Reading: IT'S YOUR PARTY, DIE IF YOU WANT TO - Vickie Fee

Having fallen for the characters and sure-footed writing (especially for a debut novel) of the first adventure of party planner Liv McKay and her best friend Di, part two of this well-plotted, humorous cozy mystery series finds Liv with her hands full not only prepping for a riverboat-themed wedding ... but also the town-wide Halloween fundraiser taking place in her hometown of Dixie, Tennessee, which involves a hayride/bonfire, murder mystery dinner, and keeping the little ones occupied while the adults enjoy themselves, as well. Which is why a local businesswoman's retreat seems the best break from the stress, especially when Liv learns the event is drawing back to town a former Dixie resident who has now made a name for herself on television as a ghost hunter. This special guest, Lucinda Grable, is courtesy of Morgan Robinson, daughter of one of the big-shot families in town who is chairing the event. But even money and power can't change Morgan's man-crazy past - or present, it seems, when the affluent bank executive is poisoned at the event and a local herbalist appears to have been framed for her murder. With her own plate already full - beyond work, Liv is also helping Di play matchmaker for their favorite town deputy, while trying to figure out if she can help with what seems a rocky patch in Di's own relationship with the sheriff - but circumstances and ghost hunter/diva Lucinda somehow keep reeling Liv back into the case, through which readers get even more access to some of Dixie's colorful, quirky yet very real residents, the mystery building to a climax that could potentially turn the fundraising murder mystery dinner into the real thing. It was such a pleasure visiting Liv and Di again, and the book's insights into how party planners operate was informative and fun. But what really sets up a great cozy series are characters you love and well-plotted mysteries, and book two of the adventures of Liv and Di keeps you debating on the killer until the end - with, most importantly, the whole story set in a world that feels refreshingly and comfortably real. Onto book three!  4.5/5 stars

Book-to-Screen: "A Discovery of Witches"

TV series debuting in the UK ... and even if here in the States, this behind-in-his-TBR-Mountain boy can't watch it until I finally get to the book first. But WOW!

Reading: LOUCA, VOL. #1: KICKOFF - Bruno Dequier

Louca, a high school student, seemingly has nothing going for him. He's failing his classes, has no real friends, and can't gain the attention of his long-term crush Julie, who seems to have a thing for jocks instead. His only shining light - a younger brother who worships him - is also a source of guilt and shame for Louca, who feels he could never live up to his kid brother's image of him. With upcoming final exams spelling the potential finale for Louca's school career, Louca suddenly meets a handsome, athletic, intelligent, funny and good-natured jock at school named Nathan, who offers to help Louca get over his awkwardness by turning the gangly, clumsy teen into a soccer legend. The only issue? Nathan is a ghost, and neither he nor Louca know why he's there - why Louca is the only one who can see him - or what happened to Nathan in the first place (though a group photo at school seems to hint at possibilities). Volume 1 of this well-written, energetic and sweetly-drawn comic ends with Louca's first game, and while giving away no spoilers all I can say is that I wish I had known the volume ended when it did because I anxiously turned the pages waiting for more ... when there was no more to come. Bruno Dequier, in Louca, has created a lovable, can't-get-out-of-his-own-way nerd whom anyone with an awkward high school life in their background will identify with, and a plotline that ends, cliffhanger-style, with readers wanting more. A charming debut.  4/5 stars

Note: I received a free eARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: EXIT STAGE LEFT: THE SNAGGLEPUSS CHRONICLES - Mark Russell

Having previously read the first graphic novel volume from Mark Russell giving an entirely new (and wonderfully grounded) face to my favorite animated series as a child - "The Flintstones" - I was prepared for anything upon finding out he was tackling another Hanna-Barbera idol from my youth, Snagglepuss. Comprising of volumes 1-6 of the comics, this heavy-in-tone graphic novel re-imagines our stagestruck hero as a Tennessee Williams-ish playwright in the early 1950's, a southern gentleman and closeted gay male with a wife who has become a legitimate Broadway star and mentor ... and what happens when he and his friends are targeted as potential communists during the Blacklist era, when McCarthyism took the American population's fear of Russia and the bomb and used it to silence/destroy anyone they deemed unworthy. Even at his height Snagglepuss was never a laugh-riot on TV, exactly; here he's not only a model for the lives and careers ruined in the name of hate - but thanks to the incredible writing skills of Mr. Russell, also an all-too-familiar reminder of what this country is dangerously close to turning into again. Exit Stage Left, with one foot in today's world as surely as it's grounded in 1950's America, is a touching, heartbreaking, important warning against history's repeating itself. It's also, especially the last half, a damned riveting read, worthy of a tear or two, even.  4.5/5

Note: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.