Review: Magic and Mischief at the Wayside Hotel by Elizabeth Everett

 

Magic and Mischief at the Wayside Hotel by Elizabeth Everett

Publication Date: March 10th 2026 by Ace

Pages: 352

Source: Publisher  

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Single mother Josie has been barely scraping by since losing her partner, and now her rent has jumped yet again. Just when she’s convinced she’s out of options, a listing pops up for a nearby rental that, while definitely a bit shabby, has good bones, a welcoming feel, and most importantly, a price she can manage.

 

Meanwhile, Pax is doing everything he can to keep Number 5 Wayside Hotel running. The hotel is a sentient refuge for magical beings, but it has mysteriously run out of fuel, leaving it stranded on Earth. With its glamour flickering and its systems failing, Pax is desperate to find a solution before the guests become trapped far from home. Taking on human residents might be the answer, especially when the hotel reacts so strongly to Josie and her four‑year‑old son, Amos. But hiding the hotel’s magic from Josie is harder than he expected, and Pax doesn’t want to frighten away the sweet, worn‑down woman he’s unexpectedly drawn to.

 

Some of the Inn’s residents were quite unlikeable, and I thought the cause of the hotel’s problems would be obvious. There were also some genuinely sweet, welcoming characters who immediately take to Josie and Amos, which added a lot of charm.

 

Both Josie and Pax carry deep emotional wounds. Josie struggles with feeling like she’s failing as a parent, a fear made worse by her overbearing mother‑in‑law. Pax, orphaned young, has never truly felt loved or chosen. Watching these two bruised souls slowly learn to trust, lean on each other, and believe they deserve happiness was touching.

 

I really enjoyed Magic and Mischief at the Wayside Hotel! It was cozy and magical, but it also had some emotional depth. Seeing Josie and Pax, two tired, bruised people, find comfort and love in each other was heartwarming. The romance wraps up nicely, but there’s definitely room for more stories at the Wayside, and I’d happily come back for another visit.

4 Stars

Book Description:

When a magical hotel appears smack-dab in the middle of the most unmagical of worlds, the last thing the residents expect is to fall in love.

Manager of the Number Five Wayside Inn and World Travel Hub, Pax Nomen has one of the easiest jobs in all the known universes, unless you count the occasional plumbing disaster. When Number Five Wayside gets stranded on a non-magical world, even Pax's trusty Wayside Handbook can’t help him. How is he going to “reboot” the hotel and keep it on its magical journey?

Josie LaChusia is a single mom experiencing debt, having parenting doubts, and tipping dangerously toward depression when an ad pops up on her phone that an apartment is available in a building she’s never seen before.

Pax needs a new guest to restart his hotel, and Josie needs a nudge to restart her life. In a building occupied by faeries, gargoyles, and a gnome with a bad attitude, two souls from very different places come together to create a home like no other.

Review: Family Lies by Karen Rose

 

Family Lies (San Diego Case Files #4) by Karen Rose

Publication Date: March 31st 2026 by Berkley

Pages: 513

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Kit McKittrick’s adopted sister, Akiko, is contacted by a woman claiming to know the truth about her birth mother. Thirty‑two years ago, Akiko was left as an infant at a firehouse and bounced through foster homes before finding stability with the McKittrick's. Akiko is eager to learn what this woman has to say, but Kit, as a homicide detective feels they should be cautious, so she and Sam accompany Akiko to the meeting place. When the woman, Mary Sherman, fails to show, they head to her home only to find her dead and come under fire themselves. Kit is injured and placed on leave, but there’s no chance she’s stepping away from the case. And of course, Sam, the department psychologist, is right there with her.

 

The slow‑burn romance between Sam and Kit has been simmering since book one, and things are finally getting serious. I enjoy their bond more as a deep partnership than a sweeping romance, their internal reflections about how grateful they are for each other started to feel repetitive, and I didn’t feel a ton of romantic chemistry. Their closeness works; the constant emotional commentary less so.

 

Family Lies was a fitting name for this mystery because Kit, Sam and Akiko discover layer upon layer of deceit in her past. The bodies and suspects pile up, and no one wants to talk. There’s danger around every corner and no one is safe!

 

This is book four in a series, and while this is a standalone mystery I think it’s best read in order because of the ongoing mystery arc that hasn’t been solved, the developing relationships and character growth. I look forward to the next book since there seems to be a lead in the ongoing mystery!

4 Stars

Book Description:

The fourth nerve-shattering installment of the San Diego Case Files from New York Times bestselling author Karen Rose sees Kit McKittrick’s sister caught in a maelstrom of deadly family secrets.

As an infant, Kit McKittrick’s foster sister Akiko was abandoned at a firehouse. Now 32, Akiko has received an unsettling phone call from a woman who says that she knew her birth mother but refuses to divulge any details except in person. Akiko is nervous but also thrilled at the prospect of finally learning about her blood relations.

Kit has a bad feeling about this and insists on accompanying Akiko to meet the woman. Sure enough, as they stand on Mary Sherman’s doorstep, shots are fired and Kit is hit...and inside the house is a corpse: Mary Sherman herself.

Although she’s on medical leave and forbidden to work the case, Kit cannot rest. With police psychologist Sam Reeves, she undertakes a covert investigation into the mysterious Mary Sherman. Was she Akiko’s birth mother? Why did she reach out after all these years? And who had a motive to kill her?

As more bodies pile up, Kit starts to put together the pieces of the frightening puzzle that is Akiko’s birth family, and she’ll come to wonder whether some secrets should stay buried after all.

Sunday Post #332

 

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. I'm also linking up to The Sunday Salon hosted by Deb Nance @Readerbuzz.

Happy Sunday!

I didn't post last week because I was in Austin, Texas babysitting our grandkids while our daughter and SIL went on a little anniversary getaway. We left on Wednesday and came home on Monday. It was a lot of fun, but very busy. We got to see our granddaughter receive an award at school for problem solving. The award was a surprise for her. She was so happy to see us in the audience because she didn't think anyone would be there since her parents were out of town. 

While the kids were in school we traveled out to Fredericksburg on Thursday and New Braunfels on Friday to sightsee and explore. My daughter and husband came home on Saturday, so we were able to spend some time with them, too. 

Pioneer Memorial Library in Fredericksburg, TX

Gruene Dance Hall in New Braunfels, TX

Pepper (my daughter's cat) looking down on his servants as we watch Apollo 13

Red Cardinal by my daughter's house in TX

 

So excited to see the Red Cardinal because we don't see them in California.

1000 Piece Puzzle Completed in Texas: Busy City by la pauz

Puzzle 17 of 2026

1000 Piece Puzzle Completed: Clam Talk by Hasbro (Charles Wysocki)

You should be able to see the 4 missing pieces. Bummer.

Puzzle 18 of 2026

Came home to everything blooming and so pretty here! We went on a hike today (Saturday) and it was gorgeous! I'll share more about that next week.

Read:

This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews-5 Stars

The Price of Lemon Cake by Jennifer Ashley-3 Stars

Her Last Breath by Taylor Adams-5 Stars

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir-5 Stars

This is two weeks worth of reading. I didn't get to read *listen* to as much as I wanted to. This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me was one of my most anticipated reads for 2026 and it delivered! I want to do a re-read soon! I can't wait for the next book! Her Last Breath was riveting and intense! We (my husband and I) just finished the audio to Project Hail Mary and loved it! I teared up a few times at the end! We want to go see the movie soon.

Received:

Meet Me in Italy by Brenda Novak

4/7/26

Too Close to Home by Seraphina Nova Glass

4/14/26

The Moonlight Runner by Karen Robards

3/24/26

Blaze Orange by Paul Doiron 

4/28/26

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing, MIRA, Park Row, and Macmillan Audio! 

How was your week?

Review: Half City by Kate Golden

 

Half City (Harker Academy #1) by Kate Golden

Publication Date: February 17th 2026 by Ace

Pages: 496

Source: Publisher 

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Twenty-one-year-old Viv Abbott has been fighting demons alone ever since she watched her father murdered right before her eyes. She’s spent years carrying that burden alone, so when an invitation arrives from Harker Academy for Deviant Defense, a school for demon hunters, she’s stunned to learn she’s not the only one out there. The offer becomes even more suspicious when it comes from Reid, a Brood demon she has every reason not to trust.

 

Viv has always felt like an outsider among her family and friends, forced to hide the truth about her life and constantly missing out when hunting called. At Harker, for the first time, she finds people who understand her. The camaraderie is immediate, the friendships fast and genuine. But the safety she feels is short-lived. When one of her new friends disappears and the academy is attacked, Viv and her tight-knit group are thrust into a dangerous mystery. I loved this crew, quirky, loyal, and determined to uncover what happened. The romance was a slow-burn, chemistry-heavy enemies-to-lovers that I’m on board for.

 

Half City starts with a slower setup as the world and characters are introduced, but the moment Viv steps onto Harker grounds, the story hits its stride. The mystery surrounding the missing student and the escalating attacks unfolds with several surprising twists, leading to a thrilling, high-stakes conclusion. The book ends on a to-be-continued note. I’m eager to see where Viv’s journey goes next!

4 Stars

Book Description:

Welcome to Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. Keep your daggers sharp, and your wits even sharper.

Viv Abbot is an average twenty-one-year-old girl. She lives in an expensive city where the rent is too high, works long hours at a thankless job, and is dating a guy she doesn’t even like in the hopes of winning her prickly mother’s approval.

She just also happens to be a demon hunter.

Ever since her father's murder, she's been forced to hunt deviants alone, meaning everyone, including her family, sees her as an outsider. . . . Until the day she crosses paths with a dangerously alluring demon, Reid Graveheart. The reformed deviant tells her of a school for people just like her: Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. If she enrolls, she'll learn to hone her craft, work with other hunters, and never be alone again.

But Viv has a deadly secret. One that not even her new friends at Harker can know about. Not when the school might hold the answers to untangling the mystery surrounding Viv's father’s death. When strange occurrences begin to plague the students, Viv will have to figure out who she can trust, and fast. All while trying to ace her classes, not fall for a demon, and make it through her first year at Harker in one piece. How hard could that be?