#femalesleuth

Enter the world of the Nina Bell! The series begins in 1996, New York City. Nina’s a theatre graduate determined to make a life for herself in the arts, navigating the world of love, lust, theatre, rock ‘n roll – and murder!

The first two books, TAPESTRY and MURDER BELLS, release this year!

My review:

When I started reading Village in the Dark, I didn't know it was a sequel. Needless to say, I hadn't read the first book, so I went in blind. Thankfully, author Iris Yamashita gave me enough information about characters and circumstances that I was able to follow the story with no problem. Am I curious about that first book? After reading this one and meeting the characters, yes, I am, and I intend to satisfy that curiosity. As for this book, it's very well written, and the pacing is equally good. It's the kind of pacing that, when combined with such a good storyline, you find yourself awake late into the night, one more chaptering it until the sun rises. The characters are so well developed that you'll feel like you've met them, and you'll want to know all their secrets - there are plenty of secrets. Between what looks like a conspiracy to figuring out who's bad and who's not, the story steadily builds in intensity as it reveals its secrets. Some elements of the story seem a bit farfetched, but the characters feel so real that I barely noticed. I won't reveal those elements because I think every reader should learn them on their own as they follow these characters through each clue. So, I'd have to say that I enjoyed this mystery by Iris Yamashita. The story pulled me in and held on through each clue the characters uncovered, and I loved how the author paints such vivid pictures with her words.

On Flashback Fridays I will share with you the books I was not able to review when they were first released that have been screaming at me from my To-Be-Read bookshelf.

Viviana Valentine Gets Her Man: A Girl Friday Mystery Historical Mystery/Female Sleuth 1st in Series Setting - New York Crooked Lane Books (November 8, 2022) Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 288 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1639101829 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1639101825 Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1639104275 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1639104277 Kindle ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09S3L5K6R

New York City, 1950. Viviana Valentine is Girl Friday to the city’s top private investigator, Tommy Fortuna. The clients can be frustrating, and none more maddening than fabulously wealthy Tallmadge Blackstone, who demands Tommy tail his daughter, and find out why she won’t marry his business partner, a man forty years her senior. Sounds like an open-and-shut case for a P.I. known for busting up organized crime—but the next day, Viviana opens the office to find Tommy missing and a lifeless body on the floor. The cops swoop in and Detective Jake Lawson issues a warrant for Tommy’s arrest. Desperate to clear Tommy’s name, Viviana takes on the Blackstone case herself. When she goes out for a night on the town with the heiress, she begins to learn the secrets behind Tallulah’s headline-grabbing life. Meanwhile, Lawson is itching to solve his murder case, and continues harassing Viviana for answers—until she’s the victim of a series of violent attacks. But Tommy’s still missing, and Viviana is scared. As she digs into the dirty history of the Blackstone empire, she suddenly realizes the true danger at hand. Now, it’s up to her to find her missing boss and make sure he doesn’t turn up D.O.A. Dollycas's Thoughts Viviana Valentine works for the city's top P.I. Tommy Fortuna as his Girl Friday. His current case is to tail young socialite, Tallulah Blackstone, for her father to see why she hasn't accepted the marriage proposal from his business partner who just happens to be 40 years older than she is. This should be an easy case. Both Viviana and Tommy are at a party where Tallulah makes an appearance. But the next day Tommy fails to show up at the office and Viviana finds an unconscious man in his office. When the cops arrive they quickly pin Tommy to the top of the suspect list and Detective Jake Lawson issues a warrant for Tommy’s arrest. With no idea where her boss is Viviana knows she needs to find Tommy but Tallmadge Blackstone wants answers. Detective Lawson is on her tail as well thinking she will lead him to Tommy. So Viviana makes friends with Tallulah at the same time she is working to get a lead on Tommy. When she starts uncovering some dirty deals her life is on the line. Can she keep herself safe and bring Tommy home or will she die trying? Ms. Edwards catches the 1950s perfect with slang, idioms, fashion, the heat of the city, and all the situations the characters get involved in. It was like watching an old black-and-white movie. The characters really came to life off the pages. Viviana Valentine is one smart cookie with a determination to find the truth and her boss. I really enjoyed the way she became friends with Tallulah Blackstone. All the girls at the boarding house are friends too. They all cared about each other and worked together to help Viviana. Tommy may be her boss but there is more there too. The author has introduced a nice cast of core characters with a real friendship theme and they developed so nicely over the course of the story. The mystery was filled with secrets and lies. I enjoyed following along with Viviana and she worked through the clues but took time to have a little bit of fun too. She really took on the life of a private investigator searching out alternate suspects with the right motive. It really was a complicated mystery with a lot of moving parts. I loved when all the clues fell into place and Viviana called a meeting of all the interested parties to out the killer. Again just like an old gumshoe movie. I appreciate the way the author tells a story and sets the scenes making her readers feel like they are in the middle of the action. Vivianna is a formidable woman an quite a sleuth with a lot on her plate but she doesn't ever give up. Viviana Valentine Gets Her Man was a delightfully entertaining read with a strong female protagonist. Ms. Edwards' words easily allowed me to escape to 1950s NewYork and I can't wait to return soon. I have moved Viviana Valentine Goes Up the River up on my TBR stack so I will be ready when Viviana Valentine and the Ticking Clock comes out in November. 

Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent About the Author Emily J. Edwards is the author of the Girl Friday series. She earned her degree in writing, literature, and publishing from Emerson College and took the long road to becoming an author, working for over a decade as a wine and spirits journalist, radio producer, and podcaster. She currently lives with her husband and several quadrupeds in Connecticut. Website   Twitter    Instagram

Coming November 7, 2023

New Carrie Jones' thrilling mystery about Bar Harbor, Maine releasing June 1

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Rosie Jones, small town reporter and single mom, is looking forward to her first quiet Maine winter with her young daughter, Lily. After a disastrous first marriage, she’s made a whole new life and new identities for her and her little girl. Rosie is more than ready for a winter of cookies, sledding, stories about planning board meetings, and trying…

New Post has been published on http://www.tiggerreviews.com/and-the-magic-word-is/

And the magic word is?

Well not abracadabra of course… What a strange name, but of course, one that is very memorable.

So we have a cosy mystery novel set in a strange village with ghosts and witches and hidden secrets.

At times, I thought I was reading a book for teenagers or for US readers who wanted to have a traditional English village with all the traditional English characters in it. Including funny names and so on.

That said, it was an enjoyable and humorous tale with engaging lead characters – Amanda herself and her feline familiar and the detective who can’t know the real truth about witch-craft, but sort of knows about ghosts.