I am trying to make myself slow down in the reading of the Liturgical Mystery series, after all, there is a finite number of them as the author (Mark Schweizer) is dead, but it's hard ... they are so much fun! The Maestro Wore Mohair is number 12. (Number 11, remember, is in the post from December 29, 2025 as it had arrived in a box from Wandering Reader and got all this started). ;-) There do seem to be a lot of murders in this small town but this time, at least, it's a cold case, from some thirty years ago. A body has been found in the woods. It's near what was a camp, then a nudist village, and now is being transformed into a Renaissance Faire ground, which is when the body was unearthed. Who was at that camp all those years ago? And what happened? (Many of the records have been burned). Can the small police force of Hayden, Nancy and Dave figure it out? And not to worry, the 'bad' writing entries are just as bad!

Here's a curious and fun mystery, especially if you like to do word search puzzles! Murder Among the Stacks, the first in A Cranberry Creek Word Search Mystery series, by Rosie A. Point and puzzles by Charles Timmerman. Each short chapter includes a word search puzzle with words from that chapter. Abby is starting a new life, in a new (small) town. She runs a book store and has a local, well known author for her first event. Things to not go well when said author dies at that event and Abby is considered a primary suspect. However, there is also the mother, a good friend (really?) and her assistant who all could have possible motives whereas Abby does not. A quick read (but I did not do the puzzles). ;-)

Reading Hermit With Dog

Murder in Half Moon Street, book eight in the Redmond and Haze Mystery series by Irina Shapiro is a classic 'locked room' mystery. A young woman is found savagely murdered in her bed. There is a lot of blood ... but none on the floor or carpet, no foot prints you might expect to see, no blood on the door knob. And the room is locked (door and windows) from the inside. The house is too new for secret passages. There were lots of people around ... staff, guests ... Redmond and Haze are dealing with personal issues, too. An engaging read.

Although the disclaimer in the front says this is a work of fiction my feeling is that some of the stories are very true ... the author is a dog walker after all! :-) Still, there are some stories from the view point of the dog, so ... Lots of fun tales here (catching a loose dog) and pictures of the dog(s) who inspired a story. Nudges from a Wet Nose, by H A Byrd was a fun read for this dog owner.

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I decided to post these books together as they share a theme, both take place on the set of something being filmed. A movie and a reality show. Gwinny has a small part in the movie Draculania (a female twist to Bram Stoker's version). Location is a damp and eerie castle with a vampire history. The lead is a bit of a diva and filming often revolves around her moods. Things change when a cast member is found dead in the prima donna's trailer with a stake through his heart. The door was locked from the inside. That will now become a crime scene, but good luck with finding any useful clues, everyone (cast and crew alike) have been in and around the trailer, touched everything, walked everywhere ... and lots of them have motive ... this will be a tough case. Add to the chaos is the fact that Gwinny ended up with the care for Lily, the Jack Russell, when her aging owner was sent to the hospital. The Dog Sitter Detective Plays Dead is the third book in this series by Antony Johnston.

In Purrfect Revenge, by Nic Saint, Detective Chase has been instructed to include Odelia in his investigation of the death of reality star Shana Kenspeckle who was found dead in her own bed. Most of her, anyway. This was a violent end (but there's also the attitude that it was too bad it wasn't filmed, it would have been good for the ratings). Odelia, of course, includes her cats in the hunt for the killer, after all, they are free to wander anywhere and listen in, then report back to her what they've heard. (The women in Odelia's family have been able to talk to cats for generations). It's a hard case because what the rest of the family says about Shana differs depending on if the cameras are rolling or not. There is an obnoxious French Bulldog, too, just to complicate matters. This is the third in the Mysteries of Max series.

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One of the many nice things to come from the visit of some long time friends who now live east of the mountains, which finally happened after a few years 'off' was that I learned of a new author/series of mysteries! Purrfectly Deadly is the second in The Mysteries of Max series by Nic Saint. And unlike a lot of authors, he puts that number right there, on the front cover where it is easy to see ... :-) Odelia writes for the local paper and has helped with solving crimes before ... with the help of her cats, Max, Dooley and Harriet. Since they can, and do, wander every where, they hear things (often on purpose) and then report back to Odelia. Yes, they can talk to her. It's a talent that's been in her family for generations. There is a new detective in town (in a small town for his own reasons) with a rather bully of a cat. There's been a party, a wild party, which resulted in the death of a once famous, much loved 80's pop singer. Follow along as the cats gather the clues! This is a fun, quirky series. Not quite a traditional cozy, but delightful all the same.

Once again I turned to historical fiction when I couldn't find a non-fiction book on an interesting subject. The Librarian Spy: a Novel of World War II, by Madeline Martin is based on real people and true events. Ava is a librarian at the Library of Congress, recruited to help 'save' literary works from the Nazi forces by converting them to microfilm and sending them to the U.S. She also speaks several languages, which helps since she is also a spy gathering intelligence. Elaine is learning to run a printing press to print up materials for use by the Resistance. She also helps distributing them, and, when necessary, moving parts of the printing press to a new location. This is done by breaking the machine into small parts and hiding them in the false bottom of the basket folks carry to buy what meager rations are available. There adventures are mesmerizing. Intense, descriptive, sad and powerful. Never underestimate the printed word!

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I'm describing Death at the Savoy as having a 'wrong place, wrong time' story line. The main character, Priscilla, in her job at the Savoy Hotel, keeps coming across dead, or nearly dead, bodies. Which makes her a prime suspect, of course! Set in the late 1960's at the famous London hotel this is a fast moving story combining the old school management (no scandal, ever) who don't like the new blood provided by Priscilla (young, blond, mini-skirts) and would love to fire her, with famous celebrities (Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, Noel Coward, Bob Hope and more), royalty (Princess Margaret) behaving badly, Russians, spies, poisons, Scotland Yard, journalists (heaven forbid they print the 'wrong' sort of story) and more. Lots of details to keep straight, but over all, not a bad start to the Priscilla Tempest Mystery series by Ron Base & Prudence Emery (who actually worked at the Savoy during this time period).

The third Scottish Ladies' Detective Agency mystery takes Maud and Daisy to visit Daisy's cousin, who lives in the Highlands. Members of a local choir have been found dead and the cousin is worried the deaths are not accidental (as the local police and doctor have determined). The choir is one of the finalists in a choir competition. Could the murderer be from a choir who has lost? Or from one still in the competition? Or something else? It seems too, that the murderer knows why they are there and sends them poems with clues as to the next victim, the location, and the method ... if they can figure them out! And, they have to deal with they fact that they are (gasp) women, too, in an era when they should be married, in the home, and caring for babies. (Do love how the author deals with that)! Mystery in the Highlands is by Lydia Travers.

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Working Horses in London, by Miriam A. Bibby is the history of the use of the horse from Roman times to present day in London. War horses, cart horses, draft horses, ceremonial horses, and more, this was an interesting read (probably more so if you are a bit horse crazy, though). ;-) Nicely written. Great pictures.

From time to time Wandering Reader sends up a box of books ... and it's always been fun! That's how I discovered the Mark Schweizer and Irina Shapiro mystery books after all! In the recent box was also a fascinating non-fiction read: Women Who Kept the Lights: an Illustrated History of Female Lighthouse Keepers (Second Edition), by Mary Louise Clifford and J. Candace Clifford. Records were often sketchy ... sometimes the name of the woman would not be included, or just initials were used ... so I am impressed with the research done here (there's a great bibliography)! Light houses in Washington Territory are included, too. :-) Remarkable women, wonderful photos.

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Amber Winslow needs a place to go. Somewhere safe and where a certain someone cannot find her. She heads for her grandmother's fancy retirement community in Arizona. They don't know each other all that well, in fact, they've never met face to face. Amber's mother has made sure of that, but, as it turns out, they have a lot n common. There are many interesting characters in the facility, including the Admiral, who is found dead shortly after Amber's arrival. There is also a missing family heirloom. His family (who never visited) is angry over this and demands something be done. Amber's grandmother is arrested for the murder and theft. This puts Amber on the trail to solve it (she's sort of a PI in training, after all). Some interesting twists here, rather enjoyed this read. :-) Murder Runs in the Family is by Tamara Berry.

As we've learned from past tales there is often a new, interim priest in St. Germaine and so is the case in The Cantor Wore Crinolines, by Mark Schweizer, the 11th in his Liturgical Mystery series. Groundhog day usually isn't a religious holiday, but this priest wants to have a mass that night: "St Groundelmas". What should the choir sing? Three houses have been auctioned off, a bit odd, perhaps, in that there were so many this time, but no one things too much about it. Until the bodies, yes plural, are found. One in each of the houses, in a closet, posed and dressed for church. The settings are straight out of the trashy book the local Blue Hills Bookworms book club is reading, down to the professions of each victim. Can Hayden and his crew figure everything out before the special mass on February 2nd? Another great entry in this series, pay attention to the names in the 'bad' writing sections as Hayden continues on his quest to write in the style of his hero, Raymond Chandler.

Reading Hermit With Dog