This has very quickly become one of my favourite paranormal series'. Book 3 was just as good as the first two.
The series has all the things that - forThis has very quickly become one of my favourite paranormal series'. Book 3 was just as good as the first two.
The series has all the things that - for me - make for good paranormal stories. The world-building is creative, clever and engaging. It's different but has enough connection to other paranormal worlds, i.e. vampires and witches with similar abilities and back-stories, that make it easy to understand and connect with the world.
The characters are just fantastic! Izzy especially is a fabulous protagonist, with complexities and issues, but still strong, smart and determined to protect and help those she loves. But ALL the characters here are equally as likable and relatable. The Grimstock family are just a big bag of crazy in every flavour, but lovable as all get out at the same time. They are awesome.
The plots that the author comes up with are a perfect combo of connections to the earlier, continuing plot-lines, but also new and expanding things to ratchet up the suspense and drama for the characters.
Probably my absolute favourite thing about this series is the humour, which is beyond amazing! The way the humour slips in as comic relief and the most unexpected moments is just the best and I often find myself laughing out loud during the most dramatic parts of each book, which is tremendous.
I will definitely be continuing with this series - it is DEFINITELY a keeper!!...more
This was good. I don't know if the author is planning more books, but I think this was a good ending place for me. The main characters, who I love havThis was good. I don't know if the author is planning more books, but I think this was a good ending place for me. The main characters, who I love have evolved to a life stage that isn't so much of an interest to me as what came before (being somewhat cryptic to avoid spoilers).
I really love the world the author has created is really fun and interesting and has offered lots of scope for the multiple stories she has written in it. I've enjoyed a number of them too.
The setting of this book in Nashville was a neat feature since I'm a country music fan, and getting to go along when the characters visited various museums in the city and I enjoyed that.
Overall, this just felt like a nice clean ending for a series I've really enjoyed....more
This series combines so many things that I enjoy in a book: firstly and most importantly it has very much a feel of PI love, love, love this series!!!
This series combines so many things that I enjoy in a book: firstly and most importantly it has very much a feel of Pride and Prejudice (my favourite book) although the plots are totally unique and different from that story. But it has the Regency manners and situations that I love.
The characters in this series - especially Annabelle - are an absolute delight!! There are tons of strong female characters (another component I adore in books) and they are given clever and interesting things to do.
Finally, there is magic! The world-building the author has done here is so different and unique and I am all-in with everything about these stories!! My only beef is the cliff-hanger we're left with at the end of this book. It's a small beef though, because I had sensibly already bought the next book so I plan to read it very soon to find out what happens next for Annabelle and the Lady Patronesses of Almacks....more
I enjoy this series for its very well done look at the Golden Age of Hollowood.
This author does a really wonderful job of bringing this era to life fI enjoy this series for its very well done look at the Golden Age of Hollowood.
This author does a really wonderful job of bringing this era to life for a reader. He tells the story of what it was like to be part of the studio system at the time both inside it and outside for those trying to break in.
These books are filled with cameos (or more) of the stars of the time and they are woven into and around the plot for the three main characters - Gwendolyn the wannabe star, Marcus the wannabe writer, and Kathryn the celebrity columns.
The three main characters are ideal to help tell many stories from many viewpoints within the Hollywood world of the time and the three of them are likable and interesting.
With this third book I did find some of the bad choices each of our main characters make - and which they have been making over and over in both earlier books - to become a bit tiring. I wish they all could be moving on from things that obviously are neither good for them nor delivering good outcomes for them by this point. To be fair the ending of the book ( which I won't spoil) does suggest each of them will have no choice but to move on so hopefully that is the plan for future books.
The personal dramas for the main characters was not very interesting for me, but the way the author brings Golden Age Hollywood to life and makes the reader feel like they are right there will all the famous people we know makes this series well-worth reading for anyone who is a fan of the era and movies of it....more
This was book two in the series. I really enjoyed book one, but this one left me a little flat. It was okay, and I finished it, but a lot of the "sparThis was book two in the series. I really enjoyed book one, but this one left me a little flat. It was okay, and I finished it, but a lot of the "sparkle" that made book one an enjoyable read was, I felt, missing from the second book.
First off, I found Penelope a bridge too far on the "annoying, clueless, buttinsky busybody" scale. Yes, I understand that the majority of main characters in a cozy mystery ARE going to be on that scale. I accept this, and sometimes the main character in a cozy is written such that their busy-bodying (yes, I know that's not a word, oh well) actually makes them endearing and/or likable if it's done well. I didn't feel that with Penelope in this book.
The mystery wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything particularly unique or special. It was adequate.
Overall, there was just nothing about this book that really drew or held my attention. It's fine, but I probably won't go out of my way to read future books in this series when there are so many cozy series' out there to choose from. You really need to have something different to grab a reader in this genre and I simply didn't feel book two in this series had that....more
This was a fabulous story and I absolutely loved every page of it!!
I read the second book in this series -The Trouble with Scarlet - before reading thThis was a fabulous story and I absolutely loved every page of it!!
I read the second book in this series -The Trouble with Scarlet - before reading this because I expected to like that story, which I had more interest in and knowledge about, better. Don't get me wrong - that was also a terrific read, but I honestly think this book is even better.
Look, there's no question you'll appreciate this story more if you happen to be a classic movie buff, because there's a who's-who of classic film stars mentioned and playing roles in the story. But even if you aren't, the writing and the characters here are just so darned interesting and engaging that I can't see how anyone who likes a well-crafted plot peopled with multi-faceted, likable characters could NOT love this book!
I actually captured some of the lines in this book because they were just too good not to. Here are my favourites:
-"Exactly how many gallons of gall were flowing through my veins when I decided I'd be a writer for the talking pictures?"
-"May I suggest something? Joan [Crawford] asked. She'd drained her glass and a curl fell over her eye. "If you want a life free of risk, I suggest to take the first bus back home.""
-"Holy crap! Is that Marlene [Dietrich]? What is she wearing? Excuse me, boys." She [Tallulah Bankhead] left Marcus and George in a cloud of scented cigarettes and Chanel No. 5."
-Kathryn took a deep breath. She knew what she had to do, even if it was going to end in kitchen knives at ten paces. "Mother," she said, "I want you to come live with me."
-Sitting in his dresser drawer was a notebook filled with poetry written for her by no less than Rudolph Valentino. Who the hell knew his actual name was Rodolfo Alfonzo Guglielmi?
Everything about this book was just so good! It was so easy to read and the story flowed over my brain like water - smooth and refreshing. I was sad to get to the end because it was so enjoyable. I can't recommend this story highly enough. Great, great read!...more
This was a terrific cozy mystery and I enjoyed it very much!
I really like this series. Focusing as it does on books and bookstores in Cambridge, UK, wThis was a terrific cozy mystery and I enjoyed it very much!
I really like this series. Focusing as it does on books and bookstores in Cambridge, UK, with most of the characters connected to books and book collections makes it perfect for readers who are interested in those things.
This book has two stories: the main plot of the murder and who did it, and a fictional gothic story from long ago, which we get to read in alternating chapters of the book. I loved both stories and thought the parallels were very cleverly worked in.
Molly, our protagonist and the transplanted American who now runs her family's bookshop in Cambridge with her mother and aunt is a great cozy heroine. She does not make the "too stupid to live" choices many cozy MCs do, getting themselves into peril. Instead Molly makes good choices, notifying the authorities rather than haring off all alone and getting herself in trouble. I like Molly a lot.
I will definitely continue reading this series, which I find one of the best cozy series around....more
I'm not a great lover of the gothic genre, but this was a really good story and I did enjoy it.
The plot was great - very entertaining and filled with I'm not a great lover of the gothic genre, but this was a really good story and I did enjoy it.
The plot was great - very entertaining and filled with twists and turns and suspense, if no real surprises. A lot of what happened I saw coming well in advance, but that didn't make the journey any less enjoyable.
Rosa is a spunky, smart, kind and determined character and I liked her a lot. She refused to let anything hold her back or stop her from doing what she knew was right, and I love a strong female character, which Rosa absolutely was.
James is also a terrific character. For all the challenges his life presented him, he wasn't bitter or unkind even though anyone might forgive him if he had been. He was terribly likable and the perfect gothic hero if ever there was one.
My only beef - and it's a minor one - is that there was a bit too much fluff cluttering up the path to the story and its resolution. I skimmed over some of the description and minor happenings that just didn't matter to me to get to the next plot point. But overall I definitely enjoyed this story very much....more
I really enjoy this series. I love the time-period of turn-of-the-century New York and I love the characters in this, especially Ella.
This is a fun, sI really enjoy this series. I love the time-period of turn-of-the-century New York and I love the characters in this, especially Ella.
This is a fun, sweet easy-reading series and the murders are well-crafted and interesting. In this book we get to meet Gil's mother and aunts who have arrived from England to try to chivvy Gil and Ella along toward setting a wedding date and they are a lot of fun.
I really like the dichotomy of Ella between being a determinedly modern and independent woman with a career and her own control of everything in her life, and her sheltered view on men and relationships due to her being protected so carefully by those around her. Somehow it just makes her endearing and smooths out the hard-edges of her insistent independence and I like her more for it.
I definitely plan to continue reading this series. I like where the plots are going and look forward to more books. ...more
This was a really fun, unique and clever story that takes an iconic fictional character - Sherlock Holmes - and drops him into the present day. AdmittThis was a really fun, unique and clever story that takes an iconic fictional character - Sherlock Holmes - and drops him into the present day. Admittedly, a reader must be willing and able to suspend disbelief enough to accept this main premise, but anyone who can is in for a really fun adventure!
Through a series of circumstances (which you should read the book if you want to learn them) Sherlock Holmes has unexpectedly arrived in the current time. While Watson and Mycroft and pretty much everyone else in his life are long dead, he is the same Sherlock he's always been and is raring to get right back to doing what Sherlock does. All he needs is a new partner - enter Dr. Amy Winslow.
I won't spoil anything by giving too many details. What I will say is there are some absolutely hilarious scenes with Holmes learning about the 20th century and acclimating to the many things that are completely foreign to his 18th century experience. I laughed out loud more than once at these "fish out of water" moments.
The one thing I absolutely did NOT care for in this book is the suggestion, albeit a very brief suggestion (view spoiler)[based on a specific interaction between Holmes and Amy, that the two of them may consider having a romantic relationship at some point. (hide spoiler)] I'm sorry, but literally everything in the Holmes pantheon makes this unbelievable and it's also unnecessary for the world the author has created. It annoyed me because it absolutely does not need to be part of this story while the rest of the book is just terrific. Still this is the only thing I didn't love about this story.
Format note: I had this as an audio book from my library, and while most audio books have just a single narrator, this book has multiple narrators voicing the characters, including the author who voices Holmes among other characters. Having multiple voices telling the story really brings an extra layer of reality and enjoyment to the story. If you are at all into audio books, this is a great book to listen to.
I do not see any indication the author is considering making this a series so I assume this is a standalone story. While I wish the author had left out the item in my hidden spoiler above, in every other way this was a very unique and enjoyable addition to the books starring Sherlock Holmes and I enjoyed it very much!...more
I loved the first book in this series and was excited for book 2, which I got as an audio book. This one was a bit up-and-down for me, but it ended weI loved the first book in this series and was excited for book 2, which I got as an audio book. This one was a bit up-and-down for me, but it ended well.
I love strong female characters and Keira is that for the most part. This second book had a bit too much boo-hooing and tortured "does he love me" and "what is going on with us" drama for my taste. It just didn't fit with Keira's personality for me so I didn't love that aspect this time around.
The murder investigation was just as engaging as in the first book and I liked that part very much.
The ending of the book brought Keira back to the personality and determination from the first book, so I will read the next to - hopefully - see her get back to driving through and getting what she wants regardless of the obstacles put in her path....more
I am really liking this series by Archer. The characters in this are interesting, diverse and smart, and they are given plenty of intriguing crime andI am really liking this series by Archer. The characters in this are interesting, diverse and smart, and they are given plenty of intriguing crime and criminals to go after, led by William Warwick.
This book includes both a continuation of the attempt to finally get the master criminal from the first book, along with a new bad guy the team from Scotland Yard is after.
One of the things Archer is amazing at is taking a number of what appear to be unrelated threads and keeping them interesting to the reader while we get to the point where the threads converge into final piece of cloth.
This series is just a rollicking and fun crime/mystery/suspense series with great, likable characters and a well-crafted plot with strong pacing. I will be continuing with this for sure....more
Up until this book, I had been enjoying this series quite a lot. However the plot choices in this one irritated me tremendously, and I won't be continUp until this book, I had been enjoying this series quite a lot. However the plot choices in this one irritated me tremendously, and I won't be continuing with reading it.
One of the biggest things I liked in the earlier books was that Genevieve was smart and capable and working very hard to be a modern, independent woman in a world that wanted her to just get married and have babies. But in this book the decision she makes to (view spoiler)[ go with Bannon to what she thinks is a meeting with a local gangster, despite feeling worried and literally thinking "this doesn't feel right" multiple times before she ends up locked in a tenement in the worst part of town, and then being committed to the infamous Blackwell Asylum under a fake name with the intent that she would never be found (hide spoiler)] absolutely infuriated me.
Especially because that choice puts multiple other people in her life in danger and in desperate worry for her, all because she had to ignore all the warnings she might be in danger and stubbornly do risky things anyway.
I also found the overall story here depressing and dark, and even the requisite HEA ending just did not do anything to make me feel positive about this story. I think this series has just run its course for me....more
This is book 57 in this continuing series. I'm not sure there is anything new I can say about it, other than it's one of my favourite series' and an aThis is book 57 in this continuing series. I'm not sure there is anything new I can say about it, other than it's one of my favourite series' and an auto-read whenever a new installment comes out. I love these characters and look forward to revisiting them with each new book. ...more
This is a favourite series and I enjoy each new book - including this one - very much.
Andrea Penrose has a wonderful way with characters. She creates This is a favourite series and I enjoy each new book - including this one - very much.
Andrea Penrose has a wonderful way with characters. She creates people I can love, root for and enjoy catching up with through each new installment of her multiple series' that I enjoy reading. Wrexford and Sloane are a perfect example of that.
Lord and Lady Wrexford are not your typical aristocrats, which is an understatement. They both have unique skills, which they use - along with their rag-tag group of family and friends - to solve the mysteries and murders that regularly land on their doorstep.
These books also always provide a fun history lesson on some aspect of Britain and other countries of the time. These are skillfully woven into the main plot and never feel like a college lecture but instead really do add to the story in a unique way.
I love this series and its characters and will keep reading it as long as Penrose continues to write new books....more
This was a very unusual but intriguing story. It slowly, quietly and gently drew me in and took me on a rather magical journey with three complicated,This was a very unusual but intriguing story. It slowly, quietly and gently drew me in and took me on a rather magical journey with three complicated, flawed but ultimately lovable characters as their individual stories were interwoven and ebbed and flowed, taking them along a path to where they really needed to be.
The writing here feels slow and at points seems as though everything is moving in slow motion, but then important, sometimes heart-breaking things happen to the characters which they must overcome and learn from on their way to the ultimate destination meant for each of them.
The book takes us on a historical and sometimes magical trip into a disappearing bookstore, meeting people who may or may not actually be real, seeing the strength of the human spirit and will to survive despite wrenching life experiences, and how books can be the catalyst to all the most wonderful, educational and, yes, magical things life has to offer.
I found myself charmed and completely engaged with this book almost without realizing it had happened, which I suppose is appropriate, as this experience also happens to our three main characters as their stories play out. ...more
I really enjoy this series of new Hercule Poirot mysteries. Written with the permission and support of Agatha Christie's estate, author Sophie Hannah I really enjoy this series of new Hercule Poirot mysteries. Written with the permission and support of Agatha Christie's estate, author Sophie Hannah really captures the original flavour, complexity and charm of the original books and she thoroughly understands the character of Hercule and how he behaves and communicates. Reading these books feels like Agatha Christie is still here and writing about her intrepid Poirot.
The mystery in this story really was classic Christie - it was complicated and twisty with many red-herrings and false clues along the way. I never try to figure out a mystery before the reveal so admittedly I'm not the best judge, but I feel like figuring out what happened would be a real challenge, even for readers who are good at that sort of thing.
This book was a fast and easy-reading story and I enjoyed it very much. I look forward to future books in the series....more
I very much enjoy this series. I loved the original Jane Eyre and feel this author has done a great job at capturing the feel and spirit of the characI very much enjoy this series. I loved the original Jane Eyre and feel this author has done a great job at capturing the feel and spirit of the character in this new series. I believe Jane as a solver of murders and enjoy revisiting the time and these characters.
It's always fun to have characters you loved from an original given new stories and adventures for a reader to enjoy in continuation. This author has come up with interesting situations for Jane and her friends and family to find themselves in, which require her to investigate and ultimately solve murders.
This is the fourth book in the series and I am enjoying it just as much now as I did the first book. I will definitely continue with the series if the author continues writing such entertaining stories. ...more
This was an interesting and well-crafted story that started as one type and ended as something different and darker but still very engrossing. I enjoyThis was an interesting and well-crafted story that started as one type and ended as something different and darker but still very engrossing. I enjoyed this a lot.
The shortest and simplest way to review this story is: Don't treat badly or, underestimate the help. If you do, you'll be sorry.
The book starts out as a caper. We know at the beginning that the help of this house are planning to rob it clean during a ball. We're privy to the planning, the deals with others to fill roles and help with needs, the maneuvering and machinations to get everything and everyone in place for what is a complex and massive plan. We think we know what's going to happen, but we're wrong.
As the plans develop and come together, we start to realize that there was WAY more going on in this fancy well-off household than appearances led us to believe and those other things start to suggest that pulling off this heist is going to be even more dicey than we thought when it was just a robbery.
The way the story spools out, letting us get to know the main players, and learning what their backstories are and how things interconnect (which is all I'll say to avoid spoilers) is very intriguing and cleverly constructed to keep one reading to find out what happens next and who's going to do what to whom, and why. The pacing of this story was masterful.
The plot and the characters are so well-written! I was completely drawn in right from the beginning of the book and stayed fully engaged right to the end.
Format note: my library had this as an audio book, which is how I read it and the narrator here was absolutely excellent! She was spot-on with the various accents and made every character unique and with their own personalized voice and personality. If you like audio format, this is a great book to listen to....more
This is a favourite "comfort" series. It is enjoyable, with characters I'm fond of and enjoy visiting with and a solid murder mystery for the main chaThis is a favourite "comfort" series. It is enjoyable, with characters I'm fond of and enjoy visiting with and a solid murder mystery for the main characters to investigate.
Edwina and Beryl are the original "odd couple" as one is a proper British lady, and the other is an American adventuress who is a thoroughly modern and independent woman. They became friends in boarding school and reconnected years later, becoming roommates in Edwina's crumbling British pile in the quintessential tiny British town, and finding themselves continously drawn into murders once they set up as "private inquiry agents".
These books are just good fun and I enjoy them. The extra engaging feature is that my library gets these books in audio format, and they are narrated by the fantastic Barbara Rosenblat who is the ultimate audio narrator, giving every character a unique voice and really bringing all the characters to life....more
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