Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #306: The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event that had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlighted upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with "Can't-Wait Wednesday" hosted over at Wishful Endings.

From Goodreads:

Fried Green Tomatoes and Steel Magnolias meet Dracula in this Southern-flavored supernatural thriller set in the '90s about a women's book club that must protect its suburban community from a mysterious and handsome stranger who turns out to be a blood-sucking fiend.

Patricia Campbell had always planned for a big life, but after giving up her career as a nurse to marry an ambitious doctor and become a mother, Patricia's life has never felt smaller. The days are long, her kids are ungrateful, her husband is distant, and her to-do list is never really done. The one thing she has to look forward to is her book club, a group of Charleston mothers united only by their love for true-crime and suspenseful fiction. In these meetings, they're more likely to discuss the FBI's recent siege of Waco as much as the ups and downs of marriage and motherhood.

But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting community.

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix is expected to be published April 7th, 2020 by Quirk Books.

Why am I waiting on this one? The first paragraph of the synopsis sold me. I like the way it sounds - "Fried Green Tomatoes and Steel Magnolias meet Dracula." I enjoy stories set in the South. And I like the cover they're using, even if it's not the final version. 

What book are you waiting on this week? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our TBR lists. Thanks for coming by and Happy Reading!

Review: Fatal Fiction by Kym Roberts

Charli Rae Warren is a kindergarten teacher in Colorado. She left Hazel Rock, Texas years ago as a teen. Now she has been called home to Texas to sign papers to sell The Book Barn which she is part owner in with her Daddy.

Charli hasn't been in town 5 minutes when she becomes a suspect in the murder of her realtor whose body she finds in the Book Barn. What was supposed to be a quick trip becomes extended fast. And Daddy is nowhere in sight. No one seems to know where he's gotten to or why.

With help from Scarlet who has transformed from ugly duckling to swan, her old beau from high school, and an armadillo, Charli tries to solve the mystery of whodunnit before she or her Daddy end up in jail.

This cozy mystery is a quick, fun read. It reminds me a little of a high school reunion since it refers back frequently to her time as a teen in the town. And at first, the town reacts to her as if she was that same teen. I won't say how things change for better or worse. Scarlet becomes her partner in crime so to speak as they seek the killer and try and improve the Book Barn so it will sell or turn a profit of some kind.

I enjoyed the characters of Charli and Scarlet in particular. The plot moves along well. The reader is provided with the same clues as Charli and Scarlet. There are enough twists in the plot that I didn't guess the killer ahead of time,

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. Fatal Fiction is worth a read if you enjoy cozies with a taste of the small town South and a touch of humor. This is the first in a new series called Book Barn mysteries. It was published December 6, 2016 by Lyrical Underground.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Teaser Tuesday: Fatal Fiction by Kym Roberts

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"He nodded and jotted something down on his notepad. I hoped it said find another suspect. But I knew bad karma was stuck to me like the stank of an angry skunk."
~ 10% through on my Kindle

Fatal Fiction is the first book in the new Book Barn Mystery.series. It's due out December 6, 2016 from Lyrical Underground. The main character is kindergarten teacher Charli Rae Warren in Hazel Rock, Texas. The above teaser is from her point of view. She hadn't been in town five minutes before she became a suspect in a murder.

What's your teaser this week? Share it or a link in the comments. Are you enjoying your book? Let us know! Happy Reading!

Waiting on Wednesday #143: Lowcountry Book Club by Susan M. Boyer

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlight upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating.

Expected publication: July 5th 2016
by Henery Press

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Somebody pushed Shelby Poinsett out her second-floor library window and it wasn’t her husband. At least that what Charleston’s most prestigious law firm wants Liz Talbot to prove. Liz must run the spectrum of Southern society, from the local homeless shelter where Shelby volunteered to the one-hundred-year-old book club where Charleston’s genteel ladies are dying to join, to bring a killer to justice. 

Related subjects include: women sleuths, private investigator mystery series, cozy mysteries, murder mysteries, whodunit mysteries (whodunnit), book club recommendations, Southern fiction, Southern humor, Southern living.

Why am I looking forward to this book? It's going to be a humorous, Southern, mystery. I enjoy reading that type of thing. And I have enjoyed the other books in the Liz Talbot mystery series. This is the fifth one in the series. It looks like a winner to me.

What book are you waiting on this week? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out. Thanks for coming by!

Review: Gone with a Handsomer Man by Michael Lee West

Teeny Templeton catches her fiance, Bing, butt naked playing badminton with 2 beautiful yet skanky women. Her reaction is to climb a tree and throw peaches at the lot of them. Bing presses charges against her and gets a restraining order, he says to avoid a repeat of the assault. Now someone has texted Teeny in Bing's name and summoned her to their former home with the  lure of mending their relationship. The reality is different though. Teeny finds Bing dead just before someone knocks her cold. Who texted her? And who knocked her out? And who is framing Teeny for murder?

Add onto Teeny's troubles that she needs bail, a place to live, and a job. And she needs the help of her first love who is now a lawyer. But just who all can Teeny trust as she navigates the legal system and life in Charleston, SC?

It's a pretty good book. It reads some like chick lit and some like a mystery. It has its funny points(throwing peaches) and not so funny(funerals and restraining orders). Some of the characters are more developed than others which is to be expected since not all of them have a large role to play. The tempo of the book picks up the closer you get to the end. I liked that I couldn't tell who the murderer was going to be pretty much up until the end.

I had a couple of minor complaints. It's a little slow in places, but that's to be expected, for example, as we have a flashback to when Teeny and Coop were an item 10 yrs ago. And Teeny falls into bed kinda quickly with Coop after losing her fiance. Her relationship with Bing would have had to have been already rocky before he died, I would have thought, in order for her to go to bed with Coop that quickly. Michael Lee West uses Teeny's past relationship with Coop to help explain that.

Overall I give the book 4 out of 5 stars. It's  best for people who don't mind a little chick lit with their mysteries. As a bonus there are recipes at the end of the book for some of the Teeny's creations like Lavender Short Bread. I listened to the book on CD. The narrator reads with a pleasant southern accent. This audiobook was released in 2011 from Tantor Media.

Throwback Thursday Review: Dollar Daze by Karin Gillespie

Romance and relationships are the themes for Dollar Daze by Karin Gillespie. This is the third book in the Bottom Dollar series. All of the women tied together because of the Bottom Dollar store are having issues with romance and relationships.

First off Mavis and Birdie both are trying to get former high school classmate Brewster Clark's attention. Mavis and Birdie are close friends, but will this competition destroy that relationship? Who will end up with Brewster?

Then there is Attalee the octagenarian soda jerk at the Bottom Dollar store. She has found love again. Something she didn't think possible at her age. She ends up engaged to Dooley, a man after her own wild heart.

And then there is Gracie aka Mrs. Tobias. Will her relationship with Rusty, a duct cleaner, be able to survive the difference in their class backgrounds?

Finally, there is Elizabeth who is struggling with the role of stay-at-home Mom. She wants more, but her husband isn't sure that a job outside the home is a good idea.

It's lovely to read how the women interact and what obstacles they face in their pursuit of love and relationships. And it's funny. At times it made me smile, other times laugh aloud. Attalee, in particular, was good for soliciting a laugh. This is southern chick lit at its best.

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars. It's enjoyable, humorous chick lit. I don't read much like this, but when I do I appreciate the dose of humor with the story. Dollar Daze was published May 12, 2015 by Henery Press.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Waiting on Wednesday #48 - Bet Your Bottom Dollar by Karin Gillespie

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlight upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. 

This week I am waiting on Bet Your Bottom Dollar by Karin Gillespie due out October 14, 2014 from Henery Press. One of the review quotes was from the Sweet Potato Queen herself, Jill Connor Browne making it that much more interesting to me. She said, "Use your very last bottom dollar, if you have to. Just BUY THIS BOOK. You will laugh yourself sick and love every minute of it."

From the publisher: 

Welcome to the Bottom Dollar Emporium in Cayboo Creek, South Carolina, where everything from coconut mallow cookies to Clabber Girl Baking Powder costs a dollar but the coffee and gossip are free. For the Bottom Dollar gals, work time is sisterhood time.

When news gets out that a corporate dollar store is coming to town, the women are thrown into a tizzy, hoping to save their beloved store as well their friendships. Meanwhile the manager is canoodling with the town’s wealthiest bachelor and their romance unearths some startling family secrets.

The first in a series, Bet Your Bottom Dollar serves up a heaping portion of small town Southern life and introduces readers to a cast of eccentric characters. Pull up a wicker chair, set out a tall glass of Cheer Wine, and immerse yourself in the adventures of a group of women who the Atlanta Journal-Constitution calls, “…the kind of steel magnolias who would make Scarlett O’Hara envious.”
The product picture comes from the publisher's website.

$15.95 (msrp) Trade Paperback — ISBN-13: 9781940976730

$2.99 (msrp) ebook — ISBN-13: 9781940976747

So, What book are you waiting on this week?

Review: Sweet as Cane, Salty as Tears by Ken Wheaton

"I'm so glad you came," Sonny says after his crying tapers off to a manageable whimper. "Karen-Anne always said one of  'em would have to die to get you back here for something other than Christmas."

Released July 1, 2014
by Open Road Media. 

Katie-Lee Fontenot aka Katherine to her New York friends and co-workers is surfing the web and checking Facebook same as the others in a meeting while some of the managers are discussing something among themselves when the electronic discussion among her co-workers turns to a zoo worker who was trampled by a black rhino down in Louisiana. At first Katie-Lee is going along with the jokes, until she reads the name of the woman hurt, Karen-Anne Castille - her baby sister.

She has made up her mind to go see her when her older sister, Kendra-Sue, tells her to get her butt on down there because now it's a funeral. So, Katie-Lee returns to Louisiana to face her family without the aid of modern medicine (Xanax, Lexapro, etc.).

Katie-Lee is a protagonist well worth reading about. She is 50 years old and single with all that entails. The company she works for is facing lay offs/ staff reductions. She comes across as a pretty real woman dealing with some real modern day problems.

Then we are transported to her family life, which like many a family life is a little weirder than life away from home. It's touching and funny. You feel for her and her siblings. And maybe there's a time or two where you might be tempted to knock heads, but that will pass.

It's a really good story and it's very well written. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

If you are interested in Cajun words and phrases such as those used in the book, Ken Wheaton has written at least 2 blog posts on them. Talkin' Funny: Louisiana Style and Even More Talkin' Funny: Louisiana Style

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.