Pallas Poppies

Plenty of coffee for coffee lovers, even if the MC is a bit snobby about it. She and I wouldn’t get along simply because I don’t like coffee and that’s probably enough for her to dislike me.

Also maybe it’s just me forgetting how young you are at 30 but the MC feels pretty juvenile. And the love interest is hot… what are his other qualities? The love part was dull and I rolled my eyes plenty of times. Could have used the MCs father as an obstacles as he smokes marijuana, make some kind of issue of them to overcome? Too smooth sailing for me. (A little icky as the MC was written so juvenile and the love interest is at least 10 years older. Is he into that?)

Didn’t hate it but just another meh read for me, won’t continue the series.

SPOILER: I don’t know why the police was so adamant that it was suicide, sure there was mention that it could be an accident but why so focused on suicide? Back it up with something. Can’t go around saying that someone killed themselves, so rude to the family.

It’s not marketed as a gay story but the MC’s are a gay couple, I kind of like that. It’s just a story where they happen to be gay.

Jack and Filip get drunk one evening as Jack is having a slight crisis. During the drunken evening they decide to bid on a cheap castle that’s for sale and their bid is accepted. To move away and open a B&B is just want they need and off they go to Småland… the castle has a lot of history and the locals are a little standoffish towards the strangers. One day they a dead body in the drawing room, and who the dead man is is just the start of the mystery.

Some editing issues, the mystery takes some time to get started but I did think it was rather charming and I will read the next book in the series.

It’s a debut and it reads like one, you can tell that this is a first for the author and I will cut them some slack.

How many little old ladies where there... four, two in each room would make sense but I don’t remember them much. Maybe fewer so that they would each get more attention?

Less telling and more showing. ’ll read the next book from this author.

If you were okay with the shenanigans in the first book you might be okay with them here. I can understand people that think it’s too much. There’s a lot of repetitions.

Not as good as the first but it worked for me, somewhat. You do need to accept that it will be silly and go with it. But I’m in no rush to read the third book.

There are so things that are annoying, the MC is immature and at times annoying. It’s her wedding and there’s no interactions with any guests, it’s like they rented a wedding just for the looks and doesn’t know anyone, feels kind of weird. Even her best friends that are there, it’s like a cameo, blink and you miss them.

And the aunties murder boner… not so much funny as it makes me think they all need to be locked up.

And was it just me or was there a lot more foul language in this one than the first one? I don’t care about it but it felt a little out of place.

Same issues I had with the third book, feels paint by numbers and I think the murder here is clunky. In the first book the three sleuths all have their own things going on and have an arc but now it feels almost like there’s one person too many and there’s not enough for everyone to do. Feels a bit lackluster and uninspired.

Not a lot of horror, unsure what I would label this as, historical featuring vampires? If you want a scary book, this is not it.

It was slow getting started, it was slow all over to be honest and a rushed dull ending.

Just another meh for me. Didn’t get why the MC became BFF with one of the ex wives right away. And there were more than one person that said something like, “Well her ex husband cheated on her, that can drive them to murder” (not murdering the ex husband but going crazy and kill people), what?

Yeah, meh.

Despite having a lot of things that I really liked I didn’t get fully into this. Maybe if there had been some more humor? I might give the next book a try and see if I was just in a mood or something. I should have liked this more.

In this one Frank and Sarah are on their honeymoon so this time it’s up to Maeve and Officer Donatelli to solve the case, with a little help of course.

It was nice and refreshing with something new but at the same time, nothing was really different with how the sleuthing happened. A bit slow and I like Sarah and Frank more.

It will be interesting to see what the next book will bring.

Always struggle to rate non fiction, just as a book I'd give it a 3 for how entertaining it was but I don't want to drag down the rating so I'll skip it. It’s not written in a mainstream flirty fashion, some parts are more interesting than others and it’s obvious that there’s a lack of sources. Does leave me wanting more so I’ll look around to see if I can find other books on the subject.

Not very entertaining as some non fiction can be but it’s about a very interesting woman during an interesting time. Makes me want to watch the series The Chinese Empress with Fan Bingbing.

I didn’t really get into this one. Never fully understood the world and why they had a Battle Royal thing happening. Why are the N*zis called the Allied Forces? They are not allied to people and where are they from? The Arctic? Who moved to the Arctic, can’t be many living there in that harsh climate so… Maybe the author didn’t want to give a nationality to bad guys and offend anyone?

A map could have been useful here, I didn’t know where I was or how the world looked.

It is mentioned that the baddies liked Scandinavian stuff so maybe they started using Norwegian/Danish Ö for aesthetic reasons but I read it as Stööörmbane each time, there was kömmand in there as well. Can’t help but laugh. I think spending some more time with the languages would have been good or skipped it all together. As everything is set in our world there should be some similarities with a real language but doubt that was the case.

Now to the characters, I didn’t get to know any of them, not really. We have Coa that’s off to the Great Hunt, and a guy that winks a lot and despite being forced to strip and at gun point Coa has the time to appreciate how hot he is and admire his penis. What does she do… um, she’s sent to the game and… yeah.

Then we have… Efi? Who’s an exotic princess who pretends to be older and stupid and marries a n*zi to spy and get revenge.

Doesn’t feel like much happened at all… Early draft vibes after watch Hunger Games a few times and being scared with our worlds current political climate but doesn’t do it for me. Needed more work.

PS. Very cliffhangy ending and I hate that with a passion.

Holly is forced back to her home town when her fiancé cheats on her just before the wedding. Back in Mistletoe she helps out as her parents Christmas tree farm, one evening after an argument between her father and the cranky lady, Holly finds the lady dead…

All in all it was fine but doesn't really do that much for me. If there was as much time spent on the crime as it was on the Christmas fun it might have been better. Feels more like a romance that a mystery.

At one point Hollys mom says the cute sheriff doesn’t date. And Holly asks some more questions and mom continues, “Nope. Ask anyone. I think every single woman in town made a trip to his doorstep when he first moved here last summer. Some kept after him for months, but he wasn’t having any of it. Eventually they all gave up.”

I hate that sort of stuff, like the MC is so special (why?) he falls for her right away.

At one point the cute sheriff says, “Maybe we can work together.” Why? Why would he do that?

The whipped cream in a can… what the heck? Doesn’t anyone in the US actually whip cream? I always see those horrible cans in books and movies.

It’s fine but the back stories are really starting to feel neglected.

I can’t understand why Cleo is so reluctant to try things with Harry, I really don’t and I didn’t get it in the previous book either.

Than we have Flossi, she does nothing in this book and going nowhere. Floyd who’s a bit like an older brother and it’s a nice relationship but he does nothing in this book, going nowhere. Cocaine auntie? Doing nothing, going nowhere. Uncle whatever his name is, same… and everyone else of her friends at the hotel… so many characters but no action whatsoever.

The ending felt forced, must put Cleo in a “damsel in distress” situation, must be saved by love interest. It’s so short, blink and you missed it. Ugh and why?

Another knockout in the series. Enjoyed it like I always do with Caimhs books.

In other news, I think Bunny would enjoy a Finnish sauna more than a Danish spa so maybe he can find his way over to Kani next? Can we get Bunny to Finland, please? Maybe he’s visiting Santa for some reason?

Oh I had the audiobook and Morgan C Jones was great like always.

I don’t really give 5 stars because no book is better than “Pride and Prejudice” but to show love and support I raise my 4 star to a 5 star.

Lady Ellen Ashcombe checks into Millar’s Hotel while getting her house back in order after it’s been used as a convalescence home during the war.

While at the hotel she comes across two old acquaintances, one she’s glad to see and one she hopes would choke… only to fall dead into his soup.

Almost a little too cute and wholesome for me. Lady Ellen shows up in the kitchen as she likes one of the maids and helps her cut beans and butting in, in a way that really isn’t appropriate. She then commandeer the maid away from the hotel and acts pretty bossy. All while wanting to be treated like everyone else.

(I actually broke a rule when reading this book. I have banned books with the cover that has that pose, they are so many of them and they are never good)

I kind of read this in preparation for when everyone told me how great it is and that I have to read it just like they did with “Thursday Murder Club” which I first DNFed and then after more recommendations I finally pushed through and it was just meh. And I expected nothing else from this, but was pleasantly surprised, I liked it!

Rosie steals the show but I’m starting to feel that the glamorous hard drinking older woman is starting to become old, how many times has she been on page now? But I like Rosie.

Amy also feels a little bit done, a hard woman, rough upbringing and doesn’t like to talk about emotions… I’m still not sure how having a tough time growing up and then working at a gym can give you a job where you suddenly jump out of a chopper and throwing hand grenades but maybe we will find out in another book? Her background/job qualifying part was possibly my least favorite part… along with her hubby that felt kind of pointless but maybe he will be important later on.

I also liked Carlos… and the cat!

You need to go with it from the start and lean to the fun parts and read it like a comedy, things are convenient for the main characters and many things are unbelievable.

I’m willing to bet money that this started out as Only Murders in the Building fanfic.

It’s cheesy and cute and I’m okay with that. Reads pretty young but there was something about it that made me stick around. Sure, a lot of things are very convenient for the MC. I’ll give the second book a read, but it will be weird if a whole bunch of dead body start showing up in the same building complex.

I quickly went to “dramatization” instead of facts and with that, I did enjoy this. It was fast paced and enjoyable. But it’s not written as fact but much more like fiction, if you want facts, I’m sure there’s a better book available.

I listened to the audio version.

As a non fiction it feels like there are plenty of times the author takes liberties and put thoughts and feelings in peoples head that I don’t know how he would know about. He’s a bit dramatic…

Couldn’t help to react when the author calls a man Judas for giving up Booth and later there’s also a mention of Jesus and Golgotha when someone gives Booth water… Booth was a racist ahole, he wasn’t Jesus. Author is clearly fascinated by his subject so he feels bias. There was a part in the epilogue as well when I was like, “Did I hear that right?”

I need to remember how dull this was and not waste more time on this series.

Also, a very specific pet peeve of mine in this one. For that, I will remember this one.

First in a series so a little slow to get started as they are setting everything up. A lot of potential but felt pretty meh.

The misfits at Olivia's job are a few too many and it feels a little crowded and leaving little space for any of the characters, perhaps if they were fewer we could focus on building a connection to them?

This womans diet… bad coffee for breakfast, cheeseburger and fries for breakfast/lunch (she does say at one point that it’s her daily cheeseburger) and then some chips and cookies for snacks in the evening… she must be supernatural eating that.

Also, she’s on her way to her brother in San Diego when he car breaks down in Arizona. Maybe I missed it but I don’t remember her ever call him or having him mentioned again. “Haven’t heard from my sister in a week after she said she was driving here, I’m sure she’s fine.”

What do a cop, a corrupt ex cop now working for the Mafia and a female Pinkerton Detective have in common? They are all trying to find the notorious axe murderer in New Orleans.

So New Orleans 1919 and there’s a serial killer on loose, sign me up, sounds great!

But I don’t really get into it, it’s too slow, nothing really at stake. No suspense and no thrills. Another book that makes me go meh, has such a promise though. Feels like a book I will forget I ever read before the year is over.

I did like the characters but I think they could have popped more, if the axeman gets them… oh well.

Wait, what? It was THE Louis Armstrong? Why?!

I read it only because I had it and I need something at bedtime. So far I haven’t liked Phryne books but I loved the TV series. This book however was alright, my favorite of the ones I’ve read. Unsure how this was different from the others but it worked for me.

Some interesting stories and characters here and there but it feels like it needs something to tie everything together. Not sure how the brief opening of Londons first nightclub had to do with anything. Or the start of a new art trend. There needed to be something to link all parts together.

This one started pretty good, the early years are interesting but feels like the author either ran out of steam or material and just wants to get to the end. No digging deep and gets kind of watery towards the end.