fuonlyknew

This is a Tag Team Event hosted by myself and Sherry.

 It’s always a pleasure to share more books by Kathryn Meyer Griffith. I’ve read many of her books and plan to read everything she writes.

For today, I’m sharing my review of Scraps Of Paper from Kathryn’s Spookie Town Muder Mystery Series.

After reading my review, head on over to Sherry’s blog at fundinmental to check out her review and enter another giveaway!

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Scraps Of Paper

A Spookie Town Murder Mystery

by Kathryn Meyer Griffith

Genre: Mystery / Cozy Mystery

My Review

I’ve read many of Kathryn’s books. She writes about ghosts, vampires, witches, time travel and more. Being addicted to cozy mysteries I was curious to see how she would do in this genre.

Abigail’s husband walked out the door, got in his car and vanished. Two years later his body is discovered, a victim of a mugging. After two years of wondering what had happened to her husband, she now has answers and feels a need to move on with her life. A fresh start is in order and Abigail sets off on an adventure, finally coming across a quaint little town with the curious name of Spookie.

Kathryn’s descriptions of the town and inhabitants of Spookie felt like she was describing the small town I live in.  The buildings, the flora and the eccentric character or two could easily be what I see every day.

Feeling a strong connection to the place, Abigail buys a fixer upper and begins her new life. While doing some repairs she begins to find scraps of paper with notes scribbled on them in crayon. Inquiring about the history of her new home, she learns a mother with two small children mysteriously disappeared some 30 years ago and were never heard from again. She’s curious about what happened to them and digs deeper into the town’s history.

Thus begins the mystery. And this is where you get to meet some of the other players in the story. It seems every small town has stereotypes and you get some of them here. I’d say my favorites are the two older sisters, both quite eccentric and both with some secrets to share. And retired Chicago homicide detective, Frank Lester. Kathryn wrote him so well. I could see Frank, calmly contemplating the mystery while also being amused by Abigail. Her naivete and his quiet, confident demeanor would be a good fit and I had hopes they might find some peace and happiness together. Yep, I’m a match maker.

Scraps Of Paper reads at a steady pace. As the crime happened over 30 years ago, there’s no violent scenes.  And while the mystery of who might have committed the crime was apparent fairly early on for me, I was still  tantalized by the story. Kathryn writes so visually that I found even the little things engrossing. And she added this tiny bit of paranormal to the story that had me wondering right along with Abigail. Is her house really haunted?

Did I enjoy this as much as Kathryn’s other books? Yes, I did. I do like her darker books, but I was just as happy with this cozy mystery.

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Synopsis

Abigail Sutton’s beloved husband walks out one night, doesn’t return, and two years later is found dead, a victim of a long ago crime. It’s made her sympathetic to the missing and their families.
Starting her new life, Abigail moves to small town and buys a fixer-upper house left empty when old Edna Summers died. Once it was also home to Edna’s younger sister, Emily, and her two children, Jenny and Christopher, who, people believe, drove away one night, thirty years ago, and just never came back.
But in renovating the house Abigail finds scraps of paper hidden behind baseboards and tucked beneath the porch that hint the three could have been victims of foul play.
Then she finds their graves hidden in the woods behind the house and with the help of eccentric townspeople and ex-homicide detective, Frank Lester, she discovers the three were murdered. Then she and Frank try to uncover who killed them and why…but in the process awaken the ire of the murderer.

Amazon / B&N

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In exchange for an honest review on Amazon and Goodreads, Kathryn will send a free eBook copy of any of her other 26 books. You can find the complete list of her books in her author bio below. Just send your request to this link HERE.

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To enter, please leave your email address so I can contact you if you win and answer this question:

What is one ingredient you look for in a mystery?

Giveaway ends February 6th.

This is a Tag Team Event hosted by myself and Sherry at fundinmental.

Now hop on over and check out Sherry’s review, and enter for another chance to win HERE.

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Other books I’ve read by the author.

Click on the covers for my reviews.

Full length novels.

Short stories.

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For a list of my reviews go HERE.

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https://kingsumo.com/g/w3hq96/win-a-signed-copy-of-uncle-and-ants-a-silicon-valley-mystery

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Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

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Moon Games

by Shelly Frome

Moon Games
Cozy Mystery/Amateur Sleuth
Milford House Press (August 6, 2018)
Paperback: 264 pages
ISBN-10: 1620061848
ISBN-13: 978-1620061848
Digital ASIN: B07G6LN41H

My Review

Right from the beginning Miranda had me going in circles. She’s disorganized and going in several directions at once. This is why I keep lists. LOL And like her, I work more than one job. This all helped me to connect with her quickly and I had some laughs as she would her way through this mystery.

About the mystery. At first I was confused, not sure just what was occurring. Then, things started coming together and making sense, the suspense ramped up,  some surprise twists were dropped on me and the mystery became something I had to solve. Wish I could have been there with Miranda. I could see us having some laughs, throwing our hands up in exasperation and putting our heads together to sort things out.

I’m always a bit worried when I try a new author. Will I like their writing? Will their characters be genuine and will I be able to connect with them? Will I enjoy the plot? Shelly Frome fairly quickly put my worries to rest and I had fun reading Moon Games. He’s now on my to read again author’s list.

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Synopsis

At the outset, Miranda Davis has nothing much going for her. The tourists are long gone by October in the quaint Carolina town of Black Mountain, her realty business is at a standstill, and her weekend stint managing the local tavern offers little to pull her out of the doldrums. When prominent church lady Cloris Raintree offers a stipend to look into the whereabouts of a missing girl hiker on the Q.T, Miranda, along with her partner Harry (an unemployed features writer) agree.

But then it all backfires. A burly figure shambles down a mountain slope with a semi-conscious girl draped over his shoulder. Miranda’s attempts to uncover Cloris Raintree’s true motives become near impossible as she puts up one smokescreen after another, including a slip of the tongue regarding an incident in Havana. The local police keep stonewalling and Harry is of little help.

Tarot cards left on Cloris’ doorstep and arcane prompts on her e-mail only exacerbate the situation. Growing more desperate over the captive girl’s fate, Miranda comes across a link to a cold case of arson and murder. With the advent of the dark of the moon, she is summoned to “Tower Time” as this twisty tale continues to run its course.

About Author Shelly Frome

Shelly Frome is a member of Mystery Writers of America, a professor of dramatic arts emeritus at the University of Connecticut, a former professional actor, a writer of crime novels and books on theater and film. He is also a features writer for Gannett Media’s Black Mountain News. His fiction includes Sun Dance for Andy Horn, Lilac Moon, Twilight of the Drifter, Tinseltown Riff, Murder Run, and The Secluded Village Murders.  Among his works of non-fiction are The Actors Studio and texts on the art and craft of screenwriting and writing for the stage. Moon Games is his latest foray into the world of crime and the amateur sleuth. He lives in Black Mountain, North Carolina.

Author Links

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Purchase Link – Amazon

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Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

I am an Amazon Affiliate. Product images are linked.

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Scream Muddy Murder

Big Lake Murder Mysteries

by Lesley A. Diehl

Scream Muddy Murder (Big Lake Murder Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Creekside Publishing (September 27, 2018)
Paperback: 352 pages
ISBN-10: 9780997234954
ISBN-13: 978-0997234954
Print Length: 272 pages
Digital ASIN: B07H2NZQ7C

My Review

Having read and enjoyed the first two books in this series, I was excited to see what these delightful character’s were up to next.

It’s been raining for days but that doesn’t stop the Seminole War reenactment from happening. And Emily and her daughter, Naomi, will play their part. At least the view is nice. Sexy Detective Stanton Lewis is right in front of them. Some lively banter and a lending hand leave Stanton and Emily face down in the muck. And they’re not alone. They’ve discovered the body of the local school principal, dead by a bullet wound. Someone better solve this quick before the town has a real war on their hands.

I could see it coming. Stanton puts his foot down, insisting the ladies stay out of police business. But the force of Emily, Naomi and Clara is one to be reckoned with. They team up to solve the murder, making a suspect list and checking it twice. I felt like I was part of the investigation as they debated who should be on the list and why. Definitely kept me invested in the outcome. I had to know if my choice was the right one.

My favorite part was the romance between Emily and Stanton. Or should I say almost romance. These two can deny and avoid all they want, I know they’ll do more than just hook up. Butting heads about the investigation just seem to heat things up between them. Me thinks they use it as a way to be together without admitting that’s what they really want. Too fun.

 I was hoping this would be as fun as the previous books, and Leslie didn’t let me down. Scream Muddy Murder was tons of laughs. And the mystery kept me clueless til right near the end.

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Synopsis

EMILY RHODES DOES IT AGAIN! This time she nosedives into a mud puddle at a Seminole War battle reenactment and finds she’s sharing the muck with a dead body. As usual the hunky detective she loves to aggravate, Stanton Lewis, cautions her against getting involved in the case, and as usual she ignores him. Emily’s sleuthing pays off, revealing disturbing information about the victim’s past. Is it the reason behind his murder? With the help of her family and friends, Emily sets out to uncover secrets kept too long and puts herself and the people she loves in the killer’s path. Too late she realizes Detective Lewis was right. Her snoopiness proves to be a deadly idea.

Author Lesley A. Diehl

Lesley retired from her life as a professor of psychology and reclaimed her country roots by moving to a small cottage in the Butternut River Valley in Upstate New York.  In the winter she migrates to old Florida—cowboys, scrub palmetto, and open fields of grazing cattle, a place where spurs still jingle in the post office, and gators make golf a contact sport.  Back north, the shy ghost inhabiting the cottage serves as her literary muse.  When not writing, she gardens, cooks and renovates the 1874 cottage with the help of her husband, two cats and, of course, Fred the ghost, who gives artistic direction to their work. She’s presently interviewing for a coyote to serve as her muse for her books and stories set in rural Florida.

She is the author of a number of mystery series and mysteries as well as short stories, most featuring her quirky sense of humor and a few characters drawn from her peculiar family.

Author Links: Twitter / Facebook / Webpage / Blog

Purchase Links – Amazon   B&N  

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I’ve read the first two books also and had a blast. Click on the covers to read my reviews.

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TOUR PARTICIPANTS

December 7 – Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

December 8 – Mallory Heart’s Cozies – REVIEW

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December 10 – Babs Book Bistro – SPOTLIGHT

December 11 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – CHARACTER GUEST POST

December 12 – A Blue Million Books – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

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December 14 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

December 15 – MJB Reviewers – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

December 16 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

December 17 – Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews – REVIEW

December 18 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – CHARACTER GUEST POST

December 19 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT  

December 19 – Books Direct – GUEST POST

December 20 – Ruff Drafts – SPOTLIGHT

December 20 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

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Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE.

I am an Amazon Affiliate. Product images are linked.