If you’re anything like me, you have lots of books in your reading pile that you haven’t read yet. Books that you’d love to get through, but you just keep adding more and more books to that pile and soon they are forgotten about. Books from the Backlog is a great way to feature those books and hopefully move them up on your reading list.
THIS WEEK’S NEGLECTED BOOK
Pub Date 28 Sep 2021
ABOUT THE BOOK
There’s nothing like autumn in picturesque Goosebush, Massachusetts, but beneath the season’s sun-dappled foliage, Lilly Jayne and her Garden Squad must investigate a shadowy murder mystery after a theater owner’s sudden death sows as much drama behind the scenes as on any stage…
Lilly Jayne typically spends the harvest season baking festive pies and crafting colorful wreaths to enter in the library’s annual fundraising contest. But this year, autumn opens on a somber note when beloved local theater owner, Leon Tompkin, dies unexpectedly. His memorial sets the scene for a mini reunion of The Goosebush Players’ best and brightest alumni, including Hollywood star, Jeremy Nolan…until someone plucks Jeremy from the spotlight, permanently.
Now, as dedicated theater volunteer, Scooter McGee, falls under suspicion, Lilly and her Garden Squad must spring into action. They quickly discover a cornucopia of potential suspects in Jeremy’s murder. Was it an embittered ex…or a jilted lover? A rival thespian…or an overly ambitious artist? Lilly rakes through the piles of clues, but if she doesn’t uncover the real killer soon, more than autumn leaves will be dropping in Goosebush…
WHY I ADDED IT TO MY LIST
2021 is the year I started reading cozy mysteries. You might say, I went a little crazy and requested too many from NetGalley. Never too many books though, right? Slowly working my way through my cozy pile.
What about you, have you read this one? Would you read it?
Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. This week I’m excitedly waiting for………..
Double Grudge Donuts
Pub Date 20 Feb 2024
ABOUT THE BOOK
The countdown is on as Deputy Donut Café owner Emily Westhill gets ready for married life. But before she takes the plunge, she’ll need to poke a hole in a deadly criminal’s plans . . .
When the Fallingbrook Arts Festival rolls into town weeks before she’s set to tie the knot, Emily expects talent and friendly competition at the week-long summer series to go together like coffee and double fudge. But the fun crumbles fast after a lively bagpiper takes first place on day one and turns heads for the wrong reasons—all before Emily and her tabby cat find him dead in a clear case of murder. Along with a distinctive weapon at the crime scene, several strategically placed items leave disturbing clues about the killer’s identity, including a broken piece of a Deputy Donut mug . . .
While detectives aren’t sure who silenced the bagpiper’s music, they don’t trust Emily or her family to tell the truth. With her nuptials and career on the line, Emily launches an unsettling investigation to save herself from trouble and bring a dangerous figure to justice. The search not only brings too many suspects into the picture, but also leads to a strange discovery on Deputy Donut’s rooftop. A discovery that tells Emily she better get cooking, because someone may be watching her every move . . . and carefully plotting to turn a wedding into a funeral!
This is such a great series. I seem to be on a roll with cozies recently. What about this series, have you read any of the books in it?
When the ceiling of preloved clothing shop Roseford Reloved falls in at the height of Christmas season, owner Polly Parrott is in despair. She can see her fortunes draining away as quickly as the water is pouring through her roof. What makes it worse is that standing right underneath the deluge is Will Sutherland, sporting hero and new owner of Parson’s Grange, the new modern mansion in Roseford.
Polly and Will’s first meeting is about as far from a success as it can be, but over a festive season of Christmas markets, a Yuletide Ball and inconvenient snowfalls, can they forge a friendship or even more, despite their unpromising beginning? Or will the complications in both of their lives end their romance before it even begins?
I have read the rest of the books in the Roseford series, and they are a pure delight. I am familiar with these characters and it’s like a homecoming to read about them in the additional books in the series.
A pure escapist read, perfect for getting lost in for the afternoon with your cat and cup of tea at your side. Hoping and praying won’t prevent the ceiling from collapsing at Roseford Reloved a used clothing boutique owned by Polly Parrott. With finances low she is afraid she’ll be sued when the ceiling falls on the head of Will Sutherland. He is new in town and the owner of a fabulous mansion in town. Beyond humiliated, she is more than surprised when the upcoming festive holiday season finds them together in a friendly manner. He has two daughters with his ex-wife, and they add to the family dynamics. One accepts her and one not so much, at first. It’s always hard to accept a parent moving on to another relationship. A heartwarming story, I enjoyed the beautiful setting and read the book all in one sitting. The story is so charming, I look forward to being back in Roseford again. I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Fay Keenan is the author of the bestselling Little Willowbury series of novels. She has led writing workshops with Bristol University and has been a visiting speaker in schools. She is a full-time teacher and lives in Somerset.
The boy who couldn’t love and the girl who wouldn’t.
Ginny Murphy is a total guy’s girl. She’s always found friendships with boys easier to form and keep drama-free – as long as they don’t fall for her, and she doesn’t fall for them. She and her best guy friends have always stuck to that. But then she meets Adrian Silvas, the only one who’s ever made her crave more, and Ginny begins to question her own rules.
Piece by piece, Ginny and Adrian begin to fall into something intoxicating, something dangerous. Ginny threatens to destroy Adrian’s belief he’s held ever since witnessing his own mother’s heartbreak: that love isn’t worth the risk. For Ginny, the stakes could be even higher. Letting Adrian get close could mean exposing a secret she’s long protected: her disordered eating.
Ginny isn’t looking to be saved by someone else. But maybe she and Adrian can help each other – if they don’t destroy each other first.
Heartfelt and evocative, GUY’S GIRL is a powerful story about true love, self-love, and growing up.
MY THOUGHTS
The book is emotional and completely raw. The main character hides her eating disorder in plain view. Many people don’t recognize the signs and miss someone having anorexia and bulimia from just a casual relationship. When you have these, you get very good at hiding it. It was not an easy book to read. I’ve never personally known anyone with these but the descriptions in the book broke my heart. I’ve learned a lot about these eating disorders through this read. The book is eye opening. I want to thank the author for writing this book and I am hoping it inspires others who have these to get the help that they need. I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Emma Noyes told her mother she wanted to be an author when she was six. She grew up in a suburb outside Chicago and attended Harvard University, where she studied history & literature. She started her career at a beer company, but left because she wanted to write about mermaids and witches—eventually publishing her first YA fantasy series, The Sunken City. She now lives in Chicago with her Swedish boyfriend and miniature Pomeranian. Guy’s Girl is her adult debut. Learn more online at www.emmavrnoyes.com.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a place to meet up and share what you have been, and are about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organise yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment and er… add to your groaning TBR pile! Hosted at The Book Date. Come join in the fun.
The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly or for a monthly wrap up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme
This week we’ve had rain several days which has held me back from walking as much as I’ve wanted to. Thank goodness for workout dvd’s which I still do. We were going to go to the Fall Festival yesterday at the state park but decided to skip it because my daughter has asthma, and the cool and rainy weather wouldn’t have been in her best interest. She didn’t really care as she was busy watching anime. I’ve been cramming in books like crazy reading. I have 2 blog tours to post on the 24th and I haven’t started either book. The one I just posted yesterday was supposed to be posted by the day before. It’s not fun falling behind. My kitten is 16 weeks old and just about the size of our 9-year-old cat. She can hold her own with her when he play fights with her, she’ll take him down.
Berkley wants me to get my review in for this one.
Currently reading
Not sure what else if anything I’ll get in reading wise this week. I do have some more Halloween/Fall books I’d like to get read before months end.
TV WATCHED THIS WEEK
None, I’m not a tv watcher. I don’t have any streaming services. I don’t NetFlix and Chill 🙂 I do own a tv though so I can hook my dvd player up to it and do my workouts.
Have a lovely start to your week. Thanks for stopping by.
336 pages September 26,2023 publication date Revell publisher
ABOUT THE BOOK
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.
MY THOUGHTS
If you’ve been reading my blog any amount of time at all you’ll notice I read a lot of different authors. Some say they want the tried-and-true authors and won’t try a debut author. I say that’s nonsense. If I hadn’t tried this author, I wouldn’t have found a new favorite author with all the elements I love in books.
Moonberry Lake is heartwarming and charming and located in the beautiful North Woods of Minnesota. Its small-town descriptions will make you want to visit, and then stay. Cora hasn’t been in Moonberry Lake since childhood but when life doesn’t go as planned, she finds herself back there with a surprising inheritance, her family’s dilapidated lakefront lodge.
Her family has kept secrets from her and while in Moonberry she’ll try to work her way through them with some unforeseen results.
Now the characters living in Moonberry are quite an eclectic bunch. Everyone has their own opinion, and they are quite different from each other. They all openly welcome her, except for one character. I’m hoping to find out more about this character in a future book.
The renovation of the family lodge is going beautifully and while the construction is going on Cora has time to settle in and really talk to her neighbors, like so many of us don’t have time for now a day.
I have to say Cora’s character seemed a little naive, but I didn’t like her any less. Of all the characters if I had to choose a favorite I’d choose Kitty, there is something very special about her.
Let’s talk about a few other characters, the dental receptionist, she is annoying. No one would keep a dental receptionist on like that, even if you did like her and felt sorry for her. I still liked her though; I thought her character was funny. I also liked the man she helped around his house, who is so introverted. All quirky neighbors, all have a story to tell and a lesson to teach. You will fall in love with this heartwarming story and not want to leave it. I am greatly looking forward to another book in the series.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
THE AUTHOR
Holly Varni is a native Minnesotan of strong Norwegian descent, who was raised in the Lutheran Church that Garrison Keillor made a career depicting. Between the lutefisk, grumpy grandparents, and the crazy neighbor who mowed his lawn wearing pajamas, the seed to becoming a storyteller was planted. She wants to give readers characters they can connect with, admire, laugh at, and most of all love.
She is podcast host of “Moments from Moonberry Lake,” and author of the “Moonberry Lake” series.
In her personal life, she married a University Professor with the same chocolate eyes as her romantic lead. They live on the Central Coast of California with their three sons. The characters of Moonberry Lake and their unique stories came about as she was trying to survive being a boy mom. When not doing laundry or writing, she has the privilege of being a Hospice volunteer, where she sits with the dying and listens to their stories.
Have you read this book? Did you love it as much as I did?
Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping in.
Hello friends. How are things going with you? This week I am hooking up with Reading Reality who hosts Stacking the Shelves. It’s a fun meme to list the books we’ve acquired in the past week. They may be bought, borrowed or stolen, hopefully not stolen though 🙂
367 pages October 20,2023 publication date Graupius Books publisher
ABOUT THE BOOK
Scotland’s all misty lochs and magical forests and perfect boyfriends, right?
When dance student Amalphia Treadwell embarks on a secret relationship with her charismatic new teacher, she has no idea of the danger that lurks in his school in Scotland.
She’s soon dealing with her boyfriend’s obsessive ex, the strange research taking place at the castle school and her own ever-evolving relationship issues.
Amalphia works hard to be the best dancer she can be, but as tension builds within the old walls of the castle, she begins to wonder if she will ever escape the dank dark of the dungeon…
Dark, witty, sexy and fun, Tendu is a compelling and seductive story of love, dance and obsession. Get your copy today.
Ailish’s dance background and love of history and spicy stories are what inspired this heady mix of romance and ballet set in a castle. She lives in Scotland beside a loch with her husband and two children where she dances and writes and eats rather too much chocolate.
Tendu contains graphic sex scenes, violence, trauma and adult language.
MY THOUGHTS
I believe the author writes about what she knows and loves. This is my first time reading a book by this author and I enjoyed what I read. There is a content warning and I appreciated knowing what was upcoming.
If you enjoy mentions of chocolate and lots of cake, this book is for you.
There are evolving relationships and strong character development. The description of Scotland sounds magical and mysterious, like a place I would seriously enjoy being. A young dancer, an older male teacher, an evolving relationship.
There is some darkness, a castle with its hidden secrets, a maniacal character who has everyone fooled at first, but we begin to feel the danger. Very atmospheric, I could feel what the characters were feeling, feel their pain, it broke my heart and then healed it and made it sing.
Excellent, I’ll be on the lookout for more by the author.
I was given a complimentary copy of the book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Ailish Sinclair trained as a dancer and taught dance for many years, before working in schools to help children with special needs.
She now lives beside a loch with her husband and two children where she still dances (medical conditions allowing) and writes and eats rather too much chocolate.
Thank you for stopping in. May blessings rain upon you.
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