What else did I read on my blog hiatus?

 First, we had a very successful Mystery Book Club last week. Not on our usual day and kind of last minute, but we had a good turnout. The weather was not good so I was a bit worried. Cold, windy, drizzly early in the day. But the regulars persevered! Everyone was so glad to meet in person at the library again. It was exactly two years since we met there regularly, had one false start back in January and hoping this "sticks". I said we need a t-shirt. 

Everyone liked The Vanishing Season by Joanna Schaffhausen and several plan to explore other books in the series. Everyone commented on Bump the dog and how he was their favorite. One person expressed her shock that everyone else was so concerned about the dog. lol

Everyone had the same thoughts about The Current that I talked about last time. A bit confusing in parts but interesting story. A lot of bad things happened to everyone in the book.

So what have I been reading to and/or listening too since December? A mix of traditional mysteries, cozies, and cozies with a paranormal twist. It was funny that authors that I am on their ARC lists and haven't heard from in quite awhile, all published a new book in February and March. So I got to read those. The timing was a bit tricky but I did it.

I finished listening to the Atlee Pine series. I really liked this series and highly recommend it. I believe that was the last book (4) in the series.

Books three and five  (Yep. I had read book four evidently but when I went to read book five, I realized I had three but never read it.) in the Madeline Brooks English cottage type traditional mysteries by Tannis Laidlaw. Madeline is a newly divorced, trying to be a realtor to support herself woman who keeps finding bodies in the houses she is showing.

There are five books in this series - The Grace Street Mysteries. 

"David Randall's perfect family life came derailed when his little daughter Lindsey died in a car crash. Thrown out by his second wife and wanting to leave a dead-end detective agency to start his own, he reluctantly accepts his psychic friend Camden's invitation to stay in Camden's boarding house in Parkland, North Carolina"

As the series goes, more people move into the house on Grace Street. They are a pretty quirky bunch. Humorous at times. Big Bang feeling group but one is a P.I., one is slightly psychic and the women who love them? They all hang around together, live together but don't always agree. And in Fatal Fantasy, David and Camden go to Extravaganzacon.I found the books entertaining.

This book two in the series. I also read the first one. I liked them. Scarlet and the Duke feel.

"Amateur sleuth Kitty Worthington once more jumps into the fray to nab the wily murderer of a high-ranking member of the nobility. Can she catch the killer before her sister's beloved pays the ultimate price?

London. 1923. Much to her consternation, Kitty Worthington's debut season is a resounding success, prompting marriage proposals from lords, rogues, scoundrels, and ne'er do wells. Even as she dodges them, a new intrigue arises, and at Westminster, no less. A high-ranking member of the nobility is murdered, and her sister's beau has been framed to take the fall."

This is a historical fiction book based on true events. Not going to sugar coat it. It was tough book to listen to.

"Inspired by the life of a real World War II heroine, this debut novel reveals a story of love, redemption, and secrets that were hidden for decades.
 
New York socialite Caroline Ferriday has her hands full with her post at the French consulate and a new love on the horizon. But Caroline’s world is forever changed when Hitler’s army invades Poland in September 1939—and then sets its sights on France.
 
An ocean away from Caroline, Kasia Kuzmerick, a Polish teenager, senses her carefree youth disappearing as she is drawn deeper into her role as courier for the underground resistance movement. In a tense atmosphere of watchful eyes and suspecting neighbors, one false move can have dire consequences.
 
For the ambitious young German doctor, Herta Oberheuser, an ad for a government medical position seems her ticket out of a desolate life. Once hired, though, she finds herself trapped in a male-dominated realm of Nazi secrets and power.
 
The lives of these three women are set on a collision course when the unthinkable happens and Kasia is sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious Nazi concentration camp for women. Their stories cross continents—from New York to Paris, Germany, and Poland—as Caroline and Kasia strive to bring justice to those whom history has forgotten. "

And after The Lilac Girls, I luckily got to read a couple of ARC''s that were lighter. I have read the first four books in this series also.

"On the private island of a wealthy banker, a young and talented stonemason falls from a cliff. A tragic accident? Or murder?

The dead man’s sister is obsessed with justice and will stop at nothing.
A glamorous French widow and her heart-throb son are certain they have been cheated of their legacy.
A daughter is bequeathed an island mansion beyond her means.
An enigmatic letter hints at a hidden fortune.

After the collapse of her theatrical tour, actress Derry O’Donnell must work to pay her way in a West of Ireland village. As Madam Tulip, she tells fortunes for a local charity only to be drawn into a maze of mystery and intrigue."

This is a fun, quick read cozy series. I have listened to the previous books in this series too.

"A touching gift. A shocking truth. Can this psychic sleuth solve a decade-old murder?
Mitzy Moon is happy to leave her painful past buried. But a thoughtful present turns her world upside down and forces her to abandon Ghost-ma and her fiendish feline to search for answers in the Southwest. Turns out her mom’s death was no accident, and proving it could be the last thing she does…"

Whew!

Currently listening to The Lions of Lucerne by Brad Thor and reading State of Terror by Hillary Clinton Rodham and Louise Penny. (pleasantly surprised)