Review: Fatal by Design

“Fatal by Design” is the fifth installment of Cara Devlin’s Bow Street Duchess mystery series. Widowed Audrey leaves her brother-in-law’s home in advance of the house party set to begin soon. On the way to her country home, she comes across an abandoned carriage that turns out to belong to her estranged sister. Millie is missing and the coachman is dead. The motive for her disappearance isn’t clear but Audrey and Hugh, who arrives to attend the house party, learn that somehow it involves long lost love, a purple diamond, and a crumbling estate. The duo must work quickly to find Millie before the killer claims another victim.

Against the backdrop of Millie’s disappearance, Audrey and Hugh must also come to terms with her status as a widow and dowager. It seems yet another roadblock will keep them from happiness. 

Audrey and Hugh, along with their friends, continue to delight as they draw on each other’s strengths. The slow burn romance has definitely caught fire, but societal restrictions and lingering questions are still in the way of a happily ever after. These characters and the story line make for an exceptionally fast read and “Fatal by Design” will leave you wanting more.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Review: Murder at the Merton Library

What do a murder in an Oxford library and a suspicious fire in a warehouse laboratory have to do with each other? In “Murder at the Merton Library” Wrexford and Sloane take on seemingly unrelated cases, but then they discover connections between the murder victim and some of the people involved in research related to what was happening in the burned laboratory. Suddenly, they are in a race to find a murderous traitor before he strikes again. Wrex, Charlotte, and the Weasels, along with a delightful cast of supporting characters, including Aunt Allison, take the reader on a fast-paced journey through intrigues old and new.

One of the things I really enjoy about Andrea Penrose’s books is the inclusion of well-researched political or scientific intrigue into the story. In this case, the intrigue revolves around the race to develop an ocean-going steamship. High risk investments are also explored as the characters work through whether or not a proposed investment scheme is legitimate or not. 

This book is great for anyone who enjoys historical mysteries and regency-era historical mysteries. Don’t miss the afterword about the competition to develop a steamship that could easily travel on the ocean.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book provided by NetGalley and the publisher, Kensington Books. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Review: Sensitive

Sara Levine’s “Sensitive” is a sweet story about a girl who has big feelings. She is criticized for her sensitivity with words that press against her heart. Then, after some alone time and rest, she realizes that those words can be changed to affirmations to celebrate who she is as an individual. 

Mehrdokht Amini’s collage illustrations help the reader visualize the impact of hurtful phrases and the joy of rest and recovery. 

I love the acknowledgement that sometimes sensitive individuals need alone time to do quiet activities such as read books or just be in nature. If you have a sensitive kiddo or were a sensitive kiddo yourself, this book is for you.

This book is great for kids and grown-ups. It will help readers better understand themselves and those they might know who are more sensitive to the world.

Thanks to Netgalley and Carolrhoda Books for an advance reader copy in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Worrying Worries

Young children can learn to manage their worries in the delightful “The Worrying Worries.” When a young child finds a worry in the wild, they take it home where it grows to something quite unmanageable. The purplish scribble-looking worry grows and grows until there is no choice but to learn techniques to manage its unpleasant effects. Once the strategies are implemented, the worry begins to shrink.

The illustrations and rhyming text are delightful. Rachel Rooney provides specific strategies for young children (and adults too!) to manage worries that get out of control. At the end of the book there is additional background for adult readers to help their little ones.

This would be a great book to have in the elementary classroom and would even be appropriate to have on the shelf in a middle school classroom. I will purchase a copy to share with my psychology students at the high school level.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book provided by the publisher, American Psychological Association, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.