#28 In the Shadow of Spindrift House by Mira Grant

A group of mystery solving teens takes on one last case before adulthood and insurance runs out. But this last case is special, it seems that the haunted house they are staying at is connected to the orphaned friend in their group. Harlowe doesn’t know anything about her mother’s family but in researching it she finds out about a house that has a complicated ownership and a mystery about who owns the correct owner should be. Near the water in Maine a house sits with three families claiming ownership of it and the large amount of acreage. A large cash prize is awarded to anyone that can stay in the house until they find the original paperwork that will decide who is the correct owner. Everyone who has tried before has died of unknown cases. But this one is personal to Harlowe and the money will allow the other three to set up their adult lives and move on from teenage mystery solving. As the story progresses it becomes less Scooby Doo and more tinged with horror. The last chapter finally speaks the one word that confirms what a well-read reader has seen coming during the story.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

#29 Noir Fatale by Larry Correia (Editor), Kacey Ezell (Editor)

I like themed anthologies and I like mysteries, so this was a natural to read. With the idea of the feme fatale in a noir setting as the basis for the stories most but not all of them hit the mark. Some of these are samples of new story universes and those I liked a lot more and hopefully will be able to read more in those settings. If detective mysteries in all sorts of settings work for you then this is fun read that takes the Noir idea and plays with it just fine and dandy.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss