S.D. Brown

This entertaining mystery draws the reader in with a murder right away. Allie, the main character, finds herself involved when authorities hold as evidence the rocks she had purchased for her rock shop business.

The book takes place not long after the previous book (Alabaster Alibi) and includes appearances by many of the great characters we met in that book. When Allie gets more and more involved in trying to find the culprit, she discovers a multitude of potential suspects. As with the first book, this was a nice, complex mystery that ended with a satisfying resolution of the diverse situations in which Allie became involved during the course of the story. My only quibble was the unfortunate number of typos and missing words that too often interfered with the flow of the story, something another proofread should readily solve.

Overall, the story kept me reading as I tried to figure out ‘whodunnit’ while eager to learn who the culprit ultimately was. Just what you want from a fun cozy mystery.

(Read December 2021)… (more)

"Alabaster Alibi" by S.D. Brown is an entertaining and gripping mystery right from the start. Within the first few pages there’s a murder, and then we jump right to Alabaster—our main character, we quickly discover—with the question of how she’s connected. From there, the story takes off, with many twists along the way and a host of singular characters as potential suspects, all of whom seem to have a motive.

This is a unique cozy mystery. While it certainly contains many of the elements commonly encountered in this genre (independent woman with a past and a big change to her life circumstances, possible romantic interest, quirky neighbor(s), etc.), it gives them a different spin. It’s a nice complex mystery, with a bit of intensity, that also touches on some relevant issues with a sensitive hand. A very enjoyable read!

(Read June 2020)… (more)

For a small book this packs a powerful punch. Fourteen year old Troy is left in charge of his younger sister while his parents are away for twenty-four hours. Troy wakes to his cell phone ringing, his dog tugging on his sleeve and pitch blackness. Unable to reach their parents Troy goes next door to the neighbor for advice. Mrs. Jones makes it clear they should stay put. When Troy sees houses on their street erupt in flames he decides they have to leave. Unfortunately he can’t convince Mrs. Jones. Troy loads up his sister and their two pets in their dad’s Bronco and heads for what he hopes is safety.

This book is full of realistic action between the older brother and younger sister. He takes his promise to his parents to protect his sister even when she becomes annoying. This is fast paced, on the seat of your chair action from the very beginning. For those who are fans of the “I Survived “ series by Lauren Tarshis, I guarantee that you will enjoy this series. I highly recommend this to all adventure readers.… (more)

Fast paced and fascinating book with exciting plot. Perfect read for 4th graders. Book was written about a boy's heroic efforts to save his sister and pet from the quickly spreading, dangerous wildfires of CA. The young man shows maturity in putting his own fears aside to think quickly and make big decisions.

I really enjoyed this read and recommend this book to young readers, especially those living in CA during the 2019 CA Camp Fire.

Thank you to Library Thing and Best Day Books for the free ARC of I Escaped the California Camp Fire, in exchange for my honest review.… (more)