If you are looking for a story with a psychic theme, interesting characters and cats, this is a book you should pick up.
Overall, a ok read.
Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I enjoy the Lily Dale mysteries and Prose and Cons is a lovely addition.
Bella Jordan and her son Max run a B and B in a special town full of mystics and mediums.

In book #4 we are treated again to this charming community of characters and a mysterious guest.

I love this series. You cant go wrong here

This is book 4 in the Lily Dale Mystery series. It can be read as a stand alone but the interaction between characters may no be as easy to follow. Set in the New York town of Lily Dale, a psychic community, Bella and her son Max are settling into their new home, a B&B she manages. Her neighbor, Pandora has relatives arriving from England and wants them to stay with Bella. Bella agrees but when they arrive they seem a little unusual. I enjoy this series as I have visited Lily Dale several times. A good story with some real characters. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I was so curious about this book because I really like paranormal mystery and I thought it was ok to read it without knowing what happened in the previous books, but even if every character was well described I was a little lost at times because there are many.

Back to the story, I liked to be in Lily Dale, a pictoresque small town inhabitated mainly by psychics, but our heroine, Bella, just moved out there with her young son after her husband death, is not. She runs a guesthouse but when mysterious things happen she starts to investigate.

The storyline was well developped and there are some twists at the end I didn't have predicted.

All in all Prose and Cons was a good read.

The review for Prose and Cons is in the March 2022 issue of Gumshoe Review and is exclusive to them until April 2022. To read the review use this link:
<http://www.gumshoereview.com/php/Review-id.php?id=6850>

I was excited to visit Lily Dale again and it almost felt like checking in with old friends. I love the series overall and the premise but this installment was not my favorite. I really struggled how Bella put up with so much and never stood up for herself, But again an overall enjoyable read by one of my fave authors. Thank you netgalley and publisher for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

Prose and cons by Wendy Corsi Staub.
A Lily Dale Mystery Book 4.
It’s been nine months since widowed mom Bella Jordan and her young son Max moved to Lily Dale, the quirky, close-knit New York community populated by people who can speak to the dead . . . if one believes in that kind of thing. Now she counts Valley View, the guesthouse she runs, as home and her psychic medium neighbours as friends. Even haughty, British Pandora, who used to own Valley View before her difficult divorce..
A very good read with good characters. Great story. So hauntingly beautiful. I love this series. 5*.

EXCERPT: She turns off the overhead light so she can see outside. Pressing her forehead against the glass, she finds the porch vacant, as it should be. The stained-glass angels are twirling slowly, lacking sufficient wind to make them chime. Beyond the porch lamp's glow, there's nothing but falling rain and darkness.

Bella turns away.

'See that Chance? You don't have to worry, because everything's okay out there. In here, too.'

The cat's green eyes glitter at her across the dim hall.

'Yeah, I know. I don't believe me either.' With a sigh, Bella slowly returns to the kitchen to clean up the pomegranate confetti. The seeds are starting to thaw, pooling and glistening like droplets of blood.

ABOUT 'PROSE AND CONS': It's been nine months since widowed mom Bella Jordan and her young son Max moved to Lily Dale, the quirky, close-knit New York community populated by people who can speak to the dead . . . if one believes in that kind of thing. Now she counts Valley View, the guesthouse she runs, as home and her psychic medium neighbours as friends. Even haughty, British Pandora, who used to own Valley View before her difficult divorce.
So when Pandora sweeps in, requesting an urgent tete-a-tete, Bella expects it to be another complaint about book club. It isn't. Pandora airily reveals her elderly Auntie Eudora is taking a last-minute cruise from London to New York with her gentleman friend Nigel - and minutes later Bella is bemused to find she's agreed to host them at Valley View free of charge.
Bella has enough on her plate: her son Max, their two kitties, a budding relationship with local vet Drew . . . not to mention this month's book club pick to read. But when she begins to have suspicions about one of her new guests, she's determined to uncover the truth for Pandora's sake - even if it kills her first.

MY THOUGHTS: This was fun, and the first in this four book series that I have read, but it won't be the last.

Prose and Cons - I loved the title and it is relevant - moves along at a meandering pace, yet the read just flew by. The characters are engaging, although not entirely believable. But then, they don't have to be. Max and his friend Jiffy stole my heart. Typical young boys who are always hungry and love a good practical joke.

The women, with the exception of Pandora who is a pain in the derriere, are a delight. They revel in their characters and aren't about to change for anyone - Except for Bella, who is still trying to find her feet in this odd little town, and is trying to please everyone to her own detriment. She really needs to grow a pair! But having said that, I also loved her character and she is a great foil for Pandora.

I guessed early on what the mystery was, but it was fun following the characters in their discoveries.

⭐⭐⭐.5

#ProseandCons #NetGalley

I: @wendycorsistaub @severnhouseimprint

T: @WendyCorsiStaub @severnhouse

#contemporaryfiction #cozymystery #crime #paranormal #romance

THE AUTHOR: New York Times bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub is the award-winning author of more than ninety novels, best known for the single title psychological suspense novels she writes under her own name. She also writes women's fiction under the pseudonym Wendy Markham.

Raised in Dunkirk, NY, Wendy graduated from SUNY Fredonia and launched a publishing career in New York City. She was Associate Editor at Silhouette Books before selling her first novel in 1992. Married with two sons, she lives in the NYC suburbs. An active supporter of the American Cancer Society, she was a featured speaker at Northern Westchester’s 2015 Relay for Life and 2012 National Spokesperson for the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation. She has fostered for various animal rescue organizations.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Cannongate Books, Severn House via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Prose and Cons by Wendy Corsi Staub for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

It's been ages since last I read a Lily Dale mystery and was very happy when I got the arc for the new in this beloved series.
It was great to travel again to Lily Dale, this quaint and strange town, and to catch up with Bella and the characters.
Even if it's not the best in the series I enjoyed as the mystery is quite twisty and kept me guessing.
Lily Dale is a fascinating place and Bella is a great character, fleshed out and interesting.
I think this is a sort of new phase in the series and can't wait to read the next story.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e ARC of this book.
Ended up enjoying the book though it got quite draggy in the middle. Tried to act like a cozy but isn't one. Characters are developed. Plot keeps you going. Nice to read by the fire.


3.5 stard

This is the fourth book in the Lily Dale mystery series, and I had a great deal of trouble getting into the book. While I like Bella, the main character, I kept wanting her to push back when Pandora, one of the secondary characters in the book, kept taking advantage of her. It seemed unrealistic that Bella took on a great deal of extra work and yet I never got a sense of any frustration or effort on her part to manage the extra work she needs to do. Then there are the two antagonist, Nigel and Eudora, who seem just totally slimy and unlikeable and I just want Bella to realize who and what they are and kick them out of the house. There are some characters who seem likeable, particularly Luther, but he isn't in the book enough to get a good sense of who he is and the role he plays.

Lily Dale seems an intriguing place, if you are willing to put some belief in a spirit world and a place where people talk to spirit guides and discuss their conversation as easily as someone might talk to their next door neighbor and then discuss the conversation with someone else. i would like to have the characters respond more when they did communicate with spirits, but that doesn't happen until late in the book when Pandora goes off to specifically meditate.

Bella's son and his best friend are charming additions to the characters. It's easy to get a feel for these two rambunctious boys as they race around together, caging sweets, rides with adults, and puppies. They add a welcome likeability to the story and i would like to see more of it.

This is a well-like series among some readers, so I believe my reaction is more in the fact that this simply isn't the series for me. The book is well written, and moves with a good pace. I would recommend it to anyone who has read other books in the series and enjoyed them as it will offer them an opportunity to follow the lives of Lily Dale residents. My thanks to Canongate Books Severn House for providing me with an advanced copy for review. The opinions stated here are entirely my own.

I really enjoyed the earlier books in this series, but this one was disappointing to me. I love the premise of there being many characters living in Lily Dale, New York with paranormal abilities with Bella not sure how she feels about their claims. Some of the best parts of the prior books are scenes with the main character, Bella Jordan who is a widow, and her six-year-old son, Max.This book was lacking in those touching scenes and had too much of Pandora, my least favorite character in the series. Pandora used to own the Vicorian manor that is now a guest house managed by Bella and doesn’t want to admit to her visiting aunt that she no longer owns it. Bella allows herself to be walked on by Pandora and Auntie Eudora throughout the book. Bella senses something is off about Eudora and her boyfriend Nigel, but the plot just didn’t grab me. I enjoyed the ending and the direction Bella seems to be taking for the future, but this was my least favorite of the Lily Dale mysteries.

I received this ebook from NetGalley through the courtesy of Severn House. An advance copy was provided to me at no cost, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

What's up with Pandora's Auntie Eudora and her love interest Nigel? Bella runs Valley View as a guesthouse where guests can speak to the dead (even though she's not a believer) but Pandora who used to own it doesn't want Eudora to know that she lost so much in her divorce- putting Bella on the spot to host Eudora without ratting out Pandora. Lily Dale is a unique small town with a distinct paranormal thing going on so know that this will figure in the mystery. I'd not read the earlier books in the series so this was a fine standalone for me. I liked Bella, her son Max, her love interest Drew and even Pandora. The mystery isn't too complicated but it's twisty enough. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC, Oh- and there's a book club and a cat with special powers.

This is one of my favourite paranormal series and this latest does not disappoint. Great characters, a great setting of Lily Dale and a whodunit that is top notch.
I highly recommend this series and look forward to reading more books in the series.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

When I began this book I wasn’t enthused with the main character being a skeptic in a town of psychics and mediums but as I read it turned into a terrific who-done-what! I loved the characters and Belle’s psychic cat, all the neighbors and their fallibility.
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this arc

A Bizarre Turn….
The fourth in the Lily Dale series of mysteries and it’s been nine months since, the ever sceptical, Bella and her son moved to the magical area to run a guesthouse. When things take a bizarre turn with a new guest Bella knows that she needs to intervene in an effort to get to the truth. Entertaining and engaging and with a unique perspective which makes for enjoyable reading.

Oh how I have missed Bella, Max, and Lily Dale! It's been four years since she wrote the last one so I was super excited for this one. She never misses her mark!

Bella runs a guest house in Lily Dale where people speak to the dead as if they’re still here. They supposedly get answers, too. Her friend Pandora used to own the home but lost it during a bitter divorce. Pandora is expecting a visit from her Aunt Eudora from London and her male companion, Nigel. Pandora doesn’t want them to know she no longer owns the home so she asks Bella to help her keep it a secret until she can tell her aunt the truth. Bella reluctantly agrees. Upon the couple’s arrival, things don’t quite seem right. Even Pandora has some doubts. Nigel keeps snooping around the house like he’s looking for something, even though he’s never been there before, and Nigel and Eudora go rather heavy on the alcoholic beverages. Pandora doesn’t recall her aunt ever drinking that much. Bella seeks the help of her friends and neighbors to find out exactly what is going on.

There’s a puzzle to solve, suspense, danger, a missing cruise line employee, psychic medium friends, mischievous boys, and even the cats get involved.

I was given an advance copy by NetGalley and the publisher. This review is my honest opinion.

Bella Jordan is a single Mother and loves her neighbors, even if they are psychic mediums who can speak to the dead. These are her friends and community now that she and Max live in Lily Dale. When the former owner of the guesthouse Bella runs comes knocking, she finds herself hosting the woman’s aunt and uncle for a visit, gratis. But it’s when one of the guests seems off that Bella vows to get to the bottom of what is going on. It wouldn’t be Bella’s first brush with death, and she sure hopes it won’t be her last.

Gotta say, I WILL be reading the first three books in this series as I really enjoyed this fourth entry. While it reads fine as a standalone, I really want to catch up on the first three entries.

I have read the whole Lily Dale series and have enjoyed all of them. This a Paranormal Romance. I am anxious for another book to find out about Max,. Max iis a Child who lives in a town full of mediums and psychics. is he gifted too?