I have to confess, I’m  a sucker for any book with a racehorse on the cover. I grew up galloping racehorses at a bush track where I boarded my horses as a kid. I also come from 3 generations of racehorse owners and trainers on both sides of my family. And my barrel racing horse (now retired) came off the track Los Alamitos in SoCal.

When I saw Bev’s book was one of the 99 cent books on the www.bookloversbuffet.com, it was the first book I bought. I have to say, it’s going to rank with my favorite books that include racehorses. Bev’s knowledge of the racetrack shines through in her novel, and the characters are so real, and sympathetic. I had to be torn away from reading. My heart ached for horses (Country Girl) as well as the people.

I’m starting Color My Horse next. I can’t wait.

Description from Amazon:

Racehorse trainer, Kurt MacKinnon, resents being yanked into undercover police work. But when his ex-partner is murdered, Kurt is determined to find the killer and moves his third-string Thoroughbreds to the backwater track where his partner was last seen alive.

Julie West, a struggling and dedicated jockey, pins her dreams of an elusive win on the new trainer in town, never suspecting she’s a person of interest—and not because of her riding skills.

Kurt didn’t expect his contrary colt to flourish under Julie’s feminine touch nor for his own rusty heart to soften. However, his deceit sucks them both into the cross hairs of a killer, and suddenly much more than their love is in danger.

CONTAINS excerpt of Kindle Bestseller “Color My Horse” by Bev Pettersen

Death of a Cantankerous Old Coot  is a great mystery novella by Teresa Watson.

I was lucky enough to read this story as it was being posted on Teresa’s blog, and then as a beta reader.

A mystery with enough twists and turns that you will be eager to get to the end to see “who-done-it.”

Someone has killed Amos Gardner, one of the leading citizens of Brookdale, though not exactly everyone’s favorite citizen. The sheriff wonders if it has something to do with the lawsuit Amos filed against his own granddaughter, Lizzie Crenshaw. When someone tries to kill Amos’ wife, she points the finger at Lizzie, who must work with the new deputy to figure out what is going on before she is either thrown in jail…or becomes a victim herself.

Give this novella a try, and you’ll by looking forward to Teresa Watson’s next story.

MURDER AMONG FRIENDS  A Tony Boudreaux Mystery.

“When Tony Boudreaux  agrees to help his ex-girlfriend Debbie Edwards Reeves find her father, he gets more than he bargained for. Reeves has vanished after being accused of masterminding a half-million dollar armored car heist, and Boudreaux’s search leads him through the shadowy back alleys of Austin and up to the snow-covered peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, north of Santa Fe.

To make matters worse, right in the middle of his investigation involving the convoluted world of psychics, illegal gambling, and grand theft, his troubles are compounded when his old man is arrested for the murder of a back alley wino. In the midst of it all, Janice Coffman-Morrison, Tony’s significant other, wants to talk marriage. Will there be enough in Tony Boudreaux to solve the predicaments of everyone around him and still have something left to help himself?” Avalon description.

I picked this book up at the library on a whim. I’d never heard of the author, but I love a good mystery. At 186 pages, it’s short, so I don’t know if I’d pay the $23.95 cover price, but the story was interesting, and the characters were memorable. A well-told mystery with good twists, and a great protagonist. I’ll definitely look for the next installment.

I am including the Amazon description of this book below because I’m terrible at book descriptions, but I wanted to say, I read this book in two sittings. I kept a notepad beside me and several pages were filled in when I got to the end. I plan to implement the lessons learned in the book to apply to my social media ways. I’ll admit, there is a lot of fluff in the book, but it makes it easy to read, not to mention fun. There is a wealth of information to anyone wanting to start a blog, or work the new social media outlets. It’s written with a slant toward writers, but I plan to use it with my business blogs too.

Amazon Description: