Category: 3 Star

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Kimberly reviews Night Of The Billionaire Wolf by Terry Spear

TITLE: Night Of The Billionaire Wolf
SERIES #: Billionaire Wolf #3
CHARACTERS: Lexi & Ryder
AUTHOR: Terry Spear
PUBLICATION DATE: 05/26/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
It’s not easy being a billionaire, a wolf shifter, and a woman…

Lexi Summerfield built her business from the ground up. But with great wealth comes great responsibility, and some drawbacks Lexi could not have anticipated. Lexi never knows who she can trust… Even on vacation, Lexi has a hard time trying to relax. And for good reason―the paparazzi are dogging her, and so is someone else with evil intent.

Then Lexi meets bodyguard and gray wolf shifter Ryder Gallagher, who’s also vacationing at Redwood National Park. When the two run into each other on the hiking trails, and then serendipitously rescue two bear cubs, Lexi feels safe for the first time in she can’t remember when. But secrets have a way of surfacing… With the danger around Lexi escalating, Ryder will do whatever it takes to stay by her side…

Billionaire Wolf Series:
Billionaire in Wolf’s Clothing (Book 1)
A Billionaire Wolf for Christmas (Book 2)
Night of the Billionaire Wolf (Book 3)

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts All in all this is a good read. So many books have the man be the rich one but in this one Lexi is the Billionaire and Ryder is a shifter who is hired to be her bodyguard.

The story was typical of Spear and her shifter books. The problem is that you can only write so many books before the same story is played out over and over. And having read a lot of her books I feel like it is nothing we haven’t read before. I like the way that Spear writes which is why I keep getting her books but I sure wish she would head to a different genre for a bit.

Now that being said the characters of Lexi and Ryder are good together and the romance is good as well. Another good read from Spear.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews Girl Long Gone by Danielle M. Haas

TITLE: Girl Long Gone
CHARACTERS: Connor & Monica
AUTHOR: Danielle M. Haas
PUBLICATION DATE: 05/25/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Monica’s stomach fluttered with excitement as she told the interesting man she’d been flirting with online for weeks all about her weekend plans. He was a great match, and they had so many things in common. But sometimes your life can come down to one single bad decision…

NYPD Computer-crimes detective Connor Mitchel’s sister is missing. As he combs through his sister’s life, he realizes Monica might not have been this killer’s first target—or his last. In a twisted game of cat and mouse, Connor thinks he’s finally found the man responsible for his sister’s disappearance. Unfortunately, he’ll first need to convince the shy, distrustful Evelyn Price she could be the next victim tangled in the murderer’s web if she doesn’t agree to help him catch the killer. But just as Connor and Evelyn close in on their quarry, the killer has one last trick up his sleeve that could trap them all…

REVIEW:
Have you ever watched a movie and wanted to yell at the screen can’t you tell that your co-worker is a serial killer? Well that is how I felt about this book. We find out pretty quickly who the bad guy is and I spent a lot of the book wanting to yell at the other characters to get a clue.

The story itself was fine. But I think if we hadn’t known who it was it would have been better because we would have been trying to figure it out too but knowing took something away from the story for me.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kelly reviews Flowers On Her Grave by Jennifer Chase

TITLE: Flowers on Her Grave
SERIES #: Detective Katie Scott#3
CHARACTERS: Katie Scott
AUTHOR: Jennifer Chase
PUBLICATION DATE: March 24, 2020
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
On the floor, amongst the piles of freshly pressed laundry, lay the woman’s lifeless body, her pale yellow nightdress soaked in blood. “I didn’t do it…” came a whisper from the corner of the room.
Detective Katie Scott has never seen two people more in love than her aunt and uncle as they danced together on the night of their wedding anniversary party. But the next morning, when Katie finds her aunt’s body sprawled across the floor, that perfect image is shattered forever.
All fingers point to Katie’s uncle, Pine Valley’s beloved sheriff and protector – after all, his prints are all over the antique knife found at the scene. Grieving, but certain of her uncle’s innocence, Katie is consigned to the cold case division after she’s discovered searching the house for clues.
Does someone want to keep her as far away from this investigation as possible?
Ignoring warnings from her team, Katie digs into her uncle’s old case files and discovers photographs of the body of a young girl found tied to a tree after a hike in search of a rare flower. Her body is covered with the same unusual lacerations her aunt suffered. Katie knows it can’t be a coincidence, but every lead she follows takes her to a dead end.
Moments before the sheriff is arrested, Katie realizes that a single piece of thread she found at the crime scene could be the missing link that will stitch old crimes to new.
But how can she prove her uncle’s innocence without throwing herself directly into the line of fire? She doesn’t have a choice, he’s the only family she has left…

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts Flowers on Her Grave is the third installment in Jennifer Chase’s Detective Katie Scott series. Once again we get to follow Katie while she solves yet another cold case but this one is different. This cold case is eerily similar to the murder of her beloved Aunt. Katie jumps at the chance to solve not one but possibly two murder cases. That is if she can keep her eye on the prize and not get murdered in the process.

I enjoyed this installment to the Detective Katie Scott series. While I was not surprised by the who ending up being the murderer the journey to find the said murder was a good one. I also enjoyed seeing Katie’s relationships with her friends and Uncle grow. I am looking forward to the next book in this series.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley & Bookouture in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

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Kimberly reviews The Rivals Of Sherlock Holmes by G.K. Chesterton & Jacques Futrelle

TITLE: The Rivals Of Sherlock Holmes
CHARACTERS: Various
AUTHOR: G.K. Chesterton & Jacques Futrelle
PUBLICATION DATE: 12/18/19
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Enthralled by the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Victorian readers around the world developed a fascination with eccentric detectives and bizarre crimes. Featuring an international array of authors and characters, this compilation of 16 short stories showcases the best of the mysteries inspired by the Baker Street sleuth. Their heroes range from famous figures like G. K. Chesterton’s Father Brown and Maurice Leblanc’s Arsene Lupin to lesser-known but equally captivating characters.
“The Problem of the Stolen Rubens,” by Jacques Futrelle, centers on Professor Van Dusen, also known as The Thinking Machine, whose superior mental powers and dispassionate approach resemble Holmes’. Robert Barr’s “The Absent Minded Coterie” presents French detective Eugène Valmont, a cultured and elegant gentleman . . . but a rather poor investigator. “The Murder at Troyte’s Hill,” by Catherine L. Pirkis, “The Ninescore Mystery,” by The Scarlet Pimpernel author Baroness Orczy, and “Cinderella’s Slipper,” by Hugh C. Weir, feature a Victorian novelty—a detective heroine. Holmesians and other lovers of old-time mysteries will thrill to these tales of dark deeds and their discovery.

REVIEW:
As a fan of Sherlock Holmes and ACD’s work I just had a hard time with this writing. ACD wrote Sherlock Holmes to be mentally introverted. He saw things and understood things others could not. And it seems hard for me to imagine there were “rivals” of Holmes that possessed the same attributes.

I will be honest and say I skimmed over a few of the stories. I would start them and just couldn’t bring myself to read every word but I did skim it so I would know where the short story went.

Others I enjoyed for lack of a better word. I had to put aside my fandom of Holmes and ACD and read them for themselves which at times was difficult.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews The Night Vanishing by Dick Wybrow

TITLE: The Night Vanishing
SERIES #: Painter Mann #2
CHARACTERS: Painter Mann
AUTHOR: Dick Wybrow
PUBLICATION DATE: 01/16/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
After the events of The InBetween, dead private investigator Painter Mann goes to New Orleans to find clues about the identity of his murderer.

Instead, he becomes embroiled (you gotta watch out for getting embroiled, it can sneak up on you) in case involving two-headed monsters, voodoo witches and hundreds of missing ghosts.

He’s also being “hunted” by the Ghost Wranglers, a popular cable TV show determined to find the ghost PI known as Painter Mann.

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts This is an interesting story. The concept is a different one. Painter Mann is dead but still investigating just like he did when he was alive.

He is working on a case but also dealing with a paranormal investigation team (Think Ghost Hunters).

I probably would have given this story 4 instead except I didn’t realize this was the second in the series and there was a bit I didn’t understand.

I would probably try the next in the series just to see if it’s worth it.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews The Family Next Door by Fiona Cummins

TITLE: The Family Next Door
CHARACTERS: Garrick & Olivia
AUTHOR: Fiona Cummins
PUBLICATION DATE: 01/28/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
For Sale: Lovely family home, ready for your updates. Friendly neighborhood setting close to park; secluded.

If not for the bodies discovered in the woods behind their new home, Garrick and Olivia Lockwood couldn’t have afforded to buy number 25 The Avenue. It’s the fresh start they and their two children badly need. Soon, these terrible crimes will be solved, they tell themselves, and once Garrick has remodeled, he’s confident they’ll sell the house for a profit.

But the darkest secrets can reside on quiet, ordinary streets like this–behind the doors of
well-kept houses and neighbors’ friendly faces. Secrets that can destroy a family, or savagely end a life, and will surface just when they’re least expected . . .

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts I liked most of this story. The reason I say most is there is a bit of what I would call “horror” and it was really descriptive. A bit too descriptive for me. I have never been a fan of horror movies. I enjoy suspense and I liked the suspense part of this book and the story was interesting but the horror was just too much.

Taking the horror out of it I liked the characters and I think I would enjoy the same story told with less graphic details.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews Phantom Echoes by B.D. Wilson

TITLE: Phantom Echoes
SERIES #: Ghostlines #1
CHARACTERS: Holden
AUTHOR: B.D. Wilson
PUBLICATION DATE: 09/30/18
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Being a psychic doesn’t mean you have to believe in Ghosts.
Unfortunately for Holden, his best friend refuses to accept that.
Holden can read the history of an object just by touching it. It’s been a struggle most of his life and every time he’s tried to use it for a beneficial purpose it’s gone horribly wrong.
But when his best friend convinces Holden to step in for a paranormal investigation, it turns out hauntings are as real as psychics. Sticking with the investigation risks landing him in the hospital again. Leaving means abandoning the ghosts who are repeating the night of their deaths over and over forever. Can he really walk away when he might be the only one who can help?

REVIEW:
This was a short story that honestly could have been longer and may have been more interesting. The concept is great. And who doesn’t like a psychic suspense? But being so short we don’t get to know the characters enough.

I believe I would have enjoyed this being a full story instead of a short story.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews Vendetta Road by Christine Feehan

TITLE: Vendetta Road
SERIES #: Torpedo Ink #3
CHARACTERS: Ice & Soleil
AUTHOR: Christine Feehan
PUBLICATION DATE: 01/01/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
#1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan pushes the limits in her next novel in the Torpedo Ink series.

Isaak “Ice” Koval is on a club mission when he sees a woman who stops him dead in his tracks. Soleil is a sweet, sexy, girl-next-door type. She’s an innocent who should be nowhere near the rough-and-ready world of the Torpedo Ink motorcycle club. But Ice knows Soleil belongs with him—and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep her.

After a life of drifting from one thing to the next, Soleil Brodeur is determined to take control of her life. When her breakup with her manipulative fiancé turns ugly, Soleil searches out the stranger who offered her a lifeline and ends up in a Las Vegas biker bar where she meets a gorgeous, dangerous man straight out of her most secret fantasies.

High on adrenaline, she finds herself falling faster than she thought possible. But Soleil knows little about the territory she’s stumbled into, and even less about what it really means to be Ice’s woman.…

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts I want to preface this with I am comparing this to other Christine Feehan books and not what I would have given any other author having read this book. I have read a lot of Feehan books and for some reason this one just didn’t do it for me.

It was almost like this book was rushed and had a bit too much sex. The sex in Feehan’s books is always good. It always is hot and written to entice. But the other part of the book just didn’t meet the standards of other books written by her…..

Now with that being said… As I said I am comparing it to Feehan books and not other authors. Comparing it to other authors would have brought the review numbers higher. Feehan is one of the best.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews Woman On The Edge by Samantha M Bailey

TITLE: Woman On The Edge
CHARACTERS: Morgan
AUTHOR: Samantha M. Bailey
PUBLICATION DATE: 03/03/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A moment on the platform changes two lives forever. But nothing is as it seems…

‘Take my baby.’

In a split second, Morgan’s life changes forever. A stranger hands her a baby, then jumps in front of a train.

Morgan has never seen the woman before and she can’t understand what would cause a person to give away her child and take her own life.

When the police question Morgan, she discovers none of the witnesses can corroborate her version of events. And when they learn Morgan longs for a baby of her own, she becomes a suspect.

To prove her innocence, Morgan frantically tries to retrace the last days of the woman’s life. She begins to understand that Nicole Markham believed she and her baby were in danger. Now Morgan might be in danger, too.

Was Nicole a new mother struggling with paranoia?

Or was something much darker going on?

Pulse-pounding, heartrending, shocking, thrilling. This is one book you won’t be able to stop thinking about.

REVIEW:
Another story that I am on the fence about. The idea of the story is good and has a lot of potential. I think a little more time would have helped this story a bit. I had a bit of trouble with the writing. Maybe it is because the author is from Canada but I just had a hard time with it.

It almost seemed like the author wrote quickly and didn’t give a lot of background to each scene.

Just not sure how I feel about this one.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews The Silent House by Nell Pattison

TITLE: The Silent House
CHARACTERS: Paige Northwood
AUTHOR: Nell Pattison
PUBLICATION DATE: 03/01/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
If someone was in your house, you’d know.
Wouldn’t you?
But the Hunter family are deaf, and don’t hear a thing when a shocking crime takes place in the middle of the night. Instead, they wake up to their worst nightmare.

The police call Paige Northwood to the scene to interpret for the witnesses. They’re in shock, but Paige senses the Hunters are hiding something.

One by one, people Paige knows from the Deaf community start to fall under suspicion. But who would kill a little girl?

Was it an intruder?

Or was the murderer closer to home?

This mystery will keep you up all night – perfect for fans of The Silent Patient and Cara Hunter

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts I thought this was a really interesting concept. What happens with a child is killed in your home but because you are deaf you don’t hear anything? And how do you get your story to the police when you find the murder the next morning?

Well the idea is interesting and I hoped the book would be as well. And it was… sorta. When Paige becomes the ASL interpreter she knows the family. She is not deaf but her family is so she knows the language well. And there is a lot to what happens because of the concept.

The problem is there were things that I just couldn’t make sense of. First a deaf family has other ways to know things are happening (phone rings so lights flash, alarm goes off so bed shakes, etc) so how did they not know someone was in the house.

But on another note the writing seemed a bit slow at some points. The book could have been cut down a bit by omitting a bunch of added words that didn’t make the story better.

All in all a book that had my attention for the concept alone.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kelly reviews Little Girls Sleeping by Jennifer Chase

TITLE: Little Girls Sleeping
SERIES #: Detective Katie Scott #1
CHARACTERS: Katie Scott
AUTHOR: Jennifer Chase
PUBLICATION DATE: May 31, 2019
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | Audible | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
He looked down at the little girl, sleeping peacefully, her arms wrapped around a teddy bear. He knew he was the only one who could save her. He could let her sleep forever.

An eight-year-old girl, Chelsea Compton, is missing in Pine Valley, California and for Detective Katie Scott it’s a cruel reminder of the friend who disappeared from summer camp twenty years ago. Unable to shake the memories, Katie vows she won’t rest until she discovers what happened to Chelsea.

But as Katie starts to investigate, the case reveals itself to be much bigger and more shocking than she feared. Hidden deep in the forest she unearths a makeshift cemetery: a row of graves, each with a brightly coloured teddy bear.

Katie links the graves to a stack of missing-persons cases involving young girls—finding a pattern no one else has managed to see. Someone in Pine Valley has been taking the town’s daughters for years, and Katie is the only one who can stop them.

And then another little girl goes missing, snatched from the park near her home.

Katie’s still haunted by the friend she failed to protect, and she’ll do anything to stop the killer striking again—but can she find the little girl before it’s too late?

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts Katie Scott is back from serving overseas and is trying to put her life back together. She goes back to her childhood home and starts working for the local Sheriff’s office to help her uncle out. When Katie stubbles upon a cold case file that is too close for comfort. Katie starts her own investigation into some missing girls.

This was a good read and I really enjoyed that the main character Katie is tough and fragile all at the same time. Ms. Chase does a great job with the red herrings in this story too. Just when I thought “I know who done it” she sent me down another path. I am very much looking forward to more books in this series and to see how Katie develops as a detective and learn more about her backstory. And of course Cisco and Chad. 🙂

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley & Bookouture in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

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Kimberly reviews You Had Me At Wolf by Terry Spear

TITLE: You Had Me At Wolf
SERIES #: Wolff Brothers #1
CHARACTERS: Nicole & Blake
AUTHOR: Terry Spear
PUBLICATION DATE: 02/25/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
First in a thrilling new series from USA Today bestseller Terry Spear featuring the hot, powerful Wolff brothers!

A wolf on a mission cannot be deterred…
The hot, powerful Wolff brothers have moved to the outskirts of Silver Town and opened a ski lodge. They’ve always wanted to live in a wolf-controlled area, and now they have their chance. They’re settling in for a quiet winter, when their lives suddenly become way more exciting than they’d ever planned.

Private Investigator and Gray wolf shifter Josie Grayson is hot on the trail of a dangerous criminal hiding out at the ski lodge when her partner takes ill and must leave her to pursue the mission alone. Blake Wolff steps in–he can’t resist the allure of this brilliant and focused she-wolf whose presence awakens a long dormant yearning in his heart.

As pursuit of their quarry heats up, Blake has a mission of his own…to convince Josie that there’s more to life than work…and that she’s his perfect mate.

REVIEW:
This is the first in a new series from Spear which is nice to see but of course it is in the same genre as Heart Of The Wolf series which is 28 books in (wow!) so seeing this is the same genre there didn’t seem all that different.

The story was fine. I liked the characters and liked how after a difficult previous meeting Nicole stands up to Blake and stands on her own two feet. I liked the Wolff brothers very much.

But that being said it is not too far from the other series but if you are a fan of the genre you won’t want to miss this book especially since it is the first in the series.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.