Month: February 2017

Kneaded to Death Blog Tour and Giveaway (ENDED)

~ Erika K ~ 5 Comments

http://www.escapewithdollycas.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/KNEADED-TO-DEATH.jpgEveryone swears by Yeast of Eden, the Mexican bread shop in town. But tonight, the only thing on the menu is la muerte . . .

Struggling photographer Ivy Culpepper has lots of soul-searching to do since returning to seaside Santa Sofia, California. That is, until the thirty-six-year-old enters a bread making class at Yeast of Eden. Whether it’s the aroma of fresh conchas in the oven, or her instant connection with owner Olaya Solis, Ivy just knows the missing ingredients in her life are hidden among the secrets of Olaya’s bakery . . .

But Ivy’s spirits crumble when a missing classmate is suddenly discovered dead in her car. Even more devastating, the prime suspect is Olaya Solis herself. Doubting the woman could commit such a crime, Ivy embarks on a murder investigation of her own to prove her innocence and seize the real killer. As she follows a deadly trail of crumbs around town, Ivy must trust her gut like never before—or someone else could be toast!

Continue reading →

Review – The Cracked Amulet by R.B. Watkinson

~ Erika K ~ 3 Comments

The Cracked Amulet (Wefan Weaves #1)Wefan is leaking from the world, and the blood-priests of the oppressive god Murak rise again to bring war to the lands of Dumnon. They search for those with Wealdan in their blood, for this gives them power. Power to twist, to alter and control, and ultimately to gain yet more power. In horrifying blood-rites practised on both humans and creatures, they gorge on the blood of innocents, destroying farms and families, conquering swathes of territory and gaining new followers. But not all Wealdan-infused blood carries the same intoxicating fuel. The blood-priests seek one above all others.

Against a background of failing states, magik and spirits, Coryn and Katleya lose all that they have and must flee all that they know. Coryn, protected by a cracked amulet, must find his sister and fulfill an oath. Katleya has only her wits and her knives to defend herself. Desperate to reach a haven where she can learn to use her power fully, Katleya uses her Wealdan to do little other than see the Wefan. But she is hunted by those who would use her for terrible purposes of their own.

A story as intricate and as powerful as any Weaving of the Wefan.

Continue reading →

Review – Ghost of Witches Past

~ Erika K ~ 3 Comments

Ghosts of Witches Past (Witches of Tower Hill, #1)Seventeen-year-old Wavy McClintock is a witch with the rare ability to see ghosts. Traumatic events with “city ghosts” when she was a child have forced Wavy into a life of seclusion. She never leaves the safety of Tower Hill, where the local ghosts are easy to spot and avoid.

Niall Tobin is a witch from an outcast family. At seventeen, he is unable to stop his parents when they strip him of his magical soul in a plot to clear their family name. When Niall escapes, he seeks out the only living witness to the murder that ruined his family. His search brings him to Tower Hill.

When a ghost appears to Wavy, revealing a mysterious symbol that sends her on a hunt for answers, she discovers Niall injured in the woods. Convinced that he will die if left alone, Wavy defies her family and agrees to help Niall.

But helping Niall means leaving the safety of her home and facing the ghosts who want nothing more than to tear her apart. As Wavy and Niall work together to learn the truth about the murder, they discover connections that haunt both their families and uncover long-buried secrets that will change their lives forever.

Continue reading →

Audiobook Review – The Sleepwalker by Chris Bohjalian

~ Erika K ~ 3 Comments

The SleepwalkerWhen Annalee Ahlberg goes missing, her children fear the worst. Annalee is a sleepwalker whose affliction manifests in ways both bizarre and devastating. Once, she merely destroyed the hydrangeas in front of her Vermont home. More terrifying was the night her older daughter, Lianna, pulled her back from the precipice of the Gale River bridge. The morning of Annalee’s disappearance, a search party combs the nearby woods. Annalee’s husband, Warren, flies home from a business trip. Lianna is questioned by a young, hazel-eyed detective. And her little sister, Paige, takes to swimming the Gale to look for clues. When the police discover a small swatch of fabric, a nightshirt, ripped and hanging from a tree branch, it seems certain Annalee is dead, but Gavin Rikert, the hazel-eyed detective, continues to call, continues to stop by the Ahlbergs’ Victorian home. As Lianna peels back the layers of mystery surrounding Annalee’s disappearance, she finds herself drawn to Gavin, but she must ask herself: Why does the detective know so much about her mother? Why did Annalee leave her bed only when her father was away? And if she really died while sleepwalking, where was the body?

Continue reading →

Death in Advertising by Laura Bradford – Blog Tour and Giveaway (ENDED)

~ Erika K ~ 5 Comments

 


When Tobi Tobias decided to open her own ad agency, having to moonlight in a pet shop wasn’t part of her vision . . . of course, neither was murder.

Sometimes when opportunity knocks, the door you open leads to a closet. That’s certainly the case for Tobi, whose weekends spent cleaning cages in her best friend’s pet shop may soon be over. She’s just landed her first big break—Zander Closet Company needs a catchy campaign slogan ASAP, and Tobi thinks she’s got the right hook to knock ’em dead: “When we’re done, even your skeletons will have a place.”

But when a real dead body topples out of a showcase closet, she’s about to discover there is such a thing as bad publicity. To save her fledgling business and not get killed by the competition, Tobi takes on a new pet project: solving the murder. But with a stressed-out parrot as the only witness to the crime, Tobi will really have to wing it to put the cagey killer behind bars.

Continue reading →

Review – War and Peach by Susan Furlong

~ Erika K ~ 5 Comments

War and Peach (Georgia Peach Mystery, #3)Nola Mae Harper is too busy restocking the jars of preserves and chutney flying off the shelves of her shop, Peachy Keen, to keep up with all the gossip about the upcoming mayoral election, but she does know the debate is sure to be a real barn burner.
Local farmer Clem Rogers claims he has a bombshell that could take small business owner Margie Price out of the running. But before Clem can reveal his juicy secret at the debate, his actual barn goes up in flames–with him inside of it. The town casts its vote against Margie, but Nola isn’t convinced the hardworking woman is capable of murder. Now to clear Margie’s name Nola will have to work fast under pressure, before Margie gets taken in by the fuzz…
INCLUDES RECIPES!

Continue reading →

Review – Death of a Ghost by M.C. Beaton

~ Erika K ~ 1 Comment

Death of a Ghost (Hamish Macbeth, #32)There are many ruined castles in Scotland. One such lies outside the village of Drim. Hamish begins to hear reports that this castle is haunted and lights have been seen there at night, but he assumes it’s some children or maybe the local lads going there to smoke pot, or, worse, inject themselves with drugs. Hamish says to his policeman, Charlie ‘Clumsy’ Carson, that they will both spend a night there.

The keening wind explains the ghostly noises, but when Charlie falls through the floor, Hamish finds the body of a dead man propped up in a corner of the cellar. After Charlie is airlifted to the hospital, Chief Detective Inspector Blair arrives to investigate the body, but there is none to be found. Dismissed as a drunk making up stories, Hamish has to find and identify the body and its killer before the “ghost” can strike again.

Continue reading →