A ghastly catastrophe by Deanna Raybourn

By: Deanna Raybourn

Narrated by: Angéle Masters

Series: Veronica Speedwell Mysteries, Book 10

Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins

Release date: 03-03-26

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Categories: Historical Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Another book that I failed to review in time, I am like 1,5 weeks late.

Veronica and Stoker seems to be pretty, sort of, settled by now. They are together, they are happy as things are.

Then they get a new murder to solver. A strange death, a victim missing all his blood. Is there a vampire in London?

A nice mystery. They meet a strange man who is a vampire? His witchy assistant? And things get weird as they try to solve it.

I think I have done audio before, but I am unsure. I kind of miss the book format now to be honest. Kind of makes me want to read book 1 again

When the corpse of an entitled young man is found entirely drained of blood in a carriage next to Highgate Cemetery, Veronica’s interest is piqued. And then a second victim is found, his death made to look like a suicide, and Veronica and her intrepid beau, Stoker, know the hunt is on. The two men share one they were both members of a society so secretive that only a singular mention of it can be found anywhere.

Thirsty for more clues, Veronica and Stoker hear that a young Roma boy may know more about their first victim, but the only way to the boy is through an old acquaintance of Stoker’s, Lady Julia Brisbane. Lady Julia and her dashing husband, Nicholas, occasionally track down murderers and are only too happy to help. But as it becomes clear the secret society is a dangerous sect looking to entice immortality seekers, Veronica and Stoker find themselves ensnared by a decidedly more sinister couple.

The professed leader of the society claims to be a creature of the night; his partner practices witchcraft and they both fancy themselves emissaries of the otherworldly. Just as Veronica and Stoker get closer to learning the true purpose of the society and unraveling this macabre mystery, another body turns up, and they quickly discover they’ve gone from being the hunters to the hunted. . . .

Audio: Adversary to the villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

By: Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Narrated by: Em Eldridge

Series: Assistant to the Villain, Book 4

Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins

Release date: 08-04-26

Publisher: Tantor Media

To review/ cozy romantic fantasy

There were a lot of Povs in this one, I do prefer if it had been the former Villain and Evie alone since that is the drama I am here for. And as of book 3 Evie is no longer the assistant, she is now the Villain. And the villain is the heir to the throne. Things got messy all the sudden.

Now people want to kill Evie. There is a prophecy, and Trystan and Evie are in love. So one would hope they could figure it all out and live happily ever after, and have no villagers with pitchforks after them.

There is more right? Cos the ending was evil. I mean there must be more coming?!

The narrator is doing a good job with this series. I like her voices.

HR Update: The position of “adversary to the villain” has been filled. Evie Sage does not recall applying.

Evie has always tried to be helpful, loyal, and only mildly involved in treason. But with a dangerous prophecy threatening the very magic of Rennedawn – not to mention the race to claim its necessary artifacts before King Benedict does – things are starting to feel… less like a career path and more like a serious problem.

The prophecy won’t stop pointing in Evie’s direction. The Villain’s magic keeps choosing her. And honestly, if you’re going to be accused of evil anyway, you might as well commit.

Unfortunately, the more Evie leans into her alleged villain era, the more her boss starts acting like the hero of a completely different story. Trystan is getting closer – closer than is wise, advisable, or even remotely professional – and looking at her like she’s already chosen a side. His.

Which is deeply inconvenient, because if Evie can’t save the kingdom’s magic, she might just become its greatest threat.

The enchanted greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst

Series: Spellshop (#2)

Format: 374 pages, Paperback

Published: July 15, 2025 by Tor UK

Cozy fantasy/library

I like this series, it is sweet, cozy and low stakes.

Terlu was turned into a statue. The capital was set on fire, and somehow someone sent the statue away to an island filled with greenhouses.

And that is the drama we get. Oh no, the green houses are failing! And the hot gardener does not know what to do.

Sure I like my fantasy with war, gods, and such. But this is just so cozy to read. Saving a greenhouse or several. Meeting a romantic interest. Becoming friends with talking plants.

Lovely.

Terlu Perna broke the law because she was lonely. She cast a spell and created a magically sentient spider plant. As punishment, she was turned into a wooden statue and tucked away into an alcove in the North Reading Room of the Great Library of Alyssium.

This should have been the end of her story . . . Yet, one day, Terlu awakes in the cold of winter on a nearly-deserted island full of hundreds of magical greenhouses. She's starving and freezing, and the only other human on the island is a grumpy gardener. To her surprise, he offers Terlu a place to sleep, clean clothes and freshly baked honey cakes - at least until she's ready to sail home.

But Terlu can't return home and doesn't want to - the greenhouses are a dream come true, each more wondrous than the next. When she learns that the magic that sustains them is failing - causing the death of everything within them - Terlu knows she must help. Even if that means breaking the law again.

This time, though, she isn't alone. Assisted by the gardener and a sentient rose, Terlu must unravel the secrets of a long-dead sorcerer if she wants to save the island and have a fresh chance at happiness and love.

A parade in horribles by Matt Dinniman

By: Matt Dinniman

Narrated by: Jeff Hays

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl, Book 8

Length: 20 hrs and 27 mins

Release date: 05-12-26

Publisher: Audible Studios

Categories: Lit rpg

It is getting harder and harder to review.

New floor! Races! AI glitching.

No, I can't explain this. This is something you have to experience.

The madness, Gods, yes experience it.

I am just gonna leave it like this. Amazing narration

As chaos and mass panic spread outside the dungeon in the wake of Faction Wars, Carl and Donut find themselves on the tenth floor, where they’re forced to compete in a surprisingly normal set of tasks. Well, normal for the dungeon.

Races. Get from point A to point B, and don’t come in last. After each race, they pick an upgrade for their vehicle and the track gets more challenging. It all seems a little too normal, a little too simple.

Ignore those strange glitches that are occurring with increasing frequency. Don’t listen to those whispers about what’s happening on the mysterious eleventh floor, something the system AI calls A Parade of Horribles. Nobody, not even the showrunners, knows what that means. Just that the AI has ominously dubbed it “a coming-out party for the ages.”

Everything is fine, Crawler. I repeat, everything is fine.

Carl hates that it’s business as usual. The rules of this floor have taken away his agency. That just will not do.

So Carl is planning a party of his own. It’s a plan so dangerous, so insane, he can’t even consult his friends lest the AI put a stop to it. Because if it goes wrong, it’s not just the end of Carl and Donut. No. The stakes are higher than they’ve ever been.