Robin Merrill

When Gertrude answered the knock on her door, she found her first real client. Andy’s girlfriend had gone missing. He’d reported it to the police, but they didn’t take it seriously. Gertrude did and was excited about having her first paying client!

Gertrude isn’t a spring chicken and may walk with a walker, but she is one determined lady when it comes to investigating. With the assistance of her neighbour, Calvin, she is hot on the trail of the missing girl.

Her sleuthing leads her to a sort of commune out in the middle of nowhere. She finds not only the girl, she’s hired to find, but a small number of other “missing persons,” being held by one woman. How is Gertrude going to get the ladies out safely?

This is a light hearted read I read in one sitting.… (más)

The town of Piercehaven isn't wild about the interloping lobsterman who's come to fish in local waters. When that lobsterman mysteriously goes missing, Emily isn't at all okay with it--especially since her fiancé, James, is acting so strange about it in Trespass by author Robin Merrill.

Nope, I didn't read the blurb before I started this third Piercehaven book. I enjoyed the first two and was fine with simply moving right along with this one.

I've gotten hooked on the series. The books aren't super light or super dark. They're down-to-earth reads full of small-town quirks. The stories move at an engaging pace, and I feel like I just know Emily by now, a heroine who's easy to relate to.

I'll admit James got on my nerves a few times in this book. Not a feeling I liked to have so close to his nuptials with Emily. I'm not sure I got over all the wedding jitters this book put me through, but, hey. At least that shows how much the story pulled me in.

Fellow fans of ChristFic will want to start at the beginning of this series. And if you've already read the first two, don't hesitate to read this one.
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I received a complimentary copy of this book for an honest review.… (más)

The prospect of new windmills in Piercehaven has the small island town up in arms, with Emily, who’s still a newcomer, caught in the middle. So the prospect of a new softball team—mostly made up of Piercehaven girls who’ve never played the sport before—could be just what the town needs to foster unity now in Windmills, a novel by author Robin Merrill.

There’s a lot that’s upbeat and pretty hilarious in this story. A dry humor often accompanies Emily’s point of view, and the quirkiness and bickering among the townsfolk is almost like an entertaining mix between the small towns of Everwood and Mayberry from two television shows I’m fond of.

Nevertheless, while I wouldn’t say this book has quite the dark edge of the one before it, this story isn’t all fun and games. There are times when serious issues here get real. And I appreciate Emily’s character, who isn’t the syrupy-sweetly-insecure type, but she isn’t a total opposite either, like hyper-aggressive and excessive on snark. She can be a crier, but she’s got fire. Fire under control.

Much like the basketball games in the first book, a great deal of time is devoted to the softball games here. This novel’s several game sequences might be more or less interesting depending on how much you like softball. On a different note, concerning the dark secret revealed in the first book, it seems there should have been more than a passing mention or two of it here. The effects of something like that can be lasting, even traumatic for some, but it appears as if the town (even the teenagers closest to the crisis) pretty much forgot or got over it rather fast.

Still, Piercehaven has been growing on me, and it’d be interesting to see what may happen next.
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I received a complimentary copy of this book for an honest review.… (más)