Death in the Vines by M.L. Longworth

Death in the Vines by M.L. Longworth ISBN-13: 9780143122449 Trade Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Penguin Books Released: May 28, 2013 Author's Blog

Source: Advanced Reader Copy from the publisher.

Book Description from Goodreads:
Olivier Bonnard, the owner of Domaine Beauclaire winery, is devastated when he discovers the theft of a priceless cache of rare vintages. Soon after, Monsieur Gilles d’Arras reports that his wife, Pauline, has vanished from their lavish apartment. As Judge Antoine Verlaque and Commissioner Paulik tackle the cases (with a little help from Marine Bonnet), they receive an urgent call: Bonnard has just found Madame d’Arras--dead in his vineyard.


My Review:
Death in the Vines is a "detective"/cozy mystery. While Judge Verlaque has the legal right to investigate the murder, the level of everyday detail was more like in a cozy mystery. The "cozy" aspect was about them enjoying fine food, fine wine, fine cigars, and talking about expensive cars. This novel is the third in the series, but it didn't spoil the previous mysteries. You don't need to read the previous novels to understand this one.

Interesting details about France, vineyard-tending, etc., were nicely woven throughout the search for whodunit. The mystery was clue-based, and I had some accurate suspicions about (though no firm idea of) whodunit before the reveal. The characters were likable, interesting, complex, and reacted realistically to the various situations. The suspense was from curiosity about whodunit and relationship tensions.

There were no sex scenes. There was some explicit bad language (including a few British bad words and written-in-French bad words). Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable mystery novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Excerpt using Google Preview.

Mrs. Jeffries Turns the Tide by Emily Brightwell

Mrs. Jeffries Turns the Tide by Emily Brightwell ISBN-13: 9780425252123 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime Released: May 7, 2013

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
Beautiful and new in town, Ellen Langston-Jones doesn’t have any enemies. So, when she’s found dead in the communal gardens, Inspector Witherspoon quickly narrows the field of suspects down to one: Lucius Montague, who was seen threatening Mrs. Langston-Jones shortly before her death.

The Inspector and all of London are positive that he’s the killer, but Mrs. Jeffries, the Inspector's housekeeper, has doubts. Her biggest problem is that Lucius Montague is a very disagreeable character and no one is inclined to save his skin. Now, she must turn the tide of the investigation...or watch an innocent man take the fall for the real killer.


My Review:
Mrs. Jeffries Turns the Tide is a historical mystery set in England in the late 1800's, though we don't know the exact year. This book was the thirty-first book in the series. You don't need to read the previous books to understand this one (as we're given background information on all of the characters at the start). This book didn't spoil the mysteries of the previous books.

There were enough setting and time period details to give the story a historical feel. The characters were engaging and realistic, though not highly complex. The suspense came from wondering whodunit and from the servants trying to avoid anyone knowing that they help the Inspector.

The story was a clue-based "puzzle-it-out" mystery. From the very beginning, I strongly suspected two characters and guessed how everyone was related to each other. Whodunit and the surprise revelations weren't highly obvious, though, and I enjoyed seeing if my guesses turned out to be accurate.

There was no sex. There was a minor amount of explicit British bad language (though I think it's pretty mild stuff). Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck

Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck ISBN-13: 9780310315476 Trade Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Zondervan Released: May 7, 2013

Source: Review copy from the publisher requested through Booksneeze.com.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
Susanna Truitt expected to marry the man she has loved through the ups and downs of twelve years. But instead of setting a wedding date, her high-school-sweetheart-now-Marine-officer tells Susanna that he can't marry her because he's in love with someone who is more exciting.

Prince Nathaniel is taking a brief American holiday on St. Simon’s Island. He's not looking for a romance since a tense political situation has practically chosen his bride for him. Nathaniel comes to Susanna’s aid under the fabled Lover’s Oak, and he's charmed. She treats him like a normal guy, and she also seems to be the only one who really believes in him. Is God's plan for them to remain apart or will their love change a nation?


My Review:
Once Upon a Prince is a Christian romance novel. It reminded me of the movie "The Prince & Me" in some ways. Susanna is a successful career woman whose plans for her future (family and career) have gone up in smoke. She meets a prince. Nathaniel's father is dying, but Nate doesn't want to be king because of the pressure and the restrictions on his life. His island nation is similar to Britain.

Since it's a "modern prince" novel, I realized that some parts would likely stretch my suspension of disbelief, and it did, but overall it was fun. I really liked the basic plot of the story--how the prince and Susanna spent time together and that the prince had a sticky political situation to deal with. I liked how Susanna and Nathaniel built each other up and supported each other. They were much better together than separately. I liked that they honestly wanted to be available for God to use.

However, the characters didn't seem consistent with the background given to them. Susanna went from supposedly emotionally dependent on having "a plan" to basically not having a plan for the whole story. When her boyfriend told her that she didn't actually love him despite standing by him through ups and downs for twelve years, she simply accepts that he's right. I don't believe that she loved "the plan," not him, but either way she's hardly upset by the breakup. Also, it was odd that Nathaniel seemed to lack leadership ability and political confidence despite his background (growing up a crown prince, being a navel officer and then head of a communications company).

There was a lot of "they prayed" and talking about God's will for the prince's life. Though Nate and Susanna felt the presence of God when at certain locations and Susanna repeatedly surrendered her future to God, I felt like God was held at a distance and was somewhat impersonal. Susanna got some cryptic future-foretelling through a crazy prophet lady, and Nate got a "brush of God's wing on his cheek" for their guidance from God. The Christian elements flowed from the events happening in the book and didn't preach at the reader, but people who don't like "preachy" books may not like this one.

There were no sex scenes. There was a minor amount of fake bad language and one text messaging abbreviation for swearing involving "God." Overall, I'd recommend this novel to those who love fairy-tale "prince" romances.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Final Sail by Elaine Viets

Final Sail by Elaine Viets ISBN-13: 9780451237705 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Obsidian Mystery Released: May 7, 2013

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
Husband and wife PI team Helen Hawthorne and Phil Sagemont both have their hands full. Phil tries to catch a sexy gold digger who may have killed her elderly new husband for his fortune. Meanwhile, Helen poses as the new ship stewardess on a luxury yacht to catch a jewel smuggler. But between serving drinks to the snobs, scrubbing floors, and cleaning up after seasick passengers, how will she find time to investigate?


My Review:
Final Sail is a mystery novel. It's the eleventh book in a series, but you don't need to read the previous novels to understand this one and this novel didn't spoil the previous mysteries.

Helen's case was a clue-based puzzle mystery while Phil's case was mainly a description of his adventures after he'd solved it. The author probably had no idea that another author had already used the idea, but I've read a story where jewels were smuggled in a similar fashion and so I guessed whodunit long before Helen. If I hadn't read that other mystery, I would have been less certain of whodunit though whodunit was among my favored suspects.

There was also an incident in Helen's past involving murder and blackmail that she was trying to deal with from afar. I would have liked Helen and the story more if it hadn't been a part of this story, but I think it was meant to add suspense.

The characters were interesting, sometimes funny, and realistic in how they reacted to events. The suspense was mainly from wondering whodunit and from the PIs trying to investigate undercover without getting caught. The details about the yacht stewardess job were interesting and woven into the story.

There were no graphic sex scenes. There was some explicit bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

And the winner is...

It's time to announce the winner of the Spring Fling Giveaway Hop. Including Twitter entries, we had 19 entries. Using a random number generator and numbering the entrants in the order I received them, the winner is:

Tammy Cuevas
who won "The Homicide Hustle" by Ella Barrick

Congratulations! I'll be contacting you for your address.

For those who didn't win, you can always buy a copy of these books from your favorite bookstore or see if they have them at your local library.

Murder on Fifth Avenue by Victoria Thompson

Murder on Fifth Avenue by Victoria Thompson ISBN-13: 9780425255377 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime Released: May 7, 2013

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
From the tenements to the town houses of nineteenth-century New York, midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy never waiver in their mission to aid the innocent and apprehend the guilty.

Sarah’s father, Felix Decker, asks Malloy to discreetly solve a crime when a member of Decker's private club--the exclusive Knickerbocker--is murdered.

Malloy discovers that the deceased, Chilton Devries, was no gentleman. As Malloy and Sarah sort through the suspects, it becomes clear that many people despised Chilton and yet none of them seems to have murdered him....


My Review:
Murder on Fifth Avenue is a historical mystery set in New York city in the late 1890's. This is the fourteenth book in the series, but you don't need to read the previous books to understand this one, and this one didn't spoil the previous mysteries.

There was a nice level of historical detail about the setting, social structures, etc. The characters were complex and reacted realistically to the situations, yet we didn't really get much character development with the main characters. The suspense was mainly from wondering whodunit.

The mystery was a clue-based puzzle mystery. I was certain I knew whodunit, why, and how from early on in the book. I guessed right about all the sordid details, but I was wrong about whodunit! We did have hints about the correct whodunit, though, and it did make sense.

There was a minor amount of explicit bad language. There was no sex. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting historical mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.