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Midge (525 KP) rated Chocolate a la Murder in Books
Mar 25, 2019
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.]
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.]
Batman: Nightwalker - DC Icons Book 2
7.0
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The new, eagerly anticipated BATMAN YA novel is an action-packed thrill ride that could only be...
young adult
Excellent slow-burn mystery
In the third book in the Hester Thursby series, Hester and her friend, Detective Angela White are attending a gala for Prescott University when they are told that someone has broken into the university owners' fancy mansion overlooking Jamaica Pond. Angela agrees to drop by out of courtesy, but once there, they are not sure that Jennifer Matson is telling the truth about what happened that evening. Then Prescott's general manager, Maxine, asks Hester to investigate some missing alumni, calling on Hester's renowned research skills. As Hester starts digging into the for-profit university, she unearths a tragedy that has long shadowed Jennifer and the family, financial issues, and more. But when one of the missing students she was looking into turns up dead, things turn dark, quickly.
I love Hill's Hester Thursby series. They are such intelligent and well-thought out mysteries. This wasn't my favorite of the group, but it was still incredibly well done and enjoyable. The topic of for-profit universities seemed timely and was quite interesting. Maxine made some awful choices, but I didn't envy her job running Prescott University, either.
Overall, the Matsons were a pretty terrible family shrouded in secrets and lies. Hill does an excellent job depicting this wealthy family and all the deception they've built up around them. Money certainly can't buy happiness. This is a slow build mystery, with a slightly different feel, and you have to give yourself time to acclimate to the characters and rhythm of the story. If you do, you'll be rewarded with an intriguing tale. It may not be non-stop action, but Hill writes an excellent tale of a twisted family. It's one that will keep you guessing until the end.
I also recommend reading the first two books, as there's some progress in Morgan and Hester's relationship here (and honestly, not enough Kate), but the book does stand-alone. You'll be missing two great reads, though, if you skip the first two.
I received a copy of this book from Kensington Books and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
In the third book in the Hester Thursby series, Hester and her friend, Detective Angela White are attending a gala for Prescott University when they are told that someone has broken into the university owners' fancy mansion overlooking Jamaica Pond. Angela agrees to drop by out of courtesy, but once there, they are not sure that Jennifer Matson is telling the truth about what happened that evening. Then Prescott's general manager, Maxine, asks Hester to investigate some missing alumni, calling on Hester's renowned research skills. As Hester starts digging into the for-profit university, she unearths a tragedy that has long shadowed Jennifer and the family, financial issues, and more. But when one of the missing students she was looking into turns up dead, things turn dark, quickly.
I love Hill's Hester Thursby series. They are such intelligent and well-thought out mysteries. This wasn't my favorite of the group, but it was still incredibly well done and enjoyable. The topic of for-profit universities seemed timely and was quite interesting. Maxine made some awful choices, but I didn't envy her job running Prescott University, either.
Overall, the Matsons were a pretty terrible family shrouded in secrets and lies. Hill does an excellent job depicting this wealthy family and all the deception they've built up around them. Money certainly can't buy happiness. This is a slow build mystery, with a slightly different feel, and you have to give yourself time to acclimate to the characters and rhythm of the story. If you do, you'll be rewarded with an intriguing tale. It may not be non-stop action, but Hill writes an excellent tale of a twisted family. It's one that will keep you guessing until the end.
I also recommend reading the first two books, as there's some progress in Morgan and Hester's relationship here (and honestly, not enough Kate), but the book does stand-alone. You'll be missing two great reads, though, if you skip the first two.
I received a copy of this book from Kensington Books and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
Ross (3282 KP) rated Legacy of Ash in Books
Dec 21, 2020
Epic but too lengthy
A very ambitious debut novel, epic in scope, cast of characters and plot. However, I found myself struggling to pick it up too often.
The book takes place in an empire with far-from-happy constituent parts and angry neighbours. The heirs of the traitorous Southweald "phoenix" are held captive as figureheads warning off any thoughts of rebellion. Meanwhile, a cliched corrupt council tries to keep the empire safe from impending invasion.
The book is filled with interesting magical creatures and abilities, with a demon, witches, crow-themed goth assassins and ancient spirits. These were at the fore nowhere near often enough, treated as curses and cast aside in favour of political plotting and old fashioned battle.
The first third of the book was awesome: learning about the richness of the world, its history, politics and magic. It really was set up to be an epic story of political intrigue, deception, plotting and underhand nastiness.
Sadly, this all lead to a battle sequence that lasted far too long. It was really like Joe Abercrombie had taken one of the First Law books and shoved The Heroes into the middle of it. I really struggled to get past this long, fairly boring conflict.
The second half of the book then calms down and focuses once again before taking a massive left-turn and changing to something very different.
As with many books of this size, the cast was massive and a number of characters not distinct enough to remember by name. And so many had such promising abilities to offer but were largely absent when they would have been so useful. It was like having a superstar in an amateur dramatic society and leaving them out of most of the script. Having said that, I once saw a pantomime with David Van Day in the cast and it was in everyone's best interests that he was largely absent.
The book finished well, but it was an 800-page book that read like a 1200-page one, taking me 5 weeks to read.
The book takes place in an empire with far-from-happy constituent parts and angry neighbours. The heirs of the traitorous Southweald "phoenix" are held captive as figureheads warning off any thoughts of rebellion. Meanwhile, a cliched corrupt council tries to keep the empire safe from impending invasion.
The book is filled with interesting magical creatures and abilities, with a demon, witches, crow-themed goth assassins and ancient spirits. These were at the fore nowhere near often enough, treated as curses and cast aside in favour of political plotting and old fashioned battle.
The first third of the book was awesome: learning about the richness of the world, its history, politics and magic. It really was set up to be an epic story of political intrigue, deception, plotting and underhand nastiness.
Sadly, this all lead to a battle sequence that lasted far too long. It was really like Joe Abercrombie had taken one of the First Law books and shoved The Heroes into the middle of it. I really struggled to get past this long, fairly boring conflict.
The second half of the book then calms down and focuses once again before taking a massive left-turn and changing to something very different.
As with many books of this size, the cast was massive and a number of characters not distinct enough to remember by name. And so many had such promising abilities to offer but were largely absent when they would have been so useful. It was like having a superstar in an amateur dramatic society and leaving them out of most of the script. Having said that, I once saw a pantomime with David Van Day in the cast and it was in everyone's best interests that he was largely absent.
The book finished well, but it was an 800-page book that read like a 1200-page one, taking me 5 weeks to read.
The Last Mrs. Summers
7.0
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Lady Georgiana Rannoch is just back from her honeymoon with dashing Darcy O’Mara when a friend in...
Bonnie and Clyde: Radioactive
Clark Hays and Kathleen McFall
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THE REVENGE OF BONNIE AND CLYDE Saving the future by exploding the past It's January 1945, six...
thriller Bonnie & Clyde Bonnie and Clyde adult fiction
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Love And Friendship (2016) in Movies
Sep 29, 2021
Beckinsale excels in a comic tale of Girl Power in the 1790’s.
Set in 1790, Kate Beckinsale plays Lady Susan Vernon, an 18th century cuckoo-like ‘MILF’ (actually, more ‘LILF’, but using the ‘Lady’ term loosely) who with her glamourous demeanor is lusted after by both younger beaus as well as married aristocracy: an example being Lord Manwaring (Lochlann O’Mearáin).
Playing many different ends against the middle, Lady Susan – with the collusion of her American friend Alicia (Chloë Sevigny) – attempts to both find a suitably rich suitor for her daughter Frederica (Morfydd Clark) as well as finding a rich husband for herself to allow her to stay in the manor (sic) to which she has become accustomed. A tale of deception, pregnancy and a marriage of convenience follows: does Lady Susan have to choose between her sexual desires and the rich, stupid and dull Sir James Martin (Tom Bennett, “David Brent: Life on the Road”). Or can she have her cake and eat it?
Based on a Jane Austen short story, “Lady Susan”, this is a delight from beginning to end. However, it does require the attention of the viewer: characters get introduced to you in rapid fire succession, and keeping track of who’s who and how they interrelate is quite a challenge.
But this is a tour de force for Kate “Underworld” Beckinsale who delivers a depth of acting ability that I’ve not seen from her in the past. Her comic timing is just sublime, and while comedies are often overlooked in Awards season, this is a role for which she richly deserves both BAFTA and Oscar recognition.
Stephen Fry joins what is a superb ensemble cast. But outstanding among them is Tom Bennett who is simply hilarious as the nice but dim Sir James. The comic routine about his misunderstanding of “Churchill” (Church – Hill) – a running gag – is sublime and a challenger (with “Was that it t’were so simple”) for the comedy routine of the year.
Directed by Whit Stilman (“The Last Days of Disco”) from his own screenplay, this is one for the more sophisticated viewer: requiring of your full attention, but a treat for the eyes, ears and brain.
Playing many different ends against the middle, Lady Susan – with the collusion of her American friend Alicia (Chloë Sevigny) – attempts to both find a suitably rich suitor for her daughter Frederica (Morfydd Clark) as well as finding a rich husband for herself to allow her to stay in the manor (sic) to which she has become accustomed. A tale of deception, pregnancy and a marriage of convenience follows: does Lady Susan have to choose between her sexual desires and the rich, stupid and dull Sir James Martin (Tom Bennett, “David Brent: Life on the Road”). Or can she have her cake and eat it?
Based on a Jane Austen short story, “Lady Susan”, this is a delight from beginning to end. However, it does require the attention of the viewer: characters get introduced to you in rapid fire succession, and keeping track of who’s who and how they interrelate is quite a challenge.
But this is a tour de force for Kate “Underworld” Beckinsale who delivers a depth of acting ability that I’ve not seen from her in the past. Her comic timing is just sublime, and while comedies are often overlooked in Awards season, this is a role for which she richly deserves both BAFTA and Oscar recognition.
Stephen Fry joins what is a superb ensemble cast. But outstanding among them is Tom Bennett who is simply hilarious as the nice but dim Sir James. The comic routine about his misunderstanding of “Churchill” (Church – Hill) – a running gag – is sublime and a challenger (with “Was that it t’were so simple”) for the comedy routine of the year.
Directed by Whit Stilman (“The Last Days of Disco”) from his own screenplay, this is one for the more sophisticated viewer: requiring of your full attention, but a treat for the eyes, ears and brain.
BookInspector (124 KP) rated Believe Me in Books
Sep 24, 2020
The protagonist in this story is Claire, an extremely talented, but very unlucky actress. Due to the lack of green card and work, she is forced to work as a decoy in catching out cheating spouses. Until one dies. Who is the killer? Is it Claire? Is it a victim’s husband? Or is it someone else altogether? You will have to read it to figure that out! 😛
This book has a very interesting variety of characters, we have elegant and artistic actors; classy, intelligent and very poetic victim’s husband, and like always, insightful police. But the real star in this book was Claire. Her ability to transform into different characters was absolutely stunning, and I really loved that she shared how these transformations made her feel. I think it was a great insight into actor’s psyche.
The narrative always kept me on the edge. There are so many twists and deception, that you never know what to expect next. Sometimes it feels, that the plot is slowing down, but that is just a very creatively incorporated “quiet before the storm” phase. 😉 The narrative was told from a single perspective, but that was necessary to keep the suspense going, and it was fully sufficient for me. This novel discusses quite a variety of topics, such as foster families in the UK; actor’s struggles in the market; kinky sex community; mental institutions and their work methods; art, and when it becomes a danger to society; etc. Due to this wide variety, the plot didn’t have the chance to be boring for me. 🙂
I really enjoyed the writing style of this book, it was very insightful and creative. The ending was absolutely mind-blowing, it left me absolutely baffled. I had to sit down and rethink all the plot, to figure out what was real and what was the illusion. The chapters are pretty short, and once I started, they just flew by. 🙂 I liked that the setting of this book was constantly changing, that created more intrigue to me, as a reader.
So, to conclude, it is a very artistic, poetic and sophisticated psychological thriller, where suspicions and illusion plays an integral part. I absolutely loved the complexity of the characters and unexpected turns and twists, that is why, I strongly recommend to read this book, and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. 🙂
This book has a very interesting variety of characters, we have elegant and artistic actors; classy, intelligent and very poetic victim’s husband, and like always, insightful police. But the real star in this book was Claire. Her ability to transform into different characters was absolutely stunning, and I really loved that she shared how these transformations made her feel. I think it was a great insight into actor’s psyche.
The narrative always kept me on the edge. There are so many twists and deception, that you never know what to expect next. Sometimes it feels, that the plot is slowing down, but that is just a very creatively incorporated “quiet before the storm” phase. 😉 The narrative was told from a single perspective, but that was necessary to keep the suspense going, and it was fully sufficient for me. This novel discusses quite a variety of topics, such as foster families in the UK; actor’s struggles in the market; kinky sex community; mental institutions and their work methods; art, and when it becomes a danger to society; etc. Due to this wide variety, the plot didn’t have the chance to be boring for me. 🙂
I really enjoyed the writing style of this book, it was very insightful and creative. The ending was absolutely mind-blowing, it left me absolutely baffled. I had to sit down and rethink all the plot, to figure out what was real and what was the illusion. The chapters are pretty short, and once I started, they just flew by. 🙂 I liked that the setting of this book was constantly changing, that created more intrigue to me, as a reader.
So, to conclude, it is a very artistic, poetic and sophisticated psychological thriller, where suspicions and illusion plays an integral part. I absolutely loved the complexity of the characters and unexpected turns and twists, that is why, I strongly recommend to read this book, and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. 🙂
The Fourth Talisman
9.0
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Nocturne, a wilderness of eternal night. Solis, a wasteland of endless day. It’s been a...
Isabel Smith (34 KP) rated Obscura in Books
Jun 28, 2018
A fine example of genre-blending!
Joe Hart’s Obscura is a must-read for fans of science fiction and space travel. Dr. Gillian Ryan, a neural radiologist, is down on her luck. Ever since losing her husband to the mysterious new form of dementia called Losian’s, she has been working hard to find a cure for the disease that is now afflicting her only daughter. She’s so close to locating the exact neurons in the hippocampus that are affected by the disease when she gets word that her funding has been cut. With all the stress she is undergoing, it’s no wonder her opioid addiction makes a reappearance.
When an old colleague that now works for NASA offers her the opportunity to continue her Losian’s research with unlimited funding, she’s hesitant to take him up on the proposition because he wants something from her in return: to accompany a group into space and study the inhabitants of a United Nations space station who are experiencing neurological side effects due to working on a top-secret NASA project. Even though she hates the idea of leaving her daughter behind for six months, she knows she can’t pass up an opportunity like this and so she agrees to the terms.
Almost from the moment she steps off the space shuttle and onto the space station (or is it?) things begin to feel off. Her research assistant, Birk Lindqvist, starts experiencing major hallucinations and she is sedated once she discovers a startling truth that was initially kept hidden from her. Everything is called into question and nothing is at it seems. What’s really going on? Where is the station they’re supposed to be rendezvousing with? And why does it feel like there is a hidden presence on board with her after everyone goes into stasis?
Obscura is a heart-pounding, adrenaline-filled thriller set in the vastness of space. Is that great or what? The prospect of reading a psychological thriller combined with a space mission story is what initially attracted me to the novel. Joe Hart does not disappoint with his ability to blend the two genres seamlessly. He even tossed in the element of the ‘unreliable narrator’ with Gillian for a little while there during her opioid abuse and withdrawal periods where readers couldn’t judge which of her experiences were real and which ones weren’t. Genius! I loved every bit of it: the deception, the uncertainty, the space travel, the action scenes, the startling discoveries…everything!
When an old colleague that now works for NASA offers her the opportunity to continue her Losian’s research with unlimited funding, she’s hesitant to take him up on the proposition because he wants something from her in return: to accompany a group into space and study the inhabitants of a United Nations space station who are experiencing neurological side effects due to working on a top-secret NASA project. Even though she hates the idea of leaving her daughter behind for six months, she knows she can’t pass up an opportunity like this and so she agrees to the terms.
Almost from the moment she steps off the space shuttle and onto the space station (or is it?) things begin to feel off. Her research assistant, Birk Lindqvist, starts experiencing major hallucinations and she is sedated once she discovers a startling truth that was initially kept hidden from her. Everything is called into question and nothing is at it seems. What’s really going on? Where is the station they’re supposed to be rendezvousing with? And why does it feel like there is a hidden presence on board with her after everyone goes into stasis?
Obscura is a heart-pounding, adrenaline-filled thriller set in the vastness of space. Is that great or what? The prospect of reading a psychological thriller combined with a space mission story is what initially attracted me to the novel. Joe Hart does not disappoint with his ability to blend the two genres seamlessly. He even tossed in the element of the ‘unreliable narrator’ with Gillian for a little while there during her opioid abuse and withdrawal periods where readers couldn’t judge which of her experiences were real and which ones weren’t. Genius! I loved every bit of it: the deception, the uncertainty, the space travel, the action scenes, the startling discoveries…everything!