REVIEW: Plymouth Undercover by Pamela M. Kelley

Title: Plymouth Undercover (Court Street Investigations #1)
Author: Pamela M. Kelley
Narrator: Leslie Howard
Publisher: Piping Plover Press
Publication Date: May 2021
Genre: Mystery
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible

Description: A mother and daughter inherit a PI Agency with a reputation that takes them by surprise.

Meet Emma McCarthy, a thirty-year-old failed actress that just moved home to Plymouth, MA.

And her mother, Cindy, a yoga instructor in the Pinehills, an exclusive golf community in Plymouth.

They’ve just inherited Court Street Investigations, a private detective agency.

And its one part-time employee, eighty-year-old Mickey, a retired police detective.

They expect typical cases like cheating spouses or workman’s comp, but quickly learn that the agency also has a reputation for solving murders when they are hired to find a local missing woman.

My Thoughts: There isn’t anything exciting or intense that stands out with this story, but I did enjoy meeting the characters and going on surveillance and doughnut runs with Emma and Mickey.

Emma McCarthy moves back home to Plymouth, Massachusetts after her acting career fails to take off. She rents a cute little cottage on the beach and begins working at the private investigation agency left to her and her mother by her father. Initially I really thought this wasn’t going to be successful for Emma because a: she isn’t a licensed PI, b: she has no experience or training as a private investigator and c: there doesn’t seem to be enough work in this community to keep them occupied.

I will happily admit that I was pleasantly surprised at how likable the characters were. Emma was easy to relate to and what she lacks in experience and training, she makes up for in tenacity and willingness to learn. Emma’s mom, Cindy, was equally likable. She helps out in the office, scheduling appointments with prospective clients while also managing her own yoga studio. There is a side story for Cindy and a prospective boyfriend that I enjoyed as well.

My favorite character is Mickey, an octogenarian retired police detective, who is the agency’s part-time employee. I loved this character and his love of doughnuts. He takes Emma under his wing and begins showing her the ropes right from the start and their relationship comes naturally.

While this agency usually deals with the typical cheating spouse or workman’s comp fraud cases, they end up taking on a missing person’s case that turns into a murder investigation. Out of all of the people at this agency, Mickey is the only one who would have any experience working a homicide investigation, but before I could process what is going on, Emma is taking on an undercover temporary assignment at the law firm where the dead woman worked.

The case is resolved very quickly without bogging the reader down with tons of details and potential suspects. In fact, I hadn’t begun to formulate any of my own theories about the perpetrator and the story was concluding.

My Final Verdict: Overall, this story was enjoyable. The character development was smooth and seamless, evoking empathy from me. I found the characters to be likable and easy to relate to and am interested in what happens to them next. The story didn’t move at a fast pace, but was wrapped up without any warning, which left me initially wondering if I missed something.

The narration of this story was performed by Leslie Howard and, though, I can’t recall any other titles she has read, her performance was well done on this story. I recommend this book to readers of mysteries and general fiction. The possibility of romance looms on the horizon for Cindy and, possibly, Emma, which may be explored in future installments.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of Plymouth Undercover from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter #4)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Publisher: Pottermore
Narrator: Jim Dale
Publication Date: November 2015
Genre: Children’s Literature / Fantasy / Teen-Young Adult
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible

Description: 'There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways ... their magical prowess - their daring - their powers of deduction - and, of course, their ability to cope with danger.'

The Triwizard Tournament is to be held at Hogwarts. Only wizards who are over seventeen are allowed to enter - but that doesn't stop Harry dreaming that he will win the competition. Then at Hallowe'en, when the Goblet of Fire makes its selection, Harry is amazed to find his name is one of those that the magical cup picks out. He will face death-defying tasks, dragons and Dark wizards, but with the help of his best friends, Ron and Hermione, he might just make it through - alive!

My Thoughts: As a fan of this series, the fourth installment of the Harry Potter series crosses the threshold into it becoming more a series for adults than children. With the third book, the reader is given a glimpse of the dark direction the series can take, but the door is definitely thrown wide open with Goblet as Harry faces some of the most challenging times he’s ever had to face. On the upside, he also gets to experience a once in a lifetime opportunity when he attends the Quidditch World Cup with his friends. Even though the event becomes frightening and menacing events occur, Harry seems to enjoy the experience. Luckily for the fans of the series, the unexpected doesn’t stop there. When Harry arrives at Hogwarts, he learns that his school will be hosting a tournament between Hogwarts and two other wizarding schools. Somebody has plans for Harry and they aren’t good plans and Harry has to keep his wits when he is chosen as one of the participants in the tournament.

One thing I did not like about this story is the way Ron behaved after Harry was chosen as one of the champions. I get that he was jealous, but it really bothered me that he is supposed to be Harry’s best friend and you are supposed to be loyal to your friends, but yet Ron did not believe that Harry did not submit his own name into the cup. Even when he finally comes to his senses and realizes his mistake, I felt like Harry forgave him too quickly. I understand why he did, but I felt like Harry let him off the hook too easily. I am sure that Ron gets annoyed playing a secondary role to Harry, but the series is about Harry after all. If it were about Ron, then this book would have been Ronald Weasley and the Goblet of Fire.

I very much enjoyed the introduction of the social custom of learning how to dance and attending the Yule Ball. Harry’s distress at not being able to take Cho Chang to the Ball and worrying about who he should take was entertaining. Hermione’s coming out was also enjoyable to see. Even with Ron’s snotty attitude, it was still wonderful.

I liked Cedric and thought he and Harry demonstrated great teamwork in the tournament even though they were competing against one another. Though the final stage of the tournament was well written and highly suspenseful, it was still difficult to read what happens as Harry’s worst nightmare comes to life. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Draco undergo some major changes as well with the help of Mad-Eye Moody.

I am now more than half-way through the series and am so excited to be reading it again. There are so many things in the books that I missed in the first reading or had forgotten about that it really does feel like I’m reading it for the first time. Even knowing what awaits me in book #5, I am looking forward to experiencing it all over again.

REVIEW: The Do-Over by Lynn Painter

Title: The Do-Over
Author: Lynn Painter
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: November 2022
Genre: Contemporary Romance / Romantic Comedy / Teen-Young Adult
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible

Description: In this riotous young adult romp for fans of Recommended for You and A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow, a teen girl has the worst Valentine’s Day ever—only to relive it over and over again.

After living through a dumpster fire of a Valentine’s Day, Emilie Hornby escapes to her grandmother’s house for some comfort and a consolation pint of Ben & Jerry’s. She passes out on the couch, but when she wakes up, she’s back home in her own bed—and it’s Valentine’s Day all over again. And the next day? Another nightmare V-Day.

Emilie is stuck in some sort of time loop nightmare that she can’t wake up from as she re-watches her boyfriend, Josh, cheat on her day after day. In addition to Josh’s recurring infidelity, Emilie can’t get away from the enigmatic Nick, who she keeps running into—sometimes literally—in unfortunate ways.

How many days can one girl passively watch her life go up in flames? And when something good starts to come out of these terrible days, what happens when the universe stops doling out do-overs?

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this cute romantic comedy quite more than I thought I would. Teenager Emilie finds herself reliving the same Valentine’s Day over and over enduring seeing her boyfriend not only cheating on her but experiencing the same frustrating and annoying interactions with Nick Stark, her chemistry lab partner. No matter what Emilie does to try to change the events that keep her stuck in February 14, she wakes up and it’s still V-Day.

In addition to the cheating boyfriend and annoying lab partner, Emilie also has to deal with the fact that her father has accepted a new job and will be moving out of state and whether Emilie will be joining him and his new family remains to be seen. Emilie also has to deal with the unwelcome news that the summer fellowship she was competing for and won has been snatched away due to a counting error. It’s enough to drive anyone bonkers, but I really enjoyed hanging out with Emilie to see what happen next and how she responds.

And responds she does. She decides to have a Day Of No Consequences. She steals her Dad’s Porsche, gets pulled over and the car gets impounded, she practically kidnaps Nick and they ditch school, visit a tattoo parlor, fast talk their way onto the roof of an office building and share seven minutes of the most breathtaking kiss Emilie has ever experienced. Nothing is off the table, because nobody except Emilie will remember it tomorrow as it will still be February 14. Or will it?

This story was a fun read for me because it was a reminder to live every day to the fullest extent you can even if you are stuck in a time loop and repeat the same day tomorrow. I liked the characters and the dynamics of Emilie’s life with her family and friends was entertaining. The dialog was realistic for the characters and the story moved at a good pace.

My Final Verdict: The Do-Over is my first Lynn Painter novel. I really enjoyed this author’s voice and her sense of humor shines through the story and characters. I recommend this to teen and young adult readers, fans of romantic comedies and anyone who likes their stories to end on a positive note.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of The Do-Over from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter #3)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Publisher: Pottermore
Narrator: Jim Dale
Publication Date: December 2015
Genre: Children’s Literature / Fantasy / Teen-Young Adult
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible

Description: Harry Potter, along with his best friends, Ron and Hermione, is about to start his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry can't wait to get back to school after the summer holidays. (Who wouldn't if they lived with the horrible Dursleys?) But when Harry gets to Hogwarts, the atmosphere is tense. There's an escaped mass murderer on the loose, and the sinister prison guards of Azkaban have been called in to guard the school...

My Thoughts: The third installment of the much beloved Harry Potter series has been my favorite from the beginning and continues to be. With the Prisoner of Azkaban, the reader is given a glimpse of the dark direction this series will take, but this book still manages to be a lot of fun. From Harry’s reckless lashing out at Aunt Marge to his crazy ride on the Knight Bus, from Harry’s first encounter with the dementors on the Hogwarts Express (not fun at all) to obtaining the Marauders Map, from meeting Buckbeak, or battling boggarts that look like Professor Snape to conjuring a Patronus charm to ward off dementors and finally learning that everything is not as it seems may make your average thirteen-year-old more confused than ever, but not Harry. I love how Harry, Ron and Hermione seem to take it all in stride and just get on with it.

Remus Lupin and Sirius Black are two of my favorite characters in this series. Finally, Harry meets people who actually knew and were friends of his parents. I don’t count Dumbledore, I guess because he’s a given and he’s not of their generation. Professor Snape knew Harry’s parents and his revulsion towards Harry and James Potter are all too apparent so meeting Professor Lupin and Sirius Black and learning of their connection to James and Lily make it all the better.

I very much enjoyed the brewing conflict between Ron and Hermione regarding Crookshanks and Scabbers. Hermione has bitten off more than she can chew, it seems, with her extra full class load and seems to be barely managing it so she isn’t her usual analytical self. Of course, knowing already how these two end up by the end of the series doesn’t detract from the enjoyment of watching these characters grow and develop.

My Final Verdict: Overall, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban provides countless hours of reading entertainment. Numerous intense and suspenseful scenes where long hidden secrets and truths are revealed to the amazement of the reader. When the story comes full circle and the last page is turned, I was left with a feeling of euphoria and a rush of adrenaline, akin to an exciting ride on a fast-moving roller coaster. I wish I could pick one favorite moment from the book, but I fear I would do the story a great injustice if I tried. Due to the brilliant narration by Jim Dale in this audio version, I was pulled into this story immediately, my sense of excitement and anticipation growing as I listened. I love each story in this series, but this one holds a very special place in my heart.

REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter #2)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Publisher: Pottermore
Narrator: Jim Dale
Publication Date: December 2015
Genre: Children’s Literature / Fantasy / Teen-Young Adult
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible

Description: Ever since Harry Potter had come home for the summer, the Dursleys had been so mean and hideous that all Harry wanted was to get back to the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. But just as he’s packing his bags, Harry receives a warning from a strange impish creature who says that if Harry returns to Hogwarts, disaster will strike.

And strike it does. For in Harry’s second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor and a spirit who haunts the girls’ bathroom. But then the real trouble begins – someone is turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects… Harry Potter himself!

My Thoughts: The second book in the Harry Potter saga starts out with Harry back at the Dursley’s for summer vacation with a few changes. He has his own bedroom now instead of being relegated to the cupboard under the stairs. It’s actually Dudley’s second bedroom (don’t get me started on the degenerate waste of space this kid is) and out of the grace and goodness of their hearts, Harry is now using it. This entire attitude demonstrated by the Dursley’s resulted in major eye-rollage on my part and activated my gag reflex. These people are truly despicable. Not sure which is the lesser of the two evils for Harry…living with the Dursleys or being attacked by Voldemort.

After a very interesting and exciting first year at Hogwarts, we now find Harry very melancholy as he hasn’t heard from his friends all summer and is feeling very lonely. Harry meets Dobby, a mysterious house elf who comes to Privet Drive to warn Harry not to return to Hogwarts, which is not an option for Harry as he considers Hogwarts his true home. Dobby demonstrates very strange and self-loathing behavior by frequently assaulting himself with inanimate objects to punish himself for saying anything, which is a little bizarre because he doesn’t really tell Harry much of anything, other than to not return to Hogwarts.

Fortunately for the fans of this series, Harry does not listen to Dobby and through a series of misfortunate events manages to return to Hogwarts to discover an evil creature attacking students. Sadly, Harry is thought to be the one behind the attacks so he has to find out who is behind it before the next attack results in another death, like the one that occurred fifty years prior.

In this book, we get to meet a lot of interesting new characters in addition to Dobby. The new Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher is best-selling author Gilderoy Lockhart who gives arrogance a whole new meaning. He was quite entertaining but very annoying, except the female students think he’s wonderful. Harry meets Draco Malfoy’s father, Lucius Malfoy who we quickly learn is quite evil and now see where Draco gets it from. Ron’s sister, Ginny is now a first year at Hogwarts and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her and the rest of the Weasley family better. Many new magical creatures are introduced in this book such as Fawkes and Aragog, to name a few. A new ghost is introduced to Harry and his friends. Moaning Myrtle haunts one of the girls’ bathrooms and though she can be quite annoying proves to be a very interesting character.

I enjoyed learning more about Hagrid and Voldemort’s past in this story and getting a bird’s eye view, if you will, of major events at Hogwarts fifty years prior with the help of an enchanted diary. I loved the scenes with Harry and Ron in the enchanted car; there’s more than one and one of them is quite intense so be prepared.

My Final Verdict: Overall, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets proves to be entertaining on every level. There are a few intense scenes that may be too graphic for young readers and may cause nightmares but older age groups will be thoroughly pulled into this story as Harry navigates the perilous hallways and dark corridors of Hogwarts to stop the evil creature lurking within.

REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Harry Potter #1)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Publisher: Pottermore
Narrator: Jim Dale
Publication Date: November 2015
Genre: Children’s Literature / Fantasy / Teen-Young Adult
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible

Description: Turning the envelope over, his hand trembling, Harry saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake surrounding a large letter 'H'.

Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin!

My Thoughts: J.K. Rowling does a marvelous job of creating a world so unlike ours but so similar in many ways. The witches and wizards in Harry’s world are not that unlike us when you think about it. They have the same feelings, fears, hopes, dreams and disappointments. There’s a social hierarchy in their world, much like ours. There’s a political structure in their world too, complete with a governing agency, ruling officials and laws and regulations. They go to school, hold jobs, get married, raise families, get old and die. They love sports and entertainment as well. There’s good and evil in Harry’s world too.

Harry is your typical boy for the most part but having never known his parents has left him missing out on that most important relationship. He’s being raised by his mother’s sister and her husband, living with them and their bully of a son, Dudley, but not really wanted. I got angry all over again at the way they treated him and at his living conditions. One thing that amazed me then and still does is why the Dursley’s put up such a fight to keep Harry from going to Hogwarts. They made it abundantly clear every day that they didn’t want Harry, barely tolerating his presence in their home. Going to Hogwarts would get him out of their home and ultimately their lives. They should have been kicking up their heels in joy when the first letter arrived. Perhaps, I will never understand why. Fortunately, the lack of bonding and family love does not turn Harry into a sociopath, bent on destroying lives.

Harry adjusts remarkably well to his new life and the excitement of it all. Once again, I found myself wishing I could go to Hogwarts. Going away to school in a castle with moving staircases, ghosts, magical creatures, and interesting characters may seem like a lot for an eleven-year-old boy to deal with, but Harry does. Finding out his parents were actually murdered by a very evil wizard who also tried to kill him is a lot to take in, as well, but Harry soon learns that those events are a part of who he is and the world he is now a part of.

I wanted to savor each page of the book, but I couldn’t put it down. Even knowing what was coming next, I discovered things I had missed before or perhaps forgot. I had forgotten what a strange and unusual girl Hermione was in the beginning. I had forgotten that Ron is very brave. I had forgotten how troublesome Peeves was and how stern Professor McGonagall could be.

My Final Verdict: So, whether you are a fan who loves to re-read this series (five times for me now) or someone who is reading it for the first time, embrace the story fully and enjoy the ride. It is an adventure not to be missed. All editions of this series are fantastic and will appeal to whatever preference the reader has, but I highly recommend the audio editions narrated by Jim Dale. All of the different voices for each of the characters, brimming with life and individual personalities give the reader a sense of being in the story with the characters instead of just a spectator.