Pick Of The Litter In My $5 Grab Bag! Curiosity Thrilled The Cat by Sofie Kelly

 

I am now home from our trip to Southern California, I missed the Earth Quake in Orange County Friday by a few hours and the tragic mudslide in Washington State on our drive down. It was so nice to be the passenger in the car on the two day drive down and back sitting in the back with my to young boys, I was able to read Curiosity Thrilled the Cat by Sofie Kelly on the drive home!

 If you read my last post you already know that I visited a used book store that was closing and got a bag of books for $5. This first in the Magical Cats Mystery was the one I grabbed out of the bag to read on the drive home and am I ever glad I grabbed it! 

 

I found the main character Kathleen really easy to like and relate too, her friends and co workers delightful, as well as the carefully calculated mystery that just happened to unfold while I was getting to know my "new friends"  I really liked this book  and can not wait to read the series.

Reading Curiosity Thrilled The Cat made me miss my own two cats who actually look like the two cats in the book Owen and Hercules...

I am excited to have found a new and wonderful cozy series to read. If you are a Cat lover and a fan of a bit of magic this is a series for you!

You can order Curiosity Thrilled The Cat  from the Book Depository by clicking here.

I look forward to starting my next  book with my cup of tea and sharing more about it with you soon!

As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

Fabulous Tea Shop and A Bag Of Mysteries in Southern California!

I apologize for the delay in publishing anything here for the last week but I have been here in California on vacation. Where today I found the most wonderful Tea Shop and Salon called Paris in a Cup. Paris in a Cup is located in Historic Orange, California and is one of the highlights of my week long trip. This very beautiful boutique and salon had some of the finest tea I have found on my trip along with the best customer service this tea lover has every had. I first read about Paris in a Cup in my tea time magazine subscriptions. When I found out our family would be traveling here I asked that this shop be placed on my itinerary! I am so thrilled I got to go and I can tell you that this shop is nestled into a picturesque area of Orange County surrounded by Antique shops and reminiscent of the cozy town atmosphere I love in my cozy mysteries! 

Had I not had my entire family with me, I would have booked in for afternoon tea and brought my cozy with me, then sat out front by the antique shop and read in the southern California sun. I did get to try the teas in store and left with a bag of my favorites! I have to tell you the Summer in Paris blend of black tea, Rhubarb, Strawberry, Blueberry and Hellanthus Flowers is heavenly.

These Macarons were delicious, exactly what you would expect from a shop that bares the Paris name!
If you are in Orange County Check the store out at 119 South Glassell Street, Historic Orange. Reservations are recommended 714 538 9411. You can also find them on Facebook by clicking here 
You can also find them on line by clicking here.

Earlier in the day we went to a book store in one of the local malls that was closing on Monday. I hate it when book shops close, especially used ones. They issued me a challenge, fill a bag for $5....with limited time I applied my every popular spin the rack method choosing by cover, but I also had to go through several racks. So I used my "Brand Loyalty" trick and grabbed all the Berkley mysteries I could find. As well as a few Obsidian which snuck in to my bag. I had so much fun filling the bag and knowing that I can pass these books on when I am done also made that $5 bag an even better value. I got 15 books and some are first in series, I can not wait to dive in on the two day drive back home I hope to read a few of these.
I look forward to sharing more reviews and photos with you again soon, I think I shall go make a cup of tea, and yes I brought my own tea kettle on the trip....
As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me here at karenmowen@gmail.com

Hooked On Murder A Crochet Mysteyr by Betty Hechtman

Well a few days ago I took a chance on a new series, I really enjoyed it at first but lost interest after the half way point. I really liked the idea of the story and main Character Molly Pink but found I was frustrated with the story line and the pace in witch it moved. I liked the story line between Molly and her friend Dinah, I even liked the story of Molly and her work mate Adele, but I had trouble with her love interest Barry and the Detective Heather plot line.

 I would read the next one even though I lost interest in this one. I think it was just not the right book at the right time for me. It did make me want to give crochet another try, I will let you know how that goes...
I took a chance on a new series and while I did not make a new best friend and fall in love with a new cozy town and I still glad I took a chance on Hooked on Murder.
As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

Taking A Chance On A New Series, How does it make you feel?

So last night I found myself in a bit of a muddle. My "To Be Read Pile" was depleted. I order all my books from The Book Depository and for some reason the series I have been reading and pre ordering did not have any releases this month that I ordered. It was 7:30 at night and I was thrilled to find my public library was open until 9pm.

I told my husband my problem, put the youngest to bed and left the boys with their Dad as I made my way to the library where I stood in front of the spiral racks of cozies at my library, faced with a muddle.  Not having a ton of time to choose, I used my "Choose Books By Their Cover" method, grabbed 8 I thought looked interesting, checked them out and headed home.
I lay them out as you see above and tried to pick the one I wanted to read, before resorting to "Enie meni mini mo" I posted the photo on Facebook to get some opinions, a friend suggested Death of a Kitchen Diva.  I then turned each over and read the back to see if any jumped out at me right away and I grabbed Death of a Kitchen Diva, read the back and realized I had read this one about a year ago and place in in a different pile.

I narrowed it down to these five and decided to give Hooked On Murder by Betty Hechtman a try... When I choose first in series I always get a bit nervous. It's an odd feeling I get almost feels like guilt~ Silly I know. I feel sometimes like I am so committed to the series that I love and do I have room in my life for another one?  I had to do some self talk, "just read the first few pages and if you don't like it you can switch to another one..." Well 8 pages in I am "hooked" already and glad I took the chance.

So it leaves me wondering, how do you feel when you take a chance on a new series, does it feel like you are trying to make a new friend? Is it easy for you? How far do you read before you decide to continue reading a book if you are not hooked right away?
As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

Books, Cooks, and Crooks an Empowering Read!

I have spent the better part of the last week reading the 3rd installment of Books, Cooks, and Crooks by Lucy Arlington, I per-ordered it from the book depository and anxiously awaited it's arrival. In early October I fell and hit my head twice, coming in to answer the phone from outside...books in hand as I slipped on the tile with my wet shoes. That resulted in a concussion that would impair my reading for several months. I am happy to say that now it is March and I am ready to read more regularly and with greater speed.  I am glad I choose this wet,cold and damp week this novel. Set in the Spring Books, Cooks and Crooks author Lucy Arlington paints a pretty scene of a small town in spring and a Town Festival I would love to attend.

Main Character Lila, is one I have come to love, in the first installment Buried in a Book Lila single mother in her 40's finds herself at a turning point her life, time to reinvent herself and take a chance at getting her dream job. What woman would not love to reinvent her self and Lucy Arlington's character Lila doesn't just get that new life handed to her, she well has to work for it.  Talk about putting on your big girl panties and having to deal with life! I instantly became a fan of this series and early awaited the release of her 2nd book Every Trick in the Book and her 3rd book Books, Cooks and Crooks. I can tell you I look forward to reading book 4 and will pre order it as soon as I hear it is released.

I especially loved the sub plot of this book the story line of Lila's best friend and coffee shop owner Makayla and her romance, it added so much more to the story of the towns folk and I hope it continues in book 4. The strong female characters and their diversity in this book make me love this story even more.

A constant companion in this series is Lila's Yellow Vespa. I had never ever in my life liked these things until I picked up this series, now I dream of one day getting my own, perhaps mine will be powder blue or Lilac.....
If you are looking for a fun and empowering read pick up Lucy Alrington's A Novel Idea Mysteries, you will be glad you did. You can find Lucy Alrington's Website by clicking here and check out her Facebook fan page by clicking here.
As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

What Is Better To Get In The Mail Then A Pre-Ordered Book From Your Favorite Cozy Author? How about Once A Month Mystery Tea From Steeped Tea!

Last year I discovered a love of Steeped Tea, it is a home based business based in Canada and new to the USA. I started ordering the tea over the internet from a lady in Calgary named Erin Stabbler and then went to a home party of a friend of mine from the boys school.

My most recent Steeped tea party in January was a huge sucess! Favorite tea of the night was called After Eight, a black tea that tastes like the chocolate mint it is named after.

 There I met Jodie Mochinski who is now my Steeped Tea Consultant. I have had two parties at my home in the past year and one of the bonuses from having that party and having two other's book their own parties is I get Mystery Tea delivered monthly for 6 months to my home for free.

In April my free tea shipments will be up and I already know that I will be requesting and paying for this service, which is a great deal at $20 a month including shipping. I have fallen in love with some of the teas they have sent, flavors I would not normally have ordered or tried.

I can not think of a better way to experience the wonders of flavored tea with out leaving home! You can find me with a pot of Steeped tea and a cozy mystery at least once a day! Some of my most favorite flavors are
Earl Grey de la Creme and Fuzzy Peach Black Tea...I have also come to love Rooibos tea the Lemon Drop, and Razzel Dazzel Rasberry are to die for!

There are so many wonderful flavors you can choose from, I can not wait to try the new flavors the Spring and Summer Catalog has to offer! Click here to view the catalog for yourself!

 

I don't sell Steeped tea myself, nor to I write Mysteries but I do love to review them and how well they go together and I think you will find they do too! 

You Can Find Steeped Tea on Facebook by clicking here

Going to put the kettle on now, I hope you will drop by again soon...

As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

Pecan Pies and Homicides, A Read I Could Not Put Down....

So one of you dear readers recently asked me how long it takes me to read a cozy, well usually a few days to a week but with Ellery Adam's third installment of the Charmed Pie Shoppe Mysteries, I was able to read this book in 2 days. Maybe not fast for some of you but given the fact I am dyslexic, a mother of 3 and had a concussion a few months back, this feels like a victory to me!

 In the first chapter of the first book in this series Pies and Prejudice I was instantly enchanted  and half way through chapter 3 I ordered Peach Pies and Alibis which felt like forever before it was released! That often happens with books I pre order and can not wait for, these magical adventure mysteries are addicting...

Chewy her wonderful dog and her amazing family and friends make you want to pack up and move to Havenwood Georgia with out  a second thought!

The cover art on each of these books truly reflects the stories with in.

 

I wish that the above photo from yesterday was more in focus! 

In this story Ella Mae is faced with some difficult choices to help her family her friends and the magical people of Havenwood. Her selfless acts make you love her and this series even more. I love that the end of each book gives you a look at the next magical adventure that lays a head for Ella Mae and her family. 

You can keep up to date on all of Ellery Adams series by clicking here for her Mystery Website. I can assure you that I will be pre ordering her next Charmed Pie Shoppe Mystery as soon as I hear it is available.

As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

A Great Book From What I Hope Will Be Another Long Running Series From Krista Davis. Murder She Barked.

I just finished reading Murder She Barked by Krista Davis. I love the "Diva" series and was thrilled when I ordered this book and it arrived last December. I only got around to starting it on the first day of my trip to Las Vegas for a Friend's surprise 40th Birthday Celebration. It was so worth the wait. I flew out of the Bellingham Washington Airport, my flight was at 2:30 in the afternoon and my husband dropped me at the airport at about 10:30 am. We live in Canada and he had to get back to pick up our three boys from school. Did I mind the extra wait time? Not one bit. I caught the end of the Olympic Hockey Game, had a burger, got a tea and sat down to read un interrupted for several hours...that it's self was a vacation!

I arrived in Las Vegas a full night a head of my friend and her party so I got to read in my hotel room and take advantage of the quiet night that the hotel in Las Vegas afforded me. I brought my own tea and wished I had brought my own tea cup and saucer....next trip.

Murder She Barked's premiss is perfect for a Cozy and a new series I instantly fell in love with. Reading about a resort destination, while on a vacation to a resort destination made the story seem so much more plausible. I did not even bat an eye when I was at the Golden Nugget with my friends for dinner buffet one night and someone came in with their dog, this happens regularly in the book and I found it funny that I was the only one that did not react to the dog joining it's owner at the table for dinner...

I was sad when my surprise trip to Vegas was over and my friends flew home, I again waited in the airport for several hours as a snow storm had hit the west coast and took full advantage of the time to read. My trip may have been done but I still had my book! I was happy to come home and enjoy the last few chapters of my book with tea cup and saucer in hand. Following the ups and downs Holly and her Oma, as well as her dog Trixie and cat Twinkle toes.

I love the idea of a resort where you can take your pets and vacation. Such a wonderful idea and a great beginning to what I am sure is to become one of my favorite cozy series. If you are a pet lover looking for a pet centered cozy with a fun cast of characters pick up Murder She Barked by Krista Davis and start your surprise vacation today.
As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com