I received this book for free from . This review is voluntary. My opinion is not influenced in any way.
The Penderghast Puzzle Protectors Series: , on February 1, 2016
Pages: 271
Format: eARC
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Jezabelle Jingle and her neighbors in the Penderghast section of Brilliant, Minnesota, have a mystery on their hands. Someone is stealing sections of hardwood floors in their homes and the thefts may be connected to a long-hidden treasure left by the founders of Brilliant. Not only that, there’s a dead body in a basement to add to the mix. Can Jezzie and her quirky friends figure out the puzzle and find the treasure before some other, unknown person–maybe the murderer–beats them to the punch? Or will the town’s Chief of Police, Hank Hardy, prevent the group from their sleuthing? Anything can happen in the strange little town of Brilliant, Minnesota. After all, brilliant minds create brilliant finds!
I am excited to be here today. Thank you, Brooke, for welcoming me here.
I love going on Blog Tours and meeting the owners of the blogs who have taken their time to let me do a guest post or review my book or give me the spotlight. Some I have visited before and others are new to me.
I am nearing the end of my tour and I always wonder what I can say on another blog without repeating myself. When I am lying in bed at night and my mind is relaxed it isn’t hard to come up with a blog post, a column that I need to write or the next chapter for one of my books. At that point I have a choice to let myself imagine away and put myself to sleep, or get back up and stay up all night putting my thoughts down on paper. I usually let myself relax with my imagination and drift off to sleep. I am one of those people that if I don’t sleep I can’t move or think the next day. I can easily say last night I knew exactly what I was going to say to you, and today it escapes my mind, so what you get is going to be a surprise to even me. I do sometimes behave like the characters in my book that are occasionally scatterbrained.
I am a reader, I review what I read and I don’t always like the most popular books. I don’t jump on the bandwagon of every popular book because I like books from unknowns too. Because I read it is the very reason why I like to connect with those who read my books in both the Fuchsia Minnesota Series and the Brilliant Minnesota Series. My readers aren’t merely readers to me. They become friends and we connect because of our love of reading not just my books, but books by other talented authors.
As an author I like to be generous in promoting my favorite books and authors to my readers and friends. They might have different tastes than I do. I don’t always stick to the Cozy genre. I enjoy having conversations about reading. I also don’t believe I live in a bubble and my books should be the only books I promote. It would be selfish believing I am the only author out there that can touch a reader’s heart or their funny bone.
In real life, I cry, I laugh, I suffer tragedies, and I worry about finances (writers don’t make a great deal of money unless you are one of the mega famous authors and I don’t even know if they make lots of the green stuff) and I go through life as many of my readers do. Being an author is another career like a banker, a janitor, a mom etc. etc. I try and share who I am with my readers so they will be comfortable with me and know the person behind the writing.
If I were to analyze my books I would tell my readers to read between the lines of the craziness. Go deep underneath the mystery and the way my characters act because there is more to them than meets the eye. Isn’t it that way with all of us? We have lived our lives and the circumstances, good, bad and ugly, have shaped who we are and why we behave the way we do today. We are pretty good actors hiding our hurts and hiding that which we don’t want other people to know because we are afraid of what others may think. Occasionally we even hide from ourselves. It is no different with Jezabelle and those that live in the Penderghast neighborhood of Brilliant. As the series unfolds you might find out things that surprise you about the character of those that live in Brilliant.
So come along with me on my journey into fantasy because it is only in the tales we weave where the line might be blurred between real life and those fictitious characters that make up the stories in our books.
Thank you so much for stopping by Brooke Blogs today, Julie. It is a pleasure to have you here.
The Penderghast Puzzle Protectors by Julie Seedorf is the first book in her new Brilliant, Minnesota series. This book features the sassy spitfire Jezabelle Jenkins. She may be a bit older than some people, but that doesn’t stop her from trying to figure out just what is going on in Brilliant, Minnesota. I read and enjoyed some of Julie’s earlier books featuring Granny from Fuchsia, Minnesota. If you liked those books, you would enjoy The Penderghast Puzzle Protectors. Granny and Jezabelle are very similar characters. They’re both older ladies who like to know what all their neighbors are up to – and this usually lands them in some trouble.
I liked that there were a couple of different mysteries in this story. While trying to figure out whodunit, you’re also trying to figure out the meaning of the puzzle itself. I liked the book and I am looking forward to more in the series. This didn’t receive a higher rating simply because I felt a lot of it was so close to one of the Granny books that it could have been interchangeable. I still gave it a good rating because I enjoyed the plot even with similar characters.
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1,369 total views, 2 views today
Mai Tran
Question for the author: Many writers describe themselves as “character” or “plot” writers. Which are you? What do you find to be the hardest part of writing?
Becky
Sounds so fun!
Rita Wray
Sounds like a great read.
johnnabooks
sounds like a fun read! Thanks for the chance!
kim hansen
Nice review.
diannekc
This sounds like a really fun read. Can’t wait to read.
gracefulcoffee
Thanks for the giveaway !!!!