The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Volume 5

By Beth Brower, published 2021

Well we are up to almost 250 pages here, though I will allow an author writing a cozy series to dwell on Christmas, I suppose. 

Emma starts with celebrating Guy Fawkes Day; continues with assisting a memorial for a dead sweet pea (yes, the flower); tries to map the movements of the neighborhood ghost; is roped into pretending to be married to the confidence man, Jack; and has a delightful Christmas with her male bffs. One of them finds one of her father’s books which he annotated that was sold to pay for Emma’s education, which is the sweetest gift.  

The coziness is almost overwhelming here, but the series continues to be fun. 

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Volume 6

By Beth Brower, published 2022

The 250-page trend continues, and it’s another charming entry into the series. 

Emma turns 21 and is officially owner of Lapis Lazuli house and what little money remains to her, and is encouraged by her banker to find employment. Her adventures in the neighborhood continue, with her falling into a fountain, dramatically failing at her first job attempt, and Emma finally moves into the beginning of a romantic relationship with one of her bffs. 

We keep learning more about all the characters which is fun (except for her increasingly unhinged cousin Archibald). The romantic interest has been present under the surface for a while, so it makes sense, but I do wonder how the author plans to keep this up if there are going to be 20+ volumes of this story? One assumes this relationship won’t last the whole time, or else that something will drive them apart and maybe they will get back together at the end. Personally, I hope she does not end up with this character, but I can see why Emma is attracted to him.

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Volume 7

By Beth Brower, published 2023

After making a move to start a romantic relationship, Emma and her boyfriend? beau? paramour?—I’m not sure what to call him—are unable to have a private define-the-relationship conversation for the first two weeks of this installment. This is a trope I find irritating. It was fine when they were prevented from having a conversation for a few days, but it dragged on for too long.

This volume just breaks 300 pages, and I miss the days of the short sweet novellas. 

Emma’s scrapes and shenanigans continue: her Aunt Eugenia comes to stay and nearly destroys everything (metaphorically); her three bffs get in a bar fight; the parents of an enemy die and said enemy Victoria moves to the neighborhood; Emma accidentally forces one of her bffs to say publicly he is her guardian until her marriage; and Emma’s cousin Arabella is only the second prettiest girl at the ball—shocking scenes. 

Reading these really close together has sort of worn the shine off a bit for me, but I’m still enjoying the story. Some people like to devour an entire series, but I actually usually prefer to space them out a bit, and this method of reading them all in a row confirms my preferred habits. I raced through these because of a complicated library holds timing adventure. Only one more to go until I am caught up with the author’s output and must wait like the rest of the world for future installments!