A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic

A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic by J. Penner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars rounded up.

The Great British Baking Show set in a world with dwarves, elves, and orcs as well as humans! As a human, Arleta Starstone has a distinct disadvantage in the world of baking: no magic. Her natural talents, stubborn nature, amazing herb garden, and a whole lot of hard work have turned her into a world-class baker nonetheless, but anti-human prejudice is a steep hurdle to overcome. Arleta's honorary dads (the orc couple next door) are her biggest fans and secretly enter her into a big-deal bake-off, and when a handsome elf arrives to escort her to the competition, she battles her fears and insecurities to take her place among the realm's elite bakers--the first human to do so.

For readers' advisors: character doorway is primary, setting secondary, with story and language also strong. I can't recall any violence, swearing, or sex scenes, but I read it a few months ago and may have just forgotten something minor. Warning: it'll make you hungry!

Many thanks to Netgalley & the publishers for providing the free eBook copy I devoured.

View all my reviews

 

A Lady's Guide to Etiquette and Murder

A Lady's Guide to Etiquette and Murder by Dianne Freeman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Frances Wynn, now the “elder” Countess of Harleigh after her husband’s untimely death, has been controlled by others her whole life, so she seizes the opportunity afforded her by widowhood and moves to London on her own as soon as her year of mourning has ended, with just her young daughter and a few servants to accompany her. Her freedom is immediately curtailed by the news that her brother-in-law has placed a freeze on her bank account in his attempt to get control of her money “for the family,” because Frances was an American heiress who married an earl in need of funds, and that need did not vanish with his death. Luckily, the news came just after she received a sizable bank draft from her mother, who sent her younger sister and aunt to visit her for the Season. The money is enough to allow her to maintain her household while fighting the new earl in court. But Frances soon has other concerns, as there is a thief on the loose in Town, an anonymous letter sent to the police has accused her of murdering her husband, and one of her sister’s new suitors might not be what he seems.

Fun and fast-paced mystery set almost a generation before the start of Downton Abbey, so Countess Harleigh would have been a contemporary of Lady Grantham back when Lady Mary was a little girl.

I loved this mystery with its hint of romance to come and enough complications that I only solved half of it before the end.

For readers’ advisors: story doorway is primary, setting secondary. Only a couple of mild swear words. No sexual content, though sex is referenced in that the main character’s husband dies in the bed of another woman at the start of the book. Violence is mostly off-screen and not described in detail at all, though Frances does have a couple of attempts on her life by the end, including being threatened with a gun.

View all my reviews

 

Kill the Farm Boy

Kill the Farm Boy by Delilah S. Dawson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars 

This is a fantasy novel that takes many of the usual tropes and turns them upside down: the Chosen One is not a innocent farm boy (saying who it *is* would be a spoiler); Fia, the warrior, hates the bikini chain mail she begins the story wearing; the Dark Lord isn't very dark; the rogue is both female and not very good at sneaking or questing; the witch isn't really wicked; the quest goes sideways constantly and for unusual reasons (both helpful and not); there are allusions to pop culture (Nardstromp's department store at the Goblin Market, artisan cheese and crackers), and so on. The authors were clearly having a great deal of fun writing the story, and it's very entertaining but not as riotously funny as I was expecting (which is not the authors' fault, just a fact of how other readers/reviewers had hyped the book). I am looking forward to the next books in the series, though!

For readers' advisors: story doorway is primary, character and setting are secondary. Characters have various skin tones/colors, although the fictional world of Pell and its surrounds doesn't map culturally to our own. There is some creative language throughout, especially from Argabella the bard, who likes to say words like "Shoutful," "Songful," and "Deadful." Argabella and Fia have a very sweet romance. There is quite a lot of violence, but it's not graphic--often more absurd than anything. A few main characters don't survive the quest.

View all my reviews

A Witch to Remember

A Witch to Remember by Heather Blake
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Darcy Merriweather is Stressed Out. Not about her wedding coming up in a couple of weeks. No, she's a bundle of nerves over her younger sister's birthday and what it means for the Elder's renewal ceremony. Her family's nemesis, Dorothy, has become increasingly, dangerously unstable in recent months, and Darcy fears for their safety, especially after the Divinitea Cottage is torched, and it initially appears as though Dorothy set the fire after murdering one of the owners. Darcy teams up with her fiancé Nick Sawyer, the police chief, and Dorothy's daughter Glinda, a private investigator, to solve the crime.

This is a cozy mystery series that REALLY must be read in order. Secrets are revealed in each book in the series that would totally be spoilers for the earlier books. In this particular volume, however, Darcy's Big Secret was ridiculously easy to guess, so her angst and fears then seemed overblown.

Surprisingly, I also figured out who the killer was quite a while before Darcy did. I didn't have a clue what the motive might be, but I deduced who and how. I can't remember the last time I correctly guessed the murderer's identity well in advance of the sleuth's reveal. I have to say, I really prefer to be more in the dark!

Given the ending of the book and the divulging of a smaller secret in the final chapter, perhaps this might be the end of the series? I would hate to leave these lovely characters behind, yet this wasn't my favorite installment, so perhaps Ms. Blake is ready to focus on her Magic Potion series instead?

For readers' advisors: story and setting doorways are primary. The strongest language used is a few instances of "hell" and "damn." There is no sexual content, just some quick kisses. The only onscreen violence is Dorothy attacking other witches with (dark) magic/fire. It's a fun, easy read for anyone who's already read books #1-8, but don't expect much in the way of character development.

View all my reviews

Jeweled Fire

Jeweled Fire by Sharon Shinn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Corene grew up as a princess in the royal court of Welce, believing she had a decent chance of becoming the next queen. When that changes, she is left without direction or purpose and decides to make a big change to demonstrate her independence. Stowing away aboard a ship headed for Malinqua and a chance to become a queen there by marrying one of the empress's three nephews seems like a grand adventure...until she realizes the current ruler is playing a mysterious game of her own, and the visiting princesses competing for the throne are more like pampered hostages than guests. Still, the chance to reinvent herself gives Corene the opportunity to make close friends--something she's never really had before. Along with Foley, her steadfast bodyguard, Corene and her new friends must uncover the secrets hidden by members of Malinqua's court if they are to survive the struggle for succession.

Corene wasn't my favorite character in the first two books, although she definitely grew on me as Ms Shinn developed her character and gave glimpses of the hurting girl beneath the spoiled behavior. She really gets her chance to grow up and shine in this volume of the series, though! Her impulsive behavior at the beginning definitely fit with the developmental stage of an older teenager, but by the end of the story, I kept thinking she was older than her chronological age.

Interestingly, none of the primary characters in this book has magical abilities, unlike in the two previous volumes. This makes for a different feel to the story. Not better, not worse--just different.

For readers' advisors: character and setting doorways are primary, story and language strong secondary doorways. Sharon Shinn is a master of world-building! The 3 mild swear words--2 in the same sentence--are the reason I hesitate to mark this book as "clean reads." There are strong elements of romance and murder mystery, although not enough to label them as either of those genres, especially romance since the story would remain even if the romance between Corene and Foley were removed. Book #3 in this series starts off at a leisurely pace that intensifies as it progresses toward the suspenseful climax. Despite the entire book taking place outside Welce, it still should be read in series order so as to fully understand and appreciate the history and context.

View all my reviews

Royal Airs

Royal Airs by Sharon Shinn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book #2 in the Elemental Blessings series features Princess Josetta and her sister Princess Corene. When Corene flees her abusive stepfather, she is rescued by professional gambler Rafe Adova not too far from the shelter Josetta runs just south of the Cinque, the five-sided boulevard separating the nicer part of Chialto from the slums. That encounter is a turning point the lives of all three, as well as the start of an unexpected turn in the complicated politics of the nation.

I was grateful for the explanatory charts of characters, blessings, calendars, and money that Shinn includes at the start of the book. I referred to them time and again to help me keep track of the complicated relationships between characters, especially. It had been a while since I'd read the first book in the series, and the family connections are even more muddled now, thanks to revelations in Book #1 (Troubled Waters) as well as in the second half of Book #2.

For readers' advisors: setting and story doorways are primary, character secondary. One swear word, and the few sex scenes are nearly entirely offscreen.

View all my reviews

A Day No Pigs Would Die

A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Robert Peck's semi-autobiographical novel of growing up in the Shaker Way in rural Vermont in 1940 is full of life lessons--some funny, some painful and violent, and some heart-wrenching.

Twelve-year-old Robert idolizes his father. Haven Peck may not know how to read or write, but he is wise in the ways of the natural world, a good neighbor, and a good man. He is steadfast in his determination to raise his son up to be a good man, too, and to that end teaches him how to take care of the animals, the farm, his mama, and his Aunt Carrie. On a farm, birth and death are everyday occurrences for which there is no escape. But in between the birthing and the dying is a whole lot of laughter, adventure, and love.

In my library, this book is shelved in the adult fiction section, but it really is a young adult novel for older teens. I picked it up because it was on a list of banned & challenged books, and now I'm wondering if it had been challenged in my district at some point in the past and moved from YA to adult fiction as a result?

For readers' advisors: language and setting doorways are primary, character secondary (there is not much in the way of plot--it's more vignettes). The descriptions of farm life are vivid and often brutal, particularly the rape of Robert's pig, the "weaseling" of the puppy, and the animal slaughtering. There are some swear words and some allusions to hanky panky happening down the road. The language is so evocative of a particular time & place it almost begs to be read aloud...which might be a good idea if you wish to read together and discuss as a family.

View all my reviews

Troubled Waters

Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I love Sharon Shinn's books! She has this amazing ability to create whole new worlds and make you wish you lived there with her characters. I don't know whether this will be a stand-alone novel or the start of a new series, but I'd love for Shinn to write more of them.

Shinn's newest book begins just after Zoe's father has died. A few days later, a wealthy stranger arrives and announces that he is there to bring Zoe to the capital to become the king's fifth wife. A grief-stricken Zoe numbly acquiesces, but when they actually arrive in Chialto, she suddenly realizes she doesn't want to marry the king and makes her escape. Over the next few "quintiles" (a quintile is 72 days), she learns who she is, what she can do, and what she wants.

The story begins a little bit slowly, which is appropriate for someone in the fog of grief, but gets going as Zoe reawakens to life. It's not quite as gripping as her Twelve Houses series (my favorite!), but it's an excellent tale told well. (Darien Serlast reminds me a bit of Tayse, of Mystic and Rider fame.)

For readers' advisors: character and setting doorways, primarily, although story picks up in the second half. It's also a good crossover book (i.e. adult book for teens).



View all my reviews