Review of Die Me A River

Die Me A River
Welcome Back To Scumble River, Book #2
Denise Swanson
5 Stars

Synopsis:

The chips are down in Scumble River

School psychologist Skye Denison-Boyd had hoped that her maternity leave would be at least a little relaxing, but when she and her husband, Wally, meet with the priest to discuss their newborn twins’ christening, an explosion at the nearby bowling alley rocks the rectory. And although the business was closed at the time of the blast, there’s a body inside.

As police chief, Wally is inevitably drawn into the investigation, which seems to indicate that foul play is afoot again in Scumble River, and Skye can’t help but do a bit of her own sleuthing. But the clues come fast and furious, ranging from an odd new stranger in town to animosity toward the gambling machines that had recently been installed at the bowling alley, and Skye finds herself wondering if this could be the puzzle that stumps her for good.

New York Times bestselling author Denise Swanson has penned another hit for cozy fans with Die Me a River, the latest installment in her beloved Welcome Back to Scumble River mystery series. (Goodreads)


Review:

The characters are well developed and well rounded. I like how strong and independent Skye is, but she still has insecurities, and that makes her seem more realistic to me. I really enjoy reading about the relationship between Wally and Skye, they are such a great couple. You can tell how much love and respect they have for each other, it is so refreshing. The secondary characters added a lot to the story and I really enjoyed spending with all of them.

The writing style flows smoothly and defined the characters very clearly by their words and actions. The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and this pulled me into the story from the very beginning of the book. The mystery was well plotted and not easily solved. I would not have even cared if there was no mystery to solve, I was enjoying spending time with Wally, Skye and the twins, but the mystery added to the story.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well crafted cozy mystery. Both of the books in this series were really great, as were the older books written in this series, from many years ago.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley, which I greatly appreciate.

 

New Releases For The Week Of August 16th, 2020–Part 4

Here is a list of some of the new releases for the week of August 16th, 2020. I am going to divide the list into 4 days because there are so very many of them for the week. Today is the fourth and final day of my list for this week. Hope you find some selections for your weekly reading. Enjoy and happy reading.

 

“The perfect romance or beach read, with a difference: its enthusiasm and beautiful descriptions offer an unexpected attention to the complexity of not just evolving love, but evolving psyches. It’s a delightful recommendation for romance readers looking for a touch more complexity from their romance reads.”
–Midwest Book Review (For Now and Forever)

THE GHOSTLY GROUNDS: MURDER AND BREAKFAST is the debut novel in a charming new cozy mystery series by bestselling author Sophie Love, author of The Inn at Sunset Harbor series, a #1 Bestseller with over 200 five-star reviews.

Marie Fortune, 39, a successful dog groomer in Boston, has had enough of catering to the wealthy and their pampered dogs. Realizing it is time to make a change, she quits and heads to a small coastal town in Maine where she remembers fond summers as a kid. Marie expects to go for a brief getaway—and is shocked to learn that her great-aunt left her an inheritance: a dilapidated, historic house high up on a hill overlooking the harbor.

Marie feels an instant connection. Although the locals tell her it would be folly, Marie decides to renovate and give it a second life as a B&B.

But there is one thing she couldn’t have planned for: the house is haunted.

Two things, actually: her great-aunt also left her a dog—and he is far from a typical dog.

When an unexpected death occurs soon thereafter, solving the crime will be more than just a matter of curiosity for Marie—her very future may depend on it.

A page-turning cozy, packed with mystery, love, hauntings, travel, pets and food—anchored around a small town and a B&B in need of renovation that will capture your heart—THE GHOSTLY GROUNDS is an un-putdownable cozy that will keep you turning pages (and laughing out loud) late into the night.

“The romance is there, but not overdosed. Kudos to the author for this amazing start of a series that promises to be very entertaining.”
–Books and Movies Reviews (For Now and Forever)

Books #2 and #3 in the series—DEATH AND BRUNCH and MALICE AND LUNCH—are now also available!“The perfect romance or beach read, with a difference: its enthusiasm and beautiful descriptions offer an unexpected attention to the complexity of not just evolving love, but evolving psyches. It’s a delightful recommendation for romance readers looking for a touch more complexity from their romance reads.”
–Midwest Book Review (For Now and Forever)

THE GHOSTLY GROUNDS: MURDER AND BREAKFAST is the debut novel in a charming new cozy mystery series by bestselling author Sophie Love, author of The Inn at Sunset Harbor series, a #1 Bestseller with over 200 five-star reviews.

Marie Fortune, 39, a successful dog groomer in Boston, has had enough of catering to the wealthy and their pampered dogs. Realizing it is time to make a change, she quits and heads to a small coastal town in Maine where she remembers fond summers as a kid. Marie expects to go for a brief getaway—and is shocked to learn that her great-aunt left her an inheritance: a dilapidated, historic house high up on a hill overlooking the harbor.

Marie feels an instant connection. Although the locals tell her it would be folly, Marie decides to renovate and give it a second life as a B&B.

But there is one thing she couldn’t have planned for: the house is haunted.

Two things, actually: her great-aunt also left her a dog—and he is far from a typical dog.

When an unexpected death occurs soon thereafter, solving the crime will be more than just a matter of curiosity for Marie—her very future may depend on it.

A page-turning cozy, packed with mystery, love, hauntings, travel, pets and food—anchored around a small town and a B&B in need of renovation that will capture your heart—THE GHOSTLY GROUNDS is an un-putdownable cozy that will keep you turning pages (and laughing out loud) late into the night.

“The romance is there, but not overdosed. Kudos to the author for this amazing start of a series that promises to be very entertaining.”
–Books and Movies Reviews (For Now and Forever)

Books #2 and #3 in the series—DEATH AND BRUNCH and MALICE AND LUNCH—are now also available!  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When rum collectors collide …

When mixologist Pepper Revelle joins the Bohemia Bartenders for what promises to be an entertaining, rum-soaked tiki convention in sultry South Florida, she expects divine ukuleles, sublime swizzles and a chance to know chief bartender Neil a little better. What she gets is chaos — the death of a high-profile rum collector, a cast of sneaky suspects and ten thousand limes to squeeze.

With one of their own under suspicion, Pepper and Neil set out to find the real killer. But behind the aloha shirts and cocktail parasols is a blender full of secrets. The centerpiece of the convention is a high-dollar tasting of rums that survived a shipwreck and other disasters, and when a precious bottle vanishes from the crime scene, everyone with a ticket is a suspect.

As Pepper tries to keep the insatiable crowd inebriated and her gregarious dog Astra sober, she finds peril under every palm tree. It seems like everybody’s guilty of something. But who’s guilty of murder? And can she and Neil find the culprit before they’re smacked like the mint in a Mai Tai?

Wrecked by Rum is the second book in the Bohemia Bartenders Mysteries, funny whodunits with a dash of romance set in a convivial collective of cocktail lovers, eccentrics and mixologists. These cozy culinary comedies contain a hint of heat, a splash of cursing and shots of laughter, served over hand-carved ice.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Abigail doesn’t have skeletons in her closet…but there’s one in her yard.

Abigail is excited to buy her own house. As much as she loves living with her aunt, she needs her space, and she’s ready for it.

What she wasn’t ready for was the body buried under the rose bushes.

Everyone’s suspicions are on Ethel, the former owner of the house and Aunt Charlotte’s best friend. Her husband disappeared more than twenty years ago, and there are no doubts he’s the body under the dead rose bushes.

How did he end up there? Is Ethel responsible for his death and burial, or is there more to the story? Can Abigail find out before the mystery taints her new home—and her dreams?

Sudsy Burial is book 2 in the Abigail Kinsman Mysteries series. It’s an amateur sleuth mystery set in a small seaside town, with plenty of gossip and a few goats. No gore, no swearing, no cliffhanger, and no graphic scenes.Abigail doesn’t have skeletons in her closet…but there’s one in her yard.

Abigail is excited to buy her own house. As much as she loves living with her aunt, she needs her space, and she’s ready for it.

What she wasn’t ready for was the body buried in the garden.

Everyone’s suspicions are on Ethel, the former owner of the house and Aunt Charlotte’s best friend. Her husband disappeared more than twenty years ago, and there are no doubts he’s the body under the dead rose bushes.

How did he end up there? Is Ethel responsible for his death and burial, or is there more to the story? Can Abigail find out before the mystery taints her new home—and her dreams?

Sudsy Burial is book 2 in the Abigail Kinsman Mysteries series. It’s an amateur sleuth mystery set in a small seaside town, with plenty of gossip and a few goats. No gore, no swearing, no cliffhanger, and no graphic scenes.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hidden secrets. Three deaths. A grieving family. Are these deaths accidents? Or the toll of a determined killer…

Peggy Fox, a childhood friend of Madeleine Brooks, is in shock. She has just lost her daughter and son-in-law in a horrific car accident and her ex-husband to a drug overdose. She must maintain control as she has custody of her pre-school grandson, the sole survivor of the crash. His other grandfather plans on buying them a house with a garden. Finally, something good happening?

Not quite.

The police are investigating the ex’s death. Peggy’s soldier son is investigating the car crash. The other grandfather is a domineering autocrat. Maddie is entangled in every aspect and is compelled to investigate. But the deeper she delves, the more she discovers hints about past secrets. Is a sinister game being played out? And is Maddie being treated as a pawn? If so, they don’t know Madeleine Brooks.

This fourth book in the Madeleine Brooks Mystery series maintains the unique blend of fascinating intrigue with a depth of emotion not often seen in the mystery genre. If you love a traditional British mystery with a strong female lead, and a murder mystery full of twists and turns, you’ll love Death in Lachmore Wood… and the Madeleine Brooks Mystery series!  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sun, sea and… murder in Fuerteventura!

Boring. Going nowhere. That was Tarah’s life in the UK, before she moved to Fuerteventura to start a new adventure. But things came unstuck quicker than she’d planned. A dead guest on the holiday complex she manages threatens to pull apart her hoped-for dream life.

If she wants to keep her job and save the reputation of the business, she’s got to find out what happened to Patrick. Did he die of natural causes – or was he murdered?

Tarah’s pet guinea pig, Mr Bob, has a knack for sniffing out trouble and he suspects foul play. The mission is on: Who Killed Patrick?

With the assistance of Mr Bob and Diego, a local plumber, Tarah turns amateur sleuth to find out the truth.

Can Tarah and Mr Bob find the murderer before it’s too late? Will they be able to save the business and protect their blissful new life?

Escape to Fuerteventura with this most unlikely amateur sleuth duo as they investigate their first cozy crime together.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Paperback

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

St. Lucy Found Dead in Funeral Home Sauna—Freshly Anointed Chief Of Police, Hatti Lehtinen, Investigates in A Yarn Over Murder, a Cozy Knitting Mystery from Ann Yost

—Red Jacket, Michigan, On the Keweenaw Peninsula—

A year after her marriage break-up and return to Michigan’s remote Keweenaw Peninsula, Hatti Lehtinen has settled into a peaceful life within the Finnish community as shopkeeper at Bait and Stitch, a hybrid fishing-and-yarn store.

When Hatti’s beloved dad, Pops, breaks his leg in a snowmobiling accident, the mayor tags Hatti to fill Pop’s role as the town police chief, and entire police force. Assured the job entails little more than prying quarters from frozen parking meters, Hatti steps up.

But Hatti’s peaceful existence is short lived when the town’s reigning St. Lucy is found dead in the funeral home sauna on the eve of the St. Lucy Festival. Now with a murder to investigate, Hatti’s situation is complicated when she discovers the prime suspect is her brother-in-law, Reid Night Wind, a circumstance sure to bring her face-to-face with the husband who dumped her a year earlier—a man she’d hoped to never see again this side of the Pearly Gates.

With the counsel of her knitting circle, Hatti launches her investigation, fearing someone among those she’s known all her life is a murderer. With the list of suspects growing like increases in a Finnish wedding ring shawl, the answer comes from an unlikely source. But can the town of Red Jacket ever be the same?

Publisher’s Note: The Bait and Stitch Cozy Mystery Series will be enjoyed by readers who appreciate clean, wholesome and humorous mysteries in ethnic settings. Readers who enjoy knitting mysteries as well as fans of Joanne Fluke, CeeCee James, Mildred Abbott and the Black Sheep Knitting Mysteries will not want to miss this captivating series by Ann Yost.

The BAIT & STITCH SERIES:
A Pattern for Murder
A Yarn Over Murder
A Double-Pointed Murder
A Fair Isle Murder  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Death at High Tide is the delightful first installment in the Island Sisters series by Hannah Dennison, featuring two sisters who inherit an old hotel in the remote Isles of Scilly off the coast of Cornwall and find it full of intrigue, danger, and romance.

When Evie Mead’s husband, Robert, suddenly drops dead of a heart attack, a mysterious note is found among his possessions. It indicates that Evie may own the rights to an old hotel on Tregarrick Rock, one of the Isles of Scilly.

Still grieving, Evie is inclined to leave the matter to the accountant to sort out. Her sister Margot, however, flown in from her glamorous career in LA, has other plans. Envisioning a luxurious weekend getaway, she goes right ahead and buys two tickets—one way—to Tregarrick.

Once at the hotel—used in its heyday to house detective novelists, and more fixer-upper than spa resort, after all—Evie and Margot attempt to get to the bottom of things. But the foul-tempered hotel owner claims he’s never met the late Robert, even after Evie finds framed photos of them—alongside Robert’s first wife—in his office. The rest of the island inhabitants, ranging from an ex-con receptionist to a vicar who communicates with cats, aren’t any easier to read.

But when a murder occurs at the hotel, and then another soon follows, frustration turns to desperation. There’s no getting off the island at high tide. And Evie and Margot, the only current visitors to Tregarrick, are suspects one and two. It falls to them to unravel secrets spanning generations—and several of their own—if they want to make it back alive.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback, Audiobook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s summertime in Riddler’s Edge, so how come it feels so chilly?

While the town prepares for a performance of The Snow Queen: The Musical, some very frosty murders occur. Have the victims been frozen by an over-enthusiastic air conditioner, or is there magic involved?

Aisling will need her friends to help her crack this case, so it’s a little unfortunate that Dylan is avoiding them all. He also has a secret visitor at the lighthouse, and Aisling is itching to get to the bottom of that little mystery, just as soon as she stops the entire town from freezing to death …  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From #1 Amazon & New York Times bestselling author Gemma Halliday comes a new fashionably fatal culinary mystery novel in the USA Today bestselling Wine & Dine Mysteries!

Emmy Oak has always been a fan of her best friend Ava’s handmade silver jewelry. So when Ava gets a chance to showcase her pieces at a charity fashion show for Wine Country’s elite, both women are thrilled. That is, until the model wearing Ava’s custom emerald necklace is murdered after her runway walk and the gem is stolen! The theft of the expensive jewel means Ava could lose everything, including her shop, Silver Girl… unless Emmy can help her track down a killer and find the missing emerald!

While the enticing Detective Grant might be looking at the death as a burglary-gone-wrong, Emmy isn’t so sure that’s the case. The model’s name was Gia Monroe, and Emmy quickly learns that she made her fair share of enemies in life. From the flamboyant designer overheard threatening her just before the fashion show, to her agent with a shady secret and a precarious hold on his talent, to an eccentric rival designer with a grudge, no one seems to be grieving Gia’s death. And when Emmy discovers Gia may have had a mysterious stalker, she realizes any one of them could have murdered the model. Between running her small winery and navigating the catty world of high fashion, Emmy tries to stay one step ahead of the danger…before the killer strikes again!

**Simple and delicious recipes and affordable wine pairings included!**

“Ms. Halliday is the undisputed queen of the genre.”
~ Fresh Fiction

“I rank A Sip Before Dying as one of my favorite fun reads. I say to Gemma Halliday, well done!”
~ The Book Breeze

“The Wine & Dine Mystery series is a definite to read and keep an eye out for more to follow.”
~ Cozy Mystery Book Review

Wine & Dine Mysteries:
A Sip Before Dying – book #1
Chocolate Covered Death – book #2
Victim in the Vineyard – book #3
Marriage, Merlot & Murder – book #4
Death in Wine Country – book #5
Fashion, Rosé & Foul Play – book #6
Witness at the Winery – book #7

Rating: This story does not contain any graphic violence, language, or sexual encounters. Its rating would be similar to PG-13 or what you would find on a Hallmark Channel movie or TV series.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Paperback   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Past and present collide when a secret from the 1920s wreaks havoc on Marlow House.

Walt struggles to remember what he may have forgotten before it’s too late.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Paperback

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Laura Lane has a gift. She can tell when people are lying, by the static in her head. After an accident, Laura moves to Strawberry Shores to start a new life.

She’s found the perfect job, made some great friends, and has her eye on a good looking guy, but a chance encounter with the local mechanic sets off the static in her head.

Now, Laura, with the help of her friends, is determined to unravel two mysterious accidents and capture a possible killer!


This is a standalone, first book in a new sweet cozy mystery series filled with humor, suspects, and lots of books! It also has some mild paranormal elements, and is suitable for all ages.  (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback