Heart of Ice by Lisa Edmonds – a Review

Description:
Discover Alice. Private Investigator of the Supernatural.

Even the coldest hearts can burn…

After closing a big case for the Vampire Court, mage private investigator Alice Worth is relieved to be back solving magical mysteries with her ghost sidekick Malcolm and spending quality time with sexy alpha werewolf Sean. Her latest case puts her on the trail of a burglary ring targeting wealthy collectors of magical objects. Meanwhile, Alice’s grandfather, crime lord Moses Murphy, fights a local boss for control of the city. Soon a new danger emerges: Moses’s new lieutenant is someone Alice knows and this is one family reunion she wants to avoid at all costs.

When Sean is injured as a result of her investigation, Alice faces the wrath of his pack and finds herself in a carefully laid trap. To save the city from Moses and his lieutenant, she risks capture by her grandfather and unimaginable torture at his hands. To save Sean, she risks losing everything she’s fought so hard to gain. But Alice has never backed down from anything in her life and she’s not about to start now…

Review:

“Little by little, one step at a time, I was freeing myself from my past and the fortress I’d built for myself.”

Alice is back at it with mage magic, a PI license (currently employed by the Vampire court), a budding romance she’s savoring, but trying her hardest not to foul up, and evading the ever present danger that is her grandfather. Heart of Ice by Lisa Edmonds, book 3 in the Alice Worth series, displays a prowess in heart and soul, and the ice she inexorably wields like a second skin; on demand to defend herself. Another win in my opinion, another anxious wait for book 4.

Alice is working hard. When busy infiltrating hate groups to expose their anti-“supe” sentiment, she’s retrieving magical artifacts imbued with volatile power. Naturally, this innate ability of hers rankles those of “lesser means” and makes Alice the target of revenge. All part of the job, she thinks. Not so much for those who love her. This particular foe is a weaponized adversary and Alice’s protection becomes monumentally important for Sean, her werewolf beau and Charles, the vampire who’d love to be on the receiving end of her passions. When the posturing ends, both Charles and Sean scramble to outshine the other, you wonder where Alice’s heart really lies. While I’m definitely pro-vampire, Sean’s a genuinely good guy (kinda like how Peeta was good for Katniss). Alice has been fiercely independent for so long, however, Sean may end up as collateral damage; choices forcing her hand. It’s heartening to see Alice embrace her developing relationship, she genuinely feels deeply for Sean, but it may prove to be too secure in an all too insecure environment.

As the girlfriend of the alpha, pack politics are a bit more stifling than Alice anticipated and it’s really getting old being stared down and snarled at as a sign of displeasure. Those in the pack who resent her non-shifter status can just suck it! Of course that reaction is on the down-low because Alice can’t disrupt or interfere in Sean’s inner circle. Investigative work, retrieving ancient magical artifacts, and finding a place within the shifter community all tend to be harrowing and detrimental to Alice’s anonymity, which is paramount to her success as Alice Worth.

I’d previously drawn similarities between Alice and a few popular fictional characters, but allow me to declare that Alice is “Worth”-y and simply a strong ass hero. Not only can she defend herself, and others, in physical combat, and magical strengths (her spellwork is tantalizing to the senses), but she can make the toughest decisions, those of the heart, to protect the ones she loves. This comes at great cost to her, the safety of her dearest and cherished few.

I’ve said too much and not enough. I’m so happy to have started this series! Alice is always balancing happiness and duty. She will sacrifice as she sees fit, but hopes to maintain those close relationships…should they start to falter. It’s easier to ask forgiveness than permission? Oh, oh. The usually-far-from-tight noose has found its mark and Alice finds herself too exposed. How neutral will Sean be if Alice calls in vampire allies to curtail threats? I’m first in line to inhale those unfolding events. I love Alice Worth!

Reviewed by Carmen

Copy supplied for review

Heart of Ice by P.J. Parrish – a Review

Heart of Ice by P.J. Parrish is my first time reading this series, as well as the author. This series is a detective mystery, with each book about the hero, Louis Kincaid. Other then the In-Death series, I have not been reading too much of this type of books this year. However, I have to say I totally enjoyed this book, and was very very impressed with the two sisters writing team that makes up P.J. Parrish.

Description:
Florida PI Louis Kincaid wants to wear a badge again. But before he can, he must return home to Michigan— and some unfinished business. He hopes to bond with ten-year-old Lily, the daughter he only recently learned existed, and reunite with girlfriend Joe Frye. But new clues to an unsolved murder put his plans on ice. A trip with Lily to enchanting Mackinac Island turns grim when the child falls on a pile of old bones; the dangerous discovery reopens the cold case of Julie Chapman, a teenager from one of the wealthy summer families, who vanished two decades ago. And when Louis is forced to cooperate with a tough state investigator who once worked with Joe, tensions skyrocket. Now, what was supposed to be a time of building lasting ties splinters into disturbing fragments, personally and professionally, as Louis pursues a mystery entangled in dark family secrets and twists even he can’t predict

Review:

Right from the start, we meet our hero, Louis Kincaid, who is a former cop, and now a Private Investigator. Louis is determined to get his badge back, but before he applies, he takes his newly discovered young daughter, Lily, on a trip to Mackinac Island in Michigan, to have some quality time with her. This is Louis first time alone with his daughter, and he is very nervous. While they are taking a bicycle ride around the island, Lily goes further ahead, and Louis can’t find her. He discovers that she went into an old cabin, and finds that she fell through the rotted floor boards, on top of some old bones. Lily turns out ok, with a broken arm, but Louis now gets himself involved with a murder mystery from 20 years ago.

Lily leaves to go back home to her mom, and Louis, being an experienced former cop, and PI, is asked by the local police chief for his help, and stays on the island. We are also introduced to Rafsky, the investigator sent to handle this high profile cold case.

Parrish does a wonderful job creating such interesting and real characters. Kincaid, though having his own insecurity issues, is a compassionate and thorough investigator. We meet his girlfriend, Joe, who is also a sheriff in another town. Rafsky is a troubled and burned out detective, who comes across as withdrawn, unfriendly, and causes friction between him and both Kincaid and the police chief; not to mention he knows Joe, from another case many years ago.

But the main part of this story, besides the great characters, is this murder mystery; Twenty years ago, Julie Chapman disappeared, and everyone concludes the bones found belong to her. What ensues is a mystery of trying to solve a cold case, with so many twists along the way. You will be guessing who the murderer is, and change your mind often. Julie came from a wealthy powerful family, which makes the case that much harder. At every step, something new is found, bringing in more suspects, as well as misleading evidence.

We learn a lot more of Julie Chapman, and why she was in the cabin in the woods. This was a fantastic story, and from the beginning you are hooked. It is impossible to read this, and skip anything, because if you do, you may miss something that could change the game, and there are so many twists. I will not give out any spoilers, only to say the end was an exciting & fantastic finish, with amazing surprises along the way. The wonderful writing team of P. J. Parrish does such a wonderful job with this book, as it is so well done, with the story flowing so smoothly. If you want a good mystery, that has you pushing to finish and find the resolution, then Heart of Ice is perfect for you. I am happy to have discovered this author, and will continue this series.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

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Heart of Ice by Lisa Edmonds – a Review

Heart of Ice by Lisa Edmonds – a Review

Heart of Ice by P.J. Parrish – a Review

Heart of Ice by P.J. Parrish – a Review