Detective and Mystery
Mystery novels, also called detective fiction, follow a detective solving a case from start to finish. They drop clues and slowly reveal information, turning the reader into a detective trying to solve the case, too. Mystery novels start with an exciting hook, keep readers interested with suspenseful pacing, and end with a satisfying conclusion that answers all of the reader’s outstanding questions.
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Book Review: Nine Lives and Alibis
As if I'm not already a pushover for cozy mysteries, all you really need to do is include a cat as one of the characters, and I'm in.
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Book Review: The Secret of the Old Clock
When I was eight, I discovered a secret at my Gramma's house. Behind her huge console television, there was a bookcase built into the living room wall. I had to squeeze my way…
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Book Review: No Whisk, No Reward
This short prequel is a nice little read that cleverly accomplishes four important jobs.
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Book Review: A Most Agreeable Murder
A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales My rating: 5 of 5 stars A wickedly witty sendup of Regency and Victorian era novels, with a splash of Clue (the movie) thrown in for…
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Book Review: The Dresden Files #5: Death Masks
Someday I'm going to figure out exactly *why* I'm compelled to read The Dresden Files.
- Action and Adventure, Book Review, Coming of Age, Detective and Mystery, Dystopian, Historical Fiction, Realist Fiction, Suspense and Thriller, Young Adult
Book Review: Back in the USSR
The back-cover synopsis had me lunging for this book, which I easily read in just a couple of evenings. It's quite the page-turner! Now, I'm not going to write a book report describing…
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Book Review: Dead and Gondola
I do love finding a new cozy mystery. They make a refreshing change from the heavier stuff I tend to read a lot of. When I see a cozy that's the first in…
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Book Review: All Dressed Up
All Dressed Up by Jilly Gagnon My rating: 3 of 5 stars I’m a huge fan of murder mysteries, and have been ever since discovering the Nancy Drew mystery series in grade school.…
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Book Review: Gone But Not Furgotten
I cannot, and never will, resist a book that celebrates cats! I pounced like a kitten on Gone but Not Furgotten.
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Book Review: Mastering Your Mystery: Write, Publish, and Profit with Your Mysteries & Thrillers
One of my goals as an author is to write a murder mystery someday. Knowing me, it'll probably be a foodie-cozy-comedy caper, but even with that lighthearted notion, I'd like to do it…
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Book Review: Sherlock Holmes and the Rosetta Stone Mystery
Sherlock Holmes and the Rosetta Stone Mystery by Linda Stratmann My rating: 5 of 5 stars Author Linda Stratmann places Sherlock Holmes in 1876, during his days as a student at St. Bartholomew’s…
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Book Review: A Calculated Whisk
The tenth installment in the Vintage Kitchen Mystery series finds Jaymie Leighton determined to solve not just one, but two murders - and one of those was five years ago.
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Book Review: The Maid: A Novel
The Maid by Nita Prose My rating: 5 of 5 stars At first glance, Molly Grey’s world seems just like the rooms she cleans at the Regency Grand Hotel—in a state of perfection.…
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Book Review: The Cluttered Corpse
The Cluttered Corpse by Mary Jane MaffiniMy rating: 4 of 5 stars My interest was piqued by the promise of a story about a professional organizer turned amateur murder investigator. I got what…
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Book Review: Tia Lugo Speaks No Evil
Tia Lugo Speaks No Evil by Danette Vigilante My rating: 4 of 5 stars Tia is a thirteen-year-old Latino girl growing up in a close-knit family in Brooklyn. Her best friend lives close…
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Book Review: Dead Dead Girls
Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa AfiaMy rating: 5 of 5 stars This can’t-put-it-down novel gives a vintage twist to the ‘ordinary citizen teams up with police to fight crime’ trope. But while that…
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Book Review: Johannes Cabal the Necromancer
Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard My rating: 5 of 5 stars I suspect that author Jonathan L. Howard has never painted himself into a corner. Or if he has, he…
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Book Review: Mint Condition Murder
Mint Condition Murder by Ellery AdamsMy rating: 4 of 5 stars Molly Appleby is a New England reporter for an antique collector’s magazine. But when she finds her next interview subject dead, she’s…
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Book Review: From Port to Rigor Morte
From Port to Rigor Morte by J.C. Eaton My rating: 3 of 5 stars Screenplay writer Norrie Ellington is babysitting her sister and brother-in-law’s business, the Two Witches Winery, while they travel the…
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Book Review: Wining and Dying
Author Daryl Wood Gerber deftly juggles red herrings while weaving together complex plot threads into a rich story of romance, revenge, and murder, while treating us to scrumptious food, tasty wine and breathtaking…
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Book Review: Blood of the Pride
Blood of the Pride by Sheryl Nantus My rating: 5 of 5 stars It’s easy to believe that this story is real, thanks to well thought out worldbuilding, fully developed characters, engrossing conversations…
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Book Review: Inspector Hobbes and the Blood
Inspector Hobbes and the Blood by Wilkie Martin My rating: 3 of 5 stars Downloading Inspector Hobbs and the Blood, to my Kindle, I read the first few pages, laden with uppity gerunds,…
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Book Review: Samuel Sloan P.I. Suspicions and Returns
Michael Staub has just published the second book in his Samuel Sloan P.I. series. These stories combines cyberpunk with classic noir gumshoe adventures. Take a spin around a retro-future Los Angeles with Sam…
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Book Review: A Side of Murder
A Side of Murder by Amy Pershing My rating: 5 of 5 stars New York chef Samantha Barnes is an unintentional YouTube star, thanks to an argument that got way out of hand…
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Book Review: Double or Muffin
Double or Muffin by Victoria Hamilton My rating: 4 of 5 stars So you think you know what reality television is really like? Step inside Wynter Castle, where Opera DivaNation has stormed the…
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Book Review: The Last of the Moon Girls
The Last of the Moon Girls by Barbara Davis My rating: 4 of 5 stars Nine generations of Moon women have lived and worked on Moon Girl Farm in the small town of…
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Book Review: The Case of the Missing Marquess
The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer My rating: 5 of 5 stars After watching the Enola Holmes movie on Netflix, I decided that I quite liked this twist on the…
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Book Review: Summer Knight (The Dresden Files)
Summer Knight by Jim Butcher My rating: 2 of 5 stars While not terrible, this wasn't my favorite book so far in the series. I found the constant slogging through the political posturing…
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Book Review: The Strange Affair of Spring-Heeled Jack
With an all-star cast including many big names of the day and a wild plot that spins Burton and Swinburne round and round, this one's a page-turner and eye-popper.
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Book Review: The Engineer Wore Venetian Red
If you're looking for a summer read, this is it! The 4th installment in the Mysterious Devices series is a doozy.
