The Petrus Prophecy

The Petrus Prophecy is the 3rd book in Gary McAvoy's Vatican Secret Archives Mystery series. There are 7 books in the series to date and its the best one I have read.  It was published in April 2022.

The publisher's summary:

Father Jonah Barlow is dead. The respected Jesuit scholar of apocalyptic studies might have died from a fall in his apartment . . . or was he pushed? All that is known for sure is that the provocative manuscript he was working on—a book that promised to reveal the upcoming fulfillment of ancient and recent prophecies, including the ghastly and shocking Third Secret of Fatima—is missing.

Two female detectives—one from Chicago, the other from Rome—take on the investigation as a possible homicide, turning to Vatican archivist Father Michael Dominic for his help, since Barlow sent the young priest the only other copy of the manuscript.

Newly elected Pope Ignatius, Enrico Petrini, intent on verifying the content of the manuscript against the original handwritten version of the Third Secret—which has been kept sequestered in the Pope’s personal vault for decades—discovers that the keys have been stolen. The search is on for the only other set, kept safely in the hands of a trusted monk in Jerusalem. Meanwhile, a sinister ancient order known as the Knights of the Apocalypse seem to be using the predictions of the manuscript to create fear and chaos as the prophecies appear to be coming fulfilled. Is the end of the world imminent?

From Chicago to Jerusalem to Scotland, from Rome to the ancient island nation of Malta, join Father Dominic, journalist Hana Sinclair, their trusted team of Swiss Guards, a French commando, and the two detectives as they solve the bewildering puzzles of the Petrus Prophecy.

This book was an exhilarating read. From the first chapter to the last I could not stop reading until I finished it. The death to resolve was that of Father John Barlow. Was it an accident or a homicide? The gut instinct of detective Rebecca Lancaster of the Chicago Police Department tells her that a murder was probably committed. She believes that the research Father Barlow was conducting was important enough to kill for and that she needs to know more about it in order to resolve this death investigation. After obtaining approval from her boss to travel to Italy, Rebecca contacts a friend who is a member of Rome's police force. With Sabrina Felici's assistance, Rebecca begins her investigation. 

Barlow's book was about the third secret prophecy of Our Lady of Fatima, an historical event, St. Malachy's prophecy of the last pope, Petrus Romano, and the Miracle of the Sun which occurred in Fatima in 1917 several months before three children were visited by the Virgin Mary and given a three part prophecy. The first secret was a vision of hell and the second secret was the identity of the pope during WWII. Both were publicly disclosed in the 1940s but the third secret was disclosed in May 2000 by Pope John Paul II. The Pope stated that the third message was the Virgin Mary’s vision of the May 13, 1981, assassination attempt on himself. John Paul II publicly credited Our Lady of Fátima for saving his life. The premise of this novel is that John Paul II only told part of the third secret. 

There were lots of twists and turns in the story. Each twist takes the reader to a different location. The reader travels to the U. S., Rome, Scotland, Jerusalem and Malta. Knowing how to read symbols is essential to solving the mystery. The story is similar to Dan Brown's Robert Langdon series. Father Dominic and his journalist friend Hana Sinclair are both experts in this field. Hana has joined him on all of his earlier exploits. While they are searching for the keys the new pope needs, the Knights of the Apocalypse (KOTA) are making media releases concerning the end of the world. Hoarding of food and other goods  begins happening world wide and the stock markets are tumbling. 

The Petrus Prophecy is a wonderful book. Mystery lovers will want to read it. 5 out of 5 stars.

Lava Cakes and Lies

Lava Cakes and Lies is the first book in a new cozy mystery series by Nova Walsh. It was published in December 2024 and features ex-lawyer Ginny as a bakery owner and amateur sleuth. I received a free copy of this book from Book Sirens in exchange for an honest review.

The publisher's summary: 

High-powered criminal attorney Ginny Malone never expected to swap her designer suits for flour-dusted aprons, but a twist of fate sends her fleeing to the quaint coastal town of Moonstone Bay, California. With her spirited—and mischievous—cat Shortcake by her side, Ginny sets her sights on starting a bakery on the boardwalk, armed only with her grandmother's secret recipes and a dash of determination.

But Ginny's dream of sweet success crumbles when a dead body is discovered during renovations, and her gruff yet oh-so-intriguing landlord, P.I. Vince Rinaldi, becomes the prime suspect. The ovens are cold, the drywall is crumbling, and now danger is lurking behind every display case.

With the help of her hammer-wielding new BFF Lois, a sprinkle of legal know-how, and a heaping spoonful of wit, Ginny sets out to fix more than just ovens and drywall. As she digs into the case, the quirky townsfolk begin to look less neighborly and more suspect—and Vince might need as much rescuing as her broken heater.

Between perfecting her luscious lava cakes and untangling lies, Ginny must race to clear Vince's name before her fresh start becomes a recipe for disaster. Can she serve up justice and save a budding romance before the real killer strikes again?

Lava Cake and Lies is a charming and witty cozy mystery filled with heartwarming friendships, banter-filled clean romance, cat antics, and recipes you'll be dying to try. Perfect for fans of Ellie Alexander and Joanne Fluke, this book is a culinary cozy mystery that promises to be a real treat.

Usually a new cozy mystery series opens with a long description of the setting and introduces the characters. We read about their backstories from long narratives. Not so with Lava Cakes and Lies. The story opened with Ginny signing a lease for her bakery. The next morning she meets with her general contactor Lois and they find a dead body in the space. The mystery began quickly which is how I like my mysteries.

The investigation of the murder consisted of Ginny reading old newspapers and talking with her new friends. There wasn't any big build up to the reveal of the identity of the whodunnit. It just happened haphazardly when someone confessed while Ginny and Vince visited them. Romance was a large part of the story. Ginny and her landlord Vince hit it off from the start and were soon hugging and kissing.

The book lacks twists and turns and the investigation was lackluster. However, I didn't mind. The story read well. Maybe I have the genre wrong. It might not be a cozy mystery but just a cozy. I think cozy is the right description but the book is advertised as a cozy culinary mystery.

While I found some issues with the writing I loved this novel. I am rating it 4 out of 5 stars and have pre-ordered the second book in the series which will be published on February 25, 2025.

First Lie Wins

First Lie Wins is my selection this month for the Key Word Challenge. It is an exciting, page-turning read that keeps you hooked until the end.

The publisher's summary:

Evie Porter has everything a nice Southern girl could want: a doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence, a tight group of friends. The only catch: Evie Porter doesn’t exist.

The identity comes first: Evie Porter. Once she’s given a name and location by her mysterious boss, Mr. Smith, she learns everything there is to know about the town and the people in it. Then the mark: Ryan Sumner. The last piece of the puzzle is the job.

Evie isn’t privy to Mr. Smith’s real identity, but she knows this job isn't like the others. Ryan has gotten under her skin, and she’s starting to envision a different sort of life for herself. But Evie can’t make any mistakes—especially after what happened last time.

Evie Porter must stay one step ahead of her past while making sure there's still a future in front of her. The stakes couldn't be higher—but then, Evie has always liked a challenge. . . .

It took a few chapters for me to engage in this book. I needed to understand what Evie was about before getting hooked. The story took off around the third chapter. Evie steals high end items such as jewelry and paintings for her boss Mr. Smith. Another character, Devon, assists Evie in planning and executing her jobs. The story has the feel of a spy thriller. No one knows the identity of Mr. Smith or why he is interested in obtaining these goods. Sometimes he just wants information to be stolen. 

Evie uses a different name for each job. These jobs are sometimes quick but can last for months and be in different locales. While she is with Ryan, Evie is introduced to a woman who is using her real name and life history which throws her off her game. Evie cannot imagine why this woman, claiming to be Lucca Marino, was in her path.

The novel is more of a whydunit than a whodunit. I was surprised by the big reveal (how all of the characters were related) and then by the ending. None of it was anticipated.

First Lie Wins is a  fun read. 4 out of 5 stars.

Fake

I chose this 2022 novel by Erica Katz for the Calendar of Crime Reading Challenge based on the month of publication. Fake is set in the art forgery world where art collectors buy copies of their original paintings to display in their homes. The originals are stored in climate controlled freeholds for insurance purposes.

The publisher's summary:

Can you spot the difference? 

Emma Caan is a fake. 

She’s a forger, an artist who specializes in nineteenth-century paintings. But she isn’t a criminal; her copies are commissioned by museums and ultra-wealthy collectors protecting their investments. Emma’s more than mastered a Gauguin brushstroke and a van Gogh wheat field, but her work is sometimes a painful reminder of the artistic dreams she once chased for herself, when she was younger and before her family and her world fell apart. 

When oligarch art collector Leonard Sobetsky unexpectedly appears with an invitation, Emma sees a way out—a new job, a new path for herself, and access to the kind of money she needs to support her unstable and recently widowed mother. 

But every invitation incurs an obligation . . . and Emma isn’t prepared for what’s to come. As she’s pulled further into Leonard’s opulent scene, she will discover what’s lurking beneath the glitz and glamour. When she does, the past she’s worked hard to overcome will collide with the present, making her wonder how much of her carefully curated life is just as fake as her forgeries . . .

The writing is superb. The story opened with a bang and the suspense continued through the ending. The pacing of events was perfect. While there was a lot of inner dialogue with the Emma character, it did not interfere with the action. She always acted upon her impulses so they were a big part of the story. For someone with an art degree from Yale, she is not the brightest star in the universe. She does not believe that copying art is the same thing as forging an art piece. While I can appreciate that Emma lived paycheck to paycheck, she seemed only to be interested in drinking the best vodka that Leonard could provide and attending the hottest parties. Someone with an art degree should have strong feelings about art. Leonard, known as Lenny, was a typical billionaire, or what I think a billionaire behaves like. His discussion with Emma on how to make money was thought provoking. Leonard said that the only way he was able to make money was by spending money. 

I had never heard of freeholds before. In a freehold state you can maintain secrecy concerning artworks that you have bought or sold. An art collector can avoid paying taxes if their ownership is a secret. Delaware and Switzerland are the freehold states that the collectors in this story use. Wanting more information on freeholds, I went to Wikipedia. However, I found nothing.

I loved this story and am rating it 5 out of 5 stars.

The Pot Thief Who Studied Calvin

The Pot Thief Who Studied Calvin was published last month. It is author J. Michael Orenduff's 10th Pot Thief murder mystery. The series features an antique seller who specializes in ancient works of clay and porcelain. Each installment of the series is titled "The Pot Thief Who Studied.  . ." It’s an interesting premise for a series. 

The publisher's summary: 

An Albuquerque ceramics dealer soon turns amateur sleuth after he gets a 3D-printed pot to die for.

Hubie Schuze usually digs through the dirt—often illegally—to find the ancient ceramics he sells in his shop, Spirits in Clay. But thanks to his nephew, Tristan, a computer science student at the University of New Mexico, Hubie receives a unique 3D-printed pot. And after a photo of it runs in the local paper, it becomes a popular item.

Unfortunately, the pot is sought-after by all the wrong people, and strange characters start darkening the doorway of Hubie’s shop. They’re willing to do anything to get their hands on the pot, and after Det. Whit Fletcher summons Hubie to the morgue, he discovers that includes murder. Now, to get to the bottom of things, Hubie must uncover what's so hot about this pot, before the cold-as-ice-killer strikes again. 

I wasn't expecting this story to be a cozy mystery but that's exactly what it is. Our amateur sleuth sells ceramic pots in between telling one joke after another. He is an expert on Calvin, Ross Calvin that is, but had to learn the finer points on John Calvin's predestination theory for his soon to be father-in-law. Ross Calvin wrote Sky Determines: an Interpretation of the Southwest, one of Hubie’s favorite books. This Calvin was a real-life Episcopalian priest whose 1934 book is a classic of New Mexico literature. He also was an adherent on predestination.

The story opened with a prologue at the local Albuquerque morgue where Hubie was present to identify the body. The story then shifts backwards in time to explain how the body ended up there. The first third of the book did not include a murder and I was getting anxious for it to happen so that I could read about the investigation. However, it came more than halfway through the story. The "investigation" consisted of the big reveal where Hubie explained every part of the case to a group of all the possible suspects. 

I had never heard of 3D-printers before. The author gives a good presentation of how they work early in the story. 

"It can operate in several ways. The one I used sets the printer to run its stylus over the surface of an object you want to copy. The movements of the stylus are stored in the printer’s memory. Then you have it follow the pattern of the object it now has in its memory, but this time it’s laying down soft clay as it goes, so it makes an exact duplicate of the object it traced.”

The book ends with a discussion between Hubie and his new bride whether the deceased's death was predestined. This story began and ended with the merits of predestination, which I had originally assumed given the title of the book. Pretty interesting. 

5 out of 5 stars.

The Art Collector

I received a free copy of this lovely mystery from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. I can honestly say that it is spectacular. The book was published last year on August 28, 2024 and it is the second book in author Susan Bacon's mystery series.

The publisher's summary:  

A Warhol protégé, a Manhattan murder and a long-hidden truth. 

It is February 1987. Seal Larsen is a photographer, denizen of New York’s downtown scene and the subject of one of Andy Warhol’s short films. When she dies in a suspicious fall from the 15th floor of her Manhattan apartment building, her friend and neighbor, Emma Quinn, is determined to find out what happened. A history professor at Columbia University with connections to the intelligence community, Emma soon realizes how little she really knows about her friend.

Exploring Seal’s life, her work, her past, Emma makes her way down to Memphis and to rural Tennessee, putting herself at risk. It’s there, on an isolated 2,000-acre farm, that she begins to grasp the tragedy that defined Seal’s life and the truth about her death.

A sequel to The History Teacher, Susan Bacon's award-winning political mystery, The Art Collector is an intrigue, a puzzle, a plot-twister. It is also an exploration of the value of art and the people who make it and of the culture that fueled Manhattan's art boom in the second half of the twentieth century.

This story hooked me from the start. It perfectly blends art and history along with a spectacular mystery. I love art so the phenomenal amount of art history within the pages of the book also kept me interested. However, a reader who isn't interested in art probably won't like it. That said, it was fascinating that Seal’s connection to Andy Warhol, one of my favorite artists, was a main feature of the story. 

I loved the setting too. The 1980s New York City art scene was mesmerizing. I didn't know much about this era before reading the book and learned alot about how artists and their dealers did business. Another setting included in the book is the Deep South during the 1960s. Seal and her mother came from small town Tennessee. They left Tennessee with an African American cook named Merna and opened a restaurant in Harlem. The final leg of Emma's investigation leads her to a remote Tennessee farm where the final pieces of the puzzle fall into place.

The only complaint I have is that the middle part of the story moved rather slowly. All of the details about various artworks and the artists that created them was probably the reason. 4 out of 5 stars.

The Vanishing Hour

The Vanishing Hour is my selection for January's Monthly Key Word Reading Challenge. It's author Seraphina Nova Glass's fourth novel but the first of hers that I have read. She is known for writing tightly woven suspense stories. The book was published in May 2023. 

The publisher's summary:

Grace Holloway keeps to herself. Since narrowly escaping death at the hands of the man who kidnapped her, she’s thrown herself into the small inn she runs in Rock Harbor, Maine. It’s quiet, quaint and, in the off-season, completely isolated—the perfect place for Grace to keep her own secrets.

But Grace isn’t the only one with something to hide, and Rock Harbor isn’t just a sleepy vacation town. Someone is taking young women—girls who look an awful lot like Grace did when she was kidnapped so many years ago.

When a surge of disappearances brings the investigation to her door, Grace finds herself unwillingly at the center of it all and doing everything she can to keep her distance. Because Grace knows something…something that could change everything. And when the truth comes to light, getting justice for the vanished might be more than Grace can handle alone…

This book was soooo good! I was hooked from the first chapter. The suspense was built up nicely throughout the story all the way to the end. The story is told through a triple narrative. We read from the perspectives of Grace, Kira Everett (whose daughter is missing) and Aden Coleman (whose father is missing). The book opens with Kira looking for her daughter Brooke. Then we see Aden visiting his mother who is upset that she cannot get a hold of her husband. Aden rents a room at a local hotel that is run by Grace. The Coleman family learns a few days later that the father is actually missing. Each chapter alternates between the viewpoints of these three characters. 

The police aren't sure if the crimes are connected. Kira decides to investigate herself because she doesn't believe that the police are on the ball. Kira soon meets Aden and Grace and together they try to piece together what has happened to their loved ones. Their friends and family are secondary characters who provide twisty turns in the plot. Almost every character becomes a suspect.

What is the vanishing hour? It is 10 pm. Each family had their relative last seen at 10 pm in the same seedy part of town. The media, who has been reporting on these cases, made up the phrase "vanishing hour."

The Vanishing Hour is a thriller with a satisfying ending. Mystery lovers will want to read this one. 5  out of 5 stars.

The Fury

I loved the author’s The Silent Patient and had high expectations for The Fury. Thus, I selected The Fury for this month's entry in the Calendar of Crime Reading Challenge. The book was published in January 2024. 

The publisher's summary: 

This is a tale of murder.

Or maybe that’s not quite true. At its heart, it’s a love story, isn’t it?

Lana Farrar is a reclusive ex–movie star and one of the most famous women in the world. Every year, she invites her closest friends to escape the English weather and spend Easter on her idyllic private Greek island.

I tell you this because you may think you know this story. You probably read about it at the time ― it caused a real stir in the tabloids, if you remember. It had all the necessary ingredients for a press sensation: a celebrity; a private island cut off by the wind…and a murder.

We found ourselves trapped there overnight. Our old friendships concealed hatred and a desire for revenge. What followed was a game of cat and mouse ― a battle of wits, full of twists and turns, building to an unforgettable climax. The night ended in violence and death, as one of us was found murdered.

But who am I?

My name is Elliot Chase, and I’m going to tell you a story unlike any you’ve ever heard.

I did not enjoy the book. I picked up a copy of it because I loved The Silent Patient. My expectation for this book was high but it just never grabbed my attention. There was too much narration and I had to continually think about who the narrator was. During my read, I couldn't figure out why this person was the narrator. After reading one third of the story, the murder finally happened. At the midway point of the story there was still no investigation of the crime. Why? This is supposed to be a psychological thriller.

There wasn't any character development. None of the characters were likable and I think that's due to all the narration. The characters were flat. They did not communicate with each other because the narrator couldn't shut up. He was always promising a new twist but they didn't materialize. I can't help but feel disappointed with the book. While I read it until the end, it never grabbed my attention.

1 out of 5 stars.

The Verifiers

The Verifiers was one of the Washington Post's best mystery books for 2022. This debut novel follows amateur sleuth Claudia Lin as she verifies people's online lives, and lies, for a dating detective agency in New York City. 

The publisher's summary:  

Claudia is used to disregarding her fractious family’s model-minority expectations: she has no interest in finding either a conventional career or a nice Chinese boy. She’s also used to keeping secrets from them, such as that she prefers girls—and that she's just been stealth-recruited by Veracity, a referrals-only online-dating detective agency. 

 

A lifelong mystery reader who wrote her senior thesis on Jane Austen, Claudia believes she's landed her ideal job. But when a client vanishes, Claudia breaks protocol to investigate—and uncovers a maelstrom of personal and corporate deceit. Part literary mystery, part family story, The Verifiers is a clever and incisive examination of how technology shapes our choices, and the nature of romantic love in the digital age.

I love Claudia's method of investigation. Claudia is inspired by her favorite amateur sleuths and thinks back to the steps they followed in their own investigations. Likewise, when Claudia becomes stumped she thinks about the villains she has read about and how they committed murder. She particularly loves the 'Inspector Yuan' mystery series. The second book in the series, The Rivals, follows these strategies so I expect that future books will continue in this vein. 

The story opens with Claudia meeting a new client, Sarah Reaves, who has the feeling her latest match may not the wonderful guy that she thinks he is. Claudia's company, Veracity, is a business that performs investigations, both electronic and in-person, for those customers using match-making apps but who are having some doubts about their matches. They are able to access the databases of several dating apps. Claudia determines that Sarah's match, Jude Kalman, has been chatting with three other women. She decides to stake out his home but never finds him coming or going. A week or so later, Sarah's sister Iris visits the Veracity offices to request an investigation into her match. She does not mention that Sarah killed herself. Claudia believes that these are not suicidal deaths but murder and, after being told to close this file, she continues to investigate. 

Author Jane Pek was born and grew up in Singapore. She holds a BA from Yale University, a JD from the New York University School of Law, and an MFA in Fiction from Brooklyn College. She currently lives in New York, where she works as a lawyer at a global investment company.

This book was a fun read. I am rating it 4 out of 5 stars.

Sleep in Heavenly Pizza

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this Christmas themed cozy mystery while sitting on my couch with some hot chocolate. Christmas is the only time of year that I actually like winter weather and looking outside at the snow with a good book. Sleep in Heavenly Pizza is the fourth book in Mindy Quigley's Deep Dish Mystery series, set in a Lake Geneva, Wisconsin pizzeria.

In this installment of the series pizza chef Delilah O’Leary and her staff are serving at a private party where the nation’s premier snow sculpting championship is held. On the eve of the festival though, a too-good-to-be-true Chrismukkah catering gig heralds an unexpected visit from Delilah’s high-intensity older sister. Then one of the town’s snowy sculptures is discovered with a dead body inside. CCTV showed the slightly clad deceased woman being pushed off a balcony and sliding downhill. Delilah’s boyfriend Calvin Capone heads the police investigation. His investigation keeps coming back to two of Delilah’s employees and two of her family members. 

Delilah is a control freak who tries to figure out who could have a motive for murder. She questions her people to get information but doesn't always tell Capone her findings. She wants to protect her friends and family. They have been arguing throughout the story which is unusual for the series. They are normally lovey dovey.  

The whydunnit for the murder was a let down for me. I was expecting something more complex. However, after the big reveal Delilah and her family's sit down Christmas dinner was a heartwarming scene. I wish I could be part of this family. As usual, there are recipes at the end of the story. I will be trying the Christmas tree pizza bread recipe.

All in all, this was a fun read. I am rating the book 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Death at a Scottish Wedding

I have read the other two installments of this series and loved them. Death at a Scottish Wedding was no different. It is a lovely locked room mystery.

The publisher's summary: 

Dr. Emilia McRoy is back on the case in the second book in the Scottish Isle mystery series, perfect for fans of Sheila Connolly and Charlene O’Connor.

Something old, something new, something borrowed and someone’s blue…

Finally feeling like Sea Isle, Scotland is becoming her new home, American doctor Emilia McRoy is delighted when she is invited to a wedding at Morrigan's Castle. Her friends have warned her that it's a three-day party and it's bound to get wild, not to mention the impending snowstorm. Constable Ewan Campbell, owner of the castle, ensures their safety with the blizzard. What he didn’t ensure, is that all of his guests would survive the night alive. When Emilia explores the impressive castle, she finds a dead man in one of the turrets.

The snowstorm hits and the local police can’t reach the castle until it lets up. With no one able to leave, the family insists they carry on with the wedding, which makes Emilia's job as the coroner a bit easier—the suspects are in one place­––and complicated because the killer has Emilia in his sights. The fact no one claims to know the victim isn't helping. Why would someone no one knows be murdered at a castle in the middle of nowhere?

It’s up to Emilia to uncover the mystery who the victim is, so the killer doesn’t get away Scot free.

I love the setting for this series. While I am enjoying reading about Sea Isle, I am also enjoying the castle setting. The rooms where events take place are meticulously described and add to that "locked castle" backdrop. The mystery itself wasn't as fast paced as it should have been. There was alot of pointless dialogue that slowed things down. That said, the twists in the plot kept me guessing at the identity of the whodunnit. I also love the two main characters: Emilia and Ewan. They are complete opposites but work together well. Ewen has an air of mystery about him as his character's identity is slowly being revealed throughout the series. In each installment we have read about him performing some bizarre activity which points to another aspect of his personality. It is fun to read about his exploits. Concerning Emilia, I like that she gave up the rat race for a job in the middle of nowhere. This new job is challenging but primarily because she needs to adjust to a different environment. In each novel the reader sees Emilia continuing to learn about the area that she moved to. and it always has something to do with the mystery.

This novel was not as entertaining as the first in the series. There is a 3rd book in the series which I read and reviewed last year. It too was fantastic. I will definitely continue reading this series but Death at a Scottish Wedding is only 3 out of 5 stars.

2025 Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge

The Carol's Notebook blog will once again be hosting the Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge again. 

Challenge Rules:

• You can read any book that is from the mystery/suspense/thriller/crime/true crime genres. Any sub-genres are welcome as long as they incorporate one of these genres.
• You don’t need a blog to participate but you do need a place to post your reviews to link up. (blog, Goodreads, Instagram, etc.)
• Make a goal post and link it back here with your goal for this challenge.
• Books need to be at least 100 pages long. Please no short stories.
• Crossovers with other challenges are fine.
• The Challenge will run from Jan. 1st to Dec. 31st. (Sign up ends March 15.)

We still have our facebook group so if you haven’t joined we would love for you to! Here’s the group’s link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/350512171977943/. It’s a closed group so just ask to join and we’ll let you in.

There will be a monthly link-up so we can see what everyone’s reading – and probably add some to our own tbr lists. At the halfway mark and at the end we will have a giveaway for those participating.

We’ll continue to use the hashtag #CloakDaggerChal.

Levels:

5-15 books – Amateur sleuth

16-25 books – Detective

26-35 books – Inspector (my personal challenge)

36 – 55 books – Special agent

56+ books – Sherlock Holmes

To join, add a link to your sign-up post or Goodreads shelf here.