Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks.
This week’s neglected book
ABOUT THE BOOK
When a deed to an apartment in Paris turns up in an old attic trunk, an estranged mother and daughter must reunite to uncover the secret life of a family matriarch—perfect for fans of The Little Paris Bookshop and The Beekeeper’s Daughter.
Hannah Bond has always been a bookworm, which is why she fled Florida—and her unstable, alcoholic mother—for a quiet life leading Jane Austen-themed tours through the British countryside. But on New Year’s Eve, everything comes crashing down when she arrives back at her London flat to find her mother, Marla, waiting for her.
Marla’s brought two things with her: a black eye from her ex-boyfriend and an envelope. Its contents? The deed to an apartment in Paris, an old key, and newspaper clippings about the death of a famous writer named Andres Armand. Hannah, wary of her mother’s motives, reluctantly agrees to accompany her to Paris, where against all odds, they discover great-grandma Ivy’s apartment frozen in 1940 and covered in dust.
Inside the apartment, Hannah and Marla discover mysterious clues about Ivy’s life—including a diary detailing evenings of drinking and dancing with Hemingway, the Fitzgeralds, and other iconic expats. Outside, they retrace her steps through the city in an attempt to understand why she went to such great lengths to hide her Paris identity from future generations.
A heartwarming and charming saga set in the City of Lights, Lost in Paris is an unforgettable celebration of family and the love between a mother and a daughter.
Why I haven’t read it yet
I remember being so excited to get approved for this book on NetGalley but yet it still sits there. I’ve even checked the paperback of it out of the library several times and still haven’t had a chance to get to it yet. This is one of my 2021 NetGalley books which I am making a big effort to get ALL of them read next year. Goodbye 2021 NetGalley books! Look for my review coming up sometime next year. 🙂
Thank you for visiting today. Which older book on your shelf would you like to get read soon?
Jenny Tanner opens the box she has cherished for decades. Contained within are her most precious mementoes, amongst them a pebble, a carving and a newspaper cutting she can hardly bear to read. But Jenny knows the time is finally here. After the war, in a mountainside village in Italy, she left behind a piece of her heart. However painful, she must return to Cinque Alberi. And lay the past to rest.
After a troubled upbringing, Candice Barnes dreams of a future with the love of her life – but is he the man she believes him to be? When Candice is given the opportunity to travel to Italy with Jenny, she is unaware the trip will open her eyes to the truth she’s been too afraid to face. Could a place of goodbyes help her make a brave new beginning?
MY THOUGHTS
What a heartfelt and emotional book this was.
A young woman, not having the best upbringing is low in self-confidence. She works at a nursing home and feels like someone finally cares about her, her new boyfriend. She has made a connection with the oldest resident there, a woman named Jenny Tanner. Jenny is over 100 years old and knows time is running out for her. She has a memory box with special mementos that signify times in her life that are important to her.
Jenny has made a strong connection with her nursing assistant, Candice Barnes. With time slipping away Jenny knows it’s a now or never kind of thing and she must return to the place of her birth, Italy, she has some places she must revisit and some things she must make right. Her memories will not let her not due this, and she will with Jenny’s help.
Told in flashbacks of Jenny’s younger life and its importance and modern times. As Candice spends more time with Jenny, we see an awareness she develops about her current situation. I enjoyed seeing the growth and development Candice shows.
The past and present meet in this glorious book, so emotional and heartfelt and full of beautiful surprises. This is a book that had been passed over many times on my reading shelf because I wasn’t sure how I’d like it. I’m here to say if you have books, you’ve been putting off get to them and you may just love them like I did this one. Highly recommended!
Pub Date 05 Aug 2021 I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kathryn Hughes was born near Manchester, UK in 1964. After thirty years working as a secretary and bringing up two children, she finally realised her dream of writing a book. Her debut novel, The Letter, set in her home town, was first published in 2013 and since then has become an international best-seller, translated into 30 languages. Her other books include The Secret and The Key. This summer sees the release of her fourth book, Her Last Promise, a sweeping tale of a daughter’s quest to unravel the secrets of her mother’s disappearance.
Thank you for stopping in today. Have a wonderful day.
269 pages St. Martin’s Paperbacks publisher December 26,2023 publication date grab a copy here
ABOUT THE BOOK
The case in Olivia Matthews’s Coconut Drop Dead is going to be a tough nut to crack.
Brooklyn’s annual Caribbean American Heritage Festival is finally here, and Spice Isle Bakery is thrilled to be one of the event’s food vendors. After all, the Murrays have been attending the festival for years. Co-owner Lyndsay Murray hopes their West Indian pastries and finger foods draw people back to the bakery in Little Caribbean. She’s looking forward to having fun, connecting with customers, and celebrating with her family.
The day’s festivities are cut short when Camille, lead singer of an up-and-coming reggae band, dies. The police think it may be a tragic accident. But Lyndsay’s cousin Manny was close to Camille, and he believes someone cut her life short. Now Manny needs Lyndsay’s help to make sure a killer faces the music.
Coconut Drop Dead is the third book in the Spice Isle Bakery cozy mystery series but my first read in this series.
I really enjoyed the authentic flavor the author has added to the book. I learned a lot about Caribbean American foods and the culture.
Spice Isle Bakery is doing very well and a vendor spot at Caribbean American Heritage Festival helps business to boom. I enjoyed seeing how close knit this family is as they work together at the bakery, even granny, the family matriarch. Granny seems to have the final say in everything and the family and community gives her the respect she deserves.
While at the festival a murder occurs, the lead singer of a famous reggae band. Believing the police are not solving the case quickly enough Lyndsay, owner of Spice Isle Bakery is ready to take things into her own hands and do some investigating on her own.
The investigation, presentation of clues and possible suspects are presented in a believable way and the book kept me guessing on who the guilty party was. Well done and I’ll look forward to reading more in this series.
Pub Date: 26 Dec 2023 I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Olivia Matthews is the cozy mystery pseudonym for national best-selling and award-winning author Patricia Sargeant.
Patricia’s work has been featured in national publications such as Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Kirkus Reviews, Suspense Magazine, Mystery Scene Magazine, Library Journal and RT Book Reviews. She’s also been interviewed on podcasts including Destination Mystery with Laura Brennan, Conversations LIVE! with Cyrus Webb, Read You Later with Lasheera Lee and Katara’s Café with Katara Johnson.
Patricia has been a keynote speaker and presenter at various events. She’s conducted numerous writing craft workshops for writers groups and book conferences, and offers online fiction writing courses through her The Write Spot website. To contact Patricia about attending your event, email her at BooksByPatricia@yahoo.com.
208 pages Ballantine Books November 27,2023 publication dategrab a copy here
ABOUT THE BOOK
Charlotte Pitt’s clever grandmother investigates the sudden disappearance of her dear friend in this chilling holiday whodunit by New York Times bestselling author Anne Perry.
Mariah Ellison, Charlotte Pitt’s grandmother, accepts her longtime friend Sadie’s gracious invitation to spend Christmas with her and her husband, Barton, in their picturesque village. But upon arrival, Mariah discovers that Sadie has vanished without a trace, and Barton rudely rescinds the invitation. Once Mariah finds another acquaintance to stay with during the holiday season, she begins investigating Sadie’s disappearance.
Mariah’s uncanny knack for solving mysteries serves her well during her search, which is driven by gossip as icy as the December weather. Did Sadie run off with another man? Was she kidnapped? Has someone harmed her? Frustratingly, Mariah’s questions reveal more about the villagers themselves than about her friend’s whereabouts. Yet in the process of getting to know Sadie’s neighbors, Mariah finds a kind of redemption, as she rediscovers her kinder side, and her ability to love.
It is up to Mariah to master her own feelings, drown out the noise, and get to the bottom of what occurred, all before Christmas day. With the holiday rapidly approaching, will she succeed in bringing Sadie home in time for them to celebrate it together—or is that too much to hope for?
MY THOUGHTS
I just love Anne Perry’s books, though I’ve only read the last 3 years Christmas books I can see I have quite a few to catch up on. Her books just have a different feel to them than many of the other mystery books I’ve read.
The books have a vintage feel to them, taking place during a slower time when neighbors had to meet up with each other to solve a disappearance. Mariah Ellison is delighted to visit her longtime friend Sadie and her husband Barton, in their picturesque village. After arriving, expecting to be invited right in by Sadie, she’s rudely told by Barton, Sadie has disappeared, and she can’t come in.
She takes things into her own hands by talking to their neighbors trying to investigate the vanishing. As the gossip accumulates all have something to say about Sadie, some not too nice. Some miss her.
One common thread shows up in the conversations, Sadie is not quite the person Mariah thought she was. Coming together the neighbors discover things about themselves. Despite the seriousness of the situation Mariah discovers a well of emotions including forgiveness, redemption and restoration.
With Christmas drawing ever closer will there be closure with joy ringing out or will uncertain times continue into the new year? I look forward to being transported back in time again to a slower time as I read more of her books.
Pub Date 07 Nov 2023 I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Anne Perry 28 October 1938 – 10 April 2023
Anne’s publishing career began with The Cater Street Hangman. Published in 1979, this was the first book in the series to feature the Victorian policeman Thomas Pitt and his well-born wife Charlotte. This is arguably the longest sustained crime series by a living writer. Murder on the Serpentine is the latest (32nd) in the series. She has now started a series featuring their son Daniel, beginning with 21 Days(2017).
In 1990, Anne started a second series of detective novels with The Face of a Stranger. These are set about 35 years before and features the private detective William Monk and volatile nurse Hester Latterly. The most recent of these (24th in the series) is Dark Tide Rising.
Anne won an Edgar award in 2000 with her short story “Heroes”. The main character in the story features in an ambitious five-book series set during the First World War, which were published between 2003 and 2007. Anne is now working on more titles in the Pitt and Monk series, both of which are under option.
None of her books has ever been out of print, and they have received critical acclaim and huge popular success: over 26 million books are in print world-wide. Her books have appeared on bestseller lists in a number of foreign countries, where she has also had excellent reviews. Her books regularly appear in the New York Times bestseller list, and have also been bestsellers in France, Germany and Canada. The Times selected her as one of the “100 Masters of Crime”, and in 2015 she was awarded the Premio de Honor Aragón Negro.
Moving into a different area, Anne has responded to requests for workshops and teaching by producing her first ‘how to write’ instructional DVD “Put Your Heart On The Page: An Introduction To Writing” and her much-loved tote bags which also carry that slogan. Both items are now available to buy direct from her website. “Developing Your Characters” is the third instalment in Anne’s instructional films.
350 pages August 30,2022 publication date Boldwood Books grab a copy here
ABOUT THE BOOK
After the end of a long-term relationship, local weather girl Bea Armstrong has been avoiding her family, and their inevitable ‘I-told-you-sos.’ But with Christmas fast approaching, she is finally on her way home to Charis House, the school in Sherwood Forest that her mum and dad run in their old family home. And to top it all off, the insufferable Henry Fairfax – who her parents have always wanted her to marry – has also been invited.
Relief comes in the shape of a last minute interview for her dream job. There are just a few minor problems… The interview is in Scotland, Bea has no car, and the snow is falling already. The only solution is for Henry to drive her – could this Christmas get any worse…
But during an unforgettable two day interview, a stay in a log cabin and a nightmare journey through the snow, Henry turns out to be nothing like she thought. And when Bea’s first love and recent ex shows up, Bea has a difficult choice to make…
Reading Beth Moran’s fabulous novels makes every day better. Feelgood, satisfying, with smart characters and gorgeous settings, it’s impossible not to fall in love with a Beth Moran story. Perfect for all fans of Jill Mansell, Julie Houston, and Jenny Colgan.
MY THOUGHTS
A fun, festive and tender holiday read. I read this one in a day. Bea Armstrong is our main character; she is the local weather girl and just ending a long-term relationship. Out with the old and in with the new, right? Bea isn’t so sure though when her old flame keeps promising her the moon but never delivers.
What a delight, she’ll be able to spend Christmas with her family, but a last-minute interview as a weather girl is in her way and she must go. Never mind the snow is piling up on her way to Scotland.
Bea has some important decisions to make. I enjoyed the characters and plot. This festive snowy read is perfect for this time of year, and it was such an engaging story.
Pub Date: 30 Aug 2022 I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Beth Moran initially worked as a biochemist and then taught antenatal classes before becoming an author. She loves to write contemporary women`s fiction set in and around Sherwood Forest, where she lives with her family.
I’m listing 5 books I’ve really enjoyed this year.
Before Mrs. Beeton and well before Julia Child, there was Eliza Acton, who changed the course of cookery writing forever.
England, 1835. London is awash with thrilling new ingredients, from rare spices to exotic fruits. But no one knows how to use them. When Eliza Acton is told by her publisher to write a cookery book instead of the poetry she loves, she refuses—until her bankrupt father is forced to flee the country. As a woman, Eliza has few options. Although she’s never set foot in a kitchen, she begins collecting recipes and teaching herself to cook. Much to her surprise she discovers a talent – and a passion – for the culinary arts.
Eliza hires young, destitute Ann Kirby to assist her. As they cook together, Ann learns about poetry, love and ambition. The two develop a radical friendship, breaking the boundaries of class while creating new ways of writing recipes. But when Ann discovers a secret in Eliza’s past, and finds a voice of her own, their friendship starts to fray.
Based on the true story of the first modern cookery writer, Miss Eliza’s English Kitchen is a spellbinding novel about female friendship, the struggle for independence, and the transcendent pleasures and solace of food.
Cora Matthews’s life is a mess. A broken engagement and the unexpected death of her mother have left her wondering if things will ever return to normal. Whatever “normal” is.
It certainly isn’t what she finds at Moonberry Lake. After she receives her family’s dilapidated lakefront lodge as an inheritance–with a surprising condition attached–Cora finds her life overrun by a parade of eccentric neighbors who all have something to say and something to teach her.
As Cora works to put her life back together, she must decide if she is willing to let go of the past, open her heart to love, and embrace the craziest version of family and home she could ever have imagined.
“An uplifting novel about the power of small-town community.”
“My darling B, my heart, my soul. I only wish we’d had longer. Longer to search for the daughter that I should never have given up. The daughter that I should have been brave enough to keep, brave enough to tell you about, brave enough to tell the world about.”
London, Present day. As Ella looks down at a faded black and white photograph of an unknown woman and child alongside a yellowing piece of sheet music, she wonders how the two things can possibly relate to her own family. The items were left for her family at Hope’s House, a home for unmarried mothers whose babies were adopted.
Soon Ella learns that the photograph was taken on the picturesque Greek island of Skopelos, nestled in the turquoise calming waters of the Aegean sea, and that the woman in the photo holds the key to her family’s heritage. As she opens up to her new flame Gabriel, he tells her that she should go to the island to unravel the mystery and that he will wait for her.
Though Ella is torn she decides to go and once there, she discovers a heart-wrenching story of a royal family forced to leave their country for a new life in London, and of a girl with a unique talent for music who captured the heart of a young violinist but was forced to leave him and London behind for the sake of her family.
When Ella discovers the sacrifice made by the two young lovers and comes face to face with her forgotten Greek family, will their story give her the courage to follow her own heart back to London and Gabriel, or will the beauty of the island capture her heart and lead her to a new love altogether?
A totally addictive and heart-breaking novel about the strength of family ties and never giving up on true love. Perfect for fans of Santa Montefiore, Lucinda Riley and Victoria Hislop.
England, 1942. ‘It has to stay secret,’ he whispers, placing the locket around her neck. ‘If they find it, they’ll send me away.’ As she holds the locket, glinting in the moonlight, she can’t hold back the tears. ‘I just wish we didn’t have to hide…’
When farmer’s daughter Irene meets Theodore at a village dance, sparks fly instantly. The war has brought him all the way from Louisiana to build a US airbase just across her father’s fields, but as they sway together, there is nothing else in the world. Only his gentle touch and his deep brown eyes.
But being together comes at a price. As Theodore is Black, the might of the US Air Force is against them, and all the members of the little village community disapprove of their relationship. And they will all go to terrible lengths to tear the two young lovers apart…
Decades later, heartbroken Ruby is back at her family’s crumbling farmhouse for the first time in years, after the loss of her beloved grandmother Irene. The roof has fallen in, family photographs are damaged – and her grandmother’s jewellery is nowhere to be found.
When Ruby uncovers her grandmother’s waterlogged diaries, she discovers that Irene treasured one piece of lost jewellery above all. A locket from a man called Theodore. And the missing locket holds the key to unravelling a heartbreaking secret that changed her grandmother’s life…
Is someone in the village hiding the locket to keep the truth about Irene and Theodore buried? And can Ruby find a way to honour her grandmother’s memory – or in digging up the pain of the war, will she tear her family apart?
An absolutely breathtaking World War Two story about the power of love in the face of adversity, and how the tragic consequences of war can echo through generations. Fans of Fiona Valpy, The Nightingale and All the Light We Cannot See will be addicted to this incredible read.
Two Sisters. One Single Event. A Family Changed Forever.
At the turn of the twentieth century, sisters Emmy and Callie Bullock are living a privileged life as the only daughters of a wealthy Alabama cotton farmer when their well-ordered household gets turned upside down by the arrival of Lily McGee. Arrestingly beautiful, Lily quickly–and innocently–draws the wrong kind of attention. Meanwhile, Callie meets a man who offers her the freedom to abandon social constraints and discover her truest self.
After Lily has a baby, Callie witnesses something she was never meant to see–or did she? Her memory is a haze, just an image in her mind of Emmy standing on a darkened riverbank and cradling Lily’s missing baby girl. Only when the sisters are separated does the truth slowly come to light through their letters–including a revelation that will shape the rest of Callie’s life.
Bestselling author Valerie Fraser Luesse weaves a complex and suspenseful tale dripping with intrigue, romance, and Southern charm.
I’ve found that historical fiction books are the ones that are the most heartfelt books I read. While I do enjoy contemporary books, I didn’t read them at all until a few years ago. I used to only read historical fiction but then I need a break from some of the heavy stories in historical fiction.
380 pages Zondervan publisher July 5,2022 publish date
ABOUT THE BOOK
Abigail’s Amish life has always followed a certain path . . . until an Englisch woman disrupts all she’s known to be true.
Growing up Amish, Abigail Bontrager often felt like a square peg in a round hole. Her pie crusts always turned out tough. Her stitches always ran crooked. She was clumsy. Not ideal for an aspiring Amish wife and mother, but her faith and love of her family, which are so much more important, are solid. Plus, her relationship with the attractive and kindhearted Owen Kurtz is moving in the right direction.
Owen is part dreamer, part entrepreneur. His friendship with Abigail has gradually blossomed into a sweet and loving courtship. Inspired by the hope of a future with the girl of his dreams, he decides to take the next step in building a business of his own—in the promising new industry of growing sunflowers.
When an outsider claiming to be Abigail’s birth mother abruptly enters her life, Abigail’s world comes crashing down. Confused and upset, she is determined to discover who she really is. Her journey of discovery leads to the possibilities of a new life waiting for her in the Englisch world. But is this new life really worth giving up everything and everyone she’s known? How can Abigail and Owen follow their hearts—and God’s plan—when these new paths now lead them into the unknown?
MY THOUGHTS
Kelly Irvin has written such a heartfelt book so full of emotions. Amish woman Abigail Bontrager has never felt she’s fit in with the other Amish in her community; a terrible baker and she can’t sew a straight stitch. Then she gets earth shattering news, she’s been adopted into her Amish family as a baby and her parents are English.
Mad at her adoptive parents, she’s confused and wants answers as to why they’ve never told her this information. Leaving her adoptive parents and Amish boyfriend she knows to be comfortable in life she must explore this English side of herself.
Her experience in the English world is so eye opening, the clothing feels uncomfortable, and she doesn’t feel covered enough, everything is faster, brighter, louder and more open. There are not the rules and restrictions she is used to, and her faith becomes severely tested especially when she starts dating an English man.
How will Abigail handle the pressures of the outside world, will she crave the less restrictions in this new fast life, or will her family and faith pull her back home? Such a beautiful story of a young woman following her heart while letting God lead the way.
Pub Date 05 Jul 2022 I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Best-selling novelist Kelly Irvin’s latest Amish romance, Every Good Gift, debuted in February 2023. The third novel in the Amish Blessings series takes place in Yoder and Haven, Kansas. The series takes a look at adoption in Amish communities. The first book, Love’s Dwelling, won second place in the Selah Awards contest in the long contemporary romance category. The series follows the Amish of Sky Country series, which featured Amish communities in Northwest Montana affected by wildfires that destroyed thousands of acres in the state in recent years. The first book, Mountains of Grace, debuted in August 2019, and delves into the impact on not only an Amish man and woman, but also a smoke jumper, a sheriff’s deputy, and a young English woman forced to confront her past because of the fires.
Kelly also writes romantic suspense novels. Her most recent forays into this genre include Trust Me, Her Every Move and Closer Than She Knows, all set in San Antonio and South Texas. Publishers Weekly says of Closer Than She Knows, “this brisk, smoothly written thriller from Irvin pits court reporter Teagan O’Rourke, a murder mystery lover, against a cunning and vicious serial killer. Fans of serial killer fiction with a Christian slant will be satisfied.”
Of Tell Her No Lies, The Library Journal says, “Irvin creates a complex web with enough twists and turns to keep even the most savvy romantic suspense readers guessing until the end. Known for her Amish novels, this two-time Carol Award finalist shows that her talents span subgenres from tranquil Amish stories to rapidly paced breathless suspense.”
Kelly is also the author of the Every Amish Season series, which included four books that chronicle the lives of Amish widows who are in different seasons in their lives. These women are linked by life altering experiences that bring them together as wives, mothers, and grandmothers in the small town of Jamesport, Mo. The first book, Upon a Spring Breeze, received critical acclaim from the Library Journal: “A moving and compelling tale about the power of grace and forgiveness that reminds us how we become strongest in our most broken moments.”
Kelly Irvin is also the author of The Amish of Bee County series, which includes the critically acclaimed The Beekeeper’s Son. Publishers Weekly called the first book in the series a beautifully woven masterpiece and Romantic Times Magazine called Kelly a storyteller extraordinaire. It was followed by The Bishop’s Son and The Saddle Maker’s Son, which is an ECPA bestseller.
A two-time ACFW Carol finalist, Kelly’s novellas have been included in numerous anthologies, including An Amish Summer, The Amish Christmas Gift, An Amish Market, an Amish Christmas Love, and Amish Quilt, An Amish Reunion, An Amish Picnic, and An Amish Christmas Bakery.
She also penned the Bliss Creek Amish series and the New Hope Amish series, both published by Harvest House Publishers. Love Still Stands, the first book in the New Hope series, debuted in September 2012, and the follow-up, Love Redeemed, released March 1, 2014. The final book in the series, set in Branson, MO., was A Plain Love Song, released in July 2014.
The Bliss Creek Amish series, set in Kansas, includes To Love and to Cherish, A Heart Made New, and Love’s Journey Home.
In the New Hope series, familiar characters from Bliss Creek move to Missouri to start a new district and a new life.
The Kansas native is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and the ACFW San Antonio local chapter Alamo City Christian Fiction Writers, as well as Sisters in Crime and Women’s Fiction Writers Association.
A graduate of the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism, Kelly wrote nonfiction professionally for thirty years. She studied for three semesters at the University of Costa Rica, learning the Spanish language. As a journalist, she worked six years in the border towns of Laredo and El Paso, where she was exposed to culture and language that serves as fodder for her fiction writing. She has written hard news, features, entertainment pieces, restaurant critiques, editorials, and weekly columns. Writing awards include the Silver Star Award from the Texas Mental Health Association for articles pertaining to mental health and numerous awards in news, feature, and editorial writing from the Texas Press Association and Texas Press Women.
Kelly retired in 2016 from her position of 22 years as public relations manager for the San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department, where her duties included writing and designing an employee newsletter, writing news releases, collaborating on marketing campaigns, coordinating ribbon-cuttings and groundbreakings, coordinating press conferences, updating the web site, and acting as a media spokesperson.
Kelly has been married to photographer Tim Irvin for 35 years. They have two children and four grandchildren. In her spare time, she likes to write short stories and poetry, read books by her favorite authors, and visit the babies.
336 pages Kensington Cozies publisher December 26,2023 publish date
ABOUT THE BOOK
In the latest Country Store Mystery by Agatha and Macavity Award-winning author Maddie Day, a killer strikes – with a cast iron skillet – during South Lick, Indiana’s annual Outhouse Race festivities, landing Pans ‘N Pancakes-owner Robbie Jordan on the suspect list…
Many residents of South Lick, Indiana, claim the Outhouse Race, in which competitors push old-timey outhouse replicas on wheels at the annual Abe Martin Festival on Memorial Day, is the best thing since indoor plumbing. Just because country store and restaurant owner Robbie Jordan has too much to do managing her new deep fryer as well as an old lover reappearing, she’s not going to miss out on the fun. Plus, it’s good for business.
But when a dead body and a cast-iron skillet tumble out of the Pans ’N Pancakes outhouse entry on the race route, it seems someone is trying to frame Robbie—in a most unconventional way. Now she’ll need to be privy to the townsfolks’ secrets as she races to flush out a killer . . .
MY THOUGHTS
I have read other books by Maddie Day, but I don’t believe I’ve read any in this series, The Country Store Mysteries. I’ve enjoyed this book as much as I have the other series I’ve read. Reading the other books, I knew what to expect from this author’s writing style.
This is kind of a funny one, not the murder of course, that’s never funny. Abe Martin Festival on Memorial Day in South Lick, Indiana brings quite the crowd every year. This year the shop owners are drawing the crowd in with a race featuring replicas of outhouses decorated to represent town businesses.
As the race is getting ready to start the shop owners must push their outhouse to the top of the hill in preparation.
One particularly heavy outhouse tips and out spills a body that had been knocked over the head with a skillet and the skillet was still in the outhouse representing Pans ’N Pancakes, the country store owned by Robbie.
She better do some sleuthing before things get really heated up. Fun to see how she came up with clues to solve this.
Plenty of suspects kept everyone busy. This was not a simple case to solve. I look forward to more in this series.
Pub Date 26 Dec 2023 I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Maddie Day is a talented amateur chef and holds a PhD in linguistics from Indiana University. An Agatha Award-winning author, Maddie writes the Country Store, Cozy Capers Book Group, and Cece Barton Mysteries, all from Kensington Publishing.
As Edith Maxwell, she write the Local Foods Mysteries (Kensington Publishing) and the Quaker Midwife Mysteries (Beyond the Page), as well as award-winning short crime fiction.
You can find all Maddie’s/Edith’s identities and work at http://www.edithmaxwell.com. She blogs every week day with the other Wicked Authors at wickedauthors.com and every second and fourth Fridays at mysteryloverskitchen.com. Look for her as Maddie Day/ Edith Maxwell on Facebook and @edithmaxwell and @maddiedayauthor on Twitter and Instagram.
It’s time for another First Line Friday, hosted at Reading is my SuperPower. Grab the book closest to you and list the first line(s) then return to Reading is my SuperPower and visit other blogs to see everyone else’s posts.
The book I’m featuring today is:
The first line:
On the doorstep of Rose’s house, Annie smooths out her coat and straightens her scarf before gripping her cane again.
+ABOUT THE BOOK
Grannies, gangsters, murders—and a rollicking journey across France!
It’s January 4, 1961, and Marseilles housemaid Annie Malian is in love. It’s also the day her fiancé René takes his life under peculiar circumstances.
Many decades later, an old Christmas postcard addressed to Annie arrives, and all her doubts come flooding back.
At 84, there’s no time to waste!
Annie enlists the help of Rose Tassy, an eccentric retired teacher and amateur sleuth.
Thus begins an unforgettable journey from Provence to a quaint village in Picardie and then on to the sparkling Riviera, with a detour through wintry Paris.
Amid yuletide festivities, Annie and Rose navigate perilous terrain. Their list of suspects quickly grows. Was it Rene’s older brother? Maybe the ex-gangster turned chicken farmer? The powerful Monegasque tycoon?
Stumped, Rose begins to question her detective mettle when a new death compounds the plot…
This Christmas, will Annie receive the overdue truth as a gift?
Vegan Book Blogger 