A Cold White Sun

Finished July 15

A Cold White Sun by Vicki Delany

This is the sixth book in the Constable Molly Smith series, set in the fictional town of Trafalgar, near Castlegar, in the mountains of British Columbia.  

At the beginning of March break, high school English teacher Cathy Lindsay is up early, looking forward to spending time skiing with her kids. She takes her dog for a walk and is shot dead by a skilled shooter. The police have little to go on, and cast a wide net looking for clues. Molly is on the scene soon after the crime occurred and gets involved in some of the questioning. 

We see a glimpse into her personal life as her relationship with her boyfriend Adam seems to be getting more serious and Molly is unsure about how she feels about that. She also sees her mother beginning a new relationship that involves someone from Molly's work and must deal with her feelings around that change. 

The victim's husband Gord is an IT consultant and their marriage hasn't been great lately, so he comes under scrutiny and has some things that he is hiding. We also learn that Cathy was having feelings for one of her fellow teachers Mark Hamilton, who has issues of his own as well. 

The lead on the case is Sergeant John Winters and we see his personal life as well. His wife Eliza is a retired supermodel and now owns a couple of art galleries, one locally. She has a relatively new employee, Margo, who has losses from her past that come into the plot. 

We also see Cathy's kids and the impact this loss has on them. 

I found the characters interesting and the plot compelling. An enjoyable read.  

Death on the Island

Finished July 12

Death on the Island by Lynne Marie Taylor

This historical mystery is set in Malta in the fall of 1880, a time when Malta was controlled by the British. The main character in this series, of which this is the second book, is Scottish Detective Inspector McQueen. He is in Malta to set up a detective division in the local police and train local officers in this aspect of police services. Recently a steamship travelling from India to Britain stopped here and one of the stewards was found to have cholera. The first class passengers were put into quarantine, on a small island near Valetta dedicated for this purpose called Manoel Island. When a dead man is found floating in the harbour, with a fatal knife wound, he is soon identified as Buchanan, one of the passengers who should have been in quarantine. McQueen and the police doctor go into quarantine to question the other passengers and because they were both exposed to the body. Buchanan was accompanying a Sikh prince who was raised in England back to England after he was refused entry to India. The prince is an obvious suspect here since he was unhappy with the circumstances. 

Marie Talti is the daughter of the owner of one of the two local papers, a weekly, and she works as both a journalist and editor, actively assisting her father. With limited resources, McQueen asks her to investigate the passengers and their backgrounds for him, and she agrees, hoping this will offer her paper an edge. 

This novel deals with difficult historical events, racial and ethnic prejudice, sexual predation, and gender roles. So there's a lot of interesting plot and characters, and I learned some history I wasn't aware of. 

I picked it up to meet a couple of reading challenges and am glad I did. 

The Shattered Tree

Finished July 5

The Shattered Tree by Charles Todd

This is the eighth book in the Bess Crawford series. Bess is a nursing sister stationed near the front in World War I. As the book opens it is October 1918 and a badly injured man in a tattered French uniform is found in the woods near the front lines. He is brought into Bess's unit, and treated there. When another soldier suddenly attacks him, Bess noted that the French soldier spoke in German as he was attacked. She mentioned this to Matron, but is about to go on leave. 

When Bess returns a couple weeks later, the man has been sent to a hospital further from the lines and she finds out his name, Philippe Moreau. But then Bess herself is injured by a sniper and finds herself at a convalescent hospital in Paris where she is the only female patient. She is still bothered by the discrepancies she noticed about Moreau and tries to learn more about him as she recovers her strength. Even with the help of an American officer that her well-connected father has keeping an eye on her, and the information she gathers from a French nun working as a nurse, she has difficulty learning more about this man, but has seen him in Paris. As she perseveres her investigation, she puts herself and others in danger, but remains led by her intuition that something isn't right about the situation. 

This had an interesting plot and I like this series and main character. Bess is from an upper class family, but isn't afraid of hard work. She is careful who she trusts with what she knows and is very observant.

Seeing Red

Finished May 14

Seeing Red by Dana Dratch

This is the second book in the A Red Herring Mystery series set around journalist Alex Vlodnachek in New York City. Alex works freelance and she has a new contract covering the leave for one of the city's most read advice columnists. Her new neighbour Ian Sterling who runs a B&B seems to be interested in her on a personal level, and her brother Nick, currently living with her is getting his new bakery business on its feet. When Nick's bakery business is shut down because the kitchen in the house they share doesn't meet commercial standards, she encourages him to approach Ian about using the kitchen at the B&B, and Ian is more than accommodating. 

But then Ian's father goes missing, and Alex wakes up one morning to find a baby in a carseat on her kitchen table. She and Nick don't know who would have broken into their home to do this, but decide to wait and see before involving the authorities. They shop for baby needs and try to keep up with his care, and even come up with a temporary name for him, JB (short for James Bond). But their other responsibilities are still there, and so Nick gets Baba, their grandmother, to come and help with JB. With the advice columnist now camped out on Alex's couch, they have a houseful, and Lucy the dog is involved with all of it. 

As Alex tries to help Ian find out what is happening with his missing father, other people go missing and bodies start appearing in Ian's basement chest freezer. 

I love the crazy antics, the humour, and the moxie of Alex. This was just as good as the first book, and I'm glad I found this fun mystery series. 

The Summer of You and Me

Finished May 7

The Summer of You and Me by Denise Hunter

This romance novel also has an element of mystery to it. It's been five years since Maggie's husband Ethan died in an IED explosion. She still mourns him, but is ready to move forward along with her young daughter Zoey. She and Ethan lived a couple hours away from the town they grew up in, and with Ethan's parents on a European vacation, she and Zoey plan to spend the summer at their home. Maggie was friends with Ethan's sister before she and Ethan became involved and his younger brother Josh, now captain and owner of a tour boat, has been extremely supportive. Josh has always had feelings for Maggie and he is hoping that this might be the time to reveal them and see if she also has feelings. But on her first evening in town she spots a man who looks like Ethan's double and soon she and Josh and trying all avenues of investigation to see who he might be. 

The situation might be awkward, but the feelings seem real, and Maggie has grown up in a dysfunctional home that she is still trying to overcome. She wants Zoey's life to be happier than her own childhood, and being with Ethan's family is a big part of the ongoing relationship. 

A romance novel with a few unexpected plotlines gives this novel more depth. The main characters had enough complexity to feel real, particularly Josh. 

The Book Witch

Finished May 2

The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer

This novel started slow with me, but then became hard to put down. The main character here is Rainy March, who is one of many book witches. Her mother and grandmother were/are as well. Rainy showed early aptitude and has been active since she was fifteen. She is now twenty-five. She lives with her grandfather and their housekeeper, Mrs. Turner, in an old house called Pilcrow House in Fort Meriwether, Oregon. Rainy's mother disappeared for around a year just before she was born, but died shortly after her birth without revealing anything about her father. The only memento she has is an old copy of the first Nancy Drew mystery, The Secret of the Old Clock. 

This novel has an interesting structure. It is split into seven sections: romance, mystery, fantasy, nonfiction, young adult and horror, thriller, and science fiction. These names are suited to the actions in that section. I liked this sentence from the job description of a book witch "Ideal candidate should be willing to jump into and out of books, short stories, and the occasional epic poem." She travels into and out of books using an umbrella, using the phrase "Our revels are now ended" to exit the book, and is accompanied by her familiar, a Russian Blue cat named Koshka. The leader of her cover is Dr. Regina Fanshawe, who is described as a taller, angrier Judy Dench, and she is very critical of Rainy, often holding up Rainy's mother as an ideal to strive for. 

Like many readers of his books, Rainy has a crush on a book character known as the Duke of Chicago, whose noir mystery stories are set between the World Wars in Chicago. He is an actual English Duke, who came to his title after the death of all three of his brothers in World War One, and he fled his home to deal with his trauma and now works as a private detective. The fans call themselves Duckys. When a situation arises in one of Duke's books requiring a witch to enter the book and resolve it, Rainy insists on going. 

There are eight Black and Whites or rules that witches are expected to follow. These rules include include no eating, drinking, or sleeping within the books they enter as these activities can cause them to forget their own identity and purpose. 

As Rainy breaks one of the rules and becomes romantically attached to the Duke, she is discovered and becomes restricted until her grandfather becomes absent for an extended period and she is determined to find him. Her adventures take her into many other books from Through the Looking Glass, to The Great Gatsby, and to closed theme parks, book burnings, and many more interesting situations. 

There is so much fun and quirkiness in this book that it is definitely one of my favourite reads. Other things I love, such as: Plan C in a situation means crying. 

Other quotes I loved: "Pencils down" and "All stories are love stories if you love stories".

A Botanist's Guide to Parties and Poisons

Finished April 28

A Botanist's Guide to Parties and Poisons by Kate Khavari

This debut novel is the first in an historical mystery series, Saffron Everleigh Mysteries, and I love the environment she's built here. The time is 1923 and the place is London. Saffron Everleigh works as a research assistant at University College London. Her late father came from a wealthy family but made a career in botany and she is following in his footsteps. Her grandparents aren't supportive, and her mother is barely scraping by, but Saffron shares a flat with a good friend, and works for a professor, Dr. Maxwell, who is very supportive. She's faced some pushback and some harassment from others in the department, including the chair, but she is good at her science and determined to make her way. 

As the book opens she is about to attend a gala for an upcoming expedition to South America and the Amazon in particular, which her department is participating in. While there she runs into a new professor at the university, Alexander Ashton, overhears some gossipy news about other professors personal and professional activities, and witnesses a possible poisoning. With the victim unconscious in hospital and the police are looking at motives and means, Saffron is aghast when Dr. Maxwell is arrested. She knows he would not have done this, and she is determined to clear his name. She takes risks, from scientific experiments on herself to breaking into gardens and offices. Her knowledge of botany shows here, and Alexander finds himself drawn into helping her as well as drawn into feelings for her. 

This was a great start to this series, which I found both entertaining and interesting. The author brings the time and setting to life, and we get a real sense for Saffron's situation. Her personality really comes through here as well, and we see both strengths and vulnerabilities. I was on her side in every way.

Miss Aldridge Regrets

Finished April 23

Miss Aldridge Regrets by Louise Hare

This is the first book in an historical mystery series called A Canary Club Mystery. The time is 1936 and Lena Aldridge is singing at a basement club in Soho, London. Lena's father, Alfie, brought her up in the world of music. Alfie was a black piano player from the U.S. who had migrated to England and made a life there. He has died recently and Lena is still grieving.  He never talked about her mother, but because Lena is white passing, she believes that her mother was white. Lena's best friend from childhood, Maggie, is married to Tommy, the owner of the club, but things haven't been going well in their relationship and Tommy has told Maggie he plans to leave her with nothing and marry his current young mistress. 

Recently someone came to blackmail Maggie and gave Tommy incriminating photographs that he can use against Maggie, something she has confessed to Lena about, while also telling her that the photos were a setup. So when Maggie turns up at the club that night, Lena is worried that something bad is going to happen. 

When the evening ends with Tommy dead, she knows she was right and she is placed right in the middle of it all. Earlier that day, a man named Charlie Bacon had appeared at Lena's rooming house, claiming to represent a man named Bennie Walker who had been a friend of her dad's back in the U.S. Lena has never heard her father mention the name, but Bennie apparently feels bad for the falling out between them and has done well, and wants to give Lena a leading role in his new Broadway musical to make amends. Lena isn't sure, but her new circumstances with Tommy's death convince her to take advantage of the opportunity to make a fresh start. 

Much of the book takes place on the Queen Mary, as Lena and Charlie make passage to New York. They are in first class courtesy of Charlie's employer and their seating places them at a table otherwise composed of a wealthy American family and the people that work for them, the Parkers. The patriarch, Francis, is in a wheelchair and obviously unwell. Other family members include his daughter Eliza, her husband Jack, their children Frankie, a young man, and Carrie, a teenager, Francis's nurse Daisy and his attending doctor, Dr. Wilding. 

Out on the deck taking air one evening, Lena encounters black bandleader Will Goodman, and is at first taken aback when he clearly identifies her as mixed race. But she feels a connection and wants someone she can be more herself with, and begins to make friends with him, and join him in below deck socializing. 

When Francis suddenly dies at dinner one night, Lena knows he has died the same way Tommy did, and she worries that someone will connect her to both deaths. As things escalate and she becomes more involved with the family, she begins to think that someone is framing her for the crimes. But why?

I enjoyed this novel, the plot and the main character. Lena hasn't lived an easy life, but she also hasn't taken her life firmly into her own hands even now. The social environment of the time and the place is brought alive, with the elements of class and race. I'd definitely be interested in reading more in the series. 

A Collection of Lies

Finished April 8

A Collection of Lies by Connie Berry

I read the first book in this series, A Dream of Death, recently and now seem to be reading them out of order, which is fine. Here, Kate Hamilton and Tom Mallory are newly married and on their honeymoon, but their future hasn't been entirely decided yet. They know where they will live in England, and one of their tasks on this trip is to do a piece of investigative work for a friend of Tom's who runs an investigative agency out of Canada. Tom is undecided whether to quit his job in the police and work for his friend or not. Kate had worked as an antique dealer in Ohio before she met Tom, and was a widow with grown children. 

Their task is to visit a museum in Coombe Mallet, Devon to look at a blood-stained dress recently received as a donation and to trace the provenance of the dress to verify, if they can, whether it actually belonged to Nancy Thorne, a Victorian lacemaker who returned home one day covered in blood with no explanation. Some suspected that she had killed someone, but no body was found, nor was anyone reported missing. Nancy lived with her sister, Sally Tucker, a dressmaker. 

The dress was donated by a man named Gideon Littlejohn, who although he makes his living in IT security, dresses and lives in his home as if he were a Victorian gentleman. So he's a bit eccentric, but seems like an intelligent man. The museum director Hugo Hawkes is eager to get the dress authenticated as it will be the star of a new exhibit at the museum, and he has recently hired a new textile conservator, Julia Kelly, to work on the piece and others that will be part of the collection. 

Kate and Tom attend a gala at the museum on their first evening there and a shot is fired, grazing Gideon. Most believe that the bullet was meant for the local MP, a reformed criminal named Teddy Pearce, who is determined to root out corruption locally. The local police, DCI Okoje and officer Varma O'Brien gladly ask for Tom to help them in the investigation. When Gideon is found dead in his home soon after, they find themselves helping in a murder investigation. There are plenty of suspects, and the couple find themselves digging into the past as they try to find motive and opportunity for the crime.

I liked the way Kate and Tom work together and value each others' knowledge and opinion. Kate's expertise in antiques and Tom's knowledge gained through his police work make them a great team. 

This case was interesting and really digs into history and makes me think of another series also based in Devon, the Wesley Peterson series by Kate Ellis, where there is an archaeological aspect to the cases.  

Winter's Secret

Finished March 27

Winter's Secret by Lyn Cote

This is the first book in the series Northern Intrigue, set in small town and rural Wisconsin. Someone has been breaking into homes while the owner is away, destroying things for seemingly no reason, and taking only cash, nothing traceable. Many of the victims are seniors and out of the homes temporarily for health reasons. 

One of the main characters is Wendy Carey, a home health nurse in the area. Wendy is first on the scene for one of these crimes as she is driving a patient home after a night away. Wendy lives with her younger sister, who is a senior in high school. Their mother has recently remarried and moved to Florida and both she and her new husband are recovering alcoholics. Wendy's father died when she was young, but she is close to her paternal grandfather. Due to her job, Wendy is familiar with many of the seniors who have been victims of the crimes in question. 

The new sheriff, the other main character, is Rodd Durant. Rodd lived part of his childhood in the area, but grew up elsewhere. He came back after inheriting his uncle's ranch. He is growing increasingly frustrated by the ongoing crimes as there is call from some locals questioning his abilities as the crimes continue. He asks for Wendy's help, learning about who might be potential targets. 

Wendy has also been a victim of the town gossips, mostly around her mother's past. She tries to not let it bother her, but it does. As the two spend time together, feelings develop and Wendy worries about drawing Rodd into the negative gossip. 

Wendy and her family are strong churchgoers, and close to the local minister and his family, often babysitting their very active young son when needed. We see into some of their family life, and the minister's family as well. 

This novel definitely shows both the good and bad of being part of a small community, and the realities of aging. An enjoyable read.

The Shining Skull

Finished March 19

The Shining Skull by Kate Ellis

As usual in this series, there are both historical mysteries that Neil, the archaeologist comes across, and modern day ones that have some relation to the historical ones.  

In 1976, Marcus Fallbrook, a seven-year-old boy, son of a well-off man, was kidnapped. His family was asked for ransom and it was paid, but he was never returned. Thirty years later a middle-aged man knocks on the door of his home looking for Marcus' father, who has passed away, and says that he is Marcus. He explains that a recent accident to his head has caused him to start remembering. In the house are Marcus' younger half-brother Adrian and his wife. As they go through confirming his identity and catching up with events, Adrian is pleased to meet his brother and connect with him.

Meanwhile a teen pop-star who lives in the area is kidnapped, and some parts of her case show similarity with that of Marcus's. 

There is also an odd case of a man, who changes appearances with each contact, impersonating a taxi cab and picking up fares of blonde women, taking them to a more private location, and cutting off most of their hair. He doesn't seem to want anything else of them. 

In terms of the historical case, Neil is supervising a relocation for graves and their inhabitants to make way for the building of a church hall. Some are quite old, and the coffins aren't in good shape. One breaks apart as they move it, and everyone is surprised to find that it holds two bodies: a young woman and a young teen boy. It is her grave, and Neil is determined to discover his identity and work out why he is there. He is also intrigued by a singular marking on some of the graves that indicates they belonged to a group that followed a woman who called herself The Shining One and who predicted a major event when her child was born. 

As the police and Neil separately research their cases and mysteries, the connections begin to be shown and the parallels are, as usual, very interesting. 

I really like how this series brings in history to current cases. It is also interesting to see how the personal lives of some of the characters develop. From Wesley's boss trying to support his woman-friend through moving her mother into dementia living to Pam's teaching to Rachel's moving out of her family home, we see changes in their lives. 

A Nose for Mischief

Finished March 6

A Nose for Mischief by K.T. Lee

This is the first book in the Riverbend K-9s series. Zoey Butler was a materials engineer working on a renewable energy project for Future State Energy in Denver when the FBI came in, charging the company with fraud. Zoey spent a lot of time helping investigators find answers, and then decided to leave the company. But with the company reputation what it is, she finds herself unable to even get an interview. She reaches out to the main FBI investigator, Alexis, and asks if there is any opening with them. She is offered an unpaid intern position at Alexis's division of K-9 training in Riverbend, Indiana, which is located at an old airport. It includes accommodation at an apartment in the small town. Zoey is paired with Liam, one of the trainers, with his dog, Tank. She is assigned a rescue dog, Tasha, that didn't meld well with its original trainer, and she finds the job interesting and is drawn to both the small town camaraderie and Liam. 

When her apartment back in Denver that she shares with her sister Elise is broken into and tossed, she is worried for her sister, and asks whether there is still something the FBI didn't learn about Future State Energy's activities. After some discussion with Alexis, she offers to take the job she's repeatedly been offered back at her old company and look for answers. Liam will be accompanying her as an undercover agent, posing as an entry level project manager. The two rent a house and pose as a couple for the purposes of this. 

As the two and their dogs become a real team, she and Liam become close, but the investigation at the company heats up as well as corporate espionage and possible sabotage.

I enjoyed the characters, particularly Zoey with her quick intelligence, and the engaging dog Tasha. 

Yellowhead Blues

Finished February 7

Yellowhead Blues by R.E. Donald

This is the fifth book in the Hunter Rayne Highway Mystery series, and is set along the B.C. portion of the Yellowhead highway. Hunter is a retired RCMP officer that now works as a long-haul truck driver. He is on his way to Edmonton with a load when a man who has stopped coming the other way flags him down and asks for help catching a loose horse. The man, Leon, is a horse trainer and breeder coming from a cattle penning competition at Teepee Creek. He stopped when he saw a loose horse and then stopped Hunter before trying to catch it. The horse was scared and had blood on it. 

They managed to catch it and used Leon's dog Blue to track the trail back to where the horse came from, finding a badly injured man sitting with his back against the tree. He was near death and the two men, with no cell reception, decided to carry him on one of the horses back to the highway. 

Bianca Morrison, a RCMP Constable, was the first officer on the scene, shortly after the ambulance arrived. Bianca is from Quebec, and has felt isolated as a female officer. She hopes that she will get a chance to participate in this case. 

A couple days later Hunter gets a call from Leon, who has been arrested for the murder of the man they found. Hunter is pretty sure Leon is innocent, but he'd had an interaction with the man before, so there is history. As Hunter digs deeper into the circumstances surrounding the crime, he asks Bianca for help and gets his dispatcher El to find some of the people he wants to talk to as well. 

I found this mystery quite interesting, with lots of possible suspects. I liked seeing Hunter's personal circumstances, as well as learning of Bianca's experiences with the RCMP. Leon's dog Blue was an active player, and an engaging dog as well. 

Company Town

Finished January 31

Company Town by Madeline Ashby

This science fiction novel is set in the near future on a city-sized oil rig called New Arcadia located off Canada's east coast. New Arcadia has recently been bought by a family-owned corporation called Lynch Ltd. The rig consists of five towers, each built in a different time period, with the oldest housing some of the poorest of the city's citizens. The main character Go Jung-hwa (Hwa) is one of these. She was born to a Korean-Canadian mother who didn't want her, and with Sturge-Weber, a rare disease that means she has a large birthmark and is more susceptible to certain conditions like seizures. Hwa is also on of the few people in New Arcadia that has no technological enhancements. She is an expert in tae kwon do, and works as security for the United Sex Workers of Canada, of which her mother Sunny is one. Hwa also had an older brother she was close to that died when the Old Rig exploded a few years ago. She is close to many of the sex workers and respects her union representative Séverine. She is given an assignment to watch over two union men who will be attending the official handover of the city to the new owners. 

When there is an incident at the handover, Hwa tries to get a better view of the situation and ends up meeting Daniel Siofra, a high level employee of the new owners who uses technology to affect the mood of groups of people. He is impressed with her skills and wants her to train Joel, the youngest son of the new owner and also act as his bodyguard during the day. Hwa doesn't want the job as she is loyal to her employer and the women she protects, but she is given now choice. As Daniel tells her when she protests "I'll find something you want and give it to you." She will be well-paid and she does set up her own apartment, but stays in Tower One. She also attends school with Joel, offering her a chance to further her education. 

When Joel is attacked and her friends start being murdered in violent ways, Hwa isn't sure who she can trust and who has ulterior motives, maybe for her, and maybe for the whole city. 

This is suspenseful and intriguing and I really cared about Hwa and what happened to her. Daniel appears to like her and support her, and she begins to feel something for him, but doesn't know if she can trust that feeling, or him.

Ashby has created characters with depth and personality, and I particularly liked her choice to give Hwa a Newfoundland accent. Great read. 

The Glitter Scene

Finished January 28

The Glitter Scene by Monika Fagerholm, translated from Swedish by Katarina E. Tucker

This literary mystery novel is told out of chronological order and from a variety of viewpoints. 

The story starts with the most recent time period, from 2004 to 2006. Johanna lives with her aunt Solveig in a house outside of town. When a girl a little older than her Ulla, tells her of a tragedy nearly forty years earlier, where an American girl died and then her boyfriend killed himself, she is intrigued and wonders where her parents, who were children at the time, fit into the story. She knows her father, Solveig's brother, is dead, but she doesn't know who her mother is. 

We then jump back in time to a story about a mask and some shoes, with the intriguing subtitle "an entirely different story, or maybe not?" and a second story about a girl who pretends she is a wild child from far away. We see Solveig and her twin sister Rita, girls who plan to become swimming stars; a brother and sister, Tom and Maj-Gun Maalamaa; Solveig and Rita's brother Bengt; their cousin Bjorn; and Doris, a girl looking for a more welcoming home than the one she was born into.

From there we move to 1989 when Maj-Gun and another local girl Suzette are in their late twenties and still unsure of their futures. When the two girls reconnect, a friendship of a sort is formed, but Suzette has secrets she doesn't want to share. 

This is a complex read, with interactions between locals and a wealthier group of people who move into a new, gated development that has repercussions. 

First Date: Divorce

Finished January 2

First Date: Divorce by Patricia McLinn

This book is the first book in the series The Wyoming Marriage Association. 

I've read books in three other series by this author and enjoyed them. I chose the book to meet a reading challenge left over from 2025. This book lets us see a variety of viewpoints. The main female character is K.D. Hamilton, a sheriff's deputy from Montana who has been trying to get her boss to let her do investigative work. K.D. was raised by a single mother after her father abandoned the family, and her mother remarried after K.D. left home. She is wary of relationships. She has been lent to the sheriff's office in Bardville, Wyoming and has just arrived at the ranch she was told to come to as the book begins. 

The main male character is Eric Larkin, a lawyer who has been living in Bardville for a short time, having moved there from Chicago after his divorce to be close to a couple of friends and have a fresh start. Along with him has come his assistant, a widowed friend of his mother's. The assistant is on the ball and trying to get Eric to be more social. Eric has kept to himself for the most part, except for his friends, the sheriff and a private investigator who is ex-FBI. 

The situation is a local business just outside of town, who is leasing a county-owned building and operating as a luxury retreat specializing in marriage counselling. A number of couple who stayed there left even more determined to split up, and they've all had one person who engaged a local lawyer for a divorce. Before renewing the lease, the county wants to ensure there isn't anything shady going on. 

K.D. and Eric will pose as a married couple who've been separated a while, but are attempting a reconciliation. Since Eric has kept to himself, no one in town outside of his friends is aware that he's divorced. There is a tight timeline, and they have to create a backstory complete with photographic evidence, so a few ranching women come together to stage wedding and other couple photographs. As K.D. gets involved, she learns more about Eric's ex and why they split. 

The mystery is pretty tame, but the romance has some sizzle. A fun read.

A Dream of Death

Finished December 26

Dream of Death by Connie Berry

This is the first book in the Kate Hamilton Mysteries series. Kate is an antique dealer who lives in Ohio. She met her late husband at university there where he taught. He was from the Scottish island of Glenroth and Kate has visited a couple of times, but hasn't been back since his death three years ago. Their children are at university and she leads a busy life. 

When her sister-in-law Elenor calls her begging to her come she does, but it doesn't mean that she's comfortable about it. Her visitor coincides with the Tartan Ball, a late fall annual event. She's staying at the hotel that Elenor owned and ran, and where the ball takes place. 

Elenor doesn't fill her in completely about why she's asked her to come, but she has shown Kate a lovely historical casket, and given her a novel about a famous event on the island that a local historian has written, asking her to read it. 

At the ball a couple of announcements that Elenor makes don't go over very well with the locals, and Elenor ends up going back to her apartment in the hotel early. Kate is disturbed the next morning to find that Elenor is dead, and that her death was a copycat murder of one more than two centuries earlier, the woman the novel is about. 

With the local police dismissive of her ideas, Kate follows the clues that she sees through the eyes of someone who is aware of some history, but not a local herself. As she works out who she can trust, she finds herself confiding in the hotel's only other guest, a police investigator from England. 

I liked the historical aspect of the plot, as well as the information around antiques. This is in some ways a woman's story, both now and in the past, and Kate is a good observer. I'd definitely be interested in reading more in the series.

False Impressions

Finished December 16

False Impressions by Sandra Nikolai

This is the first book in a series featuring a ghostwriter and investigative crime journalist. Megan Scott and her husband Tom's marriage has been more stressful lately as their efforts to have children have been unsuccessful. Tom travels a lot for work, and is off on another trip as the novel begins.

Megan is starting a new project as a ghostwriter for investigative journalist Michael Elliott, and when they realize they knew each other years before, they begin to develop a friendship as well.

When Tom goes off for a retreat, Megan doesn't have any concerns until police arrive at her door telling her that he and his female companion are dead. The discovery of his infidelity at the same time as his death is confusing for Megan emotionally, and she relies heavily on Michael for support. 

It also puts her under suspicion for his murder, and the ties between her and the crime continue to grow. The police seem to have their minds already made up, and Michael and Megan begin their own investigation to find the truth. 

I enjoyed the premise of the novel and the plot. As the book began, some of the dialogue seemed stilted and awkward, but that improved as the book went on. While it took me a while to get truly interested, I was glad I stuck with it. A good read.

Silent Bite

Finished November 27

Silent Bite by David Rosenfelt

This is a novel in a long mystery series starring semi-retired criminal lawyer Andy Carpenter. Andy and his friend and former client Willie run the Tara Foundation, a dog rescue organization named after one of Andy's dogs. 

Willie has come to Andy with a request to represent his former cellmate Tony Birch, who is in jail for murder. The case seems cut and dried, but to Andy it seems like it's a little too wrapped up for the crime. He agrees to take it on partly because of Willie and partly because Tony has adopted one of dogs from the rescue organization. When one murder becomes two and then three, Andy isn't so sure, but he follows the logic of his client's case to find the truth. Why would someone who had left a criminal organization and been clean for years suddenly begin to kill? Or is someone framing him for these crimes? 

The tone of the novel is a cross between old-fashioned detective stories and dad humour. The plot is more complex, with a couple surprises along the way. 

In for a Penny

Finished November 26

In for a Penny by Kelsey Browning and Nancy Naigle

This cosy mystery has elements of humour and craziness. Set in small town Georgia, it begins with Lillian Summer Fairview dealing with the situation she discovers after her husband's death. The entirety of what she is dealing with only comes to the reader gradually. Lillian wanted to give her husband a proper funeral, and to get the money to do that she committed a crime. She is now readying herself for a trip to jail.

Part of her plan was to get her friend Maggie, also a widow, to move into her large house, a listed property that has been handed down in her family for generations. She also leaves instructions for Maggie to retrieve her car from the prison parking lot. Maggie doesn't discover the full situation until after Lillian is gone, and she tries to protect her friend's privacy and reputation.

The local police chief is a good man, but Lillian has kept him unaware of her situation as well. He drops into the house often and finds himself assisting the women with maintenance as it arises. When he is asked to move along an RV trying to camp in the local Walmart parking lot, something compels him to move them the Lillian's property. There, the RV owner Sera finds herself befriending Lillian and Maggie. When the chief is asked to intervene in another senior lady's travels, she ends up at Lillian's as well. 

There the three women look at Lillian's situation without her and determine that there is someone else involved who shouldn't be getting away scot-free, and they begin an investigation that has them determined to get their man.

I liked the characters, who started out looking like caricatures, but became more nuanced as the story unfolded. There is humour, intelligence, and southern charm here, and they all bring something to the situation.