What I'm Reading: The Carrot Marmalade Murder (Meg Benjamin)

Who doesn't love a good wedding story--even if it's actually a cozy mystery? Well, maybe even ESPECIALLY if it's a cozy mystery! I've really enjoyed this series--even if I suspect that Meg and I may have very different tastes in jam. Not that Roxy's carrot marmalade recipe doesn't sound luscious (see what I did there? No? Then go and read the series, STAT!) but personally, I would have gone with grated carrots. Also ginger and raisins.  

But anyway, if you're looking for a cozy mystery series and you haven't looked into this one yet, why not celebrate National Bookshop Day with a reading binge?

The Carrot Marmalade Murder

Meg Benjamin

https://www.megbenjamin.com/the-carrot-marmalade-murder/

Roxy’s getting married, but murder may send the wedding off the rails.

Roxy and Nate are finally getting married, but murder wasn’t on the program. In the midst of her wedding prep, Roxy has to deal with Nate’s trouble-making ex who thinks she can rekindle their romance. But things get serious when the ex ends up dead in a Shavano back alley. Now Roxy needs to clear Nate’s name, sell her customers on her carrot marmalade, and find herself a wedding dress. All before it’s time to take a deep breath and confront her own wedding jitters.

Mug Shot: Beach House Mug

This is an old mug. And an old picture of it. Because, sadly, I don't think I still have this mug. I bought it because it was cute not because I agreed with the sentiment. I've lived in a lot of cool, touristy-type places--the Jersey Shore, Midtown Manhattan, Los Angeles, California wine country (twice) and the San Francisco Bay area and never noticed any uptick in my friend group. 

Which is actually kind of a shame. I think I'm a great hostess.

Stuff Your E-Book Reader! Today Only!

So, today is another Stuff Your E-Reader Day! For one day only (maybe two--it depends on the venders) you can download over 1200 romance ebooks for FREE!

https://www.romancebookworms.com

My contribution this time around is Giada Mazzi is Living her Best Life--a book I absolutely love! Giada is one of my all time favorite characters. 

Giada Mazzi is Living her Best Life

Games We Play series 3/Whole Latte Love

life is more than just the lies we try and tell ourselves about what we’ve done and who we are.

I guess the truth is that I never stopped loving Ben. And I never stopped imagining how different my life might have been if he were only the person I needed him to be, instead of the person that he is. Which is silly, right? I mean, truly; it’s laughable. Because if he were someone else, he wouldn’t be him.  And the world is already full of people like that. What good is one more gonna do me?

Besides, if I’m honest, Ben wasn’t ever the problem. That was me. I was never the person he believed me to be. Oh, I thought I was, in the beginning. I tried hard to be, and that worked for a while. Sort of. But eventually I reached the point where I had to make a choice between living life for myself, or for everyone else.

And when it came right down to that…how could I not choose me?

Previously released in the Love and Espresso anthology. 

Tuesday Teaser: Touch of a Vanished Hand (free-this week only!)

Does it count as a teaser when you're giving away the whole entire book? Not to mention when that book is SO LONG that your nickname for it while writing it was "the beast"? Well, I feel like Sinead would sign off on that idea, and since it's HER book, I guess I have no choice but to go along with it. FREE until Sunday the eighth.  You snooze, you lose. 

https://dl.bookfunnel.com/xofy3ssvv7

Touch Of A Vanished Hand

Oberon Book 5.0

Sinead Quinn has always been something of a drifter.   But now, with her ex-husband trying to blackmail her, and her ex-boyfriend's widow trying to put her in jail, she has no choice but to go to ground.  What better place to hide than with your family?   After all, what are sisters for?  Especially when you're a twin.

But the first rule of hiding out, is to keep a low profile.  And that does not mean kissing your sister's boyfriend (even if he can't tell the two of you apart); rescuing a troubled teen; or taking a highly visible job as hostess of Oberon's most celebrated new inn.

Adam Sasso has always dreamed big.  But big dreams beget big complications.  First, his goal to turn the vineyard he inherited from his grandfather into a world-class winery is threatened by a mysterious saboteur.  Next, his plan to run the finest bed & breakfast Oberon has ever seen, is broadsided by a hostess who wants to run him.  Finally, it seems his fondest wish, of finding love-everlasting with the soul mate of his dreams, is about to go up in smoke when he can't convince her that they're destined to be together.

This summer, it's going to take all the wizardry in Oberon to craft a happy ending for the drifter and the dreamer.

Mug Shot: Hummingbird Mug

Did I need another mug when I saw this little guy in a grocery store in Florida? Hell to the absolute no. But it was so pretty and so cheery that I couldn't resist. It's sitting on my desk right now, brightening up this muggy and overcast day, reminding me to "Be Happy and Smile."

Which...now that I think of it, maybe I did need, after all. 

And can you REALLY ever have too many pretty flower-and-hummingbird covered mugs? I'm thinking not.  

Christmas in July Free Read #4

https://books2read.com/Winter-World-of-Love

Winter World of Love

A Winter Hearts Steampunk Novella

December 24, 1871

Just one short year ago, Ophelia Leonides returned to New Texacali hoping to reconcile with her husband. And, for a while, it seemed that most, if not all, her dreams were coming true. But as the holiday season approaches, Ophelia can’t help but notice that Dario has begun to brood. He says it has nothing to do with her, but trust, once lost, is hard to regain.
 
Dario is frustrated by his inability to give Ophelia the life he knows she deserves. Now, as old ghosts from his past draw close, and the bright future he’s promised his wife grows increasingly dim, he’s on the brink of making a last, desperate gamble--one that might destroy everything they've been hoping to achieve.

https://books.bookfunnel.com/PGForte-Christmas-in-July

Mug Shot: Sunliner Diner Mug

We were in Orange Beach, Alabama recently, and we stopped in at the Sunliner Diner for breakfast. I've been to a few retro diners in recent years--and even more actual diners back in my Jersey days--but this place really stands out. The food is amazing. The atmosphere--a little loud but not painfully so--is fun. Everything shines like a scene from the movie Pleasantville. The cast...uh, I mean waitstaff, obvs, are all dressed in vintage clothes. You can even eat in a booth that's made out of a classic convertible car. It was adorbs. 

Pictured above is our table with the same Boomerang pattern Formica that I remember from my childhood. The mug is a classic. I had to buy one just because.