While going over event details at a client's house, Party Planner Liv comes face to face with 2 dead men. And there's more bad news, all kinds of bad things are happening, all centered around the trucking company owned by Liv's father-in-law. Liv and her best friend Di start snooping around to solve the murder and save her family's trucking business.

Very enjoyable read; from the picturesque setting, the Southern customs, the humor sprinkled throughout to the pacing that, for the most part, kept the story moving at a good pace. I thought the characters were realistic and likeable, but I thought there could've been a bit more character development. There was certainly enough space in the story to allow for it. At times, I thought it didn't feel like this was the first in a series. At one point, I actually had to look up whether there were earlier books. It didn't diminish my enjoyment, but I had a head-scratching moment a time or two.

I have to say, it was refreshing that the MC is happily married and loves her in laws. It has become such a cozy cliche to have your husband die or leave you destitute and you're left with his bitchy mother and so on and ugh. None of that in here. I really enjoyed that.

Overall, a great first in a new series and I look forward to reading more. Thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

4.5 stars
After the last book, I wasn't sure if I was going to continue with this series.  Thankfully, this book made up for the shortcomings of the last book.  Lots of Aunt Tillie's antics, a solid plot and very little of the immature antics that plagued the last book.
 
Bay and the rest of the Winchesters are dealing with the hated Aunt Willa returning to town and what her motives are for returning.  In the midst of dealing with Willa, a young man is found murdered, putting Bay and Landon in the middle of another investigation.
 
I really liked the plot in this one, lots of twists and turns and a good pace kept me turning pages until the end.  Lots of Aunt Tillie in this one, I think she's the main thing that draws me to these books.  In fact, if she had her own series, I'd leave this one far behind.  There wasn't a lot of witchy goings-on in this one, too.  I was hoping Aunt Tillie would smite someone again.
 
I deducted a quarter of a star because listening to Landon and Bay was just too cutesy for me.  I get it, they're in love.  You'd think they were teenagers the way they were going on about it, and the Chief's reactions were just as annoying.
 
Which leads me to why I deducted another quarter of a star - Landon and the Chief don't act very professional, or even like adults.  I can understand and appreciate being a little goofy at times, but this was a little over the top.
 
Overall, a fantastic, enjoyable read, especially if you enjoy Aunt Tillie.

Cute book, but not really the style of book I usually read. This book takes place in Mississippi at Christmas time in a small town that is facing financial difficulties - businesses are leaving town, unemployment is up, and things are looking bleak. I have to say, the vernacular in this book sounded like a yankee trying to sound Southern (and didn't really work) and the dialogue was a little stiff. I was halfway through the book when I figured out the main character and her husband were in their late 20s/early 30s. I thought they were in their 50s by the way they sounded.

Overall, a cute book and a nice seasonal read.

Monday Mourning This has been my favorite by far of this series. If it wasn't for the TSTL moment at the end (and really, I've come to expect nothing less) and all the mooning about Ryan, I'd probably rate it 5 stars.
 
An excellent plot in this one, three skeletons of young women found in the basement of a pizzeria, a friend who has just left her husband, Tempe's relationship with Ryan with a few red herrings, an excellent pace and a few surprises here and there.  I have to say, this one was a lot better than the last couple of the Bones books. 
 
Overall, a great book and I'm all fired up to read the next one.
 
 
 

The Ghost Of Marlow House The actual title of the book is The Ghost Of Marlow House, which is Book 1 of the Haunting Danielle series. I don't know why the name of the series gets the biggest font on the cover, unless the author wants to discourage people from reviewing it, since it was a little difficult to find at first.
 
Just an okay book.  I liked the plot (actually 2 plots, solving the death of The Ghost Of Marlow House and solving the lost necklace mystery.) Both were great, lots of twists and turns and although somewhat predictable, it was at least entertaining.
 
My issue is with the characters and the dialogue.  The MC's friend, Lily, is annoying to a fault. Babbles on endlessly, until I finally started skipping pages whenever she was in a scene.  Ditto the dialogue, which bordered on inanity.  Pared down, it might be more enjoyable.
Overall, worth a read but nothing spectacular.  Probably won't bother with future books, though.

I have no idea how to rate this book. On one hand, it was haunting, unbearably suspenseful and riveting. On the other hand, it was was so horrifying that I nearly couldn't finish it.

The book's plot concerns children being raped and killed, and while not detailed, was graphic enough that the book was nearly intolerable. Just too much for me.

So, I'll leave this unrated because although well written, I just can't bring myself rate it.

Edit: gave it 4 stars because the book was written so excellently that it's still haunting me weeks later.

Cowboys and Indians is book 7 of the excellent Detective Scott Cullen series. I've been looking forward to diving into this book; I've been a fan of the series since the beginning. I wouldn't say you need to read the other book in the series first; there are references to past events, but not so many that a new reader would be lost. But as it's such an enjoyable series, I very much recommend reading the other books.

Cullen is easing into his new rank as Detective Sergeant, and managing a small group of detectives on the latest case of a man found dead under a bridge wearing only his underpants. They plunge into the sordid, corrupt field of banking, where everyone lies and power corrupts. Meanwhile, Cullen's girlfriend, DI Sharon McNeil is trying to solve a series of rapes on men after they visited a local gay bar, The Liquid Lounge.

There was lots to like in this book; strong characters and a riveting plot sucks you in from the start and the solid pace kept the plot moving without getting bogged down. I was afraid at first that Bain would not make an appearance; who doesn't love a character you love to hate? His antagonism provides not only a little comedy relief but also adds to the tension one needs while reading a thriller. Similarly, the relationship between Cullen and Sharon, and their sorrow is something that nearly everyone can relate to and gives one a more personal connection to the story.

Overall, a fantastic book by one of my favorite authors. Many thanks to Ed James for the advanced copy of what is easily the best book I've read so far this year.

Not bad. Having watched Ghost Hunters for many years, I was familiar with most of the stories as well as the behind the scenes drama.

The stories in the book are all taken from investigations TAPS has done both on camera and on the show. The book was apparently mostly written by Jason with a few sentences on the end from Grant. I have to say, a golden opportunity was lost to have Grant add his point of view on each case. Instead, his remarks were pretty much, "yeah, yeah totally." Pretty pointless.

Once the cases (and the show) got into when GH started using gadgets (like a Geiger detector? Apparently ghosts give off radiation? Whatever.) it jumped the shark. They went from being a team that would try to debunk paranormal activity to a team that lost their shit whenever something changed temperature on the thermal camera.

Overall, an entertaining book but nothing that stands out.as new information. Would probably appeal more to kids or teenagers or people who have never watched the show. Or really rabid fans of Ghost Hunters.

4.5 stars
This was a nifty little short story about a PI and his psychic wife who are hired to investigate paranormal happenings at a biblical college. At only 81 pages, it took me less than an hour to read and yet it packed a great, suspenseful plot into into such a short story.

I deducted half a star because the MC's sarcasm was a little obnoxious after a few pages, but once I got into the thick of it, I barely noticed it.