Heartbeats in a Haunted House (2022) Amy Lane (Hedge Witches Lonely Heart Club #4) The witch had simply walked up to Jordan one day and said, “Take care of my stuff but don’t use my distilled oils,” and then had taken off. The place turned out to be a treasure trove of magic: crystals, spell […]
Pentacles and Pelting Plants (2021) Amy Lane (Hedge Witches Lonely Heart Club #3) The idea that the portal that had dragged him halfway here—and the pull of magic that had made it impossible to stop the journey when he’d been plopped in the middle of I-80 going 60 mph—had been inadvertent hadn’t even crossed his […]
Portals and Puppy Dogs (2021) Amy Lane (Hedge Witches Lonely Heart Club #2) “You just look perfectly average!” Simon exclaimed, and even as the words came out of his mouth, he saw the pit he’d dug for himself with the spiders and snakes in the bottom. Abort abort abort. Experience had taught them that if […]
Shortbread and Shadows (2020) Amy Lane (Hedge Witches Lonely Heart Club #1) He’d also seen Bartholomew get into the conversation, grow somewhat animated, and then stop himself, as though hearing an unkind voice. help wasn’t something you asked for, help was something you gave to other people His father was still doubtful. Bartholomew’s every visit, […]
After the Scrum (2016) Dahlia Donovan Since Devlin started to speak, he’d tried to teach the lad to call him Uncle Brute. It backfired spectacularly when he became a bastardised version of his own nickname. Uncle Boo. Taking on his nephew had forced him to take a crash course in cooking. Before now, the best […]
Come Unto These Yellow Sands (2011) Josh Lanyon To seek out a new therapist, to admit that he still might need help, was too much like acknowledging failure. Swift had never thought of happiness as a weight before, but that’s what it felt like. Something solid and real to steady him, ground him. It would […]
Agents of Winter (2022) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency #2) “I’m sorry, which one is B-837?” “Romantic or sexual involvement with another agency employee or contractor.” “I… um…” Arthur felt his cheeks flush and didn’t know what to say. It had never crossed his mind to fill out the “Fucking Form” as it was referred […]
Merlin in the Library (2018) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency #1.5) He was still getting used to asking for things he wanted as opposed to providing for himself the bare minimum of what he needed. He wanted to make the cream sauce himself. He wanted to feel the warm heat of the pan and witness […]
His Quiet Agent (2017) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency #1) He could also remember being desperately lonely and wanting someone else’s weirdness to match with his. “Well, come on, I’ll show you to them. He’s got them trained to all show up ten minutes early and get everything set up.” Arthur was confused, but had […]
The Entanglement of Rival Wizards (2025) Sara Raasch (Magic and Romance #1) This is the book that precedes The Fake Divination Offense. I’d initially skipped it because although the world building sounded fascinating, I usually dislike enemies to lovers. Which this is. But much of it worked for my anyway, because it was academic rivals, […]
The Fake Divination Offense (2026) Sara Raasch (Magic and Romance #2) Orok Monroe just wants to celebrate the lawsuit he and his best friend Seb won against the “Camp” that tortured them, but almost none of his new teammates show up, so he’s left wondering if the Hellhounds feel about him the same way his […]
[Never] Feed the Crows (2023) Jennifer Cody (Corvin’s Crows #1) It’s Amos’s second year on campus, and he has a great roommate and is doing well in his classes but hasn’t made many friends except for his roommate–and the crows. Honestly, I don’t even know how it happened, but one day I realized that I […]
Rift in the Soul (2024) Faith Hunter (Soulwood #6) Having read both Rift in the Soul and Final Heir now (and fairly recently after each other) my impression is that she just wanted to stop writing about Jane — and by extension any of the characters closely related to Jane, including Nell. In short, like […]
Spells for the Dead, Audio Book (2020) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Soulwood #5) For some reason, parts of this story really stuck with me, and I was surprised to realize this wasn’t a book I’d listened to repeatedly (one reading, one listen). “Which is why you’re down here with us,” T. Laine said […]
Peg and Rose Stir Up Trouble (2023) Laurien Berenson (Senior Sleuths #2) It’s been a couple months since Peg and Rose have mended their relationship, and so Rose has decided the best way to maintain their budding friendship is–to get Peg on a dating site so she can find love and companionship again. The first […]
Peg and Rose Solve a Murder Laurien Berenson (2022) (Senior Sleuths #1) Peg and Rose haven’t really spoken for decades. Animosity had sizzled between the two women since Peg became engaged to her beloved, and now dearly departed husband, Max, more than four decades earlier. But Rose has decided it’s time to set aside past […]
The Lights on Knockbridge Lane (2021) Roan Parrish (Garnet Run #3) Adam had never once regretted forgiving someone. Because forgiveness was about him, and not about them at all. He’d always preferred going out at night. Not because—as his neighbors believed—he was a vampire or a witch or whatever the rumor of the moment was. […]
Guilt and Ginataan (2024) Mia P. Manansala (Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery #5) There is so much to love about this series: food, queer rep, smart female character, mental health rep, and few white characters. Yet, the mysteries always fall a little flat for me. I don’t know why. (In the earlier books it was because […]
Better Than People (2020) Roan Parrish (Garnet Run, #1) Every day had dilated to a month, every night to a year, and Jack found himself wishing for anything—anything—to break the monotony of lying on the couch all day long and in bed all night. This part was always the hardest. The moment when he could […]
Circle of the Moon, Audio Book (2019) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Soulwood #4) The farm had seemingly figured out that if I was a tree, there would be no one to work the soil and it liked me around. Now, as I worked, the leaves on my neck and hands broke off and […]
Grilled Cheese and Goblins: Adventures of a Supernatural Food Inspector (2018) Nicole Kimberling Keith had investigated orgy sites where there had been twenty or more witnesses all standing and watching some victim being dismembered just because a cameraman was filming it. The presence of a camera implied fiction and a sense that some authority was […]
Flame in the Dark, Audio Book (2017) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Soulwood #3) Every branch of law enforcement wanted this case except the sheriff, who had too much political acumen to want anything to do with a United States senator, three rich dead VIPs, multiple wounded, and vampires. “Thank you for joining us, […]
Curse on the Land, Audio Book (2016) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Soulwood #2) “Nellie, you’un got big brass ones, that’s all I got to say.” I had learned what the saying meant at Spook School, and thought it was silly, as testicles were small, easy to remove, and easily injured. mortal sins were […]
Final Heir, Audio Book (2022) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Jane Yellowrock #15) The final Jane Yellowrock book. Well, I finished it. And on audio no less. Did I enjoy it? I don’t really think I did. Most of the major deaths occurred in the last book (and there were some shockers there). There […]
Loud and Clear (2016) Aidan Wayne So Caleb was set for a designated driver for every Tuesday night until this stupid drink-night thing got canceled. … Which was another reason why he actually had to attend. For all the drinking, until people got too shit-faced, they actually talked about work. Missing this was the equivalent […]
Steamy Espresso Secrets (2025) Tyora Moody (Joss Miller #4) Joss is starting the first Media Arts summer camp at the Rebecca Montgomery Art Center, and although overwhelmed, she is excited–and not just because she is teaching a day on podcasting. But the man who volunteered to teach a day of photography to the kids seems […]
The Wolf at Bay (2018) Charlie Adhara (Big Bad Wolf #2) This book opens with possibly my favorite scene ever. “Birthday, anniversary, or apology?” … “You’ve been standing here staring at that flower shop for fifteen minutes. So is it for her birthday or anniversary, or are you making up for a fight? Because I’ve […]
The Wolf at the Door (2018) Charlie Adhara (Big Bad Wolf, #1) The old-fashioned investigative work Cooper had dreamed of doing when he got recruited to the FBI wasn’t really applicable these days. … After cases like Bethesda he felt like a glorified bounty hunter, and that wasn’t why he’d wanted to get into law […]
Check, Please! Book 2: Sticks & Scones (2018) Ngozi Ukazu (Check, Please! #2) Publisher: First Second Rating: 10/10
Father Material (2026) Alexis Hall (London Calling #3) This is the conclusion to Luc and Oliver’s story, and unlike the previous two books, doesn’t follow the beats of any particular romantic comedy–or honestly, a romantic comedy. That’s not to say it isn’t funny: there is a good deal of silliness. “What do you want to […]
The Unmatchmakers (2022) Jackie Lau Leora may find her mother frustrating, but she’s looking forward to a week at the vacation house her mother bought with her two best friends–even if she hasn’t seen the kids she nearly grew up with in years. It’s a bit weird, us all hanging out as adults. Different than […]
Husband Material (2022) Alexis Hall (London Calling, #2) Oliver had been seeing a trained professional for nearly two years because of his parents so I did my best to be sensitive and not poke anything that might be the emotional equivalent of a bear or a mine—or a bear-mine, which would be a bear that […]
Boyfriend Material (2020) Alexis Hall (London Calling, #1) “I’m conscious this could be rather burdensome to hear, but you remain the thing I have most chosen for myself. The thing that’s most exclusively mine. The one that brings me the deepest joy.” if we let happy things make us unhappy when they stopped, there would […]
All the World’s an Undead Stage (2018) Angel Martinez (Offbeat Crimes Book 6) “What is it you can’t bring up in front of the squad, Loveless? Tell me you haven’t screwed up again.” “No, ma’am. It’s nothing to do with investigations.” He hesitated, fighting against foot scuffing. “My mother called this morning…” “Gods preserve us,” […]
Death and Dinuguan (2025) Mia P. Manansala (Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery #6) This is the sixth and final book in the series, and oddly, the one I liked best. A series of break-ins have hit the small businesses of Shady Palms, made all the more upsetting as all the victims were women. Adeena said, “I […]
Next to You (2022) Hannah Bonam-Young (Next #2) Lane doesn’t really know what to do with herself. She’s not unhappy, but she’s not happy either. So after her birthday she decides to purchase and renovate a bus–a far cry from her twin who got respectably engaged to a respectable guy. A guy who seems to […]
Cheddar Luck Next Time (2025) Beth Cato Bird is slowly rebuilding her life after losing both her parents and then her grandmother within a single year, but her inheritance gave her one thing: the ability to focus on her gourmet cheese board business. The property she inherited from her grandmother has a commercial kitchen, and […]
A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping (2025) Sangu Mandanna Sera was fifteen when she lost most of her magic. Choosing her love for Jasmine over her loyalty to the British Guild of Sorcery wasn’t exactly difficult for Sera. The Guild was strict, stuffy, and entirely too fond of looking down their noses at almost everybody. […]
The Skeleton Stuffs a Stocking (2019) Leigh Perry (The Family Skeleton #6) This seems to be the last Skeleton mystery, although I did see a listing for an anthology of short stories. Georgia is back living at home, and working as an adjunct at the other university in town (the one her parents do not […]
The Skeleton Makes a Friend (2018) Leigh Perry (Family Skeleton Mystery #5) Another semester, another college, but this time Georgia is teaching at a summer program for high school students. If I’d been able to afford it, I would have tried to talk Madison into signing up for the program. She’d just finished her sophomore […]
The Skeleton Paints a Picture (2017) Leigh Perry (Family Skeleton Mystery #4) This premise of this series is a little silly–one of the two main characters is an animated skeleton. But once you accept that, it’s a fun cozy mystery. Georgia Thackery is an adjunct professor, seeking the magical grail of a tenured position. “Why […]
Love Language (2024) Jax Calder Dominic and Ashton have shared an office for three-and-a-half years. Despite the fact that much of their conversation consists of insults and griping, all of Ash’s friends insist he has a crush on Dominic. “You must be the most annoying person on the planet,” Dominic says. I ignore him. Because […]
Black Arts, Audio Book (2014) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Jane Yellowrock #7) It’s still annoying that Angie is written both older and younger than her age of 7. Characters: Jane Yellowrock, Beast, Eli Younger, Alex Younger, Leo Pellissier, Molly Trueblood, Evan Trueblood, Angelina Trueblood, Little Evan Trueblood, Rick LeFleur, George Bruiser Dumas, Aggie […]
Not So Cookie Cutter (2019) Aidan Wayne He clasped his hands behind his back, at-ease stance so he wouldn’t cross his arms. He’d been told enough times that it made him look like a thug, so he tried to avoid doing it. He tended to hyper focus when it came to certain subjects, and to […]
Off the Grid, Audio Book (2015) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Jane Yellowrock #7.5) Security was so much easier in the modern day, with access to so many public records protected by such poor security. (B)est of all, she knew where the armaments were stored. “They keep ’em here”— she tapped the uneven rectangle […]
Blood Trade, Audio Book (2013) Faith Hunter narrated by Khristine Hvam (Jane Yellowrock #6) I hacked in amusement. I am bigger. I like bigger. Would like to be a holy hellcat too. Characters: Jane Yellowrock, Beast, Leo Pellissier, Eli Younger, Alex Younger, Soul, Sylvia Turpin, George Bruiser Dumas, Rick LeFleur, Reach, Bobby, Misha, Charlie, Evan […]
The Mystery of the Spirits (2021) C.S. Poe (Snow & Winter #5) I looked at Ferguson and offered a saccharine smile. “I guess I’m used to people telling me to shut up and therefore have to consolidate an entire religious movement that lasted nearly a century, heavily influenced by sensationalism and the mass casualties seen […]
Interlude (2021) C.S. Poe (Snow & Winter) “What brings you out to humble Durango?” “I was told we needed a vacation.” “He tries very hard to make it sound like a punishment.” Maybe it’d been selfish of me, but I’d appreciated her refusal to say there was anything deeper but the statement on the surface. […]
The Mystery of the Bones (2019) C.S. Poe (Snow & Winter #4) “Life isn’t all about money, Seb.” “You can say that. You don’t have a hospital bill the length of a CVS receipt.” I’d been shot in May. That batshit crazy Pete White had nearly taken me out with an antique revolver, and all […]
The Mystery of the Moving Image (2018) C.S. Poe (Snow & Winter #3) “I’m ignoring the sarcasm only because I’m incredibly turned on by you spouting random facts at me,” I answered. Calvin smirked. “I’ll remember that.” He’d been seeing a therapist for a few months now, but let’s be honest. It could take years […]