Book Review: Locked in Pursuit (Electra McDonnell #4) by Ashley Weaver

December 10, 2024September 22, 2024 GoodeyReads1 Comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Historical Mystery + Romance
Length: 272 pages
Author: Ashley Weaver
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Release Date: May 14th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The fourth instalment in the delightful series following safecracker Electra McDonnell fighting Nazis at every turn as World War II looms over London.

Safecracker Ellie McDonnell hasn’t seen Major Ramsey―her handsome but aloof handler in the British government―since their tumultuous mission together three months before, but when she hears about a suspicious robbery in London she feels compelled to contact him. Together they discover that a rash of burglaries in the city all lead back to a hotbed of spies in the neutral city Lisbon, Portugal, and an unknown object brought to London by a mysterious courier.

As the thieves become more desperate and their crimes escalate, it becomes imperative that Ellie and Ramsey must beat them at their own game. Fighting shadowy assailants, enemy agents, and the mutual attraction they’ve agreed not to acknowledge, Ellie and Ramsey work together to learn if it truly takes a thief to catch a thief.

I AM OBSESSED.

Gooooood heavens I am upset that I am caught up on this series because I NEED THE LAST BOOK. I loved this installment!! It was another amazing addition. I am loving Ellie and Ramsey’s journey. I love all of the mystery. I love the family members and friendships. There is not one bad thing I have to say about this book. I JUST WANT TO BEG EVERYONE TO GO READ IT.

I won’t say much else since this is the fourth book in a series. The progressive character arcs and overall plot line has been fantastic though. Each book has my full attention and I love how quick of a read they are. It’s a series I didn’t know I needed and now can’t stop thinking about.

Overall audience notes:

Historical Mystery + Romance
Language: low
Romance: kisses
Violence: moderate
Content Warnings: WW2 themes, gun and weapons violence

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Book Review: Curses and Other Buried Things by Caroline George

December 9, 2024November 8, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary/Historical Mystery
Length: 384 pages
Author: Caroline George
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: October 10th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Blood holds all kinds of curses. Seven generations of women in Susana Prather’s family have been lost to the Georgia swamp behind her house. The morning after her eighteenth birthday, she awakens soaked with water, with no memory of sleepwalking. No matter how she tries to stop it, she’s pulled from her safe bed night after night, haunted by her own family history and legacy. Now, the truth feels it’s only a matter of time before she loses her mind and the swamp becomes her grave. Unless she can figure out how to break the curse. When she isn’t sleepwalking, she’s dreaming of her great-great-great-great-grandmother, Suzanna Yawn, who set the curse in motion in 1855. Her ancestor’s life bears such similarity to her own that it might hold the key she seeks. Or it might only foretell tragedy. As Susana seeks solutions in the past and the present, family members hold secrets tighter to their chests, friends grow distant, and old flames threaten to sputter and die. But Susana has something no one else has been able to the unflagging belief that all curses can be broken and that love can help a new future begin. Based on her own family history, award-winning novelist Caroline George’s latest novel is a staggeringly beautiful work of hope.

OH SO SLOW.

The themes in this book were really good. I liked the commentary surrounding trauma, grief and breaking generational barriers and cycles that are harming those present. When there was finally some communication, those conversations were great.

My issues are with the pacing. Good heavens I felt like this book never went anywhere. Every little bit was some progression but otherwise it was like I was reading this day in the life that I wasn’t all that interested in.

I don’t really have much else to say. This one just wasn’t for me and I’m not going to spend anymore time on it.

Overall audience notes:

Mystery
Language: a little
Romance: kisses; low innuendo
Violence: high
Trigger/Content Warnings: lynching, loss of loved ones, racism, mental health struggles, mentions of teen pregnancy and rape

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Book Review: The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter

December 8, 2024October 17, 2024 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Holiday Romance
Length: 304 pages
Author: Ally Carter
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: September 24th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Knives Out gets a holiday rom-com twist in this rivals-to-lovers romance-mystery from New York Times bestselling author Ally Carter.

The bridge is out. The phones are down. And the most famous mystery writer in the world just disappeared out of a locked room three days before Christmas.

Meet Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt:
She’s the new Queen of the Cozy Mystery.
He’s Mr. Big-time Thriller Guy.
She hates his guts.

He thinks her name is Marcie (no matter how many times she’s told him otherwise.)

But when they both accept a cryptic invitation to attend a Christmas house party at the English estate of a reclusive fan, neither is expecting their host to be the most powerful author in the world: Eleanor Ashley, the Duchess of Death herself.

That night, the weather turns, and the next morning Eleanor is gone.

She vanished from a locked room, and Maggie has to wonder: Is Eleanor in danger? Or is it all some kind of test? Is Ethan the competition? Or is he the only person in that snowbound mansion she can trust?

As the snow gets deeper and the stakes get higher, every clue will bring Maggie and Ethan closer to the truth—and each other. Because, this Christmas, these two rivals are going to have to become allies (and maybe more) if they have any hope of saving Eleanor.

Assuming they don’t kill each other first.

IT’S A VIBE.

I liked this one! I don’t think it had the same break-out five star feel AC’s previous book did but I had a hoot listening to this one. I loved the winter and holiday vibes and even though I haven’t seen Knives Out, I understood the assignment. There was also a Clue-esque feel to it that I liked too.

And I am a sucker for a dual POV romance with some very specific types of reveals and this one had those (!!!). I swooned so hard and I loved the hate to love dynamic between Maggie and Wyatt.

It’s a quick read and I felt like it fit the holiday atmosphere well. The mystery came together in the end well and I look forward to more books by this author.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Holiday Mystery Romance
Language: low
Romance: closed door
Violence: low

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Book Review: How to Lose a Guy Before Christmas by A.J. Pine

December 7, 2024November 25, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Holiday Romance
Length: 5 hrs 24 mins
Author: AJ Pine
Publisher: Audible Originals
Release Date: November 16th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A steamy, laugh-out-loud romantic comedy about mistakes we make and the chances we take on the road to love.

After a snowstorm grounds her flight, Lucy makes a last-ditch effort to get home for Christmas using a rideshare app. She thinks she’ll be taking a road trip with a stranger…but the guy who shows up is someone she knows all too well. He’s the hookup she ghosted a few months ago, and now she’ll be stuck in a car with him for the most awkward road trip of her life.

Making matters worse, he’s even more gorgeous than she remembers—too bad things between them are frostier than the North Pole. Will the long ride home allow them to get to know each other in surprising new ways? And more importantly, will the season warm things up and send sparks flying yet again? Whatever happens, one thing is clear: It’s going to take a whole lot of Christmas magic to unlock their guarded hearts.

IT WAS CUTE.

This was a cute and fast read from Audible. Picked it up on a whim and it’s a good holiday listen. A small town full of odd eccentricities and Christmas cheer.

I liked the second chance vibes and that there was some good communication (though the third act kind of took away from that). I don’t have any intense feelings about this, just a good and simple read.

Overall audience notes: