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. 

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

We Chase Shadows by Richard Osman

stars

We Solve Murders #2

Follows We Solve Murders

This book came out September 15, 2026

ARC kindly provided 

Opinions are my own

The Dark Lord's Guide to Honeymooning (and Other Acts of Tyranny) by Tiffany Hunt

stars

Guides to Villainy and Love #2

Follows The Dark Lord's Guide to Dating (And Other War Crimes)

This book comes out September 8, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Scarlett Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Mystic and the Missing Girl by Vikki VanSickle

Drew Benson has inheriting her aunt's once thriving metaphysical shop. It started going downhill after her aunt, who was psychic, couldn't help find a missing girl. Her aunt could only come up with three words, none of which narrowed down the searching area. 

Now Drew has been tarred with the same brush. And she has a secret, she is psychic too. Her skill lies more in reading tarot. But she hasn't advertised that since Hannah was so publicly shunned. Now her high school nemesis (and NOT a love interest; refreshing!) is back in town. He's a new reporter researching the disappearance on the twenty year anniversary. So Drew is somewhat helping Nick, while also trying to keep paying her sole employee, and avoiding a love interest she knows is no good for her.

The world building on this one was maybe a bit rough but the characters were well-fleshed out without relying on stereotypes. The mystery was interesting and there were some clues that could help you determine what the outcome was going to be. 

Four stars

This book comes out September 8, 2026

ARC kindly provided by St. Martin's Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Kiss Slay Replay by Rachel Harrison

Willa is stuck. She's heading to the wedding from a group of friends she met in college, but she's bound to see her ex there. The one she broke up with because they were beginning to want different things in their relationship. She is dreading it with the passions of a hundred fiery suns. And it sucks. It sucks so bad and it's even worse than she thought. Than she could have imagined. But... then she wakes up. And it's the same day. And it's even worse. And it happens again, and again, and again. 
Super gory but I really enjoyed getting to know Willa. We don't get to know the others as well but this really is a book that focuses on her. Is there some hand waving in this book? Yes. Yes there is. But I enjoyed it anyway and Harrison is still an author I will only read during the daylight hours.

Four stars

This book came out September 8, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Philippa Flynn's Year of Panic and Piracy by Jacqueline Firkins

Phillipa Flynn has a near-death experience and upends her life. She quits her job and moves into her grandmother's house. The only wrinkle? Her grandmother's writing partner is still in the house. But that's fine, they can both be there. Even if the house is falling apart, it's still large. 

At first, she and Dylan don't interact much, he doesn't really seem to have much to say. But then they start to open up.

And even though this seemed to be billed as a romance, the focus is more on Philippa and her personal growth. It took me some time to get into the book, but I really enjoyed the middle. Unfortunately, the end didn't match the rest of the story. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out September 1, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Lake Union Publishing and Netgalley

Opinions are my own

Muriel and the Mystery by Charlotte Parent

How adorable is this cover? It's what really drew me to request this book from NetGalley. 

Muriel is in the woods and comes upon a mystery. Then she sees it again.  Then she discovers it's home. But what she does next is a good lesson for us all. 

I think I may be a bit too pedantic for this book. The reveal of the mystery was confusing. I've discovered that the book was translated from French and wonder whether some of joy was lost in the translation. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out September 1, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Tundra Book Group and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

While the Patient Slept by Mignon G. Eberhart

Sarah has been sent to a house that she is not already excited about as it is far out of town, meaning it won't be easy to leave during her four hour afternoon break. And the situation gets worse as the taxi taking her out to the house crashes and she meets the Federie family. As it is in many mysteries, the family is past eccentric and into downright strange. The family patriarch has had a stroke and everone is on edge.

There are the youngest generation, March, and Eustace Federie. Then there is the middle generation, Adolph Federie who makes a rude remark to Sarah and his wife Isobel. Three other friends are there, one of Eustace's, Deke Lonergan, one nameed Mittie Frisling, and one of the patriarch's, Mr. Dimmuck. Two servants make up the rest of the cast: the butler, Grondal, and the cook, Kema. 

On the first night, there are a quick succession of people who come to Sarah, asking her to alert them first when what's his face wakes up. But then, the murder happens. Luckily, it is Lance O'Leary, who Sarah already knows, who has come to help solve the crime. Too bad his presence isn't enough to prevent another murder. 

The story ends up being very convoluted and there is a strange amount of detail about March. 

Three stars

Sarah Keate #2

Follows The Patient in Room 18

Followed by The Mystery of Hunting's End

This book is being reissued February 3, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Penzler Publisher and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Silent Appeal by Janice Hallett

The Fairway Players are back. Once again, something has happened that requires lawyers to go through the correspondence of the acting group. We even get the same people looking over the papers (this is specifically because of the work they did on the previous case.)

Like the other books, this is an epistolary encompassing texts, emails, and even one player's personal journal. There are a LOT of people and, while I would say it helps to read the first book, I only have dim memories of all of the players from that one so you may not need it. 

The players are just as dysfunctional as they were in the first book with feuds that are both obvious and somewhat less so. They are putting on Agatha Christie's The Hollow which has some obvious echoes to characters both old and new. Like the last book, this one will have at least one murder. Is the ending just as weird? Yes. Did I generally enjoy it? Yes. 

Three and a half stars

This book come out August 25, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Atria Books and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Miss Morton Takes the Waters by Catherine Lloyd

Caroline and Mrs. Frogerton are on their way to Bath. Caroline's mysterious "inheritance," still hasn't come through and Mrs. Frogerton is in the doldrums so it seems like the best idea. Once there, they start meeting people. Of course, many of the people look down on Mrs. Frogerton for coming from trade. But she doesn't mind any of them, even the eternally grumpy Lady Brompton. She is not the one who is murdered, however. 
Even so, there are a number of suspects in the murder. The ending came a little bit out of nowhere and was a little more chaotic than I remember the Miss Morton series being. 

We have two famaciliar characters but in a new setting and a new supporting cast, including another inspector who is very much intrigued by Caroline. I am generally enjoying this series but hope that Caroline's personal arc gets some movement soon. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out August 25, 2026

Miss Morton #6

Follows Miss Morton and the Missing Heir

ARC kindly provided by Kensington Publishing and NetGalley

Opinions are my own 

Murder at First Slice by Valerie Burns

Michael and Madison are getting married. But not until after  Baby and Daisy. Madison has recovered from that and from the hangover left after her bachelorette party when she gets another shock. One of the invited guests is someone that her favorite baker (and Micahel's aunt), Miss Hannah, absolutely hates. And this is one one of her good days from the dementia that is ravaging her mind. 

As they get to know Dorothy Wilson, it soon becomes clear that she is probably one of the family members that should not have been invited. She is not only rude, she manages to piss off almost everyone she meets. So, it's no surprise that she's the one to die in this book. The larger surpise is who is standing over her with a wedding gift that was given to Madison just the day before.

There was a lot crammed into a small number of days in this book which made it somewhat hard to follow but was still a fun book to read. 

Four stars

This book comes out July 28, 2026

Baker Street #5

Follows Icing on Murder

ARC kindly provided by Kensington Publishing and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Cherkley Court Conundrum by Benedict Brown

Marcus is just about to declare himself to Bella when a face from his past appears. His romantic past. Which I was frankly surprised about since I had the impression that he was not very good with women. Well, Nerea needs help. A maid in the house she works for was attacked and nearly killed. She has read that Marius and Bella solve mysteries and hopes that they can come help her. 

There are strange things happening at Lord and Lady Sheridan's house. He is mostly absent, the children are beyond spoiled, and she is hosting a number of artists. Not everyone is who they seem to be and suspicion has settled on an absent gardener, Nerea's new love. 

I really liked this mystery because it moved several storylines along while still focusing on the mystery in front of them. I also liked that Valentine is once again part of the group. 

Four stars

Marius Quin Mystery #7

Follows The Holly Village Murders

This book came out July 17, 2026

ARC kindly provided Storm Publishing and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Our Marriage Is Murder by Carol Goodman

After twenty years and as many co-written mystery novels, Thea is ready to get out. Both out of her marriage and out of writing. The convention they're traveling to will be their last. But that doesn't mean she wants their lives to end. And there are an awful lot of people dying at the beautiful Casstelarosa. Suspiciously dying in the ways and order that Thea and her husband put in their first mystery. 

The local inspector seems inordinately suspicious of Thea so she's going to have to some sleuthing on her own to try and figure out what is going on.

I appreciated that Thea didn't immediately become a super sleuth just because she was a mystery writer. Parts of the plot were a little heavy handed for my tastes and Thea was a little too self-righteous. Overall, I finished the book and enjoyed the ties to Agatha Christie. I also really enjoyed Goodman's characterizations of fervent book fans and laughed out loud over a line about not crossing book club ladies. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out July 21, 2026

ARC kindly provided as ebook by William Morrow and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Learning and Development Essentials by Albert Singh, Vibrant Publishers

A nice, basic book that is a decent introduction to Learning and Development. It covers things like basic theories of not only learning and development but of learning. It covers some of the tools that you might need if you are developing an L&D program and even touches on data gathering and reporting. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out July 18, 2026

ARC kindly provided by BooksGoSocial and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Cloak and Dagger Club by Jackie McMahon

Lucy Hubbard has been invited to the exclusive Cloak and Dagger club for a meeting. The founder and president, Horace Hazelmoor, himself invited her. She's not sure why. Yes, she had a book published and, yes, it was well reviewed, but why her? Somehting happened at a party that she's still embarrassed about but we don't know what it is at the beginning. Instead, we're treated to a third person look at Horace's mind and the fact that he is planning to use Lucy for nefarious purposes. 

But before Horace's grand plan is realized, he is killed. And all of the authors at the club come under suspicion. Especially Frank, with whom Lucy has a past. So she decides to make like Pandora Grey (her fictional detective) and solve a murder.

There's a lot going on in this book with the main focus being on Lucy and Frank but our third person omniscient view swings around to other characters as well. 

Three and a half stars

This book comes out July 14, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Book Club Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday

Blaire Kellermoon is still trying to find her footing after her divorce. Both of her children are now out of the house and she's moved back into the home she and her husband had kept even though they had moved into a much larger mansion. She used to be a rom-com actress but lately has been working as a producer. There is one book that she particularly wants to get done, The Green Light, but she's having problems. In the meantime, she's trying to get the rights to a book written by Jack Branksome.

Jack wrote the book when he was much younger. Since then, he's been teaching but he's trying to write another book. He's not much impressed by Blaire and denies her request. Too bad everyone assumed he'd do it and the news had already leaked. 

Now he's feeling bad. And shocked that she responds by inviting him to write in her pool house. Even more shocked that he accepts.

The two slowly start to get to know each other an themselves. The book has some weird bits that don't always get explained, but it made me smile a number of times.

Four stars

This book comes out July 14, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Hotter by Laura Clery

Clery is a well-known internet personality whose most memorable character is probably Pamela Pumpkin. I didn't know much about her but I've been on a biography kick lately and picked this book up. 

I was not expecting to find out about her marriage imploded as her husband spiraled further and further into some sort of madness. We get a deep look into the answer of "why did she stay?", at least her version of it. And it makes sense in that it was very much a case of a frog being boiled. Did she make bad decisions even after her divorce? Yes, she did. She's very up front about that. 

This is more a selection of essays than a coherent book which threw me off but I did, ovrall, enjoy her stories and a glimpse into the life of someone who is trying to do the best she can by her children and then for herself.

Four stars

This book comes out July 14, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Gallery Books and NetGalley

Opnions are my own

The Cornish Honeymoon Murder by Fiona Leitch

Fiona and her husband Nate are newly marrired and ready for their honeymoon. Suddenly, they are taking it... along with her mother, daughter, and dog. At least it's a free trip to an almost carbon-neutral resort in one of the Isles of Scilly off Cornwall Why free? Because multi-millionaire owner, Isaac Barnes,believes someone is sabotaging the opening and he wants the help of the woman who solved a murder for him a few years ago. 

At first, it seems like a lark. There are a lot of famous people to ogle. The resort is right plush. Unfortunately, the pranks start escalating. And a death is discovered, just as a storm comes bearing down on the island. Nate and Fiona are on a timeline to find out who killed this thoroughly objectionable character before the storm clears up. 

Three and a half stars

The Nosey Parker Mysteries #9

Follows The Cornish Christmas Pantomime

Followed by The Cornish Halloween Murder

This book comes out June 26, 2026

ARC kindly provided by HarperCollins UK and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Slasher Summer by E. L. Chen

Patrick just wanted to gather his friends for one last summer. The group had come together because of him, The Jumpscare Society. After his sister's murder he needed something and the group had worked, putting on shadow plays of the Slasher movie, filmed right in their home town. Until their senior year when it fell apart. But now, Patrick has pulled them back together for one last night: the druggie, the preppie, the football king and his cheerleader queen, and the goth girl. Everyone except the Final Girl. But Carrie shows up anyway bringing with her a host of unresolved issues. Or maybe they all brought issues. Especially the person who shows up dressed as the Slasher. 

A fun take on horror films. The book is third person omniscient from most of the character's viewpoints and uses over half the book to build tension before the killings begin. This is going to be a weird thought but I was thrown off by exactly how perfectly the movie beats were hit in a book. It was like hearing a Queen song sung as a madrigal. It mostly works but feels just a little off. Other than that, a really fun summer read. 

Four stars

This book comes out June 23, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Crown Publishing and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Hidden Staircase by Carolyn Keene

Nancy is trying to relax and read a book but is having trouble concentrating. Luckily, she's interrupted by a knock on the door. Not so luckily, it's Nathan Gombet who is trying to get something from Carson Drew. Her father isn't home but, when he comes back, confirms that Gombet is someone that Nancy should avoid.

Luckily, she has a mystery to distract herself. There are a pair of elderly sisters who are concerned that their house is haunted. Nancy decides to stay at their house so she can experience what they are hearing. And it is certainly puzzling, but she is able to figure out what is happening in the end, leaving the sisters with a happy ending.

This book hasn't aged as well as the first one. I think it was just some of the language that made me realize how old these books are but I'm going to keep working my way through the series. 

Three stars

Nancy Drew #2

Follows The Secret of the Old Clock

Followed by The Bungalow Mystery

This book came out in 1930, rereleased June 16, 2026

ARC kindly provided by Dover Publications and Netgalley

Opinions are my own