Review (+ Tour Giveaway): Crepe Factor

Crepe Factor
By Laura Childs with Terrie Farley Moran
A Scrapbooking Mystery #14
Berkley, 2016


Summary

The Winter Market in the French Quarter is in full swing, but murder isn’t taking a holiday in the latest from the New York Times bestselling author of Parchment and Old Lace …

The holidays are a busy time for scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand—but not so hectic that she doesn’t have time to enjoy browsing the booths at the Winter Market with her best friend Ava. The last thing the ladies expect to see is a lurching man stabbed by a serving fork, dying in front of them.

The victim is loathed restaurant critic Martin Lash, who posted his scathing reviews on the Glutton for Punishment website. And the prime suspect is New Orleans restauranteur Quigg Brevard—who was seen giving the critic a tongue-lashing minutes before someone stuck a fork in him. An old flame of Carmela, Quigg asks for her help, which does not please her current beau, Detective Edgar Babcock, to say the least.

Before her relationship is the next victim, Carmela needs to find a murderer who had no reservations about punishing the culinary curmudgeon…

Scrapbooking tips and recipes included!


My thoughts

Crepe Factor is #14 in Laura Child’s popular scrapbooking series – and while I’m sure there’s much that I’ve missed along the way, it didn’t take me long to get comfortable with the characters. I would have liked more character depth, but that would probably come from reading other books in the series.

Crepe Factor is quirky, fun, and entertaining. It is well written by seasoned authors, and their dual contribution flows seamlessly. I might could have figured out the murderer’s identity if I had tried a little harder, but it was fun to just sit back and enjoy the ride, letting everything slowly unfold.

Carmela’s scrapbooking shop makes a great backdrop for this cozy mystery, and Carmela is an appealing leading lady – determined and loyal. I loved the romantic tension between Det. Babcock and Carmela.

What I liked best about this story is the feel of New Orleans –its sights, sounds and smells – all vividly conveyed by Laura. I loved the bayou scene toward the end with Moony and Squirrel.

Scrapbookers will enjoy the tips included at the end. There’s also a few recipes, and the lemon chicken one is going in my crock pot tomorrow!

I had read one of Laura Child’s Tea Shop Mysteries several years ago and really enjoyed it, so I was eager to try her scrapbooking series. Crepe Factor seemed a little edgier than Laura’s other series when it comes to language. While I did enjoy it overall, I prefer the Tea Shop series.

Recommended to cozy mystery fans.

I received this book from the publisher.

_________________________

Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fund raising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.

Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:

The Tea Shop Mysteries - set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.

The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!

The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

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Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead , followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year.

The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

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Purchase Links:

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GIVEAWAY

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Review: Jesus and the Beanstalk

Jesus and the Beanstalk
By Lori Stanley Roeleveld
Abingdon Press, 2016


Summary

What if a fairy tale and ten Bible verses could free you to live an effective, fruitful life in Christ?

We live in unsettling, challenging times. Everywhere we look, we see giant problems: giant obstacles to sharing faith, giant barriers to peaceful lives, giant strongholds of fear. But what if you knew eight small secrets to unlocking a strength big enough to overcome whatever obstacle life may bring?

Using allegory and a bit of humor, Jesus and the Beanstalk explores a passage in 2 Peter 1 to uncover eight truths that will help you unleash a larger-than-life faith:

-Faith
-Goodness
-Knowledge
-Self-control
-Perseverance
-Godliness
-Affection for others
-Love

In this creative, refreshing perspective on spiritual growth, you will discover an unyielding strength when you tap the power of a God who is stronger than any beanstalk and bigger than your biggest giants.

Purchase a copy: http://bit.ly/2dcnopJ


My thoughts

When I first saw the title, I thought this was a story for children. However, closer inspection revealed it to be a Christian living book inspired by a fairy tale and with a very relevant message for today’s times. Jesus and the Beanstalk is a unique book that can be used for personal or group study, and I enjoyed it very much.

Facts ground us, give us footing, and secure us in place,

but stories lift our eyes to meet his gaze. 

Lori Stanley Roeleveld understands the power of story to effect change, and very capably combines storytelling, personal experience, and Scripture-based teaching into an engaging and inspirational narrative.

At the heart of this book are eight spiritual fruits drawn from 2 Peter 1 – such as faith, virtue, steadfastness, godliness. Each topic is spread out over six days of in-depth Bible study, inspirational essays, and ending with a day of reflection. I made special note of Lori’s list of “Heritage of Faith Walkers” related to each spiritual fruit – people like George Mueller, Amy Carmichael, Jim Elliot, Billy Graham, Philip Yancey, Max Lucado, Oswald Chambers, Fanny Crosby, Joni Eareckson Tada, Susanna Wesley, Richard Foster, C. S. Lewis. I also enjoyed the essays and am eager to work through Jesus and the Beanstalk in depth.

To give readers a taste of what to expect, here are a few of my favorite quotes:

-- The odds are always in favor of the giant – always – but odds don’t win battles. Ask David.

-- The dragon roars and snuffs out as many as he dares before your return, but he knows too well death won’t win, murderers will be called to account, those who overcome will see your face and live forever.

-- Jesus is your security, your money in the bank, your investment portfolio, your retirement plan, your hope chest, your inheritance. He is like no other.

-- This is the age to believe what God says about prayer and about the spiritual battle raging around us.

-- People who obey often witness miracles, but that’s because people who obey are more likely to be where God is at work.

Jesus and the Beanstalk is a great spiritual resource. Recommended.

_________________________

Lori Stanley Roeleveld is the author of Running from a Crazy Man (and other adventures traveling with Jesus) and Red Pen Redemption. Her blog, LoriRoeleveld.com, was voted Top 100 Christian Blogs by RedeemingGod.com and has enjoyed over 1.5 million views. Lori lives in Hope Valley, RI.

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Thank you to Litfuse Publicity for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Litfuse landing page:
http://litfusegroup.com/author/lroeleveld

Review (+ 7-book Tour Giveaway): The Bedwarmer's Son

 

Click here to purchase your copy.

About the Book

What if Abel had killed Cain? But there was no jury of his peers….

In 1928 Georgia, a black man who kills a white man is automatically guilty, but the bedwarmer’s son, an ex-slave, is no normal black man. Once his lily-white lawyer lady learns the truth, everything changes. Can she save him from swinging?

Will the bedwarmer murder the one she’s been bought to serve?

From the antebellum South, come travel the dusty trails of Jim Crowe Dalton, Georgia with slave and master, saint and sinner. See if God is really big enough, if He truly cares about His children. McAdoo has done it again, this time in a brand new way. A delightful morsel for the palates of Christian readers world round.

About the Author

Caryl, praying her story gives God glory, loves writing for Christian genres–historical and contemporary romance, Biblical fiction, and mid-grade especially. In 2014, Simon and Schuster debuted VOW UNBROKEN, a historical Christian romance set in 1832 Texas, and Caryl followed with three additional novels. In April, LADY LUCK’S A LOSER (contemporary, mature, inspirational romance); September’s debut, HEARTS STOLEN (set in 1839-1844), book two of her historical Christian Texas Romances–a #1 Amazon Best-seller; and in November, A LITTLE LOWER THAN THE ANGELS, volume one of her new Biblical fiction series, The Generations–also an Amazon #1 Best-seller.

In 2008, her high school sweetheart-husband Ron moved her to the woods of Red River County. Caryl counts four children and sixteen grandsugars life’s biggest blessings believing all good things come from God. Praying her story gives God glory, she hopes each one ministers His love, mercy, and grace to its readers. She and Ron live in Clarksville, Texas with two grandsons, Christian and Benjamen.

Guest Post from Caryl McAdoo

The Bedwarmer’s Son, my twenty-eighth title to be published, is different from any of my books to date, offering two complete love stories from two eras a generation apart.

How I came to write it is a very different story, too!

You see, I have a contemporary book in progress based loosely on the television show The Voice, but instead of the big new singer, my imagined program The Pitch is looking for the next big author! I started it in November 2013, but abandoned its 35,000 words shortly after Vow Unbroken debuted in March from Simon and Schuster.

My characters in The Pitch—three teams of authors and agents—attend writers’ conferences all over the country looking for the next great American novel with the voters being the readers across the country. For my story, I needed lots of titles, a few with skeleton story premises to make it work.

The Bedwarmer’s Son was one of those God gave me.

But it refused to be left there as just a title. The intriguing title demanded to be written.

And so, now I’m blessed that CelebrateLit is hosting a blog tour to celebrate its September release! Though definitely a historical, this novel is not in my Texas Romance family saga series, but is a ‘companion’ book to it. My readers will remember four-year-old Charley from Hearts Stolen, book two…then him grown up and the hero of book six Just Kin. Well, in The Bedwarmer’s Son, readers meet Charley’s son and grandson, minor characters in a chapter or two.

The story opens in 1928 where the title character, William “Billy” Sinclair II is on trial for the murder of his white half-brother Jamison. Alice Parmalee, his lawyer, finds the old man’s grandson, William “Will” Robert Sinclair IV quite handsome, good-hearted and generous.

In explaining to Alice why he killed his brother, Billy goes back to the story of his mother, the ‘owned’ bedwarmer, Jasmine. Of course, every time he starts, I break into the young slave girl’s point of view, and readers find themselves back in the mid-1800’s. I love her spunk and think you will, too.

I especially love The Bedwarmer’s Son’s opening line: “He sold us right before he married that fancy lady from England, then bought us back the next Spring.” It’s set on the fictitious Three Springs plantation near Dalton, Georgia.

 In my story, I used a word that in my growing up was considered on the same level as a cuss word. I would have had my mouth washed out for saying it. So conflicted, I asked for much counsel, and everyone agreed that for the story’s time period—to portray it correctly—it was necessary…but still hard for this lady.

On the other hand, I so enjoyed going back and forth between the two stories. There’s plenty of period racial tension—so common to the day—with the KKK unhappy about the pretty white attorney defending the old black man who’s guilty simply because his victim’s skin was white.

Of course, being a Christian novel, he and his grandson trust God and believe the Almighty sent Alice—an atheist who’s been taught putting any faith in an invisible being is nothing more than a fool’s errand. She’s been reared by a famous black attorney who volunteered to take Billy’s case.

At the end of the story, when Billy’s trial is over, I think readers may be cheering. I hope so.

I pray Jasmine’s and Alice’s journey will cause readers to draw closer to the Lord, while others might reconsider a few of the things they’ve been comfortable believing. That Holy Spirit will use this story to draw them deeper into their own relationship with our Awesome God.

Looking back, I can see God’s hand all over this story and its creation and cover…the whole nine yards. I can’t begin to imagine all the ways He will used it, but am convinced that use it, He will! I always say I am blessed and highly favored, and He keeps on creating the fruit of my lips!

I love story and the cover of The Bedwarmer’s Son (designed by Ruthie Madison Derby) that displays both dejection and hope, and melds the two historic periods. God has indeed blessed me and showered His favor over me. I pray it will touch your hearts.

Oh, and as an aside I spoke with Sandy Barela about over a coffee chat, I wrote Lady Luck’s A Loser back in 2001 long before The Batchelor ever hit TV. My story is a mature inspirational romance about a wealthy man inviting nine women to come live at his bed and breakfast—under the guise of hiring a manager for it—in order to choose a wife.

Hopefully if The Pitch becomes a TV reality show, I’ll get proper credit, considering this idea is published here and copyrighted in my doing it! 🙂 Laaaa!

Blog Stops

September 27: D’S QUILTS & BOOKS

September 28: Karen’s Krayons

September 29: Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations

September 30: Simple Harvest Reads

October 1: Bibliophile Reviews

October 2: Artistic Nobody

October 3: The Power of Words

October 4: Back Porch Reads

October 5: Bigreadersite

October 6: His Grace is Sufficient

October 7: Once Upon A Time

October 8: Bukwurmzzz

October 9: Under His Wings

October 10: Mary Hake

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Caryl is giving away all seven of her Texas Romance ebooks to a lucky winner!

Review: The Book Club Murders

The Book Club Murders
By Leslie Nagel
The Oakwood Mystery Series #1
Alibi, 2016


Summary

In a charming cozy mystery series debut, Leslie Nagel’s irrepressible small-town heroine finds that her fellow mystery book club members may be taking their Agatha Christie a bit too literally—and murder a bit too lightly.

Charley Carpenter has poured heart and soul into her clothing store, Old Hat Vintage Fashions. She’ll do anything to make it a success—even join the stuffy Agathas Book Club in order to cultivate customers among the wealthy elite of Oakwood, Ohio.

Although mixing with the most influential women in town has its advantages, Charley finds the endless gossip a high price to pay. But after two women with close ties to the Agathas are brutally murdered, everyone falls under threat—and suspicion. When key evidence indicates that both murders are the work of the same hand, Charley realizes that the killer has arranged each corpse in perfect imitation of crime scenes from the Club’s murder mystery reading list. She uses her membership in the Club to convince Detective Marcus Trenault to use her as an inside informant. Not that he could stop her anyway.

Intelligent, fearless, and every bit as stubborn as Marc is, Charley soon learns the Agathas aren’t the only ones with secrets to protect. Passions explode as she and Marc must race against time to prevent another murder. And if Charley’s not careful, she may find herself becoming the killer’s next plot twist.

Amazon │ B&N │ Kobo │ Ibooks


My thoughts

The Book Club Murders . . . how could any reader resist this title? There’s a lot to like about this mystery. Leslie Nagel is a very talented writer and the story is well crafted. Romance plays a big part. I loved the character depth and relational drama. I was hooked from the beginning and didn’t want to put it down.

But this story was different from the cute cozy that I expected. While a few cozy elements are present – small-town setting, amateur detective, quirky characters, murders take place off screen – The Book Club Murders felt more like a traditional murder mystery. And that’s not a criticism, because I enjoy many traditional mysteries and police procedurals. Charley and her police detective Marc are appealing, intelligent characters – and talk about chemistry!

However, The Book Club Murders is promoted as a cozy mystery, and two elements were present that I certainly wasn’t expecting to find in this genre. One, Charley and Marc’s relationship was pretty steamy – nothing explicit, but – well, steamy. Secondly, profanity was frequent and strong, making me quite uncomfortable. This type of language was totally unnecessary and detracted from what was otherwise a great murder mystery.

I loved the backdrop of a community book club and its group of Agathas, especially how their reading list became connected to the murders. Leslie Nagel knows how to spin an entertaining story and I’m sure many mystery fans will enjoy The Book Club Murders. This is a strong debut mystery and my 3-star rating would have been much higher had it not been for the excessive use of profanity.

_________________________

Leslie Nagel is a writer and teacher of writing at a local community college. Her debut novel, The Book Club Murders, is the first in the Oakwood Mystery Series.

Leslie lives in the all too real city of Oakwood, Ohio, where murders are rare but great stories lie thick on the ground. After the written word, her passions include her husband, her son and daughter, hiking, tennis and strong black coffee, not necessarily in that order.

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Thank you to Great Escapes Tours for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review: A March to Remember

A March to Remember
By Anna Loan-Wilsey
Hattie Davish Mysteries #5
Kensington, 2016


Summary

Traveling secretary Hattie Davish is taking her singular talents to Washington, D.C., to help Sir Arthur Windom-Greene research his next book. But in the winding halls of the nation’s capital, searching for the truth can sometimes lead to murder . . .

Hattie is in her element, digging through dusty basements, attics, and abandoned buildings, not to be denied until she fishes out that elusive fact. But her delightful explorations are dampened when she witnesses a carriage crash into a carp pond beneath the shadow of the Washington Monument. Alarmingly, one of the passengers flees the scene, leaving the other to drown.

The incident only heightens tensions brought on by the much publicized arrival of “Coxey’s Army,” thousands of unemployed men converging on the capital for the first ever organized “march” on Washington. When one of the marchers is found murdered in the ensuing chaos, Hattie begins to suspect a sinister conspiracy is at hand. As she expands her investigations into the motives of murder and closes in on the trail of a killer, she is surprised and distraught to learn that her research will lead her straight to the highest levels of government . . .

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My thoughts

Washington, D.C. – 1894

A March to Remember is a cozy mystery of quality – entertaining, informative, and impressive. Mystery, history, romance are blended together in a narrative that easily flows across the page. This book is #5 of the Hattie Davish historical series, and I regret to only have discovered Hattie as the series apparently concludes. A March to Remember can stand alone, but I’d like to read the previous mysteries.

Hattie is a traveling secretary who works for Sir Arthur, and this story takes them to the Washington, D. C. of 1894, where they are guests in the home of Senator Smith and his wife. Hattie is an endearing, caring, and intelligent heroine, and I loved her perceptive thoughts that are so relevant for today: “The more I was around the senator, the more I learned he did nothing uncalculated, nothing but for its political significance.”

Anna Loan-Wilsey skillfully conveys the feel of the era and setting, completely pulling the reader back in time. The first protest march on Washington provides a fascinating backdrop for A March to Remember, one that I found very interesting. Led by Jacob Coxey, thousands of unemployed workers known as Coxey’s Army descended on the Capitol to present their grievances. “These men were only a small fraction of the millions of jobless men and women across the country who were facing starvation, some of whom chopped wood, broke rocks, and even resorted to prostitution in exchange for food for their families.”

The mystery is well plotted, with suspects aplenty – but not too many to keep up with. I read mysteries more for enjoyment rather than trying to figure out whodunit, and there was lots to enjoy in A March to Remember.

I liked how the story focuses on human nature and appreciated Hattie’s thoughts regarding the madam, Lottie Fox: “I was stuck by the morality of a woman who most couldn’t conceive had any at all.”

Recommended to all who enjoy a good historical mystery.

_________________________

Anna Loan-Wilsey, biologist, librarian, and author, writes the historical Hattie Davish Mystery series featuring a Victorian traveling secretary who solves crimes in every historic town she visits. The first in the series, A Lack of Temperance, set in 1890’s Eureka Springs, Arkansas, (an Amazon #1 bestseller) was followed by Anything But Civil (set in Galena, IL), A Sense of Entitlement (an iBook #1 bestseller set in Newport, RI), and A Deceptive Homecoming (set in St. Joseph, MO, Hattie’s hometown).

A March to Remember finds Hattie caught up in the political intrigues surrounding Coxey’s Army and the first “march” on Washington, D.C.

Anna lives in a Victorian farmhouse near Ames, Iowa with her family where she is happily working on new mystery adventures.

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Thank you to Great Escapes Tours for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

GIVEAWAY

Enter to win an autographed set of all 5 Hattie Davish Mysteries books (print version, U.S. only). Click on image or link below.

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Review: Fifth Column

Fifth Column
By Mike Hollow
The Blitz Detective #2
Lion Hudson/Kregel, 2016


Summary

Detective Inspector Jago investigates, uncovering deception and betrayal.

At first glance, the young woman found in the early hours of the morning where bombs have landed is just another casualty of the previous night’s air raid. But when the post-mortem shows signs of strangulation, Detective Inspector Jago is called on to investigate.

The dead woman is smartly dressed but carries no identification. However, a local engineering company reports a staff member has failed to appear at work that morning and the body is quickly identified as that of Miss Mary Watkins.

DI Jago’s initial interviews yield little fruit; no one can think of a reason why Mary would be murdered. But as the investigation continues DI Jago begins to uncover a trail of deception and betrayal.


My thoughts

Atmospheric … methodical ... authentic ... impressive.

Although not particularly fond of WWII fiction, I’m crazy about British drama and police procedurals, so I decided to give Fifth Column a try – and am I ever glad I did! Those four adjectives above don’t even begin to do it justice. Mike Hollow is an excellent descriptive storyteller. He knows his setting, police methodology, and human nature – and his narrative is easy to follow.

Air-raid damage in Plaistow, 1940

Fifth Column’s West Ham setting in London’s East End gives an urban grittiness to this WWII mystery, and I can’t remember when I’ve been pulled into a story’s atmosphere this much. Sometimes life gives a false semblance of certainty, but the Blitz wiped that out. Homes were destroyed, lives torn asunder. People slept in shelters at night and struggled to maintain a normal life during the daytime. The Blitz “flung ordinary people into the front line. Enemy bombs rained down on docks, factories and homes alike in chaotic destruction. Death struck randomly from street to street. No one could be sure they would be alive the next morning.”

I really like John Jago, a detective inspector in London’s Metropolitan Police, based at West Ham police station. At 18, he was conscripted to fight in the British Army during the Great War, and struggles with lingering memories. When Jago mentions having purchased his “shelter bed” at Selfridges (PBS drama by the same name), I loved being able to picture that London department store. Now he’s 42 and a bachelor, but only because he hasn’t yet found the right person. There’s a hint of romance with an American war correspondent, Dorothy, and I look forward to the growth of their relationship.

Fifth Column is also strong as a police procedural. Suspects abound, but I never found it confusing to follow. The mystery is solved through meticulous, step-by-step investigation that reflects human behaviors that never change. I had never heard of the term “fifth column” and was interested to learn that it refers to a group of people who sympathize with their country’s enemy.

British fiction sometimes contains a little mild language, but I didn’t notice any and thought this was a clean read. The spiritual thread is subtle, mainly brought out toward the end as Jago and Dorothy talk about evil, justice and judgement. I suspect faith themes will be further developed as the series progresses.

I’d like to read the previous book, Direct Hit, and look forward to much more from Mike Hollow.

Highly recommended.

_________________________

Mike Hollow studied languages at Cambridge, then worked for the BBC and then Tearfund. Now a freelance writer and editor, he lives in Basingstoke (England) with his wife Margaret. A popular poet, his work has been widely performed and has appeared in many collections.

Website

Thank you to Kregel and Lion Hudson for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.