Geeky Fab 5 vol. 1: It's Not Rocket Science by Liz Lareau; Lucy Lareau

The book starts with Lucy preparing for a new day at school. It starts off okay, meeting her friend Zara "Zeke" Kumar in line and then discovering that they are in the same pod (desks grouped together). Unfortunately, a monkey bar breaks, Lucy is injured, and it leads the principal to completely shut down the playground during recess. With the help of her new friends, Lucy decides to raise the funds to get a new playground. But the sixth graders don't want the team to succeed; they like having the playground to themselves.
It's a bit cheesy and the "Girl Power" is a little ... unsubtle, but overall an enjoyable read.

Three stars
This book came out July 31
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley

Toucan Keep a Secret by Donna Andrews

In addition to her regular duties of blacksmithing, being a mother to twins, helping the mayor, Meg Langslow is helping out the Episcopalian priest while she's on bed rest. After a meeting one night, she sees light moving in the columbarium (crypt). When she goes to investigate, one of the most contentious lay officials has been killed and many of the niches destroyed.
Linked to a robbery in the late-80s, this crime will result in more crimes including someone shooting at Meg.
Another great book in the series. Andrews knows how to move the timelines and still keep readers involved without an info dump.

Four stars

Follows How the Finch Stole Christmas!
Followed by Lark! The Herald Angels Sing

This book comes out August 7
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley

Reread July 2021, as Audible book December 2023

Dig Deep My Grave by Cheryl Honigford

Charlie is going to the big house. To meet his love's, Vivian Witchell, wealthy family. It's touted as a cottage but... it is not as small as it sounds. Plus, her first lover is there on the scene and seems to be making a play for her. Is that why he apparently ends up dead, stabbed, with Charlie holding the murder weapon?
Viv doesn't even hesitate. Even knowing that her tryout for a Hollywood screenplay is on the line, she's going to stick around and make sure that Charlie's proved innocent.
Regular readers will really enjoy this addition to the series.

Four stars
This book comes out August 7
ARC kindly provided by Edelweiss
Follows Homicide for the Holidays

Paradox by Catherine Coulter

The Savich and Sherlock books can be a little uneven for me. But I set my expectations low for the romance on this one (why even include them, they're so glossed over, at this point?) But they're once more drawn into a mystery and that is the more enjoyable part of the story, seeing the two of them work together. This time, it's to thwart someone who seems to be trying to destroy their lives, starting with trying to kidnap their son.
The A story overlaps with a sheriff who happens to witness the murder of the person who sets off the Sherlock/Savich chain of events and the FBI lover of the woman who is murdered. There is also a story about a serial killer that is glossed on.

Four stars
This book comes out July 31st
Followed by Paradox
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley

Born to Be Wilde by Eloisa James

At the end of the last book in this series, Lavinia Gray discovered that she was not the heiress she thought. In fact, her mother hasy been stealing to supplement their lifestyle for the last few years. Stealing from friends. With nothing left to lose, Lavinia goes to the bedchamber of Parth Sterling, wealthy (adopted) member of the Wilde family, to propose marriage. When he says no, she realizes that she had more to lose as it chips away at her ego.
Parth Sterling doesn't actually believe that Lavinia is as shallow as puddle, but he sure deflects his feelings for her by claiming to believe it. He offers to help find her suitors but quickly realizes that he wants her for himself.
Arrrrgggh. I really enjoyed so much of this book; Lavinia growing into herself, Parth figuring out what he wanted early... but there were so many things that were annoying; Parth being a bit of an alphahole and the Big Misunderstanding. The last felt like it was just tacked on to add pages. But overall an enjoyable read.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out July 31
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley
Follows Too Wilde to Wed
Followed by Say No to the Duke

Love You by Stacy Finz

Win Garner and Darcy Wallace have both been introduced in this series before. Win is the playboy of his family, the one who wines and dines women but never gets serious. In fact, he tries not to get too serious about anything. Or that's the perception; there have been glimpses of a deeper Win.
Darcy doesn't want Win to be deep. She just wants to break her dry spell. So she's fairly astonished when she crawls into his bed one night but gets rebuffed. Because her mother has been wearing on her self-confidence her whole life, she assumes that it's her. But Win is just trying to stay on the straight and narrow. He suggests they be friends but can't stop flirting.
The two are thrown together in order to help bring in a corporate account for their family business, Garner Adventures. It lets them both shine as well as spend some more time together.
This is a fast,fun, and fluffy with some toe-dips into the serious but nothing deep. Perfect reading for a summer's day.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out July 31
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley
Follows Want You

What Ales the Earl by Sally MacKenzie

Ten years ago Penelope Barnes was kicked out of her father's house because she was pregnant. She was able to go to her aunt's for a whort while but eventually found her way to Puddleton and the Benevolent Home there. Her daughter has the distinctive stripe of white hair that all of the Grahams have. But no one knows that her daughter is a Graham. Penelope has been claiming to be a widow. But now there's a new mother/daughter duo at the home and they've identified Harriet as a bastard. Of course, they think she's the earl's daughter.
And she is. Well, not the former earl who was an incorrigible rake and left bastards all around the countryside. No, she's the daughter of the current earl. The one who left Penelope before she knew she was pregnant. The one who has just wandered into Puddleton...
A nice world-building book that suffers a little from so much introduction (I wish we had seen more of the brewery if that's what the series is based around) but I'm definitely looking forward to more in the series.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out July 31st
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley