Murder Most Puzzling Peril at Quandary Park A Mysterious Case to Solve by Stephanie von Reiswitz

Adelaide Hatchett has died. A heart attack. At a summer party. In her own greenhouse with all of the doors and windows locked. That's probably not a surprise as she was an older woman. However, Betrand Hellebore thinks there's something more to it. He and Adelaide weren't on great terms as he had been hired to make possets and potions specifically for her from the plants in her greenhouse. He left the house with hard feelings but doesn't believe he could have been disinherited. Adelaide must have been murdered. 

The reader normally wouldn't take on a case like this but in a Wolfe-esque manner, we have to work in order to keep ourselves in the style to which we've become accustomed. 

We are introduced to the people who were at her last party and given reasons why they might have wanted to kill her. There are puzzles on almost every page and they vary in easiness from medium to hard. Of the books that I've read like this lately, this was the best executed. Highly recommend getting in hard copy as it can be difficult to read and enjoy on an e-reader and would be very hard on a phone. 

Four stars

This book comes out September 30, 2025

ARC kindly provided by Chronicle Books and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The House of My Mother by Shari Franke

Shari Franke’s face was known to millions of people as her mother’s vlogging channel took off on YouTube. For a lot of her life, Shari’s most humiliating moments were taped and then broadcast to the world. But behind the scenes, there was a lot of turmoil. She and her five siblings were physically and emotionally abused, especially once her parents (whom she refers to as Ruby and Kevin), fell under the spell of a con artist. 

The book skims the surface of what happened to Shari. She only tells her stories and a few of her brother Chad’s, not wanting to be yet another adult who makes money off her younger siblings. The writing was pretty good although the editing was not great (a lot of spelling mistakes that took me out of the story.) 

Four stars

This book came out January 7, 2025

Borrowed as hard copy from the library

Opinions are my own

The Haunting at Morsley Manor by George Morris De'Ath

Eric Thompson, paranormal researcher, has the gift. He can sense the paranormal and even see the past. He has made a name for himself making online videos investigating haunted places. Well, he and Michael made a name for themselves. But Michael took off and now Eric works alone. Not by his choice. He keeps trying out new assistants or apprentices, but they don't last long (for one reason or another.) 

The book opens with Eric encountering a rather nasty spirit. We also get to see him during an interview and get some third person omniscient thoughts about how uncomfortable he is, though he's there for the fans. He's not sure where he's going next until he's approached to go to Morsley Manor. An old director is trying to start a new series and Eric could be involved. From there, we see others from his past as well as meet new people, but not everyone will make it out of the manor alive. 

The book description was gory campy horror.  I was not expecting such graphic descriptions of said horror that took up so much of the book. If you are looking for a book with great character development, this book was not that. Other than Eric, it seemed like characters were introduced just to move his life along. 

Two and a half stars

This book came out September 23, 2025

ARC kindly provided by Rising Action Publishing Co. and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Killer Question by Janice Hallett

I have really enjoyed Hallett's bookI have really enjoyed Hallett's books in the past, especially the updating of the epistolary style. This book was a little bit heavier on texting which made for a bit of a slog.

This is, once again, a story within a story. The conceit is that the nephew of two people killed five years ago is shopping the idea of a short true crime series based around the events. We are reading the information that the nephw is sending to the producer's assistant, all of it over text messaging.

The main story is around his aunt and uncle who run a pub which includes a trivia night. They are part of a group chat of other pubs in the area who also run trivia nights so we get to know a bit about the owners, but even more about the dedicated players who go to the different pub nights. Everything is upended by the discovery of a body as well as a new group that starts sweeping the quizzes. 

While I liked the overall story, I kept having to stop and come back since reading text messages got a bit tedious. Later in the book, we got some longer paragraphs but by then we're getting in to the twists so it's a little bit of whiplash from a number of directions. 

Three stars

This book comes out September 23, 2025

ARC kindly provided by Atria Books and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Faithful Unto Death by Caroline Graham

Alan and Simone Hollingsworth are new to town. He works long hours in the city while she is left to fill her time. However, it seems like Alan may be raather possessive as he tends to call her often to see where she is in the day. One day, her neighbor stops by but Simone isn't home. And that is the start of a myster. Where did Simone go? And why are others in the neighborhood disappearing as well? Like the rather ugly girl from next door, Brenda. 

Troy moves further away from his television portrayal. He is so rude to the local cop, Parrot, that they miss valuable information.

All sorts of sordid secrets will be revealed before the end of this story. It's not quite as bad as the previous story but still quite a lot going on in a little village. 

Three and a half stars

This book came out  in 1996

Chief Inspector Barnaby #5

Follows Written in Blood

Followed by A Place of Safety

Audiobook of mine in Audible

Opinions are my own

Face the Fire by Nora Roberts

Four stars

This book came out 

Three Sisters Island, #3

Follows by Heaven and Earth

Hard copy I own

Opinions are my own

Written In Blood by Caroline Graham

The Midsomer Worthy Writers’ Circle club has invited a prominent writer to visit them. And, of all the shocks, he actually shows up. One member is not excited to see him. He actually request of another member that the two not be left alone. When they are, the member ends up dead. 

Inspector Barnaby and Sergeant Troy are in Midsomer Worthy to try and solve the murder though the investigation will uncover any number of the secrets the villagers would prefer to have hidden.

Three stars

This book came out  in 1994

Chief Inspector Barnaby #4

Follows Death of a Hollow Man

Followed by Faithful Unto Death

Audiobook of mine in Audible

Opinions are my own