An Escape Goat - A Review & Giveaway

 Review

 

AN ESCAPE GOAT by Janna Rollins
The First Zen Goat Mystery

Callie Haybeck has started a new adventure. Moving in with her long lost aunt and uncle she’s giving yoga retreats on their farm. The main draw to her sessions are the adorable baby goats featured in her goat yoga classes. After all, who can be unhappy with cute baby goats cavorting around and even on top of them. Her excitement at leading her first group fizzles however, when she discovers two of the women are nothing more than rich mean girls. Looking down on Callie and the farm with snide cutting remarks the retreat is not off to an auspicious start. Callie’s hopes for a better second day are dashed when she finds the body of one of the women in the barn. With a murder victim on her first retreat Callie’s going to need more than baby goats to find inner peace. 

Mean girls get their comeuppance in the first Zen Goat Mystery, but murder may put Callie Haybeck out of business before she truly begins! Callie is an interesting protagonist. Klutzy, earnest, and kind, she's also flighty and immature, but I sense this series will have her growing before our eyes. Her wonderful great aunt and uncle are slowly starting to ground her. As you can tell I love Aunt Ellen and Uncle Will. These salt of the earth octogenarians are feisty and fun. I like how her relationship with her new found cousin is growing and I am seriously disliking both of their fathers! 

I enjoyed the mystery, even though I knew who the murderer was early on. I still enjoyed learning about the other characters and their very solid motives. I really enjoyed the ultimate confrontation between Callie and the killer, assisted by two of my favorite characters. I also enjoyed the secondary plot, that of Callie finding her lost relatives and what happened to cause the family to split.

AN ESCAPE GOAT is a fun start to a new series that had me wishing I could sample Aunt Ellen's delicious cooking then practice yoga with adorable goats in a charming country setting.

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An Escape Goat: A Zen Goat Mystery by Janna Rollins

About An Escape Goat 

An Escape Goat: A Zen Goat Mystery
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - New Hampshire
Publisher: ‎ Level Best Books (March 12, 2024)
Print length: ‎ 265 pages

After finding long-lost family through a DNA test, Callie heads to Bobwhite Hollow, New Hampshire, to meet a great-uncle she never knew existed. Charmed by the village and more than half in love with her new family, she decides to stay and open a goat yoga studio and retreat space.

When retreat guest Angilene Claudson turns up dead with a wine glass shattered at her side and Callie’s favorite goat lapping up the spill, the death is written off as an accidental overdose. But when the goat gets sick, Callie’s gut tells her it wasn’t an accident at all. With her new business on the line and a possible murderer staying in the guesthouse, Callie sets to work to uncover the truth and keep her family safe.

About Janna Rollins

When Janna Rollins isn't writing, she likes to thumb through New England-based magazines and drool over the pictures. She has a love for red barns, goats, and genealogy. Janna can be found showing her socially awkward side on Facebook or sharing pictures of her tiny one-acre farm on Instagram. She is a member of Sister In Crime, and also writes the Hometown Hardware Mystery series as Paula Charles. Janna lives in Southwestern Washington with her husband and a whole menagerie of furry and feathered critters.

Author Links: 

Website: https://www.paulacharles.com  

FB: Rainy Day Mysteries - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556817479811  

IG: rainy_day_mysteries - https://www.instagram.com/rainy_day_mysteries  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209244230-an-escape-goat  

Purchase Links Amazon - B&N - Kobo - Bookshop.org - Powell's Books -

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Resort to Murder - A Review & Giveaway

 Review

RESORT TO MURDER by Annie McEwen
The First Northwoods Mystery

After a disastrous work experience Emmy Cooper decides to head home to her parents' lake cottage resort in Wisconsin to regroup. Unfortunately, there are problems at Cooper's Cove Resort as well. An aggressive developer is determined to buy out all of the lakeside hotels and cabins in order to build a luxury hotel. Emmy's parents are equally determined not to sell and the whole town is in an uproar. When the head of Lionheart Development is found dead on their property and her father becomes a suspect Emmy decides to solve the murder herself.

I really enjoyed my first trip to Lake Covington. Emmy Cooper is a likeable protagonist who is fortunate to have a wonderful family and set of friends. I appreciate the relationship between Callie and her parents as much as I envy her friendship with Whitney and Marcus. The mystery itself was compelling. Laced with lots of humor I was laughing as Callie and her friends investigated, and as she dealt with her childhood crush. 

The strength of family and friendships is at the fore of RESORT TO MURDER, a delightful first entry to a new mystery series. 

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 Resort to Murder (Northwoods Mysteries) by Annie McEwen

About Resort to Murder

Resort to Murder (Northwoods Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - Wisconsin
Publisher: ‎ Gemma Halliday Publishing (March 26, 2024)
Paperback: ‎ 225 pages

When Emmy Cooper’s life in Chicago is turned upside down, the young interior designer retreats to her family’s lake cottage resort in the beautiful Wisconsin Northwoods for a much-needed break. Hoping to clear her mind and gain a fresh perspective, she looks forward to enjoying the slower pace and the crisp, clean pine air at her beloved Cooper’s Cove Resort with her family, dogs, and her best friend, Whitney. Unfortunately, her homecoming isn't as calm as she'd hoped when Emmy finds out a ruthless development company is relentlessly pressuring Lake Covington property owners, including Emmy's family, to sell their land so they can build an extravagant, modern resort that would ruin the quaint esthetic of the area. And things only get worse when Emmy finds the dead body of one of the developers floating in the lake—murdered! Suddenly the police are involved, and since Emmy's father was leading the fight to stop the shady development from getting approval, he's quickly painted as the prime suspect. Now it's up to Emmy to prove her father’s innocence, save the reputation of Cooper’s Cove, and find out who would resort to murder.

About Annie McEwen

Annie McEwen is the author of the Northwoods Mysteries Series, set amongst the tall pines and sparkling lakes of northern Wisconsin, where she spent vacations as a kid. Annie and her husband are empty nesters living in their rural Indiana home, but their married children and two toddler grandsons fortunately live close by. Being grandparents is definitely the best gig ever! They also have four fur babies, one of whom is a very important character in her books. When Annie isn’t writing, playing with her grandsons, or tackling trash-to-treasure projects, she works as a radiological technologist. As a former farm kid, she still loves to dig in the dirt and garden. She’s a member of Sisters in Crime and loves attending mystery conventions.

Author's Social Media Links: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064688271296  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anniemcewen_author/  

Goodreads: Resort to Murder by Annie McEwen | Goodreads  

Website: Annie McEwen | small town cozy mysteries (anniemcewenauthor.com)  

Purchase Links: Amazon B&N Apple Kobo 

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Currently Reading...

I'm currently reading An Escape Goat by Jenna Rollins. This book is the first in the Zen Goat Mystery series.

Callie Haybeck has started a new adventure. Moving in with her long lost aunt and uncle she’s giving yoga retreats on their farm. The main draw to her sessions are the adorable baby goats featured in her goat yoga classes. After all, who can be unhappy with cute baby goats cavorting around and even on top of them. Her excitement at leading her first group fizzles however, when she discovers two of the women are nothing more than rich mean girls. Looking down on Callie and the farm with snide cutting remarks the retreat is not off to an auspicious start. Callie’s hopes for a better second day are dashed when she finds the body of one of the women in the barn. With a murder victim on her first retreat Callie’s going to need more than baby goats to find inner peace. 

Secrets of a Scottish Isle - A Review

 Review

 

SECRETS OF A SCOTTISH ISLE by Erica Ruth Neubauer
The Fifth Jane Wunderly Mystery

Robert Nightingale wants to become an agent of the Crown and it's up to Jane Wunderly to see if he's a viable candidate. Since Redvers is known to the man, Jane is the one going undercover for this assignment. She's infiltrated Nightingale's branch of the society known as the Order of the Golden Dawn. Staying on a remote Scottish isle, Jane hopes to quickly prove that Nightingale is unsuitable and leave the stark windswept place. Believing the paranormal is a lot of hooey, some inexplicable experiences leave her with more questions than answers. Especially once she finds the dead body of a woman from the Order. Jane will have to resolve matters before something even more dastardly occurs.

The Jane Wunderly Mystery series is one of my most favorite and I was absolutely ecstatic when I discovered the latest book featured the Golden Dawn! I've had a fascination with the group for decades. I loved that historical people were actually featured in the book and especially loved the role a certain well known poet played. 

The mystery was well conceived with shifty characters and an aura of foreboding. One of my favorite characters was Mrs.McCrary. This stalwart matron with secrets in her pantry is both sensible and otherworldly. She knows enough not to take things for granted, including the paranormal. Of course, I'm also a fan of that poet, another logical person open to the wisdom of the universe, and practical enough never to play the fool. It goes without saying that I love Jane and Redvers too. I appreciated that Jane had to walk across the island to speak with people and give her fiancé updates, but the continual walking and descriptions of such walks slowed the pace and was a bit much. 

A hint of mysticism with the mystery makes SECRETS OF A SCOTTISH ISLE an intriguing atmospheric novel full of historic detail.

Gone with the Witch - A Spotlight

Today I'd like to shine a spotlight on a book on my TBR pile. Gone with the Witch by Angela M. Sanders is the fifth book in the Witch Way Librarian Mystery series. I am way behind in this series and need to catch up!

Blurb:

When human bones are discovered beneath an old outhouse covered in blackberry vines, no one knows who they once belonged to. But elderly Helen Garlington wants Sam the sheriff to test the remains, suspecting they may solve the mystery of her long-vanished husband. It’s not a match, and Helen takes it hard, drowning her disappointment in sherry at the tavern—where she sees a contestant on a game show who she swears is her missing spouse, Martin. To ease the woman’s mind, Josie contacts the show to track down the look-alike guest, who kindly agrees to travel to Wilfred—and is then found dead the next morning.
 
Horrified by this fatal turn of events, Josie asks the spellbound books for help, seeking the aid of Sherlock Holmes. But strange things continue to happen—frightening images flash on the screen of a long-abandoned movie theater and flocks of crows seem to appear wherever she goes. Is Josie about to meet her own Moriarty? It will take all her courage to untangle the twisted vines of this mystery before this chapter in the colorful story of Wilfred claims another life . . .

A Fatal Reception - A Review

 Review

A FATAL RECEPTION by Kathleen Marple Kalb
The Fourth Ella Shane Mystery 

 

While the Duke is abroad opera diva Ella Shane agrees to perform in a special gala recital, hopefully getting her mind off the minutia of her upcoming wedding. While the performance goes well, the reception afterward turns horribly wrong when Mr. Larimer is killed. Mrs. Aline Corbyn claims she killed the magnate in self defense, but the society matron isn't known for truthfulness and things don't appear quite right. As Ella continues her own wedding preparations she plans to keep her eyes and ears open so that justice will be served.

 

I loved absolutely everything about this book. A FATAL RECEPTION is the kind of book that keeps you so captivated that you don't want to stop reading. I was mad that I couldn't read it all in one sitting, instead having to leave that special world in order to do mundane household chores, like laundry, and go to work. Numerous threads are skillfully intertwined, the murder, the wedding, the other wedding, the Polish prince, the printers. There's drama, angst, comedy, and a thrilling action packed finale.

 

A FATAL RECEPTION is a perfect combination of multifaceted characters brought to life in a compelling story. I laughed, held my breath, and cheered. I can't wait to see what happens next!

Currently Reading...

I just finished reading A Fatal Reception by Kathleen Marple Kalb. This book is the fourth in the Ella Shane Mystery series and was released yesterday!

While the Duke is abroad opera diva Ella Shane agrees to perform in a special gala recital, hopefully getting her mind off the minutia of her upcoming wedding. While the performance goes well, the reception afterward turns horribly wrong when Mr. Larimer is killed. Mrs. Aline Corbyn claims she killed the magnate in self defense, but the society matron isn't known for truthfulness and things don't appear quite right. As Ella continues her own wedding preparations she plans to keep her eyes and ears open so that justice will be served.