Laura DiSilverioRecensioni

Die Buying is up there with the best cozy murder mysteries. E. J. Ferris is a wounded veteran reduced to being a mall cop, and trying to do her best despite some less-than-desirable coworkers. The mall is an ever-changing setting with plenty of zany characters. There is a hint of possible romance in E. J.'s future. I am hoping this series has a long run.

I assumed a series taking place in a mall would be all fluff and silliness, but I was wrong. All Sales Fatal, the second in the Mall Cop Mystery series, was as good as the first. My only complaint was that I read it too fast, and will now have to wait for the next installment....

I enjoyed this fun mystery. DiSilverio is quite creative, telling the story from two different narrators' points of view, one in first person, the other in third. A lesser writer could not pull this off, but with this author, it works. Now I need to read first two in the series!

This series keeps getting better. If you haven’t read the first two Mall Cop books, do so. Malled to Death can be read and enjoyed without reading the previous two, but why deprive yourself? EJ is a wounded warrior – a veteran of the war in Afghanistan who must give up her military career due to a leg injury. When police departments do not offer her a job, she resorts to security work at a suburban mall. This setting presents plenty of entertaining situations and characters. EJ must operate as an amateur sleuth since being a mall cop does not carry any official status, a situation that a handsome local detective reminds her of constantly.

In Malled to Death, EJ’s famous actor father takes center stage when his action movie is filmed at the Fernglen Mall. EJ has spent her adult life trying to escape the Hollywood scene. Complicating things further, the mysterious proprietor of a cookie shop on the food court escalates their relationship.

Without getting political or maudlin, DiSilverio weaves the plight of wounded war veterans into her story when a soldier with a head injury is implicated in a movie prop manager’s death. EJ feels compelled to clear the soldier of the murder and sorts through the many suspects with the help of her retired CIA agent grandfather.

I tried to solve the murder before the final scene, but the ending caught me by surprise. If you are looking for a fun read with the right combination of humor and depth, try the Mall Cop series. You won’t be disappointed.

I loved the setting of Fernglen Mall and I loved following the mall cops on their patrols, but I didn't love the mystery itself.

Even though I've never been to Fernglen Mall, I feel like I have before. The mall is a familiar place to me, a place where I used to hang out with my friends to shop, where we'd hang out by the fountain or the food court with our treats. It's nostalgic to read about a mall cop cruising through on her Segway, stopping by all kinds of small businesses on her patrol.

EJ, the MC, is a military veteran turned mall cop. She dreams of becoming a traditional cop, but is having trouble coming to terms with the fact that she'll likely never become one due to the knee injury she sustained while in the military. She's a determined character who has a group of interesting people around her, from her family to her fellow mall cops.

My favourite part about the book were the mall cops! My favourite parts of the book were watching the mall cops interact with one another. They're a fun and eclectic bunch of characters who have to deal with a whole host of issues at the mall from loose snakes to serial car vandalizers to murderer(s).

As for the mystery itself, I personally found it just OK. I personally think there were too many elements and loose ends for one book. It made it kind of hard to follow and to sleuth along, which are two things I usually love doing in cozies.

There were also a couple of deus ex machina moments that I really didn't enjoy. For example, it it's awfully convenient that EJ's grandfather is also a retired spy who still chats with his old friends about American intelligence-gathering.

If you love evocative settings in your cozies, this one might be for you, but if you're more interested in the mystery component, maybe I'd consider a different one.

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I read the first in this series without high hopes, frankly, and I was pleasantly surprised by it. It had great characters, with a strong focus on friendships and family, and I really liked the chemistry between the MC Amy-Faye, and Detective Hart.

This second entry still has all of that - including the great chemistry - and those are the things that carried the story for me. I've read enough cozies now that it's impossible to not feel weary when certain over-used tropes are trotted out, and the family/friend in peril is one of the most threadbare. Still, I could have over-looked it (because there really are only so many reasons a girl can get herself involved in a murder mystery) but plots that involve the amateur detective and her friends running "investigations" that involve questioning suspects always make me roll my eyes. I always end up with the sense that these characters are playing dress-up and make-believe.

Still, if a cozy fits the mood, there's at least as much to like as there isn't. DiSilverio can write well, and it's one of the better edited books I've read (especially from Penguin) in awhile.½

Published as part of the Air University Library Series, this 75 page booklet analyzes the reasons women Air Force officers leave the service–through the input of 1,000 Air Force women from surveys– and proposes some solutions to stop this loss.

I'm just not a big fan of the Readaholics series.

After being wounded in Afghanistan, EJ Ferris retires from the military. Because of her knee injury, instead of starting a career as a police officer, EJ finds herself working in security at a mall. That's right -- move over, Paul Blart. EJ Ferris is a Mall Cop.

I have read a lot of cozy mysteries in my time. I thought I had seen every possible theme...everything from pie shops and cooking schools to witches and ghosts. This series caught my eye because it was a theme I had yet to encounter. Murder at the Mall.

I loved this book! The theme is different and the main character is intelligent, interesting, and a skilled investigator. The plot was well developed. The mystery held my attention, and the suspense/tension built to a great ending. There is a lot of humor in this cozy mystery. Escaped reptiles, a cat named Fubar, and a grandfather who thinks he is 007. I can't wait to read book 2!!

I read this book as part of the SaveOurCozies readathon. Penguin/Berkeley Publishing has cancelled several of its popular Cozy Mystery series. The Mall Cop series is on the list of those that are being cancelled. I hope the readathon and the SaveOurCozies group can maybe get a few of these series off the chopping block, or at least give the authors a place to connect with readers about what the future of these cozy mysteries will be. There are three books in the Mall Cop series. I am definitely going to read the rest of this series. Hopefully, the saga of EJ Ferris will continue.

Laura Disilverio also writes the Book Club Mystery series.

This started with the mad escape of creatures from the Herpetology Hut and E.J. Ferris, the mall cop has that and a local developer found dead in a window display of an expensive clothing shop. E. J. was not a typical mall cop but ex-CIA operative who had extensive damage to her knee, so much that she could not continue to work. E. J. had not given up, she was still applying to police departments in her off time. I really liked the portrayal of her cat, Fubar and of her Grandfather who understood why she wanted to keep going in her occupation rather than take it easy and being bored to death with her mother's plans for.

My only disappointment was there were too many characters and that dampened the interest a bit with the mystery. You have her mother and father, grandfather, co-employees, best friend and her old boyfriend, the shop owners and employers and many added suspects. More depth and fewer characters would be the way to go. Grandfather, Fubar and her best friend would great for any future cozy and more detail about them would have been welcomed.

I really enjoyed the humor in this cozy, great funny situations and turns of phrases.

I bought this paperback myself and enjoyed it quite bit but there were ways to improve it.

Amy-Faye Johnson is an event planner. She planned the grand opening of her brother's (Derek) pub when his hotheaded jerky partner is found murdered and Derek is the #1 suspect. Amy-Faye and her friends in her book club try to find the truth. Not bad although A-Faye talked about her copper hair a few too many times for my taste and it was a bit too much school girl crush romance for my taste - but not bad.

When Amy-Faye is heading to a new potential job of planning a wedding, she meets with the prospective bride. She doesn't find out until later that the groom is going to be her ex-boyfriend, Doug. Shaken, she tries not to let it show and agrees to go ahead anyway. Then, after the latest meeting of the Readaholics, where they're discussing Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon, Amy Faye discovers one of their members ill, and Ivy later dies from what appears to be suicide by poison. But Amy Faye doesn't believe she killed herself, and will do whatever it takes to find out the truth.

It doesn't help that the new detective in town, Lindell Hart, thinks the case is closed and tells her to let it go. But Amy Faye isn't so sure and enlists the help of her friends to find out why Ivy was murdered. Once she starts digging, she finds out more than she wants to know, and it could put her in the reach of someone who's killed once and doesn't mind doing it again...

I really wanted to like this book - after all, there's a cute cat on the cover, and who doesn't like cozies with cats? Well, this author, apparently...

The book begins when Amy Faye finds a small kitten on the way to her meeting. Since the first chapters are about her and her new acquisition of the kitten, I'm thinking she has a new kitten. But this is the worst case of bait and switch by any author that I've ever read, and I read over 300 books every year. She begins by telling you about the poor little adorable kitten, then...gives it away because she can't be bothered with a kitten. But silly me - because a kitten is on the cover, I actually thought there would be a kitten in the book (there is one scene where the person she gave it to brings it to one of their meetings, so I assume we're supposed to know it's loved and fine; I don't buy it.)

She decides she's "too busy" to care for it and must get rid of it. So, instead of giving this little thing a warm and safe home, she gives it to someone who takes it to be an outdoor cat - where there are predators - not even caring, not thinking it could get parasites; because, after all, what does she care if the kitten gets fleas or parasites and is constantly scratching? Before those who have outdoor cats get upset, I'm of the opinion that cats should be strictly indoor. You can't use the argument you're 'too busy' with me; cats are fine on their own, and low maintenance, unlike dogs. They don't need to be taken for a walk, and you don't have to kennel them when you travel. I lead a full life, and my cats are perfectly happy.

Anyway, now that I'm done with my rant about indoor vs. outdoor cats, there were other problems with this book as well: She agrees to plan her ex-boyfriend's wedding, but is stunned by the fact that he's getting married. Because, it seems, she didn't know they were completely broken up. Since they've had an on-again, off-again relationship, she thought they were just in the off-again stage. And other people knew - like her best friend Brooke - but no one bothered to tell her. How can you call someone your best friend if they have that kind of information but don't share it with you? And what about Doug's mother? She's the one who recommended Amy Faye; kudos for throwing business her way, but I suppose his mother never liked her, because she didn't call her first and mention it to her. I guess she believed they were just 'childhood sweethearts' and that it was all over between them. That woman would have been off my Christmas card list for sure.

I didn't think the reason for the murder was interesting enough to carry the book, the friends didn't seem like they cared enough to help her investigate, and her best friend Brooke seems too selfish and self-centered for me to like her. Oh, and there wasn't much about a book club, either, except the people in it.

But to make it worse, the ending completely sucked. For those that haven't read the book, I'll put it in a spoiler, but be aware it does contain the ending of the book! So if you don't want to know it, DO NOT read the spoiler!

https://joannesbooks.blogspot.com/2019/03/the-readaholics-and-falcon-fiasco-book...

In my opinion, a vacuum cleaner doesn’t suck as much as this ending. It was obvious from using a kitten as bait that the author wanted to get people to read her book...and by the ending it was also obvious that she didn't care if they did or not.

Close Call by Laura DiSilverio begins with something that could happen to any of us - Sydney Ellison picks up the wrong phone in a deli. She doesn’t realize her mistake until she gets a call on that phone talking about murder. Sydney’s first reaction is to just ignore the call; it must be a prank, right? And suddenly she is drawn back to a past she thought she’d left behind for good and that innocent mistake of picking up the wrong phone – and the possible confusion of the caller about her name – Sydney, Syd? – becomes much more than a mistake. Now it’s a cat-and-mouse chase with life and death stakes.

Close Call is a thriller with many layers and unexpected twists and turns. The plot is solid, well-developed, and fast-paced. The story is rich in detail about all of the very compelling characters, making it impossible to simply like or dislike them or characterize any of them as good or evil. Sydney is stubborn, hardheaded, often impulsive. She thinks she’s moved on but she won’t let much of the past go. She’s also loyal and dedicated and brave, but that impulsive rush to action without thinking has serious consequences. She is responsible for much of the danger to those around her because she has a need to act. The story very effectively switches back and forth from Sydney’s point of view to that of the hitman, Paul. The suspense builds to an ending I didn’t see coming, although when I thought about it, all the clues were there. The locations are richly described. You feel are there, in danger along with Sydney or trying to plan your next move with Paul.

I received an audio copy of Close Call from the author and have voluntarily left this review. The story is riveting, with more and more layers being revealed as each chapter unfolds, making it ideal for an audiobook. The narrator is skilled and easy to listen to. I didn’t want my daily walks to end. I highly recommend Close Call.

I'm entering this review about one week after reading the book and am drawing a complete blank on the plot. Obviously not a memorable work, though pleasant enough for killing time on a train trip.

That Last Weekend by Laura Disilverio is a intense, suspenseful mystery that reminds me some what of an Alfred Hitchcock story.

Ten years ago 5 friends were together for the weekend when something terrible happened. Now ten years later these same friends receive invitations to go back again to the place they were on that last weekend. Murder leaves them shook up and wondering who among them is a murderer. Can you ever really escape your past? Can friends stay friends after all that has happened? Who can be trusted and who among them should they be afraid of?

I found this book slow and hard to get into at first but if you stick with it the story picks up and it turns creepy at times and suspenseful. The plot is an edge of your seat thriller that is full of surprises with strong characters. Even the cover gives you a sense of the dark, heart pounding, thriller that is this book.

If you like a good suspense novel with a lot of suspects, a perfect setting .for the intense mystery and strong characters you will like this book.

I received this book for my honest opinion and review

A story of friendship and justice that will keep you reading. A group of friends are getting together again after ten years trying to put the past behind them, but soon tragedy strikes again. Laurel feels like she needs to uncover what is happening before it is too late, but is also fearful of just what exactly she will uncover. The friends agree to uncovering the truth, but since most likely one of them is the one responsible, it makes it harder and harder to know who to trust and who to fear.
I received a copy from the author, the review is my own.

That Last Weekend is a suspense novel by Laura DiSilverio. Laurel Muir, Dawn Infanti, Geneva Frost and Ellie Ordahl are surprised when they received a tangerine colored envelope with an invitation to a weekend at Chateau du Cygne Noire near Asheville, North Carolina. They have not been back since the “event” ten years prior. Laurel is hoping to finally get answers as to what happened that night. The second morning, Laurel goes to check on Evangeline and discovers her dead. The four friends agree to remain at the B&B until the truth is revealed. Laurel works with Sheriff Judah Boone to get the answers they need. Did one of her friends commit the crime or was it someone working at the chateau?

That Last Weekend is a slower paced novel that had extreme difficulty getting into. There are five main characters and the POV switches between four of them (Laurel, Geneva, Dawn, and Ellie). The transitions between POV were abrupt (rough). It would take a moment to realize that the POV had switched to a different character and figure out which one was talking now. That Last Weekend did not have real suspense until the last ten percent of the book. I wish the rest of the novel had the same pace and life as this section (my attention was finally captured and it was held until the end). Many readers will be surprised with the outcome of the main mystery. I was happy that the author included a good twist (only the best armchair sleuths will figure this one out). My rating for The Last Weekend is 3 out of 5 stars. I wish the author had told the story from Laurel’s point-of-view and had ramped up the pace in the first half of the book with more action.

Five college friends stayed at the same castle-like bed and breakfast every year, until tragedy struck. Pushed away by suspicion and fear, and drifting further apart due to distance and time, they now barely speak to one another. Until, ten years after that fateful night, each receives an invitation to return to the Chateau du Cygne Noir for one last weekend. The demons of the past and the present join forces, and death stalks the chateau. The five friends must confront their past and rip open old wounds to finally uncover the truth.

If all this sounds like a Christopher Pike novel to you, you are not far off (old person question: do people still read Christopher Pike books? Or are you looking up his Wikipedia page right now?). I’m not sure if I’m just burned out on the psychological thriller genre, but I just couldn’t get into this book. I tried, but ultimately, I couldn’t get behind any of the main characters, and reading the book felt a bit like my middle school reads attempted an Agatha Christie radio drama.

But, maybe I’m being overly harsh. I’ve certainly been hitting the psychological thrillers harder than the whiskey recently, and I have to say, they’ve all started to look alike to me. I think too many plot twists may have turned my head. If you’re generally a fan of the genre, or you’re old enough to look back at The Midnight Club with something like nostalgia, then give this book a whirl. I’d like to know if quiet, self-conscious, jogging female protagonists have turned me into a bitter old hag.

An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

That Last Weekend is one of those mysteries with a very limited list of suspects, none of whom you want to be guilty. Laura DiSilverio does a masterful job of balancing that tension between almost preferring not to know who is guilty and the need to know for the sake of the innocent. A circle of college friends used to vacation in a castle that had been moved brick by brick from France to America until ten years ago, one of them was pushed off a fifth-floor balcony. The local sheriff was certain it was one of them – and they suspected each other as well – and that mutual suspicion infected their friendship.

Now, suddenly, they are invited back for a weekend and none of them can resist attending, their motives mixed, hoping to rekindle lost friendships or to find answers. Murder and mayhem ensue and the sheriff is back, determined that this time someone will pay.

That Last Weekend is a fast-paced mystery that somehow manages to create as much suspense as those with a small group of suspects as many can with dozens. There really are so few, the four friends invited back to the scene of the past and present crime, the caretakers, the maid, and the victim’s mysterious fiance. The maid is skilled at pressuring people for “tips” and the caretakers are resentful the castle is being converted and they are laid off, so there’s a chance “the butler did it.” There are, of course, the friends, and they are likable people you want to be innocent.

Of course, when mysteries are left unsolved, to fester for a decade, the innocent suffer with the guilty, under a cloud of shared suspicion. Friendships wear thin. How can you hold close to a friendship if there is this whisper of doubt, the fear your friend is guilty? All in all, this was a quick, pleasurable mystery that was more complex than it seemed at first and fair every step of the way.

That Last Weekend will be released September 5th. I received an e-galley in advance from the publisher through NetGalley.

That Last Weekend at Midnight Ink
Laura DiSilverio author site

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2017/09/01/9780738752532/

An event planner and a book club called the Readaholics - one of their group members dies and they are determined to prove that it wasn't suicide. Really great start to a new series. Will look for more by author.

I will read absolutely anything having to do with Agatha Christie, especially when it's an entry in a cozy mystery series that I already know I enjoy.

When her brother's business partner is murdered during the opening night festivities at their new bar, Amy-Faye takes it upon herself to solve the mystery and clear her brother as a suspect. But along the way, she discovers that almost everyone in her small town has a secret to hide, and some have a possible motive for murder.

DiSilverio does a really nice job of weaving in the themes of Murder on the Orient Express along with some discussion of plot points (though be warned, if you haven't read the source material, the ending will be spoiled for you in this book--and if you haven't read the source material, go and read it now, it's one of my all-time favorite books!).

The characters are unique and entertaining without becoming stereotypes, and Amy-Faye is a strong narrator and protagonist, with a great supporting cast. The romance is also well-handled with a light touch, an important part of the story without overpowering the mystery.

This is definitely a cozy series I would recommend. DiSilverio has made a fun mystery series centered around famous mysteries, and I'm excited to read the other Readaholics' stories.

What a great read! This is the first young adult book for author Laura DiSilverio, and she did a wonderful job with it.

I love dystopian/young adult series, but I wasn’t sure how this one was going to play out with a bug on the cover. Well the locusts are only a small part of this story, which leads Everly Jax and her friends on a mission to escape the Kube.

Of course there are bumps in the road on the escape, so I was wondering where this was going to lead them, but once they ran into Bulrush, the “Underground Railroad”, it took a really great turn for me.

I thought the story was fast paced and really engaging. If it slowed down, the next page would bring it back up to pace. I would completely recommend this to those who like dystopian series. I am going to pick up the next volume soon!

I received this book from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my fair and honest review.

The series is about Amy-Faye, an event coordinator, and her book club. It’s interesting to be reading a book about a book club and their reviews of the books they are reading, or have read. This is my first book in the Book Club Mystery series, and I really enjoyed it. I was worried going into it that I was not going to know the characters, but by the end – I felt like I knew each one. I also felt that if I had read the other books, I wouldn’t have had too much repetition about each of the characters, which is nice.

A stranger in small-town Heaven, Colorado has been murdered, and the book club takes it into their own hands to try to help solve the murder. The only thing I didn’t like about this book was that it seemed to take a long time to get to the murder, but after that I felt like it was fast paced and really an enjoyable read. It was really fun to try and guess along with Amy-Faye about what was next and who had committed the murder. The book makes me really want to visit Colorado sometime as it sounds so beautiful.

I will definitely go back and read the other two books in this series and I would recommend this book to others.

Wow what a book to start the year off. This is an edge of your seat, hold your breath, fantastic, suspenseful book. I loved it and once I started I couldn't put it down. I found myself caught up in the story and when Sydney was caught in the cross hairs of an assassin I found myself holding my breath willing her to move and not get shot. I am a big fan of Tom Clancy books and Robert Ludlums Jason Bourne and this book is right up there with them.

When Sydney inadvertently picks up the wrong cell phone , which happens to be the burner phone of an assassin, and gets a call saying it was time to kill Montoya that's when bad things start happening. Her fiancé Jason is killed by mistake when the assassin mistakes him for Sydney, because he assumed the name meant it was a guy. He has to make it right and still kill his contract while dealing with Sydney, the loose end. Sydney wants to find out who killed Jason, get the police to believe her that there is a contract out on Sen. Montoya and still stay alive. Things keep going wrong and people have to be killed and Sydney needs to find the killer without getting killed. Can she do it? Her sister Reese tries to help but ends up shot and now Sydney is on her own to find the answers. Can she find out who the killer is and more importantly who contracted him? Will she survive? Will the people around her survive?

I like how Laura DiSilverio makes the story about both the struggles of Sydney and the assassin. She lets us see the story unfold from both of their perspectives and it adds to the story. She has an excellent suspenseful plot and well developed characters and story line. The story just flows and the whole time I was reading this book I was thinking this would be such a good movie.

I hope if you like a good suspenseful read then you will read this book.

If you want to learn more about this book and her other books you can at:
http://lauradisilverio.com/

I hope you will check this book out.

I received a copy of this book from the author for my honest opinion and review

This was a fun cozy mystery starring amateur sleuth Amy-Faye Johnson and the members of her Readaholics book club. Amy-Faye is an event planner, and she's organized the Celebration of Gothic Novels for the local bookstore. It appears to be a smashing success, until one of the guests is murdered. Who was he? Why was he there? The book club has their work cut out for them to solve the complex mystery.

I enjoyed the characters and murder mystery, though once again we have the protagonist in a relationship with the police detective. Not my favorite cozy element, after reading so many. At least they had a good relationship, and Amy-Faye never stepped over the line in her investigation.

Of course, one of my favorite things about the book was all the Gothic novel talk. If only the Celebration of Gothic Novels was real! I'd be there, for sure. This is the third book in the Book Club Mystery series, and I'd love to take a look at the first two.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.