Haywood Hall is throwing a Valentine's Day event with plant sales, dog adoptions, a concert and a chance to have books appraised by a TV expert! What starts out as a grand day devolves into one problem after another and then the worst problem of all, the TV expert is found dead, stabbed to death with a pair of scissors and the main suspect is Sean Strong, a world renowned baritone and a link to Iphy's past. Iphy and Callie take charge to solve the murder, uncovering clues and putting the pieces together.

Overall, I enjoyed this one, the plot was a real page turner, with lots of suspects and some very surprising twists and turns. Even the ending was a shock I didn't see coming!

I'm not sure if this will be the last book in the series or not (I sure hope not!) but there were a lot of endings in this story. If it does come back (I hope!) I can't wait to see where it goes next!

When I saw this as a Read Now on Netgalley, I eagerly snatched it up! In Mums and Mayhem, Fi has her hands full. Not only is she helping out with a homecoming concert put on by a superstar musician to the small village of Bellewick, but her parents are also in town to visit (and to guilt the girls into returning to run the family farm) and to cap it all off, someone killed the magic garden she's been tasked with keeping!

I really enjoyed the main mystery, who killed superstar fiddler Barley. Plenty of people were angry with Barley but who was angry enough to kill him? Fingers were pointed all in all directions and even Fiona's father is a suspect! In the end, the true killer was a surprise and the exciting ending made for a real page turner.

But it was the magic garden was what sucked me into this series from the beginning; I've been under the spell of magic gardens ever since I read The Secret Garden at the age of 9. It was with a sense of dread when Fiona discovered the garden dying. How could this happen? Who would do such a thing? It wasn't hard to figure out, but the why was was a head scratcher and I wondered why Fiona hadn't noticed the tell tale clue. The reasons for the vandalism were unnecessary. Although there was no legal recourse, I would've asked a few of the old salty dogs at the shipyard to handle the situation for me.

It was good to see Fiona and her parents settle a few issues and come to an understanding. But I have to say, Isla is an annoying woman who acts like a bratty 8 year old and the more annoying she gets, the more Fiona (and her parents) seem to shrug it off. I don't get it. Go home, Isla. Marry a farmer. Go be a problem somewhere else.

Overall, a solid mystery and a very enjoyable read

Edit: June 11, 2020: I was looking through my Kindle library trying to find a nice easy re-read to pass a long Thursday night with nothing on TV, so I went back into this one. And you know what? I liked it a whole lot more than I did the first time. Despite the over-the-top romance and flowery prose, this had a lot going for it: a cracking good plot, lovable characters and a world that's easy to fall into. I upped my rating to 4.5 stars (since Goodreads doesn't allow half stars, I'll stick it at 4, subtracting a tiny bit for the romance) but overall, it really is a relaxing, enjoyable read.

I picked this up as a freebie on Amazon. I'm really not sure how I feel about it. One one hand, it was a good mystery; Julie and her pals try to figure out where her great-grandfather hid his valuables, aided by the ghosts of her great-grandfather and grandmother, who couldn't tell them specifically where to look for some reason. But hey, hard to make a plot span a whole book if on page 2, great-grandfather ghostie says "it's under the floorboards" or something (it wasn't, btw). On top of the treasure hunt, Julie and her pals have to deal with Julie's menacing boyfriend. So all that was good, enjoyable plot, cute characters, a great read.

Except....

The overly flowery prose grated on my nerves. Witness this savory quote:
...his open hand quickly turning to the fist he so wanted to use to bend her will to his selfish desire.

Yeah, that would fit in Game Of Thrones, but not a Kindle mystery. Or, at least not this Kindle mystery.

Also, for some reason, there had to be a romance involved. And not the kind of flirty romance usually found in a cozy. No, it was the kind you read in a really crappy Harlequin romance, complete with ZINGING! and PASSION and Jesus,. save me from this, because it's really not adding to the story for me. I found myself zipping past pages and pages of this. And to make it worse, grandma ghostie was spying on them and making sighing noises. Seriously. Here, read for yourself,

Tyler gazed back, both lost in the connection of hearts and souls recognizing each other. Hand still tingling, Julie felt as though the universe took a breath then settled into a new rhythm One that had her heart beating, fluttering against her throat as she saw the mirror of her feelings in Tyler's eyes.

My panties were wet, but not from arousal. It was from laughing so hard I tinkled a little.

So, if you took out the cheesy romance, this would easily be a 5 star book. But with the romance drained a lot of my enjoyment.

I can't believe it took me so long to get this one, I loved the first book in the series! I saw it on Amazon Prime Reading and nabbed it (and the other ones, of course).

This series keeps improving and I'm enjoying spending time in Miracle Springs, especially with this intricately woven plot of lies, murder and fraud that kept me guessing right up to the end. Just when I'd think I knew whodunit, bam! Another plot twist. I also liked seeing how far Nora has come with healing her past trauma and moving on, and learning more hidden secrets from the people in Nora's life. It all makes the story and the characters come alive, I really enjoyed that. I also like the addition of the new Sheriff in town, replacing the old cretin that got his just rewards at the end of the last book.

Overall, a great second in what's shaping up to be an excellent series that will be at the top of my To-Read list.

I refuse to acknowledge this book ever happened. Whether Ms. Braun was in ill health and trying to end the series before her death or a ghostwriter unfamiliar with the history of the characters finished it, in any case it was an ignoble end to a long running series and deserved a better send off.

Set during the roaring '20s, Mena House is a posh hotel overlooking the great pyramids in Egypt. Jane Wunderly and her sharp-tongued aunt, Millie, arrive for a vacation with plans to tour the pyramids, see all the tomb artificats in the Cairo museum and just relax and enjoy the beautiful hotel. But when a young woman is found murdered and Jane finds herself under suspicion, she teams up with another guest, the mysterious (and sexy) Mr. Redvers to clear her name and find a killer.

I got a few chapters into the second book in this series before realizing there was a first book and decided it would be a good idea to start the series at the beginning. I really enjoyed this one, the author did a great job painting a vivid picture of Egypt during the heyday of Egyptology, and with loads of quirky, likeable characters, an intricate plot and even a bit of action, I couldn't put it down - and all the descriptions of the hot, sunny weather kept my feet warm during this frigid February week! A great start to a series and now I can finally dive into the second book.

I’m not really sure how to rate this one. On one hand it was compelling, exciting, picturesque, and not your ordinary mystery. On the other hand it was a bit convoluted, long winded and…well, a bit weird.

Gideon and new wife Julie are in England on their honeymoon (why they went to England in the winter, I can’t guess. Well, apparently to tour Thomas Hardy's old stomping ground but…?) Anyway, While they’re in Dorchester, Gideon goes to a museum to see a anthropologically exciting skull fragment, only to find it's been stolen. Next, Gideon and Julie head to Dorset to check into their hotel. Gideon plans to check in on an old friend's archaeological dig and finds the dig in a shambles and old friend Nate on the verge of being discredited by the archaeological groups in charge of the site. Much shenanigans ensue, Gideon is drawn in and in the end two people are dead and Gideon sleuths out the killer.

At the heart of the book, I really enjoyed the mystery and the picturesque scenery. I was able to figure out a lot of it as it happened (sorry, Gid!) but not the who, and it seems to me the story could’ve been wrapped up a lot faster without a lot of the extraneous information woven in, like the newspaper editor (none of that was relevant to the story really, and if it was a red herring, not a very good one.) but overall it was an interesting read. I liked it, but I didn't love it, so 3 1/2 stars.