purplepenning's Reviews (1.72k)

Great fun! A globetrotting mystery adventure with a quirky cast that includes a frighteningly competent body guard, her curmudgeonly ex-copper father-in-law, her high-rolling author client, plus bosses and bad guys, celebrities and wannabes, a cat called Trouble and a pub quiz team. You might have some of the mystery solved by the end, but Osman's writing is so compelling you'll read at a gallop and be happy for the ride. 

Narnia vibes in the best possible way! Other than the

Hedwig

moment, I was all in and can't wait for the next installment.

Just brilliant. Goes down fast but sticks to your ribs. Go ahead and take seconds — you know you missed something the first time around. 

I don't keep many of the books I buy, but this one is going on my shelf right next to Huckleberry Finn. Honestly, it should be packaged with every copy of Huck Finn sold, loaned, or taught from this day forward. 

Frustrating. I might've enjoyed this story as a tighter duology, but definitely not as a paced out trilogy. 

I have a couple of core issues with this one (like wtf,

Ravi

?!) — but boy what a ride! And it's pretty funny if you like flippantly snarky slacker humor. 

Kind of Hunger Games meets Gideon the Ninth via Agatha Christie and Aesop's fables as written by F.T. Lukens?

Not my jam (and not paranormal romance, if that's the vibe the cover is serving up to you) but if you want a contemporary grumpy-sunshine romance between a bookstore owner with chronic illness and a tortured

ex-Ranger

with complex PTSD, in a Pacific Northwest small-town dramedy with a little mystery and more than a little steam ... well then — ignore what the cover is serving and dive right in! There's also a pretty good cast of friendly small town looney toons and a giant cat named Kevin Costner.