Spotlight and Giveaway - Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

Today we are featuring a giveaway for readers. Berkley publishing has graciously offered one copy of Love and Death Among the Cheetahs (A Royal Spyness Mystery Book 13) to a lucky winner.  The Royal Spyness series is a historical cozy (1930s) with the charming and clumsy Lady Georgiana, or Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, 34th in line for the English throne.

About the book:

"I was so excited when Darcy announced out of the blue that

we were flying to Kenya for our extended honeymoon. Now that we are here, I suspect he has actually been sent to fulfill another secret mission. I am trying very hard not to pick a fight about it, because after all, we are in paradise! Darcy finally confides that there have been robberies in London and Paris. It seems the thief was a member of the aristocracy and may have fled to Kenya. Since we are staying in the Happy Valley—the center of upper-class English life—we are well positioned to hunt for clues and ferret out possible suspects.

Now that I am a sophisticated married woman, I am doing my best to sound like one. But crikey! These aristocrats are a thoroughly loathsome sort enjoying a completely decadent lifestyle filled with wild parties and rampant infidelity. And one of the leading lights in the community, Lord Cheriton, has the nerve to make a play for me. While I am on my honeymoon! Of course, I put an end to that right off. 

When he is found bloodied and lifeless along a lonely stretch of road, it appears he fell victim to a lion. But it seems that the Happy Valley community wants to close the case a bit too quickly. Darcy and I soon discover that there is much more than a simple robbery and an animal attack to contend with here in Kenya. Nearly everyone has a motive to want Lord Cheriton dead and some will go to great lengths to silence anyone who asks too many questions. The hunt is on! I just hope I can survive my honeymoon long enough to catch a killer. . . ."

Entry for giveaway lasts until September 7, 2019 6:00 p.m. (MST). U.S. entries only please.
The publisher will be shipping the book to the winners.


How to enter:

*** First, you must be an email subscriber of this blog.***

All entries are to be in the comments for this post.

I will accept entries for this giveaway until 6:00 p.m (MST) on September 7, 2019. I shall notify the winner via the email address you provide to get your mailing address and have the prize sent directly to you.

IF you are an email subscriber of this blog, you only need to leave a comment with your correct email.

BECOME an email subscriber of this blog if you aren't already and enjoy the celebration of all things mystery and suspense.

Review - Murder at Morrington Hall

I'm not sure how I heard of this book, but I am so glad to have discovered it. But when I read "You will love this delightful debut novel to what promises to be a winning series... I couldn’t put it down!” from one of my favorite authors, Victoria Thompson, I had to see for myself.  Read on for my assessment of this debut novel in a new series.

Author: Clara McKenna

Copyright: Jan 2017 (Berkley) 298 pgs

Series: 1st in Stella and Lyndy Mystery series

Sensuality: Mild

Mystery Sub-genre: Historical Cozy

Main Characters: Stella Kendrick, America Heiress, thoroughbred breeder

Setting: 1905, Hampshire England

Obtained Through: Personal find

Book Blurb:

"Spring, 1905:  Free-spirited like the Thoroughbreds she rides across the Kentucky countryside, Stella takes adventure by the reins when she’s asked to attend a mysterious wedding in rural England. But once she arrives at the lush Morrington Hall estate, her cold and ambitious father confesses that he won’t only give away his best racehorses as gifts—he has also arranged to give away his daughter as bride to the Earl of Atherly’s financially strapped son . . . 

Stella refuses to be sold off like a prized pony. Yet despite a rough start, there’s something intriguing about her groom-to-be, the roguish Viscount “Lyndy” Lyndhurst. The unlikely pair could actually be on the right track with each other . . . until they find the vicar who was to marry them dead in the library. 

With culture clashes mounting between families, a scandalous murder case hangs over Morrington Hall. Now, Stella and Lyndy must go from future spouses to amateur sleuths as they team up to search for the truth—and prevent an unbridled criminal from destroying their new life together right out of the gate "

Stella Kendrick, free spirited, proud, stubborn, and independant with scars from her father's ill treatment of her.  Mr Elijah Kendrick, Stella's cold hearted father and self-made millionaire, is uncouth and rude.  Viscount Lord Lyndhurst, Lyndy, is the intended groom who is marrying out of duty - until he meets Stella and thinks he may enjoy her company.  The Earl and Lady Atherly, Lyndy's parents, are insufferable snobs that financially have to welcome the unladylike American heiress into the family, but they make their displeasure well known.  Lord Hugh, second son of the Duke of Tonnbridge is Lyndy's best friend, and a prime suspect.  The stiff British nobility clash with brash Americans for many tense scenes throughout.

The setting of New Forest, the former royal hunting grounds for King William the Conqueror centuries prior with its legendary ponies roaming free, is an idyllic setting.  Several scenes contain Epsom Downs Derby and it brings out the excitement of the race.  It all provides the background to spotlight the differences between the rigid social rules of British upper class and the uncultured manners of the Americans of the era.

Of course the simple question of who would kill a Vicar gets more complicated as the story unfolds.  It had to be somebody who could make their way around the mansion without really being noticed much, which narrows the field of suspects.  

The climax highlights Stella's intelligence and independence to prove a point about who the killer was, which replaces a suspenseful killer reveal.  Although I love the tense and suspenseful killer reveal, this creative unveiling was quite enjoyable and well executed.

I loved the characters of Stella Kendrick and Lyndy and how they come to accept and appreciate each other.  The writing style is engaging, drew me in immediately, and had me sympathize with Stella and Lyndy.  The aspect of an unsuspecting heiress essentially being sold off is a great setup for this series - and is based on historical realities such as Consuelo Vanderbilt being in that exact situation.

Rating:  Near Perfect - Couldn't Put it down. Buy two copies, one for you and one for a friend. 

Here is a short video about the marrying off of 

Consuelo Vanderbilt

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk-lRsrj9Eg&list=RDQMcbBsdB8VdOA&index=2

Here is a short video about The New Forest.

https://youtu.be/7haA7ZozB-8

Thank you for joining me!

Spotlight and Giveaway - Death in a Budapest Butterfly

Today we are featuring a giveaway for readers. Berkley publishing has graciously offered one copy of Death in a Budapest Butterfly to a lucky winner.

About the book:
"Hana Keller and her family run Maggie's Tea House, an establishment heavily influenced by the family's Hungarian heritage and specializing in a European-style traditional tea service. But one of the shop's largest draws is Hana's eccentric grandmother, Juliana, renowned for her ability to read the future in the leaves at the bottom of customers' cups. Lately, however, her readings have become alarmingly ominous and seemingly related to old Hungarian legends...

When a guest is poisoned at a tea event, Juliana’s dire predictions appear to have come true. Things are brought to a boil when Hana’s beloved Anna Weatherley butterfly teacup becomes the center of the murder investigation as it carried the poisoned tea. The cup is claimed as evidence by a handsome police detective, and the pretty Tea House is suddenly endangered. Hana and her family must catch the killer to save their business and bring the beautiful Budapest Butterfly back home where it belongs."

The book includes Chicken Paprikas, Dumplings, Stuffed Cabbage, and Dessert Crescents recipes.  I am looking forward to trying them!

Entry for giveaway lasts until August 31, 2019 6:00 p.m. (MST). U.S. entries only please.
The publisher will be shipping the book to the winners.

How to enter:

*** First, you must be an email subscriber of this blog.***

All entries are to be in the comments for this post.

I will accept entries for this giveaway until 6:00 p.m (MST) on August 31, 2019. I shall notify the winner via the email address you provide to get your mailing address and have the prize sent directly to you.

IF you are an email subscriber of this blog, you only need to leave a comment with your correct email.

BECOME an email subscriber of this blog if you aren't already and enjoy the celebration of all things mystery and suspense.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I have written and published three cozy mysteries - ICED (Resort to Murder #1), Nailed (Resort to Murder #2), and SPIKED (Resort to Murder #3) by Avery Daniels 

SPIKED

"Julienne needs only three things: successfully pull of a last minute wedding relocated to her resort, work out things with her stubborn ex- boyfriend, and solve the murder of a private investigator found with her business card on his dead body. The wedding she can handle, but it comes with a flirtatious brother of the bride who manages to give Mason the idea she has moved on, and the dead PI was playing with fire before he was poisoned leaving a myriad of suspects. Two suspects are part of a scandal waiting to explode and nobody wants to be in the middle of the fallout.

Can Julienne wade through the various suspects while coordinating the wedding and dealing with a handsome amorous guest before her rival on the local paper exposes her connection and thus damages the resort’s reputation? Will she and Mason find their way to each other?"

"This was a thrilling third book from Avery Daniels with Juliette once again taking the lead on another murder investigation... Avery’s writing style is very entertaining with a first-person perspective laying out well the clever plot along with various suspects with motives and twist and turns, and sharing it all with Julienne’s inner thoughts and vivid descriptions. The mystery was delightfully involved with several lines of questioning to incorporate, an insinuation of Julie’s possible involvement, and keeping the “Wow!” ending to the…end. "  King's River Life Magazine

"Another fantastic book. Very entertaining, great characters... Great mix of mystery with a bit of romance ( or almost romance)."  BookHound

"A mixture of danger, humor, and romance set in lovely Colorado Springs, the author writes a perfect cozy mystery with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. " Cheryl Malandrinos

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