Tempest in the Tea Leaves by Kari Lee Townsend

#1 Fortune Teller Mystery
Copyright: 2011
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 294
Challenges: Cozy Mystery Challenge
Author's Website
My rating: 3/5


Simple Description:
Sunny has moved to a small town in New York where she is going to start her dream of being a fortune teller, much to the joy of her parents.
Her very first client, however, has a negative reading.  Sunny see’s her death in the near future.   She waits an hour after the lady leaves before calling the police and reporting what she saw.  She’s too late though. 

When the cops get to the house of her first client the detective finds the client dead, murdered.  Sunny is the prime suspect.  As luck would have it, the police do ask Sunny to help them with the investigation and she is determined to prove her innocence.


My Thoughts:
I’m torn on this one.  I felt it was good but there were some things that bothered me about it.  I don’t really think it’s believable that the police would ask Sunny to help investigate, so that bothered me the whole time.  I also felt that Sunny was rather immature at times, I can’t remember her exact age but believe it’s light 20’s or 30.  I just feel like she should have acted her age more.

However, I do think the series has promise.  I didn’t hate the book, I did enjoy it, you just have to get past the issues mentioned above.  Sunny is a very interesting character and she has a lot of spunk.  I think this is a character that could really develop and grow on me.  I also like the hunky police detective, but then, who wouldn’t?   I hope the next book in the series includes more of the fortune teller aspect because that’s part of what drew me to the book and it seemed to take 2nd stage most of the time.



Thanks to the author for providing this book for review.

Vision Impossible by Victoria Laurie

#9 Psychic Eye Mystery
Copyright: 2011
Publisher: Obsidian
Genre: mystery
Pages: 358
Challenges:  cozy mystery challenge

Vision Impossible picks up where A Glimpse of Evil ends.  Abby and Dutch have agreed to go undercover to help retrieve a drone that was stolen from the government.  This is a very important weapon for the US government and if in the wrong hands, well, let's just say that wouldn't be good.  

Dutch impersonates a known arms dealer and Abby is his, well, she starts out as his girlfriend and then switches to assistant.  It seems nothing will go as planned though, from the arms dealer's girlfriend showing up to Dutch being captured by one of the men who might know where the drone is, to Abby's life being threatened.

I found this to be another wonderful addition to the series.  I say this each time I review a book in the series but I'll say it again, this is by far one of my favorite series.  I love Abby and Dutch.  Their characters are very well created.  I enjoy the mix of paranormal, mystery, and humor that the author is able to create with each new addition to the series.  If you haven't tried this series yet, I definitely recommend giving it a shot...but starting with book one of course.

A Taste of the Nightlife by Sarah Zettel

#1  Vampire Chef Mystery
Copyright: 2011
Publisher: Obsidian
Genre: mystery
Pages: 297
Challenges: New Author,  1st in a series, Cozy mystery challenge
Author's Website
My rating: 4/5

Simple Description: 
Charlotte Cain is a chef at her own restaurant, Nightlife.  Her brother is a vampire and he is co-owner and works out on the floor while she handles the kitchen.   She has created a menu that both the humans and vampires can enjoy.  Now they just need to make sure they stay in business long enough to start making some money.    Things are going well until there is an altercation in the dining room one night.  The night that a famous vampire food critic happens to be dining there.  The altercation is between a vampire and a couple of witches.    As if that isn't bad enough, one of the witches is found in her restaurant the next day.  Dead. His blood drained.

Charlotte was going to let the police Paranormal squad handle things, but then it looks like her vampire brother might be involved somehow.   She wants to figure out what is going on and possibly keep him out of trouble.  With the help of a famous witch and a famous vampire, she just might do that..if she isn't killed first.

My Thoughts: 
What a fantastic start to a new series!  You know me, I like my vampires and witches.  When I had the chance to get a review copy of this book there was no way I could pass on it.  I loved Charlotte.  She was fun. She had spunk.  Sure, she had her problems but she's a great character.  

I thought the author did a good job introducing us to what life is like in her book..where vampires are out in the open and there are witches, without having to sit down and outline it all for us.  It was easy to follow and felt natural.

I thought the story moved along pretty well and it kept my interest.  It felt like it took me forever to finish this book but that had nothing to do with the book but rather my busy life.   I definitely recommend this one to cozy fans who enjoy urban fantasy too.     Just one note, there is some cursing in this story.  I thought it went well with the character and it seemed natural. It didn't bother me at all. I only mention it because normally you don't see this with cozies and I know some don't like it, so wanted to make sure you were aware.


Thanks to the publisher for providing this book for review.

Grace Interrupted by Julie Hyzy

#2 Manor House Mystery
Copyright: 2011
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime
Genre: Pages: 288
Challenges: Cozy Mystery Challenge, 2011 Pub Challenge
Author's Website
My rating: 3




Simple Description:
It hasn't been that long since the last murder at Marshfield Manor but it appears they are going to be dealing with another.  There is a group doing a civil war re-enactment on the property.   This would be fine except that two women try to sneak into the encampment, which is off limits to guests, so they can taser a guy.  When that guy shows up, he ends up punching one of the gardeners.   This guy is then found the next morning, murdered.  The cops think it's the gardener, since there is bad blood between the two families.  This isn't the only murder they have been involved in.   Grace doesn't believe the gardener is the one who did it and sets out to see if she can figure out who the real murderer is.


My Thoughts: 
I thought this was an excellent follow up to the first in the series, Grace Under Pressure.  Grace is a lovable character.  She has her faults but you know she's a nice person and like her.  The series even has the dreaded awful character, but in this one you see that she isn't so bad.  Well, at least not all the time.

I personally thought the civil-war re-enactment part was interesting.  I haven't done my own research to see if what was mentioned is really how things work, but I enjoyed reading about it. I also find it fitting that this is the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War and I've been reading a lot of articles and watching lots of shows. So it was a fun addition to the series for me.



Thanks to the author for providing this book for review.

Hexes and Hemlines by Juliet Blackwell

#3 Witchcraft
Copyright: 2011
Publisher: Signet
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 336
Challenges: Cozy Mystery Challenge
Author's Website
My rating: 3.5


Simple Description: 
Lily's friend at the police station asks her to visit a crime scene with him because he wants her opinion.  When she gets there she see's the dead body on the table, under a ladder.  The superstitions don't stop there, add in a black cat, a horse shoe over the door, a sparrow and others and Lily knows something out of the ordinary is going on.

Lily isn't officially part of the investigation but when her friend's daughter is connected to the murdered man and her husband is mixed up in it, she feels it's a threat against her and her friends that she can't ignore.  Things get worse when she realizes other witches, very powerful witches, are involved.

My Thoughts: 
I thought this was a great follow-up to the other two, a great continuation of the series.  I really like Lily, how can you not love her?  She's always felt like an outcast and she's finally trying to stay put in one place and have friends and be normal, but it seems the world has other things planned out for her.

In this one you see more of Aidan and Sailor, another witch and a physic.  You also learn more about Lily's past.  All this just makes the book better, in my opinion.

You all know me, I like the paranormal and this book is right up my alley.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and encourage you to check out the series if you haven't already.

Thanks to the Publisher for providing this book for review.

Flowerbed of State by Dorothy St. James

#1 White House Garden Mystery
Copyright: 2011
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 307
Challenges: Cozy Mystery Challenge
Author's Website
My rating: 3/5

Simple Description:
Casey hasn't been at the White House long but she already loves her job.  She's an assistant gardener and has plans to put the White House on an organic gardening plan.   However, just hours before she is supposed to give her proposal to the first lady and the committee, she is attacked while weeding a flower bed.  She doesn't remember much, other than seeing a man in a baseball cap and very distinct shoes.

When the secret service show up to help her, they soon find a dead body.   Casey reads a lot of mystery novels and believes she could be a really good sleuth.   When one of her co-workers is brought in for questioning she promises him she will find the murderer.

Casey knows she needs a sidekick and thinks one of the secret service men she has been in contact with could help her, only he doesn't give up any information.   Soon more people are attacked and Casey knows the police and FBI are missing something important, but just exactly what that is she doesn't know. yet.

My Thoughts:
At first I wasn't sure about this one.  I loved the idea of it, I'm a big organic person myself and am working on growing some veggies using organic soil and methods myself.  So the organic gardening part of the mystery is what first drew me too it.  However once I started I wasn't so sure how I would like it.  I'm happy to report that I was soon caught up in the story and ended up really enjoying it.  I cant' say exactly what kept me from liking it from the very beginning, first book in a series jitters perhaps?  Whatever it was, I'm glad I stuck with it.

I ended up really liking Casey.  Sure..she does some snooping on her own but not a whole lot. I liked that the story followed her on her normal duties and she got the snooping in when she saw the chance come up. I also like that her sidekick didn't blab all the details about the investigation.  He didn't really give her any clues and that was a welcome change.  I can't imagine investigators do talk to just anybody about the details yet in most cozies they seem to open up without any problems.  So the fact that that wasn't the case with this book was nice.

This was a great start to a new cozy series, definitely one I'll be following.


Thanks to the publisher for providing this book for review.