Audiobook Review: Bless Her Dead Little Heart by Miranda James

This series is the spin off to Miranda James' Cats in the Stacks Mysteries and features Miss An'gel and Miss Dickce Ducote. The sisters are pet sitting Charlie Harris' maine coon cat, Diesel, and get themselves involved in an adventure. When their former sorority sister, Rosabelle Sultan, turns up on their door step, claiming that her family is trying to kill her they don't really believe her. After all Rosabelle loves drama! However when someone else falls victim to a trap set for Rosabelle it really looks like Rosabelle's family mean her harm. With the Sultan family residing at their house too, An'gel and Dickce must try to solve the mystery before they become the next victim. 

I just adore Diesel and the Cats in the Stacks Mysteries. This spin off was great. While I did miss Charlie Harris, I did like this story. An'gel and Dickce are such a hoot, and with their southern manners they tend to keep their snarky comments to themselves. That doesn't mean they don't think them. Rosabelle and her family are pretty uncouth and it was interesting watching them all clash with each other! 

This was my first time listening to a Miranda James novel. I've previously read all the others. However having said that I enjoyed Jorgena Marie's narration. I liked the southern accents she used and I would definitely listen to another book in this series, with her narration. 

Bless Her Dead Little Heart was a fun debut in this series. If you enjoy the Cats in the Stacks mysteries I thoroughly recommend picking this one up. If you are new to Miranda James give this one a try and I guarantee you that you will be racing out to buy her other series too!

About this Audiobook:
Written by: Miranda James
Narrated by: Jorjeana Marie
Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
 Series: Southern Ladies, Book 1
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:10-07-14
Publisher: Audible Studios

Book Review: A Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie

Death on the Nile is a short story featuring Parker Pyne. Parker is on holidays and even though his holiday has been previously interrupted by clients, he’s hoping that it won’t be interrupted even further. However the other occupants on his cruise have other ideas. One Lady Grayle asks him to find out if she is being slowly poisoned by her husband. He sets out to investigate but before he can uncover the truth Lady Grayle ends up dead.

I find the title of this short story amusing because Agatha Christie has a full length novel under the same title. The full-length Death on the Nile is of course widely popular, having been made into several movies, featuring Hercule Poirot. This short story was unknown to me until I picked it up. The short story was published three years before the novel. I do wonder if perhaps the short story was inspiration for the novel.

In any case it was a good, little story. Parker Pyne doesn’t usually solve murders, so it was interesting watching him try his hand at this one. With limited suspects and evidence aplenty, Parker managed to solve it in time.

Another good Parker Pyne mystery.

Audiobook Review: If the Shoe Kills by Lynn Cahoon

The holiday season is fast approaching in the sleepy town of South Cove. Jill Gardiner, owner of Coffee, Books and More, is busy planning a holiday supper and fundraising for the season. The last thing she needs is to get involved in another murder case. However, one seems to land right in her lap when she discovers the body of a visitor to town. Ted Hendricks is a first class jerk and also the director of a work program, placing interns in local businesses to help them garner some experience. When Ted turns up dead Jill doesn’t have to look far for suspects. It seems everyone had a reason to dislike Ted and Jill and her boyfriend police officer, Greg, will have their work cut out trying to find the killer.

If The Shoe Kills was my first visit with Jill and her dog, Emma, to South Cove. However, after listening to just one book I know it won’t be my last. I really enjoyed the variety of people that live in South Cove, and the addition of the interns visiting certainly provided a lot of color and intrigue!

The murder aside, what really drew me into this story was Jill’s store, Coffee, Books and More. I really like books about books. So many of my favorite cozy mystery series are set in bookstores and libraries. Being such an avid reader I can’t get enough of cozy mysteries that heavily feature books in their stories. I felt right at home in Coffee, Books and More and I liked how Jill not just works there, but talks about books, not just mentioning titles but giving the reader a great view of what goes into running the bookstore. In every scene I really felt like Jill was as much an avid lover of books as I am.

With the interns of the work program in town, there were a lot of visitors to South Cove. This made trying to figure out the killer so much harder, especially as the victim was new to town as well. I had an interesting time trying to figure it out and didn’t manage to solve this one before Jill.

I listened to If The Shoe Kills on audio and I enjoyed Susan Boyce’s narration. It didn’t take me long to get into the story and I quickly found myself hooked, which is a good indicator to a great author and narrator combination.

If the Shoe Kills was a great introduction into this series for me. I plan to go back and read/listen to the earlier books in the series, to find out a bit more about Jill’s other adventures. If you like charming cozies about enchanting small towns I highly recommend picking this one up.

About this Audiobook:

Written by: Lynn Cahoon

Narrated by: Susan Boyce

Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins

Series: Tourist Trap, Book 3

Unabridged Audiobook

Release Date:11-10-14

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Audiobook Review: Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House by M.C. Beaton

I love Agatha Raisin! She makes life in the country seem very exciting and she's always up to something. This time Agatha and her new neighbour, Paul, are investigating a haunted house. When the mean old lady that owns the house ends up dead, Agatha and Paul are sure it is murder and start to investigate.

Agatha has such spirit, but she is also a romantic and looks to Paul to be her next love. Of course Paul is married and is just toying with her. She deserves so much better, and I was happy to see Sir Charles Fraith also get in on the action too. When it comes to her love life I know she is not suited for James Lacey and I hope maybe Sir Charles will continue to be in her life.

Romance aside this was a really fun mystery, that delved into the history of the Cotswold. Agatha continues to bumble along until she has the case solved and her never-ending spirit and determination kept me interested.

I love Penelope Keith's narration. She's one of my favorite narrators and the true voice of Agatha Raisin. I'm looking forward to picking up the next Agatha Raisin mystery. 

About this Audiobook:
Written by: M. C. Beaton
Narrated by: Penelope Keith
Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
 Series: Agatha Raisin, Book 14
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:01-11-13
Publisher: AudioGO

Audiobook Review: Murder of a Needled Knitter by Denise Swanson

I can’t imagine anything worse than going on your honeymoon with your MOTHER! Okay maybe going on your honey with a murderer on the same cruise ship! Well in Skye Denison-Boyd’s latest adventure she has both on her honeymoon. Her mother is on the same cruise ship as Skye and Wally and there is also a murderer on board.

I liked Denise Swanson’s new book for a number of reasons. Firstly I love Scumble River and Skye and Wally. I’ve been reading these books for a long time and I’m glad to see Skye getting her happy ever after with Wally. Even if there honeymoon did include her mom, Mae. There is more interactions with Skye, Wally and her parents, Mae and Jed, then I’ve ever seen before. This of course happens when you’re stuck on a ship together. I love how Wally stands up for Skye, and we all know Mae is the kind of woman that it can be hard to get a word in!!

I’ve also wanted to take a crochet cruise. It looks so relaxing to crochet on the water and visit new places. Mae and Jed are part of a knitting cruise group and it is anything but relaxing, especially with one of their own meeting her death. It turns out not all knitters are the peaceful, grandmotherly type!

Murder of a Needled Knitter was a great adventure on the seas, and I liked watching Skye and Wally working together to solve the mystery! It was a tangled web and it left me guessing right until the end.

I chose to listen to Murder of a Needled Knitter in audiobook format. It was my first time listening to Christine Leto narrate and it was a really enjoyable experience. I definitely will pick up future books in this series on audio. I love being able to knit and crochet while I listen, and Christine has a great voice to tell the ups and downs of a cozy mystery.

Murder of a Needled Knitter was a great listen and I can’t wait to find out what is in store for Skye and Wally in their married life, when they return to Scumble River.

About this Audiobook:
Written by: Denise Swanson
Narrated by: Christine Leto
Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
 Series: Scumble River Mysteries, Book 17
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:09-02-14
Publisher: Audible Studios

Book Review: The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

My first introduction to Brandon Sanderson was with Mistborn. I loved Mistborn an awful lot, and enjoyed the concepts. When Words of Radiance came out, I decided it was time to discover his other series, so I picked up The Way of Kings. It has taken me a while to get through The Way of Kings. It is over 1,250 pages of awesomeness and my own life has been busy. I would have rather have devoted a week and read it non-stop!

Everything about The Way of Kings is awesome. Brandon Sanderson sets up the kingdom of Roshar, and the war the Alethi are waging against the Parshendi. In this world those born with lighteyes are above those born with darkeyes. Kaladin is a darkeyed, that has ended up a slave, and sees a life ahead of him carrying a bridge, and what will likely be a early death for him and his fellow bridgemen. Dalinar is the Uncle of King Elokhar and is trying to unite them and end the war against the Parshendi. Shallon is trying to steal a soulcaster and save her family, while she becomes an apprentice to the scholar, Jasnah. It is a world where only women read and write, and men fight the war of their lives. And there is also the lost radiants…

I don’t have a lot of experience with epic fantasy. I’ve read The Lord of the Rings and a few others, but I’m mostly a newbie to fantasy books. The Way of Kings blew my mind and if this is an example of what I can expect in other fantasy series, I can’t wait to discover them.

Each book in this series will mostly concentrate on one character and this was Kaladin’s story. While he wasn’t my favourite character (I really enjoyed the Shallon/Jasnah storylines), it was interesting to see his past and how he went from the son of a surgeon to a slave and a bridgemen in the war.

There is a lot of hints of other storylines to follow and questions that haven’t been answered. I absolutely can’t wait to read Words of Radiance, which has already been released. The Way of Kings is definitely my favourite book of 2014 and I can’t wait to read more from Brandon Sanderson

Audiobook Review: The New World by Patrick Ness

I enjoy science fiction, and in the last few years I've been reading more than my fair share of YA science fiction. Beth Revis' series starting with Across the Universe was one of my favourites. I picked up The New World a couple of years ago on Audible and didn't think to listen. That was until this week, when I was waiting for a new book to come out and thought I'd listen to The New World while I wait. Well The New World blew me away and I can't believe I haven't listened before now.

The New World is a prequel and tells the story of Viola and her family, who are the landing party sent out to settle on a new world and report back. The new world isn't what Viola or her family expects.

This story was a great teaser. It made me want to race out and grab the first book in this series. I plan to listen to the rest of the series right away!! It was narrated by Angela Dawe and I liked her narration of Viola, and how she portrayed Viola's doubts about the new world.

About this Audiobook:

Written by: Patrick Ness
Narrated by: Angela Dawe
Length: 47 mins
 Series: Chaos Walking, Book 0
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:09-13-11
Publisher: Candlewick on Brilliance Audio