SUCH A COZY MURDER by Haley Jordan

Fiction, Cozy Mystery

5*****

Blurb: Oh, bother! Rosie Alexander has a lot of problems, such as juggling running her cross-stitch shop with caring for her beloved husband, who has Alzheimer’s. She doesn’t need the aggravation of a pushy customer who shows up with an old, mysterious cross-stitch sampler he wants appraised. She definitely doesn’t need the aggravation of that same sampler getting stolen…with a dead body left behind. And when another murder happens in her orbit, a former friend is implicated, and an aggravating reporter tries to paint her as running a multi-national crime ring? Maybe she should adopt a dog. Because they’re not aggravating at all. This is the first book in a contemporary cozy mystery series set in the small town of Cozy, Florida.

THOUGHTS: Rosie is such a great character. She runs a cross-stitch shop. She cares for her husband who has Alzheimer’s. And she takes on pushy customers with aplomb, especially when that customer has an old sampler that may be worth a lot of money. When the sampler is stolen and an old friend is the main suspect in the owner’s murder, Rosie jumps in to prove their innocence.

I loved the characters, but I really enjoyed the information on cross-stitching, something I tried at one time with little success – and now, I know why! The book almost made me want to take a stab at it again. The setting in Cozy, Florida works well for the story and the ending is satisfying. I’ve read and enjoyed other books by this author and this one was no exception. I hope to see more from Rosie in the future – with or without a dog.

Recommended.

I’LL BE SEEING YOU by Jana Ricards

Fiction, Paranormal (angels), Romance, Second Chances

4****

Blurb: When apprentice angel Gabriel takes Frank back in time for a second chance at love, they both learn lessons about trust. My name is Gabriel Daniels, and the first thing you need to know about me is that I’m dead. The second thing you need to know is that I’m an apprentice angel. At least, that’s what Thomas tells me. Thomas is a senior angel, and I know he’s real because I’ve seen his wings. He’s the one showing me how things work up here. Or near here. Heaven itself is agonizingly close, close enough to feel, but Thomas says I don’t belong there yet. Not until I earn it. And this is where things get… unreal. According to the Heavenly Council, the only way I can earn my wings is by giving three mortals a second chance at love. Thomas and I will take them back to the time they made the choice that shattered their hearts. My task is simple in theory and terrifying in practice: I have to convince them to choose differently this time. To trust. To stay. To love. Our first client is Frank Brennan, a World War II veteran. In 1944, in Plymouth, England, Frank fell deeply in love with Claire Cartwright. But when he found her in the arms of another man, he walked away without listening—without believing her when she swore things weren’t what they seemed. Now it’s my job to help Frank find the courage to trust her love again. I can’t fail. I need to get into Heaven.Thomas has promised that once I become a full-fledged angel, I’ll be allowed to watch over my mother and my brother back on Earth. They need me. With their mental health struggles, the world is often too much for them. And maybe—if I’m lucky—I’ll be allowed to watch over Sloane, too. She was the love of my mortal life. Even though she said goodbye, even though I never told her what I should have, I never stopped loving her. Not for a single moment. What I didn’t expect was that earning Heaven would require me to relive my own failures. Thomas never mentioned the part where I’d be dragged back through my every mistake. He claims understanding myself is vital if I want to be allowed into Heaven. But the more he shows me my relationship with Sloane, the clearer it becomes: it wasn’t fate that ruined us. It was my inability to trust. Like I said, I can’t fail. But Frank is stubborn, wounded, and carrying decades of pain. Before either of us can get what we want, he’s going to have to confront the past he’s been running from. And so am I. I’LL BE SEEING YOU is the first book in the Twice in a Lifetime time-travel romance series. This paranormal romance with closed door love scenes, duel-time line love stories and plenty of angel magic, is intended to be read first in the series. Follow that up with book 2 (NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE) and then book 3 (WHEN I WAS YOUR MAN) for your complete reading pleasure!

THOUGHTS: I really enjoyed this story, but I just wasn’t completely sure why Gabriel was being shown his life except maybe for atonement. Still, the characters were great. Especially Thomas and how he is so enigmatic with not answering Gabriel’s questions. I loved Frank and how curmudgeonly he was at first. Having him go back and relive things…and how he can’t change certain things, but can change others (and does). I really enjoyed how Thomas told Gabriel how his life turned out after all. I laughed a little at the “waiting room” and Gabriel getting stuck there at various times. And the ending tells you that there will definitely be more to come as Gabriel has to save three people and Frank is just the first. It’s a journey of discovery for Gabriel, and us as we read about him.

Recommended.

STAND BY YOUR HITMAN by Leslie Langtry

Fiction, Suspense, Mystery, Romance

5*****

Blurb: Missi Bombay invents things–fatal flowers, Jell-O bullets, stroke-inducing panty hose and other ways to kill a target without leaving any trace behind. Living a solitary life on her family’s island, she’s a great asset to her family of assassins. Unfortunately, the family that kills together also meddles together, and when Missi’s mom decides her daughter’s life is a little too solitary, she packs Missi off the Costa Rica for an undercover assignment on a low-budget Survival reality TV show. Amidst the ridiculous challenges, tribal voting, and late-night sneaking to the nearby resort, Missi finds herself not only scoping out her family’s latest target, but also Lex Danby, the hottest contestant on the island. But Missi’s hormones get put on the back burner when someone starts sabotaging the show…and Missi is squarely in the sights of the deadly culprit.

THOUGHTS: Oh. My. Word. I loved this story. It’s hilarious! Missi (main character) is so much fun, and I loved Lex, Isaac, Sami, and Missi’s twin sons. The others, not so much, but that was on purpose. Missi’s family (who are all assassins) believe she needs to get out of her lab (where she invents new ways to kill people), off their private island, and meet a man (her husband died 18 years ago). So they enroll her in a Canadian reality show ala “Survivor”. Only instead of a remote part of Canada, they end up on the beach of a fancy resort in Puerta Rica. They can see the resort from their “camps”! But they’re supposed to rough it. The host. Alan, and his assistant, Julie, are not exactly the best people to be around. He gives them challenges that could actually kill them (like wrestling a crocodile) and is living way too high (for many reasons) in the resort. Missi becomes her team leader as she knows the most about how to do things (like wrestle a crocodile). But she does meet the man of her dreams. Unfortunately, there’s a saboteur in the group and she needs to find out what’s going on before someone really does get killed. Oh, and her two sons are there (in hiding) in order to help her out.
I really did not want to put this down. Okay, when I first started it, I was skeptical. A book about hitmen and women? Was this going to be nasty? Nope. Could I read it while eating breakfast? Yep. It’s fun, the characters over the top, the parodies of the real reality show funny, and the setting added to the stupidity of the entire story. It really is a silly look at reality shows and how to do them so wrong. Oh, and the romance – nah. It’s more about the sex than the actual romance. But overall, the story is just something to laugh at.

Recommended.
Thanks to the publisher for providing this ARC. All opinions are my own and were not solicited or influenced by anyone.

Tagline: When apprentice angel Gabriel takes Frank back in time for a second chance at love, they both learn lessons about trust.

Blurb: Apprentice angel Gabriel Daniel’s first assignment in his quest to become a full-fledged angel is to give WW2 veteran, Frank Brennan, a second chance at love. With help from his mentor, senior angel Thomas, Gabriel takes Frank back to 1944 to Plymouth, England. There, Frank made his biggest mistake with love. He fell in love with Claire Cartwright, but when he found her kissing another man, he ended their relationship, despite Claire’s insistence that things weren’t as they appeared. This time around, Gabriel’s task is to convince Frank to trust in Claire’s love and fidelity, despite the evidence against her. At the same time, Thomas takes Gabriel on a journey through his relationship with Sloane, the love of his mortal life. For the first time, Gabriel sees how his jealousy and distrust tainted their love. Unless Gabriel persuades Frank to trust Claire, his goal of becoming a citizen of Heaven is doomed, along with his desire to watch over his mother and brother back on Earth. Frank has a complicated history that Gabriel must help him confront before either of them gets what they need.

Buy Links:

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GHSRWZWN

Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0GHSRWZWN

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0GHSRWZWN

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/246835425-i-ll-be-seeing-you

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/i-ll-be-seeing-you-a-second-chance-time-travel-romance-twice-in-a-lifetime-series-book-1-by-jana-richards

Author Bio:

When Jana Richards read her first romance novel, she immediately knew two things: she had to commit the stories running through her head to paper, and they had to end with a happily ever after. She also knew she’d found what she was meant to do. Since then she’s never met a romance genre she didn’t like. She writes contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and historical romance set in World War Two, in lengths ranging from short story to full length novel. Just for fun, she throws in generous helpings of humor, and the occasional dash of the paranormal. When not writing up a storm or dealing with dust bunnies, Jana can be found pursuing hobbies such as golf (which she plays very badly) or reading (which she does much better). Jana lives in Western Canada with her husband Warren and a senior calico cat named Layla. You can reach her through her website at http://www.janarichards.com

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