My Current Interest

Image provided by Kensington Books. I was so excited when Premeditated Peppermint arrived in the mail.   It was sent to me as an advanced copy (without a promise of a review) because I had reviewed a previous book in the Amish Candy Shop mystery series.   Eager to know what was going to happen next to Bailey, it didn’t take me even twenty-four hours to read the book once I had started it.   Yet, despite my enjoyment of the story, I waited to post about it.   I wanted to be sure others were able to buy the book or get it from the library before I said a word.                 It’s time for the Christmas Market in the Amish community of Harvest, Ohio.   Chocolatier Bailey King is busy making peppermint treats in her grandmother’s Amish candy shop when the last person she ever expects walks through the door.   That person is her ex-boyfriend, celebrity chef, Eric Sharp. ...

             It took me awhile to read this Witchcraft Mystery , which is unusual for me.   Normally I read these books very quickly after I pick them up from the library.   I think I hesitated this time because I was concerned about Lily and Sailor’s relationship.   People around Lily keep saying that because she is a witch she cannot have love.   I would hate to see something happen that would lead that to be true.                 It was only a matter of time before Oscar, Lily’s familiar, got Lily into trouble.   Always up to something, Oscar was in his pig form when he headbutted a woman in Lily’s store.   Now the woman, Autumn Jennings, is suing Lily for what Oscar did.   Lily does not think things need to go that far, and that the matter can be handled personally.   She goes to Autumn’s vintage shop to talk things out, but ...

             I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before, but this series really does get better and better.   Every Magical Cats Mystery book I read, I seem to enjoy a little bit more than the one before it.   That is not something I can say about every series, but I certainly can about this one.                 The citizens of Mayville Heights, Minnesota are in a debate over a new development that wants to come to town.   Librarian Kathleen Paulson is against the development, but she respects the opinions of those who are for it.   One of the big concerns Kathleen has is about the feral cats she takes care of.   People have a tendency to abandon their personally owned cats with the feral cats so they can be found by either Kathleen or one of her friends who also cares for them.   If there is a development being built near where the cats live,...

             It took me two tries to watch The Zookeeper’s Wife .   That’s because the first disc I got was so scratched up I couldn’t watch it.   Thankfully, the second disc was in much better condition, because I would have hated to have missed such a great film.                            Based upon a true story, The Zookeeper’s Wife starts just before the Second World War.   The young Z abin ski family runs the Warsaw Zoo in Poland, with Dr. Jan Z abin ski (Johan Heldenbergh) serving as the zoo director.   While everyone in the family and staff helps care for the animals, it is Antonina (Jessica Chastain), Jan’s wife, who has a special connection with them.   The animals follow Antonina around the zoo, and she is the one who can calm them down when they are in distress.   For Antonina, t...

Image provided by Crooked Lane Books.              When I saw Amanda Flower was going to have a book about a magic garden, I was very excited.   I have enjoyed so many other series of Ms. Flower's (as you can probably tell if you’ve read my blog for a while), I did not have any doubt I would enjoy this one too.   Unfortunately, when I was able to get Flowers and Foul Play from the library , I had to cram though it in seven days.   I don’t like doing that, but for a book I was waiting so long to read, I was perfectly willing to do it.                   Life has not gone according to plan for Fiona Knox.   She had to close her flower shop because competition opened up nearby.   Then her fiancé left her for their cake decorator.   Finally, her godfather, Ian MacCallister, died, eliminating a support Fiona always expected to have. ...

              I found this Library Lover’s mystery series because I came across one of its books in a Little Free Library .   As usual, the book I found was not the first in the series.   In fact, it was pretty far down the line, making it even more important that I start for the beginning.   Not that I wouldn’t have anyways.                          Lindsey Norris is the new director of the Briar Creek Public library.   Even though she is new to this small, northeast town, pretty much everyone loves what Lindsey is doing with the library.   Everyone except for Ms. Cole, the head of Circulation.   She is a very disapproving woman who constantly brings up the previous library director as though his methods were the only way to do anything.   Fortunately, Lindsey has the support of the library boa...

Image provided by Kensington Books.              When I saw the second book in the Amish Candy Shop mystery series was coming out, I was eager to give it a try.   With a mix of characters who are Amish and English (Englisch), and those who live in the town and those from New York City, I was curious to see how everyone was going to get along in this second book.   I’m sad to say, not well.                           New York City chocolatier Bailey King has entered the Amish Confectionary Competition in place of her deceased grandfather.   While this would not seem like a problem since Bailey does work in her family’s Amish candy shop, not everyone is happy Bailey is in the competition.   She is what the Amish call an “Englischer”.   Despite where she works, and being fully willing to follow the c...