Buried In Buttercream by G.A. McKevett

It can be difficult nowadays to find an author w/ consistently good stories. At some point a series starts to lose steam & you start to lose interest. NOT SO with this mystery series. I have read all the previous books in this series and this one is just as enjoyable as the others before it. If anything, it's made slightly more enjoyable after having read the others in the series and getting to know the characters. This is such a great series for anybody who likes cozies, strong female characters, good supporting secondary characters, and little bit of funny and a little dash of romance in their mystery.

The victim in this story is a wedding planner extraordinaire. There are many possible suspects because the victim did not have a huge fan club. I enjoyed the travel to different locales to hunt down clues and pry info out of people. The teamwork involved & relationships between all the detective agency members always makes me smile.

Satisfying ending for longtime fans of the series. Can't wait until the next book comes out! :)

Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

I got a copy of this book as an advanced reader copy through Net Galley. I don’t usually read Young Adult novels. I don’t for a few reasons – I’m not a young adult, but I also find that authors sometimes try too hard to make the characters “typical” teenagers and they come out sounding like stereotypes. That is not the case with this book. The teenage characters are interesting, quirky, non-stereotypical characters.

The main character in this book is 17yr old Kami Glass. She lives with her father, mother and two younger brothers Ten & Tom. I enjoyed the author’s exploration of the Glass family. Her brothers are a trip. I loved how three-dimensional all the characters were. I enjoyed reading the parts where Kami & her friends were playing detective and hunting down clues. She and her friends are working for the school newspaper and looking into the strange goings-on around town.

Since Kami can remember she’s had a voice in her head sharing her thoughts, her “imaginary friend” Jared. Eventually Jared & Kami meet – surprising each other by turning out to both be real people and not just the “imaginary friends” they had thought. The “how” and “why” of their special relationship is revealed near the end of the book. I love how the author has Kami & Jared deal with their relationship – it seemed very real and not forced to me. There are some very funny parts in the book, even though the tone of the story gets a little heavier and intense as the end nears. I loved Kami’s best friend Angela – very beautiful, not a people-person, and perpetually lazy like her older brother Rusty. One of my favorite lines from the book is:

“Oh my God, Jared. Don't tough-talk the lambs.” I still smile when I read that.

I was frustrated that the book ended on a cliffhanger. This book captured my interest from the moment I started it and I read it straight through until the end. I cannot wait until the second book comes out so I can see what happens next. I’m dying to know.

A SEAL In Wolf's Clothing by Terry Spear

This is not the first wolf book I've read by Terry Spear. I love the books in this series for a few reasons: I love werewolf books, the world is very layered & well-created, you like & care about the characters, the chemistry between the hero & heroine is fab, & the story keeps you guesing & interested. Normally I don't care for a lot of action in my romances, but the romance balances out the action.

Finn (the hero) is a Navy SEAL & a werewolf. He is part of Meara (the heroine)'s brother's SEAL group. Sparks fly between the two right from the beginning. But other than some serious teasing, there is no nastiness in their verbal sparring, which I appreciated. It was fun guessing throughout the story who the evil mastermind was. Some new interesting characters were introduced: Bjornolf (deep undercover good guy operative), Anna (part of Finn's SEAL team), & Paul. Rourke (a character from a previous book) was re-introduced and his character was made more interesting throughout the story - making the reader hoping that the author will give him a book of his own in the future. Great book & series!