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Book Review: Snow Place for Murder

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Snow Place for Murder
Mountain Lodge Mystery #3
by Diane Kelly

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: Cozy mystery

Misty Murphy, owner of a mountain lodge, becomes entangled in a murder investigation when a resort developer is found dead on her property. As suspects include the other guests in the lodge, as well as some locals, Misty takes it upon herself to dig into motives and opportunities to help the local law enforcement solve the crime.

I have not read the previous 2 books in this series, but figured if I enjoyed this one, I’d go back to them. I can safely say this is not a series I’m going to be delving into, though, as I didn’t care for the author’s style in this book. I am not used to quite so much hand-holding in a mystery book, as the narration includes every single thought the main character has about the case, large or small, sometimes repeated. As I read, I had to assume that her speculations through most of the book were all wrong because otherwise, it wouldn’t be a very engaging plot. Also, there is a lot of detail that was wholly unnecessary, including a long stretch of time before the mystery really got going. When Misty listens to conversations between others, just about every line of dialog is followed up with her thoughts about that statement—sometimes her doubting that they were telling the truth (even though she seemed to have little to no expertise in the matters they discussed most of the time), but most often bringing it back to herself with thoughts about how she would feel in that situation, how that situation reminded her of something that once happened to her, etc.

On top of all of that, Misty’s reactions to finding out the deceased man had actually been murdered, and later similar reactions to seeing a potential key piece of evidence, are over-the-top dramatic and not really what I look for in the MC of a mystery series. Finally, there were a few 1-page chapters scattered throughout the book that were from the POV of Misty’s cat Yeti. When the first of these chapters came up, it took me several minutes to understand that it was a cat’s head into which we’d just jumped, though that was probably my own fault. I thought at first that the cat’s POV would give us, the readers, some clues that would help us solve the case for ourselves, but in the end, the cat chapters provided absolutely nothing. I’m a cat person through and through, but this was unnecessary to me.

Add to that some personal preference issues, like the immediate assumption that a stranger is dangerous and could resort to violence at any moment simply because he has a gun on his hip; and the fact that the MC and her ex-husband were divorced simply because the “romance had wanted” (though he did try to romance her with a bottle of wine during this story…just saying) and they wanted different things from life. I’m really not a fan of cavalier divorce, much less celebrating it as a good thing. And I noted one glaring mistake involving characters returning from skiing twice in one day (and no, they did not leave to go skiing again in between). In the end, though I’m sure that there is an audience for this kind of cozy mystery, I am not that audience. If you think you might be, please do check out other reviews at the link below.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me a copy of this book to review.
Publication date: October 24, 2023

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Book Review: ‘Twas the Bite Before Christmas

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‘Twas the Bite Before Christmas
Andy Carpenter #28
by David Rosenfelt

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: Mystery

When the Christmas party at the Tara Foundation, a dog rescue organization co-founded by defense attorney Andy Carpenter, is interrupted when one of the foundation’s dog foster volunteers is arrested for murder, Andy reluctantly takes his case. A witness in protective custody and a local crime family make this a Christmas to remember.

This is the 2nd book in this series that I’ve read now, the first being another Christmas-related book, and this has clinched my decision to start back at the beginning of this series soon. Though this book isn’t a traditional type of mystery story, giving the reader clues as they try to solve it along with the main character, it did still have some intrigue that I had a prediction about (and turned out to be right about). Like an episode of an old detective show like Matlock, we are shown not only the investigation, but also the courtroom scenes as he defends his (presumably) innocent client. Though some of the dog love is lost on me, since I’m a cat person, I enjoy the characters. What really stands out to me, though, is the wit and snark of the main character. Rosenfelt manages to make his detective funny without overdoing it.

There was a bit of repetitiveness here and there, and the ending felt pretty rushed, especially a final reveal. Otherwise, though, it’s easy to recommend it to fans of the mystery genre. The book isn’t exactly a Christmas story—it just happens to take place at Christmas time, and you really don’t need to have read the rest of the series to enjoy this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me a copy of this book to review.
Publication date: October 10, 2023

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Book Review: Greetings from Witness Protection!

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Greetings from Witness Protection!
by Jake Burt

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Middle grade fiction

Thanks to years in foster care making her tough and street smart, Nicki Demere is asked by the U.S. Marshals to join a family of three that needs to be protected from their criminal family, camouflaging them as a family of four. As Charlotte Trevor, she does what she can to help protect her new family while also being the most average student possible. But before long, all of the Trevors learn how difficult it can be to outrun one’s past.

I don’t know why it’s so much harder to figure out how to start a review when I like a book than it is when I dislike a book. I guess because it just doesn’t seem good enough to start out with, “This book is great!” But this one really is. I don’t know how plausible the premise is, but the author sure made it seem realistic, considering that Nicki isn’t the only kid tapped for “Project Family.” From the orphanage to training with the Marshals and finally to her new home, Nicki makes an impression with everyone along the way. I didn’t always feel like her voice was all that realistic to a 13-year-old, but on the other hand, her rough history makes her anything but average. And the way her past affects her in the present was written well and adds to her being quite the sympathetic protagonist.

There were some things about this book that were predictable (at least for me, reading it as an adult) but at least one thing that happened that I did not expect at all. Throw in few emotional moments, a style that’s easy to read, and suspense built in the form of brief mentions of the criminals trying to track down the hidden family, and it’s easy to see why this book hooked me. There were even several laugh-out-loud moments here and there. I read this at the same time that my 13-year-old daughter did, and she loved it too. She agrees that it was suspenseful and thrilling. High endorsement from the target audience!

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Book Review: Beneath the Swirling Sky

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Beneath the Swirling Sky
The Restorationists #1
by Carolyn Leiloglou

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Christian children’s fantasy

Though named after Vincent van Gogh and loving to paint when he was younger, 13-year-old Vincent wants nothing to do with art anymore, after realizing that he’s not as good as he hoped he’d be. So when his parents leave him with his great-uncle Leo, a painting restorer, during spring break, Vincent expects to be bored. He expects to be lectured about art. What he doesn’t expect is to fall into a painting of van Gogh’s Starry Night and find out that he has the ability to travel through paintings. Then his little sister gets lost inside the same painting, and it’s up to Vincent and his strange cousin Georgia to find her.

Full disclosure: I am not an art lover; in fact, I’ve never had more than a cursory interest in even famous paintings. Yet I really enjoyed this book and can say that one does not need to be really into van Gogh, Rembrandt, etc. to read and like the book. The author does a good job of allowing the reader to tap into the enthusiasm of the characters in the book, even Vincent, who tries to convince himself he doesn’t care about art anymore. The focus on that in the narration got a little repetitive and almost caused me to lower my rating by half a star. However, the story and characters outside of that, and the payoff to Vincent’s attempt at being dispassionate about art are all wonderful, so I couldn’t bear to give the book anything less than 5 stars.

As Vincent and Georgia try to track down Vincent’s little sister, they come across others that can travel through paintings—others whose intentions are not exactly noble. And Vincent comes face-to-face with his own worst qualities in a very real way. But in a fantastical twist, he also comes face-to-face with the One who sees everything he is and still loves him. I don’t want to say anymore about this, because it was the absolute high point of the book for me, the moment that I knew I was going to recommend this book to everyone, young and old, and that I will read it again and again in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and WaterBrook & Multnomah for providing me a copy of this book to review.
Publication date: September 12, 2023

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Book Review: The Woman from Lydia

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The Woman from Lydia
The Emissaries #1
by Angela Hunt

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Biblical fiction

When Euodia, a Christ-follower in AD 51, sees a young slave girl being treated terribly by her master, she buys the slave to free her. But though the slave no longer brought a profit for her masters after a Jewish rabbi had robbed her of her “gift” of divination, one of her masters claims the sale was not done legally. He takes the girl back and travels to find someone who can restore her gift so she can continue to earn money for him. Euodia and her servants follow the master and slave in the hopes of rescuing the girl who should rightfully be free.

Hunt takes a couple of passages from the book of Acts and weaves them into a rich, heart-filled story that I absolutely loved! The bulk of the story is the journey east from Philippi, Euodia trailing behind Hector Hostilius, hoping to catch up to him before he manages to restore the slave girl’s gift with an unclean spirit or sells her for being worthless to him. Even before that, though, and throughout, I was caught up in the setting, from the work Euodia does making purple clothing to the travel on the Via Egnatia and so many other things. A warning for those who might be bothered by this kind of thing—Hunt doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of life during this time period—violence, idol worship, sexual immorality, etc.

Euodia’s faith in Christ came from an encounter with the apostle Paul, who is also the rabbi that “cursed” the slave girl Sabina by casting a demon out of her (these are both of the parts that came from Acts). While most of us don’t face the kind of situation Euodia is in here, trying to literally free a girl in captivity, I mentally cheered her resolve and wholehearted trust in God. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see how it was all going to play out. The book goes back and forth between Euodia and Hector for much of the book, and I’ll admit that that led me to expect a far different outcome to the book than it has. An unpredictable plot is a good thing, though, and there was not one thing about the plot or the ending that I would have changed. Well, maybe one thing, but it’s small and would be a spoiler to explain. And I did notice a few weird name discrepancies, wherein a slave was first given one name then later referred to by another and Hector’s business partner had 2 slightly different spellings for his last name. If either of these things was intentional, I didn’t pick up on it.

There is some romance in the story, but it also was not what I expected from early in the book, and it was my favorite kind—subtle and sweet. I appreciate that Hunt didn’t give us more than necessary in the way of physical interaction between the two involved, which I feel happens far too often in Christian fiction. Overall, I earnestly recommend this book for those who enjoy biblical fiction, especially from the time after Christ.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bethany House for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: A Royal Christmas

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A Royal Christmas
by Melody Carlson

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Christian Christmas fiction

Adelaide Smith is ready for a change in her life, but her plans didn’t include being found by the father she never knew, learning that he is the king of a tiny country in Europe, or being asked to travel there to meet him. Simply stepping foot into the country puts her in the crosshairs of someone who doesn’t want her there.

This was a short read, but I really liked it. Adelaide’s lawyer mind and down-to-earth qualities give her a level head (though to be honest, I have a hard time believing she isn’t goading the queen when she asks her father about the nativity scene, when she knows it was the queen who didn’t want it out). There is a bit of romance, but it doesn’t take over the story at all. The story doesn’t go the predictable route that it easily could, and I liked the common theme of “God’s plan in God’s time.” I appreciated Adelaide struggling with the darker traditions this small country has related to Christmas (though I really wish more people could at least see the possible problems with Santa Claus/St. Nicholas traditions, too). In fact, I think my favorite aspect of the story was the way Adelaide was sort of trying to put to rights the changes the queen had made away from Christian values more toward paganism. I may be exaggerating it a little, but I think that could have been expanded on into a larger story, and I would have been all for it.

Small things that bothered me were several repetitive spots that I noted and my utter bewilderment over the way the rulership turned out. It would probably be a spoiler to explain, so I won’t, but I think that either the author didn’t explain the way it all went down very well or this kingdom has some peculiar laws of succession. Overall, though, I was quite happy with this novella. It contains a lot of Christmas charm, and I think that anyone looking for a feel-good faith-based read this Christmas that isn’t too over-the-top sappy should pick up this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Revell for providing me a copy of this book to review.
Publication date: September 5, 2023

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Book Review: Facing the Enemy

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Facing the Enemy
by DiAnn Mills

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: Christian suspense, romance

The sudden death of her previously estranged brother leaves FBI Special Agent Risa Jacobs reeling and questioning her responsibility in the tragedy as well as her faith. Her partner, Gage Patterson, doesn’t understand when she resigns from the FBI to go back to teaching creative writing at a college, but he vows to keep working her brother’s case. But when a student turns in a writing assignment that is a spot-on eyewitness account of her brother’s murder, Risa finally has a lead to pursue and won’t be staying away from the FBI long.

This is the third DiAnn Mills book I’ve read, and though I did liked the first one, I’m starting to notice a trend in which I don’t get along well with her writing style. I often found myself confused and unable to grasp the meaning in the author’s choice of words. Dialog felt unnatural or stilted, especially during interviews with people involved in the investigations, and characters’ words didn’t always quite line up with each other’s. And sometimes, it seems like there’s subject-verb confusion that should have easily been caught by an editor. It’s a little difficult to explain, but I’ll share one quote that I think is a good example of what I mean. Said by a character: “Running didn’t keep them safe. But fear took over. Still am.” I promise, I’m not leaving anything out that would explain what the “Still am” refers to, or if I did, it’s because what it refers to is so separate from the rest of this quote that I didn’t realize that’s what it was supposed to connect with. And maybe plenty of people will read that line and just keep going, because the intent is clear enough (still am…running, I guess?). But for me, I can’t help but stop short and think, “Huh? Still am what? Huh?” And that takes me right out of the story. And since this is just one example of a lot of different lines that made me scratch my head, hopefully that gives a good enough understanding of why I struggled to get into this story.

The message in the book is good, though, and the main reason I gave it two stars is for the conversation with the psychologist, who I felt asked some good questions and really got to the heart of Risa’s grief, doubt, and self-blame. I wish it could have come a little earlier in the book to spare us some of the angst, but it was still appreciated. The relationship between the two MCs, on the other hand, also confused me. They’ve been partners for five years and are both already in love with each other (secretly) at the start of the story, yet sometimes it seems like they really have a lot to get to know about each other still. The writing assignment angle, which is what really caught my attention in the synopsis and made me want to try another DiAnn Mills book, hoping it would be more like the first one I read than the second, was a pretty big let-down for me. I also struggled with consistency issues in various places. I really dislike giving this low of a rating to any book, and I’ve found myself questioning my own ability to read and comprehend what I’m reading correctly, since I’ve so far been in the vast minority with my thoughts of this book and the previous one I didn’t care for. Please check out other reviews for different opinions, as most of them are positive so far, if you’re interested in the synopsis and/or genre.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tyndale House Publishers for providing me a copy of this book to review.
Publication date: September 5, 2023

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Book Review: What If Love Is the Point?

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What If Love Is the Point?
by Carlos PenaVega & Alexa PenaVega

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Memoir

Carlos Pena of Big Time Rush fame and Alexa Vega of Spy Kids fame, now married with kids, share the story of how they met, what transpired in their lives before that, and how Christ became the most important thing in their lives. Full disclosure before I start—I had never heard of Big Time Rush (as a show or a band) before reading this book and have seen the first Spy Kids movie once; it didn’t make a major impression, but I was basically an adult when it came out, so not really the target audience. The PenaVegas have a following on social media as well, though I’m not part of that sphere either. I was simply interested in hearing what they had to say about Living for Jesus in a Self-Consumed World (the subtitle of the book).

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I anticipated fluff, but there really wasn’t much of that. While they don’t exactly go into the nitty gritty of sin, sacrifice, and redemption, it may not have been their intention to present the Gospel. On the other hand, they do seem to be addressing unbelievers, at least in part, and I’m not sure what is presented here is enough to really explain what one must to do have eternal life. This is the main reason I did not give the book 5 stars. As a memoir, though, it is pretty honest and vulnerable. Considering the fame that both of these two have had in their lives, it is no small feat to not be completely caught up in it, to see that there must be more to life than the emptiness that the world provides. I appreciated the way that Alexa, especially, pointed out the ways that she can look back and see God working in her life before she’d given it over to Him. It’s touching to me that she even admits that her first marriage might have been saved with a more full reliance on God, because even in the Christian culture today, many will justify their divorce as something that just couldn’t be avoided.

Carlos, on the other hand, is a really good example of someone who might be saved in the sense that they “said the words,” but the real relationship with God took years to develop to a point where he could trust Him more. These two have very different ways of responding to God, and I like how they view their marriage as complementary. My husband and I are much the same way, though in different ways. Though there will always be difficult times, a commitment to follow wherever God may be leading is important in a marriage, as well as in individual lives. That is one of the strongest messages that comes through in this book.

If you’re looking for a presentation of the Gospel message, you won’t really find it here. But you will find an open discussion of what it looks like to follow God and what it looks like to ignore Him. Though I’m sure single people can still get some insight from this book, it’s pretty heavy on wisdom for people who are married or in an otherwise serious relationship. Whether you’re a fan of one or both of the PenaVegas or have never heard of either, if the topic interests you, I recommend giving it a try.

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: The Ferryman

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The Ferryman
by Justin Cronin

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Sci-fi

Proctor Bennett is a ferryman on the somewhat utopian island of Prospera; his job is to guide people through retirement when their digital monitor says it’s time. But when his own number starts to dip, he knows he’s not ready. Worse yet, he’s started to have some strange dreams, though dreaming shouldn’t be possible. Then he’s tasked with retiring his own father, who says some cryptic things on the way to and at the ferry. Meanwhile, some of the less privileged citizens of Prospera begin to express their dislike for their forced place in society. When all of this comes to a head, the island will never be the same.

I quite enjoyed this book overall. I’ll admit it developed slowly, but there was enough intrigue to keep me curious and coming back to it often. I had my theories, but since I tended to switch from one theory to another, I can’t really claim to have been completely correct in my guesses by the end. The conclusion was tied up pretty well, with a full explanation given, but at times along the way, I found myself seriously lost. The overall feel and style of the book reminded me a lot of Fahrenheit 451. Proctor was mostly a sympathetic hero, but I don’t think there was a whole lot of substance to him through most of the book. 

The book starts out in present tense, then switches between present and past throughout the book. I never did figure out if there was a pattern to that, so I really don’t understand the decision to write it that way. And by the end, though I said it was tied up pretty well, there were a few things, somewhat large but not glaring, that were left unexplained. I wasn’t left with the feeling other books of the type, where the reader isn’t meant to even understand what is going on with the world until part way through the book, have left me with, the feeling that I can’t wait to read it again knowing the truth, to see how things fit together. Maybe that means my guesses were actually close enough that I didn’t feel completely thrown when the truth was revealed. However, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the ride. If you enjoy cryptic sci-fi stories of vaguely dystopian futures with something of a twist, you’ll probably like this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: Evil Genius

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Evil Genius
The Smartest Kid in the Universe #3
by Chris Grabenstein

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Children’s adventure

12-year-old Jake and his scientifically enhanced, super-smart brain may have a rival when the latest batch of ingestible knowledge jelly beans are stolen. And if that isn’t bad enough, Jake has reason to believe that his artificial knowledge could wear off at any moment. Can Jake and his friends outsmart both new and old foes and recover a treasure that’s been lost for centuries?

Poor Jake is really put through it in this installment. He used to be a fun-loving kid who had no real worries. Now, not only does he have to deal with dark-side counterparts, but he’s devastated over the possibility of losing his intelligence. This book has a few more plot lines than previous ones do, so there’s kind of a lot going on for not a very long book. Because of that, I feel like Jake’s friends don’t get as much “screen time” in this book. On the other hand, at least that means I didn’t have to deal with as much of Kojo’s Kojak references. But the multiple plot lines also provide two different main villains (and several smaller ones), and there is a lot of anti-climax involved. Still, in the end, the book was fun. I’m getting to like Jake more and more with each book, and I hope there’s more to come. For the first time in this series, I cannot tell you what my daughter thought of the book, because she hasn’t read it yet. I’m very interested to hear what she thinks, but in the meantime, I’m confident recommending this book and series for kids around 8-12 years old.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s Books for providing me a copy of this book to review.
Publication date: May 16, 2023

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