46) Checked Out by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

Wealthy socialite Elizabeth Cateman Kingsley has hired Helen to find a missing John Singer Sargent painting, owned by her late father. After his death, many of Davis Cateman’s books were donated to the Flora Park library, and his daughter suspects the small watercolor—worth millions—was tucked away inside one of those dusty tomes.

To search the stacks, Helen applies for a position as a library volunteer and discovers the library director has a catalog of complaints—from a mischievous calico cat named Paris to the mysterious disappearance of various items that some of the more imaginative staff are attributing to a ghost haunting the building.

While her husband Phil sticks his neck out to find a missing necklace, Helen is on her own with no one to lend her a hand. When a dead body turns up in a parking lot, it appears someone is willing to go to any lengths to keep the treasure in the library quiet. Now Helen is bound and determined to find the killer as well as the painting—before she’s taken out of circulation herself.

My Thoughts :

This is one of my favourite cozy mystery series but as I have moaned about many times over the last few years, it is also not one I can pick up on release day.  Well I could but the cost of the book is always three times the price of a normal novel.  Even the Kindle version is highly priced.  I love the series but I can't justify buying a copy when it releases when I could buy three books for the same price.  I just hope that the author actually gets the money!   Anyway, I usually add the new releases to my wishlist and hope to get a copy for Christmas or my Birthday and at some point a copy of this latest release did find its way into my possession.  However a new installment is about to release so I am nearly back at square one, so to speak.

Another great cozy that is well thought out and interesting.  It wasn't my favourite of the series but it wasn't the worst.  This time around I felt that Helen was acting a little more dramatic than usual and I have to wonder if she is getting a bit too cocky.  Of course this did end up to be murder at the end of the day but she was sounding a little crazy now and again.

I really love Elaine Viets books and miss her Mystery Shopper series.  I hope this series will continue for a few more books but I also look forward to Helen getting a nice happy end.  She has been through a lot and despite being better off she still, I feel, deserves something more.

Looking forward to the next installment.  It is on my wishlist and my Birthday is coming up!  So fingers crossed!!!

26) Catnapped by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

The one thing celebrity Trish Barrymore and her no-account accountant husband, Mort, can agree on in their bitter divorce is shared cat custody. But when Mort is found brained by a mahogany cat tower, and Justine, their pedigreed Chartreux show cat, goes missing, Trish calls on Helen and Phil. Despite a ransom note from the catnapper, Trish is still the prime murder suspect in the eyes of the police. As they await the post-Mort-em, it’s up to Helen and Phil to find the feline filcher and let the cat out of the bag.

Discovering that Mort had some shady dealings within cat show circles, Helen goes undercover as an assistant for a woman who shows prizewinning Persians. But Phil is not buying Trish’s cat-that-swallowed-a-canary act—he thinks she might be staging the whole catnapping.

As Helen and Phil get deeper into a high-pressure world of primping, posing, and purring to collar a killer, they get caught up in a cat-and-mouse game where the stakes are literally life and death....

My Thoughts :

March is here and I going to use this month to get some physical books read.  Usually this must read author/series would have been on pre-order and bought on Kindle but for some reason the publishers insist on releasing this series in hardback for a high price.  Now I love this series but for the price of this hardback I can buy four paperbacks or Kindle books.  Guess what I decide to do!  So this was on my wishlist and I actually got a copy for my Birthday, way back when!  Now I finally got around to reading it.

As expected this was a great read.  I love the Dead-End Job Mysteries and this was just as good as the previous twelve installments.  This thirteenth story was a pleasure to read and I loved reading about the cats shows and other cat information.  It even led me to looking up some breeds and discovering what breed (obviously not fully) one of my cats is.  The research done for this book must have taken a long time and I think the author did a great job in this aspect.

The plot was strong and interesting.  There turned out to be two murders that Helen and Phil investigated and their hard work on the cases paid off as always.  It wasn't always easy and they hit a few walls now and again but despite all the little twists and turns they did a great job.  It was also nice to see the couple getting along so well but I do have to say I find it weird that they both still have their own apartments.  I should also think Margery would prefer them to give up one so she can rent it out for a higher price.

So this series continues to be a must read!  I enjoy each story as much as the previous one and love the different subjects the author weaves into her mysteries.  However one of the main reasons for coming back to this series time and time again is the continuing stories of the main characters.  There are always some surprising developments and I find their stories to be just engaging as the mysteries.

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2) A Dog Gone Murder by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

Josie has been asked to investigate Uncle Bob’s Doggy Day Camp, known for its commercials featuring Uncle Bob liking dogs so much that he acts like one. But Josie soon learns how Uncle Bob acts when the cameras are off. Her mother’s new tenant, Franklin, who works for Uncle Bob, plans to quit after seeing the man’s true nature. But before he gets the chance, Bob is murdered, and Franklin goes from the doghouse to the big house.

Now it’s up to Josie to clear Franklin’s name. Her investigation reveals that Bob was more of a dog than anyone knew—and had been kicked out of his house for bad behavior. As she digs up new clues, Josie will have to catch the killer quickly, before any more trouble is unleashed.

My Thoughts :

I love this cozy mystery author and this series is on my pre-order list.  However this tenth installment has been sitting on my Kindle waiting for attention since it released in November!  Like so many other pre-orders I just don't seem to be getting to them and I have to say a lot of books I want all seem to come out on the same day every few months.  This makes it even harder for me to keep up with them all.

With the holidays nearly over I still have some time to get some serious reading done and this was my second pick of the new year.  I finished it one day and enjoyed it just as much as the rest of the series.  There was a great mystery and all the characters I have come to know and love.  It was perfect and just what I needed after my last couple of bleh cozy experiences.

As the title and cover suggests, this tenth installment revolves around dogs.  Of course now that Josie is married to a vet she has even more to do with animals and her mystery shopping job manages to combine the two.  Once again Josie manages to get involved in a murder and tries her best to find out who did it.  Her amateur sleuth skills are well known to her family and friends which means she gets a lot of support.

The ongoing story regarding Josie's family and friends is just as interesting as the mystery plot.  Josie's daughter, husband, mother and friend all have their own stuff going on and it adds a nice touch to the series to be a part of such a nice set of people.  So I hope this isn't the last we will see of them all but somehow the epilogue came across as a final chapter to put everything in its place and leave no loose ends.

Elaine Viets is one of the best cozy mystery writers I know and I enjoy both of her series.  The Dead-End Job mysteries and the Mystery Shopper series are both must reads and I always look forward to the ongoing stories of the characters as much as the well thought out mystery plots.  Definitely check out the books if you haven't already.  They are a treat!

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77) Killer Blonde by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

South Florida sleuth Helen Hawthorne gets a history lesson from her landlady Margery Flax. In the 1970s, while pushing papers in a dead-end job, Margery witnessed a battle of the blondes between vivacious Vicki and meticulous Minnie for a promotion that would take one of them to the top of the corporate ladder.

But when their office politics turned dirty, the blondes got dangerous—leaving one of them dead and one of them a killer whose identity Margery has kept secret for more than forty years…

My Thoughts :

The Dead-End Job Mysteries are one of my favourite cozies to read and may even be the cozy series I have followed the longest.  Killer Blonde is a short story that appeared in Drop-Dead Blonde and was released this year as a novella.  

The story is short, sweet and a delight to read.  Told mostly from Margery's perspective it shows that the author can not only write a great plot for a novel but is brilliant at putting together a super mystery in a smaller package.  With wonderful details of the 70's and a great insight to a much younger Margery, I really enjoyed this short tale.  I won't go into details because it would ruin the story but you are left wondering if Margery made up the whole thing, was involved or if it is a bit of both.

For any fans of the series this is a must read.  If you haven't tried this series then this is actually a nice chance to check it out.  The story doesn't give away hardly anything about the series and could stand alone.  Well worth reading and a nice story to curl up with for an hour or two (depending on how fast you read!).

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73) Board Stiff by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

There’s a dark cloud over Sunny Jim’s Safety First Parasailing and Stand-Up Paddleboarding business on Florida’s Riggs Beach—especially after one of his clients is killed in a tragic paddleboarding mishap. Sunny Jim is sure it was no accident, and he hires Helen and Phil to find the murderer.

Between cutthroat competitors poaching his territory, the city threatening to revoke his license, a restaurant owner wanting his beach spot for a parking lot, and a wrongful death suit filed by the victim’s husband, Sunny Jim may soon be up the creek without a paddle.

But he does have Helen and Phil on his side, and as the couple start to investigate, they discover dark undercurrents of corruption behind the cheerful facades of the beachfront businesses, as well as domestic secrets. But the sands of time are running out, and if they don’t catch the killer soon, Sunny Jim won’t be the only one to go under….

My Thoughts :

The Dead-End Job Mysteries is one of my favourite cozy mystery series and I always look forward to reading a new installment because the author really has made the series shine in more ways than one.  The dead-end job angle has evolved into something so much more over the years and I can only praise the author for keeping the series fresh and original.  You won't find any extreme over the top storylines that make you cringe but good honest mysteries being solved by hard working people you can respect and like.

Helen is an amazing character and she has been a great friend.  I like how she thinks and she isn't trying to be somebody special or different.  Just herself.  Phil, Margery and the other regular characters make the series even better.  Now that Helen has a support system and partners she can trust it makes the crime solving even more fun.  The location grabs me every time and I wish I could be driving around with Helen in Florida doing surveillance or questioning people.  She has gotten so good at it all!

This time around the dead-end job is paddle boarding but it gets much bigger than that.   This time around Helen doesn't have to do the hard labour but she does end up doing a lot work as she tries to solve a murder and get to the bottom of some questionable dealings on the Beach.  On top of all this there is a little blackmailing problem she has to take care of back home in St. Louis and there are some interesting developments all round from that little story.

So this was another great addition to the series and it is hard to believe that the series is already twelve books in.  Actually thirteen because there is already another new release out.  Which brings me to a little moan and groan.   The last few books have only been released in hardback and even on Kindle are priced up near the twenty dollar range.  Which isn't putting me off the series but forcing me to wait till the price comes down or the paperback is available.  I love this series a lot but I can buy four books for the price of this one.  So I wait.

However much this series costs now I still love it.  I can't wait to read the next installment and was happy to see a novella in this series on Kindle so I have snapped that up to read very soon.  This is one of the best Cozy mysteries out there and I can only keep recommending it and hope it keeps getting more new installments.  Also I will keep mentioning that the author should try something with a paranormal twist...it is all the rage nowadays and I think she would do an amazing job at it.  Also try her Josie Marcus series!  Another great series that I can't get enough of!

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41) Final Sail by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

To catch a jewel smuggler on a luxury yacht, Helen needs to pose as the ship’s new stewardess—but between serving drinks to the snobs, scrubbing floors, and cleaning up after seasick passengers, she’s starting to miss dry land almost as much as she misses Phil.

While Helen’s cruising to the Bahamas, Phil’s got his own job—trying to catch a sexy gold digger who may have killed her elderly new husband for his fortune. Good thing he’s a self-proclaimed master of disguise, playing it cool as everything from an air-conditioning repairman to a Rastafarian.

Helen’s a help to Phil in his case, but when she’s on her own on the high seas, Helen needs to watch her step as she searches out the smuggler—or she may end up going from undercover to overboard..

My Thoughts :

Elaine Viets is one of my all time favourite cozy mystery writers and I have to admit that I am a little behind when it comes to the Dead-End Job mysteries.  The main and only reason is the price of the new releases in this series.  Even the next installment, that has been out nearly a year, is priced at seventeen dollars.  However much I love an author, this is a ridiculously high price for a cozy mystery and in Kindle format.  Sorry.  I will be waiting for the price to drop.

So I am a book behind and a new release is coming soon.  Two books behind but I am still happily following the interesting and never boring life of Helen who is now a proper P.I but still works the Dead-End jobs undercover to catch the killer, thief or cheating partner.  It is a great concept and no two stories are ever the same.  The different plots and angles each time are refreshing and exciting.  I love reading along and trying to unravel things before Helen and sometimes I do.  In this eleventh episode I managed to figure out who the smuggler was but not how the killer managed to murder her husband.  You see this time around there was two mysteries and a small snippet of a third.

Any cozy mystery lovers really need to check out this series.  It has everything you need from a cozy and there is never a dull moment.  Things have really progressed over the series and I like the way the author has kept things going and kept the series worth reading.  Make sure you read this one from the beginning though!  There is a nice continuing story that follows the series and reading this out of order will ruin some surprises.

As long as this series keeps going I will keep reading!  I just have to try and find a cheaper version of the books or wait until the price gets lower.  I feel bad for the long time fans like myself who are being put in this position.  Wait and maybe things get spoiled or cough up and read the book as soon as it is released.  I would definitely pre-order this series if it was a reasonable price.

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161) Fixing to Die by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

Mystery shopper Josie Marcus has been happily married to veterinarian Ted Scottsmeyer for months. But her newly wedded bliss is about to be cut short....

Josie and Ted have finally tied the knot, and they’re ready for the next step: buying a house. Ted’s business partner, Christine, has one she’s willing to sell, but it needs a lot of love. Luckily, the newlyweds are up for the challenge.

But when they tear down a rickety gazebo in the backyard, they find the body of Christine’s sister, a free spirit who supposedly took off six months before. The police arrest Christine for murder, leaving Ted to work overtime at the office to cover for his partner. With no time to work on the house or be with her husband, Josie will have to find the real killer quickly, before both her house and marriage are beyond repair....

My Thoughts :

I have been reading Elaine Viets cozies for a few years now and I love both of her series.  Her Dead-End job mysteries are super reads and her Mystery Shopper books are wonderful.  I have enjoyed following both Helen and Josie over the years and it is nice to see them both settled down but still getting into trouble.  I hope they both have a few more mysteries in them!

This is the ninth book in the series and you really need to catch up with the others before getting into this one.  There is the on going story of Josie, her daughter, mother and various other characters which makes the books so much more fun to read and harder to read out of order.  It is always fun to find out how Josie sees her daughters development and I love how her Amelia is growing up into such a nice, clever and well-behaved young woman.  Also it seems she is going to follow in her mums footsteps!

The mystery this time around was harder to solve but I did have my suspicions straight away.  Of course it isn't easy to know who did it when you aren't completely sure what the motive may have been and this is what stumped me until it all became clear.  So despite being right all along I wouldn't have bet any money on my choice because the story kept the important bits hidden until the time came to reveal the murderer.  Very well written.

I missed the mystery shopping in this book.  Yes there was a job or two but it was quick jobs that didn't really need a lot of work.  I am used to having a few more visits to strange and interesting shops or restaurants  Also Alyce played a smaller part than usual.  Alyce is normally her partner when investigating where she shouldn't and this time Josie did the majority of the snooping alone.

Another great addition to the series and another reason for this author to stay on my must read and pre-order lists.  However I am still waiting for this author to come up with a paranormal cozy (I think she would rock it) I am very attached to the stories and characters in her books and couldn't give them up.




 

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Monthly Giveaway Results & Winner Announcement

The Monthly Giveaway is over and I have to apologise for not posting the results sooner!  I didn't forget!  I just didn't have time!  Finally my holidays have started and I hope I will be able to find time to read and relax!  Let's hope I have some time left to blog about it!

Anyway, every month here on Amberkatze's Book Blog there is a Monthly Giveaway and you all have the chance to win a copy of the winning book!

What is the Monthly Giveaway? 

You have the chance to vote for which book you want to win from my five favourite reads from last month!

I pick five of my favourite reads from the last month (sorry no ARCs are included unless they have already been released!) then you guys go to the poll and vote for the book you want to win or the one you think deserves to win! Remember! You may not actually win the book you voted for.

Here are the results from the poll!  Keep reading to find out which book won and who has won a copy!



Pumped for Murder by Elaine Viets came in last with only 5% of the vote!


Usually the e-book comes in last but Bone Shop by T. A. Pratt managed to get 4th place with nearly 12% of the votes.


I was pretty sure that most of you had already read Grave Dance by Kalayna Price but it still got third place with 22% of the votes.


With 24% of the vote, Bled & Breakfast by Michelle Rowen was the runner-up this month!


And the winner this month with nearly 40% of the votes is Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions by Various!   This is a great anthology and I am really happy that you all wanted to win a copy!  If you check the widget below you can see if you won or not!

Did you win?  The Rafflecopter widget below should be showing the name of the lucky winner!  

Are you the winner?  Contact me to claim your prize.

Didn't win this time?  There is a new Monthly Giveaway every month.  Also check the sidebar for the latest author contests.

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Sign up for the newsletter and never miss a Monthly Giveaway!

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Use the Bookdepository or Amazon links/banners to keep the prizes coming! 
 Oh and advertise Amberkatze's Book Blog wherever you can ;)

  

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Monthly Giveaway Reminder!

Have you entered the Monthly Giveaway yet?  Make sure you check out the details and then make sure you vote, be sure you have your name entered & hopefully you will win!

What is the Monthly Giveaway? 

You have the chance to vote for which book you want to win from my five favourite reads from last month!

I pick five of my favourite reads from the last month (sorry no ARCs are included unless they have already been released!) then you guys go to the poll and vote for the book you want to win or the one you think deserves to win! Remember! You may not actually win the book you voted for.

Here is a little info about each book on offer this month. Just click on the book title and author to see my review :




Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions by Various



Bled & Breakfast (Immortality Bites Mystery #2) by Michelle Rowen



Grave Dance (Alex Craft #2) by Kalayna Price


Bone Shop by T. A. Pratt (e-book)


Pumped for Murder (Dead-End Jobs #10) by Elaine Viets 

How does the monthly giveaway work?

Well in the sidebar ---> there is this poll. You vote for the book you would most like to win. Then enter the Monthly Giveaway via the Rafflecopter widget below. When the giveaway is over the winner gets book with the most votes. So you may not even win the book you voted for!



a Rafflecopter giveaway


Newsletter subscribers! If you have not confirmed your email address then you will not be added to the draw!!!


The poll will stay open for votes until Monday 21st of July 2013 4pm (all times are in Central European Time). The winner will be announced within days of the contest closing.

Enter your email address:   Delivered by FeedBurner

Use the Bookdepository or Amazon links/banners to keep the prizes coming! 
 Oh and advertise Amberkatze's Book Blog wherever you can ;)

  

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Monthly Giveaway! Vote & Win!

July is here and I am looking forward to my much earned holiday!  I hope I will get to lie on a beach with some great books because I need to get some more reading done.  I am a little behind with my reading and June wasn't a very good month for me because real work got in the way.

However I hope at least one of the books I have on offer for you all this month is worth your vote.  It wasn't easy to pick five this time around because there wasn't much to offer and quite a few weren't paranormal.  I promise next month there will be a better selection!

So who wants to win a copy of one of my favourite reads in June? Keep reading and find out more!

Every month here on Amberkatze's Book Blog there is a Monthly Giveaway!

What is the Monthly Giveaway? 

You have the chance to vote for which book you want to win from my five favourite reads from last month!

I pick five of my favourite reads from the last month (sorry no ARCs are included unless they have already been released!) then you guys go to the poll and vote for the book you want to win or the one you think deserves to win! Remember! You may not actually win the book you voted for.

Here is a little info about each book on offer this month. Just click on the book title and author to see my review :




Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions by Various



Bled & Breakfast (Immortality Bites Mystery #2) by Michelle Rowen



Grave Dance (Alex Craft #2) by Kalayna Price



Bone Shop by T. A. Pratt (e-book)



Pumped for Murder (Dead-End Jobs #10) by Elaine Viets 

How does the monthly giveaway work?

Well in the sidebar ---> there is this poll. You vote for the book you would most like to win. Then enter the Monthly Giveaway via the Rafflecopter widget below. When the giveaway is over the winner gets book with the most votes. So you may not even win the book you voted for!



a Rafflecopter giveaway



Newsletter subscribers! If you have not confirmed your email address then you will not be added to the draw!!!


The poll will stay open for votes until Monday 21st of July 2013 4pm (all times are in Central European Time). The winner will be announced within days of the contest closing.

Enter your email address:   Delivered by FeedBurner

Use the Bookdepository or Amazon links/banners to keep the prizes coming! 
 Oh and advertise Amberkatze's Book Blog wherever you can ;)

  

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95) Pumped for Murder by Elaine Viets

The Blurb :

Helen Hawthorne and her new hubby Phil have opened their own P.I. agency and their very first client is Shelby, who thinks her husband is developing a killer body for another woman.

To keep track of the suspected cheater, Helen gets a dead-end job at Fantastic Fitness, where she has to pump iron to stay employed. Then the budding agency takes on a murder case, and Helen has to move her workouts to the early morning just to keep up. With so much weight on her aching shoulders, will Helen catch a killer-or just drop dead from exhaustion?

My Thoughts :

I am in a bit of a reading slump again and nothing seemed to be jumping out at me and saying 'read me' this last weekend. Well that isn't completely true but some review books just shouldn't be read too early :)  Anyway, in the end I turned to a series that is an old favourite of mine.  I am a little behind on the Dead-End Job Mysteries so this was a book that was really looking for my attention.  I always enjoy catching up with Helen and I was interested to see what was happening with her now she had got married.

The plot, as always, was great.  There were two main mysteries that needed solving this time around and another that Helen managed to get involved with by accident.  Three cases seems like a lot but the author managed to keep them all in check and I didn't get confused by the various bits and pieces of information and events.  I was hooked till the end and had fun trying to figure out exactly what was going on in all three cases.  I had some very good ideas about the suspects and what had happened but the author managed to surprise me and as Helen solved each case I was amazed by the final outcome.

The Dead-End job series was based on Helen having Dead-End jobs due to her situation.  Now that her situation has changed I wondered how the series could continue.  However the writer has done a good job, at least in this tenth installment, of still getting a Dead-End job involved in the book.  Also it seems Helen's past is still haunting her and I wonder how that will play out in the next couple of books.

This series is still going strong after 10 books and my interest in the characters and on-going plot hasn't faded one bit.  I am a couple of books behind in this series but I know I will be getting to them soon.  I can't wait to see what becomes of Helen, her new husband, her new business and of course the skeleton in the closet (or in this case church).  A great cozy series and a very special cozy writer who always weaves a mystery you won't forget!




  

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