Book Review: The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss

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The Escape Game  by Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss  opens on the set of a reality television show called "The Escape Room" where one of the season four contestants, Alicia Angelos, is found in a coffin on set ... dead. Fast forward to season five where Sierra Angelos, the murder victim's younger sister and suspected killer, has been brought back to the show and paired up with Beck, Adi, and Carter. Sierra wants to find justice for her sister, but when Sierra and her teammates start uncovering clues about the true killer, they must figure out how to survive the game. A huge thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for approving my request and providing me with a digital copy of The Escape Game  for free in exchange for my honest review. I was immediately drawn to the title and cover of the young adult novel. Throw in the plot being about an escape room, and I was completely sold on the story before even reading it. The story is told from the perspective of fou...
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Book Review: Valentine Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #5) by Leslie Meier

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book review valentine murder leslie meier

Valentine Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #5) by Leslie Meier is the fifth book in the Lucy Stone Mystery book series. Lucy Stone attends her first board meeting for the renovated library in Tinker's Cove, Maine. She is in for a surprise when she finds Bitsy Howell in the basement . . . dead from a gunshot wound. 

Not sure what to expect as this was my first time reading a novel by Leslie Meier, I was pleasantly surprised by this cozy mystery. It has everything I expect in this genre . . . good writing, an interesting storyline, characters that are both likable and unlikable, and some believability. And, of course, it doesn't hurt that the murder takes place in a library since it ties in books, and I love reading. 

One of the things that was extremely believable was the dynamic of the board members and how they acted with each other and that there were cliques within the board members. I've definitely seen this happen in the work place. Another convincing part of the plot was the way Hayden and his partner Ralph are treated by the townspeople. And, Lucy getting frustrated with her children was realistic as well. Raising children isn't always easy.

There were a few things that were inconsistent in the storyline that bothered me. The first thing was that the ten year old daughter was in third grade. Seeing as I haven't read the four books that came before Valentine Murder, I'm not sure if she flunked a couple of grades, or if it was a combination of the daughter being held back a year due to where her birthday fell and flunking a grade. Children in the third grade are typically eight years old when they start the school year.

Another issue was that Lucy made a phone call from a pay phone, but a few chapters later, she pulls out a cell phone that she keeps with her for emergencies. So, I don't understand the need for the character to use a pay phone. Towards the end of the book, the town loses electricity, but the front porch light is still on at Lucy's house despite them needing to use candles. Lastly, the book was published in 1999, but the characters act like personal computers and the internet are brand new things. (My family had two computers and internet in 1986.)

Because of the inconsistencies, I had to give Valentine Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #5) by Leslie Meier four out of five stars. If you enjoyed this book, I'd recommend Death of a Kitchen Diva (Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery, #1) by Lee Hollis.

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