Any author named Prose MUST be good. 😀

And her character “Molly Gray” is both likeable and entertaining.

Somewhere on the autism spectrum, Molly must be the best maid in the world.

This is the sequel to the 1st book in the series, The Maid.

Easy reading. Almost young adult. Definitely a cosy mystery.

For a while I suspected the murder mystery itself might be simplistic. I was wrong. 

There are twists and turns enough to keep any reader guessing.

With her flair for cleaning and proper etiquette, she has risen through the ranks of the glorious five-star Regency Grand Hotel to become the esteemed Head Maid.

But just as her life reaches a pinnacle state of perfection, her world is turned upside down when J. D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead—very dead—on the hotel’s tearoom floor. …

As the high-profile death threatens the hotel’s pristine reputation, Molly knows that she alone holds the key to unlocking the killer’s identity. But that key is buried deep in her past: Long ago, she knew J. D. Grimthorpe. Molly begins to comb her memory for clues …

NitaProse.com

Reviews have been good.

My fascination with Nora Roberts continues.

I wouldn’t call this her best book, but — as always — the story moves quickly. And she’s a master of presenting interesting, engaging characters.

Very readable. But definitely a cheesy romance, as well. 😀

Published Nov. 2023, the most recent of her more than 230 novels, this is the first in a planned trilogy.

A woman inherits a haunted seaside mansion in Maine from a long-lost relative.

Sonya MacTavish isn’t having the best year. After finding her fiancé in bed with another woman, she wonders why she ignored so many obvious red flags about him. …

… uncle left her a large, rambling mansion in a small coastal town in Maine, but his will stipulates that she must live in the house for three years in order to claim her inheritance. Sonya’s innate stubbornness and strong survival instinct come in handy after discovering the house is haunted by a bevy of ghosts, collectively known as the lost brides. …

Kirkus

I downloaded the second book in the series — The Mirror — but couldn’t get into it for some reason.

Amos Decker #7.

Long Shadows (2022) by David Baldacci is the author’s 51st crime book and 7th in the Memory Man/Amos Decker series.

I’ve got mixed feelings about Baldacci as a writer.

But have enjoyed all the Amos Decker books, including this one.

It’s a little too long. Too complicated. But still entertaining.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Yet another “cosy” murder mystery — again featuring amateur retired Brits.

J.M. Hall is an author, playwright and deputy head of a primary school. And his characters are 3 retired primary school teachers who unexpectedly turn to sleuthing.

Every Thursday, Liz, Thelma and Pat have their ‘coffee o’clock’ sessions at the Thirsk Garden Centre café.

But one fateful week they bump into their ex-colleague, Topsy.

Topsy was, in her day, a somewhat formidable character, but she’s quickly in cognitive decline.

Topsy’s main care giver is her daughter. A big challenge since the family now has no money. Topsy had been conned out of her life savings, over $470,000 pounds. The conman had convinced Topsy that she needed to move her money out of one bank account to another for security. Of course the second account was in the name of the conman.

As much as an interesting murder mystery, the story looks at the impact of age and declining health.

Geir Tangen is a Norwegian crime fiction writer and blogger.

Requiem is a good book — but I gave up at 55% finding it too bleak. Too dark. 

Nobody to cheer for. 

In fact, I should give up Nordic noir completely.

One of the best thrillers (2020) of the year!

Kepler treats us readers to a nonstop roller coaster of suspense, taking us deep into the hearts and minds of perfectly realized characters.

And, oh, what a villain!

—Jeffery Deaver

This is a very intense novel.

A mysterious killer is brutally murdering Europe’s most loathsome criminals.

When police discover that two of the victims have disturbing connections to Detective Joona Linna, it’s clear that somebody’s trying to send him a message.

As the body count rises, the evidence seems to point to a ghost from Joona’s past… the most terrifying villain he’s ever had to face.

Surprisingly, detective Saga Bauer is the main character in this book.

Joona Linna disappeared in order to protect his daughter from the bad guy.

A concept for YOUR future series of speculative fiction. You can write those books during retirement. 😀

Human kind is going extinct on Earth.

Elon Musk and others launch as many long range space craft as possible. Towards as many remotely feasible planets and moons that might be able to sustain life.

The ships are unmanned — aside from frozen sperm and eggs. This seems far more possible than sending folks cryogenically frozen.

Those (few) ships that survive the trip after hundreds of years at sub-light speed are possible story plots.

After landing, Androids start in vitro humans growing. They attempt to adapt the planet for homo sapiens.

This is something similar to the TV series Silo.

It sounds like Allen M. Steele traveled forward into the future to STEAL this idea from me in his book Arkwright (2016). 

There may have been other literary thieves. 😀

I’m a big fan of the fictional character DC Smith.

Grainger’s 2023 book has the retired detective working on a possible insurance fraud case.

A woman’s husband disappeared 5 years prior. And she wants to make a claim on his estate.

The insurance company believes the man is still alive — and hires DC Smith to find him.

As usual, this Grainger book is a slow-paced, humorous police procedural.

No car chases nor gun fights.

Jeffery Deaver is the master of plot twists & turns. False summits. 😀

Fewer than usual in Watchmaker’s Hand (2023), but it’s still an excellent novel.

16th in the Lincoln Rhyme series.

When a New York City construction crane mysteriously collapses, causing mass destruction and killing several people, Rhyme and Amelia Sachs are on the case.

A political group claims to be behind the sabotage and threatens another crane collapse in twenty-four hours, unless their demands are met.

With New York in a panic, the stakes are higher than ever for Rhyme and his team to unravel the plot before the timer runs out and more cranes crash down, reducing the city and its people to rubble.

Then Rhyme realizes that the mastermind behind the terror is his own nemesis—the Watchmaker.

Once again, it’s a battle of wits between Rhyme and the Watchmaker.

Technology plays more a role in this book. Drones. Artificial intelligence.

It feels like Lincoln is falling behind the times in some ways.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.