Book Beginnings on Friday and Book Blogger Hop – August 12, 2022

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted each week by Rose City Reader. It’s a chance to share the first sentence or so of the book you are reading this week. You can check out others’ book beginnings here. I’m also going to link up with Carrie at Reading Is My Superpower for First Line Friday.

This week’s book beginning:

Synopsis:

Cassie Gwynne—cat lover, bookworm and daring detective—takes on her most challenging case yet…

Florida, 1884. It’s a new year and Cassie Gwynne is determined to be done with the unseemly business of murder. She’s made her resolution and she’s going to stick to it. Unfortunately, fate has other plans… The very next day, she happens upon the body of a newcomer to town—customs collector Chester Pence—floating beneath the boardwalk.

Never one to shy away from a puzzle, Cassie can’t resist getting involved in the investigation. It’s no secret that Chester made a number of enemies in his short time in Fernandina: confiscating a beleaguered bride’s wedding dress and a bossy businessman’s cigars among many other mean acts. It’s even rumored a well-to-do lady with a pampered dog has been leaving him nasty little parcels on his doorstep, but would she stoop as low as murder?

But Cassie’s only just gotten started on her suspect list when a witness comes forward and accuses one of Cassie’s close friends, Mr. Hu, of the crime. Much to her surprise, he confesses. She is convinced he is innocent. Is Mr. Hu protecting someone?

Cassie continues to investigate, but when she returns home one day to find her aunt’s beautiful house completely ransacked, she knows it’s a warning. Can Cassie uncover the truth, or will the killer ensure this is her final case?

A warm and witty Gilded Age cozy mystery with a heroine you’ll be obsessed with! Fans of Deanna Raybourn, Verity Bright and T.E. Kinsey won’t be able to put this down.

Customs Collector Chester Pence smirked as he bent over his lantern to examine the bills in his hand, a wad of multi-dollar notes so thick he could smell the ink through the musk of wet earth and decaying plants rising from the marsh around him.

Ooh, that’s an interesting start, don’t you think? Why is Chester Pence in a marsh? Where did he get that great wodge of cash?

Would you keep reading?

Book Blogger Hop

Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer. It starts each Friday and runs through the following Thursday. Each week, there’s a new prompt featuring a book-related question. It’s designed to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, make new blogging friends, and gain followers. See what others have to say on this topic and link up your own post here.

This week’s prompt:

What are some of your favorite books? (Julie @ Stepping Stone Book Reviews)

Well, my goodness. I hardly know how to answer that. I’ll go with ones that fall in the “books I would read again” category (this is saying something, because I don’t often re-read books). Anne of Green Gables is definitely on that list. A Wrinkle in Time. The Little House books. Andrew Peterson’s Wingfeather Saga. Stephen King’s Dark Tower series. The Chronicles of Narnia. Mercedes Lackey’s Last Herald-Mage trilogy. Others may come to mind as the day goes on, and I’ll come back and add them here if they do.

What are your favorites? Let me know in a comment!

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16 Responses to Book Beginnings on Friday and Book Blogger Hop – August 12, 2022

  1. Meezan says:

    I don’t often re-read books either. I have not read any of those, but some are definitely on my TBR list, especially Anne of Green Gables. I keep getting caught up in cozy mysteries that I lose sight of other books! Enjoy your day and weekend! 🙂

  2. Love those books. But this is honestly one of the hardest questions for me to answer!

  3. Paula Shreckhise says:

    Not much time to re-read books because most are for reviews.

    My first line today is from the excellent book by Elizabeth Musser:
    By Way of the Moonlight:
    Atlanta, Georgia Thursday, March 5, 2020
    DINOSAUR BONES FOUND IN BUCKHEAD BACKYARD

  4. I don’t have time to re read, but that is a good way to choose a favourite book. I haven’t read any of those on your list, I’ll have to look them up!

    Have a great weekend!

    Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog
    My post:
    https://budgettalesblog.wordpress.com/2022/08/12/book-blogger-hop-what-are-some-of-your-favorite-books/

  5. Brian H says:

    You forgot the Discworld books, Hugo’s Les Miserables, and Peake’s first two Gormenghast books–’cause we all know the third is hot trash that needs to be burned with fire and then fed to cockroaches.

    • I did forget Discworld. And Good Omens. In my defense, the prompt did say SOME of my favorite books. But I should have included Pratchett.

      I haven’t read Les Mis, so it can’t be one of my favorite books. I know you enjoy it, though!

      And ALL of Gormenghast is hot trash that needs to be burned with fire and fed to cockroaches. No, that might be a disservice to the cockroaches (and you know how I feel about those). That’s why it made my list of “books I’d like to throw into the ocean.” As Gray Still Plays would say, yeetus deletus to Gormenghast.

      (Anyone reading, the comment I’m replying to is from my favorite human. I can talk trash about Gormenghast to him because he knows how I really feel about it. LOL)

  6. Sounds like a good book. I’ll have to check it out.

  7. Ashley S. says:

    The Gilded Age is one of my favorite eras to read about, so I’m definitely checking this series out. Thanks for sharing! Hope you have a wonderful weekend! 🙂

  8. That sounds like an interesting book. I shared the first line from Forged in Steele by Susanne Sleeman. https://daniellegrandinetti.com/2022/08/12/forged-in-steele/
    Hope you have a great week!

  9. This sounds like a fun one!! 😊

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