often he spoke as if he were on a stage, his words a performance rather than merely a means of communicating his thoughts.

 

My Review:

 

This compelling book was superbly written, cunningly clever, shrewdly paced and packed with sharp wit, remarkable insights, and observant details.   Each complex character inhabited a quirky personality, which was skillfully and enticingly fleshed out.   I adored it and didn’t want to put it down. I read it slowly and with great delight as I coveted, marveled, and savored every well-chosen word.   Imogen Clark is a master scribe; I want to amass and hoard all her clever words.

Every family has secrets and most people are intrinsically drawn and curious to unearth them as other peoples’ hidden foibles are so much more interesting and alluring than our own shame, but unfortunately, as you get older, you find there are some secrets you wish you didn’t know yet cannot erase or hit delete once you’ve played Pandora. And every family has at least one walking disaster wastrel – mine has several.   But then my family tree is horribly diseased and should be chopped down and burned for good measure. While this captivatingly portrayed family had several drama llamas, Clare was an imposing piece of work. Even in childhood, she had rebelliously pushed every boundary with an abrasive personality, and as an adult, she was simply vile, irresponsible, unpredictably volatile, and increasingly self-destructive. I fervently loathed her with fascination!

In addition to the thrill and privilege of perusing one of my favorite reads for 2018, Ms. Clark also provided me with two new treasures for my Brit Word List with an idiom of “bugger that for a game of soldiers” – for screw this; and bone idle – which Mr. Google informed me was the ultimate of sloth and laziness as it went all the way to the bone. How glorious!

About the Author

Goodreads

Bestselling author Imogen Clark writes contemporary women’s fiction about the secrets that hide at the heart of the families that she creates. She lives in Yorkshire, England with her husband and children (who hopefully have no such secrets to tell!)

Both of Imogen’s first two books, POSTCARDS FROM A STRANGER and THE THING ABOUT CLARE reached Number 1 in the Amazon Kindle Charts in the UK and Australia. Her third book WHERE THE STORY STARTS will be published in May 2019.

Imogen initially qualified as a lawyer but after leaving her legal career behind to care for her four children, she returned to her first love – books. She went back to University, studying part-time whilst the children were at school and graduated with a BA in English Literature with First Class Honours.

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Book Review: The Magic of Christmas Tree Farm by Erin Green

The Magic of Christmas Tree Farm

by Erin Green 

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA 

The scent of pine fills the crisp air as local villagers select their perfect tree. Picking the tree is the easy bit, creating a perfect Christmas is a bit trickier…

Nina has the most magical job in the world, matching customers with their perfect Christmas tree. Working at Christmas Tree Farm is always fun and full of laughter but the weight of past tragedy bears down on her. Her admirer is a great distraction, but is he the right man for her?

Holly is just trying to be a normal teenager, having to deal with the mean girls in her class. But then the most handsome boy at school takes an interest in her. Have all her Christmases come at once?

Angie is trying to bring her family together and save her broken marriage. It’s not something she can force, but it’s the only gift she craves. Will her Christmas wish come true?

It’s the season of goodwill, and at Christmas Tree Farm anything could happen…

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

They’re about as funny as chlamydia, as my best friend, Demi, would say.

 

I’m dressed from top to toe in green Lycra, complete with a pointy hat adorned with a pair of pixie ears, freezing my ass off, in the company of twenty-four children aged four and below. I want to die. The screaming, whining and wailing is on a par with the soothing decibels created by a pneumatic drill.

 

I gather that’s most of what being an adult is about – pretending you have the answer when really you’re bricking it inside and hoping it doesn’t show on your face.

 

Bloody hell, we all want true love but Cupid’s arrow doesn’t happen for everyone…Twittering blue birds, cherubs and stomach flips aren’t guaranteed unless you’re watching Disney.

My Review:

 

This is only the second book I’ve read by the delightfully talented and ever appealing Erin Green, and I am proud to proclaim myself her newest fangirl. She is a master storyteller and I am totally enamored with her poignant yet insightfully observant, deftly executed, and wryly humorous writing style. The storylines were entertaining, well-paced, thoughtfully written, intriguing, and laced with clever levity. Her characters are realistically flawed and struggling with real-world issues, while indelibly human and eventually endearing, although, like most people I know, they were not always likable. I adored this engaging tale that alternated between smirk-worthy levity and squeezing my heart. The Presents for Heaven idea of buying gifts in honor of departed loved ones was ingenious.

About the Author

Erin was born and raised in Warwickshire, where she resides with her husband. An avid reader since childhood, her imagination was instinctively drawn to creative writing as she grew older. Erin has two Hons degrees: BA English literature and another BSc Psychology – her previous careers have ranged from part-time waitress, the retail industry, fitness industry, and education. She has an obsession about time, owns several tortoises and an infectious laugh!
Erin’s writes contemporary novels focusing on love, life, and laughter. Erin is an active member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and was delighted to be awarded The Katie Fforde Bursary in 2017. An ideal day for Erin involves writing, people watching and drinking copious amounts of tea.

For more about Erin, visit her website: www.ErinGreenAuthor.co.uk
Twitter: @ErinGreenAuthor
Facebook author page: www.facebook.com/ErinGreenAuthor

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Book Review: Cupcakes for Christmas by Kate Hewitt

Cupcakes for Christmas

by Kate Hewitt

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU 

B&N / iTunes

 

Always the baker, never the bride…

Olivia James has always been happy running a tea shop and bakery in the Cotswold village of Wychwood-on-Lea and helping her friends find their happily-ever-afters, topped by the perfect wedding cake. But as Christmas approaches, Olivia is home alone and questioning her choices while eating too many of her own specialty confections.

When Simon Blacklock, a handsome, whimsical stranger, breezes into her shop and buys a cupcake and then returns the next day and the day after, Olivia begins to dream. Can romance blossom amidst the sugar and flour? And after a lifetime of living on the sidelines, is she brave enough to star in her own story?

Simon may be hiding a painful secret, but Olivia harbors secrets of her own. If they can dare to risk their hearts, this Christmas might be the most magical yet!

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

It had been a lovely surprise to find unexpected friends in a village where a single woman pushing forty was considered a bona fide spinster, someone who should invest in a plaid wheelie bag and a tabby cat.

 

“You are grossly undercharging, then. Cupcakes the size of a small rodent go for nearly five pounds in London.” “What an unappealing comparison,” Olivia returned with another laugh. “And this isn’t London, it’s the Cotswolds.”

 

“He’s a bit of a crazy cat.” Which was an understatement. “He’s called Dr Jekyll.” “Ah. The name says it all, really.”

 

She smiled, or tried to, but she felt strange inside, like part of her had just developed a hairline crack that was surely getting wider and wider.

 

My Review:

 

I am decidedly irresolute and uncertain in how to rate this one; I kept waiting for the story to arc and climax and was still waiting upon completion of the tale. The writing and premise were thoughtfully executed and somewhat pensive, although not at all unpleasant. Serious topics and pertinent real-life issues were presented and handled in an informative and insightful manner. The storyline was relevant and realistic, although slowly paced, and featured a gentle and sweet soul named Olivia, who was a cubby bakery owner nearing forty with the dawning awareness of being left behind as her friends were moving on and progressing in their lives, while she wasn’t. Which, naturally, was disconcerting and causing her some restlessness and introspection. In addition to the hideously fatal blow to her ego of realizing she was nearing forty alone, her elderly mother began displaying alarming symptoms. A bright spot on her landscape was a somewhat disheveled yet personable man she dubbed “the cupcake man,” who periodically appeared in her bakery near closing. Although his light was not always bright, he quickly became important and worth the extra care and concern. I greatly appreciated the occasional hits of levity and wit, such as Olivia’s capricious cat who was aptly named Dr. Jekyll.

I did score a new addition to my Brit Word list with bolshie, which Mr. Google informed me was British informal and meant deliberately uncooperative.   But one thing I still just cannot seem to wrap my tiny pea brain around was their Christmas tradition of fish pie.   I fear I may have scorched the little green legume while allowing that to rattle around my cranium.

About the Author

Website 

Twitter

Goodreads 

Amazon

Kate is the USA Today-bestselling author of many books of women’s fiction. Her latest releases are A Mother’s Goodbye and The Secrets We Keep. Under the name Katharine Swartz, she is the author of the Tales from Goswell books, a series of time-slip novels set in the village of Goswell.

She likes to read women’s fiction, mystery, and thrillers, as well as historical novels. She particularly enjoys reading about well-drawn characters and avoids high-concept plots.

Having lived in both New York City and a tiny village on the windswept northwest coast of England, she now resides in a market town in Wales with her husband, five children, and an overly affectionate Golden Retriever.

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Book Review: The Christmas Sisters by Sarah Morgan

The Christmas Sisters

 by Sarah Morgan

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU /  B&N

 

In the snowy Highlands of Scotland, Suzanne McBride is dreaming of the perfect cozy Christmas. Her three adopted daughters are coming home for the holidays and she can’t wait to see them. But tensions are running high…
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Workaholic Hannah knows she can’t avoid spending the holidays with her family two years in a row. But it’s not the weight of their expectations that’s panicking her—it’s the life-changing secret she’s hiding. Stay-at-home mom Beth is having a personal crisis. All she wants for Christmas is time to decide if she’s ready to return to work—seeing everyone was supposed to help her stress levels, not increase them! Posy isn’t sure she’s living her best life, but with her parents depending on her, making a change seems risky. But not as risky as falling for gorgeous new neighbor Luke…
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As Suzanne’s dreams of the perfect McBride Christmas unravel, she must rely on the magic of the season to bring her daughters together. But will this new togetherness teach the sisters that their close-knit bond is strong enough to withstand anything—including a family Christmas?

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

If her sister had been a laptop, Posy would have run antivirus software because there were times when she was convinced Hannah had been taken over by malware.

 

If parenting was a meal then Jason came straight in at dessert, bypassing all other courses including vegetables.

 

She smiled. “I’m so glad I married you.” “Of course you are. I’m irresistible. You couldn’t resist my practiced seduction.” Stewart swaggered across the room, ruining the effect by tripping over one of her slippers. She rolled her eyes. “You have a terrible memory. I was the one who seduced you.” “Not true.” “You were moving too slowly for me, Stewart McBride.” “That’s not how I remember it. I was like a rampant stallion.”

 

I have a trick I use whenever I’m scared…I pretend I’m in a movie… Whatever movie fits the scenario. It’s easier to pretend I’m playing a character, than it is to be me.

 

My Review:

 

I have sighed with contentment after reading every Sarah Morgan book I have ever picked up. While her cleverly complicated characters are not always easy to appreciate when initially introduced, over the course of their story they have all managed to magically tunnel their way into my cold heart. It is a specific type of Morgan magic as her word voodoo is strong.   This fractious and captivating family was packed with complex personalities with deep-seated issues, and they fascinated me. The writing was engaging and well-paced with generous sprinklings of smirk-worthy wit and clever levity as well as a vibrancy that conjures sharp and vivid scenes in my head as I read. I adore Sarah Morgan in any season. Ms. Morgan is also a frequent contributor to my Brit Word List with the new entries of clag (which seems to have several meanings according to Mr. Google which includes sticky as in mud; a clog or clot; and a low cloud, fog, or smog) and snug (a small comfortable room).

About Sarah Morgan

USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah Morgan writes romance and contemporary women’s fiction and her trademark humor and sensuality have gained her fans across the globe. She is a 3-time winner of the prestigious RITA® Award from the Romance Writers of America and has been nominated five times. Sarah lives near London, England, and when she isn’t reading or writing she loves being outdoors.!

Join Sarah on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSarahM…
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Website: www.sarahmorgan.com

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Book Review: Christmas on Mistletoe Lane (Sweetwater Springs #1) by Annie Rains

Christmas on Mistletoe Lane

Series: Sweetwater Springs (Book 1)

by Annie Rains

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

USA Today bestselling author Annie Rains invites you to the delightful North Carolina town of Sweetwater Springs in this all-new series . . .

‘Tis the season for a fresh start . . .

Christmas is coming to the North Carolina mountains, and the air is fresh and crisp and filled with promise. After the devastating loss of her job in the big city, the small town of Sweetwater Springs feels like heaven to Kaitlyn Russo. She’s inherited her grandparents’ charming (if a little rundown) bed and breakfast, and it’s just the new lease on life she needs. Only “heaven” comes with a catch-and a handsome and completely infuriating one at that.

After what he hopes will be a quick trip, Mitch Hargrove wants nothing more than to put his hometown in the rearview mirror. But his plans get derailed when he learns he’s now half-owner of the Sweetwater B&B. The fact that he’s given only two months to make the inn a success is a huge problem, but it’s his pretty-and incredibly headstrong-partner who’s the real challenge. With the holiday fast approaching and a grand re-opening looming, will Mitch keep running from the ghosts of Christmas past . . . or will he realize the true gift he’s been given?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

“You’re a crappy excuse for a Santa,” Mrs. Krespo bellowed from one of the tables. “Though I can see why Mommy was caught kissing Santa under the mistletoe if he looked like you.”

 

“No kissing and telling, Marvin,” Mrs. Krespo muttered, reaching for her coffee cup. “Kaitlyn doesn’t need to know you got lucky last night.” Mr. Krespo’s face turned beet red. “I didn’t tell her that, Evie.” “Well, you might as well have.” Mrs. Krespo gave her husband an assessing look. “I haven’t danced in years. I forgot how good of a dancer you were. It did things to me.”

 

“Didn’t he have a pet squirrel for a while?” “That was better than the pet skunk that lasted a day.”

 

She grabbed a box of Kleenex along with a large bag of chocolates because if you were going to have a pity party, you needed to do it right… She was hoping to find a Hallmark movie and live vicariously through the actors and actresses on-screen. Their problems could be fixed in a two-hour time slot on television.

 

My Review:

 

This gentle story was perfectly minted for Hallmark, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it listed next year as a holiday movie. I enjoyed this sweet, feel good, small-town tale, it was holiday treat with no calories – although I was frequently taunted with mentions of diet-shattering fudge and other culinary delights. The characters were enticing and highly likable while the storylines and writing were entertaining, engaging, and easy to follow with alternating licks of humor and heart squeezes.   With her career in tatters, Kaitlyn packed up and left New York City behind and headed toward her inheritance and only hope, which was her grandparents’ run-down B&B in a small North Carolina town. Although she was unpleasantly surprised to learn she had a partner, one she needed to convince to stay and meet conditions of the will within a two-month time frame or she had nothing. And of course her partner was a handsome and rugged Marine who had other plans in the works, no desire to stay, and an unfortunate history to flee. At least he was smart enough to know that when you mess up and need to grovel, bring a puppy.

About Annie Rains
Annie Rains is a USA Today bestselling contemporary romance author who writes small town love stories set in fictional places in her home state of North Carolina. When Annie isn’t writing, she’s living out her own happily ever after with her husband and three children.

 

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Book Review: Murder at Mistletoe Manor by Holly Tierney-Bedord

Murder at Mistletoe Manor

by Holly Tierney-Bedord 

 

Klarinda Snow is the innkeeper of a beautiful, historic bed and breakfast in Windy Pines, Idaho. Guests come to Mistletoe Manor to escape from their troubles while enjoying the scenic mountain town.

When all seven rooms of the inn get booked on a Tuesday night in December, Klarinda is excited about having so much business, but a little confused as well. After all, her inn normally isn’t exactly a destination hotspot.

The guests have barely settled in before strange things begin happening. Is this the most accident-prone group of travelers ever, or is someone out for revenge?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

“I’ll call Rod Showers. His rates are reasonable. And he’s a hottie!” “Myrtle, are you serious? He’s got to be seventy years old,” said Klarinda. “Easier to catch him,” said Myrtle, wiggling her eyebrows.

 

With me here and him there, that means a hundred percent of his common sense isn’t even in the same state as his penis. I should have known better than to come here.

 

My Review:

 

This was a quickly paced, wryly humorous, and fun cozy murder mystery featuring a revenge plot in a small-town inn located in the middle of nowhere Idaho. It was a banner day for the struggling innkeeper as all seven rooms had been reserved, yet when her guests arrived, they all mentioned winning an all-expense paid luxury vacation to her inn, which was a stunning surprise to the innkeeper. A large envelope stuffed with cash arrived later, which helped to ease the sting as well as adding an extra layer of puzzlement.

The weather was foul although not as vicious as the contemptuous and imperious attitudes of the female guests.   It was readily apparent that the evening was likely to be of an increasingly unpleasant nature, more for some than others as most of the guests departed the premises with the coroner.   The storylines were original, easy to follow, unpredictable, well-paced, and entertaining. Many of my favorite moments were the humorous inner musings and observations of the innkeeper, although I was quite taken by the quirkiness of the characters as well as the many ancillary details such as the elderly reindeer sweatered gentlemen who caroled on skis ~ smirk.

About Holly Tierney-Bedord

Holly Tierney-Bedord is the author of over a dozen novels and novellas, including Sweet Hollow Women, Surviving Valencia, Right Under Your Nose, Bellamy’s Redemption, and Murder at Mistletoe Manor. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

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Book Review: Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes by Jessica Redland

Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes

by Jessica Redland

 

Amazon US /  UK / AU / CA

Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes is a cozy heartwarming tale of friendship, family, putting the past behind, and embracing the future. 
It’s Christmas in Whitsborough Bay. With fairy lights connecting the shops and cafés on either side of the cobbles, Castle Street seems magical. And in such a magical place, surely Christmas wishes can come true. Carly Travis, owner of Carly’s Cupcakes, has two Christmas wishes this year. Her first is for her younger sister, Bethany, to focus on the positives in her life, including her Christmas wedding, instead of writing herself off as a failure. Bethany’s attempts at cake-decorating aren’t going to win any awards, but she’s certainly great with customers. Carly’s second wish is for her best friend, Liam, to come home for Christmas.

When Liam calls to say he’s been granted leave from the army, Carly makes a third Christmas wish. It’s the one she’s made every year since she was a teenager and, if she’s really brave, could this be the year when it finally comes true?

With Liam coming home, the shop having its best year yet, and a wedding to look forward to, it’s shaping up to be the best Christmas ever for Carly. But for Bethany, things are starting to unravel …

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The bullies called Carly “Bear Trap” thanks to a mouthful of metal, and Liam’s nickname was “Skindiana Bones.” It was one of the reasons he and Carly had become such good friends: outcasts together.

 

Liam had come up with the genius name, “The Biscuit Bunch,” because the large group of girls had been carbon copies of each other at school, exactly like a packet of biscuits: same haircut, same way of wearing their skirt and tie, same coat, same shoes, same bag … and same merciless bullying.

 

Before I hug you all goodbye, does anyone have anything else they want to confess? Nobody else tried to play tonsil hockey with Joshua? No? That’s a relief.

 

‘This isn’t your way of telling me that you really do want to run off with The Chief Biscuit?’ Liam’s expression turned very solemn and, for a moment, Carly’s stomach sank. ‘It’s an interesting proposition… But why would I want biscuits when I can have cake?’

 

My Review:

 

I have come to the end of my treasure chest of Jessica Redland books. I may go into withdrawal as I have been gleefully binging on her clever words with great delight. Written in the 3rd person and laced with bright wit and observational levity, this well-crafted story was a quick and engaging read that captivated, entertained, and squeezed the heart. Ms. Redland has such agile word skills and deftly tucks in imaginative and creative details and lush descriptions that elevate an excellent story into an exceptional one.   I adore her and fervently hope she is banging away on her next mesmerizing tale, as I am eager to return to my vast collection of quirky friends residing in the quaint village of Whitsborough Bay.

Author Bio

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella.

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast — the inspiration for the settings in her books — with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Her passion for North Yorkshire is shared by fellow-writer and great friend, Sharon Booth and, together, they are the Yorkshire Rose Writers.

Jessica tries to balance her time — often unsuccessfully — between being an HR tutor, trying to re-learn how to play the piano, studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing, and writing itself. Who needs sleep?

Social Media Links

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com