Book Review: Death By Betrayal (Josiah Reynolds Mystery #20) by Abigail Keam @AbigailKeam

Death By Betrayal
(Josiah Reynolds Mystery #20)
by Abigail Keam

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Josiah is looking forward to the county fair coming up soon. She comes across a battered tin box with a bunch of yellowed 3×5 note cards with her mother’s old recipes. Nobody could make apple walnut cake like her mother. By golly, Josiah decides to make her mother’s cake and enter it in this year’s fair. It’s sure to be a winner.

She makes a sample, asking Hunter and his new farm assistant, Palley, to try a slice. When the farm helper hears it’s for the fair, the young man tells Josiah about the demolition derby each year. Ever since Palley received his license, he has been waiting to be old enough to compete in the derby. The only problem is he needs an old beater of a car to get running and enter in the derby.

Josiah tells Palley he is welcome to use an old jalopy that’s been gathering dust in an unused shed on her property. Everyone’s excited about going to the fair to see if the old beater car comes out a winner—until the trunk pops open to reveal—you guessed it—a body. Whose body is it? How did it get there? Josiah’s on the trail of murder again.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I intend to live forever or die trying…

Hunter had come to resemble my house slippers— a little worn around the heels but comfortable and warm.

Matt is a fantasy for deep in the night when sleep is hard to come by. He is a fleeting dream that is nothing more than gossamer strands of floating golden threads— hard to grasp by a mere mortal.

Let’s face it, honey— I’m not getting any younger. You know you’re ancient when the candles cost more than the cake.

My Review:

 

I continue to enjoy Ms. Keam’s wry wit and smooth writing style while indulging my need for a rash of cozy mystery reading. This series keeps getting better with each installment. Her well-plotted murders keep me guessing while her quirky main character Josiah tries her best to reign in her temper and terrible luck. So, of course, I adore her beyond reason.

 

About the Author

One thing Miss Abigail loves to do as an author is to write real people and events into her stories. “I am a student of history and love to insert historical information into my mysteries. My goal is to entertain my readers, but if they learn a little something along the way—well, then we are both happy. I certainly learn a lot from my research, and I hope my readers come away with a new appreciation of beekeeping from my Josiah Reynolds Mysteries.”

Book Review: Young Buck (Green Valley Heroes #5) by Kilby Blades    @KilbyBlades @SmartyPantsRom

Young Buck
Green Valley Heroes #5
by Kilby Blades

 

 

 
When her husband died in bed with a 19-year-old college student, Loretta Boggs swore off men. Now she moonlights as Green Valley’s finest infidelity investigator. When she’s not staking out scumbags, sidelining sugar babies, and catching cheating bastards, she’s the fearless leader of Cheated On-onymous, a secret support group for betrayed women that meets in the basement of Green Valley Library.

Fire Lieutenant Buck Rogers is Green Valley Fire Department’s newest recruit. He’s also renting the house next door to Lorettas. When a mysterious family secret compels him to seek the talents of a private investigator, he calls in a friendly favor.

But keeping things neighborly isn’t easy. Not with Loretta spying on Buck’s chin-up routine through his open bedroom window. Not with Buck’s shameless flirting and beguiling blue eyes. Buck may be testing her resolve, but Loretta is testing his mettle. Can she get over the fact that he’s just so young? ‘Young Buck’ is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #5 in the Green Valley Heroes series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

“We were helping one of our members celebrate a personal life event.” Buck nodded. “I got that from the big pink bunting that said Happy Divorce and the balloons that said The End of an Error.”

I just don’t think I can hold out for Mr. Right. My biological clock isn’t just ticking. It’s sending up flares.

Cougars are fortysomething women who date twentysomething men. Fiftysomethings are sabertooths. You’re a thirtysomething, which makes you a puma.

 

My Review:

 

I adored this amusing and wily tale, it sparkled with clever wit. The characters were smartly etched yet authentic and endearing, I wouldn’t mind spending more time with them and hope to see them again on a return trip to this quirky community. Each story thread was entertaining, well-developed, and flowed with ease. Ms. Blade is a smooth storyteller and held my attention from beginning to end.

 
 
 

About the Author

Amazon
 
 

Kilby Blades is a USA Today Bestselling author of Romance and Women’s Fiction. Her debut novel, Snapdragon, was a HOLT Medallion finalist, a Publisher’s Weekly BookLife Prize Semi-Finalist, and an IPPY Award medalist. Kilby was honored with an RSJ Emma Award for Best Debut Author in 2018 and has been lauded by critics for “easing feminism and equality into her novels” (IndieReader) and “writing characters who complement each other like a fine wine does a good meal” (Publisher’s Weekly).

During her career as a digital marketing executive, she moonlighted as a journalist, freelanced as a food, wine, and travel writer, and lived it up as an entertainment columnist. She has lived in five countries, visited more than twenty-five, and spends part of her year in her happy place in the Andes Mountains. Kilby is a feminist, an oenophile, a cinephile, a social-justice fighter, and above all else, a glutton for a good story. Follow her everywhere @kilbyblades.

 

 

Book Review: Muffin But Trouble (Donner Bakery #4) by Talia Hunter  @talia.hunter  @smartypantsromance

Muffin But Trouble
(Donner Bakery #4)
by Talia Hunter  

 

Amazon  / B&N /  BB

New Yorker, Magdalena Solis, is a city cynic to her core. But when she’s threatened by a thug who demands she pay her absent boyfriend’s debts, she flees to Green Valley, Tennessee. Bewildered by her rural surroundings, and harboring a serious aversion to beards and flannel, Mags is horrified when the first local she encounters is the scruffiest brute she’s ever seen.

Cy Baxter has a tortured past, a bad reputation, and facial hair like tumbleweed in a dust storm.

With troubles of his own, Cy vows to keep clear of the rude stranger who does nothing but insult him. But he has a heart as big as the wide-open countryside, and when an adorable stray dog brings the two together, sparks fly in the most unexpected ways.

Desperate to pay off her pursuer, Mags starts work at the Donner Bakery. And as Cy becomes a regular customer, his sweet tooth turns into a longing for something spicier.

But with the relentless thug hot on Mags’ trail, can these city-meets-country misfits find common ground? Or will their love story be as impossible as square dancing in stilettos?

‘Muffin But Trouble’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #4 in the Donner Bakery series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I was so far from fine, I’d lost sight of it completely.

Noah’s Southern drawl made it sound like he was speaking at half-speed. If time was money, everything he said would cost about twice as much as it should.

That woman’s cheese has slipped right off her cracker.

You can go inside and carry on with your regular business. Sharpen your fangs, or cook up some small children for your dinner. Don’t worry about me.

If gossip were gravy, that woman’s biscuits would never be dry.

Bonnie Linton likes to sweeten her tea with scandal.

If the devil likes to barbecue, he has my daddy on his fork.

 

My Review:

 

This was a total delight to read. I gleefully hummed and giggle-snorted my way through this cleverly penned and sassy tale. The characters were well-textured, quick-witted, and highly endearing while also complex and more than a bit damaged. I always enjoy my visits to the quirky community of Green Valley.

 

 

Talia Hunter likes to include her three favorite things in her novels: toe-curling romance, snort-laughs, and heart-warming friendships. She recently moved to Australia’s beautiful Gold Coast, where she’s constantly amazed and not at all freaked out by the weird and wonderful critters. When she’s not writing, you can usually find her with a glass of wine, a good book, at least one of her three cats, and a jumbo-sized can of bug spray.

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Book Review: Show Off (Juniper Ridge, #6) by Tawna Fenske @tawnafenskebooks

Show Off
(Juniper Ridge, #6)
by Tawna Fenske 

 

Amazon / B&N / GP/ Apple / BB

I wish I didn’t know how one heartbreak can smash your world to bits.

And really I wish I didn’t suspect it’s why there’s an edge to Lana’s sunshine smile. Hell, I wish I didn’t think of Lana at all.I’m busy busting ass to be the best—and yeah, grumpiest—chef around. There’s a reason I keep people at a distance. My evenings blur with butter and basil and helping my brother. Trying to forget how he wound up in a wheelchair. We’ve got our routine, and there’s no room for sweet smiles or blue eyes or… why is it so damn hot in here? The thing is, Lana spins stories as a PR goddess. I’m all for icing cookies, but sugarcoating the truth? Never. Directness is best, even if it means awkward dessert dates that are definitely not dates, and embarrassing chats with my dog. But one truth I’m terrified to face? I’m nuts for Lana. And the fallout could blow up our lives like a mug cake microwaved in a tin cup.

Lighthearted, grumpy-soft-for-sunshine steamy romance about a surly chef and the sunshiny little sister of a big, messy, loving family.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Cassidy looks from Dal to me. “I don’t know what’s happening, but I just got a contact high from the pheromones.”

I know I’m supposed to respect her as my co- parent and Soph’s stepmom, but sometimes I want to grab that woman by the hair and just drag her around like a ragdoll and then punch her in the face and spit on her crotch as I tell her she’s nothing but a cheap, trashy excuse for a— what?

My Review:

 

This was a delight to read from start to finish. I adored these characters, as I have all the previous couples featured in this quirky community. Lana and Dal are well-matched in every way. She has a passion for food, and potatoes in particular, and he is a creative chef primed to indulge her like no other can. Both are well-crafted with authentic foibles and idiosyncrasies. Tawna Fenske just gets better and better with each new tale.

About the Author 

Website 
Amazon
Goodreads
Facebook
Twitter 
Instagram

 

When Tawna Fenske finished her English lit degree at 22, she celebrated by filling a giant trash bag full of romance novels and dragging it everywhere until she’d read them all. Now she’s a RITA-nominated, USA Today bestselling author who writes humorous fiction, risqué romance, and heartwarming love stories with a quirky twist. Publishers Weekly has praised Tawna’s offbeat romances with multiple starred reviews and noted, “There’s something wonderfully relaxing about being immersed in a story filled with over-the-top characters in undeniably relatable situations. Heartache and humor go hand in hand.”

Tawna lives in Bend, Oregon, with her husband, stepkids, and a menagerie of ill-behaved pets. She loves hiking, snowshoeing, standup paddleboarding, and inventing excuses to sip wine on her back porch. She can peel a banana with her toes and loses an average of twenty pairs of eyeglasses per year. To find out more about Tawna and her books, visit www.tawnafenske.com.

 

 

Book Review: A Helping Hand for the Village Nurse by Tilly Tennant  @tillytennant6000  @bookouture

A Helping Hand for the Village Nurse
by Tilly Tennant

 

Amazon  / B&N / BB

Among the emerald hills of the Lake District sits the village of Thimblebury and Wordsworth Cottage, its garden bursting with wildflowers. It is the perfect place for village nurse Ottilie to make her brave new start…

Ottilie Oakcroft never thought she’d live in a place like Wordsworth Cottage. Nestled close to the river, her new home in the tiny village of Thimblebury means all her patients are just a stone’s throw from her front door. As they drop in for cups of tea and cosy chats she ignores all the jobs on her to-do list and gets to know her new neighbours.

Yet maybe keeping busy is just what Ottilie needs, even if she’s barely had a minute to unpack her suitcase. Heartbroken after the death of her husband Josh, as she offers advice and hot soup from her kitchen to the villagers who clearly need a helping hand, she starts to feel part of a community again.

But disaster strikes when a terrible storm causes the river to burst its banks and flood Ottilie’s ramshackle cottage. She has sunk every penny she has into what she’d hoped would be her forever home, and now she’s faced with the prospect of losing it.

But the villagers have other ideas. They can’t bear to lose Ottilie and they make a plan to save her house. Leading the effort is handsome Heath, and as he rolls up his sleeves to get involved in the repairs, he and Ottilie start to open up to each other. Ottilie tells him about her loss, and he shares the pain of a marriage that ended in heartbreak for him.

Ottilie hasn’t talked to anyone like this since Josh’s death and while it scares her, a tiny grain of hope begins to grow. Could Heath be the man to make her feel life is worth living again – not just for her patients, but for herself?

A completely beautiful and romantic read about healing after heartbreak and learning that the darkest clouds have a silver lining. Fans of Shari Low, Jessica Redland and Jo Bartlett will lose their hearts to A Helping Hand for the Village Nurse.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I can’t walk in there without it turning into an impromptu surgery, so I don’t bother. If I were you I’d avoid it for the same reason. You’ll be ordering a gin at the bar one minute and inspecting someone’s piles the next.

A good marriage too– better than most, I’d say. I’m very fond of him, especially at a distance. We meet up most nights for an hour or two, either at his or at mine, and then we go our separate ways.

My Review:

 

This was one of those rare, sweet, perceptively written, and gentle stories that I could thoroughly enjoy and even recommend to my elderly mother’s church lady book club. That doesn’t happen often. The entertaining storylines and well-honed writing style held my interest throughout, even though there weren’t any “naughty words” that my mother would need to take her Sharpie to and blacken out before passing the book off to her friends. The characters were endearing and knowable with just the right amount of quirk to be realistic as well as amusing. Tilly Tennant has mad skills and I’m sure even the most judgmental of the church lady biddies would agree.

 

About the Author

From a young age, Tilly Tennant was convinced that she was destined for the stage.  Once she realised she wasn’t actually very good at anything that would put her on the stage, she started to write stories instead. There were lots of terrible ones, like The Pet Rescue Gang (aged eight), which definitely should not see the light of day ever again. Thankfully, her debut novel, Hopelessly Devoted to Holden Finn was not one of those, and since it hit the Amazon best seller lists she hasn’t looked back. Born in Dorset, she currently lives in Staffordshire with her husband, two daughters, three guitars, four ukuleles, two violins and a kazoo.

Book Review: Band Together (Teachers’ Lounge #2) by Piper Sheldon   @pipersheldonauthor @smartypantsromance

Band Together
(Teachers’ Lounge #2)
by Piper Sheldon 

Leo Cooper is back in Green Valley to hide.

Not fall in love with the tenacious band director who’s determined to drag him into the light.

After being kicked out of his massively successful rock band, Leo is content to spend Bunco nights with his mom, lay low making snacks, and lick his wounds. He’d rather work in his garden than give any attention to his failed music career.
Cut to the gorgeous high school band director relentlessly popping up in his life, making demands, and talking about giving back to the community.

Mari Mitchell knows what it’s like to be overlooked. She’s determined to do whatever it takes to ensure her students get the best shot possible even if that means running herself ragged. And when a former rockstar returns to town, who could be better to help her favorite student make their dreams come true?

Does it matter that he’s a moody musician who reminds her of a handsome tragic hero of an old-timey movie?
NO!
She’s too busy for things like burning hot physical attraction and chemistry that won’t quit. She needs Leo for more than his irresistible drummer arms. No matter how amazing they feel wrapped around her…

But what nobody knows is that the hit to Leo’s pride was a big one, and Mari might be asking too much.

Can these two band together? Or will their painful pasts prevent them from having the future they deserve?

‘Band Together’ is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #2 in the Teachers’ Lounge series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

This was what happened when you got involved in things. You then had to leave the house and interact with people. Groaning, I rubbed my temples. How did people live like this?

I closed my eyes and wished I was a different person.

I wanted to dress up provocatively, and here I am stuck like a mummy who just woke up from a curse.

My heart felt like it might explode out of my chest with glitter and rainbows. But expressing any of that would definitely make it weird.

 

My Review:

 

I adored this clever and insightfully written tale from beginning to end. The storylines were chock-a-block full of quirky and complex characters who intrigued and beguiled me. Piper Sheldon has mad skills and serious writing chops.

 

Piper Sheldon writes Contemporary Romance and Paranormal Romance. Her books are a little funny, a lotta romantic, and with just a little twist of something more. She lives with her husband, daughter, and two needy dogs at home in the desert Southwest. She finds writing bios in the third person an extreme sport of awkwardness.

 

Book Review: Eyes Tight Shut (Detectives Kane and Alton #22) by D.K. Hood  @d.k.hood @bookouture

Eyes Tight Shut
(Detectives Kane and Alton #22)
by D.K. Hood

 

Amazon  / B&N / Apple / GP / BB

Her heart races as she waits for her date to arrive. When the doorbell rings, her excitement quickly turns to fear when she takes in her date’s menacing stare as he closes the door behind him. He’s not here to find love, and there’s no time to scream before her world goes black…

When Dakota Slade fails to turn up to work at the general store, Sheriff Jenna Alton and her deputy David Kane visit her home in Black Rock Falls. TV still blaring, Dakota’s lifeless body is draped across the battered old sofa, her dark hair hanging over her delicate face, her young life taken too soon. With a shuddering breath, Jenna notices two small scorch marks on the back of the victim’s neck. Dakota has been electrocuted.

Leaping into action, Jenna traces Dakota’s last steps but quickly hits a wall. Dakota went to church every week, helped at local charities, and she was loved by those around her. Why would anyone want to harm her?

Then another young woman is found dead in her living room, the same two burn marks on her neck. Jenna’s heart shatters. Convinced a twisted killer is preying on women who live alone, she fears another innocent soul will be taken soon.

A breakthrough comes when Jenna uncovers rumors of a sleazy customer who visited both victims at work. Watching CCTV footage, her pulse pounds as she looks at the screen. The man in the film is someone close to her, someone she thought she could trust. Can Jenna take down the killer if it’s someone she loves? And will she catch him in time to stop another vulnerable young woman being murdered?

Truly gripping and completely jaw-dropping, fans of Lisa Regan, Melinda Leigh and Kendra Elliot will not be able to put down this addictive crime thriller from USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author D.K. Hood.

**Each Kane and Alton book can be read as part of the series or as a standalone**

 

My Rating:

 

Favorite Quotes:

 

It’s like trying to climb the side of an iceberg. I keep slipping down and having to start again.

I felt like a kid in the principal’s office. I’m surprised he didn’t give me detention.

My Review:

 

This was a tense and prickly read that kept me picking at my cuticles and biting at my lips. I was loathe to put my Kindle down and attend to those pesky daily living requirements such as peopling, sustenance, and sleep, but even when I did, the conundrum of the story took up considerable head space with vivid ruminations. D.K. Hood must be quite a twisted sister to keep coming up with this stuff.

 

 

About the Author

D.K Hood is THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, USA TODAY, and #1 AMAZON MILLION COPY Bestselling Author of the Kane and Alton Series.

D.K’s spine chilling, fast paced serial killer thrillers revolve around Sheriff Jenna Alton and her ex- special forces Deputy, Dave Kane. As the main characters fight crime, their secret pasts are never far away. Set in and around the fictional backwoods town of Black Rock Falls, Montana, known locally as Serial Killer Central, D.K ‘s imagery takes the reader into the scenes with her. Given the title “Queen of Suspense” by her reviewers, D.K ‘s writing style offers her readers a movie style, sizzling fast thrill ride.

 

Book Review: Mystery on Meadowsweet Grove (An Eve Mallow Mystery Book 12) by Clare Chase @clarechaseauthor @bookouture

Mystery on Meadowsweet Grove
(An Eve Mallow Mystery Book 12)
by Clare Chase

Saxford St Peter is having an open gardens day! But one of the villagers has murder, not marigolds, in mind… And now Eve Mallow needs to unearth a killer.

Everyone in Saxford is delighted when jeweller Cleo Marbeck suggests a prize for the village’s best garden. Flowers are planted, grass is cut, and the competition is on. But the event only digs up dirt… Twenty-five years ago, a young woman fell to her death in Cleo’s house, and rumours soon resurface about Cleo’s part in the tragedy.

Eve’s best friend Viv is hosting Stevie, her son’s fiancée, ahead of the wedding. On the open garden day, Stevie has a horrible flashback: the memory of a woman lying at the bottom of a staircase. But she sees it in a totally different house from the one where Honor died…

Hours later Cleo’s body is found, drowned in her own pond. Almost everyone in Saxford has been in and out of her garden, sowing suspicion everywhere. But Eve is convinced the flashback has triggered the crime… and when the police turn their sights on Stevie, she’ll have to work fast to solve the case and save the wedding.

So who wanted Cleo in the ground? The son of the woman who died, out for revenge? The employee passed over for promotion? Her long-term lover, who she refused to marry? And why do so many suspects live on Meadowsweet Grove?

When someone else takes a tumble downstairs, Eve knows she’s close to grubbing up the truth. But can she catch the killer or is she heading for a fatal fall?

A page-turning and completely charming English cozy mystery, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Faith Martin and Sarah Yarwood-Lovett.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

Perspective was everything. One person’s idol was another’s villain.

My Review:

 

This was a busy and cleverly contrived story with a plethora of story threads and a confounding mystery that the little pea in my brain was hard-pressed to solve on its own. I always enjoy Ms. Chase’s writing style and original characters, the story was easy to follow and held my attention while prickling my curiosity.

The murder victim was not well liked, by anyone anywhere. She was guilty of shady practices and many villagers had good reason for doing her in. I wondered if it would lead to a similar situation as Murder on the Orient Express, but alas, Ms. Chase has bested me yet again.

 

 

About the Author

Clare Chase writes classic mysteries. Her aim is to take readers away from it all via some armchair sleuthing in atmospheric locations.

Her debut novel was shortlisted for Novelicious’s Undiscovered Award, as well as an EPIC award post-publication, and was chosen as a Debut of the Month by LoveReading. Murder on the Marshes (Tara Thorpe 1) was shortlisted for an International Thriller Writers award.

Like her heroines, Clare is fascinated by people and what makes them tick. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked in settings as diverse as Littlehey Prison and the University of Cambridge, in her home city. She’s lived everywhere from the house of a lord to a slug-infested flat and finds the mid-terrace she currently occupies a good happy medium.

As well as writing, Clare loves family time, art and architecture, cooking, and of course, reading other people’s books.

You can find Clare’s website and blog at www.clarechase.com

Social Media

Book Review: I Thought of You by Jewel E. Ann    @authorjeweleann   @valentine_pr_

I Thought of You
by Jewel E. Ann

Amazon  / B&N /  BB

 

I wanted to conquer the world.

She wanted to gaze at the stars.

It’s been twelve years since I last saw Scottie Rucker. A grim prognosis has upended my life, and no amount of my hard-earned money can fix it. So, after leaving a note on the nightstand, I search for my first love—I search for life.

When I find her in Austin, working at a quaint general store and living in an RV behind it, those twelve years vanish. She’s exactly how I remember her.

Scottie thinks our reunion is a small-world coincidence, and I’m not ready to tell her the truth. After we rekindle our friendship, she convinces me to work part-time at the store while she pursues her budding relationship with Koen, a welder and the grandson of a customer.

Scottie’s ability to live in the moment is exactly what I need. But how do I convince her new boyfriend that I’m not his competition? And what happens if my heart changes its mind?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Stop interrupting the universe.

What is falafel anyway? Isn’t it like lamb balls?

He eyes me with wonder, the good kind, where I can imagine great possibilities running amuck in his mind. And I know this because it’s how I look at him.

I spent entirely too much time thinking about you when we weren’t together. And when we were together, I resented the passing of time.

…if you find someone who loves you for you, and you love them for who they are, then you’ve found what everyone else is looking for.

I don’t know what we are, but it’s all I have, so I don’t try to define it because the easiest way to lose things is by labeling them— devaluing them with the simplicity of a word.

 

My Review:

 

I loved this tale, it turned me inside out and had me picking at my cuticles, but I loved every clever turn, quirky character, and unexpected change of direction. Jewel E. Ann is a wily minx with exceptional word voodoo. Her magical arrangements of words always seem to suck me into the most unusual of vortexes with complicated and heart-squeezing character situations that I would never foresee, yet they make sense in the end. I am enamored with, and totally in awe of, her witty and cleverly bewitching storytelling.

 Jewel is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today best-selling author with a quirky sense of humor. When she’s not saving the planet one tree at a time, you can find her role modeling questionable behavior to her three boys, binge-watching Netflix with her husband, and writing mind-bending romance. 

Book Review: Quiet Types (Quiet Love Book 1) by L.H. Cosway     @l.h.cosway @greyspromo

Quiet Types
(Quiet Love Book 1)
by L.H. Cosway 

 

Amazon  / BB

 

Maggie Lydon rides the bus to her cleaning job every day. It’s an ordinary existence until she notices him sitting just two rows behind her. She doesn’t know his name, nor anything about him. All she knows is that he watches her and it’s the most exciting part of her week.

 

Shay Riordan notices her the very first time he takes the bus. She’s captivating, a beauty who moves through the world like no one else can see her, but she’s far from invisible to him. He wants to sit next to her, introduce himself, but it’s hard to do when you can’t speak.

 

Then, late one Friday evening they both board the bus, and an unexpected occurrence plunges Maggie into Shay’s world, and Shay into Maggie’s.

 

Quiet Types is a standalone contemporary romance and is book #1 in L.H. Cosway’s Quiet Love Series.

 

 Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I wondered what it must feel like to be so powerful and rich no one dared disrespect you. That would never be me. Not only had I started two feet below the bottom rung of the ladder, but I also lacked the ruthless ambition to climb higher.

I’ve been quiet in a world full of sound.

He saw me when, to most of the world, I was invisible. Up until that point, I thought I liked things that way, but now that I was experiencing the sensation of being seen, I realised all that I’d been missing out on.

I always imagined Mr Oaks as someone who didn’t want to know about the live human being who cleaned his apartment. He’d prefer to imagine invisible pixies came in on Mondays and set everything to rights.

Often others saw my mutism as a weakness, something that held me back, but over the years, I realised it could be a superpower, too. People couldn’t draw me into petty arguments, couldn’t use sly conversational tactics to get me to lose face. In those situations, my silence was a strength, more powerful than a witty comeback or wry retort. It made cruel or mean people look like blithering idiots as they talked and talked while I remained a stoic wall of silence.

Talking is such a shallow way to interact now that I’ve known you, Shay. It’s like comparing greyscale to colour. You engage with others on a deeper level. I felt it from the very first time our eyes met. You pulled me into your orbit without ever needing to utter a word.

 

My Review:

 

This was an impressively perceptive tale that was thoughtfully written with heart-squeezing poignancy, keenly honed observations, and surprising insights that placed me not only in the characters’ vortex but within their skins. I had never stopped to consider the aspects of mutism this deeply.

The storylines were well-contrived and engaging while populated with authentic and original main characters who quietly existed within their rather meager life space. Shay was a lovely character who saw Maggie as a stunning beauty, while she saw herself as anything but as she was quite anxious, self-conscious, insecure, easily wounded, and highly vulnerable after a lifetime of maternal neglect and emotional abuse and a childhood of schoolyard bullying. I found myself deeply invested in both main characters throughout perusal and continued to mull their story long after reaching the end.

 

About the Author

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L.H. Cosway lives in Dublin, Ireland. Her inspiration to write comes from music. Her favourite things in life include writing stories, vintage clothing, dark cabaret music, food, musical comedy, and of course, books. She thinks that imperfect people are the most interesting kind. They tell the best stories. L.H. is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.