Tag: series

The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman

Title: The Invisible Library
Author: Genevieve Cogman
Pub Date: 15-1-2015
Rating: 5 Stars

As an avid reader and fan of fantasy, I have been wanting to read The Invisible Library for over a year. Even after I received a copy, it was in my TBR pile for months. Now that I am finished reading, I am berating myself for taking so long. It was a great story and wonderful start to a new series.

Ms. Cogman has that rare ability to transport the reader to the place and time of her choosing. In this case it is a library that resides between dimensions. The librarians who staff this particular library are there for life and their mission is to collect and preserve rare books from all dimensions.  The main character Irene is a junior librarian that has been tasked with finding a book of Grimm fairy tales in an alternate London. Assigned to her is Kai, a librarian in training, who is somewhat of a mystery. In this alternate London magic and the forces of chaos abound. Worlds with chaos are extremely dangerous, leaving Irene to wonder why Kai would be assigned to her for this dangerous mission.

When they arrive in the alternate world, they discover the book they are sent to retrieve has been stolen from the vampire that recently acquired it. Now they must unravel the mystery of its disappearance. Along the way, they meet Vale, a detective reminiscent of Sherlock Homes, minus the Watson, who assists them. They also meet some not so helpful and downright dangerous people. Including another librarian that is trying to be the first to the book in order to scoop Irene.

A great adventure. The plot moved along quickly and had lots of surprises which kept our heroin on her toes. I also enjoyed how Irene’s mind worked and how she kept questioning things in her quest to find the missing book. It gave validity to the story.

The only thing I wanted, that I did not get, is a little more information about The Library itself and some of the characters. There are several bites of information that are hinted at but not fully revealed. It left me craving more. This has set the stage for further development in the series of both the characters and The Library.  In addition, the alternate dimensions concept is teeming with infinite possibilities for future stories. My head is spinning just thinking about all the possible missions for the field librarians. In short, I look forward to discovering more about Irene and Kai and reading about their exciting adventures for the The Library.

Dandelion Dead by Chrystle Fiedler

Title: Dandelion Dead Author: Chrystle Fiedler Pub Date: 27-Sep-2016 Rating: 5 Stars
Title: Dandelion Dead
Author: Chrystle Fiedler
Pub Date: 27-Sep-2016
Rating: 5 Stars

Dandelion Dead, by Chrystle Fiedler, is the fourth book in the Natural Remedies series. Even though this is the fourth book in the series, it can be read as a stand-alone book. Ms. Fiedler did an excellent job of giving the reader enough background information on the characters so you do not miss out on anything happening in the story.

Willow McQuade wears many hats, owner of Nature’s Way Market and Café, holistic doctor, animal rescuer and part time sleuth. It all starts when Willow is catering an event for Pure, a local winery, run by her ex-boyfriend Simon. All is going well, at least on the surface, until during the party the body of Amy Lord is found and it is discovered that she died from ingesting poison hemlock. Amy is the sister-in-law to Simon’s business partner David. The leading suspect in the case is Willow’s assistant Lily and the police are convinced they have their killer since Amy had both motive, opportunity and the knowledge of poisonous plants.

With the police refusing to look for another suspect, the trio of Willow, Simon and Willow’s boyfriend Jackson team up to put their amateur sleuth skills to work. What they uncover is a tangled web of lies, jealousy and deceit. They suspect that David was the real target and not Amy. As they try to unravel the mystery of Amy’s death there are additional attempts on David’s life confirming their theory and spurring them on to discover who the real killer is.

There are several interesting twists that made the story very compelling. The back stories of the characters were very thoughtful done and gave the story a real believability. The pace of the story was good and I particularly liked how all the lives of the characters were intertwined. All in all, this book is a great cozy mystery. I really loved all the herbal lore and remedies in the story. The author’s love of herbs and holistic remedies really shows in this book.

Anyone who loves mysteries is bound to fall in love with this one. Looking forward to reading more by this author.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book in return for my honest review.