Category: 5-Stars

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Book Review:  The Missing Husband (DCI Hanlon Book 3)by Alex Coombs @AlexHowardCrime @rararesources  @BoldwoodBooks

 

The Missing Husband
(DCI Hanlon Book 3)
by Alex Coombs

Amazon  / B&N /  GP

A security officer is assassinated. A small child grieves for his father. A psychopath commits their first crime…

A frightened Russian woman seeks DCI Hanlon’s help in finding her missing husband. Hanlon’s not keen on the case. Until she hears a name she recognizes only too well. Arkady Belanov, sadistic owner of an exclusive brothel in Oxford is involved. And when DCI Enver Demirel, her former partner, and friend, disappears, Hanlon is determined to solve the case.Forced into an uneasy alliance with the London underworld, the race to him from the blood-stained hands of the Russian mafia is underway…

Another gripping case for the unstoppable DCI Hanlon. Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Lisa Regan, and Mark Dawson.

This book was previously published as A Hard Woman To Kill by Alex Howard.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Her brief glance summed him up. He was short, stocky and bald and he had an unpleasant, slightly fat, aggressive face. He was like a sneer in human form.

 

Everyone in violent crime liked a good funeral; you never knew when yours might be. There was also the added plus that it wasn’t you who was in the box. One day it would be, but not today.

 

Fredericks had the kind of mouth that held a perpetual sneer, as if there were some kind of specialist curling tongs that he used on his lips on a nightly basis.

 

His GP had told him to stop smoking, but so far he’d stopped buying cigarettes and just smoked other people’s. He was amazed at the money he was saving.

My Review:

 

Book three of this absorbing and highly active series found no flagging in quality as it is holding strong in intrigue, complexity, and oddly compelling and curiously peculiar characters. Alex Coombs is a diabolically skilled and agile storyteller with a wicked keen vocabulary and uncommonly adept command of language. His word skills and phrasing pack a deadly punch and kept my curiosity on edge and my brain itching for the next puzzle piece to emerge. I am fatally awestruck and a total devotee of his inimitable, controversial, and indomitable DCI Hanlon.

 

About the Author

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Alex Coombs studied Arabic at Oxford and Edinburgh Universities and went on to work in adult education and then retrained to be a chef. He has written four well-reviewed crime novels as Alex Howard.  Sign up for his newsletter at

http://bit.ly/AlexCoombsNewsletter

 

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Book Review: The Innocent Girl (DCI Hanlon Book 2) by Alex Coombs @AlexHowardCrime @rararesources  @BoldwoodBooks

The Innocent Girl
 (DCI Hanlon Book 2)
by Alex Coombs

Amazon / B&N /  GP

DCI Hanlon is going undercover.

Oxford Philosophy lecturer Dr. Gideon Fuller is in the frame, but Hanlon is not convinced.

From the specialist brothels in Oxford and Soho, to the inner sanctum of a Russian people trafficker with a taste for hurting women, the trail leads Hanlon deeper and deeper into danger – until she herself becomes the killer’s next target…

Can Hanlon track down the killer before it’s too late?

A thrilling new case for DCI Hanlon. Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Lisa Regan, and Mark Dawson.

This book was previously published as Cold Revenge by Alex Howard.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Hanlon felt again a surge of almost homicidal rage… It wasn’t just the crime, it was the arrogance behind it. It was the way Hannah had been swatted out of existence like an insect. I’m like the Duracell bunny, she thought, except I’m powered by anger, not by a battery, and I’ll keep on going.

 

At first glance, Hanlon had mistaken the madam for a drag queen. It was an easy mistake to make. The woman in front of her was not conventionally feminine. Iris Campion –‘Like the flower, but not as pretty’– was at least six foot tall and burly with it. She had massive, flabby arms, revealed by the short-sleeved dressing gown, like a shot-putter gone to seed.

 

Maybe, she thought, he wasn’t meant to make old bones. Jann defined himself enormously through his physical attractiveness and that’s not a quality that lasts. Maybe an old Jann would have been dreadful to behold.

 

The policewoman had that rare gift of almost complete immobility that animals have, and humans rarely do.

 

I feel happy, she thought. It was a peculiar sensation, but she was sure that’s what it was… It wasn’t that she was an unhappy person; it was more like living with a defective sense of smell or colour. You knew that these senses existed, you knew everyone else appreciated them, but for you they simply weren’t there.

My Review:

 

I am continuing on with my adoration and infatuation with the enigmatic and taciturn DCI Hanlon. She has been promoted, which is quite shocking given that she is famously reviled, and by nearly everyone but a handful of co-workers. Book two was a more challenging read than the first although it was still outstanding in the quality of writing, cunningly crafted, shrewdly paced, and cast with dynamic and oddly compelling characters on both sides of the law.

 

The absorbing storylines were nothing less than gripping while also often startlingly gruesome with realistic and cringe-worthy brutality. I didn’t toss my cookies so it wasn’t sickening although the emotive nature of the scenes often squeezed my underused coronary muscle in a painful manner.   The pace was nonstop with devious and conniving behaviors and required endurance of brainpower as well as physical demands on the beleaguered characters. Hanlon is once again predictably unpredictable and off the hook with her clever yet risky undertakings to prove her theories. I covet this woman’s self-possessed confidence, conditioning, and drive as much as I do this wily wordsmith’s stunning storytelling. I do believe I am hopelessly and irrevocably enamored.

About the Author

Alex Coombs studied Arabic at Oxford and Edinburgh Universities and went on to work in adult education and then retrained to be a chef. He has written four well-reviewed crime novels as Alex Howard.  Sign up for his newsletter at http://bit.ly/AlexCoombsNewsletter

 

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Book Review: The Stolen Child (DCI Hanlon Book 1) by Alex Coombs @AlexHowardCrime @rararesources  @BoldwoodBooks

 

The Stolen Child
(DCI Hanlon Book 1)
by Alex Coombs

 

Amazon  / B&N / GP

Meet DI Hanlon. A woman with a habit of breaking the rules and a fierce loyalty to the few people she respects.
Her boss, Corrigan. Looks like a street copper promoted above his ability. Underestimate him at your peril.Enver Demirel. Known in the boxing ring as Iron Hand. Now soft and gone to seed. But he would do anything for Hanlon. When the kidnap of a 12-year-old boy blows the case of some missing children wide apart, the finger is pointing at the heart of the Met.

Corrigan sends in the only cop in his team who is incorruptible enough to handle it – Hanlon.

And then he sends Demirel to spy on her…

 

Once you start the DI Hanlon series, you won’t be able to put it down. Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Lisa Regan, and Mark Dawson.

This book was previously published as Time To Die by Alex Howard

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Hanlon was careful with words. She weighed them carefully before she used them, like a miser with money

She ran her eyes over him speculatively like a butcher eyeing a piece of meat of dubious quality, and Enver straightened his back into a more erect posture.

He still had an out-of-date mental image of himself as being in terrific shape, if a little overweight… Like in a dream he’d run as fast as he could, yet seemed to be going nowhere. He’d misjudged totally how quickly he could move; he’d only just managed to break into a speedy waddle.

My Review:

 

This was an intense, riveting, and propulsive read with several distinct storylines that were constantly gathering steam toward a devastating convergence. Alex Coombs is a first-class scrivener with exceptionally strong word voodoo. His superb writing and top-shelf storytelling featured cleverly crafted story threads that were woven with exacting word choices that kept the varied emotional tones at the perfect pitch while crackling with tension. The crimes and issues involved were totally unconscionable and had me cringing and flinching, yet I couldn’t have stopped reading if my hair had been on fire. I was quickly sucked into an ever-darkening vortex during the first few lines of page one, and it never abated.

Each addition to the large cast of diverse characters was uniquely etched and oddly compelling with brain-tickling descriptions and observations. The enigmatic and fiercely composed DI Hanlon was a conundrum for everyone and I am completely enthralled with her, as I do revere and adore a kickass chick. So imagine my glee to have three more volumes of her exploits already loaded on my beloved Kindle. Score!

I also gained a new entry to my Brit Words and Phrases list with navvy, which Mr. Google tells me is a laborer employed in the excavation or construction.

 

About the Author

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Alex Coombs studied Arabic at Oxford and Edinburgh Universities and went on to work in adult education and then retrained to be a chef. He has written four well-reviewed crime novels as Alex Howard.  Sign up for his newsletter at : http://bit.ly/AlexCoombsNewsletter

 

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Book Review: AFTERSHOCK (Dr. Jessie Teska Mystery, #2) by Judy Melinek & T.J. Mitchell @drjudymelinek

AFTERSHOCK
Dr. Jessie Teska Mystery, #2
by Judy Melinek & T.J. Mitchell

 

Amazon  / B&N / Apple / GP

ISBN: 9781335147295

Publication Date: January 19, 2020

Publisher: Hanover Square Press

 

When an earthquake strikes San Francisco, forensics expert Jessie Teska faces her biggest threat yet in this explosive new mystery from the New York Times bestselling authors of Working Stiff and First Cut.

At first glance, the death appears to be an accident. The body is located on a construction site under what looks like a collapsed beam. But when Dr. Jessie Teska arrives on the scene, she notices the tell-tale signs of a staged death. The victim has been murdered. A rising star in the San Francisco forensics world, Jessie is ready to unravel the case, help bring the murderer to justice, and prevent him from potentially striking again.

But when a major earthquake strikes San Francisco right at Halloween, Jessie and the rest of the city are left reeling. And even if she emerges from the rubble, there’s no guaranteeing she’ll make it out alive.

With their trademark blend of propulsive prose, deft plotting, and mordant humor, this electrifying new installment in the Jessie Teska Mystery series offers the highest stakes yet.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

A steel band cover of “Don’t Fear the Reaper” makes for a lousy way to lurch awake. Couple of months back, some clown of a coworker got a hold of my cell phone while I was busy in the autopsy suite, and reprogrammed the ringtone for incoming calls from the Medical Examiner Operations and Investigation Dispatch Communications Center. I keep forgetting to fix it.

 

Oskar had nervous eyes under bushy brows, small nostrils in a mousy nose, and bluish stubble against a complexion like an altar candle. He impressed me as a man who climbed out of bed every morning wound up three turns too tight.

 

My Review:

 

This was an active, nonstop, wryly written, and superbly crafted tale that was shrewdly paced, cunningly plotted, and cast with a wide variety of curiously compelling characters. I had great difficulty putting my Kindle down for those senseless interruptions that dared to interfere with my perusal such as thirst, hunger, dying batteries, and need for sleep.

The busy storylines were written from the first-person POV of the brilliant and hard-working medical examiner Jessie Teska, M.D., and were taut with intrigue and pernicious conflicts with arrogant and egregious detectives and lawyers who didn’t have the good sense to listen to her sagacious theories and perceptive observations. I wanted to kick them in the shins for her. Lashing of amusing and clever wit cropped up to balance the emotional tone, which I always appreciate. This is my second time reading this dynamic duo’s exceptional wordcraft and I am so enamored with their mad skills that I have added them to my list of favorites and will be eagerly awaiting Dr. Teska’s next case.

About the Authors

Judy Melinek & T.J. Mitchell are the New York Times bestselling co-authors of Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner, and the novel First Cut. Dr. Melinek studied at Harvard and UCLA, was a medical examiner in San Francisco for nine years, and today works as a forensic pathologist in Oakland and as CEO of PathologyExpert Inc. T.J. Mitchell, her husband, is a writer with an English degree from Harvard, and worked in the film industry before becoming a full-time stay-at-home dad to their children.

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TWITTER: Judy: @drjudymelinek  TJ: @TJMitchellWS

FB: @DrWorkingStiff

Insta: Judy: @drjudymelinek

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Book Review: Escape With Me (The O’Callaghans #3) by Kristen Proby  @Handbagjunkie

Escape With Me
(The O’Callaghans #3)
by Kristen Proby 

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From New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Kristen Proby comes ESCAPE WITH ME, an all-new stand-alone novel in her beloved WITH ME IN SEATTLE SERIES!

Keegan O’Callaghan has been told he’s married to his pub. It’s true. He’s happiest when he’s pulling taps and filling drink orders, so long as he can keep an eye on his family and ensure that all is well. Bringing a woman into his life for anything but a pleasant, short-term romp isn’t even on his radar.

Until she comes running through his door, soaking wet and in a princess gown.

Isabella Harris ran out on her wedding, and she’s not even a little bit sorry. She may have loved her groom a long time ago, but standing there about to take her vows, she realizes it’s not right. And that’s all she needs to know. Four hours later, she finds herself on a tiny island outside of Seattle, walking into a random Irish Pub and locking eyes with the sexiest bartender she’s ever seen. But now what? She’s alone and broke, with only a wedding dress to her name.

Despite the undeniable attraction between them, Keegan can see that Izzy’s scared and alone. The job offer he extends is only until she gets back on her feet–he has no intention of keeping her.

But sometimes Fate has other plans…

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

… you don’t deserve to be the back-burner girl…You’re a front and center, rolling boil kind of girl.

 

Women. I can’t go a day without her, yet sometimes, I want to tumble her right into the sea.

 

“I can totally keep a secret,” she says, but I know better. “If you tell anyone, you won’t be my favorite anymore.” The smile leaves her face. “Well, that’s just mean.”

My Review:

 

This was a fun and engaging read while pleasantly low on conflict or angst. I enjoyed the delightful respite! The characters were endearing and hard-working and the storylines were relatable, easy to follow and detailed with amusing descriptions and scenarios.   I have enjoyed the books in the series I’ve been lucky enough to obtain, although I am a fairly recent convert to Ms. Proby’s coven, I have a lot of catching up to do!

 

 

About the Author

Kristen Proby has published more than forty titles, many of which have hit the USA Today, New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists. She continues to self-publish, best known for her With Me In Seattle and Boudreaux series and is also proud to work with William Morrow, a division of HarperCollins, with the Fusion and Romancing Manhattan Series.

Kristen and her husband, John, make their home in her hometown of Whitefish, Montana with their two cats.

Connect with Kristen

 

Website: https://www.kristenprobyauthor.com/

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2kBRdpj

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2BD4vfq

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BooksByKristenProby/

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/684662744993031/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristenproby/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Handbagjunkie

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kristen-proby

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/handbagjunkie/

Book+Main: https://bit.ly/30ImsmP

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Book Review: Chasing The Sun (Angel Sands #7) by Carrie Elks @CarrieElks

CHASING THE SUN
(Angel Sands #7)
by  Carrie Elks

Genre: Small Town, Contemporary Romance
Release Date – January 20, 2021
Cover Designed by Najla Qamber
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AMAZON

READ FOR FREE ON KINDLE UNLIMITED

 

A whirlwind is coming to Angel Sands…

Take a vacation from taking vacations. That’s Lydia Paxton’s plan when she arrives in Angel Sands to celebrate her baby niece’s christening. Organizing trips of a lifetime for her exclusive New York clientele has taken its toll. Now she just wants to kick back, relax, and spend time with her family.

But, as her sister tells her, Lydia always leaves devastation in her wake.

This time, the devastation goes by the name of Jackson Lewis.

As soon as he sets eyes on her, Jackson knows Lydia’s trouble with a capital T. The problem is, the attraction between them is off the scale.

It’s a good thing Jackson swore off relationships years ago. He’s certain he has it all under control. Until this confirmed workaholic finds himself the foster father of a stray dog and playing hooky from work thanks to Lydia’s influence.

And at night, she’s curled up next to him in his bed.

Now the clock is ticking. They have twelve days together and then she’ll be gone. All they have to do is NOT fall in love with each other.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

He has that little lost boy, bad boy combination women can’t resist. Women want to save him and ravage him at the same time.

Jackson wasn’t one for talking, especially not deeply. In the days she’d spent with him, she’d learned more from his silences than his sentences.

She was his kind of crazy.

Home wasn’t a town or a city or any physical location. It was the thing that filled your soul. The place in your heart filled with the people you love.

 

My Review:

 

Although I haven’t been lucky enough to read them all, this has been such a fun series with lovable characters, low angst, relatable issues, and engaging storytelling that continues on into each standalone installment. The couples are earnest, likable, and endearing people whom I would enjoy knowing.   The writing is easy to follow and enjoyable to read. Sigh, I can only hope Ms. Elks continues this series into perpetuity and decides to write a tale for every resident in this small beach town.

 

Excerpt

Flipping her hair over one shoulder, he brushed his lips against her neck. “Does that help?” he murmured softly.

That brief touch made her shiver. “Not really.”

He chuckled against her skin, kissing his way up to below her ear, his breath hot against her sensitive flesh. “How about this?” he asked, sliding his mouth to her jaw.

She wanted to turn, to capture his lips with hers, but he was holding her too tightly.

“Or this?” He ran his fingers through her thick hair, his gaze catching hers. His eyes were dark, needy, and sent a shot of electricity through her veins.

Pushing the straps of her dress down past her shoulders, his fingers teased her skin as he pressed his warm lips against hers. He took his time as he kissed her, his movements slow and sure.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Carrie Elks Headshot

Carrie Elks writes contemporary romance with a sizzling edge. Her first book, Fix You, has been translated into eight languages and made a surprise appearance on Big Brother in Brazil. Luckily for her, it wasn’t voted out. Carrie lives with her husband, two lovely children, and a larger-than-life black pug called Plato. When she isn’t writing or reading, she can be found baking, drinking an occasional (!) glass of wine, or chatting on social media.

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Book Review: Did My Love Life Shrink in the Wash? (The Callaghan Sisters #3) by Kristen Bailey @mrsbaileywrites @Bookouture 

Did My Love Life Shrink in the Wash?
(The Callaghan Sisters #3)
by Kristen Bailey

 

Amazon  / B&N / Apple / GP/ Kobo

Sure, my bedroom gets lots of action. It’s called snoring.

Will and I didn’t have a clue what we were signing up for. It turns out that there are loads we weren’t warned about:

1) You’ll spend more time spooning your child’s cuddly donkey than your own boyfriend.
2) Communication with your other half will be via post-it notes on the fridge, mainly telling him to buy more milk.
3) If you make the mistake of going to a nightclub you’ll nod off, drool, and be woken up by an angry bouncer.
4) In the middle of the night you’ll be begging Siri for advice on getting your baby to sleep. (Whale music doesn’t work.)
5) Sex is something that happened in another dimension.

But even if I feel like I’m waiting for my motherhood powers to come in the post, at least I’ve got Will. Our old life – festivals, sambuca shots, an actual sex life – might be a distant memory, but we can get through anything together, can’t we?

At least that’s what I thought until, one day, Will walked out on us… If I’m on my own (apart from Siri, obviously) can I do this whole parenting thing? Or I am destined to lose my sanity one sleepless night at a time?

A totally hilarious and absolutely relatable tale for anyone who has survived parenthood purely on microwave meals and wished for an IV drip of coffee to get them through! This uplifting page-turner will make your belly ache with laughter. Perfect for fans of Why Mummy Drinks, Sophie Ranald, and Sophie Kinsella.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Another wave of pain strikes me and I bellow out some feral crescendo through the ward. Wolves in London Zoo howl back in reply.

 

Midhusband Joe continues to talk from in between my arched legs. His face and the giant lamp down there are slightly disconcerting, like he’s mining for something.

 

And who calls a baby Leonard? That’s just cruel… And he wasn’t good-looking. Face like a cabbage. She’s just inviting that kid to be beaten up when he’s older.

 

‘Do the stretch marks ever fade?’ I ask. ‘Mine are dark red, I look like a tiger.’ ‘Own them. They’re your new warrior stripes.

 

Swimming?’ ‘Then I’d have to do my bikini line.’ ‘No, you don’t. I swim at the lido near Emma’s and there’s a lady who goes out with full pits and fanny. It sprouts out like alfalfa.’

 

‘Sean also looks like the sort of man who wears bad shorts in summer. Am I right?’ ‘Cargo, knee-length. Sometimes the ones with the zips so he can add some length if the weather gets cooler.’ ‘If you married that, I’d voice my objections at your wedding, just so you know.’

My Review:

 

Maternity, birth, and baby issues aren’t my jam and topics I typically avoid in my book selections.   But I couldn’t seem to pass this one up as I had read and delighted in the previous books in this series.   Needless to say, I have few regrets after diving into this riotously amusing tale and am just as enamored with this author’s clever wit and irreverent humor as I was before. I cackled and giggle-snorted at the outrageous scenarios and sharp visuals her wily and cunning selections of words conjured in my cranium. My face is actually a bit tired from smirking. As there are five oddly captivating and quirky sisters in this family, I will be eagerly awaiting the next sister’s odyssey.

And, score! I have two new additions to my Brit Words and Phrases list with norks – which are a woman’s breasts; and gubbins – which is a multitasker of a word as it has several meanings which include scraps, useless bits and pieces, gadgetry, and a foolish person. For most women of my age, norks are generally gubbins.

About the Author

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Mother-of-four, gin-drinker, binge-watcher, receipt hoarder, enthusiastic but terrible cook. Kristen also writes. She has had short fiction published in several publications including Mslexia & Riptide. Her first two novels, Souper Mum and Second Helpings were published in 2016. In 2019, she was long-listed in the Comedy Women in Print Prize and has since joined the Bookouture family. She hopes her novels have fresh and funny things to say about modern life, love, and family.

You can find out more about her on Twitter (@mrsbaileywrites), Instagram (@kristenbaileywrites), and Facebook.

 

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Book Review: The Perfect Guests by Emma Rous @EJRous 

 

The Perfect Guests
by  Emma Rous

 

Amazon  / B&N / GP/ Apple 

The USA Today bestselling author of The Au Pair returns with another delicious, twisty novel—about a grand estate with many secrets, an orphan caught in a web of lies, and a young woman playing a sinister game.

1988. Beth Soames is fourteen years old when her aunt takes her to stay at Raven Hall, a rambling manor in the isolated East Anglian fens. The Averells, the family who lives there, are warm and welcoming, and Beth becomes fast friends with their daughter, Nina. At times, Beth even feels like she’s truly part of the family…until they ask her to help them with a harmless game—and nothing is ever the same.

2019. Sadie Langton is an actress struggling to make ends meet when she lands a well-paying gig to pretend to be a guest at a weekend party. She is sent a suitcase of clothing, a dossier outlining the role she is to play, and instructions. It’s strange, but she needs the money, and when she sees the stunning manor she’ll be staying at, she figures she’s got nothing to lose.

In person, Raven Hall is even grander than she’d imagined—even with damage from a fire decades before—but the walls seem to have eyes. As day turns to night, Sadie starts to feel that there’s something off about the glamorous guests who arrive, and as the party begins, it becomes chillingly apparent their unseen host is playing games with everyone…including her.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

Her thoughts are like darting fish, sparking across her mind and slipping out of reach.

 

My Review:

 

My first Emma Rous read and it was quite a complicated and twisty tale with lots of moving parts, secrets, and hidden agendas. The storylines were slowly constructed and cleverly nuanced over two timelines with a large cast of characters. The story threads were taut with tension and wound around themselves to weave what seemed like tangled knots, which ultimately became a complex tapestry while ensnaring my attention and endlessly provoking my curiosity with ever-evolving theories. Many of the main characters were elusive and an odd mix of peculiar and erratic in both timelines. This was a hard one to put down and my poor optical orbits feel like they have burned through to the back of my skull as I may have been reluctant to blink as I didn’t want to miss anything. All told, it was rather ingenious.

About the Author

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Emma Rous is the USA Today bestselling author of The Au Pair. She grew up in England, Indonesia, Kuwait, Portugal, and Fiji, and from a young age, she had two ambitions: to write stories and to look after animals. She studied veterinary medicine and zoology at the University of Cambridge and worked as a small animal veterinarian for eighteen years before starting to write fiction. Emma lives near Cambridge in England with her husband and three sons, and she now writes full time.

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Book Review: The German Girl by Lily Graham @lilygrahambooks  @Bookouture 

The German Girl
by Lily Graham

 

Amazon  / B&N /  GP

‘Our parents were taken. And if we go home, the Nazis will take us too…’

Hamburg 1938. Fifteen-year-old Asta is hurrying home from school with her twin brother Jurgen. The mood in the city is tense – synagogues have been smashed with sledgehammers, and Asta is too frightened to laugh as she used to.

But when she and Jurgen are stopped in the street by a friend, her world implodes further. Her Jewish parents have been dragged into the streets by German soldiers and if she and Jurgen return to their house, they will be taken too.

Heartbroken at the loss of her parents, Asta knows they must flee. With her beloved brother, she must make the perilous journey across Germany and into Denmark to reach their only surviving relative, her aunt Trine, a woman they barely know.

Jammed into a truck with other refugees, Asta prays for a miracle to save herself and Jurgen. Crossing the border is a crime punishable by death, and what she and Jurgen must embark on a dangerous crossing on foot, through the snowy forest dividing Germany and Denmark. And when barking dogs and armed soldiers find Jurgen and Asta escape, she must hold on to hope no matter what. One day she will find her twin, the other half of herself. Whatever the price she has to pay…

A gripping and poignant read that will break your heart and give you hope. Fans of Fiona Valpy, Kristin Hannah, and Catherine Hokin will be gripped by the story of a brave brother and sister seeking safety during one of the darkest times in our history.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Marta was Ingrid’s cousin. She was also the old man’s last helper. It was fair to say that it hadn’t gone well. It had ended with Marta refusing to ever darken Jürgen Anderson’s door, even if he died, and someone needed help moving his mouldering body …‘Even then – find somebody else,’

 

That was our surname – before I changed it after the war. It means swallow, like the bird…. My father used to say that the two of us were like our namesake – you know that swallows seldom rest, they spend most of their lives in flight? … Except of course we became birds without a nest to return to.

 

If I ever find out who your father is, you horrid brats, I’m going to send him my condolences!

 

There are people that should be sorry, but you’re not one of them.

My Review:

 

I must confess to being rather ignorant about the countries of Denmark and Sweden, other than a vague notion of where they rest on a map. Shortly after starting this missive I stopped reading and consulted my go-to all-knowing source, the font of all the important knowledge worth knowing, and my chief source of information – Mr. Google. Armed with a bit more reference and leaving many of my researched pages open, I returned to my rapt perusal of this poignantly written, heart-rending, and compelling tale.

Lily Graham’s moving and thoughtfully written account repeatedly bruised and squeezed my coronary muscle in a ruthless manner before breaking it completely and finally patching me up again.   I am ruined! Her evocative yet tensely striking storylines were expertly crafted with well-chosen words, which delivered a resounding emotional impact and hit all the feels from the carefree childhood of clever prankster twins to their traumatic escapes and distressing and harrowing adventures once separated.   I was quickly sucked into every new thread and felt familiar with each new locale with her vivid and haunting depictions. She has mad skills and an ardent new fangirl.

About the Author

 

Lily has been telling stories since she was a child, starting with her imaginary rabbit, Stephanus, and their adventures in the enchanted peach tree in her garden, which she envisioned as a magical portal to Enid Blyton’s Faraway Tree. She’s never really got out of the habit of making things up, and still thinks of Stephanus rather fondly.

She lives with her husband and her English bulldog, Fudge, and brings her love for the sea and country-living to her fiction.

https://lilygraham.net/

https://www.facebook.com/LilyRoseGrahamAuthor/

https://twitter.com/lilygrahambooks

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Book Review: One Hundred Mistakes (Aspen Cove #16) by Kelly Collins  @kcollinsauthor

One Hundred Mistakes
(Aspen Cove #16)
by Kelly Collins

 

Welcome back to Aspen Cove, where love finds you, even when you’re looking the wrong way…

As the personal assistant to popstar legend, Indigo, Deanna Archer moved to Aspen Cove for work (and maybe a certain sexy guitar player). But when her long-time crush dumps her, Deanna is determined to get him back, even if that means enlisting the help of Aspen Cove’s new deputy sheriff to act as her fake boyfriend. After all, the best way to get a man is to make him think he can’t have you, right? As her plan unfolds and feelings toward Merrick grow, Deanna is faced with a dilemma: does she stay on course or veer off in the direction her heart wants to take her?

Merrick Buchanan moved to Aspen Cove for peace and tranquility. Getting away from his meddling mother was an added bonus. When she says she’s coming for a visit and bringing his perfect match, he knows he has to act fast. What he needs is a decoy, and Deanna Archer is the perfect candidate. He may think he’s in control of the situation, but his heart has other plans.

As the ruse plays out, will Deanna and Merrick see the gift they’ve been given, or is their fake relationship just another mistake?

Find out in One Hundred Mistakes …

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

He’s not a keeper… He’s a catch and release.

 

“The only exciting thing that happened since yesterday was that Mrs. Brown’s cat went missing, but he was easy to find, seeing as how she’d dressed him in a clown costume. He was hiding out behind the bakery. I’d hide too if I had to wear some of the outfits she puts him in.” Merrick had caught a glimpse or two of the poor animal. Last week he found him skulking around the alley wearing a fish head hat. That gave new meaning to catfish.

 

… feeding a man’s ego was like feeding a tapeworm; they were never satisfied.

 

“Tell me about your first love?” “I was nine, and she sat next to me in class. I brought her bags of Skittles, and she dumped me for a Snicker’s gifting guy.”

 

I’m more likely to kill someone than be killed. I mean … I work with idiots.

 

… women aren’t presents. They are more like onions, and you have to peel back the layers and hope they don’t make you cry.

 

I once read about an airline dumping the waste from a plane, and it came down in a shitsicle and killed a man watching Oprah. My point is, life is dangerous.

My Review:

 

I adore this sweet and steamy small-town series, the humor is always giggle-snort worthy. Kelly Collins has a sharp wit and a gift for snark and knows how to put it to good use. I was well entertained by the featured couple, who were both newcomers to the developing little hamlet of Aspen Cove.   I learned something new that I had to Google; living wine labels are a real thing. How clever! My future alcohol consumption could actually be educational, what fun!

ABOUT KELLY COLLINS   

 

  Goodreads  / Website  / Amazon /

International bestselling author of over 30 novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping the love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.