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Miso Cozy Mysteries #7
The Daydreamer Detective Finds Her Calling
Tragedy strikes Chikata again!
When Noriko Kubo, a local small business coach, is found dead in her back garden, Mei feels the pull of a good mystery and the desire to solve another case, especially at the behest of her best friend. With several suspects that need to be questioned or followed, she has all the skills to help out and the imagination to piece together the clues.
But time is not on her side and neither is good luck. Her baby is crying for hours every night, her husband’s restaurant is so popular he’s never around, and her new house is in jeopardy of never being built. Mei doesn’t have the energy to help with a murder investigation... or does she?
Soon, everyone is depending on her for everything, and Mei feels lost and unsure of her own future. She loves her family and her tea shop, but she’s never really found her calling unless she’s helping to solve a murder case. That’s not a legitimate career for her, though, is it? Can Mei juggle her busy life, secure her place in society, and still help find Noriko’s killer?
With her head in the clouds and a taste for solving crime, you don’t want to miss Mei in The Daydreamer Detective Finds Her Calling, the intensely delicious fifth course to the Miso Cozy series of cozy mystery novels.
When Noriko Kubo, a local small business coach, is found dead in her back garden, Mei feels the pull of a good mystery and the desire to solve another case, especially at the behest of her best friend. With several suspects that need to be questioned or followed, she has all the skills to help out and the imagination to piece together the clues.
But time is not on her side and neither is good luck. Her baby is crying for hours every night, her husband’s restaurant is so popular he’s never around, and her new house is in jeopardy of never being built. Mei doesn’t have the energy to help with a murder investigation... or does she?
Soon, everyone is depending on her for everything, and Mei feels lost and unsure of her own future. She loves her family and her tea shop, but she’s never really found her calling unless she’s helping to solve a murder case. That’s not a legitimate career for her, though, is it? Can Mei juggle her busy life, secure her place in society, and still help find Noriko’s killer?
With her head in the clouds and a taste for solving crime, you don’t want to miss Mei in The Daydreamer Detective Finds Her Calling, the intensely delicious fifth course to the Miso Cozy series of cozy mystery novels.
- GenresMystery
ebook
First published March 29, 2019
9 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Steph Gennaro
7 books7 followersSteph Gennaro is a long-time Japanophile, and she’s been studying Japanese culture and language for over 20 years. She loves dreaming of far-off places, going for walks with her dog, Lulu Ninja Assassin, hanging out with her family, and reading outside in the summertime. There is no better season than summer. She’s a Capricorn, mother, knitter, and web developer, and pasta is her favorite meal. Steph Gennaro is her pen name for cozy mysteries, but she also writes science fiction romance.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 12, 2019
Great entry in this charming series. Love the character development in Mei and her mother!
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February 27, 2019For more information on this book, teasers, and news, please visit http://www.spajonas.com/blog/
September 18, 2020
I love The Daydreamer Detective. Mei spaces out as she projects possibilities in her mind. Her friends are used to that habit, even though it annoys them. But that's how she figures out mysteries. Almost two years ago, she returned home from Tokyo not knowing what she's going to do with her life--to her mother's dismay. After solving four murders (5th with this book), she's finally figured out what she wants to do with her life.
She has a loving, supportive husband and a baby who's Dr. Jekyll during the day and Mr. Hyde at night. Having had a baby who cried half the night, every night, I knew the author wrote from experience. Still, Mei handles the baby, a tea shop and elderly customers, and solves the murder because of a friend's request. Mei just can't say no to a friend.
Mei has grown throughout the series. She's more mature, more sensible. She recognizes how lucky she is to have such great friends. Even her mother changes. She's always been critical of Mei's choices. After a disaster, she almost becomes a different person. I love how the author reveals cultural differences without lecturing. Small town Japan has many similarities with small town America, along with many differences. If you enjoy cozy mysteries, with humor, you have to read this series.
She has a loving, supportive husband and a baby who's Dr. Jekyll during the day and Mr. Hyde at night. Having had a baby who cried half the night, every night, I knew the author wrote from experience. Still, Mei handles the baby, a tea shop and elderly customers, and solves the murder because of a friend's request. Mei just can't say no to a friend.
Mei has grown throughout the series. She's more mature, more sensible. She recognizes how lucky she is to have such great friends. Even her mother changes. She's always been critical of Mei's choices. After a disaster, she almost becomes a different person. I love how the author reveals cultural differences without lecturing. Small town Japan has many similarities with small town America, along with many differences. If you enjoy cozy mysteries, with humor, you have to read this series.
May 13, 2019
I LOVE this series!
Cozy mysteries set in Japan. The protagonist, Mei, is the kind of armchair detective common in this genre, whose "daydreamer" ways allow her to connect clues and investigate murder when it happens in her small town. Mei is awesome! I love the way this character struggles and grows throughout the series. In this, the fifth book, she's trying to balance being a business owner and a new Mom, and boy is it rough. Mei and her world-class chef husband are trying to build their house, but in the meantime they are crammed into a tiny apartment with their new baby, who cries most nights, depriving them both of sleep. That makes day-to-day life hard, but add a new murder investigation on top of that, and Mei has her work cut out for her.
For five books now, we've watched Mei investigate murder as a "hobby". In this book, the possibility of turning it into her calling presents itself, and it's a very exciting hint at what's to come.
Warning: this book describes food in such a way that you'll find yourself craving some great meals! It also immerses you in Japanese culture and gives you a very satisfying mystery. You should give this series a try!
Cozy mysteries set in Japan. The protagonist, Mei, is the kind of armchair detective common in this genre, whose "daydreamer" ways allow her to connect clues and investigate murder when it happens in her small town. Mei is awesome! I love the way this character struggles and grows throughout the series. In this, the fifth book, she's trying to balance being a business owner and a new Mom, and boy is it rough. Mei and her world-class chef husband are trying to build their house, but in the meantime they are crammed into a tiny apartment with their new baby, who cries most nights, depriving them both of sleep. That makes day-to-day life hard, but add a new murder investigation on top of that, and Mei has her work cut out for her.
For five books now, we've watched Mei investigate murder as a "hobby". In this book, the possibility of turning it into her calling presents itself, and it's a very exciting hint at what's to come.
Warning: this book describes food in such a way that you'll find yourself craving some great meals! It also immerses you in Japanese culture and gives you a very satisfying mystery. You should give this series a try!
June 15, 2020
Not my favorite book in the series. The murder and investigation seems like an afterthought. This story seems to be more about Mei and Yasahiro adjusting to life as new parents, and the mystery why Mari screams her head off all night and only at night. (This is never explained. I know almost nothing about children, but this doesn't seem normal at all. It feels like a discarded plot point that wasn't edited completely.)
I'd say I will continue to read the series, because the setting in small-town Japan is what initially interested me. But unless I've missed something, this appears to be the last one. Pajonas has moved on to other series and projects, and I think Mei has been left behind.
I'd say I will continue to read the series, because the setting in small-town Japan is what initially interested me. But unless I've missed something, this appears to be the last one. Pajonas has moved on to other series and projects, and I think Mei has been left behind.
April 1, 2019
I LOVE MEI
I am prejudiced....almost fifty years ago I lived in Japan, assigned there as a U.S. Army Nurse. I was permitted to extend my tour of duty to three years. I am addicted to the Miso Cozy Mysteries. I am in love with Mei, her family, friends and the fictional city in which she lives. I was disappointed I could not find the suspense that were part of the previous novels. Maybe because of Mari? My goal is read every book S. J. Pajonas writes! I definitely share this author's love of Japan.
I am prejudiced....almost fifty years ago I lived in Japan, assigned there as a U.S. Army Nurse. I was permitted to extend my tour of duty to three years. I am addicted to the Miso Cozy Mysteries. I am in love with Mei, her family, friends and the fictional city in which she lives. I was disappointed I could not find the suspense that were part of the previous novels. Maybe because of Mari? My goal is read every book S. J. Pajonas writes! I definitely share this author's love of Japan.
March 22, 2019
I received a free copy form the author and voluntarily reviewed it.
I love this series and it's one of my favorite cozy mystery series, so I was excited to start reading this one. The Daydreamer Detective Finds Her Calling is another awesome installment in this series. I love seeing how Mei and the other characters change and progress throughout this series. And as the title suggest this one is quite an important book in Mei's journey.
Mei has a lot to deal with in this book, the saying when it rains it pours certainly came to mind. Not only is her baby crying for hours every evening, her hired help at the tea shop is stopping soon, her house is a mess, her husband's restaurant is more busy, there are troubles with their new house that's being build, she hardly gets any sleep or free time and then there is a new mystery that Mei gets involved in. All in all it was quite the eventful read and I enjoyed seeing how Mei dealt with everything and I also felt so bad for her with all the stress she's under and everything she has to deal with.
I really enjoyed this book. It nicely gets split between Mei's personal struggles, the strange happening at the house and the mystery. The mystery starts a bit later, but I think it worked well here. And the three main topics all nicely got blended together. I like reading about Mei's personal life as mcuh as the mystery, so it definitely works here to have quite a bit of focus on that.
The mystery was an interesting one, I wans't as invested as in some other books in this series, but I still really enjoyed reading about it and seeing how they figure out what happened. For a long time it doesn't seem to get much clearer what happened, until suddenly new evidence and clues pop up and then it slowly starts coming together. I liked how it all came together in the end. I also liked how this tackles Mei's involvement with the mystery, it's very natural and I like seeing how she helps with the investigation.
Then there are the strange happenings with the new house that is being build. There are accidents happening, things beings moved, people see something moving at night and holes appearing where they were none before. Mei and Yasahiro just want their house build, but the crew that works there is terrified it's haunted and they have to solve this before the work starts up again. I really liked this plot line as there were all these strange events and I started wondering if it really was haunted or if something else was going. I especially liked the conclusion as it was such an interesting turn. Although I did end predicting what was going on slightly before Mei made that guess, but that's because of something the author said on her blog and I suddenly pieced things together. It was a great twist.
I also liked reading about everything that's going on in Mei's life. How she struggles with everything, but also how she slowly finds a way to deal with. She has some trouble accepting help or asking for it on other cases, but I liked how eventually she realized it's not a weakness. I have to admit I am not a fan of babies in books, but even so I really enjoyed this book and while the baby is part of a lot of scenes I didn't mind as much, although I'll be happier when the baby is a bit older. I think Mei is a great character and her struggles also feel very realistic. By the end of the book I really liked where she was and where she's going with her life. I can't wait to see what will happen in the next book.
There isn't as much Mei and Yasahiro time in this book, but I did like how they are a unified font and do things together. They're just so busy with everything going on that they don't have as much time for each other. The scenes they have together are great and they are sprinkled throughout the book as little pieces of happiness. There's this scene where Yasahiro stands up for Mei that was awesome and also toward the end where you really see the cozy family they're all becoming.
There also is a great cast of recurring side characters like police officer Goro and his wife Kumi, Police officer Kayo, Mei's mother and some returning customers at her tea shop and also new side characters like Emi who helps in the tea shop, the characters involved with the mystery and some characters who work on the house. And the author does a great job giving them all their own personality too.
To summarize: I love this series and this is another great read. Mei has so much going on in this book with busy things in her personal life like her baby and work, a mystery to solve and strange happening at their new house that's being build. It all blends together to form an engaging story and I just wanted to keep reading and find out what was going on. The mystery was well done, with not many clues at first, but slowly more clues popping up and things slowly coming together. The house story line also was interesting and I especially liked the conclusion to that, although I did manage to predict what was going on. I really like where things are going in Mei's life and especially how her involvement with the mysteries is going and how she finds her calling in this book, I can't wait to see where that goes in future books. All in all I can't recommend this series enough to cozy mystery fans and it remains one of my favorite cozie series.
I love this series and it's one of my favorite cozy mystery series, so I was excited to start reading this one. The Daydreamer Detective Finds Her Calling is another awesome installment in this series. I love seeing how Mei and the other characters change and progress throughout this series. And as the title suggest this one is quite an important book in Mei's journey.
Mei has a lot to deal with in this book, the saying when it rains it pours certainly came to mind. Not only is her baby crying for hours every evening, her hired help at the tea shop is stopping soon, her house is a mess, her husband's restaurant is more busy, there are troubles with their new house that's being build, she hardly gets any sleep or free time and then there is a new mystery that Mei gets involved in. All in all it was quite the eventful read and I enjoyed seeing how Mei dealt with everything and I also felt so bad for her with all the stress she's under and everything she has to deal with.
I really enjoyed this book. It nicely gets split between Mei's personal struggles, the strange happening at the house and the mystery. The mystery starts a bit later, but I think it worked well here. And the three main topics all nicely got blended together. I like reading about Mei's personal life as mcuh as the mystery, so it definitely works here to have quite a bit of focus on that.
The mystery was an interesting one, I wans't as invested as in some other books in this series, but I still really enjoyed reading about it and seeing how they figure out what happened. For a long time it doesn't seem to get much clearer what happened, until suddenly new evidence and clues pop up and then it slowly starts coming together. I liked how it all came together in the end. I also liked how this tackles Mei's involvement with the mystery, it's very natural and I like seeing how she helps with the investigation.
Then there are the strange happenings with the new house that is being build. There are accidents happening, things beings moved, people see something moving at night and holes appearing where they were none before. Mei and Yasahiro just want their house build, but the crew that works there is terrified it's haunted and they have to solve this before the work starts up again. I really liked this plot line as there were all these strange events and I started wondering if it really was haunted or if something else was going. I especially liked the conclusion as it was such an interesting turn. Although I did end predicting what was going on slightly before Mei made that guess, but that's because of something the author said on her blog and I suddenly pieced things together. It was a great twist.
I also liked reading about everything that's going on in Mei's life. How she struggles with everything, but also how she slowly finds a way to deal with. She has some trouble accepting help or asking for it on other cases, but I liked how eventually she realized it's not a weakness. I have to admit I am not a fan of babies in books, but even so I really enjoyed this book and while the baby is part of a lot of scenes I didn't mind as much, although I'll be happier when the baby is a bit older. I think Mei is a great character and her struggles also feel very realistic. By the end of the book I really liked where she was and where she's going with her life. I can't wait to see what will happen in the next book.
There isn't as much Mei and Yasahiro time in this book, but I did like how they are a unified font and do things together. They're just so busy with everything going on that they don't have as much time for each other. The scenes they have together are great and they are sprinkled throughout the book as little pieces of happiness. There's this scene where Yasahiro stands up for Mei that was awesome and also toward the end where you really see the cozy family they're all becoming.
There also is a great cast of recurring side characters like police officer Goro and his wife Kumi, Police officer Kayo, Mei's mother and some returning customers at her tea shop and also new side characters like Emi who helps in the tea shop, the characters involved with the mystery and some characters who work on the house. And the author does a great job giving them all their own personality too.
To summarize: I love this series and this is another great read. Mei has so much going on in this book with busy things in her personal life like her baby and work, a mystery to solve and strange happening at their new house that's being build. It all blends together to form an engaging story and I just wanted to keep reading and find out what was going on. The mystery was well done, with not many clues at first, but slowly more clues popping up and things slowly coming together. The house story line also was interesting and I especially liked the conclusion to that, although I did manage to predict what was going on. I really like where things are going in Mei's life and especially how her involvement with the mysteries is going and how she finds her calling in this book, I can't wait to see where that goes in future books. All in all I can't recommend this series enough to cozy mystery fans and it remains one of my favorite cozie series.
May 20, 2019
What a relief
The series is continuing at its previous high level. Additionally the author had laid out a reasonable plan for how the series can continue.
The series is continuing at its previous high level. Additionally the author had laid out a reasonable plan for how the series can continue.
Read
January 27, 2020For more information on this book, teasers, and news, please visit http://www.spajonas.com/blog/
Read
June 29, 2020For more information on this book, teasers, and news, please visit: https://www.stephgennaro.com/the-dayd...
June 19, 2024
great series!
I have loved this cozy, gentle but deep, series! I hope we see more of Mei. I definitely recommend this series!
I have loved this cozy, gentle but deep, series! I hope we see more of Mei. I definitely recommend this series!
March 29, 2019
The 5th installment of The Daydreamer Detective series is by far my favorite. This time around Mei finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery all while trying to maneuver the ins and outs of being a new mom. This fantastic read highlights S.J. Pajonas' seamless writing and guarantees a fabulous read.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews