Friday, March 19, 2021

Bait and Witch by Angela M. Sanders

Josie Way used to work for the Library of Congress but, after entering the witness protection program, she moves to Oregon where she becomes the librarian of a small town. What she quickly discovers is that the library, the legacy of one of the town's now disgraced founding family, is soon to be demolished. But she is ready to fight for the library, especially when the books begin whispering to her. 
First books often have the heavy lifting of having to establish not only characters but the world in which they live. Josie is only just finding out that her family has magical powers so there is a lot of story before we even find out more about where her powers come from and how they manifest. IT was an okay book but I hope the witchy side is built out more in subsequent books.

Three stars
Followed by Seven-Year Witch
This book came out December 29, 2020
ebook borrowed from CloudLibrary
Opinions are my own


Thursday, March 18, 2021

Badass Habits by Jen Sincero

Benjamin Franklin had a theory that some people are abstainers and some people are moderators. Jen Sincero is definitely a moderator and seems to assume that everyone else is as well. If you know yourself to be an abstainer, this book is not going to be for you. Otherwise, if you know that you are a moderator and that you love Sincero's books, I think you will delight in this new addition.

Two and a half stars
This book came out December 1st, 2020
ebook borrowed from CloudLibrary
Opinions are my own


Wednesday, March 17, 2021

The Recycled Citizen by Charlotte MacLeod

Sarah is about eight months pregnant but she and Max are still out and about even visiting the Senior Center her cousins Dolph and Mary run. It is somewhat a charity but really allows homeless seniors a place to stay that is warm and dry. They can volunteer to earn things like stockings (most of them preferring not to get money) or they can bring in recycling that the center can then turn in for money. In a previous book, Dolph had inherited a house stuffed-full of ... well, stuff. In this book, our favorite characters decide to auction off all of that stuff in order to raise money for the center and the warehouse they are turning into housing. Unfortunately, one of the seniors has been found dead by an apparent mugging and it sends them all down a rabbit hole.
The storyline was engaging and character development lovely. The mystery itself was... well, just an odd solution but in line with the rest of the books in the series.

Three stars
This book came out in 1988
Followed by The Silver Ghost 
Hard copy I didn't keep
Opinions are my own



Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Must Love Familiars by R.E. Butler

This book was a really interesting mix of super sweet and innocent (yucky, make out, etc.) and sort of dirty (the sex is open door.) It took me awhile to get into the story but I'm really glad that I got to the end where I read about the publishers. This particular book may not have really resonated with me but I love what they are trying to do. 
It took me awhile to get into the book because a lot of the beginning sentences were so simple so there were a lot of stoppers. And there was a LOT of world building in there. But it was an interesting story between a vampire and a witch. He's a sheriff and she is in charge of the local shelter. And this particular shelter is for familiars only. I wish we had seen more of the shelters and the adoption process; there were no successes only one failure though that failure was well explained.

Three stars
This book came out February 1st, 2021
eBook borrowed from CloudLibrary
Opinions are my own


Hopcross Jilly by Patricia Briggs

This book focuses a little bit more on Jesse Hauptman though parts still are told from Mercedes "Mercy" Thompson's point of view. It is a nice addition to the Mercy Thompson series but I wouldn't suggest reading it unless you've read other books in the series.
Mercy and a pack of wolves discover a skeleton one night while they are out hunting. It turns out that there are actually four skeletons, pointing in the four cardinal directions. And as the police come in and start looking, those aren't the only four.
At the same time, Jesse is being ostracized at school because of her relationship with the wolf pack. But there is one new girl, Jillian, who seems interested in being her friend.  But she's just a little odd herself and Jesse isn't sure she's a friend worth having.

Three and a half stars
This book came out July 10th, 2015
Hard copy of mine
Opinions are my own


Monday, March 15, 2021

His Burial Too by Catherine Aird

Well. This was an odd one. We meet a young lady, just back from being a nanny in Italy, whose father was out all night. And he is discovered, somewhat incongruously, under a statute that was being moved in a nearby church. In comes Inspector Sloan.
As it seems is usual for Aird, the suspect ends up being someone who seems to be a secondary character but she starts to drop BIG clues as the story ends. If you can remember who everyone is. That can be hard to track in an audio book but I still enjoyed listening.

Three stars
Follows A Late Phoenix
Followed by Slight Mourning
This book came out 1969
Borrowed from Audible
Opinions are my own


The Stately Home Murder by Catherine Aird

This was an interesting beginning, following a group of tourists as they tour a "stately home". We learn about the history of the house and the family that owns it. The tour ends when a precocious child discovers a body stuffed into a body of armor. 
It turns out to be the family archivist who was on the verge of proving that the current lord of the manner shouldn't be in there at ll. But was that the reason he was killed?
The solution on this one was a little unfairly clued until the very end but I love Aird's word choice. Short stories tightly told.

Three stars
Follows Henrietta Who
Followed A Late Phoenix
This book came out 1969
Borrowed from Audible
Opinions are my own