In January, a local weatherman mentioned white pelicans had arrived in our area. Today, we just experienced the joy of spotting two white pelicans at our beach. People stopped and watched, and it was fun!
In the winter white pelicans visit Florida, but they can also be found in southern California and along the Gulf Coast states. In the summer adult white pelicans breed in colonies on lakes in western Canada and the northwest U.S.
The white pelicans feed from the water’s surface, dipping their beaks into the water to catch fish. I actually witnessed one of the pelicans dip his head into the water, lift it up, and swallow a fish. Brown pelicans were diving into the water to get their food, but the white pelican swam and ate.
The white pelicans are huge. I looked it up and they have a nine-foot wingspan! As we left the beach, we ran into a couple debating if it really was a white pelican. The man said they are not supposed to be in the Atlantic Ocean, especially in February. We told him he wasn’t wrong, but somehow, there they were.
It’s interesting how something as simple as white pelicans showing up unexpectedly can bring strangers together.
I hope you have a wonderful week, and I hope you find something amazing to connect you to new people.
I’m excited to share a little about Axe Me No Questions by Paula Charles. I asked Paula to tell us a little about her latest book. (Release date 1/28/25–preorder available now.)
Axe Me No Questions is the second book in the Hometown Hardware Mystery series. Dawna Carpenter was originally based on my grandmother who owned and operated the hardware store in the small town where I grew up. Friends and family have told me they hear and see me in Dawna, so I guess we’re more alike than I knew!
The town of Pine Bluff is fictionalized, but when I thought about what Dawna might be getting mixed up in during the fall, I thought of the Timber Festival my hometown used to host when I was young, and decided it was the perfect event to showcase the area and get Dawna tangled up in another murder mystery.
During the Timber Festival in Pine Bluff, the main even is a lumberjack and jill contest. While I’ve attended these type of events, I’ve only ever been an onlooker, never scrambled up a pole or attempted to roll logs in the water with my fast feet. Though I’m no award-winning axe thrower, I can wield an axe with the best of them to chop firewood!
Here’s the back cover info for Axe Me No Questions.
Heads are on the chopping block as hardware store owner Dawna Carpenter finds herself on the cutting edge of a murder investigation.
In the quaint mountain town of Pine Bluff, Oregon, fall has arrived and it’s time for the annual Timber Festival, complete with Lumberjack and Lumberjill contests, and booths serving spicy chili and creamy pumpkin pies. Dawna and her daughter April have plans to watch the logging contest together. She’s looking forward to soaking in all her favorite things about the season, which includes having a conversation with her deceased husband, who she is certain is still hanging around the house.
But when Dawna falls over the body of one of the lumberjacks, with his own throwing axe imbedded in his chest, her focus turns to murder. With the town in turmoil, Dawna takes Chief Dallas’s request to keep her ears open as a full license to snoop. Who had an axe to grind with the charismatic lumberjack? Dawna had better stay sharp, or she might be the next one to get the axe.
Thanks, Paula.
Friends, I don’t know about you, but I’m excited about the second book in the Hometown Hardware Mystery series.
Dawna’s back with friends and family in Axe Me No Questions. It’s a delightful follow-up to Hammers and Homicides in A Hometown Hardware Mystery series.
I was able to read and ARC (Advanced Readers Copy) of Axe Me No Questions, and I was riveted. I love the characters, the small-town vibe, and trying to solve the mystery with the twists and turns Paula Charles throws at the reader.
When a dead body is found, Dawna is back to sleuthing. What an adventure it is.
I was recently asked about my bookish goals in 2025.
I have two books releasing in 2025.
Bleeding Heart Librarian is the third book in A Texas Flower Farmer Cozy Mystery Series, and it’s scheduled to come out at the end of April.
At the end of August, Killer Secrets will release, and it’s the third book in An Organized Crime Cozy Mystery Series.
I want to promote these books, and I want to write a new book in 2025 after I finish polishing Killer Secrets.
I also want to read more this year. My goal is to read twenty-six books. I have so many books in my TBR pile and on my Kindle, and I want to make time to read them.
Whether you’re a reader or author or both, what are your bookish goals for 2025?
In case you haven’t read Bite the Dust, the eBook is on sale January 16-31.
Happy Thanksgiving! I am so appreciative of you and the time you spend with me. I hope you have a wonderful holiday, good food, and fun with family and friends.
I also hope you can find time to read a good book this weekend.
I’ve been busy the past few months, and I’ve got a lot to be thankful for. Here are a few highlights.
As you can see, I have a lot to be thankful for.
I’d love to hear what you’re thankful for this year. Email me or tag me on social media.
Jackie Layton 