Book Review: The Modiste Mishap by Erica Ridley

Miss Sybil Stamper is the least fancy member of the reading circle known as The Heist Club. To her friends, bespectacled Sybil is the Queen of Lists, but she’d rather be belle of the ball. When she finally acquires an evening gown, her life looks like it’s falling into place. But when a client’s valuable objects go missing, not only is Sybil’s happy ending in jeopardy—so are the futures of other young ladies just like her! 

With the help of the Wild Wynchesters—a uniquely talented family of caper-committing siblings who don’t let “laws” stop them from righting wrongs—Sybil and her club of delightfully bookish spinsters take on the heist of the Season.[summary via Amazon]

Prepare yourself for a "squee" alert, because I absolutely LOVED The Modiste Mishap, the second book in the Heist Club series!

Over the winter I read all the Bridgerton books by Julia Quinn, and fell in love with regency romances all over again. Fast forward to the summer when I spied The Modiste Mishap, and I knew I had to give it a try. This book combines my love of romance and mystery, and was a unputdownable read. I literally finished it in a day!

Miss Sybil is a devoted reader and part of a reading circle called The Heist Club. When she is re-stocking one of their lending libraries, she falls right in the middle of a mystery, involving miss ball gowns! With the help of The Heist Club, she must recover the gowns before it's too last.

Love, love, LOVE! This was such a fun mystery! While there were no dead bodies, although Elizabeth Wynchester might have wanted one, it was an interesting mystery, and kept me glued until the end!

Up until now, Penelope Featherington has been my favourite regency heroine, but I think Miss Sybil might have beaten her to the number one spot. She is plucky, loves to read and loved to organize with lists! What's not to love?

I cannot recommend this mystery enough. If you like romance with your mysteries, then this series is for you! If you love Bridgerton and Pride and Prejudice, then you need to read this series! This one is a great introduction to the Wynchesters, and I'm planning to pick up the other series next.

Book Review: Bayou Book Thief by Ellen Byron

Twenty-eight-year-old widow Ricki James leaves Los Angeles to start a new life in New Orleans after her showboating actor husband perishes doing a stupid internet stunt. The Big Easy is where she was born and adopted by the NICU nurse who cared for her after Ricki’s teen mother disappeared from the hospital.

Ricki’s dream comes true when she joins the quirky staff of Bon Vee Culinary House Museum, the spectacular former Garden District home of late bon vivant Genevieve “Vee” Charbonnet, the city’s legendary restauranteur. Ricki is excited about turning her avocation – collecting vintage cookbooks – into a vocation by launching the museum’s gift shop, Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbooks and Kitchenware. Then she discovers that a box of donated vintage cookbooks contains the body of a cantankerous Bon Vee employee who was fired after being exposed as a book thief.

The skills Ricki has developed ferreting out hidden vintage treasures come in handy for investigations. But both her business and Bon Vee could wind up as deadstock when Ricki’s past as curator of a billionaire’s first edition collection comes back to haunt her.

Will Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbooks and Kitchenware be a success … or a recipe for disaster?[summary via Amazon]

As readers of this blog will know, I absolutely love "book-themed" cozy mysteries. There is just something about books within books that is so tantalizing. Which is why Ellen Byron's new series, the Vintage Cookbook Mysteries, are perfect for me!

Ricki James-Diaz is originally from New Orleans, and after a disaster of a relationship in L.A., she decides to get back to her roots when she opens a vintage cookbook shop. However, not all is smooth sailing when a local curmudgeon is found dead and the police are determined to pin it on someone at "Bon Vee". Ricki quickly steps in to investigate and clear her new family!

I enjoyed this book so much! I've never been to New Orleans and the author instantly transports you through the pages. From the mouth-watering food, to the places and sounds, it was a festival of delight with every page!

The mystery surrounding Franklin's death was first class! Over the years I've gotten pretty good at guessing who the killer is, and with this one I had no clue! It was a mystery wrapped within a mystery, and the bibliophile in me was very fascinated!!

I simply loved everything about Bayou Book Thief. When the last page was turned, I was disappointed that I would be leaving Bon Vee. Although I know I will be back there very soon! If you're looking for a book-themed mystery that combines a culinary mystery, this should be right on the top of your list! I can't wait to visit with Ricki and her friends again!

Book Review: The Persian Always Meows Twice by Eileen Watkins

Cassie McGlone, owner of Cassie’s Comfy Cats in Chadwick, New Jersey, knows that professional cat grooming isn’t all fluff. She handles her feistiest four-legged clients with a caring touch and nerves of steel. And she needs all the nerve she can muster on her latest house call—when she finds the murdered body of her favorite client, millionaire George DeLeuw, and his newly orphaned Persian, Harpo.

Cassie wants to do whatever she can to help the local police find George’s killer. Taking temporary custody of Harpo seems simple enough—until it becomes clear that someone is desperate to get their claws on the cat. Could the feline be the key to untangling a felony? As cat at whisperer Cassie tries to coax out deadly secrets, she better tread lightly. After all, she gets one life, not nine.[summary via Amazon]

Recently, I have been completely gushing over new series. Of course, the gushing is not about to stop, because I absolutely fell in love with the Cat Groomer Mysteries!

Cassie McGlone is starting her life again in Chadwick, after a disastrous relationship. She's using her pet grooming skills and opens up Cassie's Comfy Cats. However, when her wealthiest client turns up dead, she's going to have to use different skills to solve the murder!

I took to this series like a cat to cat nip! Being a Crazy Cat Lady myself, I just loved all the details the author puts into the cat grooming aspect. I have a Maine Coon cat, and I definitely appreciate the author sharing the ups and downs of owning a long haired cat. Of course, I wouldn't trade my floofy cat for the world. Perhaps this is why I just adored Harpo, the Persian cat, that the story centres around.

The mystery centres around a wealthy client, George DeLeuw. It was interesting as Cassie delves into George's past life, and tries to untangle the mystery. Of course, all the while trying to keep Harpo safe! The mystery was first rate and the final denouement was a surprise, as was the way it came about! I just love a good edge-of-the-seat mystery, and The Persian Always Meows Twice definitely delivers.

If you love cat-themed cozies, and maybe your first cozy mystery [like me] was The Cat Who books, then I suggest picking up this series. I already have the next one, waiting to be started!

Book Review: Jane Darrowfield, Professional Busybody

After Jane helps a friend with a sticky personal problem, word starts to spread around her bridge club—and then around all of West Cambridge, Massachusetts—that she’s the go-to girl for situations that need discreet fixing. Soon she has her first paid assignment—the director of a 55-and-over condo community needs her to de-escalate hostilities among the residents. As Jane discovers after moving in for her undercover assignment, the mature set can be as immature as any high schoolers, and war is breaking out between cliques.

It seems she might make some progress—until one of the aging “popular kids” is bludgeoned to death with a golf club. And though the automatic sprinklers have washed away much of the evidence, Jane’s on course to find out whodunit . . .[summary via Amazon]

New series alert! Well new-to-me series alert!! I really enjoy Barbara Ross' Maine Clambake series, and I was thrilled to discover this series as well.

Jane Darrowfield is taking snooping to a whole new level. She's asked to help untangle some issues at a local retirement community. Little does she know that someone is about to be murdered, and she's going to be in the middle of it!

I just LOVED this book! It's definitely a contender for Top 3 of 2022! The writing is easy to fall into, and the characters and mystery have so many layers. I adored Jane. Yes she's a busybody, but one with a purpose! From her bridge club to everyone at Waldon Springs, this story was so enjoyable!

The mystery itself was excellent. Absolutely first class! I definitely had a hard time guessing the murderer, and Jane got there before me! 

I will definitely be coming back for another mystery in this series! Luckily for me the second book in this series is already released!

Book Review: A Murder Like No Author by Amy Lillard

It's movie time in Sugar Springs and the whole town is pitching together to get the historical Coliseum Theater ready for the event of the year—the premiere of Missing Girl, local author Wally Harrison's bestselling novel turned film.

Thrilled to bring tourists to Sugar Springs, the town comes together to host the late author's event. But when a stranger arrives, boasting he has definitive proof that Wally didn't write Missing Girl...well, drama leaps from the page into real life. Mishaps start taking place around the theater—and then the stranger is discovered dead in his hotel room right before his press conference.

Can Arlo and her Friday night book club to sleuth out the killer and solve the mystery before the town's Hollywood dreams go up in smoke?[summary via Amazon]

Oh how I missed the Main Street Book Club mysteries!!! A Murder Like No Author is the third book in the series and it seems like forever since I visited Sugar Springs. This time bookstore owner, Arlo Stanley, is getting ready for the film premiere of local author, Wally Harrison. However, things don't go smoothly when a dead body turns up at the theatre . To make matters worse, her "book club" members are determined to stick their nose into the investigation.

Oh poor Arlo! As usual her book club, making up her guardian Helen, and friends, Fern and Camille, is causing strive and police chief, Mads, looks to Arlo to reign them in. However, reigning in the girls is easier said then done, and that is when the hilarity [and a great story] starts to take place!!

I really enjoyed the murder mystery. With Wally Harrison being a previous victim [refer to the first book] and someone accusing Wally of stealing the book, Missing Girl, there is quite a tangled web to untangle, and I had a lot of fun doing it. The mystery is excellent and will keep even the most seasoned reader guessing right until the end.

I've come to expect a great story with this series, and A Murder Like No Author doesn't disappoint. If you are looking for a fabulous book-within-book series, I recommend picking up the Main Street Book Club Mysteries. The antics of the book club coupled with the murder mystery is the perfect way to spend a Summer afternoon!