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Hood of Sedna (Stevie Capot Chronicles) by Mina Skye – Review by Lucinda Morton-Phillips

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Hood of Sedna (Stevie Capot Chronicles Book 1)Hood of Sedna by Mina Skye
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I thought the premise of this book was intriguing, with paranormal elements, shapeshifters, fae, magic, romance, and action.
Stevie Capot awakens in 1745, North Carolina with no idea who she is or with no memory of her past. She is taken in by a widower and his son, but has to leave after 10 years when she shows no sign of aging and questions are starting to be asked. This sets off 150 years of moving from place to place, before settling in Sedna, Washington, where she becomes the leader in a community of the poorest residents and tries to look after them any way she can. This leads to a run-in with the local marshall and she encounters 3 other men with links to her past.
These men are shapeshifters and warlocks and each encounter offers a tantalising glimpse and dreams of who she might have been in the past, though they each have their own agenda.
The story is told from multiple viewpoints which sometimes makes the story choppy and interrupts the flow. Several times I had to go back to see who was talking, and there was a lot of telling, not showing. I found the dialogue to be inconsistent, especially the ‘Scottish brogue’ that Stevie is supposed to have.
The ending is an interesting cliffhanger and I am interested enough to discover what happens in the next book.

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The Missing Red Envelopes by Yobe Qiu – Review by Lucinda Morton-Phillips

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The Missing Red EnvelopesThe Missing Red Envelopes by Yobe Qiu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A delightful chapter book abounding with traditions of the Lunar New Year told from the perspective of Lorie & Weina, young Asian American sisters in New York City.
The story revolves around the tradition of giving lucky red envelopes during the Lunar New Year. This year is the first time that Weina, the younger sister, is entrusted with the important job of looking after the special red sachet that holds the red envelopes. When Lorie & Weina discover that they have misplaced the sachet, they have to retrace their steps that day, including visits to Grandma’s house, the temple and the parade.
Such a charming story that shares the day’s events and shows the importance of traditions, food, and family. The illustrations are delightful too and help to bring to life the story. This story would be great to aloud to young children and for chapter readers to read themselves.

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Divinely Dramatic (Divine Vintage Series) by Sandra L. Young – Review by Lucinda Morton-Phillips

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Divinely Dramatic (Divine Vintage Series, #2)Divinely Dramatic by Sandra L. Young
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Divinely Dramatic is the 2nd book in the Divine Vintage series by Sandra L. Young. The focus shifts to Marcy, the young assistant in Divine Vintage boutique who was a secondary character in the first book. This book can be read alone, but you will have a broader understanding of the skills displayed in this story if you have read the first book, Divine Vintage.
As well as working two jobs and looking after her infirm mother, Marcy agrees to help with the costumes of a period-era play in the local community theatre as a favour to her friend Justine.
Ever since she helped her friend (and boss) Tess solve a century-old supernatural murder mystery a couple of years ago, Marcy has been able to see auras although she is not always sure that she interprets them correctly.
Whilst sorting out the costumes for the play, she sees a pulsing white light which leads to her and Tess investigating a 50-year-old mysterious death of an actress who died on opening night in the very play they were now producing.
As well as everything else, the lead actress fails to arrive at rehearsals, leading to Marcy filling in, and then being offered the role by the attractive but grumpy director Mike, who only took on the directing job because he lost a bet with his mates. He is determined to have a successful show to show them up.
Life becomes complicated with the attraction between Marcy and Mike because Mike has a beautiful but difficult girlfriend, and Marcy starts dating her co-star.
Will Marcy be able to pull it all together to solve the mystery, put on a successful show, get her life together and get the man?!
I really enjoyed this book. It seemed to be more modern than the first book and had a faster pace. I love Marcy and her eclectic fashion sense and discovering that Mike was a kind and generous soul under the gruff exterior. It was lovely to touch on characters from the first book to see how their life has progressed, but Marcy was definitely the focus of this book, along with the vintage fashions.

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