Genre: Cosy Historical Mystery

Blog Tour Spotlight | “The Silent Woman” (Book One: Cat Carlisle) by Terry Lynn Thomas

Posted Monday, 13 May, 2019 by jorielov , , , , , , , , , , , , 0 Comments

Stories in the Spotlight banner created by Jorie in Canva.

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Acquired Book By: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours whereupon I am thankful to have been able to host such a diverse breadth of stories, authors and wonderful guest features since I became a hostess! HFVBTs is one of the very first touring companies I started working with as a 1st Year Book Blogger – uniting my love and passion with Historical Fiction and the lovely sub-genres inside which I love devouring. It has been a wicked fantastical journey into the heart of the historic past, wherein I’ve been blessed truly by discovering new timescapes, new living realities of the persons who once lived (ie. Biographical Historical Fiction) inasmuch as itched my healthy appetite for Cosy Historical Mysteries! If there is a #HistRom out there it is generally a beloved favourite and I love soaking into a wicked wonderful work of Historical Fiction where you feel the beauty of the historic world, the depth of the characters and the joyfulness in which the historical novelists brought everything to light in such a lovingly diverse palette of portraiture of the eras we become time travellers through their stories.

As this story (“The Silent Woman”) was only available for review consideration in ebook format, I decided to listen to the audiobook version of it via my Scribd subscription. Thereby, I elected to join the blog tour and share my ruminative thoughts whilst assembling an interview to discuss the book and the series with the author as I personally have a penchant for Historical Mysteries, Suspense and Thrillers. As I was not obligated to post a review based on an audiobook I listen to via my subscription to Scribd, I did this for my own edification and to continue to share my reading life with my readers. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

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On why this story appealled to me:

One of my favourite sub-genres of Historical Fiction are the Historical Mysteries, Suspense and Thrillers. More oft than not, I am travelling down a corridor of the historic past whilst I am following the footsteps of such likeable Historical sleuths, detectives and specialists such as Anna Blanc, Arthur Conan Doyle, Hiro Hattori, Bess Crawford, Willa Cather & Edith Lewis, Maisie Dobbs, Lady Darby, Edith Head & Lillian Frost and the Discreet Detective Agency to name a few. Each time I tuck inside one of these lovelies, I am benefiting from the Historical overlay of the past intermixing with the beauty of the sleuthing unfolding as I walk through the investigation alongside the lead character(s).

In the past, I hungrily devoured the Miss Marple series as I was smitten by Agatha Christie’s infamous St. Mary’s Mead and their lovable and inquisitive pensioner who liked to get a nose in on crime. In recent years, I’ve taken a liking to Poirot which half-surprised me as previously I found him to be a bit off-putting but now I find him stoic and uniquely intriguing as much as I find Monk or Columbo.

Each window into the past is a beautiful discovery but to travel through the threshold of history whilst seeing the differences in crime and detection is another layer of hidden histories and insightful revelations from a keenly sociological perspective. Each author I read has their own variant doorway they like to take us through – creating their own individual portal into the past and finding ourselves anchoured to a bevy of interesting characters who not just have their story to share with us but perhaps, a story out of History which has equal merit and relevancy to know today?

This is why I can never tire of seeking out these kinds of stories and the authors who are bringing them to life. It is also a benefit for stories which are Digital First releases are able to be cross-released into a format I can enjoy – either print or audiobook. The joy for this blog tour was finding out this series is available via Scribd as most UK publishers are not present on the website and I look forward to more of their book catalogues being added at some point as most of those are mainly housed on Audible.

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Blog Tour Spotlight | “The Silent Woman” (Book One: Cat Carlisle) by Terry Lynn ThomasThe Silent Woman (Spotlight)
by Terry Lynn Thomas
Source: Scribd | Subscription
Narrator: Jan Cramer

Would you sell your secrets?

Catherine Carlisle is trapped in a loveless marriage and the threat of World War Two is looming. She sees no way out… that is until a trusted friend asks her to switch her husband’s papers in a desperate bid to confuse the Germans.

Soon Catherine finds herself caught up in a deadly mixture of espionage and murder. Someone is selling secrets to the other side, and the evidence seems to point right at her.

Can she clear her name before it’s too late?

Genres: Cosy Historical Mystery, Crime Fiction, Feminist Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ASIN: B07KCKN37Z

Also by this author: The Silent Woman (Interview)

on 18th November, 2018

Format: Audiobook | Digital

Length: 7 hours and 36 minutes (unabridged)

Published By: HQ Digital UK (@HQDigitalUK)
an imprint of HarperCollinsUK (@HarperCollinsUK)

The Cat Carlisle series:

The Silent Woman (book one)

The Family Secret (book two)

Converse via: #CatCarlisle + #HistFic or #HistNov
as well as #HistoricalMystery and #HistoricalFiction

Available Formats: Trade Paperback, Audiobook and Ebook

About Terry Lynn Thomas

Terry Lynn Thomas

TERRY LYNN THOMAS grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, which explains her love of foggy beaches and Gothic mysteries. When her husband promised to buy Terry a horse and the time to write if she moved to Mississippi with him, she jumped at the chance. Although she had written several novels and screenplays prior to 2006, after she relocated to the South she set out to write in earnest and has never looked back.

Terry Lynn writes the Sarah Bennett Mysteries, set on the California coast during the 1940s, which feature a misunderstood medium in love with a spy. The Drowned Woman is a recipient of the IndieBRAG Medallion. She also writes the Cat Carlisle Mysteries, set in Britain during World War II.

The first book in this series, The Silent Woman, came out in April 2018 and has since become a USA TODAY bestseller. The Family Secret released in March 2019. When she’s not writing, you can find Terry Lynn riding her horse, walking in the woods with her dogs, or visiting old cemeteries in search of story ideas.

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Posted Monday, 13 May, 2019 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Book Blitz w/ Notes during #HistoricalMondays | Celebrating “The Golden Hour” (The Lady Evelyn Mysteries, Book Four) by Malia Zaidi

Posted Monday, 8 April, 2019 by jorielov , , , , 0 Comments

Stories in the Spotlight banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Why I am spotlighting this during #Historical Mondays:

You might be curious why I hosting a book blitz rather than a book review during my feature for showcasing Historical narratives on Mondays? The keen reason for this today is the fact when I read the premise of this Cosy Historical Mystery series – I had a feeling I had stumbled across my next #mustread Cosy series and I wanted to take the chance to feature it during a #HistoricalMondays celebration ahead of being able to read it myself! A bit similar in a way to spotlighting and/or discussing books during #WaitingOnWednesday but this is strictly for the Historical narratives across genre which speak to my readerly heart and are the kinds of stories I am wicked thankful are being published for readers like me who can’t devour enough #HistFic!

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Book Blitz w/ Notes during #HistoricalMondays | Celebrating “The Golden Hour” (The  Lady Evelyn Mysteries, Book Four) by Malia ZaidiThe Golden Hour (Spotlight)
by Malia Zaidi

Lady Evelyn Carlisle has barely arrived in London when familial duty calls her away again. Her cousin Gemma is desperate for help with her ailing mother before her imminent wedding, which Evelyn knew nothing about! Aunt Agnes in tow, she journeys to Scotland, expecting to find Malmo Manor in turmoil. To her surprise, her Scottish family has been keeping far more secrets than the troubled state of their matriarch.

Adding to the tension in the house a neighbor has opened his home, Elderbrooke Park, as a retreat for artistic veterans of the Great War. This development does not sit well with everyone in the community. Is the suspicion towards the residents a catalyst for murder? A tragedy at Elderbrooke Park’s May Day celebration awakens Evelyn’s sleuthing instinct, which is strengthened when the story of another unsolved death emerges, connected to her own family.

What she uncovers on her quest to expose the truth will change several lives forever, including her own. With the shadow of history looming over her, Evelyn must trust in her instinct and ability to comb through the past to understand the present, before the murderer can stop her and tragedy strikes again.

Genres: Amateur Detective, Cosy Historical Mystery, Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1543959499

Also by this author: The Quality of Mercy

Also in this series: The Quality of Mercy


Published by Self Published

on 26th March, 2019

This is a self-published series through BookBaby!

Lady Evelyn Mysteries series banner provided by HFVBTs

A Poisonous Journey (book one)

A Darker Shore (book two)

The Study of Silence (book three)

The Golden Hour (book four)

Converse via: #LadyEvelynMysteries + #HistoricalMysteries
as well as #CosyMysteries and #HistoricalFiction

Available Formats: Trade Paperback and Ebook

I was overjoyed seeing this is a self-published series through Book Baby as I used to participate in the Book Baby Twitter chats about self-publishing through their platform. It was one of the platforms I felt next to LuLu which worked well for authors and over the years, I’ve been blessed to read a few releases by Book Baby. I was first introduced to Book Baby though through my admiration and love of #CDBaby which is part of the parent company.

About Malia Zaidi

Malia Zaidi

Malia Zaidi is the author of The Lady Evelyn Mysteries. She studied at the University of Pittsburgh and at the University of Oxford. Having grown up in Germany, she currently lives in Washington DC, though through her love of reading, she resides vicariously (if temporarily) in countries around the world.

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Posted Monday, 8 April, 2019 by jorielov in #HistoricalMondays, 20th Century, Amateur Detective, Blog Tour Host, Cosy Historical Mystery, Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Indie Author, Lady Detective Fiction, the Nineteen Hundreds, the Roaring Twenties

A #cloakanddaggerchristmas Book Review | “Naughty On Ice” (Book Four of The Discreet Retrieval Agency) by Maia Chance

Posted Monday, 24 December, 2018 by jorielov , , , , , , 0 Comments

Book Review badge created by Jorie in Canva using Unsplash.com photography (Creative Commons Zero).

Acquired Book By: I was approached by Minotaur Books this Winter about reading a selection of their upcoming Mysteries and Suspense novels. I was hoping to read them in the weeks leading into Christmas until I came down with a serious Winter virus which disrupted my plans. Therefore, it became a proper #cloakanddaggerchristmas celebration for me as I settled into these Cosies as the holiday was arriving giving me a comfortable joy of reading the kind of stories I love to discover during this time of the year. Cosies are wonderful all year round but there is something special about the ones that take-on a holiday vibe!

I received a complimentary copy of “Naughty On Ice” direct from the publisher Minotaur Books (an imprint of St. Martin’s Press) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

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The reason reading ‘Naughty On Ice’ appealled to me:

This one felt like a smashing good fit as I personally was seriously attached to the tv series “Miss Fisher” – I love the whole era this is set behind and of course, I can imagine the kind of folly which might follow suit as well. I saw the first in the series is at my local library so I wouldn’t feel guilty this is a series already in-progress!

I have been aching to find a new Cosy series which was representative of what I *adore!* in the Miss Fisher Murder Mysteries but which could exist separate from #MissFisher all the same! I haven’t ever read one of those mysteries due to how attached I became to the television adaptations – something didn’t seem quite right to me to back-read a series I knew would ultimately disappoint me as the series on air and the series in print are two birds of different feathers! It would have been different of course, if I had found the book series prior to the tv series but since I hadn’t, I was ready to find another Cosy Historical Mystery series which had the essence of Miss Fisher but was a wholly new adventure all the same!

I had a feeling I’d adore reading this series – I had it in mind to fetch the first of the series as I spied it at my local library but as I struggled with my health this Autumn & Winter, I elected to read it out of sequence, keeping true to how sometimes you can read a festive Cosy and gather a good notion about a series already in-progress. It didn’t take long for me to recognise I would love these stories and I happily added the first three to my #BeatTheBacklist reading challenge to see what I’ve been missing out from not having found this series sooner!

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Naughty On Ice badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit jorielovesastory.com

Naughty On Ice
by Maia Chance
Source: Direct from Publisher

Marvelously charming Lola Woodby and her stoic Swedish cook Berta return for a dazzingly fun holiday adventure in Naught On Ice, Maia Chance's latest addition to the Discreet Retrieval Agency series.

When an anonymous Christmas card from Maple Hill, Vermont beckons the Discreet Retrieval Agency to recover an antique ring at a family gathering, of course Lola and Berta jump at the chance - after all, holiday business hasn't been such exhilarating work, and their sweethearts Ralph and Jimmy have been on the back burner.

But no sooner do they find the ring on Great-Aunt Daphne Goddard's arthritic finger than Mrs Goddard drops dead from a poisoned glass of Negroni on ice - and the police show up to find Lola and Berta red-handed with the ring. It's an obvious set-up, and now the duo must uncover the secrets of Maple Hill in order to clear their name... or be thrown in the slammer.

Genres: Cosy Historical Mystery, Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781250109071

Published by Minotaur Books

on 13th November, 2018

Format: Hardcover Edition

Pages: 288

 Published By: Minotaur Books (@MinotaurBooks)
{imprint of} St. Martin’s Press (@StMartinsPress)

The Discreet Retrieval Agency series:

Come Hell or High Ball (book one)

Teetotaled (book two)

Gin and Panic (book three)

→ Naughty on Ice (book four) *where I begin the series!

Converse via: #DiscreetRetrievalAgency, #LolaAndBerta, #MaiaChance

and #CosyHistoricalMystery, #CosyMystery or #HistMys

Available Formats: Hardcover and Ebook

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About Maia Chance

Maia Chance was a finalist for the 2004 Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award and is a Ph.D candidate at the University of Washington. She is writing her dissertation on nineteenth-century American literature. She is also the author of the Fairy Tale Fatal Mystery series.

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

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Posted Monday, 24 December, 2018 by jorielov in 20th Century, Amateur Detective, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Review (non-blog tour), British Literature, Cosy Historical Mystery, Cosy Mystery, Crime Fiction, Detective Fiction, Historical Fiction, Lady Detective Fiction, Modern British Author, the Roaring Twenties

#SpooktasticReads | a mini-event of #WyrdAndWonder named after an event Jorie conceived in [2017] but wished to expound upon her idea to reach a wider audience who could re-interpret the event for themselves with a #wyrdandwonder twist!

Posted Monday, 22 October, 2018 by jorielov , , 2 Comments

#SpooktasticReads banner created by Imyril (@imyril) Photo Credit: Unsplash Photographer Mark Tegethoff. (Creative Commons Zero) Used with permission.

Last Autumn, you might remember I conceived of this idea to re-start my readings into the spooktacular worlds of chilling Thrillers, Suspense, Mysteries and the Paranormal (with just a dash of love for Cosy Horror!) – wherein I conceived of spending a fortnight reading such lovelies and enjoying a personal readathon leading into Halloween! I fell a bit short of my goals last year, though I took it as a success – as not only did I read some rather spookified tales which I’ll be re-promoting these last days of October but I found myself wholly intrigued by the stories I was selecting to read!

This year, I helped name our first mini-event for #WyrdAndWonder – wherein I was hoping to let this small idea I had last year take flight, reach a bigger audience and find readers who might find their own definition of #SpooktasticReads befitting their own readerly life! I was originally going to only slate myself to read two Dark Fantasy selections for our event this October, but then, I re-read over my post from last year and realised all the chilling stories I was reading for different events in the book blogosphere this year aptly cross-apply to the essence of what we’re reading for #SpooktasticReads as a Fantasy loving reading group! Some of the stories of course play the theme up quite a bit for the spookier side of the genres, some of which may or may not directly (or indirectly) relate to Fantasy per se but this is one of those readathons which is open to both interpretation and the joy of having free reign to enjoy the readathon in a way each reader wants to approach it!

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A Spooktastic reading binge for Psychological Suspense & Gothic Tales!

Autumn for me is a time in the year where I simply like to read a curated collection of stories which fall under different categories of mutual interest: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Gothic or Paranormally inclined and Cosy Horror.

This year [2018] as I co-host my own mini-event celebrating the 13 days leading into Halloween with #SpooktasticReads, I am also happily reading a Cosy Mystery about a witch for my first ever #CozyMysteryBookClub selection via audiobook whilst finding the joy of participating in both #SCAREtober and #HorrorOctober as those reading (and blogging!) challenges compliment my readings for #SpooktasticReads whilst the few stories I have slated for #Victober also work well with the context of what I’m focusing on this year! I decided to ‘let go’ of the idea of reading individual stories for each theme of challenge and get into the randomness of finding the stories which not just cross-relate but I can talk to the readers of all the challenges who are seeking the same stories I am!

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If other book bloggers or readers want to join us, please link to your blog, Twitter, Riffle List, LibraryThing List or other ‘space’ online where you are updating about what your reading – such as Instagram or Vlog (YouTube) in the Comments section below!

Use the tag: #SpooktasticReads & link back to this post – as I will happily be sharing what your doing for this lovely #WyrdAndWonder mini-event! Plus, I love hearing what others are reading in case something they discover would be a good fit for me as well!

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Posted Monday, 22 October, 2018 by jorielov in Bookish Discussions, Cosy Historical Mystery, Crime Fiction, Ghosts & the Supernatural, Gothic Literature, Historical Fiction, Historical Thriller Suspense, Parapsychological Gifts, Supernatural Fiction, Suspense