I’m hosting two book giveaways on my Socrates’ Book Review Blog.

One is Little Shop of Homicide by Denise Swanson. The other is Hot Chocolate by Dawn Greenfield Ireland. Stop by and enter to win a copy of both both books. Just click on the covers on the right sidebar to enter!

http://socratesbookreviews.blogspot.com/

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Publisher:
Artistic Origins, Inc.

Format:
EBook

Release Date:
October 2011

The Story…

Madge, Dorothea and Lila Mae Alcott are middle-aged sisters who are heiresses to the Alcott Chocolate empire. When Dorothea can no longer care for their 92 year-old father, the sisters decide to fire his nurse, Bambi, and place him in an assisted living care facility where he can get all the care he needs.

Bambi Chaline is a blonde bombshell who worked for the Alcott’s for years and is more than happy when they give her a severance package along with excellent references. However, her husband, Jimmy Ray, isn’t quite so happy and hires a lawyer on behalf of his wife. Their lawyer files a lawsuit against the Alcotts for wrongful termination. Jimmy Ray smells a huge settlement, while Bambi is dismayed by the case.

Jimmy Ray is livid when the court throws the case out, but Bambi isn’t upset at all. As the Alcotts celebrate their success, Jimmy Ray doesn’t return home from his bowling alley. The Alcotts become the prime suspect in his disappearance.

My Review…

It was a nice change of pace to have characters in their 50’s. Sometimes I want to read about people closer to my own age then characters in their 20’s. I tend to be able to better identify with older characters. Plus, it made me feel as if I was reading a humorous Agatha Christie book.

I never read anything by Dawn Greenfield Ireland before, but she definitely knows how to write mysteries the way I like them. The story is filled with twists, turns and eccentric characters that are essential in writing a cozy mystery. It’s fast-paced and keeps the readers on their toes. There are also some giggles and a dash of romance thrown into the mix. At the end, she includes some yummy recipes that are featured in the book. Suddenly I’m in desperate need of a hot chocolate with some marshmallow fluff.

This book is delicious!

FTC Disclosure: The author provided me with a copy of this book to review for the blog tour. This did not influence my thoughts and opinions in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

It is with great pleasure that Socrates’ Book Review Blog and Socrates’ Cozy Cafe welcomes author Denise Swanson for a visit. Denise is the author of the cozy series ‘Scumble River Mysteries’ and a brand new cozy series ‘A Devereaux’s Dime Store Mysteries’. For years I’ve been a huge fan of the Scumble River books and I was both surprised and delighted to see she began a new series. When asked if I’d like to review the first book, Little Shop of Homicide, I jumped at the chance. I’m so happy that Denise agreed to do this interview. Welcome, Denise!

Let the interview begin….

1) You were a school psychologist for a long time, what made you decide to write cozy mysteries?

I always liked to write. I wrote my first book in kindergarten and tried again in junior high, but back when I was growing up, no one talked about writing as a career. However, as I neared forty, I began to realize I hadn’t done what I wanted in my life. It took me a while to figure out that what I really wanted to do was write a novel. I looked at my bookshelves and decided to write the kind of books I liked to read—character driven with a little humor and a little romance.

2) Can you describe the process from the time you “get the call” that you will be published to the book appearing on the bookstore shelves?

After I dropped the receiver and accidently hung up on my agent, I almost don’t remember the rest. I recall not believing it was real until I held the actual contract in my hand. I got the call in March of 1999 and Murder of a Small-Town Honey came out in July of 2000. There were several revision requests from my editor—including writing a whole new first chapter—then the copy edit and the finally galley pass through. There was the quest for the perfect title—my original title was The Chokeberry Days Murder. Next up was the cover, which I loved, and finally getting the whole promotional machine started.

3) Do you have any say in the title or covers of your books? Is the decision-making process different from when you were a new author to now – a well-established author?

Most of the titles I’ve suggested are accepted by my editor and the rest of the NAL publishing team. Occasionally, they don’t think whatever I’ve called the book will attract readers and we go back and forth until we’re all happy. For my new series, I originally called it Sex and the Single Dead Girl, but the powers that be thought it sounded too much like a vampire book. My editor came up with Little Shop of Homicide, which I love!

The covers are a different story. I do see the cover sketches and can request small changes, but contractually, NAL has the final say.

4) Where did you get the idea for your new series?

The ideas for Little Shop of Homicide came from various sources. The setting was inspired by my love of the old dime store in my hometown. The idea of Devereaux’s previous profession came from the whole Bernie Madoff scandal. And the rest just sort of blossomed from various “what ifs.”

5) Do you outline the direction you’d like your books to go or do you just go with the moment?

When I started writing, and up until about my seventh or eighth book, I outlined using a sort of spider web approach—starting with the crime and going outward. But now I pretty much just sit down in front of the computer every morning and ask myself, “What comes next?”

6) How long does it take for you to write a book?

The first draft takes 3-4 months, then an additional 2-3 months for the second draft and final polish. After I get the revision letter from my editor, I usually have another 4-6 weeks of work.

7) Do you have any idea how many books will be in each of your series?

I really don’t. Sadly, often writers have little choice about ending a series. They can choose to end it, but they don’t always get to continue one they want to. That depends on sales (especially the first week a book is out). The publisher will only continue a series if it does well (better than the last book).

8) What do you think of the new “online” craze of “meeting” your fans and getting feedback to your work almost instantly? I’ve always loved meeting readers. I did over seventy appearances for my first book. I love the opportunity to interact with readers online. On my Facebook author page, I often ask their opinions and many have helped when I have research questions.

9) Do you have any opinions on the sudden explosion of ebooks and ereaders?

I’m such a novice about e-books, I still haven’t formed much of an opinion. NAL only recently acquired the e-rights to the Scumble River books and still haven’t gotten the entire series converted. And I got my first e-reader for Christmas—mostly to read friends of mine who had decided to publish books only electronically.

10) Can you give us any clues or hints to upcoming books?

Murder of the Cat’s Meow, Scumble River #15 is due out in September and the next dime store book is due out March 2013.

11) Are you planning any book signings in the near future?

I’ll be doing several signings for the release of Little Shop of Homicide. The first is at Aunt Agatha’s in Ann Arbor, MI Sunday, March 4, then one at the Coal City Library in IL Saturday, March 10 and the Barnes and Noble in Bolingbrook, IL Sunday, March 11. The details can be found on my website www.DeniseSwanson.com

Thank you so much, Denise, for taking the time from your busy schedule to join us!

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Publisher:
Obsidian (a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.)

Format:
Paperback

Release Date:
March 2012

Devereaux Sinclair makes a few life-changing decisions. She quits her city job, after a huge scandal rocks her company, moves back to her small hometown in Missouri, Shadow Bend, and buys an old fashioned five-and-dime store. Dev is quite happy until her ex-boyfriend’s fiancé, Joelle, turns up dead. The murder weapon just happens to be items Dev used in a gift basket that Joelle purchased, making Dev the number one suspect.

With her father already serving time in prison, Dev has no desire to join him there. She’s just begun a new life in Shadow Bend and everything was going along so well. She, also, is the only one who can take care of her grandmother. Determined to clear her name, Dev seeks the help of her best friends Poppy and Boone to find out who the real killer is. Not to mention the handsome U.S. Marshall, Jake Del Vecchio, who just arrived in town willing to assist in the search.

There is, also, a secondary mystery which looks to be drawn through this series. Dev’s father is in prison for a crime he insists he didn’t do and intends to prove his innocence. It will be interesting to see what direction this goes.

One of my favorite things about this series is that it’s set in an old-fashioned five-and-dime store which made me feel very nostalgic.

Sometimes it takes awhile to get used to characters in a brand new series, but I didn’t find that with this book. By the end of the book, I felt as if I knew the main characters very well. The mystery had me going in several directions – choosing the wrong culprit every time. LOL

This is a fast-paced mystery with quite a bit of romance thrown into the mix. Toss in Dev’s matchmaking grandmother and readers have a great adventure in store for them.

Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

If you’d like to win a copy of this wonderful book, check out the giveaway on my other blog Socrates’ Book Review Blog.

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Format:
EBook

Publisher:
Tyger Books

Release Date:
December 2011

Emily Castles, once again, finds herself mixed up in mystery and murder in the second book of the ‘Emily Castles Mystery” series.

One of Emily’s neighbors, Victoria, is receiving threatening letters. Victoria immediately asks Emily for help. Victoria admits that she made a video back in her college days with her former boyfriend and is afraid he’s the one sending the letters. From what Emily learns, the tape is not anything x-rated so she doubts that is the cause of the threats and she wonders if Victoria might not be a bit paranoid.

Since Emily’s current job status is non-existent, she agrees to help Victoria at her local children’s theater and, at the same time, keep watch for anything out of the ordinary. When the theater’s landlord is found dead, Emily realizes something truly is going on and she’s determined to help her neighbor.

This is a short story – only about 70 printed pages – and it goes way too fast. I wanted more, much more. I enjoyed every minute of this story. The good thing about short stories is that you can pick one up, settle in for a few hours and enjoy it with a nice cup of tea (or whatever you’d like to drink – LOL). The bad thing is you can’t wait for the next book to be published. That’s how I feel with this one.

The characters are very well-crafted and Helen Smith is a master story-teller. The story takes many twists and turns and keeps the reader guessing along with Emily. I’d love to see several Emily Castles’ stories in one complete volume. That would be fun to read.

FTC Disclosure: The author provided me with a copy of this book to review. This did not influence my thoughts and opinions in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Publisher: Tyger Books

Release Date: February 2011

Format: EBook

Emily Castles is grieving the loss of her beloved dog, Jessie. She’s feeling quite emotional and all alone in the world. Emily is invited to a neighborhood bonfire party by her new neighbors. This isn’t your typical party and one thing Emily never expects is to witness a murder.

Readers are treated to a crazy evening complete with an eccentric group of performers who give Emily a run for her money. She’s sure one of them has been murdered, but who could have done it? To make matters even more confusing, there’s no dead body and she begins to wonder if anyone really died.

This is a short story, approximately 70 printed pages and a very quick read. Talk about leaving readers wanting more. This is the first of a series of Emily Castles mysteries set in London. It’s fast-paced, funny, and mysterious all at the same time. I’ve never read anything by Helen Smith before, but she’s a new-to-me author that I will be looking for in the future. I can’t wait to see what Emily’s next adventure will be.

FTC Disclosure: The author provided me with a copy of this book to review. This did not influence my thoughts and opinions in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Publisher:
Poisoned Pen Press

Format:
EBook (Available in paperback)

Release date:
April 2011

Pru Marlowe recently returned to her beautiful hometown in the Berkshires for some peace and quiet. Unfortunately, that’s the last thing she’s going to get. Pru has a gift. She can communicate with animals.

As an animal behaviorist Pru has a variety of different pet clients including Lily, a rescue dog, who was taken in and given a home by Charles, one of the local citizens. Lily is a pit bull who loves her human, but tragedy strikes when Charles is killed and Lily is accused of his murder. Pru is the only one who believes in Lily’s innocence while the rest of the town is ready to get rid of her.

Pru uses her animal psychic abilities to talk to the animals in town, along with her live-in tabby Wallis – they set out to find a murderer.

This is the first book in the “Pet Noir” mysteries. I know a lot of people don’t like books with talking animals, but this one is different. The only one the animals talk to is Pru and that’s because of her special abilities. Otherwise the animals appear as ordinary animals to everyone else in town.

It’s a fun book with a mystery and even a dash of romance thrown together. The relationship between Pru and Wallis is just priceless. They are like two old friends instead of pet and human. I do admit that I was able to figure out who the culprit was but I enjoyed figuring it out with Pru and Wallis. It’s an enjoyable, fast-paced mystery and I’m looking forward to the second book in the series.

FTC Disclosure: I read this book from my own collection for my own enjoyment.

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Publisher:
Wf Howes

Format:
Audio

Release Date:
December 2010

This is the synopsis from Fantastic Fiction:

Lily Bard is a loner. Fiercely protective of her independence, she concentrates on her karate skills and her work as the proprietor of a cleaning and errand-running service, and pays little attention to the town around her. When her landlord is murdered, though, she looks like the prime suspect. Uncovering the real killer may be the only way to prove her innocence, and Lily realizes that she must focus on the other residents of tiny Shakespeare. Her job gives her easy access to people’s private lives, and she begins to snoop, finding plenty of skeleton-filled closets, and exposing herself to the unwanted attentions of a murderer.

My thoughts…

This is the first book in the Lily Bard series. I love Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse books so I had to try this one. Lily has her own cleaning service and lives in an apartment building with a quirky group of neighbors. It has all the ingredients I enjoy in my cozy mysteries – A strong heroine who feels compelled to stick her nose into a local murder mystery as she can’t trust the police to do their job, a cast of characters that send her on one wild goose chase after another and an intricate mystery that can go in all different directions until the case is solved. Lily even has a few secrets in her own past that she’s determined to keep hidden. What a great idea for an amateur sleuth to be the local cleaning woman. She gets to come and go into everyone’s house without drawing too much suspicion so she can snoop.

I listened to this one on audio and plan to listen to the rest of them on audio. This made for fun listening on my way to work. I can’t wait to hear all about Lily’s next adventure.

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Publisher:
Books on the Green

Release Date:
June 2011

Format:
EBook

It’s never a dull moment for movie blogger and mom Barbara Marr. Just as she’s ready to enjoy a pedicure with her friends…not just any pedicure, but a Sweet Tangerine Spice Ultra-Ultimate Pedicure, one of her neighbors is acting crazy on her front lawn screaming about killing rabbits. Not to mention that Barbara is sure this nut is having an affair with her George Clooney look-alike FBI agent husband.

When another neighbor is nearly killed, Barbara knows there’s something ominous going on and she’d have to do a bit of investigation of her own – even if it means missing out on her Ultra-Ultimate pedicure! After all, her friends are in danger and so is her own family. The pedicure would have to wait.

The wacky adventures of Barbara Marr will have readers laughing out loud. The story is complete with devoted friends, a husband who wants to reunite with her, his sexy flirty friend, and even a couple of zany mobsters. Barbara makes me think of a married Stephanie Plum. Reading this book is a great way to relax and spend a few hours.

Citizen Insane is the second book of the series. Although it stands alone, you’ll want to read the first one, Take the Monkeys and Run. You won’t want to miss a moment of Barbara’s antics.

I can’t say enough good things about this series and the author. She’s amazing! These books are better than a box of chocolates (and I love chocolate!) I’m just sorry it took me so long to get around to reading it.

and how could I not give it….

FTC Disclosure: The author provided me with a copy of this book to review. This did not influence my thoughts and opinions in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

Genre:
Cozy Mystery

Publisher:
Berkley Prime Crime Mystery

Release Date:
August 2009

Format:
EBook

Madeira Cutler is finally leaving her life and job in New York behind as she moves to her family hometown in Mystic, Connecticut. Maddie has huge plans which includes opening a vintage clothing store in a renovated morgue. The building needs much work, but Maddie is determined to have it completed by opening day. Unfortunately, an obstacle gets tossed in her way when an intruder breaks in and old bones are discovered in one of the morgue drawers.

Meanwhile, the building next door goes up in flames along with its owner. The police and Maddie begin to thing the two incidents are connected. Maddie and her best friend, Eve, decide to do some investigating on their own. They don’t want anything to get in the way of the store’s grand opening, which increases their desperation to uncover the truth.

Annette Blair gives her readers a great cast of characters in this second book of her “A Vintage Magic Mystery” series. Maddie is developing into a wonderful heroine, complete with supernatural powers – she touches vintage clothing and it opens the doorway for her to see directly into the past.

The rest of the cast vary in quirky to loveable to a few that aren’t quite so nice, including two men vying for Maddie’s attention. Toss in the morgue’s resident ghost and Maddie has her hands full. This is a fast-paced book which has readers going in a couple of different directions. The third book is already in my TBR waiting for me.

FTC Disclosure: I read this book from my own collection for my own enjoyment.