Armchair Traveler books I want to read and one I did read

February 17, 2026February 16, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 13 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week’s prompt was: Books for Armchair Travelers (Submitted by Laurie C @ Bay State Reader’s Advisory)

I have not read a lot of travel or adventure or even non-fiction books, but I do have a list I want to read so I thought I’d share that list today.

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson

I actually had this book in my Libby at the end of last year, but ran out of time to read it. I’ll try again this year.

Description: The Appalachian Trail stretches from Georgia to Maine and covers some of the most breathtaking terrain in America—majestic mountains, silent forests, sparkling lakes. If you’re going to take a hike, it’s probably the place to go. And Bill Bryson is surely the most entertaining guide you’ll find. He introduces us to the history and ecology of the trail and to some of the other hardy (or just foolhardy) folks he meets along the way—and a couple of bears. Already a classic, A Walk in the Woods will make you long for the great outdoors (or at least a comfortable chair to sit and read in).

2. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

I will be reading this one in March for the Christie 2026 Challenge.

Description:

“The murderer is with us—on the train now . . .”

Just after midnight, the famous Orient Express is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. By morning, the millionaire Samuel Edward Ratchett lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. Without a shred of doubt, one of his fellow passengers is the murderer.

Isolated by the storm, detective Hercule Poirot must find the killer among a dozen of the dead man’s enemies, before the murderer decides to strike again.

3. The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim

A relative recommended this one.

Description:

The women at the center of The Enchanted April are alike only in their dissatisfaction with their everyday lives. They find each other—and the castle of their dreams—through a classified ad in a London newspaper one rainy February afternoon. The ladies expect a pleasant holiday, but they don’t anticipate that the month they spend in Portofino will reintroduce them to their true natures and reacquaint them with joy. Now, if the same transformation can be worked on their husbands and lovers, the enchantment will be complete.

4. Heidi by Johanna Spyri

I’ve always wanted to read this one but have never got around to it.

Description:

At the age of five, little orphan Heidi is sent to live with her grandfather in the Alps. Everyone in the village is afraid of him, but Heidi is fascinated by his long beard and bushy grey eyebrows. She loves her life in the mountains, playing in the sunshine and growing up amongst the goats and birds. But one terrible day, Heidi is collected by her aunt and is made to live with a new family in town. Heidi can’t bear to be away from her grandfather; can she find a way back up the mountain, where she belongs?

5. Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mays.

I’ve seen this movie but have not read the book.

Description:

Frances Mayes entered a wondrous new world when she began restoring an abandoned villa in the spectacular Tuscan countryside. There were unexpected treasures at every turn: faded frescos beneath the whitewash in her dining room, a vineyard under wildly overgrown brambles in the garden, and, in the nearby hill towns, vibrant markets and delightful people. In Under the Tuscan Sun, she brings the lyrical voice of a poet, the eye of a seasoned traveler, and the discerning palate of a cook and food writer to invite readers to explore the pleasures of Italian life and to feast at her table.

6. Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck

Description: To hear the speech of the real America, to smell the grass and the trees, to see the colors and the light—these were John Steinbeck’s goals as he set out, at the age of fifty-eight, to rediscover the country he had been writing about for so many years.

With Charley, his French poodle, Steinbeck drives the interstates and the country roads, dines with truckers, encounters bears at Yellowstone and old friends in San Francisco. Along the way he reflects on the American character, racial hostility, the particular form of American loneliness he finds almost everywhere, and the unexpected kindness of strangers.

7. My Life in France by Julia Child

Description: Here is the captivating story of Julia Child’s years in France, where she fell in love with French food and found “her true calling.” From the moment she and her husband Paul, who worked for the USIS, arrived in the fall of 1948, Julia had an awakening that changed her life. Soon this tall, outspoken gal from Pasadena, California, who didn’t speak a word of French and knew nothing about the country, was steeped in the language, chatting with purveyors in the local markets, and enrolled in the Cordon Bleu. She teamed up with two fellow gourmettes, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, to help them with a book on French cooking for Americans. Filled with her husband’s beautiful black-and-white photographs as well as family snapshots, this memoir is laced with wonderful stories about the French character, particularly in the world of food, and the way of life that Julia embraced so wholeheartedly. Bon appétit!-

8. All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes by Maya Angelou

In 1962 the poet, musician, and performer Maya Angelou claimed another piece of her identity by moving to Ghana, joining a community of “Revolutionist Returnees” inspired by the promise of pan-Africanism. All God’s Children Need Walking Shoes is her lyrical and acutely perceptive exploration of what it means to be an African American on the mother continent, where color no longer matters but where American-ness keeps asserting itself in ways both puzzling and heartbreaking. As it builds on the personal narrative of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and Gather Together in My Name , this book confirms Maya Angelou’s stature as one of the most gifted autobiographers of our time.

9. A Room with a View by E.M. Forester

I have seen this movie but thought I should read the book some day.

Description:

“But you do,” he went on, not waiting for contradiction. “You love the boy body and soul, plainly, directly, as he loves you, and no other word expresses it …”

Lucy has her rigid, middle-class life mapped out for her, until she visits Florence with her uptight cousin Charlotte, and finds her neatly ordered existence thrown off balance. Her eyes are opened by the unconventional characters she meets at the Pension Bertolini: flamboyant romantic novelist Eleanor Lavish, the Cockney Signora, curious Mr Emerson and, most of all, his passionate son George.

Lucy finds herself torn between the intensity of life in Italy and the repressed morals of Edwardian England, personified in her terminally dull fiancé Cecil Vyse. Will she ever learn to follow her own heart?

10. Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie Mallowan

I have read this one and enjoyed it.

Description:

Over the course of her long, prolific career, Agatha Christie gave the world a wealth of ingenious whodunits and page-turning locked-room mysteries featuring Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot, and a host of other unforgettable characters. She also gave us Come, Tell Me How You Live, a charming, fascinating, and wonderfully witty nonfiction account of her days on an archaeological dig in Syria with her husband, renowned archeologist Max Mallowan. Something completely different from arguably the best-selling author of all time, Come, Tell Me How You Live is an evocative journey to the fascinating Middle East of the 1930s that is sure to delight Dame Agatha’s millions of fans, as well as aficionados of Elizabeth Peters’s Amelia Peabody mysteries and eager armchair travelers everywhere.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them, if you did?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

I also post a link-up on Sundays for weekly updates about what you are reading, watching, doing, listening to, etc.

If you would like to support my writing (and add to the fund for my daughter’s online art/science classes), you can do so here.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Book review: Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie Mallowan

February 5, 2026February 4, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 5 Comments

I’m surprised more people don’t talk or write about Agatha Christie’s non-fiction books, especially Come, Tell Me How You Live, which reveals so much of her witty sense of humor.

Of course, she only wrote three non-fiction books — this one, her autobiography, and The Grand Tour, a collection of her letters and photographs from her 1922 tour to promote the British empire.

Christie writes this book under her full name of Agatha Christie Mallowen, with Mallowen being the name of her second husband and she’s wrong in her introduction.

I don’t read non-fiction often so I wasn’t sure I would enjoy this one but when the opening pages describe Agatha looking for outfits she can wear on her husband’s archaeological dig in Syria and the clerk lets her know they might not be able to accommodate her larger size, which Agatha handles hilariously, I knew I had to keep going.

As Agatha says in the intro of this book, “This is not a profound book. It will give you no interesting sidelights on archaeology, there will be no beautiful descriptions of scenery, no treating of economic problems, no racial reflections, no history. It is, in fact, small beer — a very little book, full of everyday doings and happenings.”

This book does actually include some beautiful descriptions and a few interesting sidelights on archaeology.

Agatha started writing this book before World War 2 and finished it afterward, sending it out into the world to be published.

As I mentioned already, the book begins with Agatha looking for traveling clothes. Her humor immediately kicks in.

“Shopping for a hot climate in autumn or winter presents certain difficulties. One’s last year’s summer clothes, which one has optimistically hoped will “do”, do not “do” now the time has come. For one thing, they appear to be (like the depressing annotations in furniture removers’ lists) “Bruised, Scratched, and Marked.” (And also Shrunk, Faded, and Peculiar!). For another — alas, alas that one has to say it! — they are too tight everywhere.

So, to the shops and the stores and:

“Of course, Modom, we are not being asked for that kind of thing now! We have some very charming little suits here — O.S. in the darker colors.”

I’m guessing O.S. means oversized because Agatha then writes: “Oh, loathsome O.S. How humiliating to be O.S.! How even more humiliating to be recognized at once as O.S.!”

If I have done my math right, Agatha would have been around 45 at the time this trip was taken.

She and her husband, Max, traveled to Syria and Iraq. Max was an archaeologist and Agatha actually met him on an archaeologist dig in 1930, years after divorcing her cheating first husband, Colonel Archibald Christie.

What’s so fun about this book is how Agatha writes about different she and Max approach situations in life, with her being a bit more high strung and him being laid back and acting like everything will turn out all right. Agatha was about 15 years older that Max, I might add, which I did not realize while I was reading the book. I read that while I was researching for the review. No wonder he seemed so aloof and laid back. He was still young and a bit naïve in some ways.

In addition to sharing details of her marriage, Agatha also writes about the quirky men who travel with her and her husband.

I would not be surprised if some of the people they worked with or met along their travels popped up in Agatha’s mysteries.

Mac, her husband’s architect assistant, gets the bulk of the secondary character playback throughout the book and it is hilarious. His full name was Robin Maccartney.

Mac is extremely serious, a perfectionist, and also lacks any sense of humor.

Agatha and Max traveled off and on between 1935 and 1936, with stays in Syria long enough that they had a house remodeled for them to stay in. Mac, an architect by trade, has been designing blueprints for Agatha’s bathroom.

“I ask Mac that evening at dinner what is fist architectural job as been.

“This is my first bit of practical work,” he replies. “—your lavatory!”

He sighs gloomily, and I feel very sympathetic. It will not, I fear, look well in Mac’s memoirs when he comes to write them.

The budding dreams of a young architect should not find their first expression in a mud-brick lavatory for his patron’s wife!”

Agatha shares some of her most savage lines in the book when she is writing about Mac, who almost seems uptight and perfect to be human at times.

It isn’t until he can’t light a gas lamp that he has a meltdown which Agatha says reveals his humanity.

“I steal a glance at him when another five minutes have gone by. He is getting warm. He is also looking not nearly so superior. Scientific principal or no scientific principal the petrol lamp is holding out on him. He lies on the floor and wrestles with the thing. Presently he begins to swear… A feeling that is almost affection sweeps ove me. After all, our Mac is human. He is defeated by a petrol lamp!”

Agatha writes that from that point on, Mac is one of them, someone who can easily get frustrated and swear about it.

Agatha did take her typewriter and some manuscripts with her and writes about working on a book while there. One of their friends, Louis Osman, an architect and member of the archaeological team, who was affectionately nicknamed “Bumps” by the group, and who Agatha simply calls “B” in her book, came into her office one day to chat, but she wants him to leave because she’s in the middle of writing a murder scene.

“He goes into the drawing office and talks to Mac, but, meeting with no response, he comes sadly into the office, where I am busy on the typewriter getting down to the gory details of a murder.

‘Oh,’ says B. “you’re busy?”

I say, ‘Yes,’ shortly.

“Writing?” asks B.

‘Yes’ (more shortly).

‘I thought, perhaps,’ says B wistfully. ‘I might bring the labels and the objects in here. I shouldn’t be disturbing you should I?’

I have to be firm. I explain clearly that it is quite impossible for me to get on with my dead body if a live body is moving, breathing and in all probability talking, in the near vicinity!

Poor B goes sadly away, condemned to work in loneliness and silence. I feel convinced that, if B ever writes a book, he will do so most easily with a wireless and a gramophone turned on close at hand and a few conversations going on in the same room!”

Agatha also tells about the women of the middle east and how they want to get to know her and learn more about her. I was surprised to learn in this section that Agatha had had a series of miscarriages over the years, which may be one reason she and Archie only had one daughter.

There are some parts of the book I found a tiny bit slow but so much of it was so fascinating that I didn’t mind a little bit of slowness

I really enjoyed Agatha’s recollections and her thoughts about the faith of the people compared to the faith of the people in England.

I also found it interesting to read her views on public education, which would probably surprise people today.

After sharing about watching some of the village children play and experiencing every day life she wrote:

“I think to myself how happy they look, and what a pleasant life it is like the fairy stories of old, wandering about over the hills herding cattle, sometimes sitting and singing. At this time of day, the so-called fortunate children in European lands are setting out for the crowded classroom, going in and out of the soft air, sitting on benches or at desks, toiling over letters of the alphabet, listening to a teacher, writing with cramped fingers. I wonder to myself whether, one day a hundred years or so ahead, we shall say in shocked accents: ‘In those days they actually made poor little children go to school, sitting inside buildings at desks for hours a day! Isn’t it terrible to think off! Little children!’”

Have you ever read this one or any of Agatha’s non-fiction books?

A Good Book and A Cup of Tea (or coffee) Bookish Link Up for February

February 2, 2026February 2, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 7 Comments

Welcome to the A Good Book & A Cup of Tea (A Monthly Bookish Link Party)!! This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!).

Each link party will be open for a month.

My co-host for this event is Erin from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs! You can link up with either of us!

Some guidelines.

1. For Bloggers, you can link unlimited posts related to books and reading. They can be older posts or newer posts. These can be posts about what you’re reading, book reviews, books you’ve added to your shelf, reading habits, what you’ve been reading, about trips to the bookstore, etc. You get the drift.

2. Link to a specific blog post (URL of a specific post, not just your website). Feel free to link up any older posts that may need some love and attention, too.

3. Please visit at least two other bloggers on this list and comment on their posts. Have fun! Interact! Get some book recommendations.

4. Readers can click the blue button below to visit blog posts.

5. If you add a link you are giving me permission to share and link back to your post(s).

Thank you to all who participated in December and throughout 2025. Please be sure to visit other posts in the link-up and support each other!

Book review: The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie

January 28, 2026January 26, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 5 Comments

The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie is the first of two books which feature Superintendent Battles and in the autumn my husband picked me up a gorgeous copy of it during a trip to a Barnes and Noble about 90 minutes away.

I had looked at the copy the year before so the gift was exciting and I enjoyed reading it as my third book this year.

Anthony Cade dominated the majority of the story, more so than Battle, and I was fine with that. He was a blast and had all the best lines. For some reason, I kept picturing Cade as Hugh Fraser, who plays Colonel Hastings in the Poirot TV show and movies, as I was reading.

From what I have read about this series, this is also where we Agatha readers meet Bundle – real name Lady Eileen Brent, but I also didn’t feel she dominated much of the story either. I read that she is even more in the second book of this duology, Seven Dials, which was recently released as a mini-series on Netflix. No, I haven’t seen it as I don’t a subscription to Netflix.

Sh was a fun addition who I would have liked to seen more of in the book really. So many Agatha fans seem to love her. This is not a complaint in anyway. Just an observation of a character I liked and wanted more of. I believe I will get that in the second book.

This one features a ton of political intrigue and some call it more of a thriller than a detective/crime fiction book, like many of Agatha’s other books. There is also a bit of romance, though, and I found the romance so sweet and the romantic lines swoon-worthy.

A quick description from the Agatha Christie site: A young drifter finds more than he bargained for when he agrees to deliver a parcel to an English country house. Little did Anthony Cade suspect that a simple errand on behalf of a friend would make him the centerpiece of a murderous international conspiracy.”

Chimneys, by the way, is the name of the house/estate – not an appendage on a roof.

Here are some quotes from the book that I enjoyed:

“Detective stories are mostly bunkum,” said Battle unemotionally. “But they amuse people, he added, as an afterthought. And they’re useful sometimes.”

“In what way?” asked Anthony curiously.

“They encourage the universal idea that police are stupid. When we get an amateur crime such as a murder, that’s very useful indeed.”

***

‘Lord no. It’s the red signal again. When I first saw you—that day in Pont Street, I knew I was up against something that was going to hurt like fun. Your face did that to me—just your face. There’s magic in you from head to foot—some women are like that, but I’ve never known a woman who had so much of it as you have. You’ll marry someone respectable and prosperous, I suppose, and I shall return to my disreputable life, but I’ll kiss you once before I go—I swear I will.’

***

“I wouldn’t go so far as to say I’ve got a plan. But I’ve got an idea. It’s a very useful thing sometimes, an idea. – Superintendent Battle

***

“You understand well enough, I dare say,” said Anthony, breaking the silence. “You know when a man’s in love with you. I don’t suppose you care a hang for me – or for anyone else – but, by God, I’d like to make you care.”

As for the mystery, I didn’t fully guess the guilty party but was starting to get an idea of who certain people really were toward the end of the book.

Have you read this one? What did you think?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

I also post a link-up on Sundays for weekly updates about what you are reading, watching, doing, listening to, etc.

If you would like to support my writing (and add to the fund for my daughter’s online art/science classes), you can do so here.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Top Ten Tuesday Bookish Discoveries I made in 2025

January 27, 2026January 27, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 29 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week’s prompt was: Bookish Discoveries I Made in 2025 (New-to-you authors you discovered, new genres you learned you like, new bookish resources you found, friends you made, local bookshops you found, a book club you joined, etc.)

2025 was the year my husband I discovered a small bookstore in a tiny village about 30 minutes from where we live, which is sad considering we’d lived here for five years before we found it.

The store features mostly used books, some antique books, and a few new ones.

There are books from all kinds of genres, including a large history section.

The cozy mystery/mystery mass paperback section was the most exciting for me because they sell those for $1.50 each. I picked up some Murder, She Wrote books that I have enjoyed so far. The ones by Donald Bain anyhow. Not so sure about the Jon Land ones. I started one and … well, it was rife with odd writing in only the first few pages.

We haven’t been back since the end of summer but I think another trip there is due soon. I am hoping to explore their shelves for Nancy Drew books which they’ve had a collection of the last couple times we’ve been.

2. 2025 was also the year I discovered Storygraph to track the books I’ve read. I track my books in my reading journal but liked the idea of doing it via an app too. I don’t use Goodreads to track because my mom is connected to my Kindle/Goodreads account and reads a lot more than I do. I can’t find the books I’ve read in the mass amount she’s read so I wanted a place I could track my reads.

Storygraph does that for me. I enjoy logging on as I progress in a book and marking the progress as I go along. It also helps me keep a list of books I want to read.

I’m not as worried about the other stats it provides at the end of the year. I read to have fun and stats aren’t as important to me as they once were.

3. 2025 was when I discovered P.G. Wodehouse.

I have started with the Jeeves series by Wodehouse and have enjoyed the first two books I read. The dry British humor/sarcasm is perfect to me because it fits my sense of humor. That’s probably I’ve often preferred British shows, sitcoms, and books to American ones.

I’m looking forward to reading more of his books this year.

4. I discovered that my new favorite genre is “gentle vintage fiction.”

I would describe this genre as fiction that takes place in a small village or simple location and is written before the 1970s. They are usually books that are almost about nothing in particular. They detail the everyday lives of the main characters and take the reader on a leisurely walk that doesn’t lead to too much stress or sadness.

I would place the Miss Read books by Miss Read and P.G. Wodehouse books in this category.

I have a list of books in this genre that I hope to read this year, including more by both of those authors.

5. Another new author for me in 2025 was Sharon Mondragon.

I read two of her books in 2025 — Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go To Funerals and The Unlikely Yarn of the Dragon Lady.

I hope to read the sequel to The Unlikely Yarn of the Dragon Lady sometime this year.

6. I discovered Murder, She Wrote books by Donald Bain in 2025.

They are actually not bad. The books give a more detailed look at Jessica’s personal life, with a lot of emphasis on her emotions as she solves the murders, and also on her being a widow. In the first book of the series, Gin and Daggers, she remembers her late husband Frank quite a bit, and it’s bittersweet to see her spending time in London in the same hotel she and Frank once stayed in.

Bain also included a lot of history of wherever Jessica was visiting in his books.

I haven’t read any of the books in the series by other authors but I will be trying a couple of them this year while also reading Bain’s books.

The attribution for the books is actually Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain, but…you know…there is no real Jessica Fletcher so Donald really writes them. Other authors took over later because he passed away. line up. I plan to read more of them for fun in 2026.

8. I rediscovered my love for The Chronicles of Narnia in 2025 and decided to re-read the series, which I had not read in 30 years. I read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe in 2024, but in 2025 I read The Horse and His Boy, The Magician’s Nephew, Prince Caspian, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

I will be reading The Silver Chair and The Last Battle this year.

9. In 2025, I discovered more Golden Age Crime Fiction authors such as Dorothy Sayers and Margery Allingham. I read one by Dorothy Sayers and enjoyed it and hope to read more of her and Allingham this year as well as discover other authors in this era/genre.

10. In 2025, I let go of reading what I thought others would want me to read or suggested I read – unless it was a super good suggestion. I just mean that I worried a lot less about reading what was popular or everyone else was reading and just read whatever I wanted to. If it interested me, then I read it, even if I hated it later. I also stepped out of my comfort zone several times to try a book that looked interesting to me but that I wouldn’t have tried in the past. I definitely plan to do more of this in 2026.

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

I also post a link-up on Sundays for weekly updates about what you are reading, watching, doing, listening to, etc.

If you would like to support my writing (and add to the fund for my daughter’s online art/science classes), you can do so here.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Top Ten Bookish and Writing Goals for 2026: More classics, Christie, non-fiction books, and finishing the cozy mystery I’m writing

January 20, 2026January 20, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 27 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

One. Read at least one Agatha Christie a month

I should be able to manage this one since I am in a Christie reading challenge for 2026. I tried it last year and failed but I think I’ll do better this year.

I read The Secret of Chimneys for January and already have the book for February — Mrs. McGinty’s Dead.

I will be reading An Autobiography by Agatha Christie for the challenge as well, which will actually cross off another of my goals down below.

Two. Read at least three classic books this year

I want to read at least two classics this year, and I hope one of them will be The Count of Monte Cristo.

I will be reading Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien as well.

Other classic book goals for me this year are to read at least one book by a Bronte sister, finish Mansfield Park (despite the gag factor I have with it), and a re-read of Tom Sawyer, which I haven’t read since I was maybe 11.

To get through these classics I will be using advice that a booktuber I just found gave on his channel and that I mention more in detail below. Keep reading if you want to find out what that advice is.

Three. Read at least two autobiographies

I already have a couple I want to read — Maureen O’Hara, Myrna Loy, and Paul Newman’s, but then I heard that James Cagney’s is very good, so I am looking for that one on Thriftbooks.

Four. Read at least two non-fiction books

I hope to read at least one C.S. Lewis book, Mere Christianity, and as for another non-fiction, I’m not sure yet. Feel free to recommend a good one in my comments.

Five. Read more Christian Fiction books

I did not read a ton of Christian Fiction books in 2025. Not for any bad reason. I just didn’t seem to find a ton that interested me last year. I was also more interested in mysteries. I have a few lined up for this year, though, including:

Finding Lady Enderly by Joanna Davison Politano, Stories That Bind Us by Susie Finkbeiner, A Desperate Hope by Elizabeth Camden, and Long Way Gone by Charles Martin.

A lot of Christian Fiction is very intense.

Do any of my blog readers know of Christian Fiction that is less intense? Rom-coms, I know, but those are hit or miss for me.

Mystery and thriller books in Christian Fiction seem to be all overdramatic and formulaic and not a simple, fun mystery like Agatha Christie or the Golden Age crime writers, which is why I don’t often read Christian Mystery.

Six. Weed out books I’m not reading or probably won’t to straighten shelves

My shelves are overflowing with books I grabbed at used book sales and will probably never read. I need to weed them out and make more room on our bookshelves. As the vlogger I watched this morning said, we buy new books because we get an endorphin hit at the idea of what the story will hold but then when that endorphin hit wears off, we just end up leaving the books piling up and not reading them.

Seven. Find another place in the house for another bookcase

This brings me to seven — we need more bookcases, even if I weed some of the books out. I really want another one for our bedroom since we are currently using an old coffee table and piling them up there. A bookcase would look better there, and it would be easier to find the books we want to read if we had a bookcase. Right now, most of those books are The Husbands, but to find one, he has to shift through the stacks. I’m not sure how we would get a bookcase up the stairs, but I suppose we could get one that can be assembled after we buy it.

And a few writing goals:

Eight. Finishing Gladwynn Grant Goes Back to School and start a planned Christmas cozy mystery

I watched a video this morning from a booktuber who was sharing about how to read more books instead of buying them and never reading them. One thing he said was to set aside a certain time for reading, and while reading, don’t think about all the other things you need to do. Instead, tell yourself, “I am reading for one hour, and I can do those other things later,” and then immerse yourself in the story. Focus on the words and the use of them and the play of them. Don’t think about the end goal of finishing the book, but instead think about the words as you read them and really be mindful of what you are reading.

While I want that goal in reading, I also want it in writing this year.

I want to set aside an hour or two a day and just write and enjoy the act of writing instead of constantly being focused on the need to finish this book and add it to the series. I think that’s what has been holding me up. I haven’t been having fun with writing — I have been looking at the end and how far I am from it instead of taking one step at a time and focusing on the path in front of me. I’ve been so focused on the thought, “I need to get this done” that it has become a chore rather than a joy.

So, I will be enjoying creating scenes and scenarios for Gladwynn and her friends more and looking at how far I am behind in word count etc. less.

At least books one, two, and three are out there for the world to read.

Nine. Figure out a way to finish my small town contemporary romance series, The Spencer Valley Chronicles

I am very behind on this one. I released my last Spencer Valley Chronicles book, Shores of Mercy, in 2022. I really need to wrap up the series and how I want to do that is to write a final book with Alex Stone, Molly Tanner’s love interest, as the main character. He has some demons he needs to tackle, mainly from his broken relationship with his verbally and emotionally abusive father.

The one problem is that I don’t write contemporary romance or any romance anymore. I would have to rewrite a lot of the series because I don’t really enjoy looking back at it and seeing my writing at that time.

Ten. Figure out how to advertise my books (without breaking the bank) and sell more of them

This one will be an ongoing process. Right now, my free ways of advertising my books are here on my blog and various social media accounts. It gets tedious to plug the books all the time, though, and I prefer to have fun posting bookish memes and reels and talking about old movies or books.

I’m horrible at self-promoting. Even doing it in this post is making me feel icky.

Still, I write the stories so I should have people read them, and it’s fun when they do and let me know they like them.

I don’t have deep pockets for paid advertising, but I hope to find a few ways to do that this year.

So…..these are some of my bookish and writing goals for 2026. What are some of yours?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

I also post a link-up on Sundays for weekly updates about what you are reading, watching, doing, listening to, etc.

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Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Anticipated Mysteries and Cozy Mysteries for the first half of 2026

January 13, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 19 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week’s prompt is Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2026. I decided to instead bring that topic down to focus specifically on ten anticipated mysteries and cozy mysteries for the first half of 2026.

I don’t know if they are my most anticipated, but I am looking forward to at least checking them out. I should mention that Cozy Mysteries can be hit or miss for me, which, yes, I find ironic since I write them.

A Very Novel Murder by Ellie Alexander (January 20^th)

Opening a detective agency above her beloved bookstore seems like the perfect business plan—until Annie Murray’s first case involves a suspicious death right on her doorstep.

June Munrow, an elderly resident of Annie’s hometown, Redwood Grove, is convinced that young Kelly Taylor’s recent drowning wasn’t the tragic accident everyone believes it to be. Despite the police ruling, June is determined to prove there’s more to the story and hires the Novel Detectives to uncover the truth.

As Annie delves into Kelly’s life, she discovers a tangled web of secrets involving Kelly’s complicated relationships, a peculiar landlord, and her mysterious roommate. Everyone connected to Kelly seems to be hiding something, and the deeper Annie digs, the more puzzling the case becomes.

With her trademark blend of curiosity and compassion, can Annie piece together the clues and solve her first official case—before she gets into deep water herself?

Death Wasn’t Invited: A June’s Journey Mystery by Carlene O’Connor (March 3, 2026)

Based on the hit mobile game, a cozy murder mystery set in 1920s Paris by a USA Today bestselling author, perfect for fans of Richard Osman and Agatha Christie. June’s friend has been brutally murdered and the police have the wrong man, can she solve the case before the killer catches up to her?

Paris, 1922. The marriage between the Auclair and the Picard family is the talk of the town. June can’t wait to attend the engagement party with her friends, Nate and Jack. But Nate has an ulterior motive: he’s there to stop the wedding. Before he can complete his task, he’s stabbed in the chest with Jack’s knife. Jack is arrested, but June knows he wouldn’t hurt a fly.

In this throwback to the classic whodunnits of Agatha Christie, June must find the real killer and clear Jack’s name. As she becomes embroiled deeper and deeper into a corrupt web of Parisian old money, high society and politics, she uncovers deadly secrets. Can June solve the case before the killer strikes again?

A Sip of Suspicion by J. New (January 8)

A summer garden party, a book club full of secrets, and one deadly cup of tea.
Meet Lilly Tweed – former agony aunt, proud purveyor of fine teas, and accidental sleuth.

It’s the height of summer in Plumpton Mallet, and Lilly has been asked to host her very first event: a tea demonstration for the local book club. The guest list sparkles with the town’s elite – a titled aristocrat, a wealthy heiress, and plenty of polite rivalries simmering beneath the surface.

When the heiress is found dead before the evening is out, tension turns to panic. As a prime witness, Lilly is drawn into the investigation and soon discovers that everyone had something to hide. With secrets steeping and motives bubbling over, she must separate truth from gossip before the killer strikes again.

A Sip of Suspicion is the second novel in J. New’s delightful The Tea Leaf Mysteries – perfect for fans of charming British whodunits, red herrings and a perfectly brewed cup of tea.

The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts: A Novel (The Marlow Murder Club Book 5) (July 7)

Two dead celebrities. One village full of secrets.

Someone is killing celebrities in Marlow. First, it’s a famous soccer player. Then, a bestselling thriller writer. When two shocking deaths rock their quiet riverside town, Judith, Suzie, and Becks—the unstoppable Marlow Murder Club—must untangle a dangerous web of blackmail and scandal to catch a killer.

But with their trusted police ally DI Malik suddenly suspended, and Judith’s own past threatening to resurface, the women are on their own. Suspects are multiplying like tabloid headlines, secrets are stacking up, and time is running out.

Can the Marlow Murder Club crack the case before the killer strikes again—or will this be the end of their crime-solving adventures?

Booking for Trouble (A Library Lover’s Mystery Book 16) by Jenn McKinley (February 24)

Just off the shores of the coastal Connecticut town of Briar Creek are two small islands, which library director Lindsey Norris visits with her new book-boat, inspired by the bookmobiles she’s seen traveling across the country. Nothing, not even the infamous feud between the families who own the Split Islands, can stop Lindsey from getting books into the hands of readers. But when Lindsey and her boat captain husband, Mike Sullivan, discover a body on the rocky outcropping of one of the islands, Lindsey’s new library venture quickly becomes a murder investigation.

At news of the crime, hostilities between the two families are reignited. Long buried secrets are revealed, tensions spark, and suspects abound. As Lindsey navigates treacherous waters (both literal and metaphorical), she must use her research skills and community ties to solve the murder and bring peace to the islands before her book-boat dreams are sunk.

Conspiracy by Coleen Coble (July 7)

Conspiracy, the third book in USA TODAY bestselling author Colleen Coble’s Sanctuary series (following Ambush and Prowl), delivers exactly what her fans want: the ideal blend of suspense that keeps you on the edge of your seat with just the right amount of romance. Perfect for fans of Laura Dave, Allison Brennan, and Lynette Eason.

Fifteen years of secrets. Once chance for justice.

Just as wildlife veterinarian Paradise Alden begins to envision a future with Blake Lawson, the ghosts of her past return with a vengeance. The murder of her parents has shadowed her for fifteen years, but a new threat brings the cold case into the terrifying present. A trained leopard–a chilling embodiment of Paradise’s deepest fears–is now stalking her.

Haunted by resurfacing memories, Paradise, Blake, and her newfound brother, Drew, follow a trail of clues that leads them into a web of dark family secrets. The deeper they dig, the more shocking the connections become, linking their families to a dangerous conspiracy that someone is still willing to kill to protect.

With every step closer to the truth, the killer becomes more desperate. Paradise, Blake, and Drew must race to expose a murderer who has remained hidden for fifteen years, but this time, they are the ones being stalked. If they can’t unmask the killer, the past will destroy both the fragile future Paradise and Blake are trying to build and the family she has finally found with her brother.

A conspiracy of lemurs is a family. But a conspiracy of people can be deadly.

Chilled to the Bone (A Mabel McCoy Mystery Book 3) by Lilian Hart (June 23)

Fifteen years ago, three paintings vanished from Grimm Island’s Historic Society during Hurricane Delilah. The theft was written off as opportunistic looting during the storm’s chaos.

When the Silver Sleuths stumble across one of the missing works hanging in a mainland estate sale, Mabel realizes the heist was far more calculated than anyone suspected. The stolen pieces—a valuable Winslow Homer seascape, a Civil War-era portrait, and a rare botanical illustration—weren’t random targets.

As Mabel digs deeper, she uncovers a network of art dealers, insurance adjusters, and society members who all had reasons to want those specific paintings to disappear. But when the estate sale dealer turns up dead with a paintbrush shoved through his heart, it becomes clear someone will do anything to keep this cold case buried.

The Silver Sleuths think they’re hunting for stolen art. What they don’t realize is that the art thief has been hunting them.

With Bea wielding a magnifying glass like a weapon and Sheriff Dash ready to lock Mabel in protective custody, the race is on to catch a killer who’s turned murder into their own twisted masterpiece. Because on Grimm Island, some secrets are more dangerous than hurricanes—and this one is about to make landfall.

The Lies We Trade by Kristine Delano (January 20)

Meredith Hansel should be having the best week of her life. After establishing herself as a portfolio manager at a prestigious Wall Street firm, she’s in the national spotlight for the innovative funds she created. But as Meredith prepares to celebrate, the plates she’s kept spinning for years begin to crash: Her strained marriage reaches a breaking point. Her conscientious teenage daughter acts out under mysterious pressures. Someone vandalizes her home with disturbing graffiti. And Betsey, her most trusted ally at the financial firm, goes rogue, and Meredith is forced to sign a restraining order against her.

Then her worlds collide when she receives a thumb drive and a cryptic note from Betsey threatening to reveal a secret that could have devastating effects on Meredith’s family . . . unless she can figure out what Betsey wants and deliver it in time.

As Meredith begins to dig into the data, however, she begins to suspect that it’s no coincidence her life is crumbling. That maybe what’s happening to her family is connected to what’s boiling beneath the surface at her investment company. Soon Meredith realizes there’s only one way to avoid taking the fall, and it all hinges on Betsey’s true motives. Was she really threatening Meredith or trying to warn her?

Murder by the Book by MRG Davies (January 23)

When the manager of The Quaint Bookshop is found slumped between the shelves, the four members of the shop’s reading group decide to put into action all the skills they’ve picked up from their favourite fictional detectives.

If anyone knows how to solve a killer of a crime, it’s a team of murder-mystery superfans. The police might be investigating but the reading group are on the case…

My Grandfather, the Master Detective by Masateru Konishi (March 17)

A Japanese The Thursday Murder Club, taking healing fiction for a mystery-filled spin with this Japanese bestseller that has sold more than 200,000 copies in Japan. Steeped in references to classic crime from Christie to Chesterton to Poe, My Grandfather, the Master Detective plays with the genre, capturing readers’ imagination in this Tokyo-set escapist mystery. Its charming characters and affectionate focus on relationships echo heartwarming Japanese titles such as Before the Coffee Gets Cold.

So what books are you anticipating in 2026? Let me know in the comments…

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

My favorite reads from 2025

January 6, 2026January 6, 2026 / Lisa R. Howeler / 38 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Today, I’m sharing my favorite reads from 2025. I did not read as many books as I had hoped I would, but it was a year where I branched out a little bit.

Because I didn’t read as many books this past year as the year before, I don’t have as many favorite reads but I do have a few.

These are in no particular order.

Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go To Funerals by Sharon Mondragon

I had never read any books by this author and just found this cozy mystery a lot of fun. I loved the characters and the story too.

Description:

Something is brewing in Raeburne’s Ferry, Georgia—and it’s not sweet tea.

In a small town where gossip flows, bedridden Mary Ruth McCready reigns supreme, doling out wisdom and meddling in everyone’s business with a fervor that would make a matchmaker blush. When her best friend has her world rocked by a scandalous revelation from her dying husband, Mary Ruth kicks into high gear, commandeering the help of her favorite granddaughter, Sarah Elizabeth, in tracking down the truth. Finding clues in funeral condolence cards and decades-old gossip dredged up at the Blue Moon Beauty Emporium, the two stir up trouble faster than you can say “pecan pie.”

But just when things are starting to look up, a blast from the past waltzes in with an outrageous claim. But as Grandma Ruth always says when things get tough, “God is too big.” With him, nothing is impossible—even bringing long-held secrets to light. Grandma Ruth and Sarah just might have to ruffle a whole mess of feathers to do it.

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy

I had never read this before but had seen the TV movie. I didn’t think I would enjoy this but ended up loving it and want to read the sequels.

Description: The Scarlet Pimpernel is Baroness Orczy’s classic adventure novel about Sir Percy Blakeney, a wealthy Englishman who has a secret identity as a daring rescuer of aristocrats from the French Revolution. Orczy’s thrilling tale of heroism and romance is a timeless classic that has captivated readers for over a century. Set in 1792, The Scarlet Pimpernel follows Sir Percy as he outwits the forces of the French Revolution to save innocent lives. With a colorful cast of characters and an exciting plot, Orczy’s classic novel is an unforgettable reading experience that will leave you wanting more.

The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis

I probably read this years ago, when I was like 10, but I didn’t remember any of it so it was a lot of fun to follow along this magical story and find out what happened. This was technically the first book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

Description:

Narnia . . . a land frozen in eternal winter . . . a country waiting to be set free

Witness the creation of a magical land in The Magician’s Nephew, the first title in C. S. Lewis’s classic fantasy series, which has captivated readers of all ages for over seventy five years

On a daring quest to save a life, two friends are hurled into another world, where an evil sorceress seeks to enslave them. But then the lion Aslan’s song weaves itself into the fabric of a new land, a land that will be known as Narnia. And in Narnia, all things are possible.

This is a stand-alone novel, but if you want to journey back to Narnia, read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the second book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

This one was out of my comfort zone. I don’t usually read fantasy, but I read The Fellowship of the Ring last year and ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would. This upcoming year I am reading the last book in the trilogy, Return of the King.

Description:

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.

Frodo and his Companions of the Ring have been beset by danger during their quest to prevent the Ruling Ring from falling into the hands of the Dark Lord by destroying it in the Cracks of Doom. They have lost the wizard, Gandalf, in a battle in the Mines of Moria. And Boromir, seduced by the power of the Ring, tried to seize it by force. While Frodo and Sam made their escape, the rest of the company was attacked by Orcs. Now they continue the journey alone down the great River Anduin—alone, that is, save for the mysterious creeping figure that follows wherever they go.

The Inimitable Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse

This was my first Wodehouse and it was so much fun. I love Bertie and Jeeves and all the other characters around them.

Description:

Upon their first appearance in 1915, Bertie Wooster and his highly competent valet Jeeves were destined to become Wodehouse’s most famous duo. The hilarious stories that feature the charmingly foppish Bertie and his equally lightheaded friends being rescued from tedious social obligations, annoying relatives, scrapes with the law, and romantic problems by the quiet interventions of Jeeves are among Wodehouse’s best-loved tales.

But First, Murder by Bee Littlefield

I really love Bettie from the Bettie Bryant Mysteries and this second installment in the series didn’t change my mind.

Description:

After years of slinging lattes, Betti Bryant is taking ownership of her life. She doesn’t need new friends or book club invitations to distract her from finding her way forward. And the unresolved situation with a guy she kissed a few weeks ago might as well stay unresolved.

But there’s one distraction she is not prepared for: finding a murder victim on her way to work one frigid December morning.

Suspicion falls on Betti’s roommate, Callista, who happens to be holding a baseball bat over the victim’s body when the police drive up. Almost totally sure Callista is innocent, Betti buys a new notebook, digs out her scrapbooking supplies, and makes the cutest murder board ever.

Now, on top of holding down a job (or two) and figuring out her entire future, she’s committed to finding the real killer before any more lives are ruined—including her own.

Every Living Thing by James Herriot

I’ve enjoyed all the James Herriot books but this one has been my favorite so far.

Description:

Every Living Thing: The Warm and Joyful Memoirs of the World’s Most Beloved Animal Doctor brings back familiar friends (including old favorites such as Tricki Woo) and introduces new ones, including Herriot’s children Rosie and Jimmy and the marvelously eccentric vet Calum Buchanan.

This book marks a perfect opportunity for existing fans of Herriot’s work to reacquaint themselves with his writing, and for those who’ve never read him to see what generations of animal lovers have already discovered: James Herriot is that rarest of creatures, a genuine master storyteller.

Home to Harmony by Philip Gulley

This was my first Philip Gulley book and I really enjoyed it and all the quirky characters and downhome feel of it. I literally laughed and cried while reading it.

Description:

In this acclaimed inaugural volume in the Harmony series, master American storyteller Philip Gulley draws us into the charming world of minister Sam Gardner in his first year back in his hometown, capturing the essence of small-town life with humor and wisdom.

Dave Barry is Not Taking This Sitting Down by Dave Barry

This was a collection of Dave Barry’s columns and it had me laughing so hard during some really difficult changes in my life this year.

Description:

Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist Dave Barry is a pretty amiable guy. But lately, he’s been getting a little worked up. What could make a mild-mannered man of words so hot under the collar? Well, a lot of things–like bad public art, Internet millionaires, SUVs, Regis Philbin . . . and even bigger problems, like

• The slower-than-deceased-livestock left-lane drivers who apparently believe that the right lane is sacred and must never come in direct contact with tires
• The parent-misery quotient of last-minute school science fair projects
• Day trading and other careers that never require you to take off your bathrobe
• The plague of the low-flow toilets, which is so bad that even in Miami, where you can buy drugs just by opening your front door and yelling “Hey! I want some crack,” you can’t even sell your first born to get a normal-flushing toilet

Dave Barry is not taking any of this sitting down. He’s going to stand up for the rights of all Americans against ridiculously named specialty “–chino” coffees and the IRS. Just as soon as he gets the darn toilet flushed.

Christy by Catherine Marshall

This one is on this list but there was a lot about it that bothered me. There were deaths that seemed unnecessary to me and some odd theological stances but at the same time it had me thinking long after I read it and the story overall was fascinating and kept me turning the pages.

Description:

Come, Tell Me How To Live by Agatha Christie Mallowen

This was a fascinating non-fiction book by Agatha Christie that showcased her humor, her dedication to supporting her husband, and her emotional and physical strength in traveling to a foreign country.

Description:

Over the course of her long, prolific career, Agatha Christie gave the world a wealth of ingenious whodunits and page-turning locked-room mysteries featuring Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot, and a host of other unforgettable characters. She also gave us Come, Tell Me How You Live, a charming, fascinating, and wonderfully witty nonfiction account of her days on an archaeological dig in Syria with her husband, renowned archeologist Max Mallowan.

Something completely different from arguably the best-selling author of all time, Come, Tell Me How You Live is an evocative journey to the fascinating Middle East of the 1930s that is sure to delight Dame Agatha’s millions of fans, as well as aficionados of Elizabeth Peters’s Amelia Peabody mysteries and eager armchair travelers everywhere.

Honorable Mentions:

The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie

This was my first read of the year this year and it was a favorite because of the humor in it. I would have liked a bit more Miss Marple in it but when she was in it, she was entertaining and fun.

Description:

It’s seven in the morning. The Bantrys wake to find the body of a young woman in their library. She is wearing an evening dress and heavy makeup, which is now smeared across her cheeks. But who is she? How did she get there? And what is the connection with another dead girl, whose charred remains are later discovered in an abandoned quarry?

The respectable Bantrys invite Miss Marple into their home to investigate. Amid rumors of scandal, she baits a clever trap to catch a ruthless killer.

Other books I enjoyed this year:

Rebecca by Daphne De Mauier

Peg and Rose Solve A Murder by Laurie Berenson

Killer in the Kitchen: A Murder She Wrote Mystery by Donald Bain

The Case of the Careless Kitten by Erle Stanley Gardner

The Pale Horse by Agatha Christie

Have you read any of these? What were some of your favorite reads in 2025?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books On My Winter 2025 To-Read List

December 16, 2025December 16, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 17 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Today’s prompt was: Books On My Winter 2025-2026 to-Read List. I have a lot more than this on my list but I picked out ten to list today.

Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien

2. The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie

3. Miss Read Village Diary by Miss Read

4. My Beloved by Jan Karon

5. A Damsel in Distress by P.G. Wodehouse

6. Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart

7. ‘Tis Herself by Maureen O’Hara

8. The Case of the Velvet Claws by Erle Stanley Gardner

9. Murder She Wrote: Brandy and Bullets by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain

10. Peg and Rose Stir Up Trouble by Laurien Berenson

Have you read any of these books?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.