I was very entertained by this one. It isn't too romancy nor is too "thriller like." It's a perfect balance of both.
The mystery: I had a basic idea ofI was very entertained by this one. It isn't too romancy nor is too "thriller like." It's a perfect balance of both.
The mystery: I had a basic idea of what was going on, but I didn't have the finer details figured out from the get go so that's a plus.
The heroine: Awesome chick. She's a young woman trying to be a jockey. She isn't portrayed as super perfect or super tough though. She has weaknesses as well as strengths. She rides a race even after suffering great injuries, but she also drinks too much in a moment of weakness. She's "real."
The hero: He's the only reason this book gets a four instead of a five. I didn't always like him much. He's undercover and I realize that, but I didn't think he treated Julie all that great sometimes. (His thing with Tiffany really ticked me off.) He also seems really indecisive about what he wants. He tells Julie he wants a temporary thing, but then he gets upset over her possibly seeing other guys. Really though, this is typical male behavior so Ms. Pettersen did a great job.
The horse stuff: SUPERB.
Merged review:
I was very entertained by this one. It isn't too romancy nor is too "thriller like." It's a perfect balance of both.
The mystery: I had a basic idea of what was going on, but I didn't have the finer details figured out from the get go so that's a plus.
The heroine: Awesome chick. She's a young woman trying to be a jockey. She isn't portrayed as super perfect or super tough though. She has weaknesses as well as strengths. She rides a race even after suffering great injuries, but she also drinks too much in a moment of weakness. She's "real."
The hero: He's the only reason this book gets a four instead of a five. I didn't always like him much. He's undercover and I realize that, but I didn't think he treated Julie all that great sometimes. (His thing with Tiffany really ticked me off.) He also seems really indecisive about what he wants. He tells Julie he wants a temporary thing, but then he gets upset over her possibly seeing other guys. Really though, this is typical male behavior so Ms. Pettersen did a great job.
I first read Jockeys and Jewels by Bev Pettersen and I really enjoyed it, but this one is even better.
First of all, it needs to be said that Color My I first read Jockeys and Jewels by Bev Pettersen and I really enjoyed it, but this one is even better.
First of all, it needs to be said that Color My Horse is NOT a sequel. It can stand alone.
Second, the mystery isn’t as dominate in this one as it was in Jockeys. The mystery in this one revolves around a few mysterious people hanging around the horse track stealing cell phones, brandishing knives, following the heroine, Jessica, and attempting to feed Breeder’s Cup horses poisoned carrots. There’s a Middle Eastern connection entwined somehow.. Jockeys was about jewels and a smuggling operation... for full review, please check it out in October's Lit Asylum.
I first read Jockeys and Jewels by Bev Pettersen and I really enjoyed it, but this one is even better.
First of all, it needs to be said that Color My Horse is NOT a sequel. It can stand alone.
Second, the mystery isn’t as dominate in this one as it was in Jockeys. The mystery in this one revolves around a few mysterious people hanging around the horse track stealing cell phones, brandishing knives, following the heroine, Jessica, and attempting to feed Breeder’s Cup horses poisoned carrots. There’s a Middle Eastern connection entwined somehow.. Jockeys was about jewels and a smuggling operation... for full review, please check it out in October's Lit Asylum.
The blurb had me at "suffragette". The Alaska setting sealed the deal. A suffragette in Frontier Alaska solving murders. This is the first in a seriesThe blurb had me at "suffragette". The Alaska setting sealed the deal. A suffragette in Frontier Alaska solving murders. This is the first in a series. The writing is good, though I never felt I really got to know the heroine. There was a feeling of disconnection for some reason, but it could be because I just didn't like her much. Her allusions to her torrid past and the circumstances in it kind of put me off.
I found the plot pretty predictable until the very end. I didn't see the twist with her brother coming.
The setting is well done, capturing the frontier feeling along with the "let's get this place civilized" vibe.
But, really, while I enjoyed this enough, there is nothing about it to make it stand out from any other mysteries....more
I've really been enjoying this series since I picked it up at book three and despite missing books one and two, I have never felt like I'm missing anyI've really been enjoying this series since I picked it up at book three and despite missing books one and two, I have never felt like I'm missing anything, thought I can't for the life of me remember her previous experience with Agent Williams. Either he was in book one or two, or there's been too much time between novels and I've forgotten.
But I digress. Louise is a former clerk for America's secret agency. It's WWII and she's in D.C. working a new job with the Foreign Morale committee. I've heard of this before and this is extremely interesting to me. During the war, we made fake letters and postcards and graffiti to discourage Nazis and German soldiers...to lower their morale. Louise takes us into the backrooms of this project. Her mission is to turn German POWs who've recently been incarcerated in the States. They are needed to plant the propaganda behind enemy lines.
But while interviewing the POWs Louise gets involved in a murder mystery.
And her secret lover pops up again, though there's very little of this twist this time.
I like how the author delves into the attitudes toward women and women working during the war, the changing attitudes and the resistors. The writing is stellar, and I must applaud the author for something. Often when reading mysteries in which there are a lot of suspects, I grow confused. Too many characters are introduced too soon and too many backgrounds, causing me to lose track of who is who. Not so in this novel. All the prisoners relevant to the story are introduced with just enough detail that we can tell them apart and remember who's who.
I wanted to love this. I'm a huge fan of this author and this series. The laughs in the first three books.... The problem is I've come to expect that I wanted to love this. I'm a huge fan of this author and this series. The laughs in the first three books.... The problem is I've come to expect that from the rest of the series. And it's not working out that way. Book four didn't make me laugh as much as I'd hoped. This one, book five, didn't make me laugh at all. Perhaps the humor has petered out? It just got too technical for me too. It's getting way into computer stuff, which I have no interest in at all. I think some of the fun has gone out of it, also, because Lexi has finally settled down with a love interest....more
Dr. Dody is back, and better than ever. While this novel doesn't explore too deeply the prejudice she faces in her line of work (she's a death doctor Dr. Dody is back, and better than ever. While this novel doesn't explore too deeply the prejudice she faces in her line of work (she's a death doctor in Victorian England for those just now hearing about this series), it does explore a different kind of prejudice toward women during those times. There's an epidemic sweeping the country. Women are being declared insane and thrown into institutions where horrific surgeries are performed on them.
Dody's sister Florence plays a huge role in this novel as circumstances lead to her being incarcerated on the inside. Behind the scenes is Dody with her breaking and entering, Pike ready to acquire search warrants, suffragists running in front of the king's horse (real event included in the story), and doctors will ill intentions.
And that's not all. More drama ensues with the maid's beau, tensions rise at police headquarters, and Violet, Pike's daughter, shows a headstrong side. Dody and Pike continue their romance nevertheless, but it appears their secret is no longer a secret and women did not take lovers and maintain careers both back then. So there's a lot of tension in this story. And did I mention female genital mutilation? Talk about frightening.
This is a very dark historical tale/mystery following disturbed people with diseases, sexual desires, secrets, and religious delusions. Some of the ocThis is a very dark historical tale/mystery following disturbed people with diseases, sexual desires, secrets, and religious delusions. Some of the occurrences within shocked me. It made me think of a historical Patricia Cornwell novel with this heroine, Maddie, as the historical Dr. Scarpetta.
It's very long ago France. Women still wear corsets. Men inherit everything. Women are NOT supposed to be doctors, let alone coroners or the like, but Maddie wants to do this above all else and a carriage accident finally provides her the chance to step into her father's shoes for a while and get in on a case involving dead bodies on ice, wolves, a convent, and nasty little mites in the nose.
And then there's a very dashing professor who suddenly has his sights on Maddie.
There were lots of twists and turns in this story. The mystery is not easy to piece together. Too many of the characters withhold information. I was kept guessing and as I said above, repeatedly shocked. The heroine is strong but not unbelievably so. She has her moments in which she's shaken by what's she witnessed--understandably. She has good intentions and a lot of drive.
I think the story lacked emotion though. There were many instances with her, her father, the professor, others, that I felt exhibited too little emotion for the situation; they were a bit too robotic. Despite this, the writing itself is stellar.
The ending didn't adequately explain some things for me. It's hard for me to convey what I mean without putting spoilers in this though. There are many things in the story that I mustn't reveal.
And to be frank, I found some things just a bit too perverted. I was saying, "Um, seriously? That's sick."
I had an absolutely good time reading this historical mystery with the most intriguing cast of characters--from Thomas Edison to J.P. Putnam to Tesla I had an absolutely good time reading this historical mystery with the most intriguing cast of characters--from Thomas Edison to J.P. Putnam to Tesla (Yes, Tesla was responsible for AC electricity. We're not talking about the car.)
But in the middle of the drama--Who invented what? Who's stealing what? Who is Bowler Hat going to kill next? And heck, even the invention of the electric chair--and the interesting characters, the heroine of the story steals the show. Mary.
Mary's mother is ashamed of her. Mary is unconventional. She doesn't want to get married and have babies. She can't even make French toast. And she curses sometimes. She wants to be a detective. She runs through the streets after bad guys, tearing at her corset so she can breathe. She's scandalous!
And I loved her. She stands up for herself and others, does the right thing, and has a sense of humor, or at least the narrative does. The narrative is different, in a good way. It head hops skillfully between characters, is in third person, and is not jarring. It's very well done.
I'm enjoying this historical mystery series. In this one we follow Mrs. Stayton (I still rather think of her as a younger Miss Marple though) and her I'm enjoying this historical mystery series. In this one we follow Mrs. Stayton (I still rather think of her as a younger Miss Marple though) and her companion Lucy as they board a Titanic-like ship in the late twenties, departing England and going to America, where Mrs. X (Stayton) plans to confront a literary agent who for reasons unknown rejected her first mystery novel.
And it wouldn't be a Mrs. X book without a murder.
Think Clue but on a ship.
We know the weapon was a scarf...but was it Mr. Farquhar, with the scarf, in room B1, or Simone Wainwright with the scarf in B25? Gerald maybe, on the promenade?
The murder occurs a bit late and from that point on it's very climatic and then it's like reading a tennis match with the whodunit changing every other page, but this was done in an exciting way. Like I said, Clue.
And I was chuckling from the very first page, with her letter to the Red Star Line. What a terrific way to start a story!
The cast of characters, though unlikable, is very entertaining. There's a woman and her husband who survived the sinking of Tatiana due to her incredible grip. There's a crabby Russian countess. There's adultery, foot fetish...each page contains a surprise.
And I never figured it all out, not until Mrs. X was laying out some clues. That's when I pieced it together.
I really like these stories, the writing style, the bits of humor, all of it. I look forward to the next one. My only quibble would have to be that Mrs. X is far too perfect and nice, to the point it's not really believable....
Harriet is a P.I. Her thing is scams. But people keep bringing her murders...and that's no exception in book four of this Dirty Harriet series. Her foHarriet is a P.I. Her thing is scams. But people keep bringing her murders...and that's no exception in book four of this Dirty Harriet series. Her former flighty Boca babe friend is in rehab to get clean from a coke addiction. While in there, she's certain that teenagers are being murdered daily... At first Harriet thinks her friend has lost her marbles, but a visit to the clinic has her checking in herself (and her inner vigilante).
And don't think for a second that Harriet's being checked into a clinic means she doesn't manage to get a little help from her friends and our favorite characters: Enrique, her new stepdad, the Countess...
And who knew Lana the alligator had a great nephew?
I felt like this one was a little shorter than the other books, but that could just be me. I get so engrossed in these funny, witty stories with this tough, kick-butt heroine, I really never want the books to end. The humor, though tamer this time around, was still rampant--more in sarcasm and observations from Harriet than actual happenings. The book has mystery, anticipation (she really sorta needs to get this thing solved in 24 hours so she can see her sexy karate (Crav Magna?) instructor, humor, and this time around we also get to see a more vulnerable side to Harriet as her situation brings back things from her past.
I figured out the mystery before Harriet did, but I must give the author points for a totally new idea. I can honestly say I've never read a situation like this one. It's def unique and intriguing. I think my only complaint about this story is...the setting. Harriet is usually out riding her hog and getting into all kinds of trouble. But in this tale, she's confined to the rehab clinic. This bothered me for some reason. But it was certainly bothering Harriet too, so maybe we're intended to feel that way along with her!
Not for me. Too biographical and not fiction feeling enough. And the italics....in which the author seems to be talking TO us and relating a ton of faNot for me. Too biographical and not fiction feeling enough. And the italics....in which the author seems to be talking TO us and relating a ton of facts has really messed the whole thing up for me. ...more
I zipped through this novel in almost a day. I love a good mystery. I love being kept in suspense. I love the idea of this story. At first it starts iI zipped through this novel in almost a day. I love a good mystery. I love being kept in suspense. I love the idea of this story. At first it starts in 2015. A young wanna-be writer is inspired when she walks through another woman's art gallery. She determines she's going to write a book based on an unsolved murder on the coast of Oregon.
Then it goes back to 2005. Megan Cahill is found carrying a gun, staring out to sea on the beach by a photographer. The famous photo is taken, shooting the photographer to amazing career heights. Megan's husband is dead in the house behind them. Her ex-husband is found dead later that week. Everything seems to surround Megan. Surely she has something to do with it all...
It also takes us back about five years before this murder, and delves into the connection between a prosecutor investigating the Cahill case and the photographer/witness who had a drug problem.
It seems everyone is tied into the mess in some way, even if they don't realize it--a former prosecutor, a former pro football player, all kinds of interesting characters. I'd like to add that characterization was superb. Despite all the people involved and changing POVs, I always knew who was who by their distinctive personalities.
I confess I knew whodunnit a lot sooner than I would have liked, but the story still managed to keep me in suspense. While I knew who the main culprit was, I honestly thought others were involved too and was constantly trying to pinpoint just who was involved and how it was all done.
And though I really enjoyed this novel and mystery, I did find a few things that bugged me. 1. The lack of emotion/feeling/description. This was almost too much telling, not enough showing. I found it kind of funny when the novelist in the story thinks, "What did the wind off the ocean feel like when Megan Cahill stood on the shore looking out to sea? What did the sand feel like as she walked across the beach from her house?..." The writer in the book seems to realize she needs those details while the actual writer didn't. 2. It's almost 2015 now, as I write this, just a week to go...and I'm just your average computer user--nothing fancy--but even I know how to flip and reverse photos in Paint program.
It's not often I pick up a Kindle freebie by an author I've never heard of before and find a gem of a story. They are usually so/so. This one is quiteIt's not often I pick up a Kindle freebie by an author I've never heard of before and find a gem of a story. They are usually so/so. This one is quite good! Think Miss Marple, forty years younger, with twice the humor.
Young Mrs. X, widowed now three years, fancies herself a mystery writer all of a sudden and her and her companion set off for a house in the country...where between a very wacky family and servants, they run into a REAL murder.
The style takes some getting used to at first. The narrative is in first person--not a problem--but it's as if you're reading the manuscript of her story. It even has little notes to her editor or agent in parenthesis. This irritated me at first, but I came to understand it and once I got over the initial feeling of being "jarred" by it, I was no longer bothered.
I enjoyed the heroine and laughed so many times...I lost count. From the dog named Bugger to the sarcastic remarks exchanged between these family members who loathe each other so much... There's not only a murder mystery here, but secrets from the war, the mystery circumstances of her own husband's death, the way she calmly handles the personal questions...there's actually a lot going on in this "little" story.
This is a light mystery set in 1911 London. Actually, the word "light" is probably wrong. After all, a woman is shot to death in Hyde Park. That's serThis is a light mystery set in 1911 London. Actually, the word "light" is probably wrong. After all, a woman is shot to death in Hyde Park. That's serious stuff. But the telling of it all, the lack of emotions from the characters gave it a light feel.
Except for a nervous Bridget (the niece) and a flighty sister, the women in the story were like robots: the assistant, the daughter. The men seemed to be fleshed out a little more, namely the beau and the nephew. (The husband didn't seem as affected as I would expect.) I guess that would be my main quibble with the book and I'll just get that out of the way. The characterizations were presented to us in such a way that while we're given lots of details (some of them impertinent to the story) about each character, we never come to care for them at all. At least I didn't.
The story itself, the plot, is really somewhat exciting. A wealthy married woman who writes racy romances in her free time and has a male companion (not her husband) taking her to shows and riding with her in the park is just shot dead one day. There's missing property, Russian connections, and strange secrets about her popping up here and there during the investigation.
At the heart of it all is the possible beau who really wants the woman's daughter, the robotic daughter, a bluestocking niece, a flighty sister, a husband with a missing gun, and a mysterious assistant as well as a nephew who runs a controversial newspaper. The story throws just enough details at you to throw you off and keep you guessing. What does one have to do with the other? Is this even relevant, you wonder as you read and pick up clues.
But it's rather slow and on top of my above quibble, I also grew irritated at the "jumping" around. Example: The scene is on Marcus. He is about to go visit the newspaper. Scene ends. Then it goes to the daughter and Marcus shows up to visit her. I thought he was going to the paper? Then he sits down to tell her about his trip to the paper and we jump to that scene.... I'd prefer it be in chronological order. There was also something off with the historical aspect. It's a historical setting--with horses, dresses, rules and etiquette, and a coronation, but I never felt transported as I tend to do with good historicals.
This is book four in the Louise Pearlie series. (I only read book three before reading this one and I haven't been one bit lost.) Louise is a woman whThis is book four in the Louise Pearlie series. (I only read book three before reading this one and I haven't been one bit lost.) Louise is a woman who works for the OSS during WWII, in D.C. What's the OSS? I can't remember what exactly it stands for, but think of it as an early version of the NSA. Louise's official task: filing clerk, but what she really does is decipher and translate and record mysterious data and notes and whatnot from spies overseas and searches for spies here at home.
What I really enjoy about this series, besides a heroine who knows her own mind, sticks up for others, and is intensely independent, is the historical setting. Through her we see the housing situation/rules in D.C. during that time, learn of all the political tension and how one must watch what they say, and meet a variety of characters. In this one we meet a returning war vet missing his arm and though it's a small side story, find out why he's so angry and tired of being asked about his Purple Heart.
Side stories such as his really happened and make for thought-evoking reading.
Ms. Shaber even managed to put bits of the racial tension/situation in the States in this installment. I applaud the author for keeping Louise at the homefront. Her series shows that there was a LOT going on here too during the war.
And as usual, Louise's file clerk duties get set to the side when a higher up asks her for some discreet help. A little blunder lands her on the case of a murdered man. Was he murdered? Or was it an accident? But if he wasn't murdered, where is his wallet? And why was he being investigated by the OSS?
Page by page, secrets are revealed, but never enough to make me solve the case. I love it when I have no clue whodunnit or am proved wrong. I like a good surprise. The case/story is topped off with a very intense storm, more bloodshed, and a fearful night during which I wasn't sure the Louise was going to get out of the mess this time...
I was very excited about this, the second book in this series following a tough woman cop and her German Shepherd sidekick. Though the mystery was reaI was very excited about this, the second book in this series following a tough woman cop and her German Shepherd sidekick. Though the mystery was really tame and not very climatic, the humor is just fabulous and I do love a good chuckle.
The first one was more exciting, to be honest, as it followed this crazy "tunabomber" and it made me laugh out loud more. This one follows this slightly OTT twenty-one-year-old girl--come to think of it, from what I've seen of the younger generation, maybe this chick isn't so OTT after all...LOL--who feels she entitled to all the finer things in life and doesn't want to work for any of it. She wants to steal it. And she chooses the rodeo for her playground, which happens to be where Megan and Brigit the dog are patrolling.
I enjoyed the funny narrative, the thoughts everyone has, especially Brigit's, but even the bad girl's. Every single page had me smiling or chuckling or relating to some funny remark or thought.
I do dislike one thing. I hated knowing who the bad "guy" was. I like mysteries that force me to think about how it could be. Book one had it down pat. Even though it went into the perp's mind, we didn't know who the perp was, who Megan was associating with or questioning that could be the perp. In this book, Megan doesn't even run into the perp until the end and we, the readers, know it all along. The lack of connection between Megan and the perp makes for a lackluster mystery. There really is no mystery.
And some things were just off. Even Texas does background checks when you buy a gun.