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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Aug 19, 2022  
Sneak a peek at the cozy mystery THE FLOWER ENIGMA by Breakfield and Burkey on my blog. If you like what you see, the eBook is only $0.99. Be sure to enter the giveaway for a chance to win an autographed copy of the book - two winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2022/08/book-blitz-and-giveaway-flower-enigma.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
Imagine a romantic getaway in the Texas Hill Country

JJ, a cyber guru, whisks his girlfriend, Jo, away for a vacation. No paparazzi. Magnolia Bluff is the perfect destination. Flower B&B is prettier than the pictures on the website.

The evangelizing podcast creators are demanding answers about the town’s newest resident, Mateo Hernandez. The enormous wall he erected has convinced the ladies he’s hiding nefarious activities behind a dubious attorney. Local authorities don’t believe laws are broken and discount the women as meddling gossips.

When the couple checks in to Flower, the podcast show-in-progress is interrupted by a cyberattack. JJ, the techno-geek, can’t resist helping. At each subsequent event in the series, he uncovers more serious issues than cyberwarfare.

JJ and Jo can’t avoid this roving series maelstrom. It gets personal when they’re attacked and warned to leave town. No one can conceive the depth of the crimes behind Mateo’s walls.
     
Bakeries and Buffoonery (Magical Mystery Book Club #4)
Bakeries and Buffoonery (Magical Mystery Book Club #4)
Elizabeth Pantley | 2023 | Mystery, Paranormal
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Independent Reviewer for Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!


The snapdragon inn is the setting of a cozy mystery book club with a difference they get transported into the stories to find out whodunit!


This time they are trying to find out who hates cake so much, in the town of Frosting that they have caused chaos, mayhem, and murder. Can they do it before the next murder happens?


This is such a delightful series they really are a pleasure to read. Elizabeth does such an amazing job at pulling you into the story as if you are one of the characters and I must say I am rather fond of all the characters, I'm sad we've lost one but happy for her circumstances and hope we do find out how she gets on.


Although this is a series I personally think you could read it as a stand-alone, but it's much more fun reading the series as you get to find out more about everyone.


I highly recommend and give 5/5


** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

 

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
  
Mushroom Capped
Mushroom Capped
Cathy Wiley | 2023 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Jackie Finds Murder Mushrooming
Former celebrity chef Jackie Norwood has landed in Conway, Maryland, for their second annual mushroom festival. She’s especially excited about connecting with her friend, Marshall. However, she quickly discovers that there’s lots of tension in town thanks to a big farming company trying to buy up the mushroom farms in the area. When Jackie finds the owner of the company dead, Marshall becomes the prime suspect. Can Jackie clear him?

I loved the first book in the series, and it was great to be spending time with Jackie again. All of her family and friends from the last book are back as well. While it would have been nice to see a bit more development for them, I still enjoyed spending time with them and loved the humor they brought to the story. The story started quickly, and when I reached the end, I appreciated just how the clues and motives were layered into the story. I was engaged the entire time, and the ending made perfect sense. If you like mushrooms, you’ll be interested in the five delicious sounding recipes at the end of the book. This is looking to be a great culinary cozy mystery series, and I’m looking forward to finding out what happens at Jackie’s next festival.
  
Chocolate a la Murder
Chocolate a la Murder
Kirsten Weiss | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Mystery, Thriller
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Delightful Paranormal Mystery!
I jumped at the chance to read this delightful little mystery as I have come to adore cozy novels in recent months. This is the fourth book in the ‘A Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum’ series by Kirsten Weiss, the first book being ‘The Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum,’ followed by ‘Pressed to Death’ and ‘Deja Moo.’

The setting for the story is a town called San Benedetto in the California wine country. In “Chocolate a la Murder,” owner, Maddie Kosloski, of the Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum, is preparing for The Wine and Chocolate Days Festival in San Benedetto. Maddie has sweet dreams about her new Magic of Chocolate exhibit. Her latest attraction is a haunted Mexican whisk called a molinillo that rattles if someone lies.

When Maddie visits the town's new boutique chocolate shop, she finds one of the owners dead and covered in melted cocoa. Maddie's determined to catch the killer, and she soon uncovers deadly dealings in the world of artisan chocolate. But the deception surrounding those dealings are enough to make the molinillo rattle all night. Will Maddie have to temper her passion for sleuthing before a killer makes her their next target?

Although I haven’t any read of the first three books of the series, Kirsten Weiss, provides plenty of back-stories, so “Chocolate a la Murder” works well as a stand-alone novel. Written in the first person, the characters in this novel were a real laugh and I especially liked Maddie’s feistiness. I even found myself asking the same questions and thinking along the same lines as Maddie when trying to work out the identity of the perpetrator. I really enjoyed the easy-to-read writing style, the plot and the pace of the book. The paranormal element helped to add intrigue to the tale, whilst making it a little different to some of the other books in the genre.

All in all, “Chocolate a la Murder” is a lighthearted, lovely read, that combines mystery, thrills and murder and mayhem and I'm looking forward to reading the first three books of the series.

[Thanks to #NetGalley and Midnight Ink Publishing for the free ARC of #ChocolateAlaMurder in exchange for an honest review.]
  
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Feb 12, 2021  
Check out this awesome playlist (and the sweet inspiration for it) for the cozy mystery GRAND OPENINGS CAN BE MURDER by Amber Royer Author on my blog. Come view the book trailer, and enter the giveaway to win a signed copy of the book as well as a $25 gift card to Dandelion Chocolate!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2021/02/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-grand.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
Felicity Koerber has had a rough year. She's moving back to Galveston Island and opening a bean to bar chocolate factory, fulfilling a dream she and her late husband, Kevin, had shared. Craft chocolate means a chance to travel the world, meeting with farmers and bringing back beans she can turn into little blocks of happiness, right close to home and family. She thinks trouble has walked into her carefully re-built world when puddle-jump pilot Logan Hanlon shows up at her grand opening to order custom chocolates. Then one of her employees drops dead at the party, and Felicity's one-who-got-away ex-boyfriend - who's now a cop - thinks Felicity is a suspect.

As the murder victim's life becomes more and more of a mystery, Felicity realizes that if she's going to clear her name in time to save her business, she might need Logan's help. Though she's not sure if she's ready to let anyone into her life - even if it is to protect her from being the killer's next victim. For Felicity, Galveston is all about history, and a love-hate relationship with the ocean, which keeps threatening to deliver another hurricane - right into the middle of her investigation. Can she figure it out before all the clues get washed away? FIRST IN A NEW SERIES!
     
Tails from the Deep
Tails from the Deep
Diane Vallere | 2019 | Mystery
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Zoe is the middle of three sisters, the daughters of Mother, the leader of the merfolk settlement Sirenia somewhere under the sea. Unlike her other sisters, Zoe loves to explore. One of her favorite places is a shipwreck beyond the edges of her merfolk village. She sneaks out there quite frequently, so when things seem off one day, she is quick to notice. When she returns the next day, she finds a human diver trapped on the bottom next to a dead body. She frees the diver, but her actions lead to questions that might impact her settlement. Can she figure out who to trust and what is really going on?

Mermaid mysteries are definitely something different, but I couldn’t resist when Diane announced she was going to write these. After all, I love the water, so the idea of living under the sea, at least for a few pages, was too irresistible. I’m glad I did because I enjoyed this story. This reads very much like a cozy murder mystery with plenty of twists and turns. The end was a little abrupt, but that’s a minor issue. As we read, we also get a feel for mermaid culture, which was a delight. Many of the slight twists on our world and expectations made me smile. It was definitely well thought out. We also get to know Zoe very well over the course of the story since is many ways these stories are coming of age stories in addition to mysteries. Since it is a 100 page novella, there isn’t tons of character development for the rest of the characters, but they still come across as real. The other two stories focus on Zoe’s sisters, and I can’t wait to see how they are developed and how that fits with Zoe’s take on her sisters. If you are looking for a slight fantasy edge to your cozy, I definitely recommend this novella for something different.

NOTE: This story, along with the stories of Zoe’s sisters, are included in the Mermaid Mysteries anthology. Buy them individually or as a set, but there is no need to buy both.