Book Review: Murder at the Mayfair Hotel by CJ Archer

Author: C.J. Archer

Title: Murder at the Mayfair Hotel

Series: Cleopatra Fox #1

Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery

Format: ebook

Pages: 395

Published: November 30, 2020

Where I got It: My shelf (Amazon)

Summary: 

December 1899. After the death of her beloved grandmother, Cleopatra Fox moves into the luxury hotel owned by her estranged uncle in the hopes of putting hardship and loneliness behind her. But the poisoning of a guest on Christmas Eve throws her new life, and the hotel, into chaos. Cleo quickly realizes no one can be trusted, not Scotland Yard and especially not the hotel’s charming assistant manager. With the New Year’s Eve ball approaching fast and the hotel’s reputation hanging by a thread, Cleo must find the killer before the ball, and the hotel itself, are ruined. But catching a murderer proves just as difficult as navigating the hotel’s hierarchy and the peculiarities of her family. Can Cleo find the killer before the new century begins? Or will someone get away with murder?

Review:

I've seen this book everywhere, so I decided to give it a chance when it was free on Amazon. Love me a historical fiction mixed with a good mystery!!!!

Cleo Fox moves into a luxury hotel owned by her estranged uncle in hopes of putting the past behind her. She wants to move forward and reforge these family bonds. However, after the poisoning of a guest on Christmas Eve, her life is turned upside down. No one can be trusted, especially not Scotland Yard. With the New Year's Eve ball fast approaching and the hotel's reputation on the line, Cleo must find out who the killer is. 

The first half of the book had me addicted!  I was glued. The last half? It started dragging a little bit for me. Maybe I was just anxious to find out who the killer was? IDK. I was just ready for the story to wrap up nicely, and we go on our merry way. 

Plus, Cleo is supposed to be this brainiac, but she made a lot of silly mistakes and pointed fingers that made no sense. Maybe she'll tighten up in the next one? Yes, she was a bit sheltered and naive.  Maybe that iswhy she made some obvious errors. 

The last couple of chapters had me glued again. 

We'll see. If I come across book 2 and it is free...maybe. 

I'll stamp this with 3 stars. 

Audiobook Review: The Hammer of God by Arthur C. Clarke

Author: Arthur C Clarke

Narrator: Jonathan Davis
Title: The Hammer of God

Genre: SciFi
Format: Audiobook
Published: January 1, 1992
Where I Got It: My shelf (Audible)

Summary: 

In the year 2110 technology has cured most of our worries. But even as humankind enters a new golden age, an amateur astronomer points his telescope at just the right corner of the night sky and sees disaster hurtling toward Earth: a chunk of rock that could annihilate civilization. While a few fanatics welcome the apocalyptic destruction as a sign from God, the greatest scientific minds of Earth desperately search for a way to avoid the inevitable. On board the starship Goliath Captain Robert Singh and his crew must race against time to redirect the meteor form its deadly collision course. Suddenly they find themselves on the most important mission in human history--a mission whose success may require the ultimate sacrifice.

Review:

I've heard about this book for years, but never gave it a chance. I decided to finally give it a read.

We are in the year 2110, and technology and AI are the least of our worries. They have cured most of them, but there is a disaster heading straight towards Earth. One huge chunk of rock could annihilate all of civilization. There are some fanatics that welcome it since they see it as an act of God. However, the greatest scientific minds want to stop it. Starship Goliath and its crew race against time to redirect the meteor. 

This was certainly a story to read. It inspired many, many SciFi movies, so it was interesting for sure. 

The pacing was a little slow for such a thriller and high-tension situation. I feel like there was a lot of filler and a lot of deep dives. Don't get me wrong. I like understanding the world and how we got to where we are. However, there was a lot of history lessons that didn't really help the story along. 

The mix of religion was a nice touch, though. It showed that even in the future, there might be some folks trying to stop science and push their religion. 

The ending. Oof.

The narrator did a good job. I liked his voices, and he helped me stay involved with the story during the info-dumping sections. 

Overall, this was a good read. Just be prepared for some serious tech, history, and world info-dumping. The narrator helped me stay involved with the story and made it come to life. I'll give this 4 stars. 

Reading Challenges

- Audiobook #3

Audiobook Review: Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

Author: Kendare Blake

Narrator: Amy Landon
Title: Three Dark Crowns

Series: Three Dark Crowns #1

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance
Format: Audiobook
Published: September 20, 2016
Where I Got It: Borrowed from library

Summary: 

When kingdom come, there will be one.

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born—three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins.

The last queen standing gets the crown.

Review:

First book club book of 2026! Weeeeeee!

Here we follow three sisters. All three are queens and equal heirs to the crown, and all are magical. However, there can only be one queen to rule them all. Mirabella is an elemental. Katharine is a poisoner who can ingest poisons. Arsinoe is a naturalist. This will be a fight to the death on the night of the sisters' 16th birthday. 

How cool is this concept? Def royals meets fantasy meets Hunger Games. Loved the idea and the concept. I wouldn't want to live here, but the powers would be lovely. I guess I would just want to be a civilian. I wouldn't make a good queen. 

The execution of the story was...okay. It was so slow and so dry in the beginning. Yes, we are learning about the sisters and the world and the rules, etc. However, it took forever for anything to really happen. Plus, we had a lot of POVs going on. Not just the queens, but a lot of their friends, etc. Sure, I didn't mind getting a glimpse of the world, but I think I would've liked this more if it were just the queens' POVs. 

Also, I did the audio of this. I wonder if I would've appreciated the multiple POVs if I did the ebook/physical book of it. It would've been easier to follow along. There were a couple of times I was confused about who was saying what. I had to rewind a couple of times. Don't get me wrong, the narrator is good! I have listened to her before, but so many POVs and soooo many characters, it is hard to have a different voice for each person. 

OMG, the end. I need to read book 2. Dayum. 

Oh! There was another scene a few pages back that had me audibly gasp! Holy cannoli batman!

Overall, I did enjoy myself while listening to this. I think I would've liked it more if I did a different format and/or if we have less POVs. I do want to read book 2 because things have HEATED up. I'll give this 3 stars. 

Reading Challenges

- Audiobook #2

- Library Love #3

TMST: Favorite Decade(s)

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog. Feel free to leave your links in the comments if you are participating.

1/27/2026 What's your favorite decade and why? (You do not need to have lived through it!)

I've been bad at joining in on this weekly posting! My goal this year is to try and do one or two a month (at minimum). They are such fun prompts!

I'm a huge history buff and I loved parts of my childhood. But what always stuck in my head was the 1760s, 1770s, and 1780s. The aesthetic is just so...beautiful. It's always been one of my favorite time periods. The looks. The fashion. The colors. It just speaks to me.