The Divine Circle of Ladies Courting Trouble

I absolutely adore these "Circle" books. I've read all of them & they are all wonderful stories...full of fun & mystery & good friends working together to solve the crime using a bit of magic to help them along. These books are hard to put down! I've been waiting patiently for the next book in the series so I went to the author's webpage & she says that the publishers are holding off on publishing the next book. In fact, I emailed her recently & she wrote back to say that books 5 & 6 are finished & she's about a third of the way into book 7! This is what she says on her website: Alas, no news on the publication of the fifth and sixth (all written!)Circle and Cass Shipton adventures. If you are moved to write to Kensington Books, Inc. to say you enjoyed the first four adventures, it can't hurt, might help. My editor is Audrey LaFehr [...] I've emailed twice already & maybe if we can get a letter writing campaign going, we'll be able to convince them to publish the rest of these great books! I've recommended this series to my friends & am having them email Kensington too. I honestly dont know why they're not getting published. It must be disappointing to Dolores to keep writing these stories & have Kensington drag their feet about getting them in print. I'm currently reading the books again & hope that one day soon I'll be able to find out what else Cass & her friends have been up to. So, please, if you're a big fan of the books, take a minute & send her editor an email letting her know much you've enjoyed the Circle series & that you want to keep going on lovely adventures with Cass & company! Maybe with some emails & a wee bit of magic, we'll soon be into a new mystery! I WANT MORE BOOKS! Thanks for letting me ramble but it's for a good cause! LOL!

UPDATE: check author's web site for info on new books. 5th book scheduled to be published by June, 2009. I'm doing my happy dance LOL!

As usual, The Divine Circle is full of twists, turns, laughs and fun. This series of books was introduced to me by a friend, and I love them. Finally, friends who treat each other with respect, loyalty and life long contributions who enjoy the path they are given. The books plot is fresh and unusual, which adds to Ms Riccio's outstanding writing. I for one, can't wait for more.

I've been a fan of this series from the beginning (Circle of Five) and each book since (Charmed Circle, The Divine Circle of Ladies Making Mischief) has been such a pleasure to read. The Divine Circle of Ladies Courting Trouble continues Ms. Riccio's fine tradition of a good mystery with characters you can care about and action that grabs you from the beginning. If I had to list books that illustrate women's friendships in a good and realistic fashion, these books would top the list. Cass and her friends, Phillipa, Deirdre, Heather, and Fiona, are so interesting. Their lives are full, yet they make the time for one another, their sleuthing, and their Wiccan faith. It is so great to be along for their adventures and see how they depend on one another, their strengths and weaknesses coming together to support each other and work for common goals. The Circle's Wiccan practices, holiday observances, and spell workings are very well done, so much a part of the story that they are never intrusive or preachy. They are just a lovely window into who the ladies are and how they live their lives daily. If you enjoy a good mystery and love to read well done fiction that incorporates Wicca into the story, the books in this series are for you.

In Plymouth, Massachusetts, Wicca practitioner Cass Shipton gives talk on the origins of Halloween to the Garden of Gethsemane Ladies League members; afterward everyone nibbled on the food, but soon complain of stomach problems. Cass though feeling ill realizes the bitter aftertaste in the brownies was hemlock. One attendee, chocoholic Lydia Craig died from the poisoning; no one knows who provided the brownies. After a stomach pump and finally recovering, Cass attends the Kitchen Magic cooking show on South Shore TV Access when once again the participants are poisoned this time from pumpkin cranberry bread; Cass still not having her stomach fully back did not partake of the poisoned food. While Detectives Stern and Mann struggle with the case and Cass' lover is with Greenpeace in Florida and Greece, Cass and her circle of friends begin using their otherworldly powers as well as inductive reasoning to ferret out a killer even as they wonder if the motive had something to do with Lydia's strange will. The fourth Circle of Five paranormal mystery is a lighthearted charming cozy that sub-genre readers will appreciate due to the solid cast that make believers out of even skeptical readers. The investigation is cleverly developed on two fronts with Cass at the point of both, though predominantly through the psychic abilities of the Circle members. The likable cast makes for a fine who-done-it, Wiccan-style; newcomers will feel the spell to seek out the previous three Cass and company capers while fans of the series will once again taste the magic. Harriet Klausner