So what have you been reading?

A tidy mystery that is solved in the end and now to wait if there will be more mysteries for Dorthy, ship’s detective to solve.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

The day Celia came into her magical powers she cursed her oldest brother to live without love. Her father now ignores her and her middle brother causing the tow siblings to forge a relationship that was previously prevented to happen due to middle brother’s mother being of low status.  When the king decides that Celia must go to court to marry the prince she finds out that not is all as it seems with the reasons of the marriage and now she is nothing more that someone to be ignored by her new husband as she finds out the true meaning behind the war that has gone on between her people and the elves.  A good novella that reminds the reader of the power of words.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

Nancy has returned from the Halls of the Dead looking for help from her former classmates. Her friends spring to action and return with her to fight the ghosts of the unquiet dead and help save the other living statues.  You find out more about this realm and there are more surprises instore for the group as they try to figure out what caused the spirts to come out and attack everyone.  A great story in this universe and there are new students so people will be asking for more backstories.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

The third book has Alex going to America with their valet but not their horse in order to help Dr Denton. Denton’s cousin has gone missing at an abandoned coal mine in West Viginia.  Of course, things are not simple and Alex learns more about mines then they ever wanted to know. Almost as eerie as the first book and leaving you with the feeling that we all need a friend like Alex in our lives even if we hope to never truly need someone of Alex’s mettle to help with those kinds of things

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

Chih and their hoopoe companion Almost Brilliant are traveling to the city of Baolin to collect stories about the famine for their monastery. After eating a bowl of a pork dish the city is famous for, Chih is called to visit the local magistrate and is put under guard while there.  Chih still does their work collecting stories from people in the home even as they can see there is a secret hiding in the house that is llinked to the famine.  The 18 year old mystery is solved by the end and the story gives insight to just what people will do when there is nothing to eat and they are being hunted by a famine demon.  As with most of these stories they can be read in almost any order and no real need of backstory to enjoy it.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

Set in the Kitty Norvell universe but can be read as a stand alone story. Three average guys have been living together as vampire roommates since they were turned in the same week 15 years prior.  Sam plays and reviews video games and doesn’t go out much except to the club to help his roomie meet women for meals.  Rick, the Master of Denver has pretty much left the three of them on their own since they were turned. When a reporter approaches them for a story but is really using it as a way to get info on Rick, Sam and his buddies now have to deal with older vamps coming after them and hope that Rick can get to them in time.

A group of bots that had been working in a restaurant decide to reopen it so they can pay their bills. Robots have a limited number of rights in California after the war and this group of friends decide to take matters in their own hands and make Biang Biang noodles to pay the bills. They are selling well but dister strikes in the form of review bombing them based on being a robot kitchen. By the end of the book they find out who is doing this and take the bad press and make it work for them.  This is a SF cozy even if it is set in a future San Franscisco trying to rebuild from a war.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

Yea for more mysteries with Sub-Inspector Ferron.  This time the victim knew she would die but now she is missing and the only clue in her apartment is a herd of tiny unicorns. This story gets into the details of social media in the future.  The killer is clever, but Ferron wins in the end.  

A talented AI that is an investigative reporter wakes up and finds they are missing over a week of memories and have no idea what they were working on.  A bit of sleuthing on their part has them back on the path of what xir were doing on the moon.  I liked the idea that Scorn has both parents in xir life and an older AI sibling.  The setting and mystery was good and I would like to see more in this setting.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

The third mystery has Pleiti going to help a former classmate now at a rival university. She goes to recruit Mossa’s help against the plagiarism charges on her friend’s cousin’s academic work.  Mossa is depressed and sends Pleiti away offering no support and just wants to be left alone to wallow in her melancholy. Pleiti arrives at the university and uses the mantra “What would Mossa do” to guide her to help Villette find the person slandering her and stop her from receiving a donship from Stortellen University. It was fun to see the role of primary investigator on Pleiti’s shoulders. 

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss