Tag Archives: kidnapping

Review – The Scorned by David Putnam @daveputnam @oceanviewpub

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The Scorned
The Scorned
The Scorned
The Scorned

I first saw The Scorned by David Putnam in a tour. His name was familiar, but when I saw this cover, I was determined to do everything I could to win the giveaway. Karma was on my side, and I won the fabulous package below.

I know I am starting this out of order, but The Scorned by David Putnam is his latest release, so I am going to share that one first. As you can tell, I don’t have all of the other nine, but the main thing is….I have The Disposables, Book I, that I will be reading next.

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

First off, The Scorned by David Putnam is Book 10 and I have not read the previous books. The more I read of The Scorned, the more hooked I became and I will be going back to the beginning, The Disposables.

In the opening pages, David Putnam describes something that I find true, living in a tropical climate:

The humidity so thick words hung suspended a moment longer before dissipating.

I love the whole ex-cop, ex-con concept. Books that deal with trafficking in women and children hit home for me. I want to know the villains will get their comeuppance, at least in fiction. All too often, in reality, that does not happen. It does cause all my emotions to come into play.

Bruno Johnson and his bud, Karl Drago will face the villains…head on, raining hell down on them. I felt I knew Bruno, but Karl…it was a pleasure watching him grow and develop into a more complete individual. I would definitely want him on my side…and his crusty dog too.

The characters, even the good ones, do not walk the straight and narrow. Sometimes, to make things right, stepping outside the law is the only answer. Other times, we don’t always have the full story, so rushing to judgment can have you eating crow.

Most of the time, this action packed thriller was full of horrendous happenings, drugged and trafficked women, stolen babies, and meth heads. Other times, the good guys confront them, holding them accountable for their actions, showing no mercy and occasionally, even having some light hearted moments.

The more I read of The Scorned, the more it drew me in, feeling anger and fear, wondering how it will all end and if all my ‘friends’ will remain standing. I missed learning how the characters came to be in the situations we find them in…on the run, evading the law, forced to leave the United States and relocate to Costa Rica, though David Putnam did address it, filling in some of the blanks.

The children…the amazing actions taken to save any and all….

In the beginning, the story had an old time feel to it, the writing style making we wonder if the Bruno Johnson series was really for me. I kept at it and lost myself. I can hardly wait to go back to the beginning, The Disposables, and find out how it all started.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Scorned by David Putnam.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Ex-cop, ex-con Bruno Johnson stumbles into a criminal organization that exploits women and children—he must fight his way out and home

Bruno Johnson is hiding out from the U.S. law in Costa Rica with his pregnant wife, Marie, and the ten kids they rescued from toxic homes in South Central Los Angeles. When Marie encounters a difficult labor and delivery, their good friend Dr. Vargas rescues both her and Bruno’s infant son. So Bruno feels indebted when asked to escort his daughter Layla, a college student in Los Angeles, back home to Costa Rica.

When Bruno arrives in Los Angeles, he finds the problem with Layla is complicated and dire. Layla has fallen in with Johnny, the leader of a vast and notorious criminal empire that exploits women and children. She says she’s had his child and that he has taken the baby.

Bruno enlists the help of his old friend Karl Drago—and his dog, Waldo—to aid in his search for Layla’s baby—a baby her parents disavow. Bruno soon discovers things aren’t as they appear, but he will stop at nothing to save the innocent baby and return to his family and newborn son in Costa Rica—providing he can evade capture while on U.S. soil.

Perfect for fans of Michael Connelly and David Baldacci

While all of the novels in the Bruno Johnson Crime Series stand on their own and can be read in any order, the publication sequence is:

The Disposables
The Replacements
The Squandered
The Vanquished
The Innocents
The Reckless
The Heartless
The Ruthless
The Sinister
The Scorned
The Diabolical (coming 2024)

  • Thriller, Mystery, Internations, Suspense

352 pages, Hardcover

Published February 7, 2023

ABOUT DAVID PUTNAM

Best-selling author David Putnam comes from a family of law enforcement. During his career, he did it all: worked in narcotics, served on FBI-sponsored violent crimes teams, and was cross-sworn as a US Marshall, pursuing murder suspects and bank robbers in Arizona, Nevada, and California. Putnam did two tours on the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s SWAT team. He also has experience in criminal intelligence and internal affairs and has supervised corrections, patrol, and a detective bureau. In Hawaii, Putnam was a member of the real-life Hawaii Five O, serving as Special Agent for the Attorney General investigating smuggling and white-collar crimes.

Putnam lives in Southern California with his wife, Mary.

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New Release Review – Red Queen by Juan Gomez Jurado #netgalley @JuanGomezJurado

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Because of the information at the end of the book, after this story is finished, I felt a need to share William Blake’s “The Tyger.” Blake is having a discussion with Evil in the form of the tiger.

The Tyger

By William Blake

Tyger Tyger, burning bright, 

In the forests of the night; 

What immortal hand or eye, 

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies. 

Burnt the fire of thine eyes?

On what wings dare he aspire?

What the hand, dare seize the fire?

And what shoulder, & what art,

Could twist the sinews of thy heart?

And when thy heart began to beat.

What dread hand? & what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain,

In what furnace was thy brain?

What the anvil? what dread grasp.

Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears 

And water’d heaven with their tears:

Did he smile his work to see?

Did he who made the Lamb make thee?

Tyger Tyger burning bright,

In the forests of the night:

What immortal hand or eye,

Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

Blake, William. “The Tyger.” ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Songs of Experience. ​​​​​​​Facsimile reproduction of the 1794 illuminated manuscript, published by The William Blake Trust and the Tate Gallery, 2009, in ​​​​​​​William Blake: The Complete Illuminated Books.

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The title Red Queen made me curious, but it was not what I expected. The author is unfamiliar to me, but the cover made me curious, with #1 International bestseller. Then, I read the blurb, and thought this could be a winner for me. And boy was it. Antonia Scott was so much more than I expected and I love that her ‘partner’ is a disgraced police officer. I love when a characters can find redemption, and I feel he will.

Antonia Scott allows herself to think of suicide no more than three minutes a day.

Does that intrigue you? It sure did me. Why did she think of suicide at all? Isn’t she a gifted forensic investigator? A personal tragedy leaves her with a heavy sense of guilt that she cannot escape. I am not going to tell you why. You will have to discover that for yourself.

Inspector Jon Gutierrez is a disgraced police officer, suspended from work. He has always been harassed because of being gay in a male driven society. He loves to cook. He is not fat, just rock solid. I think a lot of cooks love to eat. For others, like me, it is more like fuel. He has been tasked with bringing Antonia out of her self imposed isolation and has no idea what he is coming his way.

“My brain…isn’t normal. I can do things others find impossible.”

When I found the reason for that, I had ambivalent feelings. I guess, if it was what she wanted, who am I to judge.

Red Queen started out slow for me, but I think that is Juan Gomez Jurado’s way of preparing me for what is to come. The only problem I had was when he went back and forth between Jon and Inspector Gutierrez. It was early in the book and took me a little while to go with it and quit questioning whether he was talking about two people instead of one.

‘You sacrifice a pawn for the sake of continuing the game. Because the only thing that matters is to keep on playing.’

As we delve into the mystery, the suspense slowly rises. The story deepens. The sacrifices are costly, the players out for themselves

When Jon brings a rubber plant to her place, trying to make the barren room feel like a home, I cracked up. And…well, I can’t say. I will say this, though, the story kept getting better, the characters more real, foibles and all.The last quarter or more of the book was unputdownable. My desire to know them better, to work another case with them, intrigued me.

After the story is over, Juan Gomez Jurado shared some information that had me going to the internet to find out more for myself. Now…that is the sign of a great writer.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Red Queen by Juan Gomez Jurado.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Introducing Antonia Scott – the most compelling and original detective since Lisbeth Salander – in the international bestselling thriller that has taken the world by storm.

Red Queen is the first book in a trilogy that has sold over 2 million copies in Spain, sold to seventeen countries, and is the basis of an Amazon streaming series to debut in 2023.

Antonia Scott—the daughter of a British diplomat and a Spanish mother—has a gifted forensic mind, whose ability to reconstruct crimes and solve baffling murders is legendary. But after a personal trauma, she’s refused to continue her work or even leave her apartment.

Jon Gutierrez, a police officer in Bilbao—disgraced, suspended, and about to face criminal charges—is offered a chance to salvage his career by a secretive organization that works in the shadows to direct criminal investigations of a highly sensitive nature. All he has to do is succeed where many others have failed: Convince a recalcitrant Antonia to come out of her self-imposed retirement, protecting her and helping her investigate a new, terrifying case.

The case is a macabre, ritualistic murder—a teen-aged boy from a wealthy family whose body was found without a drop of blood left in it. But the murder is just the start. A high-ranking executive and daughter of one of the richest men in Spain is kidnapped, a crime which is tied to the previous murder. Behind them both is a hidden mastermind with even more sinister plans. And the only person with a chance to see the connections, solve the crimes and successfully match wits with the killer before tragedy strikes again…is Antonia Scott.

ABOUT JUAN GOMEZ JURADO

Juan Gómez-Jurado (December 1977 Madrid, Spain) is an award winning journalist and bestselling author. He is one of the three most successful contemporary Spanish authors along with New York Times bestselling authors Javier Sierra and Carlos Ruiz Zafón. In 2016, Juan celebrated the mark of 6 million readers worldwide.

Juan is the author of nine international bestselling novels: GOD’S SPY, THE MOSES EXPEDITION, THE TRAITOR’S EMBLEM, THE LEGEND OF THE THIEF, SCAR, RED QUEEN, BLACK WOLF and WHITE KING. They have been translated into more than 40 languages. He is also the author of the young adult science-fiction series, ALEX COLT SPACE CADET.

Juan is an avid reader and traveller. He lives in Spain with Sam, his bad behaviored dog.

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Giveaway – Carmel Conundrum by Stacy Wilder @dollycas #cozymystery

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Carmel Conundrum: A Liz Adams Mystery by Stacy Wilder


Carmel Conundrum: A Liz Adams Mystery by Stacy Wilder

About Carmel Conundrum


Carmel Conundrum: A Liz Adams Mystery
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – California
Wild Hawk Press (December 10, 2022)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 226 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8985426625
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BPQXHL7Y

Stolen identities, a cult, a kidnapping, an attempted murder, and a budding romance . . .

Join Private Investigator Liz Adams, and her lie-detecting Labrador, Duke, in the scenic town of Carmel By-the-Sea, as the pair investigate the mystery of stolen identities. Complications arise when Liz becomes romantically entangled with her hot new client, Brad.

Enter Apollo, a charismatic cult leader, whose mission to save the homeless has a dark twist. Why does he continue to trespass on Liz’s property? She’s compelled to uncover the answer.

Tensions mount, as the stakes become a matter of life and death. Will Liz and Duke solve both mysteries before the damage is irreparable?

Travel with Liz from Charleston, SC to Carmel, CA, and back to discover the astounding truth.

The Carmel Conundrum Playlist

  • 1.         “Hotel California,” The Eagles (thanks to Barry Edick for the song suggestion)
  • 2.         “Only The Good Die Young,” Billy Joel
  • 3.         “California Dreamin,’” The Mamas & the Papas (thanks to Mary Ellen Hendricks for the song suggestion)
  • 4.         “Glitter in the Air,” P!nk
  • 5.         “King of the Road,” Roger Miller
  • 6.         “California Girls,” The Beach Boys (thanks to Barry Edick and Mary Ellen Hendricks for the song suggestion)
  • 7.         “Celebration,” Kool & The Gang
  • 8.         “Take My Breath Away,” Berlin
  • 9.         “Hit the Road Jack,” Ray Charles
  • 10.       “(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay,” Otis Redding
  • 11.       “Life is a Highway,” Rascal Flatts
  • 12.       “Bad Day,” Daniel Powter
  • 13.       “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” Cyndi Lauper
  • 14.       “I Knew I Loved You,” Savage Garden

About Stacy Wilder

Stacy Wilder has traveled to six out of seven continents Books have shaped her life and her travels. Her love of mysteries began with Nancy Drew.

Carmel Conundrum is the second book in the riveting Liz Adams Mystery series. In addition to mysteries, Stacy writes children’s stories, short stories, and poetry. She and her husband live in Houston, Texas, with a totally spoiled Labrador retriever, Eve.

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Review – The Loyalty Of Children by Chris Lewando @westcorkwriter

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Amazon / KindleUnlimited / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Chris…you will always be a must read author for me! I love vigilante stories and Chris Lewando has outdone herself in The Loyalty of Children, Book III of the Suffer The Little Children series. I love walking on the dark side of life through words, wallowing in the filth of humanity, the dregs of society. I, also, like seeing them get their comeuppance.

Chris Lewando’s writing style speaks to me. Below is just one example of how in sync we are. She is talking about watching the news, which Dee and I don’t do.

“…What good does it really do to ‘know’ what horrible things are happening if we don’t act? And most of us don’t have that freedom, we’re too busy just hanging in there with our family and financial dramas to get out and make a difference. And I guess that’s just what the politicians need us to do.”

The Suffer The Little Children series may be fiction, but it has the ring of truth when describing the villains and the depths they will go to to scratch their itch. There are a lot of triggers in the series, so if you don’t have a strong stomach and a need for vengeance…BEWARE.

I love Dee, a character that I could never be. Feisty doesn’t begin to describe her. To face what she faces, a sense of humor does come in handy. Living on the run, constantly picking up her bag and moving to the next place. She knows how dangerous her life is, but that doesn’t stop her from doing what she feels needs to be done. She does not run from danger, but takes a methodical approach to meeting it head on. How will her story end?

…the criminal mindset is new to me; it’s a leaning curve. I wonder if I’ll live long enough to get the certificate.

Mikey…WTF…I don’t even know what to say. The author’s end note tells how Mikey came to be and I had to research it and find out more for myself. I love when an author has me doing research, arousing my curiosity, making me have to know more.

The ending….oh man, I did not see that coming. I couldn’t figure out how Chris Lewando would wrap it up and I love that she caught me so off guard. I would love to crawl around in her head. BUT, I hate that the story was over. I have to know what comes next for Dee, her father, Amy, Greg, and all the other characters that work together to save the children. I feel there must be more coming….

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Loyalty Of Children by Chris Lewando.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
5 Stars

AMAZON SYNOPSIS

If her family is going to survive, Dee needs to kill the bad dude, or die trying… Deirdre and her father rescue two children who are living rough. But are they what they seem? As she tries to find out why the boys ran from their foster home, the action escalates once again… ***** ‘It feels like a TV Netflix series the whole way through. There MUST be a sequel planned.’

Dee has saved her vigilante-father from the clutches of the FBI, and a long term of imprisonment, but in her moment of triumph, she learns that the man she calls ‘the pedo baron’ has infiltrated her sister’s home in the guise of a friend. This silent threat to her sister’s family means she has to take action, but what?

*It’s possible to read this as a standalone novel, but there are brief references to previous action, so the author recommends that the series be read in order.*

A feisty character with a crusty sense of humor, this unintentional heroine brings an original voice to a character-led story, and finds an inner strength even she hadn’t known about.

ABOUT CHRIS LEWANDO

Chris Lewando

I trained as an English teacher, but the planned storyline drifted off-track. I landed in an office, producing management statistics – a different kind of fiction. I have been writing for many years, with quite a few mainstream genre novels and short stories published while I was still working full time. I gained a Creative Writing Masters (hons), and have been a novel-writing tutor since lessons were sent by snail mail and the nearest thing to a mobile phone beamed Captain Kirk onto the Enterprise. I live in rural South West Ireland, play Irish music in pubs for tourists, drive a camper the same age as me, and self-publish standalone novels with multiple viewpoints and complex characters.

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MY CHRIS LEWANDO REVIEWS

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Lost But Not Forgotten – Splintered Emerald by Jane Blythe @jblytheauthor #romanticsuspense

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Jane Blythe is one of my must read authors. Her romantic suspense does everything you want it to do and she covers dark and disturbing events, which draw me in like flies to honey.

Splintered Emerald (Broken Gems, #5)

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I have been anticipating Emerald’s story and finally…I have it. I let the book linger on my Kindle for a little while because I knew this was the last sister to be found after their parents had sold them to human sex traffickers. It is fifteen years later….and this book sure took a turn I wasn’t expecting. Jane Blythe is good at that, so don’t get too comfortable. I am sure this is going to be a very bumpy ride.

“Ooh, she’s a pretty one.”

“How old?”

“Fifteen.”

“She’s not to be touched…she’ll either be sent to training or sent off with her new owner.”

Emerald is only fifteen, the baby of the family. It had only been a year since she quit sleeping with a night lite, even though she shared a bedroom with her sister, Sapphire. Her name matches her emerald green eyes.

She knew it was easiest to obey, though she wished the floor would swallow her up. She felt her dreams would never come true. She would not live a wonderful life, dying at an old age. Would she even make it to twenty? She didn’t care. She is afraid to live. Afraid to die.

Emerald gets to her owner, and I thought OMG, but she felt relieved. When you read Splintered Emerald, you’ll understand why we had conflicting thoughts, though I do see why she felt that way.

Ten days. Ten days until her eighteenth birthday. What then? She still held a tiny sliver of hope…hope that she would be rescued.

Eleven years have gone by…OMG…I would have lost all hope.

WOW! Fifteen years have gone by and Jane has gone off the rails with this one. My mind would never get to where she took me on my own. I am stunned and unable to see how we are going to reach a happy ending. Jane’s imagination knows no bounds and I love it!

I am trying to be careful about what I share with you, because this dark and evil story you need to read for yourself. And it kept getting worse. The physical torture may be surpassed by the mental torture, the innocence stripped away. The abuse, rape and beatings aren’t enough for Jane, she has gone even darker. AND I LOVE IT!

I don’t know what to think of Emerald. She is so lost, I don’t know if she can find herself, when she learns the truth. But, what is the truth?

There is an underlying story that I haven’t figured out. I thought of…but it doesn’t fit. I was curious how Jane Blythe would wrap up the book and the Hatcher sisters stories. She nailed it.

The Epilogue…I love Prologues and Epilogues. It is sweet, but I felt some pieces were missing. It doesn’t affect my rating THOUGH…5 well earned STARS it is!

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Splintered Emerald by Jane Blythe.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Fifteen years is a long time to be missing.

Emerald Hatcher was the baby of the Hatcher family. Sweet, kind, compassionate, a dreamer who would give the shirt off her back to someone who needed it more than her.

But that was then.

What have fifteen years away from her family, tortured and abused, done to her?

The Hatcher sisters have been desperate to find the last sister and bring her home, but what they get is not what they bargained for.

Is anyone really ready for Emerald Hatcher to return home?

ABOUT JANE BLYTHE

Jane has loved reading and writing since she can remember. She writes dark and disturbing crime/mystery/suspense with some romance thrown in because, well, who doesn’t love romance? She has one completed series, Detective Parker Bell, and one new series, Count to Ten.

When she’s not writing Jane loves to read, bake, go to the beach, ski, horse ride, and watch Disney movies. She has a black belt in Taekwondo, and a 200+ collection of teddy bears. She has the world’s two most sweet and pretty Dalmatians, Ivory and Pearl. Oh, and she also enjoys spending time with family and friends!

Website  /  Twitter  /  Facebook

MY REVIEWS FOR JANE BLYTHE’S BOOKS

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Disasters – Frozen Crimes by Chrys Fey @ChrysFey @rufus_thomas

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Frozen Crimes is Chrys Fey’s latest novel in the Disaster series. I have been reading her work for years and eagerly pick up her books anticipating a wonderful story.

I love the beautiful cover of Frozen Crimes, done by Kim Mendoza.

Frozen Crimes (Disaster Crimes #4)

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I have been through a hurricane, an earthquake, a lightening storm, a tsunami, a fire, and now a blizzard with Beth and Donovan. Chrys Fey does not give them a break, just because Beth is pregnant.

Frozen Crimes has a gorgeous cover and I do love a story that features storms and Mother Nature showing us who is the boss. To know Beth and Donovan’s full story, you need to start at the beginning with Hurricane Crimes.

Chrys Fey dives right into the suspense and I wonder…is it someone we have met before?

Donovan is away on a monster truck tour. He is a driver and loves what he does. He had never planned on marriage, but once he met Beth, he was a goner. She used to travel with him and he missed her terribly. Now that a little one is on the way, he wonders…

Beth is home alone…Oh No. It’s nighttime. There’s a knocking at her bedroom window. She’s no newbie to danger, but being pregnant adds another level of fear. She has no idea that she is being hunted, stalked. In this day and age, it is easy for someone to find you and that in itself is frightening, then we have Beth and Donovan’s story to add to that.

Beth is no stranger to danger, so she started a self defense studio. Thorn, a police officer, is their best friend and has a sweet spot for one her friends who is also an employee. She has her own tragic story to tell and kindred spirits are drawn together. He uses checking on Beth as an excuse to spend time with her.

Beth and Donovan’s love for each other is so sweet. When he took her for a drive on vacation in Michigan, I knew what was coming and I loved it. He is so wonderful with Beth and the small things are very precious to her. I love that they live in Florida, and I too love living in sunny paradise. I was born in Michigan, so them visiting for Christmas and getting caught in a blizzard brings to mind forgotten memories. Deep fried turkey, yeah I’ve had that. I love those little touches that make a book even better to me.

Chrys Fey’s writing flows smoothly, leading me deeper into the story, anticipating something bad coming, just not sure what it is going to be. She does add the good with the bad. She creates suspense and adds some heat to spice things up.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Frozen Crimes by Chris Fey.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

***Frozen Crimes (Disaster Crimes Book 5)***

Beth and Donovan are expecting their first child. Life couldn’t get any better…until a stalker makes his presence known. This person sends disturbing messages and unsettling items, but it isn’t long before his menacing goes too far.

Hoping for a peaceful Christmas, Donovan takes Beth to Michigan. Days into their trip, a winter storm named Nemesis moves in with the goal of burying the state. Snowdrifts surround their house, and the temperature drops below freezing.

Except, the storm isn’t the only nemesis they must face. Everyone’s lives are at stake—especially that of their unborn child. Will they survive, or will they become a frozen crime?

Content Warning: stalker, hostage, violence, guns/gunshots, cheating, pregnancy/child birth

Heat Rating: Hot (Steamy scenes but NOT erotica)

Disaster Crimes Series:
Hurricane Crimes (#1)
Seismic Crimes (#2)
Lightning Crimes (#2.5 free story)
Tsunami Crimes (#3)
Flaming Crimes (#4)
Frozen Crimes (#5)

ABOUT CHRYS FEY

Chrys Fey is the author of Write with Fey: 10 Sparks to Guide You from Idea to Publication. She is also the author of the Disaster Crimes series. Visit her blog, Write with Fey, for more tips on how to reverse writer’s burnout. https://www.chrysfey.com/

MY CHRYS FEY REVIEWS

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Have Tissues Handy – Look For Me by Lisa Gardner @LisaGardnerBks #LibraryLove

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Lisa Gardner is a must read author for me. I have been reading her work since way before I began blogging, but now forget to keep up with her. This is my first step to correct that and catch up on some of the books I’ve missed, so I am happy to throw some library love her way.

Look For Me (Detective D.D. Warren, #9)

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Detective D D Warren can relate to Flora, so they made a deal to work together, but I must warn you…have tissues handy because the highs and lows, the love and hate, had my emotions roiling, making this intense thriller impossible to put down, keeping the waters muddy and I was unable to see the end until I got there…the epilogue…a real tear jerker.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

In #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner’s latest twisty thrill ride, Detective D. D. Warren and “Find Her”‘s Flora Dane return in a race against the clock to either save a young girl’s life . . . or bring her to justice.

The home of a family of five is now a crime scene: four of them savagely murdered, one—a sixteen-year-old girl—missing. Was she lucky to have escaped? Or is her absence evidence of something sinister? Detective D. D. Warren is on the case—but so is survivor-turned-avenger Flora Dane. Seeking different types of justice, they must make sense of the clues left behind by a young woman who, whether as victim or suspect, is silently pleading, Look for me.

ABOUT LISA GARDNER

Lisa Gardner

Lisa Gardner is a #1 New York Times bestselling crime novelist. A self-described research junkie, she has parlayed her interest in police procedure and twisted minds into a streak of twenty-plus thrillers. Her latest, WHEN YOU SEE ME, comes out January 28, 2020 and features fan-favorites Boston Detective D.D. Warren, survivor-turned-vigilante Flora Dane, and FBI Agent Kimberly Quincy.
When a shallow grave is discovered outside a small mountain town in Georgia, questions quickly arise. Are these the sad remains of one of infamous Jacob Ness’s previous victims? Or the evidence of something worse? The cold case quickly turns red hot as the task force realizes nothing in this quaint town is at it appears. Worse, there’s another young victim whose life is on the line. Can they figure out the truth in time?
Lisa lives in the mountains of New Hampshire with two crazy pups and an ancient rescue dog. When not writing, Lisa loves to hike, play cribbage, and of course, read!

Website

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Danger in the Jungle – Shadow of the Jaguar by D V Berkom @dvberkom

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D V Berkom has created a kickass characters in Leine Basso and I am super excited to take a trip to the jungle with her in Shadow of the Jaguar.

Shadow of the Jaguar: A Leine Basso Thriller

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I have read other books about the Lost City, so I am eager to see D V Berkom’s spin on it. I do love traipsing through the jungle, with danger lurking, looking for lost treasure.

Martin is concerned about keeping the discovery quiet and the location secret, to protect it from those who would endanger the site and the people who live around it. Nancy, his daughter, is more interested in academic pursuits, wanting to share it with the world, which opens them up to those who want it for themselves.

She drank the Kool-Aid.

Enter Leine Basso…a kickass ex-assassin that takes name and leaves no prisoners. She is pulled from her comfy cozy bed, where she was nestled with Santa, her detective boyfriend, in Los Angeles and on her way to the jungle deep in the heart of the Amazon.

The head bad guy betrays anyone and everyone to get what he wants and I hope and pray he gets a healthy dose of Karma.

I am loving Shadow of the Jaguar and the Indiana Jones vibe I’m picking up. We have action and adventure, loyalty and betrayal, treasure found, and lives lost.

I love books that add the ecological aspects that would accompany a discovery such as this, including theft, clear cutting, eco terrorism and things that would damage the jungle and the people who live there. To me it adds a realistic aspect to the fiction.

The pacing flowed smoothly, making it easy to read on, totally captivated by the characters, trying to figure out who is the good guy and who is the bad guy. I was worried and I wonder…could a good guy do a bad thing and still be a good guy?

I love that D V Berkom has Leine and her daughter on the adventure together. They both work for SHEN, which is an organization that deals with human traffickers and there is never a dull moment. They are well equipped to handle whatever gets thrown at them and it is a pleasure to be along for the ride.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Shadow of the Jaguar by D V Berkom

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Leine Basso is back in Shadow of the Jaguar, an edge-of-your-seat, page-turning action-adventure thriller.

A lost civilization. A woman’s abduction. The promise of unimaginable treasure.

Deep in the heart of the Amazon, an expedition finds evidence of a fabled lost city of gold. It isn’t long before a ruthless drug trafficker learns of the possible find and kidnaps an expedition member, threatening to kill her and the rest of the expedition unless he’s given the coordinates to the city.

Former assassin Leine Basso and her daughter are called in to rescue the kidnapped woman, who also happens to be a good friend’s niece. But in the jungle, danger lurks at every turn, and nothing is as it seems…

ABOUT D V BERKOM

Image of D.V. Berkom

DV Berkom is a slave to the voices in her head. As the author of two popular thriller series (Leine Basso and Kate Jones), her love of creating resilient, kick-*ss female characters stems from a lifelong addiction to reading spy novels, mysteries, and thrillers, and longing to find the female equivalent within those pages.

Raised in the Midwest, she received her BA in political science from the University of Minnesota and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Many, many cross-country moves (and several years) later, she now lives just outside of Seattle, Washington with the love of her life, Mark, an ex-chef-turned contractor, and writes every chance she gets.

My Reviews DV Berkom’s Leine Basso Thrillers:

My Reviews for DV Berkom’s Kate Jones Thrillers:

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From My TBR – Stranger in Town by Cheryl Bradshaw @cherylbradshaw

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I received a copy of Stranger in Town by Cherly Bradshaw from her assistant on 10.5.16 and added it to my Goodreads TBR on 12.15.17. Don’t ask me why I waited so long to add it to my shelf or to read it, because I can’t tell you. 🙂

The sweet cover does not foreshadow the ugly story inside.

Stranger in Town (Sloane Monroe, #4)

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Stranger in Town by Cheryl Bradshaw is the fourth book in the Sloane Monroe Mystery series. It falls between a cozy and the dark, hardcore suspense that I love so much. I did enjoy meeting Sloan and love that she is a PI instead of a cop. She’s a PI because, “I don’t like people.” She doesn’t play well with others.

Stranger in Town deals with a difficult subject, child trafficking. Though Cheryl Bradshaw doesn’t delve into specific details that occur all too often with those taken, it is not any less frightening.

Olivia knew something wasn’t right….but she was frozen in fear.

Imagine your child at your side, doing your normal grocery shopping. An innocent errand turns horrific when you notice she is no longer at your side, no longer in the store… I can’t imagine anything more terrifying.

Sloane has her own backstory, which is what drives her to commit everything she has to finding the young girls. There are now two missing, a four year old, Savannah, and a six year old, Olivia. What could someone possibly want with them? Did they want them for their own? Did they want them to sell them?

Sloane wants to make everything whole again. She is methodical, thinking things through before acting, but something is different this time. She’s different. She will do whatever needs doing to get justice. I can relate to her desire to run when she is cornered. It’s all about perspective. Sometimes stepping away opens your eyes to what is in front of you.

Uh oh. At 55% I smelled a rat!

When Sloane talked to Sierra, Savannah’s little friend, it was heartbreakingly sweet.

In Stranger in Town, Cheryl Bradshaw covers more of Sloane’s search for the missing girls than the subject of human trafficking. There was more than one instance when I thought a character was suspicious, but it wasn’t for the reason I expected. We do have a twist, and that will happen when the villain feels he was betrayed, or put at risk of being exposed.

I would love to read more of Cheryl’s work and meeting Sloane was well worth the time.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Stranger in Town by Cheryl Bradshaw.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
3 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cheryl Bradshaw

He only needed her to look away for a few seconds…

Six-year-old Olivia Hathaway tiptoes down the center aisle of Maybelle’s Market, stopping once to glance over her shoulder and make sure her mother isn’t watching. But Mrs. Hathaway is too preoccupied to notice her daughter has slipped away. Moments later, a frantic Mrs. Hathaway runs up and down the aisles, desperately searching for her missing daughter. But little Olivia is already in the arms of a stranger. Will PI Sloane Monroe find Olivia before it’s too late?

ABOUT CHERYL BRADSHAW

Cheryl Bradshaw is a New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author writing in the genres of mystery, thriller, romantic suspense, paranormal suspense, and women’s contemporary fiction. Stranger in Town (Sloane Monroe mystery series book 4) was a Shamus Award finalist, and I Have a Secret (Sloane Monroe mystery series #3) won best thriller of the year from eFestival of Words.

Cheryl Bradshaw’s Novels:

Sloane Monroe Series:

Black Diamond Death (#1)
Murder in Mind (#2)
I Have a Secret (#3)
Stranger in Town (#4)
Bed of Bones (#5)
Flirting with Danger (#5.5)
Hush Now Baby (#6)
Dead of Night (#6.5)

Addison Lockhart Series:

Grayson Manor Haunting (#1)
Rosecliff Manor Haunting (#2)

Till Death do us Part Novella Murder Series:

Whispers of Murder (#1)
Echoes of Murder (#2)

Stand-Alone Series:

Eye for Revenge

For information and updates about Cheryl Bradshaw, visit her at www.cherylbradshaw.com, find her on Facebook on her Cheryl Bradshaw Author Page and follow her on Twitter @cherylbradshaw.

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Precious Gems – Crushed Ruby by Jane Blythe @jblytheauthor

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Crushed Ruby by Jane Blythe is Book II in the Broken Gem romantic suspense series. Each story is about one of the ‘broken’ sisters and it may even break your heart too.

Crushed Ruby (Broken Gems, #2)

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Ruby and her four sisters had been sold to sex traffickers…by their parents. I can only imagine the terror and sense of betrayal they felt, knowing no one would be looking for them.

She was not a virgin, so there were no hands off signs on her and the kidnappers took advantage of that. She was a sex object. On call. Anything goes. She can’t say no. How many times can she let her mind go before she would never be able to get it back.

It had been four years and it still felt like yesterday when she would hang out with her friends doing things seventeen year old teens do. She especially missed her twin. She felt used up at 22. She didn’t care any more. No friends, no family. She’s done.

Four years…a chance at escape appears….and she takes it.

Seven years later and Sapphire, her sister is getting married. Even though one of them is still missing, Emerald, Ruby feels hopeful, though the biggest part of her life is lost in books, shelf after shelf, floor to ceiling books.

This took a twist I didn’t see coming. Jane Blythe is great at book surprises.

A Skull. A Black Cat. A Witch. A Ghost.

Judah and Zeb hadn’t been partners for long, but they clicked, working together seamlessly. The case they are working now is urgent, but will become more personal as the days pass and Judah will be more drawn to Ruby.

Ruby is still a prisoner…in her own mind. Will she be able to allow him entrance? Suicide calls to her. Will she ever be normal? She feels tainted, poisoned, unworthy. Ruby has no idea how strong she really is and when the time comes, will she be able to save herself?

I love when Ruby was reading, looking for a plot twist, because I was too. And I got it.

Jane Blythe writes some of the most suspense, nail biting, mind twisting romantic suspense novels and I am always eager to grab the next one. She doesn’t fail to give me more than I am expecting, and characters that I grow to love and worry and fret over.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Crushed Ruby by Jane Blythe.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Betrayed. Sold. Tortured. Now she’s fighting to rebuild her life.

Ruby Hatcher escaped human traffickers, and she has her life back, but a nagging voice at the back of her mind keeps telling her the world would be a better place without her in it. When a home invasion throws her together with Detective Judah Willow, she learns that she’s not as alone as she thought.

Judah wants to ask Ruby out, but he knows about her traumatic past and won’t push her into doing something she isn’t ready for. But when Ruby gets mixed up in his latest case, he is determined not only to keep her safe but also to prove to her that not all men treat women like property. Earning her trust and her heart will push him to confront his own turbulent past, but if it helps Ruby, it’s worth it.

↝ Trigger warning – mature content, issues of sexual assault/abuse, violence ↜

ABOUT JANE BLYTHE

Jane has loved reading and writing since she can remember. She writes dark and disturbing crime/mystery/suspense with some romance thrown in because, well, who doesn’t love romance? She has one completed series, Detective Parker Bell, and one new series, Count to Ten.

When she’s not writing Jane loves to read, bake, go to the beach, ski, horse ride, and watch Disney movies. She has a black belt in Taekwondo, and a 200+ collection of teddy bears. She has the world’s two most sweet and pretty Dalmatians, Ivory and Pearl. Oh, and she also enjoys spending time with family and friends!

Website  /  Twitter  /  Facebook

MY REVIEWS FOR JANE BLYTHE’S BOOKS

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  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
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