Every so often I will follow an email link from NetGalley and check out what’s happening. I try to limit how many books I grab at one time…you know how that is. I found some books by Joanna Schaffhousen and grabbed a couple. I would like to thank NetGalley, Minotaur Books and Joanna Schaffhausen for the opportunity to read and share them.
The Vanishing Season is Joanna Schaffhausen’s debut novel, released in 2017…and, boy oh boy, is it a good one. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it gave me so much more.
Three people have gone missing and Ellery Hathaway knows they are dead and another will be taken very soon. Sam dismisses her warnings, but she won’t stop there. Sam is not only her boss, the chief of police, but also her lover, her married lover. I sure don’t approve of that, but as I read on, I could see how it happened. She uses sex as a weapon. That will have it’s own repercussions.
Woodbury, Massachusetts is a small town, a blink and you will miss it, with only eight police officers. I love to read of small towns, the gossip mill, and secrets that won’t stay secret. Ellery has a big one, but…
Ellery calls in the big guns, Reed Markham, an FBI profiler that had saved her from the serial killer that had taken her fourteen years ago, leaving her scarred and broken. He too has his own story. His marriage is on the rocks, but he had made a promise to her, so when she called, he came.
I love her basset hound, Speed Bump. LOL Critters always add some grins for me, and with a subject like serial killers, I need some chuckles.
The dog leapt from the vehicle with all the grace of a hippo performing a belly flop.
I have plenty of suspects, but two in particular have my attention. Even if I’m wrong, I don’t like them. LOL I do like to try and figure it out for myself as we follow clues, question witnesses, and try look for what others have missed.
There is no romance, though I know there are more books coming, so I wonder. I mean, just think about it, her body is scarred and so is her mind. She doesn’t want anyone in her house. Doesn’t want anyone touching her. And doesn’t want to share her secret. After what she’s been through, I can see why she protects herself, so who could possible get through the walls she has built up but the one person she trusts?
I am at 38% and my tension level is high, the pace is picking up, making me feel like the end is near, nut, there’s so much of the story left. I can only imagine what Joanna Schaffhausen has in store for her characters. I am lovin’ it.
I am filled with horror at the terrible things one person can do another, as the bits and pieces of Ellery’s captivity leaks out, each detail worse than the last.
Well…I didn’t see him coming. It takes a lot for an author to fool me so completely, especially near the end, but she had me eying the wrong guy until a page or two before he attacked. He was well camouflaged, but I will be on my toes with the next case, expanding my suspect list and reading between the lines.
Man oh man, I am so glad I took a chance on Joanna Schaffhausen. I had never heard of her. She kept me riveted from beginning to end and I can hardly wait for Book II, No Mercy. BRING IT ON!
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of The Vanishing Season by Joanna Schaffhausen.
5 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Ellery Hathaway knows a
thing or two about serial killers, but not through her police training.
She’s an officer in sleepy Woodbury, MA, where a bicycle theft still
makes the newspapers. No one there knows she was once victim number
seventeen in the grisly story of serial killer Francis Michael Coben.
The only victim who lived.
When three people disappear from her
town in three years, all around her birthday—the day she was kidnapped
so long ago—Ellery fears someone knows her secret. Someone very
dangerous. Her superiors dismiss her concerns, but Ellery knows the
vanishing season is coming and anyone could be next. She contacts the
one man she knows will believe her: the FBI agent who saved her from a
killer’s closet all those years ago.
Agent Reed Markham made his name and fame on the back of the Coben case, but his fortunes have since turned. His marriage is in shambles, his bosses think he’s washed up, and worst of all, he blew a major investigation. When Ellery calls him, he can’t help but wonder: sure, he rescued her, but was she ever truly saved? His greatest triumph is Ellery’s waking nightmare, and now both of them are about to be sucked into the past, back to the case that made them…with a killer who can’t let go.
ABOUT JOANNA SCHAFFHAUSEN
Joanna Schaffhausen wields a mean scalpel, sharp skills she developed in her years studying neuroscience. She has a doctorate in psychology, which reflects her long-standing interest in the brain―how it develops and the many ways it can go wrong. Previously, she worked as a scientific editor in the field of drug development. Prior to that, she was an editorial producer for ABC News, writing for programs such as World News Tonight, Good Morning America, and 20/20. She lives in the Boston area with her husband, daughter, and an obstreperous basset hound.
His commanding officer blames Jack for his own failings. Jack becomes a
scapegoat of his malicious jealousy and hatred, and he is intent on
making Jack pay – with his life!
>>>In the cross-hairs of an egotistical man without remorse
Fighting for their lives, Jack and his new love – Major Lori Darden, RN –
learn just how dangerous it can be to raise the ire of a psychopathic
boss. Jack must fight back to prevent his world from turning to ash
right before his very eyes.
>>>A mix of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher Series and TVs M.A.S.H.
Download your copy today and become immersed within the pages of this brutally
intense, thrilling adventure from international bestselling author
Edwin Dasso.
>>>“This is a fast-paced, action-packed roller coaster of a read. A
refreshingly different perspective…”
Jack is left emotionally traumatized from his deployment in Iraq with
severe PTSD and the Army forces him to retire. Jack’s PTSD
flashbacks sometimes leave him unaware of his actions while under the
influence of his unwelcome mental demon.
>>>Retirement isn’t Always What You Plan
As the new Chairman of Anesthesia at Southern Medical Center, Jack
thought he’d retired into the tame civilian job he’d dreamed of,
but a series of bizarre murders and deaths occur under his watch.
Can Jack put this puzzle together on time? Will he survive?
>>>Jack Bass, MD is Lee Child’s Jack Reacher and Marcus Welby rolled into one!
Sound confusing? Wait till you see inside Jack’s head!
“A dark psychological suspense thriller that will captivate you and
leave you turning the pages well into the night!”
”Once more, Dr. Dasso has knocked this book into a home run…”
After narrowly escaping murder at the Southern Medical Center, Jack Bass,
MD, and his new love, Janice, move to a new city to start their life
together. Jack steers his career away from the hospital, taking a
promising position at a small healthcare company that provides
support and assistance to people with serious medical issues.
However, he soon discovers things at the company are not as they
should be – something sinister is occurring.
>>>A medical suspense thriller that will keep you breathless
Jack uncovers the deadly plan for profit lurking underneath the company’s
innocent facade. Once again, Jack must uncover a ruthless web of
plotters and connections in order to save the lives of innocent
victims, including Janice and himself! Will he be
able to neutralize the threat before it’s too late?
>>>An ultra-realistic medical murder mystery that will not cease to
surprise you!
Death Management is the third book in the bestselling Jack
Bass Black Cloud Chronicles medical murder mystery series.
Prepare to be amazed by a surprising plot full of unexpected twists
and breathtaking turns.
You’ll Be Safe Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles Book 4
“This is by FAR one of the best medical mystery books I have read.”
After the murder of his wife and unborn child, Jack Bass longs for death.
In fact, he welcomes it. That is, until Amanda, his lovechild with
Major Lori Darden, unexpectedly enters his life. Jack tries to shroud
his new life with his daughter in privacy, determined that the events
of his past should not threaten his daughter. But no matter how hard
he tries, Jack cannot avoid trouble. It relentlessly pursues him.
˃˃˃ Homeless Veterans Are Disappearing From The Streets
After being kidnapped and delivered to an isolated encampment, veterans are
given a medication that makes even the most out-of-control psychotic
captives turn into walking, order-taking, defenseless shells. They
are used as slave labor, exploited then killed whenever the mood
strikes their captors. Despite his best efforts to remain isolated
from the world, Jack is faced with a choice between protecting
himself and his daughter or helping to save these veterans who are
being victimized for profit.
˃˃˃ There Will Only Be One Man Left Standing after This Battle
Jack is again unwittingly thrust into a world of conspiracy and murder as
he follows yet another trail of bodies. This time, Jack may have bit
off more than he can chew. Will his new-found daughter become an
orphan?
You’ll Be Safe is book four in Ed Dasso’s Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles series.
Do I Know You?Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles Book 5
“…book #5 in this addicting series. Well worth the wait!”
Jack Bass, MD: Lee Child’s Jack Reacher meets Marcus Welby
Sound confusing? Wait till you see inside Jack’s head!
Jack was shot while rescuing homeless veterans from from an isolated slave
camp. He was left clinically dead but was revived by a team of trauma
surgeons. When he awakens he has significant, but spotty, amnesia.
His friends and family take him abroad in an effort to help him
recover but, true to form, Jack unwittingly stumbles into the middle
of, and thwarts, a terrorist bombing plot. The terrorists are
hell-bent on revenge! Jack fights to survive and protect his family,
all while he struggles to even remember who he is.
A series for readers who love action thrillers with hard-hitting,
complex characters.Goodreads * Amazon
Empty Promises
Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles Book 6
Big pharma is buying all the politicians in D.C.
They can then legally unleash their new, but deadly, super-narcotic on the
American public.When Hank Green has a bad reaction to a drug during a study, Jack Bass, MD
gets involved. He soon discovers that many Veterans are being conned
into enrolling in the same drug study…and many are dying as a
result.Will Jack survive looking under the rocks of the political landscape as he
attempts to stop this scourge?Move over Jack Reacher, and make room for Jack Bass, MD.“A fantastic thrilling adventure that kept me glued to the pages. Every
story tops the one before it.”Goodreads * Amazon
Death Hub Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles Book 7
From USA Today and Amazon International Bestselling Author Edwin Dasso
comes the Seventh book in the Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles.Jack Bass, MD, discovers that new medical technology can work wonders…if
it doesn’t kill you first. Jack is working feverishly with two of his
favorite past students to figure out what is behind the chaos of
medical technology gone crazy.Is it a bigger issue than anything they could have imagined?Although, this book is part of a series, it is easily enjoyed as a stand alone
novel.Praise for Death Hub:“I love to read a good thriller and I was not disappointed with Death Hub.”“… entertaining, exciting and scary at times.”“Cyber Security is a Priority… definitely a scary idea.”
Edwin Dasso, MD, a USA Today and Amazon International #1 Best-Selling
medical thriller author, writes works of fiction that leverage many
of his “stranger than fiction” experiences from years of
practice at major medical centers and community hospitals.“You might be shocked at some of the events in the books that are based on
an actual experience.”Member of the International Thriller Writers.His “Jack Bass Black Cloud Chronicles” series has been
developed into a TV series, “Jack Bass, MD,”
(https://www.facebook.com/jackbassmd/?ref=bookmarks) which is
actively being discussed around Hollywood. Network feedback has been
very positive.Fiction writing is reviving a lost love from earlier periods in his life
where he enjoyed writing short stories. In addition to a number of
years as a practicing anesthesiologist and critical care specialist,
he has published articles in national healthcare journals, written
many “Ask the Doctor” columns and has spoken frequently at
national healthcare forums. He has also been instrumental in
designing and deploying population health programs to help people
deal with depression related to poor health.
The year is coming to an end and I was looking at my 2019 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge to find out what I was lacking and I needed a J. I looked through my Kindle and found Just You, Me and a Secret by Ganga Bharani Vasudevan. I picked it up on an Amazon free day, 6.7.16.
There are some definite bumps and bruises in Ganga Bharani’s first novel, but I am so happy I grabbed it on an Amazon free day.
I love the cover and it fits the story perfectly!
When I first began I struggled a bit. It reads like an ARC, rough around the edges, but I persevered and am glad I did.
Meera has lost her memory and her future husband, a doctor, is helping her to regain it. She reads her diary, Clara, and learns about her life. For some reason she is drawn to San, her lifelong friend, more than to Ashruth, her intended. Could the bash on her head have changed her that much?
As the story unfolds, I find myself getting more involved in her life and I am hoping she comes to the same conclusion I have.
The ending makes everything worthwhile.
3 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Just You, Me And A Secret is a story of an amnesiac, Meera, who battles between her past and present.
Meera Prabhu wakes up after a terrible accident with absolutely no memory of herself. She sees a stranger in the mirror and seems to be living with another stranger, Ashruth. Ashruth, a doctor by profession and a clown by appearance, claims that he is her fiancé. They were engaged to be married and would have been married already if not for the accident. He keeps on emphasizing on how much she loved him and yet, he keeps her apart from her family for her ‘mental state’. Armed with what seems to be her personal diary, Meera tries to grasp her identity and her reality. But no matter how hard she tries, she just seems to be unable to connect. Will Meera break through the hurdles in front of her and be able to connect to her friends and family again? Most importantly, will she ever regain her identity again?
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those
neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything
like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in
your stacks.
When an old friend of Josh Henson’s is found beaten to death in the parking garage of the San Francisco radio station where he works, the former newspaper reporter turned Internet investigator is drawn from his home in the bucolic Florida Keys into a world of political maneuvering, intimidation and assassination, all parts of a battle not only for control of the country but for its very soul.
In a novel that anticipated the Occupy
and Move Your Money movements, Henson becomes involved in a campaign to
take back America from the corporate and political elites that have
hijacked it for their own purposes and profit. As he does, he is drawn
into another battle, this one fought ruthlessly and without quarter by a
shadowy group of men and women who bring their own “particular set of
skills” to bear against forces that will stop at nothing in defense of
wealth and power.
America Rising is a novel for our times, a
novel of audacity and hope, where “change you can believe in” is more
than just a slogan. It is not a screed. It’s a story of people banding
together to ensure, in the truly revolutionary words of Abraham Lincoln,
that “government of the people, by the people and for the people will
not perish from the earth.”
I have more than 3,000 books on my want to read shelf on Goodreads. I am going through them, checking my kindle and bookshelves, and if I don’t already have them, deleting them. BUT, how am I ever going to read all the ones I do have? I try to ignore new freebies coming my way, but not doing a very good job of it. LOL I don’t even have all my Kindle books on the reading list.
I am sure the fact that the book takes place in the Florida Keys is one of the reasons I grabbed this mystery. I downloaded America Rising by Tom Paine from Amazon on 7.5.12 and added this to my TBR on 7.6.12. It is currently 3.99.
I first found Sibel Hodge by participating in a tour by Partners In Crime and never looked back. Whenever I see her name, I immediately check further. This will be my third book by Sibel Hodge and I have loved every one of them.
Their Last Breath has a powerful cover that definitely fits the storyline. Done by BlackSheep.
I love the simple but powerful cover and it definitely pertains to the story inside. Does it make you curious? Good! I love Sibel Hodge’s work and was so excited when she gave me a copy for review.
Detective Warren Carter retired…with a haunting secret, so when the call came from the Chief Superintendent of the Professional Standards Department, he was on full alert. She wanted his help and gave him free rein to investigate. He felt the justice system failed many, all politics, all the time, so he didn’t always follow the rules, going rogue and I like that. I feel his frustration. This time, it was with approval.
Nice touch, with the old neighbor. I felt his feebleness, oldness, loneliness.
I wondered how Warren and Becky’s cases would intersect.
Their Last Breath by Sibel Hodge is one of those books that takes off early, ticking me off, getting my emotion in an uproar. Human trafficking and enslavement. The reason for the women’s abductions was a new one for me and that just added to my disgust. I loved trying to understand what could possibly make someone think that is okay. Delving into the minds of twisted characters fascinates me.
Becky…she eats often…she’s a grazer. I almost snorted out loud. LOL Sibel Hodge’s writing. She creates complex characters and she knows how to ‘show’ their personalities.
Early on, I find HER very fishy. My spidey senses are tingling and instinct is a valuable tool when reading, writing, and investigating.
I love flawed characters and Warren is one for sure. I would want him and Becky in my corner if I am ever in trouble. Their tenacity and instinct lead them to success.
Well done, Sibel. You hooked me from beginning to end. The characters are filled with depth and personality and that made me me love and hate them. The storyline is one I am familiar with, kidnapping and trafficking, but you added that little bit extra that I am always looking for, getting my emotion in an uproar, filling me with disgust at the villains and empathy with those that can find no way out of the position they find themselves in, just because they wanted a better life. Their Last Breath has the feeling of reality, of events that go on today.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Their Last Breath by Sibel Hodge.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Detective Carter knows all about torture – but he’s never known a case as dark as this one.
The Six…
An
abandoned building goes up in flames. Six women are chained inside and
left to die – the truth is left to burn with them. Only one piece of
evidence remains, but will it be enough to find their killer?
The Detective…
Retired
detective Warren Carter has been suffocated by grief for his wife and
is looking for a new start. But when he gets a call that cuts to the
heart of the force, investigating a corrupt police officer, he has to
accept. This time, though, he’s going to have to face his demons and
work out who to trust when the truth is guarded by his own colleagues.
The Bad Cop…
It
was supposed to be the perfect crime: they knew the system well enough
to beat it and get away with murder. But they didn’t know Detective
Carter, and how far a man will go when he has nothing left to lose…
Their Last Breath is the gripping new thriller perfect for fans of Line of Duty, from the bestselling author of Duplicity and Into The Darkness
ABOUT SIBEL HODGE
Sibel Hodge is the author of
the #1 Bestsellers Look Behind You, Untouchable, and Duplicity. Her
books have sold over one million copies and are international
bestsellers in the UK, USA, Australia, France, Canada and Germany. She
writes in an eclectic mix of genres, and is a passionate human and
animal rights advocate.
Her work has been nominated and
shortlisted for numerous prizes, including the Harry Bowling Prize, the
Yeovil Literary Prize, the Chapter One Promotions Novel Competition, The
Romance Reviews’ prize for Best Novel with Romantic Elements and Indie
Book Bargains’ Best Indie Book of 2012 in two categories. She was the
winner of Best Children’s Book in the 2013 eFestival of Words; nominated
for the 2015 BigAl’s Books and Pals Young Adult Readers’ Choice Award;
winner of the Crime, Thrillers & Mystery Book from a Series Award in
the SpaSpa Book Awards 2013; winner of the Readers’ Favorite Young
Adult (Coming of Age) Honorable award in 2015; a New Adult finalist in
the Oklahoma Romance Writers of America’s International Digital Awards
2015, and 2017 International Thriller Writers Award finalist for Best
E-book Original Novel. Her novella Trafficked: The Diary of a Sex Slave
has been listed as one of the top forty books about human rights by
Accredited Online Colleges.
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those
neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything
like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in
your stacks.
An appaloosa horse is
the only eyewitness to a killing, a sack of Montana sapphires is
missing, and only Heaven knows the whole truth.
In “The Man Who
Fell from the Sky,” some themes of “Ghost” meet “The Horse Whisperer” in
this full-length, paranormal whodunnit mystery that is packed with
romantic suspense, danger, dark secrets and high spiritual stakes.
Cody
Bliss, angel detective, is assigned by Heaven to the mortal body of
J.R. Wilder, a paroled murderer, in order to solve his own previous
untimely demise and take care of unfinished business with Mariah, who is
unable to move on with her life until she knows what happened to her
missing husband.
Against the backdrop of a western Montana ranch
near Glacier National Park, and in the company of Mariah and her
tight-knit family, Cody (inside the body of J.R. Wilder) must solve the
murder mystery using forensic clues and the spiritual powers of an
angel. He must also yield to J.R., whose body he is using, as J.R. falls
in love with Cody’s widow.
This full-length novel’s compelling characters are all seeking truth and redemption. Only an angel detective can set things right, and the consequences for an entire family rest in his heavenly hands.
Angel detectives, a mix of the ghost and horse whisperer…what’s not to like? Sounds like a good one to me. How about you?
Well, we are coming to the end of the Rememdium series with Tainted World by Ashley Fontainne. It has been one hell of a ride and I can only wish the best to the gang I have come to know so well.
Well, we are at the end of the adventure with this group of people I have come to know and love in the final story of the Rememdium series, Tainted World by Ashley Fontainne. It has been a long, torturous, bloody road to El Salvador and we have lost many friends and family. How many people are alive and where they are will remain unknown and that may make their survival more likely.
Those around you died brutal, savage deaths, literally being ripped limb from limb and eaten alive. Would you rather go out in the initial slaughter or be one of the last ones standing? Which is worse? Well, I will not go quietly into that good night. How about you?
So much more to worry about than the zombies that dog their every step. Sometimes humans can be more deadly. Conspiracy is the ultimate betrayal when the country is going through an apocalypse. If you can’t count on those in charge, who can you count on? Do you believe in an ultimate power source, like the Illuminati? I sure do.
When Mike and Trent came across Chris, that about summed up everything for me. I can’t tell you what happened but it affected me profoundly.
I was surprised to see a character that carried my name, Sherry, whether it’s intended or not., It’s always so much fun to see it happen. I thought she was the best. LOL
I love Jesse. She is a character that has turned everything in her life around and stands tall in a crisis. I loved it when she said, “…even a pawn can capture the king if in the right position on the board.”
I wondered how Ashley Fontainne would wrap up the Rememdium series and I thought she did a bang up job. I am completely satisfied. After all the running, fighting, killing, munching, hiding, crying, dying and loving, I breathed a sigh of relief at a job well done. Not everyone made it, but those that did left me with a feeling of hope for humanity.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Tainted World by Ashley Fontainne.
4 stars
GOODREADS BLURB
The final installment of what happens when a miraculous cure ends up destroying the entire world.
When
Dr. Everett Berning’s discovery of a permanent cure for drug addiction
fell into the hands of Benito San Nicholas, head of the Alvarado cartel
in El Salvador – the end result was the dead took over the world.
In
less than 48 hours, narcotics tainted with fungal spores are deployed
around the globe and mankind’s existence hangs in the balance. Nowhere
is safe as the death toll mounts and the reanimated corpses aren’t the
only threat.
The remaining members of Project Rememdium and the
small contingent of survivors from Arkansas band together. The decision
is made to flee to a safer location, yet Teresa Alvarado had other
intentions. Once in the air, hell-bent on finding Benito San Nicholas
and killing him for what he’s done, Teresa Alvarado forced the pilot to
take them to her native El Salvador.
Will Teresa’s own personal vendetta actually offer hope to Dr. Berning and the rest of the world?
Or will the dangerous jungles of El Salvador be the place where all hope is lost and they take their final breaths?
ABOUT ASHLEY FONTAINNE (from her website)
Award-winning and
International bestselling author Ashley Fontainne is an avid reader of
mostly the classics. Ashley became a fan of the written word in her
youth, starting with the Nancy Drew mystery series. Stories that immerse
the reader deep into the human psyche and the monsters that lurk within
us are her favorite reads.
Her muse for penning the
Eviscerating the Snake series was The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre
Dumas. Ashley’s love for this book is what sparked her desire to write
her debut novel, Accountable to None, the first book in the trilogy.
With a modern setting to the tale, Ashley delves into just what lengths a
person is willing to go when they seek personal justice for heinous
acts perpetrated upon them. The second novel in the series, Zero
Balance. focuses on the cost and reciprocal cycle that obtaining revenge
has on the seeker. For once the cycle starts, where does it end? How
far will the tendrils of revenge expand? Adjusting Journal Entries
answered that question: far and wide.
Her short thriller
entitled Number Seventy-Five, touches upon the sometimes dangerous world
of online dating. Number Seventy-Five took home the BRONZE medal in
fiction/suspense at the 2013 Readers’ Favorite International Book Awards
contest and is currently in production for a feature film.
Her paranormal thriller
entitled The Lie, won the GOLD medal in the 2013 Illumination Book
Awards for fiction/suspense and is also in production for a feature film
entitled Foreseen.
Ashley’s decided to delve
into the paranormal with a Southern Gothic horror/suspense novel,
Growl, which released in January of 2015. The suspenseful mystery Empty
Shell, released in September of 2014. Ashley will be teaming up with
Lillian Hansen (Ashley calls her mom!) to pen a three-part murder
mystery/suspense series entitled The Magnolia Series. The first book,
Blood Ties, is due out the Summer of 2015.
Ashley also hosts The WriteStuff, a popular BlogTalk Radio show, each Friday night at 10 p.m. CST.
Whoa…Willow Rose sure knows how to grab me by the throat, leaving me gasping, hoping…will they get to her in time?
No one thinks it will happen to them…a school shooting…
Eva had found her long lost sister, and now she has found that she has a long lost brother and her estranged father. And they need her help. She can’t say no.
Her characters are unique, fascinating and complicated.
Willow Rose has so much going on in Say You Love me that my head is spinning. She has an ability to spin a complicated web, making me wonder how it will all come together.
Why…what…who…
The villain is having a great time and sharing it, streaming it live online, the viewers scream for blood. Disgusting, frightening, and it unfolds like a Criminal Minds episode.
Eva Rae also has a full plate when it comes to her personal life. It is complicated, but she brings some of it on herself, unable to make the commitment to her cop boyfriend, Matt. I love him. He has the patience of a saint, but everyone has their breaking point. Her ex wants her back. Sure, they had good times and the kids would love it, but….
I don;t like what happens at 70%, but I’m not telling.
Willow Rose wrote Say You Love Me while hurricane Dorian was threatening the coast. I love that she worked that into the story and created more nail biting and danger. Never too much suspense for me and she gives me a steady supply in all her books.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Say You Love Me by Willow Rose.
4 Stars
Former FBI-profiler Eva Rae Thomas is back and embedded in a true nightmare
reaching deep into her own family.
What would you do if your brother was accused of a horrible crime, and you
were certain he didn’t do it?
Life is not done throwing Eva Rae Thomas curveballs.
A phone call turns her life upside down – once again. The call is
from her father, the man she hasn’t seen in thirty-six years, not
since he kidnapped her sister in a supermarket.
Now, he is back in Florida, and he needs her help. Her younger brother –
who she didn’t know existed – has been arrested on Amelia Island.
The boy is in a coma after being shot by an officer during the
incident. But his father doesn’t believe the police, and he asks
for Eva Rae’s help to prove it.
At the same time, a serial killer is planning one of the most horrific
mass killings in history.
Will Eva Rae find it in her heart to help her father after what he did to
her? Will facing him again set her free or pull her under?
SAY YOU LOVE ME is the fourth book in the Eva Rae Thomas Mystery
Series and can be read as a standalone.
The Queen of Scream aka Willow Rose is a #1 Amazon Best-selling Author
and an Amazon ALL-star Author of more than 60 novels.
She writes Mystery, Thriller, Paranormal, Romance, Suspense, Horror,
Supernatural thrillers, and Fantasy.
Willow’s books are fast-paced, nail-biting pageturners with twists you won’t
see coming. Several of her books have reached the Kindle top 10 of
ALL books in the US, UK, and Canada. She has sold more than three
million books.
Willow lives on Florida’s Space Coast with her husband and two daughters.
When she is not writing or reading, you will find her surfing and
watch the dolphins play in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
Kendra is an author of mystery romance novels. A woman after my own heart. She is also a ghost whisperer. She doesn’t leave her comfort zone, whether in fashion or personality. That will all change when Jenna seeks her help
Jenna is her best friend and quickly becomes a ghost. Fantastic personality and I can relate to her. She is afraid for her FBI father and hangs around, refusing to go into the light. She wonders how Jenna could be her best friend and she not realize she was gay. It makes her question herself. Kendra’s mind just never went there.
The plot thickens and bodies fall.
Kendra will be working with Derek Knight, who Jenna was investigating the death of numerous FBI agents with. I feel a romance in the making. The attraction was quick and it developed rapidly, them being pushed together all day, every day.
Of course, I knew she would have to do something stupid, ignoring her intuition. It happens in all romantic suspense novels. It can be frustrating, but builds the suspense, knowing she’s in big trouble with a capital T.
Well, I was right about one thing, but it wasn’t the killer and it didn’t go down the way I thought. I love when an author can surprise me and keep me guessing. And…now I know.
There’s more to come in this series and I want to be there with the gang. I can imagine all the hoots, laughs and danger that will be coming their way.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Unorthodox by S Peters Davis.
4 Stars
Ghost-Riddance!
A short story by S. Peters-Davis
“Do you have any idea how long I’ve wandered around, waiting for someone to see me?” I studied her misshaped face. Her eyes read, ‘who gives a rip.’ A deep sigh later, I zoomed through the air to catch up with her. “So, what’s your name?” Something about her seemed familiar to me.
“Go find someone else to pester.” Only a short side-glance at me, and she hiked on, trekking through the forest, ever closer to where my bones lay.
“How long have you been able to communicate with the dead?” I would engage her, make her listen to my story, and why would that even matter? All of my family had long passed from this world. “Do you ever take a beat to rest?”
She stopped and glared at me. “If I talk to you for a minute, then will you leave me alone forever?”
“Forever?”
Her eyes misted over. “I’m not feeling friendly. I don’t wish to chat, and certainly not to a stranger. Can’t you see I’m upset?” A tear took a nosedive and slipped off her chin.
“Who’s responsible for your misery? I’ll haunt them ’til the end of time.” I stomped my foot, even though it made no sound and actually slipped below the ground surface for a second.
She laughed. Her voice rose above the birdsong and then ricocheted off the trees eerily like a haunted forest. She fell to the ground with uncontrolled gasps and guffaws of laughter. Her eyes leaked a lot as she rolled half in and half out of the ground, and then suddenly, she stopped with a hiccup. Her brilliant blues swept over me. She sat up with her legs stretched out in front of her.
“I meant what I said, not a joking matter haunting someone ’til the end of time.” I folded myself to the ground beside her, arms crossed over my chest to impress my seriousness on her.
Her full, shapely lips stretched into a smile. “So, why are you stuck in the forest? Who are you anyway?”
“Landus James, at your service.” I reached my hand toward her, and she grabbed it. My eyes went wide as did my mouth that we could actually touch each other.
“Yea, so…what does one ghost say to the other?” She grinned and stood.
I followed suit, rising from the ground as I recognized those lovely blues staring back at me. “Zee?” I held her at arms-length. “How? Why?”
“You’re not the only one wandering through this forest in search of your significant other.” She studied me, scanning. “What happened to you? Half of your face is gone.”
“It is?” I touched my cheeks, feeling raw tissue and bone on the right side of my face. Something I’d never been able to do before now. What a nightmare I must look like after being mauled by a grizzly. “I had no idea my spirit-self would be portrayed as I must have appeared in death.” I studied her face, parts swollen, discolored, and gory. “What happened to you?”
“Someone attacked me from behind. I don’t know who as I lost consciousness with the first blow to the back of my head. I had gone looking for you the next morning. You had taken the gun long before nightfall, looking for supper while I set up our camp.” She looked around me, her focus on the ground underneath the branches of a big oak tree, where my bones rested. “All this time I’ve been looking for you, and there you are.” Her attention drifted back to me. “Let’s go bless your bones, then I’ll show you where mine lay to rest.”
We ambled over to the tree. Zee spoke the words, “Blessed are those who live in love.” She grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the south. “Let me take you to where I lay so you may speak a blessing for me.”
We moved with the wind as it hurled us between the trees and shrubbery. My heart lifted to heights it hadn’t visited for many centuries. Our fingers entwined a little tighter as we passed through miles of wooded terrain. Then suddenly, Zee drew my body closer, we slowed and settled beneath a huge walnut tree.
“Here I am,” she said, looking toward the ground.
Her remains resonated within my spirit, and I knew exactly where she lay. “You lay here.” I bent to touch the earth, and my hand vanished below the surface. “Blessed are those who live in love.”
As soon as the last word left my lips, everything went dark, and I wondered if I’d gone to hell…
* * *
My body shook incessantly to the words, “Wake up. Wake up right now! Landus, please wake up.”
I opened my eyes to Zee. Her lovely unmarred face hovered above mine, the sun creating a halo around her beautiful blonde hair. “Where are we?” I asked, raising to my elbows and looking around. The forest appeared the same.
She pinched me.
“Ouch. Why’d you do that?” I stared at her, noticing how beautiful she looked. How fresh and alive her cheeks blushed.
She started laughing like before.
The brambles, sticks, and dirt poked into my forearms, and I sat to brush it off, realizing I could actually feel the outside world.
My breath sucked in, my lungs filled, I breathed.
“We get a second chance, darling.” Zee settled on my lap, her lips gently finding mine.
I responded, fervent for more but not fully understanding how we could be together after being apart for so long.
She pressed her body against mine. Her heart thrummed against my chest.
We were alive.
Her eyes fluttered open, and she drew back, licking my lips as we parted. “I want you right now, right here.”
I sucked in another breath, fully aroused and on fire for her. “Blessed are those who live in love.”
“Ghost riddance,” she muttered against my lips and then proceeded to rip my shirt from my body.
Unorthodox
A
Kendra Spark Novel
Book One
S. Peters-Davis
Genre: Paranormal
Suspense-Thriller Romance
with a good dollop of
Supernatural
Publisher: Books We Love
Publishing
Date of Publication: September
15, 2017
ASIN: B073MZZPVM
ISBN 978-1-77362-303-0
Number of pages: 153 pages
Word Count: 63,000
Cover Artist: CoverUp.Net
Book
Tagline:Kendra’s ability of
communicating with the dead is requested by her FBI criminal analyst friend to
stop a killer from murdering agents.
Series
Tagline: Kendra sees ghosts, and then her BFF, Jenna, becomes one. The two
friends and FBI agent Derek Knight fight for justice to the victims of heinous
crimes.
Book Description:
Kendra Spark, suspense-mystery
romance author and communicator with the dead, is requested to hop on the first
flight to D.C.
Jenna Powers, FBI criminal
analyst and estranged best friend of Kendra, gets ghosticized in a fatal
accident before relaying all the details of the FBI killer case.
Derek Knight, a dedicated FBI
Special Task Force agent, takes lead on the case.
The investigation into the FBI
agent killings continues as Kendra, Jenna – yes, even after death – and Derek
work together on the case before Director of the Special Task Force Jackson
Powers’ number is up. He’s Jenna’s father and the end-game of the killer’s
target list.
Somehow the elusive killer
remains undetected, until Kendra’s unique ability produces results and a final
possibility at stopping his killing spree before it’s too late.
Tagline: Trafficked girls marked to lose their souls by a malevolent
supernatural entity require someone with explicit abilities for their rescue.
Will Kendra be able to save them?
Book Description:
Kendra Spark, suspense-mystery
writer and communicator with the dead, signs on to the next FBI Special Task
Force case, trafficked girls that are marked to lose their souls.
Jenna Powers, ghostified criminal
analyst, sticks close to the case as she and Kendra are also marked by the same
malevolent supernatural force.
Derek Knight, lead FBI Agent on this
case, learns of the malevolent entity and the deeper paranormal realm of
danger.
Kendra’s unfiltered feelings for
Derek struggle to take a backseat, and as the menacing threat grows more
intense, so does her passion for Derek.
Derek faces uncertainties he’s
never dealt with in his past, like malicious entities and the loss of his heart
to love. How can he protect Kendra against forces he can’t see?
As boundless supernatural danger
intertwines with the future reality of the trafficked teens, Kendra and Jenna
realize only they can shoulder the rescue by calling in a voodoo priestess…
Tagline: A cold-case
investigation ends in facing the ultimate psychopaths, a highly-accredited
police director gone crime lord and a beautiful malevolent “albatross of a
spirit.”
Book Description:
Kendra Spark, Derek Knight, and
“ghosty” Jenna Powers, members of an FBI special task force, investigate a
cold-case and end up facing the ultimate psychopaths, a highly-accredited
police director gone crime lord and a beautiful malevolent “albatross of a
spirit.” Both want Kendra for her unique abilities but might settle for Jenna
instead.
Derek stops at nothing to keep
Kendra and Jenna safe, but what if the worst-case scenario happens, an
unstoppable villain and villainess of the dark plane that picks the earth plane
as their stomping ground?
S. Peters-Davis writes
multi-genre stories, but loves penning a good page-turning suspense-thriller,
especially when it’s a ghost story and a romance. When she’s not writing,
editing, or reading, she’s hiking, RV’ing, fishing, playing with grandchildren,
or enjoying time with her favorite muse (her husband) in Southwest Michigan.
As DK Davis, she also writes YA
and NA paranormal, supernatural novels that involve diverse and mature subject
matter.
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those
neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything
like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in
your stacks.
If you could hear the
thoughts of every person for three blocks around–the regrets,
rationalizations, commercial jingles, the lies that hide what they can’t
bear to think—how could you ever trust anyone? And if you could make
them believe anything you wanted, how could you ever trust yourself?
Max
Renn is a legend of the Soviet mind control program, a genetic
experiment, the product of three generations of psychics bred by the
state for their power. Before his first mission, the Soviet Union
collapses and he disappears.
We meet him twenty years later in
the Everglades, keeping as far from people as he can get, until his best
friend–his only friend–is murdered and he is forced to assemble a team
of people like him to fight the international conspiracy behind the
murder.
“A dead-on thriller for the decade . . . . I can’t
imagine anyone reading this and not wanting more” — Thomas F.
Monteleone, author of the NY Times bestseller The Blood of the Lamb and
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Writing a Novel
“Ted Krever has been a writer to watch, now he’s a writer to read. Do not miss MINDBENDERS.” -F. Paul Wilson
“Ted Krever is a great storyteller but more importantly, the stories he creates and writes are ones that I want to read. In this ADD era, where even e-mails are considered too long, Ted’s work commands my attention. It is definitely worthy of yours, too.” -David Leaf, biographer and award-winner writer/director/producer of such films as ‘The Night James Brown Saved Boston,’ ‘The US Vs. John Lennon’ and ‘ BEAUTIFUL DREAMER: Brian Wilson and The Story of SMiLE.’ (less)
I love the subject matter and have read more than one book about mind control and government programs. Add in the Everglades and this one was a no brainer.
