A Tree, A Book, and A Breeze

Death at Thorburn Hall Julianna Deering Bethany House Publishers Drew Farthering finds a new mystery on his hands when he arrives at Thorburn Hall in Scotland for the 1935 British Open. His host, Lord Rainsby, asks Drew to investigate a suspected embezzler--then dies in a suspicious accident the next day. However, the house is full of guests with potential motives. Can Drew discover the killer among them?      I've been putting off writing this review because I'm in the middle of preparing for finals and my brain is mush and basically at the "what even is words?" stage, so writing anything has been a struggle, even if it's just a book review.      But in that craziness, it was nice to sit down and read a pleasure book, which is what the Death at Thorburn Hall was. I love old-fashioned mysteries, and a book like this was just what I needed. My main complaint with this one was that I didn't think the plot picked up until nearly the end; it ...

The Austen Escape Katherine Reay Thomas Nelson After years of following her best friend’s lead, Mary Davies finds a whimsical trip back to Austen’s Regency England paves the way towards a new future. Mary Davies lives and works in Austin, Texas, as an industrial engineer. She has an orderly and productive life, a job and colleagues that she enjoys—particularly a certain adorable, intelligent, and hilarious consultant. But something is missing for Mary. When her estranged and emotionally fragile childhood friend Isabel Dwyer offers Mary a two-week stay in a gorgeous manor house in Bath, Mary reluctantly agrees to come along, in hopes that the holiday will shake up her quiet life in just the right ways. But Mary gets more than she bargained for when Isabel loses her memory and fully believes that she lives in Regency England. Mary becomes dependent on a household of strangers to take care of Isabel until she wakes up. With Mary in charge and surrounded by new friends...

  Lady Jayne Disappears Joanna Davidson Politano Revell   When Aurelie Harcourt's father dies in debtor's prison, he leaves her just two things: his wealthy family, whom she has never met, and his famous pen name, Nathaniel Droll. Her new family greets her with apathy and even resentment. Only the quiet houseguest, Silas Rotherham, welcomes her company. When Aurelie decides to complete her father's unfinished serial novel, writing the family into the story as unflattering characters, she must keep her identity as Nathaniel Droll hidden while searching for the truth about her mother's disappearance--and perhaps even her father's death. Author Joanna Davidson Politano's stunning debut set in Victorian England will delight readers with its highly original plot, lush setting, vibrant characters, and reluctant romance.      I feel torn about this book because while not every aspect of it won me over, there were quite a few things I gen...