A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic by J. Penner

Arleta Starstone may have the last name of a wizard but she is a human. One of the magicless people of Adenashire. So why has she been invited to the Great Adenashire Bakeoff? Well, it's because her neighbor, a pair of orcs that she considers her stand in fathers after her parents died, sent in one of her baked items. Now there's a wood elf at her door and he wants to take her to the championship. There will be adventures along the way and then once she gets there. Arleta is going to have to grow in ways she doesn't expect in ordder to try and win the money prize. But she may end up with even more than that in the friends she makes along the way. 

Three stars

Adenashire #1

This book came out November 13, 2023

Opinions are my own

Legends & Lattes: The Graphic Novel by Travis Baldree, adapter: Samuel Sattin, illustrator: Shanti Rittgers, illustrator: Sarah Webb

I read this as an all-words book and was left with a smile on my face. When I saw this book, I wondered how well the story would lend itself to a slightly different interpretation. Had I not read the book first, I think I would have liked this iteration a little bit more. Instead, I found myself missing ther rhythm of Baldree's writing. It's just not quite the same in picture form and I think there are pieces missing that added the whimsy that made me really enjoy the original. However, it was still an enjoyable book and I enjoyed the artwork immensely. 

Viv is an orc who is tired of fighting. Her long-term goal has finally come to fruition and after her last battle, she takes off. In Thune, she's going to open a coffee shop. The fact that no one in Thune knows what coffee is isn't going to stop her. 

She immediately finds the owner of a specific shop and then a Hob named Cal to help her build. As the building goes up and gets finalized, she meets more and more people like the succubus who will help her run the place and a small mouse to provide baked goods. Like life, there will be some ups and downs but this story will end with an HEA. 

Three and a half stars

Legends & Lattes #1

This book comes out October 6, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

A Murder for Miss Hortense by Mel Pennant

Decades ago, Hortense and eleven other people were part of a Pardner. Sometimes called a lottery, it is people putting money in together and each person benefitting at some point. This particular Pardner grew even larger and they started using money to benefit their community at well. Then they started dipping into protecting their community and investigating crimes. At some point, Miss Hortense was thrown out of the Pardner. 

Now, there are few people remaining who were part of that original group. And quite a few of the remaining members are dropping dead. But why? 

This was an interesting story, but it took me some time to get into the cadence and then I lost track of some of the characters. 

Three and a half stars

Miss Hortense #1

Followed by Miss Hortense and the Last Rites

This book came out June 10, 2025

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

The Body on the Beach by Simon Brett

Carole Seddon likes her life. More or less. Her little house in Fethering is perfect for this widow and her dog. She gets to walk him on the beach every day and usually sees the same people every day as well. Not much changes. Well, until the day there's a hooded figure on the beach. Then she finds a body. Do the local police believe her? No. They treat her as a doddering old fool, especially once they go back and the body isn't there. 

There is another annoyance in Carole's life, her new neighbor Jude. Who exactly is this woman? She seems far too bohemian to enjoy being in Fethering. But she believes Carole and the two start to investigate what is going on. And they uncover a lot. 

This book is very much of the time it was written in. The series is still going (when I'm writing this in 2026) and I'm interested to read the books in between to see how these two characters evolve.  

Three and a half stars

Fethering #1

Followed by Death on the Downs

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible Plus

Opinions are my own

Murder on Threadneedle Street by Andrea Penrose

As always, the book opens with a murder. This time, the victim is someone we've met in previous books which explains why Wrexham, Charlotte, and all of their friends and wards get involved with this crime. 

The stories in this series always have a historical pinpoint and the subject under discussion in this book is banknotes. I honestly hadn't thought about it very much but it makes sense that, at some point in our history, we had to figure out a way to try and thwart counterfitting. It made for some very interesting inventions and plot points. 

Another things that Penrose does so well is to allow character growth, however slight, for her characters. The addition of Eddy, Wrex's sister to the house has caused some ripples but, shockingly, all of the characters talk to each other about friction points and manage to smooth it out rather than it causing misunderstandings and friction that become the basis of the book. Instead, the mystery is central. 

stars

Wrexford & Sloane #10

This book came out September 29, 2026

Follows Murder at Somerset House

ARC kindly provided by Kensington Publishing and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

She Has Her Mother's Laugh by Carl Zimmer, Joe Ochman

Starting off with the author wanting to know what heredity might mean for his unborn daughter. This kicks off a history of how the science of heredity came about and the goods and bads of all of the studies, where people went wrong, or, in the case of Watson and Crick, stole research and presented it as their own. 

He weaves in people like Pearl S. Buck who had a daughter with PKU and how genetic factors proved how the disease is inherited. Or Frederick Douglass who railed against the social mores placed on people based on the color of their skin. 

The narrators voice was very nice and lent itself well to the subject. 

Four stars

This book came out May 29, 2018

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Pixie Me Up by Willow Mason, narrator: Gabrielle Baker

Elisa has come into an inheritance from her great aunt. But she's not even sure she remembers this particular great aunt. And the people she is meeting in this town are certainly odd. At least she's making a few friends. They are the ones who help her understand what is happening when her hair turns pink and starts standing on end. And her cat seems to be talking to her. What the heck is happening?
This was a fast listen and the narrator certainly helped make the story fun. Was it layered or deep? Not really. Was it fun and did it turn some cozy tropes on their heads? Yes it did.

Three and a half stars

Newborn Pixie Cozy Mystery #1

Followed by A Bone to Pixie

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible Plus

Opinions are my own