booksare42's reviews
511 reviews

Death and Croissants by Ian Moore

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This review was originally posted on my blog: https://booksare42.com/
 

Have you ever picked up a book and after you finished it though, “ahh, this is exactly what I needed?” That’s how I felt about Death and Croissants by Ian Moore. After being on the verge of a reading slump, my library hold came through and this book was exactly what I needed. 

Death and Croissants takes place in the Loire Valley in France. Richard, a seemingly uninteresting person who runs a bed and breakfast, finds himself caught up in a mystery when a bloody hand print shows up on his wall and a guest goes missing. Valérie, one of the other guests at his B&B is on the case and Richard is tangled up in the mess, whether he likes it or not. To make matters worse, someone has murdered one of his hens, which makes the matter personal. 

I absolutely loved Richard. I have a soft spot for characters who find themselves caught up in chaos and mysteries even though it’s the last thing they want to be dealing with. On one hand, he just wants to live a quiet life making breakfast for guests and watching his films, but on the other he’s thrilled because the chaos is the most excitement he’s felt in years. He’s such a reluctant hero and I found myself rooting for him throughout the book. I also enjoyed his sense of humour, he had a few moments that made me laugh-out-loud.

Valérie, the other main character, was a whirlwind of mysterious energy. It’s clear that there’s more to her than meets the eye and that she’s a force to be reckoned with. I thought Valérie and Richard made the perfect team. I love a quality detective duo and Valérie and Richard did not disappoint in this department. 

I loved the setting of this book. All of the best cozy mysteries take place in quiet little towns or villages. The cast of characters and suspects was memorable and intriguing. I loved learning more about the people in town and trying to piece together how they might be connected with the crime. I hope that some of the characters make future appearances later on in the series. 

As far as the plot goes, this was exactly what I want to see in a cozy mystery. It wasn’t overly violent. There was a decent cast of suspects, but not so many that I couldn’t keep track of what was going on and who was who. There were twists and turns that kept me reading past my bedtime to figure out who the guilty party was. There was also the slightest inkling of a romantic subplot that in no way took away from the overall story. 

Overall, I thought this was a thoroughly enjoyable read. It’s perfect for fans of Agatha Christie or Richard Osman or anyone looking for a cozy mystery. I’m looking forward to continuing on with this series and seeing what trouble finds Richard and Valérie next. 

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

3.5

Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

3.5

War of the Wind by Victoria Williamson

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Thank you to The Write Reads and Neem Tree Press for providing me a copy of this book for a blog tour. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

War of the Wind is the fifth book I’ve read by Victoria Williamson. While I’m a fan of Victoria Williamson and impressed at her ability to write so many different genres, I had mixed feelings about War of the Wind.

I loved the characters in War of the Wind. I was rooting for Max the entire time, as he struggled to navigate and adapt to life with hearing loss. My heart broke for him when he thought his family had replaced him and his friends didn’t want him anymore. I thought Max had great character development and I thought he learned a lot about himself throughout the book. I loved reading about his evolving relationship with his friends and family. 

Max and his friends were easy characters to root for. I wanted them to succeed in saving their community. I liked how they were able to work together and use their strengths to come up with a plan. 

What made me a bit uncomfortable was the wind turbines. The wind turbines were being used for nefarious purposes and I don’t think there was enough emphasis that the turbines themselves aren’t necessarily bad, it’s that they were being used for bad things. I think the discussion of the wind turbines could have been a bit more nuanced, instead of painting them in a, mostly negative, light. 

One of the tropes in this book is the “evil scientist” trope. I don’t know how I feel about this trope but I think it has the potential to be harmful. There are too many conspiracy theories about science being bad and I think this trope has the potential to make people more distrustful of science. 

I appreciated the disability representation in this book. I don’t know how accurate it was, but in the author’s notes, it mentions that the British Deaf Association reviewed the novel before publication to ensure the Deaf characters’ stories were portrayed sensitively. 

Two other things that I wanted to note is that this book does contain bullying and some scenes that involve physical violence. This book also falls somewhere between the Middle-Grade and Young-Adult age categories. 

Overall, War of the Wind was an enjoyable read. It had some wonderful characters and representation in it. There were a few plot points that didn’t sit well with me, but overall I liked it. 

The Highland Falcon Thief by M.G. Leonard, Sam Sedgman

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

 The Highland Falcon Thief is the first book in a fun, middle-grade mystery series. 

Harrison (Hal) Beck is a fantastic main character. I loved following him, his friend Lenny, and Uncle Nat put the pieces together to solve the mystery of the jewel heist on the Highland Falcon. 

The mystery had Agatha Christie vibes and I thought it was a great way to introduce that style of mystery to a younger audience. 

This book had plenty of dangerous moments, clever moments, and funny moments. I loved the illustrations and I liked that Hal’s drawings helped him solve the case. 

This book had tons of fun facts about railroads and trains, which I enjoyed. 

I also liked how this book dealt with the topic of Hal processing the idea that he’s about to be a big brother. 

I can’t wait to read the next book in the series. 

Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

3.5

The Tea Dragon Tapestry by K. O'Neill

hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

 Just like the other books in this series, The Tea Dragon Tapestry is incredibly heartwarming and cozy. 

I liked that this book featured all of the characters from The Tea Dragon Society and The Tea Dragon Festival, and that it also introduced some new characters to the world. I also adored the found family aspect of this series.

This book dealt with some heavy topics like grief and self-acceptance. There were two lines that really stood out to me: “But sad people aren’t objects to fix. Give them space and show them you’ll still love them whenever they are ready to be loved” and “I feel homesick for the person I used to be.” I thought both of these lines were beautiful and they’re going to stick with me for a long time. 

Once again, I love the artwork in these series. It’s bright and colourful, but also very cozy. Picking up the books in this series is like picking up a warm cup of tea, there’s something comforting about it. 

Set on You by Amy Lea

funny inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 I was introduced to the main characters in this book, Crystal and Scott, last year when I read Exes and O’s. I had been curious about their story and I’m glad I finally got around to reading Set On You and finding out about how they got together. 

Set On You is a fun enemies-to-friends-to-lovers romance, with a little bit of forced proximity thrown in. Crystal annoyed me at times, but I thought she had great character development. I loved how driven she was and I found some of her struggles, especially with impostor syndrome, to be relatable. Scott has Golden Retriever energy and I enjoyed his character. Scott didn’t has as much character development as Crystal, though part of this is because the book is told entirely from Crystal’s point of view. I think I would have enjoyed this book a bit more if it was dual point of view, or if we at least had a few chapters told from Scott’s point of view. 

I loved that this story revolved around Crystal’s Grandma Flo and Scott’s Grandpa Martin getting married. I think weddings make a great backdrop for a romance novel, and wedding did not disappoint. More generally, I also loved that the wedding allowed me to meet more of Scott’s family and Crystal’s family. I liked reading about how their families meeting and blending into one. On another note, some of Grandma Flo’s antics made me laugh-out-loud and I would love a spin-off book about her. 

While the story about Crystal being an Influencer might not be for everyone, I enjoyed reading about her business and brand. I loved how passionate she was about her clients and how empowering and motivating she could be. I thought this book had some good messages about self-acceptance, imposter syndrome, anxiety, and how toxic the Internet can be. I also thought that the Instagram posts throughout the book (and their comment sections) was a nice touch. 

I loved the banter between Crystal and Scott. Their relationship had some sweet moments, though communication was an issue at times. There was one date, and a few other scenes that bothered me, but overall I liked them as a couple. I thought the reason for the third-act break-up was ridiculous, but I generally find third-act break-ups to be ridiculous. This book did have some steamy “open door” scenes with varying levels of description. 

Overall, I thought this was a fun book. It was easy to read and get into and it had some laugh-out-loud scenes. I’m looking forward to reading the third book in this series, The Catch, later this year. 

Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.5

 I have mixed feelings about this one. I loved the mystery and I thought Poirot was presented with a unique and interesting problem. At times though, it felt like there was too much going on. This one had a lot of characters in it, a few of them were developed but a lot were barely mentioned and mostly just in the background. The language used to describe some of the international students did not age well and some comments and stereotypes were racist. This book also did not have enough of Poirot in it and a lot of the story was conversations between the students. Overall, this was an enjoyable read, but not the most shocking or memorable Christie mystery. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, and Murder

Minor: Alcoholism

Norah's Ark by Victoria Williamson

4.0