Tropical Girl Reads

The Girl I Left Behind- Book Review

Hello all! I just finished an awesome historical fiction and debut novel of Andie Newton, The Girl I left Behind. So let’s begin the review!

The Girl I Left Behind: An emotional, gripping and heartwrenching ...

What would you risk to save your best friend?

As a young girl, Ella never considered that those around her weren’t as they appeared. But when her childhood best friend shows Ella that you can’t always believe what you see, Ella finds herself thrown into the world of the German Resistance.

On a dark night in 1941, Claudia is taken by the Gestapo, likely never to be seen again, unless Ella can save her. With the help of the man she loves, Ella must undertake her most dangerous mission yet and infiltrate the Nazi Party.

Selling secrets isn’t an easy job. In order to find Claudia, Ella must risk not only her life, but the lives of those she cares about.

Will Ella be able to leave behind the girl of her youth and step into the shoes of another?

Perfect for fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The German Midwife and Kate Furnivall.

Print Length: 368 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1789546680
Publisher: Aria (October 3, 2019)
Publication Date: October 3, 2019
Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
Language: English
Genre–Jewish Fiction/Historical Fiction

Andie Newton writes female-driven historical fiction set in WWII. She’s the author of The Girl I Left Behind (Aria 2019) and The Girl from Vichy (Aria 2020). Andie holds a Bachelor degree in History and a Master in Teaching. She would love to say she spends her free time gardening and cooking, but she’s killed everything she’s ever planted and set off more fire alarms than she cares to admit. Andie does, however, love spending time with her family, trail running, and drinking copious amounts of coffee.

I got this book through Kindle at a discounted price. I am a die hard fan of historical fiction, particularly if the book is based on Holocaust or based on during the Nazi regime. The Girl I left Behind is such a book. The story, told from the main protagonist point of view, Ella is best friends with Claudia. They are in the Women’s League, which, in Nazi Germany at the time, all German teenagers are required to join. However, Claudia is involved in a resistance movement named “The Falcons” which is involved in opposing the Nazi Regime and helping the Jews and others who the Nazis consider “irredeemable” to hide. But things become complicated when Claudia was caught by the Gestapo. Ella, who moved to Munich from Nuremberg joins the Reich government as a secretary to a high ranking Nazi official and at the same time, selling the secrets to the resistance and the spies, acting as a spy herself.

So let’s start with the ones I like about the book.

The book was actually well written, quiet emotional towards the end that you actually feel like you want to cry.
The author has done tremendous research on this book, particularly about the life of a German teenage girl during the Nazi regime, the resistance movement that opposed the Nazi regime. Though the book is fictionalized, the events that are described in this book is real, particularly about the description of the political prison.
Despite the seriousness of the topic, I like how the author has put in a hint of romance in the book–the budding romance between Ella and Max and then Ella and Eric (her own boss) (SPOILER ALERT)
I like the way the author has made Ella as a brave and courageous girl, risking her own life while working as a secretary to the Reich by acting as a spy, selling secrets. As a woman, I greatly admire Ella’s character in the book.
The author managed to make the reader feel as a part of the story, particularly the part where Ella goes for skiing with her boss Erik and cousin Alex and three others, describing the life in the mountains, away from the chaos of war. Also, you feel that you are a part of the story as well.
The author has done a good job keeping the reader at the edge of the seat. As a reader, I was worried about Ella and about how and when she will get caught.
The last few chapters were bit emotional and sad to read at the things Ella had to go through.

There were not many things that I didn’t like. Towards the end, we know that Ella is going to start a new life as a new person though I kind of wished I know what happened to Max and Claudia.

Overall, this is a good historical fiction book, keeps you hooked into the story and you don’t really want to put the book down! Worth five stars in my opinion!

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Cookie and Cream — How to Bake A Murder book review K.J. EMRICK

Hello all! These days I have been reading a lot of culinary fashioned cozy mysteries and it is actually free on Amazon kindle. So today, I am going to do a book review, How to Bake a Murder by K.J. Emrick, a cozy mystery novel and the first part of the Cookie and Cream series.

How to Bake a Murder (A Cookie and Cream Cozy Mystery Book 1) by [K.J. Emrick]

“I can’t get a pulse. Cookie, call for an ambulance.”

Definitely not the words you want to hear when a man has just collapsed in the middle of your bakery.

A few minutes is all it took for Karen ‘Cookie’ Williams to be thrust into the center of a nightmare. A customer was dead and she was considered a suspect. Her beloved shop was a crime scene.

Things weren’t looking so great for her.

If you add in the strange figure that was lurking around at night, the prominent businessman who was harassing her to sell up and an unhappy granddaughter who was spending the summer with her you had a recipe for disaster.

Can Cookie work out who killed her customer and save her bakery from ruin before she becomes a victim herself?

Print Length: 194 pages

Publisher: South Coast Publishing; 1 edition (July 26, 2016)
Publication Date: July 26, 2016
Genre:- Cozy mystery

Strongly influenced by authors like James Patterson, Dick Francis, and Nora Roberts, Kathrine Emrick dreamed of being an author for the majority of her life.

She never quite gave up on the idea of being a published author and at the age of 51, thanks to Amazon and their Kindle platform, she finally realized her dream. Her maturity allows her to bring a variety of experiences and observations to her writing.

She lives in beautiful South Australia with her family including several cats and dogs. Kathrine can always be found jotting down daily notes in a journal and like many authors, she loves to be surrounded by books and is a voracious reader.

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and volunteering at the local library. Her goal is to regularly produce entertaining and noteworthy content and engaging in a community of readers and writers.

To find out more please visit the author’s website at http://www.kathrineemrick.com

First of all, I really like the book cover. The title itself also sounds cheesy. In a nutshell, Karen “Cookie” Williams owns a bakery in a small town. She brings her granddaughter, Clarissa over the summer, in the hopes of getting to know each other. There is also a budding romance between Jerry a police officer who often comes to the bakery. Then one day, a regular customer, Julien dies on the doorstep of Cookie’s bakery after eating his cream puff especially made for him.

Let’s start with the ones I like about the book.

The book is simple and short and the author has written in a easy format.
It was funny as well.
Reading cozy mysteries especially based on culinary kinda makes you feel hungry too.
I like the relationship Cookie is having with her little dog who is named Cream
I like how the relationship between Cookie and her granddaughter started improving towards the end of the book.
Many of the characters in the book were likable especially the main character Cookie.

Now about the ones I didn’t like about the book.

Too much of dialogue and at times, it was confusing.
Some parts of the story was a bit unrealistic.
The budding romance between Cookie and Jerry was a bit too fast in my opinion

Overall it was a good book, a good cozy mystery thriller to read. Worth four stars!

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Book Review–The Secret of Lost Stones

Hello all! I have been reading books on Kindle a lot lately and I must say, I seem to read faster on Kindle than on physical book….

Anyway, just finished reading The Secret of Lost Stones by Melissa Payne which I got free from Amazon Kindle. I can’t wait to share my thoughts with you all!

The Secrets of Lost Stones by [Melissa Payne]

A soul-stirring novel about the bonds between mother and child and the redemption that comes with facing the past and letting it go.

Thirty-two-year-old Jess Abbot has lost everything: her job, her apartment, and—most heart-wrenching—her eight-year-old son, Chance, to a tragic accident. Haunted by memories and grief, Jess packs what’s left and heads for the small mountain town of Pine Lake, where she takes a position as caregiver to an eccentric old woman.

A rumored clairvoyant, Lucy is strange but welcoming and immediately intuits Jess as a “loose end” in need of closure. But Jess isn’t the only guest in Lucy’s large Victorian home. There’s also Star, a teenage runaway with a secret too painful to share. And the little boy with heart-shaped stones, who comes with a hope for reconciliation—and a warning.

Soon Jess learns that she’s not the only lost soul running from the ghosts of the past. She and Star have been brought together for a reason: to be saved by the very thing that destroyed them.

Print Length: 332 pages
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing (September 1, 2019)
Publication Date: September 1, 2019
Genre:- Magical Fiction/Friendship

As a middle child, Melissa Payne was born to tell stories. What started with blaming her brother for breaking the car window evolved to a graduate thesis that she desperately wishes she could rewrite to blogging on motherhood and marriage. Now she likes to create stories set in wild and beautiful places with characters in flawed and imperfect relationships, whether that’s between a mother and a daughter, friends or strangers. And imagining all of it with just a hint of the ethereal, a whisper of something beyond what we can see and a sense that it’s all for a purpose.

So as I said earlier, I got this kindle edition free from Amazon. So in a nutshell, the story is told from the perspectives of two characters–Jess who is a thirty something year old woman, dealing with the death of her son, Chance and Star, a homeless teenager. Both encounter an eccentric old woman named Lucy, who seemed to be having a gift of some sort of psychosis (or fortune telling?) about the future. Jess who is on the verge of committing suicide becomes Lucy’s caregiver and Star leaves her homeless life behind and moves into Lucy’s house. But Lucy has brought both Star and Jess on a purpose. And there is a certain little boy with red sweatshirt who is hovering around Lucy’s house.

So as usual, let’s start with the ones I like about the book.

The author has written the book in such an engaging style that makes the reader want to read more with the thirst of what is going to happen next. (yeah sometimes I read through the night)
The author has written in simple English which was easier to understand.
The book is also realistic and tells the day to day struggles that most single mothers face (especially when dealing with finances). Also the life on the streets described in the book was realistic, making you feel worried for Star.
I actually feel sorry for both the main characters, Jess and Star as both faced hard times during a particular part of their lives. I like how until the end only Jess realized that Star was her son’s best friend (SPOILER ALERT!!!)
I like the friendship bond between Lucy and Ebee and the sort of motherly bond that Jess shares with Star.
Though Lucy was annoying at times as we don’t make sense of what she is actually trying to say, and her engrossment with the crossword puzzles, I found her character quiet likable.
I also like the sort of friendship going on between Jeremy and Star.

Now about the things I didn’t like

Actually, there was nothing much to dislike though at times, it was a bit emotional to read.

Overall, this was actually a good debut book by this author and I actually enjoyed reading the book. Worth five stars!

Sneak Peak at the Books I am Reading

Hey all! Here is a sneak peak at the books I am currently reading and soon will be blogging 🙂

The Secrets of Lost Stones – Melissa Payne

A soul-stirring novel about the bonds between mother and child and the redemption that comes with facing the past and letting it go.

Soon Jess learns that she’s not the only lost soul running from the ghosts of the past. She and Star have been brought together for a reason: to be saved by the very thing that destroyed them.

2. The Girl I Left Behind – Andie Newton

What would you risk to save your best-friend?

Selling secrets isn’t an easy job. In order to find Claudia, Ella must risk not only her life, but the lives of those she cares about.

Will Ella be able to leave behind the girl of her youth and step into the shoes of another?

Perfect for fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The German Midwife and Kate Furnivall.

3. How to bake a Murder- K.J. Emrich

How to Bake a Murder (Cookie and Cream #1)

“I can’t get a pulse. Cookie, call for an ambulance.”

Definitely not the words you want to hear when a man has just collapsed in the middle of your bakery.

A few minutes is all it took for Karen ‘Cookie’ Williams to be thrust into the center of a nightmare. A customer was dead and she was considered a suspect. Her beloved shop was a crime scene.

Things weren’t looking so great for her.

Can Cookie work out who killed her customer and save her bakery from ruin before she becomes a victim herself?

Book Review–The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes, Ruth Hogan

Hey all! Second book review of the day!!!! I just finished reading The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes by Ruth Hogan and so I am going to share with you all what I really think about the book.

Masha is drowning. Once a spirited, independent woman with a rebellious streak, her life has been forever changed by a tragic event twelve years ago. Unable to let go of her grief, she finds solace in the silent company of the souls of her local Victorian cemetery and at the town’s lido, where she seeks refuge underwater – safe from the noise and the pain.

But a chance encounter with two extraordinary women – the fabulous and wise Kitty Muriel, a convent girl-turned-magician’s wife-turned-seventy-something-roller-disco-fanatic, and the mysterious Sally Red Shoes, a bag lady with a prodigious voice – opens up a new world of possibilities, and the chance to start living again.

Until the fateful day when the past comes roaring back…

Print Length: 352 pages
Publisher: Two Roads (May 3, 2018)
Publication Date: May 3, 2018
Genre:–Parenting/Litarary

I was born in the house where my parents still live in Bedford: my sister was so pleased to have a sibling that she threw a thrupenny bit at me. As a child I read everything I could lay my hands on: The Moomintrolls, A Hundred Million Francs, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, the back of cereal packets and gravestones. I was mad about dogs and horses, but didn’t like daddy-long-legs or sugar in my tea.

I studied English and Drama at Goldsmiths College which was brilliant, but then I came home and got a ‘proper’ job. I worked for ten years in a senior local government position (I was definitely a square peg in a round hole, but it paid the bills and mortgage) before a car accident left me unable to work full-time and convinced me to start writing seriously. It was going well, but then in 2012 I got cancer, which was bloody inconvenient but precipitated an exciting hair journey from bald to a peroxide blonde Annie Lennox crop. When chemo kept me up all night I passed the time writing and the eventual result was The Keeper of Lost Things.

I live in a chaotic Victorian house with an assortment of rescue dogs and my long-suffering partner (who has very recently become my husband – so I can’t be that bad!) I am a magpie, always collecting treasures, and a huge John Betjeman fan. My favourite word is ‘antimacassar’ and I still like reading gravestones (courtesy of Goodreads)

So I have wanted to read this book and had been in the want to read list of books. Last year, I got this book from the Big Bad Wolf book fair and so I was excited to read it!

So basically, the story is told from the main protagonist point of view, Masha who goes to lido every day and practice “self drowning” beginning with the temperature of the pool. She is grieving at the death of her toddler son, Gabriel, who was drowned in a pond some twelve years ago, though the body was never found. She has a wolfhound dog named Haizum and she makes trips to the cemetery almost every day, looking at the “angels” and the gravestones of people who had died. Then she meets an eccentric woman who wore red shoes and who feeds the crows in the cemetery. Masha names her as “Sally” though she never knows the woman’s actual name (until the end of the story) and befriends her. The story is told how this Sally changed Masha’s life.

So as usual, let’s begin with the ones I liked about the book.

The book was actually interesting to read and so did not make the reader (that’s me) feel bored.
The author used vivid adjectives on descriptions of a place or things so the reader can visualize these things in the head and imagine the scene.
Many of the characters in this book were likable. For example, I like the main character Masha. Though you feel her grief at the loss of her son, at times, she was funny and witty as well. She is also quiet loyal to her friends, particularly her gay friend, Edward. And she likes dogs!!!
Author has used another character Alice as a chapter, describing her life with her son Mattie as a single mother. Though the reader is confused at first about the connection with Alice and Masha, towards the end only we find the connection (I am not going to dwell too much on that)
I like how the author has used her real life experience as a cancer patient to write this book. As a result, it was kind of emotional to read.
I like all the bonds of friendships and relationships described in this book.

Now let’s start with the ones I didn’t like in the book.

I am not sure if it was intentional, but there were some unnecessary plot lines in the story that deviated from the story a little and was a bit boring sometimes.

Overall, I enjoyed reading the book and for those who haven’t read the Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes, I recommend this book to you!!! Give it a five star rating!

Five Stars Gold Stock Photo - Download Image Now - iStock

Book Review–The French Girl by Lexie Elliot

I know I was supposed to post a blog yesterday but it was raining and thundering. AND we are still under lockdown.

So today, I will be doing a thriller review on The French Girl, the debut book of Lexie Elliot.

Image result for the french girl lexie elliott

Everyone has a secret…

They were six university students from Oxford—friends and sometimes more than friends—spending an idyllic week together in a French farmhouse. It was supposed to be the perfect summer getaway…until they met Severine, the girl next door.

But after a huge altercation on the last night of the holiday, Kate Channing knew nothing would ever be the same. There are some things you can’t forgive. And there are some people you can’t forget…like Severine, who was never seen again.

A decade later, the case is reopened when Severine’s body is found behind the farmhouse. Questioned along with her friends, Kate stands to lose everything she’s worked so hard to achieve as suspicion mounts all around her. Desperate to resolve her unreliable memories and fearful she will be forever bound to the memory of the woman who still haunts her, Kate finds herself entangled within layers of deception with no one to set her free….

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley (February 20, 2018)
Language: English
Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Lexie Elliott grew up in Scotland, at the foot of the Highlands. She graduated from Oxford University, where she obtained a doctorate in theoretical physics. A keen sportswoman, she works in fund management in London, where she lives with her husband and two sons. The rest of her time is spent writing, or thinking about writing, and juggling family life and sport.

So I was curious about this book probably of this Girl word and when I saw this book at the bookstore last week, I immediately bought this book. I manage to finish this book within one week!

P.S. There is some bits and parts from the book so SPOILER ALERT

So in a nutshell, the story is about six British graduates who goes to France for a vacation and meets a French girl named Severine. But a day before they were leaving, Severine disappears mysteriously. The six British graduates return back to their country and then move on with their lives. Then a decade later, Severine’s remains are found in a well and then the investigation is open, making each of these six a suspect.

The story is told from the perspective of Kate Channings, one of those six graduates. She immediately gets haunted by the ghost of Severine when she heard the news about finding Severine’s remains. The story mostly focused around Kate and the other five, Seb, Tom, Lara, Caro (Theo was the other one who died in Afghanistan), the relationships between each of them and the secrets that each of them had on that fateful night. This story is mainly for the mature audience as it talks about drugs and sex as well.

So let’s begin with the ones I like about the book.

The story is interesting overall and by the middle of the book, I was so interested in actually which of these people actually killed Severine on that night.
The story is somewhat realistic as well.
The author uses simple English and phrases making the reader understand.
It was intriguing and will make the reader feel at the edge of the seat.
It was also interesting to see that the main protagonist Kate was also the prime suspect of the story due to the fact that her then boyfriend slept with Severine the day they broke up.

Now I will tell the things that I didn’t really like about the book.

To me the ending was a bit vague–I feel that the ending was a bit rush.
It was at first slow paced though in the middle, it started to grow it’s momentum

Overall, I rate this book as four stars!

Book Review–Coffee and Crime by Kelly Hashway

Welcome to another book review! I have just finished reading Coffee and Crime by Kelly Hashway on Kindle. Well actually, this is a very short novel and took me less than an hour to finish the book! So my review is going to be short as well.

Coffee and Crime (Cup of Jo Book 0) by [Kelly Hashway]

Joanna Coffee is hiding from her past, which includes an ex who cheated on her with her best friend. Too ashamed to go back home to Bennett Falls, Jo is living with her aunt clear across the country.

But a crime occurs in the coffee shop where Jo works, and it makes Jo rethink what she’s doing with her life. She’s determined to solve the crime and the problems in her own life.

Fans of Joanne Fluke and Victoria Laurie will enjoy this culinary cozy mystery series.

Kelly Hashway fully admits to being one of the most accident-prone people on the planet, but luckily she gets to write about female sleuths who are much more coordinated than she is. Maybe it was growing up watching Murder, She Wrote that instilled a love of mystery, but she spends her days writing cozy mysteries. Kelly’s also a sucker for first love, which is why she writes romance under the pen name Ashelyn Drake. When she’s not writing, Kelly works as an editor and also as Mom, which she believes is a job title that deserves to be capitalized.

Again, I got this book free on the Kindle and just decided to try reading this out.

So in a nutshell, the story is about a girl named Joanna Coffee who is working with her aunt in a coffee shop in a mall. A murder takes place in the mall and Joanna starts secretly investigating the case as apparently, the murderer had been drinking black coffee which had been purchased from the coffee shop and Jo knows that only four people had bought black coffee on that day…

Here is my short and sweet review in a list form.

I really like the cover of the book (so in this case Kindle cover)–it looks really cheesy and nice. I am fetish for book covers.
The story is short and simple–kind of like straight to the point.
Not much of descriptions but a little bit of more dialogue in the books.
If you are looking for a fast read, then this book might be a good choice for you.
The ending was short, chapters were not very long and I like the ending actually.
I actually like the main character, Jo.

Overall, this is a good book and I rate this book as five stars!

Rating Five Stars. Motion Graphics Stock Footage Video (100 ...

Sunday Review–The Boy in Stripped Pajamas by John Boyne

Hello all!!! I am back with a lazy review–it’s Sunday and I am doing a review on historical fiction on The Boy in Stripped Pajamas by John Boyne

Lines may divide us, but hope will unite us . . .

Nine-year-old Bruno knows nothing of the Final Solution and the Holocaust. He is oblivious to the appalling cruelties being inflicted on the people of Europe by his country. All he knows is that he has been moved from a comfortable home in Berlin to a house in a desolate area where there is nothing to do and no one to play with. Until he meets Shmuel, a boy who lives a strange parallel existence on the other side of the adjoining wire fence and who, like the other people there, wears a uniform of striped pyjamas.

Bruno’s friendship with Shmuel will take him from innocence to revelation. And in exploring what he is unwittingly a part of, he will inevitably become subsumed by the terrible process.

Paperback: 215 pages

Publisher: David Fickling Books; Reprint edition (October 23, 2007)

Language: English

Genre–Holocaust, Family, Friendship, Historical Fiction, Prejudice and Racism

John Boyne was born in Ireland in 1971 and is the author of seven novels for adults and three for children. The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas won two Irish Book Awards, was shortlisted for the British Book Award, reached no.1 on the New York Times Bestseller List and was made into an award-winning Miramax feature film. His novels are published in over 45 languages. He lives in Dublin.

OK, so let me tell you something, I have always been fascinated with World War II stories including Holocaust. I have learned about Holocaust in history and also about Nazis and Hitler and I have always intrigued about Holocaust. It also makes me sad that there was a period of time when being a Jew, or gay or communist means a death sentence to each of them. I have watched the movies The Pianist, The Schindler’s List as well as The Boy in Striped Pajamas movie and the way Nazis treated the Jews is utterly horrifying. Reading Anne Frank’s Diary also showed what life is really for a Jew during the Holocaust time.

This book is mainly based on a nine-year old Bruno’s perspective during World War II. His father is a Nazi Commandant who was being sent to Auschwitz to look after the camp. Little Bruno does not understand why they had to leave the comfort of their house in Berlin and move to “Out With” which is the way Bruno pronounces and which is of course Auschwitz. Bruno eventually befriends a prisoner named Schmuel who shares the same birthday as Bruno and who instantly become best friends.

The author has used the eyes of a nine year old to tell about the horrors of Holocaust also showing the naivety of Bruno. Bruno admires his father and thinks of him as a hero. He does not understand why Schmuel looks sad. He does not understand why people on the other side of the fence are wearing striped pajamas. He doens’t know who “the Fury” is (we all know it’s The Fuhrer who is Hitler) But through these curiosity of a naive nine year old, horrors of Holocaust can be seen as well–the way the younger Nazi solder, Lieutenant Kotler treats Pavel and Schmuel (who is clearly afraid of Kotler) and the way the children are taught to hate the Jews. That’s Nazism and it was actually horrifying. Boyne has cleverly and beautifully written a sensitive topic of Holocaust. The ending of the book was too sick, too sad, knowing what is actually happening to them inside the room they were locked in and for a moment, my heart stopped for a second, secretly crying. It was too emotional and captivating

However there are some certain things that I felt that the story is unbelievable.

Bruno always steals food to give to Schmuel and is away for longer periods of time–wouldn’t his mother notice?
As far as I know, Jews or prisoners at Auschwitz were not allowed to loiter around the camp, including to be near the fences.

Over all my rating for the book will be

If you are interested in historical fiction and want to read books based on Holocaust, specially written for children, then this book is for you.

“Sitting around miserable all day won’t make you any happier.”

“What exactly was the difference? he wondered to himself. And who decided which people wore the striped pajamas and which people wore the uniforms?”

“He looked down and did something quite out of character for him: he took hold of Shmuel’s tiny hand in his and squeezed it tightly.
“You’re my best friend, Shmuel,” he said. “My best friend for life.”

Hope you like my review!

Book Review- Cream Caramel and Murder by K.E. O’Connot

Hey all! I know I haven’t posted on the blog lately but here I am! Just finished with another book. I have reading lot of books on Kindle lately and this book is one of the books I read on Kindle. Cream Caramel and Murder is the debut book of K.E. O’Connor and the beginning of Holly Holmes series.

So here’s my review!

Cream Caramel and Murder (Holly Holmes Cozy Culinary Mystery Series Book 1) by [K.E. O'Connor]

Sweet treats, revenge, and murder.

Holly Holmes loves her new job working in the kitchen at Audley Castle, home to the eccentric and wealthy Audley family.

With her faithful corgi cross, Meatball, by her side, she enjoys a quiet life full of baking, researching old recipes, and trying any fun fitness fad – weighted hula hoop, anyone?

When the bumbling, and cute, Lord Rupert Audley requests some of her scrumptious desserts for his school reunion, she happily gets baking.

Everything is going great until Meatball discovers a hand sticking out of the ground, Princess Alice faints, and Holly gets stuck in the spotlight for murder!

If Holly can’t clear her name, she’ll lose her amazing new life in the beautiful Audley St. Mary, Meatball will go back to the animal shelter, and her freedom will be history.

File Size: 2912 KB
Print Length: 175 pages
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publication Date: July 25, 2019
Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
Language: English
Genre:- Cozy Mystery

The writer of over 50 books in the paranormal adventure and cozy mystery genres. Her writing has mystery, adventure, excitement, and romance. She loves to make up new worlds and characters, and share stories for others to enjoy. She does this while hiding in her castle with a limitless supply of books, tea, cakes, and her many familiars (animals feature in most of her work.)

K.E. O’Connor loves reading anything that quickens her pulse and makes her fall in love with the characters. Her writing does the same. She has numerous series:

So I got this book free from Amazon. The title itself is cheesy and that it’s a cozy mystery book with a murder involved made me more intrigued so decided to try it out on the kindle. I was not disappointed with the book.

So in a nutshell, Holly Holmes, the main protagonist of the series loves her job working as a dessert chef in the Audley Castle. She of course loves her job. Holly’s desserts are loved by everyone including Princess Alice and Lord Rupert who are friends with Holly. So one day, Rupert asks Holly to make scrumptious desserts for this school reunion. The next day, Holly’s dog Meatball and Princess Alice finds a hand sticking out of the ground and eventually finds that one of Rupert’s friends was murdered. And Holly becomes a suspect and soon she starts sneaking around to see who is the real murderer.

So as usual, let’s start with the ones I like about the book.

I really like the author’s style of writing–it was simple and easy to understand.
The author also did a good job of making the reader hooked into the story and to actually makes the reader wants to see who had done it.
Even though the book is a mystery book, it was also funny as well.
All the characters in the book are likable. I really like the protagonist, Holly Holmes who I found as a very likable character.
I also like the friendship between Princess Alice and Holly.
Oh, I think Holly’s name for the dog Meatball is cute!

Now about the ones I didn’t like in the book.

The book is not very realistic but then again, I enjoy reading the book.

Overall, I really enjoy reading the book–fun to read and was engaging to read as well. I am actually looking forward to read all of Holly Holmes’ series! This is the first of the series.

I rate this book as five stars!

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Sneak Peek at the books I am reading

Hey all! These days, I am reading books on Kindle but I have some physical books that I have to read as well. So currently, I am reading these two books and hopefully I will do a review on these two books soon!

Cream Caramel and Murder – K.E. O’Connor