Let's start our discussion of February books.

Alice

I am reading one for the challenge, Louis Penny's Still Life. It has been on myshelf for a long time. Really good. Will have to get more by here.

Alice

I'm reading the newest Lacey Smithosonian mystery....Shot Through Velvet. It's a fun read.

I'm still reading the same books I posted about a couple of days ago on the Jan. thread. I can say that I am quite enjoying Wild Indigo by Sandi Ault. Glad I took a chance on it--it's for the Indigo part of the bonus 'rainbow' challenge and is the first in a series, so for those who don't have a book chosen for this category yet this might work for you. It's about Jamaica Wild, a sort of park ranger (Bureau of Land Management) working in northern New Mexico, and she is learning about Pueblo Indian culture, so there is some mystical elements to it as well.

Cheryl

I'm reading Dead in the Water by Ted Wood for the challenge.  Only a few pages into it and so far it's just OK.  It's a short book so I will finish it if only because I had a difficult time finding a book for this category of the challenge.

I'm reading Evidence of Things Seen by Elizabeth Daly for the challenge (paranormal - ghost) and I am enjoying it thoroughly!

I'm reading The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson. I finally got interested in this series and plan on reading the last one soon.

Also reading Francine Matthews' Death in a Mood Indigo. I only have one more to go to finish this series, also.

I am reading Murder in the White House by Margaret Truman. The story line is pretty good though parts of it are corny; however, I am enjoying the story.

It is the first of her fiction novels and am hoping in the rest of the series she has worked out some of the choppiness and awkward corny moments. I have the next three books in the series on my TBR.

I am reading "The Long Quiche Goodbye" by Avery Aames.   I am finding it to be a slow start but it is the first of the series and usually once I get to know the characters I settle into a book more.  It is a cozy mystery set in a cheese shop so maybe tonight I will have a little wine and cheese while I read.  

Arrgghh!! I have DNF'd three books since yesterday.  Couldn't even get through the first 20 pages.  Not good. :(

Today I picked up Death Wore White by Jim Kelly.  I've made it to page 15 without chucking it across the room so I guess that's good.  It's the first in a series AND an award winner so I might slot it into one of the challenge categories. 

Finished up Wild Indigo last night (loved it!) and also Mama Rides Shotgun (meh...seriously thinking of removing the third one from my WL as I just found Mace and her "Mama" awfully annoying this time around) and now am starting The Burgundian's Tale by Kate Sedley (one of the Roger the Chapman medieval mysteries) and tucked Strange Affair by Peter Robinson in my purse...it's one of the few Alan Banks mysteries my library doesn't offer in audio, which is kind of a bummer as I've gotten to like listening to them. Ah well!

I should mention, the Roger the Chapman medieval series is excellent for those looking for a medieval mystery for the challenge. Except for the first couple, they are very hard to find here at PBS though...I have had to get the rest from my library.

Cheryl

Just finished Deadly Web by Barbara Nadel.  Although the author is a favorite, this book about satanic worship, Goth culture, murder, and deviant sexual practice below the surface of Istanbul, was not particularly enjoyable. 

Susan  

I am reading "Still Life" by Louise Penny for one of the categories in the Mystery Challenge.  Not very far along, but I think it is going to be a good one.

Becky I loved Still Life I read it last week. I liked it so much I ordred the next two books in the series.

I am readign a Killer Plot by Ellery Adams. I didn't have high expections but it is quite good. I really like the dog too. Main character, Olivia, has turned out much different than I expected. Book 2 in the series comes out in March, looking forward togetting it.

Alice

I just finished Test of Wills by Charles Todd. Wow, did my opinion change. The first page, I was afraid that the writer was too "fluffy" for my reading tastes. But, thankfully I continued the book. It is a great mystery. Until the last 3 pages, I had no idea who was the murderer!!! And was it a surprise.

Going to SYKM. Check this out.

No wonder that this was a good book. Notice the awards. Wings of Fire is going onto my library search list.

Mary

I just finished Duplicity Dogged the Dachshund by Blaize Clement.  I think this second in the Dixie Hemingway series is smarter and more serious than the run of the mill cozies.  Dixie was a deputy in the Sarasota County Sheriff's office which gives her more credibility than the usual manicurist or cookie maker. 

A second love interest has emerged which I hope gets resolved soon unlike Janet Evanovich and Joanne Fluke's ongoing indecision.  This is about the 3rd time in books I've read that a hero/heroine has forgotten to recharge their cell phone, causing the "big contrived confrontational ending". For goodness sake, get a car charger!

Other than those things, I enjoyed the book and plan to read the rest of the series.

Susan

Susan, really like the Dixie Hemingway series, too.  I have the latest on my TBR pile. And without giving anything away, she does focus on one of those guys. <grin>

Good news, Michele.  I am getting ready to read #3, Even Cat Sitters Get the Blues and #4, Cat Sitter on a Hot Tin Roof.

Susan

I finished Thomas Perry's Vanishing Act and I must say that was an awesome read! I can't wait to get the entire backlst and dive in. I love Jane Whitefield!

ETA: Also finished Craig Johnson's Junkyard Dogs....as good as usual. Poor Walt is going to have to get a break here or he isn't physically going to make it until he decides if he wants run again. I think the hospital is just going to build him a room on. 

Bah!  Not really enjoying Death Wore White but I'm more than halfway through it so I'll probably finish.  Will begin Thirty-Three Teeth today and probably both of my "we're practically twins" category books just to see which one I want to read. They are both new authors to me.

LeeAnne --- I am very envious that you are going to start "Thirty Three Teeth".  I did receive my copy, but am finishing "Still Life" first.  I haven't enjoyed a book as much as I enjoyed the first Dr. Siri book in quite some time.

I've been a reading fool...staying at with my mom and her SO due to illness (theirs), so have just grabbed stuff randomly when I've gotten home for more clothes and kitty care. I did grab my first Constable Evans mystery by Rhys Bowen on the weekend, and liked it. Grabbed and read another today - no time for them to be in order, but I will be seeking additional books in the series. I've also read two Maigret novels (longstanding favorite), and Mrs. Jeffries Disputes the Verdict. I have a couple Louise Pennys to read, but I'm "saving them," I read Still Life last week and it's another series I think I'll be following. And I'm ready to start either Carrot Cake by Pence or another Mrs. Jeffries book. I'm not home long enough to be organized, lol, so it's sort of random.   

Finished Buttons and Bones by Monica Ferris....kind of the ultimate cozy, with no dramatic, dangerous ending. Just a clever woman (my age) who figures things out.  Fun, but now time for something different. I've been reading WL books--a little guilt thing I have about getting them on to the next reader. However, I think it's time to read something that's been on the TBR pile for a while.

I have been there with my MOM. She has been hospitalized 3 times in the last few months. Those "Lazy Boy Type" chairs in hospitals are just better than the floor.

Keep reading. The Maigret's are perfect for those times.

Mary

I just stayed up late to finish "Deeper Than the Dead" by Tami Hoag. Boy, was it good! I have "Secrets to the Grave" on hold at the library and I can't wait to read it, also. I am pretty much smitten with FBI agent Vince Leone.