Have Yourself a Deadly Little Christmas (Year-Round Christmas Mystery #6), by Vicki Delany

Publication Sept. 19, 2023

Backstage drama takes center stage.

I've done local theater and although the stress levels can be tough, I've fortunately never experienced anything like what was going on during this production of "A Christmas Carol". Wow, talk about egos. Egos clashing with money and prestige lost or gained. And, that's just part of the story.

After what a somewhat slow start to me, I realized how hooked I was at some point. Maybe when I absolutely had to finish this book before finally going to bed? In any case, although Delany is one of my go-to authors, I somehow seem to have missed this series, so it was a delight to find it. Merry and her family were a delight .... I mean, her dad might as well be Santa Claus and her mom is a former opera star ... and the rest of the surrounding characters were intersting, too, with some quirks of their own. Set in Rudolph, New York, a town that does Christmas year-round, it was easy to fall into the Christmas spirit as I read. 

Well, except for when Merry finds a dead body in her shop, Mrs. Claus's Treasures. Who killed the difficult Paula? Was it connected to the play? It isn't like Paula didn't make more than a few waves, all made worse by the behavior of her not so very Tiny Tim-ish son's behavior. Would shop worker Jackie have killed to get a better part? She does seem to harbor delusions of grandeur and being the entertainment world's next big star. How about the victim's husband? They were definitely not the perfect couple? Will Merry prove too-stupid-to-live as she persists on asking questions, not to mention showing up on doorsteps uninvited to ask them? Would Mattie the dog be enough protection? What would motivate someone to kill? Who ... oh, enough teasers. Get the book. It's a fun, relatively quick read but, beware, it may keep you up past your bedtime. 

Thanks #NetGalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for introducing me to Rudolph, the Christmas Town, and its (mostly) friendly residents. Can the spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future change those few Scrooge-y hearts for good? I'll be back!

The Game Is a Footnote (Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery #8), by Vicki Delany

 

Jan. 10, 2023

Rumors are flying about paranormal activity at a local museum, Scarlet House. Gemma Doyle has reluctantly agreed to spend a night there to try to discover what is going on. Friend Jayne and her soon-to-be-husband will be there, too, although Gemma has deliberately avoided involving Ryan, her detective boyfriend. Quite frankly, Gemma isn't expecting anything out of the ordinary. 

She was wrong. Strange noises, animals in the barn in turmoil, and items out of place. If this spook, spectral or not, expected Gemma to run away in terror, however, they picked the wrong person. Gemma doesn't believe in ghosts and her plan, much like Sherlock Holmes, is to eliminate the impossible and investigate whatever is left. Do you believe in ghosts? Tell me after you finish this one.

Unfortunately, finding a dead body, David, wasn't part of the impossible and adds to Gemma's incentive to get to the bottom of things. She's distracted, however, by the sudden disappearance of her dependable worker, Ashleigh. Never fear, however, Gemma is definitely capable of handling more than one puzzle at a time. Toss in the sudden visit of her sister Pippa from England and things only get more interesting....and complicated. 

I won't detail the plot, discovering it all piece by piece as you sort through the multitude of red herrings is, well, part of the fun. The characters we've gotten to know over the series are there, not to mention the critters. Moriarity the cat still hisses at Gemma, btw, but manages to provide an unwanted, scary distraction at one point.

Why is Scarlet House suddenly seemingly haunted? Who killed David? How does one lock oneself in a barn? Are hungry pigs dangerous? Why is Pippa really there? Is Gemma the least bit sorry for waking up Ryan at 3a.m.? That's debatable. That whole scene of the police trying to secure the scene of the crime in the rain, including a pig sty, creates a hilarious image in one's mind, must admit, so Ryan had to be exhausted. What does an aging pop star have to do with anything? What secrets are the various players in this drama keeping? Why....why don't I stop with the teasers now and just say, read this one. 

Thanks #NetGalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for letting me drop in on Gemma and friends again. I'm always up for a bit of Sherlock sleuthing even if Gemma's tendency to get so caught up in her whirling mind means that she forgets we're there at times.