Tag: More Mystery Please

Brilliant thriller

Like Double Dutch making quarter turns, changing directions just when you think you know the next jump, USA Today bestselling author Joshua Moehling expertly bobs and weaves together a brilliant thriller in Beneath a Broken Sky.

In this fourth book in his Ben Packard series, we find our detective and the folks of Sandy Lake, Michigan dealing with suffocating heat, along with the aftermath of not just a tornado that caused major damage to the town, but also the smoke and ongoing threat of nearby wildfires.

An unexpected visit from the sister of a former lover, the murder of a mom, who had threatened legal action after her gay son was bullied and his car was vandalized, and whose husband was unfaithful has a tired, shorthanded Ben pushed to the limits.

The only downside to the novel is that reading about men who can’t make up their minds proves tiresome after a while, so I do hope that Ben, who for now remains my favorite hunky detective, will make up his mind when it comes to his love life.

I highly recommend Beneath a Broken Sky to fans of mystery, thriller, suspense and LGBTQ+ fiction. I received an advance copy of Beneath a Broken Sky, from Poisoned Pen Press, courtesy of NetGalley.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop

Delicious debut

In the much anticipated The Belgravia Phantom, Ellis Blackwood has delivered another delicious debut with his new Quill and Page Mystery Series.

Having put the acclaimed 17th century Samuel Pepys Mysteries to bed earlier this year, Blackwood has brought another world artfully to life in exquisite detail — this time Victorian England, Settles Street in the East End of London.

That’s where we get to know a rich ensemble of colorful characters: Kate Quill, a wrongfully dismissed lady’s maid now forced to take in mending to pay the rent, her three siblings, their ragamuffin friends, an all-knowing Irish landlady, not to mention the meticulous, former gentleman’s gentleman, Frederick Page.

Each has their own talents, including some which may or not have been acquired in the course of petty thievery, ala The Artful Dodger. After Kate takes a job as a medium’s assistant, it will take every last one of the Settles Street crew to try and prove her innocence before police bring Kate in for the murder of her former employer, who was killed during the séance.

I loved getting to know the entire Quill clan, and enjoyed the thrilling chase for Lady Pemberton’s killer, with as many twists and turns as suspects. Especially with more than a tease to their next adventure, featuring one of my favorite characters, I can’t wait to read the next Quill and Page installment and highly recommend The Belgravia Phantom to historical mystery fans.

I received an advance reader’s copy of The Belgravia Phantom, courtesy of the author and Vintage Mystery Press. Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop

Death of an Ex

Life and its secrets can be messy. Delia Pitts captures every nuanced layer of private investigator Vandy Myrick’s in Death of an Ex.

This second book of the Vandy Myrick mysteries finds Vandy visiting her mother’s and her daughter Monica’s graves, after receiving a settlement check from those held responsible for Monica’s death, three years earlier.

After running into her ex and his son at a banquet later that night, Vandy finds out the next morning Phil’s been murdered just blocks from her home after an intimate reunion, sending her on a mission to find the killer and the truth about who Monica’s father really was.

Full of heart, sometimes heavy, Pitts’ crisp first-person writing brings readers on an emotional roller coaster, with a gripping whodunnit. While I didn’t like everything Vandy did, Pitts’ masterful prose ensured I understood her.

I highly recommend Death of an Ex, just out in paperback, as a dramatic mystery perfect for a beach read. I received an advanced reader copy of Death of an Ex from St. Martins Press/Minotaur Books, courtesy of NetGalley.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

Blown away by Tangles

I was absolutely blown away by Tangles, Kay Smith-Blum’s compelling debut novel, winner of 13 well-deserved literary awards.

Set in Hanford Washington, where two-thirds of the nation’s plutonium was produced as part of the Manhattan Project, now a major clean-up site, Smith-Blum masterfully weaves a tale of riveting historical fiction, romance and mystery – one full of palpable emotion – courage, fear, determination, hope and love.

Told through the eyes of a brave secretary and a young scientist, this stunning Cold War home-front tale reveals the devastating costs of the birth of the nuclear age, and celebrates the quiet courage of wronged women, the fierce determination of fatherless sons, and the limitless power of the individual.

It’s a story that doesn’t leave you. I have laid awake at night thinking about it and how everyone needs to read Tangles. Knowledge is power.

I highly recommend Tangles for historical fiction, romance, mystery, and thriller fans. I received a copy of the book, courtesy of the author. Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

All aboard for murder

As an avid fan of the Masterpiece Mystery production of The Marlow Murder Club on PBS, I jumped at the chance to read the fourth book in the series (my first), Murder on the Marlow Belle. Reading Robert Thorogood’s words on the page instead of watching the series onscreen is even better!

By this installment, our amateur sleuths – Judith, Becks and Suzie – have a bit of a reputation in their bucolic riverside town for solving crimes – especially murder. So it wasn’t much of a surprise for Verity Beresford to show up at Judith’s door after her husband hadn’t come home the previous night.

Once local theatre director Oliver Beresford’s body was discovered, much to DI Tanika Malik’s superiors’ chagrin, our dynamic trio dives smack into the middle of an investigation into an “impossible” murder during a celebratory Thames excursion aboard the Marlow, with Judith joining the cast of the current production of the Marlow Amateur Dramatic Society.

Thorogood is ingenious in weaving a thoroughly intricate and satisfying mystery with a plethora of suspects, humor, heart, and revealing secrets – not only involved with the murders but our main characters, as well.

I highly recommend Murder on the Marlow Belle to fans of Thorogood’s shows – The Marlow Murder Club, Death in Paradise, Beyond Paradise and Return to Paradise, as well as fans of cozy and British mysteries. I received an advanced reader copy of Murder on the Marlow Belle from Poisoned Pen Press, courtesy of NetGalley.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

Bravo, Blackwood!

All the world’s a stage and some of them are deadly.

The most suspenseful Samuel Pepys Mystery yet, The Drury Lane Murders finds Pepys’ inquisitors working to discover not only the source of financial irregularities in the King’s Theatre Company but solve the murder of a lead actress at the Theatre Royale, as well.

With suspects aplenty to keep you guessing, in this sixth book of the series, author Ellis Blackwood masterfully weaves together not only delicious mystery and intrigue but a dash of comedy as well — much of it at poor Jacob Standish’s expense. Blackwood’s exceptional talent for world building also gives readers a rich taste of 17th Century British theatre life in what is now known as London’s famed West End.

When Jacob is barred from the theatre, Abigail Harcourt, his fellow inquisitor, must follow leads in the theatre solo and becomes one, as she replaces the murdered actress onstage. While performing for the King himself, her life may hang in the balance.

I loved the tying in of characters we’ve met earlier in the series coming back to stir the pot, tying up of plot points from previous books, as well as the laying of strings to pull in future marvelous mysteries.

Tip: If you are near the end of this book, do not read it if you wake in the middle of the night, as your adrenalin will rush and despite the most satisfying of endings, you’ll never fall back to sleep.

I highly recommend The Drury Lane Murders for anyone interested in historical cozy mysteries, suspense thrillers, and 17th century London. I received this advanced reader copy of The Drury Lane Murders from Vintage Mystery Press, courtesy of the author.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

The Final Episode is worth the wait


Hooked from the very first chapter, like heat lightning, Lori Roy’s The Final Episode sets your nerve ends tingling for the storm to come. The two-time Edgar-award winning and New York Times Notable Crime Book author gives readers a five-star amazing, can’t-put-it-down thriller.

Young Francie Farrow is a sick girl who goes missing from her bedroom while her parent’s slept. Miles away, soon-to-be 11-year-old Jennifer Jones believes in her bones that when she receives her foretold gift of “second sight” on her much anticipated birthday, she will find the missing girl. That summer didn’t turn out the way Jennifer expected.

Twenty years later, a true crime television series recreates the summer that changed everything for Francie’s and Jenny’s families. Claiming to shed new light, bringing speculation and attention back to the case, will the man convicted of her murder reveal where Francie is buried? Is the man convicted of her murder really guilty? Or is the murderer still out there? You’ll have to wait for the final episode to find out.

Told in present-day and flashbacks of Jenny (now Jennifer) and Francie Farrow’s mother, Roy easily places the reader wholly in each, giving readers a finale even bigger than the title teases.

I highly recommend The Final Episode to mystery, suspense and thriller fans and those looking for a great summer read. I received an advanced reader copy of The Final Episode from Thomas and Mercer publishers, courtesy of NetGalley.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

Mistletoe and Murder Most Cozy

In Mistletoe and Murder, A Kate Hamilton Mystery novella, we find my newest favorite crime solving duo — Kate, an American antiques dealer and her almost-husband, DI Tom Mallory in the days leading up to Christmas and their wedding in Suffolk, UK.

Despite the picturesque village winter scene, which she beautifully paints, USA Today bestselling author Connie Berry immediately sets the tone, with Kate having jinxed herself aloud by pronouncing her wedding would be perfect. It shows up in small ways at first throwing a wrench in timing for the big day in a Mercury retrograde kind of way. But the biggest jinx of all begins when Kate’s friend, Sheila — another bride-to-be, needs her help. Before long, a little help turns into a life and death situation when Sheila goes missing, that could not only nix the Christmas Eve wedding but their lives, as well.

I highly recommend Mistletoe and Murder, to fans of Christmas cozies, traditional cozy mysteries, British mysteries, and partners in crime-solving duos.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

Coastal Christmas cozy

If you’re looking for a coastal Christmas cozy, look no further than Amelia Pine’s Killer Fruitcake.
In the second installment of her Sea Glass Beach mysteries, you’ll find surfing pups dressed in festive costumes, fruitcake, and of course, murder.

Milliner Paige Andrews and her friends in the Beachside Dining Club work to prove the innocence of the mother of a club member accused of killing her brother – the Avocado King, while keeping on the good side of the police chief/Paige’s mother’s boyfriend.

It’s a cute cozy with interesting characters, plenty of suspects and a few red herrings. You’ll also find a little romance in the air to go along with the holiday spirit, not to mention the spirit in Paige’s soon-to-open hat shop.

I recommend Killer Fruitcake for fans of beach cozy mysteries with a little romance. I received this advanced reader copy courtesy of the author. Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

Review by Di Prokop, More Mystery Please

*If you enjoy holiday mysteries as much as I do, be sure to check out the Second Annual More Mystery Please Santa Advent calendar, beginning December 1 as I share my new holiday favorite reads, giveaways and more.

A rich blend of history, mystery and murder


In The Coffee House Murders, masterful storyteller Ellis Blackwood, sets Abigail Harcourt and Jacob Standish on another captivating adventure bringing the post-Great Fire 1660’s London to life.

This third installment of the Samuel Pepys Mysteries finds the famed diarist, the Clerk of the Acts to the Navy Board and adviser to King Charles II, for whom the series is named, charging his young inquisitors with another mission – to find his missing pocket watch.

The seemingly innocuous task soon takes a dangerous turn when the pair put their sleuthing abilities to work upon discovering the murder of a wit and parliamentarian, which they had met in Rose’s Coffee House on the Strand, the very coffee house the two had frequented the previous night.

After the investigation leads to an adjacent royalist-clientele coffee house, the Gilded Bean, it becomes clear treachery is afoot. In order to protect the crown and Pepys, who has no idea of his inquisitors activities, they must break into Westminster. If caught, the consequences are deadly. If they do not break in, the consequences are the same, save for who will die.

I love the way Abby and Jacob’s confidence and skills continue to grow and though not yet romantic, how they’ve come to rely on each other.

In this third installment in as many months, Blackwood continues to impress with his ingenious plotting, characterization, and richly detailed setting, painting another brilliant whodunit. I highly recommend The Coffee House Murders to fans of historical fiction, historical mysteries and British mysteries.

I received an advance reader’s copy of The Coffee House Murders, courtesy of the author and Vintage Mystery Press. Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

If you’re interested in learning more about Samuel Pepys, his diary is available online. Pepys’ diary entries from 1665 are also woven into the narrative of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated The Great Plague by Dorothy and Lloyd Moot (for which I was privileged to host a C-Span BookTV episode).

Review by Di Prokop
More Mystery Please

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