Shady Hollow by Juneau Black

*Possible spoilers, read with care.

5/5 ⭐

Welcome to Shady Hollow. This village lives in harmony with one another until tragedy strikes with the sudden death of the cantankerous old toad that lived in the pond.

I love a good cozy mystery. Something lighthearted and fun but still thrilling and thought provoking. Shady Hollow hit all the marks making this a series you won't want to miss.

I had seen this one on so many people's TBR lists that I knew I needed to read it as well. And what better time than during Autumn. It just felt right.

This mystery follows Vera Vixen, the local reporter who just so happens to be a fox. Having come from a bigger town, she seems much more in the know of what to do in the case of a murder than the local constabulary. Which is made up of two bears named Meade and Orville. They do get their chance to make up for what they lack.

Let me just put it here, the names of these characters is incredible and l loved the inclusion of a 'Cast of Characters' page as well as a map page! Juneau Black out did themselves!

Now for the murder. I was left in the dark until the big reveal. It was not one that I saw coming. The author did a fantastic job as providing us with all the clues but not giving anything away. You got to solve the mystery with Vera as she worked through alibis and digging up facts all the while dodging threats and angry beavers.

And as for the setting, the prose and imagery were stunning and put you right there with the characters as they travelled from Joes to the Mill and back to the newspaper office. And of course Nevermore, the local bookstore ran by Lenore, a raven.

All in all this is a series you should definitely pick up if you like cozy mysteries, woodland creatures and a whimsical story.

Chelsea

Comments

Certain Dark Things - Silvia Moreno-Garcia

5/5 ⭐ A fresh take on the old classic, Silvia Moreno-Garcia manages to reimagine vampire lore into something completely unique. Take whatever previous notions you have of vampire stories and toss them out the window. She managed to introduce such an interesting take on vampires, ones that take on aspects from their cultures like Alt with ties to Aztec mythology and so on. All of these subspecies of vampire builds on the richness of the world Moreno-Garcia created. Alt flees to Mexico City, a closed nation free from any vampire after her family is killed by a rival gang of Necro vampires(a deadly European subspecies of vampires). With only Cualli, her loyal and deadly dog, and a garbage boy named Domingo helping her, she has to flee both the Necros and human gangs who wish her dead. Vampire gangs are definitely a new one for me. The characters come to life on the page within the excellent worldbuilding. You just get lost in the story, captivated until the very end. The diversity of t

WWW Wednesday 6/22/22

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This is a meme hosted by Sam of Taking on a World of Words . A fun midweek check-in where you answer three questions: What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you'll read next? Currently I am reading, Ace by Angela Chen. A book that I have had for about a year and am rereading it and finishing it. I am annotating it and having a lot of fun so far. Also I picked up To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini at the library earlier, but haven't started it just yet. I missed last weeks WWW Wednesday post so I am combining last weeks and this weeks. It been a bit of a slow time for me. I have been reading more fic and such online than traditionally printed material. Also I have been struggling to find something that actually interests me. I have been getting bored rather quickly. Recently, I finished Gamer + Cat Vol. 1. It's a super cute slice of life and one I will definitely be looking o

Over my Dead Body by Sweeney Boo

5/5 ⭐ Found family, a magical boarding school, and a missing friend. A perfect combination in this spooky YA graphic novel. Plus the incredible artwork is not to be missed. This is one that caught my eye as I kept passing in the teen department at one of the libraries I work at. I then read the little summary and was hooked. This story follows Abby as she learns one morning that the closest person she has to family has disappeared and feels that the school isn't doing enough in the search for her. And so takes it upon herself to discover what secrets this school has been hiding for years. Accompanied by friends and a mysterious story from the schools past, they learn that the off-limits woods hold more than they expect when a similar story of a missing students comes up. This was such an atmospheric and gorgeous graphic novel. And perfect for those looking for a more gothic meets dark academia story for the season. Plus the characters were well rounded and covered the spect

In The Solarium

Search This Blog