The Phantom of Nantucket Carolyn Keene, narrator: Jorjeana Marie

Nancy, Bess, and George are off on another adventure. Bess has a friend, Jenna, on Nantucket who is about to unveil a new museum exhibit that is going to solve the mystery of a ship that sank over a hundred years ago. But someone seems determined to sink the exhibit before it is opened. First, a banner for the exhibit is painted with the word "Liar" in red. Then, a key piece of the exhibit disappears from the museum. The curator is reluctant to call the police but, upon hearing that Nancy is an amateur detective, agrees to let her work on the case. 

This is somewhat interesting that, in the original series, Nancy had quite a few head injuries. This time it's George who gets bonked. 

Three
stars

Nancy Drew Diaries #7

Follows Secret at Mystic Lake

Followed by The Magician's Secret

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

Opinions are my own

How To Find A Nameless Fae by A.J. Lancaster

What is a princess supposed to do when she's turned forty-one and the curse that she was born with never comes to fruition? Giselle's mother failed to guess a fae's name and he was supposed to come fetch her in return. But that hasn't happened. And Giselle has lived her whole life with no one wanting to get close to her because she's just going to leave. So, she's going to strike out and write her own story, heading into the fairy realm to find the being who has prevented her from living her life.

It turns out, the fae has lost something as well. And the two are now inextricably linked. The more time she spends with the fae, the less Giselle is convinced she's like to leave.
There were parts that you can't think too hard about but an overall charming story.

Four stars

This book came out June 26, 2025

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited
Opinions are my own

Do You See What I See? by Peter Swanson

Nicholas, our first person narrator, had some success with his first novel, a dip after his second, and was not renewed by his publishing company for a third. Marco Tavares, on the other hand, his third book hit the New York Times best seller list and stayed for eighteen months. There's even going to be a major motion picture. 

The problem is with his follow up book. Linda, the agent for both men, summon Nicholas to New York, he's not sure what to expect. It certainly isn't that Linda wants him to go to the Cape for Christmas. It seems like Marco has the idea for his next book. And the book is mostly written. He just needs some help sorting it all out. And that's where Nicholas comes in. He's a bona fide orphan so it's not like he's going elsewhere for Christmas. Of course, he ends up taking the commission or there wouldn't be a story. 

So. Nicholas is going to the Cape for Christmas. Along with Marco, his wife, Maeve, Marco's sister, Cat, and the grandmother who raised them, Louisa. Also there are a best friend that Marco makes fun of, his ex-girlfriend and her husband, and a man who claims Marco stole his idea for the bestselling novel. It is a scene ripe for a murder. Even the characters comment on in it.
In three stories, Nicholas slowly unfolds more and more of the true story. We don't ever really learn what happened, but Swanson gives a satisfying conclusion to a book that says 128 pages in Netgalley but showed 87 in my ereader. It is truly impressive what our author unfolds in this tight of a story and I enjoyed it completely. 

Four and a half stars

This book came out October 6, 2026

ARC kindly provided by William Morrow and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Middlebridge Mysteries 2 by Ken Cuperus, narrator: Anna Cathcart, narrator: Eric McCormack

It's sophomore year for Violet Wilner. She's ready to take on more responsibility in the cold cases that she's been helping work on for Professor Bellowes along with her frenemy, Stewart. And not one, but both of these characters will be mixed up in a mystery. One murder and the other robberies. But the first one hits the closest to home. When a body is unearthed in a building that is being torn down, Violet's mother comes into town because she knew the deceased, as did the new president of Middlebridge University (who we never hear from again.)

These stories were a little light but I enjoyed them for what they were. 

Four stars

Middlebridge Mysteries #2

Follows Middlebridge Mysteries

This book came out August 27, 2026

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible Plus

Opinions are my own

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. 

Four 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

Tales from the Territory by Travis Baldree

I had read these stories before but they really do work better when you can read them all in one place. 

Goblins & Greatcoats

Zyll is but a small goblin, traveling with her horse, Round Boy. She stops at an inn and walks into a nightmare. Well, it might be for most people but Zyll doesn't even acknowledge the bodies on the floor, she just wants food. 

stars

Legends & Lattes

This book comes out Sepetember 30, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Subterannean Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

A Murder, a Marquess, and Miss Mifford & A Body, A Baron, and Miss Mifford by Claudia Stone

A Murder, a Marquess, and Miss Mifford

Both of Emily's older sisters have married well so she's been dragged to Londo to have a series. She... is not very excited about that. To say the least. She isn't exactly outgoing and her mother is akin to Mrs. Bennett. Unfortunately, she threatens to kill a woman (an overly obnoxious woman, to be sure), who then ends up dead. And her rival's finger points straight at her!
Luckily, a nearby marquess, Frederick Chambers, does not believe that she had anything to do with the murder and rushes to her defense.
I'm glad I kept reading the books in this series. The first one wasn't great but the rest are, like I said in the last book's review, like Pringles. You just can't stop reading them. Are they great? Not really. But they're a fast read and easy to get through.

Three stars

Regency Murder & Marriage #3

Follows  A Victim, A Viscount, And Miss Mifford

Followed by A Body, A Baron, and Miss Mifford

This came out October 4, 2021

A Body, A Baron, and Miss Mifford

Eudora was probably the most annoying sister to read about. She's always trying to appear older in order to "catch up" to her sisters. And they've all solved a murder and fallen in love, so now she wants the chance too. To bad the body she's stumbled across seems to be a natural death. Luckily, she's able to flag a man down to go get help. That man just happens to be a baron who falls immediately, irrevocably in love with her. She's not very interested in him until a freak snow storm strands them at her sister's house and an actual murder occurs.
This book was... fine. But Eudora was annoying and the romance was thin. I finished it though and the author set it up for a new set of Miffords to find love

Two and a half stars

Regency Murder & Marriage #4

Follows A Murder, a Marquess, and Miss Mifford

Followed by An Execution, an Earl, and Miss Hughes

This came out  March 2, 2025

A Christmas Guide to Family and Murder by Dianne Freeman

Though Frances and Rose usually spend Christmas in London, this year is different. Now, Frances is married and her husband's half sister as well as the sister's half sister are also in the house. That means that changes might happen, including how the whole family wants to spend the holiday. That means going to the coast to be with George's sister Fiona and her family. 

The children will get to play with their cousins and there might even be snow. Aunt Harriet is joining them and her gentleman caller, Gilliam, is also invited. Although there seems to be some friction between the two of them. 

While they are there, a storm blows up. While the house they are staying in remains standing, other buildings are knocked down and the two men offer to help set things to rights. Frances and Fiona are taking the children into the village to see if they can help as well when they stumble across a dead body. It turns out to be someone who was not well-liked in the village for many reasons. 

It will take quite a bit of digging to figure out what happened and Frances is somewhat shocked to learn that the children are curious about the deaths and crime. She thought that she and George had done a good job hiding thier preoccupation from her daughter. 

A fun story with a little less George on page than usual but we got to see some of how Frances is navigating her new family, especially when one girl is fifteen and one who is pracctially an adult. 

Four stars

Countess of Harleigh #9

Follows A Daughter's Guide to Mothers and Murder

This book comes out September 29, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Kensington and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Eavesdropping on Animals by George Bumann, narrator: Eric Michael Summerer, foreword: Jon Young

Disclaimer: I know the author. The biggest disappointment of the audiobook is that he was not the narrator. We could have heard the actual turkey gobbles that won him a trophy, we could have experienced the raven's call, we could have heard his last name pronounced correctly (from his website: rhymes with human.)

The review of this book could be flattened to say, "Bumann tells you to go outside and use your senses." However it's so much more than that. He wants you to go outside and listen and watch and sync about what you're hearing and seeing not just observing but becoming a reader of the landscape.

Four stars

This book came out April 15, 2025

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Peg and Rose Deck the Halls by Laurien Berenson

Peg wasn't paying attention and now it's almost Christmas. That means it's time to put together the Christmas Bazaar and children's dog show. Except, while she was distracted, the kennel club gave the job to Jonabell. Even though Peg created the show and has been spearheading it for years. Years. Now, she's in charge of decorations. So what does that mean? She's going to drag Rose into it. 

But, almost before they start planning, Jonabell drops dead. At Peg's open house. And it's not natural causes. 

Because it was at Peg's house and Jonabell had taken Peg's place, rumors are floating that she is under suspicion for the death. But we don't actually hear that from the police. We don't see much of the police in this book but one of the reasons I like this series is that Peg and Rose let the police know when they find clues. Peg even directs someone straight to the police station when they have information she thinks the police may not know. 

I didn't really understand why everyone was so suspicious of Peg, especially since Jonabell wasn't well liked to begin with. I had a hard time reconciling the sudden turn against Peg just because something happened at her house. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out September 29, 2026

Senior Sleuths #4

Follows Peg and Rose Play the Ponies

ARC kindly provided by Kensington Books and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Password to Larkspur Lane by Carolyn Keene, narrator: Danica Reese

An injured carrier pigeon lands in Nancy's yard. Inside the capsule is a mysterious message. She is determined to figure out what the message means. It will lead her to a mysterious manor where a doctor seems to be taking advantage of elderly women, including one who risks quite a bit to get a bracelet smuggled out with Nancy's family doctor.

A lot of coincidences and a fairly improbable escape when Nancy is thrown in a pit at the end of the book but worth re-reading when I'm doing the whole series. 

Three stars

Nancy Drew #10

Follows The Sign of the Twisted Candles

Followed by The Clue of the Broken Locket

This book came out in 1933

The Cornish Halloween Murder by Fiona Leitch

stars

The Nosey Parker Mysteries #10

Follows The Cornish Honeymoon Murder

This book comes out September 24, 2026

ARC kindly provided by HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Curse of the Spellmans by Lisa Lutz

Izzy and her wacky family are back. She’s been arrested 4 times in the last three months because of her next-door neighbor, a man she refers to as, “The Subject”. He is suspicious because of his name, the locked door in his house, and, of course, his interest in her. Izzy is also busy because her whole family is acting suspiciously. Her mother keeps sneaking out, her dad is coming home having been to yoga, her brother isn’t going into work and instead staying at home all day, and her sister Rae, well, she’s always suspicious. 

Most of the characters from the first book make a reappearance, including two of Izzy’s ex-boyfriends. It is a zany book and very much of its time which may make it seem dated to some readers. I did have to plow through some of the zaniness at points but it was overall a good read and is not discouraging me from completing the series. 

Three and a half stars

Spellman Series #2

Follows The Spellman Files

Followed by Revenge of the Spellmans

This book came out March 11, 2008

Hard copy from library

Opinions are my own

Well Versed by Jen DeLuca

Six years ago Nina's heart was broken. That tainted her love of the Ren Faire and even made her change her major. Now, she's jobless and had to move back home where they desperately need ladies in waiting. Too bad the man who broke her heart is still there. And, through a series of unfortunate events, he is now spending more and more time with her family. By extension then, her. And she may not be as upset as she originally thought about that.
I didn't enjoy this book as well as the first one. I'm not sure if I'm just in a different place but the heroine seemed more caught up in her own issues that circled and  

Three stars

Well Met #5

This book came out September 22, 2026

Follows Well Traveled

ARC kindly provided by NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group

Opinions are my own