Happy Halloween!

Boo!

It's that time of year where it should be cooler (not) and it is a good excuse to have those mini candy bars on hand in case you get trick or treaters. We don't get trick or treaters much anymore. The neighborhood has grown up. But we wouldn't want to get caught without...just in case, right? And it is time for everything pumpkin. My friend Shirley just filled me in on all kinds of things that are out with pumpkin flavor right now - pumpkin flavored breakfast cereals, pumpkin flavored English muffins and I even saw pumpkin flavored premade popcorn. Who would have thought?

Just about to the end of my Mystery Book Club book for the month, and I will be telling you about that soon. But I participated in an online Book Spooktacular recently and found out about several authors that I wasn't familiar with and their books. Most of them write some books with Halloween themes. I thought I would share some of their books with you. I haven't been able to check in on the event for all of the featured authors. I am sure they all have good books.

First, the hostess of the event is Kathi Daley. She writes the Zoe Donovan series. Several are holiday themed including Halloween. Zoe is an Animal Rehab and Location Officer and features her dog, Charlie. Oh and they include recipes. I always try a recipe or two from books that have recipes and they are usually pretty good.

The first in the series is Halloween Hijinks. 

"Amid a backdrop of zombies on the run and Halloween festivities, animal control officer Zoe Donovan is faced with losing something she loves in order to save someone she loves when she finds a dead body in the basement of a haunted house just two days before Halloween. With the help of her best friends, Levi and Ellie, and her dog Charlie, she delves into a mystery as complex and multilayered as the feelings she develops for her ex-nemesis Zak Zimmerman. Halloween Hijinks is the perfect recipe, combining holiday fun with a touch of humor, a pinch of romance, and a dollop of murder."



Haunted Hamlet and Costume Catastrophe are two other Halloween themed books by Kathi. She writes lot of other books too. Check out her website.


Another author that is featured at the Spooktacular is Krista Davis. I have read a couple of her Domestic Diva books and enjoyed them.

The fifth book in the series is The Diva Haunts the House.


"Domestic diva Sophie Winston is getting into the Halloween spirit- her decorations for a community haunted house are so good, it's scary. Not to be outdone, rival domestic diva Natasha is throwing a spooktacular Halloween party at her house. But when Sophie arrives, she discovers one of Natasha's guests dead in a Halloween display, and a pale, fanged partygoer fleeing the scene.Could the killer be a real vampire-the same one rumored to have lived in Sophie's haunted house back when it was a boardinghouse? Good thing a domestic diva never runs out of garlic."

Second in her Paws and Claws series is The Ghost and Mrs. Mewer. How cute is that?


"Wagtail, Virginia, the top pet-friendly getaway in the United States, is gearing up for a howling good Halloween—until a spooky murder shakes the town to its core . . .

Holly Miller doesn’t believe in spirits, but the Sugar Maple Inn is filled with guests who do. The TV series in development, Apparition Apprehenders, has descended on Wagtail’s annual Halloween festivities to investigate supernatural local legends, and Holly has her hands full showing the ghost hunters a scary-fun time.

But the frights turn real when Holly’s Jack Russell, Trixie, and kitten, Twinkletoes, find a young woman drowned in the Wagtail Springs Hotel’s bathhouse—the spot of the town’s most infamous haunting. The crime scene is eerily similar to the creepy legend, convincing Holly that the death wasn’t just accidental. Now she’ll have to race to catch a flesh-and-blood killer—before someone else in town gives up the ghost."

Here is Krista's website: http://www.kristadavis.com/domestic-diva-mysteries/books.html

Another featured author was Melanie Jackson. I have not read any of her many books, since I was just introduced to her, but several of her series appeal to me. The Pumpkin Thief is the 2nd in the Chloe Boston series.



"Chloe Boston, meter maid and unofficial sleuth of the Hope Falls Police Department, is on the trail of the Halloween Killer and a second troublesome criminal, the Pumpkin Thief, who has robbed every pumpkin patch in town. Aided by her dog and new boyfriend, Chloe is closing in on Hope Falls public enemies 1 and 2."

Melanie also collect vintage pictures. Here is one she posted for Halloween.


Melanie writes several different genres and different mysteries. Here is her website: http://www.melaniejackson.com/mystery-series-menu/

Lets not forget about the Onyx Webb series, which is like Halloween all year 'round. Book 7 is coming out Monday, Oct. 31. How appropriate.



The series is written by husband and wife, Richard Fenton and Andrea Waltz.

"Delectably Creepy. Gripping. Fascinating.
Onyx Webb is a multi-genre mash-up that combines supernatural suspense, crime, horror, romance, and more. So the story... Onyx Webb is a ghost. Billionaire playboy Koda Mulvaney becomes obsessed with a girl he sees inside a mirror. Juniper Cole is on her way to the prom and... well, we don't want to spoil anything - we've probably told you too much already. How all these events are related is part of the mystery that is, Onyx Webb.

The Onyx Webb series follows the unusual life of Onyx Webb along with a central group of characters in various locations and times. The billionaire Mulvaney family, piano prodigy Juniper Cole and her brother Quinn, paranormal show hosts Cryer and Fudge, and a few others make up the core of the series. Written like a book version of a supernatural soap opera (think: American Horror Story) each character’s story moves forward with most every episode.

It may appear that the characters are entirely unrelated and yet episode by episode, the connections will become clearer. Like being an inch away from a spider web, with each book, the web will move further and further away revealing the full story of every character and most importantly, the stunning conclusion for Onyx Webb herself."

I have read all of these books. It reads and is written like a soap opera, so they are really one sitting reads.

Here is their website: http://onyxwebb.com/

That is just a few Halloween books. There are many, many more. Enjoy!

The Hauting of Delavere Hall

Just finished a good book to put you in the Halloween spirit.

The Haunting of Delavere Hall by Amy Flint



Isn't the cover great? Amy designs the covers of the books in this series. This is the second in the Porter Biggleswade series. (see Shadows in the Mist review for a peek into book one).

"Paranormal investigator Dr. Porter Biggleswade is settling into her new life in York. While pensioners caught up in a ghostly battle, and civil war soldiers haunting a local pub are keeping her busy, a call from a friend takes her to a crumbling estate on the Yorkshire coast. Rumours are rife at Delavere Hall, with monks and a murder at the heart of them. Secret rooms, hidden passages,  sightings of ghostly monks and the Grey Lady fuel the intrigue. Porter agrees to investigate and discovers more than she bargained for."

I am loving this series with Porter Biggleswade. In this book, Porter is hired by her friend Audrey who is set to inherit Delavere Hall. Audrey and her Aunt Harriet are experiencing supernatural phenomena at the Hall; monks wandering through the house, sounds of someone crying, "the Grey Lady", and cold spots. Audrey would like to know what exactly is going on before she inherits the Hall. Porter and her intern from PIU (Paranormal Investigation Unit) set up their equipment and spend a few nights there on and off. While the ghost hunting equipment does it work, Porter and Clarice also check out a local pub that seems to have a ghost only present when the owners sister is there. Edward Tedry is still trying to befriend Porter. Porter's parents are still on the outs and putting Porter in the middle.  Professor Dawley-Ellington continues searching for the Palette of Isis.

What I especially like about both Shadows in the Mist and The Haunting of Delavere Hall, are the central "ghosts" in both books are historical figures. Shadows in the Mist featured the Bronte sisters. I won't tell you the name of the main ghost in the second book since that is part of the mystery to be solved. I also enjoy Porter's sense of humor.

No this is not like that t.v. Ghost Hunters. Let me know when they find Al Capone.

I received a free copy in exchange for a review.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

The Thirteenth Tale was our Mystery Book Club selection for October and Halloween.
Isn't this a great cover? I loved the book itself. The pages are heavy, aged looking and rough cut, like an old book. Just like the books in the cover.




Here is what it is about:

"Biographer Margaret Lea returns one night to her apartment above her father’s antiquarian bookshop. On her steps she finds a letter. It is a hand-written request from one of Britain’s most prolific and well-loved novelists. Vida Winter, gravely ill, wants to recount her life story before it is too late, and she wants Margaret to be the one to capture her history. The request takes Margaret by surprise — she doesn’t know the author, nor has she read any of Miss Winter’s dozens of novels.

Late one night while pondering whether to accept the task of recording Miss Winter’s personal story, Margaret begins to read her father’s rare copy of Miss Winter’s Thirteen Tales of Change and Desperation. She is spellbound by the stories and confused when she realizes the book only contains twelve stories. Where is the thirteenth tale? Intrigued, Margaret agrees to meet Miss Winter and act as her biographer.

As Vida Winter unfolds her story, she shares with Margaret the dark family secrets that she has long kept hidden as she remembers her days at Angelfield, the now burnt-out estate that was her childhood home. Margaret carefully records Miss Winter’s account and finds herself more and more deeply immersed in the strange and troubling story.

Both women will have to confront their pasts and the weight of family secrets... and the ghosts that haunt them still."

I really liked this book. But then, my favorite books way back were gothic mysteries. 

It is a mystery set in fairly modern times. 20th century anyhow, but we don't really know the year. Old spooky house, ghostly sightings, mysterious people. The back story of the family history is "icky" but sets the tone. The book reminded me of Wuthering Heights in that it is dark; the weather is bad, the house is cold, the characters are dark and melancholy, some downright disturbed.

We had a pretty lively discussion at the book club about it. Some people liked it and read it pretty quickly like I did. Some people didn't like it. Those that liked it seemed that they like gothic type mysteries set in the English countryside. Some, like me, thought the ending was neat and tidy and all wrapped up, until one person suggested that maybe the main character wasn't who we all thought she was. Hmmm. So we tousled with that for awhile too.

The book has been made into a movie in Britain starring Vanessa Redgrave. You can purchase the movie on Amazon but it is not available to watch on Amazon, Netflix etc. here.

I thought the author was interesting too. This is her first published book. She has one other, stand alone. She studied French literature and taught English in France. She left her career in teaching to write.

http://www.dianesetterfield.com/profile/.

I found it to be a page turner and really enjoyed it.

 

 

 

Recipes from "cozies" in the kitchen

Happy Autumn!
I hope you are enjoying cooler weather where you are. Not here yet...promises, promises.

As I mentioned last time, for our September Mystery Book Club meeting, we read cozies that had a food or cooking theme and then were invited to bring something to share from the book we read or another book.

I did bring some cookies from one book that I read this summer. I had made the cookies before so I new they tasted good. While my book had lots of recipes in it that looked good, I decided I would try a few out before I brought them to a pot luck.

Our "leader", Kay brought some books to share and one was a cookbook, The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook. I borrowed that one and decided to try a few recipes from it also.

And now I am going to share them with you. I think a lot of people read books with recipes but never try them. I won't write out the recipes here, but will tell you where you can find them and how I liked them.

Let's start with dessert first!

Cherry Oatmeal Walnut Cookies from The Accidental Alchemist by Gigi Pandian


These are vegan, not using any dairy or eggs. The moisture comes from maple syrup and olive oil. Yep, olive oil. I have made them four times now and they are really good. I took them to the book club pot luck and everyone seemed to like them. Don't use the extra virgin olive oil that is green. It has too strong of a flavor for cookies. (I know because I did that the first time around.) Oh and if you are not vegan, throw in a few mini chocolate chips or you could use a non dairy version. Yum.

http://gigipandian.com/books/the-accidental-alchemist/

On to the book I read for our cozies in the kitchen theme.

Blood Orange by Susan Wittig Albert


I made two recipes from this book.

Blood Orange, Avocado, Grape and Spinach Salad: spinach, oranges avocado, grapes, green onions and feta cheese. There is also a Orange Vinaigrette for it made with orange juice, vinegar, garlic, honey, mustard and olive oil. Very delicious.

Tortellini with Lemon Basil Butter Sauce: What's not to like here? It uses frozen tortellini. The sauce is made with butter, green onion, lemon, and basil. Also very good.

http://www.abouthyme.com/China/BloodOrange.shtml

I made three recipes from The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook. This is a fun book. I had seen it advertised when it came out and meant to go the bookstore and take a look. I will be getting my own copy of it. Lots of good recipes in it and some introductions to each section by different authors.



Kinsey Millhone's Famous Peanut Butter & Pickle Sandwich by Sue Grafton: It is what is says. Bread and butter pickles and peanut butter. I did try it. I was leery. But the two kind of meld together and it is just a good flavor and crunchy. Try it! You'll like it!

Italian Chicken by Brad Meltzer: Baked chicken using Italian salad dressing, mushrooms and parmesan cheese. The parmesan cheese makes a delicious crust on the chicken. Very good.

Charlaine's Very Unsophisticated Supper Dip by Charlaine Harris: Ground chicken or beef, three kinds of beans, Rotel tomatoes, red wine and two unlikely ingredients. Dry ranch dressing mix and taco seasoning. This can be served with chips as a dip or as a "chili". I had it as chili and with chips. lol

There are sections on breakfast, appetizers, soups and salads, entrees, side dishes, desserts and cocktails. Some of the other authors who contributed recipes are Lee Childs, Mary Higgins Clark, Harlan Coben, Diane Mott Davidson, Gillian Flynn, Carolyn Hart, Gigi Pandian, James Patterson, Lisa Unger, Jacqueline Winspear and many, many more. Those are just a few of the authors I have read books by.

http://mysterywriterscookbook.com/

It's that time of year to start cooking! Enjoy.

Death by Didgeridoo

 Found a new cozy series on Good Reads. I had not heard of it, that is.  The Jamie Quinn mystery series by Barbara Venkataraman.

Death by Didgeridoo is the first book in the series. There are currently four.



"Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, still reeling from the death of her mother, is pulled into a game of deception, jealousy, and vengeance when her cousin, Adam, is wrongfully accused of murder. It's up to Jamie to find the real murderer before it's too late. It doesn't help that the victim is a former rock star with more enemies than friends, or that Adam confessed to a murder he didn't commit."

The story takes place in South Florida, which interested me, since I used to live there. Fun to read familiar highways and towns. This isn't a long book, only 111 pages but is the first in the series of

This is a good quick read cozy. Plenty of ups and downs and surprises. Looks like Adam killed his music teacher. Adam has Asperger's and I felt really bad for him. But wait...maybe he didn't do it. Although this isn't a long book, it kept me on my toes with surprises. Jamie is  a likeable character. This book sets up the characters for the next books. Duke Broussard, her friend and PI makes a good sidekick. If Jamie can keep him on task. There are some humorous parts in the book too. Dare I say a fun murder mystery?

The ending leads into the next book.

Give it a try if you like cozies or like me, like to break up reading "heavy" books with a good cozy.

I received a free copy in exchange for a review.

Dawn Girl

OMG

So I read this book Dawn Girl by Leslie Wolfe. No it is not a spoof on Gone Girl.



Here's what it is about:

"A GRIPPING SERIAL KILLER THRILLER

Her blue eyes wide open, glossed over. A few specks of sand clung to her long, dark lashes. Her beautiful face, immobile, covered in sparkling flecks of sand. Her lips slightly parted as if to let a last breath escape.

Who is the beautiful girl found at dawn, on a deserted stretch of white sand beach? What is her secret?

FBI Special Agent Tess Winnett searches for answers relentlessly. With each step, each new finding, she uncovers unsettling facts leading to a single possible conclusion: Dawn Girl is not the only victim. Her killer has killed before.

Hiding a terrible secret of her own, Special Agent Tess Winnett faces her inmost fears, in a heart-stopping race to catch a killer who’s getting ready to end yet another life. Will she find the killer in time? Will she be able to stop him? At what cost?

The rules of the game have changed.
So has the textbook definition of a serial killer.

Special Agent Tess Winnett is the bold, direct, and short-fused heroine of Dawn Girl. Putting her life on the line, she doesn’t pull any punches, searching only for the truth, and for the man who takes lives on her watch. Intelligent, resourceful, and uncompromising, Tess will take readers on a memorable, white-knuckled journey in this suspenseful, gripping serial killer thriller."

It IS a "gripping serial killer thriller". The subject matter was a little difficult for me, but it is so fast paced and I really wanted Tess to figure this out, that I couldn't put it down.

Very skillfully written. We are inside Tess's head as she is determined to find who killed Dawn Girl. As the description says, Tess has her own demons which we get glimpses of. She doesn't always follow the rules and irritates her boss and most everyone she works with or for. But you will be rooting for her. She is reluctantly working with a local investigator, Gary Michowsky who seems to have some issues also.

It is really, really good. I could see more books with Tess and Gary.

I hadn't read any other books by Leslie Wolfe. But this is her 6th book. I believe they are stand alones.

Here is a bit about her:

"Bestselling author Leslie Wolfe has an all-consuming passion for writing fiction. Leaving the coveted world of corporate boardrooms for the blissful peace of what she calls "the Wolves’ den," Leslie's novels break the mold of traditional thrillers. She is passionate about technology and psychology, and her extensive background and research in these fields empower and add texture to her multi-dimensional, engaging writing style.

She released her first novel, Executive, in October 2011. It was very well received by the public. It was followed thereafter by Devil's Move (2014), The Backup Asset (2015), The Ghost Pattern (2015), Operation Sunset (2016), and Dawn Girl (2016). Her latest novel, Dawn Girl, pushes the traditional boundaries of crime novels, where both villain and hero are not what one expects."

I recommend it!

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Blood Orange by Susan Wittig Albert

For our September Mystery Book Club, we read "cozies in the kitchen" - mysteries that are cozies with a food theme, background etc. and that feature recipes.

I choose my go to cozy series featuring China Bayles, written by Susan Wittig Albert. This is #24 in the series.

About:
"It's mid-April in Pecan Springs, and China is renting her guest cottage to Kelly Kaufman, who needs a temporary place to live as she contends with a very acrimonious divorce from her husband Rich. One nasty point of dispute is her part ownership of the Comanche Creek Brewing Company, which she is refusing to sell.
At the same time, as a nurse employed by a local hospice, Kelly has discovered instances of suspicious practices. Even more disturbing, she suspects that a patient was murdered. Kelly's knowledge could be dangerous, and she wants to get guidance from China on what to do. But on her way to China's house, Kelly is forced off the road and critically injured, putting her in a medically induced coma. Now it's up to China to determine who wanted her out of the picture. Was it her soon-to-be ex? His new lover—who happens to be the sister of China's friend Ruby? Or someone connected with the corruption at the hospice? China owes it to her friend to uncover the truth—but she may be putting her own life at risk... "

A little background: China has left her career as an attorney and moved to the small central Texas town of Pecan Springs. She has an herb shop named Thyme and Seasons. She shares space with her friend Ruby, who has a shop called The Cave. China sells all things herbs; books, herbs, things made with herbs and even does classes. Ruby sells incense, rune stones, tarot cards etc. They also have a Tea Room and a catering business. Whew! China is married to McQuaid, a former homicide detective, now a private investigator and on the faculty at the local University.

What is great about this series, is that you don't have to start at the beginning of the series if you don't want to.  You can pick up any book in the series and read it. The author does a quick background for you at the beginning of each book.

Each book is the name of a plant or herb and they are related to something about the story. Each chapter starts with a history of an herb; some are really interesting excerpts from books from the 1650's for example, some current day. Blood Orange has to do with the color of paint found on the car that Kelly is in, when she is forced off the road.

Since Kelly is targeted on her way to China's, China is compelled to find out what is going on; what did Kelly want to tell her, who was Kelly hiding from and why.  As if that isn't enough, McQuaid is supposedly out on a PI assignment in El Paso. He calls one night and tells China she probably won't hear from him for a few days as there won't be cell phone coverage. China begins to think he is having affair, but then several people in town mention to her about the assignment McQuaid is on with Blackie, ex sheriff, going into Mexico to track down a ring that is stealing oil field equipment. What? Why is he hiding this from her? This sound dangerous. Oh, and Ruby, the one with the store with tarot cards etc.? As the books have gone on, Ruby has developed or recently shared, that she has a gift of premonition. She tells China not to go through the door - but she doesn't know what door, or when "the door" will present itself. This premonition gives the reader the chance to say "No China! Don't do it. Don't you remember what Ruby said?"

So besides the main mystery, there is always some side stories or development of the characters, that keeps the series interesting. The author typically brings in current events that are a thread in the story.  We have craft brewerys, hospice/fraud, illegal sales of drugs to name a few mentioned in this book.

Last but not least, the author always gives us several recipes at the end of the book that are actual recipes you can make easily and taste good. I know I have made some in the past. In this book there are three that look especially good: Orange Rosemary Muffins, Blood Orange Avocado, Grape and Spinach Salad, and Tortellini with Lemon Basil Butter Sauce. I think I will put those on my home menu this month.