On My Table And In My Cup January 7th-14th

What a wonderful week, hoping you did too. I have made lots of time for reading this week, finishing 4 books and was so thrilled to get Healing Herbal Tea's a book I ordered several months ago when I previewed it and reviewed it. I knew that I had to have this in my collection and spent most of last night reading through it planning blends to try.

I had the true luck of the Irish having two Irish Cozies on my table this week. Friday night I finished Cruel Winter, by Sheila Connolly.  I really did not want this one to end. Perfect read for this cold and icy week, this is book 5 and being published by Crooked Lane Books this March 14th. My review will be posted early next week.

Charlene O'Connor's Murder at an Irish Wedding was like a breath of fresh air. This is book two and takes place shortly after book one ends. I so admire the heart in this story, the strong family ties and cozy Irish hospitality the way that Carlene writes.

Witchy paranormal cozy Headless in Nevermore spent a bit of time on my table, this is a cozy I purchased from Amazon. Violet Merriweather spins a great fable and cozy mystery in this the second in series.

A wonderful surprise awaits in Kate Kingsbury's Dead and Breakfast a Merry Ghost Inn mystery. This is book one in a series I am really looking forward too. I love the granddaughter and grandmother duo, who sink everything into a haunted Oregon coast Victorian that they are renovating for a bed and breakfast when they stumble upon a skeleton behind the wall they are removing. Good mystery in this one!

She Stopped for Death was more of a psychological thriller cozy which I had on my table this week. I was very surprised  with how this cozy turned out. Love the ideas of the Little Library Mystery series and was excited to have book two to review.

A lovely little book also on my table was the Little Big Book of White Spells, this is a book that would make a great gift and one I appreciated as a reference for an aspiring paranormal cozy mystery writer.
In my cup this week I have lots of black tea, Double Cream Earl Grey from Thay Tea and Vanilla Black tea from Murchies.
I am so glad to have you join me here for a cup of tea and a cozy mystery week in review. I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

Headless in Nevermore by Violet Merriweather

Today I am sharing my review of a book I bought last week from Amazon, Headless in Nevermore. This is the second in the Witches of Nevermore series and book two starts shortly after where book one ends. Much like the first one Magicless in Nevermore, this is a fast moving fable. This is a very imaginative and grown up fairy-tale, and paranormal cozy mystery. Lots of fantasy and a good mystery, a bit of romance and lots of magic. Great characters and very complex story that is well thought out.

NOW THAT SHE’S FOUND HER MAGIC, SHE’S READY TO TAKE ON THE WORLD, NEVERMORE, AND ENORMOUS QUANTITIES OF ICE CREAM (NOT NECESSARILY IN THAT ORDER).
Cassandra Holly is Nevermore’s newest Shadow Witch. Or will be once she completes her training. So of course this is the perfect time for a (mostly) dead person to show up needing help with a few things.Like figuring out who killed him, for starters.THAT’S WHEN THINGS GET COMPLICATED.When a person has died seven and a half times already, it’s a given that eventually one of those times is bound to disagree with them. Enter Zimbree—a Franken-head of sorts that is missing both his body and any relevant clues that might lead to the person responsible for his most recent demise.And he wants his body back. Justice would be nice too.HAPLESS VICTIM ASIDE, WHAT IF HER CLIENT ISN’T AS INNOCENT AS HE SEEMS?The deeper Cassie gets into the investigation, the more she’s sure Zimbree is hiding something from her. Especially when everything seems intent on thwarting her. Like a band of wraiths that seem oddly connected to her client, and then by the Council of Merlin itself.And that’s before the djinn shows up, her pre-hatched dragon goes rogue, and she discovers that a bit of illicit necromancy might be the least of her problems.

Click here to order your own copy of Headless in Nevermore and to find out more about this series.
Thank you for joining me for a cup of tea and a cozy mystery review I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

On My Table And In My Cup October 8th-15th

It is Saturday again and the start of hockey season for me, this year both my boys are playing on the same team. This is truly an emotional and exciting time, says the mother who is just having her tea and has yet to dress them or load the mini van this morning. Above is my very pleasant late Friday delivery, some of November's finest books!

 On my table this week I am very pleased to have been asked to read and review Canadian Author Janice J. Richardson's Casket Cache, newly arrived on my kindle app and a review I hope to have for you early next week.

I have a review coming up for you tomorrow on Charlaine Harris' All the Little Liars, I hope you will stop back over to read my review.

My library stocks the best cozy series and I was so delighted to be able to read the series and Chance of a Ghost was such a great book! I can not wait for the next one!

Magicless in Nevermore was a good fairy tale for grown ups, a fun book to read!

Sunday's Death on Windmill Way was a great escape mystery this week as well.

The winner of Kathy Aarons Behind Chocolate Bars is, Kathleen Costa! Thank you to all who entered!

The Murchies Vanilla Black tea has been a lovely addition to my daily tea pot this week. I have not made a decision yet on what kettle I will be going with, looks like either Santa or a new year purchase. I got news that we will have to find a new home to rent very soon and for now my travel kettle will have to do. The idea of moving is both exciting and terrifying all at the same time.
I hope in the next three months to discover myself and my family in a comfortable and new location, we shall miss where we live now and have lived for 8 years terribly, I think it will be hardest on the boys. Our goal is to stay in the same area so as not to disrupt their lives too much.
Thank you for joining me for a cup of tea and a cozy week in review. I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com

Magicless in Nevermore by Violet Merriweather

Over the weekend I read Magicless in Nevermore by Violet Merriweather. This is a paranormal fantasy cozy, and reads like a fairy tale for grown ups. I think it was a good witches story. It was fable like and cautionary tale as much as it was a cozy. I enjoyed the writing of main character Cassandra Holly and her best friends. I think this cozy was also funny and easy to picture even though it was more on the fantasy then I normally read, I enjoyed the story and it was a great release! I can recommend this story to those like me who enjoy a fun witch story! I liked the spin on this one!

Cassandra Holly is just your average witch living in Nevermore. Except for the witch part. To be a witch, to stay in Nevermore—and in enchanting distance of her family—she needs to find her magic.Now.Against all odds, she does.Sort of.FINDING HER MAGIC IS WHEN EVERYTHING GOES WRONG.Coming into her magic is a dream come true. Stumbling onto a crime scene where the most powerful—and crankiest—witch in Nevermore’s history has been murdered? Not so much. Being hired by the witch’s ghost to find the killer? Verging into nightmare territory.Ordinarily Cassie would have left the crime solving to the experts. But it turns out the ghost is not only well-versed in cranky, but coercion as well, and she isn’t going to take no for an answer.GHOSTLY DESPOT ASIDE, WHAT IF THE MURDER WAS SIMPLY A RED-HERRING?The more Cassie learns about the murder, the more she realizes something more nefarious is afoot. And if she doesn’t figure out the true mystery in time, she’ll lose her magic, her family, her home.And quite possibly herself.

To order your own copy of Magicless in Nevermore please click here for the Amazon listing.
To learn more about Violet Merriweather and this series please click here.

On My Table and In My Cup October 1st-8th

Saturday of the Thanksgiving long weekend here in Canada, it sneaks up on me every year. I think the USA has the right idea by having it in November, though I wont complain I am not cooking this year, duties have fallen to my sister (who is a better cook then me) and my mother in law who's cooking is out of this world. I am very lucky to be sure. I tell you I swear I blinked and it was only labor day weekend.  On my table currently is a new to me cozy called Magicless in Nevermore, love the title and the cover can not wait to get into this one. I may indulge in a paranormal cozy or two every now in again as one does a bag of potato chips...

I did not indulge in as much reading as I would have liked to this week but I did indulge in other things I loved, my friend and I had high tea this week and it was a heavenly escape. The Chocolate Zuccini Bread was out of this world, I am going to have to try my hand at making some myself. I loved their peach black tea we had and tried their Avalon blend which I found to floral. 

 I have been reading Carrie Doyles' very interesting cozy Death on Windmill Way it is my hope to finish it today and share the review with you tomorrow or early next week.

I am still catching myself thinking back to the cozy I read on Sunday and remembering that though I finished the book how much I enjoyed this story. I love it when a  good book stays with you and The Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum was a cozy I really enjoyed.

Released this week Crepe Factor by Laura Childs with Terrie Farley Moran was a great opportunity for me to learn more about the writing process and I am thrilled that Terrie was able to share with me and all of you how that process worked. I am very excited to have had the opportunity to read this one.

I hosted 4 of Vicki Vass Antique Hunter Mysteries on my table this week and loving this series as I do I can not say enough about the way it is written. If you are looking for a great established series that is well written and fun this is a series for you.
I look forward to sharing more cozies and great reviews with you soon. I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com