Book Review: An Unexpected Kind of Love by Hayden Stone

An Unexpected Kind of Love by Hayden Stone is currently scheduled for release on August 9 2021. Bookstore owner Aubrey Barnes likes his quiet, orderly London life, thank you very much. His shop may be struggling, his only employee is a menace, and his plumbing is one creaky pipe away from disaster, but he can handle it. Maybe. He cannot, however, handle the film company that’s thrown his Soho street into chaos. And he definitely can’t handle the charismatic American actor Blake Sinclair. Which is why he’s extremely reluctant to lease out his shop as a set for Blake's film, but it’s his one opportunity to save his business. Now he can’t get away from the distractingly hot actor. Then Aubrey finds himself alone with Blake in a trailer, and what happens next turns London’s heat wave into an inferno that leaves him breathless. Aubrey is not cut out for the high-profile life of dating a celebrity, especially an American actor who’s not even out yet. Good thing their tryst is absolutely not going anywhere. Of course, when you expect nothing, that’s exactly when it starts to mean everything.

An Unexpected Kind of Love is a romance with well developed characters and a solid setting I could understand and empathize with Aubrey. He is awkward and more loved by his friends than he realizes, and just trying to be the best person he can under a lot of stress. I understood every moment of his worries and self doubt. Blake is well written as well, but since we do not get his point of view I connected much more with Audrey. I thought the set up, the secondary characters, and the problems everyone faces are all realistic and well written. I was intrigued by some of the secondary characters, and while some are definitely not my favorite (looking at you Eli) I would love to see more about Ryan, Gemma, and Lily. I think they were all well developed past the role they needed to play in this story.

An Unexpected Kind of Love is a sweet contemporary romance with plenty of heat and feels.

Early Book Review: Can't Judge a Book By Its Murder (Main Street Book Club) by Amy Lillard

Can't Judge a Book By Its Murder is the first book in the Main Street Book Club series by Amy Lillard. It is currently scheduled for release on October 29 2019. 

As Sugar Springs gears up for its all-class high school reunion, Mississippi bookstore owner Arlo Stanley prepares to launch her largest event: a book-signing with the town’s legendary alum and bestselling author, Wally Harrison. That’s when Wally is discovered dead outside of Arlo’s front door and her best friend is questioned for the crime. When the elderly ladies of Arlo’s Friday Night Book Club start to investigate, Arlo has no choice but to follow behind to keep them out of trouble. Yet with Wally’s reputation, the suspect list only grows longer—his betrayed wife, his disgruntled assistant, even the local man who holds a grudge from a long-ago accident. Between running interference with the book club and otherwise keeping it all together, Arlo anxiously works to get Chloe out of jail. And amidst it all, her one-time boyfriend-turned-private-eye returns to town, just another distraction while she digs to uncover the truth around Wally’s death and just what Sugar Springs secret could have led to his murder.

Can't Judge a Book By Its Murder is a murder mystery that had a lot going on. Arlo joined the town community in high school, so knows all the major players but still feels a bit like an outsider. She has some serious history with the town, and is smart enough to understand what she does not know and who to ask for help.Her loyalty to Chloe and navigating of small town relationships was well done. Her book club group has just the right mixture of spunk and compassion to keep things on track, and interesting.I could have done just fine without the set of for possible future romantic interests for Arlo, but that was better handled that I feared when I saw it start develop. I did enjoy the complexity of the actual mystery- and how every time I thought I had it a new twist or idea would pop up and make me question myself a little more. There was an awful lot to unpack in Wally's personal life- and I feel like while we got to the bottom of the important parts there was likely even more in the author's headcanon about what he was up to when out of his wife's sight. I liked the secondary characters, and thought that the small town was well developed- maybe too well developed with the amount of other important information.  I have to admit that I had trouble getting into this one, and after putting it down for things like cooking meals I had to remind myself to pick it up rather than being eager to. Part of this could be because of the amount of background information that was needed to start of a small town mystery series, and that did fade a bit as the story progressed, but not as much as I hoped. 

Can't Judge a Book By Its Murder is a small town murder mystery with plenty of twists and turns. It kept me guessing through the entire read. 

Early Book Review: Trouble on the Books (Castle Bookshop Mystery) by Essie Lang

Trouble on the Books is the first book in the Castle Bookshop Mystery series by Essie Lang. It is currently scheduled for release on March 13 2019.

Shelby Cox never intended to become a bookseller, so when the former editor returns to her hometown of Alexandria Bay, nestled in upstate New York’s breathtaking Thousand Islands region, to take over her aunt’s bookstore, she has no idea what to expect. To her amazement, she discovers that she now owns a fifty-percent share in Bayside Books, and will also run the store’s second location in the majestic castle on nearby Blye Island. But just as Shelby is gearing up for the start of the tourist season, the Castle volunteer coordinator is found murdered in the nearby Grotto. Castle caretaker Matthew Kessler is suspect number one, but Shelby thinks the killing may be connected to an earlier era, when violence among Prohibition-era smugglers was rampant in the region. As Shelby launches her own investigation, handsome and unnerving Special Agent Zack Griffin of the Coast Guard Investigative Services tries to quell her smuggling theory and keep her safe. But Shelby is determined to summon all her savvy as a book editor to plot the murder—and find the killer before they strikes again.

Trouble on the Books is an entertaining read, with a god deal od setting and character development. Shelby and her relationships and background were slowly introduced, but there were moments that had me checking back to see if I missed something. I did like that there were hints that there is a great deal more about Shelby to learn as the series continues. I think the mystery itself and the sleuthing were well done with some good twists and turns as well as a better introduction to characters that are almost certainly going to be important later. As the first book in the series there is a great deal of ground work that needs to be laid in order for the small town community members and their relationships to be introduced. I think that this was generally handled very well, setting up some important groundwork that will make later books work very well. I had two things about the book that just did not work, and one of them might be because I am in a bit of a reading slump. I just could not connect to Shelby as a character at all. I did feel like I was getting to know her, but not that I was in her head or that I cared much for her well being. This could totally be because of my headspace rather than the book, but it colored my read and reaction to the story as a whole- so I need to mention it. The second thing that bothered me was the need to introduce one (or more) love interests for our sleuth. Romance is not the end all and be all to ever single lady's life (so says the married romance reader). Maybe let Shelby figure out where she is living and what she wants in the near future, never mind survive the day, before giving her a few guys to try out?  

Trouble on the Books is a good read, with a solid mystery. Personally I had some character issues, but I think future installments will be even better than the first.

Book Review: The Cat of the Baskervilles (Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery) by Vicki Delany

The Cat of the Baskervilles is the second book in the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery series by Vicki Delany. While reading the series in order gives readers a better grasp of characters, and their dynamics in the small town, I think that newcomers to the series could enjoy this book almost as much as those that have read the first book in the series.

Legendary stage and movie star Sir Nigel Bellingham arrives on Cape Cod to star in a stage production of The Hound of the Baskervilles put on by the West London Theater Festival. When Sir Nigel, some of the cast, and the director visit the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop at 222 Baker Street, Gemma Doyle realizes that Sir Nigel is not at all suited to the role. He is long past his prime and an old drunk to boot. The cast, in particular the much younger actor who previously had the role, are not happy, but the show must go on. Before the play opens, Leslie Wilson, mother of Gemma’s best friend Jayne, arranges a fundraising afternoon tea to be catered by Mrs. Hudson’s Tea Room. The tea is a huge success, but when it’s time to leave, Sir Nigel has gone missing—only to be found at the bottom of the rocky cliff, dead. Along with the dead body, Gemma finds evidence incriminating Leslie Wilson. When the police, in the presence of handsome detective Ryan Ashburton and suspicious detective Louise Estrada, focus their attention on Leslie despite the numerous other suspects, the game is once again afoot and it’s again up to the highly perceptive Gemma and Jayne to clear Jayne’s mother’s name.

The Cat of the Baskervilles is a thoroughly entertaining read. I did feel like there was a little more build up before the death of Nigel than I really expected, however the groundwork laid in those chapters was important for the rest of the book. It just made the start feel a little sluggish for me. I enjoyed Gemma's personality and character, as I always do, because she stays true to form and focused on the tasks at hand, or at least those most pressing in her mind. I also liked that friendships and relationships ran as an undercurrent, effecting the story but never overwhelming the plot or pacing once the book really got moving.The twists and story elements surrounding Jayne and her mother were a well evolved story line and I thought it was handled perfectly. I found the final reveal to be very well done, and am glad to say that I was unsure of the culprit until it was laid out for me. There were a ton of secrets and plot elements, but despite the sheer volume of details, it never felt overwhelming or like anything was a red herring or tossed in on a whim, which sometimes happens when this volume of details are at play.

The Cat of the Baskervilles is just as entertaining and full of twists and turns as the first book in the series. I enjoyed the read and will be following this series as it continues.