Silence of the Library by Miranda James Review

This is a part of the Cat in the Stacks mystery series.  I've read several and have enjoyed them all.   Charlie Harris and his Maine Coon cat, Diesel, are great characters! The series takes place in Athena, Mississippi, a small town boasting a local college.  Charlie is a librarian there, and also volunteers at the local library.

When the Head Librarian at the local library decides feature  Favorite Childhood Mysteries during National Library Week, she turns to Charlie, who has a large collection he inherited from his aunt, to loan books for their display.  When she discovers that one of authors from that era is still alive, and living not far from Athena, she sets up an appointment to ask her to be a featured speaker at the event.  She invites Charlie and Diesel to accompany her to the appointment, as the author, Electra Barnes Cartwright (EBC), is a favorite of Charlie's.

Everything is going well, until some rabid fans descend on Athena.  The head of the EBC fan club is thrilled to find out EBC lives nearby and will be attending, as she has never met her in person.  Two fervent collectors want to impose on her to increase the value of their collections, and a publisher wants to get his hands on some unpublished manuscripts so he can publish them.

Then, someone is murdered, and there are several possible murderers.  Charlie gets involved in the investigation, and learns several bits of information that are shared with him because of friendships, and being in the right place at the right time.  He, of course, passes them along to the Detective in charge of the investigation.  There are more twists and turns, but at the end, Charlie helps to discover who the real murderer is.

This was an entertaining book, and I enjoyed it.  I actually sped through it, and read it in one sitting.  I suspected who the murderer was early on, but that didn't distract from the delightful story.  I will continue reading this series.

This was the fourteenth book I've read for my Craving for Cozies Challenge, as well as the letter J for my Alphabet Soup--Authors Challenge. 

Southern Spirits by Angie Fox Review

This is the first in a new to me series, Southern Ghost Hunter Mysteries.  It features Verity Long, who has moved back to her hometown (Sugarland, Tennessee), inherited her grandmother's house, got engaged to a member of a prominent local family (the Wydells), found out her fiance was a cheating  jerk, and broke the engagement the day of the wedding, followed by going to the reception he was still having to smash the cake in his face in front of everyone.

As revenge, the Wydell family sued her for the expensive wedding which they had insisted on, and won.  After selling off everything she owned, with the exception of her grandmother's house, she is still left $20,000 in debt, and may be forced to sell the house.

Due to her washing out a small, dirty vase that no one at her auction had purchased, and dumping the water into her garden, she becomes saddled with a ghost whose remains had been in the vase (which turned out to be his urn). The ghost is that of a 1930s gangster, who is mouthy, sarcastic, and unsurprisingly, has the morals of a gangster.

She and the gangster, Frankie, make a trip out to one of his old hangouts on the outskirts of town, where Verity is caught by Ellis Wydell, police chief and brother to her ex-fiance, who owns the property.  He eventually discovers she has some connection to the afterlife, and hires her to get rid of whatever ghost is haunting his property, because he is trying to convert it to a restaurant and can't afford all of the damage the ghost is causing.

As he has offered her $20,000, and she'll be able to pay off her debt without selling her grandmother's house, she accepts. She finds that there are several ghosts resident  in the old speakeasy, from several eras in time, but only one is in a violent destructive mood.

This is an interesting but light read.  I'm not really a big fan of paranormal books, but I enjoyed this one.  I will probably read more in the series, but not sure I would make an effort to search them out.

This is number 13 of my Craving for Cozies Challenge.

Murder at the Mortuary by Lee Strauss Review

This is number five in the Ginger Gold series.  As are most of the others I've read in this series, it is set in 1920s England. When Ginger's friend, Haley Higgins, who is studying to be a doctor, finds a body in the mortuary without the papers it should have, and the body was a murder victim When Ginger discovers she knew the victim, she gets involved in solving the mystery, at the behest of the victim's father who hires her as a private detective.

Scotland Yard Inspector Basil Reed is once more involved in the investigation, and once more suggests that Ginger leave the investigating to him.  As Ginger is miffed at the Inspector, she chooses (as usual) to do as she wants, although she does keep the Inspector informed after the fact. 

Haley takes a more prominent role in this story, which I enjoyed. She was concerned that something sketchy was happening at the Mortuary, which was part of  college she was attending to become a doctor.

There were several possible suspects to keep you guessing. There was also a lot of background tension as Inspector Reed had reunited with his estranged wife, leaving Ginger and her feelings for him somewhat confused and hurt.

While I enjoyed this mystery, I didn't like it as much as the others I've read.  It may be because the Mafia was involved, or possibly that Ginger became a professional detective, which seemed out of character for a woman of her high society position.

I'll be reading more of this series, but I'm going to take a break of a month or so before starting up again.

This is number 12 of my Craving for Cozies Challenge.

Not a Creature was Purring by Krista Davis Review

This is the fifth book in the Paws and Claws Mystery Series by Krista Davis.  It is set in Wagtail, Virginia, which has reinvented itself from a sleepy little town to a super pet friendly vacation hot spot.  Everything in town caters to the pets, with stores being pet friendly, and many of them selling pet related items.


Holly Miller returned to Wagtail in the first book of the series to help her grandmother, her "Oma", after Oma had been involved in an accident and needed someone to run the Sugar Maple Inn for her.  While there, Holly becomes involved in a murder investigation.

In this book, the fifth, Holly has relocated permanently, and now is part owner of the Inn, and has been involved in several other investigations in the intervening books, and this is no exception.  A man staying at the Inn is found in town, dead, discovered by Holly and her dog, Trixie. He was murdered, and the suspects are numerous, including most of his family, who he had insisted stay at the Inn to celebrate Christmas.  Holly's Aunt Birdie is also one of the suspects.

One member of his family is his granddaughter, Norma Jeanne, who has just become engaged to Holly's long time friend (and secret crush) Holmes Richardson, who is also in Wagtail.  This creates a lot of tension for Holly, as she doesn't really like Norma Jeanne, but wants her friend to be happy.  Needless to say, Holly gets involved investigating, so she can prove her Aunt didn't do it, and ends up finding out several surprising things during her investigations.

This is a fun Christmas read, and I enjoyed it quite a bit.  I enjoy reading about Wagtail, and the Christmas setting just adds to the enjoyment.  Finished it quite quickly, and it left me in a good holiday mood (even though I didn't read it until February)!

This is part of several reading challenges I've signed up for, including Alphabet Challenge (letter N), the Alphabet Challenge--Author (Letter D) and  number 11 in my Craving Cozies Challenge.

Murder at Feathers & Flair by Lee Strauss Review

 

This is the fourth mystery in the series, and I fear I have become addicted. I love that it is set in the 1920s in England (but so different from Agatha Christie's 1920s England) and while the heroine is rich enough to ignore many of the rules of the era, she is smart and experienced enough to get away with it. The books remind my of Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher's mysteries: same era, same youngish, rich, smart and fearless heroine, different countries.

In this book, Ginger Gold has opened her dress shop, and the fashionistas of high society are coming in.  During a special event, someone is murdered.  Scotland Yard Inspector Basil Reed is once more investigating, and of course, so is Ginger. Ginger is also asked by her sister-in-law, Felicity, to investigate the disappearance of her friend and fellow actor, Angus Green.

As I've come to expect in this series, it is well written, with interesting characters, and many different possible suspects.  It is a very enjoyable read, and I'm looking forward to the next in the series!

This is part of my Craving for Cozies Challenge, number 10.

Murder at Bray Manor by Lee Strauss Review

The third in the Ginger Gold Mystery series.  Ginger has decided to stay in England, and open a dress shop called Feathers & Flair. As the shop opens, Ginger receives a letter from her young sister-in-law, Felicity, urgently asking her to come to Bray Manor. Apparently, Felicity's grandmother thinks the Manor has become haunted because things are going missing, or moved.  Torn between opening her new shop, the appeal from Felicity, and her own feelings about the Manor, she now receives a phone call from Felicity that sends her and her friend, Haley, to Hertfordshire the next morning.

After arriving at her late husband's former home, she finds that his sister and grandmother have opened the Manor to the public, renting rooms to local groups for meetings to help keep the Manor going.

The next night there is a charity dance at the Manor, and Ginger finds that Felicity's new love interest is Captain Smithwick, someone Ginger knows from her secret past, but doesn't like or trust.  The next morning, a young woman's murdered body is found.  Once again, Ginger is drawn into investigating a murder, as is Scotland Yard Inspector Basil Reed, and the suspects are numerous.

Once again, I enjoyed reading this mystery.  As are the other books in the series, it is set in the 1920s, with the fashion, transportation and attitudes of the time frame.  Looking forward to the next few books in the series, which I have already purchased.

This is number 7 of my Mount TBR Challenge, as well as number 9 for my Craving for Cozies Challenge.

Murder at Hartigan House by Lee Strauss Review

This is the second in the Ginger Gold Mystery Series, and I found it to be as enjoyable as the first.

This series takes place in the early 1920s, and this book is takes place in England, where  she has returned to settle her father's estate.  Ginger, also known more formally as Lady Gold, is a young widow, her husband killed during the first World War. 

After arriving at Hartigan House, her family estate, a body is discovered, inside a room that her father had ordered to remain locked before he left England for America.  Actually, it is more of a skeleton than a body, and is wearing the remains of an evening gown.  As Ginger uncovers more information, she becomes worried that her late father may have been involved in the woman's death.

Basil Reed, the Scotland Yard Inspector that Ginger had met on the ship while traveling from America to England, is again called in to investigate.  Ginger, of course, proceeds to investigate on her own, with the help of her friend, Haley. 

I found this to be interesting, and I'm looking forward to reading more books in the series.

This is part of my Mount TBR Reading Challenge, as well as the Craving for Cozies Challenge.