Review and Excerpt: Deck the Malls with Purple Peacocks by Amy Gettinger

Deck The Malls with Purple Peacocks (Alice Chronicles #2)
By Amy Gettinger

Genre: Chick-lit/ Women’s Fiction/ Sweet Romance
Age category: Adult
Release Date: November 18, 2017

Description:
It’s Christmas in Orange County, California, and the mall is full of purple peacock decorations, large and small. Department store employee Aracely Martinez has a goofy Cuban friend, Quito (who’s awfully cute in his mall Santa suit), distracting her from her night-shift restocking job. But Aracely has a long-held secret, which her supervisor at the store, Jacob Thinnes, is holding over her head to make her do his bidding.

Which is too much bidding.

Enter Aracely’s oldest friends: Alice Chalmers, Georgette Jones and Julie Bowers. The group’s “Venus Warrior” bond from the 2003 production of The Venus Monologues at Garden Beach Community College is still very strong, and these women are ready, willing, and able to kick some butt to help Aracely out of her difficult bind. Join Aracely’s “Three Wise Women” plus her ever-present trickster hunk, Quito, in one adventure after another as they work against the odds to give Aracely a fabulous, nearly impossible Christmas gift: the life of her dreams.

My Review:
Deck the Malls with Purple Peacocks caught my eye due to the festive and quirky title and matching cover.

The story is all about Aracely, whose illegal status has been noted and exploited by her unscrupulous boss. While there was plenty of the lightheartedness I’d hoped for by the packaging, there was a healthy dose of serious issues and an insightful look into what being an illegal immigrant might be like, particularly in today’s world.

It didn’t take me too long to know for sure that this was a sequel, but I felt this one stands alone pretty well. I enjoyed the missions and the banter between the friends in the Venus Warrior group, as well as the result of their benevolent meddling. Quito was adorable and his jokes as groan-worthy as I’m sure they were intended to be. The romance wasn’t as central to the story as I’d thought it would be, but that’s ok. This turned out to be more of a cozy mystery sort of thing with the team of Venus Warriors sleuthing and saving the day together, despite being total amateurs.

Jacob and the other cast of ne’er-do-wells were sinister and manipulative, and I had no trouble rooting against them. I thought it interesting how they could be so awful to Aracely, a good and hardworking person, while thinking of themselves as superior. Their self-righteousness paired with their awful behavior towards Aracely seemed designed to highlight a certain hypocrisy that seems all too realistic in today’s culture.

Overall, a good read. I wish I’d read the earlier book first because I think I’d have gotten more of the references and inside jokes between the characters. Anyhow, I’d recommend this to folks who like a little humor wrapped around a serious topic, middle-aged sleuths running missions to save their young friend, and a happy ending that doesn’t come easily.

I received the review copy of this book from the author via Lola’s Blog Tours. This review was written for my blog, I read too much!

~~~

You can find Deck The Malls with Purple Peacocks on Goodreads

You can buy Deck The Malls with Purple Peacocks here on Amazon


Read on for an excerpt and more information about the author.

Cozy Mystery Review: Here Comes the Witch by Ani Gonzalez

This is my stop during the blog tour for Here Comes the Witch by Ani Gonzalez. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 7 till 20 September. You can see the tour schedule here.

Here Comes The Witch (Main Street Witches #1)
by Ani Gonzalez
Genre: Paranormal Cozy Mystery
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 7 September, 2016

Blurb:
Jewelry designer Kat Ramos has come to Banshee Creek to break the famous Hagen House curse and, in order to do that, she must marry Liam Hagen. A vengeful ghost with a deadly history isn’t part of the deal, and neither is love. Will Kat be able to handle both? Or will the mystery of the cursed Hagen House remain unsolved?

You can find Here Comes The Witch on Goodreads, Amazon.com, and Amazon.co.uk.


My Review:
Here Comes the Witch is pegged as a romantic, cozy mystery. Kat arrives in town to complete her end of a deal that will both fund her long-wished-for jewelry shop and put an end to a generations-old curse on an old house. The only catch is, she has to marry a complete stranger and live in the house with him for a year. Still, it’s worth it if it will make her dream come true.

First off, in my opinion, this isn’t really a cozy mystery. Instead, I’d call it a ghost story with romance, or maybe a cozy ghost story, if such a thing exists. Still, the history behind the haunting is rather mysterious so maybe that’s where the cozy mystery tag comes from.

The book’s a fun read: humorous, scary and romantic in turn. Quite unique. There is an element of the occult, if you couldn’t guess by the cover and the title, but it fits right in with the ghost story. Not only is the house haunted, but the whole town is, and they’ve made it a tourist draw. I thought it added an amusing flare to the story. But the town’s phenomena are mostly benign, whereas the ghost (or ghosts) in the house seem anything but. They’re downright scary. Then add in Kat and Liam’s sham of a marriage getting a little more real than either expected, and it’s quite an interesting mix.
Overall, I loved this story and would strongly recommend it to folks who love a good romance with some magic and a few angry ghosts thrown into the mix.

I received the review copy of this book from the author via Lola’s Blog Tours. This review was written for my blog, I read too much!


About the Author:
I write paranormal romantic comedy and cozy mystery (whew, that's a mouthful!) set in Banshee Creek, Virginia, The Most Haunted Town in the USA. My books feature feisty funny heroines dealing with a host of paranormal critters (ghosts, cryptids, pagan gods...the sky's the limit) and mysteries. They find magic, love and laughter and readers get to follow them every step of the way.

I love quirky towns with spooky stories, and, thanks to my books, I get to "live" in one year-around. In real life I live in a Minneapolis suburb (which is sadly lacking in ghosts) with my husband and three children and I'm still trying to adjust to the cold.

You can find and contact Ani here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Amazon
- Newsletter

Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Here Comes the Witch. These are the prizes you can win:
- Custom Jewelry (US Only)
- a 25$ amazon gift card (International)

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cozy Mystery Review: The Daydreamer Detective Braves the Winter by S.J. Pajonas

Today is my stop during the blog tour for The Daydreamer Detective Braves The Winter by SJ Pajonas. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 11 till 15 July, you can view the complete tour schedule here.
There's a tour wide giveaway during this tour, the giveaway can be found at the bottom of this post.

Start this series for free!
The Daydreamer Detective, the first book in this series is free for a limited time! You can grab your copy of The Daydreamer Detective for free on Amazon, B&N, Kobo and iBooks!

The Daydreamer Detective Braves the Winter (Miso Cozy Mysteries #2)
By SJ Pajonas
Genre: Mystery/ Cozy Mystery
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 7 July 2016

Blurb:
December has set in and just when the rural town of Chikata is recovering from one murder, Mei and her new boyfriend, Yasahiro, find their friend, Etsuko, dead in her apartment. Etsuko was sweet and talented, and now everyone suspects her longtime boyfriend killed her. Mei doesn’t believe it, though, and she vows to help solve the crime.

But Mei has more to think about than murder. With the barn gone and their vegetable stores destroyed, she and her mother are down to their last canned goods and no money for heat. Mei’s mom is fortunate to find work, but Mei must fend for herself, get a job, and keep their financial situation a secret from Yasahiro. In pursuit of paying work, she stumbles onto a new witness to the crime, and before long, the dead woman's secret life unravels before everyone’s eyes. Half-starving and out of her element, Mei is on thin ice, and it’s going to take a whole lot of ingenuity and quick thinking to solve the crime before the killer gets to her as well.

My Review:
The Daydreamer Detective is back, and plunging temperatures and finances have thrown her and her mom into dire straits. Add to that a shocking murder, a promise to get to the truth, and a drive to also make enough money to get through the winter, and Mei has her work cut out for her.

This was another delightful cozy mystery/romance. Mei’s a sweet girl, but tough. I love how she strives to be self-sufficient, but still caves enough when needed. I also enjoy how she’s just a regular girl trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life and how she just happens to be caught up in solving a crime. And what an ending! The danger builds and builds as the story progresses, ending in a satisfying and thrilling finale.

As for the romance, it seems realistic, but in a good way. It left me with warm fuzzy feelings and high hopes, but there’s still room for further developments in the coming books. The romance isn’t really the focus of the story, but it’s important to it.

The length of the book is also a plus here, at least for me. It’s a nice sized book, but it doesn’t feel like a long book.

Overall, I loved this book. It’s a fun read with a good dose of romance, mystery and danger. Folks who love cozy mysteries in far off places will likely enjoy this story.

I received an advanced review copy of this book from the author via Lola’s Blog Tours in order to provide this review.

You can find The Daydreamer Detective Braves the Winter on Goodreads

You can buy The Daydreamer Detective Braves the Winter here:
- Amazon
- B&N
- Kobo
- iBooks

The First book in the series:
The Daydreamer Detective (Miso Cozy Mysteries #1)
By SJ Pajonas
Genre: Mystery/ Cozy Mystery
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 31 march 2016

Blurb:
Luck? Forget it. Mei Yamagawa is fresh out of it. She's just been downsized from her 3rd job in five years and her bank account is dry. Now, to keep her head above water, she must leave Tokyo and move back to her rural Japanese hometown. And there's nothing worse than having to face your old rivals and ex-boyfriends as a failure while starting life over as a farm girl.

But when her best friend's father is murdered, and her best friend is named the main suspect, Mei turns her daydreaming ways towards solving the crime. Between dates disguised as lunches with the town's hottest bachelor chef, searching for clues, and harvesting sweet potatoes, Mei has a lot of non-paying work cut out for her.

Will she catch the killer before her bad luck turns worse? Or will she fry in the fire with the rest of her dreams of success?

You can check out my review of book #1 here.

You can find The Daydreamer Detective on Goodreads

You can get your free copy of The Daydreamer Detective here:
- Amazon
- B&N
- Kobo
- iBooks

About the Author:
Stephanie (S. J.) is a writer, knitter, amateur astrologer, Capricorn, and Japanophile. She loves foxes, owls, sushi, yoga pants, Evernote, and black tea. When she’s not writing, she’s thinking about writing or spending time outside, unless it’s winter. She hates winter. Someday she’ll own a house in both hemispheres so she can avoid the season entirely. She’s a mom to two great kids and lives with her husband and family outside NYC. They have no pets. Yet. When it comes to her work, expect the unexpected. She doesn’t write anything typical. Find her online at http://www.spajonas.com.

You can find and contact SJ Pajonas here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Tumblr
- Instagram
- Youtube
- Wattpad
- Amazon

Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of The Daydreamer Detective Braves the Winter. One winner will win a bundle of S. J. Pajonas ebooks. Including: Removed, Revealed, Washing Statue Wanderlust, and The Daydreamer Detective.

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Stop and Cozy Mystery Review: The Daydreamer Detective by SJ Pajonas

 

This is my stop during the blog tour for The Daydreamer Detective by SJ Pajonas. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 4 till 8 April, you can view the complete tour schedule on the website of Lola’s Blog Tours.

The Daydreamer Detective (Miso Cozy Mysteries #1)
By SJ Pajonas
Genre: Mystery/ Cozy Mystery
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 31 march 2016

Blurb:
Luck? Forget it. Mei Yamagawa is fresh out of it. She's just been downsized from her 3rd job in five years and her bank account is dry. Now, to keep her head above water, she must leave Tokyo and move back to her rural Japanese hometown. And there's nothing worse than having to face your old rivals and ex-boyfriends as a failure while starting life over as a farm girl.

But when her best friend's father is murdered, and her best friend is named the main suspect, Mei turns her daydreaming ways towards solving the crime. Between dates disguised as lunches with the town's hottest bachelor chef, searching for clues, and harvesting sweet potatoes, Mei has a lot of non-paying work cut out for her.

Will she catch the killer before her bad luck turns worse? Or will she fry in the fire with the rest of her dreams of success?

My Review:

The Daydreamer Detective is a sweet and wonderful story. As a cozy mystery, the story features a young, amateur sleuth, Mei, who has found herself back in her hometown trying to resolve herself against her failed attempt at life in the big city. But she isn’t there long at all until her best friend’s father is found dead and her friend is implicated as a possible suspect. Add to the mix a handsome chef and a matchmaking mom, and there you have it.

What I love most about this story is the attention to detail and the way the story delves into Japanese life in a natural way. The characters seem real, the places, too. Everything is brought together so that you feel like you’re there, with just enough information upfront and sprinkled in so that you understand how the culture feeds into the motivations, interactions, and everyday lives of those portrayed in the story. It makes the world seem a smaller place and made me feel a kinship with the characters.

Another thing I love, and I think this is a necessary characteristic of a cozy mystery, is the way the story unfolds in a way that just feels right. The pace is steady and pleasant, but engaging all the same. The mystery is almost second place to Mei trying to adjust to her new life, at least until nearly the end when it gets rather exciting, and the romance is sweet.

I suppose the only downside is that Mei is too hard on herself. At times, she seems stuck, like a record player on a bad spot, reliving her insecurities and past failures, despite all the support and reassurance of her friends and family.

Overall, I loved this story. I think fans of cozy mysteries and light romance will like it, and though it’s longer than others I’ve read, I thought the length was a plus. It let everything unfold in an unhurried and organic fashion and just let me enjoy the progression over a few days. It’s a great book to snuggle up with

I received the review copy of this book from the author so that I could write a review for this stop. Hope you enjoyed it.

You can find The Daydreamer Detective on Goodreads.

You can buy The Daydreamer Detective here:
- Amazon
- B&N
- Kobo
- iBooks

 

 

 

About the Author:
Stephanie (S. J.) is a writer, knitter, amateur astrologer, Capricorn, and Japanophile. She loves foxes, owls, sushi, yoga pants, Evernote, and black tea. When she’s not writing, she’s thinking about writing or spending time outside, unless it’s winter. She hates winter. Someday she’ll own a house in both hemispheres so she can avoid the season entirely. She’s a mom to two great kids and lives with her husband and family outside NYC. They have no pets. Yet. When it comes to her work, expect the unexpected. She doesn’t write anything typical. Find her online at http://www.spajonas.com.

You can find and contact SJ Pajonas here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Tumblr
- Instagram
- Youtube
- Wattpad
- Amazon


There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of The Daydreamer. There will be two winners:
- One US Resident will win: One paperback copy of Adult Coloring Book Japan, One Signed Copy of The Daydreamer Detective, One signed copy of Removed, and a surprise flavor of Pocky!
- One International Resident will win: One ebook copy of The Daydreamer Detective, One ebook copy of Removed, and One ebook of each Rice Cooker Revenge, Washing Statue Wanderlust, and Mamachari Matchmaker

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cozy Mystery Cover Reveal: The Daydreamer Detective by SJ Pajonas

Today is the cover reveal for The Daydreamer Detective by SJ Pajonas. This cover reveal is organized by Lola's Blog Tours.

The Daydreamer Detective (The Daydreamer Detective #1)
By SJ Pajonas
Genre: Mystery/ Cozy Mystery
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 31 march 2016

Blurb:
Luck? Forget it. Mei Yamagawa is fresh out of it. She's just been downsized from her 3rd job in five years and her bank account is dry. Now, to keep her head above water, she must leave Tokyo and move back to her rural Japanese hometown. And there's nothing worse than having to face your old rivals and ex-boyfriends as a failure while starting life over as a farm girl.

But when her best friend's father is murdered, and her best friend is named the main suspect, Mei turns her daydreaming ways towards solving the crime. Between dates disguised as lunches with the town's hottest bachelor chef, searching for clues, and harvesting sweet potatoes, Mei has a lot of non-paying work cut out for her.

Will she catch the killer before her bad luck turns worse? Or will she fry in the fire with the rest of her dreams of success?

You can find The Daydreamer Detective on Goodreads and for pre-order at Amazon.

About the Author:
Stephanie (S. J.) is a writer, knitter, amateur astrologer, Capricorn, and Japanophile. She loves foxes, owls, sushi, yoga pants, Evernote, and black tea. When she’s not writing, she’s thinking about writing or spending time outside, unless it’s winter. She hates winter. Someday she’ll own a house in both hemispheres so she can avoid the season entirely. She’s a mom to two great kids and lives with her husband and family outside NYC. They have no pets. Yet. When it comes to her work, expect the unexpected. She doesn’t write anything typical. Find her online at http://www.spajonas.com.

You can find and contact SJ Pajonas here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Tumblr
- Instagram
- Youtube
- Wattpad
- Amazon

Cozy Mystery Review: Innocent in Las Vegas by A.R. Winters

Innocent in Las Vegas by A.R. Winters
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Entertaining, fun and a little dangerous.

Innocent in Las Vegas is a book I came across while scanning for freebees on Amazon a while back. The version I have features a cupcake on the cover, just the sort of quirky thing to catch my eye, and having now read the story, a pretty good match to it.

Alright, I'll start off with the basics. Although I haven't read many in this genre, I would have to classify this as a cozy mystery. Tiffany Black is a novice Private Investigator who hopes to one day ditch her job at the casino for a permanent job as PI. The only problem is she doesn't have her license, she's inexperienced, and she has no clue what to do when her first high profile case (one that no one else would take) gets dangerous.

Just like the cover on my edition, this story is quirky, which is a good thing in my opinion. The main character loves pastries, and that works its way into the plot a few times. She's also single, and her parents and grandma are constantly trying to fix her up. This leads to some amusing misunderstandings and drama, but I won't go into details for fear of spoilers. I think these things make Tiffany interesting and somewhat believable.

As for the mystery, I was surprised by the ending, which is a good thing. If I'm able to figure something out before the sleuth, it's not as fun. Now, that's not to say it couldn't be figured out. The clues are there, the suspects are well-portrayed, and Tiffany works the case pretty well for a novice, pastry distractions and all. Still many of her interviews and follow ups read a little dry and down to business, and she has a tendency to drop an interview as soon as the target realizes she's a PI and says they're done, perhaps a side effect of her inexperience.

I like stories featuring tenacious investigators like Colombo or even Psych (yeah TV shows), who dig in and drive their suspects to confession by popping up in annoying and amusing ways. There is a little of that in this story, but just a little. She's mostly winging it and gets lucky here or there with a new lead or surprising bit of gossip that relates to the case.

The general approach and character archetypes are similar to those few other cozy mysteries that I have read. Inexperienced female sleuth, strong-willed and kooky grandmother, parents trying to set her up with a boyfriend, random love interest, and x-factor (in this case cupcake addiction).

Overall, I liked this story, mostly because it made me laugh. Also, the resolution was a surprise, but not out of nowhere. Fans of cozy mysteries may like this story, but it's similar in some ways to other offerings in the genre.

View all my reviews

Mystery Review: Debbie Valentine, Rookie Caterer by T.G. Davis

Debbie Valentine, Rookie Caterer by T.G. Davis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A good story. I like it.

Debbie Valentine is an entrepeneur who's just started off a new business venture as caterer. The story opens during her second catering job. There's a little scenario where her friend gets in trouble in a humorous way and Debbie comes to the rescue, but once she leaves the club for home, that's the last we see of her catering. From then on, the story focuses on the boisterous group of people staying at her Aunt Jill's bed and breakfast.

On a lark, they invite Debbie into their game of Truth or Dare, and soon Debbie picks up on the darker side of the group dynamics. The next day starts off fine with all the partiers sleeping it off, but it doesn't last. Soon, Debbie has a real mystery to solve and a murderer to identify. This should have been titled Debbie Valentine, Rookie Sleuth.

This is the second T.G. Davis mini-mystery I've read, and I must say, the author's writing and plotting have tightened up quite nicely. The characters in Debbie Valentine are similar to those in Annie Banner, but I think that this story has a much more believable plot and outcome. I like how Debbie's family, like Annie's in the other story, provides comic relief. Her mom, in particular, is rather quirky in a good way, and her Aunt Jill is one tough lady, both fearless and capable when it counts.

That being said, the story is a bit information heavy for the characters with a walk-on role, and the ladies of the Valentine clan seem to have dated everyone they do business with or encounter with the exception of the wedding party staying at the bed and breakfast. I would have preferred one- or two-liner introductions instead of one to two paragraph intros for those who only appear to say "way to go" or are merely mentioned in passing and then are never again seen again. I also got a little lost with all the rapid fire introductions for the wedding partiers. Still, the overall story is tightly drawn and the plot is solid.

I liked this story and would recommend it to those who like a quick read, a little humor, and some amatuer sleuthing gone right.

I received a free copy of this ebook in return for an honest, non-reciprocal review.

View all my reviews

Novella Review: Annie Banner, Wedding Planner by T.G. Davis

My month of short and shortish stories continues with Annie Banner, Wedding Planner, what the author calls a cozy mystery.  I didn't know what a cozy mystery was going in, but I think it means a quick mystery you can cozy up to. 

Anyway, this is another one of those stories that the author offered to me in exchange for a review.  But unlike The Tales of Arva (previous post), this one didn't fall into one of the genres I usually read.  However, I took it as an opportunity to broaden my horizons and agreed to do the review anyway.

I've since discovered that this is just the first of many Annie Banner, Wedding Planner cozy mysteries.  The author plans to publish them quite frequently.  As such, I've included a link to the author's Amazon page at the end of this post, so those who are interested can sign up to receive notifications when new ones are released.

Annie Banner, Wedding Planner by T.G. Davis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Annie Banner and her mom, Dana, run a successful wedding planner business. But this time, a routine visit takes strange turn and the duo find themselves in the middle of a mystery.