The Ghost in the Electric Blue Suit, by Graham Joyce

Synopsis: David, a college student, takes a summer job at a run-down family resort in a dying English resort town. This is against the wishes of his family…because it was at this resort where David's biological father disappeared fifteen years earlier. But something undeniable has called David there.

A deeper otherworldliness lies beneath the surface of what we see. The characters have a suspicious edge to them…David is haunted by eerie visions of a mysterious man carrying a rope, walking hand-in-hand with a small child…and the resort is under siege by a plague of ladybugs. Something different is happening in this town.

When David gets embroiled in a fiercely torrid love triangle, the stakes turn more and more menacing. And through it all, David feels as though he is getting closer to the secrets of his own past.

This is a darkly magic and sexy book that has a strong suspense line running through it. It's destined to continue to pull in a wider circle of readers for the exceptionally talented Graham Joyce.

Thoughts: So many of the characters in this story are completely dysfunctional, and I kept wanting to tell them off. At the same time, they were so well written that I actually CARED about what happened to them and how the story ended. 

David gets himself involved with two women at the resort, one of whom just happens to be married to a controlling, abusive jerk.  As if that weren't enough, he inadvertently attends a political meeting of fanatical bigots, which complicates his life even more.

The secrets from David's past turned out to be fairly predictable, and was probably the most disappointing part of the story.

Overall, the book was a fun read, and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys suspense.

**I received a copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads, in return for an honest review.**

My rating:  Three stars 

The Tumble Inn, by William Loizeaux

**I received a copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads in exchange for an honest review.**

Tired of their high school teaching jobs and discouraged by their failed attempts at conceiving a child, Mark and Fran Finley decide they need a change in their lives. Abruptly, they leave their friends and family in suburban New Jersey to begin anew as innkeepers on a secluded lake in the Adirondack Mountains. There they muddle through their first season at the inn, serving barely edible dinners to guests, stranding themselves in chest-deep snowdrifts, and somehow, miraculously, amid swarms of ravenous black flies, conceiving a child, a girl they name Nat. Years later, when Mark and Fran are nearing middle age and Nat is a troubled teenager, Mark's life is ripped apart, forever changed, and he must choose between returning to his old home in New Jersey or trying to rebuild what is left of his life and family in the place of his greatest joy and deepest sorrow.

I enjoyed the story the writer told, although not necessarily the way he told it. I would have preferred less description of the environment, and more stories about the family and their life. It seemed there were years which were completely skipped over, years where I am sure there could have been events to discuss.

Over all, a very realistic look at a family and the ups and downs of life.

Peril In Paperback, by Kate Carlisle

Synopsis: Rare books expert Brooklyn Wainwright is invited to the fiftieth birthday party of her neighbor Suzie’s aunt Grace. A retired founder of a major video game corporation, Grace is a larger-than-life character who’s turned her Lake Tahoe mansion into a fun house. Part of the fun involves a seance, but after the lights flicker, one guest is dead, poisoned by a cocktail intended for Grace. It seems someone is determined to turn Grace’s playful palatial estate into a house of horrors. Brooklyn suspects the key to the killer’s identity may lie in the roman a clef Grace has written about her life. With Grace in great peril, “must-read” takes on a whole new meaning, as Brooklyn tries to stop a murderer who’s through playing around.

Thoughts: What a fun story! A fabulous homage to English house parties, with an Agatha Christie feel to it. 

My biggest problem with this book was that, with Derek out of town, Brooklyn was a HUGE whiner through most of the story. I just wanted to shake her and tell her to grow up!!

The numerous mysteries were well written,as usual. And I had trouble figuring them all out on my own, which I love.

Looking forward to reading/listening to more of this series soon.

My rating: Four stars

Hotel Apocalypse, Volume IV, by Bennett Gavrish

  Synopsis: Hotel Apocalypse is an action-packed dystopian adventure set in a post-apocalyptic world. One corporation controls the last shelter on Earth, and those inside are subject to its laws and lies. With each episode, you'll uncover more of the tower's mysteries and get to know the group of heroes fighting for a brighter tomorrow. 

Thoughts: **I received a copy of this book from the author in return for an honest review.**

What a great ending to this series!  Leo and his "apprentice" are out of the tower, discovering more lies told by NexGen. They join a group of survivors who live in an underground bunker---one of whom is surprisingly familiar to Leo. They all work together to formulate a plan to take over the tower. One of my favorite characters doesn't survive the revolution, but the reason why made perfect sense. I hope this author will be writing more in the future.

My rating: Four stars

The Lyre and The Lambs, by Sydney Avey

**I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.**

This is a sequel to The Sheepwalker's Daughter, but it works well as a stand alone story,which I can say with certainty as I did not read the first book. 

It's the Sixties. Modernity and tradition clash as two newlywed couples set up house together. Dee and her daughter Valerie move with their husbands into a modern glass house Valerie built in a proudly rural Los Altos, California, neighborhood. When their young relatives start showing up and moving in, the neighbors get suspicious. Then a body is found in the backyard and the life they are trying to build comes undone.

This was a story which kept me interested from beginning to end. While the Christian aspects weren't really "in your face," it was nice to read about a family who lives their beliefs and values on a daily basis. 

The family dynamics were very realistically portrayed, as were the issues with the neighbors. I could empathize with Dee as she dealt with each new upheaval and tried to help each younger family member through his or her trials and tribulations. 

I hope to read more by Sydney Avey in the future.

My rating: Four stars

A Cookbook Conspiracy, by Kate Carlisle

Synopsis: Brooklyn has always been a little obsessed with food, but it was her sister Savannah who became a chef, graduating from the prestigious Cordon Bleu school in Paris. She and her classmates all went on to successful careers, but none of them achieved culinary superstardom like Savannah's ex-boyfriend Baxter Cromwell. When Baxter invites the old gang to participate in his new restaurant's gala opening in San Francisco, Savannah asks Brooklyn to restore a tattered cookbook as a present for him. Shortly after receiving the gift, Baxter is found dead, with Savannah kneeling over him, bloody knife in hand, and the rare cookbook has disappeared. Brooklyn knows her sister didn't kill him, and she suspects the missing cookbook might lead to the real villain.

Thoughts: As much as I enjoy cozy mysteries, the main character in this series is really beginning to get on my nerves. If she isn't whining about something, she's behaving as though she can't function without her strong, handsome lover.

That aside, the mystery component of the book was a fabulous one. I had a couple of suspects right away,and was able to narrow it down to the correct one before it was revealed in the book.

The supporting characters, as always, were an enjoyable part of the plot and subplots.

Rating: Four stars

Making Rounds With Oscar, by David Dosa, M.D.

Synopsis: Making Rounds with Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat is the story of a doctor who, at first, doesn't always listen; of the patients he serves; of their caregivers; and, most importantly, of a cat who teaches by example, embracing moments of life that so many of us shy away from.

Thoughts: A very touching story of patients at the end of life, their caregivers, and their interactions with Dr. Dosa and Oscar. I laughed, I cried, and wished that there was more when it came to an end. I would like to read a sequel, of more people who have had their lives touched by Oscar.

Rating: Four stars