Tag: Cozy Mystery

Her eyes met mine, her desperate look pleading with me not to do anything stupid. Sadly, that wasn't going to happen.

Book Review | Belinda Blake and the Birds of a Feather by Heather Day Gilbert

We’ll start with the one thing I’m not happy about with Belinda Blake and the Birds of a Feather:

This is the last book in the Belinda Blake series 🙁

Yes, it’s another great instalment in Belinda’s life as an exotic petsitter, and it wraps up well, but I’d like more.

For those who have been following the series, we do get an answer to Belinda’s little romance problem. For those who haven’t been following the series 
 this is the third in the series, and while it’s an excellent standalone novel, there is a little backstory that you might appreciate more if you read Snake in the Grass and Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing first

Belinda returns to her hometown after her best friend’s mother dies. While she’s there, she gets pulled into caring for the lady’s homing pigeons 
 and investigating a suspicious death in the neighbourhood. As you do.

Belinda is a great character—fun, intelligent, and slightly weird.

She has two jobs: she’s a video game reviewer who probably understands more of what my teenage son says than I do, and she babysits exotic pets: snakes, wolves, and pigeons, among others. The novel is written in first person, and her quirky voice works well as a narrator.

Belinda Blake and the Birds of a Feather by Heather Day Gilbert @HeatherDGilbert is a fun mystery with plenty of humour, witty dialogue, and great characters. #CozyMystery #BookReview Share on X

As with the other books in the series, this is a fun mystery with no on-the-page violence but plenty of humour, witty dialogue, and great characters. I’ve enjoyed this series, and I’m sorry to see it end (although I am hoping that hint towards the end was prepping us for more Belinda Blake books—hint, hint).

Recommended for cozy mystery fans.

Thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Heather Day Gilbert

Heather Day Gilbert, an ECPA Christy award finalist and Grace award winner, writes contemporary mysteries and Viking historicals. Her novels feature small towns, family relationships, and women who aren’t afraid to protect those they love.

Publisher’s Weekly gave Heather’s Viking historical Forest Child a starred review, saying it is “an engaging story depicting timeless human struggles with faith, love, loyalty, and leadership.”

Find Heather Day Gilbert online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter | YouTube

About Belinda Blake and the Birds of a Feather

When exotic pet–sitter Belinda Blake starts pecking at the details of a suspicious accident in her sleepy hometown, she inadvertently digs up a murder case that won’t be solved without ruffling a few feathers . . .

The moment Belinda arrives in Larches Corner, her Upstate New York hometown, she’s immediately recruited to care for a deceased friend’s flock of homing pigeons. But Belinda’s plans for a swift visit scatter after a local college student is mowed down in a malicious hit-and-run that has the whole town reeling.

At first, the gruesome demise of Jackson Hait appears to be a random tragedy. But Belinda quickly uncovers connections to a tight-knit group of friends and a similar death three years earlier . . . one that wasn’t as accidental as it seemed. Now, Belinda must pluck the truth from a tangled nest of lies before a cruel killer takes wing.

Find Belinda Blake and the Birds of a Feather online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

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Rainy weather was an introvert's best friend.

Belinda Blake and the Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing by Heather Day Gilbert

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from Belinda Blake and the Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing by Heather Day Gilbert. Here’s the first line of Chapter One:

Rainy weather was an introvert's best friend.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

My Review

Belinda Blake and the Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing is the second book in Heather Day Gilbert’s Exotic Pet-Sitter series. As with the first book, the clue is in the title. This instalment features Belinda Blake in her job as a pet-sitter, this time helping out at the White Pine Wolf Preserve. It’s a murder mystery, so it’s not long before there is a body.

And a body means there is a mystery for Belinda to solve.

She’s not satisfied with the assumption that the wolves are the evildoers. While she’s no fan of wolves, their behaviour doesn’t stack up with the facts. Just as the title implies, things are not as they seem.

It’s clever. Very clever. And I like clever fiction, so I loved this second Belinda Blake novel.Yes, this is the second book in a series, but you don’t need to read the first book for this one to make sense. It’s a quick, fun read.

The title is clever, the plot is clever, and Belinda is clever.

She’s not your normal American twenty-something woman. She’s quirky, and I like quirky (even if I’d find her quirks possibly too weird in a real-life friend). She babysits snakes and wolves for one thing. She’s also a video game player and reviewer, and it’s great to see a female character who is out of the ordinary like this.

But Belinda is ordinary in other ways, and that makes her relatable. She has money troubles, a weird family, and a not-exactly-clear possible romantic relationship with an old friend … and another with her employer’s son. I’m looking forward to seeing that explored in future novels in the series.

Recommended for fans of exotic pets (if there is such a thing), and people who enjoy a cozy mystery with a sassy and intrepid heroine.

Thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Belinda Blake and the Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing

Exotic pet-sitter Belinda Blake is nervous about her new job at the White Pine Wolf Preserve, but it turns out that the care and feeding of wild carnivores may be the least dangerous part of the gig . . .

Pet-sitter Belinda Blake is no stranger to dealing with wild animals, but she’s wary when the owner of the Greenwich, Connecticut, preserve asks her to help out with her “fluffy darlings.” Her caution seems justified on her very first day, when she discovers a tour guide—dead, bloodied, and surrounded by wolves in the enclosure.

Was it death by predator or something more sinister? The body count rises, but something’s not adding up. As she gets to know the rescued wolves and wolf-dog hybrids better, Belinda realizes that her human colleagues are not above suspicion. With help from her own “pack”—her pregnant sister, Red the chauffeur/bodyguard, and hunky farmer Jonas—Belinda is hot on the killer’s tail, but if she doesn’t find him soon, he’ll do more than muzzle her to keep the truth from escaping.

You can find Belinda Blake and the Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

About Heather Day Gilbert

Heather Day Gilbert, an ECPA Christy award finalist and Grace award winner, writes contemporary mysteries and Viking historicals. Her novels feature small towns, family relationships, and women who aren’t afraid to protect those they love.

Publisher’s Weekly gave Heather’s Viking historical Forest Child a starred review, saying it is “an engaging story depicting timeless human struggles with faith, love, loyalty, and leadership.”

Find Heather Day Gilbert online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter | YouTube

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