Category: Bibliophile Chats

Title: An Invitation To Murder

Series: Lady Katherine Regency Matchmaker, Book #1

Author: Leighann Dobbs

My Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis:

Lady Katherine only has one week to catch the Pink Ribbon Killer. Not only to stop the killing but also to prove her skills at detection to her father and win her dowry and independence. There’s only one catch—she has to take one last matchmaking job to do it. Never mind that the match is impossible, all the better because if she fails, then no one will seek her services again. The job provides the perfect cover especially when her peculiar investigatory techniques are mistaken for unconventional matchmaking attempts. Things would go a lot smoother if she weren’t knee-deep in suspects and thwarted at every turn by a rival matchmaker. But when the killer strikes again, Katherine’s investigation leads down a dangerous path. Too late, she discovers that she has a lot more to lose than her dowry… (via Goodreads).

My Thoughts:

This is the first cozy mystery book I have read that didn’t take place in modern times, and I loved it! Katherine, the heroine, captured my heart from the start, with her determination to gain her independence and ferocious refusal to conform to societal rules, yet work within them to achieve her goals. The story takes place in the Victorian Era, a time when young women of the upper class were expected to reach for no higher goals than a favorable marriage. In contrast, Katherine is determined to make her way as an investigator, like her father, despite the stigma that carries.

As we follow Katherine throughout her investigation, we not only experience her determination but also her intelligence and forward thinking. The introduction of investigative technologies through her investigator friend, Lyle, gives us the feeling of what it must have been like at the dawn of criminal science. As a science major and buff, I truly enjoyed this area of the storyline. While the sub-plot, the matchmaking challenge Katherine faced, was predictable, the umbrella mystery of the Pink Ribbon Killer was captivating and intriguing.

Not to toot my own horn, but with many cozy mystery books, I often figure out who the perpetrator is long before the story reveals it. However, in An Invitation To Murder, while I had my suspects like Katherine did, I truly did not know who it was until they ultimately, and dangerously, revealed themselves to our investigator. For the life of me, I can’t remember how I came across this book for it to end up on my reading list, but so glad that it did.

This is the first book by Leighann Dobbs in the Lady Katherine Regency Matchmaker series, and I have already purchased the second book: The Baffling Burglaries of Bath. This will be one series that I will definitely follow closely.

Thanks for taking the time to read my review; if you like you can follow my reading activity on Goodreads here.

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The Ghost and Mrs. McClure by Alice Kimberly
My rating: 4 of 5 stars (more…)

The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
My rating: 2 of 5 stars (more…)

Henna House by Nomi Eve
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Henna House, by Nomi Eve, is a captivating coming of age story, centering on the life of a young Jewish girl named Adela, born and raised in Yemen. The reader joins Adela’s life in 1920, a time when the Jewish children are under threat of confiscation due to the Orphan’s Decree; Adela is eight years old, her father is very ill and her parents are struggling to arrange a marriage in order to save Adela from being taken away after her father’s death. Through the interweaving of historical knowledge and creative storytelling, Nomi Eve takes the reader on an unfathomable journey through the trials of Yemenite Jews, by means of Adela’s life story; beginning in 1920, taking us to the other side of World War II, and ultimately concluding with Adela’s older adulthood. (more…)

A Brew to a Kill by Cleo Coyle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Once again I am sharing my thoughts on a Coffeehouse Mystery book; this time it is book number 11: A Brew To A Kill. (more…)

I realize that it is already late January, however, I have been wanting to do a quick post covering the books I read in 2017, and I just now have the time to sit and write it. The year of 2017, wasn’t my best year as far as quantity of books goes, but quality is better than quantity, and 2017 was definitely my year for quality books. Last year, I only managed to read 20 books, an average of 1-1/2 books a month. The low count is partly due to several books that I abandoned out of boredom or frustration, that are not included in the total count. The twenty books I did read were all enjoyable and satisfying.

Glance over the images below to see what I read in 2017:

Of the twenty books I read in 2017, I did pick a top three and they are:

The Keeper Of Lost Things, by Ruth Hogan (read review)

The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper, by Phaedra Patrick (read review)

Behind Her Eyes, by Sarah Pinborough (read review)

That sums up my year in books for 2017. Hopefully, 2018 will bring me more reading time and good quality books, fingers crossed.

Thanks for taking the time to read my post; if you like you can follow my reading activity on Goodreads.

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Murder by Mocha by Cleo Coyle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Murder by Mocha is the 10th book in the Coffeehouse Mystery series written by Cleo Coyle, the pseudonym for the husband and wife writing team of Alice and Marc Cerasini. The series first caught my eye at my local library, when I spotted book one, On What Grounds, with a delicious looking cup of coffee on the front. Since I am a huge coffee addict I was very intrigued by the promise of mystery with a side of coffee. (more…)

The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Everyone has lost something or someone at some point in their life. Sometimes the loss is small, like misplacing your keys. Other times the loss is great, like losing your great grandma’s locket. While some items may be found again, others are lost forever, potentially impacting our lives profoundly. In The Keeper of Lost Things, by Ruth Hogan, we meet one such person, whose profound lose of a single, sentimental item, changes the course of his life, and ultimately the lives of many others along his journey.

The Keeper of Lost Things is one of the greatest pieces of literature I have read in my adult life. That may sound like a very serious statement about a relatively new work of fiction, but no story has touched me so deeply since I was a child. Every thought and idea presented is brought to completion, with vignettes that bring you to the brink of tears then pull you back with laughter. The main plot ebbs and flows like a river through a valley of heartbreak, joy, and fulfillment.

The book opens with the pivotal character, Anthony, who has spent the better part of his life collecting lost items. An umbrella, a single glove, even a tin of ashes come to live in Anthony’s collection. Due to his own loss, a medallion his late wife had given to him, Anthony comes to believe that each and every item he finds is potentially very meaningful to the owner, and Anthony choses to keep these items until they can be returned. Although he never quite figured out how to return the items that came to him for safe keeping; as his life is nearing its end, he bestows, not only his home and worldly possessions, but also the collection of lost things to his assistant, Laura, entrusting her with the daunting task of locating the owner’s of as many lost things as possible.

As Laura takes hold of her new home and new purpose, the reader has the privilege of experiencing Laura’s growth into a dependent and confident woman. While we learn that the catalyst for change happened years before, when she divorced her husband, it is not until she begins to explore the job Anthony left for her that she truly finds herself. Interwoven within the story of Laura and the aftermath of Anthony’s death, are the stories of the lost items and the people who lost them. While most of the stories are brief insights into how the items were lost, one story is consistently intertwined and ultimately poignantly connected to the beginning of Anthony’s journey as The Keeper of Lost Things.

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The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Have you heard the saying: “never judge a book by its cover”? As a self proclaimed bibliophile, I take this saying seriously, both in its literal meaning and in the philosophical sense. However, in the case of The Curious Charms Of Arthur Pepper, this book is just as adorable as it’s cover.

This book grabbed my eye as I was perusing the aisles of a big chain bookstore. The cover was the initial draw, however, the book description further intrigued me and thankfully my local library had a copy on the shelf. The Curious Charms Of Arthur Pepper, while dealing with some complex issues, is truly a simple, bittersweet story that leaves you in love with Arthur Pepper.

*Spoilers*

Our story opens on the one year anniversary of the passing of Miriam Pepper. Her husband, Arthur, has decided it is time to pack her clothes and other belongings for donation, as he should be “moving on” or so his children keep telling him. In the process, he discovers a charm bracelet that he has no recollection of ever seeing before. There are several charms on the bracelet and the piece reflects a luxury that he and his wife never aspired to live. As luck would have it, the first charm has a phone number engraved on the back and with a combination of reluctance and curiosity, Arthur dials that number and unlocks the door to a multifaceted life his wife had long before Arthur Pepper.

The author does a fabulous job in this book of exploring the very unique process that one goes through when mourning the passing of a significant other. Beyond just mourning the loss of that person, there is the process of redefining who you are when you are no longer a “we”. In his journey to discover who his wife was before he met her, Arthur Pepper discovers there is a way to continue living his life without dismissing Miriam’s role in it.

Not only did I deeply enjoy this book, it will probably make it into my Top 3 Books of 2017.

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Below the Belt by Stuart Woods
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Below the belt was chosen by my Mystery Book Club for our October selection. While this is the 40th book in the Stone Barrington series, it was my first time meeting him and my first experience with the author, Stuart Woods. Truth be told, I would never have chosen this book for myself, however I have committed to give every Mystery Book Club selection a fair shot. In this case that commitment paid off!

There are two reasons why I would not have chosen this for myself. First, it is the 40th book in the series, I always prefer to start with the first book as I assume information would be needed from that to enjoy subsequent stories. While at certain times, in the beginning of Below the Belt, I felt there may have been reference to details shared in previous editions, they quickly resolved themselves and were never distracting from the story.

The second reason I would not have chosen this for myself is that it is a political suspense story. I hate politics! I don’t enjoy political novels, fiction or otherwise. However, in the case of Below the Belt, I became so intrigued by Stone Barrington that by the time the politics came in to play, I was already entrenched with the story.

While I typically like to give a short synopsis at this point in my review, I will instead refer you to the Goodreads summary. My disinterest in the political underline of the story would certainly leave my synopsis lacking. Let me just say that I truly enjoyed spending time with Stone Barrington and his “girlfriend”, Holly. Although at times I felt the plot was running flat, never reaching an ultimate climax; the story flowed freely from one event to another allowing the reader to easily transition through the subtle twists & turns. Of course there was that one point when the reader (me) gasps out loud as the red herring is revealed, or rather exploded.

This book, while perhaps not a piece of literary history, was a fun read, easily digested and entertaining. Stone Barrington’s is definitely a story I would read again, perhaps the first one next. Have you read anything good lately?

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