IT STARTED WITH A SECRET by Tif Marcelo – Featured New Release

IT STARTED WITH A SECRET

Spirit of the Shenandoah Book 1

by

Tif Marcelo

BLURB

When one unforgettable night…
Leads to a whole new life…

When Jared Sotheby arrives in Peak, Virginia, to search for his identity—and his Filipino roots—he doesn’t anticipate an instant connection with a stunning woman he meets on his first night in town. And he certainly doesn’t expect her to be managing the B & B owned by the biological family he’s searching for!

One passionate night aside, Matilda Matthews needs a cook, and Jared, a chef, needs a way in. She’ll give him the job if he keeps his identity a secret—for now. Their subterfuge quickly grows complicated as Jared yearns for a connection—not only with his family, but also with the once-bitten Matilda. But first he’ll have to convince her to let a younger man into her heart…

Buy links:

Tif’s Website
Amazon
Harlequin

ABOUT TIF

Tif Marcelo is a veteran US Army nurse and holds a BS in Nursing and a Master’s in public administration. She believes and writes about the strength of families, the endurance of friendship, heartfelt romances, and is inspired daily by her own military hero husband and four children. She hosts The Stories to Love Podcast, and is the USA Today bestselling author of In a Book Club Far Away, Once Upon a Sunset, The Key to Happily Ever After, and the Journey to the Heart series.

Follow her here:

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COURTING MISS EMMA by Linda Broday – Book Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway

COURTING MISS EMMA

The Hangman’s Daughters, Book 2

Linda Broday

Western / Wholesome / Sweet Romance / Historical Fiction

Publisher: Severn House

Date of Publication: November 7, 2023

Number of Pages: 203 pages

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Texas, 1868. Emma Taggart has finally found a place to belong – setting up Heaven’s Door orphanage with her sister Maura was a new beginning for her – and one she will do anything to protect.

When guarded ex-army man Stone Landry buys the neighboring land and moves in – camels and all – Emma’s world changes forever. He is an infuriating man who instantly gets under her skin – in ways she never dreamed possible, and despite herself, Emma starts to wonder if, just maybe, he is man enough to take on a Hangman’s daughter . . . But their newfound connection is quickly tested by violent night raids, kidnappings, and underhand tricks by powerful rancher Zeke Parker, who is intent on running them out of town and taking the land he deems to be his. Can Emma find enough courage to trust in Stone to give her the life, the family, she’s always dreamed of?

Click to Purchase!

It’s no wonder Linda Broday is my go-to author for Historical Western Romance. She delivers an immensely entertaining read every time. Every. Single. Time. Courting Miss Emma, the second book of her The Hangman’s Daughters series continues Ms. Broday’s long list of excellent books with memorable lead characters, heart-in-your-throat action, unpredictable storylines, despicable villains, and a motley crew of support characters that include children and animals (camels in Texas!). Most importantly, there’s humor to balance all the angst and violence inherent to the subgenre. And, of course, a sweet, wholesome romance.

Life was fleeting at best and a woman had to grab every moment. Emma wanted no regrets when her time came.”

Miss Emma Taggart has to be one of my favorite Linda Broday heroines ever. Not only is she intrepid, caring, capable, and resourceful, but she is also incredibly funny. Her internal musings about possible epitaphs are either poignant or downright hilarious. Morbid perhaps but admirable nevertheless considering a lot of people want her dead just for being the hangman’s daughter. I love that she saves herself from danger and defends her found family with all her might. A true heroine in every sense of the word.

Life doesn’t play fair sometimes … We have to make the best we can of what we’re dealt.”

Stone Landry is a great match for Emma. They have fantastic chemistry and have heavy daddy issues in common. Stone’s character arc is probably the most compelling in this story. From getting pissy about orphans trespassing on his property to becoming a father figure to an abused child. His reflections on being a soldier make this book a fitting read for Veteran’s Day.

She held on to hope despite the odds.”

Another aspect of Linda Broday’s writing I love is the way it transports me to the time and place of her novels. Maybe not the exact time as she herself confessed in the author’s note but certainly in the general vicinity. Incorporating elements like the camels, the canon, the concept of land grabbing, and the presence of the Chili Queens into the story goes a long way toward effectively bringing the setting to life.

She wanted to be someone’s whole world, not just a little piece of it.”

The introduction of a third hangman’s daughter and a tattooed stranger wandering into the orphanage ensures the continuation of this wonderful series and I am super happy about that. I hope I’ll get a chance to read that story in advance as I had both Winning Maura’s Heart and Courting Miss Emma thanks to the publisher and Lone Star Lit.

I’m a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of western romance novels and short stories. Watching TV westerns during my youth fed my love of cowboys and the old West and they still do. On a still day, I can often hear the voices of American Indians, Comancheros, and early cowboys whispering in the breeze here on the high West Texas plains. We refer to this land as “cowboy” country and men here still ride the range just as cowboys of old. My stories focus on family life and almost all have children.

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SOMETHING BORROWED, SOMETHING 90% DARK by Amber Royer – Book Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway

SOMETHING BORROWED,

SOMETHING 90% DARK

Bean to Bar Mysteries, #6

Amber Royer

Cozy Culinary Mystery

Publisher: Golden Tip Press

Date of Publication: September 12, 2023

Number of Pages: 288 pages 

Scroll down for a Giveaway!

Felicity Koerber’s bean-to-bar chocolate shop on Galveston’s historic Strand is hosting the friends and family coming into town for her best friend Autumn’s wedding. As matron of honor, Felicity has a ton of tasks to complete – including making chocolates for the gift bags. She doesn’t have time to solve another murder. But when one of the bridesmaids becomes a prime suspect in the death of a visiting real estate agent, Felicity has to put her detecting skills to use again to keep the wedding plans from getting derailed.

She’s already nervous about the impending deadline she’s given herself to finally choose between her two love interests – and figuring out where life goes once she makes her choice. But add in a missing Pygmy goat and a new coffee shop that wants to partner with her, and she’s frazzled.

She begins to discover that not everything is as it seems among the wedding guests. Can she handle the wedding preparations, pull off turning her shop into a concert venue, and unmask the killer before anyone else dies?

Click to Purchase!

Y’all! It’s here! The highly-anticipated resolution to the love triangle is finally here! As she promised, Amber Royer made Felicity choose between Logan and Arlo and it’s the best decision ever. Those who have been reading my reviews know I used to root for the other team (see Out of Temper) but A Study In Chocolate and this latest book convinced me to switch sides. My Romance-loving heart totally approves of Felicity’s choice especially when his response to Felicity’s question “Why me, specifically?” is this quote:

Because you are the sunlight.”

Readers, I swooned. This guy needs Felicity in ways the other doesn’t. Felicity needs him too. For this romantic element alone, Something Borrowed deserves a high rating. And then there’s the rest of this extremely enjoyable story.

… my confidence levels have changed.”

I read this book in one sitting and I recommend other readers to do the same if they have time to spare. As I have come to expect with the Bean-to-Bar cozy mysteries, the action starts from the first page and doesn’t let up until the highly satisfactory ending. As usual, Felicity gets entangled in two separate investigations that involve her love interests and her ever-expanding network of friends. And, of course, there’s a classic novel that serves as inspiration for the murder mysteries – The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett.

The various searches for a missing insurance investigator, missing pieces of jewelry, a kidnapped goat, and a killer on the loose happen amidst preparations for Felicity’s best friend Autumn’s wedding. Anyone who’s ever been involved in planning a wedding knows how time-consuming and stressful it can be so it’s amazing how expertly Ms. Royer wove in all the myriad details together.

What’s also fantastic is the growth in Felicity’s character. She’s becoming more accepting of the amateur sleuth role that has been thrust upon her and has gained so much confidence from the experiences she’s been through. All the while continuing to learn about the craft and the business of chocolate-making.

For its engaging storyline, fascinating characters, well-paced action, balance of angst and humor, and swoony romance, Something Borrowed, Something 90% Dark is my favorite of the series so far.

Huge thanks to Lone Star Lit for allowing me to be part of this blog tour and to the publisher for providing me a copy to review.

Amber Royer writes the Chocoverse comic telenovela-style foodie-inspired space opera series and the Bean to Bar Mysteries. She is also the author of Story Like a Journalist: A Workbook for Novelists, which boils down her writing knowledge into an actionable plan involving over 100 worksheets to build a comprehensive story plan for your novel. She also teaches creative writing and is an author coach.

Amber and her husband live in the DFW Area, where you can often find them hiking or taking landscape/architecture/wildlife photographs. If you are very nice to Amber, she might make you cupcakes. Chocolate cupcakes, of course! Amber blogs about creative writing technique and all things chocolate.

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CODENAME CHARMING by Lucy Parker – Featured New Release

Following Battle Royal, beloved author Lucy Parker pens another delicious romantic comedy about a fake relationship between a grumpy royal bodyguard and the charming, sunny assistant who melts his cold, hard exterior.

Codename Charming

LUCY PARKER

SYNOPSIS

Petunia De Vere enjoys being the personal assistant to lovable, bumbling Johnny Marchmont. But the job has its share of challenges, including the royal’s giant, intimidating bodyguard, Matthias. Pet and Matthias are polar opposites—she’s spontaneous and enthusiastic, he’s rigid and stoic—but she can sense there’s something softer underneath that tough exterior…

For Matthias Vaughn, protecting others is the name of the game. But keeping his royal charge out of trouble is more difficult than he imagined because everywhere Johnny goes, calamity ensues, and his petite, bubbly assistant is often caught in the fray. Matthias hates the idea of Pet getting hurt and he’s determined to keep everyone safe, even if it means clashing with his adorable new coworker.

When a clumsy moment leads to a questionable tabloid photo, the press begins to speculate that Pet is romantically involved with Johnny. To put an end to the rumors, the royal PR team asks Pet and Matthias to stage a fake relationship and the two reluctantly agree. But as they spend more time together outside of work, they begin to wonder what real emotions this pretend connection might uncover. Especially when a passionate kiss leaves both of their heads spinning …

Buy Links:

Amazon – amazon.com/dp/B0BM9VMCWC
B & N – barnesandnoble.com/w/codename-charming-lucy-parker
Kobo – kobo.com/codename-charming

REVIEW

Quiet, super trope-y, and sweet, Lucy Parker’s newest release is sure to delight her fans. In Codename Charming, she employed a lot of themes I enjoy in a Romance novel — Beauty and the Beast, Opposites Attract, Grumpy/Sunshine, Workplace Romance (between equals), and Fake Dating. Throw in height difference and a little bit of a “fated mates” vibe and it’s hitting all my soft spots.

Life isn’t always easy … Neither is love. But they’re sure as hell worth fighting for.”

Pet and Matthias are so wonderful together all the way from Battle Royal that their attachment is truly believable despite the pretend beginning of their relationship. I love that they are both present in practically all the scenes in the book. The reader can really see the natural progression of their love story.

This book has Lucy’s signature wit and quirky characters, but perhaps it needs more of the first and less of the second. It could also use more humor and snappy banter and fewer subplots. While I like a slow burn, the pacing here could have been sped up a tad. I liked this story but it’s missing some of the verve that characterized Lucy’s earlier works.

ABOUT LUCY

Lucy Parker is an award-winning romance author who lives in New Zealand. A romance reader from a young age, she loves to write about people pursuing their dreams and falling hopelessly in love along the way—often with the last person they would expect! Her previous titles have been featured in Entertainment Weekly, Cosmopolitan, and Oprah Magazine, and were included in NPR’s Book Concierge for four consecutive years.

Follow Links:

Twitter – @_lucyparker
Facebook – @LucyParkerAuthor
Instagram – @LucyParkerAuthor

NOT THAT DUKE by Eloisa James – Featured New Release

NOT THAT DUKE

Eloisa James

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The Duke of Huntington has no interest in an eccentric redhead who frowns at him over her spectacles…until he realizes that she is the only possible duchess for him. A new enemies-to-lovers romance by New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James.

Bespeckled and freckled, Lady Stella Corsham at least has a dowry that has attracted a crowd of fortune-hunting suitors—which definitely doesn’t include the sinfully handsome Silvester Parnell, Duke of Huntington, who laughingly calls her “Specs” as he chases after elegant rivals.

And then—

The worst happens. Marriage.

To the duke. To a man marrying her for all the wrong reasons.

How can Silvester possibly convince Stella that he’s fallen in love with the quirky woman he married? Especially after she laughingly announces that she’s in love—but not with that duke.

Not with her husband.

Buy Links:

Amazon
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ABOUT ELOISA JAMES

Eloisa James is a New York Times bestselling author of historical romance novels who has published over 30 books, translated in 26 languages, with sales worldwide of 7 million. Eloisa’s “double life” fascinates people, since as Mary Bly, she’s a Shakespeare scholar and Chair of the English Department at Fordham University. An example: Eloisa wrote the New York Times bestselling memoir, Paris in Love, about the year her family spent in France, and Mary wrote Lizzie and Dante, a contemporary novel about a Shakespeare professor. She lives in New York City and Florence, Italy.

Follow Eloisa:

Website
Eloisa James’ Lindow Castle
Instagram
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REVIEW

With its combination of an adorable heroine, clueless duke hero, witty repartee, and steamy sexytimes, Not That Duke is my favorite of the series, so far. Of the three heroines, short, plump, bespectacled, freckled, clumsy, and clever Stella answers best to the title Would-Be Wallflower. I love that she didn’t have to change herself in order for Silvester to fall for her.

She wanted what Merry had, what Yasmin had … She’d spent her life never being loved for being herself. She’d be damned if she accepted a lifetime of the same.”

And, for all that he’s slow on the uptake and he fought his feelings for a long time, Silvester appreciated Stella for her uniqueness. I absolutely loved reading the progression of their relationship, especially when Silvester started seeing Stella in a new light and the lightbulb moment when he finally realized that he loves her. While his cluelessness made me roll my eyes, I have a fondness for him borne out of reading the previous book in the series and how he was like a big brother to Yasmin. Also, I live in Huntington so, I claim him as my duke.

I love the way you say No to me … The way you say Yes to me.”

Between the pets, the children, the duchesses, and Eloisa James’s signature multitude of fascinating secondary characters, there were plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. There were touching ones too, especially that confrontation scene between Stella and Silvester near the end. I was already giving this book a high rating, but the fact that it brought me to tears really brought it over the edge.

My only criticism is that the cover doesn’t represent Stella very well. Where’s the spectacle, the prominent bosom, the freckles? I wish Ms. James would insist upon a truer-to-book-description cover model in future books.

Many of the scenes in Not That Duke took place at the same time as The Reluctant Countess just in different points of view. I suggest reading Yasmin and Giles’ story first to better appreciate Stella and Silvester.

“SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS” by Dina Gachman – Pop-Up Blog Hop: Review and Giveaway

“SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS”

by Dina Gachman

Grief & Bereavement / Love & Loss / Parenting & Relationships
Publisher: Union Square & Co.
Page Count: 240 pages
Publication Date: April 11, 2023

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A heartfelt exploration about what it means to process grief, by a bestselling author and journalist whose experience with two devastating losses inspired her to bring comfort and understanding to others.

Since losing her mother to cancer in 2018 and her sister to alcoholism less than three years later, author and journalist Dina Gachman has dedicated herself to understanding what it means to grieve, healing after loss, and the ways we stay connected to those we miss. Through a mix of personal storytelling, reporting, and insight from experts and even moments of humor, Gachman gives readers a fresh take on grief and bereavement—whether the loss is a family member, beloved pet, or a romantic relationship. No one wants to join the grief club, since membership comes with zero perks, but So Sorry for Your Loss will make that initiation just a little less painful.

In the spirit of Elizabeth Kubler Ross books like On Grief and Grieving, or C.S. Lewis’s A Grief Observed, So Sorry for Your Loss is the perfect gift for someone who is grieving. With her blend of personal experiences, expert advice, and just a little bit of humor, Gachman has provided a compassionate and compelling resource for anyone looking for grief books.

PRAISE FOR SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS:

“Gachman perceptively puts words to the uncomfortable realities of loss…and deconstructs its social myths, helping readers feel less alone. Those facing loss will find solace here.” —Publishers Weekly

“So Sorry for Your Loss is a monument to the work of remembering and a testament to the immutable love of family and the grief that forever changes us.” —Lauren Hough, New York Times bestselling author of Leaving Isn’t the Hardest Thing

“So Sorry for Your Loss is a meditation on loss that reminds us how to go on living.” —Deirdre Fagan, author of Find a Place for Me and The Grief Eaters

CLICK TO PURCHASE ON:

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This book wrecked me and affirmed me all at the same time. The first is self-explanatory and expected given the title and subject matter. The second is surprising and what made me appreciate “So Sorry For Your Loss” and Ms. Gachman’s writing of it even more.

Grief does not discriminate.”

Going in, I knew I was going to be emotional reading this book. Many years ago, my dad died after a long illness. Three months later, my husband and I had to make the devastating decision to say goodbye to our beloved pet Baldr, a German Shepherd/Siberian Husky mix we considered our first baby. To say I could relate to the author with her consecutive losses of loved ones is an extreme understatement. While our circumstances were vastly different, the common denominator of grief connecting us was enormous.

Between her sharing of her personal experiences and her extensive research on the subject, Ms. Gachman articulated eloquently what I was feeling at the time but haven’t been able to put into words. The pain that was actually physical, the holding on to objects to retain continuing bonds, the internal conflict between trying to keep it together and the temptation to fall apart, the need to talk, the search for a community that understands the same or similar loss — these were all defined and expounded on in this book. These for me were affirmations that my expression of grief, my prolonged mourning, was valid, perhaps even universal.

Despite our best intentions and loftiest goals, there is one outcome that is 100 percent guaranteed in romance and in life. Each one of us will, at some point, take our last breath.”

The inevitability of my mom and my parents-in-law passing on is always at the back of my mind. In some ways, I’ll be prepared for the grief that is to come, having gone through it before with my dad. This book helps as well. It has been educational as much as it has been evocative. The sections about hospice care and stages of grief have been eye-opening for me. When the time comes, I will likely reread and look up my forty-three annotations, especially those welcome bursts of humor (Plutarch! Tinder! Dolly!) that balanced the heavy weight of the subject of grief.

Huge thanks to the author’s publicity team for providing me with a review copy through Edelweiss and to Lone Star Lit for allowing me to share my thoughts on this absolute gift of a book.

Dina Gachman is a Pulitzer Center Grantee and a frequent contributor to the New York Times, Vox, Texas Monthly, and more. She’s a New York Times bestselling ghostwriter and the author of Brokenomics: 50 Ways to Live the Dream on a Dime. She lives near Austin, Texas, with her husband and son. Photo credit Jessica Comiskey.

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TWELVE HOURS IN MANHATTAN by Maan Gabriel – Featured New Release

TWELVE HOURS IN MANHATTAN

Maan Gabriel

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Bianca Maria Curtis is at the brink of losing it all when she meets Eric at a bar in Manhattan. Eric, as it turns out, is the famous Korean drama celebrity Park Hyun Min who is in town for one night to escape the pressures of fame. From walking along Fifth Avenue, eating ice cream at Serendipity, to sharing tender moments on top of the Empire State building, sparks fly as Bianca and Eric spend twelve magical hours far away from their respective lives. They talk about love, life, and happiness, and the freedom they both seek to fully exist and not merely survive.

But real life is more than just twelve magical hours.

As the clock strikes the 12th hour, Bianca returns back to the life she detests to face a tragedy that will test her strength and resolve – and the only thing she has to keep going is the memory of a man she loves in secret from a world away.

Two worlds. One heart. Twelve Hours.

Buy Links:

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ABOUT MAAN

Maan Gabriel is a mom, wife, dreamer, writer, and advocate for women’s stories in literature. She earned her BA in communications from St. Scholastica’s College in Manila and MPS in public relations and corporate communications from Georgetown University. She has lived in Manila, Brussels, Dakar, and Mexico City. During the day, she works in strategic communications. Gabriel, along with her husband and son, currently calls suburban Washington DC home.

Learn more at www.maangabriel.com

Facebook: @MaanGabrielAuthor
Instagram: @Maan_Gabriel
Twitter: @MaanGabriel

REVIEW

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WINNING MAURA’S HEART by Linda Broday – Book Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway

WINNING MAURA’S HEART

The Hangman’s Daughters Series, Book # 1

LINDA BRODAY

Western Romance / Clean & Wholesome / Historical Fiction

Publisher: Severn House

Date of Publication: March 7, 2023

Number of Pages: 256 pages

Scroll down for the Giveaway!

The Calhoun brothers are identical twins but on opposite sides of the law. Cutter is a deputy Marshal, Jonas an outlaw. When Cutter attempts to break his brother out of a notorious gang, they are shot, and Maura finds one of them wounded, close to the mission – but which brother is it?

Maura Taggart is an outcast, the daughter of a hangman and tainted by association – no reputable man wants her as his wife. And now she is homeless, along with her sister and the group of children in their care. Armed with pure grit, she finds a nearby mission where the nuns agree to take them in and set up an orphanage. But trouble is just around the corner . . .

As the stranger regains his strength under Maura’s care an attraction between them grows, yet how far can she trust him? And why has he brought trouble to their door? With the orphanage under threat can Maura trust this handsome stranger both with their safety and with her heart?

UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK:

https://books2read.com/u/3LVQ9D

From the incredibly evocative first page, Winning Maura’s Heart grabbed my attention and my heart and didn’t let go until the tenderly sweet ending. This story of outcast sisters, abandoned children, an unforgiving society, and morally ambiguous men had me tearing up in parts and once again admiring Ms. Broday’s remarkable writing prowess. She is an auto-read for me whenever I get a hankering for a good old-school Western romance.

You’ll never get anywhere by sitting down and giving up.”

Maura Taggart joins the long list of Ms. Broday’s amazingly stalwart heroines. Along with her sister Emma, she somehow survived being driven out of San Antonio by ungrateful citizens while taking care of more than a dozen orphaned children armed only with her indomitable will, innate kindness, and unshakeable faith in a higher power. In saving a half-dead man, an abused child, an alcoholic uncle, and many lives, she is the embodiment of a true heroine.

By contrast, Calhoun is not a clear-cut hero. There is a mystery surrounding his real identity and he exists in the gray area between bad and good. I really appreciate how Linda wrote him as well as Max Taggart. Both men earned redemption through their actions. Such is the power of love.

New life was born from hopeless despair.”

Nothing symbolizes love more than children. In this story, they provided both touching moments and funny scenes. They supplied the light to balance the heavy and dark threats of violence and abuse.

Indeed, Ms. Broday penned another action-packed and adventuresome novel that also taught me something new (hint: spiderweb) while satisfying my romance-loving heart. Her talent is so extraordinary, I’m willing to accept the improbabilities that happened in the story to bring about a happy-ever-after.

Thank you, Linda, for this book. And thank you, Lone Star Lit, for providing me with the opportunity to review this story and be included in the blog tour.

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GRAND PRIZE: tote including a signed copy of Winning Maura’s Heart, strawberry & chocolate tea, Cowgirl hand lotion, bath bombs, personalized cup;

2nd Prize: eBook copy Winning Maura’s Heart;

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WHEN JASMINE BLOOMS by Tif Marcelo – Featured New Release

WHEN JASMINE BLOOMS

by

Tif Marcelo

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From USA Today bestselling author Tif Marcelo comes a timeless tale of motherhood inspired by Little Women about one woman’s grief, hope, and second chance with the daughter she lost.

It’s been two years since Celine lost her daughter Libby. Desperate to escape her grief, Celine throws herself into her work, determined to be the strong, capable woman the world believes her to be. But there’s no fooling her family.

A shocking intervention brings an impossible choice: confront her grief or risk losing the family she still has. Reeling, Celine wonders what her life would have been like if she’d chosen her first love instead of her husband and avoided this pain altogether.

Celine wakes the following day and is shocked to realize that what-if has become reality. She’s with her high school sweetheart, her daughters aren’t quite her daughters, and her home is being rented by the daughter she thought she’d lost forever.

As she reconnects with Libby in this parallel world, Celine is forced to face the problems in her real life: her unwillingness to move forward, the tension that’s always rocked her family, and the hard truth that not everything can be fixed by a mother’s love.

Buy links:

Tif’s Website
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ABOUT TIF

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A STUDY IN CHOCOLATE by Amber Royer – Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway

A STUDY IN CHOCOLATE

Bean to Bar Mysteries Book 5

AMBER ROYER

Cozy Culinary Mystery / Women Sleuths / Romance 

Publisher: Golden Tip Press

Date of Publication: January 27, 2023

Number of Pages: 260 pages 

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Felicity Koerber’s bean to bar chocolate shop on Galveston’s historic Strand is expanding, as it has become a gathering spot for the community, despite having been the scene of multiple murders. Artists she met while doing a chocolate sculpture are now working out of the shop. So when Felicity is invited to tea by an eccentric art collector, she’s intrigued, especially when she gets asked to pose for a portrait done with chocolate on chocolate. Only, where there is a murder the next day at the same historic house where the tea was held, one of Felicity’s artist friends becomes the main suspect.

When the killer threatens that unless Felicity unravels the murder, one of her two love interests will be the next victim, she finds herself unwittingly at the center of a puzzle with a Sherlock Holmes-obsessed murderer who wants to be the next Moriarty – and wants to cast Felicity as Sherlock.

Felicity starts finding unexpected connections between her friends and acquaintances and must deal with the idea that someone who knows her is a murderer. At the same time, she has to keep her business running, despite construction dust and unruly customers – and an unexpected order for thousands of truffles.

Satchmo the retired police-dog-turned-therapy dog returns to help her sniff out a few clues, and the kidnapping of Ruffles, the quirky artist’s cat, helps lead Felicity into the puzzle. Can Felicity solve it in time to protect the people she cares about from becoming additional victims?

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My new favorite cozy mystery series is back and it’s as engaging as ever! Amber Royer’s A Study in Chocolate entertains with its fast pace, scrumptious food descriptions, confounding mysteries (yes, plural), adorable animals, amazing information about several topics, and a huge cast of fascinating characters.

In this book 5 of the Bean to Bar Mysteries, we are reacquainted with several secondary characters from the previous books and introduced to a few new ones further proving my assertion that Amber Royer plans to include the entire population of Galveston in her stories. As usual, somebody turns up dead, and Felicity gets drawn into solving the mystery of who the murderer is. This time, deliberately by the killer themself with the added tension of a threat to Logan, one of Felicity’s two love interests, as the next target to die.

Everyone is suspect and red herrings and misdirections abound as expected. Ms. Royer kept things interesting with details on chocolate roasting and truffle making and delving into the Sherlock Holmes cases. It always amazes me how she is able to integrate so many disparate elements into a cohesive narrative. Food plus classic literature plus art plus family plus business plus romance equals a wonderfully enjoyable read. Even the dreaded love triangle didn’t bother me too much in this book because this is pretty much Logan-centric. I’m not sure if it’s a big hint about Felicity’s final choice or another misdirection by the author. I hope we find out in the next book as promised.

I also hope that the next book goes through an extra step of proofreading and better formatting before publication. While they didn’t detract from the story, some of the errors and the poor appearance of the paperback distracted me and lessened my appreciation for the book. What didn’t lessen is my gratitude to Lone Star Lit for inviting me to review this book for the blog tour. Thank you.