Sleeper Agents – The Expired by B P Smythe #BPSmythe

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Sleeper Agents – do you believe it is possible? I sure do, and so does B P Smythe in this complex political thriller.

THE EXPIRED

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Sir Geoffrey…no conscience, no morals, self preservation, not someone I would want in my circle of friends. But I do love a good bad guy. LOL

Is there an honest person in government? Is there anyone that doesn’t have their own devious agenda, willing to go to any lengths to get what they want? I do love conspiracies, so I was looking forward to diving into this one.

Sleeper agents. Man-made assassins. Covert programs. Secret agendas. Betrayals.

Francis…

Think Manchurian Candidate.

Drugs. Terrorism. Flat out murder.

B P Smythe has created some despicable characters, but to counter the bad, we need to have the good. There is tons of action and characters that have their individual stories, and they come together the story becomes clear.

Though it didn’t rate high on my thriller list, The Expired by B P Smythe was an interesting and enjoyable read that fed my conspiracy reading need.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
3 Star

GOODREADS BLURB

‘The Expired’ is a psychological thriller masterpiece showing how vulnerable people can be brainwashed to become sleepers (Manchurian Candidates) and used by corrupt politicians to further their own ends. ‘The Expired’ shadows true accounts of government sleeper programmes set up during the Korean War and the East West Cold War.

Commander Gregory Potting is a former head of MI6 Intelligence and the governments most trusted Senior Adviser for Internal Affairs.

His position is put to the test in 1973 when a bizarre psychological plot unfolds that is inextricably linked to a London terrorist attack, a cocaine drug scam, a homosexual called Francis Hodder who suffers from schizophrenia and changes from time to time to Roxanne – a transvestite prostitute who robs and murders his clients.

Francis Hodder is a transsexual who preys on gay men. As a child he is abused by his father who is head of government security. Francis becomes an embarrassment to MI6 because of his gender leaning. He is brainwashed to become a Sleeper assassin triggered by code words to kill personnel who threaten government security. Francis becomes a manipulated pawn, who by mistake during a sexual encounter with a Black September terrorist, uncovers plans for a deadly attack on a densely crowded popular sports event to kill thousands of people to further the cause of EL Fatah and Black September.

ABOUT B P SMYTHE

I studied engineering at Carshalton College and eventually became a member of the Institute of Quality Assurance.

My engineering career took on many roles including toolmaking and being a technical writer for an artificial limb manufacturer. However, I’ve always enjoyed putting pen to paper while raising quality manuals and writing reports. I also write tennis articles for my local county magazine and relax reading crime and horror fiction. This, coupled with my technical writing career, partly influenced my transition into creative writing.

Wanting to expand my writing knowledge, I obtained a Level 3 / NCFE Certificate / PI410 creative writing diploma.

Sow And You Shall Reap – http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/145677171X is my first self- published novel. However, I have submitted numerous short stories for internet competitions including, winning £100 as first prize for my A Rose Without a Thorn for the www.spinetinglerspublishing online magazine and winning £50 first prize for my We’ll Meet Again in the http://dark-places.co.uk online magazine.

Two of my other short stories, Love Me Do and My Secret Place, have also been published in the printed Litro Magazine – Issue 140 – ISBN 978-0-9554245-5-7 http://www.litro.co.uk/2015/02/litro-140-diaries/

Near the end of 2015 I fortunately obtained a three book deal contract with Bloodhound Books www.bloodhoundbooks.com to publish a trilogy of macabre/thriller collected short stories. My first book titled – ‘From a Poison Pen’ is the first book of the trilogy and highlights from the stories – What happens when a member of the Hitler youth ends up in a concentration camp? How does a beach side cocktail get in the way the way of one woman’s scheming? What leads a teenage girl to reign down fire and brimstone? When a doctor buries his mistake, can he get away with it?

This collection of dark, humorous and macabre tales explores the disturbing side of human nature.

When I read The Manchurian Candidate by Richard Condon, I was fascinated while exploring true accounts of government sleeper programmes set up during the Korean war and the east west cold war. This inspired me to write ‘The Expired’, a psychological thriller showing how prospective candidates can be brainwashed to become sleepers and used by corrupt politicians to further their own ends.

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Monday Mini Review – The Diamond Star by Jane Blythe @jblytheauthor

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Jane Blythe is one of my go to authors, so I am happy to share this sweet novella, The Diamond Star with you. The Diamond Star is a part of the Heart of a Hunk: A Limited-Edition Collection of Bad Boy, Billionaire and Hunky Romance Heroes. Woo Hoo, let’s celebrate. You can grab you copy for just .99.

The Diamond Star

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Aurora’s brother had been murdered, but only after being tortured.

I love that she is alone…in the middle of the night…

Thump. What’s that? Is it the cat? Thump. Uh-oh. I know Jane…and that is no cat!

Hide? Run? Too late. Merry Christmas to her. 🙁

Brady…Okay, I didn’t see that coming. Instalove…Instalust…The scenario is pretty far fetched, but it is fiction and I do love to forget the logical and set my mind free to follow where the author wants to take me.

Do you want a short, easy read, with thrills, chills and a happy ever after? You might want to give this a try.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Diamond Star by Jane Blythe.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

~ Part of the Heart of a Hunk multi-author box set ~

It’s Christmas Eve, and Aurora Kinsley is grieving her brother who was recently murdered. That quickly becomes the least of her concerns when she wakes in the middle of the night to find four men trashing the house. To survive the mess her brother left behind, she’ll have to put her trust in one of the men who killed her only sibling.

** Warning: Graphic violence and themes of sexual assault/abuse **

MY REVIEWS FOR JANE BLYTHE’S BOOKS

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Loved This Short – Environmentally Friendly by Elias Zanbaka #EliasZanbaka

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Elias Zanbaka reached out to me through Goodreads offering his short story, Environmentally Friendly, to me for review. I’m glad I took him up on the offer. At the time of posting, it was free (be sure and check for the “0”) and you can grab it HERE.

Environmentally Friendly

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I’m so glad I grabbed this original, intense, wild rollercoaster ride of a short story that had me zipping through the pages, following a cop trying to do a good thing, giving more than taking and leaving me wanting more of this wonderful character.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Out of seven billion people, one man has declared war on Mother Nature and plans to bring it to its knees.

Out of all the criminals in Los Angeles, he’s the number one target being hunted by the LAPD tonight.

And out of the entire LAPD, one officer is hell-bent on helping him complete his mission.

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Don’t Drink The Kool Aid – Scapegoat by Adam Howe @Adam_G_Howe

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Woo Hoo! More quirky and outrageous horror courtesy of Adam Howe.

Enter…If you dare.

Scapegoat

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Okay….Here we go on another wildassed adventure.

A house on wheels, three mangy rednecks and a Wrestlemania road trip. I feel nothing can go wrong. ‘as I chuckle under my breath’

Some men never grow up, and Mike’s friends, Lonnie and Pork Chop are a perfect example.

They decide to take a shortcut and I know nothing good can come of that, but I sure am eager to find out what kind of trouble they find. They, literally, run into the “goat”, causing a crazy band of vicious, coldblooded cultists to chase them down.

Have no fear. Adam has a way of taking his flawed and twisted characters and turning them into lovable friends that come through at the end, but at what cost. He kills his characters off with no shame, probably laughing with glee as Another One Bites the Dust.

This action packed, fire and brimstone apocalyptic tale leaves me wondering…does anyone survive when the line between good and evil is blurred? Be careful…if you let pride…think you know it all….Arrogance is not an asset.

One minute I felt the truth of it all and the next I felt I was in hell with Sam and Dean Winchester.

Adam Howe shattered my expectations, leaving me loving and hating Mike and his band of misfits…and looking forward to their next twisted adventure.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Scapegoat by Adam Howe.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

March 29, 1987… For metalheads Mike Rawson, Lonnie Deveroux, and Pork Chop, an RV road trip to Wrestlemania III becomes a one-way ticket to hell. While delivering an illegal shipment of counterfeit wrestling merchandise, an ill-fated shortcut through the Kentucky backwoods leads them to a teenaged girl carved head to toe in arcane symbols. Soon our unlikely heroes are being hunted through the boonies by a cult of religious crazies who make the Westboro Baptists look like choirboys… a cult that will stop at nothing to get the girl back and complete a ritual that has held an ancient evil at bay for centuries… Until now.

From Adam Howe, writer of Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet, and the winner of Stephen King’s On Writing contest… and James Newman, acclaimed author of Odd Man Out and Animosity.

PRAISE FOR SCAPEGOAT:

“As if Joe Lansdale wrote, and John Carpenter directed, the Jonestown massacre. SCAPEGOAT is Howe and Newman’s Kool-Aid and you’ll want to drink it to the very last drop.” (Eryk Pruitt, What We Reckon)

“A delightful backwoods detour through the three Rs of Southern-fried horror: Rednecks, revenge, and Wrestlemania! One of 2018’s most entertaining reads. This is one GOAT you’ll definitely want to get.” (Michael Patrick Hicks, Mass Hysteria)

ABOUT ADAM HOWE

Adam Howe

Adam Howe writes the twisted fiction your mother warned you about. A British writer of fiction and screenplays, he lives in London with his partner, their daughter, and a hellhound named Gino. Writing as Garrett Addams, his short story Jumper was chosen by Stephen King as the winner of the international On Writing contest, and published in the paperback/Kindle editions of King’s memoir. His fiction has appeared in places like Nightmare Magazine, Thuglit, Mythic Delirium, and Year’s Best Hardcore Horror Volume 1. He is the author of Tijuana Donkey Showdown, and two novella collections, Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet, and Black Cat Mojo. In the pipeline: the occult thriller Scapegoat, co-written with James Newman, a horror/crime collaboration with Adam Cesare, and 80s action throwback, One Tough Bastard.

Stalk him at Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter

MY ADAM HOWE REVIEWS

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Who Will Survive? Sister of Shadows by Eric Kent Edstrom @ekedstrom

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I have been reading the Scion Chronicles since the beginning, The Daughter of Nothing by Eric Kent Edstrom. Sister of Shadows is the third book and all I can say is Eric did not let me down.

Sister of Shadows (The Scion Chronicles #3)

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The evil of humanity oozes from the pages in the third book, Sister of Shadows by Eric Kent Edstrom. I am loving the series and can hardly wait to see how he wraps it up in the fourth and final book.

Sister of Shadows picks up where Child of Lies left off, so reading in order is necessary. I have loved each story, watching the children struggle to survive as they discover who they really are and why they were ‘born’.

The topic raises ethical and moral issues, while pointing out how power and money corrupt and some people will stop at nothing to get what they want.

I have a lot of notes, but because this is the third book, I tossed them to the wind. I will not spoil all the twists, turns and surprises that Eric has piled onto these resilient children. I have watched them grown and develop into young adults, pushed beyond anything they ever could have conceived. I have watched their leadership skills rise to the forefront, their maturity and creativity grow at a fast pace, forced because of their circumstances.

They make a run for freedom, for life, and the treachery and danger that follows them kept me in suspense, wondering who will survive, because Eric doesn’t hesitate to kill off his characters. I hope they haunt him at night. LOL One of my favorite newbies is Meow Meow and if you read the story you will see why. This girl is off the charts, afraid of nothing.

I find the story unique and original, and it sticks in my head. It is hard to surprise me with something new and different, so this is a refreshing story. A story that keeps on giving a high level of tension and pacing, keeping my total attention.

I laughed, I cried, I raged and I sighed…knowing Eric has more to come.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Sister of Shadows by Eric Kent Edstrom.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Escape. That is all Jacey cares about as the riveting story of the Scions continues.

Escape is in their grasp. The Scions now have a way off the island—a ship—but they have no place to go.

With an enemy hiding in their midst, and shaken by murder, kidnapping, and an impending military invasion, time for escape is running out.

A fast-paced rollercoaster of a novel, Sister of Shadows will keep you breathless all the way to the shocking finale.

Eric Kent Edstrom

ABOUT THE AUTHOR .

Eric is an author, songwriter, husband, father, and guitarist. He is the author of YA SF series The Undermountain Saga, which includes Undermountain, Afterlife, and Starkiller.Eric loves working out with kettlebells and eating pretty much anything with peanut butter. . Stalk Eric:  Website  /  Twitter  /  Goodreads .

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MY ERIC KENT EDSTROM REVIEWS

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Romance Amongst The Chaos – The Breadth of Creation by C S Johnson @C_S_Johnson13

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I am not a huge scifi fan, but after reading The Heights of Perdition by C S Johnson, I knew this was a series that I really wanted to finish. Thankfully, C S Johnson agree. So…here we are on The Breadth of Creation, Book II of the Divine Space Pirates Trilogy. You will want to read them in order.

The Breadth of Creation (The Divine Space Pirates #2)

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The Breadth of Creation by C S Johnson is the second book in the Divine Space Pirates trilogy. I loved the first book and was ecstatic when I received the rest of the series. It’s rare when I do finish a series and this is one where I felt I had to know the ending. So let’s get started.

the Breadth of Creation picks up where The Heights of Perdition by C S Johnson left off.

Aerie is anything but predictable and that makes for some exciting reading. I like a person that bucks the system and shows some independence. After all, it is thinking outside the box that brings about advancement.

The Heights of Perdition made me think of the Patrick Swayze movie Red Dawn. I loved it, so it was easy for me to get lost in Aerie’s world.

To keep from spoiling things for you, I will only tell you that Aerie feels something in her life is very wrong. And that is putting it mildly.

Rebels, dissenters and the religious are ready to fight for their right to live in freedom. It’s the usual debate of those who wish to rule and use an iron fist to do it. Outlaw religion, the arts and anything else that helps people to dream of what could be. But…how far can you push someone before they push back?

C S John has created a believable world that shows both sides of humanity, with all the gray areas popping up, because that’s life. It could be our future. Lots of food for thought and seeing that the trilogy is complete, I will not have to wait to see how they resolve their lives. That is always a plus in my book.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Breadth of Creation by C S Johnson.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Life in the United Revolutionary States has never been easy for Aerie St. Cloud. Recovering from recent injuries and unable to recall the last few weeks of her life, she feels haunted by a growing absence in her memory. Stepping out in search of the truth, she is determined to get the answers she seeks—even if they only bring her more pain.

After losing Aerie, Exton Shepherd once more faces the temptation to take his revenge against the URS, and General St. Cloud in particular. With the help of his family, community, and Aerie’s long-lost mother, Merra, he leads them into battle to reclaim the Ecclesia’s outpost of Chaya in hopes of finding inner peace.

Surrounded by secrets and deception, and plagued by their own shortcomings, can Aerie and Exton find their way back to each other without sending the world into further chaos?

C.S. Johnson

ABOUT C S JOHNSON

C. S. Johnson is the author of several young adult novels, including sci-fi and fantasy adventures such as the Starlight Chronicles series, the Once Upon a Princess saga, and the Divine Space Pirates trilogy. With a gift for sarcasm and an apologetic heart, she currently lives in Atlanta with her family. Find out more at http://www.csjohnson.me.

Blog  /  Twitter

MY C S JOHNSON REVIEWS

The Heights of Perdition

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One Sentence Review – Sweet Dreams by Aaron Patterson @Mstersmith

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I shared Sweet Dreams for Teaser Tuesday and now I need a book for Saturday’s One Sentence Review. Seeing I loved Sweet Dreams by Aaron Patterson, it seems a perfect fit, I also must confess, the cover reached out…………

Cover by Andrew Garcia

Sweet Dreams

Amazon / Audio / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I wasn’t sure I was going to write a review about Sweet Dreams by Aaron Patterson until after I finished reading it, saw some of the mixed reviews and thought I needed to add my two cents by saying, “Hey man, it’s a fictional novel with lots of thrill, chills and surprises by some fiendish villains and loveable heroes that will keep you reading, and reading, and wanting more.”

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Star

GOODREADS BLURB

*Warning The WJA series is a cross genre series and may bend or break many rules. If you are set in the traditional ways of storytelling this may not be the series for you. Please use caution and only read if you are of an open mind, and crave something off the map and mind-bending. Mark Appleton is living the American Dream. Beautiful wife, loving daughter, and a high paying job in New York City. But when his family are killed in a accident he must reinvent himself. A year later in the midst of putting his life back together, Mark finds out that his family was killed and it was…No accident. Mark will stop at nothing to hunt down the men responsible for the death of his family and what he finds will change his life forever. Kirk Weston is a Detroit detective. He hates his job, his ex-wife, and his life. He is hand selected to help the FBI on a high profile case and just when he thinks things could not get any worse… They do.

If you look at the Amazon blurb you will notice it and the Gooreads blurb are different. I always share the Goodreads blurb on my blog. After checking out the Amazon blurb, I have mixed feelings about this situation. Read the Amazon blurb below and let me know what you think.

AMAZON BLURB

Fans of Daniel Silva, Robert Ludlum, and James Patterson will enjoy SWEET DREAMS by international bestseller Aaron Patterson. . .

Mark Appleton was living the American dream. Beautiful wife, loving daughter, and a high paying job in New York City. But his perfect life is shattered when his family dies in an accident. In the midst of putting his life back together, Mark discovers the seemingly random accident that killed his wife and daughter was not an accident at all. Mark will stop at nothing to hunt down the men responsible for the death of his family, and what he finds will change his life forever.

“New authors come and go every day. Very few come on the scene with the ability to weave a tale that will make you sad to reach the end, longing for more. At a time when the world needs a real hero, Patterson delivers big with the WJA’s Mark Appleton—an unlikely hero for the 21st century.” —The Joe Show

“SWEET DREAMS is packed with action, suspense, romance, betrayal, death, and mystery.” —Drew Maples, author of 28 Yards from Safety

Visit Aaron’s blog at TheWorstBookEver.blogspot.com
Follow Aaron on twitter at www.twitter.com/Mstersmith
Join Aaron on Facebook too!

Quite a difference, don’t you agree?

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Searching For Answers – Heaven Denied by Ken La Salle @KenLaSalle

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I read Heaven Enough, Book I (see my review HERE) some time ago and loved it, so I am very excited to share Ken La Salle’s new sequel, Heaven Denied.

What do you think of the awesome cover?

 Amazon  /  Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Matt has not lost one wife, but two, taken before their time. Heaven Denied is a look into his psyche to see how one person deals with grief, the desperation of loss and the need to know….

Ken La Salle has a way of digging deep into my mind, raising questions and making me wonder what I would do. How would I handle the loss of someone so important to me that I cannot let them go. He gets inside my head, scrambling all my perceptions to the point where I get Matt’s motivation, his need to do something.

Matt needs…I don’t think he knows what he needs and I love that his mother is by his side as he searches. And Eric? Is he just along for the ride?

Ken La Salle walks his own line, as do his characters, and that shines through in his writing. They muddle through life, like the rest of us, looking for love and happiness. I love that his books do more than entertain me, they make me think, to read between the lines, to look into myself and ask the hard questions.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Heaven Denied by Ken La Salle.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

What would it be like to have heaven enough?

For just a few, brief days on the Pacific Crest Trail, Matt Murphy knew. He fell in love, faced his true self, and came to understand what was really important in life – until the woman he fell in love with died and his life was cast into the chaotic emptiness of grief. Within that emptiness, Matt lost his wealth, his job, and everything that helped his life make sense.

Matt believed he could accept that if it really was the price of true love… Until he learned that the woman he loved had already been married.

Where that left him and what it meant for the love he thought they shared, Matt couldn’t know. His only recourse would be to meet the man who had married his love and understand what that love had meant to him. How could he have lost her? How could he have pushed her aside? How could he have given her up when losing her broke so much of what was left of Matt’s heart?

Matt is going to have to find out. Even if it means blundering through another relationship, driving into a lake, just a bit of kidnapping, and possibly facing the kind of man he really is, was, and always will be.

The results of which could change Matt’s life forever…

MY KEN LA SALLE REVIEWS

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Secrets Revealed – Deception Bay by Chris Patchell @chris_patchell

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Okay, this is my second attempt to create my review post for Deception Bay by Chris Patchell. I had the review written since November, but was waiting for it to release this month to get all the details. Then, it got buried in my draft folder and now…Any of you who have switched to the new WordPress **** know how frustrating this can be. I pushed the schedule button and voila…it disappeared…gone forever.

But not so Deception Bay. I love the gorgeous cover and it holds all the elements to hook me. I was also traveling when I read the book, so my notes from reading it back in November are scarce and my memory…well, let’s not discuss that. LOL

Deception Bay

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I love a prologue, especially one like Deception Bay’s that immediately hooked me and never let me go.

Austin is heading home to Whidbury Island to see about his mom, who has been in an accident.

He has a panic attack and meets Ellie.

The cat…named CAT after Inspector Clouseau’s valet because he’s sneaky and attacks when you least expect it. Makes for some hilarious scenes and I do like the extra fun with the critter.

If Austin wasn’t a writer, I might mistake him for Jim Rockford, from the Rockford Files. He’s constantly getting beat on. Love the character.

I figured out some of the mystery from the prologue, but I’m still working on the who. Why would anyone want to hurt his mother? Sure, she had issues, but who wouldn’t when their Golden Boy was taken from them before his time.

Austin is forced to face his past and the inner demons that he can’t seem to get rid of. He grows, changes, forgives and solves a couple of mysteries along the way.

Three deaths, past and present.

A wonderful tale of secrets, murder and mystery, with laughs along the way. I do love some chuckles with my murder

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Deception Bay by Chris Patchell.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

She’s armed. He’s dangerous. Together, can they stop a killer from tearing a small island community apart?

When wise-cracking cozy mystery author, Austin Martell, left his hometown on Whidbey Island for the bright lights of New York, he vowed he would never go back. But some promises are impossible to keep, and when Austin discovers that his mother has suffered a serious accident, he has no choice but to return. Austin soon learns that her accident may be no accident at all, and secrets that were laid to rest after his brother’s tragic death off the coast of Deception Bay, have now begun to surface.

Austin finds himself in the center of a real-life murder mystery, when Police Chief Ellie Sharpe uncovers a curious connection between the author and the death of a local businessman. Born and raised on Whidbey and trained as a New York cop, Ellie is smart, and tough, and determined to solve the mystery behind the killing before more people die. Sparks fly as the two pair up to figure out who is responsible for the murder. The closer they come to discovering truth, the more desperate someone is to keep the sins of the past from coming to light.

Someone close to Austin harbors a deadly truth. Can Ellie unmask a killer before Austin becomes one more secret buried beneath the waves of Deception Bay?

ABOUT CHRIS PATCHELL

Chris Patchell

Chris Patchell is the bestselling author of In the Dark and the Indie Reader Discovery Award winning novel Deadly Lies. Having recently left her long-time career in tech to pursue her passion for writing full-time, Chris pens gritty suspense novels set in the Pacific Northwest, where she lives with her family and two neurotic dogs.

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I Wanted To Love Watcher In The Woods By Kelley Armstrong @KelleyArmstrong

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Don’t ya just hate when you read a book by an author you love and don’t love it? such was the case with Watcher in the Woods by Kelley Armstrong.

My thanks go out to NetGalley and St Martins Press for a review copy.

Watcher in the Woods (Rockton, #4)

Amazon / Audio / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Don’t ya just hate when you read a book by an author you love and don’t love it? such was the case with Watcher in the Woods by Kelley Armstrong.

She hadn’t seen her sister, Casey, in three years, but now she needs her help. She had always been subservient, seeking her sister’s approval. She didn’t have boyfriends because she killed her last one. And now…Rockton, here she comes.

Casey lives with Eric Dalton, the Rockton sheriff and is a homicide detective herself. If you have to run for help, this is a good duo to have on your list.

The Yukon is a wilderness and a great place to hide out.

There is something a little bit off about Rockton. I am ambivalent about their voting practices, among other things. The town has a dystopian feel to it, it’s secretiveness and it’s isolation, running on it’s own set of rules.

The characters, good and bad, all have their part to play, showing their reasons for being there. Definitely not the guy/girl next door. Everyone knows everyone so who is that guy, the U S Marshal who thinks he can waltz into town and take one of their residents?

Kelley Armstrong is an author very familiar to me. I see her name, I pick up her book. So simple. I’ve read numerous books by her, but this is the first one I have reviewed. And it’s a hard one.

There is a mystery…yes. It’s obvious there will be more books. Did I miss something by reading out of order? The story does seem to be complete. All that being said, Watcher in the Woods fell a little flat for me.

I love Kelly Armstrong’s writing and I did enjoy reading Watcher in the Woods, so I will definitely grab her next book.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Watcher in the Woods by Kelley Armstrong.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
3 Star

GOODREADS BLURB

In #1 New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong’s latest thriller, the town of Rockton–and her fans–are in for another hair-raising adventure.

The secret town of Rockton has seen some rocky times lately; understandable considering its mix of criminals and victims fleeing society for refuge within its Yukon borders. Casey Duncan, the town’s only detective on a police force of three, has already faced murder, arson and falling in love in less than the year that she’s lived there. Yet even she didn’t think it would be possible for an outsider to find and cause trouble in the town she’s come to call home.

When a US Marshal shows up in town demanding the release of one of the residents, Casey and her boyfriend, Sheriff Dalton, are skeptical. And yet only hours later, the marshal is shot dead and the only visible suspects are the townspeople and her estranged sister, in town for just the weekend. It’s up to Casey to figure out who murdered the marshal, and why they would kill to keep him quiet.

ABOUT KELLEY ARMSTRONG

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her

Kelley Armstrong

earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers’ dismay. Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

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