100+ Reading Challenge - July

JULY

 

87.	Foul Play at the PTA	Laura Alden
88.	Is It Safe?	Jerol Anderson
89.	Now You See Her	James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge
90.	Incognito	Gregory Murphy
91.	Murder Passes The Buck	Deb Baker
92.	Wed and Buried	Mary Daheim
93.	A Small Fortune	Audrey Braun
94.	Corinthia Falls	Kim Hutson
95.	STAY	Allie Larkin
96.	A Killing in Antiques	Mary Moody
97.	Releasing Gillian's Wolves	Tara Woolpy
98.	A Sheetcake Named Desire	Jacklyn Brady
99.	The Goodbye Quilt	Susan Wiggs
100.	Harrowing Hats	Joyce and Jim Lavene
101.	Executive Lunch	Maria E, Schneider
102.	Heat Wave	Nancy Thayer
103.	Die Buying	Laura Disilverio
104.	Pleating for Mercy	Melissa Bourban

My best month so far and I was reading with a magnifying glass for part of the month! 

Pleating for Mercy by Melissa Bourban

An Obsidian Mystery
Published by New American Library
A Division of The Penguin Group


A Brand New Series
A Magical Dressmaking Mystery
Release Date:  August 2, 2011
ISBN-10: 0451234367
ISBN-13: 978-0451234360

A decedent of the infamous Butch Cassidy,  Harlow Jane Cassidy and all the other Cassidy women through time possess special "gifts".  Harlow is still unsure what her gift actually is when she returns home to Texas from Manhattan. Her great grandmother has passed away and left her farmhouse to Harlow.  Harlow worked as a fashioner designer in New York so she decides to open a custom dressmaking boutique on the main level of her new home.

One of her first customers is her childhood friend Josie, who is getting married in just two weeks. The store where she had ordered her bridal gown and bridesmaids dresses has gone out of business and she needs Harlow to save the day and create all the dresses as fast as she can.  

Calamity strikes when the maid of honor is found dead outside of Harlow's shoppe.  The bride looks like the prime suspect and she now needs more than a few dresses.  She needs her help to find out who killed her friend.  It turns out Harlow may be able to do this especially with a little bit of unusual help, a little help from the great beyond. 

This story really tugged at my heartstrings.  I too come from a long line of dressmakers, seamstresses, and people who love to sew. My grandmother was known for her beautiful work, making men's suits and wedding dresses along with every other garment thinkable. My mother made all my clothes until I started making my own and until my accident I created not only clothes for my family but quilts as well.  While we may not have possessed any magical powers we found so much joy in what we were able to create.

Harlow's gift with fabric is extraordinary, but it is her late great-grandmother that steals the story and will keep you in stitches as she makes her opinions "heard".  The other characters are varied and well written. A little bit of romance, loaded with humor and a wonderful mystery made this book a delightful read.  You can also feel the author's love and talent of sewing jump of the pages. She definitely has a passion that shines through.

This was a fun read and would be enjoyed by all but especially those that love to sew.  It would also make a fabulous gift for anyone who sews. If future books follow this pattern some wonderfully constructed mysteries are in our future!!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel  Agent

BOOK 2 IN THIS SERIES!!!!

The author also writes as Misa Ramirez, be sure to check out her Web Page to find out about all her books!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Obsidian. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 

Die Buying by Laura Disilverio

Cover Illustration
by Ben Perini
Cover Design
by Rita Frangie

A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
Published by The Penguin Group


A BRAND NEW SERIES!
A Mall Cop Mystery
Release Date: August 2, 2011
ISBN-10: 0425242730
ISBN-13: 978-0425242735

Emma-Joy Ferris (EJ) was serving her country in Iraq when shrapnel from an IED blast mangled her knee and lower leg and got her medically discharged and sent home.  Her dream is to work for any police department stateside but all she has received is rejections.  The only job similar that she now has is being a mall cop for Fernglen Galleria just outside of Vernonville, Virginia.  

Most days are spent deterring shoplifters, giving directions, and cruising the mall on her Segway.  Today is much more interesting, vandals are painting bible passages on vehicles in the parking lot, someone has liberated all the reptiles from the Herpetology Hut, including Agatha, a 15 foot python, and oh yes, a dead naked man was found in a boutique window.

EJ's feathers get ruffled when an arrogant police detective brushes her off as just a mall cop.  There are snakes loose in the mall and a killer on the loose in Vernonville and EJ plans to round them all up by herself if necessary. With her military experience and the help of her grandfather who is retired from the CIA she knows she can solve the case before the police and is determined to do just that unless she gets herself killed first.

An pleasing debut to what should be a very interesting series. I love EJ, and could feel her pain both internal and external as she fights for what she wants but has to settle for what her body allows her to do.  This resonates very personally with me. I am very interested in where the author takes this character in the future.  A mall can be ripe with possibilities.

As for the mystery and the plot, they were both very good and while very entertaining were needing more depth, which I am sure will come as the author grows more comfortable with these characters and setting.  This is definitely a series to watch, the foundation has been set and the possibilities are endless.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel  Agent

About The Author

Laura DiSilverio spent twenty years as an Air Force intelligence officer--serving as a squadron commander in England, English teacher at the Air Force Academy, budgeteer at the National Reconnaissance Officer, POW/MIA researcher in Bangkok, and in other positions--before retiring to write and parent full-time. She lives in Colorado with her hubby, tween-aged daughters (who are teaching her a lot about patience), and Wire-haired Pointing Griffon. She writes the Charlie Swift/Gigi Goldman humorous private investigator series (SWIFT JUSTICE, St. Martin's Minotaur, Oct 2010) as well as the Mall Cop mystery series (DIE BUYING, Berkley Prime Crime, Aug 2011).

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Berkley Prime Crime. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 

Executive Lunch by Maria E. Schneider

Bear Mountain Books
A Sedona O'Hala Mystery
1st in the Series
ISBN-10: 0615448747
ISBN-13: 978-0615448749

Sedona appears to be a mild mannered lab assistant at Strandfrost, a computer development firm, but when some thugs enter the business she turns into Superwoman to save her colleagues and sends the crooks running for their lives.

Her efforts are rewarded when she is approached by board of Strandfrost with an opportunity to good to refuse. They will set her up in a home and lifestyle of an rising executive in the company but she needs to find out what the thugs were after.  They know company funds are being diverted, they know one of the players, but not enough to shut the operation down.

She agrees to help the board and put herself in danger but quickly learns she can trust no one. Maybe not even the ones who are supposed to be helping her.  She could lose her job or even her life if she doesn't uncover whose behind the executive rip off!

Sedona turns from Superwoman back to her true identity of Superklutz and the fun begins.  She trips over, runs into, falls on top of everything and anyone.  This is a fast paced romp into the corporate world that will have you laughing out loud.  With just enough surprises to keep you guessing who-dun-it until the very end.  A  well written, lively mystery and a great escape for your pleasure. You will be left looking forward to your next visit with Sedona O'Hala.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

More books in this series:

  

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

FEEL GOOD FRIDAY!!!

Hosted by: Erika, the girl next door grows up

Welcome to

Feel Good Friday!!!

Erika had found that a lot of her bloggy friends reading posts about being positive, so she thought she might try her very own meme. She just wanted everyone to feel good and have some happy thoughts as you begin the weekend.  Go over to her blog for the details.

"The Girl" is busy constructing a new website so for the time being this feature is being hosted by lia sophia tomgirl.  She has a great blog, be sure to check it out!

What made me Feel Good this week!!

First, I am feeling quite a bit better and my face is slowly coming back.  The issue now as that continues I hope is that the paralysis was keeping the pain at bay but a few ibuprofen has kept that in check and being able to read again without a magnifying glass is pure joy. 

Next, I have been receiving some awesome books to review and my wish list a Paperbackswap has gone crazy.  I usually get about 1 wish listed book a month and this past week 14 came through and are on their way to me.  I am going to be very busy reading.

Lastly, I received this picture via an email from my good friend Cheryl this morning and I just have to share it with all of you.  It sure made me smile, well as much as I can smile right now.

 J

What made you Feel Good this week?

I hope you will take just a moment to share it with me.

Harrowing Hats by Joyce and Jim Lavene

Cover Design
by Lesley Worrell
Cover Illustration
by Ben Perini

A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
Published by The Penguin Group
A Renaissance Faire Mystery
4th Book in the Series
Release Date: August 2, 2011
ISBN-10: 0425242773
ISBN-13: 978-0425242773

This series features Jessie Morton, an assistant history professor at the University of South Carolina at Columbia.  Each summer she returns to Renaissance Faire Village to work as an apprentice for her dissertation - "The Proliferation of Medieval Crafts in Modern Times".

This summer she is working with Andre Hariot at Harriet's Hat House. Andre used to work in Hollywood making hats for many famous movies but something drove him away and he ended up at the Renaissance Faire Village.

Living at the faire is quite a treat for Jessie until one of the Three Chocolatiers is found drowned in a vat of chocolate with a hat pin in his eye.  Maybe this summer's apprenticeship with be curtailed if her boss is found guilty of the murder.  But he is just one of several suspects, turns out the sweet treat maker had quite a few enemies. Jessie feels obligated to do little investigating on her own to find out who really killed the chocolate candy man and save her sweet hat maker in the process.

I find myself looking forward to my adventures with Jessie and all the knaves, knights, wrenches and fools as we travel to the Renaissance Faire.  This year it's even more exciting as a whole new group has been added to the Village and the residents are not happy which adds yet another element for humor and strife.

I have liked all the books in this series but this is the first one I can say I loved because the mystery was much more complex, the characters have gained depth and are more real.  That is what happens with series books, the author becomes more comfortable with the characters and they evolve naturally and effortlessly for the reader. 

There were also a couple of surprises and teasers that leaves the reader waiting for the next installment.  This is definitely a series to read in order to appreciate the entire series and the reader will see how each one just keeps getting better and better.  Until next summer......

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel  Agent

The series in order:

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Berkley Prime Crime. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 

Foul Play At The PTA Giveaway Winners!!!

CAROL W. (TEXAS)

HAS WON

PLUS

AND

TAMMY S. (ALABAMA)

HAS WON

Thank you to everyone that entered!!!

Winner was chosen using Random.org

Stay tuned for more

Book Reviews, Recommendations,

Random Thoughts & Giveaways!!!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Heat Wave by Nancy Thayer

This book has been on my wish list since I noticed it on some blogs before it came out.  I read Beth's Review on her blog The Crazy Life Of A Bookoholic Mom and when it was offered to me by the Amazon Vine Program I snapped it right up.  Thank you Beth!!!  Please take a minute to check out her wonderful blog!!

Ballantine Books
Random House Publishing
ISBN-10: 0345518314
ISBN-13: 978-0345518316

Carley and Gus have been married 13 years, she stays home with their two girls in their huge Nantucket home that was Gus's mother's family home.  Gus is a partner in his father's law firm.  Life is good.  Until one night Gus doesn't come home from the office.  Carley contacts her in-laws and her father-in-law goes back to the office to find his only child dead at his desk.

This sets up a whole mass of events for Carley from dealing with her children, her in-laws and her friends, plus the financial burden she now has to manage. She moves forward for herself and her daughters in ways that are hard for Gus's parents to understand at times. She tries hard to do what she believe Gus would want her to do. Always putting her family first. 

This story has so many layers, relationships, and drama.  The relationship Carley has with her daughters rings true as they all come to grips with Gus's death.  Add the oldest daughter becoming a teenager and all the very real things mother and daughters face are brought to the forefront.

The relationship with Gus's parents is difficult at best. At times his mother tries to undermine Carley with her girls but Carley handles it and even stands up to them both unleashing the strong character within.

The relationship with her friends troubled me at times, some of the situations seemed almost too much for the character of Carley to bear.  One so extraordinary that most of us never would be able to handle and I think the author let it happen too easily.

I don't want to reveal too much but one of Carley's relationships moved too slowly, the stopping and starting, the taking in and pushing away felt overdone.  I realized that by the end of the story what the author was setting up but the time taken should have been in one place instead of the other.

All this being said, Nancy Thayer is a wonderful author who writes of Nantucket in almost a poetic way.   You know she loves her setting and she knows her audience.  This is a fine summer read that all her fans will enjoy.  Did I love it? No, but I did enjoy it. Is this her finest novel? No, but it is very good.  It's all about the relationships. The story is full of flawed characters with lots of waves, the heat was there and then it was gone and everything tied up in the end in a neat little package.  Just a little bit too neat.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the Amazon Vine Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 

COZY WEDNESDAY - With Author Mary Moody (Giveaway too!)

I love Wednesdays. It's like having a group of friends, old and new, over for some cool beverages during this hot summer and talking about the good books we've read.  In this case Cozy Mysteries.  I have just recently "met" Mary Moody when I heard about her new book A Killing In Antiques and was so happy when she agreed to stop by and spend Cozy Wednesday with us.

Welcome Mary!!!

Characters get in the Way

Thank you for having me here today Lori. I've been reading your blog for some time and enjoy the wide range of mysteries that are recommended. I've always loved reading mysteries, but A Killing in Antiques is the first one I've written, and I'm old for a beginner – a late bloomer.

Before I began the actual writing of A Killing in Antiques I made some rough notes. I believed that I had thought it through, and had the plot, characters, and crime well in hand. I was ready, so I sat down and wrote. Wow! What happened with the characters astonished me.

Everyone was there, my characters were on the pages where they belonged, but they started doing things I hadn't planned. Two characters that I only meant to walk through the pages and impart some news to Lucy St. Elmo (my protagonist) took over larger parts of the story than I ever intended.

Which, of course, created problems. Since I liked what the characters were doing, I decided to change the plot to fit their growing personalities, rather than change their personalities to fit the plot. One of them has become a solid favorite among readers! Then, a character who I thought would be fun, turned out to be a dud. I had to dump him.

My killer was another one who caused grief for me, as well as for his victim. When I think about killers at all, I think of them as bad guys. Just plain bad. My killer was such a bad person that he/she didn't fit in with the rest of the characters. It was as if the characters in, say, Sleepless in Seattle, had one friend among them who was Caligula. Wrong, all wrong.

So I had to work the murder motive around in my mind until it better fit someone who belongs within my setting. When you think about it, there are no good motives for murder, and that's why most real murderers are caught so quickly. Every issue surrounding a real murder usually points to the culprit.

 I don't mind if readers guess WHO did it, I usually do, but I'd like them to stay because they enjoy my characters and want to see how the denouement works out for them. To my mind, the murderer should seem reasonable, given the story that's been built. It shouldn't come as shocking surprise. In looking back, the reader should feel that, - yes, now that I think of it, that does seem right.

In order to make the writing of my current book, Under the Hammer, come along smoothly, I made an extensive outline. I wrote out fully developed characters, including their backgrounds, - particularly about my killer. These will not end up in the book, but they will let me know how each character should act in certain situations, what emotions they'll feel, and who they really are.

But it's happening again. Jill is a character who was supposed to walk through the action, tell Lucy something about an auction, then leave. But it turns out that Jill is very angry at a pivotal character who Lucy loves. So, I'd better get back to my computer and straighten this out before it starts trouble. Or maybe I'll let her do her thing. I'd better do something, I have a deadline for this book!

~Mary

Thanks Mary!!!

I love reading about the processes writers go through to get to the end product, the book we hold in our hands. Some authors just sit down and write, others like Mary make a mini outline and let the characters evolve. Every author has their own style that happens behind the scenes to give us a few hours of reading entertainment. I am so glad they do what they do and give us all wonderful stories to enjoy.

Mary is a Massachusetts native, and grew up in a collecting family where she learned the pleasures of the treasure hunt. She loves writing stories about the ingenious ways people find to participate in the antiques marketplace. Mary went to school in Worcester, and has an MBA from Clark University. 

An Obsidian Mystery

Published by The New American Library

A Division of The Penguin Group

A Brand New Series

A Lucy St. Elmo Antiques Mystery

ISBN-10: 0451234189

ISBN-13: 978-0451234186

Lucy St. Elmo owns St. Elmo's Fine Antiques in Cape Cod. Treasure hunting is the mainstay of any antiques business and Lucy excels beyond many when it comes to finding just the perfect piece.

This week the hunt takes Lucy to Brimfield, the largest outdoor antique show in all of New England.  She has her strategy all worked out, her custom made cart and money at the ready.  She is ready to make a killing at this show and bring back treasures she has been dreaming about. 

Lucy was not the only one with making a killing on their mind. Someone else did but they actually killed someone! Right there at Brimfield!! Worse Lucy knows the deceased. He was her long time friend, Monty Rondo. He was well known in the antique circuit as a supreme picker. 

All leads pointed at his partner but there is no way Silent Billy would have hurt Monty.  So Lucy has no choice, in addition to hunting for treasures, she also has to hunt down a killer. With less than a week before Brimfield closes for the season and all the suspects pack up and move on to the next big show she has to move fast to close the sale on the real killer, knowing he is truly no treasure.

First I have to tell you Brimfield is a real place.  Those of you not in the New England area may not realize this.

Knowing that makes the story even better because while Mary describes the place wonderfully with her words, seeing it makes the story itself so believable.

I was drawn into this story not only by the mystery but the education about the treasure hunting in the antique world.  The characters were real, eccentric and interesting.  You wanted to follow them through the maze of Brimfield, weighing each as a suspect, crossing them off the list, then thinking some more and returning them to the possible suspect category.  The story was like a mini treasure hunt for the reader making it very entertaining. 

This is a perfect summer read.  I am looking forward to learning more about antiques and Lucy and her wonderful friends and family. I can't wait to return to Cape Cod with Lucy!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Berkley Prime Crime. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 

Now thanks to the wonderful people at Penguin, 

I am able to give away 2 copies of this wonderful book!!

U.S. and Canadian Residents Only

Contest will end at 11:59 p.m. CST on August 10

Winners will be chosen using Random.org

Followers will receive an extra 2 entries!!

Leave a comment for Mary for an additional 5 entries!!

Just fill out the form below to enter.

CORINTHIA FALLS by Kim Hutson

I was really excited to get this book and even more thrilled when Kim agreed to guest post.  I am living in a state of a fractured church myself.  So much so we no longer attend services.  Kim's book was a perfect read for me as it gave me hope for the future. My review of the book will follow his wonderful post.

Welcome Kim!!

******************************************

Thank you Dollycas for having me as a guest on your blog! I find it informative as well as entertaining with a personal touch.

To me there is nothing more important than ‘hope’. Hope is what drives us. It develops character and gives us confidence in the future. The Apostle Paul may have summed it up best in his letter to the early Christians in Rome – “But not only that! We even take pride in our problems, because we know that trouble produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope. This hope doesn’t put us to shame, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

In my first book, Corinthia Falls, my story and message is one of hope for people of faith; for those troubled and confused, for those facing tribulation in their lives, and for those who may feel weak of spirit. Through God’s guidance, Corinthia Falls is accomplishing just that and so much more.

The story of the small-town community church that forgave and put away their differences to encourage one another through the leadership of a modern day Pauline character has given many of my readers not only hope, but incentive to use the book as a witnessing tool for Jesus Christ. I thank God for using me in this way. All the glory is His!

My wife of over thirty years, Rhonda, is blind and uses the assistance of her guide dog, Pax. They make a great team. Both are talented and beautiful. I know of no one filled with more hope and anticipation than Rhonda and I know of no servant more loyal than Pax. Together, they run a small business and inspire others everywhere they go.

Writing in a Christian/Fiction venue may limit a book’s audience. However, I have found this group of readers to be very steadfast and reliable. Christians love a good story. Maybe that is why Jesus talked in parables. The Christian reader enjoys fantasy, adventure, excitement, passion, scary stuff and especially humor. The difference is they yearn for a positive tale; a story of a moral nature that depicts good over evil.

So, I would like to invite all Dollycas followers to take a little trip back with me to a town I think you will recognize. Maybe you lived their once or you just past through; a place of hope. Let’s go back to Corinthia Falls…

~Kim

********************************************

Kim serves in the Laity of the Oklahoma Conference of the United Methodist Church and is an Associate Lay Leader in the Muskogee District.

I truly loved this book for several reasons. First it is extremely well written, you can feel it is definitely written from the author's heart.  I felt a personal connection while reading it, at times feeling that the characters were actually reaching out to me.  Troubled and confused about my faith and my church is exactly where I am at. I wish the characters from this book could descend right here to my local church and several others that seem to be losing their way. The United Methodist Church was built on mission, taking care of others and somehow I see that slipping away here.  

It is a story of hope, bridging gaps, doing what it right for the many, not the few.  In following the lives of the high school youth and nurturing them as was done in this story is the way to revitalize the churches.  Supporting them in their entire life, gently pushing, finding opportunities, turning the bad into the good.  

I have been deeply enriched by my trip to Corinthia Falls and know you would be too. 

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Be sure to check out Kim's site!!


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”