Vultures in the Sky by Todd Downing

During a time of unrest in Mexico, there were a group of people on a train. They were all nervous because of the political issues as well as rumors of religious zealots. Then, there are also the vultures following the train... and someone is killed. Then another person. The remaining passengers become more and more nervous. But Hugh Rennert steps up to get to know the other passengers and tries to discover why a man should have been killed and why so many other passengers are lying.
Basically a locked room mystery, I heard about this book on the Classic Mysteries podcast. The mystery is described there as a fair play story (the readers should be able to guess who the murderer was) but I actually found it incredibly confusing. The book was published in 1935 and the attitudes and descriptions of the Mexicans and women are very much of the time and hard to read in the modern day.

Two stars
This book came out in 1935
Borrowed from the library
Opinions are my own

Winterset by Candace Camp

Anna Holcombe and her brother have a family secret which means that, even though she loved Reed Moreland, she turned down his marriage proposal. The reason Reed even met her, living out in the country, is that he bough her uncle's estate. Now, knowing that Anna rejected him. He wants to sell. Except that he keeps having dreams that she is in trouble. And he just wants to make sure that she is okay.
For now she is, but someone is killing the local townspeople. And an old legend is resurrected. One that could bring the Holcombe family's secret out into the open.
A fun book with interesting characters.

Four stars

Follows Beyond Compare

Followed by An Unexpected Pleasure
This book came out January 8th, 2018
Hard copy I didn't keep
Opinions are my own

Hitched by Pippa Grant and Lili Valente

Blake and Hope were introduced in the previous book in this series. They obviously have good chemistry but Hope doesn't believe that to be enough. Her parents' marriage is proof that no one should ever get married. But her grandmother's will leaves a valuable alpaca to whichever of her grandchildren get married first. And Hope's cousin has already found a willing candidate off Tinder. Blake is not her first choice. Or her second or even her third. He's far down the list and she only calls him when her first option craps out and no one else interested. But Hope has something that Blake wants; she can help him get a liquor license for his winery ahead of opening which will make or break his work.
For his part, Blake is only too willing to play along. Except that he knows something that Hope doesn't, he still loves her and is ready to do whatever it takes to win her heart for good.
Not quite as good as the first two but still a fun book.

Three and a half stars
Follows Hammered

Followed by Humbugged
This book came out September 3rd, 2019
Borrowed book from Kindle Unlimited
Opinions are my own

One Haunted Evening -- anthology

This was a really interesting conceit - instead of an anthology, three author's stories are intermixed as each is happening (at least, that's what I'm interpreting by the three names on the cover and the sheer number of characters). It was, unfortunately, not well executed but just the idea made me round up to three stars.
There is a LOT going on in this little book. There are three main heroes, three heroines, at least five secondary characters that I noticed set up for their own next books. Plus, the authors tend to flip between calling the men by their first names and last names/titles so it gets doubly confusing. Basically, a bunch of guys decide to have a Samhain party at a supposedly haunted castle that one of them has just inherited and they discover that it, indeed, haunted.

Three stars
This book came out
Borrowed from Kindle Unlimited
Opinions are my own

A Royal Christmas Cruise by Max Walker

A Spanish prince is not supposed to be gay. But Nick is tired of living a lie. Especially in this day and age. So he breaks up with his girlfriend and heads on a cruise. He doesn't expect to see a hot guy wearing nothing but some brief banana-printed underwear fall out of the security booth.
Shiro Brooks is traveling with a group of friends that he hasn't seen for four years. He hasn't yet told them that he and his boyfriend (another from the friend group) have broken up. But a hot makeout session in a bookstore gives him an idea. Maybe this man would like to pretend to be his boyfriend... Nick turns him down but they end up hanging out anyway. And close proximity in a romance novel usually leads to an HEA. If only they can figure out who is taking pictures of them, outing Nick before he's ready.
If you like Max Walker, you'll enjoy this book. As usual, the plot is not real deep and most of the joy of reading can be found in the relationship building (and the hot sex scenes.)

Three stars
This book came out November 23rd, 2019
Borrowed as an audiobook from the library
Opinions are my own

Every Boy's Got One by Meg Cabot

I'm really excited that Meg Cabot hit it rich with her young adult novels but I wish she would go back to her romances because she's so good at them. Told through journal articles, emails and texts, this story tells of two couples, Holly and Mark who are eloping to get married in Italy, and their friends Jane and Cal. Jane is a cartoonist who is about to hit it big while Cal is a reporter. The two have immediate animosity toward each other. Jane thinks he's uptight (which he is) while he dislikes her frivolity.
Love the well developed characters and the first-person narrative told by several of the characters. Fun, quick read that makes me smile. Can you ask for any more in a book?

Four stars
This book came out in 2005
Hard copy I own
Opinions are my own