Bay of Sighs by Nora Roberts

Ohmigosh. I'm not ashamed to admit that I was really worried about this book. The first book in the series was a pale replica of earlier Roberts trilogies and Annika quite frankly annoyed the hell out of me. To read a whole book about her? Well, there was more story than characterization in this book so the story of Annika and Sawyer falling more in love was there, but there was also a lot of movement in the overarching story of finding the three stars.
Annika is a mermaid who just got land legs in the last story. Because she revealed that she's a mermaid, she only has those legs for another three months. Just enough time for her to fall in love with the time/space traveler, Sawyer King.
Sawyer is cautious with Annika. Though he is wildly attracted to her, he knows that she is innocent in the ways of humans (even if she does have a penchant for taking her clothes off). And to work through all of this sex stuff while fighting an evil goddess who is now recruiting humans? It's a balancing act that they're all going to have to work at.
I mentioned that the first book in the series as a replica of other Roberts trilogies, the three stars, the character named 'King' who could be a king, and the idea of an evil queen. So, this still feels like a retread but with little new bits thrown in. And, while Annika wasn't as annoying as I thought she would be, she was still annoying. This was better than the first book though and I'm very much looking forward to the third book in this series.

This book comes out June 14
Three and a half stars

This Calls for a Drink! by Diane McMartin

This book has the wry and subtle humor that I was hoping for in Should I Scoop Out my Bagel?. I wish I had paid attention to the fact that this was a wine and beer book. I was really hoping for some good cocktail suggestions. But Diane McMartin writes with a sense of humor and a good idea of how her book might be used. I definitely think that dipping into it for particular instances or to read aloud with friends would be a blast. Reading it through all at once is a bit daunting and gets a bit repetitive. I also wish that in her "life celebrations" section, there hadn't been a gap in between 30 and 65. Each one was only a paragraph anyway, why not throw in turning 40 or 50 or even realizing your at the onset of menopause?
Overall, there is some great information in this book and I would definitely recommend it as a gift to someone who is either wanting to learn more about beer/wine or has a major life occasion happening soon.

Three stars
This book comes out June 14, 2016

Hello, Bicycle by Anna Brones

This book wants to take you back to the thrill of your first ride. To the joy of riding a bike, whether it's   actually your first ride or your going on your daily commute.
This book includes a history of the bicycle (velocipedes and penny-farthings included) as well as information for the modern day rider. All of this is done in an entertaining but rather shallow manner (none of the information is super-in-depth.) However, the information is fairly wide-ranging up to and including the obvious how to pick out a bike and wearing helmets to how to upcycle various bike parts and yoga for biking.
It wasn't the book described but it was a fast and fun read.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out June 7

The Secret of High Eldersham by Miles Burton

I first heard about this book on the Classic Mysteries podcast, and thought, "Hm. A mystery that is turned into a detective story/thriller combo by runaway events? I MUST read this." And when it came up as an ARC on NetGalley? I requested it immediately. Thank you Poisoned Pen Press for re-releasing this book.
The first story to feature Desmond Merrion, this book starts out with the description of a small village, seemingly untouched by the modern day (the main road goes around it) and newcomers seem to have spates of bad luck that run them out of town. In fact, the only "newcomer" to have succeeded, though on a small scale, was the pubkeeper of the Rose and Crown. A former policeman, he had retired there to live the rest of his life and work in the garden. So why was he stabbed so ferociously one evening?
At first, Detective Inspector Young, called in from Scotland Yard thinks this is an open and shut case. But he soon discovers that the easy solution is not the correct one. So Inspector Young writes to a man he's known from the war, Desmond Merrion.

Tea Cups and Carnage by Lynn Cahoon

A new shop has opened up in South Cove, California. Run by a former beauty contestant runner-up who seems to be wrapping men around her little finger, Tea Hee is going to be a shop selling china. But she's not the only new person in town. There's also a biker that has taken to riding up and down the sidewalks, even injuring Jill's aunt Jackie.
There is definitely a cloud around Kathi though. Her sister Ivy has followed her to town and seems to be spying on her. And then her cousin also comes to town, under an assumed name, and is shot in his hotel room. Who is doing all of this killing?
For some reason, Jill's insistence on solving mysteries when she keeps getting close to death at the end of each story didn't bother me as much. Maybe because she acknowledged it? Whatever, this is another nice addition to the Tourist Trap series and I'm definitely intrigued by the new series introduced at the end of this one.



Three and a half stars
Comes out June 7
Followed by Hospitality and Homicide

From This Day Forward by Lauren Layne

I don't generally love novellas since it's so hard to get to know the characters but this one wasn't bad.  I felt that Layne set up a nice back story for Leah and Jason so it wasn't a case of insta-love. The fact that if the two had just talked to each other they wouldn't have been so miserable for a year was annoying but they did come to that realization at the end. There was also some nice world building for the Wedding Belles series.
Leah McHale and Jason Rhodes are both photographers that have been asked to fill in for a high profile wedding at the last minute. Jason doesn't mind at all since he's been thinking about Leah ever since she ran away from their budding relationship but Leah isn't happy at all. In fact, their first meeting ends when she tosses a glass of water into his lap. But the two will have to work through their feelings and get over their knee-jerk middle school reactions to come together and create magical pictures for this important function. And maybe find their way back to each other.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out June 6

Murder at the Spa by Stefanie Matteson

Charlotte Graham is an aging (at 60ish? I think they said her age but I lost track) movie star in the early 1990s (when this book was originally published. And it shows in the attitudes of some of the characters toward others in the book. Can you imagine the word "cripple" being used to describe someone today?)
Anyway, it seems Charlotte has gotten some press for helping to solve a mystery and so it's to Charlotte that her friend Paulina Laugenberg turns when something's rotten in Denmark. Or at least in the beauty empire that Paulina has built.
There are a LOT of characters in this book. From the great Paulina and her personal staff to the spa staff to the other guests at the spa. If you can sit down and read this book in a shorter span of time, I'd highly recommend it. Otherwise you can get mired in trying to remember who exactly is who.

Three stars
This book will be re-released as an ebook on June 7