Fashions Fade, Haunted Is Eternal

 

Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal is the last book in the A Haunted Vintage Mystery series and I am so sad the story is over. 

Excited over the chance to consult on a fashion shoot with vintage clothing Cookie ignores the shoot being held in a creepy cemetery. 

Still friends with Charlotte and working hard at keeping her vintage clothing store going Cookie is disturbed at having another murder occur in her vicinity. Once again a different ghost shows up and tells Cookie they cannot recall how they died but want her help. Stuck figuring out a murder, dealing with the every day craziness of life, and determined to keep crime out of her home town Cookie ignores her boyfriends advice and starts investigating. 

I really enjoyed the story, it had a lot more action compared to earlier stories while keeping the fun humor that was throughout the whole series. What I did not like was the end too much, it felt rushed to end such a strong series. An epilogue would have been nice or just a another chapter tying up things a bit more. 

No Exit

 

No Exit came up as a recommendation on Goodreads from another book I had read. Bored on day I read the description and just could not get it out of my mind, thankfully the library had it available for check out.

I cannot recall the last time I could not put a book down, I was struggling to keep my eyes open as I kept whispering to myself just one more chapter. The start of No Exit is literally the slowest part of the whole story, once things take off they take off and the suspense never stops. With that said it is super hard to really say much about the story without giving anything away since every turn of the page seemed to bring a new problem for Darby to deal with. 

The writing was fast paced, action packed, and smooth sailing. It does get gory at times but even though I dislike gore I was able to stomach it since that part was not the focus of the story. While I would not say no to another story by Taylor Adams I think I need some a bit more mellow after reading such an intense story. 

A Pasion for Haunted Fashion

 

A Passion for Haunted Fashion is the sixth book in the Haunted Vintage series. 

Having fixed the problems for several ghosts Cookie is not at all shocked when a new ghost appears to her as she searching a trunk in a theater for costumes. Determined to help the young lady out with solving her murder Cookie is working on getting information from Peggy when she hears a scream. Forgoing the questioning of Peggy Cookie rushes out of the basement to see what the commotion is. To her horror her best friend Heather is standing over a deceased man covered in blood. Despite Heather's claims she did not kill him the police have little to work with and keep going back to Heather. Knowing her friend is not a killer Cookie once again has two murder mysteries to solve. 

Charlotte and Cookie and feel like old friends, their personalities are so vibrant and lifelike. While I am eager to read Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal I also do not want to end the series since I have enjoyed every book. 

The Chain

 

I cannot recall the last time I bought a new book but last weekend I went to the bookstore and The Chain happened to be the first book I looked at the in the bookstore. An hour later I walked out with it, the idea of the story was so engaging I could not focus on other books I looked at.

Everything is going right for Rachel, her cancer is gone, her divorce with her ex-husband final, and she has her daughter to be her guiding light. All that changes in an instant when a phone call comes in saying they have her daughter and in order to free her she must pay a ransom. That is not even the worse part of it, once the ransom is paid Rachel must kidnap another child. Horrified and sickened at the thought of someone having Kylie and knowing the only way to free her daughter is to steal another child has Rachel out of sorts to say the least. A mother's love knows no bounds though and Rachel is determined to not just be another link on the chain.

Fast paced, full of character development, and gets your heart racing at times. The Chain is one of the freshest stories I have read in a long time. Unlike most suspense stories I have read this one did not have corny make you jump out of your skin moments and it was utterly believable in a lot of ways. Everything about The Chain caught my attention from the start and kept it. I would gladly read more work by Adrian McKinty and I am actually looking up recommendations for other stories with a similar pacing and theme. 

The Orchardist

 

The Orchardist was given to me by a friend since I am struggling to find reading material with the library closed. 

The story was strange, sad, and not really to my liking. The part I did like is being familiar with the locations in the story. That helped me paint a more vivid picture of the surroundings which played an important role in the story. 

Talmadge is happy living a quiet life on his orchard tending to the trees and selling his harvest for a fair sum in town. His life is turned upside down when two young pregnant girls steal his fruit. Feeling like they need someone to watch out for them Talmadge starts feeding the girls and looking out for them. What develops is an odd friendship where neither side really trusts the other. 

If I had not been so desperate for reading material I would have abandoned The Orchardist, it just was not my style of book at all. The writing was fine and well edited but the pace did not work out for my taste. I also did not like the manner in which characters were jumped from but I must say it was one of the better jobs of making clear that a new character was being spoken about. 

If the Haunting Fits, Wear It

 

If the Haunting Fits, Wear It is the fifth book in the Haunted Vintage Mystery Series. This time two ghosts attach themselves to Cookie demanding they solve their murder. I was really looking forward to two mysteries in one but was a bit disappointed overall. Overall this has been my least favorite of the series and parts felt a bit off.

Cookie is excited to be providing wardrobe information to a new client and eagerly packs up to travel to the Kentucky Derby. Upon arriving she runs into a ghost of a woman who is not happy she is digging through her vintage clothing. Annoyed the woman demands Cookie solves her murder and just when she is coming to terms with finding a new wayward spirit Cookie runs into a dead jockey. Now the jockey is insisting his murder gets solved as well. 

Overall the story felt a bit weak. The owner of the bed and breakfast Cookie stayed at was the most interesting character by far. I also was not a fan of the weak love triangle going on. Even though I struggled with If the Haunting Fits, Wear It I do plan on continuing the series.