The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning

The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning by PJ Fitzsimmons is stuffed with Holiday goodness and British charm.  From the drunk lolling about in the pub to the local policeman, each character is full of hidden depth and the occasional dark secret, each of which contributes to this festive murder mystery set in snowy dairy country.

Whose footprints are those?  Who is hiding what?  And why did Major Flaps Fleming appear to his friends hours after his murder?  Even more shockingly, why did he pay off his bar tab?

Prepare to be stumped as you watch the ever witty Anty Boisjoly and a couple of familiar faces from The Case of the Canterfell Codicil try to solve the case.  Will our favorite gadabout find the real killer before Anty's dear Aunt Azalea Boisjoly winds up behind bars for a murder she (probably) didn't commit?

Grab a mug of mulled wine, prop your feet up in front of the fire, and sit back for a good time with Anty and his Aunty, a very mysterious murder, and a surprisingly poignant ending.  What more could you ask for?

Long live Hildy.

I received an advance copy for free from BookSirens and I am reviewing it voluntarily.

Just One Damned Thing After Another

Title: Just One Damned Thing After Another
Author: Jodi Taylor
Genre: Wacky, intelligent fiction
Format in which consumed: Kindle ebook
Rating out of 5 stars: 3.75

This book is smart, funny, and interesting. But for some reason it took me forever to read. There was just no urgency for me to find out what was going to happen.

Max, the main character, is witty and well-educated with some kind of vaguely tragic backstory. And I don't know quite how to put this, but she was made all the more relatable because it's easy to forget she's a woman. I imagine it would be easy for a male reader to put himself in her shoes because she's neither very feminine nor masculine. She just sort of goes about her life, pursuing the bizarre occupation of time-traveling historian and eventually falling in love with a man, thereby providing some of the few reminders that somewhere under those dusty coveralls, there beats the heart of a girl. But other than her awkward love life, there is nothing much to set her or any other female apart from their co-workers other than their education and titles at St. Mary's (hotbed of secret historical research via never-explained time travel pods).

And maybe that's not a good thing. Because I honestly couldn't keep the characters straight, even Max's love interest. Other than Max it was just a blur of snarky, subversive people who were constantly popping out of hallways and making off-kilter statements.

I know that isn't a ringing endorsement, but if you enjoy smart books about history and adventure with a little bit of sci-fi flavor, you will probably love it.

Jane Green House Party!

I belong to House Party, which is a pretty neat website where you can sign up for the chance to host a party to promote various products or media events. To my great excitement, they are offering a Jane Green House Party. She is a witty British writer who is coming out with a new book called Tempting Fate.

Jemima J and Babyville are two of her books I've read and both are very enjoyable. Jemima J is very much in the tone of Bridget Jones's Diary. Jemima transforms her life in order to land the guy of her dreams and it's actually very inspiring the way she exercises a newfound self-control in order to drop her extra pounds (of which there are MANY) and become the sexy, stylish woman she's always wanted to be. Babyville is about several women in various stages of motherhood and it's funny and well-written, but not as good as Jemima J.

So what House Party will do for those lucky few who are selected is send them a box filled with goodies. I did a Silk Fruit Smoothie party one time that was delicious and great fun. The Jane Green kit provides copies of a couple of her books as well as tea and cookies so you can have a real girltimeteapartyconfab and talk about the books. I'm additionally excited because the cookies are Moravian cookies and I was raised Moravian.

If you haven't heard of House Party, you should look at their website. They may not have any parties that interest you and you may not get chosen for the party of your choice, but it's really exciting when you get to host one and that box arrives on your doorstep. I'll definitely be looking for more of their book opportunities in the future. Did I use the word excited enough?