State of Grace by Marie Force

Like other books in this series, there is a LOT going on. Not only do we read about one of Sam's cases, we hear about her adapting to the role of First Lady of the United States and all the side stories of the people in her orbit (and there are a lot of them.) Still, a fast and enjoyable read.

Sam is shocked when a typical suburban mom is found tied up and left for dead in the back of the woman's minivan. She and her team are going to have to do a lot of work to uncover exactly why this woman was murdered. This is, of course, taking place while Sam is trying to navigate the world of politics while still maintaining her own identity. 

This is all set against the backdrop of Christmas which Sam is looking forward to with her family. The family that is also under threat because the twins' grandparents have filed for custody and are trying to blackmail Eli into turning them over.

Four stars

This book came out December 21, 2021

Follows State of Affairs

Followed by State of the Union

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Dancing Death by Christopher Bush

There's a party planned, one that happens every year but this year, there's a big snow storm coming in so the people left over are the ones staying in or near the house. And it's an interesting crew that remains. Among them are sisters who don't seem very close, a writer who is down on his luck, and Ludovic Travers. Then, the electricity goes out and two people die. A stranded motorist shows up and there's another body. About 2/3 of the way through the book, the police show up and work with Travers to solve the crime.

It was very atmospheric and very convoluted. An interesting read and another good recommendation from the Classic Mysteries podcast.

Three stars
This book came out January 1, 1931

Follows Murder at Fenwold

Followed by Dead Man's Music

Borrowed as ebook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

Spy x Family, Vol. 2 by Tatsuya Endo, Casey Loe

Anya has made it into a prestigious school. She makes a new friend but not the one that her father would have liked. Lots of story potential there and her new friend seems a little suspect but we'll see if more comes out of the relationship. 

We are also getting a new character in Yor's little brother who seems to be on the hunt for... her husband.

Lots going on but starting to create a really interesting story.

Three and a half stars

This book came out September 1, 2020

Follows Vol. 1

Followed by Vol. 3

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Wedding Bells and Deadly Spells by Danielle Garrett

Anastasia "Stacey" Winters has just been let go from her dream job. Reeling, she still wants to help her friend Francois who is under examination as having poisoned the groom in her last wedding (that death contributed a LOT to her firing.) While figuring out who the actual killer is, she is also able to take the next step in her professional career.

This was sort of a weak story but still fun and the series ends on a high note.

Three stars

This book came out April 12, 2019

Follows Couture and Curses

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

Soul Taken by Patricia Briggs

Mercy has barely recovered from the events of the last book when Marsilia shows up and tells her to find Wulfe. That, if Mercy can't find him, the Pack will be blamed. And rumors start up soon after that the Pack can't actually protect the people it claims to protect. A number of magic users (not very powerful but having some magic; mainly witches and goblins) have gone missing. Could it be the Soul Taker? 

There is a movie that has just finished filming that purports to be based on a local urban legend involving a young man who was possessed by a scythe and compelled to murder. Mercy discovers it was not so much legend as truth since Zee was called in to destroy the artifact. But he might have been slipped a fake. That seems especially like a possibility since similar deaths are cropping up. And at least one ghost isn't allowed to leave this plane of existence.

Regular readers will really enjoy this book but I would not recommend starting with this one. We get quite a bit of history for a couple of characters, one that adds a little bit of a wrinkle for pack dynamics.

Four stars

This book came out August 23, 2022

Follows Smoke Bitten

Followed by Winter Lost

Borrowed as hard copy from library

Opinions are my own

The Kiss Curse by Erin Sterling

Vivi's cousin Gwyn meets her match in this book and it's Rhys's brother Lwellyn, better known as Wells. He is the oldest brother, the Golden Child of their father's eye. But being the Golden Child is wearing on him and he is ready to escape. Why not to Graves Glen? It's a place he can convince his father that it would be good to have a Penhallow (obviously Rhys doesn't count since he married a Jones woman) and it's not like the pub in Scotland is even getting any customers.

In Graves Glen, Wells first finds a bachelorette party in his family home (invited there by his brother.) Then he engages in a not-so-friendly rivalry with Gwyn when he sets up a true witch shop (as opposed to her... plastic pumpkins) right across the street, and he also encounters a face from the past who may or not be evil.

This was, overall, an enjoyable story though it meandered and crossed over itself without seeming rhyme or reason. I never really did understand why Gwyn and Rhys would be drawn to each other but, for folks looking to get into the Halloween season, this is a great read.

Three and a half stars

This book comes out September 20, 2022

Follows The Ex Hex

ARC kindly provided by Avon and Harper Voyage and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Sweetwater and the Witch by Jayne Castle

When the book begins, Ravenna Chastain is a profiler for the FBPI (Federal Bureau of Psi Investigation). She's not really supposed to be in the field but she volunteered to pose as a witch. Well, as the type of woman a specific cult is targeting as witches. But the FBPI isn't exactly knocking down the door of the cultists to rescue her. It's a good thing she has her fire talent and a dust bunny she names Harriet who ends up being an inveterate pen collector. It's that night that causes her to pivot into matchmaking. It's there that she meets Ethan Sweetwater. He has, of course, lied on his application making it hard for Ravenna to find him a match. But, they both have events coming up that would be nice to have someone else at. So they agree to go as each others dates.

This is a plot point that Castle has used a lot in this series. And this book feels like a mishmash of a number of other books she's written (which, at this point, is probably really hard not to do.) The whole time I was reading this book though, I was thinking of Filomena from "The Main Attraction"; she is basically the same character as Ravenna. Small, red haired, volatile (the scene with Ravenna's family felt like a major Krentz throwback; heroine embarrasses herself by being too emotional while the hero is uber calm and makes the family love him even more than the actual family member.) Overall, the book was fine but it felt like a lot of retread to the 90s with shallow characters and a plot that was not as tightly woven or fleshed out as more recent books. 

Three and a half stars

This book come out September 20, 2022

Follows Guild Boss

Followed by People in Glass Houses

ARC kindly provided by Berkley Publishing Group

Opinions are my own