Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble by Alexis Hall

Wow. If you have any problems with self doubt, this book may not be the best as we get the first person view of Paris as he wobbles his way through a version of the Great British Bakeoff. He doubts every single thing he does and we get to read paragraphs of it. Lots and lots of paragraphs of it. And we don't get nearly enough of the romance in this book (same as in the first one in the series) but it is still an incredibly charming book. Hall is such an amazing writer that , in another's hands (words?) I wouldn't have kept going but I did. 

I wish we had gotten to see more of the behind-the-scenes as Paris finally figured out how to start the long road to being more confident. And how to be in a relationship with Tariq. 

Three and a half stars

This book came out November 1, 2022

Follows Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake

Followed by Audrey Lane Stirs the Pot

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Modern Calligraphy by Maricar Concepcion Ramos

This was a very nice introduction to calligraphy though I was very surprised that the author suggested that you should pick your pen up after every stroke. I have watched a number of videos and read another book and none of them suggest that approach. It seems to me that would add a large amount of time to your projects. I also really wish that the author had interspersed the practice sheets closer to the actual description of the fonts. Lots of font options in this book as well as some art work that can be done with your brush pens. I highly recommend buying a physical copy of this book. 

Three and a half stars

This book came out November 8, 2022

Ebook from NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning by P.J. Fitzsimmons

Anthony "Anty" Boisjoly decides to make this book somewhat even more amusing to listen to as he goes to visit his Aunty. She has an extreme aversion to being anywhere in public but hers are the only footprints in the snow leading to her neighbor's house. The same neighbor who is now dead. 

Inspector Wittersham once again appears in this story and agrees with the local constable that Anty's aunty does seem like the most likely murder suspect as she has been spending time with the retired major and it is possible that something went wrong between them. The biggest problem that Aunt Azalea is facing is that the major was seen in the local pub after the snow started pinning her as the only suspect.

The solution is a bit convoluted and all of the townspeople have secrets that come out in the end but it was overall a very enjoyable story.

Four stars

This book came out July 1, 2022

Follows The Case of the Canterfell Codicil

Followed by The Tale of the Tenpenny Tontine

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Better than Fiction by Alexa Martin

Drew Young hasn't had time to mourn her grandmother's passing. Instead, she's been focusing her life on the bookstore her grandmother left her. She's feeling inadequate because she doesn't have her grandmother's charm or knowledge of books. She doesn't even have a love of books. Her love was photography but she had to give that up in order to run the store. Her grandmother's cronies are trying to help (probably) by getting a hot romance author to come in to talk to the book club. Drew is not impressed. Not by his handsome face, or gorgeous eyes, or charm... When the cronies set them up on a date, she is REALLY not amused. But Jasper manages to charm her anyway. But he's keeping some secrets that Drew might not appreciate.

Drews love for her grandmother and her grandmother's love for her both shine through and are the best part of this story. There are also some subplots with Drew's half-sister who is trying to get to know Drew better and Drew's father who is not nearly so nice. 

Four stars

This book comes out November 8, 2022

ARC kindly provided by Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Matchmaking a Grump by Angela R. Casella, Denise Grover Swank

Kennedy might have a massive trust fund but she can't touch any of it until she's thirty and she wants to put a spotlight on the nonprofit she works for. So she agrees to go on a dating show that is basically  The Bachelor for rich people. But none of the men have caught her eye. At least, none of the contestants have. The grandson of host Nana Mayberry on the other hand isn't... horrible. Nana Mayberry is definitely horrible but Rowan...

Rowan is trying to destruct the show. His grandmother is a horrible person and she does NOT need a national platform to increase her ego. If Kennedy gets run over as he does that, it's not like he knows her anyway. Or likes her all that much. But the more he gets to know her, the more he does like her.

Four stars

This book come out November 3, 2022

Follows Matchmaking a Single Dad

Followed by Matchmaking a Roommate

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie

The solution to this story is more than a little complicated with any number of coincidences but it is seemingly easily solved by Hercule Poirot. 

A young girl, known for being an inveterate liar, declares that she has seen a murder. When no one believes her, she doubles down and says that she only just realized what it was that she saw. Still, no one pays attention. Even mystery writer Ariadne Oliver, visiting a friend, thinks the girl is lying in order to bulk up her social credibility. But then, during the Halloween party, the girl is killed. And, later, her brother. Mrs. Oliver does the sensible thing and calls on her friend, the famous detective. 

This is an interesting story because we do get to see Poirot in nature (it doesn't go well) and the ending is a little more dramatic than some others in this series.

Three and a half stars

This book came out November 1, 1969

Follows Third Girl

Followed by Elephants Can Remember

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Reread October 2023

Spy x Family, Vol. 4 by Tatsuya Endo

The Forger family is growing! In the last book, Anya got the first of 8 stars she needs to join the elite of her school and her reward is a dog. However, the first stop (Loid's agency's training facility) does not yield any results. When he's called away to deal with a young terrorist, the family is pulled into a bomb plot which also, surprisingly, yields a dog. Even more surprisingly, this dog has a deep and unexpected connection with Anya.

Three and a half stars

This book came out January 4, 2020

Follows Vol. 3

Followed by Vol. 5

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own