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kathydavie's review against another edition
3.0
Tenth in the Aurora Teagarden amateur sleuth mystery series and revolving around a librarian married to a writer in Lawrenceton, Georgia.
My Take
It’s a sweet and cozy tale of family life with a first-person protagonist point-of-view, which means we “hear” the story from Aurora’s perspective and her struggles in dealing with a new baby…on top of the flu. Of course it doesn’t help when a dead body shows up in the backyard and the neighbors are pointing fingers.
Considering how so many people in town react to Aurora, I’m thinking “don’t judge a book by its cover”, i.e., don’t listen to gossip. Remember who a person is and how they’ve behaved over the years. That’ll say a lot more about them…and YOU…than passing on malicious talk. Of course, it doesn't make the story more interesting, if the characters are decent *grin*.
It’s a small town, so everyone knows everyone else, and when one gets promoted to detective, those relationships can change, and not necessarily for the better.
I love how Harris describes Phillip as being a kind, nonjudgmental person, content to let other people live their own lives. A maturity so few people reach. I do love his character, and I’m looking forward to much more of Phillip.
Actually, I simply enjoy this series — and Sleep Like a Baby — for that easiness of family and small-town life.
The Story
Robin and Aurora have finally begun their adventure in parenting. With newborn Sophie proving to be quite a handful. But is the home help they hire a good idea or a bad? It doesn't help that she suddenly disappears one night and can't be found.
What Roe and Phillip do find is a body outside…but it isn't Virginia's. Now, not only does she have a newborn to care for and a bad case of the flu to nurture, Roe also has to contend with a new puzzle — who is this mystery woman dead in their backyard, and what happened to Virginia?
The Characters
Aurora Teagarden is a librarian (she’s a member of the Real Murders [Book] Club and the Uppity Women) with her first baby, Sophie Abigail Crusoe. Robin Crusoe is her mystery writer husband. Phillip is Aurora’s half-brother who’s been living with them. Moosie is a sweet but timid kitty who lives with them.
Corinne is Robin’s mother. Aida Brattle Teagarden Queensland is Roe’s mother who recently married John Queensland. John David (Poppy is John David’s deceased wife; Chase is their son) and Avery are John’s kids. Melinda is Avery’s wife. Jane Engle had been Roe’s “fairy godmother”. Roe and Phillip’s dad is a deadbeat.
Virginia Mitchell is the home help Aurora’s mother finds for Roe and Robin. Carlos Rivera is Virginia’s half-brother; Marcy Mitchell is her mother. Ford is her newly released-from-jail boyfriend. Dr. Garrison is Roe’s ob-gyn. Deedee Powers, Tallchief, and Stanley are some of the nurses at the hospital. Officer Brad Rodenheiser is in charge of hospital security. Carter Redding's daughter, Kathleen, is ill. Dr. Clifton is a consulting psychiatrist.
Peggy and Lena Herman are twins who live next door. Chaka is their Rhodesian ridgeback. Lena’s twin girls, Cindy and Mindy, live in Maine and Spartanburg, respectively. Kevin is Peggy’s doctor son and a dad himself. The officious Deborah and Jonathan Cohen live on the other side and, man, they are such pains in the tush! They just know that anything bad that happens is Roe and Robin’s fault and designed just to irritate them. Lulu is their PITA dachshund.
Sarah Washington is Phillip’s girlfriend; Beatrice is Sarah’s mother. Josh and Jocelyn Finstermeyer are twins and Phillip’s friends. Josh is dating Holly Maxwell while Joss is dating Kay Duval. Beth and George Finstermeyer are their parents. The snotty Justine had a party; Dr. and Carly Halverson are her lax parents. (Carly is Clifton’s daughter.)
Angel Youngblood is an old friend of Roe’s and married to Shelby; they’ve both worked as bodyguards. Their daughter is Lorna. Amina is/was a childhood friend; Megan is her daughter (Roe is her godmother). Susie is one of Megan’s friends. Hugh is Amina’s about-to-be-ex lawyer husband.
Father Aubrey Scott is the pastor of their church. Emily Scott is his wife. Liza is Emily’s daughter and friends with Phillip, since events in All the Little Liars, 9. Connor had been Emily’s first husband, an alcoholic abuser.
Laurenceton law enforcement
The pregnant Officer Susan Crawford partners with Officer Cleve Dan. Detectives Cathy Trumble and Levon Suit come to investigate the body. The pregnant Katrina is Levon’s wife; Jeremy is their son. Ardos “Arnie” Petrosian is the coroner whose full-time job is as the owner of Spartan Shield Security. Halina is his deceased wife.
Truman PD
Officer Dale Finch cracked up when Ford started complaining.
Brenda works at a real estate company and is Susan’s sister-in-law. Annette is Cathy’s younger sister. Duncan is her troubled son. Mrs. Sung is the drycleaner who wants Roe out of her establishment ASAP. Patricia “Mimi” Day was an exciting old lady. Laurie and David Martinez were the previous owners of Roe and Robin’s house. Rick Morrison was robbed.
Tracy Beal, a.k.a., LastFanStanding, escaped a mental hospital. She’d also stalked Dan Lonsdale and threatened his fiancée. Her mother, Sandra Beal, lives in South Carolina, while her sister, Sharon, lives in Anders. Celia Shaw was an actress murdered on the set of Whimsical Death.
The Lawrenceton Library is…
…where Roe works. Sam Clerrick is the library director and her boss. Lizanne is his secretary and Roe’s friend. Bubba is Lizanne's recently ex-husband who seeing Teresa Stanton, the ex-wife of another lawyer, Bryan Pascoe. Roe’s coworkers include Jennie Spellman, the media specialist, and Perry Allison.
Boucheron is…
…the world mystery convention in Nashville where one of the awards is the Anthony. Jeff Abbott is Robin’s friend and was best man at their wedding.
Harry Holderman of the Holderman Agency is Robin’s agent. Jill has been Robin’s editor for the past three books. Dawn is his webmaster.
Blossom Betty’s is a florist in Anders.
The Cover and Title
The cover is a deep, dark purply blue of sky and shadow while a slash of light comes from the house and illuminates the body lying under the orange smooth-skinned bark of the mimosa tree, turning the leaves a brilliant blue green with splotches of pink flowers scattered in the treetop over the orange striped Moosie sleeping on a branch. The author’s name is at the top in a pale orange with the lime-green title (in script) a’slant across the tree trunk. The series information is at the bottom in a pale gray.
The title is how no one actually will Sleep Like a Baby.
My Take
It’s a sweet and cozy tale of family life with a first-person protagonist point-of-view, which means we “hear” the story from Aurora’s perspective and her struggles in dealing with a new baby…on top of the flu. Of course it doesn’t help when a dead body shows up in the backyard and the neighbors are pointing fingers.
Considering how so many people in town react to Aurora, I’m thinking “don’t judge a book by its cover”, i.e., don’t listen to gossip. Remember who a person is and how they’ve behaved over the years. That’ll say a lot more about them…and YOU…than passing on malicious talk. Of course, it doesn't make the story more interesting, if the characters are decent *grin*.
It’s a small town, so everyone knows everyone else, and when one gets promoted to detective, those relationships can change, and not necessarily for the better.
I love how Harris describes Phillip as being a kind, nonjudgmental person, content to let other people live their own lives. A maturity so few people reach. I do love his character, and I’m looking forward to much more of Phillip.
Actually, I simply enjoy this series — and Sleep Like a Baby — for that easiness of family and small-town life.
The Story
Robin and Aurora have finally begun their adventure in parenting. With newborn Sophie proving to be quite a handful. But is the home help they hire a good idea or a bad? It doesn't help that she suddenly disappears one night and can't be found.
What Roe and Phillip do find is a body outside…but it isn't Virginia's. Now, not only does she have a newborn to care for and a bad case of the flu to nurture, Roe also has to contend with a new puzzle — who is this mystery woman dead in their backyard, and what happened to Virginia?
The Characters
Aurora Teagarden is a librarian (she’s a member of the Real Murders [Book] Club and the Uppity Women) with her first baby, Sophie Abigail Crusoe. Robin Crusoe is her mystery writer husband. Phillip is Aurora’s half-brother who’s been living with them. Moosie is a sweet but timid kitty who lives with them.
Corinne is Robin’s mother. Aida Brattle Teagarden Queensland is Roe’s mother who recently married John Queensland. John David (Poppy is John David’s deceased wife; Chase is their son) and Avery are John’s kids. Melinda is Avery’s wife. Jane Engle had been Roe’s “fairy godmother”. Roe and Phillip’s dad is a deadbeat.
Virginia Mitchell is the home help Aurora’s mother finds for Roe and Robin. Carlos Rivera is Virginia’s half-brother; Marcy Mitchell is her mother. Ford is her newly released-from-jail boyfriend. Dr. Garrison is Roe’s ob-gyn. Deedee Powers, Tallchief, and Stanley are some of the nurses at the hospital. Officer Brad Rodenheiser is in charge of hospital security. Carter Redding's daughter, Kathleen, is ill. Dr. Clifton is a consulting psychiatrist.
Peggy and Lena Herman are twins who live next door. Chaka is their Rhodesian ridgeback. Lena’s twin girls, Cindy and Mindy, live in Maine and Spartanburg, respectively. Kevin is Peggy’s doctor son and a dad himself. The officious Deborah and Jonathan Cohen live on the other side and, man, they are such pains in the tush! They just know that anything bad that happens is Roe and Robin’s fault and designed just to irritate them. Lulu is their PITA dachshund.
Sarah Washington is Phillip’s girlfriend; Beatrice is Sarah’s mother. Josh and Jocelyn Finstermeyer are twins and Phillip’s friends. Josh is dating Holly Maxwell while Joss is dating Kay Duval. Beth and George Finstermeyer are their parents. The snotty Justine had a party; Dr. and Carly Halverson are her lax parents. (Carly is Clifton’s daughter.)
Angel Youngblood is an old friend of Roe’s and married to Shelby; they’ve both worked as bodyguards. Their daughter is Lorna. Amina is/was a childhood friend; Megan is her daughter (Roe is her godmother). Susie is one of Megan’s friends. Hugh is Amina’s about-to-be-ex lawyer husband.
Father Aubrey Scott is the pastor of their church. Emily Scott is his wife. Liza is Emily’s daughter and friends with Phillip, since events in All the Little Liars, 9. Connor had been Emily’s first husband, an alcoholic abuser.
Laurenceton law enforcement
The pregnant Officer Susan Crawford partners with Officer Cleve Dan. Detectives Cathy Trumble and Levon Suit come to investigate the body. The pregnant Katrina is Levon’s wife; Jeremy is their son. Ardos “Arnie” Petrosian is the coroner whose full-time job is as the owner of Spartan Shield Security. Halina is his deceased wife.
Truman PD
Officer Dale Finch cracked up when Ford started complaining.
Brenda works at a real estate company and is Susan’s sister-in-law. Annette is Cathy’s younger sister. Duncan is her troubled son. Mrs. Sung is the drycleaner who wants Roe out of her establishment ASAP. Patricia “Mimi” Day was an exciting old lady. Laurie and David Martinez were the previous owners of Roe and Robin’s house. Rick Morrison was robbed.
Tracy Beal, a.k.a., LastFanStanding, escaped a mental hospital. She’d also stalked Dan Lonsdale and threatened his fiancée. Her mother, Sandra Beal, lives in South Carolina, while her sister, Sharon, lives in Anders. Celia Shaw was an actress murdered on the set of Whimsical Death.
The Lawrenceton Library is…
…where Roe works. Sam Clerrick is the library director and her boss. Lizanne is his secretary and Roe’s friend. Bubba is Lizanne's recently ex-husband who seeing Teresa Stanton, the ex-wife of another lawyer, Bryan Pascoe. Roe’s coworkers include Jennie Spellman, the media specialist, and Perry Allison.
Boucheron is…
…the world mystery convention in Nashville where one of the awards is the Anthony. Jeff Abbott is Robin’s friend and was best man at their wedding.
Harry Holderman of the Holderman Agency is Robin’s agent. Jill has been Robin’s editor for the past three books. Dawn is his webmaster.
Blossom Betty’s is a florist in Anders.
The Cover and Title
The cover is a deep, dark purply blue of sky and shadow while a slash of light comes from the house and illuminates the body lying under the orange smooth-skinned bark of the mimosa tree, turning the leaves a brilliant blue green with splotches of pink flowers scattered in the treetop over the orange striped Moosie sleeping on a branch. The author’s name is at the top in a pale orange with the lime-green title (in script) a’slant across the tree trunk. The series information is at the bottom in a pale gray.
The title is how no one actually will Sleep Like a Baby.
yodamom's review
4.0
Roe and Robin, new parents to a beautiful baby girl are adorable. Their love for each other and their child is written so wonderfully. Roe, is sick and Robin will be out of town so he calls in the woman who helped care for Roe and the baby before. Roe is relieved she can sleep and know that all is taken care of while she recuperates. Well things just can't be that easy, nope. Roe wakes to her baby wailing, her care taker missing and there is a dead body in the backyard that is not the caretaker. Things get weird, strained and sometimes ugly from there.
I loved this edition to the series we really got to see their relationship at work and it's a good one. I love a good solid relationship. Phillip her 1/2 brother was a stand up guy who held more than his own. I am always happy after I finish a Charlaine Harris book. Now I wait for more.
I loved this edition to the series we really got to see their relationship at work and it's a good one. I love a good solid relationship. Phillip her 1/2 brother was a stand up guy who held more than his own. I am always happy after I finish a Charlaine Harris book. Now I wait for more.
novelette's review
2.0
Least favorite of all the series. I don't like Aurora, and the characters seem forgetable
badseedgirl's review against another edition
2.0
Once an author introduces a baby into a mystery novel series, the series has officially canceled itself.
annemarie246's review against another edition
2.0
Too much baby sh*t
Used to like this series, but the baby and all the breast feeding and diaper changing has ruined it. Won't be bothering with reading any more.
Used to like this series, but the baby and all the breast feeding and diaper changing has ruined it. Won't be bothering with reading any more.
peppermintbat's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
cheesygiraffe's review against another edition
4.0
***NetGalley Review***
Aurora Teagarden has finally become a mother. She and Robin are the proud parents of a beautiful daughter named Sophie. After a couple months they are finally getting their life into a routine.
Robin has been nominated for an award for one of his books and he is going to the ceremony to see if he's won. Aurora stays home to be with their newborn. On the morning that he's set to leave Aurora wakes up feeling sick. She makes Robin go anyway but he calls in a woman that had helped them with Sophie when she was first born. It turns out Aurora has the flu. Virgina is doing a good job at first. With the help of Aurora's brother, Phillip they got her covered. Then one night Aurora wakes up to hear Sophie crying and Virgina is missing. When she goes to look outside for her she instead finds another woman dead in her backyard.
Aurora has another murder mystery to solve. But she has the flu and a newborn. Can she do it? You know she can. With a little help from Robin and Phillip.
I enjoyed this cozy mystery. I guess I like Whodunits on the lighter side most of the time. This is well written and the characters are interesting. I think since Charlaine Harris has come back to this series to continue it that she's done a great job. Although I do feel like it might be harder for Aurora to solve mysteries with a baby in tow. But we will see.
Aurora Teagarden has finally become a mother. She and Robin are the proud parents of a beautiful daughter named Sophie. After a couple months they are finally getting their life into a routine.
Robin has been nominated for an award for one of his books and he is going to the ceremony to see if he's won. Aurora stays home to be with their newborn. On the morning that he's set to leave Aurora wakes up feeling sick. She makes Robin go anyway but he calls in a woman that had helped them with Sophie when she was first born. It turns out Aurora has the flu. Virgina is doing a good job at first. With the help of Aurora's brother, Phillip they got her covered. Then one night Aurora wakes up to hear Sophie crying and Virgina is missing. When she goes to look outside for her she instead finds another woman dead in her backyard.
Aurora has another murder mystery to solve. But she has the flu and a newborn. Can she do it? You know she can. With a little help from Robin and Phillip.
I enjoyed this cozy mystery. I guess I like Whodunits on the lighter side most of the time. This is well written and the characters are interesting. I think since Charlaine Harris has come back to this series to continue it that she's done a great job. Although I do feel like it might be harder for Aurora to solve mysteries with a baby in tow. But we will see.
lesliewatwar's review against another edition
4.0
Cozy read
Cozy read with familiar friends on a couch cool morning. It was quick to catch my attention to want to keep reading. Simple enough it didn't require a lot of thought or tense moments. Exactly what I needed right now.
Cozy read with familiar friends on a couch cool morning. It was quick to catch my attention to want to keep reading. Simple enough it didn't require a lot of thought or tense moments. Exactly what I needed right now.
rdyourbookcase's review against another edition
3.0
Well, the more Aurora Teagarden that is in the world, the better - especially because it means more Hallmark movies! I’m glad Charlaine Harris has returned to her world and I enjoyed all of the twists and turns that the series has taken. (Although, I must admit, whenever I read about how rich Roe is, I get jealous. It seems too easy.) Also, I can tell how much Harris’s writing has grown since her earlier books. The mystery in Sleep Like a Baby was intriguing and the obstacles of Roe being sick while caring for her baby made the story more interesting. Overall, I liked it and I’m hoping for more books!
ltsakmann's review against another edition
2.0
I'm sure I'm going to continue with this series. The " mystery" wasn't all that mysterious.