Pie

When Alice's Aunt Polly passes away, she takes with her the secret to her world-famous pie-crust recipe. Or does she? In her will, Polly leaves the recipe to her extraordinarily surly cat Lardo . . . and then leaves Lardo in the care of Alice.

Suddenly Alice is thrust into the center of a piestorm, with everyone in town trying to be the next pie-contest winner ... including Alice's mother and some of Alice's friends. The whole community is going pie-crazy . . . and it's up to Alice to discover the ingredients that really matter. Like family. And friendship. And enjoying what you do.

I don't normally read YA, but the cat and pie on the cover drew me in. Then I downloaded a free sample of the first 2 chapters and immediately pre-ordered the book. Set during the summer of 1955 (love the '50s...wish I'd been around in that more innocent time!), Alice is a young girl grieving over the loss of her beloved aunt. She feels lost because they were so close, spending everyday together in Polly's pie shop. Alice doesn't get along with her mother, who was jealous of her successful sister. Then a mystery is dropped into Alice's lap...where is the recipe for Polly's famous pie crust, and how does her cat Lardo hold the answer? Love the small town feel, and I will admit I teared up at the end. This book is absolutely as sweet as pie.

October 25 Releases

These are today's releases that I'm really excited about:

*The Puppy That Came for Christmas-Megan Rix
*Killer's Christmas in Wales-Elizabeth Duncan
*A Christmas Homecoming-Anne Perry
*Christmas Note-Donna VanLiere
*9 Lives of Christmas-Sheila Roberts
*Scotched-Kaitlyn Dunnett (The holiday book in this series, A Wee Christmas Homicide, is FREE today for Kindle and Nook!)

Happy Reading!!! Any new releases you're really excited about?

Liver Let Die

Jordan McAllister can't cook her way out of a macaroni & cheese box, but filling in for the culinary reporter at The Ranchero Globe is better than writing personal ads. Her first assignment to review the new steakhouse in town is a disaster that ends with her waiter murdered outside her door-with her name and number in his pocket. Now Jordan is the prime suspect, as well as the main course on the murder menu. 

This is the first book in Liz Lipperman's Clueless Cook Mystery series, and it's a winner. Jordan is a fun and fearless protagonist, and oh the trouble she manages to get herself into! I loved the scene where she couldn't eat the foie gras after she learned what it was...I would have the exact same reaction she did! And the recipes in the back of the book from her columns look divine. I made the Pumpkin Pie Crunch yesterday and it's wonderful! I'll definitely be trying out more of the recipes, and will be looking forward to more books in the series.

Adventures of Goldilocks and the Three Behrs

Victoria Goldenrod (Goldilocks) is forced to leave the security of her wealthy family and embark on a journey to the Wild West. Her wagon train is robbed at gunpoint while Victoria is out on a walk through the forest, and she's the only survivor to the brutal killings. She's also the only witness, and she needs a place of refuge where the Blackstone Gang can't find her.

Victoria stumbles across a cottage deep in the forest and makes herself at home, assuming the family is away on a trip, but what she finds in her bed when she awakens the next morning could be more than she's prepared to handle. The Behr family isn't like others. And they'll do anything to make sure Victoria becomes one of their own. Even if every one of them have to seduce her.

For as much as I love my historicals as hot as possible, I have to say this one was a bit much for me. I'm a pretty traditional gal with my romances...I want a love story between one man and one woman. These stories of untraditional relationships with three and four people leave me quite uncomfortable. That being said, I enjoyed the western aspect of this one, especially the wagon train journey in the beginning.

Bone Yard

Fourth Installment in the Raine Stockton Dog Mystery Series: a short novella

Dog trainer Raine Stockton has lived all her life in the quiet community of Hansonville, North Carolina. She is the daughter of a judge, the niece of a sheriff, and the ex-wife of a deputy. She does not lead the kind of life, generally speaking, in which people get buried in her back yard. But when Cisco, Raine’s mischievous golden retriever, digs up human bones beneath the site of what will soon be her new training kennel, mayhem ensues. With the state police swarming everywhere, concerns about a mass grave and suspicions of a serial killer, Raine is surrounded by chaos. But when her beautiful collie Majesty keeps disappearing and cryptic messages from a pet psychic only add to the confusion, Raine soon finds herself plunged into the midst of a mystery that is far too close to home. Can she and Cisco track down the truth before it’s too late?

In 2006-2007 I devoured the first 3 Raine Stockton Dog Mysteries: Smoky Mountain Tracks, Gun Shy, and Rapid Fire. They quickly became my favorite in the "dog cozy" genre. (If you haven't read them, run to your Kindle NOW!!!) Then they stopped and I was heartbroken. So a couple months ago I was thrilled, thanks to marvelous ebooks, to discover a new novella in this gem of a series and couldn't wait to become reacquainted with Raine and her 4 beautiful pups. This is a wonderful mystery, along with some changes in Raine's life, including an ending that completely broke my heart. I can't wait for the Christmas novella, Silent Night, in December, and hope and pray that the series can last a long time in ebook form.

River Bound

What do a madame and a bounty hunter have in common? They want the same man.
Bound and Tied, Book 3
When Rosalyn Smythe, aka Madame Rosie, steps aboard the Marie-Dearie, she hopes it’s the end of a year-long search for her runaway fiancé, Dalton Black. Her cabin holds a surprise: James McKendrick. Notorious bounty hunter, old lover…a man only too happy to help her clear the air—and her heart—of her murdering, thieving bastard fiancé once and for all.
In disguise as a riverboat gambler, Dalton is determined to find who framed him for killing two U.S. Army soldiers and who stole the gold they were carrying. He wants his life back—and his woman, who just happens to be on board and on the arm of his former best friend.
Convincing James he’s innocent is easier than winning back Rosalyn’s heart. Especially since Rosalyn seems to be enjoying their competition for her affections a little too much. There’s only one place to work out his dilemma. In bed.
As the sheets become unbearably hot, threads of evidence leading to the real killer are unraveling, leading toward one fateful card game—and one man who’s hell-bent on making sure Dalton has nothing left to lose. 

The 3rd book in Myla Jackson's Bound and Tied series, I haven't read the first 2 but definitely will after reading this one! Set on a steamboat on the Mississippi River in 1861, this story features the classic good boy/bad boy choice for our heroine, bordello owner Rosalyn. It is hot and steamy and action filled, with a mystery to be solved as well.

99 cent Kindle books

There has been a lot of online chatter about the flood of independently published 99 cent Kindle books. Some say it's a great way to introduce readers to new authors, to whet their appetite and increase the likelihood of future sales. Others say it's lowering expectations, that readers will think they're going to get what they pay for, in other words, they're not going to be getting much.

I'm not an author so I don't have a strong opinion either way, except to say this: in the past week I have read 2 Kindle books that I paid 99 cents each for...Wild Wild Widow by Emma Jay and Happy New Life by Tonya Kappes. They couldn't be more different genre-wise; all they have in common is that they both completely blew me away. Both without a doubt "5 paws up" reads.

I'm sure there are 99 cent klunkers out there, but I've yet to come across one yet. The ones I've read so far have happily exceeded my expectations, and in many cases been better reads than some of the traditionally published, full price paperbacks and hardcovers out there. A great book is a great book, no matter how it's published, period.