I Feel So Unnecessary

A Killer Collection A Collectible Mystery # 1 189 pages Genre: Cozy Mystery Publisher: Beyond the Page, January 2015 Book Source: Publisher via netgalley In the world of antiques and collectibles, it helps to have a sharp eye for quality, a good ear for gossip, and a nose for murder. Molly Appleby is a young writer for Collector’s Weekly , and when the attractive reporter isn’t covering auctions and antique shows all over the South, she’s trying to get her new relationship with a coworker off the ground. When her latest assignment takes her to North Carolina pottery country to cover an exclusive kiln opening, she’s certain the show promises surprising offerings and rare finds. What she doesn’t expect to find is a dead body. George-Bradley Staunton is known throughout the antiques world as a very wealthy and very ruthless collector, and when he drops dead just after the opening, there are all too few mourners and a seemingly endless list of suspects. When the local ...

Box of Rain by Debra R. Borys My rating: 3 of 5 stars   Cousins Shorty Davis and Booker T Brooks grew up in pretty much the same circumstances: single mother, too many siblings crowded into a small ghetto apartment. So what makes one kid choose violence as his method to survive living on the streets and the other choose education? Chicago reporter Jo Sullivan doesn’t know or have time to worry about it. She’s dealing with her own issues when her estranged father comes to Chicago to participate in a cancer clinical trial. When a severed head turns up in an alley dumpster, however, she’s thankful for an excuse to shift priorities and find out why all the evidence seems to point to the one kid least likely to have committed the crime. * I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. It was an absorbing read with realistic characters and plenty of twists and turns. It also tackled homelessness in a caring, sensitive manner. I recommend it. Lisa ...

Hilltop Sunset Brynn Bancroft Mysteries # 1 By: Joyce T. Strand Genre: Mystery Publisher: McCloughan and Schmeltz Publishing, November 2014 296 pages Book Source: Author A mystery set in wine country pitting financial exec Brynn Bancroft against a determined stalker, a troubled love interest, and career clashes. Brynn Bancroft learns that a former employee who beat her nearly to death has returned to stalk her and her friend, Jillian Hillcrest, also a former victim.  Recently divorced, Brynn turns to a new love interest only to encounter additional unwelcome issues. Meanwhile, short-timer Brynn, who has resigned from her Silicon Valley company, becomes bored fulfilling her remaining responsibilities there. She begins to prefer supporting the launch of her ex-husband’s new hilltop winery while waiting to move to her next position. Between her stalker and her new love interest, Brynn faces a series of life-changing events. While Brynn bothered me ...

The Way of the Wicked Hope Street Church Mysteries #2 By: Ellery Adams Genre: Cozy mystery Publisher: Beyond the Page, 2014 Book Source: Publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review This is book number 2 in the Hope Street Church Mysteries. Cooper and her bible study class volunteer at a local charity delivering food to shut-ins. But when the shut-ins begin being murdered and the class and charity volunteers become suspects it's up to Cooper and her friends to find the real culprit.   A fun quick read with a good message, gentle humor, likable characters, and an engaging mystery. I also like that it's set in my home state of Virginia. I really like this series.      Book Links: Goodreads / Amazon / B&N Author Links: Goodreads / Website / Facebook Lisa

Death in Perspective ( Cherry Tucker #4) By: Larissa Reinhart Publisher: Henery Press Publication Date: June 24, 2014 250 pages Genre: Mystery * I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. When Cherry is asked to design a set for a private school's production of Romeo and Juliet she gets more than she bargained for. The director also wants her to find out who's been cyberbullying him through social media. When her love interest Luke Harper decides to help her life gets even more complicated- considering their families hate each other. Will Cherry solve the mystery and get the man?   A fun engaging mystery. It had enough twists and turns that kept it exciting. The ambiguous ending between Cherry and her love interest left me wanting to read more of this series. It was the first book I've ever read in the Cherry Tucker series and I enjoyed it very much. So, it's a... 1/2 Get it at: Amazon B...

The Devils' Cradle By: Darcy Daniel Genre: Thriller 475 pages Publisher: N L Lamont Publication Date: January 2014 * I received a complimentary copy from the author in exchange for an honest review. Nina has been a prisoner of her sadistic husband and brother-in-law for over a decade. When she fears her son is turning out like her husband she takes him and runs. Case Herder has his own agenda regarding her brother-in-law and when their paths cross he decides to help Nina. Their decisions leave them running for their lives. When Michael and Greg find her she has no choice but to face them head-on. The Devils' Cradle is a gripping thriller with truly scary villains and a compelling story. This is one book that will keep you up all night. I recommend it. So, I'm giving it... Buy it here: Amazon   Add it on: Goodreads  

Palmetto Poison ( Carolina Slade Mysteries #3) By: C. Hope Clark Genre: Mystery 280 pages Publisher: Belle Bridge Books Publication Date: February 2014 * I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Carolina Slade finds herself in trouble once again when her boss asks her to investigate a family friend who's been accused of distributing drugs and what led to his son dying. She then finds herself entangled with peanut farmers, an overly dedicated DEA agent, the governor, and murder; and her life- and the life of her family is in danger once again. Carolina is a spunky, likable heroine. I do find her a little too hard headed at times, but that's also part of her charm. She has good chemistry with her boyfriend Wayne Largo and he's a good match for her. The plot and setting kept me interested and it was a quick read. The cliffhanger ending bothered me a little but that'll just make me read the next instal...

Cold Sacrifice  DS Ian Peterson #1 Genre: Mystery Publisher: HarperCollins Publication Date: April 29, 2014 384 pages Synopsis: When three dead bodies are discovered in Detective Ian Peterson's hometown of Kent, it becomes clear that a vicious killer is on the loose. And without his trusted colleague, Detective Geraldine Steel, by his side, Ian's left to take the lead on a complex murder case with few clues. The first victim is a middle-aged woman named Martha, brutally stabbed to death in the local park. Her husband, who did not report her missing, is the prime suspect until a young prostitute, Della, reveals his whereabouts the night Martha was murdered. But then she is strangled to death in her apartment. While the police are frantically gathering evidence and looking for a connection, a second prostitute is suffocated. With nothing but the timing of the murders to tie the three women to one another, Ian and his new partner, Polly Mortimer, struggle...

Back on the Market By: L.A. Frazier Genre: Mystery 274 pages Publisher: Cup of Tea Books  Publication Date: December 2012 Synopsis: Recently divorced, forty-something Vicky Andrews desperately needs a life. Finding her boss naked and dead at an open house she's hosting was not what she had in mind. Wishing she'd spend more time reading Nancy Drew in her formative years, Vicky calls upon her own intuition and various investigative skills to try to find a piece of incriminating evidence the murderer thinks she has--before the murderer finds her. She might decide that the world has it in for her if not for Detective Nick Carson, who shares frustration, information, and more than a few fantastic kisses as he tries to solve the case. Throw in a rescued miniature dachshund, a skeleton named Max, and a coven of well-intentioned neighbors, and maybe, just maybe, Vicky has found exactly what she needs. My Thoughts: * I received a complimentary copy from...

The Perfect Game By: Stephen Paul Genre: Supernatural Thriller 254 pages Publisher: Telemachus Press Publication Date: February 2014 Get it here: Amazon Smashwords * I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: In a dark Manhattan alley, a young woman suddenly collapses from a brain hemorrhage. The statistics say it’s rare to have happened to someone so young and healthy, yet all signs point to natural causes. But when Kyle Vine, the man she was supposed to meet that night, learns she wasn’t the only victim, he knows there’s something more going on and soon discovers a mysterious link to the sudden success of a journeyman pitcher for the New York Yankees. As the lethal brain bleeds continue to strike, Kyle and the woman’s eccentric uncle work together to unravel a mystery unlike any the world has ever seen in order to stop a ruthless killer from striking again. Stephen Paul’s debut supernatural suspense thriller, The Perfec...

Unholy Matrimony A Lucille Mystery #2 By: Peg Cochran Genre: Mystery 165 pages Publisher: Beyond the Page Publication Date: March 2014 Get it at: Amazon B&N * I received this book from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: The hilarious Lucille Mazzarella is back and planning a wedding. But even the worst Bridezilla can’t create the wedding drama she’s about to face in this second book in the series. Desperate to see her pregnant daughter Bernadette married before the baby comes, Lucille is engrossed in all things wedding. Nothing will distract her from planning this Mazzarella main event. Nothing, that is, except for the murder of the mother of the groom. Just when things couldn’t possibly get any worse, Lucille is named as the prime suspect, and it’s a race against time as she and her best friend Flo struggle with shady financial dealings, a family that isn’t at all what it seems, a groom that might not be all man, and...