Somebody Worth Killing
by Jessica Payne
A fun read (5/16/2026)
I couldn't put this book down, despite the impossibility of it all. For example, a hired killer is the mother of young children. She even travels out of town. She even travels out of town for jobs. There is not much more I can say without spoiler.
The Reimagining of Thornwood House
by Jaleigh Johnson
Such Imagination! (4/25/2026)
This book is just exceptional. It jumps into the mystical, with witches and mystical houses. Imagination of the author coming up with the situation and the plot is amazing. I love the house as a living being as I loved our heroine moves from a government witch agency to a small village to become a guardian of a which house. The unfolding is truly fun to watch and get into. I love this book, although normally I wouldn't pick up a book in this genre.
The Jellyfish Problem
by Tessa Yang
Enchanting but thought-provoking (3/26/2026)
I enjoyed this book from front to back. The characters became real to me-to the point that I could picture them in my mind. It's an interesting plot that reminds us that we are connected to nature and clearly each other. This is not a book I would normally have picked up to read, but I could not put it down. The descriptions of the phenomenon of the jellyfish are beautiful and detailed.
The Magic of Untamed Hearts: Wild Magic #3
by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
A fun read (10/16/2025)
This is not a book I would normally recommend select to read. Magic gifts to a family of women bring fun into the book, but the theme of "fitting in" hits home with many of us-/no matter what your gifts may be. It's also a love story. I could have done without the explicit sex in this book, but I realize that appeals to many others.
Next Time Will Be Our Turn
by Jesse Q. Sutanto
Cross-culture and cross-sexuality masterpiece (9/21/2025)
Jesse Santano masterfully writes about the Indonesian-Chinese culture through generations of women in Indonesia and the US. She deals with issues of homosexuality and mental health. Her characters are vividly themselves with hereditary traits showing through. This book speaks to the stark differences between the two cultures over the past few generations. The confidence and wisdom to be ourselves rang out loudly to me.
The Botanist's Assistant
by Peggy Townsend
Great Characters (8/2/2025)
Lab assistant, Margaret; janitor/journalist, Joe; and grad student/lab assistant, Calvin; are terrific characters. Watching Margaret the loner develop close relationships while solving a murder makes this book interesting and entertaining. The book has many repetitive descriptions and phrases that bogged me down. Otherwise it is an entertaining read.
The Vanishing Place
by Zoë Rankin
A great read (7/2/2025)
This book is about a family that lives deep in a forest in a hut is totally absorbing. The characters are richly developed and there are mysteries (note plural) within mysteries—beginning with a young girl, bloody and bedraggled, wandering into to town. This results in the one person who escaped from the family returning to the small town. She gets caught up in solving the girl's identity plus other murders and family secrets. The final chapters surprised me as the family history is resolved. A great read. I didn't want to put it down.
The World's Greatest Detective and Her Just Okay Assistant
by Liza Tully
Fun, fun, fun (2/23/2025)
This book is so entertaining that I didn't want to put it down. Set in LA, the characters are stereo type cinema types gone haywire— a gre at movie star is now an attorney. The unlikely crew of characters set out to solve a murder. Need I say more? It's great fun reading this book.
Making Friends Can Be Murder
by Kathleen West
Great Characters and plot (2/23/2025)
I was captivated by the club of women with the same name. What a clever idea! Enter the FBI and you have all the elements for friendships being formed, a murder and fraud to solve and, of course, a love story. This book is great!
