Review: Five Roses

Five Roses by Alice Zorn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4 stars review. I would like to thank NetGallery for allowing me to read this book in return for my honest review.

For me, this was a slow paced book, however I kept wanting to go back and read it when I had the time. I don’t know if this is how the author normally writes, as this is the first book I’ve read by her, so I have nothing to compare it to. The characters were developed well and believable. There are so sad parts to the book which I felt help bring it to live.

The story takes place in Montreal, and centered around four women; Rose, Fara, Maddy, and Yushie, each women has her own secrets, torments, and ghost surrounding them. They are brought together and connect with each other in one way or another that helps them share their secrets and past. They each come from a different cultural, that takes the reader on a journey and watch as their past with help make their future.

One thing that I didn’t like was that there were still some unanswered questions and loose ends, that didn’t tie up the stories. I don’t know if there is going to be another book that will tie everything up and answer the questions or if this is how the author intended on leaving the books. Even through it was a slower pace book, the story was good, the characters were likeable and over all, I did enjoy the book.


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Review: The Rules of the Game

The Rules of the Game by Liz Duffy Adams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars review. I would like to thank NetGallery for allowing me to read this book in return for my honest review.
This episode continues the story of King Charles, his wife Catherine, and his persistent mistress Barbara. Catherine is holding her own with Charles, and how well they fit together as a couple. The story lines are really starting to pick up. I am enjoying these episodes and it’s nice to be able to read them when I don’t have time to sit and read a chapter here and chapters there like normal books. These make a perfect read for people that are busy and on the go! The stories are well written, fast pace, entertaining, engaging, and intriguing. The stories are well thought out and well written, I did discover that each episode is written by different authors. This just makes me want to read the episodes more to see where each person is taking the characters, and where the next person has to begin. I do recommend these episodes to others that enjoy historical fiction, and have limited time to read, but do enjoy reading.


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Review: The Tulip Factory

The Tulip Factory by Kacie Davis Idol
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 Stars. I would like to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a delightful, warm your heart read. The narrative switches back and forth between characters. With the way the author did this, you are more able to understand them. It has been years since I was in North Carolina, but the description the author gave, I remember somethings of the area, and was able to visually see what she was describing and felt like I was right there seeing it with my own eyes.

The story was interesting, well written, characters well developed, heartwarming, flowed at a good pace, and you could relate to it.

28 year old Corrine has a dream of becoming a writer, but as life points it figure at her and laughs, she sees that dream is passing her by. She works as a receptionist, and realizes that she is still in love with her ex-boyfriend that they broke up over a year ago. Corrine contacts James by mistake, and they agree to meet. Corrine needs to figure out what it is that will make her happy, truly happy, and then go for it before her dreams die out and leaving her with what ifs. Even if that means letting go of James completely.

I would recommend this light hearted books to everyone.


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Review: Whitehall - Episode 3: "On His Blindness"

Whitehall - Episode 3: "On His Blindness" by Barbara Samuel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars review. I would like to thank NetGallery for allowing me to read this book in return for my honest review.

This book continues on where the other two left off. This time we see Charles and Catherine having a disagreement. Catherine refuses to allow Charles’s mistress, Barbara being brought in to her inner circle. Charles gets aggravated over this because Barbara keeps insisting, and I don’t think she’s doing it out of her “goodness for the queen”, and Catherine keeps denying her to Charles. However, Barbara plots, schemes, and knows how to get her way….eventually.

Just like the other two episodes, I did find this episode just as intriguing. It is very well written, fast paced, and kept me entertain. The only thing is it is only about 45 pages, and I want the story to continue on. It is a nice way to enjoy a short story if you have limited time, like reading it on your lunch hour, waiting for your children at ball practice or swimming lessons, or only if you have a short time to read.


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Review: Whitehall - Episode 2: "Skilled Artifice"

Whitehall - Episode 2: "Skilled Artifice" by Mary Robinette Kowal
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars review. I would like to thank NetGallery for allowing me to read this book in return for my honest review.

This book picks up where Whitehall - Episode 1: "Embarkations" left off. This time we learn more with the King’s mistress, and she brings drama with her. She doesn’t like the fact that King Charles is spending a great deal of time with his new wife, Catherine, as he should be after all they are married now, and they didn’t know each other before. However, Catherine is a quick learner and she quickly learned how to keep Charles’s attention. I do think the story does need his mistress in it because she would bring the drama that will help make these episodes to where readers would be engaged, even if it’s just to see what she is plotting.

I did find this episode just as intriguing as the first episode. It is very well written, fast paced, and kept me entertain. The only thing is it is only about 45 pages, and I want the story to continue on. It is a nice way to enjoy a short story if you have limited time, like reading it on your lunch hour, waiting for your children at ball practice or swimming lessons, or only if you have a short time to read.


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Review: Whitehall - Episode 1: "Embarkations"

Whitehall - Episode 1: "Embarkations" by Liz Duffy Adams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4 Star reviews. I would like to thank NetGalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This was a short novella of about 50 pages. This is the first one in the series. This is based off of Catherine of Braganza and her marriage to King Charles II of England. At first the story seemed to start off a bit slow, but when I did some research on it, I found out this is going to done in several parts, ok that made since to me as to why it was starting out this way.

As the story progressed it did get better. Catherine is being sent to England from her homeland of Portuguese, to marry a man who she doesn’t know but will hopefully keep England from invading her home country. However, Charles is much too busy with his mistress to come and greet his bride when her ship arrives.

I am looking forward to all of the installments to find out how the story will unfold, the development of the characters, and to find out what happens next.


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Review: Deceived

Deceived by Ashlee Mallory
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 Stars. First off I’d like to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in return for my honest opinion.

If you enjoy mystery thrillers, with twist, turns, sitting on the edge of your seat page turning books, can’t put down once you start reading, then this one is for you! This book is fast paced, well developed complex and intriguing plot and characters. The scenes were very well described and thought out.

The main character, Olivia Michaels was a foster child, who is now a successful research analyst with a large brokerage firm in San Francisco with a bright future ahead of her. While working she finds out that someone has been making millions using her identity through insider trading. While in prison, she finds out who set her up and she knows, with the help of some of the other women in the prison, with skills that she will need to get her revenge.

With this being the first book in a new series, I hope the next one is just as intriguing as this one. I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys a good mystery or thriller. I felt the book was well written and will be enjoyed by all.


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Review: To Davy Jones Below

To Davy Jones Below by Carola Dunn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 Stars. I will say first and foremost, this is the first book that I have read in this series. I do feel that I should go back and read the other books in this series before this book. I felt a little lost as to whom some of the characters were, what their connection to Daisy, and some of the back story, not that it interfered with this book a lot, but more of while I was reading I felt lost.
Putting my feelings aside: I enjoy reading books set in the 1920’s era, the romance of the time period along with the changing of the fashion, prohibition, mobsters, bootlegging, speakeasy’s, everything about this era seemed to be a fun time to be alive. The descriptions the author uses in the book helps bring the story to life in this time period.
Daisy Dalrymple has just married her Scotland Yard detective Alec Fletcher, and is leaving on their honeymoon for America on the Talavera, along with Daisy’s childhood friend Phillip Petrie, his wife, Gloria, and Gloria's father, American millionaire industrialist Caleb P. Arbuckle, and Mr. Arbuckle’s new friend, Jethro Gotobed. Once the ship leaves dock, they are under their way for what they hope is a wonderful adventure. Shortly after they leave dock, a passenger falls overboard. The young man is rescued, but one of the witnesses insists that he didn’t fall, he was pushed. Alec’s is drug into this investigation by the Captain. After that another passenger falls overboard, but this time the passenger was shot.
With the harsh weather making the sea rough, many of the passengers are having a bout with seasickness, including Alec. Daisy takes it upon herself to help figure out if there is a connection between the two passengers’ incidents or if they were two separate incidents. With no help from Scotland Yard, Daisy needs to find the culprit before anyone else falls victim, including herself.
The characters were well developed, the way the author described the time period, I actually felt as those I was seeing right before my eyes. I did figure out early on who it was, and I was pleased that I was right when I got to the unveiling. It was a cute read and one that I enjoyed. I couldn’t help myself to like Daisy and wanted to become friends with her, that I decided to go back and read the other books up to this one and if there are any others after this one.


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Review: Fat Cat Takes the Cake

Fat Cat Takes the Cake by Janet Cantrell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 Stars. I had never read any books in this series and with this being the third book I was wondering if I would be able to catch up with the characters from the previous book, but I had no problems what so ever. This was such a fun, easy, and enjoyable read. I will go back and read the other two books in the series just because I liked this one and found it so entertaining.

Chase Oliver is co-owner of a cute little dessert shop called, Bar None with Anna Larson, and the shoppe’s resident, Quincy, who is supposed to be on a diet, orders from his vet. Julie, Chase’s best friend from high school, receive an email from an old high school chum, inviting them to a reunion in their old high school gym. They can’t figure out why they would be getting an invite to their fourteenth year reunion, from Richard “Dickie” Byrd. Julie and Chase suspect that Dickie is running for Mayor again, and is using this to rally support and votes.

Anna has been invited to the Batter Up Challenge that is hosted every year. She starts working on a recipe so that she can beat Grace Philens (sp), who for the past three years has been invited to the competition and each year gloats about it to Anna that she was invited and Anna wasn’t.
Chase gets an unexpected call from Ron North, a reporter for their local paper who wants to do a story on Chase and her new bakery. Chase isn’t thrilled hearing from Ron, since they went to high school together and he was always stalking Julie.

Julie and Chase goes to the reunion and they see many of the people from their high school class, Mona, a germ-phobic, who is also married to Dickie, Julie’s high school crush Eddie, who only eats healthy, organic foods and juices, their old principle Mr. Snelson, and of course Ron North, who spots Julie and attaches himself to her like a magnet. When he tries to kiss her, Julie’s boyfriend sees this and tells Ron to move along, Ron does so, but not before he takes Julie’s favorite scarf and slips it into his pocket. He leaves his notebook that he uses for his reporting at the punch bowl. Julie finds it at the end of the evening picks it up and asks if it belongs to or know who it belongs to. The next day, Chase is trying out a new harness for Quincy, so they can go on walks to help him lose weight, when Quincy slips out of the harness, runs under a bush, and discovers Ron’s body, dead. He had Julie’s scarf around his neck, and Chase see’s this is not going to look good for Julie. To save her friend, Chase needs to find out who killed Ron, before Julie is charged with murder.
There are plenty of possible suspects, twist and turns, characters are well developed and the story flows nicely. This was such an enjoyable read. I also want to thank Cozy Mystery Review Crew for allowing me to receive a free copy of this book for review.


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Review: The House on Tradd Street

The House on Tradd Street by Karen White
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Melanie Middleton is a well know real estate agent in the Charleston, SC. She specializes in historic home, but she herself doesn't like them, nor does she or has she ever done a renovation. She feels that the people that love and buy these home are wasting their money, because they are a money pit.

She goes to see Mr. Nevin Vanderhorst to try and get him as a client. When she arrives at the house she smells the fragrant of roses and she sees a woman dressed in the early 1900's attire, and see's a rope swing, swinging in the breeze. But there isn't a breeze on this day. Upon talking to Mr. Vanderhorst, she learns that his mother abandon him when he was eight years old, just like her mother did to her. She also learns that the woman she keeps seeing is actually the ghost of Nevin's mother Lousia, and she only appears to those that she likes. Nevin tells her the story that all of Charleston knows except for Melanie, that it is rumored that Louisa disappeared one night along with Joseph Longo and where never heard of again.

The next morning, before the crack of dawn, Melaine gets a phone call from an attorney asking her to come down to his office. When she arrives there she learns that Nevin Vanderhorst passed away and he left her his house on Tradd Street. Melanie is in utter shock as she can't figure out why he would leave her his house to someone he meet the day before, his entire estate, and with conditions as well. She has to live in the house for one year and restore it to it's natural beauty, and during this time, she might find out what actually happened to Louisa, why she would leave her young son that she simply adored, and what happened to Joseph Longo.

Melanie is also told that the money for the restoration will be in the hands of a trustee, her alcoholic father. Can things get any worse for Melanie. Enter Jack Trenholm, an author who gets into contact with Melanie and wants to write a book about the disappearance of Louisa Vanderhorst and Joseph Longo. If that's not enough Marc Longo, grandson of the missing Joseph Longo wants to hire Melanie as his real estate agent to buy old house, the one he has in mind, 55 Tradd Street to be exact, Melanie's house.

Melanie is overwhelmed by her responsibilities and finds herself getting wrapped up in the mystery surrounding Mr. Vanderhorst's mother's disappearance and the ghosts that haunt her new home.

This book has everything in it, ghost that haunt the house, romance, mystery, hope, new found friendship, healing, good guys, bad guys, lost loves, and changes. The characters were well written, the reader can identify with their personalities, there need for control, the journey they go on and how it affects their lives as well as the way they live their daily lives. You find yourself wanting to know the discovery of the mystery that surrounds the house and the disappearance of the people, how the Middleton family is connected to the Vanderhorst, and which of the two men will Melanie choose or not choose.

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Review: Epitaph

Epitaph by Mary Doria Russell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

We all know the story of the Earp brothers, Doc Holliday, and the shoot out at the O. K. Corral. One of history's most iconic gunfights that only lasted 30 second, but is one of the most famous and well know gunfight in history. We've seen the movies that romanticized it and how in history class they touched on it and made it seem like it was nothing and really didn't elaborate on it. But this story really showed how it probably really did go down.

The characters were more in depth, well developed, more true to how they really were as far as not just a sweet loving family that didn't have any problems what so ever. It showed that Wyatt was just like any other man who lost his patients with his wife/live in Maddie, cared for his brothers and even considered Doc Holliday as his brother. As well as being a quiet man who a lot of the time kept his emotions in check.

A lot of research was done to ensure a more accurate account of the events leading up to the gunfight as well as the true characteristics of the people. The author makes you feel as though you are right there watching everything unfold. Even though this book is about Wyatt and Josephine Marcus and their lives, there is plenty in the story about the other Earp brothers, their wives, and even Doc Holliday and all his rumors that have followed him from every town, city, and state that he lived in, traveled to or even pass through.

The gunfight itself is only a small part of the entire narrative, it only last 30 seconds in it's entirety. This is more about the lives and events leading up to the gunfight, and the events after, told from the perspective of those involved which make this such a great novel. It's not just the same facts that have been told over and over again, but an engaging novel that brings the events and character to life.

The author even gives the wives, including Sadie (Josephine. Only those that really love her call her Sadie), more of role in this book. We learn more about their pasts, why the boys loved them, or why Wyatt despised Maddie so much. You learn more about the cowboys that started the fight, and each one was shown their own personalities, rude, greedy, corruption, and self-centeredness.

This book was well received, fast paced, entertaining, and very enjoyable.






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The Mill River Recluse

The Mill River Recluse by Darcie Chan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Mary Hayes lived all of her life in a small Vermont town. She helped her father raise and train horses. She was a shy, quiet girl with anxiety that resulted from being attacked by one of her high school teachers. When Patrick McAllister comes to her father’s house to look at one of his horses, Patrick doesn’t only takes in interest in the horse, but with Mary as well. Patrick is patient with Mary and her shyness, and her discomfort about being around a lot of people. He finally convinces her to come and meet his family. Mary agrees and has a lovely time with Patrick’s grandfather, who seems to understand the young girl’s fear. Finally Patrick asks Mary to marry him and she agrees to marry Patrick and into one of the riches families in town.
Mary’s life takes a sudden change after marrying Patrick, the good looking, patient, wonderful husband, isn’t what he seems to be. Of course his sisters and parents are so proud of him and in their eyes is the perfect son, brother, husband that anyone could have and Mary should consider herself lucky to have landed him. Patrick’s anger one day leads to a tragedy that no one saw coming, especially Mary and ends up with brunt of his anger. Left with limited eye sight, a widow, and a fortune, Mary decides to spend the rest of her life living in her big house on the hill, with only Father Michael O’ Brien as her only friend and companion.
While she sits in her mansion on the hill that looks down to the town, Father O’ Brien tells her about what’s going on in the town, the towns’ people, who’s new to the community, keeps her informed as if she knows each and every one of them, right down to their homes and pets. Through the years, he tells her how one community member lost her home in a fire, and how a couple of weeks later someone bought her a new one. One Christmas, every family in the town received a new color tv, and how others have benefited from an anonymous benefactor, all the while Mary stays in her house and watches the town move on and move forward, keeping a secret that no one knows and would surely surprise the town.
This book shifts back and forth between past and present and between various characters’ perspectives—the author handles these changes with confidence and doesn’t leave readers confused. Her characters are well developed to where you feel like they are your family members, BFF’s or someone that you don’t like. You get the small town feel that the author has described. This book leaves you hope, kindness, and knowing that there is still good people in this world.


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