cindyjameson

This is the first book of the series of "Sarah Booth Delaney Mysteries".  I have read all of them and each one builds on the one before it.  The characters evolve into complex beings that you get emotionally invested in.  That being said, this is the weakest book of the entire series so far. From this point on all of them warrant 4.5 or 5 star ratings! 

This is the only series I have recommended and re-recommended to other readers of mystery.  

They are lighter mysteries, but a little heavier than cozy mysteries.  There is suspense and always a little romance too.  I won't give away the best parts though, you will have to read them for yourself!

A beautifully written story about the futility of our existence. It does not matter what we do while we are here, the earth with continue, and the marks of our lives will stay for a century or two, and then the earth will swallow up whatever trace existence that has remained. I found this book an incredibly dismal reading experience. There were no peaks, just ebbs; the depressing day-to-day stories of several barely content people.

The author brings the English countryside to life with her flowing descriptive language. The mental imagery is the high point of the book. Other than that, I felt like celebrating when I was finally finished reading this book.

This is a fast-paced thriller. The ending leaves you with questions and wanting more!

Mislaid was quite the ride. Not knowing the author's work, I am not sure that the book is, as some suggest, a satire on social commentary at all. The absurdities and contradictions of the social norm, do however, provide some entertainment. Is the author making a statement, or just providing a piece of literary entertainment? My thoughts oscillated back and forth between these two opinions, eventually leaning towards the latter. The adventure of Peggy is riddled with situations where her actions and solutions are anything but what most people would attempt. For this reason I could see where some readers could decide that it is satire.

The author is quite witty, but in some of the situations, maybe it was a little too much to be realistic. I found Peggy's intellect to be conflicting with her actions. Surely someone so intelligent could have come up with better solutions to her difficulties.

The ending left me feeling like something was lacking. It was tied up in a nice little bow, the tone perceived from the beginning of the book is all but non-existant in the story's resolution. It was as if the character's personalities changed somewhat so they could all be there for the wrap-up.

I love this series. The author has a way of taking you to her mythical town and making it real. You never even question the fact that they are witches, it all seems normal.

Something About You is an enjoyable page-turning read. It is not your everyday run of the mill romance; It combines mystery, suspense, some action, humour and some hot romance. I will be looking for titles by Julie James in the future.

Night of the Living Deed is the first mystery in the Haunted House Mystery series. I give it a 3.5 star rating because there were a few weak points that should have been obvious to the author, in my opinion. However, I loved the book. It was fun from start to finish and I am looking forward to reading the next one.

Diets Suck, and so does this book...

The main difference between this books and other diet books is that it is put into a story format instead of a how-to format. For some people if may be helpful in this format, but I found all of the situations contrived and not believeable. I did not find anything in the book that was new from other diet books as far as information. I guess the biggest downfall was that the book was basically selling the isatori.com website. I will have to give the author credit for his original marketing concept.

Tag along with Rabbi Kappelmacher in solving this new mystery. Kappelmacher's sleuthing methods are reminiscent of the investigative skills of Inspector Hercule Poirot. There is a large cast of colorful suspects you will be introduced to. You will be in the front row as all of the clues are uncovered by Rabbi Kappelmacher. Will you be able to deduce who the murderer is? If not, the ending will be quite a surprise!

What a superlative collection of short stories! I knew, before even completing the first story,that I had stumbled upon an extraordinary compilation of writings!

I took my time reading these delicious tales; I read only one after finishing each novel in my cache of books. I savored each and every one of Jacob Appel's short stories.

What skill this author has! In a mere 20 pages, he transports us into a new location, a different time, and introduces us to a set of wholly unique characters. In those 20 pages he is not afraid to touch on taboo issues, private thoughts, or gender roles. Each trenchant story is only snippet in time of someone elses story, but he deftly ends them at the precise point that leaves us satisified, yet considering what we have just read.

I will be looking for more short stories by Jacob Appel in the near future!!