Book Review and Giveaway - When the Carnival Came: An Olivia Penn Mystery by Kathleen Bailey

My Review

Olivia Penn is happy with small town life in Apple Station, Virginia.  However, when a good friend is dangerously close to a murder, she works to help her - even though this may cause waves with her new boyfriend, who is on the police force. Olivia's amateur sleuthing takes her to working undercover as a reporter at a carnival.

I wanted to read When the Carnival Came because I read and enjoyed the last book in this series.  I also found the carnival setting intriguing!

The carnival details were indeed fascinating;  this novel gives a glimpse of everyday life in a small traveling carnival.

I really like Olivia as a detective - she's very smart, although she puts herself in a dangerous position at times on this case!  I also like her father, her boyfriend Preston, and the small town of Apple Station.

I am so happy to have discovered the Olivia Penn Mystery Series and look forward to reading further.  I recommend When the Carnival Came for cozy mystery fans who want to read an exciting mystery and who are interested in small town settings and a carnival atmosphere.

Book Synopsis

A mysterious murder at an abandoned military base. A carnival has rolled into town. The shocking connection forces her to choose between a dear friend and her new love.

Spring is blooming in Apple Station, Virginia, and Olivia Penn’s new romance is heating up. With love in the air and the carnival in town, life seems picture-perfect—until a stranger arrives at her door with carnations and a cryptic message for her friend.

When Olivia follows the trail and finds her friend standing over a dead body, she discovers there’s more to the carnival than just fun and games. Compelled to keep an impossible secret from both her new love and the police, Olivia is recruited to go undercover and investigate who among the quirky carnival crew had a motive for murder.

In a race to protect her friend and solve the crime, she must trust a man she never expected to see again. Together, they execute a daring plan to bring a killer to justice and save the lives of thirty very precious, valuable feathered friends.

With the killer on the verge of vanishing without a trace, justice—and her life—hinge on quick thinking and a bold move. Will she and her new love survive to see another day?

When the Carnival Came is the fourth book in the award-winning The Olivia Penn Mystery Series. When the Carnival Came is a small-town, cozy mystery brimming with heart and humor, featuring a charming cast of characters and a fast-paced, twisty plot. Action-packed and full of suspense, this clean, cozy thrill ride will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Author Bio

Kathleen Bailey is the award-winning author of The Olivia Penn Mystery Series. She writes mysteries with heart and humor that keep to the traditional and cozy sides of crime. Kathleen has degrees in English, psychology, and physical therapy. She previously worked as a pediatric physical therapist for over twenty years with children who have special needs. She now spends her days plotting and sleuthing in Virginia where she lives with her husband and adorable feline fur baby. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and the James River Writers. Visit online at www.kathleenbaileyauthor.com.

Author Links

Website: https://kathleenbaileyauthor.com/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/author/kathleenbailey

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/kathleen-bailey

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cozycrimewriter

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Bookshop.org – Alibris 

Giveaway 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review - A Corpse Among the Carolers (A Food Blogger Mystery) by Debra Sennefelder

My Review

At the Jingle Bell Stroll, Hope Early finds that the man playing Santa Claus has been stabbed.  She works to solve the mystery but finds there are a number of viable suspects.  

I wanted to read A Corpse Among the Carolers because I love cozy mysteries.  I especially like holiday mysteries and foodie books.  

I really liked the holiday setting and the details of Hope's food blogging.  (I would have enjoyed even more of those!)

The mystery aspect of the storytelling was well done, with lots going on and leads that could go in several different directions ... which gave this mystery some twists and turns.

I enjoyed A Corpse Among the Carolers and look forward to reading the next book in the Food Blogger Mystery series as well!  Recommended for other cozy fans.

Book Synopsis

Hope Early is fully immersed in the spirit of the Christmas season, until the sounds of joyful carolers are silenced by the words “Ho-ho-homicide” . . .

Food blogger Hope Early always gets a hearty holiday laugh from knowing that the weeks leading up to Christmas are as frantic as they are festive. But in spite of everything she has to do, the one thing she always has time for is the annual Jingle Bell Stroll, a night when the community gathers to sing their hearts out and enjoy each other’s company. This year’s caroling feels especially heartwarming, until the final note lands with a thud when Hope finds the body of the man who’d volunteered to play Santa, a knife plunged into his back.

With virtually the whole town present at the caroling, the list of suspects seems endless. It doesn’t take long, though, for both Hope and the police to turn a sharp eye on the victim’s bitter and vindictive ex-wife, along with his new wife, who may have been after his money. Then Hope unearths a clue that suggests the dead man may have been hiding a sordid past and connections to unseemly characters. But as she closes in on the killer, they’re determined to wring her neck before she can ring in the new year . . .

Includes tasty and toasty holiday recipes!

Author Bio

Debra Sennefelder is the acclaimed author of charming and suspenseful cozy mysteries set in small towns filled with intriguing characters and delightful pets. Based in Connecticut, Debra shares her home with her family and a lovable, slightly spoiled Shih Tzu. Her passion for mystery fiction, particularly cozy mysteries, inspires her to create engaging stories that blend crime-solving with delicious recipes and stylish fashion. She is the author of the Food Blogger Mystery series, the Resale Boutique Mystery series, and the Cookie Shop Mystery series. When she’s not plotting her next whodunit, you’ll find her baking sweet treats or indulging in a good book.

When she’s not reading, she enjoys cooking and baking and as a former food blogger, she is constantly taking photographs of her food. Yeah, she’s that person.Born and raised in New York City, where she majored in her hobby of fashion buying, she now lives and writes in Connecticut with her writing companion, Connie.She can be reached at Debra@DebraSennefelder.com

Author Links

Newsletter – http://bit.ly/2jBx9oV

Facebook Author Page – http://bit.ly/2ASJVDr

Website – http://bit.ly/2lQwSNi

Instagram – http://bit.ly/2EQh6da

Bookbub – http://bit.ly/3TL0vgc

Goodreads – http://bit.ly/2DpMPE8

Amazon – https://amzn.to/2CcLsHw

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Kobo – Bookshop.org  –

Book Review - The Blooming of Delphinium by Holly Varni

My Review

Delphinium Hayes owns a florist shop in the small town of Moonberry Lake, Minnesota.  Delphinium has a special gift; she can detect a floral scent from everyone she meets.  This lets her know what they are really like.  When a group of elderly men from a nearby assisted living start playing poker in her walk-in refrigerator, she works with the assisted living director, Elliot Sturgis, to find a solution.  This being Moonberry Lake, there are little surprises and romance.

I wanted to read this book because I absolutely loved On Moonberry Lake.  It made my top 10 reads list last year, and I couldn't wait to spend more time in this fictional world.

The Blooming of Delphinium is delightful!  Delphinium is a wonderful protagonist.  I enjoyed her gift for - quite literally - sniffing out what is good or bad in people, her work at the florist, and her interactions with Eliot.  

I also enjoyed the elderly people in this book - they are treasures!  And I still love the town of Moonberry Lake.

I enthusiastically recommend The Blooming of Delphinium and the Moonberry Lake series for fans of women's fiction and charming small town settings.

Book Synopsis

Making the perfect match is like arranging the perfect bouquet--and no one is better at it than Delphinium Hayes. Except when it comes to making a match for herself.

As far as hidden talents go, she is blessed with one of the more unique ones. With the slightest passing whiff, she knows someone's most admirable or weediest characteristic. This peculiar perception never fails to give her an advantage in understanding people--except for one man, whose scent doesn't seem to match his demeanor.

Prim and proper Elliot Sturgis, director of Moonberry Lake's Gardens Assisted Living and Senior Care Facility, carries the scent of violets--meaning love and loyalty--yet is strict and unwavering in his determination to stop a group of his wily residents from sneaking over to Delphinium's shop to play cards in the flower cooler. But the more glimpses Delphinium gets of the soft side beyond Elliot's harsh exterior, the more she understands his scent--and her intrigue deepens as sparks fly.

The crowd in her cooler isn't Delphinium's only problem. Behind on the mortgage payments and on the verge of losing her shop to foreclosure, Delphinium isn't sure where to turn for help. But God has a funny way of putting the right people in the place at the right time . . .

Author Bio

Holly Varni is the author of On Moonberry Lake. A native Minnesotan of strong Norwegian descent, she was raised in the Lutheran Church that Garrison Keillor made a career depicting. Though she, her husband, and their three sons live along the Central Coast of California, her beloved Midwest roots continue to haunt everything she writes. She hosts the Moments from Moonberry Lake podcast, where she shares more stories of her beloved characters. Learn more at HollyVarni.com.