Book Review: The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker

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The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker  was published on March 17, 2025. It opens with Detective Declan Shaw at a closed subway station trying to work up the nerve to commit suicide when he receives a call from his partner about a break in and homicide at the home of a true crime author. Shaw makes his way to the crime scene to work the case, and in a turn of events, Declan comes under scrutiny in another case loosely connected to this new case. I received an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Writer  from NetGalley and Little , Brown, and Company for free in exchange for my honest review. I'm appreciative that my request for this book was approved. With this story opening with the main character trying to commit suicide, I almost didn't go any further with the book. However, I am glad I stuck with it as it took me on a fantastic ride and had my emotions all over the place. There were so many twists and turns that just when I thought I had it all figured out, there was ...

Book Review: Tippy Toe Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #2) by Leslie Meier

book review tippy toe murder leslie meier
Tippy Toe Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #2) by Leslie Meier is a little darker than the first book in this series. With the repressive heat of the summer, Lucy's ankles are swelling with her fourth pregnancy, and she's craving doughnuts. On top of her pregnancy, she's preparing her two daughters costumes for their upcoming dance recital. When a retired dance teacher goes missing from Tinker's Cove and a grumpy shopkeeper is murdered, Lucy can't help herself from getting involved in the mystery.

Where I enjoyed the second installment of the Lucy Stone Mystery book series, I wasn't expecting a cozy mystery to deal with child molestation and was startled by one of the details that was provided. This is an important topic for sure, but it could be a trigger for others reading Tippy Toe Murder.

I loved the fact that it dealt with dance and preparing for the annual dance recital. It brought back great memories of my dance classes and recitals, especially the things that always seemed to go wrong during the dress rehearsals. That always meant that we would have a good show . . . at least that's what the saying was, bad dress rehearsal means a good show. The dance teacher being stressed was right on the money too! 

At the beginning of the book, I wasn't quite sure where the author was going with the disappearance of the dance instructor, but it finally began to come together. If you're reading the book and find it dull, stick with it because it does get better and becomes a bit action packed. Other than it being a bit slow paced at the beginning and being startled by some of the details relating to the abuse of the child, the only other thing I didn't like about Tippy Toe Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #2) was how Lucy Stone's husband treated her. It seemed a bit out of character for him compared to Mistletoe Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #1).

Four out of five stars is what I gave Tippy Toe Murder for all the reasons mentioned above. I enjoyed the book for the most part, and I'm looking forward to reading the next installment, Trick or Treat Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery, #3). If you enjoyed this book, you may enjoy Deeper Than The Dead (Oak Knoll, #1) by Tami Hoag.


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