The Mask of Mirrors
RECOMMENDED: A Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick is $2.99! M.A. Carrick is the name for the writing duo of Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms. Carrie wrote a Lightning Review of this one and gave it a B+:
Readers who like political scheming, fashion as a weapon and a tool, secrets, and swashbuckling will enjoy this, and as a special treat for Tarot fans the characters have their own form of cartomancy which is described in detail in the book.
The Mask of Mirrors is the unmissable start to the Rook & Rose trilogy, a dazzling and darkly magical fantasy adventure by Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms, writing together as M. A. Carrick.
Fortune favors the bold. Magic favors the liars.
Ren is a con artist who has come to the sparkling city of Nadežra with one goal: to trick her way into a noble house, securing her fortune and her sister’s future.
But as she’s drawn into the elite world of House Traementis, she realizes her masquerade is just one of many surrounding her. And as nightmare magic begins to weave its way through the City of Dreams, the poisonous feuds of its aristocrats and the shadowy dangers of its impoverished underbelly become tangled…with Ren at their heart.
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Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks is $1.99! This is a historical romance with (you guessed it) a Scottish hero! The heroine is deaf and in an arranged marriage. There was a great discussion last time this was on sale about the nature of the heroine’s disability, as the description is slightly misleading.
Eveline Armstrong is fiercely loved and protected by her powerful clan, but outsiders consider her “touched.” Beautiful, fey, with a level, intent gaze, she doesn’t speak. No one, not even her family, knows that she cannot hear. Content with her life of seclusion, Eveline has taught herself to read lips and allows the outside world to view her as daft. But when an arranged marriage into a rival clan makes Graeme Montgomery her husband, Eveline accepts her duty—unprepared for the delights to come. Graeme is a rugged warrior with a voice so deep and powerful that his new bride can hear it, and hands and kisses so tender and skilled that he stirs her deepest passions.
Graeme is intrigued by the mysterious Eveline, whose silent lips are ripe with temptation and whose bright, intelligent eyes can see into his soul. As intimacy deepens, he learns her secret. But when clan rivalries and dark deeds threaten the wife he has only begun to cherish, the Scottish warrior will move heaven and earth to save the woman who has awakened his heart to the beautiful song of a rare and magical love.
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Song of the Forever Rains by E.J. Mellow is $1.99! This one was published by Amazon, so it’s only available there. On Goodreads, there does seem to be some confusion on whether this falls into adult romance or young adult. Others say it splits the different at new adult.
From the award-winning author of the Dreamland series comes a new dark romantic fantasy about a young woman finding hope in her powers of destruction.
The Thief Kingdom is a place hidden within the world of Aadlior. Many whisper of its existence, but few have found this place, where magic and pleasure abound. There, the mysterious Thief King reigns supreme with the help of the Mousai, a trio of revered and feared sorceresses.
Larkyra Bassette may be the youngest of the Mousai, but when she sings her voice has the power to slay monsters. When it’s discovered the Duke of Lachlan is siphoning a poisonous drug from the Thief Kingdom and using it to abuse his tenants, Larkyra is offered her first solo mission to stop the duke. Eager to prove herself, Larkyra accepts by posing as the duke’s potential bride. But her plans grow complicated when she finds herself drawn to Lord Darius Mekenna, Lachlan’s rightful heir. Soon she suspects Darius has his own motivations for ridding Lachlan of the corrupt duke. Larkyra and Darius must learn to trust each other if there is to be any hope of saving the people of Lachlan—and themselves.
Welcome to the world of Aadilor, where lords and ladies can be murderers and thieves, and the most alluring notes are often the deadliest. Dare to listen?
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Real Murders by Charlaine Harris is 99c at Amazon! This is book one in the Aurora Teagarden cozy mystery. I feel like this series has been mentioned a few times on the site. Are you a fan?
Aurora Teagarden, small town librarian and true crime buff, is looking forward to the monthly meeting of the Real Murders Society, a group of fellow crime enthusiasts who share a unique interest in historical murders. The Society meetings are the highlight of Roe’s social life in sleepy Lawrenceville, Georgia, and she’s ready for a quiet night of discussion, coffee, and cookies. But after she finds the body of a Society member in a staged crime scene eerily similar to the one the group was supposed to discuss that very night, Roe finds herself at the center of a murderous story of her own.
As the killer strikes again, it’s obvious that members of the Real Murders Society have become targets of a knowledgeable copycat. With the help of handsome police detective Arthur Smith and the town’s dashing new resident, mystery novelist Robin Crusoe, it’s up to Roe to discover if the murderer is one of the group’s own and to piece the perplexing puzzle together before another body appears.
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris, this first book in the Aurora Teagarden mystery series combines the excitement of solving the crime and the charm of Southern hospitality. Real Murders, A Bone to Pick, Three Bedrooms, One Corpse and the rest of the Aurora Teagarden mysteries have been adapted into film for Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.
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I loved Song of the Forever Rains. It is beautifully written, reminding me very much of Laini Taylor in the atmosphere created. There is a second book in the series (there are three sisters, so I assume/hope a third is in progress): Dance of a Burning Sea which is inching its way to the top of my TBR tower…
I am a huge fan of the Aurora Teagarden books and was disappointed when author Charlaine Harris started writing her Sookie Stackhouse books. Happy for the author, to have such success, but sorry for myself.
I lived with my parents during the pandemic and probably watched all of the Aurora Teagarden movies on Hallmark with my mom. I have definite feelings about Candace Cameron Bure and her acting ability but she wears the most beautiful coats I have ever seen on the show. I didn’t realize the books were by Charlaine Harris! Are the books actually smutty? Because the vampire books sure are.
My two cents: I bought the Teagarden series in paperback years ago in advance of a major snowstorm that kept us housebound for days. So I read them all but became increasingly disenchanted the further along I got. I never warmed up to Aurora. She was unpleasant and self-absorbed. And her love life! Seriously, YMMV, but Harris has a pattern in that regard that I don’t care for. You can see it in the Lily Bard and Sookie Stackhouse series, as well, to give you an idea.
Speaking of Lily Bard, despite some quibbles, I liked that series back in the day, much more than Teagarden, but I revisited the first book in audio a couple of years ago and, wow, it did not hold at all for me. That’s a risk with old favorites, I guess.
@EJ: As noted, it’s been years since I read them, but I don’t recall them being particularly graphic or smutty. Definitely not anywhere near Sookie level.
That said, I was only vaguely aware of the movies. I may be wrong, but it’s difficult for me to imagine that CCB and/or Hallmark would be a very good fit for the source material.
@Susan
That makes me think I would like the books.
I enjoyed the Aurora Teagarden series very much. Roe has various romances/encounters, but not to the level of Sookie Stackhouse. I always enjoy Harris’ writing. I did NOT like the Hallmark series. The books are much better.
A couple of things I liked:
1. Roe doesn’t actively try to solve the mysteries. I have issues with feisty protagonists who interfere with detectives unless there’s a REALLY good reason. That was my main issue with the Hallmark series.
2. Roe isn’t selfless and all-sacrificing. She has boundaries and doesn’t put up with even the people she loves dumping on her. I liked that about Sookie too.
I ADORED the Mask of Mirrors. Fair warning, the third book in the series is not yet out and the wait is indeterminable.
I found the Charlaine Harris series (and the Lily Bard one) to not be what I’d consider cozy – a lot of them are kind of dark or are a little more depressing or trauma-forward (some are more gruesome/violent, but I don’t think as much as in her other mystery series) than I’d consider a cozy mystery to be. That said, once I started reading them I had to keep reading them – they’re good mysteries, but I’d have to be in the right mood for them.
Marie Brennan’s website has a post from a month ago saying that they’re working on revisions for the third Rook & Rose book right now.