nikkisbooknook's reviews
4887 reviews

Mia Murphy has, for the 2nd time, decided to go straight.  No more crime, no more dead bodies, no more trying to outwit Devlin and Griselda.  Well, the bad guys didn't get the memo and Mia, Lucy and Hattie are soon knee deep in corpses once more!

Hattie it seems has annoyed someone with her tasty recipes and they are out to frame her for murder...again!  But the girls have their own ways to find out what's happening and they don't want Hattie getting taken off to jail.  Who knew baking could be so cut-throat?

As ever with a trip to Bass Derby the chaos and madcappery if full flowing and you just need to switch your brain off and enjoy the shenanigans!  My favourite scene has to be hiding from Devlin and Griselda in the pub. If Beau wasn't a mystery writer you'd really start to worry about his fascination with murder. King Tut as usual is in scene stealing glory - even a non cat lover like me could deal with having a guard cat like him around!

 

Teddy is the spitfire, confident, go-getting girl I wish I had been.  She's unabashedly herself, and won't change to make herself more palatable to anyone.  Gus is dependable, reliable, set in his ways.  That man needs a bit of shaking up to remind him that, whilst he's a tad older than Teddy, he's not quite ready for the old folks home either!

I loved the way that their enemies to lovers, banter filled relationship developed.  It actually kind of reminds me of my husband and I, we both know what buttons to push and where to draw the line. It was wonderful to see the emotion and tenderness that the story between Teddy and her dad, Teddy and Emmy, & Teddy and Gus/Riley showed how fears can be overcome, family can be found anywhere and that just because you fail once, you're not always a failure. 

The friendship and co-parenting between Gus and Cam was refreshing to see and the way that they didn't get in the way of each other's happiness and supported each other.

Can't wait to see what happens next! 

Juno and co are back for some more mystery solving.  This time one of their own is being targeted - Phoebe received an invitation to her own funeral!  Then the poor postman is killed when someone sends her a letterbomb!

Juno continues to pine/lust after her new friend Mil.  She thinks he's too young for a widow like her, but I say let Mil decide who he wants to date!  The flirty banter between them is escalating - she just needs a little prod. 

I love a great amateur sleuth mystery and this team are growing on me.  Juno is a great leader of the pack, even though she may dispute that herself.  Phoebe and Felix would be couple goals if Phoebe could rid herself of her mental health battles, which causes rifts between them.  Felix is no angel but it is clear that he loves his wife.  Learning more about their life prior to the village really filled in some gaps.

There are plenty of suspects to choose from and the plot twists a few times, skewing the favour to one suspect or another.  I really struggled to have any empathy for Penny at all, she was such a vicious madam. 

I have to admit I was completely hoodwinked at the reveal - I did not see that coming at all! There are lots of laughs from the supporting characters of Juno‘s mum and her boyfriend Dennis. Juno's son also makes a wee appearance, dealing with a dilemma of his own. 

 Pine has recently taken over the Lordship from his father.  He has so much to keep an eye on and control over, he has no time to search for a mate.  But his king is in the mood for HEA's and is plotting to matchmake for him at the Yule ball.  Pine hatches a plan and tasks the Matchmaker to find him a temporary consort.  Not a companion of negotiable affection, just someone who he can be seen with at the Ball and thwart his king's plans.

Enter Neve.  She hates Christmas and when she wins a holiday she thinks "Jackpot".  However, she did not think she'd end up on a distant planet, dealing with a handsome lord who shifts into a dragon!

It doesn't take long for the fake dating to turn real.  Pine gets suitably wowed by a glammed Neve and a tad growly protective when she has to dance with other males at the ball.  Neve, in turn, has to deal with arrogant males who think they're all that and a bag of chips and can have whoever and whatever they want!

Duplicitous dragon politics, dishy MMC and delightfully grumpy FMC.  She may be out of her element (and her world) but Neve won't take anything lying down.  The secondary characters are well formed and I loved meeting Briar! 

 When a romance starts with an almost beheading by christmas tree, things can only get better for our MC's surely!!

Take Christmas, a grinchy primary school teacher, a golden retriever - sunshine handyman and a bunch of cute as a button kids and this is the ultimate meet-cute Christmas romcom. It balances sweet and funny without being twee and syrupy.

Clutzy Amelia and nice-guy Jake are the prefect couple. He's determined to make her see the joy of Christmas, whilst she is mired in all the things that have befallen her during the season. Fate seems determined to put them together, they meet 3 times within a short period of time. Fred and Nala steal the show as all pets in a romcom must!

This reads like a Hallmark movie that won't make you roll your eyes so hard they fall out of your head! 

These terrorists really don't know what they have unleashed when they abduct Mark's friend/handler, Mackenzie.  She may be tortured but Mark will inflict infinitely worst on their enemies to get her back!

The timeline slips between modern day and a few years earlier, when a joint mission with Mossad led Mac and Mark to work together.  Now that previous mission has bearings on Mac's current predicament. Past and present merge together as Mark tries to piece together information that may lead to Mac's whereabouts.

As the tension mounts we learn there are more hostages, suitcase nuclear weapons and blackmail being used to control and coerce people throughout the Middle East and the UK to do the bad guys bidding.  Fast paced, twisty, and packed with danger.  I love a well researched and paced thriller and this has both those things in spades!

I really enjoyed the different style of opening to this story.  The ill-gotten gains being hidden away - what has that to do with our story??

Welcome back to Bayou Mambaloa. The cutest, quirkiest and, it would seem, most dangerous small town in Louisiana!  Rafael aka Romeo, has been burned in love.  He gave up the career he loved for his sweetheart and she jilted him.  Now he loves the ladies but leaves them wanting more.  Gisele however, she doesn't hate men exactly -s she just doesn't trust them a whole lot!  Wither her ful mouthed, men hating parrot, she rules over her little Voodoo and potion shop.  But it seems that someone has it out for Gisele.

Rafael can't have that.  He's now on protector mode, whether feisty Gisele thinks she needs it or not.  The chemistry between these two is palpable and soon can't be contained.  Gisele wants to hate Rafael for his treatment of her cousin but she soon learns that situation is not all it's been painted.

Wooing a wary woman whilst trying to fend off cougars, biting parrots and a determined bad guy means Rafael has his work cut out for him!  Interfering friends/neighbours really needs to become a standard trope! 

 

Flirting with the Frenemy Review: 

Wyatt is #bookboyfriendgoals! He's protective, irritating, handsome, a great dad and best friend of Beck. However, he and Ellie have made it their life's work to peck at each other. But now that that frenemy line has been obliterated they learn that all that fighting was hiding some major fireworks! Tucker steals almost every scene he is in and the smexy times are flaming hot! Pirate weddings are the way to go and if Beck could send me his game room I'd be really happy! 

America's Geekheart: 

Beck is a master of acting the shallow underwear modelling fool but that man hides a deep well of sentiment and sweetness. He fell hard, fast and first for Sarah. Sarah may be an intentional wallflower but when needs must she'll show up and show out! You will want your own pig in a tutu - yes, you read that right! 

Liar, Liar, Hearts on Fire: 

Lila was this fantastic blend of sad, persistent and patient. Tripp, former boybander, single dad and baseball nut - he may just have the answer to all her hopes and dreams. How on Earth does Tripp survive being a germaphobe around two kids? As usual any scene with cute kids in makes me giggle. But I have to say #duckageddon was one of my favourite scenes. It's always great to have former couples and random townfolk pop in and see what they're up to now. Smexy, sweet and funny. 

Dirty Talking Rival: 

Grady and Annika could have been love's young dream but things were said, actions were done and now they're rivals. But how much rivalling can get done when Annika can't bake for toffee? GBBO isn't this cut-throat! Feuding towns, miscommunication on both sides, stubbornness out the wazoo - these two really do get in their own way! I do love the way they are all in for their families - the Rocks are a whole handful to deal with, especially Pop Rock. Annika, Grady and a goat named Sue will keep you in hysterics! I have never heard such innuendo from a baker to his pastries, lol!