Daily Archives: November 30, 2017

Review – The Passenger by Lisa Lutz @lisalutz

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I read Passenger by Lisa Lutz some time ago and it’s one of those reviews that just got lost in the shuffle. So…let’s get started.

The Passenger

Goodreads  /  Amazon US  /  Amazon UK  /  Amazon CA

MY REVIEW

The mystery has begun and Lisa Lutz kept me guessing until the end.

Tanya’s husband falls down the stairs and dies. When she finds him, she runs. Why?

On the run, she hooks up with Blue…WHOA. She is a badass and could definitely teach Tanya some lessons. Wonder what her story is?

Trouble comes looking for them and bodies fall.

How would you go about creating a new identity….a new life?

Their life keeps getting more complicated and I wonder what will become of them. My curiosity and Lisa’s pacing and suspense keep me tearing through the pages, wanting answers, but…

Lisa Lutz is not new to me. I have checked her books out from the library and enjoyed them. Passenger is full of a lot of words and some took me on long convoluted paths. Were they there to just lengthen the story or were they essential to the character development and suspense? I don’t expect fiction to be ‘real’ but, to me, a suspense novel like Passenger doesn’t need events just to have them. Know what I mean? It just slows the pacing and lessens the suspense and I like the white knuckled, breath holding, must know what happens next feeling.

I don’t quite get what’s going on and don’t find out why she is running until the last 20%. I do love that I didn’t know the story and had to read to the end to find the answers I was seeking.

Blue kept popping in and out and I loved it. There are no heroes here. All in all, I enjoyed the story. 

I read an ARC, so I hope Lisa trims the fat and makes this the top notch book I feel it can be.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of Passenger by Lisa Lutz.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos 3 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

In case you were wondering, I didn’t do it. I didn’t have anything to do with Frank’s death. I don’t have an alibi, so you’ll have to take my word for it…

Forty-eight hours after leaving her husband’s body at the base of the stairs, Tanya Dubois cashes in her credit cards, dyes her hair brown, demands a new name from a shadowy voice over the phone, and flees town. It’s not the first time.

She meets Blue, a female bartender who recognizes the hunted look in a fugitive’s eyes and offers her a place to stay. With dwindling choices, Tanya-now-Amelia accepts. An uneasy―and dangerous―alliance is born.

It’s almost impossible to live off the grid today, but Amelia-now-Debra and Blue have the courage, the ingenuity, and the desperation, to try. Hopscotching from city to city, Debra especially is chased by a very dark secret…can she outrun her past?

ABOUT LISA LUTZ

Lisa LutzLisa Lutz is the New York Times bestselling author of the six books in the Spellman series, How to Start a Fire, Heads you Lose (with David Hayward), and the children’s book, How to Negotiate Everything (illustrated by Jaime Temairik). Her latest book, The Passenger, a psychological thriller, will be published March 2016 by Simon and Schuster. Lutz has won the Alex award and has been nominated for the Edgar Award for Best Novel.

Although she attended UC Santa Cruz, UC Irvine, the University of Leeds in England, and San Francisco State University, she still does not have a bachelor’s degree. Lisa spent most of the 1990s hopping through a string of low-paying odd jobs while writing and rewriting the screenplay Plan B, a mob comedy. After the film was made in 2000, she vowed she would never write another screenplay. Lisa lives in the Hudson Valley, NY.

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Giveaway – I Burned Down His House by Jessica Frances #Jessica Frances @XpressoReads

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I Burned Down His House
Jessica Frances
(Love at First Crime #3)
Publication date: November 28th 2017
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

She burned his house down, so he lit a fire between them that she could never extinguish.

So, I burned his house down.

It was an accident.

I mean, technically, the dog did it.

Well, the dog helped me to do it.

Did I mention it was an accident?

When circumstances mean I suddenly have a new housemate,

A man who is my ultimate fantasy,

And my entire world is turned upside down by new friends,

And a dog who likes to get me into trouble,

I have to wonder how my life got so crazy.

Add in my neighbor, who is under investigation;

Some unfinished business from the past, which just won’t go away;

Interfering family, who don’t know when to stop;

And mixed signals, making me wonder if fantasies really can come true,

And you have my new, hectic, crazy life.

But, when things take a dangerous turn,

And lives are on the line,

Will we all make it through in one piece?

Or is everything destined to crumble down around us?

Who would have thought that burning down a house would change everything so much?

Then again, as some people say: there is nothing quite like love at first … crime.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

Trying not to feel like a loser that I have Joey’s number memorized, I dial, hoping like hell he picks up. It has to be in the incredibly early hours of morning, so there is every chance, if he hasn’t come home yet, it’s because he’s out with someone and won’t answer.

After five, drawn-out, torturous rings, he finally picks up.

“What?” he grumbles. I can’t tell if I woke him up, or if he’s just annoyed to be disturbed.

“Hey, Joey, it’s Teagan—”

“Who?”

I pause, annoyed I’m so forgettable he can’t remember who he gave his house key to! “Teagan Bevon, the woman who lives next door?”

“Oh … Oh!” There is finally recognition in his voice. “Right. Look, Teags”—he sounds so distracted I don’t think he even noticed he gave me a nickname—“I’m kinda busy—”

“But—”

“—so I’ll just see you later—”

“Wait!” I cry out, afraid I will hear the dial tone any second.

“Actually, you probably won’t see me later. I’m going to be—”

“I BURNED YOUR HOUSE DOWN!” I scream into the phone and am finally met with silence. “Joey?” I whisper, fearful he already hung up.

“Can you repeat that for me?” he finally gasps out.

“I …” Now I feel nervous. “I … umm … I accidently”—I use too much emphasis on the word, making me sound extra guilty—“burned down your house.”

“Are you okay?”

My heart skips a beat. I just told this man that I burned down his house and his first thought is if I’m okay?

“Some smoke inhalation, but nothing serious. I’m so sorry about your things—”

“How about Karma?”

“Karma got out fine. She’s with the Glovers,” So … maybe she’s not okay. The almost ninety-year-old couple may not be quite at the same speed as Karma.

As he sighs in relief, my hands begin to shake again.

“Joey, I’m so sorry.”

 

Author Bio:

Jessica lives in Adelaide, South Australia. When she is not writing, you can find her reading, napping or watching excessive amounts of TV. Connect with her on Facebook and Goodreads.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook



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