100 books like Second Hand Curses

So, this was one of the first ‘adult’ books I read as a younger twenty-something, and it had me laughing out loud all the time.

Jane is hilarious, down to earth, and a great character. The book is the first book in a series of four books that document Jane’s growth into a ‘grown-up’. Not only was the humor spot on (Molly Harper’s humor is usually spot on for me), but the narrator brought all the characters to life in such a way that I was dying to get back to the story anytime we had to stop listening (I was buddy reading with my mom and sister for the first read through).

I’ve read this book over a dozen times, and I really think it’s because as Jane goes through the transformation from human to vampire, she builds her own family around her that accepts her, loves her, and… show more.

This book is a really great, cozy mystery with a little bit of a twist.

Dani, the main character and amateur sleuth, inherits this house from her grandmother’s best friend, and conveniently enough, there is a fully licensed commercial kitchen inside the husk of what the woman was trying to make a B&B. Dani takes on a group of college students as borders while she gets her new food service business up and going, and the first catering job Dani’s company gets, her client dies.

I really enjoyed this book for a number of reasons. I thought the uniqueness of her business was sweet, and I absolutely adored the found family that Dani and the college students created for themselves. I think it was a really well-done aspect of the story. 

This is a book that has stuck with me for over five years now.

The book is the first in the Frontier Magic Trilogy, and it’s fantastic. I loved the world-building, the twist on how magic worked and was taught. I also loved how her biological family thought she was a jinx, but her teachers and friends really believed in her and her magic.

Amanda Ronconi reads the books, too, so I highly recommend listening if you are into audiobooks. 

While this book is a middle-grade fantasy, I love it so much.

Two enemy clans working together to save their world from a threat bigger than either of them is great, but when you also make it so that each representative is an outcast, well, it’s that much better. Not only do these kids work together, facing fear and prejudices head-on, but they become their own family, and it’s oh-so magical.

I again recommend the audiobook, as it’s narrated by the great David Tennant (Barty Crouch Jr., Tenth Doctor on Doctor Who, and Crowley on Good Omens), so it is fantastic. 

Tesha Geddes may have set out to write a Beauty and the Beast story, but like most of her books, her characters had plans of their own. This wonderful “retelling” strayed from the standard plot with lovely tangents, unique characters, and superb world-building.

I can’t help but hope for more of this kind of story from Geddes. Characters who start out needing a leg up learn that maybe they have something worthy to offer after all.

I love how T.M. Baumgartner creates unique, lovable characters.

If her story doesn’t start out with family nuances, it definitely gets there as her characters find themselves swimming in problems that are not easy to solve. Her main character is a rare veterinarian, one willing to help pets, people, and other-world visitors regardless of race or origin. No lizard, pig, dog, or flying gremlin is too small.

Ooh, get ready for a wild ride with this series. It’s cozy, but fast-paced and full of intrigue!

I’d love to be a part of these adventures. Each mystery is tangled around one or more characters, and I found myself rooting for all of them. And some of the villains? Well, they might have snuck their way into my affections as well because not all characters are simple, and some have a way of growing, changing, and becoming friends. Also, Dragons. The main one in this series is a doozy. 

Frank Tuttle writes urban fantasy with Heart. He creates atmosphere in such a way that it is a character all by itself.

You can smell the grime on the streets, see the urchins begging and there in the gutter, catch sight of a gleaming gem. His wonderful characters come from all walks of life, from vampires who aren’t out for blood to banshees in need of a friend. There might be a witch, but she could be nothing more than an old hag, a friend, or maybe all of the above.

There’s nothing quite like these stories: a cross between the dark streets of urban fantasy and the family nuances of a cozy mystery. Love the whole series.  

I love a lot of K.M. Shea’s work because her plots involve character growth as well as a mystery to be solved. One of my favorite series begins with The King’s Captive.

The main is a little cat shifter. She is not a powerful shifter or even a powerful person. She’s down on her luck but thrifty, scrappy, and courageous. She’s also a cat, so she’s sneaky and clever, even if she does lose tufts of fur to her enemies now and then. She needs help to survive, but finding it and trusting others, well, that’s all part of the great journey.

Neil Josten is a runaway. A survivor. Determined to stay hidden from his murderous father, the last thing he needs is a national spotlight. But that’s exactly what he risks by signing for the Palmetto State Foxes. Thrown into a team of outcasts, last chancers, and no-hopers, The Foxhole Court is the story of one broken, battered boy and his fight to find something worth living for, and someone who deserves his truth. Neil transcends the page, blossoming slowly and resentfully as his teammates chip away at the icy walls barricading his heart. In a genre full of hopeless adults, I found it refreshing and heartwarming to have Coach Wymack as the gruff yet dedicated foster father to all these damaged kids. A violent, vicious, yet heartfelt comfort read.