Christmas Book Review: The Christmas Clue

A married couple reminisce about their snowy Christmas that inspired the game of clue. They were hired to provide Christmas entertainment to a run down hotel during the war. Things aren't like the old days, but that doesn't mean they can't celebrate. 

When they arrive at the shop in town, they're stunned to discover that the shop owner has died. When another body is discovered at the hotel, the husband and wife try to unravel everything they've seen. There are a lot of rumors, a lot of motives, and a lot of murder weapons - which had been gathered together for the entertainment. Can they solve the murder?

My Thoughts: This is a fictionalized account of the inspiration of the board game Clue. I love the game Clue, which is why I read this book. It's a short read with lots of twists and turns. I enjoyed the husband and wife team trying to make Christmas not seem so depressing. The moments that inspire the game are fun to read.   The setting was charming - you could feel both the cold from the winter elements and the coziness from the hotel. Hand this thriller to fans of the game Clue.

Cover Thoughts: Charming

Source: Netgalley 

Library Recommendation: A fun historical fiction cozy read set during Christmas is a fantastic addition to your public library's collection

Picture Book Review: Our Favorite Day of the Week

 

On the way to school, Musa learns that his friend's favorite day of the week is Tuesday. He shares that his favorite day of the week is Wednesday. As more friends join the group of walkers, they learn about everyone's favorite day. 

I love how everyone has a different reason for their favorite day from spending time with grandmothers to religion. I love how their teacher surprises them with her choice. This book will have the reader think about what their favorite day of the week is and why. 

* Book sent for review

Top Ten Tuesday: Fall Freebie

 This week's topic is a fall freebie - and I'm talking about some YA fall books.

Now that fall is officially here, it's time to read some cozy seasonal reads. I'm loving all the fall YA romance books this year. I haven't seen this trend before in YA and I'm here for it! 

To Read:

Already read:

Middle Grade Monday: Nothing to See Here

 

Winnie is having a terrible year. Her best friend is pulling away from her and joining the popular kids. Her parents took her phone away; she's the only kid in school who doesn't have a phone. Now there's a list going around rating girls in the class as Hot or Not. Guess which list she made...

When rumors start getting posted online - everyone is glued to their screens. It doesn't matter if what they're saying is true, everyone believes the rumors. Winnie and some other disgruntled students decide to start rumors of their own as an experiment. They hope to stop all the online hate and bullying. Can their idea make a difference?

My Thoughts: I felt terrible for all the kids in this book. I wouldn't want to grow up with social media. There's so much here to talk about: the friendship drama, cheating, phone privileges, bullying, gossip, the experiment, and fake news. I really love how the group of non-friends: 1) become friends and 2) create an experiment to play with fake news and rumors.  Also, I love that this was based off a news story. I hope this book makes readers think about their social media footprint. I hope it makes readers think about kindness. This subject is so important right now for middle school students and Barbara Dee handles it with perfection. I hope over the years, this becomes required reading. 

Cover Thoughts: Love it

Source: Book sent fore review

Library Recommendation: A must have for your school and public library collections - don't sleep on this one. 

Hand this book to: middle school students and parents of middle school students.

Release date: October 20, 2026.

Board Books: Barn in Fall

This rhyming board book showcases one day on the farm - the day of the fall festival. The illustrations are gorgeous. There's so much to pour over in this book.

* there are four books in this series, one for each season. 

TBR Check-in: Summer

This week, we shared our Fall TBR list and that means it's time to check in and see how I did with my summer list.

And it turns out - not well!

Read:

And I think it's because of two reasons:

1. Summer Reading always kicks my butt and leaves me less reading time 

2. We had a budget freeze for most of the summer, which means no new books. And while we do belong to a consortium, many libraries don't send new books. The budget passed and now we're back to normal. I'll hopefully be getting to read these books soonish.

How did you do on your list? 

Fall Romance Read: Honeycrisp Orchard Inn

 

Ellie's life just imploded. Her boss fired her after her boyfriend stole her presentation. Now she has: no boyfriend, no job, and no place to live. Her mother calls her out of the blue and asks for her help planning a Fall Festival. Ellie's thankful for the call; it couldn't have come at a better time.

She immediately heads for home; she hasn't been there in ages. She falls in the love with the town and the orchard all over again. Ellie has some fences to mend to her parents for not having been home in several years and to Aiden. Aiden was once her best friend, and she told him they were going to run the orchard and inn together. The more time she spends with him, the more she could see a future together living out their childhood dream. But can she really go back to small town life?

My Thoughts: It took me a beat to get into this one, but then I was hooked. A fantastic fall romance novel that hit so many fall beats. I loved the orchard and the inn; it seems like such a fun place to visit. I love how Ellie worked to pull together this festival that would help save the inn. I love her banter with Aiden. I loved the relationships she struck up with the other people who worked at the orchard/inn. And Pumpkin was adorable! I'm so glad that this is the start of a new series, because I didn't want this book to end.

Source: My Library

Cover Thoughts: Perfectly cute and very fall

Library Recommendation: Highly recommended for your romance collection

Hand to one to: readers who want fall stories and readers who enjoy Hallmark movies

Book 2:

I'm so happy it's a Christmas romance