50 Book Reviews Reviews Published

Saturday, January 1, 2022

January 2022 New Release Cozies

Thank you to the authors, publishers, and NetGalley for providing these ARCs in exchange for honest reviews.


JANUARY 25th RELEASES

Hot and Sour Suspects
A Noodle Shop Mystery
Vivien Chien
St. Martin Paperbacks

Speed dating sounds like a hot idea to bring more customers to the Ho Lee Noodle House, located in the Asia Village, Fairview Park, Ohio. Even restaurant manager Lana’s mom is supportive of the idea, after all you must pay to play, but it turns sour when one player is found dead after his date, leaving Rina on the top of the suspect list.  Kimmy and Megan are quick to suggest that they sleuth out the suspects while boyfriend/Detective Aidan, as always, requests that she be careful. It isn’t like she goes looking for trouble, oh wait yes she does and usually ends up stumbling right into it. As always, Vivien Chin delivers an entertaining cozy with a sassy sleuth, supportive sidekicks, a little romance, and a lot of clues to sift through. I am looking forward to the next one, although you should know that this is a stand-alone with plenty of back story sprinkled throughout.  


Up to No Gouda
Linda Reilly
Published by Poisoned Pen Press

First in a new series, and there is nothing cheesy about it except for the wonderful sounding sandwiches. Excellent narration by Mia Gaskin. Dream of a lifetime turns into a real life nightmare. Carly, recent widow and new restaurant owner of a grilled cheese bistro learns that the new building owner is kicking her out to build a boutique for his fiancĂ©.  Lyle Bagley, is the reason Carly and her BFF haven’t been on speaking terms since high school. So you can guess who the victim is and unfortunately, Carly’s hard working helper is at the top of the suspect list to be grilled. Not everybody enjoyed interacting with Lyle, not even his own brother so there are plenty of likely suspects, plenty of red herrings, and plenty of yummy sounding sandwiches like Smoky Steals the Bacon.


JANUARY 22nd RELEASES


Murder at a Scottish Social
Traci Hall
Published by Kensington

Paisley Shaw meets the Mean Girls who became the Ladies Who Lunch. They lunch and gossip, and backstab, and get murdered. All Paisley wants to do is be a successful shop owner, a good Mum, take care of her Grandpa, and enjoy the company of friends at the weekly Knit and Sip get together. Yet here she goes again, being in the wrong place at the right time to help the well dressed detective Zeffer. This series makes me want to visit Scotland and visit not only Paisley's town of Nairn, but also her shop even though I don't know the first thing about knitting or yarn.. An engaging tale where is seems that one keeps their friends close and maybe their enemies closer. Plenty of of suspects because the victim was plenty awful, and what a horrible way to be done in, by food. Speaking of which, I think I will be pairing this book with a nice piece of salmon and some rosemary potatoes for a cozy dinner.  

JANUARY 11th RELEASES

Crimes and Covers
Amanda Flowers
Published by Crooked Lane Books

Wedding time for Violet Waverly and David Rainwater, which means it is time to find something old, new, borrowed, and blue. How about an old book, a new acquaintance, a borrowed book, and a lady with the blues and a questionable family tree? Speaking of trees, one thing to know about Violet‘s family bookstore, Charming Books, is that it has a birch tree in the middle of it that is very, very special. While is not magic, the tree or perhaps the essence of the tree has a magic about it. I also believe that Faulkner the store crow and Emerson the store cat are both smarter than the average cozy companions. Perhaps it is the tree, or maybe it is the spring from which Violet must gather water from each day to keep the tree alive. Books can appear as if you summoned them and often times they give hints to help    figure out which way to go with a mystery. Ah yes, the mystery. What do you say to someone who believes so passionately that they are in fact a descendant of a famous author of days gone by? Believes to the point of obsession? Violet, like all cozy main characters, has a heart of gold and the tracking abilities of a bloodhound. How she makes time to solve a mystery surrounding a rare book, solve not one but two murders, make a small bit of peace with her traveling troubadour father, and get married is completely beyond me. Must be all the help she gets from her BFF Sadie, Mayor Grandma Daisy, Faulkner & Emerson (the cat who knows how to slip out in and of most places) and her new husband Police Chief Rainwater. All of the aforementioned characters have been expertly created with such unusual and original personalities that you feel like you know them or at least would want to get to know them. 



Three Book Problem
Vicki Delaney
Published by Crooked Lane Books

Much like Sherlock, Jemma must use her deductive reasoning and her smashing English accent to look at all the signs, as there are more than four, when the party host becomes the victim of a darting.  A most unusual gathering of people to supposedly discuss the Cannon while in period dress at a mysterious Victorian home. It also seems that this group has very little good to say about their host. Jemma has a bit of an advantage over Sherlock, she has baker/cook extraordinaire Jayne Wilson, her best friend, for a Watson, and Detective Ryan Ashburton, her very clever and handsome boyfriend instead of Scotland Yard. No one is above suspicion and everyone has a motive, or at least the appearance of a motive, even the widow who seems a tad too dramatic about her great love and loss. Excellent read with red herrings, brilliant deductions and perfectly paired with mini mushroom tarts.


JANUARY 4th RELEASES

A Fatal Family Feast
Lynn Cahoon
Published by Lyrical Press

Family can be challenging to say the least especially when it involves life changing events. Felicia hasn’t looked to her parents, especially her father, for permission much less their blessing with regards to her life choices for a number of years. So, Just because her betrothed, Estebe , is the old fashioned sort and requested his Mr. Williams’ blessing it doesn’t mean that he won’t meet Felicia at the altar on the blessed day.   Emotions run high, and not even the ex-boyfriend aka Mr. Williams’ pick for Felicia is going to stand in the way. A dead body, the ex’s dead body, well that might be another story as Estebe is on the top of the suspect list. Angie and crew (of the County Seat restaurant) are ready and willing to chase the clues and red herrings while keeping the wedding plans on track. There are so many suspects and so many mentions of great foods. Of course, when the main character, Angie, runs a farm-to-fork restaurant how could there not be. Thank you to author Lynn Cahoon for including a recipe for Workday Quick and Easy Risotto; it was not only quick and easy but also quite tasty.  


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