Review: Ladies of the House by Lauren Edmondson

Sense and Sensibility is one of my favorite Jane Austen novels! Whenever I see Austen re-tellings with a modern flair…..I try to be wary. Some are great but others miss the mark and but yet no matter how great or awful the re-tellings are, I still can’t resist them in any form! When I saw that Lauren Edmondson was writing a modern re-telling of Sense and Sensibility, for good or for bad, I was so excited to read it!

But I went into it knowing that nothing will ever live up to the original Sense and Sensibility—nor should it! Austen had her own unique voice and I expected Edmondson to have her own voice as well, but what I did hope was that Edmondson did justice to the Dashwood sisters and the spirit of the original novel.

It’s hard to do a good retelling which is why I have been wary but try and I might, I just can’t resist reading another and another and another to see how well or how poorly it was executed. This one however I think did a nice job at recreating the Dashwood sisters as modern women. While not with out some flaws, the story overall was fun, modern, and a cheeky nod to Sense and Sensibility!

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Review: Fatal Fried Rice (A Noodle Shop Mystery #7) by Vivien Chien

I first discovered this series because I was hungry. I was on my lunch break scrolling through Netgalley and saw the first book and was like lured in by the noodle ox on the cover and I have never been so glad to be hungry in all my life! I found such a fun series because I was hungry!

This has been such a fun little series to read and I am so happy to see that we are on the seventh book in the series! I am so happy people have loved it as much as I have. Lana Lee is a great amateur detective who has funky hair, a love for donuts, and doesn’t shy away from a murder or two. She sounds like someone I would totally hang out with which is one of the reasons I have enjoyed this series so much.

These are quick reads that I almost always finish within a day or two. They make for great beach reads or a great pick you grab at the airport between flights. I always feel satisfied after reading one of these books, not to mention hungry for Chinese food!

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Review: Spellmaker (Spellbreaker Duology #2) by Charlie N. Holmberg

I haven’t had very good luck with duologies. I typically find them to feel unfinished. There is something about the trilogy of three books that rounds out a story in a way that two books just doesn’t. So often I tend to pass on them, but then I was pitched Charlie N Holmberg’s Spellbreaker duology.

The covers for Holmberg’s books are whimsical and really stand out to me. They are easy to identify and the suggest something historical mixed with fantasy and I couldn’t pass on the first book. It just sounded so good and I did enjoy it so reading the second book in the duology was a no brainer for me! These books are quick reads and I really enjoyed diving back into Holmberg’s rich world!

I still feel the a trilogy would have worked better in this particular series but as duologies go, this one wasn’t bad at all. I enjoyed many aspects of this one and am excited to read more books by Holmberg!

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Re-Share Review: Who Speaks for the Damned (Sebastian St. Cyr #15) by C.S. Harris

Sebastian St Cyr is one of my all time favorite detectives. I love all of the books and I am actually currently reading the next book which is great by the way! I loved the series so much that I went back and read the entire series beginning to end last year so that I could get a more complete picture of Sebastian and the secondary characters.

I had jumped around in the series when I started the books and while I wasn’t exactly lost, there were times when I could tell that I was missing out one some nuances between the characters and the larger narrative. So I went back and started at the beginning and it was so great for me to do that because I fell in love withe the story and characters even more.

That said you don’t have to read all the books in order necessarily. Some you do but for the most part they can stand alone. This one was one of the books that could stand alone. I am so excited to re-share my review with you guys today because I just love this series so much and the characters and mysteries are fantastic! If you love historical mysteries you need Sebastian St Cyr on your radar!

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Review: The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

When I saw this book, the cover made it hard to pass on. The cover is so eye catching and colorful that I couldn’t look away! I loved it and was immediately curious what this book was all about! Then I read the back…..ummmm sold after the two rules! I couldn’t wait to check this one out!

In the summary the first line is this: Rule #1: The poison must never be used to harm another woman. Rule #2: The names of the murderer and her victim must be recorded in the apothecary’s register. I mean poison and murder in the late 1700s?! YES! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this one!

I also saw that this book was announced as a Book of the Month pick for March and while I have a copy of this one on my iPad, I also ordered the hard copy as my BOTM too! It’s a gorgeous book and the story was so so so good! I am so excited to share this one with you guys today! If you love historical fiction and thrillers this one is wonderful!

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