Category: Kimberly’s Review

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Kimberly reviews Dead Sorry by Helen H Durrant

TITLE: Dead Sorry
SERIES #: Calladine & Bayliss #11
CHARACTERS: Calladine & Bayliss
AUTHOR: Helen H Durrant
PUBLICATION DATE: 06/17/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Looking for a brilliant best-selling crime mystery with great detectives?

THE PAST COMES BACK TO HAUNT THEM

Twenty-five years ago a schoolgirl was attacked by three bullies in her home where she lived with her grandmother.

Now, the mother of one of those bullies is found murdered on the Hobfield housing estate. Written on the wall in the victim’s blood is the word, “sorry.”

There is a link to the discovery of bones at an old house up in the hills — the home of the teenage girl who was attacked.

Detective Tom Calladine and his partner DS Ruth Bayliss have more than this puzzling case on their hands. Arch-villain Lazarov is threatening Calladine’s granddaughter and a valuable hoard of Celtic gold is coming to a local museum.

The pressure is on, and this time Calladine is cracking . . .

Discover an absolutely unputdownable crime thriller from a best-selling author.

If you like Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott, Mel Sherratt, Ruth Rendell, or Mark Billingham you will enjoy this exciting new crime fiction writer.

DEAD SORRY is book eleven of a new series of detective thrillers featuring DS Ruth Bayliss and DI Tom Calladine.

REVIEW:
3.75 Hearts So here is the deal. I didn’t realize this was part of a series and then to realize it was the 11th in the series made it a bit difficult to read. I felt like I should have known the characters already but didn’t. That being said, the suspense of it can be read as a stand alone.

I hadn’t read anything by this author that I can recall so I was unfamiliar with the flow of the author. So when I thought I had it figured out and kept thinking “How do they not know?” I was pleasantly surprised to realize I actually didn’t know at all. And that makes me like a book

I think I would really enjoy this series and plan on reading more.

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

4 Hearts

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Kimberly reviews You Are Stronger Than You Think by Joel Osteen

TITLE: You Are Stronger Than You Think
CHARACTERS: Self Help
AUTHOR: Joel Osteen
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/12/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:

You were designed with the ability and inner strength to stretch to the next level, to stand strong and overcome the opposition, to learn new skills, to believe bigger, dream bigger, and to take on new challenges.

In You Are Stronger than You Think, #1 New York Times bestselling author Joel Osteen encourages you to stand firm when the difficulty is not turning around. When the pressure mounts, when you feel overwhelmed, when the struggle looks too big, or the goal is out of reach, you have to remember that is not your destiny. You are more powerful than you think. You need to see yourself the right way and realize what’s already inside you. You were made to outlast the competition, to go further than you thought you could, and live a life beyond what limits you.

As you read You Are Stronger than You Think, you will find the power to break the cycle of defeat, the courage to set a new standard for your family, the hope to conquer your fear, and the confidence to accomplish every dream. You will discover that you have more strength, more talent, more determination, and more endurance than you ever imagined. Nothing can hold you back…because You Are Stronger than You Think!

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts Honestly, there is not a lot to say about this book. Either you are already a fan of Osteen or not. Of course, this is written just as he preaches. There are a lot of personal stories and affirmations, a lot of scripture references and it is uplifting.

If you are going through a rough patch or find yourself feeling “less than” this is probably exactly what you need. It very much falls under the “God will not give you more than you can handle”.

If you NEED this book you will find it.

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

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Kimberly reviews The Killer In The Snow by Alex Pine

TITLE: The Killer In The Snow
SERIES #: DI JamesWalker #2
CHARACTERS: James Walker
AUTHOR: Alex Pine
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/26/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
The first fall of snow can be fatal…

A year has passed since DI James Walker cracked his biggest case yet, and he’s hoping for peace and quiet this festive season.

But across the fells, a local farmer returns home on Christmas Eve to find footsteps in the fresh snow that lead down to his unused basement – and no footsteps leading away. Days later, his body is found, alongside those of his wife and daughter.

Without a neighbour for miles, there are no witnesses and little evidence. And the crime scene has strange echoes of another terrible murder committed at the farmhouse, twenty years earlier…

James knows that to catch this killer, he needs to solve a case that has long since gone cold…

Perfect for fans of smash-hit TV series Whitehouse Farm, Simon McCleave’s The Snowdonia Killings and Catherine Cooper’s The Chalet.

REVIEW:
This is the second in the series. In this one James has to open up a cold case to solve a recent one.

I thought the concept of having to solve a decades old case to solve a recent one was great. I enjoyed the suspense part of the story.

However, I find it really hard to want to read these books. I am not a fan of the writing of Alex Pine. I wanted to give him a second chance but I still had a hard time. It might be the London influence but there doesn’t seem to be any emotions in the writing. It is very monotone to me.

I am not sure I will pick up book 3 but it might depend on the synopsis and give the series another try.

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

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Winter Romance Wednesday! Kimberly reviews Mistletoe In Juneau by Dahlia Rose

TITLE: Mistletoe In Juneau
CHARACTERS: Danni & Declan
AUTHOR: Dahlia Rose
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/19/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A heartwarming holiday romance from Hallmark and USA Today bestselling author Dahlia Rose that’s perfect for fans of Rochelle Alers and Debbie Macomber.

Danni’s a social media influencer who’s way out of her element. She sort-of broke up with her boyfriend-slash-manager, and she escaped her fast-paced life in New York to spend Christmas with an old friend in Juneau, Alaska. Danni takes in the beauty of the scenery and the warmth of the community…and she’s drawn to the local sheriff.

Before Declan was the sheriff, he was in the Army. An IED explosion cost him his leg…and his fiancée, who couldn’t deal with the injury. He knows Danni’s a city girl, while he loves the Alaskan wilderness. Could two very different people find what their hearts are looking for?

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts I couldn’t wait to read this book for the holidays. I lived in Alaska, though a different city, so I felt I already had a connection but I really had to force myself to get into this story. When I did I enjoyed it.

The story is one we have heard a million times. She needs a break from a crazy life. He has been burned before so has no desire to fall from another outsider. But sparks fly anyway.

Once I got into the story it was much better. There is good and bad in this story but romance is like that.

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

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Kimberly reviews Better Off Dead by Lee Child & Andrew Child

TITLE: Better Off Dead
SERIES #: Jack Reacher #26
CHARACTERS: Jack Reacher
AUTHOR: Lee Child & Andrew Child
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/26/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Jack Reacher is back in a brand-new page-turning thriller from acclaimed #1 bestselling authors Lee Child and Andrew Child.

Digging graves had not been part of my plans when I woke up that morning.

Reacher goes where he wants, when he wants. That morning he was heading west, walking under the merciless desert sun—until he comes upon a curious scene. A Jeep has crashed into the only tree for miles around. A woman is slumped over the wheel.

Dead? No, nothing is what it seems.

The woman is Michaela Fenton, an army veteran turned FBI agent trying to find her twin brother, who might be mixed up with some dangerous people. Most of them would rather die than betray their terrifying leader, who has burrowed his influence deep into the nearby border town, a backwater that has seen better days. The mysterious Dendoncker rules from the shadows, out of sight and under the radar, keeping his dealings in the dark.

He would know the fate of Fenton’s brother.

Reacher is good at finding people who don’t want to be found, so he offers to help, despite feeling that Fenton is keeping secrets of her own. But a life hangs in the balance. Maybe more than one. But to bring Dendoncker down will be the riskiest job of Reacher’s life. Failure is not an option, because in this kind of game, the loser is always better off dead.

REVIEW:
3.25 Hearts Holy heck… This is #26 in the Jack Reacher series. How are they still coming up with stuff?

Jack is still on the way to the Pacific Ocean and this time he makes it as far as the Arizona/Mexico border. When Reacher finds a veteran who needs help he can’t help but step up.

So let’s be honest. Reacher has to be about 70 now, right? Not really but it seems he has managed to stay young and is still able to hold his own. Yes he is a vet but he never seems to have time in his life to work out or even eat healthy. So each time I am waiting to read that he has finally aged.

Anyway, This is a typical Child book and the second one co-writing with his brother. I can read the difference but mostly it is exactly what readers expect from a Reacher book.

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

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Kimberly reviews The Last Goodnight by Kat Martin

TITLE: The Last Goodnight
SERIES #: Blood Ties #1
CHARACTERS: Kade & Ellie
AUTHOR: Kat Martin
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/26/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A thrilling new suspense novel from the bestselling author of The Perfect Murder that fans of Jayne Ann Krentz and Laura Griffin won’t want to miss! A cold case is heating up, and with another body on his hands, one rancher is hot on the trail of a killer…and protecting another woman in the crosshairs.

When Kade Logan said goodbye to his estranged wife eight years ago, he never thought it would be the last time he saw her alive. Now her car has been hauled out of a nearby lake and Kade is determined to track down the man who murdered her. Enter Eleanor Bowman, a talented private investigator who’s about to stir up a hornet’s nest on his Colorado ranch.

With old scandals still buzzing about his late wife’s many affairs and new violence erupting, Kade is faced with the discovery of another beautiful woman’s body. Are the two killings linked? Who is the man who seduced, then murdered both victims? Ellie believes they are dangerously close to the truth.

From corporate Denver high-rises to posh Vail mansions, Kade and Ellie sense the killer is closing in again, and this time Ellie is the target. Kade must risk everything to save the woman he’s coming to love—before she becomes the next one to die . . .

REVIEW:
I will admit this is a romantic suspense so the idea is easy. He needs help. She is a PI. They each have a past. Sparks Fly. Bam = romantic suspense.

But I really enjoyed this book. The characters are written really well. I liked both Kade and Ellie. Kade is a cowboy who lost his wife eight years ago and he is done with waiting for answers. He wants to move on but can’t until he gets info. Ellie is strong willed and independent.

I love the way both of them were written. They have depth and character. The suspense was interesting as well. I liked the case that Ellie takes on and how she handles it.

Really good story to start a new series. Looking forward to more in the series.

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

4 Hearts

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Kimberly reviews Blood Red Winter by J.A. Conrad

TITLE: Blood Red Winter
CHARACTERS: Trent & Aria #1
AUTHOR: J.A. Conrad
PUBLICATION DATE: 06/08/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
No good deed goes unpunished…

Two months after his fiancée, Elizabeth Reinhardt, leaves him with no explanation, broken and confused, Trent Lemend is forced to pack up and start over in rural Georgetown, Texas. Believing his life could get no worse, Trent attempts to bury the inner demons of his past.

But when he stumbles upon a terrifying crime scene, Trent’s troubles are only just beginning. Discovering that one of the victims, an emaciated, blood-covered woman, is still alive, changes his life in ways he never thought possible.

Saving the woman destroys all that he’s ever known. Suddenly, as a witness, he’s the killer’s number one target. With the murderer on the loose, nobody is safe–especially Elizabeth, the only woman he’s ever loved. Now, it’s up to Trent to save his ex and reclaim his life. But will he discover a dangerous dark side of his own?

REVIEW:
I am so on the fence about this story. I enjoy stories I do not know the end to but then again I want some clues. I enjoyed most of the characters but BFF was written as if the author kept forgetting who the character was. The story was fast moving and a quick read but some of it was so far from realistic I skipped over sections. See why I am on the fence?

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

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Kimberly reviews Find Me In The Dark by Dea Poirier

TITLE: Find Me In The Dark
SERIES #: Det Harlow Durant #1
CHARACTERS: Harlow & Lucas
AUTHOR: Dea Poirier
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/21/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
My father’s path was one I never wanted to walk, but here I am, following drops of blood like a crumb trail left in the woods. I was born of murder, my life built on the bones of a prolific killer. And now, I must atone for sins that should not be mine to bear.

Detective Harlow Durant has spent a lifetime trying to escape the shadows of her tormented past. As the daughter of a convicted serial killer, Harlow was determined to turn her life around and is now the only female detective at the New York Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, bringing killers like her father to justice.

Upstate, in the small college town of Plattsburgh, the body of a young woman has been found inside a melting snowbank. Harlow and her partner Detective Lucas Park are immediately called in to investigate. Searching around the victim’s frozen body, they find a bracelet which identifies her as college student Alyssa Trent.

As Harlow and Lucas begin to gather evidence from the town’s shocked community, the snow continues to thaw and soon another two victims are discovered. With the body count rising fast it is clear that Harlow is hunting a serial killer. But what links these seemingly ordinary young women?

With a town living in fear and a killer at large, Harlow receives a chilling message from someone who knows her father’s case and knows the secret she has hidden from the bureau. Is she being warned off the case? And with a freak April snowstorm heading across the state, will Harlow risk everything to stop a killer dead in their tracks before they strike again?

REVIEW:
2.75 Hearts This book was just not for me. The cop part of it was fine. The main characters are fine. The story is not really original but written fine. So the story should be “fine” right? Not really.

First off, the story is very dark and violent. So many details that seem to have been written in just to shock the reader. And the other thing I didn’t like much was the “man hating” attitude. It seems that Harlow believes most men have abused women or deep down hate women in some way. She is written to hate men but blames it on men hating women.

This book was just too much. Too much detail, too much man bashing and too much violence.

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

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Winter Romance Wednesday! Kimberly reviews Dear Santa by Debbie Macomber

TITLE: Dear Santa
CHARACTERS: Lindy & Carmichael
AUTHOR: Debbie Macomber
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/19/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A special holiday wish list brings about hope, love, and second chances in this nostalgic novel from the queen of Christmas stories, #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber.

Lindy Carmichael isn’t feeling particularly joyful when she returns home to Wenatchee, Washington, for Christmas. The man she thought was “the one” has cheated on her with her best friend, and she feels completely devoid of creativity in her graphic-design job. Not even carolers or Christmas cookies can cheer her up–but Lindy’s mother, Ellen, remembers an old tradition that might lift her daughter’s spirits.

Reading through a box of childhood letters to Santa and reminiscing about what she’d wished for as a young girl may be just the inspiration Lindy needs. With Ellen’s encouragement, she decides to write a new letter to Santa, one that will encourage her to have faith and believe just as she’d done all those years ago. Little does Lindy know that this exercise in gratitude will cause her wishes to unfold before her in miraculous ways. And, thanks to some fateful twists of Christmas magic–especially an unexpected connection with a handsome former classmate–Lindy ultimately realizes that there is truly no place like home for the holidays.

In Dear Santa, Debbie Macomber celebrates the joys of Christmas blessings, old and new.

REVIEW:
4.25 Hearts I picked this up from NetGalley from their “Christmas In July” release and I am sad that I did. Why? Because I read it in July too. And Debbie Macomber makes the holidays come to life and I kept looking around wondering where my tree and decorations were. As with ALL of Macomber’s Christmas novels this one needs to be turned into a Hallmark or Lifetime Christmas movie.

In this story Lindy returns home for the holidays. Her man and best friend were cheating on Lindy and her job just wasn’t doing it for her anymore so she now has two weeks to get some love from home and reset her mind. While home she finds some old letters she wrote to Santa and it makes her take a look inside her heart. And now all these years later it is time to write to Santa again.

And of course we can’t forget that this is Debbie Macomber that is telling the story so while Dear Santa has a lesson in it that we all need to take to heart it also has romance. And Macomber tells a great romance.

Another great story perfect for the season.

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

4 Hearts

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Kimberly reviews Sleepless by Romy Hausmann

TITLE: Sleepless
CHARACTERS: Nadja & Laura
AUTHOR: Romy Hausmann
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/19/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
It’s been years since Nadja Kulka was convicted of a cruel crime. After being released from prison, she’s wanted nothing more than to live a normal life: nice flat, steady job, even a few friends. But when one of those friends, Laura von Hoven–free-spirited beauty and wife of Nadja’s boss–kills her lover and begs Nadja for her help, Nadja can’t seem to refuse.

The two women make for a remote house in the woods, the perfect place to bury a body. But their plan quickly falls apart and Nadja finds herself outplayed, a pawn in a bizarre game in which she is both the perfect victim and the perfect murderer…

REVIEW:
2.5 Hearts Ok I just didn’t get it. This book was so jumbled that I had a hard time following everything.

The story of Nadja is back and forth of what happened to her when she was convicted. Now she wants a normal quiet life so why in the world would she help a friend (or is she?) deal with the lover she killed. Why can’t she say “I can keep quiet but I am not helping you?”

And then when they go hide even more happens. And none of it makes sense to me. I just kept thinking “Why? Why is Nadja doing this? And why am I still reading?”

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

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Kimberly reviews Over My Dead Body by Jeffrey Archer

TITLE: Over My Dead Body
SERIES #: Det. William Warwick #4
CHARACTERS: Det Warwick
AUTHOR: Jeffrey Archer
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/19/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
An unputdownable story of murder, revenge and betrayal from international number one bestseller Jeffrey Archer.

THE CLOCK IS TICKING IN THIS ROLLERCOASTER RIDE OF A THRILLER…

In London, the Metropolitan Police set up a new Unsolved Murders Unit—a cold case squad—to catch the criminals nobody else can.

In Geneva, millionaire art collector Miles Faulkner—convicted of forgery and theft—was pronounced dead two months ago. So why is his unscrupulous lawyer still representing a dead client?

On a luxury liner en route to New York, the battle for power at the heart of a wealthy dynasty is about to turn to murder.

And at the heart of all three investigations are Detective Chief Inspector William Warwick, rising star of the department, and ex-undercover agent Ross Hogan, brought in from the cold.

But can they catch the killers before it’s too late?

REVIEW:
3.5 Hearts This is the 4th in the series and I have now read three of them (missed #2).

OK, here is the thing about this book. It is so busy! There is so much going on that it is honestly hard to keep track of. The stories (yes multiple) that are going on are interesting in their own right but it moves so fast and switches between the cases that I felt I needed a notebook.

Archer is a great writer and I enjoy his books so maybe I wasn’t ready to have my mind so filled with details that it threw me off a bit. With that being said I wanted to know everything. I didn’t want to put it down even though when I did I found myself reviewing who was who.

Another good story by Archer. And I look forward to more in the series.

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

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Kimberly reviews The Room In The Attic by Louise Douglas

TITLE: The Room In The Attic
CHARACTERS: Lewis, Emma & Isak
AUTHOR: Louise Douglas
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/12/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A child who does not know her name…

In 1903 fishermen find a wrecked boat containing a woman, who has been badly beaten, and a young girl. An ambulance is sent for, and the two survivors are taken to All Hallows, the imposing asylum, hidden deep on Dartmoor. The woman remains in a coma, but the little girl, who the staff name Harriet, awakens and is taken to an attic room, far away from the noise of the asylum, and is put in the care of Nurse Emma Everdeen.

Two motherless boys banished to boarding school…

In 1993, All Hallows is now a boarding school. Following his mother’s death and his father’s hasty remarriage, Lewis Tyler is banished to Dartmoor, stripped of his fashionable clothes, shorn of his long hair, and left feeling more alone than ever. There he meets Isak, another lost soul, and whilst refurbishment of the dormitories is taking place, the boys are marooned up in the attic, in an old wing of the school.

Cries and calls from the past that can no longer be ignored…

All Hallows is a building full of memories, whispers, cries from the past. As Lewis and Isak learn more about the fate of Harriet, and Nurse Emma’s desperate fight to keep the little girl safe, it soon becomes clear there are ghosts who are still restless.

Are they ghosts the boys hear at night in the room above, are they the unquiet souls from the asylum still caught between the walls? And can Lewis and Isak bring peace to All Hallows before the past breaks them first…

REVIEW:
What an interesting story. I enjoyed this story most of the time. The ending was a bit of a disappointment.

I found the gothic story spooky and creepy but in a good way. I enjoyed the two different timelines of 1903 and 1993 well written.

This book is pretty long. And there are certainly parts that went a bit over the top in description and but the scariness of the story was high.

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