Valentine Candy Murder by Leslie Meier

In Valentine murder, Lucy is a brand new board member for the library.  She goes to her first meeting and they find the librarian has gone missing.  When she goes down to the basement to see if she's there, she finds her dead.  This is not a good start to a new job...

Kensington Books and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published December 18th.

No one knows why someone would have killed the new librarian.  There really aren't any clues to be found.  But it almost had to be someone with library access or they wouldn't have a key to the basement door.

Lucy's boss is all excited.  She's one of his journalists and she was right on the scene!  But Lucy doesn't want to just talk about it.  She wants to solve it.  Unfortunately, this isn't the only death planned...

Chocolate Covered Murder is even more deadly.  It begins with an ice fisherman's death.  Then a candy shop employee who flirted with all the men in town dies.  This is a small town and everyone knows everyone else.  Who would commit murder?  The cops arrest a suspect but no one thinks she's the murderer except them.  Can Lucy figure out it?  And, if she does, can she stay alive?

Candy Corn Murder by Leslie Meier

Lucy Stone is back and finds herself forced to try to solve a murder.  After all, they've arrested her husband for the crime!

Kensington and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published August 25th, so watch to grab a copy then.

I've been reading about Lucy Stone for a while but this one is the best so far in my opinion.  It's a unique blend of a story from the past and a murder covered up then that merges into a current murder.  The murderers are not the same and motive for the murder is not the same, but there's a family connection.

Lucy knows Bill didn't kill anybody but the murder weapon was found in the back of his pickup.  To her, that means someone was setting him up.  Her life is already tied up with her job as a journalist, she's taking care of her grandson for four months, and her oldest daughter at home has hooked up with a young man she likes but she's not sure she wants her daughter getting serious about.  Now throw a murder in there and it's too much at once.

The Halloween event is new and she's writing articles about the events.  Someone is sabotaging the events.  The police try to say it's vandals, but Lucy isn't buying that.  Who wants to stop the Halloween festivities and why?

It's a good mystery and has a good ending.  I wonder if Lucy will still have her grandson in the next book.  He's a cute little tyke and he says what he thinks.  I like kids like that.

French Pastry Murder by Leslie Meier

This cozy mystery is set in Paris, France.  Imagine the mystique, the romance, and the fragrances of Paris.  Now imagine murder...

Kensington Books sent me an ARC of this book to read for review (thank you).  It will be published this month, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

Lucy is an interesting character.  She's pretty low keyed, safe and sane, and she's always had a dream of visiting France.  When she and her friends win a trip, she's ecstatic!  Her daughter is living there now and she wants to visit with her and see the sights.  Sounds good, right?

She's traveling with her husband and three other couples.  They're good friends and a breakfast club at home.  When they get to Paris, they find they have different ideas of how to have a good time.  That's OK.  Somehow they all agree to go to the cooking class they won and then they'll see whatever they personally want to on their own time.  

The cook is a bit odd and doesn't seem to know as much about French cooking as one of the women on the trip.  But the classes are paid for, so they go.  When Lucy forgets something and runs back up to class to retrieve it, she finds the cook dead.  This is where their real trouble begins.  The French police take away their passports.  How are they going to get back home?  Especially since the police have no clues on who actually killed him.  They might even put Lucy in jail...

There are different nationalities, different goals in life, and different laws in this story.  Once you're imprisoned in a foreign country, it can be very hard to get out.  The consulate isn't helping them much.  It's up to Lucy to figure out who killed the chef and why if she wants to get back home and not spend years in jail.  That would be enough to motivate me.

I found this to be an enjoyable cozy mostly because of the description of Paris.  The plot was a bit weak, but I like Lucy so it was good to see her solving another odd crime.  Grab yourself a cup of tea or coffee and settle in your favorite chair and take a trip to Paris...

Christmas Carol Murder by Leslie Meier

Things are tough in Tinker's Cove.  Budget cutbacks, layoffs, and foreclosures are happening right and left.  However, it's Christmas.  Let's all get in the Christmas spirit, shall we?  Evidently not, because one resident gets an early Christmas present:  A wrapped package containing a letter bomb!

Kensington Books sent me an ARC of this book to read for review (thank you).  It was published in October, so you can find a copy at your local bookstore now.  This is part of a series, so check them all out.

The man murdered was a partner at the local mortgage company.  Since they were the ones foreclosing on all the houses, there are a lot of suspects.  Lucy works for the local paper and writes up her own article about the foreclosures only to have her editor doctor it and take the punch out of it.  Seems he owes them money, too.

Lucy is also involved in the play they are putting on for Christmas.  It should be fun to do but everyone is emotionally upset at the lack of finances and lack of health care coverage.  Needing a kidney is expensive and the policies most had were cut as their hours had.  Lack of money is making everyone anxious and worried.  Lucy is concerned about that, too, but she keeps wondering who could be a murderer in their small town.  Unfortunately, she finds out the hard way...

Why not take a walk with Lucy through Tinker's Cove?  Just don't go in that last door...

Happy reading.

Easter Bunny Murder by Leslie Meier

Lucy Stone is taking her grandson to the Easter Egg Hunt that is held every year at the big house on the hill.  Sometimes the eggs contain gift certificates and other goodies, it's not just eggs.  Nothing is ready for them this year though and while everyone is wondering why, the front door opens and the Easter Bunny comes out.  He staggers up to the gate and then falls to the ground and dies.  It was not exactly what everyone was expecting.

Kensington Books sent me an ARC of this book for review.  The book is available now; check with your local bookstore for a copy.

This is #19 in the Lucy Stone series.  Lucy doesn't think the man wearing the bunny costume died of natural causes.  Of course, no one else is listening.  When she hears gossip about how the old woman living in the big house has lost her money because she's not donating like she used to, she thinks there may have been another reason he died...

As Lucy searches for the truth, she has to be careful not to step on anyone's toes.  She also has to be cautious so the killer doesn't come after her.  She doesn't do so well with that.

The story about greed in a good family also has an odd little twist at the end when the killer is revealed.  I liked that touch.  Why not give it a read and see what you think?

Happy reading.