Mrs. Pollifax and the Second Thief by Dorothy Gilman

The book opens with Mrs Pollifax standing in the rain at a funeral. She's been asked to take pictures by her old friend Farrell. The same Farrell who's sent out an SOS asking her and Curtis to come to Sicily. Curtis can't make it but Mrs Pollifax is up for the challenge.

She meets not only Farrell there, but also a young CIA agent named Kate. Kate and her aunt are the ones to hide Mrs. Pollifax and Farrell when they are followed from their meeting spot. There is something interesting going on with Kate's aunt and the village that she supports with her art. Somehow it overlaps with the work that Farrell has been doing, trying to retrieve a supposed signature of Julius Caesar. Oh, and old enemy rears his head once again.

Oh, these books are dated. Terms that were maybe acceptable in the early 80s now cause a twinge. Is this book believable? No. Does it need to be? Also no.

Three stars

This book came out in 1993

Follows Mrs. Pollifax and the Whirling Dervish

Followed by Mrs. Pollifax Pursued 

Hard copy I didn't keep

Opinions are my own

Murder in an Irish Pub by Carlene O'Connor

Siobhan O'Sullivan is working with the rest of the Garda to make sure the town stays safe while a major poker game is going on. There are some very famous players coming in including The Octopus, Eamon Foley (anyone's guess as to whether his nickname refers to his good poker hands or how he acts around women), Clementine Heart, and Shane Ross. 

During the first game, Eamon is dealt the Dead Man's hand. Major foreshadowing there as he later ends up dead but not before he's accused of cheating to win the hand. There was a lot going on with accusations that his wife was carrying a child that wasn't Eamon's, a bet involving a valuable racehorse, and longstanding rivalries. 

The actual answer comes somewhat out of left field. An interesting story and you don't need to have read the rest of the series to understand what it going on.

Three stars

This book came out February 26, 2019

Follows Murder in an Irish Churchyard

Followed by Murder in an Irish Cottage

Hard copy I didn't keep

Opinions are my own

Scarlet Nights by Jude Deveraux

Jude Deveraux... light fluff, incredibly enjoyable. Sarah Shaw was introduced in the first Edilean story as the neighbor/cousin who was involved with a man nobody liked. In this story, we find out that the man is actually a maniacal con artist and Mike Newland (the brother of another character from the first novel) has been dispatched to the town to entice Sarah away from her fiancee. 

Not to deep, not a lot of character development and the characters fall into bed WAY too fast, but some great dialogue and I just love the wackinesss.

Three and a half stars
This book came out August 1, 2010

Follows Days of Gold

Followed by The Scent of Jasmine

Borrowed as hard copy from the library

Opinions are my own

The Pantomime Murders by Fiona Veitch Smith

Clara Vale is asked to look into the sudden disappearance of Sybil Langford. The woman is legendary in pantomime circles and her professionalism is well-known. For her to leave so quickly and in the middle of the season worries her young friend Peggy. Even as Clara is looking into the information, another person dies. 

At the same time, she is hired to help figure out why a local department store is losing so much merchandise. The man who hires for the department store is a familiar name, Jack Danskin. He is eventually brought into the mystery a little bit more and he may become a bigger part of the series as we go on. 

I like this book better than the first ones as we are getting to know the characters more and the mystery came together a bit more smoothly. 

Four stars

This book comes out November 28, 2023

Follows The Picture House Murders

ARC kindly provided by Embla Books and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Thanksgiving by Sam Sifton

This is a delightful book which, written by the one man turkey helpline for the New York Times, simplifies Thanksgiving for everyone. Whether you've hosted Thanksgiving in the past or this will be your first year, this book is going to help you be ready for the big day. Combining recipes with some of the author's own nostalgia with instructions from before the big day to the end of it, this book is no-nonsense and filled with some rules to break (you can put your for on top of your napkin) and others to definitely follow (NO appetizers.)

Highly enjoyable and definitely worth a read, probably even a re-read.

Five stars

This book came out January 1, 2012

Borrowed as hard copy from the library

Opinions are my own

Watchful Wisteria by Angela Pepper

Zara's newest ghost is one who was persistent. She made it into Zara's body even though she had a blocking gel and was trying to hold her breath. The ghost, Tansy, was Zinnia's plant provider and Vincent's estranged sister. When Zinnia and Zara go to check out the house, there are also ghosts of 

More of the book actually centers around a red fox that Zara rescues in the woods and what it showing up does to upend Zara's life.

Three stars

This book came out July 11, 2017

Follows Wisteria Wonders

Followed by Wisteria Wyverns

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

Inheritance by Nora Roberts

Is it trite to walk in on your fiance having sex with someone else right before the wedding? Yes, but that doesn't mean it's not happening to Sonya. It's just too bad that he takes the breakup badly and that she works with him. So she quits her job and branches out on her own.

Sonya's able to get even a little more space when she finds out that she's inherited a large house from the uncle she never knew she had. It's in Maine and she has to live in it at least 40 weeks for the next three years. Though trepidatious, Sonya's ready to take the leap. It doesn't even take three weeks for her to decide she's going to go for it. It takes a little longer for her to convince her best friend Cleo that she should move there too. 

Roberts is a master and this book just shows it once again. You think you've read books similar to this one -- old ghost angry about life and taking it out on the living; two friends moving to a new place and finding handsome men; playful and adorable dogs. But this book has enough of a twist and some nuances in the characters that make it worth reading to see what happens next. 

Four stars

Lost Bride Trilogy #1

Followed by The Mirror

This book comes out November 21, 2023

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

Reread as hard copy from the library April 2024