Friday, August 2, 2019

The Case of the Missing Hippo by Laura James

Oh, how I wish that the illustrations had been included in the ARC I got from NetGalley. The story was fine but I think the pictures might have upped my rating.
The Case of the Missing Hippo by Laura  James
Violet, the niece of a local hotel owner, is trying to get the hotel some more business by holding a talent show. One of the judges catches a bad cold so Fabio is asked to step in. During the tryouts, the lights go out and a hippo singer disappears. Fabio is immediately on the case. It takes a race at the nearby athletic event to put him on the right track.
This book will probably amuse parents with the arch jokes and wink, winks but I'm not sure how it will appeal to children.

Three stars
This book comes out August 6th
ARC kindly provided by Bloomsbury Children's Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Thursday, August 1, 2019

Lone Wolf Cowboy by Maisey Yates

How much do the scars of our past affect our current relationships?
Lone Wolf CowboyVanessa Logan has been mentioned in past books. Her twin Olivia was the perfect child while Vanessa was the one who descended into drugs, alcohol, and debauchery eventually leaving home when she was a teen. Five years ago, she managed to pull herself into sobriety and now she's back in Gold Valley working with at risk kids.
On the other hand, Jacob Dalton is burying his own guilt from spending the day in bed with a one-night stand while his friend covered a wildfire shift and died. He's using alcohol. His family are the ones who set up the camp for the kids and he's being pulled in to just be in the classroom so that the teen boys don't decide that Vanessa is fair game.
One night, Jacob and Vanessa are each dealing with their own dragons and hook up. Neither is very proud of themselves but it does lead them to opening up with each other about their past. It also leads to them being linked in ways that they never expected.
I... didn't love the last half of the book. And I can't articulate why. Possibly because Major Plot Point (MPP) came out of left field for me. More because MPP made it so that everything was fast forwarded and I like a little more relationship development in most of my books.

Three stars
This book came out July 30th
Follows Cowboy to the Core
Followed by Cowboy Christmas Redemption
ARC kindly provided by Harlequin and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Labyrinth by Catherine Coulter

This book starts with a literal bang when Sherlock is t-boned at and intersection. As she is spinning out of control, she hits a man who then disappears. But what was he doing in the intersection in the
first place? Adding to the mystery, Sherlock's head injuries are such that she gets amnesia and can't remember anything about what happened. In fact, she can't remember anything at all.
At the same time, Agent Griffin Hammersmith is taking some time off in Virginia when he hears a psychic scream. A woman is being attacked. But when local law enforcement arrives, they're more interested in covering up than in helping.
Carson is in the store when a man just starts <i>thinking</i> at her. He's ruminating on the death of one of three missing girls. She inadvertently draws attention to herself and wakes up in a basement. Rather than interviewing an eminent scientist, she is now trying to escape with her life.
Griffin has the FBI to throw so throw he does. But the secret that they uncover is big enough that they need both Sherlock and Savich. But the Ss still need to find Justice, the man who Sherlock hit. As a CIA agent, he holds the key to uncovering a major conspiracy.
The two stories are not well connected but it was otherwise a good read.

Three and a half stars
This book came out July 30th
Follows Paradox
Followed by Deadlock
ARC kindly provided by Gallery Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Terns of Endearment by Donna Andrews

Terns of Endearment (Meg Langslow, #25)Meg's grandfather has been asked to lead a series of bird talks on the cruise line Pastimes. In return, he got a friends and family discount. So the entire clan has packed up and headed to Florida to get on the boat. Even waiting to embark is sending up red flags since the porter does not seem willing to take aboard her family's 32 bags. The trip only gets odder after Meg meets a group of 4 writers who had a friend die recently; the woman they blame, Desiree, has also joined the cruise. It becomes quite quickly obvious that Desiree is a exactly as the other writers describe her, thoroughly despicable. Is it, however, a surprise that her shawl and shoes are found on deck 4 along with a suicide note. This happens on the same day that the boat's engines go silent.
With the officers of the boat behaving as if all is well (it very noticeably is NOT), the staff size mysteriously small, and the appearance of a body (not Desiree's), Meg is up to her eyeballs in mystery.
Andrews usually does a great juggling her large cast of minor characters and mostly does okay in this book but there are some places where it feels like there are a LOT of people introduced; this will probably be confusing for new-to-the-series readers but not as hard for those of us who are Langslow fans. I appreciated that the book was moved out of Caerphilly but was never really pulled into the story.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out August 6th, 2019
Followed by Owl Be Home for Christmas
ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Reread as Audible book December 2023

Monday, July 29, 2019

Let's Fake a Deal by Sherry Harris

I liked that this book moved Sarah Winston out of the rut the last couple of books had been in. I didn't love the ending (the wrap up didn't make sense with most of the rest of the books; not enough clues had been laid) but it was overall an enjoyable read.
The book opens with Sarah starting a garage sale for a cute young couple who are downsizing now that they've moved to town. Too bad all of the furniture is actually stolen and Sarah is the number one suspect. But her friend Michelle has it even worse. In line for a promotion at the Air Base, she's just had a big charge made against her and she's not allowed to know what it is or who made it. However, she can pretty well figure it out. Too bad he ends up dead in her car.
So Sarah is trying not only to save her friend Michelle but herself (and her DA boyfriend Seth whose reputation is also on the line). It's a lot to juggle but she might just figure out some things along the way.

Four stars
This book comes out July 30th
Follows The Gun also Rises
ARC kindly provided by Kensington Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Murder at Crossways by Alyssa Maxwell

First-person narrator Emma has accepted a job as the acting editor-in-chief for her friend/love interest, Derek's, paper, the Newport Messenger. She is proud to have the position but all is not well. She is dealing with a series of setbacks that may actually be sabotage. Who doesn't want her working at the newspaper? Is it because she is a woman?
And in her personal life, the book opens with a stunning beach rescue and then the discovery of a dead body. Emma is shocked to see the face of her brother, Brady. But after her shock fades, she realizes that it is someone else. But is it who she suspects?
Combining both her personal and professional life, Emma's society reporter is unable make it to the Harvest Festival held by Mamie Fish so she has to go in his stead. Though the guest of honor, Prince Otto of Austria, never shows up, and, thought it breaks the hearts of all of the debutantes and their mothers who had hoped to snares prince, it seems he has a very good reason. Earlier in the evening, Otto was killed just like the man on the beach. Can the two deaths be connected? And what will the answers mean to Emma and her brother?

Three stars
This book comes out July 30th
ARC kindly provided by Kensington Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Good Guy by Kate Meader

After leaving the Special Forces, Levi Hunt is again playing hockey. But he's shocked when he's moved up to the pros after a series of injuries on the Chicago Rebels team. The press is ecstatic for the story but only one person has history with Levi, Jordan Cooke.
Jordan's husband was Levi's best friend. The night he was buried, Levi and Jordan kissed and Levi still feels a massive amount of guilt. Jordan is a little more balanced.
She knows that it was a strange time for them both and that grief can cause people to do things they wouldn't normally. But she's not back in his life to pursue romance; she has the chance to land time on a network if she can get a big scoop. But she's not exactly sure that she wants to be the one to do that to Levi. Sometimes the past is best left covered. Forced proximity and a simmering heat may not lead Jordan to the story of her career, but it may lead her to love.
This was a very frustrating story to read and the end was especially so. It relies on the trope of grown-ass people not just TALKING to each other and assuming that they know what is going on and what is going to be best for the other person. Plus, there is a pretty big bomb and it's sort of resolved but I wish there had been more.

Three stars
This book comes out July 30th
ARC kindly provided by publisher and NetGalley
Opinions are my own