Obviously, I love reading cozy mysteries, however, I’ve always loved to color, too!  When super author, Krista Davis created the Pen & Ink Mystery series, it went to the top of my reading list as the protagonist manages a bookstore and is also an adult coloring book artist.  If that sounds interesting to you...read on.....😊 📚


5 Star Review by Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)

Florrie Fox manages a bookstore in Washington, D.C. and is an adult coloring book artist. When her friend Dolly shows her a rare first edition coloring book she found at an estate sale, Florrie unwittingly becomes a target when the estate wants the valuable book back plus international buyers seek to find the book, also. Dolly hid her precious find before someone killed her.

More than one mystery is skillfully blended into this plot and the pace is steady and absorbing. The author has outdone herself inserting mysterious characters into the storyline at different points making you wonder ‘who on earth is this person’ before nicely connecting all the dots at the end. The cast of characters, whether good ones or not-so-good ones, are each enjoyable in their given roles. Delicious recipes to try at end of book.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Kensington Publishing. Thank you.

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I love antique music boxes, and that’s one of the things I enjoy reading about in Mary Ellen Hughes Keepsake Cove Mystery series.  I hope my review will encourage you to read this series. 😊 📚


5 Star Review by Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)

Keepsake Cove is a wonderful town to live in and to visit. There are charming shops to explore, and great places to eat. The protagonist inherited her aunt’s music box shop in which her grampa was the original collector. I enjoy the author’s descriptions of the music boxes and the tunes they play. Featuring some wonderful secondary characters like her shop assistant who likes to dress as ‘famous characters’, and a great new author friend, Lyssa, who has a bubbly personality, plus the male romantic interest who owns a restaurant across the street—the story is fast to pull you in and hold your interest for hours. The murder mystery is captivating and readers may be surprised at the villain. I enjoyed book two slightly more than I did book one and definitely recommend both books to cozy mystery fans.

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I enjoyed book 2 in Ellen Jacobson’s Mollie McGhie’s Cozy Sailing Mystery series.  Happy Reading! 😊 📚⛴  Release Date:  11-19-18.


5 Star Review by Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)

Scooter and Mollie are a married, rather oddball couple, yet entertaining characters who spend a lot of time at the Marina where their fixer-upper boat is moored. Since Scooter purchased the boat, the Marina has been plagued by murders and Mollie’s like a magnet when it comes to stumbling over dead bodies. They’ve adopted a cool calico cat named Mrs. Moto, and she goes back and forth with them from their cottage to the boat. The supporting cast of characters are quirky, as well, and keep levity in the plot scenes.

Book 2 is a keen cozy mystery revolving around sea turtle nesting, poaching, blackmail and murder. There are several fishy-acting suspects to untangle as to who had the greatest motive, means, and opportunity. I liked this enjoyable, relaxing cozy mystery.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by the author for an honest review. Thank you.

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One of the fabulous newer cozy mystery series...A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery By Jacqueline Frost.  It will put you in the Christmas fun spirit! 😊 📚 🎄


5 Star Review by Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)

Reindeer Games is a beautiful Christmas Tree Farm in Mistletoe, Maine, and it’s the perfect winter wonderland to escape to for lots of fun and relaxation. Construction is underway for the new Inn that Holly White will manage, and her family hopes it will be ready by Christmas Day.

Alarm bells start ringing when a local investor, who’s also a womanizer, is found dead in a huge bowl of peppermint candy at the tree lighting ceremony. Caroline, Holly’s best friend, is the top suspect, so Holly starts asking questions around town even though Sheriff Evan Gray, her boyfriend, tells her to let him handle the investigating. I found the writing top-notch as the author skillfully ribbons suspicious characters, including Santa Claus’s, throughout the brilliant plot. Threats to Holly snowball as the real killer’s tension escalates.

The story is a pageturner! Rich in details, the originality of the setup of the town of Mistletoe and the Reindeer Games Tree Farm is simply captivating. I want to visit and stay at the new Inn! The characters are written so friendly and likable or they’re detestable. I loved the magical ending for Holly. I’m excited about book three and looking forward to reading it.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Crooked Lane. Thank you.

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Tea and cozies—What more can you ask for? 😊📚 A delicious new cozy mystery series from Joy Avon.....


4 Star Review by Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)

The debut of the Book Tea Shop Mystery is a nice, quick read. Protagonist, Callie Aspen, a tour guide who’s travelled the world, is visiting her Great Aunt Iphy’s vintage tearoom, Book Tea, in Heart’s Harbor, Maine. Callie brings along a sweet Boston Terrier she’s fostering. The Book Tea is catering at Haywood Hall mansion where matriarch Dorothea Finster is ready to reveal the changes in her new will and, thus, has summoned a family gathering. However, the tea party is interrupted by a vicious crime.

New author, Joy Avon, scatters trails of cookie crumbs from one suspect to another, and so forth, and does a good job of keeping the murderer’s identity a secret until the reveal. There is a second mystery plot that ties up all loose ends, and I enjoyed it, also. As I read this cozy, some of the characters grew on me, and I look forward to future developments with them. I just couldn’t get into the Deputy Falk. The story’s premise has great potential and it will be interesting to read the next book and see what happens to Book Tea.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books. Thank you.

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3 Star Review By Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)

I liked several of the same things in this second book of the Magic Garden series—the mystical garden, the animal characters, and several secondary characters, Hamish, Presha, and Raj—that I enjoyed in book one. In this story, although Fiona should be enjoying the opening of her florist shop, Climbing Rose, instead she’s pulled into a murder involving a prominent citizen in the Scottish village, who had made it clear he didn’t like her or her ancestors before her. There are several suspects to sort through their relationships with the deceased, however, the killer reveal didn’t really surprise me. There aren’t near as many magical garden scenes, and I felt the tone of the plot was overall dreary. Fi’s sister, Isla, has come to stay with her and they bicker constantly. On a positive note, the author continues her great world building and characterization and seems to set the stage for more mystical revelations in the third story. I recommend reading the first book before you read this one or you’ll be lost as to what’s going on.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books. Thank you.

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Author Lynn Cahoon’s Tourist Trap Mysteries are long-time favorite stories of mine.  I loved this novella, SANTA PUPPY, and hope you will too❣️ 😊 📚


5 Star Review by Chatting About Cozies (Linda Langford)
Release Date:  11-6-18

This wonderful Christmastime novella will put you in good spirits for the holidays! Jill and the South Cove gang are volunteering at an animal shelter helping groom dogs and cats for an upcoming adoption event. An older terrier mix, Baby, catches Jill’s eyes, and his background is tied to a recent death, and the heartfelt story of his owner’s past. A happy ending is the gift Cozy Mystery Readers receive at the story’s end. Cookie recipe included.

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Looking for a quick read?  Try new cozy author, Jody Holford’s DEADLY NEWS!


4 Star Review by Chatting About (Linda Langford)

First of all, I love the adorable cover showing cute puppy, Tigger. This new series has potential with a likeable protagonist, Molly Owens, and an interesting supporting cast of characters. I found the starting pace peppy, then it slowed in the middle, and picked back up in the latter part of the story. The plot is centered around reporter, Molly, and the newsroom and employees she’s just started working with in the charming seaside town of Britton Bay, Oregon. When one of the staff starts researching a news story and is murdered, can newcomer Molly help police solve the mystery?

Being a very traditional cozy mystery reader, I was both surprised and shocked that Molly quickly established a romantic relationship with mechanic, Sam Alderich. I’m happier when the mystery stays centerstage and any romance develops slowly, along with trust. I also found the killer reveal quite abrupt, and the reasoning a scenario I’ve read many times before. I give this story 3-1/2 Stars which I graded up to a 4 Star Review because I did like Molly and many of the other characters, and I hope to see more originality in future books.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Kensington Lyrical Underground. Thank you.

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