ROCCO'S JULY COZY REVIEWS

 Ma-row! July's cozies are short but sweet!

SCAREDY CAT

SOFIE RYAN

SECOND CHANCE CAT MYSTERY

BERKLEY, MMPB

JULY 4, 2023 FIVE STARS

Secondhand store owner Sarah Grayson and her affectionate rescue cat, Elvis, will scare up a few leads to find a killer in the newest installment of this captivating New York Times bestselling series.

 
After a long, cold, and snowy winter, it seems as though spring may be arriving early in Maine. Sarah Grayson is busy at her store, Second Chance, and she’s looking forward to an afternoon break from the hustle and bustle, tagging along to the North Harbor Spring House Tour with her friend Detective Michelle Andrews.
 
But it turns out one of the houses has a haunted history, and when a ghost hunter is found dead on the premises, Sarah knows the best way to uncover the killer/to solve the mystery is by investigating the not-so-dearly departed. With help from Elvis and Charlotte’s Angels, the crew of senior citizen private detectives who work out of the store, she’ll close the case on this creepy crime.

We love Sarah and Elvis, and Charlotte's Angels are always a riot!  I look forward to a new entry every year in this series that never fails to entertain! Five Paws.

A QUESTIONABLE CHARACTER

LORNA BARRETT

BOOKTOWN MYSTERY

BERKLEY; HC; JULY 27, 2023

FIVE PAWS

The murder of a local contractor may be the final nail in the coffin for Tricia Miles in the latest entry to Lorna Barrett's New York Times bestselling Booktown series.

It's a busy summer in Booktown. Contractor Jim Stark is in great demand: he’s overseeing a number of projects, including Angelica Miles's newly constructed building on Main Street, finishing up the new brew pub, and gutting a stone mansion off Main Street that Angelica bought to be the world headquarters for Nigela Ricita Asssociates. It’ll house office space where her marketing staff and the rest of the NR Associates clerical personnel will work.

Tricia Miles and Angelica arrive at the mansion before their workday to see how the construction is going. They find the place unlocked and Stark’s right-hand man, Sanjay Arya, dead—bludgeoned to death. The loss of the contractor’s top man threatens all the projects in the works, which would effectively ruin the expensive marketing plan that the Chamber of Commerce has been working. Is Jim a suspect? (He’d be stupid to kill the person he depends on to keep the projects going.) But Stark also thinks his wife, who was very chummy with Sanjay, might have been cheating on him with the second-in-command, making him a likely suspect.

Once again Tricia finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation, but can she find the killer before he or she has the chance to bring the hammer down?

Tricia is in trouble again!  It's getting to be a habit, but an enjoyable one for hte reader as we follow Tricia tracking down anohter killer.  This delightfully quirky series never disappoints! It is always entertaining and we can see why it's lasted so long!  Exceptional character development - although it would be nice if Tricia hooked up with a decent suitor, for once!!!!! Another five paw mystery this month! 

PURRDAY INTERVIEWS PRINCESS FUZZYPANTS!

In anticipation of the newest Pet Shop Mystery debuting Tuesday, DEATH STEALS THE SPOTLIGHT ROCCO turns the interview reins over to Purrday so he can ask the tough questions of Pet Shop Mystery's newest character:  Princess Fuzzypants.

As many of you know, the character is based on the real life fantabulous cat, Princess Fuzzypants, who has her own blog and Facebook page!  Here is Purrday' interview with the real life Princess:

Purrday:  Merow, Princess, we are honored to have you here!             Princess: It is  my pleasure, Purrday.    Purrday: Princess, how did you feel when you learned that you were to be a character in the human T.C. Lotempio's next Pet Shop mystery?             Princess: Purrday, I was absolutely thrilled when I learned I would be a character and then when I found out I would be your girlfriend, I was over the moon. Purrday:.  Would you say becoming a fictional character has changed your life in any way?             Princess: *Blushes*. Some of my furriends tell meow that I have always been a star but now I really do feel special.  My fans are so excited too.  I feel like I am sharing the experience with them.  It has, however, not brought any more treaties or stinky goodness. Purrday: Aside from the Pet Shop mysteries, do you have a favorite series that features a pet?         Princess:  OMG! This is hard because I have so many.  Of course I love Nick and Nora but my first one is still one of my favourites and that is Midnight Louie or the PI with shivs.  He always made meow laugh.  Currently I never miss Diesel in the Cat in the Stacks series. Purrday:  Who would you choose to be stranded on a desert island with: Myself or Nick Charles the cat from the Nick and Nora mysteries         Princess: Another toughie.  Could I have both of mew? Purrday:  Do you have any literary aspirations of your own?             Princess:  I actually do.  I would love to find a publisher or somepawdy who could help meow share my stories and thoughts with the greater public.  I think mew will agree I have some impawtant things to say. PUrrday:   If DEATH STEALS THE SPOTLIGHT should ever be made into a movie, would you consider playing yourself?  and who do you see in the roles of Shell and Gary?         Princess:  I would love to have this made into a movie and naturally mew and I would play ourselves.  Casting the humans…hmm *ponders*.   I know Momma would choose Henry Cavell if she could play Shell but she is way too old.   But seriously I think somepawdy like Timothy Oliphant or Ryan Reynolds for Gary and Kelly Reilly or Rachel MacAdams for Shell since Rachel is from my home town.  They have to be funny and charming and still kick butt. Who do mew think it should be?  *Giggles* Purrday:  No actress could compare to you, Princess.  It has been a pleasure to interview you. Princess:  I want to thank mew Rocco and TC for letting meow be part of this.  It has been a blast !

ROCCO's June Cozy reviews!

 Ma-Row!  Here are our June cozy reviews. First up..HISS  ME DEADLY

HISS ME DEADLY

A CAT IN THE STACKS MYSTERY

MIRANDA JAMES

BERKLEY; HARDCOVER; 6/27/23

FIVE PAWS

Perfect for fans of Ali Brandon, Sofie Kelly, and Laura Childs, James’s Cat in the Stacks mysteries deliver a delightful blend of cozy themes that readers love, with a charming, Southern setting and a Librarian sleuth who solves crimes with his trusted fuzzy companion.

 

In this latest installment, Charlie and Diesel must catch a killer before he strikes another deadly note.

 

Charlie Harris remembers Wilfred “Wil” Threadgill as one of the outsiders during high school in Athena. Although Wil was a couple of years ahead of him and his friend Melba Gilley, Melba had a big crush on Wil, who dropped out after his junior year. An aspiring musician, Wil hit the road for California and never looked back. Wil eventually became a star, fronting a band and writing award-winning songs. 

Coming back to Athena to work for two weeks with students in the college music department, Wil is now the big man on campus. Not everyone is happy to have him back, however. His entourage have been the target of several acts of petty harassment. At first they are easy for Wil to shrug off, but the incidents escalate and become more troubling. When one of the band members is killed Charlie worries that Melba, now deeply involved with the man at the center of the attacks, could be in deadly danger. It is up to Charlie and Diesel to find out who hates Wil Threadgill enough to silence his song . . . forever!

Charlie and Diesel are still going strong n their 15th adventure!  they work overtime to make sure their buddy Melba isn't in danger!  Part of the charm of this series is the supporting characters; and, of course, our favorite 'cat in the stacks'. Long live Diesel!  an excellent addition to a long running series that shows no signs of running out of steam. Five paws.

A FATAL ILLUSION

a Lady Darby Mystery

Anna Lee Huber

Berkley; Trade PB

June 20, 2023

four Stars

New parents Lady Kiera Darby and Sebastian Gage look forward to introducing Sebastian’s father to his granddaughter, but instead find themselves investigating an attempt on his life...

Yorkshire, England. August 1832. Relations between Sebastian Gage and his father have never been easy, especially since the discovery that Lord Gage has been concealing the existence of an illegitimate son. But when Lord Gage is nearly fatally attacked on a journey to Scotland, Sebastian and Kiera race to his side. Given the tumult over the recent passage of the Reform Bill and the Anatomy Act, in which Lord Gage played a part, Sebastian wonders if the attack could be politically motivated.

But something suspicious is afoot in the sleepy village where Lord Gage is being cared for. The townspeople treat Sebastian and Kiera with hostility when it becomes clear they intend to investigate, and rumors of mysterious disappearances and highway robberies plague the area. Lord Gage’s survival is far from assured, and Sebastian and Kiera must scramble to make the pieces fit before a second attempt at murder is more successful than the first.

Another solid entry in a long running series. Four paws.

HOT POT MURDER

LA Market Night

Jennifer Chow

Berkley/MMPB

June 6, 2023

Four stars

Trouble is brewing for cousins Yale and Celine Yee after a hot pot dinner gets overheated and ends in murder in this second novel of the L.A. Night Market series by Jennifer J. Chow.

Yale and Celine Yee’s food stall business is going so well that they’ve been invited to join an exclusive dinner with the local restaurant owners association. The members gather together for a relaxing hot pot feast…until Jeffery Vue, president of the group, receives a literal shock to his system and dies. 

Everyone at the meal is a suspect, but the authorities are homing in on family friend Ai Ho, owner of the restaurant where Jeffery was killed—and Yale’s dad is a close second on their list. Yale and Celine step up to the plate and investigate the dinner attendees: the association’s ambitious VP, a familiar frenemy, a ramen king, a snacks shopkeeper, and a second-generation restaurateur. It’s up to the detecting duo to figure out what really happened before their friends and family have to close their businesses for good.

Everyone loves reading about food and when murder is combined so much the better!  Reminiscent of the Gourmet Detective msyteries, Chow delivers a solid plot.  Definitely worth a read! Four paws.

 

spotlight - MURDER ON MUSTANG BEACH

Spotlight on new release:

MURDER ON MUSTANG BEACH

ALICIA BESSETTE

RELEASE DATE: MAY 16, 2023

HARDCOVER

FOUR STARS

Cattail Island in the Outer Banks is a popular destination for honeymooners and nature lovers alike. So it is a huge blow when the murder of a newlywed grinds the pre-summer season to a screeching halt. Bookseller Callie Padget launches her own investigation, after mysterious customer Geri-Lynn Humfeld, caretaker of the island’s protected wild horses, brings in an irresistible piece of information.

Determined to restore order and safety to her beloved hometown, Callie searches for answers—even as those answers cast suspicion on her soon-to-be boyfriend, Toby Dodge, whose martial arts studio was the scene of the crime. As she digs deeper, Toby becomes the police’s prime suspect. The truth raises troubling questions and sends her scouring the bookshop’s shelves for guidance.

Meanwhile, a well-loved member of the mustang herd—a pregnant mare whose anticipated foal is a symbol of summery hope for locals and visitors alike—may be facing dire circumstances. With help from Geri-Lynn, Callie unearths startling secrets surrounding not only the compromised mare, but the murdered newlywed, too. And when another body shows up, this time on isolated Mustang Beach, she must race against time to stop a killer from claiming any more innocent lives.

A fast paced mystery that readers will enjoy.  I am always partial to those that are set in a bookshop!  Callie is a combination of the best of Jessica Fletcher and Nancy Drew!  Four Stars

Win a copy of Murder on Mustang Beach!

Berkley has donated a hard copy for giveaway! To enter, leave your name and e-mail address in our comments section. Winner will be chosen via random.org.  US entries only please. Contest ends midnight, May 26.

ROCCO spotlights and reviews new Berkley cozy titles for may!

THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS

A  HAUNTED BOOKSHOP MYSTERY

CLEO COYLE

RELEASE DATE: MAY 2, 2023

BERKLEY MASS MARKET PAPERBACK

 A stray dog leads bookseller Penelope McClure and her gumshoe ghost on a chase for a clever killer in this brand-new entry in the "utterly charming" (Mystery Scene) Haunted Bookshop Mysteries from New York Times bestselling author Cleo Coyle.

Pet Mystery Week brings brisk business to Penelope's Rhode Island bookshop, but a real mystery comes barking at her door when a lost dog turns up in a panic. Pen and her son Spencer follow the furry fugitive to a wooded area where the dog's owner lies unconscious. Mrs. Cunningham is a warm-hearted widow who volunteers at the animal shelter and runs Buy the Book's pet lovers book club. Why would anyone shoot such a sweet soul?

The police believe it's an accident, a shot by a careless deer hunter, but Pen remains skeptical. To straighten out this doggone mess, she whistles for the ghost of PI Jack Shepard, an expert in hounding as well as haunting. Jack has a dog story of his own, a case from the 1940s that may help Pen sniff out clues to her present predicament. Yet even with Jack's hard-boiled help, Pen may not be able to stop the killer from striking again or letting this whole case go to the dogs . .

ROCCO SEZ:    WE love cleo Coyle's coffeehouse mysteries and now we also love the haunted bookshop! of course, it would have been nice if the title were the ghost goes to the cats but you can't have everythng merow!  Another well-plotted mystery that fans and newbies to the series will enjoy.  Five paws.

DRESSED TO DRILL

A FIXER UPPER MYSTERY

KATE CARLISLE

MAY 2, 2023

BERKLEY MASS MARKET PAPERBACK

Contractor Shannon Hammer’s new project, renovating an old church, reveals some old sins when a body is found on the premises in the latest Fixer-Upper Mystery from the New York Times author Kate Carlisle.

While Shannon Hammer is thrilled to attend the premiere of the movie based on her boyfriend Mac’s latest book, she can’t wait to trade her killer heels for work boots and start her next renovation project in Lighthouse Cove: a quaint Victorian church that has seen better days. And will see them again—as a museum—if Shannon, her talented crew, and her sister Chloe have anything to say about it.

But on the first day of demolition, work comes to a screeching halt when they stumble on the body of a beautiful young woman in one of the chapels. Who killed the assistant art director? Suspects crawl out of the woodwork as fast as Shannon can restore it. The church is hiding a century of secrets from the days that smugglers wreaked havoc on the California coast. But it’s a more recent secret that someone killed to protect. Shannon and Mac will use every tool in their toolbox to nail down the truth before any more lives are sacrificed.

ROCCO SEZ:  We became a fan of this series after seeing the Hallmark movie adaptation.  Once again, Shannon Hammer (appropriately named) finds herself caught up in a puzzling mystery as she begins her next renovation project!  We love the Shannon and Mac team! Five paws!!!!!

NEW SERIES FROM E.J. COPPERMAN! AND AN INTERVIEW

May 2 marks the debut of a new series from our friend E.J. Copperman (Haunted Guesthouse, Jersey Girl Mysteries).  Say hello to Fran and Ken Stein, PI's!

Meet Fran and Ken Stein - a private investigator duo who refuse to let a little thing like being not entirely human stop them from doing their jobs.


"Twisty and bonkers and fun" Multi award-winning author Catriona McPherson

After losing their parents when they were just babies, private investigators Fran and Ken Stein now specialize in helping adoptees find their birth parents. So when a client asks them for help finding her father, with her only clue a rare ukulele, the case is a little weird, sure, but it's nothing they can't handle.

But soon Fran and her brother are plunged into a world where nothing makes sense - and not just the fact that a very short (but very cute) NYPD detective keeps trying to take eternal singleton Fran out on dates.

All Fran wants to do is find the ukulele and collect their fee, but it's hard to keep your focus when you're stumbling over corpses and receiving messages that suggest your (dead) parents are very much alive.

Ukuleles aside, it's becoming clear that someone knows something they shouldn't - that Fran and Ken Stein weren't so much born, as built . . .

The Ukulele of Death is the first in a new series of light-hearted, paranormal tinged mysteries that are filled with off-beat humor, heart and the wry wisdom that's E.J. Copperman's signature style.

ROCCO's Review:  A different kind of cozy with a good plot, told in E.J. Copperman's inimitable style of blending in humor.  (Cat-ch the irony in the character names, LOL).  A definite five star debut!

Bonus:  E. J. Copperman interview!

ROCCO:  Welcome back, EJ!  Please tell us about your newest book and/or series.

 E.J.: Thanks for inviting me back! It’s always a pleasure.

UKULELE OF DEATH is the first book in a series about Fran and Ken Stein (I’ll give you a second), two very tall, very strong private investigators (and siblings) who are asked by a client to find a rare ukulele she thinks can help her find her birth father. Things go steadily downhill from there. And the fact that Fran and Ken aren’t exactly normal humans does play into the story…

 

 ROCCO  Readers always have a favorite character. Do you have a favorite from this book and/or series?

 

EJ: Well, Fran narrates so I spend most of my time in her head. But I think people will enjoy her friend the US Marshal, the accessible billionaire who offers to help and of course Fran and Ken’s “Aunt Margie,” who raised them after their parents were forced to flee New York City.

 

ROCCO:  Once you’re finished writing a book, how long is it before you start writing the next?

 EJ: It depends on whether I have a contract for something else. I’m writing the second Fran and Ken book now, to be followed by the sixth Jersey Girl Legal Mystery. So that’ll keep me busy for a bit.

 

 ROCCO:  Where do you do your best writing?

 EJ: Wherever I happen to be. Location doesn’t really enter into it. I do my MOST writing at my desk in my office, because I’m there most of the time.

 

ROCCO:  Any new projects in the works?

 EJ: Well, this is the first in a series, so that’s new, and the aforementioned Jersey Girl #6 (following AND JUSTICE FOR MALL), and then… there are possibilities.

ROCCO:  What do you love to do in your free time? LOL Do you get much free time?

 EJ: Not as much as I'd like LOL. I watch baseball games; I’m an ardent fan. I spend time with my amazing spouse and sometimes our children, who have had the nerve to grow up and move into homes of their own.

 

ROCCO: Where can readers go to learn more about you and your books?

 EJ: The easiest place is at http://www.ejcopperman.com of course. There you’ll find info, news (such as it is), reviews and anything else you might, for reasons I couldn’t imagine, want to know about me. I’m also on Facebook, Twitter and very occasionally Instagram. I’d be on TikTok but nobody wants that.

 

Thanks so much for an amazing interview, E.J.

 

Ukulele of Death debuts in bookstore today!

Amazon link:

https://www.amazon.com/Ukulele-Death-Fran-Stein-Mystery/dp/1448309700/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11KZR8S2PMYDS&keywords=ukulele+of+death&qid=1681322334&s=books&sprefix=ukulelie+of+death%2Cstripbooks%2C202&sr=1-1

 

 

 Ma-Row!

Introducing a new series by the "human": Tiffany Austin, Food Blogger Mysteries!

It kicks off with Book #1, EAT DRINK AND DROP DEAD, this Tuesday, April 4th!

A former chef gets mixed up in murder when she moves back to her Southern home town in the first Tiffany Austin food blogger mystery - a culinary cozy that will make your brain work and your stomach rumble!

"I was hooked from start to finish!" Laura Childs, New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries

Food critic and blogger Tiffany Austin has the best job in the world: she gets to eat for a living. At least, she hopes she has a job. Her trial period at Southern Style magazine is up - and rumors are swirling that management are making a choice between Tiffany and a rival columnist: the ambitious Jenny Lee Plumm.

Former chef Tiffany knows she has a battle on her hands . . . but she didn't realize it was to the death! When her rival's body is discovered after the two have a very public argument, Tiffany finds herself the prime suspect in a murder investigation. The lead detective might be very hot - but Tiffany's definitely not ready to go down for a crime she didn't commit.

Ably assisted by Hilary, her best friend and partner in (non) crime, and bolstered by the unconditional love of her Siamese cat Lily and King Charles Cavalier puppy Cooper, Tiffany plunges into an investigation of her own. After all, she has a degree from the CIA - the Culinary Institute of America - and she's not afraid to use it. But can she find the real killer before she's served up to the cops on a silver platter?

purchase link:https://www.amazon.com/Drink-Tiffany-Austin-Blogger-Mystery/dp/1448310024/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1680365374&sr=1-1

Watch for our blog tour starting Wednesday, April 5th.  enter at the stops to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card!