Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too!

Children’s Fiction

240 pages

Five stars *****

Pub date: 25 August 2026

My thoughts:

Misty Copeland was a trailblazer in the world of ballet. She was the first Black woman to become a Principal Dancer with the American Ballet Theater. Anyone lucky enough to have seen her dance knows that they watched someone special.

Now, among other things, Copeland is turning her hand to fiction that is for children between ages 8 and 12. With her insider knowledge of ballet, she pirouettes right through this story.

Readers meet Josie for whom dance is of utmost importance. She is willing to work hard to achieve her goals. However, she also faces a unique challenge as described to her by one of the teachers.

With its background of a school,The Firebird, a protagonist who is likeable, dance, and a bit of magic, this book will surely appeal to many young girls (and I hope some boys). Adults who love ballet and stories about resilient kids may also want to look at this title.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing for this title.

I hope that there will soon be a second book and that this is a book in a series. All thoughts are my own.

Description:

from the publisher

From New York Times bestselling author and former American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Misty Copeland comes the first book in a middle grade series about a girl who must balance her ballet aspirations with her magical destiny.

Twelve-year-old Josie can’t wait to start classes at the prestigious Star Fire Academy for the Performing Arts. She has been dancing ballet since she was three years old and hopes she can live up to the expectations of the school—and make her parents proud.

When she arrives at the academy, it only takes one class for Josie to know she’s going to have to perform like never before to keep up with her talented fellow students, especially if she wants a shot at the coveted solo in the upcoming fall recital. As Josie digs deep for the confidence and inspiration required for the role, she grows closer to her ballet teacher, Miss Fiona, who tells Josie she’s destined for something far greater than a solo.

According to Miss Fiona, centuries ago an evil sorcerer attempted to turn himself into the most amazing dancer in the world. Instead, his spell went wrong, transforming him into a monstrous being full of rage and envy—but also creating a beautiful dance spirit full of goodness: the Firebird.

Ever since, the two timeless entities have been fighting for the souls of young artists. In every generation, the Firebird is embodied by a new hero, and Josie is next in line. Suddenly, Josie is faced with two roles of a lifetime. Can she rise to the occasion?

NOTE: AS OF THE TIME OF THIS POSTING, THIS BOOK IS AN E BOOK BARGAIN AT JUST NINETY-NINE CENTS.

#ABookshopSummer #NetGalley

Women’s fiction

350 pages

Four stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pub date: 12 February 2026

Description:

from the publisher

📚 An intriguing, twisting and heart-warming novel set in a bookshop that has an unexpected impact on people’s lives. From the author of The Second Chance Book Club and Found in a Bookshop 📚
When the Lost for Words bookshop in York hosts an event for a new reading project, four strangers’ lives will change in ways they could never have expected . . .

Trixie is hosting the event. She loves her job at Lost for Words, and she’s feeling grounded and calm – until a phone call from her ex throws everything off course.

Cherry only goes to the event because she needs to get out. Caring for her grandmother without any help is exhausting – and lonely. Maybe things will be different if her long-lost sister finally comes home.

Rhiannon and Guy really hit it off at the bookshop; it feels like the start of something special. And Guy is fantastic with Rhiannon’s baby. But Rhiannon is keeping quite a big secret . . .

When you spend time with people who love books, you’re sure to learn something about yourself – and maybe see a way to start in a different direction. As each of them is about to find out . . .

My thoughts:

The first book by this author that I read was The Lost for Words Bookshop. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of the story and how much I cared for the protagonist. Since then, I have always looked forward to this author’s new books.

It was delightful to discover that this story takes place at The Lost for Words where Trixie has a project about which she is excited. She wants to bring together a group that will want to read aloud at each meeting. The first book she chooses is Virginia Woolf’s, The Waves. I find this to be a charming premise as it is very far from living life on a screen-the participants will meet at the shop for the readings.

There are a few characters who are important in addition to Trixie. Cherry is the focus of much of the story. She is the twin who remained home when her sister went off to have adventures. Cherry is really missing her as the novel opens and she is feeling the weight of caring for her grandmother. How will Cherry grow over the course of these pages?

There are others who are important as well including mother to a young child, Rhiannon. What is she keeping private and not telling the others? Rhiannon gets along well with Guy. Will they become more than friends?

Those who enjoy a book about books, people who care for one another, and stories in which characters grow, will want to give this title a look. Readers will also enjoy the many book titles that are sprinkled throughout the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Headline for this title. All thoughts are my own.

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From the Publisher:

Katherine Center has become one of my favorite authors. She writes good stories with character about whom I care. Hello Stranger is one of my top two read by her, the other being How to Walk Away. That was the book that made me know that I would always want to read Center’s titles.

This novel has a heroine whose voice I loved. Sadie Montgomery can be funny and sassy. She is a portrait artist who has some complicated family relationships. Her mom, also a portrait artist, died young while Sadie’s father was very disappointed that she walked away from being a doctor (his profession). There are also a stepmother and stepsister who challenge Sadie.

Sadie has many other relationships too. There was a boyfriend and there are her dog, a vet, a good Samaritan whom she does not seem to like, a therapist, a best friend, coffee shop baristas, a neighbor whom she finds creepy, and others. It is fun to watch all of these relationships over the course of the story.

Center also looks at a serious and real issue in this story. Looks is just the right word as Sadie suddenly has a medical crisis that leaves her unable, literally, to see faces. She knows that they are there but nonetheless can’t make sense of them. This is a real condition and one that the author researched for the novel. It is especially challenging for Sadie as she is an artist and her work has always been face centered.

Readers will want the best for Sadie. Read this very enjoyable novel and wait to see how her life evolves. I highly recommend it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 11 July 2023

Now out in paperback

#TheLibrarians #NetGalley

The Librarians is the first book that I have read by Thomas who will now become one of my favorite authors. Her earlier books were historical mysteries, I think, while this one is contemporary.

There were many things that I loved about this title. Scenes set in libraries appeal to me most definitely. I also very much enjoyed getting to know the four main characters and their backstories.

Readers meet Astrid, who has hidden something about her identity; Hazel, who has left behind a tricky past involving her husband; Sophie, who did something that she should not have but had reasons for it; and last, Jonathan who has taken time to accept his identity.

When two murders occur, there are complex links and actions binding these four librarians to one another. Who killed a man who ghosted Astrid only to reappear? Why was a woman who came to an evening event at the library found murdered that very night? What is it like for characters when people from their pasts reappear? Finding out will keep readers turning the pages.

Spending time in this book’s worlds (Austin, Singapore, Madeira), with its characters, and in its timeline made for a very fun read.

I am eager to see what Ms. Thomas does next.

Kirkus Reviews states: “This knockout mystery mixes the camaraderie of The Thursday Murder Club with the chic family and romantic drama of Crazy Rich Asians. Thomas’ virtuosity shows in this fast-paced and intricate yet emotionally moving mystery.” True.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 30 September 2025

From the Publisher

370 pages

Fashion & Photography

Four stars****

Pub date: 01 August 2026

My thoughts:

This book offers a brief introduction to each of fifty fashion designers. Readers can look for their favorites (Chanel, Dior, Balenciaga, Quant-to name a few) or page through this title in order. Readers may also discover some creators who are new to them.

For each designer, find out when they lived and what they looked like, learn a bit of their biography, understand something about their fashion ethos and see examples of their work. If anything, readers will just wish for more on their favorites.

This book is currently only ninety-nine cents of Amazon. Take a look and think about buying it today.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Arcturus Publishing for this title. All thoughts are my own.

Pub date: 01 August 2026

Description:

from the publisher

Fashion writer Emma Baxter-Wright introduces 50 of the world’s most influential fashion designers and a selection of their most celebrated pieces, showcased with full-colour photography.

Starting with the foundation of the 19th century House of Worth, perhaps the first real fashion house, through the designs of the hugely influential Coco Chanel, Christian Dior and Yves St Laurent, to Japanese designers such as Rei Kawakubo and Issey Miyake whose designs ‘deconstructed’ fashion in the 1980s and 1990s and the emerging stars of the present day, this stunning book is a fascinating history of how fashion has developed over the past 160 years. Two double-page spreads are dedicated to each designer, outlining their influences, the legacy of their ideas and revealing the beautiful designs that have made them famous.

by Kemper Donovan

#LooseLips #NetGalley

Here is a fun and entertaining mystery that is just perfect for a winter night’s read. The ghostwriter narrator of the first book in the series is back. This time she is going on a cruise (despite not really liking the sea) for a group of would be writers. This is a clue to the double entendre of the Get Lit moniker that is the name of the event.

The cruise is organized by a writer, phenomenon and self-promoter known to our ghostwriter from their MFA days. On this mostly all women cruise, Payton has brought along her wife but also her ex husband and her male assistant. The staffers on the cruise, the guests and the writers are all brought to fun (and somewhat snarky) life.

Not so many of the attendees have signed up for our ghostwriter’s mystery writing class. But no matter, there will be plenty of real life mystery and murder on board.

Come along for a fun trip and feel like an insider in this quite entertaining read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 21 January 2025

From the Publisher

Knives Out meets high seas intrigue on a literary cruise to nowhere in this intelligent, wildly funny locked room mystery for fans of Richard Osman, Anthony Horowitz, Nita Prose, and Agatha Christie!

The USA Today bestselling host of the “All About Agatha” podcast injects the spark and fizz of a Golden Age murder mystery into the present-day, as the ghostwriter’s skills are put to the test aboard a bestselling author’s decidedly insalubrious cruise.

The first book in the series:

https://joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=post&jetpack-copy=52105

Curtis Sittenfeld is a nimble author whose novels are each unique. I have read her takes on both Laura Bush and Hilary Rodham Clinton; while each had a similar subject in a president’s spouse, the books were definitely not the same kind of story twice. I also read Eligible which was a Jane Austen update. There is always a voice of its own in her works dating back to Prep.

This title is a lighter one in the Sittenfeld oeuvre. Many will think that there is some resemblance to SNL here. There are writers, a comedy sketch show with celebrity guests and other aspects that reference late night television. However, there are also the characters and relationships and they are Sittenfeld’s own. These folks include Sally who has not been lucky in love and has been having “hook ups” instead of commitments. She watches as a co-writer, Danny, who is described as not too well put together appearance wise, become involved with someone “out of his league.” Why do things turn out this way for men more than women?? What happens when guest host Noah comes on the show and what will happen between him and Sally over time? Read this one to find out.

Many have adored this book. I liked it. I could not quite enter its world and pushed a bit to finish it. That said, I think this will be a very popular read this spring and summer.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

#TheBookClubforTroublesomeWomen #NetGalley

The early sixties were a time of nascent change for many, including women. There was restlessness as some felt that being a housewife and mother was not fully satisfying in and of itself. (This may have been true before, of course, but it was at this time that Betty Friedan published a book that spoke to and legitimized these feelings).

In this novel, Marie Bostwick looks at a group of women who are living in a planned, suburban community outside of Washington DC. The group includes Margaret who was a bright, successful college student when she met her husband. Now she is a mother of three. When she gets an opportunity to do a bit more will she take it?

Bitsy married an older man. She loves horses but passed on vet school to marry a vet. Readers will find out why. Bitsy is having trouble with the suburban dream because she hasn’t been able to have a child.

Viv is a mother to many with a husband who seems supportive. But, when she wants more and looks for a job, will she tell Tony?

Then there is artistic, chaotic Charlotte. She challenges Margaret and the others. Will she cross a line too far?

These women meet regularly in a book club with the first book being The Feminine Mystique. Readers follow their lives over the course of this long and satisfying novel that is special to the author (read what she says).

Recommended to those who enjoy (women’s) fiction and would like a look at the 1960s.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Focus for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 22 April 2025

Historical Fiction-Women’s Fiction

384 pages

From the publisher:

From the Publisher

#BluntInstrument #NetGalley

288 pages

Mystery and Thrillers

Pub date: 02 June 2026

Four stars ****

My thoughts:

I had previously read a couple of books by Amy Bloom and enjoyed them. Each of these (White Houses and In Bloom) was different from the other, so I knew that Bloom could definitely write in several genres as she most recently turned her hand to a mystery.

In addition, to wanting to read this title because of the author, I was also intrigued by the academic setting. After all, I loved Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers and the mysteries by Amanda Cross.

So, did I enjoy this book? Yes, I did. It offered a fun read with its outspoken protagonist, some skewering of academia, the murder and the solution. I think this is the first of the series. I look forward to what comes next.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penzler Publisher for this title. All thoughts are my own.

Post first published on 2 August 2026

Description:

from the publisher

A failed professor solves a murder on campus in this new whodunit from bestselling author Amy Bloom.

The case of the bludgeoned lecturer has all of Cromwell University reeling, even though the elderly Professor Bullfinch wasn’t particularly well-liked. His ornery nature and Old World approach to campus politics ruffled more than a few feathers over the years, and present tensions within his department mean there are more suspects than mourners in the wake of his death. And the murder weapon—a bronze bust of Nathaniel Hawthorne—does seem to indicate that the attack may have been academically motivated…

Enter Dell Chandler, the failed English professor turned self-taught private detective whom Dr. Cutty calls in to investigate the crime. She has the background to tease out the motives among the staff and just enough experience to conduct a thorough inquiry. If she solves the case before the cops do, the university could keep the whole thing quiet, avoiding sensational media about the dark side of campus life. But to do so, she’ll have to dodge her own demons from her past life as a disgraced academic.

Written with the same depth of character and insight that readers have come to expect from author Amy Bloom’s novels and memoirs, Blunt Instrument is an engaging and entertaining mystery with a clever, complex protagonist at its core.

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Editorial Reviews:

Criminal Element

Bestselling author Amy Bloom delivers a clever campus whodunit in Blunt Instrument, following disgraced academic turned private investigator Dell Chandler as she navigates university politics and her own past to solve the murder of an unpopular lecturer.

Library Journal
VERDICT Dell is an appealing investigator in a somewhat unevenly paced story. Fans of mysteries in academic settings will enjoy.

Publishers Weekly
The review calls Bloom’s debut “a witty whodunit” and notes that while some late-breaking plot contrivances slightly undermine the pacing, the book is “a blast” overall. It expresses eagerness for a sequel Book Marks.

Book Reporter

Written with the same depth of character and insight that readers have come to expect from author Amy Bloom’s novels and memoirs, BLUNT INSTRUMENT is an engaging and entertaining mystery with a clever, complex protagonist at its core.

Kirkus Reviews

This entertaining, sexy adventure in not-so-dark academia checks all the classic detective-story boxes. Keep ‘em coming.

A Novel

by Alexandra Joel

Pub Date 07 Sep 2021   

This was a fun and absorbing read set in both Australia and England.

Protagonist Blaise Hill grew up poor in Sydney. She has promise and wants a career. With the help of one of her teachers she secures a newspaper job. Blaise’s career will take her far, all the way to being the Royal Correspondent of the title.

Blaise’s early jobs taught her a lot about fashion so names like Yves St. Laurent, Mary Quant and Cecil Beaton make appearances in the novel. Her later career puts her in the midst of mid-century history; readers follow her as she covers Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones. Readers also meet John Profumo and Christine Keeler, and learn about spies including Kim Philby. It makes for a fascinating background.

This novel also has a romantic story line, family and friendships. Will Blaise find love with Charlie who seems to have it all; this includes a high government position, a family seat, charm and more. But…there is also the mysterious Adam Rule. He knows a dark secret from Blaise’s past; will he use this against her? Readers also get to know Blaise’s sister Ivy who contracted polio and the close friends with whom Blaise lives in England. Readers will be turning the pages as they await the resolution of the novel’s several strands.

Ms. Joel writes an interesting note at the end of the novel sharing her inspiration and resources. This background places the book in context.

The Royal Correspondent reads easily and I always looked forward to picking it up. Here is a good escapist read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.