Interview with Joanna Schaffhausen (Dead and Gone)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Dead and Gone by Joanna Schaffhausen brings back popular police detective Annalisa Vega. In this latest installment there are not one but five crimes to solve. Because she is such an excellent author, readers do not get confused at all as to what is happening, and which crime is being focused on in a particular chapter. The plot has Annalisa Vega being pulled in by her boss, Commander Zimmer, to investigate the death of …

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Interview with Valerie Burns (Murder Is a Piece of Cake)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Murder Is a Piece of Cake by Valerie Burns is the second book in the Baker Street Cozy Mystery series. As with all her books, dogs play an important role and the characters are very well developed. The first book in the series, Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder, has Maddy Montgomery inheriting from her great Aunt Octavia the Baby Cakes Bakery and a 250-pound English Mastiff named Baby. The will stipulates Maddy must …

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Out of Nowhere by Sandra Brown

Title: Out of Nowhere Author: Sandra Brown Series: n/a good if not great Thank you to Sandra Brown, Grand Central Publishing, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Aspects of this novel might fall short for some readers; they may feel it’s more romance than thriller or mystery, the mass shooting was blink and miss it, the characters were a bit off, Shawna was a cliche, the villain one-dimensional. And to …

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Interview with Linda Castillo (An Evil Heart)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper An Evil Heart by Linda Castillo is once again another home run. She blends an intense crime mystery with some light-hearted scenes and detailed insight about the Amish community. The story opens with twenty-year-old Aden Karn being violently killed with a crossbow. He was well-liked, kind, funny, hardworking, and engaged to be married. Now Kate Burkholder, Painters Mills police chief, must find his killer. But as she delves into Karn’s past, Kate begins to …

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Interview with Eliza Jane Brazier (Girls and Their Horses)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Girls and Their Horses by Eliza Jane Brazier is more than just a book about horses. Readers should think about sports travel teams and stage mothers. Those parents who try to put their own dreams on their children and push them to succeed, even when the dream does not seem realistic. The book explores the world of competitive horse jumping, with overbearing mothers who push their children to compete, toxic coaches, and mean girls. …

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Interview with Amanda Flower (Blueberry Blunder)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Blueberry Blunder by Amanda Flower is the eighth book in the Candy Shop Amish series. This series along with the spinoff Amish Matchmaker Series are great cozies. Readers are treated to a unique mystery, brilliant characters, and some funny animals. The plot has the main character, Bailey King, building her dream candy factory in Harvest, Ohio. After the construction work stalls, she fires the contractor. Unfortunately, that same night someone kills him. With a …

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The Murderous Affair at Stone Manor by Laura Stewart

Title: The Murderous Affair at Stone Manor Author: Laura Stewart Series: Amelia Adams #1 charismatic characters but confused genre It was with great joy that I saw this book has a sequel. Then it was with great sorrow that I realized the sequel is not available in audiobook format, minimizing the likelihood of my reading it, especially this time of year. I enjoyed this book very much. I suspect the characters are what will either pull readers in or drive …

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Interview with Mary Alford (Amish Wilderness Survival)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Amish Wilderness Survival by Mary Alford blends an Amish story within an intense thriller. The plot is action-packed as the hero and heroine are immediately thrust into a dangerous situation where they must run for their lives. Leora Mast is trying to find her twin brother, Tanner, who has gone missing. After losing her parents to a fire and surviving cancer she only has him left, with an unmistakable link. She travels to Montana …

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Interview with Matthew Quirk, Gabriel Basso, Luciane Buchanan, and Shawn Ryan (The Night Agent)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper The Night Agent by Matthew Quirk was published in 2021. It has been made into a Netflix TV series, http://www.netflix.com/thenightagent, and was released on March 23rd. Both the show and book are riveting thrillers that delve into corruption at the highest levels of government. The plot has FBI Agent Peter Sutherland tapped to work in the White House Situation Room. When Peter was a boy, his father was suspected of being a traitor, a …

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Interview with Elizabeth Goddard (Cold Light of Day)

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Cold Light of Day by Elizabeth Goddard takes readers on a roller coaster ride with betrayals, espionage, and murders in a small Alaskan town. The plot has both the hero and heroine having secrets and mystery surrounding their background. Autumn Long is the police chief of Shadow Gap and must handle a crime spree where bodies are mounting up, a woman is missing, and her father almost killed. While investigating a crime, she notices …

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