May 29th's Book Beginnings and Friday 56

For a short week, this has been a long and stressful week.  But I'm heading up to visit my family this weekend, so I have that to look forward to.

Before I do, here's this week's Book Beginnings and Friday 56.  This week, I'm featuring Truffled to Death by Kathy Aarons. (Which I haven't even gotten to read in today - yet.  That's the kind of day Thursday was.)

And it begins like this:

"It's so beautiful," I practically cooed at the plain clay bowl sitting just inches from my face behind the glass.  My fingers were itching to hold it.

Jumping to page 56, we find:

I couldn't help but imagine that he'd left the country with the goods from the robbery,

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Book Review: Assaulted Pretzel by Laura Bradford (Amish Mysteries #2)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Amazing characters and a good mystery

Cons: Romantic triangle a little strong for my tastes.

The Bottom Line:

A toymaker’s death

Brings us back to characters

You will quickly love

Festival, Toys, and Murder

After discovering just how strong the Amish Mysteries by Laura Bradford are, I knew I had to read the second in the series soon.  That’s why Assaulted Pretzel jumped several places up my to be read mountain range.  I’m glad it did because this was another great book.

The series features Claire Weatherly, who has moved to the town of Heavenly, Pennsylvania, in Amish country.  She’s living with her aunt and running a gift shop that sells Amish created items.  Through the shop, she’s made several friends in the Amish community, including Esther, her employee, and Benjamin, the handsome man whose sister runs the bakery next door.  She’s also friends with Jakob, the handsome detective who left this very Amish community years ago and has been shunned as a result.

Claire has been hearing about an annual Amish Food Festival ever since she moved to Heavenly, so she is excited it has finally arrived.  She is looking forward to spending the day sampling Amish food and chatting with her new friends.  Unfortunately, some of the festive spirit has left thanks to a leaked memo that reports that Rob Karble, who was in town to sign a deal to distribute Amish made toys via his toy company, is planning to use his own workers and plants instead of local workers like he’d originally promised.

However, things take a dramatic turn when Rob is found murdered behind one of the booths.  With multiple people in the Amish community affected by Rob’s change of plans, Claire once again finds herself helping Jakob, navigate the investigation.  Will one of her Amish friends be convicted?

Once again, I found myself drawn into this book by the vivid and real characters.  After two books, I love them and can’t wait to spend time with them again.  My heart breaks for a few of the characters as the book progresses, and I have to keep reading to see if they can overcome the obstacles in their lives.  And yes, the suspects introduced for this book are just as strong as the returning characters.

Part of these characters being so real is the reactions we see to the murder.  Because we see how it affects a wide variety of people, the pace might be a tad slower than I would normally enjoy.  The tradeoff is completely worth it because it makes the characters that much richer, so this isn’t really a complaint at all.

On the other hand, I did grow a little weary of the romantic triangle in this book.  Claire isn’t quite ready to pursue a romance, yet she is drawn to both Benjamin and Jakob, who are equally interested in her.  Benjamin being Amish produces even more obstacles.  Even though all this annoyed me at times, with how that storyline is left, I can’t wait to see what happens in the next book.  I know, I know, a complete contradiction, right?

And what about the mystery itself?  I’m glad you asked.  As the book progresses, it continues to build with some nice twists and surprises.  I thought I had the killer pegged early on, but I began to question my guess the further into the book I got.  When the killer was revealed, the solution was completely logical.

I’ve already purchased the third in the series and am planning to get to it soon.  If you are looking for a mystery story you will get lost in, look no further than Assaulted Pretzel.

Want to fully appreciate the character development?  Read the Amish Mysteries in order.

TV Show Review: Boy Meets World - Season 3

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Lots of laughs and great episodes

Cons: None worth mentioning

The Bottom Line:

Cory, Topanga

Finally begin dating

In this fun season

“Let’s Go Watch TV in the Other Room.”  “TV’s Not Funny.  Cory’s Life’s Funny.”

Since I started Boy Meets World late in its run, I’ve been waiting for these early seasons to officially start Cory and Topanga dating.  That’s one of the major storylines of the delightful season 3, and there are plenty of laughs to be had over the course of the season.

In the very first episode of the season, it’s the first day back at school and Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) has decided it’s time to ask out Topanga Lawrence (Danielle Fishel).  However, he can’t quite work up the nerve, so his best friend Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong) steps in in a most unusual way.  Over the course of the season, they deal with the rocky road of being a couple, including what happens when one of them says “I love you,” dealing with another girl coming on to Cory, loyalties to friends versus each other, and trying to create a great first New Year’s together.

Of course, that’s not the only thing happening this season.   Cory’s older brother Eric (Will Friedle) is graduating from high school and trying to get into a college with some help from Mr. Feeny (William Daniels).  In pursuit of that, Eric lands an internship at a local TV station.  Shawn is living with their English teacher, Jonathan Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn), while his dad searching the country for his mom, and the two of them need to navigate their new relationship at home and school.  It only gets more complicated when Shawn gets a pet pig (for one episode).  We also add a third main teacher to the school when Mr. Turner’s friend Eli (Alex Desert) gets a job teaching media.  And Cory and Eric find themselves throwing a last minute anniversary party for their parents Alan and Amy (William Russ and Betsy Randle), instead of the rave they had planned to throw.  Being the DisNerd that I am, I can’t leave out a fun if improbably trip to Disney World that happens late in the season as well.

The season is filled with laughs.  I found the situations more realistic and funnier than some of the episodes last season, and I enjoyed just about every episode.  Even when they do get more serious with Shawn’s family situation or an episode focusing on Mr. Feeny late in the season, it earns those moments and still surrounds them with laughs.

I do feel like the episodes, which are presented here in their original air date order, are out of order a couple of times.  It’s not that big a deal since the storylines are minor as they carry over from one episode to another, but it does annoy a little.

This is also the season that Cory’s younger sister Morgan gets a new actress.  After not being seen for most of the season, she pops up about two thirds of the way through played by Lindsay Ridgeway.  Her first scene is classic and hilarious.  That’s part of the overall effort to age the characters since Cory starts out in eighth grade, but seems to be fifteen by the end of the season.  Or am I not supposed to pay attention to things like that?  Frankly, it’s another minor issue since the laughs are still strong, and that’s the most important thing.

I can’t help but keep comparing these episodes to the ones airing when I started watching late in season 5.  In fact, I started watching about the time that Cory and Topanga broke up that season, and Shawn was so upset by it.  They break up in this season as well, and instead of doing everything possible to get them back together, Shawn is trying to help Cory move on.  Funny how things changed in two seasons, isn’t it?

All the actors do great in their parts this season, and their deliveries and reactions lead to some great laughs.  This also rings true for Cory’s parents.  They don’t have as many storylines of their own this season, but their scenes are always great.  Special guest stars this season include The Monkees, and in a fifty’s Happy Days tribute show, Tom Bosley and Anson Williams as themselves with Pat Morita popping up in the episode as well.

All 22 episodes of season 3 are present on this three disc set in full frame and stereo sound, aka their original broadcast specifications.  For a sitcom, you don’t need more than that really.  There does seem to be some volume issues with occasional drops.  It’s annoying, but not super bad.  The only extra is a trivia game based on the season you’ve just watched.

So you don’t need to get this season for the extras, but season 3 is filled with laughs.  I’m enjoying this trip back through Boy Meets World.

Season 3 Episodes:

1. My Best Friend’s Girl

2. The Double Life

3. What I Meant to Say

4. He Said, She Said

5. Hometown Hero

6. This Little Piggy

7. Truth and Consequences

8. Rave On!

9. The Last Temptation of Cory

10. Train of Fools

11. City Slackers

12. The Grass is Always Greener

13. New Friends and Old

14. A Kiss is More Than a Kiss

15. The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

16. Stormy Weather

17. The Pink Flamingo Kid

18. Life Lessons

19. I Was a Teenage Spy

20. I Never Sang for My Legal Guardian

21. The Happiest Show on Earth

22. Brother-Brother

Book Review: Death by Coffee by Alex Erickson (Bookstore Cafe Mysteries #1)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Krissy and the suspects, decent plot

Cons: Weak series characters and humor

The Bottom Line:

The premise sounds fun

But execution does not

Fulfill that promise

Who Puts Peanuts in Coffee?

When Death by Coffee crossed my path, I immediately knew I had to read it since the plot teaser sounded like it was right up my alley.  Sadly, it didn’t live up to its potential.

Looking to branch out on their own, best friends Krissy and Vickie have moved away from their Southern California home and opened a combined coffee shop and bookstore in Pine Hills.  Vickie even has the bright idea to name it after one of Krissy’s Dad’s bestselling books, Death by Coffee.  Unfortunately, business on their first morning is slow.  Painfully slow.  In fact, Brandon Lawyer is one of their few customers.  He gets his coffee in a to go cup, walks back to his insurance office across the street, and dies a few minutes later.

Naturally, the rumors start flying about their coffee, but Brandon actually dies from his peanut allergy, something that he definitely didn’t pick up from their shop.  Being raised by a mystery writer father has made Krissy naturally curious, and she begins to investigate, hoping to catch the killer.  Can she do it?

The plot was actually fairly decent.  Krissy might have rehashed what she’d learned a time or two, but it wasn’t that bad.  We could have used one more good suspect to add another twist or two to the story, but that’s a minor complaint.  The solution was logical and suspenseful.

My problem begins with the characters.  Vickie is fairly flat even though she’s obviously going to be a series regular.  The suspects fared better as did Krissy.  Yet other series regulars were as flat as Vickie.  And don’t get me started on Rita, a fan of Krissy’s father who is completely obnoxious.  Seriously, I was rooting for Rita to be killed.

Then there’s the humor that was advertised in the book.  Much of it is supposed to come from Krissy making a fool out of herself.  I’m still not a fan of embarrassment humor, so I found myself cringing more than laughing here.  When Krissy’s not making mistakes, she has her cat, Misfit, there to embarrass her.  Now, I know I’m not a cat person, but seriously, I would have gotten rid of that cat ages ago if I were Krissy.

It’s not that the book was bad, but it wasn’t truly good either.  I hate to give an average grade to a debut from a new author, but Death by Coffee truly earns it.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

What's on My Nightstand - May 2015

With the holiday today, I almost forgot to do my What's On My Nightstand post for the month.  Can't have that, now can we?

I am currently half way through Death of a Chocolate Cheater by Penny Pike (aka Penny Warner).  This is the second Food Festival Mystery, and I'm enjoying it.  The beginning was a bit slow, but it's really picked up.

On deck is Truffled to Death by Kathy Aarons, the second in her Chocolate Covered Mysteries.  I read the first a few months back and enjoyed it, so I'm really looking forward to this one as well.

After that, I've got Farmed and Dangerous by Edith Maxwell.  No chocolate, and the third in a series.  See, I'm mixing it up.

Meanwhile, I'll be listening to A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton on audio while I drive to visit family.

From there?  I'm not completely sure what I will be reading the rest of the month.  I have a list of books I'm hoping to get to, including the next Trixie Belden to read and review, but I just haven't decided what I'll grab next.

Book Review: Book of the Dead by Michael Northrop (TombQuest #1)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Strong action

Cons: Set up is a little slow

The Bottom Line:

Ancient doors open

Danger, excitement come out

Slow start leads to thrills

The Mummy for Kids

At the LA Times Festival of Books last month, I only bought a few mysteries.  However, I bought a lot of Middle Grade Books thanks to two panels I attended.  One of those new to me authors was Michael Northrop, and Book of the Dead gets his new TombQuest series off to a great start.

Alex Sennefer has been sick all of his life, but it is getting worse.  In fact, after a particularly rough couple of days, he is rushed to the hospital, where the prognosis is not good.

And then Alex makes a miraculous recovery.  But he wakes up to strange stories happening all over the world.  Might it have to do with the recently found artifacts in the Egyptian exhibit his mother was setting up?  Can Alex and his best friend, Ren, help stop the evil that has been unleashed?

Based on the cover and plot description, I was expecting something along the lines of The Mummy (the new one from 2001), and I wasn’t disappointed at all.  The set up was a bit slow since it was obviously fairly early on just what would happen, but once we got past that set up, it turned into an exciting ride.  A couple of the scenes got my heart pumping and gave me sweaty palms.  The easily frightened might not want to read it, but kids looking for an adrenaline rush will absolutely love it.

The characters weren’t yet fully developed, but I wasn’t that surprised since this is a 200 paged action heavy story.  I cared enough for them to care about the outcome, and I am sure we’ll see more development as the series progresses.

Most of the book are told from Alex’s third person point of view, but we get a few parts from the point of view of Ren and even Alex’s mom.  They helped flesh out the story and rounded out those characters as well.

The ending of this book sets up the next one, and I’m expecting it to be another exciting thrill ride.  If you want a page turning read based on Egyptian mythology, Book of the Dead is definitely for you.

This review is part of this week's Marvelous Middle Grade Monday.

Weekly TV Thoughts - May 23rd

It's like May sweeps ended on Wednesday or something.  It's actually been weird the last couple of days without a lot of TV to watch.

Dancing with the Stars – I pretty much agree with the judges and the results.  As much as I loved Noah (and what wasn’t to love?), he just isn’t quite as good as the other two.  I honestly couldn’t decide between Ryker and Rumor, so I would have been happy with either of them winning, and Rumor’s win was great.

The Flash – Wow.  Just wow.  I don’t know why I was expecting anything less from the show, which has been amazing all season.  There were so many emotional moments, and the cast pulled them off brilliantly.  But that last act, between Barry and his mom and Eddie’s sacrifice.  Just wow!  And that’s the worst cliffhanger of the season, too.

Young and Hungry – I must admit, I was surprised at this.  I expected Cooper to be around another few episodes.  And, since I’m new to the show, I didn’t know about the event that Cooper used against Josh in the cliffhanger.  Interesting development for sure.

Survivor – I’ll admit, I’d gotten so I was rooting for Mike after my comment about no one being worthy of winning a few weeks back.  I’m so thrilled to see him win.  Yep, still rooting for the underdog, I guess.  And what does it say about me that I don’t remember who most of the people are who are on the second chances cast next season?  Oh well, I’ll remember who most of them are fairly quickly, I’m sure – at least the most memorable ones.

May 22nd's Book Beginnings and Friday 56

Well, it's about that time in the week - time for Book Beginnings and Friday 56.

This week, I'll be pulling quotes from my current read - Assaulted Pretzel by Laura Bradford.

This is the second in her Amish Mystery series.  I'm fast approaching the half way point, and it's as great as the first.

But the review will come next week.  For now, let's get to the quotes.  Here's how the book begins:

Claire Wheatherly was just reaching for a slice of Ruth Miller's second-to-none Shoo Fly Pie when she heard it - the slow rolling rumble of an approaching storm that threatened to put a kibosh on the treat she'd been hankering for all week.  Shielding the plate with her body, she dove her fork into the gooey goodness and - ...

Yes, that is actually how the first paragraph ends.  So maybe I'm being a little mean, but there you have it.

I'm actually going to skip to page 58 for the next quote.  Not really anything good on page 56.  But on page 58, there's this:

The more formal greeting died on her lips at the sight of Jakob standing just inside the shop's front door with a camera in one hand and a pair of gloves in the other.

So there you have it.  I'm hoping to finish this book on Saturday, and with how quickly it is going, I don't see that being a problem.

Hope you have a great long weekend, even if that means a few hours doing nothing but reading.  That's definitely in my plans for the weekend.

Book Review: As Gouda as Dead by Avery Aames (Cheese Shop Mysteries #6)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Colorful characters and a good mystery

Cons: Characters can spend a bit too long spinning theories

The Bottom Line:

Bar owner murdered

Makes stakes personal for all

Another great read

As Gouda as Ever

I spent some reading time last year catching up on the books of Avery Aames, and when As Gouda as Dead, the latest Cheese Shop Mystery came out, I intended to read it right away so I could stay up to date.  Here it is three months later and I’m finally getting it read.  Yes, someday my TBR problem will be conquered.

For those unfamiliar with the series, they are set in a small Ohio town and feature Charlotte Bessette, the owner of a cheese shop in town.  The crime rate in town seems to be going up since this is the sixth in the series, and Charlotte has the unfortunate habit of getting involved in the growing number of murders in town whether she wants to or not.

It’s days before Charlotte and Jordan Pace are to finally wed when tragedy strikes.  Tim O’Shea, the well-loved owner of the Irish bar in town, is found drowned in the cheese vat on Jordan’s cheese farm.  Many of their friends are deeply impacted, and it bothers Charlotte and Jordan enough that they decide to postpone the wedding.  With the added free time, Charlotte decides to dig in and find the killer.  But who would have motive to kill Tim?

I was actually surprised when I realized who the murder victim was going to be in this book since Tim has been a supporting player in the series.  We usually only see him for a scene or two, but it’s unusual to have someone like that be murdered in a series like this.  I found it gave me more of an emotional stake in the outcome, which I really liked.  Yes, there were still the fun sub-plots to help lighten the mood overall.  All told, the tone balanced out perfectly.

There is a large cast of characters.  Honestly, if I hadn’t read most of the series last year, I’m not completely sure I would have them all straight only because there are so many of them.  We got to see some interesting growth in some of them, and another couple were shown in a different light.  Of course, the book is filled with suspects in the latest case, and all of them are interesting as well.

As can often be in the case, the characters throwing out theories can overwhelm the clues and red herrings.  Yes, we talk to the suspects, but then the wild speculation starts.  However, that’s a minor complaint.  Overall, the plot progresses well to its logical and suspenseful climax.

And there are the recipes.  We get a half dozen new recipes that feature cheese – everything from Cheese Pops to Goat Cheese Cookies.  That’s a good thing because reading the book makes your mouth water for cheese.  I’m even thinking about visiting my local cheese shop and trying a few new varieties.  (No really, I mean it this time.)  And in the non-cheese department, there’s a Triple-Chocolate Pudding that sounds amazing.  

For fans of this series, reading As Gouda as Dead is an easy decision.  Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next to Charlotte and her friends and family.

New to the series?  You'll want to read the rest of the Cheese Shop Mysteries in order.

Ornament Review: 1950 - Treasure Island Premiers - Moments That Made Disney #9 - 2015 Disney Store Ornament

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Details and base make the ornament fun

Cons: Bust of a pirate not exactly Christmassy

The Bottom Line:

A live action first

Ornament is not a bust

Thanks to the fun base

This Ornament is More of a Treasure Than Expected

While Disney had dabbled in live action film making his entire career (his early Alice shorts combined a live action girl in an animated world and much of Song of the South was live action after all), but it wasn’t until 1950’s Treasure Island that he produced his first full length live action film.  That’s a true milestone, so it was obvious that Treasure Island's premiers would be one of the Moments that Made Disney ornaments.

But I’m sure those behind the ornament series wondered just how to represent it.  What they finally hit upon might seem a little odd, but it really does work.  We get a bust of Long John Silver.  He’s wearing his black hat and red jacket.  He’s looking slightly to his right, and he’s got his green parrot perched on his right shoulder.

A bust of a pirate as an ornament?  I’m not sure I’d normally pick it up, and this wasn’t one of the series I was really looking forward to purchasing, but I also can’t picture what else they’d do.  A ship would be too boring.  It was going to have to be a figure of some kind, and I’m picturing an ornament that would be slightly small if they went with a full person.  As a bust, this ornament seems about right.

As to character, could they have picked a better one to represent the film?  Everyone knows Long John Silver, and his behavior has influences our stereotype of pirates for decades.  Including the parrot and the sneer on his face are fun touches.  On the other hand, the size of the bust makes it a little large for a Christmas tree.  It’s not like some of the other pop culture ornaments you can hide in your tree.  This one jumps out and demands your attention to something non-Christmassy.

But it’s the base that really makes this ornament work for me.  The bust is on a circular base that has Treasure Island written on it.  And that base?  A tan sand color.  In the base, there are little bits of sparkles and glitter as well as gems and gold pieces to catch the light.  That detail makes the ornament so much better than it would have been otherwise.

That base is also flat, so you can set the ornament out for Talk Like a Pirate Day or any other time you want.  There is a red ribbon slipped through the loop on Long John’s head, and if you use it, you’ll find the ornament hangs straight.

No, this isn’t the best ornament in the series, but the little details make it so much better than it could have been.  This is the way to mark the milestone that is Treasure Island's premiers.

Be sure to check out the rest of the Moments that Made Disney series.

Original Price: $19.95