Surrounded by family secrets, suspicious deaths, and her own repressed memories, fifteen year-old Clara Willenheim lives as a prisoner in her ancestral estate in 1860s Bavaria. Her only chance of escape is to journey through the castle’s secret passages, unraveling her family’s dark history and its place at the center of a vast web of crime. Driven by the capricious and vengeful ghost of her long-dead aunt, Clara opens doors that threaten powerful enemies, a place where she’s forced to choose between righting past wrongs or losing her own life.
A historical Gothic mystery brimming with suspense and plot twists, The Death of Clara Willenheim is layered in rich, period detail. The novel explores the cost of selflessness and the struggle to choose between justice and vengeance. But at its heart, it’s a story about how, when one part of ourselves dies, something greater can rise in its place.
My Thoughts
If you’re looking for a modern book written in the style of traditional gothics, this is your book. The language is complex, florid at times, and beautifully descriptive which will appeal to readers who truly love language, albeit very dark. The author has a solid grasp of descriptive narrative bolstered by a suspenseful and horrifying story with a satisfying resolution.
The first chapter skillfully set the stage for the suffocating, dangerous narrative which followed. There’s a lot in this story that will make a person with claustrophobia cringe. Which brings me to my only issue with this book – lack of trigger warnings in the description. While gothics traditionally hint at truly terrible things that occur to the heroine, the truly terrible things here – child molestation and trafficking – are topics that I typically avoid in the books I select. Taking my personal reaction to that out of the mix, I am left with a favorable review because the story is very well-written and the plot convincingly dark.
Publication Date: October 29, 2024 Published By: The Gothic Literary Society Thanks to Book Sirens for the review copy
I wasn’t going to add to the huge noise of every reader online putting out their “Best Of” lists, but here we are. Truth – my reading in 2024 was pretty superficial – lots of cozy mysteries and children’s books. However, there were three books that I have not been able to forget, so here they are.
Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden – I actually read this in 2023, but it was published in 2024. If you’re not reading Katherine Arden, what’s stopping you? Her Winternight Trilogy is by far the best fantasy series I’ve read in the last decade, but this book…this book cannot be categorized. It’s part fantasy, part magical realism, and part historical fiction all wound up in one utterly draining and powerful story about the changing form of evil.
The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo – I’ve recommended this book more times than I can remember. Gorgeous writing provides the foundation for a magical, tender tale of mothers & children, the power of childhood memories, and the cost of vengeance.
Lilith by Eric Rickstad – This heartrending, potent story of a mother going after the people she believes responsible for her child being involved in a school shooting is a timely, painful, and dark reading experience. There isn’t a parent out there who hasn’t thought about what they’d do if their child was a victim of gun violence.
A powerful debut with a magical twist about one woman’s discovery of her family’s secret healing abilities and the mysterious consequences she must contend with when she uses them on someone she loves.
For generations, the Winston women have possessed an unspoken magical gift: they can heal with the touch of a hand. It’s a tradition they’ve always had to practice in secret, in the moonlight hours, when the fireflies dance and the whippoorwill birds sing.
But not every healer has rightfully passed on this knowledge to her descendants, and for young Louise Winston, the discovery of her abilities comes in less-than-ideal circumstances—she brings her best friend back from death following an accident, the day after he professed his long-held feelings for her, five days before she’s supposed to move away.
Desperate for answers, and to avoid this new reality between them, Louise escapes to her grandmother’s lush Appalachian orchard. There, she uncovers her family’s hidden history in a tattered journal, stemming back to her brave great-grandmother who illicitly healed Allied soldiers in war-torn France. But just as Louise begins to embrace her unique legacy, she learns that it can also come with a mysterious cost. And with a life hanging in the balance, she’ll be forced to make the most impossible of choices…
Spanning eighty years, The Moonlight Healers is a deeply empathetic, heartfelt novel about mothers and daughters, life and death, and the beautiful resilience of love.
My Thoughts
There are many great stories out there about women’s power and knowledge passed through generations, and I find I gravitate to this concept time and again. In The Moonlight Healers, I found a lovely, tender, and sometimes tragic story about the power of women healers and the joy and heartbreak the gift has had on past and present generations.
The relationships between mothers and daughters is especially poignant and emotional. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about each member of the family, from Agnes to Helene on down to Camille, Bobbie, and Louise. The overarching theme of how, in history, the persecution of women healers forced them to move their activities to nighttime to avoid scrutiny is not only the source of the title, but also a stark reminder of how dangerous it was to be a woman knowledgeable in the healing arts.
There’s some romance included here, but it’s not the core of the story, which is all about mothers and daughters, endings and beginnings. If you’ve keenly felt the loss of a mother, a grandmother, sister, or a mother figure, I recommend a box of kleenex by your side as you approach the ending.
Highly recommended.
Publication Date: February 11, 2025 Published By: Harlequin Trade Publishing Graydon House Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy
I’ve had a lot going on lately so my reading time has been limited. However, given the season, I thought I’d share a bit about one of my favorite things: Christmas Ghost Stories!
I’ve loved ghost stories since I was a child, and delved into the weird and wonderful Victorian tradition of telling ghost stories at Christmastime during an English class in college. Before the advent of radio and television, storytelling was a true art which thrived in wintertime when people gathered closely around the hearth for warmth during the darkest days. Tales of ghostly apparitions provided rich fodder for talented storytellers who entranced their listeners then scared the pants off them with a well-timed BOO! You can learn more about the tradition from History.com – https://www.history.com/news/christmas-tradition-ghost-stories
Some of my favorites are shown below…
My Favorite
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens – the quintessential Christmas ghost story chronicling the redemption of Ebenezer Scrooge after a night of facing three ghosts. Storytelling at its best!
For Young Readers
Ghosts of Greenglass House by Kate Milford – Spend Christmas in a mysterious house high up on a cliff overlooking the equally mysterious Nagspeake with a colorful cast of characters including the “raw nights” performers.
Fotinoula and the Christmas Goblins by R.G. Fraser-Green – Follow Fotinoula as she works feverishly to save her little sister from the fiendish Kallikantzaroi, the Christmas Goblins.
The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper – Young Will finds himself hunted by the mysterious and threatening horseman who threatens to bring chaos into the world. This classic is a must-read for fantasy fans.
Super-Scary Collections
The Mistletoe Bride by Kate Mosse – Mosse is one of the best writers out there today and here she turns her attention to traditional ghost stories from England and France, including the eponymous “Mistletoe Bride,” truly a gruesome and sad tale.
Christmas and Other Horrors: a Winter Solstice Anthology – The long nights in the darkest time of the year call for scary stories from Garth Nix, Alma Katsu, Tananarive Due, and others.
The Scary Book of Christmas Lore: 50 Terrifying Yuletide Tales From Around the World – Bone-chilling global tales of monsters such as the anti-Santa Krampus, the bloodthirsty ogre Gryla, and the Mari Lwyd (touched on in Greenglass House).
The Haunting Season – a shiver-inducing collection of tales from the English countryside.
Winter Spirits : Ghostly Tales for Frosty Nights – original ghost stories from current horror writers Catriona Ward, Stuart Turton, Jess Kidd and more.
If you’re looking for something weird and a little twisted, check out these and other holiday ghost collections.
This inventive, well-written series features Oliver Tucker, a deceased detective who solves his own murder in the first of the series, Dying to Know, and goes on to continue his career solving crime in the next two books.
Dying to Know Description
Detective Oliver Tucker’s dead—murdered—and back as an earth-bound spirit to help his wife, Professor Angela Tucker, crack the most important case of his life—his own. But, this is not a ghost story; it’s a murder case.
Tuck knows why he is back among the living but not one of them—Detective Solve Thyself. Perhaps he was murdered because of his last case—a murder involving a retired mob boss, a local millionaire land developer, a New York hit man, and the local university elite. Or could it be that Bear Braddock, his best friend and partner for more than fifteen years, wants Angela? Tuck knows that everything surrounds Kelly’s Dig where the discovery of Civil War graves may put an end to a multi-million dollar highway project. If it does, who stands to gain the most? Enough to kill?
Using his unique skills, Tuck weaves through half-truths and generations-old lies chasing a madman. And he’s not alone—others, dead and alive—are hunting the same killer. Still nothing can change the truth—it is the living, not the dead, who are most terrifying.
Dying for the Past Description
Still an earth-bound spirit-detective, Tuck is on the case of the murder of a mysterious philanthropist with ties to the Russian mob and 1930’s gangsters. With the help of his wife, Professor Angela Tucker, and his former partner, Detective Bear Braddock, they must find the killer and be the first to read “the book”—an old gangster’s journal of the roots of espionage, racketeering, and corruption leading to the identity of modern-day powerbrokers and spies. Tuck finds a colorful cast of allies in a tough Assistant U.S. Attorney General, a secretive FBI agent, and the spirits of a long-dead 1930’s gangster and his sassy girlfriend.
As Tuck searches to learn the secrets of “the book,” he begins to unravel his own ancestry of mobsters, adventurers, and wayward spirits. Is being a ghost hereditary?
Dying to Tell Description
Detective Oliver Tucker never knew how perilous dying was until he stumbled onto William Mendelson—murdered in a hidden vault where Egyptian relics and World War II secrets were once stashed. Now those relics are missing. The secrets are coming out. The dead are talking.
Tuck, the detective for the dead—the Dead Detective—is pulled into the case by the spirit of a World War II Office of Strategic Services operative with his own agenda. OSS Captain Ollie Tucker I—Tuck’s namesake—knows the past is catching up to the survivors of an Egyptian spy ring from more than seventy years ago. With the help of his beautiful and brilliant wife, Angel, and his gruff former partner, Detective Bear Braddock, Tuck must unravel a tale of spies, murderers, and thieves.
As Tuck’s case unfolds, he confronts the growing distance between his death and Angel’s life—and the solution is a killer of its own.
My Thoughts
As I raced through all three of these books, I found myself thinking that I’ve found the next David Handler, whose Stewart Hoag series I have thoroughly enjoyed over the years. O’Connor writes with the same sense of style, sophistication, and wit as Hoag and some of the best of detective fiction authors, but adds the currently-popular paranormal component by making the main character a ghost. I’ve read some paranormal mysteries that handle this well and many more that don’t; O’Connor handles the trope very well indeed.
Tuck’s character is mouthy, smart, and industrious, ferreting out clues and information using his newfound abilities while also moving through space and time in unusual ways. The rest of the characters are also memorable and very likable, particularly Tuck’s widow Angel who is by turns smart, sassy, and very much able to take care of herself.
As the series progresses, O’Connor does a good job of fleshing out the characters and building their backstories. I especially enjoyed the revelation in book 2 about Tuck’s family. In addition to great characterizations, O’Connor is also a really, really good storyteller. The mysteries here are complex and well-plotted and plumped up by dialog that is by turns snarky and sparkling.
I’ll be recommending this series and author for sure.
Book Details
Genre: PI Cozy Mystery Published by: Level Best Books Publication Date: September 2024 Purchase Links:Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads
Tj O’Connor is an award-winning author of mysteries and thrillers. He’s an international security consultant specializing in anti-terrorism, investigations, and threat analysis—life experiences that drive his novels. With his former life as a government agent and years as a consultant, he has lived and worked around the world in places like Greece, Turkey, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, and throughout the Americas—among others. In his spare time, he’s a Harley Davidson pilot, a man-about-dogs (and now cats), and a lover of adventure, cooking, and good spirits (both kinds). He was raised in New York’s Hudson Valley and lives with his wife, Labs, and Maine Coon companions in Virginia where they raised five children who supply a growing tribe of grands.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…to bake! Unleash the magic of baking this holiday season with 100 Christmas classics and unique indulgences.
’Tis the season for festive treats! Turn your kitchen into a haven of holiday cheer with The Christmas Baking Cookbook. From traditional gingerbread cookies to sweet innovations such as the eggnog-flavored cupcake, this cookbook is guaranteed to elevate your festive cookies and candies. Discover new favorites and expand your repertoire as you sit by the fireside this season with your favorite holiday goodies.
Inside you’ll find:
100 deliciously simple recipes
Step-by-step instructions
Easy, festive decorating techniques
Gather around the Christmas tree and treat yourself, delight your friends, and (most importantly) impress your in-laws. It’s time to deck the halls with loads of icing with The Christmas Baking Cookbook!
My Thoughts
Taking a break from the mayhem of mystery novels to delve into a new book of Christmas baking!
I begin planning out my Christmas baking starting in August or September each year, poring over cookbooks and seasonal baking magazines from years past, looking for new recipes or new twists on old recipes. I will always reach for a cookbook that has the words “Christmas” and Baking” in its title.
This cookbook contains plenty of new-to-me recipes and ideas but also plenty of old favorites. The instructions are relatively clear and the photography depicts some luscious creations. My only issue with this book is that there are no introductions or words of wisdom with each recipe. You get the title, the ingredients, and the instructions. This makes it a completely serviceable book but somewhat disappointing for a cookbook reader like me. Bakers who prefer a no-nonsense approach to cookbooks will definitely appreciate the stripped down character of this book. I will definitely buy it for the recipes.
Publication Date: October 15, 2024 Published by: Cider Mill Press Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy
THE RARE BOOKS COZY MYSTERIES by Daphne Silver November 25, 2024 – January 3, 2025 Virtual Book Tour
Rare books librarian Juniper Blume lands her dream job: creating a new museum in her Chesapeake Bay town of Rose Mallow, Maryland. But on her very first day, she makes a shocking discovery – a dead man clutching a book by Edgar Allan Poe, stolen from the collections!
As Juniper gets closer to cracking the coded message hidden inside the book, she realizes someone is desperate to keep its literary secrets buried… even if that means burying her too.
Dressed in her signature vintage style with rescue pup Clover by her side, the fearless bookworm must hunt down the culprit before becoming the next victim. But can she solve the case without jeopardizing a budding romance with her boss, the dashing Leo Calverton? And can she help her sister Azalea perfect their grandmother’s legendary blintz recipe before the Rose Mallow Festival?
A delightfully deadly page-turner, The Tell-Tale Homicide continues the charming Rare Books Cozy Mystery series by Agatha award-winning author Daphne Silver. Fans of Kate Carlisle and Jenn McKinlay will love tagging along with the whip-smart, book-loving Juniper on her adventures.
My Thoughts
The second entry in this series is just as charming as the first. Juniper Blume is back along with her sister Azalea, the hunky Leo Calverton (who is NOT her boyfriend!) and a few other colorful characters populating the quaint town of Rose Mallow.
The murder mystery involves priceless books by Edgar Allan Poe but also plenty of red herrings driven by the chaotic nature of past loves & betrayals and new relationships. Juniper is positioned here to be the bridge between the wealthy Calvertons and the business owners and residents of Rose Mallow, which I think will make for some entertaining future books. The resolution of this mystery was a surprise and went in a completely unexpected direction. I enjoy the author’s style and storytelling quite a bit and will be recommending this series.
Series Details:
Genre: Cozy Mystery Published by: Level Best Books Series:The Rare Books Cozy Mysteries Series Links:Amazon | Level Best Books
Daphne Silver is the Agatha Award winning author of the Rare Books Cozy Mystery Series. Her first novel, Crime and Parchment (Level Best Books, 2023), won the Agatha for Best First Mystery Novel. Her latest book, The Tell-Tale Homicide, comes out November 2024 from Level Best Books. She’s worked more than twenty years in museums and symphonies and has the great fortune of being married to a librarian. When she’s not writing, she’s drawing and painting. She lives in Maryland with her family. Although she’s not much of a baker, she won’t ever turn down a sweet lokshen kugel.
THE RARE BOOKS COZY MYSTERIES by Daphne Silver November 25, 2024 – January 3, 2025 Virtual Book Tour
Description
Rare books librarian Juniper Blume knows this much… an ancient Celtic manuscript shouldn’t be in a Maryland cemetery. But that’s exactly what her brother-in-law claims.
Last year, Juniper saw the 1,200-year-old Book of Kells in Ireland. She learned how their bejeweled covers were stolen centuries ago, never to be seen again. So how could they have ended up in Rose Mallow, a small Chesapeake Bay town? Being Jewish, the Book of Kells might not be her sacred text, but as a rare books librarian, the ancient book is still sacred to her, making it important to Juniper to find out the truth.
Rose Mallow is the same place where Juniper used to summer with her sister Azalea and their grandmother Zinnia, known as Nana Z. Ever since Nana Z passed away, Juniper’s avoided returning, but her curiosity is greater than her grief, so she heads down in her vintage convertible with her rescue dog Clover.
Juniper discovers that her sister Azalea has transformed their grandmother’s Queen Anne style mansion into the Wildflower Inn, backing up to the Chesapeake Bay. Although Juniper isn’t much of a cook, Azalea has kept their grandmother’s legacy alive, filling the house with the smells of East European Jewish treats, like sweet kugels and tzimmes cake. Will coming back here feel like returning home or fill Juniper with a deeper sorrow? Can she apologize to her sister for not being there when she was needed most?
My Thoughts
The first in what appears to be series featuring Juniper Blume, Crime & Parchment is a well-written, clever mystery that will appeal to fans of cozies as well librarians (and there’s a big overlap there!).
Silver does a good job of fleshing out the characters which will certainly have a place in future books. Juniper is portrayed as both self-assured and full of doubt, never quite certain of her place in Rose Mallow. Her sister Azalea rounds out the family connection and the relationship between the sisters is one of the tension points in the story. Then there’s the potential love interest for Juniper, Leo Calverton, and the complicated relationship between Azalea and her ex-husband Rory.
Beyond the relationships is the crux of the mystery – could the long-lost, priceless covers of the the Book of Kells really be in Rose Mallow, Maryland? Sounds preposterous, right? The author makes an interesting case and seamlessly incorporates lots of Maryland history into the story.
This is a series to watch and will be one I recommend. Watch for Silver’s next entry in the series, The Tell-Tale Homicide, coming this fall and reviewed here on November 30.
Series Details:
Genre: Cozy Mystery Published by: Level Best Books Series:The Rare Books Cozy Mysteries Series Links:Amazon | Level Best Books
Daphne Silver is the Agatha Award winning author of the Rare Books Cozy Mystery Series. Her first novel, Crime and Parchment (Level Best Books, 2023), won the Agatha for Best First Mystery Novel. Her latest book, The Tell-Tale Homicide, comes out November 2024 from Level Best Books. She’s worked more than twenty years in museums and symphonies and has the great fortune of being married to a librarian. When she’s not writing, she’s drawing and painting. She lives in Maryland with her family. Although she’s not much of a baker, she won’t ever turn down a sweet lokshen kugel.
Embark on an unforgettable mystery-adventure starring a girl determined to save her friends and find a home, written by the best-selling author of the Serafina and Willa of the Wood series!
Robert Beatty, a master at telling atmospheric tales of mystery and suspense set in the natural world, has crafted another ingenious, unputdownable story.
Thirteen-year-old Sylvia Doe has lived at the Highground Home for Children nearly all her life. Whenever the administrators try to place her with a foster family, she runs away–back to Mason, Highground’s caretaker and her best friend. The only place she feels like she belongs is with him and the horses he has taught her to love.
When a powerful storm causes the remote mountain valley where she lives to flood, Sylvia begins to encounter strange and wondrous things floating down the river. Glittering gemstones and wild animals that don’t belong–everything’s out of place. Then she spots an unconscious boy floating in the water.
As she drags him onto the shore and their adventure together begins, Sylvia wonders who he is and where he came from. And why does she feel such a strong connection to this mysterious boy?
My Thoughts
Robert Beatty never fails to deliver a suspenseful, well-written story where the pages fly by because it’s so good you can’t stop reading. Here we have a new hero, Sylvia, a foster child with apparently no family and no recollection of what happened to her before age 4. All she knows is that she belongs at Highgrounds, the children’s home that is the only true home she’s ever known. She’s most comfortable with the horses and the nature surrounding the site.
This eerily prophetic story of a flood of epic proportions in the mountains of North Carolina is truly one of the best I’ve read in ages. From the very beginning when Sylvia is making her way back to Highgrounds, to the heartstopping ending, the story of Sylvia Doe and the mysterious boy she rescues from a raging river will keep readers entertained and get them hooked on Beatty’s writing. He joins Kate DiCamillo in my list of the best authors of children’s fiction writing today.
Publication Date: October 8, 2024 Published By: Disney Publishing Worldwide: Hyperion Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy
InMadrigals and Mayhem, the fourth in Elizabeth Penney’s charming Cambridge Bookshop series, Molly Kimball finds that even the holidays can come with a healthy dose of mystery.
Molly is eager to experience her first English Christmas with family and friends now that she’s adjusted to her move to Cambridge and her restoration of her family’s ancestral bookshop, Thomas Marlowe—Manuscripts and Folios. When local toyshop Pemberly’s Emporium reopens, Molly is excited to meet the new owner, Charlotte Pemberly, who is determined to make the toy store a success after unexpectedly becoming her grandfather Arthur’s sole heir.
Arthur’s new wife Althea Winters and her unpleasant family loathe Charlotte for inheriting what they believe was theirs and have set their sights on a valuable Madame Alexander doll that’s gone missing. When Althea’s grandson is poisoned by cakes from Tea & Crumpets, Charlotte becomes the top suspect. Molly believes Charlotte was the intended victim and investigates the Pemberly’s home, only to discover that Arthur had been murdered.
To get closer to this treacherous family, Molly and her boyfriend Kieran go undercover by volunteering to act and sing for a madrigal dinner directed by Althea and her daughter at St. Hildegard’s College. Molly must help her new friend clear her name while searching for the missing doll and wrangling her own family during the chaotic holiday festivities at the bookshop.
My Thoughts
Fans of cozy mysteries will thoroughly enjoy this delightful series set in a 700-year-old bookshop in Cambridge. Similar in some ways to Paige Shelton’s Scottish Bookshop mysteries (attractive, young American woman transplanted into a UK bookshop gets involved in solving mysteries) but different enough that readers will be captivated by the warm relationships that form the bones of this series.
The story in this fourth entry features a serial poisoner and a lost Madame Alexander doll worth hundreds of thousands of pounds. It is set in the toy shop of everyone’s dreams at the most magical time of the year (Christmas), and moves at a quick pace but keeps the readers interest easily. The murderer was fairly easy to guess, but the story threads were clever enough to keep me engrossed in the story.
While this is the fourth in a series, it can be read as a stand-alone, although I have recommended the first three in the past. They are quick, enjoyable reads for wintry afternoons.
Publication Date: November 26, 2024 Published By: St. Martin’s Press: Minotaur Books Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy
It's All About the Book 