Book Review Club: Steampunk and Mysteries

Barrie Summy's Book Review Club is coming to you a week late this month, thanks to New Year's Day falling on a Wednesday. Hope you had a good holiday and are now ready for the serious work of book reviewing. (Who am I kidding, this is fun!)

I read a lot this last month, so I opted for quantity over depth of review. Here are three books that I enjoyed. 

A Lady of Resources
by Shelley Adina

The fifth in the Magnificent Devices series focuses on Lizzie de Maupassant, one of the sisters formerly known as The Mopsies. Lizzie and her sister Maggie were found wandering the streets of London at the age of five and taken in by a street gang where they learned to pick pockets and engage in other acts of crime/survival. In Lady of Devices, Lady Claire Trevelyan teamed up with the gang to form a new "flock" as she put it. Claire became Lizzie and Maggie's guardian and de facto big sister.

Now 16, Lizzie has finished her studies at the Lycee des Jeune Filles in Munich. She has learned to behave like a lady, but the guttersnipe in her surfaces from time to time, as when, at a party, she picks the pocket of a gentleman on a dare, and finds more than she bargained for. In this book, Lizzie meets her real father and finds out what happened to her and Maggie eleven years ago. In the process of uncovering the truth, she must use all the resources at her disposal to survive.

In the earlier books, Lizzie and Maggie were as close as two sisters can be, all but inseparable and often seeming two parts of one whole. Now grown up, they are beginning to emerge as fully fleshed out characters. It will be fun to watch them mature. This is an adventurous, funny and delightful story. I recommend reading the entire series. The first four books are now available as an e-book bundle.

Great opening line: "Of all the infernal instruments man ever made, the corset is the worst."

Two to Mango
by Jill Marie Landis

TWO TO MANGO takes us into the world of competitive hula dancing, with hilarious and disastrous results. Em Johnson, who manages her Uncle Louis bar, the Tiki Goddess, gets drawn back into detecting after two members of the same Kauai dance troop end up dead. Both deaths appear to be from natural causes, but local detective Roland Sharpe thinks otherwise. Could they have been poisoned? He asks Em to take the bar's resident dance troop, the Hula Maidens undercover by entering the the Kukui Nut Festival's hula competition. Problem is, the Maidens came in dead last the last time they entered, so they're not eager to compete again, esp. after Lillian's recent wardrobe malfunction.

The insider look at competitive hula (no, Jill did not make that up) has the ring of authenticity. (I happen to know the author has danced the hula for many years now.) I often get a little melancholy during the holidays, so a good time to read more Tiki Goddess books to lighten the mood.

Opening line: "Thanks to you and your nipple, Lillian, we'll never dance in this town again."

Very enjoyable and funny mystery.

Three to Get Lei'd
by Jill Marie Landis


In this episode, the Tiki Goddess has been taken over by a camera crew from the reality TV show, Trouble in Paradise. Thanks to the popularity of the pilot, the Hula Maidens are more rambunctious than ever, obsessed with accumulating fans and Facebook likes. They are practicing less and their dancing is worse than ever. Em is at her wit's end, though the money from the show has come in handy. Then one of the cameramen is murdered in the kitchen, and everything changes.

This installment opens up with big, big laughs, then takes a turn to the more serious in the middle, but ends with more hilarity. I thought the mystery was somewhat transparent, but still enjoyed the book because of the characters. If you're looking for an amusing cozy mystery series with a lot of local color, you can't do much better than this one.

Opening line: "Life is full of ups and downs, honey. We have to celebrate every minute before we drain our last tiki mug." - Uncle Louie

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Disclaimer: I am a personal friend of the author of Jill Marie Landis, but would not be reviewing her books if I hadn't truly enjoyed them. All books were purchased from Amazon and read on my Kindle.

As always, click on the graphic below to read more reviews from Barrie Summy's Book Review Club. Happy reading!

Linda McLaughlin

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@Barrie Summy

December Book Review Club

Mai Tai One On

by Jill Marie Landis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The first in the Tiki Goddess mystery series is set (mostly) in a seedy but vintage seaside bar where the protagonist, Emily, works for her Uncle Louie. Rumors reached her in So. Calif. that her uncle was becoming a little dotty, so Em pulled up stakes and moved to Kauai to manage the bar and save her uncle's business. One of her cost-cutting measures was to hire a local dance troupe, the Hula Maidens, in place of professional entertainment. The Maidens, a group of eccentric women of varying ages and dancing abilities, provide assistance, conflict and lots of comic relief.

The mystery starts when their neighbor, Harold Okamato, is found murdered in the luau pit. The police detective sent to investigate is Roland Sharpe, a handsome local who sometimes moonlights as a Samoan fire dancer. Em is attracted to him, but annoyed when he homes in on the Tiki Goddess's bartender Sophie as primary suspect. Convinced Sophie is innocent, Em and the Hula Maidens naturally set out to find the real culprit.

Mai Tai One On is an enjoyable and amusing cozy mystery filled with lots of local color and eccentric characters. I'm looking forward to reading the next one, Two To Mango.

Disclaimer: Jill is a long-time personal friend, but that in no way influenced my review. If I hadn't liked it, I wouldn't have posted a review.I bought her book on sale from the Amazon Kindle store.

The Christmas Cuckoo

by Mary Jo Putney

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A charming Regency holiday story that revolves around a mistaken identity by a mistress of her craft.

Newly minted earl, Major Jack Howard has just sold out of the Army and returned to London only to find his aunt, the dowager countess, determined to control his every move. In a moment of rebelliousness, he boards a stagecoach bound for Bristol. Too much whiskey to stave off the cold leaves him in a drunken stupor at an inn in Chippenham.

Meg Lambert arrives at the inn looking for her brother's friend Captain Jack Howard, and find the major instead. Not realizing he's the wrong man, she takes him home for the holidays. Once he sobers up, Jack realizes he's been mistaken for someone else, but the Lambert home is so warm and welcoming, he puts off confessing his true identity. He knows he's a cuckoo in another bird's nest, but has no wish to leave, especially since he's falling in love with Meg.

Silent Night: A Lady Julia Christmas Novella

by Deanna Raybourn


My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Julia and Brisbane spend another Christmas at Bellmont Abbey, her family's home (originally visited in Silent in the Sanctuary. Once again, ghosts are at play, only this time less murderous. The mystery is pretty thin, but Julia's family is as wonderfully eccentric as before, making for a delightful read. A fun choice for the holidays.

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 Linda

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