Dakota CassidyCritiques

Couldn't finish, ugh

Great book, but grab a tissue or twenty.

Jingle All the Slay by Dakota Cassidy
1st in the Marshmallow Hollow Mysteries. Paranormal holiday cozy mystery.
Welcome to Marshmallow Hollow, Maine. Where it’s Christmas all the time and murder is hung by the chimney with care.
Halliday Valentine is a psychic witch. She has recently moved to Marshmallow Hollow, a very human town, to run the family factory. Her familiar is a curmudgeonly British hummingbird. She’s also brought her ungrateful rescue cat, and Karen, her taking reindeer.
When a shady real estate tycoon shows up dead in the middle of an annual festival, Halliday teams up with the handsome Digby “Hobbs” Dainty to find the killer. Surprisingly, there aren’t too many people in town that seem to be sad.

Humorous and entertaining, this book was a fast read that had me chuckling throughout. In particular, the names of the pets and multiple women fawning over Hobbs. Don’t try to figure out the killer. It will either be super easy or someone out of left field because that’s how these mysteries run. Enjoy it for the lark it is.
Always looking forward to more crazy by this author.

Thoroughly enjoyed! And how about that cover!

I really dislike the interactions among the women in this book. I'm kinda done with this series. Maybe I'll pick it back up if Sloan the hot werewolf gets a book.

Cute.

I enjoy this series, but the series recap in every book is a much. At this rate the end of the series it's going to be 10% new story 90% recap.

Yay, no recap

It used the word "husked," and not while talking about corn, either. Adverbs are our friends, people! 'Said huskily' is about a million times less wrong.

I'm not going to add a star rating since I only made it through 81 of 338 pages. It was just too campy and tried too hard to be funny for me. I like the set up of a woman getting tricked into a genie bottle but it just didn't work for me for the above reasons. Not my cuppa.

First in the accidentally series. This one has Marty taking her dog for a walk with two friends. She is inadvertently bitten by what she thinks is a large dog. A few days later a man comes along explaining that he was the dog and now she's a werewolf.

An interesting collection of scenes

I was ready for another book in this series as soon as I finished the last page; absolutely did not see the end twist coming. Very enjoyable quick read.

A light, fun read, well-written for the genre. Although I wasn’t sure about the high-maintenance protagonist Marty, I was pleased to see her over-talkative, somewhat scatty personality develop over the course of the story. The council issue and Keegan’s relationship with them might have benefitted from fledging out a little more. Summer holiday entertainment.

In Marshmallow Hollow, Maine, every day is Christmas. Due to the town factory that manufactures christmas decorations, the town has gone christmas crazy. It kind of reminds me of Santa Claus, Indiana, except for the theme park. But wait, there is an evil developer in town trying to get people to sell their shops and lands to develop that theme park. Unfortunately he turns up dead and it’s up to Halliday Valentine to help solve the crime. This book does connect to other Cassidy series, but it can be read as a stand alone. Atticus the hummingbird familiar is one of my favorite characters, but I think our main gal needs to be fleshed out a bit more. She is a psychic witch who hates that she has to hide her magic. This book felt long, even though it was rather short. It was a nice cozy for the holidays, and while I did buy the rest of the series, it will be held until next years holidays. I am in no hurry to read the next book in the series.

Disliked the female protagonist for most of the book. She had a sad backstory which was revealed later in the book but for most of it, she was obnoxious and struck me as TSTL.

4.5 stars.

Talk Dirty to Me, Dakota Cassidy's first installment in her Plum Orchard series, is sweet, sassy and sexy! This fun read is also poignant and just a little heartbreaking but overall, it is a wonderful story of second chances and redemption for heroine, Dixie Davis. Dixie is a reforming mean girl whose efforts to make amends for her past misdeeds are hampered by her reputation, the long memories of the townspeople and good old-fashioned jealousy.

Dixie has a long history of manipulating, lying and cheating to get her way and ten years ago, this behavior blew up in her face and eventually led to the end of her engagement to Caine Donovan. She and Caine left town after their break-up but they both maintained their close friendship with Landon Wells. Returning to Plum Orchard for Landon's funeral, they are stunned to learn of his bequest to them-a thriving phone sex company, Call Girls. Insanely competitive, Dixie and Caine are soon locked in a fierce battle to win full ownership of Call Girls. Their court-appointed mediator keeps the peace between them during business hours, but who is going to keep them from acting on their scorching hot passion?

Surprisingly, Dixie is a very likable and sympathetic character. She is genuinely remorseful for her long ago actions and she never cuts herself any slack when it comes to owning her mistakes. Her tentative friendship with Emmeline "Em" Amos is a minefield of hurt feelings on Em's part and it takes a while for Dixie to earn Em's trust. Although her resolve is challenged when her protective instincts for Em are provoked, Dixie remains determined to become a better person.

There is never any doubt that Caine was deeply hurt by Dixie's actions and in fact, he still harbors a lot of anger toward her. He is highly skeptical that she has really changed and he is very conflicted by the differences in her behavior. Caine is unwilling to trust her again, but he gradually begins to believe that her transformation is legitimate but he remains reluctant to risk his heart.

The sparks fly between Caine and Dixie from their very first scene together. Their scenes are full of witty repartee and an incredible amount of sexual tension. Caine and Dixie's sex scenes are explicitly detailed and incredibly hot. It is also very obvious that they are still deeply in love, but mistakes from the past make it very difficult for them to commit to a future together.

Fully rounding out this marvelous novel is an outstanding cast of secondary characters. Although he has passed away, Landon's presence is always keenly felt and his love for Dixie and Caine transcends death. Frenemy Louella Palmer continually tries to undercut Dixie's efforts and she provides a lot of the external conflict to the storyline. Em is kind hearted and loyal, but her friendship with Dixie is tested throughout the story.

A romance with depth and substance, Talk Dirty to Me is a fast-paced and entertaining novel with a cast of characters that are incredibly appealing. The plotline is realistic and easy to relate to, and Dakota Cassidy's writing style is quite engaging. Plum Orchard is an immensely charming series and I cannot wait to dive into Something to Talk About, Em's romance with delicious newcomer Jax Hawthorne!

Talking After Midnight, the third installment in Dakota Cassidy's highly addictive Plum Orchard series, is a little more serious than the previous novels. Tantalizing glimpses of Marybell Lyman and Taggart "Tag" Hawthorne have revealed frustratingly little information about either characters' pasts but learning their secrets is well worth the wait.

Marybell is not the average sweet Southern woman. Sporting a colorful mohawk, multiple piercings and a tough girl attitude, this phone sex operator definitely stands out in the conservative small town of Plum Orchard. Marybell's protective armor is carefully crafted to keep people at a distance, but underneath all the makeup and metal is a kind, caring and loyal woman whose past is full of hardship and heartache. Although she tries to keep her distance from Tag, he manages to slip past her defenses, but Marybell is afraid the secrets she is keeping will destroy their fragile relationship.

Tag has come a long way from the brooding, angry man we first met in the previous book. By all appearances, he has finally made peace with his demons and he is moving forward with his life. He is very intrigued by Marybell and he good-naturedly pursues her despite her flimsy attempts to rebuff his advances. Although Marybell is less than forthcoming about her own history, Tag is an open book when it comes to his disastrous past. Overall, their relationship is light-hearted, flirtatious and very steamy.

There are a lot of surprises in Marybell's past and she has excellent reasons for keeping quiet. But with the nasty and interfering Louella Parsons always digging for dirt, it is just a matter of time before everything comes crashing down around her. Em, Dixie and LaDawn are firmly in her corner but Tag is quick to believe the worst of her.

While I really liked the overall story, Marybell's part of the storyline becomes a little repetitive. It is easy to predict both Louella's role in Marybell's downfall and Tag's reaction to the subsequent revelations. While it is frustrating that Louella really never suffers any consequences for her actions, the characters always take the high road and resist sinking down to her level. Revenge might be sweet but Marybell is too classy and compassionate to destroy anyone else's reputation.

Talking After Midnight is a wonderful conclusion to Dakota Cassidy's delightfully heartwarming and sometimes zany Plum Orchard series. I'll miss the Call Girls but I have loved watching their characters grow, overcome their personal issues and find their happily ever afters. While each of the novels can stand on their own, I highly recommend the entire series.

4.5 stars.

Something to Talk About is another über entertaining and scrumptiously steamy installment in Dakota Cassidy's marvelous Plum Orchard series. In this outing, Emmeline "Em" Amos finally learns to stand up for herself while Jax Hawthorne puts the ghosts of his past to rest.

Em is still struggling to find her footing following her (now) ex-husband's shocking revelations and their subsequent divorce. A single mom with two young boys, she is working as the General Manager of Call Girls, her good friend Dixie's phone sex business. Trying to shed her good girl image, Em accepts a drunken dare to answer a call, but wouldn't you know it, the next caller is really a little girl who is trying to find her dad a girlfriend. Jax is not amused to discover his daughter Maizy chatting it up with a phone sex operator and he lets loose with an angry tirade. Unfortunately for Em, Jax is an old college friend of Dixie's boyfriend, Caine, and their paths are soon going to cross on a daily basis when Jax begins working at Call Girls as a computer programmer.

Em is the town sweetheart which is just a really nice way of saying she is a pushover. She is genuinely caring and thoughtful, but she will go to any lengths to avoid confrontation. However all of this begins to change when Em maintains her unlikely friendships with Dixie and the other women at Call Girls despite everyone's obvious disapproval. She loves her newfound independence but she is still she overcoming the habits of a lifetime drilled into her by her unhappy mother. When malicious gossip begins continues to adversely affect her sons and her ex-husband issues a surprising threat, Em's response to all of these challenges shocks everyone, including herself.

Jax is a roguishly charming character with a surprising amount of depth. There is a a lot of heartache in this devoted dad's past, but it takes most of novel to unlock all of his secrets. Jax
wants a real relationship with Em, but since she is insistent that she does not want a serious entanglement, he agrees to her no strings fling proposal. However they do get to know each on a more personal level when he convinces her to help him decorate his house.

Em is really not cut out for a casual affair and she has as much difficulty keeping her emotions out of their relationship as Jax does. There is plenty of heat between them and their sex scenes are highly sensual. In and out of the bedroom, their exchanges are meaningful and laced with humor.

While there is plenty of internal conflict as Em and Jax deal with their respective issues, there is also some external conflict as well. Jax's brothers Gage and Tag are extremely supportive but he and Tag butt heads occasionally. Chief troublemaker Louella Palmer is in fine form as she dredges up a long-buried secret. Em's mother is a huge help but that assistance comes with a high price tag when her negativity causes problems for Em.

Something to Talk About is a heartwarming novel with a well-developed cast of multi-faceted characters. The plot is well-written and beautifully executed. Unexpected revelations keep the story fresh while Dakota Cassidy's tantalizing glimpses of secondary characters Marybell Lyman and Tag Hawthorne leave readers eagerly anticipating the next novel in the Plum Orchard series.

I love her books. She is funny and brilliant. Delaney is a medium but her powers were not developed, they were forced onto her. She has an encounter with Clyde. He follows her to ask for her help to figure out why he was thrown into hell.

I so love this book. It left me rolling in stitches! Marty is so talkative and it makes the story funnier. Keegan loves her unconditionally. Even before he met her. To have a love like that is what most women want and this was just to cool!

This book was almost tortuous to finish. It was about 5 hours too long and full of nothing but annoying characters that I found it very hard to root for them. Marty is just too shallow for me and her actions are extremely inconsistent throughout the book. Keegan is supposed to be a bad-ass alpha male but his character lands with a dull thud. Marty’s two friends are written as such stereotypes you can’t even begin to like them. The two characters I liked were Sloane and Mara and they hardly in the book.

I don’t usually mind language in the book but for some reason the curse words stuck out so much that it started to bother me. The story started interesting but I was already fed up with the main character 10 minutes into a 10 hour book. Ugh. I couldn’t get a real good feel for the mythology the author was creating around the werewolves.

I just couldn’t really tell any of the characters apart from the narrator. All the males sounded the same and the voice of Keegan was not consistent.

Three stars is a bit generous. It wasn't nearly as witty and funny as American Werewolf in Hoboken. Once she got to Paris, it was utterly predictable. The characters were endearing though. And, I'm a sucker for a HEA. That was about all that saved this one for me. It was also free...

Meh. It was kind of abruptly over. There wasn't much in the way of actual plot. NO action. Super simplistic resolution. Felt lazy. No where near living up to the funny snark of book one, or the activity of book two. Blech.

2 stars It started out rough for me with excessively crude comments from a very immature character.(-1 star) Normally I would just say okay it's part of the story but these were just for crude shock value and added nothing to the characters or the story. It was just gross. Seriously saying "i smell old lady crouch" from an adult ? Unfortunately that wasn't the only name calling that made no sense in the book. The character in question toned it done after she learned her lesson. Well not completely she still name called and degraded people. She made a miraculous personality change suddenly in the book. "Poof" I'm not going to do that anymore, Yeah it went like that. It was predictable, a broken romance rekindled, ending in a HEA. None of the characters had any real depth, they read like cookie cutter people.I don;t care about any of these characters or this world enough to move on i the series