Giveaway & Review – Corporate Citizen by Gabriel Valjan @GValjan @NouveauWriter

Posted on December 8, 2016 by fundinmental

I have been reading my way through the Roma series and the mystery continues in Corporate Citizen.

We are back in Boston…but the danger seems to follow them wherever they go.

This is the best one yet and it was a punch to the gut.

MY REVIEW

I was one of the herd, led down the predictable path, forgetting to read between the lines…Slapped me in the face, woke me up!

The Roma Series continues in Corporate Citizen by Gabriel Valjan and I must say, this is the best one yet. We have action and murder from the opening pages.

I am so glad I stuck with this series. Gabriel Valjan’s writing style was difficult for me to read in the beginning, but now that we are on familiar ground it has become easier…more than that, it has become fantastic.

The complex characters have captured me as they struggle to have a normal life while solving dangerous mysteries. I am very concerned for all of them. I am afraid they may not all make it out of the book alive. Especially Nate, a new member of their team. What will become of him?

I am wondering who Loki really is…and the Magician? What are their objectives? Why are they feeding her info? And the bigger question…Is it good or bad?

Murder is always a component in the Roma series, but the conspiracy is what hooks me. Now…enter a designer drug…or two. Krokodiles. Barneys.

Bianca is the main character, but all the others are vital to the story. I do wonder if her love life will survive through all her and Dante’s trials and tribulations.

WOW. I am on page 236, approaching the end and everything is becoming clearer. I can see why things were so tangled and convoluted that I didn’t see where Gabriel Valjan was taking me.

I am thinking…I must reread this series and if you believe in conspiracies, like I do, and want to find out how misdirection and rogue government agents can affect your life, you will want to read this too!

Gabriel Valjan did an awesome job of leading me around in circles, so I didn’t see the outcome. I WAS one of the herd, led down the predictable path, forgetting to read between the lines. I was smacked in the face! Could this really happen? Is it happening now?

OMG…DAMMIT…I came to the end, but Bianca’s story is far from over. I’m ready for it! Where is it?

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Corporate Citizen from Gabriel Valjan.

5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Corporate Citizen

A call for help from an old friend lands Bianca and the crew back in Boston. On a timeout with Dante, due to revelations in the aftermath of the showdown in Naples, Bianca is drawn to a mysterious new ally who understands the traumas of her past, and has some very real trauma of his own. Murder, designer drugs, and a hacker named Magician challenge our team, and Bianca learns that leaving Rendition behind might be much harder than she thinks.

ABOUT GABRIEL VALJAN

Gabriel Valjan lives in Boston, Massachusetts. He is the author of the Roma Series, available from Winter Goose Publishing. Gabriel has also written numerous short stories and essays found online and in print.

Connect with the author: Website ~Twitter ~ Facebook..

GIVEAWAY

5 winners get a paperback copy of CC
5 winners get an ebook copy of CC
1 winner gets whole set of Roma series in paperback (signed)
1 winner gets whole set of Roma series in ebook format
12 winners total
Print copies open to USA and ebooks open international
Giveaway ends Dec 17

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You may see my Giveaways HERE.
You can see my Reviews HERE.
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My Reviews for the Roma series by Gabriel Valjan:

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Another Hit – Magnolia Moonlight by Mary Ellis #Mary Ellis

Posted on December 7, 2016 by fundinmental

I have been reading the Secrets of the South Mystery Series by Mary Ellis and was very excited to get my hands on another hit, Magnolia Moonlight. Thank you Mary and Harvest House Publishers.

I love the wonderful covers.

Cover by Lucas Art and Design

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Mary Ellis’ Secrets of the South Series is fantastic and I am happy to share another book from the series, Magnolia Moonlight, and travel the south with some familiar characters. Each book of the Secrets of the South series targets one of the couples. Their characters grow and develop as they learn to work together and get to know each other.

Beth and Michael work for Private Investigations and they have some issues with each other. Issues they will need to resolve in order to solve the mystery surrounding the suicide of the preacher.

Maybe the issues are more Beth’s than Michael’s. She holds a lot of resentment towards her mother. Is it because she only she’s her as her mom and not a person? Do you have that problem?

Beth had left Natchez under a cloud, but she had done nothing wrong. Would her investigation be stymied because of it?

When Mary mentions Castle, the TV show, the pieces fall into place. Beth and Michael could be Kate and Castle, especially with their verbal ‘foreplay’.

Mary Ellis has one of the characters asking themselves, ” Was guilt genetically hardwired into female DNA?” Food for thought, don’t you think?

Mary does a wonderful job of bringing her characters to life on the pages, making them believable and easy to relate to, though their work may be more glamorous than that of an assembly line worker or a waitress.

Beth and Michael both change and develop into deeper, more interesting characters.

WHOA, I’m on page 256, just reading along, thinking I know everything….then the story takes a wild twist. I think to myself, good one Mary, as I grin ear to ear. I love a surprise…in my books.

Murder, embezzlement, gambling, loan sharks…I am a bit of a gambler myself and love Texas Hold ’em, so Magnolia Moonlight has an extra element that sets it apart from other mysteries. And the mysteries do run rampant, as I twist and turn my way through the pages.

I love Mary Ellis’ stories because there is so much going on that, even though I don’t feel a sense of urgency and lurking danger, the writing keeps me going, wanting me to sate my curiosity of WHODUNIT.

I think I see the beginning of a new adventure for Price Investigations…

Coming soon…Sunset in Old Savannah.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Magnolia Moonlight by Mary Ellis.

4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

After being jilted by his fiancee, Michael Preston, a former accountant, pursues a new job as a private investigator. And, what better place to work than the new office of Price Investigations in Natchez, Mississippi? Unfortunately, Michael’s partner, Elizabeth Kirby–a crack shot ex-cop with a past she wants to escape–resents having to work with someone whose only surveillance experience comes from television and video games. Their boss and his wife, Nate and Isabelle, are two insanely busy newlyweds who are “forced” by their friends to finally take their honeymoon. However, their romantic trip to Alabama turns into an investigation when they bump into Izzy’s ex-husband, Craig, who seems to have taken up his gambling addiction once again. In an attempt to save Craig, Izzy discovers her ex doesn’t hold all the cards. Back in Mississippi, Michael and Beth are left to take on their first case when a preacher allegedly commits suicide. His widow suspects foul play, but things look grim when Michael discovers the Reverend may have been stealing from his congregation. Will Nate, his wife, and his employees be able to uncover the true face of deceit behind the masks that surround them?

ABOUT MARY ELLIS

Mary Ellis has written twelve award-winning novels set in the Amish community and several historical romances set during the Civil War. Her latest, Midnight on the Mississippi, first of a new mystery series, Secrets of the South, is set in New Orleans. Before “retiring” to write full-time, Mary taught school and worked as a sales rep for Hershey Chocolate, a job with amazingly sweet fringe benefits. Mary enjoys traveling, gardening, bicycling and swimming, and lives in Ohio with her husband, dog and cat. She can be found on the web at: www.maryellis.net or
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Mar…

You can see my Giveaways HERE.
You can see my Reviews HERE.
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My review for Midnight on the Mississippi

My review for What Happened on Beale Street

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FREE – Riproaring fun mystery – Bubba and the Dead Woman by C L Bevill #CLBevill

Posted on December 5, 2016 by fundinmental

The covers for Bubba and the Dead Woman by C L Bevill, and the rest of the series are so much fun, how could I resist them? I am a sucker for a great cover and love when it pertains to the story inside, like these covers do.

If you like some laughs with your murder mystery, come with me.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Bubba and the Dead Woman by C L Bevill is the first book in the Bubba Snoddy mystery series. If you like some humor and laughs mixed in with your murder mysteries, this series is for you.

Bubba is a big man with a gentle nature and he lives in a small town with an attitude. He sounds like a backwoods hick…half the time, but he is more than he appears to be. He is a fabulously complex character who projects a false facade to protect himself.

His faithful basset hound, Precious is his constant companion, refusing to be left behind. She may look harmless, but she will not let anyone harm her human.

It seems like trouble will forever follow him around, along with dead bodies, so it is no surprise when he stumbles across Melissa Dearman. The surprise is that he has a past with her. The news travels fast through the grapevine of Pegramville and the sheriff haunts his every move.

His mom, Miz Demetrice is a spitfire and you need to think twice before you cross her. She is wacky and wild.

The writing makes me think of the Andy Griffith show, with a bit of Dukes of Hazard and the Beverly Hillbillies thrown in.

Bubba is shot at, beaten up, lured into a pit, falls down the stairs and someone tries to burn his house down with him in it. How much more abuse can the poor guy take before he solves the mystery?

Rip roaring, thigh slapping good fun. Even the dog’s ‘conversations’ are funny, showing her personality. I couldn’t help but crack up when she tries to play hard to get with her human because she’s mad at him. I love when a critter adds an extra element to the story and Precious does that in spades. She may be my favorite character.

Mysteries abound with legends of treasure and plenty of people in the suspect pool.

If Bubba and the Dead Woman by C L Bevill is the first book in the Bubba Snoddy mystery series, but this book will stand alone.

I picked it up for free and you can too, HERE.

4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB: Bubba is a good old boy with lots of problems. His ex-fiancee is deader than a door nail and everyone thinks he dun did it. His house is haunted. His mother is running an illegal gambling ring. His dog likes to bite people too much. And he’s got to find out who really did it before the sheriff throws him in jail…again.

Bubba and the Dead Woman, the first book, is FREE! The rest are $2.99 or less.

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Giveaway & Review – Turning To Stone by Gabriel Valjan @GValjan @NouveauWriter

Posted on November 24, 2016 by fundinmental

This is my fourth book in the series, Turning To Stone by Gabriel Valjan and each book got better and better.

If you like complex stories and characters that grow on you, this series is a must read..

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The Roma Series continues in Turning To Stone by Gabriel Valjan and starts out with a BANG!

I am on familiar ground with Turning To Stone…The Mob. I have read a lot of organized crime novels, and Turning To Stone has everything I look for…corruption, betrayal, brutality, wholesale slaughter and assassins, female, no less. I love that twist and, for me, it doesn’t happen often enough.

But this is not the organized crime of Al Capone’s day. They are going legit and manipulating events through money, so be careful about investing in the stock market. LOL

Gabriel Valjan’s series keeps getting better and better. The writing flows smoother for me, the pacing and suspense picking up to a level that makes it hard to put the book down.

Some surprising turns at the end make me realize how strong and determined Bianca and her cohorts are. They have questions and WILL NOT stop until they have the answers, no matter the cost to themselves.

I enjoyed Turning To Stone the most…so far…and I am so glad I stuck with the series!

Action packed with OMG moments. The brutal, tragic ending left me feeling very sad and I can hardly wait to see where we go from here.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Threading The Needle from Gabriel Valjan.

4 Stars

SYNOPSIS

Alabaster Black aka Bianca Nerini returns as an investigation into a public official’s assassination pits Bianca and her friends against a backdrop of financial speculation, female assassins on motorcycles, and the Camorra—the most ruthless of Italian organized crime gangs—in Gabriel Valjan’s TURNING TO STONE, the fourth book of the highly praised Roma series (Winter Goose Publishing; June 2015; softcover $15.99; Kindle / Nook, $5.99).

En route to a secret meeting, Aldo Giurlani—the regional commissioner of Lombardy in northern Italy and a specialist on organized crime—is assassinated in the middle of a public square.

More mysterious is the package sent to Giurlani’s hand-picked team of five top investigators within the Guardia di Finanza (GdF), the Italian law enforcement agency that investigates illegal financial transactions, from money laundering to drug trafficking. Within the package are five copies of a book entitled Man of Smoke written by Aldo Palazzeschi.

Then there is Bianca’s tenuous online contact with a mysterious online contact known as Loki, who delivers a cryptic message to her, takes on a new twist with the appearance of a brilliant young obsessive-compulsive man who joins her team.

Complicating matters even further, old enemies and, more problematically, Alabaster’s former employer—Rendition, a murky covert U.S. government agency that does more than just investigate financial crimes—still have grudges to bear against her.

As new mysteries unfold, Bianca’s group quickly discovers that Naples might just be the most dangerous city in Italy.

ABOUT GABRIEL VALJAN

Connect with the author: Website ~Twitter ~ Facebook

GIVEAWAY

5 winners get a paperback copy of CC
5 winners get an ebook copy of CC
1 winner gets whole set of Roma series in paperback (signed)
1 winner gets whole set of Roma series in ebook format
12 winners total
Print copies open to USA and ebooks open international
Giveaway ends Dec 17

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You may see my Giveaways HERE.
You can see my Reviews HERE.
If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
Look on the right sidebar and let’ talk.
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My reviews for Gabriel Valjan

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He’ll Get His Revenge in For the Love of Grace by Andy Blackman #Andy Blackman

Posted on November 23, 2016 by fundinmental

I was offered a chance to read For the Love of Grace by Andy Blackman and I am so happy I jumped on it. This suspense thriller quickly captured my attention and held it throughout.

Thanks Rachel at Authoright Marketing & Publicity and Andy Blackman for the chance to read and review this fantastic novel of love, loss and revenge.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Thank goodness I had a sixth sense about For the Love of Grace by Andy Blackman, because neither the cover or the blurb made me anticipate what was to come. I was quickly captured, wondering how Tom will unravel his complicated life and find a happy ending.

Tom grew up poor and hungry, with a thirst for knowledge that was aided by a photographic memory. He is a gentle, loving boy, devoted to his mother, until…

His entire life changed in the blink of an eye. Circumstances beyond our control can cause our lives to take a turn we never could have anticipated and this is just what happened to Tom.

I feel so much sympathy for Grace, his mother, that deserves sainthood in my book. She is a selfless, loving person, giving to others just because of their need. How much pain is such a wonderful person supposed to endure? I feel *** is not doing right by her.

I am halfway in and my heart is breaking for Tom. He is a good guy caught up in bad situations through no fault of his own, just being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Life deals him some bad breaks, but this 30 minutes was the worst of his life and nothing would stop him from exacting his revenge. And I am with him! I want to pick up a gun and hunt them down like the brutal savages they are.

I love when a man is bad and good at the same time. Know what I mean? Where do you draw the line? I sympathize with Tom, I feel his pain through Andy Blackman’s words. Andy does a fantastic job of taking me sky high only to drop me, splatting my feelings all over the ground.

I knew from the beginning that something really bad, tragic, would have to happen to take him down the road of an assassin and I kept waiting for it to happen. The suspense never let me rest. The writing created a sense of impending doom.

The peripheral characters are not written just for support. They all play an important part in his life, whether they are his friends or on the receiving end of his wrath, but this is Tom’s story.

I don’t know why I didn’t see the ending coming. I should have seen it. I guess I was so wrapped up in Tom, that I really didn’t want it to end, because I just could not find a way for it to end the way I wanted.

My only complaint…the book is too short. I would have loved to be with Tom through his training to become such a proficient killer. I would have loved a few other parts of the story to be fleshed out more, giving me more details. Maybe this is just because I didn’t want the story to end. BUT…it doesn’t.

I definitely want to check out Book II, The Second Son!!!!

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of For The Love of Grace from Andy Blackman.

4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB: Grace Backer had a life full of tragedy. But despite everything, she raised her son, Tom, with her secret intact. Tom is a prodigal child, destined to escape the slums of the East End of London for a better life; circumstances will make him flee his loving mother and their home much sooner than expected.

Tom starts a new life in Odessa, Russia, and with the help of new-found friends starts a business. At last, he is finally accepted into a new and loving family, but one which holds its own dark secrets. A chance meeting with the son of a duke of the realm leads to close friendship and a new business partnership. When Tom decides to move his company to London and have his regal new friend run it, the firm thrives. However, not everything is as it seems, and Tom’s business soon conceals dangerous secrets of its own.

Years later, when Tom finally decides to return to London, he is a wanted man, one hunted by the intelligence agencies. If he is finally to be reunited with his beloved mother and his best friend, he must fight to put the past behind him. But keeping secrets is never easy.

You can see my Giveaways HERE.
You can see my Reviews HERE.
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It’s a Boy and He’s a Dragon – Dragon’s Egg by Emily Martha Sorensen @CleanYAFantasy

Posted on November 21, 2016 by fundinmental

I love dragons, so I am very excited to share Dragon’s Egg by Emily Martha Sorenson.

A 58 page fun, quick and easy novella that put a smile on my face.

Such a cute cover that made me grab this without hesitation.

Cover by Eva Urbanikova

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Can a baby dragon throw a tantrum?

Wellllllll, let’s find out.

This is not your usual dragon tale of hot shifters and the maiden in love with him.

It’s a baby.

It has been waiting for a long time….waiting…waiting…waiting…for its parents.

I felt so bad for the poor guy, so lost and alone.

He imprints before he hatches, on Rose and the stranger. He speaks to them telepathically and they cannot say no.

Rose’s life quickly spins out of control and I can hardly wait to see what happens when…

Imagine all the difficulties of raising a baby dragon…what do you feed it…where will it sleep…where will it go to the bathroom? It’s funny where my thoughts went as I wondered how they would handle something they never could have foreseen coming into their life.

OH NO! All to quickly I reached the end.

Kudos to Emily Martha Sorensen for this fun story and fresh approach.

This quick story was worth every minute and left me wanting more.

Now I NEED Dragon’s Hope.

4 STARS

GOODREADS BLURB

Rose didn’t count on becoming a mother to a brand new baby dragon egg.

She’s always wanted to be a paleontologist, and is now in college studying to become one. But a chance meeting at the American Musuem of Natural History turns her world upside down. Because, millions of years after dragons have gone extinct, there’s an egg that seems to be unexpectedly . . . alive.

The egg knows what he wants. He wants Rose and a stranger, Henry, to be his new parents. But can three strangers of two different species become a family?

A 14,000 word G-rated new adult fantasy.

Buy Links: Amazon, Nook, or Kobo.

ABOUT EMILY MARTHA SORENSEN

Emily is a prolific writer with many titles to choose from. She writes of fairies, dragons, fantasy, science fiction, steampunk, world peach in short stories and flash fiction.

You can find her on Goodreads & Amazon

You can see my Giveaways HERE.
You can see my Reviews HERE.
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Vigilantism With A Twist – She Bites by #RogerArsht & #CaitlinHawker

Posted on November 16, 2016 by fundinmental

She Bites by Roger Arsht & Caitlin Hawker has such a cool cover and fantastic blurb, there is no way I could pass on this vigilante thriller novel. I would like to thank Roger, Caitlin and Archway Publishing for the opportunity to read and review She Bites.

She Bites has a bit of a twist, so keep reading to find out why.

Does this cover talk to you as loud as it talks to me?

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

She Bites by Roger Arsht & Caitlin Hawker is my kind of thriller. I am always on the lookout for a new twist to a familiar story and they supply a fantastic one.

She Bites is action packed from the get-go and I love it. Dog fighting is a cruel ‘sport’ and I do not understand how anyone can get any enjoyment from treating an animal that only wants to please with such cruelty.

Want to take a walk on the dark side…read on.

Dr Robyn Sparks is not only a veterinarian, but a vigilante, doling out punishment to animal abusers. Having critters in a book adds a special little something for me and increases my enjoyment.

I love that Robyn Sparks cares so much for animals that she will stand up for them when others don’t. She is a strong, determined woman, and after my own heart.

She wants them to feel the pain and she dishes it out with a vengeance. She is a female Dexter.

Would I go that far? Would you?

Have you pissed her off? Wellllll, if you have, she will be paying you a visit and She Bites. It WILL be hazardous to your health!

When Jack Williams, a detective with his own issues, comes into her life, it becomes even more complicated.

Two damaged souls are drawn together…by a dog. Their terrors may be different, but their motives are the same.

Is one bad and the other good? Yin and yang?

When dealing with vigilantism, moral questions are raised.

Justice…is it legal…illegal? What would happen if everyone took the law into their own hands?

I don’t see how this can end well, but I want it to.

The writing makes the story flow smoothly and the suspense is a nail biter. How can he not figure out what is really going on with her? How can she keep her secret? Will the authors be able to put their thinking caps on and come up with an ending that I will be happy with, yet find ‘believable?’ That you will find ‘believable? All I can say is…you will have to read it for yourself to find out.

I love it, will highly recommend it, and I will be looking for more of their work.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of She Bites from Roger Arsht, Caitlin Hawker and Archway Publishing.

4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB: Dr. Robyn Sparks is a veterinarian with a dark secret: she moonlights as a self-appointed vigilante, who deals her own brand of justice to animal abusers by murdering them. If you do bad things to dogs, Robyn does bad things to you.

She Bites tells the story of a talented veterinarian who dispenses brutal judgment. Her work with sick and injured animals provides Robyn with a view of life’s most tender moments as well as a view of man’s most brutal behaviors.

Robyn’s regular habit of sending bad people to the pet crematorium is interrupted when she meets Jack Williams, a damaged detective who is fighting his own demons. Their relationship is a roller coaster ride of tangled emotions and legal close calls.

Ultimately, Robyn has to make a choice: whether to continue down her destructive path and kill a twisted psychopath turned professional dog fight promoter, or to pursue a romance with a cop who believes morality is best served by the hand of the law.

By our estimate, there are tens of thousands of dog fighters in the U.S., forcing hundreds of thousands of dogs to train, fight, and suffer every year. – The American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), 2016

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

About Roger Arsht

Roger Arsht is a mild-mannered high school English teacher by day, but dons his writerly cloak after class and pens the darker side of life. His noir thrillers ask some hard questions about corruption and violence in the world, and what to do about it.

Roger wrote his first novel A Slam Dunk, when, while watching sports, it became illogical to him that a man could don a uniform on Sunday and be a hero, then the rest of the week engage in illegal activities or violence. Knowing his book needed a darker element of writing, he contacted a former student of his, who was loaded with talent, but also horrified him with her scary stories. Caitlin Hawker stepped up to the job and a collaboration was born.

When he’s not writing or hanging out in high school (his favorite place to be,) Roger loves to fish, golf, travel and cook, not necessarily in that order. He and his wife have two grown sons, and live in Park City, Utah with their Golden Retriever rescue dog, Pumpkin.

About Caitlin Hawker

Caitlin Hawker is a self-described “dark” person who loves horror movies and the study of humanity’s darker side. It took her awhile to learn to read and write, until her dad described to her that letters were pictures, and then suddenly it all made sense. Now a prolific writer, she began penning noir fiction in high school, in typical dark, brooding teenager fashion, which scared her teachers. What was a hobby later turned into a career when Roger Arsht walked into the college bookstore where she was working and asked her to help him write a book.

When she isn’t writing, she makes costumes and dabbles in art. Caitlin is a connoisseur of all things weird, and loves to collect facts. Her latest discovery is that the last duel in France was with hot air balloons and shotguns, which ended up setting a field full of sheep on fire.

She and her husband live in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Caitlin is planning for the day when she can get a dog.

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Bah…Humbug by Tony Bertauski @tonybertauski

Posted on November 15, 2016 by fundinmental

I have been reading Tony Bertauski’s Christmas stories since the very beginning and have loved each and every one, so I was eager to get my hands on Humbug.

Be sure and check out his other books below, where you can find my review links.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Fantastic twist on a familiar tale.

Tony Bertauski has come away with another winner in Humbug. This is one of those books that is hard to review without giving away all the goodies inside.

You may think you know the story, but when Tony Bertauski spins a tale, he creates a world of his own, original, unique and highly creative.

I immediately thought steampunk because of all the technology involved, but cyberpunk will do just fine.

Ebenezer is constantly riding around his castle on a Segway. He is overweight and a bit lazy. He wants what he wants when he wants it and expects his androids to deliver. He doesn’t leave his castle and doesn’t want any human contact. No one knows what he looks like because he projects a created image when he talks ‘face to face’.

At times I felt like Ebenezer got what he deserved and other times I felt sorry for him. After all, we don’t always know what happens to shape a person into who they have become.

We do travel to the future, visit the present and go back to the past to find out his story.

The twists and turns kept me entertained and I surely never saw the end coming. I loved it.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Humbug by Tony Bertauski.

4 Stars

AMAZON BLURB: Jacob Marley is dead. His business partner, Eb Scrooge, is left to run Avocado, Inc., an innovative technology business, all alone. An introverted shut-in locked away in a Colorado mansion, he changes the company’s mission statement. Only his servant droids keep him company.

Until the gifts arrive.

Each Christmas, a messenger forces Eb to look at his life in hopes he will change. But change does not happen in a single night. And only Eb can make it happen.

But who is sending the messengers?

ABOUT TONY BERTAUSKI

Get my books FREE. Tell me where to send them at http://bertauski.com

My grandpa never graduated high school. He retired from a steel mill in the mid-70s. He was uneducated, but he was a voracious reader. I remember going through his bookshelves of paperback sci-fi novels, smelling musty old paper, pulling Piers Anthony and Isaac Asimov off shelf and promising to bring them back. I was fascinated by robots that could think and act like people. What happened when they died?

I’ve written textbooks on landscape design, but that was straightforward, informational writing; the kind of stuff that helps most people get to sleep. I’ve also been writing a gardening column with a humorous slant. That takes a little more finesse, but still informational for the most part.

I’m a cynical reader. I demand the writer sweep me into his/her story and carry me to the end. I’d rather sail a boat than climb a mountain. That’s the sort of stuff I wanted to write, not the assigned reading we used to get in high school. I wanted to create stories that kept you up late.

Fiction, GOOD fiction, is hard to write. Having a story unfold inside your head is an experience different than reading. You connect with characters in a deeper, more meaningful way. You feel them, empathize with them, cheer for them and even mourn. The challenge is to get the reader to experience the same thing, even if it’s only a fraction of what the writer feels. Not so easy.

My reviews for Tony Bertauski’s books:

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The Ground Shook – Seismic Crimes by Chrys Fey @ChrysFey

Posted on November 8, 2016 by fundinmental

I was super eager to get my hands on Seismic Crimes by Chrys Fey.

I have enjoyed her stories and I got to name a character in this one.

I can hardly wait to meet Jackson Storm.

Amazon / Goodreads

Seismic Crimes by Chrys Fey

Publisher: Wild Rose Press

Cover design: Kim Mendoza

MY REVIEW

Chrys Fey is a fantastic author who is always on the top of my reading list. She did not let me down in Seismic Crimes. Seismic Crimes picks up where Hurricane Crimes left off. The recap does not require you to read it first, though I would recommend doing so.

Beth’s journey continues with Donovan, which began in Hurricane Crimes, and now they are caught in an earthquake in San Francisco, being chased by a killer.

Is there such a thing as love at first sight? She risks a lot for him after knowing him for a day. It works for me.

Beth is an independent person, able to take care of herself, but Donovan easily fits into her life. He is hunky…hot…and action oriented, in more ways than one. Lots of romance and action, along with plenty of mystery and suspense, as Beth and Donovan take their relationship to a new level.

I am familiar with hurricanes and they don’t really scare me. There is plenty of time for preparation and if it’s going to be a big one, ya just get out of the way. Not so with earthquakes. I cannot imagine how terrifying it is to have your whole world shaking beneath your feet.

I could not help but chuckle at Beth’s thoughts while she is at the police station. It’s not starting out so well for them.

What can I say about Jackson Storm…? I love that Chrys made him a…and I see some deliciously good stuff coming next.

Humor and romance go well together and Chrys Fey does a great job of blending them while keeping the suspense percolating.

Some sexy, hot scenes. I would recommend this for adults.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Seismic Crimes by Chrys Fey.

4 Stars

ABOUT THE BOOK

An Internal Affairs Investigator was murdered and his brother, Donovan Goldwyn, was framed. Now Donovan is desperate to prove his innocence. And the one person who can do that is the woman who saved him from a deadly hurricane—Beth Kennedy. From the moment their fates intertwined, passion consumed him. He wants her in his arms. More, he wants her by his side in his darkest moments.

Beth Kennedy may not know everything about Donovan, but she can’t deny what she feels for him. It’s her love for him that pushes her to do whatever she has to do to help him get justice, including putting herself in a criminal’s crosshairs.

When a tip reveals the killer’s location, they travel to California, but then an earthquake of catastrophic proportions separates them. As aftershocks roll the land, Beth and Donovan have to endure dangerous conditions while trying to find their way back to one another. Will they reunite and find the killer, or will they lose everything?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR .

Chrys Fey is the author of Hurricane Crimes and 30 Seconds. She is currently working on the sequel to Hurricane Crimes that’ll serve as book two in the Disaster Crimes series.

When Fey was six years old, she realized her dream of being a writer by watching her mother pursue publication. At the age of twelve, she started writing her first novel, which flourished into a series she later rewrote at seventeen. Fey lives in Florida where she is waiting for the next hurricane to come her way.

You can connect with her on Facebook and her blog, Write with Fey. She loves to get to know her readers!

Author Links: Facebook / Blog / Website / Goodreads

Ghost of Death

Witch of Death

Hurricane Crimes.

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Kept Me Guessing – Review for The Second Man by Emelle Gamble @EmelleGamble

Posted on October 24, 2016 by fundinmental

I think Emelle Gamble has some great covers and the one for The Second Man did not let me down. It is a cover that grabs my attention, and I love that the girl is dominant, yet it hints at the romance inside.

Cover by Tammy Seidik

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The deadly mystery of The Second Man by Emelle Gamble begins in the opening pages. I love when the author puts their hooks in me right out of the gate. I have read a couple other books by Emelle Gamble and I think each book I read keeps getting better and better.

Jill’s school reunion is coming up and her bestie, Carly, is coming home from Europe with her husband and child. There will be two more men who will arrive and create all kinds of havoc for her, a triangle…of sorts.

I have an inkling of what’s coming, but Emelle Gamble does a great job of twisting and turning things, keeping me guessing. One minute I think it’s too obvious for this guy, then I’m sure it’s him. I never really thought it was the other guy, but who then?

All the time I’m reading, the suspense builds…slowly. I know something will be happening, yet I have more to learn about the characters and their motivations before I will find out.

I like that Jill didn’t immediately climb into bed with her old love, even though she wanted to jump his bones. She gives her ex the benefit of the doubt when he comes knocking on her door, even though she wants nothing more to do with him.

I am often accused of being cynical, but I think I am a realist. Why throw your trust out there willy nilly, especially after having been burned. What’s wrong with waiting for someone to prove their trustworthiness?

I can relate to her decision making process – slow and methodical. I mull it over and anticipate all the options, just like she does.

The characters are more complex than I anticipated and it kept me guessing what their actions would be. I love when I start out thinking people and events are so predictable and the author jerks me around, hopping from suspect to suspect, unable to be sure who the guilty party is until the end. Her writing misdirected me and when I found out, it was so obvious, all I could think was, good job Emelle.

I look at the very pretty cover and think this will be more of a cozy, but as I read along, I had to change my mind. The villain will bump off anyone that gets in his way or may discover his secret.

If you are looking for a great mystery that’s heavier than a cozy, yet doesn’t have blood and guts flying off every page, The Second man by Emelle Gamble is for you.

I received an advanced reading copy of The Second Man by Emelle Gamble in exchange for my honest review.

4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB: Jill Farrell’s college reunion is coming up, but she wants no part of it. The man she once loved, Swedish exchange student Max Kallstrom, is rumored to be attending, but that doesn’t tempt her as Max disappeared from her life the night before the graduation, and has never been heard from since.

When her ex-husband, Andrew Denton, knocks on her door and announces he wants to make nice, and, “oh, by the way, one of their class alumni might be a murderer”, Jill’s resolve to avoid the event hardens.

Jill shuts Andrew’s efforts to reconnect down, and tries to put Max out of her mind.

And that’s that, until a second man knocks on her door, and the emotions of a time long ago overtakes her. Max Kallstrom tells Jill she’s the reason he has come to California. He asks her to please let him explain why she hasn’t heard from him for fifteen long years.

She’s willing to listen to what he has to say, but immediately realizes that her memories must guide her through a wrenching and dangerous few days. While her heart remembers a handsome young lover, she and her classmates are all different people now, and the reality of a murdered friend proves she can’t trust everyone.

What’s not so clear is if she should trust anyone . . . especially Max Kallstrom.

ABOUT EMELLE GAMBLE

From Goodreads: Emelle Gamble was a writer at an early age, bursting with the requisite childhood stories of introspection which evolved into bad teen poetry and attempts at ‘real literature’ all copies of which she has since, very sensibly, shredded. She took her first stab at romantic fiction in an adult education writing class when her kids were in bed, taught by fellow writer Carolyn Haines, in Mobile, Alabama. As M.L. Gamble, she published several romantic suspense novels with Harlequin. She is now contracted with Soul Mate Publishing for Secret Sister, summer of 2013, and Dating Cary Grant, an early 2014 release.

Always intrigued by the words ‘what if’, Emelle’s books feature an ordinary woman confronted with an extraordinary situation. She most enjoys reading stories that surprise and amaze her, and hopes her readers will enjoy the challenging and exciting journeys her characters take.

Emelle lives in suburban Washington D.C. with her husband, Phil, her hero of thirty years, and two orange cats, Lucy and Bella. Her daughter, Olivia, and son, Allen, are happily launched on their own and contributing great things to society, which has always been their mother’s fondest wish.

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