Author: CozyRomBooksandCoffee

My name is Suzanne and I have lived in Tennessee my entire life. I am marred with 3 kids and 3 grandchildren. My family is my! I love to read so I decided to support the authors I love by writing reviews. I also post my reviews to Goodreads and Amazon. Besides reading, I love to spend time with my family, travel, Corvette road trips & working out. I hope you enjoy my blogs.
Fiction, Romance

The Unexpected Inn by Rachael Bloome

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Title: The Unexpected Inn
Author: Rachael Bloome
Series: Blessings Bay #2
Genre: Romance
Location: Blessings Bay, CA
Main Characters: Abby, Logan, Evan, Nadia
Other Characters: Max, Clara, Denise, Verna, Serena, Sage
Stars: 5

Since reading the first book in her Poppy Creek Series, I have loved this author. This most recent series, Blessings Bay, does not disappoint. This is the second book in the Blessings Bay Series and I loved catching up with Logan and Abby along with several new characters that were introduced.

The unexpeted Inn leaves you wanting to visit but be warned—you might not want to leave. The characters are intriguing and well-developed. I especially love Max’s story, the foster boy that was introduced in the first book. As he gets used to his new home, could everything fall apart and upset his life!

As Abby is preparing to open her Bed & Breakfast, the first guest, who runs a review blog, arrives early. Could this review end Abby’s career as an innkeeper? Even though Abby is worried about what kind of review her Inn will receive, she is thrilled that her best friend, Nadia, is visiting. Could Nadia find romance and her own new beginning in Blessings Bay?

The characters in this sweet, wholesome small-town romance navigate life and new beginnings in Blessings Bay while taking the reader on an emotional roller coaster that includes laughter and tears. Grab a cup of coffee (or your preferred beverage), settle into your preferred reading spot, and get ready to spend some time lost in this tale of new romance, second chances, and a foster child who simply wants a loving home.

Happy Reading!

Fiction, Mystery

Blackbird by Kay Bratt

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Title: Blackbird
Author: Kay Bratt
Series: Hart’s Ridge #9
Location: Hart’s Ridge, Georgia
Genre: Mystery
Main Character: Taylor
Other Characters: Caleb, Allison
Stars: 5

Kay Bratt is a master storyteller; she never lets you down. I have loved this series from the very first book and Blackbird is no exception. To fully understand the characters in this series, it is recommended that you read them in order.

In the small town of Hart’s Ridge, Taylor Gray serves as the deputy sheriff. She leads a hectic life juggling her family and her career. She has a strong work ethic and doesn’t give up until she obtains the information she needs. There are moments when her personal life and her work as a deputy can get blurred. She is kind-hearted and eager to assist when she can.

In the ninth episode of the Hart’s Ridge Series, Taylor is trying to help Allison, an abused mother, and her two children escape her abusive husband. What makes this so challenging is her mother’s constant interference. A mother’s job is to protect her children and instead Allison’s mom is hindering her escape. Will Allison be able to escape her abusive ex and her mom to find the family she has always wanted?

This book continues with a story that was introduced in book eight of the series. As you may recall, Caleb works as a deputy and is a collegue of Taylors. His wife Lydia was kidnapped from a local Walmart and presumed dead even though they never found her body. After talking to a local psychic, he just feels like something is off so he continues to search for answers in his wife’s disappearance. He needs to find her one way or another even if it confirms she is really dead.

This is a very dramatic and gut-wrenching book. The reader is drawn in by the author’s ability to make the characters appear incredibly genuine and like they are a part of the narrative. I was completely engrossed by the story and was able to imagine what each character must be going through. There wasn’t as much family involvement in this book as the others, which I missed, but I was utterly captivated by both of the stories. The plot was left open for the story to continue in book ten, which is scheduled for release in the summer of 2024.

The author draws inspiration for her writings from actual events, which is one of my favorite things about her. Even though it is fictionalized in the book, the author’s note at the conclusion tells you where she found inspiration for this story, so make sure to read it.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Dying to Dance (Cha-Cha-Ahhh) by Marcy Blesy

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  • Title: Dying to Dance
  • Author: Marcy Blesy
  • Series: A Tucson Valley Retirement Community Cozy Mystery #5
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Tuscon Valley
  • Main Character: Rosy,
  • Other Characters: Keaton, Stacy, Renee, Richard, Karen, Frank, Brenda, George, Amos, Jan, Alan, Officer Lona, Officr Dan, Zak, Lanie, Safia, Waylon, Mario, Celia, Lois, Tracy, Leo, Bob
  • Pets: Dog name Barley
  • Stars: 5

The residents’ shenanigans in this fifth episode of The Tuscon Valley Retirement Center will make you laugh out loud.

Everyone in the retirement community is giddy with anticipation as Rosi and Tracy prepare for a dance competition that will give residents the chance to perform alongside professional dancers. When the professional dancers arrive in the community, the locals are selected and matched with a dancer. Everything was going great until—you guessed it—an unexpected crime occurred. There’s always a mystery to solve when Rosy is around, and she has to apply her sleuthing skills to solve it. Will Rosy once again put herself in danger to find the culprit?

This book is funny and features an eccentric group of characters. Rosy is a fantastic protagonist and I am excited to see where her and Keaton’s relationship goes. I love Rosi’s parents and her relationship with them. You will be guessing until the very last page as the author skillfully crafts a compelling mystery.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Baker and a Body Bag by Avery Kent

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  • Title: Baker and a Body Bag
  • Author: Avery Kent
  • Series: Bishops Landing Cozy Landing #6
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Bishops Landing Cozy Mystery
  • Main Character: Annie
  • Other Characters: Jake, Casey Alisson, Nicki, Ethan, Casey, Maggie, Francesca, Aunt Mildred, Connie, Lancer, Janine, phard name Sarge, Karl, Lance, Rhett, Maggie, Colin, Doc James, Principal Bell, Kurtis, Ty
  • Stars: 5

The sixth novel in the Bishops Landing Cozy Mystery Series brings us back to the quaint town of Bishop’s Landing. Catching up with Annie and her friends is always a pleasure. Annie is thrilled to have her Goddaughter, Nicki, coming to visit, and she is even more thrilled to have a surprise visit from her son, Ethan.

Annie is looking forward to her first date with Jake. Everything is set up for their sunset cruise on Jake’s boat, which is going great until they discover the high school coach’s dead body in the water. As if this isn’t bad enough, it gets worse when Annie’s son is the main suspect since he was observed having a heated argument with the deceased. Annie is determined to prove her son couldn’t have committed the crime. During her sleuthing, she discovers a series of secrets & lies that have been kept under wrap for a years which gives us several possible suspects.

It’s always nice to catch up with Annie in this series, which I absolutely love. The author is skilled at giving each character enough nuance and personality to give them dimension. I am really enjoying the slow-burn romance of Annie and Jake to see where that might lead. And of course there are dogs which is always entertaining. For a small town, there is a lot going on, which keeps the reader engaged. The reader is taken on a exciting journey through a compelling mystery that keeps them guessing until the very end.

Happy Reading

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Birthday Pink Backlash by Emily Oberton

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  • Title: Birthday Pink Backlash
  • Author: Emily Oberton
  • Series: Hadley Home Design standalone Novella
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Forest Haven Spa Resort in the Smoky Mountains
  • Main Character: Hadley Sutton
  • Other Characters: Liza, Carmella, Curtis, Willa, Jayla, Kim, Gwyneth, Charlene, Adam, Chef Hansen, Raven
  • Stars: 5

I received this novella by being a part of Emily Oberton’s Newsletter. If you don’t receive her newsletters, I highly recommend that you join. Even though this is part of the Hadley Home Design Mystery series, it is a standalone Novela and doesn’t contain any spoilers for the rest of the series.

This novela takes us to the Forest Haven Spa Resort in the Smoky Mountains for Hadley’s birthday celebration . She wants to celebrate her birthday with a spa & massage weekend. Her celebration takes a nasty turn when her masseuse is found dead. Turns out the deceased is not well liked so there are a lot of suspects who could have wanted her dead.

Despite the fact that this novela is short and a quick read, the author takes us on quite the roller coaster journey to find the killer. It keeps the reader guessing throughout the entire book. I found it engaging and suspensful. Her other works in the Hadley Home Design Series are also highly recommended.

Click on the image of the bookcover above to go to Emily Oberton’s wepage to join her newsletter.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Graven Images by Lori Roberts Herbst

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  • Title: Graven Images
  • Author: Lori Roberts Herbst
  • Series: Callie Cassidy Cozy Myster #6
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Rock Creek Village, CO
  • Main Character: Callie Cassidy
  • Other Characters: Tonya, Butch, Maggie, Glenda Vivian, Sam, Cedric, Lydia, Monika, Frank, Raul, Mrs Finney, Lynn, Pinky, David, Conrad, Lila, Robert, Ken
  • Pets: Golden Retriever named Woody and Carl the Tabby Cat
  • Stars: 5

The author does not let readers down in this sixth installment of the Callie Cassidy series. I loved it from the first to the last page. it was interesting, intriguing and made me want to keep reading to see how this mystery would unfold.

Known for hopping from one hobby to another, Callie’s mother has discovered a new one: grave rubbing. Who knew there was such a hobby! As her mother heads to the cemetery for her first excursion into her new pastime, Callie agrees to accompany her to tak photos. Callie brings her tabby cat, Carl and her golden retriever, Woody along for the adventure. After she is satisfied that she has taken enough photos, Callie, along with Woody & Carl, chooses to stroll around the cemetery when she notices a ghostly apparition emerging from the trees. When examined closely, it was a woman wearing a long white dress and bleeding from a head wound. The woman claimed not to know who she was or how she got there, but Maggie, Callie’s mother, recognized her immediately as a woman who vanished without a trace forty years prior. It is at that moment that Woody bolts for the trees, and when Callie catches up with him, she finds him standing over a dead body by a recent grave. it is quickly determined that this dead body is a man who has been dating her best friend Tonya’s mother. What might have occurred! Was it the mystery woman in the white dress who killed him? Was he killed by Lydia, Tonya’s mother? Callie finds herself involved in a murder investigation once again along with the mystery of the woman with no memory. What is the mystery behind this woman in the white dress and where has she been for the past 40 years?

Apart from attempting to unravel the two mysteries, Callie is also attempting to win over her boyfriend Sam’s parents.

There are numerous suspects in this intriguing mystery, which keeps the reader wondering right up to the very end. Callie has been my favorite protagonist throughout the entire series. She is intelligent, a devoted friend, and perpetually gets mixed up in a murder investigation. The remaining characters in the series are all well-developed and three-dimensional. From the moment I picked up her first book, this author has been a favorite of mine. She writes about places so vividly in her books that I can almost feel myself there. Her mysteries will always have unexpected turns that keep the reader guessing until the perpetrator is identified. The Callie Cassidy Mystery series is a great choice if you enjoy cozy mysteries with lots of twists and turns leading to unexpected conclusions. Although these books can be read as a stand-alone, I suggest reading them in order to fully get to know the characters and develop the same kind of affection for them that I have.

I received this book for free as part of the author’s ARC team. This Review is my honest opinion

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Dying for Dirt (All Soaped Up) by Marcy Blesy

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  • Title: Dying for Dirt (All Soaped Up)
  • Author: Marcy Blesy
  • Series: Tucson Valley Retirement Community Cozy Mystery #3
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place:  Tuscon Valley, AZ
  • Main Character: Rosi
  • Other Characters: Tracy, Keaton, Zak, Mario, Leo, Brenda, Jan, Safia Dr Rafferty Smith, Me. Quinta, Officer Warren, Baily Adelain
  • Pets: Rosi’s Golden Retriever Barley
  • Stars: 5

Once again, Rosi gets to use her investigative abilities and we get to giggle at the retirement community’s antics in this episode of Another Tucson Valley Retirement Community.

Rosi, her supervisor Tracy, and a few of the interesting yet annoying senior community residents travel to Phoenix for the Senior Living Retirement Community Conference. Although it should be a time for leisure, that is obviously not the case. The group goes to the opening night festivities on their first night there. Much to Rosi’s humilation, she finds herself in a humorous scenario that has the potential to make her Tik Tok famous. To top it all off, later that night, Barley, her Golden Retriever, discovers a dead body in the most unlikely place. Once more, Rosi gets to use her investigative abilities as she finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. Since there was no identification, they must first identify the victim and then determine the motivation before they can find who could have commited this heinous crime.

Though I particularly like the protagonist, all the characters are intriguing. The quirky residents of the Retirement Community and other people Rosi meets along the way provide some humor despite the fact that this is a murder mystery. Since Rosi is pursuing a suspect, could she be putting herself in danger? The author has a talent for creating mysteries that keep the reader interested and guessing the entire time. This engrossing cozy mystery has several twists to reveal the killer and a surprise conclusion.

Happy Reading!

Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Blue Ridge Breakdown by Rachel Hanna

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  • Title: Blue Ridge Breakdown
  • Author: Rachel Hanna
  • Series: Jubilee #4
  • Genre: Romance, Women’s Fiction
  • Takes Place:  Jubilee, GA
  • Main Character: Ava, Jack
  • Other Characters: Madeline, Brady, Geneva, Eloise, Burt, Clemmy
  • Pets: Ava’s Boxer Millie
  • Stars: 5

Rachel Hanna never disappoints. Blue Ridge Breakdown is the 4th book in the Jubilee series and I officially want to move to Jubilee. I could not put this book down and I was smiling so much, I thought may face was going to freeze that way. If it is written by Rachel Hanna, I know I am going to read it and get so lost in the story that I will be transported to the destination.

Ava is driving her father’s vintage truck escaping from a bad situation, but she has no idea where she’s headed or what she’s going to do. When she encounters a snowstorm in the Blue Ridge Mountains, she finds herself in a precarious predicament. Her truck stalls after slamming into a snowbank. She has run out of gas and doesn’t have cell service. As if things couldn’t get much worse, her beloved Boxer, Millie, exits her car and darts into the forest as she opens her door to check if she can obtain cell service. As she sits in her truck all alone with no site of any other cars, she is convinced she is going to die at the side of the road in a town where no one knows her. Suddenly, she notices lights, and a truck has stopped behind her. She is simultaneously afraid and appreciative. Is he there to rescue her or does he mean her harm!! A large lumberjack looking man opens the door of her truck, picks her up and carries her to his truck. He drives in silence and takes her to his home in the woods. She finds out this lumberjacks name is Jack and means her no harm. Right now he is her hero for rescuing her. She continues to worry about her cherished Boxer. Although Ava is appreciative of Jack’s assistance, she isn’t entirely honest with him about what led her to Jubilee. As Ava grows more at ease in Jubilee and begins to establish a connection with Jack, her past eventually catches up with her. Will the potential between her and Jack be threatened by her past?

We also visit again with Madeline and Brady as Brady is putting the finishing touches on his new house so he can move in. I just love them and always enjoy seeing what they are up to.

This is a story of new beginnings, finding love in unexpected places, and becoming part of a community. It just goes to show you that it isn’t blood that makes you family. This book will make the reader smile and feel like they are part of the wonderful community of Jubilee.

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Murder in the Bloodline by Penny Brooke

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  • Title: Murder in the Bloodline
  • Author: Penny Brooke
  • Series: A Green Oaks Bookbinding Cozy Mystery #2
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: Green Oaks, Massachusettes
  • Main Character: Charlotte
  • Other Characters: Isla, Lauren, Faye, Phillip, Edie, Brandon, Amy Felicity, Jeff, Beau, Nat, Levi, Becky
  • Pets: Charlotte’s 2 cats Roma & Archimedes
  • Stars: 5

Once again an outstanding book by Penny Brooke. After moving to Green Oaks, Massachusetts, Charlotte started restoring the home she inherited from her grandmother. When we last saw Charlotte, she had cracked a 1920s murder case. Her wish is to put murder mysteries behind her. Or at least that is what she thought.

Charlotte is going through boxes of her grandmother’s old books to determine which ones would be good candidates for her favorite pastime of bookbinding. One of the books has an envelope sticking out of it, which she notices. Inside the envelope she discovers a note written to a young woman, Lauren, who killed herself around a year ago. Since the cops are not interested in opening this cold case, Charlotte is sure that something else is going on and decides to investigate it herself. Through her investigation she discovers a mystery about a missing woman, her sister’s apparent suicide, and long-kept family secrets.

Another thriller in the Green Oaks Bookbinding series that will keep you guessing throughout the entire book. I read it in one sitting since I couldn’t put it down. This novel explores a family with many secrets by taking the reader through a number of events to an ending you won’t see coming. Will Charlotte be able to pull together the evidence to crack another unsolved mystery?

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Dying for Wine (Seeing Red) by Marcy Blesy

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  • Title: Dying for Wine (Seeing Red)
  • Author: Marcy Blesy
  • Series: Tucson Valley Retirement Community Cozy Mystery #2
  • Genre: Cozy Myster
  • Takes Place: Tucson Valley, AZ
  • Main Character: Rosi
  • Other Characters: Keaton, Detective Daniels, Simon, Jan, Clyde, Brenda, Mario
  • Pets: Rosi’s Golden Retriever Barley, Elena, JJ, Xander, Sherman, Douggy, Bob, Frank, Brenda, Safia, Dee, Tracy
  • Stars: 5

This is the second book in the Tuscon Valley Retirement Community series and I enjoyed it as much as the first one.

Rosi has made the decision to move to Tucson Valley and leave behind the cold winters of Illinois. She is settling into her new role At the Tuscon Valley Retirement Community Performing Arts Center. A farewell event featuring impersonators of some of the biggest stars of the 60s is being held for the community’s snowbird residents. Rosi handles the diva attitudes and outrageous requests without letting the performers’ disparate personalities get in the way of making this the greatest concert the community has ever seen. The concert is a success and Rosi is pleased with how everything turned out, up until one of the performers is found dead at the foot of the stage. Once again Rosi puts her sleuthing skills to work to to assist Detective Daniels in tracking down a murderer. She is aware that in order to preserve the community’s and the Performing Arts Center’s reputation, they need to discover this culprit as soon as possible. The plot takes a lot of turns and involves a number of suspects before the killer is identified because she unearths more secrets than she could have predicted while conducting her investigation.

I’m having a great time with this series since the characters are interesting and entertaining, with a wide range of personalities. In addition to the search for a killer, the side stories are just as interesting. Rosi is still getting to know Keaton and is excited to see where their new relationship goes. She is also looking for a new place to live so she can move out of her parents’ house. As a dog lover, I love Barley, her Golden Retriever.

I laughed out loud at some of the quirky characters in this series, which is lighthearted and entertaining along with a mystery that has a twist and an unexpected conclusion.

Happy Reading!