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Morgan Sheppard (1037 KP) created a post

Jun 12, 2026  
Something new is being written, and I wanted to introduce it here first. 😁

Only in Fairy Tales is a contemporary romance set in Monmouth, a small Welsh border town where the castle ruins are free to enter, the river runs past a medieval gatehouse, and history sits in the stone of everything. A story about a woman who has quietly, without drama or bitterness, stopped expecting love. A man who, from the moment he sees her, pays attention in a way that doesn’t leave him much choice about where it leads.

It's a slow-burning story; a patient one. Set against Welsh border landscapes, old stones, and the particular atmosphere of a place that knows what it is.

I started writing it this week. I'll be sharing the journey here as it unfolds; the setting, the characters, the world of the book, without spoilers, but with enough to give you a feel for what's coming.

Only in Fairy Tales — 2026.

#WelshFolklore #TalesFromWales #WritingRomance #ContemporaryRomance #LaterInLifeRomance
     
Where They Found Her
Where They Found Her
Kimberly McCreight | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry
6
8.7 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
The body of a baby is found in a small New Jersey town, close to the town's prominent university. Molly Anderson is asked to cover the story for the local paper -- her first big break since becoming a reporter, but both she and her husband are concerned it will dredge up memories of the loss of her own baby. Meanwhile, across town, teenage Sandy searches for her own missing mother. At the same time, Barbara, the wife of the local police chief who is investigating the baby's death, is busy trying to deal with her young son, who is having trouble in school and acting strangely.

McCreight weaves together the stories of these three very different individuals, as we learn what happened to the baby and more. I confess that I figured a lot of this out early on, but was still intrigued enough to keep reading. It's a very enthralling storyline and I found myself staying up late to find out what happened to the baby and the various women involved.

The story winds up being tied to another death nearly 20 years and it's well done, if not a little easily tied up at the end. The characters were a little flat for me - I had a tough time empathizing with Molly or Barbara, which made it harder to get into their stories, though I did like Sandy. It's still a good page-turner and a quick read.
  
Murder on Devil’s Pond
Murder on Devil’s Pond
Ayla Rose | 2024 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Murder of the Town Recluse
Hannah Solace has returned to her small town in Vermont to help her sister run a B&B. The only person she’s really reconnect with is Ezra Grayson, the town’s eighty-year-old recluse that most people want to see sell the house he’s lived in most of his life. Then Hannah finds his dead body on the pond that borders the B&B. When she finds herself on the suspect list, Hannah begins to investigate. Is his death related to a secret from the past? Or was one of his heirs, who are staying at the B&B, too impatient to inherit?

I’ll admit, it took me a couple of chapters to fully get pulled into this new world, but once it did, I was fully hooked. The mystery is complex with a variety of motives. I figured one thing out early, but the rest, including the killer, kept me guessing. The characters, including the suspects, grew more complex as I read as well. There are some relationships I’m looking forward to seeing explored further as the series goes along. The environmental themes are well done, and the recipe at the end sounds delicious. This book is a little more on the serious side for a cozy mystery, but as long as you know that going in, you’ll be fine. If you are looking for a new series you can dig into, you’ll be glad you picked up this book.