What's it about: K-9, handlers, animals, search & rescue, missing child, light romance
Thoughts: Mattie (the main character) is working in a different town and the usual cast of characters other than Cole (the other main character), is not around. I suppose this is to widen Mattie's world to maybe change the direction of the series, I don't know, I just know I would prefer they stay in her small town. I still enjoy reading about the dog Robo and Mattie, the handler. The wedding at the end is a bit mushy, too emotional and I probably would skip it if it wasn't part of the book. If this is the final book of the series, it's a good send-off.
What's it about: serial killing, doctoring, investigating, minor thoughts about marriage and gender equality or lack of, poor living conditions of people in the late1800s
Thoughts: The details of the violence of murdered victims are quite gritty so I kind of wish there have been some humor to balance it. I do like the two main characters - Dr. Julia Lewis and Detective Inspector Tennant. They are a contrasting pair which probably will end in romance but for this first book, they are partners, she, the coroner and he, the police. Toward the end, I think Dr. Julia could have been smarter but then again, maybe it would be less exciting if someone didn't do something foolish. I actually guessed the killer down to two person and I was correct, in a way.
There is a bit too much detail about the horrible way people are living in those times. Many points of view including the killer who is not given a name which I guess help build the suspense. There was a perspective that make us think one of the main characters might be killed but readers know main characters are rarely killed off so why was it necessary to disguise who it was? Anyway, This was a good read and the murder mysteries was interesting. I'm not sure I'll read the next book due to the ultra violence.
What's it about: murders, demons (though there is no specific detail of what the creature is), an old librarian, quirky characters, a talking cat
Thoughts: First, it read like some cozy mystery but then it did a 360 and suddenly, they're talking about demons. I think if you forgot the title of the book, you would be surprised. The main character's name is Sherry Pinkwhistle which honestly, I thought is silly. I do think Sherry have very interesting thoughts. The talking cat is interesting but he's like a side character and seemed to lack any type of importance other than giving Sherry some info about the demon. I can't seem to remember other characters. I don't appreciate the sudden use of the four-letter f word for no reason.
Sadly, there is no demon hunting as the title suggested. The demon comes to them by taking over a few people's bodies and talking through them and that's basically it. There are no specifics about what or who the creature is exactly. At the end, the demon leaves but we get no answers about why this demon came other than she/he/it was just having fun and enjoying murder mysteries.
I can't say if I like the book or not. I guess it's aiming for cozy so it never goes beyond quirky or weird or even dark. If you take the demon aspect out, it's just another cozy mystery which frankly, would have been better.
What's it about: a wishy-washy skeptic woman with a son, psychics, small town, maybe murder
Thoughts: Being in Bella's (the main character) head is not fun. This is told in third person but her thoughts are in first person and in italics which I sort of hate. When she's not having excessive thoughts about her dead husband who was basically a saint, she's having excessive thoughts about her son and soon after she landed in Lily Dale, she's having excessive thoughts of leaving town even though every character around her is telling her she's staying. Even as a reader, we know she's staying so why bother with that? If you're homeless, broke and you have a son and you landed in a place that welcomes you and gives you room and job, wouldn't you take it? She has no plan whatsoever (not unless you call temporary staying with her mother-in-law who Bella hates as a plan). She's a teacher but doesn't seem too smart at making decisions unlike her 5-year-old son who might be a better adult than she is. The way she is portrayed, I think she's someone who doesn't do anything without outside forces forcing her to make decisions. Her skepticism about psychics and spiritualism is too constant and annoying even when she had dreams that contradict her skepticism.
There are tons of meandering. The story goes nowhere until it suddenly becomes a murder mystery at the end. So we have been given little tidbits about Leona (the so-called murdered victim though her death was deemed accidental) throughout the book but with the way it ended, it just seemed rather boring because even though Leona was beloved by all, her killer was pretty much a surprise because we only got to know them toward the end.
I did wish the main character would have died and become a ghost which then would make her an interesting character to follow but no, she gets to live and you get to read about her dull life in later books though I won't continue the series. I want to say this is a cozy mystery but it's too cozy. Maybe if you like books that meanders with some skepticism thrown in, you will like this.
What's it about: sleeping beauty retelling, magic, changelings, a foolish knight, a toad-like fairy with water magic
Thoughts: I didn't know this was a novella so maybe it's why I was disappointed it was so short. I do like this little novella but wish it has been longer. I wish for a different ending for the villain, something more justifiable as her character simply existed to be the bad guy and nothing else. [Spoiler: This falls under 'Disney villain deaths of falling from a high tower or a great height.' I have read a couple fairytale retellings with this Disney deaths and I don't know why but I am bothered by this happening in a book written by an author who mostly writes books that are unconventional. But I guess it sort of fits because the two main characters are cowards when it comes to killing even someone as cruel and vile as the villain. End Spoiler]
This ends happily in a sleepy kind of way because things just return back to the beginning with a slight turn of circumstance so what's here is merely a glimpse into a short event in (the main character) Toadling's life as she is kind of an immortal. I would recommend this but maybe hold your expectations because this is a mildly dark story and accept it like you would a short story.
What's it about: family drama, some mystery, a death, sort of a sequel to Pride and Prejudices
Thoughts: I had read most of Jane Austen's works so I am familiar with most of these characters. The prologue that sums up Pride and Prejudices is probably unnecessary as there are reminders throughout the book what had happened previously. It was written in a gossip-like way that I disliked.
So this is a mystery but somewhat dull but it was short, less than 300 pages. The author plays it safe by killing off an unfamiliar character (named Denny) who 98% of the characters in the entire book don't even know. The man's death is mostly meaningless since there are no characters declaring any type of grief (other than Wickham as they were friends), no characters coming forth seeking justice for the dead man (other than the police and Darcy (who's part of the police) but they don't count), it's like, if the man had not died on Pemberley property, there wouldn't even be a story.
The character of Wickham aka the accused, is portrayed as a wild, wayward, troublemaker same as in Austen's book. So if you know of his character, you will sort of be able to guess what happened. I certainly drew up the same conclusion as the book. And since we get nothing of Wickham's perspective other than the things he said, readers can neither sympathize nor feel pity for him and probably won't care if he get hang or not - I didn't care one bit. And his wife, Lydia, completely unhinged - if she had been killed, heck, if Wickham had been the victim, it might have more of an impact.
The writing is full of long sentences that sometimes is a bit overwhelming when reading because there is hardly much pause, such as one long paragraph containing just one or two sentences. I know this is like Austen's style but it was used a bit excessively.
The ending with Darcy and Elizabeth having a conversation should have already happened years before (before this book). What they should have done is give the reader a small viewpoint of what happened when Denny died but nope, we get this conversation that is almost meaningless except to announce two news but still a bit underwhelming but it ends on a happy note.
If you've read Pride and Prejudices and Austen's other novels, you will recognize the names of characters from that book and a couple other names from Austen's other books and that's really the enjoyment here. This could have been great since it was written by a veteran mystery writer but it was dull and worth reading only if you're a Pride and Prejudices fan but even then, you will still probably be disappointed.
What's it about: mystery, murder, blizzard, wills & laws, con artists, money
Thoughts: I didn't like the way the names of the characters kept switching from being call by their first name to their honorific titles and sometimes nicknames. So there are tons of viewpoints and maybe people in different stations and different level of familiarity would call each person differently but I just think it was done badly.
Also, I don't like the main character keeps going back to a house she knew is full of people maybe trying to kill her. With two lawyer friends who are apparently great at what they do, why didn't they think of some lawful way to temporary move her out of the house while they figure out how to get her independence? Heck, the other main character could have married her and have her moved out and then they can investigate and do what's necessary. For such smart people, they take very little actions. But of course we have the main character (our heroine) being stubborn and would refuse to remove from her house no matter the danger because she thinks she can do some investigating which she did but found very little to be helpful. Some deaths could have been avoided if only she moved out of the house or listen to the advices that were generously given to her. The problem is solved by other people so the main character probably didn't need to do anything. I don't like her enough nor the other supposedly main character (who is her love interest but we get very little of his viewpoint) to continue this series.
What's it about: mystery, romance, murder
Thoughts: It is part mystery, part romance and I didn't even mind the romance. I enjoyed this very much. I even laughed. It was an entertaining, fun read.
Have you read any books lately? How was your January? I hope February is being good to you.
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