I am fairly new to reading Sci Fi & Fantasy titles but was very happy to engage with Van Praag’s The Witches of Cambridge. I loved virtually visiting in this part of England, especially at the university. I also very much enjoyed spending time with the many women in these pages. They have qualities that make them unique and that impact how they relate to others.
As happens in the best reads, I found myself engaging with the characters and wanting the best for them whether they were the one who could not help herself from speaking the truth, the one uniquely sensitive to others’ feelings or any number of the others.
After I started this book, I bought several other titles by the author as I want to explore her worlds again and again.
Highly recommended (even if you are not sure about books with magical elements).
Many thanks to NetGalley and Allison & Busby for this title. All opinions are my own.
I was initially drawn to this one by the book’s title and the cover which I found very appealing. Happily, the story inside these pages also offered an enjoyable read with gorgeous locations, some good characters and an interesting plot.
Sadie was the kind of person who lived a predictable life as exemplified by her position as an actuary. Her life changes following the unexpected death of her best friend, Gemma (not too much of a spoiler as this happens very early in the book).
Sadie needs a change and purchases a bike tour company in France (now that sound pretty nice). However, of course, there are problems. These include vandalism and murder. No spoilers so hard to say much more except that this was a fun, cozy read. I hope that it is the start of a series.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for this title. All opinions are my own.
As far as I know, this favorite author of mine has not written a mystery like this one before. Well, here is yet another tour de force by Ms. Benedict. It feels like she is skilled at writing both a detective story and historical fiction. I recommend it highly.
Many know who the Queens of Crime were. This group included Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Baroness Orczy, and Margery Allingham. They all have prominent roles in this enjoyable story that is narrated by Dorothy Sayers.
At the time that the story was set, a number of male writers of detective fiction decided to band together in a society. Well, the women wanted a part of this too and pushed their way into the Detection Club.
In this story, these women want to prove their worth by solving a real case. They become involved in figuring out what happened to a British nurse who was murdered in France. They are intrepid in following clues, making hypotheses, and working to bring matters to a resolution.
Along with the crime story, readers are given insight into who these women of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction were. I enjoyed these parts of the story and also what was shared about the creation of their novels.
All in all, this is a most engaging read that fans of historical crime fiction and Benedict will enjoy. I think that Benedict will find some new enthused readers as well.
Note: I am a fan of toggling between the audio and reading editions of titles. They complement one another and add to my enjoyment. In this instance, the audio book narrator did a wonderful job of speaking in the voices of each of the main characters. This added to my pleasure in this title.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this title. Also, thank you to Macmillan Audio for the audio book. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 11 February 2025
Another forthcoming title featuring these characters:
This book invites readers to again spent time with the Killers of a Certain Age. Although I have not read the first in this series, I felt that I was able to jump right in.
Readers meet four women who have a spectacular skill set including proficiency in disguise, strategy and killing. They are Helen, Billie, Natalie and Mary Alice. These women are called back into service to avenge a colleague’s murder and the mayhem then briskly takes off.
This book is full of action, drama, excitement, good characters, a variety of global settings and more. It is a kind of James Bond for the older woman (but not too old) vibe. I found it to be very enjoyable.
I have read other series by this author. This one is a bit different. Kudos to Raybourn for doing something new …and succeeding.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.
The title of this short, illustrated title lets the reader know what is important. This book was written by a person who knows about hearing loss from personal experience and shares perspective.
This book could well offer a good entry point for discussion with kids about understanding and treating people with empathy.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Da’Bombay Publishing LLC for this title. All opinions are my own.
There are so many good books on the HTP Summer Blog Tours this year. Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds is a title that sounds like it will be a very fun read. I plan to start it soon.
Many thanks to everyone at HTP for this opportunity!
The book:
Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds
Allison Brennan
On Sale Date: June 17, 2025
9780778387251
Hardcover
$30.00 USD
400 pages
About the book:
For fans of BAD SUMMER PEOPLE, FINLAY DONOVAN IS KILLING IT, and THE WHITE LOTUS, this sun-dappled mystery from New York Times bestselling author Allison Brennan features a risk-averse bibliophile who gets in over her head when strange notes in a book draw her into a real-life investigation.
Mia Crawford is responsible to a fault. She has to be. Between her high-demand job and taking care of her grandmother and her cats, she has little time for anything else. What time she does have, she pours into reading. Mysteries, romances, thrillers…books filled with women who are far more impulsive than she would ever dream of being. Now, forced into taking a long-overdue vacation, she finds herself on a luxurious private island where she just might have a chance to reinvent herself—for a little while, anyway. She can explore the island. Flirt shamelessly with a cute bartender. Have a vacation fling. Live like a heroine in one of her favorite novels.
Or she can curl up with a good book on the beach. Turns out reinventing yourself is easier planned than done. But when gossipy notes written in the margins of an old book turn out to be clues to the disappearance of another guest, Mia finds herself diving head-first into a dangerous adventure. With everyone at the resort hiding secrets of their own, she’ll have to solve this real-life mystery before she becomes the next target.
Start reading:
PROLOGUE
“Death is so terribly final, while life is full of possibilities.”
—George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
DIANA HARDEN HAD A plan, and the plan was good.
This little hiccup in her plan was merely an annoyance, not a roadblock. Sending her on a wild goose chase to St. John was childish and petty.
Ethan Valentine would pay dearly for wasting her time.
It was near dark when the water taxi returned her to St. Claire. The driver was barely more than a kid, but Diana paid him well. She’d had enough of this cloak-and-dagger bullshit, so she had the kid take her straight to Valentine’s private dock in a sheltered cove on the southwest side of the island.
“Remember,” she said, putting her fingers to her lips in the universal be quiet sign. She didn’t want Ethan to know she’d figured out his ridiculous game.
The driver nodded and grinned, and she waved him off.
Ground lights lined the wood stairs from the dock to Ethan’s house built on top of the cliff. The height dizzied her as she trudged up. The cool ocean breeze chilled her through the sheer scarf that she’d wrapped around her shoulders.
Ethan would pay first, and then she would tell him where she’d hidden the files. When she went out of her way to help someone, to give them information that would put them on top of the world, and they treated her like dog shit on their shoe? No way would she tolerate such disrespect.
The man had to be half-crazy to live like a hermit in the middle of the Caribbean. All because he’d lost in a business deal? Coming here to lick his wounds and feel sorry for himself? He should be thrilled that she had proof he’d been cheated. Instead, he’d shunned her.
If someone had told Diana ten years ago that she’d fallen head over heels for a gold-digging con artist, she would have been grateful. Sad, angry, sure—who wouldn’t be? But she would never have lost everything over it. Ethan Valentine should have been thanking her for the information that she had been willing to give to him practically for free yesterday.
Now the jerk would pay top dollar.
Diana stopped to catch her breath when she reached the top of the stairs. The view was breathtaking—the sun sinking into the ocean to her right, and the distant lights of St. John to her left. Almost as if on cue with the falling sun, several soft white LED lights flickered on, showcasing the house and garden, but darkening the jungle beyond.
Though the house was lit, she couldn’t see through the privacy screens. She adjusted the oversized bag on her shoulder, then approached the frosted glass door and rang the bell twice. The chime sounded like a bird call. When no one immediately came, she rang again. And again. Nothing. She tried the door; locked.
Frustrated and angry after her crappy wasted day on St. John, she walked around the deck. The downstairs was almost completely enclosed by glass doors. She was looking for a way inside when a voice, heavy with an accent that sounded not quite Mexican, said, “Are you looking for something?”
Diana stumbled and knocked over a chair. “Who are you?” she demanded.
Squinting, she barely made out an old man reclining on a chaise lounge on the far corner of the deck. He had brown skin and a white beard so long and thick she could barely see his face. She’d seen him at the resort, an annoying busybody. What was he doing at Ethan’s house? How long had he been watching her?
“¿Quién crees que soy? ¿No has sentido curiosidad?”
She didn’t understand Spanish.
“No one is home,” the old man said, in English this time. “Do you need help finding your way back to the resort?”
“This is Ethan Valentine’s house,” Diana said. “He said he would be here.”
“He did? Odd.”
Who was this strange man?
“When will Ethan be back? It’s important.”
“Volverá cuando vuelva. Perhaps you’d like to wait?” the man said. “It might be a day or two before he’ll come by. Or a week. A month?” He lifted his hands in the air and shrugged.
Where the hell was Ethan? At the resort? Oh, that would be just her luck.
Irritated, she said, “I’ll find him myself.”
“Very well.” The man leaned back into the chair and closed his eyes.
With an infuriated sigh, Diana traipsed along the gravel road that led to the main lodge, wishing she’d asked the kid with the water taxi to wait.
She didn’t relish the two-mile hike to the resort, especially going over this mountain. Her flip-flops crunched on the gravel. She had wasted far too much time because of Ethan Valentine. He wanted to play games? Oh, she would play. And Diana was much better at it than he was. Her price had gone up tenfold.
The narrow road was poorly lit with sporadic ground lights. She didn’t have a flashlight and her cell phone was dead, so she stayed in the middle of the path, knowing that there were sheer drops all over the place. Diana had never considered herself squeamish or afraid of the dark, but she couldn’t even see the stars because of the thick canopy of bushy leaves hanging over the road.
Rodents ran from the trees right in front of her, then scurried down the cliff. She forced herself to breathe evenly. There were no dangerous animals on the island. The rustling leaves? Probably gophers or rabbits. She started talking out loud to herself, feeling silly, but hearing her own voice calmed her fears.
She stumbled and caught herself with a vine that was hanging from one of the trees, cursing Ethan. He thought a hundred thousand was too much? How about a million, Ethan? Pay up or she’d out him. Tell everyone what he had really been doing since disappearing from the United States. She’d start with the Wall Street Journal and Variety. Then maybe Forbes or The Economist. Hell, the New York Times might be interested in the scoop. See how Ethan liked the publicity. His ridiculous behavior certainly wouldn’t help Valentine Enterprises.
She stepped into a clearing on the top of the mountain. Packed, flat earth free of rocks and bushes and lined in bright lights. Ethan’s helipad, though there was no chopper here now. That jerk. That asshole. Chalk this up to one of the many lies he’d told.
Maybe she wouldn’t sell him the documents at all. Maybe she’d sell them back to the man she’d stolen them from, and Ethan could continue to wallow in misery.
Angry but wholly determined to make these miserable men pay for the havoc they had wreaked in her life and the lives of those she cared about, she strode across the helipad.
The trees swayed in a sudden gust of wind, and a chill ran up her spine. She rubbed her arms and cursed.
Then the lights went out.
She froze in the sudden black. The jungle closed around her, and the trees groaned as if they knew something she didn’t. Rustling to the left, then to the right. “Who’s there?” she called out. “Show yourself, you prick!”
She heard the flapping of wings first. Then dozens of bats flew right at her. She screamed and dropped to the ground, her arms over her head, as the flurry of flying rodents rushed by. She could feel the air shift and change around her as they dipped so low she thought for a moment that she was prey.
Then the flapping faded into the distance, and Diana found herself huddled on the ground, filthy and sore.
“For shit’s sake, Diana!” she said out loud. “Get up.”
Determined not to let creatures of the night terrify her again, she stood, and her eyes readjusted to the dark. The lights flickered on, then went off again, but on the far side of the clearing, she spotted a wooden sign. She made her way there and came upon a forked path with two arrows. The path to the left was marked The Falls, and the path to the right went to St. Claire.
Finally! She hurried to the right, down the path toward the resort. All she could think about was stripping off her disgusting clothes and inspecting the cuts and bruises she felt all over her body.
Ten minutes later, faint music filtered up through the trees, and she thought about all her potential paydays—the conniving con artist with the super-rich, clueless boyfriend? Diana had had her pegged a mile away. Don’t try to con a con, she thought with a smile. Or maybe she’d focus on the security guy with the gambling habit? The cheater? The thief?
So many to choose from . . . and then she got an idea, as if a light bulb went bright above her head. She slowed and reached into her bag to glance through her notes, then realized she’d left the book in her room this morning. No worries. It wasn’t like she’d forget the most brilliant idea she’d had all week. After all, she was the heroine of this story—as strong and beautiful and smart as the treasure hunter in the novel she was reading. She laughed out loud. That’s what she was, a treasure hunter! Only she hunted secrets, not gold.
Secrets that turned into gold. She loved the imagery.
She picked up her pace, eager to get back to her cottage. Her feet hurt, her head pounded, and all she wanted was a large glass of wine and a long soak in the hot tub with her book.
The path wound around as she descended. Diana avoided the main lodge because she didn’t want to see anyone, especially when she looked like something the cat dragged in. Security lighting brightened the private patio of her cottage. She searched for her card key and as her hand grasped it at the bottom of her bag, she heard a voice behind her.
“Diana.”
She jumped, whirled around. Fear bubbled up in her chest until she saw who it was. Annoyed and tired, she said, “What do you want?”
“I’ve been waiting for you.”
“We’ll talk tomorrow. I’m beat.”
She turned her back on her uninvited guest and started to insert her card key, but before she could open the door, she was grabbed from behind.
“Wha—” She tried to speak, but her words were cut off. Her scarf tightened around her neck. She couldn’t talk. Then she couldn’t breathe.
Her vision blurred. Grabbing at the scarf, she scratched her neck. Her knees grew weak. Her vision faded.
Scream!
No sound escaped her throat. She heard nothing except for her own pounding heart, fear wrapping itself around her like a vise.
ALLISON BRENNAN is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling and award-winning author of over forty novels. She lives in Arizona with her husband, five kids and assorted pets.
Right off the top, there were several reasons why I wanted to read this novel. (Thank you NetGalley and the publisher!) I was familiar with the author, am interested in the Mitford family, love stories set in bookstores, and enjoy dual time line novels. In this case, parts of the story are set in the present. while others take place during WWII. Both stories are well told and readers are aware that they will intersect.
The protagonist in the present is Kate. She has written several novels and is experiencing writer’s block. She does not want to take the easy route of writing a sequel to her most popular title. Her difficulty in putting a story to paper is convincingly portrayed. I could not help but wonder if Ms. Gable had first hand experience with this issue.
Kate travels to London to spend time with her close friend JoJo. This leads to her working at the shop where Mitford was employed years earlier. By the way, Kate did thesis work on Mitford and is interested in her.
The WWII part of the story takes place partly at the Heywood Hill book shop. This is a real store and I enjoyed visiting there virtually. It appears charming and very individualized for its customers as I found when I looked online.
In need of funds, Nancy begins to work at HH. Has she left something behind there?
In the present day, Kate meets a man who would like to find a missing manuscript. Readers learn why. He and Kate become involved in this project while Kate is working at Heywood Hill.
Readers become aware that Nancy and Kate share some things in common. Will they each be able to write again? How does working at the bookshop impact each of them?
I found this novel a bit slow to capture me but once it did I enjoyed it very much. Historical fiction lovers may well want to take a peek at this one!
I have posted on many titles today. They are books that I have read and enjoyed that are currently e-book bargains. Apologies if I have bombarded you with too many posts all at once.
I have read and enjoyed other books by this author so very much wanted to read this one, even if I am a bit late in getting to it. I find Benedict to be an interesting author because, while her titles may look cozy, they are not always.
Everyone knows that famous expression about being wary of Greeks bearing gifts. That is what came to mind when I read about Edie receiving a present of puzzle pieces. She may not fully realize it, but readers know that murder and mayhem will follow.
Edie and her nephew are on the case. What will they find? Will order be restored?
This is an interesting read. Recommended to fans of the author, mystery readers and those who enjoy stories set at Christmas.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this title. All opinions are my own.
Readers who enjoy a Gallic mystery with a British protagonist may well enjoy this second food titled mystery following on the author’s Death and Croissants. It is written by a British comedian who brings a certain sensibility to the genre.
Richard has gone out for dinner. The menu is a tasting one and he has not tasted enough (he is still hungry). The beginnings of a mess emerge with the goat cheese parfait that is the dessert course.
Soon, there is, of course, a murder. It takes place in a cheese related locale. Will Richard, a local B and B owner figure out what has happened? How will his amie, Valerie, contribute? Read this one to find out. It will especially be enjoyed by Francophiles.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Press for this title. All opinions are my own.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 