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Carma (21 KP) rated The Last First Date in Books

Jun 17, 2019  
The Last First Date
The Last First Date
Maggie Wells | 2014
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Last First Date by Maggie Wells

Maggie Wells is a new author to me. I read this as part of a 4 book collection through overdrive. The Last First Date was a cute very short novella. As with any other novella I read, well most of them anyway, I am left wanting. This one cut off a little sharper than most so I felt like I needed more answers than normal.

Overall it is a cute short story. Detective Langley “Lang” Sheppard finally has a day off and is having the worst first date of this life. Jessica Vickers is dealing with recent life setbacks and is just trying to get to the New Year to start over fresh. They each are just holding on to their pathetic lives until the clock strikes midnight. A chance stop at a local convenience store finds them in each other’s path and so it begins.

I wish it would have gone a couple more chapters to set up a little more of the story. There are some pretty comical sections that made me laugh out loud. I liked Maggie Wells’ writing style so I probably will give another story of hers a try (after getting through my TBR shelf first ha)
  
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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2206 KP) rated Murder in the Piazza in Books

Sep 10, 2022 (Updated Sep 10, 2022)  
Murder in the Piazza
Murder in the Piazza
Jen Collins Moore | 2020 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Murder in Rome
Maggie White’s husband has been sent to Rome for two years for his job, and she’s gone along with him. After a few months of living the life of leisure, she has found a job working for Masterpiece Tours, a specialty tour company that offers painting lessons and tours of some of the museums and famous locations in the city. She’s barely started and she’s already fantasizing about ways to kill her boss, Lord Phillip, an English expat. However, she is shocked to find him shot in his office one evening. The police don’t seem that interested in figuring out what happened, so Maggie starts investigating. Can she figure out what is going on?

This was a good travel themed mystery. It brought Rome to life in such a way that I felt I was there with Maggie. Unfortunately, the pacing of the mystery was off early on, but I did appreciate how everything came together at the end. We met many of the characters in a group setting, but they became distinct people as the story progressed, so it wasn’t really an issue. If you are looking for a virtual visit to Rome with a side of murder, this is the book for you.
  
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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2206 KP) rated The Gardener’s Plot in Books

Nov 9, 2024  
The Gardener’s Plot
The Gardener’s Plot
Deborah J. Benoit | 2024
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Debut Wasn’t Quite Ready to Bloom
Maggie Walker has inherited her grandmother’s house in a small town in the Berkshires. She’s long been a gardener, so when she is asked to help Violet with the new community garden, Maggie jumps in with both feet. But the morning of the grand opening, Violet is nowhere to be found. Then, a member of the community finds a boot in his plot in the community garden. A boot attached to a dead body. With the police thinking Violet might have something to do with it, Maggie’s set out to find her friend and prove she is innocent. But can she do it?

Since this book won a contest to be published, it caught my attention. Sadly, I don’t think it was quite ready for publication. The writing seemed a little vague at times, filling in details later, after we’d already made our impressions of things. The plot bogged down in the middle as Maggie spun her wheels before leading us to a good climax. The main characters were great, but the suspects were a little flat. The setting was charming, and even this non- gardener loved hearing about the plants. I wish I had liked this book better, but I probably won’t be moving on with the series.