What I'm Reading: Into the Dark (Jordan L Hawk)

There are several authors I follow who have (in recent years) been releasing books less frequently than before. This is a frustration that I (sadly) know about from both sides. In the case of Jordan Hawk, it's compounded by the fact that she has several series in the works, so that the wait between books in any given series can be really long. 

I'll be honest. I love her shapeshifters the best. But her OutFoxing the Paranormal series is a pretty close second. It's so delightfully contemporary. It's all ghosts and ghostbusters and psychics and gadgets...like a grown-up version of Scooby Doo. 

This is the third book in the series, and I would definitely suggest starting at the beginning. It's not totally necessary, but you'll miss a lot of character development otherwise.

I also love the covers. 

Into the Dark

Jordan L Hawk

 https://jordanlhawk.com/products/into-the-dark-outfoxing-the-paranormal-3-ebook

OutFoxing the Paranormal’s benefactor, Ms. Montague, has a new assignment for the team: to investigate the haunted asylum Oscar’s grandmother died in. But upon arriving at the site, they find a rival duo of ghost hunters already there.

Between unexpected competitors and the murderous ghost of a former nurse, the pressure is on for Oscar to live up to his family’s heritage and lay the asylum’s ghosts to rest. Can he prove himself by putting an end to the nurse’s reign of terror, or will the asylum claim yet another victim?

Mug Shot: Choose Joy Mug

 

Not much to say about this mug. It's got a nice message and a lot of summery flowers. Love the Forget Me Nots. I guess it reminds me of childhood summers that I spent on a farm in Vermont.  

Anyway, there are a lot of things that can spark joy. And, for the record, decluttering is NOT one for me. But art, writing, yoga, cooking, music, pets, friends, etc

But, while we're on the topic. There's a "Choose Joy" coloring book that's on my TBB pile. If you're interested, check it out. 

https://www.amazon.com/Choose-Joy-Coloring-Gratitude-Wonder/dp/0593232208/ref=sr_1_19

I've also created a "choose joy" playlist on Spotify. You can find that here:

What I'm Reading Wednesday: Good Deeds (Kathryn Moon)

Sooo...I'm not usually a fan of reverse harem romance but I was turned on to Kathryn Moon by a friend who RAVED about her books. Good Deeds is an extremely cute book. I've found that, for me, a sci-fi or alternate universe setting makes all the difference when it comes to RH. I'm actually able to suspend my disbelief.  

I'm not saying it'll ever be a favorite sub-genre...or is it a trope?...whichever. When you have four, or five, or six, heroes to one heroine, the story-to-sex ratio will always be skewed the wrong way for my tastes (and yes, I know: YMMV). Still, this was sweet and funny and a good read. 

I've read four of Moon's books now and my only complaint is that I find it hard to keep track of all the names and personalities (and what scent goes with which alpha) especially when half the characters are bikers with TWO names apiece. 

Good Deeds
Kathryn Moon

 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MCDLJF1

Nötchka Uumian, solo-scavenger and pilot, only came to Bandalier for business. But when her first ever heat cycle hits, she has two choices: get off the planet or find somewhere safe to ride out the heatburns. Determined to never end up mated and trapped in a kitchen, she heads into the Droid district. You can’t mate if the other person isn’t an organic right?

Low on funds and preparing for weeks of sexual stupor, Nötchka finds herself in the Nuts in Bolts, a nearly deserted Cozy House with a handful of older models, two of which aren’t even servicing. But the owner, Proto model Avan-8, is willing to trade sex for repairs and Nötchka is desperate. Everything will stay simple with droids… or it would if she didn’t end up liking them all so much.

If she can just make it through her heat without too many feelings, avoid the pack of Dendärys males that seem determined to catch her, and figure out why women are going missing, it will all work out.

It’s definitely not vekking working out.

Good Deeds is a full length, insta-burn, standalone, whychoose romance novel, starring a fiesty heroine and five fritzing hot android heroes.

Mug Shot: Fiesta Mug

Here's another find from the antique store I mentioned last week. I mean, technically it's a cup, but who really cares, right? It's a very summery coral color and I'm a sucker for vintage Fiesta Ware. 

My mother and grandmother shared my love of dishes and I always associate Fiesta Ware with my grandmother who had quite a few pieces in a variety of shades--notably, yellow, blue, gray and coral. These were everyday dishes and none of them survived my siblings and my childhood. I've been picking up pieces here and there for the past ten years or so.  
 

What I'm Reading Wednesday: Copper Script (KJ Charles)

So, there are a lot of reasons why I like this book. One of the two main characters is left-handed...or WAS left-handed--to be exact. I'm left-handed as well, and one rarely stumbles across a left-handed character, so that was interesting and refreshing. The other main character is a cop--an honest cop who is conflicted about his job. I've written SO MANY cop characters and they've occasionally struggled with similar issues, so it was nice to see how someone else handles the subject. Also, it's M/M which I generally enjoy. AND it's a murder mystery/romance set in post-WWI, which Charles does very well and which gives serious Agatha Christie vibes. Having read ALL of Christie's work back in my teens and twenties, it feels a little like coming home. 

So, all in all, a very good read.

Copper Script 
KJ Charles

https://kjcharleswriter.com/

Detective Sergeant Aaron Fowler of the Metropolitan Police doesn’t count himself a gullible man. When he encounters a graphologist who deduces people’s lives and personalities from their handwriting with impossible accuracy, he needs to find out how the trick is done. Even if that involves spending more time with the intriguing, flirtatious Joel Wildsmith than feels quite safe.

Joel’s not an admirer of the police, but DS Fowler has the most irresistible handwriting he’s ever seen. If the policeman’s tests let him spend time unnerving the handsome copper, why not play along?

But when Joel looks at a powerful man's handwriting and sees a murderer, the policeman and the graphologist are plunged into deadly danger. Their enemy will protect himself at any cost--unless the sparring pair can come together to prove his guilt and save each other.

Mug Shot: Antique Hand-Thrown Mugs

I picked these mugs up a couple of weeks ago in an antique store in New Braunfels. It might just be the best antique store I've ever visited! It was huge! I didn't even make it through half the store.

These sweet mugs appear to be hand-thrown (they're signed on the bottom by "Owen") so they're not quite identical and they were kind of a steal. I love the matte glaze and the dark sage and rust tones. I think these mugs go very well with one of my dish sets--they're butter yellow with green trim and have roosters painted on them.  They're also perfect for an afternoon cup of tea, or an evening outside after dark (once it's cooler and there aren't so many bugs). 
 

What I'm Reading Wednesday Hexes Fly (Jenny Schwartz)

I probably haven’t been paying as much attention to release dates as I should because, much to my surprise, Jenny Schwartz’ new story, Hexes Fly, recently appeared in my Kindle library. Did I say surprised? I think I mean delighted!

This is book two in her new Caldryn Parliament series. As Jenny describes it, the series “is a homage to the Golden Age mysteries of the past, but set in a futuristic society that has magic.” Which sums it up nicely, I think. 

Like her earlier series “Adventures of a Xeno-Archaeologist,” these books are set in the far future, on fictional planets that had been settled (in their distant past) by humans. Think Battlestar Galactica meets magical steampunk. Also like this series, (and her Hidden Sanctuary and Uncertain Sanctuary series) the stories are intensely political in a way that makes you (or me, at least) think deeply about philosophically about all manner of socio-political things. Which you might think would make it the LAST thing I'd want to read right now, but SURPRISE! it's not. 

It's extremely comforting, somehow, to read about a seemingly sane political system even if it involves alien species, allows for magic and exists in a fictional universe. Or maybe it's BECAUSE of that. I dunno. Could be either one. But if you're as burned out with real life issues as I am, I highly recommend it!

Actually, I recommend it even if you're not burned out. It would make a great beach read, too. Check it out!

https://authorjennyschwartz.com/

Hexes Fly (Caldryn Parliament Book 2)
Jenny Schwartz

https://www.amazon.com/Hexes-Fly-Caldryn-Parliament-Book-ebook/dp/B0DXN1LF23

The Spring Ball on the first Saturday of Caldryn Parliament’s Spring Term is a night of glamour and power. 

However, this year the witch clans are feuding, and when rival clans trade curses in the ballroom non-magical bystanders are the victims.

As people transform into animals, burst into unwilling song, or fall into magical slumber Vanda Kavanagh, the Warden of Caldryn Parliament, is suspicious.

The witches claim they never intended to hurt anyone, and Vanda believes them. So, who is using the witches as a stalkinghorse for their own agenda, and what is it that they hope to achieve? Most importantly, why can’t the witches undo their own hexes?

If the spells aren’t broken by the next full moon the curses will be permanent.