Scandal in Silver

In Sandra Chastain's Scandal in Silver, the first installment in the Alexander sisters historical romance series, you'll be swept away by a beautiful and enchanting love story that came from the heart. During the Civil War, Sabrina's father wanted to mine the silver dream and be rich. But when he died in a cave-in, it left Sabrina and her four sisters alone. They needed someone to help mine the ore and to bury her father with their proper burial. So Sabrina left to go for help and encountered a treasonous massacre of Confederate soldiers and rescued the Misfits who were beaten and held captive. Sabrina rescues them and makes them her prisoners at her mountain home.  That's when she met Captain Quinton Colter, who had endured a lot of heartache of his own during the war. He was on a mission to confront a traitor who turned them in as the ultimate scapegoats. Not only did Sabrina fell in love with Colter, so did her sisters with Colter's men, except for her half-sister Raven, who was learning the ropes of her Native American Arapaho heritage with her grandfather. Other than dealing with danger on a war-torn ground, they followed their hearts to start a future in the end and a bright new adventure.

This was a beautiful classic loveswept story from the late Sandra Chastain. This was so romantic and enduring at the end of the Civil War. I cared for Sabrina and her sisters, who followed their hearts and set out for a romantic adventure with a former Yankee Rebel. This was so profound and enchanted to see how they dealt with loss and love in a swift timespan along the Colorado Territory. I loved the background of Colorado and the Civil War theme for the locations of that time period. This would make you sigh and cry and faint by these former soldiers as it would tug your heart strings real tight. Get swept away with romance, non-stop action, drama, intrigue and adventure.

Will you be daring to be a scandal in silver today?

State of the Onion

In Julie Hyzy's State of the Onion, the first installment in the White House Chef Mystery, if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. For Olivia Parras, her dream job is to be the executive chef of the White House and be in charge of the staff and menus. But she had a couple of obstacles in the way. It all started, when she picked up a present for her mentor Henry Cooler, who was retiring from his job. But when they were an intruder who invaded the White House's lawn, Ollie put a stop to it with her skillet. But as soon as the intruder was escorted away, she became hooked and intrigued into his warning shot about the president being in danger. Little did they know, things weren't cut and dried as it seemed. She had to contend with a lurking terrorist in the midst to followed her around, an insensitive sensitivity director who made life unbearable, and an arch rival for the coveted spot. With all this, she put herself into danger and became close of being killed, when she uncovered a ghastly plot from someone she knows in disguise. In the end, she came on top and unearthed a big hatched plot to ruin world peace between the nations.

This was a great culinary cozy debut with a great cast of characters. I liked Ollie and her determination to reach for the goals. I think she makes a great couple with Tom. I couldn't stand Sargent and Laurel Anne Braun. I loved the locations of the inner workings of the White House and the Washington D.C. Metro area. We do learn what goes behind the scenes in the White House's kitchen that you don't hear or see on TV. This would make you whet your appetite in every page turn and take you on a great journey. This was intrigue, suspense, non-stop action and plenty of drama.

Will you crave a reading of State of the Onion?

Too Hot to Handle

In Tessa Bailey's Too Hot to Handle, the first installment in the Romancing the Clarksons contemporary romance series, get ready to fan yourself and cool yourself with a hot glass of water. After Rita Clarkson had accidentally burned down her late mother's restaurant, she found an entry in her journal with her last wishes for Rita and her three siblings. To complete that final wish, they would have to take a road trip from Los Angeles to New York City. On the way there, their car breaks down in the middle of New Mexico, when help arrived on a motorcycle. The Good Samaritan who rescued them is named Jasper Ellis, who tried to live up to his grandfather's expectations. While the car's in the shop, both Rita and Jasper get to know each other better, while she tried to settle the peace between her brothers and sisters, who haven't seen each other in years.  But the chemistry between Jasper and Rita was steamy hot, ever since he kissed her and when they made love with each other. He helped her find peace and faith to cook again in the kitchen since the fiasco, while she also found a new home where she belonged with him and in his kitchen of his restaurant. While her sisters continued to road trip without her to NYC, she had found what she was looking for in a fresh new start.

This was a fantastic contemporary romance debut.  I adored Rita and her siblings, as they've tried to get along and make peace in the end with encouragement. I found Jasper hot and sexy altogether with his flannel shirt. I also cared for Rita, Aaron, and Belmont, as they've tried to make amends and help Rita out with her toughest decision to stay in Hurley, New Mexico.I found Hurley very picturesque for a small town in the middle of nowhere with all the right fixings for an idealistic location and settings. The chemistry between Rita and Jasper was hot all over. This would take you on a thrill ride with your emotions and senses as you would cry, sigh, and cheer on Rita in the end. This has plenty of romance and love with great drama, non-stop action, and a hint of humor.



Will you be too hot to handle to grab a copy today?

We'll Always Have Parrots

In Donna Andrews's We'll Always Have Parrots, the 5th installment of the Meg Langslow mystery series, this fast-paced mystery had brought a Hollywood flair to this novel with a dose of humor. When the Porfiria, Queen of the Jungle convention arrived in Los Angeles, it had drawn a huge following of fandom from that cult fantasy TV show. As Meg and Michael landed there, things had gotten awry. Parrots and monkeys invaded the hotel, and the main actress was a force to be reckoned with, even behind the scenes to run the show. With her bad temper, it had scared Meg's nephew Eric away for her autograph, when Meg had a choice word or two for her. But when she discovered her dead body in her hotel room, it became suspicious as she later learns that everyone had a bad word or two. With the police on the scene, Meg sleuths around to her history and the creator of the graphic novel before his untimely death, thirty years ago or so. As she pieces the puzzle together, she becomes suspicious of one person or another, when the truth leads to her to believe it was someone right under her nose in disguise. As she corners him with her suspicions, he pulls the fast moves on him until he's captured by the police to find out why before the weekend's over.

This was a great mystery from the fabulous Donna Andrews. I cared so much and a lot for Meg and Michael, while they tried to work out the next step of the relationship. I thought Salome the tiger, the monkeys and the parrots were a hoot. I loved the crazy Porfiria cast of characters, behind and in front of the camera. I loved the Hollywood flair of taking it to a new level of learning about fan fiction, Hollywood, and graphic novels. This would reel you into a great quick read with oodles of humor and will get you absorbed into the novel, like you were transported there from outerspace. Plenty of drama, non-stop action, intrigue and some dollops of humor along the way from start to finish.

Will you check out We'll Always Have Parrots today?

Immaculate Reception

In Jerrilyn Farmer's Immaculate Reception, the second installment in the Madeline Bean culinary cozy series, things get heated and a bit controversial with past historical topics. Months after the debacle from the previous incident, Madeline and her two associates started a new catering company together. When they received an invitation to cater the pope's arrival in Los Angeles, things get a bit dicey, when she discovered a hidden confession from a Jesuit priest in a folder of recipes for making bread. She became intrigued and asked her ex-fiancé's help, when they talked about the discovery and started investigating into the matter. While preparations are in full swing, during the viewing of a sitcom, a friend of Brother Xavier's had gotten murdered. While the cops believed a gang banger did it, she thought so otherwise. And then she's been harassed after speaking to the monsignor about the letter, and a day later, he turned up died. Later on, she unearthed something in his English journals and dug around by asking Victor Zoda, who had a hidden past. During the pontiff's visit, things turn awry, when Xavier gets handcuffed to a crate, and Zoda escapes the clutches of the cops, when Maddie corners him and fends for himself to find out why he had done it in the end.

This was another great catering culinary cozy in the series. I really like Madeline and haow she made a fresh start with her catering company to make their first big event a success in th end. I found Holly and Wes a hoot. I didn't like Dottie much and Arlo was a bit much. But I could see her hooked up with Chuck if things pan out well. I loved the California backdrop of Los Angeles for the scenic settings and locations. This would give you a great read to learn about the Jesuit order of priesthood and a great caper to get a feel for things, even with such history from World War Two. This has great drama, non-stop action, intrigue, good recipes, and plenty of mystery to go around.

Will you be invited to the Immaculate Reception?

Peachtree Road

In Anne Rivers Siddon's Peachtree Road, a long saga and coming-of-age historical woman's fiction novel that takes place from the 1950s to the 1970s in Atlanta, Georgia. Told from the narrator, Shephard Bondurant, he told the story about the arrival of his cousin Lucy and the life they lived on Peachtree Road with his aunt and two other cousins all in one roof. Throughout the years, these two cousins were inseparable as siblings, he told how Lucy came into their lives and how she became a hellion in such a young life.  While it mainly focused on Shep "Gibby" Bondurant through his lives, it showcased how they grew up in a rich family through the changing years. While Lucy hadn't known her father, Shep was close to his folks as an only child, until they've grown apart. In three parts, this reflected on their adolescent youth to how Shep found true love with his neighbor Sarah Cameron, while Lucy had a rough childhood and a turbulent marriage at a young age. Later on, they grew up to deal with such heartache from loss in family and friends, broken hearts, domestic violence and abuse, and for Lucy, motherhood. After Lucy gave birth to Malory, her only daughter, Shep told how he had dealt with Lucy's manic depression and alcoholic days and the many treatments she went through to clean up her act. After when she had a clean slate with some happiness as Malory grew up and found love of her own, Shep told how Lucy snapped until he couldn't deal with her anymore, until her own death happened to bring it full circle to how the story started.

Although long, this was a heart-wrenching historical Southern woman's fiction novel. I did care for Gibby, who had been dealt with a lot in the span of the story. And every chance he wanted to get with Sarah, his cousin called, until it tore them apart. I did feel sorry for Lucy, when she had harbored a lot of abuse and mental issues throughout the years, until she took matters in her own hands at the end. I did love the backdrop of Atlanta and NYC for the dual locations of the novel's settings, and how it changed and shifted throughout three decades or so along with the times. Though we might now know the mystery if Gibby really had fathered Malory or not. This would make you want to cry, yell, and sigh for the long haul. This has plenty of non-stop drama, action, romance, and plenty of intrigue on how they grew up and dealt with it all from start to finish.

Will you visit Peachtree Road?

Fatal Fiction

In Kym Roberts's Fatal Fiction, the first installment in the Book Barn Mystery cozy series, this startling debut has plenty of humor and lots of intrigue. When Charlie Rae Warren came home to help her father out by selling the bookstore in Hazel Rock, Texas, she had stumbled into a murder at the same store. From there, she became a suspect, while her father was missing and have been presumed to be missing from the law, she took matters into her own hands to clear his name. She came across her high school boyfriend and the new sheriff, while she looked for new suspects and new clues. While she tried to save the store by revamping it, she learned rumors and idle gossip into the small town. Someone tried to sabotage her and cause her a scare. After her father turned up, she faced the hard core truth of who really was the killer and why, when she finally had figured it out in the end.

This was a fantastic cozy mystery debut. I really cared about Charli Warren, a biracial girl living in the small town. That's really diverse and something more we would love to see more often in any genre novel. I found Cade and Mateo and Scarlet, all charming in their own way. I loved how they came together to save the small town store to raise money and make a good profit. And you've got to love Princess, the pink armadillo! That cracked me up! This would take you into a great new world of cozy mysteries. This would make you laugh and groan and root for Charli Rae. This has drama, a hint of romance and good humor, non-stop action and plenty of intrigue.

Will you check out Fatal Fiction today?