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Murder in the morning
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
MoMo Book Diary recommends ‘Murder in the Morning’ which is the second of the Melissa Craig cozy mystery series by Betty Rowland.

Having enjoyed the first Melissa Craig instalment I was eager to get into the follow up.  I found this instalment, which begins where the previous book concluded, to be more entertaining than the first.  However, this could be due to reading them both in order and in the same week – I would definitely suggest reading them in order and together as I did.

Whilst the book focuses on a new crime the characters involved were developed in the first instalment and I assume will continue through the ongoing series.

This series will be enjoyed by those who enjoy Midsomer Murders, Agatha Raisin and Father Brown type of mystery!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this book.
  
Well, I've found yet another cozy mystery series to add to my must-buy list! I really enjoyed the setting - a working historical farm - and learned everything I could want to know about maple syrup production. Not in a clinical way, but as interesting bits of information presented during the story.

Our heroine Kelsey has her hands full trying to run the farm, raise her kindergarten-age son, and solve a murder before the police can pin it on one of her young employees. There was an interesting cast of characters, and that homey, small-town feel that I love in a good cozy.

While previous events are mentioned, it's not necessary to have read book 1 to know what's going on.

NOTE: I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.
  
Facials Can Be Fatal (Bad Hair Day Mystery, #13)
Facials Can Be Fatal (Bad Hair Day Mystery, #13)
Nancy J. Cohen | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry, Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
When a well-to-do client dies mid-facial, Marla Vail decides to track down a killer to save her salon’s reputation. This cozy has a great cast of characters and suspects galore. It’s a fast moving story that will keep you guessing, and rooting for Marla all the way through. While it is the 13th Bad Hair Day Mystery series, you’ll be able to catch on and not feel lost even if you haven’t read the previous 12 books. You will most likely want to go back and read them when you’re done, however!
  
Charity Penn has been raised to trust no one, so she is immediately suspicious when she receives a letter stating she won a contest for cooking lessons in a chocolate shop in South Carolina – a contest she didn’t enter. When her friend goes down to investigate, he calls her teasing good news and then winds up dead in a vat of chocolate. Determined to figure out what happened to her friend, Penn goes to investigate. But can she trust anyone? What is going on?

This book started out slowly, at least mystery wise, since it had the hard job of setting up the series as well as solving the mystery. However, the second half included some good twists and turns as well as payoff for the set up. Penn is an interesting main character since she is pricklier than we normally see in a cozy mystery, but the reasons for her behavior as fully explained and understandable. I’m looking forward to seeing some growth from her as the series progresses, and we already see some of that here.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/09/book-review-asking-for-truffle-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
Sowing Malice
Sowing Malice
Wendy Tyson | 2020 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Reaping Another Great Mystery
When the von Tresslers moved to town, they didn’t make the residents of Winsome, Pennsylvania, very happy. They’ve mostly kept to themselves except when they were pushing to do things their way. Now, David von Tressler has died, and most of the mourners are from out of town. That includes three women that Megan Sawyer runs into at the local nursery. Shortly after Megan meets them, one of the women disappears. Then a body turns up at Megan’s farm. What is going on?

I was thrilled to see another entry in this great series, and I wasn’t disappointed. The mystery is strong. It starts quickly and there are plenty of twists and turns before we reach the end. The characters continue to be wonderful. We got updates on the series regulars and the new characters were well developed. There’s nothing here that spoils previous books in the series, so you could jump in here, but to fully appreciate the character growth, I do recommend reading the series in order. This series is more of a traditional mystery than a lighter cozy, but as long as you know that going in, you’ll be fine. I definitely recommend this book and the entire series.