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Review: A Grave Matter (Lady Darby Mystery #3) by Anna Lee Huber
While my reviews of the Lady Darby mysteries are rather spread out, that does not mean that I read them sporadically. On the contrary, I read them in rather rapid succession but decided to spreat out the reviews so as not to overshadow other books that I had on my review calendar. The Lady Darby mysteries have won a place in my heart as a beloved lady detective series, all thanks in part to the electric romance between her and Gage, and all the Gothic elements that I adore in books. In this latest book, the Gothic element was a rather macabre burglary of sorts……stealing long dead skeletons. I loved the…
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Review: Mortal Arts (Lady Darby Mystery #2) by Anna Lee Huber
After rapidly finishing the first Lady Darby book, I knew that I would need the next one. I didn’t care that the book cost $14.00 on my Kindle and I had tons of other books I could read….I had to know what happened to Gage and Kiera next! This book was much different than the first one and I think I liked it even more than the first book! I loved all the Gothic elements that this one had. The first book lacked some of my favorite elements but this one did NOT disappoint! Crumbling castle on the coast, a madman locked in the attic, an asylum looming ominously off…
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Review: The Anatomist’s Wife (Lady Darby Mystery #1) by Anna Lee Huber
After reading Anne Lee Huber’s novel Secrets in the Mist, I realized how desperate I was for another Gothic romance novel. I wasn’t really up for a murder mystery but everyone raved about Huber’s Lady Darby mysteries so I thought I would try out her well known mysteries that boast Gothic elements and romance. The Anatomist’s Wife was on my radar years ago when it released and I recall trying desperately to win a copy when it was published. I obviously didn’t win a copy, but I did try very aggressively for days. Then of course I moved on to some other novels only to have this one resurface again…
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Review: A Death by Any Other Name (Lady Montfort Mystery #3) by Tessa Arlen
I am always on the look out for new murder mysteries, preferably with a female lead ‘detectives’ and set in England. While this isn’t my first novel by this author, it felt new to me. I read Tessa Arlen’s first book in this series, DEATH OF A DISHONORABLE GENTLEMAN, back in early 2015 and though I wasn’t completely hooked at the beginning, I was invested enough to finish it and was rewarded for my tenacity. I didn’t read the second book in this series for some reason, but when the third book came up for review it sounded rather good so I decided to give her books another go. I…
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Review: Silent in the Sanctuary (Lady Julia Grey #2) by Deanna Raybourn
While I was waiting patiently for my induction to start (which basically took like 12 hours), I was able to finish reading the latest Lady Julia book! And what a perfect read to pass the time! I’ve been a fan of Raybourn for quite some time, but the first Lady Julia book didn’t quite meet my expectations, however I liked her enough and love Raybourn’s ability to create romantic tension between characters that I thought I would give the second book a try. Having been away in Italy with her brothers and their friends, Lady Julia has heard nothing from her sort of love interest Nicholas Brisbane. But she has had…
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Review: Silent in the Grace (Lady Julia Grey #1) by Deanna Raybourn
Lady Julia’s husband has literally just dropped dead in the middle of her dinner party. After being in failing health for most of their marriage, Lady Julia knows he isn’t long for this world but she is shocked when the impertinent Nicolas Brisbane suggests that it might have been foul play. Brisbane is a private investigator who was hired by Lady Julia’s husband because he believed someone wanted him dead. Brisbane plans on continuing the investigation if Lady Julia would like….but she is reluctant to believe him and dismisses him after the funeral. A year later, a chance discovery changes her mind and she reaches out to Brisbane for help in solving…
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Review: The Case of the Fickle Mermaid (A Brothers Grimm Mystery #3) by P.J. Brackston
This is a very quirky mystery series. I read the second book in the series last year and while it was quirky it was also pretty enjoyable. PJ Brackston is short for Paula Brackston who most famously writes what I call ‘the witch books‘. I’m a huge fan of her witch books and her writing style, so when this series came across my nightstand for review I agreed even though I started with the second book. I enjoyed the whole ‘Gretel as a sleuth’ idea and when I read the book I found lots of things to love about the series. I love the whole fairy tale and murder mystery…
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Review: Messenger of Truth (Maisie Dobbs #4) by Jacqueline Winspear
So after reading the third Maisie book, I was kind of on a ‘Great War’ mysteries kick so I decided to continue on with the next book in the series, Messenger of Truth. I was impressed with how the third book developed and the next book sounded equally as intriguing that I just couldn’t help myself. This time Maisie is called to assist on what appears to be an accident. Up and coming controversial artist Nicholas Bassington-Hope is set to open an exhibit that has been receiving a lot of hype. The night before the big event, he takes a fall from the scaffolding, breaking his neck. It appears to…
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Review: Pardonable Lies (Maisie Dobbs #3) by Jacqueline Winspear
I have had a love hate relationship with the Maisie Dobbs books over the years. I read the first one and just wasn’t overly impressed but I pressed on and read the second and again felt like I wasn’t connecting with the series in the way that I had hoped. But I keep pushing myself to read them because not only do I love the covers but I love the time period! I love books set either during the Great War or in the years immediately following in England. This should be a series that I fell in love with based on the setting but I struggled to really connect…
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Review: The Mystery of the Lost Cezanne (Verlaque and Bonnet #5) by M. L. Longworth
This book combined three of my favorite things…..art, France, and mystery. Judge Antoine Verlaque is enjoying his life and work in the small town of Aix-en-Provence. Provence was once home to the art worlds most famous painters, Paul Cezanne. A friend in Judge Verlaque’s cigar club asks him to visit René Rouquet, a man who not only lives in Cezanne’s old apartment, but thinks he found a previously unknown Cezanne portrait. When the Judge and his friend arrive at Rouquet’s apartment, they are shocked to find him dead…..and the canvas is missing. After tracking down the canvas, the Judge and his girl friend Marine Bonnet, begin looking into the canvas’s authenticity. The woman in the portrait is clearly…