Feline Fatale

Once again Linda O. Johnston has written a creative crazy complex and charmingly delightful cozy as Feline fatale is one of the better amateur sleuths in the Pet-Sitter mystery series (see Howl Deadly). Kendra is a caring courageous person who goes the extra kilometer for her friends and loves Dante despite his excesses. Fans of the saga will appreciate the heroine as she tries to identify the murderer to insure Wanda is no longer a suspect.

How to Be an American Housewife

Shoko was a young woman in Japan during WWII. Once her parents realized that Japan was going to be defeated, they encouraged Shoko to marry an American and obtain a better life. She did so at the expense of her relationship with her brother, Taso, who could not forgive her for betraying her country. Jumping ahead many years, it’s clear that Shoko has done what she could to be the best American housewife. She now longs to return to Japan and reunite with Taso, but she is too ill to travel. She enlists the help of her daughter, Sue, whose own failings as a housewife have caused a rift between the women.

Sink Trap

The mystery plot is less a matter of winnowing out the suspects and more about finding proof that will stick. And speaking of 'stick', it's likely that a lot of readers are going to be sticking around to see what further trouble Ms. Neverall will encounter in the course of keeping the taps running in the Pacific Northwest.

Sit, Stay, Slay

This isn't a "cute" mystery; there's more than a touch of Raymond Chandler's mean streets here, and Kendra's not completely straight and narrow. She's a woman caught up in change, who's had her self-image cracked and is trying to figure out how to put the pieces back together. When a pet-sitting client and friend is found dead, her immediate reaction is to get involved not so much to seek the man's killers or find justice, but to keep herself from being eyed too closely as a suspect.
It's an intriguing start to a new series, with a main character who shows a great deal of potential for growth, something that can help keep the character fresh even as the bodies pile up around her.

The Long Quiche Goodbye

Welcome to the grand opening of Fromagerie Bessette. Or as it's more commonly known by the residents of small-town Providence, Ohio-the Cheese Shop. Proprietor Charlotte Bessette has prepared a delightful sampling of bold Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, delicious tortes of Stilton and Mascarpone, and a taste of Sauvignon Blanc-but someone else has decided to make a little crime of passion the piece de resistance. Right outside the shop Charlotte finds a body, the victim stabbed to death with one of her prized olive-wood handled knives.