Shoulder Bags and Shootings by Dorothy Howell

Kensington Publishing
July 2010

Genre: Chick Lit, Cozy Mystery

Haley Randolph enjoys everything life has to offer. She just spent the last couple of weeks in Europe with her handsome boyfriend, Ty, who happens to be the owner of the department store where she works as a salesperson. She then gets a chance to drive his grandmother’s expensive Mercedes home from the airport and now she’s on her way to buy the latest designer pocketbook – a Sinful pocketbook. She absolutely must have one. Things don’t get better than this…until she looks in the trunk of the car. Facing her is the dead body of her business competitor, Tiffany Markham.

Haley and Tiffany have had their problems in the past since they both have purse party companies and are constantly competing with each other, but Haley didn’t want her dead. Unfortunately, the police don’t believe her and are ready to pin the crime right on her doorstep. Haley realizes if she wants to prove her innocence, she’ll have to do it on her own.

This madcap adventure will have readers laughing along with Haley’s antics, as well as trying to figure out who really killed Tiffany. Howell writes with a comedic flair and in the same vein as Sophie Kinsella’s Confessions of a Shopaholic series. Think chick lit meets cozy mystery.

Although it’s the third book in the “A Haley Randolfph Mystery” series, I have not read the previous two but that did not take away from my enjoyment of this book. I do have the first two books and intend to read them.

I totally enjoyed this book. It’s a fast-paced tale that will leave readers smiling after the last page is turned. This is one author I’m adding to my book buying shopping list.




For Reading Challenges:

Chick Lit Reading Challenge
Cozy Mystery Reading Challenge
Mystery Reader Cafe Reading Challenge
Read Your Own Book Reading Challenge

The Ghost and Mrs. McClure by Alice Kimberly

Genre: Cozy Mystery

After the death of her husband, Penelope Thornton-McClure moves to Rhode Island to help her Aunt Sadie manage a mystery bookshop, Buy the Book. What she doesn’t know is that Jack Shields was murdered in that bookstore in 1949 and continues to haunt the bookstore to the present day. His murder remains unsolved. To add to the mystery, she’s the only one who can communicate with the ghost.

Pen is very excited to get a bestselling author, Timothy Brennan, for their first book signing at the store. Things quickly take a bad turn when the author announces it will be the last book in his popular series. As the crowd tries to absorb this shock, the author falls over and dies.

It’s not long before the police determine that Brennan was murdered and Pen becomes the prime suspect. If she doesn’t want to spend the rest of her life in jail, leaving her young son parentless, she must solve this murder and fast. Fortunately, she has a live-in ghost, who used to be a private investigator in 1949, to assist.

I’m a huge fan of cozy mysteries and have had this book in my TBR for years. I don’t know how I could let it just sit there. This book is wonderful. The characters are loveable (some, not so much but they aren’t supposed to be), the story is fast-paced and the setting is so quaint.

Alice Kimberly also writes as Cleo Coyle, author of the Coffeehouse Mystery series. I’ve read a couple of the Coffeehouse mysteries, which I’ve enjoyed, but this series has surpassed that one to me. First of all, I love the idea of a mystery bookshop and the addition of a live-in ghost is priceless. The interaction between Pen and Jack is delightful. This was a quick read for me and you know I’ll be reading the rest of the series.

If you’d like to read them, here is the order they should be read in…

1. The Ghost and Mrs. McClure
2. The Ghost and the Dead Deb
3. The Ghost and the Dead Man’s Library
4. The Ghost and the Femme Fatale
5. The Ghost and the Haunted Mansion

Of course I’m also giving it the Socrates’ Great Book Alert medal. The third book in a row that I’m giving it to…I’m on a role!



For Reading Challenges…

A to Z Reading Challenge
Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge
Read Your Own Book Reading Challenge

The Tail of the Tip-Off by Rita Mae Brown

Genre: Mystery

It’s winter time in Crozet, Virginia and the town is caught up in cheering the local women’s basketball team. Following one exciting game, H.H. Donaldson, a local building contractor, suddenly dies. At first it’s believed to be a heart attack, but it doesn’t take long before the police realize it was a cold blooded murder.

Harry Haristeen is determined to find the murderer. Her trio of furry best friends, kitties Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, plus Harry’s faithful corgi, Tucker are more than happy to protect their human “mom”. When another body turns up dead, the animals vow not to let the same thing happen to their mother.

I always like to revisit this series led by the tiger kitty Mrs. Murphy. This is a fast-paced mystery, although the outcome wasn’t really all that surprising, it was a good read. The characters are all well developed with most of them reappearing in each book. It’s always fun to check in on characters we’ve grown to love over the years. This wasn’t my favorite of the series, but it was a good one.

For reading challenges:

What an animal reading challenge
Cat Sleuth Reading Challenge
A to Z Reading Challenge
Mysteryreader Café Reading Challenge
Read Your Own Book Reading Challenge

Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge 2010

I loved this challenge last year and one that I completed. Since I love my mysteries, this was one challenge I intended to join as soon as it was posted and it was posted today! I'm excited about it. If you'd like to join, you have to do so through their Yahoo group mysteryreadercafe

Here is the challenge for 2010. Remember you need to read a different book for each one. Good luck!

2010 Mystery Reader Cafe Reading Challenge:

a.. Read a book by an author whose last name starts with the letter "B"
b.. Read a mystery set in a different country than your own
c.. Read a mystery originally published in 2010
d.. Read the first mystery in a series

My list of books...

1. The Tail of the Tip-Off by Rita Mae Brown (author with last name "B") Click for review
2. A Vicky Hill Exclusive by Hannah Dennison (set in a different country than your own)
3. Shoulder Bags and Shootings by Dorothy Howell (Published in 2010) Click for review
4. The Ghost and Mrs. McClure by Alice Kimberly (first mystery in a series) Click for review

Latte Trouble by Cleo Coyle

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Clare Cosi’s coffeehouse, the Village Blend, is hosting a huge party to celebrate a new line of jewelry called “Java Jewelry”. The jewelry is created by Lottie Harmon and inspired by the Village Blend. Of course the coffeehouse makes the perfect backdrop to introduce the public to this new line of fashion accessories as Fall Fashion Week in New York City begins.

Unfortunately, things take an ominous turn when one of Clare’s employees serves up a lethal latte and is immediately arrested for murder. Clare is certain her employee is innocent and intends to prove it. She quickly discovers there’s more here than meets the eye and she’s certain her friend Lottie is the real target. Nobody believes Clare and she decides it’s up to her to prevent Lottie being murdered, not to mention she has to find a way to get her employee out of jail before it’s too late.

Against her better judgment, Clare teams up with her ex-husband and current business partner to track down the killer. Now if she can just stop herself from falling for him all over again.

This is the third book in Cleo Coyle’s coffeehouse mysteries. I’ve enjoyed all three books, so far. Ms. Coyle always throws in twists and turns to throw readers off the track and she succeeds very well. Her characters are wonderful and, as often happens with cozies, they become old friends. I’m looking forward to reading the next one.

For reading challenges…

Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge
Mysteryreader café Reading Challenge

The Diva Runs Out of Thyme by Krista Davis

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Sophie Winston is a domestic diva! Her family expects the perfect Thanksgiving dinner from her and she aims to please.

During her Thanksgiving shopping, she meets up with a man trying to give her a homeless cat. She turns down the offer, but soon feels bad. After she’s finished shopping, she tries to find the man with the cat, but instead finds the man’s dead body. She takes the cat, but is shocked to learn that the police found her picture in the man’s car. Suddenly she finds herself as the number one suspect of a murdered man she didn’t even know.

Sophie tries to put this incident aside so she can create a happy festive holiday for her family, but somehow she ends up with more guests for dinner than she anticipated including her ex-husband Mars and his fiancée, Natasha. Natasha is Sophie’s main competition in the annual Stupendous Stuffing Shakedown contest, as well as both women having domestic advice columns.

Several contestants find themselves the victim of having their ingredients tampered with and when Sophie finds the sponsor of the contest dead, all eyes turn toward her as the lead suspect in two murders. With a little help from her family and friends, Sophie sets out to prove her innocence. It’s just a shame the sexy detective in charge of the investigation also thinks she’s a murderer.

This is the first book in a brand new cozy mystery series, “A Domestic Diva Mystery”. I could not put this book down. The story has a wonderful array of characters. Each one has their own special qualities that come alive throughout this book. I practically devoured this one. I can’t say enough good things and I loved every minute of reading this one.

Krista Davis is a “new-to-me” author that I’ll be watching out for. I already have the second book in this series and the third comes out in February 2010. If they are anything like the first one, I have quite a bit of great reading ahead.

I can’t help but give this my Socrates’ Great Book Alert medal.


For reading challenges:

Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge
Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge

The Cat, The Quilt and The Corpse by Leann Sweeney

The Cat, The Quilt and The Corpse by Leann Sweeney

Genre: Cozy Myster, “A Cats in Trouble Mystery”

Jillian Hart is too young to be a widow, but when her beloved husband suddenly dies, all she has to keep her company are her three beautiful cats, Syrah, Chablis and Merlot. They make their home in a small town in South Carolina where Jillian has her own business of making quilts. When she returns from an overnight business trip, she finds her home has been broken into and her precious Syrah has been cat-napped!

Jillian turns to the police for help, but when they hear nothing but her cat was stolen, they don’t offer much help or concern. Basically, they don’t take her seriously at all. She asks for assistance from a local private investigator who installs a new alarm system and it doesn’t hurt that the P.I. is a sexy hunk as well.

With the help of a newfound friend, police officer Candace Carson, they conduct their own investigation but continually run into dead ends. Jillian is convinced she knows who did it, but when her suspect turns up dead, she becomes the number one suspect herself. Jillian races around the clock to prove her innocence and find her beloved Syrah before any harm comes to her.

I absolutely adored this story. I’m a huge cozy fan and if you toss in a few kitties, all the better for me. I fell in love with all the human characters, as well as the furry ones. The characters were well-developed, the story moved along at a fast pace and it kept you guessing until the end. It had everything I love in my mysteries. The next book in the “A Cats in Trouble Mystery” will be out in the spring. It’s already on my shopping list.


For reading challenges:

Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge
2009 Suspense & Thriller Reading Challenge
Cat Sleuth Reading Challenge
Mysteryreader Café
What an animal II challenge

I'm also giving this the Socrates' Great Book Alert Medal

Murder of a Chocolate-Covered Cherry by Denise Swanson

Genre: Cozy Mystery


School psychologist, Skye Denison, cannot believe it when she learns he has been entered into the Grandma Sal’s Soup-to-Nuts Cooking Challenge. Skye’s mother, May, is the true cook in the family, but she is only entitled to one entry. With four entries to submit, May enters one recipe with Skye’s name on it. There’s no way her mother would let her out of the contest, so Skye finds herself stuck as one of the contestants.

Trouble brews when malicious pranks sabotage the contestants’ entries, Grandma Sal’s family is at odds, one of her teenage students is missing and one of the more obnoxious contestants is found dead in a chocolate fountain. Not to mention Skye’s boyfriend’s father shows up in Scumble River and it’s clear he has a hidden agenda. All of this, as Skye desperately tries to make her cooking entry a success. She can’t let her mother down, but she also has to assist the police in finding the killer before more contestants end up dead.

This is the 10th book in the Scumble River Mystery series and I’ve truly grown to love Skye Denison. I always feel like I’m visiting with an old friend when I read one of these books. There is only more book in the series left, but I’m sure Denise Swanson will have more released soon.

If you like a fast-paced mystery with charming characters, give this series a try. Each book can be read as a stand-alone, but I would start at the beginning so you can see how Skye’s relationships develop and how she grows as a person.

For reading challenges:

2009 Suspense & Thriller Reading Challenge
Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge
Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge
Themed Reading Challenge – With this book, I completed the challenge!

Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge 2009

Okay...so, what's one more challenge? Especially when it's for a genre I love? Here's the info about it...

Announcing the 2009 Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge:



1. Read a mystery with the word "murder" in the title

2. Read a mystery set in your region

3. Read a mystery that has been on your shelf for at least a year

4. Read a mystery from a "new to you" author


Please remember that each challenge above should be a different book. Although this was created for the reading group I run at Yahoo, anyone can participate. Reading challenges are personal and self-policed. You make the decisions if you want to change the books as the year goes on, etc. What's important is that it's fun and that you get to books you want to read.

Good luck to all!


If you're interested in joining in, click the button above.

Here are my choices, although I might change my mind later in the year...

1. Murder of a Chocolate Covered Cherry by Denise Swanson Click here for review (title with the word "murder" in it)
2. Latte Trouble by Cleo Coyle Click for review (mystery set in my region)
3. The Diva Runs Out of Thyme by Krista Davis Click for review(book in my TBR for over a year)
4. The Cat, The Quilt and The Corpse by Leann Sweeney (new to me author) Click for review

This should be fun!