For Charlotte, posing as the town psychic has never been easier. Thanks to helping the cops solve the mystery of the Castle Cove Bandit, “Ruby” has become a beloved fixture in the sleepy Oregon beach town. Her sister, Paige, is flourishing now that she’s not being yanked from one con job to the next. And both sisters are discovering what it means to be part of a community, rather than preying on one.
But wherever Charlotte and Paige go, crime is sure to follow. Someone has been breaking into homes and vandalizing their contents, including Ruby’s Readings and Cosmic Shop. Charlotte doesn’t want to get involved and risk their newfound stability, especially since it’s only two more months until the real Ruby returns. But when a phone call from their estranged parents breaks up their happy routine, the sisters realize they have even less time in Castle Cove than they thought.
Charlotte’s already had to distance herself from Deputy Jared once—a criminal in a cop’s bed never ends well. But this officer of the law isn’t giving up the chase. The closer he gets, the sooner the jig is up, and if Charlotte doesn’t give him the slip now, she may lose Paige forever.
THIS IS NOT A STAND ALONE NOVEL — IT IS BOOK TWO IN A THREE BOOK SERIES.
Mary Frame writes romantic comedies with quirky characters, steamy moments, and banter that will make you blush and snort-laugh at the same time. She’s a full time mom with a full time job and has no idea how she manages to write novels, but it probably helps that she's a dedicated introvert. She doesn't enjoy writing about herself in third person, but she does enjoy reading, writing, dancing, and damaging the ear drums of her co-workers when she randomly decides to sing to them.
She LOVES hearing from readers and will not only respond but likely begin stalking them while tossing out hearts and flowers and rainbows! If that doesn't creep you out, e-mail her at: maryframeauthor@gmail.com
Personally, I think the best thing about book two is how it brings Charlotte and Jared together a bit more :) If you read for more of the romance, this is the book for you!
But about that cliffy... Sorry guys!!! Book three will be published in a couple short weeks! I know, I know, there are those of you out there who will smite me (oh mighty smiters) me and my little cliffhanger, too! I would like to point out this entire series put together is 164,133 words so I kind of had to break it up a bit. ;)
This series for me was an exercise in plotting and putting together a giant story with three mini arcs and an overreaching plot arc which made my brain hurt a little bit. But for me it's all about growing as a writer and entertaining the masses. Or, you know, all of you :)
Anywho, I hope you enjoy it! Don't forget to read book one, Anything But Extraordinary first! I can't wait until book three is here! <3
After reading the first book in this trilogy (Anything But Extraordinary) I dove immediately into book two. I couldn’t wait to see how Charlotte fared in her desperate dance, keeping the townsfolk convinced that she was actually a psychic named Ruby.
Another mystery features in this installment, but the mystery takes a backseat to the budding relationship between Charlotte & Jared. That man! He’s wonderful! He’s so close to perfect it’s almost painful. The romance is sweet, with Jared seeming to sense that “Ruby” needs things to go slow. I found myself yelling at my iPad as I read, cursing Charlotte for not coming clean, telling the truth, and letting Jared help her.
The ending snuck up on me before I was ready and, I will warn you, the cliffhanger has me biting my nails in anticipation. Thankfully the entire series is published and you won’t have to wait for satisfaction.
I love this series! It gives me such good vibes and makes me feel so good. It has exactly the right dose of excitement and mystery, it has great personalities and the love... it's just what I want! Can't wait til January 18th;)
Most important: This is not a three-book series but a single large novel published in three volumes. This should not surprise anyone as the author's own blurb warns the readers against cliffhangers in volumes 1 and 2. You will be paying about 8$ for the whole story, but it's about 700 Kindle pages so that's not excessive. Get the boxset, as you will definitely want to keep reading after the first (free) book.
Quirky and engaging and sometimes charming characters inhabit picturesque Castle Cove. Among these, baby sister Paige was, for me, the best-drawn character, being a perfect thirteen-year old sweet little brat. The lead is the sympathetically-penned Charlotte aka 'Ruby'. The plot is a tumbleweed - a fast moving thicket, blown briskly along by the variably smart, caring, air-headed, scheming Not-Ruby (i.e. Charlotte). The story is more or less character driven and is cleverly played out. Each volume centres around its own focal mystery or point of tension, but the story blows right on from one to the next, with no overlap. While Charlotte's character seemed a little inconsistent in maturity at times, there was no question but that I was rooting for her all the way. The con-artist parents, however, were noticeably flat villains, especially when viewed in contrast against other characters like the lively Tabby, embattled Ben, Gravy the three-legged cat, etc, etc, etc (the list is long!) Heartthrob Deputy Jared is entirely too flawless.
Four stars rather than five mainly for the variable strength of characterization, and because I feel that this should really be marketed as one book rather than three. Strongly recommended for YA fiction fans.
Great job Mary Frame. Not the run of the mill series. I quite like it so far! Let's see how it ends. Be back soon on book three. So far I would recommend book one and two. Let's explore book three! Hey Mary, I live quite close to you! On the California side !
This is the second book in this series. I think reading the first book, Anything but Extraordinary, before this one would make everything easier to understand.
Charlotte, still posing as Ruby the Psychic, and her sister Paige have settled into the quirky small town of Castle Cove. This time, she’s again drawn into a police case where someone is breaking into houses, but not stealing or destroying anything, just moving things around. In fact in some cases, the intruder washes the dirty dishes left in the sink. A teenage prank? A misguided burglar? Can Charlotte help hot Deputy Jared figure out the culprit?
The poor young woman is drawn to Jared, but she keeps pushing him away, hoping to protect her heart and his. On top of all that’s going on, her parents appear to be on her trail, and that’s not a good thing. Can she avoid them to protect Paige?
While the first book in the series, Anything but Extraordinary, resolved most issues and only left a very minor cliffhanger at the end, A Life Less Extraordinary concludes with a few major cliffies. I’ll be honest; I can’t wait to read book three in this series to find out how this ends.
Mary Frame can take her position next to the likes of Janet Evonovich for madcap humor. This is cleaner, and I like Charlotte more than Stephanie Plum, but I can draw parallels. Both are single women who keep getting caught up in situations that initially appear beyond them, but they rise to, or perhaps trip into, solutions.
So, will the parents relent? Will Jared and Charlotte persist? Will Tabby and Ben work things out? Will everyone live happily ever after in Castle Cove, or will it all disintegrate and leave everyone miserable. That third book is calling to me.
This highly enjoyable, well-written book kept me reading and wanting to learn what would come next. I highly recommend it.
I received a free review copy of this book from the author. Her generosity had no influence on my opinions on this book. It’s a book I truly enjoyed.
This was the second book in the "Extraordinary Series". The story continues with Charlotte and her younger sister Paige, who are trying to make a life for themselves away from their scamming, criminal, selfish parents. Charlotte is posing as the owner of Ruby's house/business which she is house-sitting. The town thinks that Ruby (Charlotte) has psychic abilities. Jared, an adorable, kindhearted police officer has asked "Ruby" - the clairvoyant - to help him with a baffling case. The more time they spend together, the more they are attracted to each other. Meanwhile, Charlotte and Paige's parents have found the town where they have fled to and as much as they love this quirky town, Charlotte and Paige have to make plans to leave, before the parents approach them.
The third and final book in the series will be released in January 2018 and I can't wait to continue to the story and find out the conclusion. I just finished book 2, wrote this review and pre-ordered the 3rd book!
This book has romance, mystery, comedy and even a bit of sadness, just like real life. People are not always what they appear to be. I was given the ARC by the author, but I would have bought and read this book regardless. I discovered Mary Frame somewhat recently and really enjoy her writing style. She has wonderful creativity in her plots and character development.
This may be a little biased, given that I’ve stated repeatedly how much I love Mary Frame’s books. This off course was not exception, although I did prefer the first book of this series over this one – something to do with novelty perhaps. Here we continue to follow Charlotte and Paige hiding from their con artists parents and impersonating new identities while struggling to find some sort of normal life despite it all. The tension between Charlotte and Jared’s relationship increases as they start caring more and more about each other. The new mystery in town are weird break-ins with nothing being taken, only weirdly moved around, with no signs of forced entry. It’s so weird the authorities have no clues, so Charlotte “Ruby” jumps in to once again help with her “abilities”. We also get to know Deputy Jared “Cute But” Reeves a little more, learning about his deceased parents and career choices. Overall an easy and fun read with likeable characters, splashes of humor and plausible plot. What’s not to love?
Aaaand we all know this is part 2 of a 3-part series and the cliffhanger is killing me (but in a good way).
Charlotte and her little sister Paige are living in Castle Cove, house and shop sitting while their new owner Ruby is on a yoga retreat. The daughters of con artists Charlotte and Paige are running away and trying to go straight. Unfortunately, almost from their first day Charlotte told a little white lie and now the whole town thinks she is Ruby and she's psychic!
In book one we were introduced to practically the only under 50s in the whole town. Tabby and Troy, who are twins: Tabby runs the local hardware store and Troy is a cop. Eleanor the librarian, Ben the barman and Jared the Deputy Sheriff. Charlotte/Ruby uses her psychic 'powers' to help the local police solve crimes, in reality she owes her success to a few mini-cams she planted in public places and a good memory.
In this latest installment a new criminal is targeting Castle Cove, breaking into homes and playing practical jokes like hiding kitchen utensils in the freezer or tying jumper sleeves together. Alongside the secret prankster is something more sinister, cryptic gifts and notes from Charlotte and Paige's parents - have they been caught already?
As the love lives of the under 50s become more complicated Charlotte is torn between the life she wants and hiding from her parents.
Loved this, loving this series, can't wait for the final installment.
I enjoyed this book even better than the first one on the series. I love these endearing characters and the wonderful splashes of humor present all over the story. My only complaint (and I almost took a star off—I'm very picky) is that Paige and Charlotte's parents are too purely-evil, lacking the multi-dimensional richness the other characters have and coming across as less believable. But that is noticeable precisely because every other character is so well-crafted.
I'm torn now. Part of me can't wait for the next book, so I can finally see my characters have their happy ending, yet the rest of me is sad, because then the series ends and it means I won't have these friends any more.
Once again Awesome and super exciting !! I get to read the third one now love you mary for letting me be the first of many readers. I love how Jared and “Ruby” Charlotte grow closer in this book. Secretly I kept thinking tell him for crying out loud !! He is so loving he will understand but then again... It would be to predictable ! I also just love the friendships and the old people in this book ! They crack me up especially Miss Viola who is not who you expect #Spoiler haha Soo anywho I am gonna read on !! And when they come out on paperback gonna buy em all ! Because once a collection started cannot miss any of them 😍😍
Happy Holidays peoples !!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The second book is just as good. There is something so easy about the way this author writes and it keeps your attention even though you know the ending is still to come and it won’t be in this book. Thank goodness for that as this reader doesn’t want it over yet. We watch as feelings unfold, ridiculously odd behaviours delight and our female MC and her sister fall in love with a small town and its aging population, and the strange happenings in this cosy mystery. Book 1 and Book 2 have charm, good old fashioned and delightful charm. I have no doubt the last book will be the same. Already downloaded.
Short review. Second book in the Extraordinary Trilogy. I like how there is more development between each of the relationships from the first book. I definitely think that Jared knows that Charlotte is lying about her identity but doesn't want to scare her away and that he's hoping she will open up and tell him truth. Charlotte and Jared get much closer and Jared reveals more of himself to her, I like how much Jared cares about Paige and wants her to be happy. This one also ends on cliffhanger too. I can't wait for the third book and see how the story ends.
An exciting middle book of the trilogy as things begin to fall apart for Charlotte and Paige. The town, friends, and romance remain strong, although a series of strange break-ins keep Charlotte and Jared mystified. So many funny times with friends, if only it didn't have to end.
Once I finished this, wild horses wouldn't have kept me away from the final book. Too god to put down while reading this, and now I can't read the next one fast enough!!!
I read it straight through in about 3 hours. Disappointed it was so short. I thought the price was high for such a short book. There was profanity and sex in this one. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone under 17. I don’t recommend the series unless you’re willing to get the whole series. I enjoyed reading it and would love to finish the series, but not for this price.
While one can enjoy each story in the series individually (and each contains a mystery which is resolved within), they are written to be read consecutively and end in cliff-hangers. And you WILL want to know what happens next! Narrator Leah Casey voices our heroine perfectly. Things heat up in book two in more ways than one, but no spoilers!
If when the characters first go on the run they made calls to tip lines of any law enforcement agencies that had them in a most wanted list. After all the parents are repeat con artists. For con artists equals criminals. Hmm think I have just solved the problem of what Charlotte should have originally done after arriving at their first haven.
Ruby and Paige end up staying with Jaded for a few weeks when Troy gets sick and Tabby had to look after him. Paige and Ruby make plans for their future. There is more than one crazy thing happening in Castle Cove. The book ends on the biggest cliffhanger yet, so I am going to dive into the last book as I need to know what happens now!
Jared and Charlotte (Ruby) solve the mystery snd finally connect. Charlotte gets done ready to leave town with page before their parents find them, but her plan is failed when her parents show up at Jared's with page. Story continued in book 3. '
I love every minute of it! It’s better than the 1st book and the plot thickens...romance, suspense, and a little sense of humor among the friends she got...man, I want to see how it ends on, now, book 3!!!!
3.25* Why are these low key entertaining. I’m eating up the plot like there’s no tomorrow. I think it’s honestly because they’re only like 250 pages but still so good. There are obviously many flaws but as a quick light read it’s very good.
An exciting, fun, sad, adorable mystery continuing the stories of our friends in Castle Cove. Growing up on the southern Oregon coast, the town is so easy to picture. I need to know what happens after the cliffhanger ending. So I’m off to the next book.
Things are heating up in Castle Cove. A fun little mystery and lots of angst and tension. I really want Charlotte/Ruby to come clean with Jared but I guess that is what book 4 is for.
Okay, paguei a língua. Fiquei curiosa por causa de umas reviews e comprei os outros livros da série. Valeu a pena? Até agora, sim. Continua sendo fofo. Mas não é TÃO incrível assim 🤔