The Running Bibliophile

While purchasing Peril in High Heels (High Heels, #11) by Gemma Halliday and Kelly Rey, I thought I'd check to see if A High Heels Haunting (High Heels, #4.5) by Gemma Halliday was available for purchase because every time I went to buy it previously, it was never available. I was super excited that I was finally able to buy it.
Since A High Heels Haunting is really a novella, I was able to finish it in one sitting. Although it is technically part of the High Heels book series, Maddie Springer was barely in the book, and I wasn't expecting that, so I was very disappointed. 
It was very well written and kept me intrigued. I feel like if it hadn't been tied to the High Heels book series, I would've enjoyed it so much more because I kept waiting for Maddie to make a big appearance. What I did love was that I never guessed who the killer was . . . I guessed someone completely different.
The novella is about a web designer named Kya Badder who falls in love with a pair of …

Peril in High Heels (High Heels, #11) by Gemma Halliday and Kelly Rey brings back the beloved character of Maddie Springer who is in heaven watching her best friend Dana star in a film that is an adaption of her favorite book. Things go downhill when the director is found in his trailer . . . stabbed to death with one of the prop swords.
The High Heels Mysteries book series is one of my favorite cozy mysteries. Not only does it have mystery, there is a little romance and a bit of comedy. I have to say that other than Maddie, her husband Jack Ramirez is my absolute favorite character.
What I loved about Peril in High Heels is that there were several red herrings, but I tried to figure out who the killer was early on . . . I was glad to find out that I was correct in my guess, but I couldn't quite figure out the motive. Of course, Maddie gets herself in a pickle and becomes a target herself when she starts asking the right questions around the movie set. I wasn't expecting the …

While in middle school, I discovered a book by the name of The Time of the Witch written by Mary Downing Hahn. I immediately fell in love with that book and the author. After that, I checked out every book by her in my school library. One of the books I ended up checking out was Stepping on the Cracks (Gordy Smith, #1). I didn't realize it then, but it was my first foray into reading historical fiction.

Stepping on the Cracks (Gordy Smith, #1) written by Mary Downing Hahn follows best friends Elizabeth and Margaret as they enter the sixth grade while both of their brothers are off fighting the Nazi's in World War II. Both girls are extremely patriotic and support the war, but they are more worried about their own personal war with Gordy Smith, who is the class bully. When Elizabeth and Margaret decide to get even with Gordy and his best friends, Toad and Doug, the girls uncover a secret that the boys rather them not know.

Even as an adult rereading Stepping on the Cracks, it is…

Janet Evanovich is a talented author, and her Stephanie Plum book series just keeps getting better and better with each book. Fearless Fourteen (Stephanie Plum, #14) is no exception. Although this series is technically a thriller and suspense book, it could also be categorized as chick lit and humor. 
There were numerous times throughout the book that I found myself laughing out loud, which is always welcome, especially with a pandemic going on in the real world. The situations that Stephanie Plum gets herself into are always comical, and let's face it, predictable at this point. And, the way that her on again off again boyfriend Joe Morelli reacts is always humorous as well. 

One character that is reoccurring in the Stephanie Plum series is Grandma Mazur, and she makes an appearance in Fearless Fourteen. However, I am glad to say it is a minor role in this book. I love the character, but there are times when I feel like she was featured too much. I can only take this particular…

Hollow City (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #2) by Ransom Riggs picks up immediately where Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1) left off. Jacob and his peculiar friends escape the island they've lived and make the trek to London, England to find help for Miss Peregrine.
When I first picked up Hollow City, I had a bit of trouble getting into the story line because I was too worried that it wouldn't live up to the first book in the series. However, once I got into the book a little, I was pleasantly surprised and couldn't wait to find out what happened. There were a couple of nights that I read it right before falling asleep and ended up having such strange dreams because of it, that I woke up in the middle of the night more than once with my heart pounding. Don't get me wrong, the book isn't scary, but Hollow City is definitely suspenseful and a little on the dark side. Isn't it strange how the mi…

Back in 2010, I discovered a website called Goodreads.com where I could keep track of what books I had read, what I was currently reading, and books that I wanted to read. Then, I found out that you could enter giveaways for a chance to win an advanced readers copy, also known as an ARC, of a book or a book that had already been published. I have been fortunate enough to win several books through Goodreads.com's First Reads Giveaways. One of those books was Two for Sorrow (Josephine Tey, #3) written by Nicola Upson. I received this novel for free in exchange for my honest review.
Not knowing anything at all about the author going into reading Two for Sorrow (Josephine Tey, #3), I had absolutely no preconceived ideas about Nicola Upson. Overall, the book was relatively well written, and the style of writing reminded me a bit of P.D. James. It was interesting enough to keep my attention until I got about halfway through the book. At that point, the story line really started to drag…