Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange

 

Well, I don't even know what to say about this book. I enjoy a good vampire book. I enjoy a good spin-off or re-write of my favorite book by Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice. I have to say I have mixed feelings about this one. At times it was entertaining, but at first I was trying to decide if I was even going to continue with it. But the further I went I became invested in the story. The ending though was kind of silly(I mean vampire's so why wouldn't it be silly, right?). By the title I thought that we would see more of Mr. Darcy in the vampire mode, but even though we knew he was a vampire, it was not revealed to Lizzy until almost the ending of the story. So basically it was Lizzy pining away for intimacy with Darcy and Darcy not complying. I enjoyed the references to the original work by Jane Austen. There were many lines from P&P that Darcy and Lizzy reminisced about on their honeymoon tour. So while it could have been a better story, I'm not mad that I finished it! 

The Snows of Weston Moor by Benedict Brown

 

Christopher and his family are off on a trip for Christmas. Unfortunately Christopher and Lord Edgington never arrive at their destination. Having gone off the road in a snow storm they make their way to a mansion filled with actors celebrating the holidays. Christopher and Lord Edgington hide who they really are. Of course there is a murder and Christopher and his grandfather are on the trail of the killer!

Christopher seems to be a bit more with it in this installment. He has more intelligent questions to ask and makes less accusations and bumbles. He's coming along nicely in his grandfathers footsteps. While Christopher was able to figure out who-done-it I was not able to! It was a mystery to me until the great reveal! The characters were interesting and irritating all at once. I hopped from one to the other as the guilty party. Lord Edgington bringing his staff with him wherever he goes cracks me up! I love it! A great mystery which I was able to read while being snowed in for 5 days! 

Elisha's Bones by Don Hoesel

 

When one of the richest men in the country calls Jack Hawthorne and hires him to search out Elisha's(yes, Elisha from the Bible) bones Jack has no clue what he's getting into. Soon people are trying to kill him. Not just kill him, but also kill anyone he knows who is trying to help him. What will happen when Jack calls on the woman he once was engaged to? Will she help him or will she be the one to kill him?

Elisha's Bones was an exciting read. The setting was intriguing and the characters were engaging. The action was exciting and kept me invested in the story. I loved Esperanza's character. I enjoyed how she could hold her own through all of the chaos that Jack brought with him. An exciting adventure with old ruins, secret societies and conspiracies that will have you excited to turn the next page. I highly recommend.

The Crimes of Clearwell Castle by Benedict Brown

 

Christopher has graduated and now he and his grandfather Lord Edgington are on their way for a holiday. When they arrive at Clearwell Castle they are greeted by an angry mob commemorating a centuries old death of a young woman they say was murdered. A good thing that Chrissy and Lord Edgington are on the case. Not only must they investigate the young woman's death from hundreds of years ago, but two more recent deaths have occurred as well. Will they be able to solve all of these crimes? 

Christopher and his stomach kill me! He makes me laugh! I enjoyed how Lord Edgington is teaching Chrissy how to reason out people's motives and is helping him to not go on circumstantial evidence, but reason out how he came to a conclusion even if it was a wrong one. The Lord Edgington Investigates series is one I am enjoying reading through. This is book 7 in the series. One of the things the author stresses in his introductions is that nothing in each installment is given away from any of the other books that come before it. The main characters are carried through each book, but nothing is given away about the mysteries in other books. I like that because at one point I had to read one out of order. This was the perfect installment to the series and I highly recommend it. 

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn

 

Dr. Anna Fox has agoraphobia. She cannot leave her house. She has been stuck this way for 10 months due to PTSD. Anna is a child psychologist, but so far has been unable to help herself. Anna's world consists of watching her neighbors lives play out through her windows. Mixing pills and alcohol Anna becomes even more muddled. When she sees a murder across the way nobody believes her. How can Anna prove that she is not just a drunk who is hallucinating?

The Woman in the Window kind of plodded along. Was fairly predictable, but there were some twists that would give the reader a surprise. I got frustrated with Anna because of her dependence on alcohol, but then I've never been in her position so who's to say I wouldn't fall prey to the same thing? As a mystery, it took a long time to get to that. I felt like the majority of the story was backstory leading up to the actual mystery. The ending was super-exciting and redeemed the book for me. 

This book is part of my challenge to read through all of the mysteries listed in a puzzle that I did a few years ago:

I'm slowly working through them! They are all in my TBR jar:

Welcome to 2026 readers! I hope that you have a fantastic year and find all kinds of reading treasures!

The Tangled Treasure Trail by Benedict Brown

 

Lord Edgington and his grandson Christopher go to London to see what the Bright Young People of London are up to. Treasure hunts are the entertainment of the day and one person has already been found dead. When a recent acquaintance ends up dead soon after, Chrissy and his grandfather can't help wonder if the two deaths are related. With Christopher and his grandfather on the case it is only a matter of time before they figure out who the killer is. 

I am loving the Lord Edgington Investigates series! I love that I usually can't figure out the "who-done-it" until it is pointed out to me. Christopher cracks me up! He is a mixture of insecurities and "I-know-I'm-right" teenager-ness. He makes me laugh with his flair for the dramatic. Not just in his always empty stomach, but also in his wrapping up of the case speeches. His insights and his empathy for the people that he comes in contact with show that he is growing as the series continues. I enjoy that Lord Edgington insists that Christopher reasons things out and prove his theories. I also enjoy that each book can stand alone without revealing anything from past or future books. This is book 5 in the series. I read books 1-4 and then had to skip to book 6 and now back to book 5 and nothing was given away, no missing pieces. A great mystery series that keeps you guessing until the end.

That is a wrap for my reading in 2025! My goal was to read 65 books but I only managed 39. A few books I read two or three times over for proofreading purposes. Happy New Year to you all and may your 2026 be filled with many blessings! 

Forever by Debbie Viguie

 

Y'all! It is hard to believe that this is the last book in this series! We are finally here to see what we have all been waiting years for! Cindy and Jeremiah are finally going to tie the knot...HOPEFULLY! IF they don't get killed before that happens! 

The whole series has stressed me out every time I pick one up to read! But this final book had me biting nails, putting the book down to relieve the stress, laughing, crying, thinking NOOOOOOOOOO several times! Oh so many feels while reading! We finally get to see what Matthews's end-game is and y'all, it is not nice! Throughout the entire book we are kept on the edge of our seats wondering if Jeremiah and Cindy are going to make it to the wedding, will they make it through the wedding, will they make it out with their lives? Author Debbie Viguie has managed to keep this reader invested in Cindy and Jeremiah's lives for 15 years, and each book has managed to keep me on the edge of my seat. I loved Forever, there were twists and turns and tears and smiles and shock. I was emotionally spent by the time I read the last page. The Psalm 23 Mysteries will be one of my favorite series FOREVER!