Tag: Series

Mystery Reads: Book Retreat Mystery series by Ellery Adams

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“There were books everywhere. Hundreds of books. Thousands of books. There were books of every size, shape, and color. They lined the walls from floor to ceiling, standing straight and rigid as soldiers on the polished mahogany shelves, the gilt lettering on their worn spines glinting in the soft light, the scent of supple leather and aging paper filling the air.”
― Ellery Adams, Murder in the Mystery Suite

When searching for a new-to-me cozy mystery, I discovered Ellery Adams’ Book Retreat Mystery series. The first in this series, Murder in the Mystery Suite, published in 2014, is an introduction to Jane Steward and Storyton Hall, a storybook resort owned by her family. This was an absolutely beautiful ode to book lovers and the stories that define their lives.

Storyton Hall is a storybook resort tucked in the rolling hills of rural western Virginia. Resort manager Jane Steward is tasked with keeping the resort and its staff happy and its guests eager to come back for additional stays. Determined to boost Storyton Hall’s bookings, Jane decides to host a Murder and Mayhem week. Fans of all things mystery will gather together for role-playing, fantasy, games, and parties. During one of the first events, a scavenger hunt, Jane is surprised to find so many of the guests incredibly invested in winning the prize, a valuable book (but Jane doesn’t think it’s quite as valuable as some of the guests are making it out to be). Her suspicions are proved false when death befalls the winner of the scavenger hunt. Did he die of natural causes? Or is one of Jane’s guests a murderer?

This series introduction is full of delightfully quirky characters, beautiful surroundings, and oh so many book recommendations. Murder in the Mystery Suite has turned the traditional cozy mystery into a more modern version that could become a favorite for years to come.

This title is also available in large print.

Book Retreat Mystery series

  1. Murder in the Mystery Suite (2014)
  2. Murder in the Paperback Parlor (2015)
  3. Murder in the Secret Garden (2016)
  4. Murder in the Locked Library (2018)
  5. Murder in the Reading Room (2019)
  6. Murder in the Storybook Cottage (2020)
  7. Murder in the Cookbook Nook (2021)
  8. Murder on the Poet’s Walk (2022)
  9. Murder in the Book Lover’s Loft (2023)

Good Spirits by B.K. Borison

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“I still feel like I don’t fit, but I’ve stopped trying to force myself into the spaces that aren’t made for me.”
― B.K. Borison, Good Spirits

Nolan Callahan never expected to spend his afterlife as the Ghost of Christmas Past, but here he is. Every holiday for over a hundred years he has spent his time haunting someone. This year he expects the work to be the same – he will get his assignment, visit them, take them on trips to their past, and then go back to aimlessly wandering as a ghost waiting for his afterlife. His newest assignment, Harriet York, isn’t like the others though. She’s sweet, charming, and has managed to give Nolan hope for a future if only he could figure out why he was assigned to haunt her.

Harriet York is a good person. Having left her career as a lawyer much to her family’s massive disappointment, Harriet has taken over her aunt’s antique shop. As a people pleaser deep in her core, Harriet lives to make people happy and to do what’s expected of her. When Nolan starts haunting her, she is just as surprised as he is. The two start on a quest to discover why they have been brought together. On trips to her past, Harriet and Nolan find connections that link the two of them to each other. Having decided that they were matched in order to help Nolan move on, they quickly find that moving Nolan to his afterlife isn’t as easy as they thought it would be.

Nolan knows his deadline of Christmas Eve is fast approaching. With a warning from his boss that dire consequences await both he and Harriet if he doesn’t complete his job on time, Nolan is conflicted. Does he want to move on? Or does he want to spend time with Harriet, indulging in the deep feelings between them both? The connection that Nolan and Harriet have is unmatched. Fueled by his magic and the charged threads connecting the two, Nolan and Harriet must decide which route they want to take? Move on or stay connected?

Looking for a holiday read, I turned to my fellow readers, one of whom suggested I look into B.K. Borison. Good Spirits, her latest novel, caught my eye based on the cover alone. This was a cozy magical, paranormal holiday romance. I absolutely adored it and can’t wait to read more by this author. Final note: if you choose to read this book, you need to be able to suspend your disbelief. (Also if you read this book, let me know! I need to talk the ending with someone!)

Ghosted series

  1. Good Spirits (2025)
  2. Grim Tidings (2026)

Nine Month Contract by Amy Daws

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“Well, preferring loneliness over rejection or disappointment won’t work forever. You’re hurting yourself under the guise of protection, but it makes no sense because all you’re doing is literally hurting yourself. It’s a pointless cycle. And you’re missing out on life,”
― Amy Daws, Nine Month Contract

All Wyatt has ever wanted is to be a father. Not wanting to go the traditional route, he reaches out to a surrogacy agency, but is disappointed in the candidates presented to him. When his brothers and niece get involved, he soon discovers a help-wanted ad spread all over his small mountain town advertising for a surrogate. This eventually leads the family to Trista. Trista wants to be a surrogate for her own personal reasons, but the surrogacy agency doesn’t believe she’s a viable candidate. When Wyatt’s family reaches out to her, she decides to meet and see if they are a good match. The banter between the two is off the charts from the very first meeting. When his brothers join in, it’s clear that his meddling family is going to be involved every step of this surrogacy journey.

It was a treat to watch all the relationships grow and change over the course of almost a year. While initially I wasn’t sure what I thought of Nine Month Contract, this book did have some of my favorite romance tropes: forced proximity, small town romance, grumpy x sunshine, and found family. If you have listened to Checked In!: A Davenport Public Library Podcast, then you know that I do not like pregnancy tropes in romance. A pregnancy trope is when a character’s unexpected pregnancy drives the story, usually as a surprise or accidental or secret baby plot. Not my favorite, but when I saw Nine Month Contract and that deals with surrogacy, I was intrigued. Could I handle a pregnancy trope if both characters knew it was happening? After finishing this book, I can clearly say . . . ‘I have no idea’. It was decidedly different than anything else I have ever read, but I’m still undecided. Wyatt’s family kept the story moving, in my opinion. They were hilarious, unhinged, yet incredibly sweet. Wyatt and Trista were also clearly a grumpy x sunshine situation which I adored. The banter was top notch. All in all, Nine Month Contract was a small town romance full of family drama.

Mountain Men Matchmaker series

  1. Nine Month Contract (2024)
  2. Seven Year Itch (2025)
  3. Honeymoon Phase (2025)
  4. Bad Boy Era (2026)

The oldest brother Max’s story is told in Last on the List, the fifth book in the Wait With Me series by Amy Daws. Last on the List takes place several years before the Mountain Men Matchmaker series and leads you in to that series.

Online Reading Challenge – November Wrap-Up

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How did your reading go this month? Did you read a detective or crime fiction title for November? Share in the comments!

I read our main title: The Beekeeper’s Apprentice by Laurie R. King.  Originally published in 1994, The Beekeeper’s Apprentice (Or On the Segregation of the Queen) is the first book in the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series by Laurie R. King. This title was also a nominee for the Agatha Award for Best Novel in 1995.

When searching for a book to read for this month, I knew I wanted to pay homage to the great Sherlock Holmes, but I didn’t want to read something written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which led me to exploring spinoffs. I eventually found Laurie R. King and her Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series. This series started in 1994 and has a total of 19 books so far. The latest book in the series, Knave of Diamonds, was published in 2025.

Let’s get into The Beekeeper’s Apprentice. It’s 1915 and Sherlock Holmes has been retired for quite a number of years. When a young Mary Russell stumbles upon an older gentleman on the Sussex Downs studying honeybees, she doesn’t realize that he is Sherlock Holmes at first. Russell is gawky, exceptionally smart, and recently orphaned, but her intellect is what attracts her to Holmes. Holmes decides to tutor Russell, which eventually leads them on a variety of cases throughout this first book. Eventually they are called to Scotland Yard to assist with finding the kidnapped daughter of an American senator. This case ends up being connected to Holmes’ past in a significant way and has deep repercussions for Holmes and Russell’s futures.

My thoughts: I quite enjoyed the fact that Sherlock Holmes was coming out of retirement a bit reluctantly in this book. Russell and Sherlock’s relationship was also intriguing. They become reluctant friends throughout this book with a relationship that changes the more they learn about each other. The disguises, danger, and problem solving was top-notch in this book. I also quite enjoyed that this book was told from young Mary Russell’s point of view which allowed me to take a step back and see Holmes through different eyes. All in all, a sold start to the series.

Next month, we will be reading historical fiction!

In addition to following the Online Reading Challenge here on our Info Cafe blog, you can join our Online Reading Challenge group on Goodreads and discuss your reads!

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

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“Perhaps the logical conclusion of everyone looking the same is everyone thinking the same.”
― Scott Westerfeld, Uglies

Uglies is the first book in the series of the same name written by Scott Westerfeld. Published in 2005, Uglies is perfect for fans of The Hunger Games, Divergent, and anyone interested in young adult dystopian novels.

Tally Youngblood is about to turn 16 and she couldn’t be more excited. In Tally’s world, every 16 year old is required to have a surgery that turns them pretty. Tally is ready to leave the wrong side of town, turn pretty, and join her best friend in New Pretty Town. This mandatory plastic surgery will alter everything about Tally, turning Uglies into Pretties and eliminating any issues of jealousy, insecurity, suffering, and inequality across the world.

Sounds too good to be true, right? Enter Shay, who wants to leave before her surgery and run to the Smoke, a band of rebels who are opposed to everything that Pretty Town stands for. Tally can’t understand why Shay would want to leave, but circumstances soon drastically change for Tally, leaving her with no choice but to hunt down Shay. This book was rich with symbolism and had me on the edge of my seat, thinking about the consequences of a society so caught up on beauty and appearances that they are willing to sacrifice anything for the chance to be pretty.

“What you do, the way you think, makes you beautiful.”
― Scott Westerfeld, Uglies

Interested in this book? Uglies is the December See YA Book Club pick. We will be discussing this book on Wednesday, December 3rd at 6:30pm at our Eastern Avenue branch. For more information about future See YA book picks, visit our website.

Books in the Uglies series

  1. Uglies (2005)
  2. Pretties (2005)
  3. Specials (2006)
  4. Extras (2007)

See YA Book Club

Join our adult book club with a teen book twist. See why so many teen books are being turned into movies and are taking over the best seller lists.

Registration is not required. Books are available on a first-come, first-serve basis at the Eastern Avenue library. We meet the first Wednesday of the month at Eastern at 6:30pm. Stop by the service desk for more information.

Wednesday March 4th session will be meeting in the Story Room.

December 3 – Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

January 7 – She is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran

February 4 – Better than the Movies by Lynn Painter

March 4 – The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera

April 1 – Looking for Smoke by KA Cobell

May 6 – If You Could See the Sun by Ann Liang

June 3 – Shut Up, This is Serious by Carolina Ixta

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

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“I feel special. Like maybe I deserve to be here.”
― Freida McFadden, The Housemaid

Is there an author you have seen everywhere that you have been reluctant to read? For me, this author is Freida McFadden. Her books are flying off the shelves at the library with her new ones having long holds lists. In an effort to figure out her popularity, I decided to listen to The Housemaid, the first book in her Housemaid series. Before I get into the book, let me share something: I love psychological thrillers and the twists, turns, and brutal endings they can have. Because of this, I am a bit picky about what psychological thrillers I read, but I still wanted to give Freida McFadden a try.

Here’s a brief synopsis: Millie is looking for a fresh start. She has been let go from her last job and is sleeping in her car, so when she scores an interview to be a live-in housekeeper for a wealthy family, she is surprised. Given her previous work history and her past, Millie knows she probably won’t get the job, but surprise, she is offered the job! She is tasked with cleaning the house from top to bottom, picking up the Winchesters’ daughter from school, making their meals, and a myriad of other tasks. The lady of the house, Nina, at first seems like a dream, but soon turns into a nightmare. She rips up the house, making messes and blaming Millie. She repeatedly tells lies and gaslights Millie. The constant whiplash between nice and angry pushes Millie close to Nina’s husband, Andrew. Millie doesn’t see how the two could have ended up together. Andrew is extremely attractive, while Nina doesn’t take pride in her appearance and has let herself go. As Nina continues to deteriorate, Andrew grows more broken. Soon Millie believes that Andrew deserves better and that she appreciates him more than Nina does. When Andrew and Millie are given the opportunity to act out their desires, Millie feels like her dreams have come true. She doesn’t realize it’s a trap until it’s too late, but unfortunately for the Winchesters, they have underestimated Millie.

My thoughts: While I enjoyed the twists and the ending, there were other parts I found repetitive. Some scenes also felt tedious and at times I felt this book could have benefitted from another editing round. The Housemaid was a good thriller, but honestly I was hit with dejavu many times, like I had read this book or plot before. This was a solid three star read because of its predictability.

The Housemaid series

Meesh the Bad Demon by Michelle Lam

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Michelle Lam’s juvenile graphic novel debut, Meesh the Bad Demon, is the story of unlikely heroes, bad guys, and the stereotypes and myths that surround them. Meesh, a bad demon, tries to find her place, but instead discovers that she doesn’t quite fit in with her peers. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though!

Twelve-year-old Meesh would rather read magazines from Plumeria City (the fairy realm), watch fairy television shows, and talk to flowers instead of doing typical demon things. She spends her days seeing the good in people and the world around her. That, unfortunately makes Meesh a ‘bad’ demon in the eyes of her peers. Meesh struggles with fire breathing, acid-puking, horn-sharpening, lava-molding, and many other skills that her school in Mount Magma works to teach young demons to prepare them for the world. Luckily for Meesh, her grandma is there to listen and to try to understand her problems.

When disaster strikes Mount Magma, Meesh is at first confused and scared. Running to her grandma for help, Meesh discovers that her grandma is in danger. All of demon-kind is in trouble and Meesh must find help. Escaping from Mount Magma, Meesh is on the lookout for other worlds. Stumbling upon the fairy realm, Meesh is convinced that the fairies will be able to help her save the other demons. Just when she thinks her problems are solved, Meesh realizes that something is not quite right in the fairy realm. They aren’t the perfect creatures she always thought, but Meesh is determined to solve her problem and ends up making new friends along the way. Meesh and her group of outcast friends all learn that there’s more to themselves than the stereotypical things others think about them. Learning to love yourself and knowing your own strengths while being able to ask for help are just some of the important lessons that readers will learn in this book.

Meesh the Bad Demon was absolutely adorable. While I am definitely not the target audience of this juvenile graphic novel, I appreciated the author’s clear determination to teach readers about the importance of understanding and accepting others’ differences. Highly recommend.

Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks

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“We show the people we love the ugliest parts of ourselves, and we tell them the truth even when it hurts, because that’s what intimacy is.”
― Ivy Fairbanks, Morbidly Yours

Morbidly Yours is the first book in the Love in Galway series by Ivy Fairbanks. This series starter was a sweet, yet spicy, open door romance between a demisexual Irish mortician and a Texan widow who moves across the world to escape her past.

Callum Flannelly is painfully shy. He has been working at the family undertaking business for years, but after learning that his grandfather updated his will before he died, his life and business are in jeopardy if Callum can’t meet one major stipulation. Callum must marry before his thirty-fifth birthday if he wants to inherit the business. The main problem: he has no romantic prospects and the few dates he has been on have not ended well.

Lark Thompson has left Texas to restart her life and career in Galway, Ireland. Having found her rental site unseen, Lark was excited to be moving next door to a quaint bed and breakfast. Imagine her surprise when she learns that, instead of the bed and breakfast, she is living next to an undertaking business! The last thing Lark wants is to be reminded of the death of her husband by living next to a funeral home.

When she meets Callum though, Lark is intrigued. After Callum shares his dating dilemma, Lark decides to help him on his quest to find the one. The tiny issue is that the more time they spend together, the more she grows to like Callum and vice versa. The two develop a chemistry that they are both scared to investigate further because their time together is limited. Their connection grows stronger by the day though and it quickly becomes obvious that something has to give.

I absolutely adored the chemistry between the two main characters, but there was a bit of a miscommunication between them that could have been fixed if they *just talked to each other*. Still recommend this title and I will definitely be reading the second in the series, Heart Strings.

Love in Galway series (so far)

  1. Morbidly Yours (2023)
  2. Heart Strings (2025)

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

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“What’s wrong with me? … I might seem like the ideal student: homework always in early, every extra credit and extra curricular I can get my hands on, the good girl and the high achiever. But I realized something just now: it’s not ambition, not entirely. It’s fear. Because I don’t know who I am when I’m not working, when I’m not focused on or totally consumed by a task. Who am I between the projects and the assignments, when there’s nothing to do? I haven’t found her yet and it scares me. Maybe that’s why, for my senior capstone project this year, I decided to solve a murder.”
― Holly Jackson, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

Every community has a story that haunts the residents. The town of Fairview is not exception to this. Five years ago, popular high school senior Andie Bell went missing and her boyfriend, Sal Singh, was accused of her murder. Not long after Andie went missing, Sal killed himself, leaving the community bereft with questions and her family without a body. It was all anyone could talk about for years. Now five years later, senior Pippa Fitz-Amobi has decided to reopen the Andie Bell case as her senior capstone project. Pip believes that Sal was innocent and that the only way to find the real killer is to do her own investigation. This means digging for answers to a case that everyone else believes is closed. With the help of Sal’s younger brother, Pip reexamines this closed case. It doesn’t take long before Pip ruffles someone’s feathers enough that they start threatening her. This case takes a dangerous turn for all those involved.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is the first book in the series of the same name by Holly Jackson. This series debut was intriguing from the start. Pip is smart and driven to solve this case, sometimes to the detriment of her own safety. Each character in this story is well-developed, while the plot wasn’t too predictable. The plot twists were unexpected. I also enjoyed that the author was able to weave in multiple storylines without it becoming too convoluted and confusing. All in all, a great read for both teens and adults.

Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series

  1. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (2019)
  2. Good Girl, Bad Blood (2020)
  3. As Good as Dead (2021)

Interested in this book? A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is the October See YA Book Club pick (it was also made into a series on Netflix!). We will be discussing this book on Wednesday, October 1st at 6:30pm at our Eastern Avenue branch. For more information about future See YA book picks, visit our website.

See YA Book Club

Join our adult book club with a teen book twist. See why so many teen books are being turned into movies and are taking over the best seller lists.

Registration is not required. Books are available on a first-come, first-serve basis at the Eastern Avenue library. We meet the first Wednesday of the month at Eastern at 6:30pm. Stop by the service desk for more information.

October 1 – A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

November 5 – Rez Ball by Byron Graves

December 3 – Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon by Kimberly Lemming

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“Cin, I can barely breathe when you are not near. If anything were to happen to you, if you left me to be alone again, these memories of you would kill me.”
― Kimberly Lemming, That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon

I checked out That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon by Kimberly Lemming purely because of what the cover looked like. This book reminded me of the classic romance novel covers – think Fabio shirtless with his long hair blowing in the wind (highly recommend you look this up for *research* purposes). I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I enjoyed this read! That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon is the first book the Mead Mishaps series by Kimberly Lemming.

Cinnamon lives a quiet life as a spice trader. Having taken over part of her family’s spice farm, all Cinnamon wants to do is get a cat, expand her business, and actively avoid any adventuring. Stumbling her way home from a town party late one night, Cinnamon bumps into a demon that she decides, in her wine-drunk state, to save. Coming to her senses, Cinnamon runs to her parents’ house for safety. Upon awaking the next morning, she is shocked to see that the demon is still around and that he needs her help. Fallon, the demon, is on a mission to kill an evil witch that has been enslaving demons for centuries. Why should Cinnamon care? Well it turns out this evil witch also has her hands in the operations of her town and basically the entire country. Shocked, Cinnamon has no choice to go along with Fallon in their attempt to kill off the witch and rescue the enslaved demon. It doesn’t hurt matters that Fallon is easy on eyes and just so happens to keep burning off his shirt.

This was an adorably hilarious and steamy read. The spicy scenes take place on page, so be prepared if you decide to give this a read. I found myself laughing out loud in places because Cinnamon is quite funny. Fallon is intense, but his intensity helped balance out Cinnamon’s quirkiness. Their relationship started slow, but things got steamy once they decided to be serious. If you’re looking for a blend of romance, humor, and adventure, dive into this series debut!

Mead Mishaps series

  1. That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon (2021)
  2. That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf (2023)
  3. That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Human (2023)