Sophia Rose Reviews - Mermaids and Meringues by Danielle Garrett

Today on the blog Sophia Rose is back to review Danielle Garrett's Mermaids and Meringues, #2 in her Sugar Shack Witch series. Read on to see what she thought.
Enjoy!

Mermaids and Meringues by Danielle Garrett

Narrated by Danielle Ronconi

#2 Sugar Shack Witch Mystery

Paranormal Cozy Mystery

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Published: 2.15.22

ASIN:  B09J1YH9XR

Time: 5 hours 52 minutes

Speed: 1.2x

Rating: 3.5 stars

Format: MP3

Source:  Tantor Audio

Sellers: Amazon

ADD TO: GoodReads  

GoodReads Blurb:

It’s New Year’s Eve and Rosella Midnight has a date with danger.

A handsome date for New Year’s Eve? Check.

Red lipstick and a killer party dress? Double check.

A kiss when the clock strikes twelve? Undecided.

If I’m going to be stuck in Winterspell a little longer, I may as well have fun with it. But you know what they say about the best laid plans...

When my romantic evening turns into a kidnapping investigation, I can’t wait around to watch the ball drop. There’s a mermaid-snatching monster on the loose, and it’s up to me to stop them.

Luckily for me, my date always comes loaded for dragon.

 

Sophia Rose's Review:

A paranormal cozy mystery series set in an all-magical town with a witch still hoping to find herself and figure out her romance life as heroine lends a little something extra beyond the new mysteries each book has to offer.  Long time and perfect pitch narrator, Amanda Ronconi adds the delicious icing to the Sugar Shack Witch Mysteries goods.

 

Mermaids and Meringues is the second book in the series, but offers a standalone mystery that makes it easier for a person to read/listen out of order.  That said, the personal storyline and character relationship connections are ongoing from the first book.

 

Rosella has been running away for some time.  I was none too keen on her in the first book because she tossed out all the good (family, friends, boyfriend, and the half the town that didn’t care about her magic) with a few vocal bad types and dithers around with other people’s feelings as a result.  I found this type of thing continued into this second book to some extent as she still goes about with one foot out the door so to speak.  It was lessened, though, and she seems done with badmouthing her hometown and this made it easier to focus on the story’s new mystery and the blossoming chance with Orion, the monster hunter, who really is trying to get past her issues and being so patient even as she can’t seem to figure out her life.  So, in essentials, she’s growing and changing and I was happy to see it.

 

This was a new standalone situation involving a missing mermaid and a possible odd situation of someone being turned into a mermaid.  It was fun to see Rosella and Orion working together on this one.  She is incensed about the treatment of the mermaids that were captured and ‘owned’ by a rental company and is able to use her animal speaking magic to communicate with the mermaids to help solve the case even as Orion does the research and uses his connections to make the crucial discoveries while using his charm to work through ticklish situations.  They finished out the mystery and I liked where they left things when it came to their relationship.  That previous background mystery leftover from the first book never came up so I’ll be curious to see what comes of that in later books.

 

All in all, it improved on the first book for me and left me wanting more from the series with Rosella, her family, her animal friends, Orion, and the paranormal mysteries.  Definitely find the enhancement of the audiobook edition and Amanda Ronconi’s talent the best way to experience the series and I recommend it.

 

Author Bio:

From a young age, Danielle Garrett was obsessed with fantastic places and the stories set in them. As a lifelong bookworm, she’s gone on hundreds of adventures through the eyes of wizards, princesses, elves, and some rather wonderful everyday people as well.

Danielle now lives in Oregon and while she travels as often as possible, she wouldn’t call anywhere else home. She shares her life with her husband and their house full of animals, and when not writing, spends her time being a house servant for three extremely spoiled cats.

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/daniellegarrettreadergroup/
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/authordaniellegarrett/

 

 

Sophia’s Bio:

Sophia is a quiet though curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, and gardening. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes Region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, Baseball, Cats, Scooby Doo, and Chocolate.

Sophia’s Social Media Links:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/sophia.rose.7587

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sophiarose1816

GoodReads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13418187.Sophia_Rose