Review: Veil of Doom (Wicked Witches of Cauldron Hollow #7) by Sara Bourgeois

Rating: 4⭐️

Veil of Doom was good but left too many questions about the plot and characters to be a really fully executed story. It just feels rushed.

It starts with everyone getting ready for Blythe to be walked down the aisle at her wedding. Last minute preparations are getting underway, everyone is there. Blythe’s best friend, Paine’s family is there and Adelma Stonehart, matriarch and head witch is acting uncharacteristically giving and gentle.

But soon there’s screaming and someone has been murdered. Adelma Stoneheart herself. And the wedding is over before it’s begun.

Trust the author to throw a twist right at the beginning. Adelma started the series as a sort of enemy/frenemy to Blythe or at least to her previous family members. But Adelma has slowly become more welcoming and supportive towards Blythe, especially after Blythe has become a close friend to her granddaughter. So to see Adelma murdered at the beginning was a shocker.

And then comes even more twists of events. One right after another.

No spoilers but there’s new characters. A resolution, of sorts, to an ongoing question about the house. And frankly, more questions raised than are answered here by the storylines.

It’s too fast paced to make sense and feel satisfying. It feels rushed, especially at the end.

It left me feeling like ok that happened, now where’s the rest of it?

And I didn’t get it. And we usually do .

So it’s a good or interesting storyline but not the best.

I’m looking forward to the next one to see what happens and if we get our questions answered.

A wild ride to be sure.

Wicked Witches of Cauldron Hollow (4 book series)

If the Hat Fits #1

Under The Hat #2

Hat Out of Spell #3

Hat Trick #4

Bear Many Hats #5

Drop of a Hat #6

Veil of Doom #7

Hats off To Boo #8 – Oct 31,2026

The Hat Before Christmas #9 – Dec 23,2026

Buy link

Review: Veil of Doom (Wicked Witches of Cauldron Hollow #7) by Sara Bourgeois

Rating: 4⭐️

Veil of Doom was good but left too many questions about the plot and characters to be a really fully executed story. It just feels rushed.

But soon there’s screaming and someone has been murdered. Adelma Stoneheart herself. And the wedding is over before it’s begun.

And then comes even more twists of events. One right after another.

No spoilers but there’s new characters. A resolution, of sorts, to an ongoing question about the house. And frankly, more questions raised than are answered here by the storylines.

It’s too fast paced to make sense and feel satisfying. It feels rushed, especially at the end.

It left me feeling like ok that happened, now where’s the rest of it?

And I didn’t get it. And we usually do .

So it’s a good or interesting storyline but not the best.

I’m looking forward to the next one to see what happens and if we get our questions answered.

A wild ride to be sure.

Wicked Witches of Cauldron Hollow (4 book series)

If the Hat Fits #1

Under The Hat #2

Hat Out of Spell #3

Hat Trick #4

Bear Many Hats #5

Drop of a Hat #6

Veil of Doom #7

Hats off To Boo #8 – Oct 31,2026

The Hat Before Christmas #9 – Dec 23,2026

Buy link

Blurb

You didn’t think there would be a wedding without a murder, did you?

Blythe Fairfield is finally getting her happy ending.

The dress fits. There’s a groom waiting. Even the cat is wearing a bow tie.

Then someone dies at her wedding.

Adelma Stonehart, matriarch of one of Cauldron Hollow’s oldest witch families, is found murdered before Blythe can complete her vows. By morning, most of the town has forgotten. Blythe can’t.

Nobody said “I do” yet. But somebody’s going to answer for this.

September 8, 2026

Language

‎English

Book 7 of 9

Wicked Witches of Cauldron Hollow

Blurb

You didn’t think there would be a wedding without a murder, did you?

Blythe Fairfield is finally getting her happy ending.

The dress fits. There’s a groom waiting. Even the cat is wearing a bow tie.

Then someone dies at her wedding.

Adelma Stonehart, matriarch of one of Cauldron Hollow’s oldest witch families, is found murdered before Blythe can complete her vows. By morning, most of the town has forgotten. Blythe can’t.

Nobody said “I do” yet. But somebody’s going to answer for this.

September 8, 2026

Language

‎English

Book 7 of 9

Wicked Witches of Cauldron Hollow

Review: Appraised for Murder: A Humorous Small Town Cozy Mystery (The Antiquated Alibi Mysteries Book 1) by Beatrix Penrose

Rating: 4⭐️

This is the beginning of a new small town cozy mystery series by Beatrix Penrose and I think it’s off to a good start.

Appraised For Murder’s central character is a somewhat recently widowed woman, Maggie Callahan, (it’s been two years), whose children are in college. Maggie returns to the small town of Black Walnut Cove, buys a big barn and opens an antique store/estate liquidators shop with her best friend, Birdie in the Blue Ridge Mountains, called Callahan & Co.

In Black Walnut Cove, Maggie Callahan, along with Birdie Jenkins, the v neighbor shop owner Luke Sterling, and her golden retriever, Buster take on daily challenges and the occasional murder mystery. It’s a cozy, with a non spicy romance , small town murder mystery story.

I enjoyed so much about this. The community was captured by the author so well, that of an Appalachia Mountain town and culture, layered over with antiques and other knowledge about its citizens and history. All woven together in a story both about Maggie, a widow in her 50’s starting over in a town where she raised her children, old memories and a new future.

Birdie, her best friend and co-owner of Callahan & Co is absolutely one of my favorite characters. She’s real, hilarious, intelligent and one of the best things about the story. The murder mystery is also a good one, although I thought it was a little muddled towards the end.

The romance between Maggie and Luke is almost nonexistent, he brings her pie, or coffee. There’s a kiss. That’s it. I didn’t see any chemistry between them. For me, it could have been left out and it wouldn’t have mattered.

Buster the golden retriever is a cute element to the story and characters.

One last thing, Maggie, Birdie and Luke do a lot of investigating here and the Sheriff’s department is mentioned. But when do they actually interact with each other? Turn over actual evidence? That whole thread or aspect to the narrative is missing and it doesn’t make sense to leave it out.

Appraised for Murder is a good start to Beatrix Penrose’s new series and I’m excited to see what the next book takes it.

Cover Design is exactly what I expect from this author. Terrific.

The Antiquated Alibi Mysteries:

Appraised for Murder #1

Poisoned by Provenance #2

Buy link

Book 1 of 2: The Antiquated Alibi Mysteries

Blurb

A picturesque Blue Ridge mountain town, an empty-nester starting over, and an antique appraiser who just valued his last settee…

Fifty-two-year-old widow Maggie Callahan thought she had her second act figured out. Running Callahan & Company Estate Liquidations out of a restored apple warehouse gave her purpose, steady work, and just enough room to keep her grief at bay.

With her sharp-tongued best friend Birdie running client relations and her affable, treat-obsessed golden retriever Buster greeting customers, life in Black Walnut Cove was peaceful.

Then came the estate sale of the century.

Blackwood Manor is an eighty-room Victorian stone estate overflowing with three generations of hoarded family heirlooms. But before Maggie can even catalog the parlor furniture, an arrogant high-profile appraiser from Atlanta storms in, loudly threatens her business, and attempts to declare a rare 1820s Moravian cherrywood secretary worthless junk.

Hours later, the appraiser is found dead in the carriage house—bludgeoned with an antique brass balance scale.

With the sheriff eyeing her as a prime person of interest and two predatory out-of-town heirs circling like vultures, Maggie must team up with handsome salvage carpenter Luke Sterling to uncover what the victim was really hunting. When Buster sniffs out clues to a hidden 1845 mountain covenant, Maggie realizes someone is willing to kill to keep a century of land swindles buried in the dust.

Can Maggie decode the clues and unmask the killer before Blackwood Manor is sealed for good—or will Callahan & Company become the next liquidated asset?

Appraised for Murder is the first full-length novel in the charming Antiquated Alibi Mysteries series. If you love witty banter, small-town mountain secrets, lovable canine sidekicks, and clever mature sleuths, you’ll feel right at home in Black Walnut Cove!

Includes clean romance, no graphic gore, and no profanity. Grab your copy and start reading today!

September 5, 2026

Language

‎English

Print length

225 pages

Book 1 of 2

The Antiquated Alibi Mysteries

Review: Old Man’s War by John Scalzi

Rating: 4.5⭐️

I’ve been reading several 2026 Hugo Awards winners and nominees recently and John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War series won for Best Series so I thought I’d check it out as I’m obviously late to discovering this author.

Old Man’s War, the first book in the series was written in 2007 and is an excellent read. The plot is so well written and one that is easy to understand and relate to one multiple levels.

John Perry is 75. His beloved wife has died and he mourns her and their life together deeply. Their son is grown up, settled down and has a family of his own. John is mentally and emotionally adrift from his life without his wife. And has made plans to move on. He’s joined the Army.

Along with a massive number of other 75 year old seniors from around the world.

There’s an interstellar space war going on and soldiers are needed to fight for humanity’s survival. Old men and women will be made young again in order to fight for humanity against the aliens.

That’s the plot. And it’s a great one. How Scalzi pulls it off, the mental and physical impact of this on those who become the “next generation of fighters”.

All these people leaving Earth and their old lives behind forever for the unknown. The way that will impact them, their way of thinking and understanding humanity. And even relationships. The possibility of even having one in a war that stretches on forever.

All those ethical or emotional dilemmas that John or the others might have are quickly dealt with by the realistic military structure as necessary to win the war and continue the increasingly complex alien engagements.

Interesting elements will emerge as important themes of the series, such as cellular memory and philosophical questioning about what makes a being a person. Even identity comes into play towards the end when the possibility of cellular memory is introduced.

Scalzi in his Author’s notes talks about what books he found informative, including Heinlen’s Starship Troopers and later on (my favorite) Joe Haldeman’s The Forever War. I see that in the Starship Troopers as many have written.

The characters that surround John are notable in the sense that they are only just above one dimensional level. We are just getting started with connecting to each of them emotionally and then it’s time for reality to set in. They’re frontline soldiers.

Events are fast paced and full of military action in space. Strange aliens and space ships and bloody battles that have killed thousands, perhaps even more.

The ending is open for the next book. Where some of the questions raised here might be given further exploration. Can’t wait to read it next.

Highly recommended. Especially if you’re a fan of the books I mentioned.

Cover design by Jamie Stafford-Hill

Old Man’s War (7 book series)

Old Man’s War Series

#1 Old Man’s War

#2 The Ghost Brigades

#3 The Last Colony

#4 Zoe’s Tale

#5 The Human Division

#6 The End of All Things

Short fiction: “After the Coup”

Buy link

Old Man’s War

Blurb

John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife’s grave. Then he joined the army.

The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce-and aliens willing to fight for them are common. The universe, it turns out, is a hostile place.

So: we fight. To defend Earth (a target for our new enemies, should we let them get close enough) and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has gone on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.

Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity’s resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force, which shields the home planet from too much knowledge of the situation. What’s known to everybody is that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don’t want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You’ll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You’ll serve your time at the front. And if you survive, you’ll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets.

John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine-and what he will become is far stranger.

Old Man’s War Series

#1 Old Man’s War

#2 The Ghost Brigades

#3 The Last Colony

#4 Zoe’s Tale

#5 The Human Division

#6 The End of All Things

Short fiction: “After the Coup”

Tor Books

Publication date

April 1, 2007

Language

‎English

Print length

308 pages

Book 1 of 7

Old Man’s War

Review: Tombyards and Butterflies (Montague and Strong Detective Agency Book 1) by Orlando A. Sanchez

Rating: 3⭐️

If you’re looking for a magical fast paced , shootum up immortal partners story/series, here’s one for you.

Its world building is non-existent, the characters have zero chemistry, between themselves or any relationship that’s created here. It’s just a jumble of paranormal beings intermingling with a Greek mythological pantheon of gods who have hidden secrets and agendas, some of which concern the two main characters.

It’s all rather confusing. No one really knows what is happening. Not even them. But they accept cases , from vampires or goddesses, things go badly. Then go even worse.

I don’t know. There’s no depth to this or to the characters. I was connecting to any of it. Especially when one character is asked if he’s dumb(his actions and remarks indicate yes) and his partner , a Mage with a painful history, and this reader agree with whoever is asking. And he’s immortal and, apparently, forever immature. Lovely. SMH

Lots of magical action however.

It ends up with them having a mythical pet demon dog. And another likely mission to look forward to.

Not me. I need more than this to get me interested in a series and characters. And TSTL characters. But not everyone does.

It’s got lots of books to this, 32 of them. Check them out if you’re so inclined.

Cover Art: Deranged Doctor Design

Buy link

Book 1 of 32: Montague & Strong Case Files

Blurb

A Missing Ferryman. An Undead Dilemma. An Immortal Detective.

An emissary from the Dark Council has just materialized in the office of the Montague & Strong Detective Agency, and makes Simon Strong an offer he can’t refuse. Charon is missing. The legendary ferryman responsible for transporting sorcerer souls across the river Styx hasn’t been seen in days. And with each passing hour, those unable to cross the river are left to walk among the living, tilting the world further out of balance.

Meet Simon Strong, an immortal, who is also the best private detective in New York City. Together with his surly partner-Tristan Montague, a mage of indeterminate age, they must find the Ferryman and get him back to work before another Supernatural War ravages the earth, destroys humanity, and Simon’s local coffee shop.

Time is running out. His landlord wants the rent and Karma with a capital K is paying him a visit, and she can be a real…

Join the Montague & Strong Detective Agency and help them locate Charon, so he can restore balance to the universe, put the dead sorcerers to rest, and maybe solve the age old conundrum-coffee or tea?

Bitten Peaches Publishing

Publication date

February 27, 2017

Edition

1st

Language

‎English

Print length

310 pages

Book 1 of 32

Montague & Strong Case File

Review: Moonbright by Leah Ryan

Rating: 3.75⭐️

Moonbright by Leah Ryan is a paranormal werewolf romance, the first book that I’ve read by this author. And there’s so much that I absolutely love about it. And a couple I don’t.

The main character is one, a small woman, a healer of mysterious origin who has been alone in the dark woods since childhood. She’s hand built herself a small homestead over the years, chickens and herbs, carefully tended. And she’s mended the wolves that have come needing medical care, and her specially crafted medicines that she’s created over her years tending them.

Ryan hints at a dark history behind a child , 12 years old that had to live alone in the woods, learning to build herself a makeshift home, forging for herself and learning enough to survive to craft and maintain her livelihood.

But we never find out what happened to Mel the Healer , now 22, in her past life to bring her to the existence she living now.

The book is full of these unexplained mysteries, around characters and the world history. It’s just there, part of the story. If this sort of thing is something that you as a reader find irritating, then really this book, and probably the writer, are not for you.

What I love about this book? That it honestly made me laugh out loud in many instances. The dialogue is dry, sarcastic, and funny. Guffaw funny at times. Scenes too, including ones with Mel’s pet chicken Nugget. And the relationship between Mel and her best friend, a rough woman hunter, Kestria, who stops by with venison and other items to help Mel keep going. Their friendship feels real and established, believable in their past history and conversations.

Events shake up Mel’s current situation as the local healer, and care givers to the wolves in the woods. Who aren’t exactly wolves but werewolves.

Ryan brings in a long ongoing war between humans and werewolves, with the humans being unaware that the wolves are actually supernatural beings with families.

And a romantic relationship between a young Mel and the older Alpha Keer, which I don’t feel is as strong an element here or as believable in a romantic sense. The role that Mel eventually transitions into for the pack works at the beginning and then seems to be lost towards the end.

That’s much of what I have issues with the story here. It starts off extremely strong, terrific characters and interesting plot choices, albeit with missing parts to major characters back history that’s never filled in.

But towards the ending, the narrative speeds up, crashing towards a dramatic buildup that’s never quite right. There’s one scene where, a climactic moment occurs. There’s talking, and the villain gets driven (stalks) off.

Oddly unsatisfying because nothing is really settled for good. It’s a temporary fix.

And that real ending? Think the end of The Sopranos. That sort of mid-sentence abruptness. Because this literally ends mid-sentence.

Yes. It absolutely feels incomplete. And I didn’t like the way that show ended either.

Moonbright by Leah Ryan starts off strong, has some great characters, especially in Mel the healer and her best friend, Kestria. Even Nugget the chicken.

But the romance didn’t exactly work and that the story felt rushed, while an unfinished ending will never be ok with me. Finish the sentence! And the ending is.

Interesting.

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.comMoonbright: A Standalone Werewolf Romance eBook : Ryan, Leah: Kindle Store

Blurb

I have a cottage, a garden, a pink chicken named Nugget, and a strict personal

policy against asking questions.

That last one is why it took me years to notice that the wolves I’ve been

stitching back together are not, technically, wolves.

In my defense, nobody told me.

In their defense, they were trying very hard not to.

Now my cottage is rubble, my best friend has a tail, and thirty werewolves are

standing in my herb beds having a collective crisis about how much I know.

Their Alpha is taking it worst. One eye. All scars. No interest whatsoever in

humans, in healers, or in a woman who talks this much.

He also won’t stop watching my hands while I work.

Neither of us plans to mention it.

Then someone starts turning moonbright into poison. The flower I grow. The one

I’ve been using to keep every single one of them alive.

And it turns out there’s exactly one person left who knows how to turn it back.

It’s me. It’s the one with the chicken.

🌙 Standalone fantasy werewolf romance with a full HEA

🌙 Laugh-out-loud funny — banter-heavy, dual POV

🌙 Grumpy/sunshine · touch-starved alpha · forced proximity

🌙 Found family · fated mates · healer heroine

🌙 Slow burn, explicit, takes its time getting there

🌙 One (1) pink chicken. One (1) homicidal rooster named Keer Jr.

May 9, 2026

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File size

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Title: LENGTH OF DAYS : GHOST GUY Book 2 by M.M. Crumley

Rating: 3⭐️

Making this succinct. I really enjoyed the first book. Not so much the second.

If you dislike spoilers, stop reading. Even as short as this is going to be.

We left Tucker, in his non-corporeal state, far in an Underground realm searching for the soul of Kai , a ghost taken by a mysterious being who gathers up souls and feeds on their suffering and pain.

We enter exactly where the first book ended. He’s entered the imposing “cave” and seen the souls embedded there, including Kai, captured there and realizing how difficult his mission is.

Then begins a long repetitive stream of conversations and scenarios that all sound almost exactly alike for the majority of the book. Broken up only intermittently by moments where we see the Graeves family members who are taking turns with Tucker’s body. This gives us a glimpse of his condition and the passage of time above.

Then immediately after it’s back to the same old thing of trying to free them, pain, fatigue, failure, repeat. Pages of this. Literally pages and pages. Until Tucker has one last try , at around 80 or so percent done.

Yes, success. And it’s over and out. Says an immediate goodbye to one of the most important, influential and intriguing characters in less than a page. That’s so disappointing.

Then he’s back in his body . Delivered Kai the ghost home. With not a lot of fanfare.

Does a go around to the people who have been there for him, tells them how much they mean to him.

Yes, he’s going to do something really dumb. Because, why don’t you ask all these magically powerful men and women for assistance or advice with a plan to defeat the enemy you just escaped from. Nope, can’t do that.

See when you’ve had to slog through an entire book of repetitive tasks and scenarios, densely packed narrative? Only to have the main character go full on TSTL?

Well, that’s enough for me. I really like the other series connected to this. But Ghost Guy just turned into a great big pass for me.

Too many books still to be read.

Here’s the first book if you want to see more about it:

GHOST GUY: HELL TO PAY (Book 1)

Urban Fantasy/ Horror Comedy

THE IMMORTAL DOC HOLLIDAY SERIES ❤️

BOOK 1: HIDDEN

BOOK 2: COUP D’ÉTAT

BOOK 3: RUTHLESS

BOOK 4: INSTINCT

BOOK 5: ROGUES

BOOK 6: EMPIRE

BOOK 7: OMENS

BOOK 8: CHASM

BOOK 9: FERAL

BOOK 10: OBLIVION

BOOK 11: RELENTLESS

BOOK 12: REQUIEM

BOOK 13: HELLION

BOOK 14: SHADOWS

BOOK 15: INDEBTED

BOOK 16: FATHOM

BOOK 17: FEROCITY

BOOK 18: ONSLAUGHT

BOOK 19: ECHOES

BOOK 20: TEMPEST

BOOK 21: SINGULAR

GHOST GUY SERIES

BOOK 1: HELL TO PAY

BOOK 2: LENGTH OF DAYS

BOOK 3: RECKONING

JANEY FALKE SAINT KILLER SERIES BOOK 1: BLOOD OATH

BOOK 2: BLOOD TIES

BOOK 3: BLOOD FEUD

BOOK 4: BLOOD LUST

THE HOUSE OF GRAVES SERIES ❤️BOOK 1: THREE LITTLE GRAVES & THE BIG BAD WOLF

BOOK 2: OVER THE RIVER & THROUGH THE WOOD

BOOK 3: FIRE BURN & CAULDRON BUBBLE

BOOK 4: A HUNTING, A HUNTING WE WILL GO

BOOK 5: AND HE WALKED A CROOKED MILE

BOOK 6: HOLIDAY SPECIAL: DECK THE HALLS

THE LEGEND OF ANDREW RUFUS SERIES

BOOK 1: DARK AWAKENING

BOOK 4: BURIAL GROUND

BOOK 5: DEATH SONG

BOOK 6: FUNERAL MARCH

BOOK 7: WARPATH

Buy links:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G1TXHWGF?binding=kindle_edition&qid=1789168610&sr=8-1&ref=dbs_dp_awt_sb_pc_tkin

Blurb

In a desperate effort to rescue one of Medusa’s ghosts from the Underworld, Nevin Tucker has left behind the body he holds so dear. But now he’s stuck in the Underworld, all on his own, trapped in the lair of suffering. He knows he’s not a hero. He knows he’s not the man for the job, but he also knows that he’s the only one who can save Kai. And he’s decided to win, no matter the cost… Dive into a hidden world of magic and mayhem now! Available in print, eBook and audiobook formats, OR read FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

And get ready for my NEW Ghost Guy series!
Book 1: HELL TO PAY
Book 2: LENGTH OF DAYS
book 3: REKONING

Also read the Janey Falke: Saint Killer four book series while you wait!
Book 1: BLOOD OATH
Book 2: BLOOD TIES
Book 3: BLOOD FEUD
Book 4: BLOOD LUST

Review: A Heartbeat at My Feet by Kristin Beck

Rating: 4⭐️

“My little dog—a heartbeat at my feet. —Edith Wharton”

A two perspective story where one is a Jack Russell terrier called Cicero wasn’t exactly what I expected from the book and truthfully, I’m not sure that I thought it was as cohesive as I thought it could have been, given the format.

Probably because of his ghostly former confused owner hanging around. Definitely that.

There’s an abundance of storylines here, among them Cicero’s, the Jack Russell, whose owner has a heart attack at the beginning of the story. It leaves the little dog devastated, adrift from the only home he’s known and in trouble on the streets in Italy.

The other is Josie Ballard, a middle aged woman who has been planning a trip with her husband to Italy for some time. Their only son’s in college and she’s given notice of her assistant librarian job already. Then she finds out that her husband is cheating on her and wants a divorce.

Distraught and angry, Josie takes, on her father’s advice, the trip she’s been anticipating and planning for. Alone.

Of course, the paths of our two narrators collide, their worlds and similar emotional states meshing in a tour of Sorrento and all that it offers.

I really enjoyed the relationship between Cicero and Josie, their worlds woman she started to become in Italy away from the all sacrificing, doormat she was at home.

The best part of the story is exploring the countryside and communal life of the towns in Italy through Josie and Cicero’s varying perspectives. When either new voices, like the ghost of Cicero’s owner who is intermittently interjecting himself into the narrative to wonder why he’s not moving on, or more importantly, his son, Hugo, who starts to make a impact on Josie’s vacation and Cicero’s future.

For a story about a woman fleeing a shattering revelation about a long time solid marriage and relationship to a journey of self discovery, this quickly transitions to a romance between Josie and Hugo. Albeit with the nonstop conversation and perspective of Cicero , Hugo’s father’s constant companion , now Josie’s as well.

I miss the stage where Josie becomes an independent woman, with her own goals and abilities to reach her dreams on her own. She literally has never lived in her own place by herself. Even at the end, the time by herself is so fleeting, it’s to see the end of her lease and then it’s over.

So the trajectory is stateside all sacrificing daughter/mother/wife (whatever order you choose) to going abroad to find yourself. Immediately, it’s meeting up with another man with a problematic romantic history, then instant love. And when called, returning immediately back to your sacrificial status.

Leaving it only because dad and son say it’s ok.

Hmm. That’s just not the right mentality or message I’d want in a story. The thing I do like is that Cicero is waiting for her when she returns.

But this? The entire thing? Obviously I’m not the best reader for this story or characters or content.

Liked Cicero. Liked the Italian content.

It’s well written for what it is. Just not for me. I read it because of the dog.

Cover design by Emily Mahon

Buy link

amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › books › shop-nowHeartbeat At My Feet Kristin Judd | Best Sellers & New Releases

Blurb

Fate has a sense of humor in this witty, heartfelt tale of love and second chances told in two perspectives—a woman in midlife desperate for something new, and a lost dog seeking his purpose.

After years of dreams deferred, Josie Ballard’s life is about to change. She and her husband are off to Sorrento for a summer adventure, but on the eve of their departure, Josie discovers his infidelity. Devastated, she leaves her faithless husband, heading for the sun-drenched Italian coast. Alone, future unknown.

Five thousand miles away, Cicero, a rather snobbish terrier of indeterminate breeding, is likewise living an upturned life after his beloved human’s passing. Heartbroken, he wanders the wilds of Pompeii. When a flustered tourist with a kind smile appears in the ruins, clutching her tote bag and map, Cicero and Josie collide like the two lost souls they are.

In a series of turns as twisty as Sorrento’s streets, Cicero leads Josie to her second act: Hugo, a charming and somewhat contrary local bookseller. Against a backdrop of quaint villages, sun-dappled olive orchards, and the shimmering Mediterranean Sea, Hugo and Josie embark on a friendship that just might tiptoe into romance, with little Cicero to help them along the way—for dogs, he reasons, are nothing if not experts when it comes to love.

Publication date

August 1, 2026

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Language

‎English

File size

5.3 MB

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Print length

277 pages

Review: Move Your Ash: A Midlife Paranormal Dark Comedy (The Scales of Justice Book 2) by Lara McKenzie

Rating: 5⭐️

Move Your Ash is my favorite book of this series and of the recently released connected novels associated with the same universe characters.

It’s reminiscent of the early Maya Blog stories in which the character was really introspective, here journaling instead of blogging, through some major personal issues with relatable humor, often deep rooted pain, and continuing fears from her past family history of family violence and abuse.

Charlotte has a new home, new neighborhood and is working with Nico to rebuild their relationship after his betrayal and the devastating events in the first book. It’s only going so so, along with her perimenopause and all that brings with it.

It’s a lot.

McKenzie gives us a woman who is trying to, once again, establish herself in a new situation, one where she’s in control, but not letting the past fears restrict her ability to live her life. She’s in therapy, trying to understand how to handle her emotional pain as well as the perimenopausal symptoms that are associated with her fluctuations in emotions, rage being the most common, unacknowledged fears being one of the others.

Her new neighbors, a mixed bag of human beings and otherworldly beings are a fascinating group that add humor, tightly written tension, and a lot of relatable community dynamics to the story. Absolutely loved this and the characters.

But, as with this author and universe, it’s always about the main character, her development and personal growth. Charlotte has been through enormous tragedy, betrayals, and damaging emotional abuse by her kidnappers/traffickers. And she’s continuing dealing with the trauma and aftermath of this experience. The journaling is a very important part of this.

They impart her intelligence, insight into her moods, daily thoughts and even hot flashes. These entries start each chapter and remain the highlight of the book for me. Tidbits of joy, hilarity and often, poignant stories.

Nico’s part here is equally important. He’s aware of his role in working to make their relationship better, equal and communicative with understanding that was missing from it before. Their fights and interactions are just as important as anything else here but the discussions between them are deeply rooted in being adults and handling each other’s flaws and feelings.

For some reason Move Your Ash: A Midlife Paranormal Dark Comedy (The Scales of Justice Book 2) by Lara McKenzie reads like a finale book to me. So many characters make appearances. It’s absolutely satisfying and I love it.

I really hope not. I’m so fond of this universe and these people. I want to see what happens to them next. But if McKenzie leaves them here, I’m ok with that.

Highly recommended. But read the books in the order they are written.

Cover Illustration by Mansitha

MAYA’S BLOGS

Espresso Yourself

Diligence

Uncharted Grounds

Flat White Flag

Little Bean

Stir Crazy

THE SCALES OF JUSTICE

Kiss My Ash #1

Move Your Ash #2

Buy link

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H7XPHS29?binding=kindle_edition&qid=1788730014&sr=1-1&ref=dbs_dp_awt_sb_pc_tkin

Blurb

The toughest thing a perimenopausal woman with no patience left can grow—other than chin hair—is roots.

Charlotte has a new house, nosy neighbours, and a mission to live her life without fear.

But her new life is proving tougher than she expected, especially when her work at White Flag House’s new legal clinic brings her more attention than she’s comfortable with, her hormones play havoc with her emotions, and her relationship with Nico still hasn’t recovered after his betrayal.

Can Charlotte learn to stand on her own without shutting out the people who want to stand with her?

Perfect for fans of midlife paranormal comedy with just a touch of darkness.

September 2, 2026

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‎English

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Book 2 of 2

The Scales of Justice

Check out the latest tour for In Love and War“ by Beryll & Osiris Brackhaus (Other Worlds Ink tour and excerpt)

Beryll & Osiris Brackhaus have a new queer sci-fantasy romance out (gay, bi, poly): In Love and War – The First Lotus Knights.

It is the year 1985 ET. House Virasana has fallen, the Lotus Throne stands empty, and a bitter succession war has every noble House at arms. To make things worse, House Tô-Genji and House Medina are locked in a vicious feud over a flood of cheap illicit drugs tearing their worlds apart.

Prince Li Lan Tô-Genji is as far from the fighting as one can be. Third son of the Duke of Qufu, Li Lan is the family scholar – kept behind palace walls to preserve tradition, etiquette, and history. Brilliant, restless, and quietly furious at a life chosen for him, he steals what little freedom he can.

Sir Wilhelm Grebenstein arrives with a delegation seeking the Duke’s support for the Grebenstein claimant to the Lotus Throne. An expert swordfighter and genuine hero, he is not much taken with the dirty business of politics, but rather with the brilliant and resourceful third son of the Duke…

Then, Sir Saïd, a dashing Medina knight, is taken prisoner and exhibited in the castle of Li Lan’s father, awaiting an uncertain fate. Yet Li Lan finds him to be an honourable, passionate warrior and both of them are deeply intrigued by each other.

Saving Saïd would be treason. Leaving him would be complicity. Forced into an impossible choice, Li Lan and Wilhelm help Saïd escape – the three flee together, lighting a fuse that will reshape the Virasana Empire. Hunted across a realm in upheaval, they’ll have to fight for their lives, for their love and the reckless hope of an Empire actually worth fighting for.

A swashbuckling queer throuple romance set in the beloved Virasana Empire universe, this standalone space-opera adventure by award-winning authors Beryll and Osiris Brackhaus blends passion, peril, hope, and humour with just the right amount of heat.

Universal Buy Link

Excerpt

Wilhelm had his sword pulled and at the intruder’s throat in a heartbeat and before he was even half awake. Of that at least, his father would have been proud.

“Thank God,” Li Lan’s voice said. The prince was sitting at the edge of his bed, looking prim and composed and beautiful, completely ignoring the sword at his throat. “You really should be more alert to intruders in your bedchamber. Any assassin could have killed you in your sleep.”

“What are you doing here?!” Wilhelm’s words came out a weird mix, between a shout and a whisper, and at the same moment, he registered the cool draft against his chest. He dropped his sword like a hot potato and pulled up his blanket instead. Thank God he wasn’t sleeping completely naked like he did on board the Havelland, but had instead kept on his long underpants. It still left him so inappropriately exposed that he was struggling to string together a coherent thought. At least Li Lan appeared to be fully robed, as far as he could tell in the dim light coming in through the window and from beneath the door. Also, the prince didn’t seem overly concerned by Wilhelm’s barely dressed state, which made it more disturbing, considering how self-conscious the Tô-Genji were concerning their modesty.

“I am about to do something very stupid. And … I have come to ask for your help,” Li Lan said, explaining nothing.

Oh, thank God. So this wasn’t some sort of romantic visit after all. And where had that ridiculous thought come from? Li Lan wasn’t an Almaviva princess. Of course he had a reason of grave importance to be here.

“What…?” He started to ask, but stopped himself. He took a moment to take a deep breath and arrange his blanket a little more securely around his chest, trying to force his sleep-addled mind into action. “What are you talking about? What kind of stupid are we talking about?”

Li Lan had a sharp tongue and wit, but so far, he hadn’t struck him as the adventurous type. However, right now, he sounded very much like a young hero, embarking on a valiant but foolhardy quest.

“I will set the Medina prisoner free and try to flee the fortress with him.”

He heard the words, but he had to run them through his mind a couple of times to make sure they were really what Li Lan had said. This was so much worse than anything he could have imagined. The obvious question was ‘Why?’, but before he could ask, Li Lan continued speaking.

“We could try to steal horses and escape into the countryside, but there is no one who would help us and nowhere we could hide, so we would surely be caught sooner or later. We have no way of getting off-planet as neither of us can fly a spaceship. But you can.”

With his mind desperately trying to scramble after Li Lan’s words, it took him several seconds to understand the implication.

“You are asking me to help you?” That was what Li Lan had started with. The enormity crashed down on him like a ton of bricks. This wasn’t a simple, honourable quest to slay a dragon. Helping Li Lan would mean betraying the trust of his father, betraying his House, Li Lan’s House, jeopardising the negotiations of House Grebenstein with House Tô-Genji, sacrificing any future he had.

Looking at Li Lan, he found the graveness of the situation reflected in the other’s face. His words weren’t lightly spoken, and he was only too aware of how much he was asking.

Li Lan lowered his gaze to his hands, which were holding on tightly to the hem of his sleeves. “I am sorry I have to ask this of you, but there is no one else I can ask. I have no other friends.”

His words pierced Wilhelm’s heart as true as a well-aimed arrow. How terrible to be among your own and still utterly alone. “But why? Why do you need to do this?”

“Because my father is a monster more cruel than even I expected. I had hoped he would exchange the Medina for prisoners of our House, or grant him a quick execution. But my father wants to have him tortured to death. He has ordered me to find a justification within our traditions that would allow him to do so, when there is none.” Li Lan was keeping his voice low, but it was roiling with deeply held rage.

Not pain, not suffering. Rage. Primal, incandescent rage, raw and true, utterly unbefitting of a Tô-Genji and yet, so very Li Lan. “It is wrong. I will not do this. I have done so many things I knew were wrong, telling myself I had no other choice, going along with what everyone else was doing. But this? This I won’t do. I must draw a line. I would rather die than become something I will have to hate.”

He was trying to do the right thing. Of the reasons Li Lan had listed, this one was utterly relatable. He was a noble knight of House Grebenstein, after all. The importance of honour and justice had been drummed into his head from the moment he had learned to walk.

But was this a just cause? One worth risking everything for?

“How do you know that Medina doesn’t deserve the death your father decreed?”

“Because we are at war and he is fighting for his House, the same way my brother fights for ours. Because he is funny and kind. Why else would he speak to me as an equal, more so than any of my own family, when by all rights he should have nothing but contempt for an enemy who puts him on display in a cage like a rabid animal?”

“Beg your pardon? You spoke to him?”

Li Lan had the good graces to look flustered. “Yes? Someone had to bring him food that first night. Hospitality demanded it. And … apart from you, he is the only interesting thing that has happened here in years.”

Wilhelm couldn’t help a little chuckle. This sounded much more like the Li Lan he had come to know and like during his stay on Qufu. Not gravely serious, or roiling with barely suppressed rage, but slightly indecent and quietly rebellious.

Encouraged, Li Lan continued. “He laughed at my jokes. Like you do. How can I help my father arrange such a gruesome death for Saïd when we could be friends?”

So this was a just cause.

Which left only one possible answer to Li Lan’s plea, but it took him a second to say the words.

“I will help you.”

Author Bio

Beryll and Osiris Brackhaus are a couple currently living their happily ever after in the very heart of Germany, under the stern but loving surveillance of their three black cats. Both of them are voracious but picky readers, love telling stories and drinking tea, good food and the occasional violent movie. Together, they write novels of adventure and romance, hoping to share a little of their happiness with their readers.

An artist at heart, Beryll was writing stories even before she knew what letters were. As easily inspired as she is frustrated, her own work is never good enough (in her eyes). A perfectionist both in the best and worst sense of the word and the driving creative force of their duo.

An entertainer and craftsman in his approach to writing, Osiris is the down-to-earth, practical part of the duo. Broadly interested in almost every subject and skill, with a sunny mood and caring personality, he strives to bring the human nature into focus of each of their stories.

Author Website: https://www.brackhaus.com

Review: Blood Jade (Phoenix Hoard #2) by Julie Vee and Ken Bebelle

Rating: 4.75⭐️

I will admit to absolutely consuming this series. I am so engaged in the dragon magic universe and contemporary world that these authors have so fabulously created for their characters and fantasy story that I read right through the entire series.

Blood Jade picks up after the events of Ebony Gate, where Emiko Soong finally accepts her duty as the Sentinel of the City of San Francisco. We all learn about a grander conspiracy and plot against her family and other clans from a mysterious figure known only as The General.

As with the first book, the authors have multiple important storylines coinciding with the emotional Emiko’s development between herself and the City, what that entails, as well as Emiko’s character learning to engage with others around her in real relationships. From someone who has chosen a life of isolation to that of connection that spreads through a City to families and communities she’s been avoiding, Emiko has to undergo a major change of heart and mind. The transition isn’t easy and accepting it completely isn’t something she can handle.

The journey towards her personal growth takes her back home to Tokyo, to face family and responsibilities she ran away from. And the story with all its new characters and complex storylines, weaves old memories and new paths together for an explosive story and several revelations.

Just a phenomenal journey and book. I can’t believe I had not heard of this before.

Get all three books and binge read them together.

Absolutely amazing.

Highly recommended and thrilled to share.

The Phoenix Hoard – 3 books completed

#1 Ebony Gate

#2 Blood Jade

#3 Pearl City

Buy link

Blood Jade (The Phoenix Hoard, 2)

Blurb

The follow-up to Ebony Gate, the critically acclaimed debut of Vee and Bebelle’s Phoenix Hoard series.

IT TAKES A KILLER TO CATCH A KILLER

Emiko Soong, newly minted Sentinel of San Francisco, just can’t catch a break. Just after she becomes the guardian for a sentient city, a murder strikes close to home. Called by the city and one of the most powerful clans to investigate, she traces the killer whose scent signature bears a haunting similarity to her mother’s talent.

The trail will lead her back to Tokyo where the thread she pulls threatens to unravel her whole world and bring dark family secrets to light.

Meanwhile, the General rises in the East and Emiko must fight the hidden enemies of his growing army who are amped up on Blood Jade, while keeping her promises to her brother Tatsuya as he prepares for his tourney.

Her duties as Sentinel and her loyalties collide when she must choose between hiding her deepest shame or stopping the General’s relentless march.

The Phoenix Hoard

#1 Ebony Gate

#2 Blood Jade

#3 Pearl City

Tor Books

Publication date

June 17, 2025

Edition

Reprint

Language

‎English

Print length

464 pages

Book 2 of 3

The Phoenix Hoard

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