Review: Pumpkin Spice Spells (Witchcakes #1) by Sara Bourgeois

Rating: 3.5⭐️

I made the mistake of reading this without reading the prequel, Magic Muffin Magic, and felt that Pumpkin Spice Spells was decidedly lacking in background knowledge and in world building for the story to make sense and the reader to feel any connection.

After I backtracked and read the prequel and got up to speed, Pumpkin Spice Spells was a better story. Ivy’s new start in her deceased aunt’s bakery in Harvest Hollow is slowly becoming her own, venturing into her own recipes and making her own mistakes, all with the help of her best friends and Nutmeg.

The rest of the town is still vague in community and shops, details of which I’m sure the author will fill in as events happen. But it’s the town inhabitants and descriptions that give the reader a glimpse into its own character and a sense of “identity “ that small towns have about them.

So far that’s lacking here. Surprising in a book that is very wordy. It’s too “told to” and not enough, ambiance, I guess to make up for it. Something is missing here, and I’m finding it hard to figure out what.

Whatever it is that is the missing ingredient, it’s what is keeping me from being 100 percent engaged in the lives of the people here and the storyline. I’m just too removed emotionally to care about the mystery and the characters involved.

Surprising in a novel by this author.

I’ll keep reading, you never know.

Lick it up and check it out for yourself.

Witchcakes (3 book series)

Maple Muffin Magic #0.5

Pumpkin Spice Spells #1

Apple Cider Charms #2

Sugar Cookies Sorcery #3

Buy Link

Pumpkin Spice Spells (Witchcakes Book 1)

Blurb

Welcome to Harvest Hollow, where the pastries are sweet, the magic is real, and murder is always bad for business.

Ivy Merriweather never planned to come home. But when life in the city goes up in flames, she returns to Harvest Hollow to help save her family’s bakery, Witchcakes, just in time for the town’s busiest season… Halloween.

Between pumpkin spice cupcakes, enchanted recipes, and a chonky orange cat named Nutmeg who is far more trouble than help, Ivy already has enough on her plate.

Then a member of the Halloween festival committee is found dead behind the bakery, and suddenly all eyes are on Witchcakes.

The police chief is more interested in keeping the peace than solving a murder. The town rumor mill is working overtime. And Ivy’s kitchen magic keeps warning her that the wrong person is about to get away with it.

To clear her name, protect her bakery, and keep Harvest Hollow’s spookiest season from turning deadly, Ivy will have to follow the crumbs, trust her instincts, and hope Nutmeg does not destroy the evidence first…

September 15, 2026

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‎English

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Book 1 of 3

Witchcakes

Review: A Most Excellent Midlife Crisis (Good To The Last Death Book 3) by Robyn Peterman

Rating: 4.5⭐️

Peterman’s storylines and characters are developing beautifully, giving realistic growth to the depth that they’ve unlocked in themselves as events has shown.

It’s funny, sometimes painful, heartbreaking and joyful, depending upon what characters are involved here, ghost squatters, members of Daisy’s new found family or someone completely different.

And hilarious when it comes to those detailed “facts” that Tim and Jennifer are experts at spewing out during get togethers. I’ll admit, I really look forward to those. They make my day and I really need to start writing them down. In each book.

Gideon and Daisy are well on their way to an established relationship but twists are a fact of the series as are cliffhangers.

Read swiftly through to the next book for all the answers. I’m way ahead at this point. Loving this series.

A great series and read.

Cover design by JJ’s Design & Creations

Good To The Last Death (16 book series)

It’s A Wonderful Midlife Crisis #1

Whose Midlife Crisis Is It Anyway? #2

A Most Excellent Midlife Crisis #3

My Midlife Crisis, My Rules #4

You Light Up My Midlife Crisis #5

It’s A Matter of Midlife and Death #6

The Facts of Midlife #7

It’s A Hard-Knock Midlife #8

Run For Your Midlife #9

It’s A Hell of A Midlife #10

A Leaner Meaner Midlife #11

Having the Time of My Midlife #12

Someone Save My Midlife Tonight #13

Semi-Charmed Midlife #14

Got To Get You Into My Midlife #15

Spice Up Your Midlife #16

Buy link

Book 3 of 16: Good To The Last Death

Blurb

Midlife’s a bumpy journey. The ride is a freaking rollercoaster. The crisis is real.

With my life back to normal—normal being a very relative word—one would think I’d catch a break.

One would be very wrong.

With an Angel gunning for me and a Demon in my bed, life couldn’t be more complicated. Not to mention, I’m going to have to make a rather large life choice.

Do I want to live forever? Does anyone?

Forever is a very long time.

Whatever. I’ll think about it tomorrow… or next week… or next month. As long as I have my girlfriends, my dogs, a super-sized case of merlot and my deceased squatters, I’m good to go.

My midlife crisis. My rules. If it doesn’t kill me dead first, I plan to have a most excellent midlife crisis.

Robyn Peterman

Publication date

July 27, 2020

Language

‎English

Print length

338 pages

Book 3 of 16

Good To The Last Death

Review: Maple Muffin Magic (Witchcakes prequel) by Sara Bourgeois

Rating: 3⭐️

I’m a absolute fan of author Sara Bourgeois and am reading several of her terrific series right now , from a paranormal murder mystery set in a small mysterious town in the Arizona desert (a real favorite) to another unfolding in a witchy town of Cauldron Hollow. So when I see yet another book, the first one in a new series, yes, I immediately pick it up.

Especially when the cover is ablaze with fall colors and elements. Hooked.

That said, I don’t find I was as connected to the story and characters here as I was with the other series. Bourgeois loves a woman who is in the process of restarting her life. Whether it’s because she’s been fired from her job, or because her relationship has gone downhill, whatever the reason, she’s needing a jumpstart to a new stage in her life.

And the plot gifts her with a shop or something from a deceased relative, fill in who it is, and what it is, that allows the woman to relocate and begin again. With new powers. And a familiar.

Here it’s a bakery , a cat familiar, a magical town that leans into its reputation, and Ivy Merriweather returning to Harvest Hollow where Ivy takes over her aunt’s bakery shop, Witchcakes and Nutmeg, the aunt’s familiar.

Of course, soon after, there’s a murder, several mysteries to investigate, and recipes to bake for the next festival.

The friends that Ivy have in town make a nice foundation for the main character to settle into but the slow burn romance aspect is nonexistent here. You can see where the author wants to build the storyline but it’s a real stretch right now.

This is a nice outline at best. I feel her other series have better depth and deeper layering, even at the beginning.

Witchcakes (3 book series)

Maple Muffin Magic

Pumpkin Spice Spells #1

Apple Cider Charms #2

Sugar Cookies Sorcery #3

Buy Link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.comMaple Muffin Magic (Witchcakes) – Kindle edition by Bourgeois, Sara. Mystery, Thriller …

Blurb

Welcome to Harvest Hollow, where the ovens are warm, the magic is old, and one chonky orange cat has already decided who belongs.

Ivy Merriweather only came back to Harvest Hollow to settle her grandmother’s affairs and decide what to do with Witchcakes. Clean the bakery. Make a plan. Leave before anyone calls it a homecoming.

Then she finds an orange cat sleeping in a proofing basket like he owns the place.

Nutmeg is nosy, bossy, underfoot, and somehow always exactly where he should not be. He is also determined to help Ivy reopen Witchcakes for Harvest Hollow’s fall market, whether she asks for his help or not.

But when Rosemary Merriweather’s signature harvest spice tin vanishes, small acts of sabotage start piling up. Someone makes it very clear that they do not want Witchcakes back in business, and Ivy realizes that her return may have upset more than just the “official bakery cat”.

To save the business, survive the market, and solve the mystery of who is trying to push her out, Ivy will have to trust her instincts, trust her magic, and trust the ridiculous orange menace currently sitting on her recipe cards.

August 8, 2026

Language

‎English

Print length

106 pages

Review: Whose Midlife Crisis Is It Anyway? (Good To The Last Death Book 2) by Robyn Peterman

Rating: 4.5⭐️

I am so in love with this series and these characters. And I’m consuming them like bonbons. They are so addictive .

They are quick reads and flow beautifully into each other, mostly because the last chapter of each book is the first chapter of the next novel, catching the reader on the narrative and any cliffhanger that might have happened.

My favorite part is that the character development is so good along with the magical elements. Daisy’s adjusting to her new abilities , supergluing body parts to ghosts and helping them on their way, and her growing relationship with the Grim Reaper, to say nothing of her own found family of mixed humans and otherworldly beings. And now it includes Daisy’s gay dead ex husband, Steve, who is terrific! He’s got his own story.

Don’t forget Clarisse, who’s truly evil acts . Her plot will carry over several books.

This is exciting, well written, emotional, and fast paced. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself reading through the entire series unable to stop.

Amazing! A great time and highlight as a reader.

Cover by Cookies.

Good To The Last Death (16 book series)

It’s A Wonderful Midlife Crisis #1

Whose Midlife Crisis Is It Anyway? #2

A Most Excellent Midlife Crisis #3

My Midlife Crisis, My Rules #4

You Light Up My Midlife Crisis #5

It’s A Matter of Midlife and Death #6

The Facts of Midlife #7

It’s A Hard-Knock Midlife #8

Run For Your Midlife #9

It’s A Hell of A Midlife #10

A Leaner Meaner Midlife #11

Having the Time of My Midlife #12

Someone Save My Midlife Tonight #13

Semi-Charmed Midlife #14

Got To Get You Into My Midlife #15

Spice Up Your Midlife #16

Buy link

Book 2 of 16: Good To The Last Death

Blurb

A Paranormal Women’s Fiction with a bit of class, and a lot of sass, for anyone who feels like age is just a number! Midlife’s a journey. Enjoy the ride. Crisis included.

Never knew that life after death was far more dangerous than real life. Never in my forty years did I think my new normal would be gluing body parts back onto ghosts and hosting a houseful of dead squatters. Thank God for superglue and a strong stomach. Never thought I’d date the Grim Reaper and that I would be the one to blow it. I mean, how idiotic does one have to be to get dumped by a dude who lives in Hell? Going about business as usual is not usual in any way. No one is who they seem to be… and to be honest, neither am I. What I’d known to be true has turned out to be myth. The Angels are frightening and the Demons are hot.

Wait. I mean not. Who am I kidding? The Grim Reaper is very hot—like a freaking pre-menopausal hot flash hot. Now I’m in a race against time and all sorts of unsavory supernatural horrors to save my deceased gay husband’s afterlife. And that was a sentence I never thought would leave my lips. Whatever. I’ll yank up my big girl panties, stock up on wine and lean on my girlfriends as needed. As they say, when the going gets tough, the tough get inebriated… or something like that. With everything to lose, I have no choice but to grow some lady balls. That I can do. I just hope balls will be enough. I had planned to live midlife in peace, not in pieces. Good luck to me…

Robyn Peterman

Publication date

May 18, 2020

Language

‎English

Print length

308 pages

Check out the new Release “Search for the Lost“ by J. Scott Coatsworth & Kim Fielding (tour and excerpt from Other Worlds Ink Tours)

J. Scott Coatsworth and Kim Fielding has a new MM romantasy book out, Chaos and Order book two: Search for the Lost.

SOMETIMES ORDER BECOMES CHAOS…

Leopold Lane—after being “collected” for the Office of the Lost by Crispin Eladrin Moss’caladin—is tucked away cozily with his beloved office fae in their treehouse. Happily ever after, right? Not so fast.

Before Leo can even get settled, Crispin’s mother disappears, leaving Crispin in charge and his brother Aspin in a panic. As Queen of the Fae, she has also left them a little surprise: a bit of oxymoronic magic that turns their world upside down.

Crispin and Leo set off in search of the queen and a solution to their predicament. Aspin tags along, with some less-than-helpful friends. On the way they will discover important family secrets and learn new things about each other… and themselves. Nothing is simple when Chaos and Order get involved. Besides, it wouldn’t be a proper quest if it was straightforward, would it?

Series Blurb:

Crispin and Leopold are poorly matched. They’re nothing like one another – Crispin is Order personified, while Leo’s nothing but Chaos. So of course, they are perfect for each other. Now they just have to figure out why the Universe has thrust them together – and how not to get themselves killed (or murder each other) in the process.

Note: Book One is on sale everywhere for just 99¢ from October 1st-31st.

Universal Buy Link

Excerpt

A sharp banging at the door brought Crispin back to the present. Or rather, to the past, when Leo had been taken away from him by Juzir and Qyl.

They shared a look. Leo was clearly thinking the same thing.

Wordlessly, he gathered up his clothes and disappeared into the bathroom, snicking the lock closed.

We have a bathroom lock now? Crispin brushed away the thought. “Coming!”

He hoped Leo wasn’t in trouble again. After all, they’d fixed everything. There were no more flattened citizens aimlessly lying about. Well, except on Tarkon, where most of the wildlife and half of the people were naturally pretty flat. And they’d thrown a big party to smooth the waters with all their new friends, including the Mucklins, even though Molly the moth-woman had planned to feed Leo and Crispin to her children. But that was all in the past.

He opened the door, half expecting an angry mob. Instead it was his annoying older brother, Aspin, staring at him forlornly. “Hey, Elly….”

The old much-hated nickname—derived from his middle name, Eladrin—brought a rebuke to Crispin’s lips, but it died when he realized how dejected Aspin looked. “All clear!” he called over his shoulder. Crispin made way for Aspin to enter. “Come in. What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Aspin nodded, looking as if he’d eaten a canary—or Minkis, Crispin’s pet squirrel.

“Who is it?” Leo had appeared, dressed formally for company—which for him meant flip-flops and a loose white T-shirt that he’d made a half-hearted attempt to tuck into his jeans. His hair, which usually stuck straight up, was slightly more tamed. “Oh, hey Aspin!”

Even though Aspin clearly despised him, Leo never held a grudge, one of the many things Crispin loved about him.

Aspin threw his arms around Crispin. “She’s gone, Elly. She’s gone.”

“Who?” But then it dawned on him: Aspin had only one her. And Aspin confirmed it with a single word. “Mother.”

Crispin stiffened. “Mother is dead?” Oh sordid heavens. I’m not ready to take over yet.

Aspin ended the embrace, returning to form. “No, you idiot. I said she was gone, not dead. Three days ago, and no one knows where she is or if she will come back. You have to help me find her.”

“Gone.” Crispin eased himself down onto their newest piece of furniture, the hideous old couch from Leo’s Earth apartment. Leo stared at him, blinking, then sat on the cushion next to him. “She’s gone. So that means….”

Aspin sank down onto one knee. “Hail to Crispin Eladrin Moss’caladin, King of the High Holy Fae.”

Oh flack. If there’s one thing that Crispin was positively absolutely emphatically five-thousand-percent not ready for, it was to take his mother’s throne. He had no aspirations to power, and he certainly didn’t share his mother’s proclivities for seducing mortals. Well, maybe just the one.

Author Bios

Scott lives with his husband Mark in a small Italian villa outside of Sacramento, California. He was indoctrinated into fantasy and sci fi by his mother at the tender age of nine. He devoured her library, but as he grew up, he wondered where all the people like him were.

He decided that if there weren’t queer characters in his favorite genres, he would remake them to his own ends.

A Rainbow Award winning author, he runs Queer Sci Fi, QueeRomance Ink, Liminal Fiction and Other Worlds Ink with Mark, sites that celebrate fiction reflecting queer reality, and was the committee chair for the Indie Authors Committee at the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) for almost three years.

Website: https://www.jscottcoatsworth.com

Facebook (personal): https://www.facebook.com/jscottcoatsworth

Facebook (author): https://www.facebook.com/jscottcoatsworthauthor/

Mastodon: https://mastodon.otherworldsink.com/@jscottcoatsworth

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/jscottcoatsworth.bsky.social

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

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8392709.J_Scott_Coatsworth

QueeRomance Ink: https://www.queeromanceink.com/mbm-book-author/j-scott-coatsworth/

Liminal Fiction: https://www.limfic.com/mbm-book-author/j-scott-coatsworth/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/J.-Scott-Coatsworth/e/B011AFO4OQ

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/j-scott-coatsworth

Kim Fielding is very pleased every time someone calls her eclectic. She writes fantasy, mm romance, science fiction, horror, and whatever else her muse demands.

Winner of the 2021 BookLife Prize for Fiction, a Lambda Award finalist and Foreword INDIE finalist, she has migrated back and forth across the western two-thirds of the United States and now lives in Oregon, where she will never have enough bookshelf space.

She’s a university professor who dreams of being able to travel and write full time. She also dreams of having two daughters who fully appreciate her, a husband who isn’t obsessed with football, and a house that cleans itself. Some dreams are more easily obtained than others.

Website: https://www.kfieldingwrites.com

Facebook (personal): https://www.facebook.com/pgerstenfeld

Facebook (author): https://www.facebook.com/KFieldingWrites

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/kfieldingwrites.bsky.social

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

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4105707.Kim_Fielding

QueeRomance Ink: https://www.queeromanceink.com/mbm-book-author/kim-fielding/

Review: It’s A Wonderful Midlife Crisis (Good To The Last Death Book 1) by Robyn Peterman

Rating: 4.5⭐️

There’s multiple books and series about middle aged women (and surprisingly that age varies wildly) who find themselves launched onto new paths and into new lives from many authors, now available to pick from. And in several different genres.

Some I enjoyed reading and others not so much.

It’s A Wonderful Midlife Crisis (Good To The Last Death Book 1) by Robyn Peterman is a definite delight. While I’m not sure I agree with a woman in her early 40’s as middle aged these days, (there’s another series whose writer has it as late 30’s), the characters and stories are so well written, the dialogue crisp and fun, and the emotional depth real and relatable, well, it’s just a winner in every way.

There’s so many positive aspects to the story and characters that I read quickly through and started immediately into the second book.

It opens with Daisy, a widow of one year, immediately having a tough morning. It starts bad and turns worse when she finds a hand in her laundry basket.

That’s the opener. We learn she sees ghosts, they inhabit her house to an unsettling degree and her life’s a mess. The bright side of her life are her friends and her grandmother who lives in a nursing home.

That’s the bare bones of a fantastic story that will include a Grim Reaper, portals, KrazyGlue, ghosts, angels, her ex-husband, a paranormal romance, and strange pets, and wonderful relationships.

Each book ends with a cliffhanger that the next book will pick up on with a rehash of the last events. It flows smoothly which works perfectly as all the books of the series are available now to binge on. All sixteen of them!

Gram is a definite favorite but I can easily see that others will grow on me as the development here is excellent.

And because ghosts and life and death are a part of the story, just know that there will be some characters who will pass on as part of the plot.

That too is as it should be.

I am thrilled to have found this author and series. And now can share it with you. Another happy recommendation!

Cover design by JJ’s Design & Creations

Good To The Last Death (16 book series)

It’s A Wonderful Midlife Crisis #1

Whose Midlife Crisis Is It Anyway? #2

A Most Excellent Midlife Crisis #3

My Midlife Crisis, My Rules #4

You Light Up My Midlife Crisis #5

It’s A Matter of Midlife and Death #6

The Facts of Midlife #7

It’s A Hard-Knock Midlife #8

Run For Your Midlife #9

It’s A Hell of A Midlife #10

A Leaner Meaner Midlife #11

Having the Time of My Midlife #12

Someone Save My Midlife Tonight #13

Semi-Charmed Midlife #14

Got To Get You Into My Midlife #15

Spice Up Your Midlife #16

Buy link

Book 1 of 16: Good To The Last Death

Blurb

A Paranormal Women’s Fiction with a bit of class, and a lot of sass, for anyone who feels like age is just a number!

Whoever said life begins at forty must have been heavily medicated, drunk, or delusional.

Thirty-nine was a fantastic year. I was married to the man I loved. I had a body that worked without creaking. My grandma, who raised me, was still healthy, and life was pretty damned good.

But as they say, all good things come to an end. I’d honestly love to know who ’they’ are and rip them a new one. One year later, I’m a widow. My joints are starting to ache. Gram is in the nursing home, and dead people think my home is some kind of supernatural bed and breakfast. Gluing body parts onto semi-transparent people has become a side job—deceased people I’m not even sure are actually there. I think they need my help, but since I don’t speak dead, we’re having a few issues.

To add to the heap of trouble, there’s a new dangerously smokin’ hot lawyer at the firm who won’t stop giving me the eye. My BFF is thrilled with her new frozen face, thanks to her plastic surgeon, her alimony check, and the miracle of Botox. And then there’s the little conundrum that I’m becoming way too attached to my ghostly squatters… Like Cher, I’d like to turn back time. Now.

No can do.

Whatever. I have wine, good friends, and an industrial sized box of superglue. What could possibly go wrong?

Everything, apparently.

All in all, it’s shaping up to be a wonderful midlife crisis…

Robyn Peterman

Publication date

February 17, 2020

Language

‎English

Print length

394 pages

Book 1 of 16

Good To The Last Death

Review: A Tale of Secrets and Sorcery by Vanessa Nelson

Rating: 3.75⭐️

I enjoyed this new fantasy adventure novel by Vanessa Nelson and feel it’s got some wonderful elements to it.

But after reading it, it feels very much like a prequel or half of a story for a larger version. The characters, the concept and overall powers here as laid out are intriguing. But in the scenes where,especially Evie’s magic is revealed in marvelous detail, the promise of increasing potential for her as “the most powerful sorceress” that he’s known to have any impact here never happens.

Even those gremlins, a fantastic asset to Evie and a element that I wanted to know more about, from their magical abilities to their backgrounds, their futures were left unanswered by the ending, a rushed finale that begged for a sequel.

But back to the main characters, Evie the magical librarian and Lord Fentemann, Barnaby, on a secret mission from his Queen. Evie’s got a great backstory and she’s totally believable in this fantasy. My issue here is that we get constant scenes where we’re watching Evie, along with the gremlins, bring alive fantastical legendary landscapes from descriptions in ancient tomes she and Barnaby are researching from . Where’s more of this in the story? More of her powers and her abilities here? This is what I want as a reader.

Even Barnaby, who is supposed to be a high level magician, isn’t shown any of the scenes to be that powerful. The characters are interesting enough but not entirely credible. Except for Evie and the gremlins.

The plot is very good. And its elements of an ancient earth based religion that’s been upended holds more promise than was satisfied by the storyline’s ending. Again, no real finish to the multi plots and characters.

It just ends with everyone just leaving to different paths with no resolution to the many different journeys of this novel. What happened to the Druids? The gremlins? The enemy?

And spoiler, that rushed romance and instant marriage felt less like a real believable event between two people and more like a plot device needed to bring the story to a close.

That is a shame. Because the beginning of this book is very different, layered and well done. Unlike the ending which feels rushed, unbalanced and unsatisfying.

So much potential for a sequel to set this right.

Interesting though.

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.comA Tale of Secrets and Sorcery eBook : Nelson, Vanessa

Blurb

One librarian, one sorcerer, and a whole lot of trouble.

Evie has been doing her best to lead a quiet, unremarkable life, working her job as a librarian at one of the largest libraries in the world amid a collection of magical books and magical creatures that delight in causing mischief. She dreams of adventure even as she struggles to hide her magical abilities in a kingdom that executes rogue sorcerers. When a chance encounter leads to her secret being uncovered, Evie finds herself in the middle of a greater adventure than she could ever have imagined.

Lord Fentemann – Barnaby to his few friends – has been charged by his Queen with a special, dangerous and vital task. Already annoyed at having to travel to the kingdom to carry out research in the library, worse is to come when he is forced to go on the run. Someone doesn’t want Barnaby to succeed in his mission.

Thrown together, Evie and Barnaby realise that their best chance of survival is working together.

Can Evie and Barnaby work together to stay ahead of the Queen’s enemies and complete the mission not just for the Queen but possibly the whole world?

Review: A Killer Heart (The Cat Lady Chronicles Book 5) by Helen Harper

Rating: 4.75⭐️

I just love Helen Harper’s The Catherine Lady Chronicles and this might be my favorite book of the series so far.

In A Killer Heart we finally get to explore more of cat sith Kit McCafferty’s history, both her dangerous past and her current life’s work with MET, the Magical Enforcement Team,besides Captain Montgomery.

Kit’s past history as an assassin has often been referenced in other stories but here it’s an integral part of the book. The EEL, or Eagle Enforcers and Liquidators where Kit was employed and later retired from after 20 years as an assassin, is under attack.

And whoever is targeting the people who work or worked there are harming others around them, innocents, as well as. Kit is immediately involved, both as a secretly retired assassin and as someone who is working with the MET, who is investigating the attacks.

This is a great story. Kit is trying to balance her life, her past family as a EEL assassin and her new life in the Coldstream community which she’s embraced. Along with her new lone wolf boyfriend.

Harper is terrific at showing Kit in her multiple identities, cat sith, dangerous assassin , an older woman who’s body is being uncooperative when she needs it most, and the “harmless cat lady “ persona she uses when she’s trying to make herself look like a helpless woman. It always feels credible to the reader, valid and occasionally hilarious.

The cats remain as cat like as ever, intriguing and mysterious. I love them.

The investigation is a good one. And ends satisfactorily.

The book ending however, oh my. An hilarious cliffhanger of sorts. It’s not fair to have to wait until next year to see the outcome of this one!

An absolute delight of a book. Highly recommended. A romantic relationship with no spice is included.

Book Cover created by Covers By Juan

The Cat Lady Chronicles (6 books)

Waif and Strays #1

The Dark Hiss of Magic #2

A Skirl of Sorcery #3

Night Maze #4

A Killer Heart #5

Kith and Kin #6 – April 30, 2027

Buy link

A Killer Heart (The Cat Lady Chronicles Book 5)

Blurb

What happens when the hunters become the hunted?

Kit McCafferty is an upstanding citizen of the magical city of Coldstream.

She’s a good neighbour. She has a fabulous partner, an occasionally tidy home, and only a moderately alarming number of cats. Her days as a professional assassin with Eagle Enforcers and Liquidators are behind her. Or so she thinks.

When Kit volunteers to assist local law enforcement with crowd control, she comes face-to-face with her former life. Someone is trying to destroy EEL — the discreet but deadly firm of assassins she once called home — and they’re not concerned about collateral damage. They’re willing to raze Coldstream to the ground to finish the job.

Whoever is targeting EEL knows its inner workings and its secrets. Kit’s old friends and colleagues, as well as the citizens of Coldstream, are at risk. To stop blood from spilling onto the city’s glittering streets and shadowed alleyways, Kit must decide who she is now – a heroic citizen determined to protect her city or a stone cold killer.

Walking away from her past might not be an option.

This is the fifth book in the urban fantasy series The Cat Lady Chronicles. Expect magic, adventure and a whole lot of cats.

September 18, 2026

Language

‎English

Print length

288 pages

Book 5 of 6

The Cat Lady Chronicles

Review: Crimson Moon Falling (Riley Blackthorne #3) by J.L. Brannick

Rating:3⭐️

Crimson Moon Falling finishes up the Riley Blackthorne series with a story that’s just remotely better than the dreadful second book.

It’s got Riley dealing with her sentient implant which is depressing her emotions. And it’s scientist/creator stalking her to get her back. Along with the investigation into the abductions of other supernaturals, her father’s disappearance and government corruption, there’s no let up on the dangers to herself and those around her.

Once again Conall, his brother, who has been a dangerously out of control element for 3 books and remains one here, are among the worst of the storylines. In a pack where the Alpha is the final boss, here Conall consistently has let his brother undermine his authority, his ability to rule, and even his choices. Without a single real confrontation or consequence. Yes, let’s believe that.

And that Riley’s decision to constantly forgive those actions makes sense. Because yes, being a passive doormat in a relationship where you’ve been the constant victim but made to be the one who has to give in is healthy.

That’s the overriding dynamic here. Three books of it.

There’s an open ended aspect of this where the stalker is still out there, still writing to her, she’s still in contact with him. Yeah, that’s great. Should talk about that too.

That great young woman who wanted to finish her degree? Wanted nothing to do with the Alpha? I liked her. Too bad she’s completely lost at the end. Vanished under a sentient brain implant by a male doctor that has its own agenda and a bond with a selfish Male Alpha who can’t or won’t communicate. Don’t even recognize her.

Too bad. I’m done anyway.

No recommendations.

Cover designer Maggie G. Jackson

Riley Blackthorne series:

Black Moon Rising #1

Cold Moon Burning #2

Crimson Moon Falling #3

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Blurb

Silent frost creeps through me as my new mate bond slowly dies.

The implant embedded in my cortex at Roswell suppresses my emotions while sharpening my intellect.

At the cost of my mate bond.

When another park ranger goes missing in Yellowstone, I come full circle to my father’s disappearance.

My troll partner and I uncover a conspiracy so dark that only the most cunning and ruthless will survive.

And my agonizing choices will help keep the supernaturals safe, but the aftermath could haunt the Alpha and Pack for years to come.

If I stay alive long enough to make it back to them.

Book 3 in the Riley Blackthorne thriller urban fantasy romance trilogy, where an Alpha and his mate work to uncover a corrupt government’s insidious plot before war erupts.

Review: Storm’s Reckoning (Storm Herald – An Epic Urban Fantasy Series Book 2) by Sean Cunningham

Rating: 4.5⭐️

I love it when the second book is better than the first and that’s certainly the case with Storm’s Reckoning by Sean Cunningham.

The next novel in his Storm Herald series, it picks up directly from the end of Storm’s Edge and Vanessa trying to decide what she wants to do next. Try to stay low key or resume her high risk courier jobs that are making her more noticeable to those of power and influence. The very ones she has been avoiding.

But working full time for Odd’s Transport and doing a new job for the mysterious Edric seems to be her next step forward towards her new path.

Storm’s Reckoning takes her and Leo on a new mission for Edric and straight to a location where there’s a divisive battle taking place for dominance among a powerful werewolf pack as its current Alpha is in poor health.

Cunningham’s story always includes multiple strong plots layered into the main investigation and mission for Edric. Vanessa’s powers continue to grow without her understanding how that’s possible and Leo’s seeking knowledge about himself and his own magic and background. All while they face dangerous situations and new challenges.

Vanessa and Leo, a non romantic main character duo, are new favorites. Both complicated characters with personalities that are changing and developing as the series and circumstances demand more from each of them.

The action sequences are fierce and powerful , magically charged and full of emotion. Mostly blinding rage.

The secondary or new characters are just as strong as the established ones. Which makes both the narrative richer and their occasional loss during the story more realistic and raw.

The backgrounds and mysteries of Edric, Vanessa and even Leo continue forward to the future stories. I can’t wait to read more.

Highly recommended.

Storm Herald – An Epic Urban Fantasy Series (3 book series)

Storm’s Edge #1

Storm’s Reckoning #2

Storm’s Awakening #3

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Book 2 of 3: Storm Herald – An Epic Urban Fantasy Series

Blurb

She’s not hiding anymore. Neither is what’s inside her.

Vanessa Montiero has a new employer, a vampire partner, and a job that should be straightforward: negotiate with one of England’s most powerful werewolf dynasties for access to the ghost of a witch, one they’ve kept secret for a century.

Behind the manicured hedges of the Godwins’ country estate lies a succession war sharp enough to draw blood, a string of mysterious murders, and something in the forest that doesn’t leave survivors.

She’s faced monsters before. She’s been one.

But the Godwins are a family of predators – and whatever hunts their forest is worse. Getting out alive will require everything she has, and possibly everything she’s been trying not to be.

Storm’s Reckoning continues the brutal, emotionally charged Storm Herald series. Perfect for fans of Alex Verus, Kate Daniels, and The Dresden Files.

Falconbrook Press

Publication date

April 15, 2026

Language

‎English

Screen Reader

Supported

Print length

326 pages

Book 2 of 3

Storm Herald – An Epic Urban Fantasy Series

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Note: Book One is on sale everywhere for just 99¢ from October 1st-31st.

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