The Spy Test by Joel Jessup

Definitely buy this book as a hard copy. Navigation, puzzle solving, and readability will all be better that way. 

This is a collection of puzzles that are a nice range of types. There are cryptograms, pictures, and logic puzzles. Each is designed to tell you whether you could be a spy. Is that true? Eh. But they're fun even if a little frustrating to navigate as an ebook. 

Three stars
This book comes out November 19, 2024

ARC kindly provided by Quarto Publishing Group - Ivy Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Bonded in Death by J. D. Robb

In Death #60

Follows Passions in Death
Audiobook ARC from Macmillan Audio and NetGalley

Ebook ARC kindly provided by St. Martin's Press and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

No One Was Supposed to Die at this Wedding byCatherine Mack

stars

This book comes out May 13, 2025

The Vacation Mysteries #2

Follows Every Time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies

ARC kindly provided by Minotaur Books and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

The Mirror by Nora Roberts

We return to the same set of characters as Inheritance. Owen and Sonya had gone through a magic mirror and were in the past, when one of their ancestors was getting married. And they witnessed his bride's death. 

They are quickly brought back to the present day where Sonya's significant other/Owen's best friend, Trey, waits for them with Sony's best friend, Cleo. They are moving further along in finding out how to solve the curse of their family. Sonya's dreams continue but she and Cleo are trying to build good vibes in the house to combat the evil spirit.

There's not a ton that happens in this book that didn't happen in the first book. The plot moves, but a lot of it is the same thing we saw in book one. Cleo and Owen get together in this book and we get to see more interaction with Chef Bree who is a fun character. Nothing ever really drags but there's not a lot that's new either. 

Three stars

Lost Bride Trilogy #2

Follows Inheritance

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

The Treasure Hunters Club by Tom Ryan

Generations ago, a sailing ship lost a treasure off the coast of Nova Scotia. Decades ago, a group of friends found the treasure. Then, it disappeared. Since then, there has been a society of their offspring dedicated to finding the treasure. But they are all in their eighties and nineties. Or dead. 

This book jumps between characters as well as between the past and present. We also move from first person narration, to third person omniscient, to a different third person omniscient, to some epistolary. And there are layers of the mystery. In other words, there's a lot going on. There's even a touch of fantasy at the end. For someone who doesn't mind a sort of sprawling book that runs all over, this is going to be a great book. 

Three stars

This book came out October 15, 2024

ARC kindly provided by Grove Atlantic and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

A Body at the Grand Hotel by Benedict Brown

At the end of the last book, Marius got some new information about what may have happened to his father. But he is trying not to dwell on that and is excited to be distracted by a letter inviting him to be an honorary member of the Torquay Mystery and Detection Society. They are inviting him to give a speech the night before the local October Ball. Marius decides, why not? Bella, Inspector Lovelace, and his family all decide to come along as well. 

When he gets there, he discovers that the group is not exactly the fans he had supposed them to be. Instead, he is thrown to the wolves by their leader, Mrs. Thistlethwaite. The same Mrs. Thistlethwaite who Marius finds dead in the hotel pool the next morning. 

This is a twisty turning mystery that is maybe a little overwrought. There was some time spent in a crossover with Brown's Lord Edgington series and that did feel a little forced. The ending was interesting but I'm not sure everything was sewn together successfully. Still, an enjoyable read, overall. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out November 15, 2024

Follows The Castleton Affair

Marius Quin Mystery #4

ARC kindly provided Storm Publishing and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Guilt and Ginataan by Mia P. Manansala

It's Corn Festival time in Shady Palms. They have a small-ish town so they have teamed up with nearby Shelbyville. 

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stars

This book comes out November 12, 2024

Tita Rosie's Kitchen Mystery #5

Follows Murder and Mamon

ARC kindly provided by Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley

Opinions are my own