Books Read - October 2018

Bevill, C.L.

The Bureau of Extraordinaires *****

Fiction.  Steampunk story set during and just after the Civil War.  Silas underwent some scientific experiments against his will by a Dr. Morrow.  As a result, Silas has been turned into a man/beast and is called an Extraordinaire.  With the help of his cohorts and the lovely Agatha, he must stop the scientists from carrying out their evil plan.

Bronte, Charlotte

• Jane Eyre ****

Fiction.  An orphan attends boarding school where she ends up teaching, afterwards finding a job as a governess to a young girl in the country.  The master of the house falls in love with her, but as they plan on marrying, sinister things begin happening in the home.

Cannon, Sarra

• Sacrifice Me ****

Fiction.  First in the Sacrifice Me Seasons paranormal series.  Franki loses her job right before her birthday, and when a mysterious invitation appears at her doorstep for a club downtown, she can’t resist going.  It’s a strange atmosphere, but the strangeness is only beginning for her as her life is threatened.

Claflin, Stacy

• Sweet Desire ***

Fiction.  First in The Transformed paranormal series.  Gessilyn is a witch on the run from her coven who are after her.  As she learns about her powers, she needs to stay one step ahead of them.

Clarke, Alexandria

• The Haunting of Riley Watson Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a paranormal trilogy.  A fake medium, Lucia, is hired by a resort owner to help his young daughter who is haunted by spirits after the death of her mother.  When the resort is snowed in with only 12 people, tensions run high when one of them is murdered.  Was it by a human hand or by an angry ghost?

• The Haunting of Riley Watson Book 1 ****

• The Haunting of Riley Watson Book 2 ****

• The Haunting of Winchester Mansion Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a paranormal trilogy.  A young couple travel the country renovating and flipping houses, and when they end up in Black Bay renovating an abandoned mansion, they get drawn into the mystery of what happened to the wealthy family that used to live there.

• The Haunting of Winchester Mansion Book 1 ****

- The Haunting of Winchester Mansion Book 2 ****

• Little Girl Lost Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a paranormal trilogy.  Bridget has been roaming the world for ten years when her best friend notifies her that her young sister is missing.  She returns home to find her sister and suddenly begins receiving telepathic messages from her begging for help.

• Little Girl Lost Book 1 ****

- Little Girl Lost Book 2 ****

• Witch Myth Christmas Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a paranormal trilogy.  Noelle Summers is a winter witch, but when someone comes to town messing with Christmas, she has to resort to her witchy powers to catch the culprit and restore balance in the town.

• Witch Myth Christmas Book 1 ****

• Witch Myth Christmas Book 2 ****

• Witch Myth Wildfire Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a paranormal trilogy.  The Summers coven has fallen under a curse, and the sicker they become, the stronger the need for a healer, so they look outside their coven to find the particular person who can help them, then they kidnap her.

• Witch Myth Wildfire Book 1 ****

• Witch Myth Wildfire Book 2 ****

• Witch Myth Yew Hollow Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a trilogy.  Morgan Summers is a medium but hates talking to ghosts.  When one seeks her help in solving a murder, she has to agree to help in order for the ghost to move on into the afterlife.

• Witch Myth Yew Hollow Book 1 ****

• Witch Myth Yew Hollow Book 2 ****

Du Maurier, Daphne

• Rebecca *****

Fiction.  A paid companion meets a wealthy widower in Monte Carlo, and when they fall in love, he takes her back to his palatial home in Cornwall, where she competes with the memory of his first wife.

Evans, Holly

• Chaos Conspiracy ****

Fiction.  First in the Sacrificial Magic paranormal series.  A mercenary witch is matched with a demon to solve the case of missing people who have disappeared into a cult.

Hayden, Roger

• The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion Book 0 ****

Fiction.  First in a paranormal trilogy.  A young couple buy an abandoned mansion and set about renovating it when they find that it is already inhabited by a group of ghosts.  A family was murdered years ago in the house, and some of the townspeople are determined to keep the killers’ identities secret.

• The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion Book 1 ****

- The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion Book 2 ****

Holmberg, Charlie N.

• The Paper Magician ****

Fiction.  First in the Paper Magician fantasy series.  Ceony is apprenticed to Paper Magician Thane, and when his ex-wife attacks him, Ceony is his only hope to survive.

Morton, Kate

• The Clockmaker’s Daughter ****

Fiction.  A multi-time period tale of a ghost and the artists who surround her and a missing rare blue diamond.

Olson, Melissa F.

• Bloodsick ****

Fiction.  First in the Old World Tale paranormal series.  Sashi, a witch had kept away from werewolves for her whole life, but when she meets one in need of healing, she must help him.

Parrish, Kat

• Magic in the Blood ****

Fiction.  First in La Bruja Roja paranormal series.  Aixa is a Red Witch living in a small town on the border.  When a rival witch allies with a drug lord to take over the town, Aixa uses her powers to fight back.

Pope, Christine

• Hidden Gifts ****

Fiction.  First in the Witches of Canyon Road paranormal series.  Miranda McAllister has been sent to Santa Fe for an arranged marriage to Rafe Castillo, who she has never met.  She’s had to leave her entire life, including her family, behind to marry a man who does not seem to want her, but she’s determined to fulfill a promise her parents made, a debt that must be paid.

Reine, SM

- Caged Wolf ***

Fiction.  First in the Tarot Witch paranormal series.  Rival biker gangs invade town, and Ofelia, a stripper bartender, chases them off with the help of a werewolf.

Tate, Kristy

• Witch Ways ***

Fiction.  First in the Witch Ways paranormal series.  Evie is a young girl who has no idea she is a witch.  But when her problems with fire get her kicked out of a private school, she starts training at a special school where she hones her powers.

Taylor, Nicole R.

• Crescent Calling ****

Fiction.  First int he Crescent Witch Chronicles paranormal series.  Skye has been fired from her job and has no prospects when an Irish barrister arrives in Australia to let her know that her estranged mother has died and has left her a business and home in Ireland.  She accepts her inheritance and moves to Ireland, where she finds out that her mother wasn’t just an ordinary human.

van Praag, Menna

• The Dress Shop of Dreams *****

Fiction.  Cora is a single-minded scientist, ignoring all else for her work.  When her grandmother, Etta, nudges her toward Walt, Cora is slow on the up-take.  When her parents were killed when she was a child, her heart froze and wouldn’t let anyone in.  Until now.

Webb, Wendy

• Daughters of the Lake *****

Fiction.  Kate returns to her parents’ house on the lake to heal her wounds after leaving her cheating husband.  While there, her father stumbles across a dead body in the water, and Kate has a violent reaction to seeing the woman, making her a suspect in the death.  What she can’t tell the police is that she’s been having dreams of this very woman, dreams that seem all too real.

• The End of Temperance Dare *****

Fiction.  A ghost story set in a former TB sanitarium.  A former reporter takes a job as manager of the renovated sanitarium cum artists retreat, and the woman who hired her dies on her first day.  She has a week to prepare before a new group of artists arrives, and unknown to her or to them, they all have ties to the sanitarium.

• The Fate of Mercy Alban *****

Fiction.  A gothic suspense set in Minnesota.  Grace Alban inherits her family home when her mother passes away, and though she hasn’t been home in 20 years, she arrives with her teenage daughter to take charge of the home.  A lost manuscript and old love letters lead her on a chase to find the truth in the suicide of a famous author years ago.

• The Tale of Halcyon Crane *****

Fiction.  A gothic suspense set in a remote island in Minnesota.  Hallie was raised by her father in Seattle after her family home burned down and her mother was killed.  When she suddenly finds out that her mother had been alive all this time, and that Hallie’s father had actually stolen her away and created a new life for them, Hallie returns to her family home to discover what really happened when she was a child.

• The Vanishing *****

Fiction.  A gothic suspense set in rural Minnesota.  When Julie’s husband commits suicide after bilking investors out of their hard-earned savings, she is left with no prospects until a wealthy stranger arrives to hire her to be a companion to his elderly mother, a famed author.  Julie finds the home haunted by a mysterious force.

Weldon, Phaedra

• Elemental Arcane ***

Fiction.  First in the Eldritch Files paranormal series.  Sam owns an occult shop in New Orleans, and when children begin changing into monstrous killing creatures, she and her friends are determined to destroy them and to find the real children.

Welling, ReGina

• A Match Made in Spell ****

Fiction.  First in the Fate Weaver witchy series.  Lexi is a matchmaker, but when a new musician moves to town, her matches are going haywire.  Not to mention she is falling for the musician. She’s running out of time to awaken to her power, and her fairy godmothers aren’t helping at all.

Books Read - September 2018

Acevedo, Chantal

The Distant Marvels ****

Fiction.  Sheltering from a hurricane with other elderly women, Maria Sirena tells the story of her rebels parents and her childhood during the Spanish-American War. 

Blackwell, Juliet

The Lost Carousel of Provence ****

Fiction.  Cady was raised as an orphan in foster care, but when she flies to Paris to photograph some of the iconic carousels, she meets a man who introduces her to his family, and for the first time she feels as if she belongs.

Boling, Dave

Guernica *****

Non-fiction.  Sweeping tale of Basque people and the political temper of Spain’s response to Basque nationalism that engulfs two families leading up to the bombing of Guernica.

Cameron, Claire

The Last Neanderthal *****

Fiction.  A Neanderthal girl loses her family and struggles to survive, while an archaeologist uncovers her remains in a cave in France.

Downie, Ruth

Memento Mori *****

Fiction.  Eighth in the Medicus mystery series set in Roman England.  Ruso and Tilla are living with her relatives in the north of England, when he receives news that his good friend’s wife has been killed.  When they travel to Aqueas Sulis, the find out that Valens in actually accused of murdering his wife, and they must work together to not only solve that murder but also uncover what is going on at the temple.

Duany, Jorge

Puerto Rico: What Everyone Needs to Know *

Non-fiction. Population, demographics, culture, politics, and religion of Puerto Rico

Galenorn, Yasmine

Casting Curses *****

Fiction.  A secret room is found in the attic of the B&B, and a mysterious dark shadow takes over the space.  Maddy must petition a goddess to help lift the curse before another person is killed.

The Wish Factor *****

Fiction.  The story of Maddy’s cjinn and how they found each other.

Garland, Alex

The Tesseract *

Fiction.  Disjointed vignettes in Manila.

Guo, Luc & Frmprc Seac

Han *

Non-fiction. Basic information on who the Han are.

Hallatt, Alex

A Basque Diary ***

Non-fiction.  The goings on in Hondarribia as told by an Englishwoman.

Harkness, Deborah

Time’s Convert *****

Fiction.  Marcus’ story of growing up during the American Revolution and his introduction to Matthew and how he became a vampire.  Phoebe’s story of her induction into the vampire life.

Hawker, Olivia

The Ragged Edge of Night ****

Fiction.  A former friar has answered an ad for a widow looking for a husband to care for herself and her three young children.  Worried about the war and the effect Hitler is having on Germany, he was lucky to be disabled from service with the Wehrmacht and wants to live a quiet life in the country.  After the wedding, he takes up work teaching music to several children, but his family is still struggling to make ends meet.  When the local priest asks him to join the resistance, he does so willingly, ignoring the danger he could be putting his new family in.

Karade, Baba Ifa

The Handbook of Yoruba Religions Concepts ****

Non-fiction. Introduction to the Yoruba religion.

King, Dean

Skeletons of the Zahara ****

Non-fiction.  In 1815, an American trading ship shipwrecked on the African coast.  Eleven men were captured by nomads and sold into slavery.  They spent months traveling the Sahara desert before some of them were finally ransomed by the British consul and returned to America.

LaManna, Gina

Long Isle Iced Tea ****

Fiction.  Fourth in the Magic & Mixology paranormal cozy mystery series.  The Faction is kidnapping paranormals from The Isle, and Lily and Ranger X are trying to solve the problem.  Lily knows that her father is leading The Faction, and when she too is kidnapped, she faces him down.

Long, Laurette

Biarritz Passion ***

Fiction.  Book one in the French Summer romance novels.  Caroline and her selfish younger sister travel to a villa in Biarretz for two weeks.  Annabel is engaged, but she causes problems in Caroline’s new romance with Edward.  With misunderstandings between them, they separate, Caroline returning to England alone.

Lourey, Jess

The Toadhouse Trilogy: Book One *****

Fiction. First in the fantasy trilogy.  Aine and her brother live in Missouri with their grandmother.  When danger arrives in the form of a fantastical creature, the children must flee with the help of Gilgamesh and his traveling toadhouse.  They hop from book to book trying to stay ahead of Biblos, but he is closing in fast.  As the children learn more about their own heritage, they realize how strong they really are as they search for three keys that will open the doors to Tir Na Nog and reunite them with their mother.

Maddicks, Russell

Cuba, Culture Smart *****

Non-fiction.  Cultural history of Cuba.

Neal, Toby

Wired Fear *****

Fiction.  Eighth in the Sopie ang series.  Sophie and Jake are enjoying their official coupledom, when Sophie Finds she is pregnant.  But the baby might not be Jake’s.  The Chang family is changing leadership again in their customary bloody fashion, and Sophie and Jake are in their crosshairs.

Quieroz, De & Sandy Gueses

= Portugal, Culture Smart *****

Non-fiction.  Cultural history of Portugal.

Robinson, Steve

Letters from the Dead ****

Fiction.  Seventh in the Jefferson Tayte genealogy mystery series.  Tayte is hired to research the genealogy of a Scottish family.  The client is searching for the identity of his 4x great-grandfather.  The rest of the family is searching for a famous ruby that disappeared almost two hundred years ago.  Tayte is on the search for both.

Sullivan, Donald H.

Taino: The People Who Met Columbus ****

Fiction.  Tales of the Taino people of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico.

Thomas, Elizabeth Marshal

Reindeer Moon *****

Fiction.  Yanan lived 20,000 years ago in Siberia.  She grew up with her extended family in lodges of deerskin and antlers.  Orphaned with a young sister to raise, she pulls all her strength together to see them through a vicious winter in hopes to reunite with the rest of their family in the spring.

Undset, Sigrid

Happy Times in Norway ****

Non-fiction.  Sigrid tells of an idyllic time in Norway before WWII about her family living in a small town in Norway.

Vendramini, Danny

Them and Un ****

Non-fiction.  The Neanderthal Predation (NP) theory explained in full.  The Neanderthals were apex predators and almost annihilated the European Early Modern Humans (EEMH), before the humans became the aggressors and killed off the Neanderthals.

Vicente, Alidis

The Coqui and the Iguana ***

- Fiction.  The tale of the coqui frog who is afraid of the dark and the iguana who helps him.

Books Read - August 2018

Ashley, Mike

The Mammoth Book of Perfect Crimes & Impossible ****

Fiction.  Anthology of short mysteries as written by authors in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Benson, Clara

The Mystery at Underwood House *****

Fiction.  Third in the Angela Marchmont mysteries set in the 1920’s England.  Angela is recovering from a bout of influenze and rents a cottage at the shore to recuperate.  Her goddaughter has come to stay with her.  While out walking they meet a Miss Trout who lives in the big house on the cliff.  She invites them to tea and tells them a lurid story of a missing diamond necklace that used to belong to Queen Marie Antoinette and is rumored to be hidden somewhere in the house.  Angela and Barbara offer to help her find in and find themselves caught up in the search and in danger of losing their lives.

The Treasure at Poldarrow Point *****

Fiction.  Second in the Angela Marchmont mysteries.  Angela is asked by an old friend to help solve three murders.  The patriarch of a family has died and left his fortune split between his four children.  But they are dying one after another, and their shares will revert to the family lawyer instead of staying in the family.  Angela must figure out what is happening before the last surviving son is murdered.

Blake, Deborah

Dangerously Driven *****

Fiction.  Fourth in the Riders urban fantasy series.  The three rider brothers are finally coming back together to see each other all for the first time since they went through their terrible time.

Doovan, Dana

Eye of the Witch *****

Fiction.  Second in the Detective Marcella thriller series.  Detective Marcella has retired and is living i Florida, but he’s bored out of his mind.  When he receives a call for help from his old partner, he’s on the next flight back to New Castle.  Three women have seemingly committed suicide, but the similarites in their situations and the fact that they are all connected makes Tony and  Rodriguez and Rodriguez’ new partner band together to find the answers before another woman dies.

The Witch’s Ladder ****

Fiction.  First in the Detective Marcella thriller series.  A group of people with psychic abilities meet together for workshops.  When someone starts killing them and taking their livers, Detective Marcella starts investigating.  

Downie, Ruth

Caveat Emptor *****

Fiction.  Ruso and Tilla are back in Londinium, but as Ruso hasn’t been able to find a job as a surgeon, he accepts a job as an investigator working for the porcurator on a case of missing tax money.  Two brothers are accused of stealing the money, but when they both turn up dead, Ruso has to sort through the various power struggles in Virulamium and hope to bring justice to the wo men and the other innocents.

Persona Non Grata *****

Fiction.  Third in teh Medicus mystery series.  Ruso and Tilla travel to southern France to help Ruso’s family with their debt problems.  When one of their creditors is poisoned and dies in Ruso’s study, he becomes the main suspect.

Semper Fidelis *****

Fiction.  Fifth in the Medicus mystery series.  Native recruits have been dying during training, and Ruso begins to research what has been happening  When a Praetorian bully is killed, Ruso is framed as the murderer, and Tilla must help prove that he is innocent.

Tabula Rasa *****

Fiction.  Sixth in the Medicus mystery series.  Ruso’s clerk has gone missing, and while rumors spread of a body secreted into the wall, a young boy also goes missing, and it’s up to Ruso and Tilla to find out what happened to him and to hopefully bring him home again.  In the meantime, Tilla discovers part of her own family and uncovers a secret her mother held dear.

Vita Brevis *****

Fiction.  Seventh in the Medicus mystery series.  Ruso and Tilla are living in Rome with their adopted daughter Mara.  Ruso is taking over the practice of a doctor who has gone away.  As they’re moving into their new home, a barrel has been left outside the door.  When Tilla opens it, she finds a dead body, and the mystery of who it is and why it has been left there sends Ruso on a quest to find the missing doctor.

Drummond, Idia

Blood Faerie *****

Fiction.  First in the Calenonia Fae urban fantasy series.  Eilidh has been exiled from the Kingdom of the Fae because she has the power of the Azurie.  She has been living in Perth, Scotland for decades, when one day a man is murdered right outside the church she stays in.  His heart has been ripped from his body, and Eilidh begins to track down the murderer.  He is fae.  He practices blood magic, a dark and evil brand of magic.  She loses his scent and returns to the body, where a police detective, Quinton Munro, somehow senses her presence.  He sees her but imagines her to be a teenage boy who runs away and evades him.  They are drawn together in this epic tale and forge a bond that they hope will survive and destroy the blood faerie.

Galenorn, Yasmine

Iron Bones *****

Fiction.  Third in the Wild Hunt urban fantasy series.  Ember is learning more about her family background and what and who she really is.  The Fae are in trouble, as someone has unleashed a plague on them, and they seek help from the Wild Hunt to solve the issue.

Lourey, Jess

Rewrite Your Life *****

Non-fictoin.  Using your own issues to create fiction.

Thawer, Tish

The Witches of BlackBrook ****

Fiction.  Three witch sisters live in Ipswich, Massachusetts in the 1600’s.  When one is accused of witchcraft and about to be burned on a pyre, she casts a spell that will bring the sisters together over and over through the centuries.  She has managed to find one of her sisters, but they have never been able to find the third.  There’s a dark force working against them, and a witch friend warns them that treachery is afoot.

Thayer, S.M.

I Will Never Leave You ***

Fiction.  Trish is married to Jim, who is having an affair and a baby with Laurel.  Trish and Jim have been trying to have a baby for 12 years, and when Trish finds out her husband’s mistress just gave birth, she goes a little crazy.

Todd, Marilyn

I, Claudia ****

Fiction.  First in the I. Claudia mystery series set in Rome.  Claudia is married to an old rich man, though they have separate bedrooms and prefer it that way.  When well-known patricians start being killed in a macabre way, Claudia realizes that they’re all clients of hers, clients for whom she performs special tasks for.  In an effort to detract scrutiny from herself, she decided to solve the mystery herself, thought she has to deal with the constant presence of a canny policeman whom has developed a lust for her.

Virgin Territory *****

Fiction.  Claudia travels to Sicily to escape her creditors, and she is hired to escort a retired Vestal Virgin back to her family.  When someone kills the virgin, Claudia goes in search of the killer.  Marcus shows up to help her.

Woodworth, Paddy

The Basque Country: A Cultural History ****

Non-fiction.  History, politics, culture, and the people of the Basque Country.

Books Read - July 2018

Ashley, Mike

The Mammoth Book of Locked Room Mysteries & Impossible Crimes ***

Fiction.  Anthology of locked room mysteries.

Berry, Steve

The Museum of Mysteries *****

Fiction.  Cassiopeia Vitt is on the hunt for a man who stole a priceless Sabbat Box containing vials of liquid hundreds of years old.  When she accidentally inhales the vapors of one of them, she is transported back in time to the days of Arthur and Morgan la Fey.

Best, Morgana

Broom Mates ****

Fiction.  First in the Sea Witch cozy mysteries series set in Australia.  Goldie Bloom loses her boyfriend at the same time she inherits a house on the Gold Coast.  She sees this as a sign and travels to this small town, where she discovers not only is she a witch, but she has a familiar named Persnickle.

Broom with A View ****

Fiction.  Second in the Sea Witch Paranormal Cozy Mystery series.  Goldie is called to the retirement home when her friend Oleander is accuse of murder.  With her trusty familiar at her side, Goldie is able to communicate with the deceased to find out who really did kill her.

Christmas Spirit ****

Fiction.  Prudence is a clairvoyant medium, not a fortuneteller, but she has never seen a corporeal ghost before until this Christmas.  She’s a bit sad at spending Christmas alone until she develops feelings for this deceased police officer who needs her help in solving two murders.

Dizzy Spells ****

Fiction.  Second in the Kitchen Witch paranormal cozy mysteries.  A new self-proclaimed witch has moved into town and set up shop, but it’s Amelia’s house she wants.  When a man dies on Amelia’s front porch, she learns that he is a realtor.  It’s up to Amelia and her friends to connect the dots and find out who killed him and why.

A Ghost of a Chance ****

Fiction.  First in the Witch Woods Funeral Home paranormal cozy mysteries.  Laurel Bay can see and hear ghosts.  When she inherits her father’s funeral home business, her first funeral is interrupted by a dead body in the casket.  On top of the dead body supposed to be there.  The young woman lying on top of the other body appears to Laurel

Miss Spelled ****

Fiction. First in the Kitchen Witch paranormal cozy mysteries.  Amelia loses her boyfriend and her job and her apartment all in the same day.  But she also receives a letter telling her that her aunt has left her a house and a cake shop in her will.  Surprised and bewildered, she travels to the small town and to her new home, where she finds a group of people who were very good friends of her aunt and who become her good friends.  But when a man arrives in her cake shop and dies moments later, she is worried that the town and the police will suspect her.

Witches’ Brew ***

Fiction.  Pepper moves to Lightning Bay to help her aunts run their bed and breakfast.  Unbeknownst to her, there are vampires and witches and werewolves living there.  When Pepper arrives, the body of a dead man falls from the roof right in front of her, and she has to figure out who killed him and why.

Bowen, Rhys

The Tuscan Child *****

Fiction.  Hugo was a British flyer in WWII.  When his plane went down, he was rescued by a lovely Italian woman who kept him hidden in a ruined monastery.  Joanna is a modern young English woman studying to be a lawyer.  When her father dies, she returns to his home to dispense with his belongings.  She finds an old letter written by her father and decides to put her studies on hold to travel to Italy to discover about the father she realizes she never really knew.

Finsilver, Janet

Murder in the Mansion ***

Fiction.  Second in the Redwood Cove cozy mystery series.  Kelly has been hired as the fulltime manager of the B&B, but on her first day back at work, a guest at a nearby B&B has been killed, and Kelly was the one who found her.  While trying to solve that case, Kelly finds herself in dangerous when she draws too near the solution, and she has to fight her way to safety.

Galenorn, Yasmine

Oak and Thorns ****

Fiction.  Second in the Wild Hunt urban fantasy set in Seattle.  The Wild Hunt agency is on a case on Whidbey Island.  A series of murders and missing people has lasted for decades, and Herne, Ember, and the others are investigating the case and find themselves facing off with one of the Ante-Fae.

Geary, Debora

A Hidden Witch ***

Fiction.  Second in the Modern Witch series.  Witchcraft and technology collide in this tale of a group of witches who use a computer game to keep in touch and a woman with no skills who finds out she is one powerful witch.

Gilbert, Victoria

A Murder for the Books *****

Fiction.  First in the Blue Ridge Librarian mysteries.  Amy is a librarian who moves to a small town in Virginia to care for her elderly aunt and manage the local library.  She comes across an old mystery when she stumbles over a dead body, and with the help of her handsome next door neighbor, she sets about trying to solve both cases.

Gimpel, Ann

Tarnished Beginnings ***

Fiction.  Prequel to the Soul Dance shifter series set in Egypt.  Tairin, a young Romani girl, hits puberty and discovers she’s a wolf shifter.  Her mother is killed by the Romani for marrying a shifter, and her father has gone back to his people, leaving Tairin to live on her own.  She escapes the Romani and travels across Cairo, finally choosing to live as a wolf rather than a vulnerable girl.

Harkness, Deborah

The All Souls Real-time Reading Companion ***

Fiction.  Playlists and links to paintings of the All Souls world.

The World of All Souls Compendium *****

Non-fiction.  Writing notes for the All Souls trilogy.

Jaffarian, Sue Ann

Sh*t I’d Kill For ***

Fiction.  Short story about a woman who is solicited by a stranger to kill in order to get things.

Johnson, Erin

Seashells, Spells & Caramels ****

Fiction.  First in the Spells & Caramels paranormal cozy mystery series.  Imogen is having a hard day when she is handed a flyer for a baking contest to be held in France.  Something tells her to take a chance for once in her life and go for it.  When she arrives at the unusual town, she falls in love with it, but the contest is fraught with danger, and she is the prime suspect when one of the contestants is poisoned.

King, Kerry Anne

Whisper Me This ****

Fiction.  A woman returns home when her mother is found unconscious, and her father has slipped into dementia.  While going through the family papers, she discovers an old secret that shatters her to the core.

Locher, Wes

Braving Britannia *****

Non-fiction.  From the beginning of development through the various expansions of Ultima Online, this book tells the stories of behind-the-scenes creation of the game.

Marcum, Diana

The Tenth Island ****

Non-fiction.  Memoir of a journalist’s trips to the Azores.

Milligan, Molly

What the Cat Dragged In ***

Fiction.  First in the Celtic Witch mysteries series.  Bronwen, a hedgewitch, lives with her elderly aunt and a mystical cat.  When her cousin arrives for a visit from America to learn about her own powers, the two of them work to solve a haunting and a mystery.

Wine, Witches and Song ***

Fiction.  First in the Wildham-on-Sea paranormal cozy mysteries.  Jackie finds a body under a pile of stones on the beach and uses her magic to help solve the case.

Omer, Mike

A Killer’s Mind ****

Fiction.  A forensic psychologist consults for the FBI and is sent to Chicago to work on a case of a serial killer, one who possibly has ties to her past.

Phipps, C.A.

Apple Pie and Arsenic

Fiction.  First in the Maple Lane cozy mysteries.  Maddie returns from New York to take care of her ailing grandmother in Oregon.  Her dream is to ope a bakery in New York, but she hasn’t considered opening one in her home town.  Her grandmother talks her into buying an empty shop, and her business is going well.  She even has time to enter a pie in a local contest, but when she finds a dead body, she feels she needs to solve the mystery herself.

Robinson Holly

Sleeping Tigers ****

Fiction.  A teacher on summer break travels to San Francisco to visit a friend and to look for her brother.  She finds him, a drug addict, living in a flophouse with others.  When she finds out he has fathered a baby on a homeless teen, she tries to get him to assume responsibility, but he flees the country, and she follows hoping to bring him home again.

Shaffer, Andrew

Hope Never Dies ****

Fiction.  Obama/Biden mystery.  Biden’s old friend, a conductor on the Amtrak train is run over by one of the trains, and Biden promises the man’s daughter that he’ll try to help find out what happened to her father.  She is convinced he didn’t kill himself, but the police have a different point of view.  Obama comes along for the ride, though his relationship with Biden is a bit tarnished.

Swain, James

The King Tides *****

Fiction.  First in the Lancaster and Daniels mystery series.  Lancaster is hired by a Miami doctor to find out who is targeting his daughter.  When Lancaster finds pornographic videos portraying someone who looks exactly like the girl, he realizes the case involves pedophilia.  He tracks down the girl’s aunt who works for the FBI and realizes the similarities between the two are causing the problem.