Methods of Madness

****

PG

Easily Recommend

Another exciting stand alone mystery by Stephanie Black.

I thought I had the killer pegged...then I didn't, then there was a twist...let's just say I wasn't disappointed.

I love how clean her books are...nothing to complain about.

Beneath and Italian SKy

****

PG

Easily Recommend

I seem to really like books that are based around an actual historical event/catastrophe.  I think the reason is that it tends to add a depth to the stories that other books may be missing.

This is a story written around an earthquake in Italy.  It is the second in the American Heiress series by Stacy Henrie.  I have read all three now and have enjoyed each one of them.  I feel like her books aren't as frivolous as some romances can be.

There was nothing in it that I objected to and therefore, give it a two thumbs up and would recommend it to anyone!

Misleading Miss Verity

***

PG

{UM} a little {TMP}

Could Probably Recommend

One huge bonus for this book is that it is set mainly in Scotland...and I am on somewhat of a Scottish kick right now...desperately hoping that one day I will be able to visit the highlands.  I particularly am interested in seeing the Isle of Skye!  It looks AMAZING!!!  

Aside from the setting, I did enjoy the plot and some of the characters though it didn't grip me like some books do.

There were definitely a few moderate to highly {Uncomfortable Moments} and the kissing scenes were just barely on the verge of {Too Much Passion} for me.

Overall though, I don't think I would feel bad about recommending it to someone.

A Pursuit of Home

***1/2

PG

{UM}

Able To Recommend

This is the third in a series that I have mostly enjoyed.  This one had me a bit lost with some of the history and politics but it was still good.  There was more adventure and intrigue than the other two.  There were just a small handful of {Uncomfortable Moments} but nothing worthy of making it unrecommendable.  I liked the characters and plot...again, just a bit fuzzy on some of the details.

Oh, also, the main character ties into another one of Ms. Hunter's books (An Noble Masquerade) that is not part of this series so that was fun to try and go back and remember the storyline of that one (which is quite hard for me...I may need to reread it now :)

Cold As Ice

***1/2

PG

{UM}

Could Recommend

I was excited to read some of Stephanie Black's stand alone mysteries after getting caught up on her Natalie Marsh series.  This one takes place in the same town as the Marsh series and uses the same detectives and a couple of other characters so that was fun...

I liked the plot...mostly from the point of view of the sister of the main suspect in the murder.

The only thing I had against it was a few {Uncomfortable Moments}.  The accused has an unsavory past and so things from his former days, such as history with a girlfriend, popped up a few times.

Something that I didn't expect because it wasn't a part of the series I read earlier was Black's open link to religion.  The main characters are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Usually I'm not a fan of fiction writers that use the church in their books.  I don't know why but for some reason it usually rubs me the wrong way.  It caught me off guard here and kind of bugged but it wasn't referred to enough to really put me off...so I was kind of okay with it.

Anyway, another pretty clean mystery I feel I could recommend!

Not a Word & Mind Games (Natalie Marsh Series)

 

****

PG

{UM}

Easily Recommend

Finally, a murder mystery author I can recommend!

I read To Die, To Sleep earlier this year without realizing it was the third in a series.

My daughter recently read it as well and we researched it a little more and found these two books that precede it were at our local library.  Yeah!

I am so happy with how clean they are...just some mild {Uncomfortable Moments}

If you are looking for some interesting but not gory or trashy mysteries, I highly recommend Stephanie Black!  She has several more books that are not part of this series and I plan on reading them all.  Her books keep you interested and reading.

The first one (Not a Word) I *accidentally* skimmed (I don't know what came over me) toward the end and saw who the culprit was prematurely :(  The second one, however, I held back and was happy to discover that my guess at who the killer would be was correct!

Adoring Abigail

****

PG

{UM} bordering on {TMP}

Probably Recommend

The thing that I liked right off the bat with this book was that the heroine had a very noticeable "flaw"...or something the world would label as a flaw.  She wasn't perfect in the eyes of most.

That always makes a book more likable for me.

There were just a few {Uncomfortable Moments} and a couple of times I thought the passion was a little borderline {Too Much Passion}.

Other than that I thought the storyline was original enough, and, like I already mentioned, I liked the characters so, overall, I most likely would recommend this book.