Recent Reads: The Eye of Zoltar by Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragonslayer 3)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Eyes of Zoltar by Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragonslayer 3) has the Mighty Shandar, the most powerful wizard ever known, is returning!  He didn’t solve the dragon problem from the first book, and so really owes a refund on his fee, but he doesn’t want to do that!  He wants to get rid of the dragons, unless Jennifer and the wizards can give him the Eye of Zoltar!

There’s a journey through the Cambrian Empire, for which there is a 50% fatality index, and other mischief and odd happenings!  And a princess who needs to be brought down to Earth!

I found this book to be a great addition to the series!  There were surprises, 50% death guaranteed, magic and humour!

The Eyes of Zoltar was published on 10th April 2014, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Jasper Fforde on Twitter and his website.

You can read my reviews of the books in this series:

The Last Dragonslayer – book 1 

The Song of the Quarkbeast – book 2

The Eye of Zoltar – book 3

The Great Troll War – book 4

Recent Reads: Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist by M.C. Beaton (Agatha Raisin 6)

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist by M.C. Beaton has James Lacey in Cyprus, after the disastrous wedding day with Agatha.  Agatha is at home in Carsley, and is planning to chase after James.  Afterall, he’s on their honeymoon without her! 

In Cyprus, she ends up doing some of the tourist things with a couple of groups, who seem to be the opposite of each other.  When one of the group is killed, Agatha decides that she is going to be the one to figure it out.  She needs something to take her mind off James!

This has twists and turns that surprised me, and having a different setting was interesting.  This was a good book, with fun occurrences, and  a lot of Agatha blundering aro

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist was published in October 1997 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

My review of the previous book in the Agatha Raisin series are below:

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death (book 1)

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet (book 2)

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener (book 3)

Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (book 4)

Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage (book 5)

Recent Reads: Life Unplugged; A Digital Detox Workbook by Meleah Bowles and Elise Williams Rikard

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Life Unplugged; A Digital Detox Workbook by Meleah Bowles and Elise Williams Rikard is about how to spend less time staring at a screen and the benefits that it brings.  It also tells you about the downsides of looking at a screen.

It gives suggestions for ways you can do this, such as making notes in a notebook rather than on a laptop or tablet.  It also gives you suggestions and challenges, such as making the effort to write to a friend rather than sending them a message.

I thought this was a good book if you’re looking for suggestions on how to look at a screen less.  The challenges were a fun way to do this, so you could see the difference it made to you.

Life Unplugged; A Digital Detox Workbook was published on 24th December 2019, and is available on Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Meleah Bowles on Twitter.

You can follow Elise Williams Rikard on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Recent Reads: 14th Deadly Sin by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Womens Murder Club 14)

Posted on by Pam

My review: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

14th Deadly Sin by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Women’s Murder Club 14) and Lindsay, Claire, Cindy and Yuki are all back with a bang!  It’s Claire’s birthday!  Yuki is thinking about changing her job, Cindy has written a book about the serial killers she helped to bring down, and Lindsay is still catching bad guys!

I found it interesting to see Yuki’s thoughts on her job, and seeing Cindy becoming an author.  I didn’t think either of these were explored very much, but then these books are light reading.

It was fast paced and had surprises, and so was exactly what I was expecting!  I think there’s always room for a book series that you know what you’re getting.

14th Deadly Sin was published on 26th February 2015, and it’s available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow James Patterson on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and his website.

I’m afraid I couldn’t find any links for Maxine Paetro for you to follow.

Women’s Murder Club books:

1st to Die   – book 1 

2nd Chance – book 2

3rd Degree – book 3

4th of July – book 4

The 5th Horseman – book 5

The 6th Target – book 6

7th Heaven – book 7

The 8th Confession – book 8;

The 9th Judgement – book 9

10th Anniversary – book 10

11th Hour – book 11

12th of Never – book 12

Unlucky 13 – book 13

Recent Reads: The Haunted Homecoming by Angie Fox (Southern Spirits 10)

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

The Haunted Homecoming by Angie Fox is set at homecoming, and Verity’s mother has also decided to come home!

There’s a body discovered at the homecoming festivities, and so Verity investigates!  Frankie is also trying to hide as he says El Gato is out to get him!

This is the school that Verity and her mother both went to, so there are some shared memories, and of course, ghosts that Verity recognises from when she went there.  

It’s a fun read, with people pretending to be other people, ghosts, and a heap of family drama.

The Haunted Homecoming was published on 17th August 2021 and is available on Amazon.

Angie Fox has a Facebook page and a reader group.

I’ve previously read and reviewed the below books in the series:

Southern Spirits, A Ghostly Gift and The Skeleton in the Closet – book 1, 1.5 and 2

Pecan Pies and Dead Guys – book 7 

The Mint Julep Murders – book 8

The Ghost of Christmas Past – book 8.5

Southern Bred and Dead – book 9

I was given this book in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Moose Island Books and Author Collective 20  (the publishers) for this book.

Recent Reads: The Song of the Quarkbeast by Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragonslayer 2)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Song of the Quarkbeast by Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragonslayer 2) has Jennifer and the wizards of Kazam returning!  With Big Magic being unleashed in the last book, there’s more magic around, and King Snodd IV wants to be the one in control of it!

I thought the Quarkbeast was a great creature, and enjoyed the story in this book!  If you like your fantasy to be funny, then these are the books for you!

The Song of the Quarkbeast was published on 3rd September 2013, and is available from Amazon and Waterstones.

You can follow Jasper Fforde on Twitter and his website.

You can read my reviews of the books in this series:

The Last Dragonslayer – book 1 

The Song of the Quarkbeast – book 2

The Eye of Zoltar – book 3

The Great Troll War – book 4

Recent Reads: Unlucky 13 by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Women’s Murder Club 13)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Unlucky 13 by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Women’s Murder Club 13) has Yuki and Brady getting married!  And they’re off on honeymoon, which is a cruise!  Lindsay is back at work and Joe is at home with baby Julie.  But of course, there’s still murder and mayhem happening in beautiful San Francisco as 2 people are found on Golden Gate Bridge, with their stomachs blown out! 

This is another thriller from James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, and is very enjoyable. 

Unlucky 13 was published on 5th May 2014 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow James Patterson on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and his website.

I’m afraid I couldn’t find any links for Maxine Paetro for you to follow.

Women’s Murder Club books:

1st to Die   – book 1 

2nd Chance – book 2

3rd Degree – book 3

4th of July – book 4

The 5th Horseman – book 5

The 6th Target – book 6

7th Heaven – book 7

The 8th Confession – book 8;

The 9th Judgement – book 9

10th Anniversary – book 10

11th Hour – book 11

12th of Never – book 12

Recent Reads: Dragon Consultant by Mell Eight

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Dragon Consultant by Mell Eight is a fantasy novel, where Dane is a supernatural consultant, who is called in by the FAA for dragons in the airspace!  He turns up and finds dragon kits (young dragons) around a sick adult dragon, called Mercury.  

Dane takes Mercury and the kits home after he hears the story of why they’re together, and promises to look into it.

This is a quick read, but enjoyable, with fun characters, government coverups, and a love story.

Dragon Consultant was published on 20th April 2020 and is available from Amazon and Bookshop.org (books 1-3 of the series).

 You can follow Mell Eight on Facebook, Twitter and her website.

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to NineStar Press. 

Recent Reads: The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragonslayer 1)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragonslayer 1) is set in a world where magic and dragons are real, but magic is fading away.  Jennifer Strange is a foundling, in charge of Kazam, an employment agency for wizards.

But something big is coming, and there are visions happening about the death of the last dragon.

This is a funny books, with an ensemble cast, who are a mix of wizards and others.  I really enjoyed the story, which has twists and surprises.

The Last Dragonslayer was published on 2nd October 2012, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Jasper Fforde on Twitter and his website.

You can read my reviews of the books in this series:

The Last Dragonslayer – book 1 

The Song of the Quarkbeast – book 2

The Eye of Zoltar – book 3

The Great Troll War – book 4

Recent Reads: The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman (The Invisible Library 2)

Posted on by Pam

My review:?????

The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman (The Invisible Library 2) has Irene and Kai back again, along with Vale, the great detective of the world they have made their home.  We discovered that Kai is actually a dragon prince in the last book, and dragons love order.  They influence the worlds they are on to be order.  There is also the fae, who love chaos, and so they influence the worlds they are on in this way.  The two sides do not get on.

When Kai is kidnapped, this could cause a war!  Irene has to rescue Kai, and survive the chaos of the world that he’s been taken to.  She’s going to need all of her spy skills!

This is a series of books that I have loved reading, with each one adding more to the worlds!  We get to see more about the fae and the dragons in this book, and it’s felt very rich in characters and settings!

The Masked City was published on 3rd December 2015 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Genevieve Cogman on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

My reviews for the other books in the series are below:

The Invisible Library (book 1)