Harvest House

Follow the Adventures of This Crime-solving Duo

February 17, 2016 by Suzie Waltner Leave a Comment

Over the past several years, there has been a re-emerging interest in Sherlock Holmes (the Sherlock series starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, the television show Elementary, and the Robert Downey, JR/Jude Law blockbusters following the adventures of said detective). I’m a little ashamed to admit I’ve not actually read any of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective adventures, though. I have to say that if they are as much fun as Rachel McMillian’s upcoming The Bachelor Girl’s Guide to Murder, I’ve been missing out!!

Best friends and flatmates Merinda Herringford and Jemima (Jem) Watts tromp around Toronto in 1910, often disguised in trousers and bowler hats, as they solve mysteries no one else seems interested in. The pair teams up with Ray Deluca, a reporter and Jasper Ford, a police constable, as they are investigating the murders of two Irish women.

Far beyond what society and the women-hating Morality squad dictate acceptable, the duo of Herringford and Watts search for answers amidst both the lower classes and upper classes of Toronto.

What an absolute enjoyable and fun read!! While The Bachelor’s Guide to Murder’s focus is primarily on Jem (the more proper of the sleuthing team) and Ray, readers will feel at home with the foursome. And while the cadence of the book is light-hearted (including some footnotes for those astute readers in most chapters), the story delves deeper than it may appear upon first settling into the book.

It’s a story about the hardships for immigrants in Toronto, about the role women were expected to play and how they were viewed when they step outside the box built around them, and about focusing not on oneself but on the many others around you and acknowledging that while life might be hard for you, others have it worse. And in the midst of everything, there’s the hope of falling in love.

After finishing this delightful debut in two days (it would have been less but I had to work), I look forward to more Herringford and Watts mysteries in the future. The first full-length book will be available April 1, but feel free to introduce yourself to these women in the e-novella A Singular and Whimsical Problem.

***Harvest House Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and fair review. All opinions expressed are my own.

121 Days until Christmas

August 25, 2015 by Suzie Waltner Leave a Comment

After reading that, you’re either jumping up and down in your giddiness or trembling with fear.

Me? I’m in the first camp. I love the holidays and am one of those annoying people who pop in the Christmas music Nov. 1. Hey, I no longer live under my dad’s roof and no longer have to adhere to his “No Christmas music until after Thanksgiving” edict.

Last year I had all of my Christmas shopping done before Thanksgiving. Granted, I am a single gal who lives 3,000 miles away from family and rarely spend the holidays with them due to my job. I don’t have to deal with big holiday meals, entertaining, in-laws, or children. And I still found plenty of practical and helpful information in Get Yourself Organized for Christmas: Simple Steps to Enjoy the Season

Author Kathi Lipp offers readers twenty-one assignments to make the Christmas holidays less stressful and more enjoyable. Some of the lessons (like creating a Christmas binder and organizing your recipes) will take some time. Others (one which includes doing something nice for yourself) will be easy, refreshing, and relaxing.

In my opinion, Lipp’s best advice deals with deciding which traditions are must haves (or must keeps). Does your family celebration included anything that’s “always been don that way” even if it’s something no one really cares about? Maybe it’s time to re-evaluate.

With real-life examples from her own Christmases past, and a few from readers, Lipp helps set the foundation for a holiday season in which you stress less and enjoy what matters most (family, friends, and Christ’s birth) more.

Added bonuses in the book included some delicious and seemingly simple (I haven’t tried them yet) recipes as well as five assignments to help you clean everything up after December 25.

Get Yourself Organized for Christmas is available everywhere September 1, 2015.

****Harvest House provided me with a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and fair review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Midnight on the Mississippi by Mary Ellis

August 15, 2015 by Suzie Waltner Leave a Comment

When stockbroker Hunter Galen arrives at his office planning to calm his partner and best friend down, the last thing he expects to find is the man dead. As the lead suspect in the homicide case, Hunter turns to his older brother’s PI friend, Nate Price, for help clearing his name.

Nicki Price has come to New Orleans with dreams of working for his cousin at his PI firm. When he turns her offer of help down and tells her to go home, she takes matters into her own hands and Hunter agrees to hire her. As the two of them delve into the case, they find evidence of that Hunter’s friend and partner was hiding a lot more than Hunter ever suspected. Proof of blackmail, indiscretions, and more paint a dark picture of his friend.

While Nicki is determined to prove herself as a good investigator, the one thing she doesn’t count on is her attraction to Hunter, a man who is not only engaged but way out of her league. But she is convinced of his innocence and is dead set on proving it to the world.

Midnight on the Mississippi is the first book in a new Secrets of the South series which I sincerely hope includes more of Nicolette Price, PI. She has a knack for stumbling into things but she’s also down-to-earth, kind, and says what’s on her mind. As she explores the city of New Orleans, the reader can feel her awe and excitement (and while I love to travel, I’ve never been tempted to visit there until experiencing some of the sights through Nicki’s eyes). I did have some of the suspense elements figured out before they were revealed but not all of them. The one thing I wished for more of in this book was a little more insight into what was going on with Ashley (Hunter’s fiancé). Why did she live the way she did? What drove her (the reason in the book wasn’t quite compelling enough for her actions for me). But, that little fact won’t deter me from picking up the next book in the series when it’s available.

****Harvest House Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

Heaven Help Heidi by Sally John

January 16, 2015 by Suzie Waltner Leave a Comment

Heidi Hathaway’s life is not only shaken up but altered when she crashes her car on the California freeway. Injured, too weak and exhausted to work, and unable to drive, Heidi has some major decisions to make about her life. When she happens across an acquaintance at the pier on the beach, she finds out about Casa de Vida, a small complex of bungalows hidden away in Seaside Village. When she meets the owner of the complex, she is washed with a sense of peace (the same peace she experienced with one of her nurses in the hospital). Heidi makes the decision to lease her sleek and modern condo–the one she can’t live in because she can’t navigate the stairs–and move into Casa de Vida. As Heidi tries to figure out her new life, her friendships with the other residents grow. The women are always willing to help her or talk to her, and the owner is like a mother figure to the entire group. They are a family. With Heidi’s new life comes strain between her and her best friend (and business partner). Heidi is ready to recover from her accident and get on with her life again. But what will life look like after?

Heaven Help Heidi was the first book I’ve read by Sally John. There were several different points of view in the book, but it wasn’t distracting. If anything, it made the story more well-rounded because as a reader, I was able to experience what many of the people were struggling with both in the past and present. The residents of Casa de Vida are all there divinely and all of them are likable. This book is about relationships, both disfunctional and functional. It’s about family, both traditional and the family that you make when you become about adult. It’s about friendship, how years of friendship can change and how new friendships can become a gift. And it’s about trust others and God with fears, pain, hope, and joy.

Available Feb 1, 2015. Order your copy here

****Harvest House Publishers provided me with a free copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and fair review.