December Reading Wrap Up
Like many of you, I suspect, December has been busy. But I did read quite a few books that I loved. I’m behind on my reviews though, so I will post what I have now and add more in mid-January. Stay tuned for that.
She Doesn’t Have a Clue
Jenny Elder Moke
A remote island. A fierce storm. A mystery writer with writer's block, who's attending her ex-boyfriend's wedding. Let's add that the ex-boyfriend is also the writer's editor, who's not-so-patiently waiting for her next manuscript. As if all of that isn't bad enough, the bride is poisoned and our writer, Kate Valentine, keeps discovering bodies. With the help of Jake Hawkins, the devastatingly handsome adventurer who inspired her fictional leading man, Kate must find the real killer before they strike again.
Jenny Elder Moke has debuted with a richly entertaining mystery, chock full of colorful characters and beautifully written scenes that are both harrowing and comedic. I highly recommend this cozy mystery with a little romance thrown in.
She Doesn’t Have a Clue is out on April 29,2025.
Trust Issues
By Elizabeth McCullough Keenan and Greg Wands
Who can you trust when family inheritances are on the line?
When Janice Thornhill is found at the foot of an overlook in the park near the Cloisters, where she is a volunteer tour guide, her estranged adult children are surprised to learn they have been cut out of her will. Expecting a sizable inheritance which would solve their various financial problems, both Hazel, a social media influencer with a taste for extreme wealth, and her brother Kagan, an addict who couldn’t hold a job or stay married, suspect their new stepfather, Perry, is to blame for their change in fortune. As if that’s not enough, the police suspect foul play and begin to focus on Hazel and Kagan. Perry, meanwhile, has an airtight alibi.
So begins this con artist/revenge tale that builds suspense dramatically until an action-packed finale with a satisfying twist at the end. McCullough Keenan and Wands weave a tight plot, told through multiple points of view and chock full of sketchy characters you will love to hate and whom you certainly can’t trust.
Trust Issues releases January 28, 2025.
Such a Good Mom
By Julia Spiro
A body washes ashore on the idyllic island of Martha’s Vineyard just as the high season shifts into full swing and it threatens to overturn Brynn Nelson’s already faltering life like a sudden squall on a beautiful day.
Brynn is a new mom adjusting to life with a fussy newborn. She’s convinced she’s a terrible mother and that her husband is retreating from her. Reluctant to confess her feelings to her best friends, who all seem to have it together, or to her husband’s family, who play an outsized role in her life, she feels utterly alone. Then a body washes ashore and her husband is arrested for the crime.
Confused about whether she thinks he might have murdered someone or whether she is losing her mind, she reluctantly begins searching for clues at his request.
This is a slow burn mystery that leans heavily into Brynn’s postpartum depression. Spiro deftly captures the tedium and repetition of the early days with a newborn, making this a deliberately slow-paced of the mystery.
Such a Good Mom will be released April 29, 2025.
The Usual Family Mayhem
By HelenKay Dimon
Kasey Nottingham has a reputation for lack of follow-through. She hasn't managed to hold a job. She quit law school after a single year. And her love life is no better. When her latest boss insists she come up with a potential client for their venture capitalist firm, she rashly suggests her grandmother's very successful small Southern baking company, Mags' Desserts. The only problem is that Mags, her grandmother, and her partner Celia don't want to sell. Kasey knows this, but her boss tells her she has a week to convince them or she'll lose her job.
The other problem is Jackson, Celia's son, who Kasey has had an unrequited crush on since she was a teenager.
While Kasey dodges questions about her abrupt return to her North Carolina town, she begins to notice strange happenings surrounding her gram, including dead husbands, locked cabinets, and mysterious entries in the business acounting software.
HelenKay Dimon sets up a hilarious tale, full of delicious-sounding sweets, lots of secrets, some of which may be criminal, and a generous helping of family mayhem. For fans of Elle Cosimo and Jesse Q. Sutanto, this tale of Southern justice is a rollicking good read.
The Usual Family Mayhem will be available March 11, 2025.