Voted 2016 Best Mystery Series by the Association of Texas Authors. Madison Reynolds is rebuilding her life, one obstacle at a time. But the building blocks aren’t standard issue: widowed at thirty-nine…betrayed by her late husband…mother of teenaged twins…finances in shambles…living with her eighty-year-old grandmother…still attracted to her teenage crush Brash deCordova, who just happens to be … deCordova, who just happens to be the Chief of Police in The Sisters…embroiled in yet another murder mystery… How will she ever get all the blocks assembled and stacked one upon another, in order to build a future for herself and her children?
Madison’s newest client at In a Pinch Temp Service is a suspicious wife, up against a formidable foe—the lovely Caress Ellingsworth, former soap opera queen. When the star is murdered and Madison is eyewitness to the deed, she wonders if the shadowed person she saw commit the crime might really be her client. Now Madison is torn between uncovering the truth and keeping her client’s name off the suspect list.
Caress is not the only star in town these days. With a little help from Granny Bert and Madison’s best friend Genesis, the popular television show Home Again arrives, with some crazy notion about remodeling the Big House for Maddy and her twins. The problem is, Madison can’t afford to buy the house, much less pay to have it renovated. No matter how tempting the offer—or how tempting the show’s star, Nick Vilardi—Madison sees it as just another block that will not fit.
Even if she manages to stack the blocks in a semblance of order, even if she climbs her way up and reaches for the sky, what happens when the stars fall?
Book Two of The Sisters, Texas Mystery Series.
Homegrown characters, mystery and romance.
more
The second novel in Becki Willis’ The Sisters, Texas Mystery Series is most definitely a page turner and full of twists and turns within the multiple stories and mysteries. There were quite a few characters added to this second series, and at times, it was difficult to follow who’s who, especially if they didn’t initially make a big impression amidst all the mystery and mayhem. The main characters, however, are still delightful, especially Granny Bert and Genny, true to character as in the first novel, but I was sincerely disappointed that Madison has not matured even a little. If anything, she thinks and acts more like a teenager in her reactions to Brash in this second novel than she did in the first one.
I was pleased with the ending of the novel and look forward to reading the next book in the series.
Chicken Scratch #1 – This is my first book by this author and I was greatly surprised at how well written, well thought out and laced with humor and intrigue; this little gem is packed. The area is near and dear to my heart since I was born in the area. The people, while not as easily identifiable as in a Jeff Abbott novel, are locals I know. The Texas speak is just as if Ms. Willis and I were at the Creamery (TAMU) sharing milk shakes and local gossip. The kinks and knots in the plot made it hard to put down the book, even to get a tea refill. You can’t help but like the characters and root for them. The story, filled with life stories, is actually pretty substantial, not fluff, and Ms. W is an entertaining storyteller. 5*
When The Stars Fall #2 – This book is better than Chicken Scratch (#1), which is a good book, too. A lot of suspense, along with developing romances amongst several characters, keeps the reader immersed in this substantial story. Like the first book, the baddie is easily figured out, but the story is well worth reading. There are too many of the well rounded, well developed characters to shout out separately, but they’re all interesting, funny, sincere and just plain folk. The Big House becomes a prominent character and helps the family with a huge change to their lives, maybe. Not a cliffhanger, but there’s a tease about the future of Big and Madison. 5*
Stipulations and Complications #3 – This is a heavy, suspense filled book full of dark secrets and mysteries with the past and the present colliding and the darkness is felt by all involved. Yet, there’s plenty of good and love along with the humor. This intriguing, substantial read is hard to put down with its interesting storylines and well thought out characters. This book is on the level with DeMille, Follette, Grisham and Ludlum. 5*
Home Again: Starting Over #4 – Amen Sister to that comment about Texans and wannabes! This series must be read in order; they keep getting better and better. I love the fact that what happens in the earlier books are just slightly mentioned, instead of being retold. All the characters keep growing and their past and secrets coming to light as the books go on. Multiple storylines in this book and the twists and surprises just keep the reader glued to the pages. I’ve chain read the first four books and don’t have the next two available to me. But I’m diving into book seven, the newly released The Lilac Code. 5*
The Lilac Code #7 – Trouble even finds them outside of Texas! I missed the two books before this one, but it was still an interesting read. I was disappointed with the ending – the gun in her hand was forgotten. But the pages were full of intrigue and suspense, and the characters were intense. Again, there were multiple stories occurring, along with the main story. Current events were featured, which isn’t surprising with all that’s happened in Texas and other U.S. locations in the past year alone. While not a cliffhanger, there’s definitely more books in the future. I chain read five books in three days and never once was bored with this series. 5*
From the first page I knew I was going to like this book. A light read that is funny, and has family values, romance, mystery. Even a house to be renovated! And is very well written. Excellent author.
Am in love with this series. It just gets better and better. Madison sees a murder committed right before her eyes and meets lovely character Derron. Full of twists and turns, I just could not put this book down . Cannot wait to start book 3.
Madison Reynolds has a new client. George Gail thinks her husband, Curtis, is cheating on her and wants Madison to follow him to get proof. Madison sees Curtis at the Bumble Bee Hotel and after he leaves, Claudette Ellingsworth comes out of the same room. Claudette is better known as Caress, a former soap opera star.
After being called in the middle of the night, Madison drives by Caress’ house. The window shades are wide open, showing Caress arguing with another person. Unfortunately, Madison can only see the second person’s back and can’t tell who it is. When Caress goes down, but does not get back up, Madison fears that something is wrong and calls 9-1-1. It turns out that Caress is dead.
Madison is then hired by Darla Mullins to fill in for one of her assistants who is out of the office. While working for Darla, Madison has several encounters with an unknown person in a trench coat.
Who killed Caress? Who was she arguing with? Who is the person in the trench coat? Can Madison figure out who is threatening her and solve the mystery of who killed Caress?
Becki Willis has another winner with this installment of The Sisters, Texas Mystery series. The characters and situations are vivid and very realistic. There is plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing clear to the end.
When the Stars Fall by Becki Willis is just as entertaining as the first book in this series, Chicken Scratch. You certainly don’t have to read these books in order, but if you want to appreciate the evolving characterization and watch the relationships unfold, then reading them in order is highly recommended.
For such a small town, Juliet, Texas, sure has a lot going on: celebrities, flourishing romances, a home makeover reality show, scrumptious food coming from Genny’s cafe, and a brutal crime of passion.
Maddy Reynolds is once again embroiled in a murder, but who did it and why? But before the murder even takes place, the action shoots out of the gate the minute George Gail hires Maddy to spy on her husband because she suspects him of having an affair. Maddy quickly finds herself in way over her head, but she needs the money, so she adds amateur sleuth and private investigator to her job description for In a Pinch Temporary Services.
Becki Willis gives every character the all-star treatment in When the Stars Fall. George Gail and Derron Mullins are great examples of the author’s wonderful characterization skills because she meticulously builds in quirky details that make each character memorable, unique, and quite entertaining. The murder mystery in book 2 has Maddy stymied, but that doesn’t mean our sleuth won’t eventually stumble upon the truth, hopefully without becoming a victim herself. There’s a killer on the loose, and it’s not who you expect.
On a lighter note, romances are heating up in When the Stars Fall, especially when Genesis Baker throws a humdinger of a St. Valentine’s Day party at her cafe. Looks like Cupid’s arrows are finding their mark.
this is another great story in the series. if you like suspense and romance you will enjoy reading the book. Maddie is a widow raising twin teens, she has opened in a pinch to do odd jobs. now a lady wants her to look into what her husband is doing she thinks he is cheating. a good story
I read the first book, Chicken Scratch, and loved it. Now I’ve read When Stars Fall and Becki has done it again. I’m in love with all the characters that live in Juliet and Naomi, twin small towns in Central Texas. I like how Becki weaves in the idiocincrasies of each inhabitant into the stories enabling the reader to know each person. All that being said, I wish the main character, Madison, was a bit more confident in herself. She’s a survivor and needs to start acting like one.