Calliope

Review: Where Secrets Sleep by Marta Perry

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I just love when my three favorite genres converge. Amish life, suspense and romance all play a part in this novel about Allison Standish, a city girl who inherits her estranged grandmother’s fancy house-turned-small-shops-building near Amish country.

While the conditional inheritance trope might not be original, it’s the perfect foundation for mysterious shadows, doors ajar, and electrical problems. The protagonist moving to a different town also provides impetus for a love story. I always enjoy the novelty of watching a new relationship grow.

I found this story comforting and homey. The Amish characters provided serenity and hope. Nick, the love interest, lent an easiness and a smile. His interactions with his dad, brother, and son warmed my heart and made me laugh. The mystery moved the plot forward and gave me plenty to ponder and wonder about.

I’ll always be a fan of Amish fiction, suspense, and romance as individual genres. But it’s a nice surprise to find them all together in a well-written novel. Three fixes in one. #addictedtoreading

-calliope

buy WHERE SECRETS SLEEP

Review: One Wish by Robyn Carr

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You know the best thing about this book? It brought me back to 14 years of age, reading a teen novel about a figure skater… On Thin Ice, or Champion On Ice… I can’t remember the title, but I can remember the pink paperback cover, the worn spine, the old Volvo that almost didn’t get the skater to the rink one morning. I wish I still had that book. In the blink of an eye I would step into that teenage world for 150 pages and love every 1980s minute of it.

I can’t get a hold of that book, but I CAN get the same nostalgic feeling, vicariously through the main character of One Wish. Grace used to be a champion figure skater. She left the drama and the pressure to open up a flower shop in Thunder Point. Where she meets Troy. The teacher who likes to have fun during his time off. Outdoor fun. Athletic fun. Fun with women. Fun with Grace!

One Wish tells more than just the romance between Grace and Troy, though. We see Grace’s struggle with the past, her talent for the florist business, her ambivalence toward her mother, and her friendship with Iris.

I enjoyed the wedding planning, the return of old characters, the Ray-Anne subplot, and the sense of community coming together to support one of their own. Carr put heart into One Wish… And although Troy was occasionally a bit smarmy, most of the novel rang authentic. I shed some messy tears, both happy and sad.

Carr fans, you must read this book. I was SO EXCITED to read a Thunder Point novel that measured up to the Virgin River series – a high standard, indeed.

-calliope

P.S. I just KNOW that Ray-Anne’s Gingersnap will be a central character in an upcoming Thunder Point novel. I CAN’T WAIT!!!

buy ONE WISH (really! you must!)

Review: It Started at Sunset Cottage by Bella Osborne

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Fun fun fun British rom-com! Author Kate stays a while at Sunset Cottage to help translate her novel into a screenplay. While she’s there, lead actor Timothy comes to hide out from the paparazzi. They form a friendship and wend it among the challenges of celebrity: a diva lead actress, script changes, personal fears, a maniacal dog, and breaking down emotional walls.

To add to the antics, Kate’s best friend Sarah must deal with the criminal father of her young daughter. Kate’s ex-mother-in-law cracked me up… and made me grateful for my own in-laws. I was pleasantly surprised to see Sarah finding love…

Overall, I enjoyed the comedic ride, the look into making a film, the British bits, and the tender falling-in-love moments. Those melty scenes are the best. Sigh.

-calliope

buy IT STARTED AT SUNSET COTTAGE

Review: February Fever by Jess Lourey

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Holy Moly, Jess Lourey! Here I thought I was embarking on another cozy mystery, threaded with a teensy bit of romance and some humor. But no. Instead I got Murder on the Orient Express sends Valentine’s Day off its tracks, and Things Are Not What They Seem goes deeper than a good disguise.

I laughed a whole bunch at the beginning of Mira’s train ride with nutty Mrs. Berns. All the elements of a good mystery came into play, with Lourey’s usual wit causing me to chuckle. The writing rocks, too. My favorite line about being stuck in a snowstorm: “Overhead, snow fell heavy like dirt on a casket.” Foreshadowing at its finest.

After the halfway mark, however, things got serious. Murders needed to be solved, people’s safety was at risk, and any laughter was only from pure comic relief.

By the end of February Fever I was crying like a baby. Mira may have solved the mystery on the train, but she also brought full-circle some unresolved heartaches.

Writing a funny mystery that naturally turns serious takes talent. Ending same book with a funeral takes guts. And leaving me hanging about the next step for Johnny and Mira’s romance? Pretty clever. When can I read the next book?!

-calliope

buy FEBRUARY FEVER

Review: Death of a Liar by M.C. Beaton

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This 31st book in the Hamish Macbeth series begins the way I like a mystery to begin: with a murder. This isn’t just any murder, though. It’s the first of many. Sergeant Macbeth thinks they’re all related, and he’s determined to solve the case.

While Hamish is busy investigating, we watch him navigate his sort of pitiful love life, his friendship with his sidekick Dick, and his relationships with his police superiors.

I liked seeing Hamish’s whole life and how he prioritized work, women, and friends. Beaton succeeds in making him a three-dimensional character that way. I was grateful, because this is the first Hamish Macbeth book I’ve read, and I understood the character in the first few chapters.

Beaton wrote some fun criminals, too. I laughed at their antics and raised my eyebrows quite a few times. The recurring secondary characters were a little flat, though. I didn’t feel like I knew Dick or Jimmy or Blair or any of the other police officers. As a matter of fact, they all got jumbled up for me. I kept going back to earlier chapters to sort them out in my mind. And that doesn’t make for fun reading.

The writing was good for the most part. Sentence structure was perfect, descriptions and word choice were on point. The Scottish bits were terrific! The dialogue was a little weak, though, with some stilted conversation. I also noticed quite a bit of telling-instead-of-showing. Combined, it made the book plod along for me.

And just a little subjectivity: what in the world was the point of Anka? She was sent to the forefront so often that I really thought she would end up with a bigger part than she had. Maybe it’s a tease for books to come?

So in the end, I liked the actual mystery, and I could appreciate the main character, but the rest of the book just didn’t do it for me. But if you’re a mystery buff and a fan of a largely male cast, you might enjoy Death of a Liar. Check it out.

-calliope

buy DEATH OF A LIAR

Review: The Unexpected Consequences of Love by Jill Mansell

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Confident Sophie photographs like a boss. She’s professional, punctual, talented, and fun. But she won’t turn the lens on herself, figuratively speaking. She buried deeply past hurts and fears, and she has no desire to revisit them.

Josh is a good-hearted, wealthy young man who traded a fast LA life for the slower paced business of helping his grandmother run her inn. He meets Sophie, and together they travel the road of I Like You But I Don’t Want To Like You.

I love that Sophie didn’t play with Josh’s feelings, even though she had a difficult time having a man in her life. And Josh was such a sweetheart, gently persisting in loving and caring ways.

Mansell also rocked the subplot of Tula and Riley. The reader gets the benefit of seeing Tula and Sophie’s friendship, plus Tula’s chance at romance.

I really really really had fun seeing Riley’s character develop. Mansell surprised me a little. Riley surprised me a lot. My admiration of Riley equalled that of Josh – and my reaction may have surprised me the most!

Every time I read something new by Jill Mansell, she impresses me with her original characters. How much chick lit and romance can this author write before I start seeing repeats? Innumerable, apparently, because I’ve read more than a dozen Mansell novels. Every one of them is told in a new way – always with humor, warmth and verve – with fresh settings and dialogue, and characters I love to love.

-calliope

buy THE UNEXPECTED CONSEQUENCES OF LOVE

The British cover (note the title difference):

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Review: Huckleberry Spring by Jennifer Beckstrand

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So, Book 4 in the Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series. Oh that grandmother Anna can be sly. And grandfather Felty is definitely not on board with the deceit. But the matchmaking keeps succeeding, so they keep on doing it.

Spring brings Emma to the farm to help grow a pumpkin. Then Anna tells a few white lies to get her grandson Ben back to Wisconsin from Florida. He had escaped there after breaking off his engagement to … yes, Emma. And the re-matchmaking begins.

This time, it’s more than just hearts on the line. Ben has a medical issue he’s not willing to share. Emma has strength of spirit but also a will to not get her heart broken again.

I just love the innocence and Godly love in Beckstrand’s Huckleberry Hill books. I appreciate the family loyalty and the harmless jokes. And there’s always a sense of adventure!

I found this book especially romantic, because I could truly feel the love between Emma and Ben… and they could too.

Thanks again, Ms. Beckstrand.

-calliope

By the way, Book 1 in this series is on sale for $1.99. buy Book 1

Book 4 buy HUCKLEBERRY SPRING

Review: First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen

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Fifteen-year-old Bay has come to terms with being part of the magical Waverley family. She accepts her mother’s and aunt’s special abilities, and is totally fine with her power to know where things – and people – belong.

But she’s still a teenager. She has the knowledge of where she belongs, but she doesn’t feel a sense of belonging. Unless she’s at Aunt Claire’s house, watching magic happen in the kitchen. Or in the backyard at the apple tree, waiting for it to blossom during the first frost of the year.

When Bay falls in love with a popular boy at school, she knows they belong together, but HE doesn’t know it. And to mix things up a little more, there’s a shiny con man appearing in random places, stories of Bay’s grandmother having the power of frost, and Aunt Claire forgetting where she really belongs.

At first frost, everything falls into place. The family, the apple tree, the con man, and a boy’s heart.

This story is magical without being about magic. It’s a warm, cozy, relaxing tale that wraps you up in wonderment. I can’t explain why else I loved it, but I did.

-calliope

buy FIRST FROST

Review: Teardrop Lane by Emily March

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Rose is a small-town physician who always keeps her cool. Unless she’s alone – and then she grieves her demons. Cicero is a brooding, passionate glass-blower whose temperament can be as hot as the furnace. Through the love they have for Cicero’s nieces and nephews, Rose and Cicero see past the facades and fall in love. Sometimes love isn’t realistic, though, and a relationship might not be in the cards.

As usual these days, what I really loved about this romance was the inclusion of familial love and loyalty. Rose and Cicero put the children first, no matter what. It was also fun to read about glassblowing. March did a wonderful job describing the process and the resulting art – so much so that I could envision each glass piece as Cicero created it.

Even though Cicero wasn’t the expected alpha hero type that I usually read, I enjoyed this love story for its warmth, fantastic locale descriptions, and the art of glassblowing.

-calliope

buy TEARDROP LANE (An Eternity Springs novel)

Review: It Must Be Your Love by Bella Andre

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I’ve never really been into rock stars, but Bella Andre made me a fan in about two chapters. Ford is the rock star of every woman’s dreams. He’s so perfect that you can only believe he’s a character in a book, but he’s written so well he seems pretty darn real.

Mia Sullivan is a successful realtor with a pretty fulfilling social life. Except that she can’t stop thinking about that time she met Ford at a concert… and fell in love.

While I think Andre wrote a fantastic alpha hero and a believable, strong yet feminine woman, I think the strength of this book goes beyond the amazing romance. As in every “Sullivans” book Andre writes, I appreciate the descriptions of family bonds, protective brothers, accepting parents, loyal cousins, and the laughter and trust that really good families foster.

It’s kind of wonderful to get lost for a few hours in hot and heavy liaisons, a wedding, a romance, and family full of love.

-calliope

buy IT MUST BE YOUR LOVE