Tag Archives: Mystery

Wired by Julie Garwood – Review & Giveaway

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Wired by Julie Garwood – Review & Giveaway

 

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WiredAmazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM / Book Depository

Description:
A beautiful computer hacker and a bad-boy FBI agent must collaborate—in more ways than one—in the sizzling new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Julie Garwood.

Allison Trent doesn’t look like a hacker. In fact, when she’s not in college working on her degree, she models on the side. But behind her gorgeous face is a brilliant mind for computers and her real love is writing—and hacking—code. Her dream is to write a new security program that could revolutionize the tech industry.

Hotshot FBI agent Liam Scott has a problem: a leak deep within his own department. He needs the skills of a top-notch hacker to work on a highly sensitive project: to secretly break into the FBI servers and find out who the traitor is. But he can’t use one of his own. He finds the perfect candidate in Allison. Only, there’s one problem—she wants nothing to do with his job and turns him down flat.

What Liam doesn’t know is that Allison is hiding secrets that she doesn’t want the FBI to uncover. But Liam will do nearly anything to persuade her to join his team, even break a few rules if that’s what it takes. A temptation that could put his job—and both of their futures—on the line…
and longing for more . . .

 

 

Review:

Wired by Julie Garwood is the 13th book in her Buchanan/FBI series.   I am a big fan of Julie Garwood, and I am happy to say that I loved Wired.  What makes this story fun to read, were the two lead characters, Allison Trent and Liam Scott.   I loved both of them.   The story line was also exciting, fun and with the two wonderfully likable characters, it was a fast fun read.

Allison Trent, our heroine, is a college student by day, a part time model, and a hacker at night.  Allison is a genius, and can find bugs, break viruses or stop hacks and writes her own security programs.   Allison visits the FBI’s new cyber building with her friend Jordan , but while there she is approached by two men who want her to work for them to find a leak in the FBI. 

Liam Scott, our hero, is an FBI agent, who has researched and discovered Allison.  Liam does not work for the Cyber division, but he recognizes that Allison is the one who will be able to find the leak, which has been stopping some of their key investigations.  At first Allison refuses, as they want a commitment of a year.  She is also afraid that they will discover how easy it is for her to get into any computer system, even if she only fixes bugs, or helps find and return millions of dollars scammed from seniors.  But Liam will arrange for Allison to have immunity, as they need her to work on this sensitive project, which thus far has been impossible. 

As Liam slowly fights off his attraction to the smart, tough, beautiful Allison, he learns about her rough life.  When Allison mother and father died years before; she and her sister were forced to live with their aunt and uncle.  They used Allison to do modeling work, and would take all her money.  They were really nasty people, who badgered her constantly with phone calls.  

Rather than give spoilers, what follows is a wonderful story that blends an exciting storyline that threatens Allison, as well as the threats from her relatives; but it is also such a sweet romance that will develop between Allison and Liam.  This was a fun story, and Allison was such a great heroine.  Liam was also good, as he was always there for Allison, even when he was determined to not let his growing feelings change anything in his life.

Wired was a wonderful fast exciting, fun read, with a great couple, some humor and nasty villains.  Julie Garwood once again gives us another wonderful enjoyable story.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

giveaway

Julie Garwood’s publisher is offering a hard copy of WIRED to ONE (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe

1. If you have not previously registered at The Reading Cafe, please register by using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.

NOTE: If you are having difficulty commenting after logging onto the site, please refresh the page at the top of your computer

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7. Giveaway is open to USA only

8. Giveaway runs from July 4 to 8, 2017

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The Child by Fiona Barton – Review & Tour

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The Child by Fiona Barton – Review & Tour

 

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Description:
As an old house is demolished in a gentrifying section of London, a workman discovers a tiny skeleton, buried for years. For journalist Kate Waters, it’s a story that deserves attention. She cobbles together a piece for her newspaper, but at a loss for answers, she can only pose a question: Who is the Building Site Baby?

As Kate investigates, she unearths connections to a crime that rocked the city decades earlier: A newborn baby was stolen from the maternity ward in a local hospital and was never found. Her heartbroken parents were left devastated by the loss.

But there is more to the story, and Kate is drawn—house by house—into the pasts of the people who once lived in this neighborhood that has given up its greatest mystery. And she soon finds herself the keeper of unexpected secrets that erupt in the lives of three women—and torn between what she can and cannot tell…

 

 

Review:

The Child by Fiona Barton is a psychological thriller.   I have read quite of few psychological thrillers this year, with many of them simply ok reads, with the authors using the same multi character POV’s, which can get confusing.  The Child started off a bit slow and somewhat confusing with multiple POV’s and I thought “here we go again”.  But things changed about a ¼ into the story, when it caught hold of me, and I could not let go; that being said, I loved The Child.

The story revolves around the discovery of a baby’s skeleton on a construction site of a torn down building.  Kate Waters, an investigative reporter, sees the notice about the finding of the “Building Site Baby” and decides to do some investigating.  The POV’s of this story are Kate; Emma and Angela, with a 4th, Jude, having an occasional narration. 

As Kate does her investigation, she will indirectly become involved with the other two ladies.  Angela gave birth to a girl over 20 years ago, only to have her child stolen out of the hospital room.  Angela and her husband Nick, have been living a nightmare all these years, especially in the beginning when Angela was an initial suspect. Emma is young lady who is emotionally disturbed, which was caused by nightmares from her harsh childhood.  Emma used to live with her mother, Jude, near the site where the baby was found.    

Kate is in the center of this novel, as she makes discoveries along the way that will bring her into contact with various people, including those who lived near the site all those years before.  When the body has been identified as having been buried for decades, Kate will find herself researching missing children from that time period.  This will bring her to Angela and her missing baby, Alice.  When DNA confirms the child is Alice, both Angela and Nick feel they finally have closure.  Then a strange turn of events will open the door for further investigation, as the lab informs the authorities that the things wrapped around the burial of the body was only 10 years old.  Was the baby’s body moved? Will Angela get closure?

The story becomes exciting & intense as Kate’s in depth investigation will come across more secrets along the way.  Emma’s emotional stability plays a major part of the ongoing story, which will introduce us to many of the other characters we get to meet, all whom were living near the site a decade earlier.  I loved the character of Kate, who was an awesome and caring reporter.  Her persistence and determination will help bring out the truths.

Once we get past the first quarter, which leads the way into meeting the main characters, it was such a captivating story.  I could not put the book down, as I needed to know what happened. What a tangled web it weaves.  To tell too much more would be spoilers.

The Child was an awesome thriller, with some great characters, and many amazing twists.  Fiona Barton has written a fantastic story, and I loved how things came to a very good and satisfactory conclusion.  Certainly not like most the psychological thrillers we have read that leave things to the imagination.  If you enjoy thrillers, The Child is a must read.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

THE CHILD by Fiona Barton

*One of Publishers Weekly and Bustle’s Most Anticipated Books of 2017*

*A TIME “Top 10” Summer Thriller*

*Pre-publication exclusives featured by Entertainment Weekly and theSkimm*

*Praise from Lee Child, Shari Lapena, and Clare Mackintosh *

*Starred Reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal*

*A June 2017 Library Reads Selection*

 

Fiona Barton credit Jenny LewisThis summer FIONA BARTON is back with a second novel that proves lightning can strike twice.

Barton’s 2016 debut, The Widow, was an instant global bestseller, captivating readers around the world and setting the publishing industry abuzz.

The highly-anticipated release of THE CHILD (Berkley Hardcover; June 27, 2017) reaffirms Barton’s growing reputation as a writer of rich, character-driven suspense novels. Like Tana French, Louise Penny, and Megan Abbott, Barton’s stories do more than thrill: they explore the complexities of a changing world.

The Widow delved into the secrets that exist within a marriage and the reporter’s role as voyeur. Here Barton continues to mine those themes. THE CHILD tackles the 24/7 news cycle, and lays bare the intricacies of a different but equally fascinating relationship—mother and child.

Says Barton: “The emotions, responsibilities—and the pain—of motherhood are unique to each of us with children. Ask any woman and she will have her own story to tell.”

In a working class neighborhood of London, construction workers make a grisly discovery: the long-buried remains of a baby. When a newspaper mention reveals the find, most readers barely give it a glance. But for two women, its threat to unearth hidden stories is impossible to ignore. For veteran reporter, Kate Waters (introduced in The Widow), it sparks the question “Who would bury a baby?” and starts a hunt for the truth about the nameless child. The story unfolds via the women’s alternating perspectives to eventually reveal: Who is Building Site Baby?

In fact, it was the allure of a hidden story that propelled Barton to her long-time career in news. A journalist and British Press Awards “Reporter of the Year,” she has worked at the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph, and brings that experience to bear in her novels.

In THE CHILD she details how Kate’s lengthy investigation into Building Site Baby’s death represents a perilous breach of the newsroom’s new culture of 24/7 online news. Says Barton: “The danger for Kate is that she risks becoming one of the dinosaurs—sidelined because she is unable and unwilling to be part of the revolution. And I feel for her.”

Though THE CHILD delivers an evocative look at the changing face of journalism, and a delicious plot twist, it is the characters’ haunting and rich emotional lives that set Barton apart and confirm her stature as a crime novelist of the first order.

Visit Fiona Barton online at fionabartonauthor.com and on Twitter @figbarton. Join the conversation using #TheChild.

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Up In The Pines by Katie Jennings – a Review

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Up In The Pines by Katie Jennings – a Review

 

Up in the PinesAmazon / B&N

Description:
Deep in the mountains of Montana, Deputy Lark Galloway discovers a body. Despite being nothing more than bones, she connects the remains to a resident who disappeared twenty years earlier. As she unravels the dead man’s history to solve his murder, someone tries desperately to throw her off the scent. Meanwhile, famed Hollywood screenwriter Sawyer Matheson returns to town to escape his cheating fiancé, only to find himself at the heart of Lark’s investigation. Sparks fly as things heat up between Lark and Sawyer, but nothing can prepare her for the earth-shattering truth behind the body in the pines.

 

 

Review:

Up in the Pines by Katie Jennings is a standalone romance suspense thriller.  Up in the Pines takes place in a small town in Montana, where we meet Deputy Lark Galloway, our heroine.  A decaying body is discovered by a tourist, and when Lark surveys the scene, she knows it was murder.  The lab will confirm that the body has been buried approximately 20 years.   Lark will find herself, and the detective team researching missing persons back in that time period.

Sawyer Matheson, our hero, returns home to his deceased father’s house after having left years before.  Sawyer is now a successful and famous screenwriter, who comes home to get away from the media hounding him over his split with a famous actress, whom he found in bed with another man.  Sawyer will meet Lark, who lives in a cabin nearby, and thinks she looks familiar.   Lark, of course, knows who the famous Sawyer is, and remembers having a crush on him in high school.

What follows is a complex murder investigation that will become difficult to solve, especially with the element of time having passed.  Lark will work with the lead detective and learn the identity of the victim, which will bring out a few possible suspects.   When Lark’s partner is attacked and left for dead, she knows the danger is escalating, as the murderer is still alive and trying to stop the investigation.

Sawyer, whose mother ran away years before, will begin to help Lark in the investigation, in the hope he will learn why she left.  In a short time, their romance will begin to heat up, and they made a sweet couple.  Lark felt that there was no future, as he would go back to California; but Sawyer begins to see value in staying in his old home town.   But first they must survive, and a murderer must be caught.

This is a difficult review, because saying too much more would be spoilers.  Up in the Pines was an excellent “whodunit” with many twists and surprises.  Just when you thought you knew who it was, the next breath things turned another way.   Katie Jennings did a wonderful job keeping us glued to our seats, unable to put the book down.  The last third of the book was non-stop action, intense and very exciting.  If you love mysteries, thrillers, and a great couple, then you should read Up in the Pines.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for review

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An Unnatural Vice/ An Unseen Attraction (Sins of the Cities 1 & 2) by KJ Charles-Reviews

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An Unnatural Vice / An Unseen Attraction (Sins of the Cities 1 & 2) by KJ Charles-Reviews

An Unnatural Vice

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AN UNNATURAL VICE ( Sins of the Cities #2) by KJ Charles

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 6, 2017

In the sordid streets of Victorian London, unwanted desire flares between two bitter enemies brought together by a deadly secret.

Crusading journalist Nathaniel Roy is determined to expose spiritualists who exploit the grief of bereaved and vulnerable people. First on his list is the so-called Seer of London, Justin Lazarus. Nathaniel expects him to be a cheap, heartless fraud. He doesn’t expect to meet a man with a sinful smile and the eyes of a fallen angel—or that a shameless swindler will spark his desires for the first time in years.

Justin feels no remorse for the lies he spins during his séances. His gullible clients simply bore him. Hostile, disbelieving, utterly irresistible Nathaniel is a fascinating challenge. And as their battle of wills and wits heats up, Justin finds he can’t stop thinking about the man who’s determined to ruin him.

But Justin and Nathaniel are linked by more than their fast-growing obsession with one another. They are both caught up in an aristocratic family’s secrets, and Justin holds information that could be lethal. As killers, fanatics, and fog close in, Nathaniel is the only man Justin can trust—and, perhaps, the only man he could love.

••••••••••

REVIEW: AN UNNATURAL VICE is the second installment in KJ Charles’s adult, Victorian, historical Sins of the Cities M/M romance, murder-mystery series. This is journalist and former lawyer Nathaniel Roy, and Seer of London Justin Lazarus’s story line. AN UNNATURAL VICE can be read as a stand alone but for cohesion and backstory I recommend reading the series in order as there is an ongoing premise and plot throughout the series. Some of the events of An Unnatural Vice cross over and run parallel to the events of book one-An Unseen Attraction

NOTE: AN UNNATURAL VICE and the SINS OF THE CITIES series contain scenes of M/M sexual situations and may not be suitable for all readers.

Told from dual third person points of view (Justin and Nathaniel) AN UNNATURAL VICE follows the enemies to lovers relationship between the Seer of London (Medium) Justin Lazarus, and journalist Nathaniel Roy. Nathaniel’s latest assignment is to uncover the truth behind self-proclaimed Seer Justin Lazarus-a proclamation Nathaniel is determined to prove fraudulent and deceitful. But Justin has information that could prove helpful to Nathaniel’s friend Clem Talleyfer (An Unseen Attraction #1) as the group of friends endeavors to find the missing heir to the Taillefer fortune and title holder to the Earl of Moreton. What ensues are Justin and Nathaniel’s attempts to stay one step ahead of the people hired to destroy any evidence of an heir, and Justin and Nathaniel’s growing love between two people whose lives follow different paths towards the future.

The relationship between Nathaniel and Justin is slow to build. Their acrimonious but tepid friendship requires cooperation when Justin is targeted by someone in control; Nathaniel is determined to protect the man with whom he is falling in love sweeping his lover to a secreted location fearing for their lives. The $ex scenes are intimate and provocative without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

AN UNNATURAL VICE follows the search for the missing heir, although most of the investigation is behind the scenes as the story line focuses on our leading couple. The requisite evil has many faces but the ultimate villain has yet to be revealed.

The world building continues to look at the friendships and relationships of a group of ‘gay’ men in Victorian, England although AN UNNATURAL VICE primarily focuses on Nathaniel and Justin’s struggle to stay alive. Once again, the tone of the story is not conducive to the era or the time-I was expecting a tighter interpretation of the language e.g. euphemisms, slang, sentence structure, and because of this, the story line reads more modern than historic (see my review of book one). The back and forth banter between Justin and Nathaniel is witty and entertaining. The premise is much more detailed and descriptive than the first installment as the author brings to life the dreary and wretched world of Victorian England; the characters are colorful and dynamic although I would have liked more information about Nathaniel’s earlier years; the romance is seductive and intense. AN UNNATURAL VICE is an entertaining story line; a fast paced and intriguing story of mystery, suspense, romance and love.

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

________________

AN UNSEEN ATTRACTION
(Sins of the City #1)
by K.J.Charles
Genre: adult, Victorian, M/M, historical romance

An Unseen AttractionABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 21, 2017

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

Lodging-house keeper Clem Talleyfer prefers a quiet life. He’s happy with his hobbies, his work—and especially with his lodger Rowley Green, who becomes a friend over their long fireside evenings together. If only neat, precise, irresistible Mr. Green were interested in more than friendship…

Rowley just wants to be left alone—at least until he meets Clem, with his odd, charming ways and his glorious eyes. Two quiet men, lodging in the same house, coming to an understanding… it could be perfect. Then the brutally murdered corpse of another lodger is dumped on their doorstep and their peaceful life is shattered.

Now Clem and Rowley find themselves caught up in a mystery, threatened on all sides by violent men, with a deadly London fog closing in on them. If they’re to see their way through, the pair must learn to share their secrets—and their hearts.

•••••••••••

REVIEW: AN UNSEEN ATTRACTION is the first installment in KJ Charles’s adult, SINS OF THE CITY Victorian, M/M, historical romance, murder-mystery series. This is lodging-house keeper Clem Talleyfer, and stuffer (taxidermist) Rowley Green’s story line.

NOTE: AN UNSEEN ATTRACTION contains scenes of M/M sexual situations and may not be suitable for all readers.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Clem and Rowley) AN UNSEEN ATTRACTION follows two paths and focuses on the forbidden relationship between two men: lodging-house keeper Clem Talleyfer, and taxidermist Rowley Green. The year is 1873, and Clem Talleyfer manages, on behalf of his brother, a lodging house for single men. Enter Rowley Green, the local taxidermist, and the man who has caught the eye of the lodging-house manager. When one of the tenants disappears and is found dead several days later, Clem and Rowley face the wrath of not only the local law enforcement but Clem’s brother as well. What ensues is the investigation into the who, what and why, and the building but forbidden love between two men caught in a game of secrets and lies.

AN UNSEEN ATTRACTION is a slow building story line; a murder /mystery plot where our leading couple find themselves targeted for reasons unknown. As the investigation grows, so too does the realization that the person(s) responsible is all too familiar to the lodging house manager.

The relationship between Clem and Rowley is one of immediate attraction but the fear of the unknown and public scrutiny have kept their relationship at a slow burn for several months. When Rowley invites Clem for an evening out, Clem soon realizes that his attraction to the local taxidermist is one of mutual want and need. The $ex scenes are intimate and seductive without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

AN UNSEEN ATTRACTION is, first and foremost, a story of murder, mystery and suspense. Clem and Rowley’s backstories are heartbreaking; family history is something no one wants to share. The slow reveal of clues is well paced; the identity of the person ultimately responsible was (for me) easily deduced early on. The language and text is simple; the tone of the story is not conducive to the era or the time-I was expecting a tighter interpretation of the language e.g. euphemisms, slang, sentence structure, and because of this, the story line reads more modern than historic. The premise is entertaining; the characters are colorful and energetic; the romance is sweet and seductive.

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Reviewed by Sandy

About The author

Follow: Twitter / Facebook / Website / Goodreads /

KJ Charles is a writer and freelance editor. She lives in London with her husband, two kids, an out-of-control garden and an increasingly murderous cat.

KJ writes mostly romance, gay and straight, frequently historical, and usually with some fantasy or horror in there. She specialises in editing romance, especially historical and fantasy, and also edits children’s fiction.

Find her on Twitter @kj_charles or on Facebook, join her Facebook group

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HUSH GIRL : It’s Only a Dream by Gloria Zachgo – a Review

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HUSH GIRL : It’s Only a Dream by Gloria Zachgo – a Review

 

Hush GirlAmazon

Description:
While Nicki Reed is desperate to find the answers to her past, someone is desperate for her to never remember.
Shortly after her father died, Nicki’s nightmares started. They were soon followed by panic attacks. Suspecting her haunting dreams were related to her childhood, Nicki sought professional help, but Nicki was unable to verbalize any memories she had as a child. Bad things happened when she told secrets.
When her therapist suggested she write her memories, Nicki started remembering things she had pushed far into the recesses of her mind. She started to doubt her own sanity, and when she began to see a strange woman stalking her, she couldn’t be sure if that woman was real or imagined. Yet, Nicki couldn’t tell anyone, until—her own family’s welfare was threatened.


Review:

Hush Girl, It’s Only a Dream is a new mystery thriller by author Gloria Zachgo. It’s a psychological thriller detailing the issue of overcoming abuse as a child and dealing with the mystery of murder(s).

This dark, but thrilling, tale relates the issues of Nichole Reed (Nicki), who is beginning to see a therapist about panic attacks, insomnia, and weeping bouts. She didn’t seem to be able to verbalize with anyone about the issues or causes of her problems.

Since she couldn’t talk about the issues, the therapist had her try to write her memories, dreams and thought in a notebook. An interesting aspect of the treatment.

Nicki and her husband Matt had two wonderful little girls Molly and Olivia. Matt is a loving and understanding husband and a wonderful father. Nicki knows how very fortunate she is to have Matt, and her girls. She has a living sister, Cindy, and a brother who had died as a teenager in a motorcycle accident, Brian. Their mother left when she was around five years old. They were raised by their father and later a live-in woman named Sharon.

The story centers around the chronicles of her memories and the abusive treatment by the monster Sharon. The stories are pretty intense and dark, so if you’re sensitive to this kind of story, be warned.

This is the story of a, not just troubled woman, but a real monster who ruled the lives of these children and terrorized them. It’s also the uplifting story of how Nicki overcomes this with the help of her husband and children.

There is some really scary stuff and covered-up murder(s) and attempted murder. The story is fictitious and imaginative, but scarily realistic. There are wonderful parts of family humor as only a child can produce, as well as the dark stuff, adding to the realism of raising a family.

While I caution any who are sensitive to the realistic abuse, I found it to be a page turner and the ending is splendidly upbeat. The author tells a compelling and interesting story that draws you into it completely. I fell in love with Nicki and her children and especially her husband…sigh worthy.

Reviewed by Georgianna

Copy supplied for an honest review.

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What’s Become of Her by Deb Caletti – a Review

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What’s Become of Her by Deb Caletti – a Review

 

What's Become of HerAmazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM / Book Depository

Description:
“Guilty people keep secrets.”

Isabelle Austen returns to her hometown on a small, isolated Pacific Northwest island to take over the family tourism business after the death of her mother, a disapproving parent and a hard woman to love. Feeling lost, Isabelle is also struggling with a recent divorce and wondering if she’ll ever come into her own. Then her life takes a surprising turn: The mysterious Henry North arrives on Parrish Island, steps off a seaplane, and changes Isabelle’s world forever. From the beginning, their relationship is heady and intense—then Isabelle learns of Henry’s disturbing past, involving the death of a fiancée and the disappearance of a wife. Suddenly Isabelle is caught between love and suspicion, paranoia and passion, as she searches for the truth she may not want to find—and is swept into a dangerous game she may not survive.

 

 

Review:

What’s Become of Her by Deb Caletti is a Psychological thriller. I enjoyed the story line, but I also had mixed feelings about this book, which I will go more into later in this review.

Isabelle Austen has recently returned home to Parrish Island after the death of her mother.  She takes over the family seaplane travel business; and seems content being back and spending time with her friends including Jane, Joe, Eddie. One day, a tourist arrives on the island and almost immediately, both Isabelle and Henry, the tourist have a strong attraction.  Isabelle is a divorcee, and finds Henry, charming, handsome and extremely easy going.  They both are falling love with each other, and Isabelle moves in with Henry, but soon her world is about to change. 

In a short time, the local police warn her of his past, two deceased or missing wife/fiancée.  Isabelle knows Henry, and refuses to believe those lies.  Her friends strongly advise her not to become serious. Henry tells Isabelle about the first wife, who died in a fall and the missing fiancée.  He swears that he is innocent of any wrongdoing, and professes his love to her, which she accepts. Soon Isabelle starts receiving packages from an unknown source, forcing her to begin her own research into the women in Henry’s lives, the investigations.

Throughout the story, we also get the pov of another character named M. Weary, who was a friend to the missing fiancée, and who privately keeps an eye on Henry, on the internet and other means to watch for him to find another woman. Weary is obsessed with Henry and concern for his new lady, Isabelle. 

What follows is an exciting tense adventure where Isabelle, despite warnings from her friends, continues to believe in Henry.  The packages she receives makes her take further steps to find out the truth, which will put her life in danger. What will Isabelle do?   Who does she believe?

My mixed feelings:  I thought the beginning was nice, with a slow build romance. Then for a period I thought the story was slow & a bit redundant with switching focus on Isabelle and Weary.  Once we enter the halfway point or beyond, the story picks up drastically and it becomes an exciting thriller. I loved the intense last ¼ of the book, which had major surprises that I did not expect.  Overall, this was a very good psychological thriller.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

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Remnants by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

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Remnants by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

 

RemnantsAmazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM / Book Depository

Description:
All that remains are whispers of the past…

When multiple body parts are recovered from the Little Ogeechee River in Savannah, Georgia, local law enforcement calls in FBI agent and profiler Brandon Fisher and his team to investigate. But with the remains pointing to three separate victims, this isn’t proving to be an open-and-shut case.

With no quick means of identifying the deceased, building a profile of this serial killer is more challenging than usual. How are these targets being selected? Why are their limbs being severed and their bodies mutilated? And what is it about them that is triggering this person to murder?

The questions compound as the body count continues to rise, and when a torso painted blue and missing its heart is found, the case takes an even darker turn. But this is only the beginning, and these new leads draw the FBI into a creepy psychological nightmare. One thing is clear, though: The killing isn’t going to stop until they figure it all out. And they are running out of time…

 

Review:

Remnants by Carolyn Arnold is the 6th book in her Brandon Fisher FBI series.  The FBI team of Jack, Brandon, Paige and Zach are sent to Savannah, Georgia on what will be a very difficult case of floating body parts found in the river by a plantation.  Jack is the leader of this team, and Brandon has now escalated to being full agent, having finished his probationary period.

As we have come to know about this series, the cases are usually violent, squeamish and at times difficult for the agents, especially Brandon.  I like the team, but I still do not like Brandon that much, as I look at Jack as the one who pulls them together.  I do like Paige and Zach.

When the story started, we saw someone drug  a man in the men’s room of a mall, and kidnap him.   The body parts discovered is from different people, some perhaps there for a long time.  During the investigation, Paige and Zach will question those who found the parts, while Jack and Brandon will question others.  Clues are difficult to come by, and the body parts continue to surface, which leads the team to believe that a serial killer is on the loose.  From various conditions of the body, such as blue paint, and heart extractions, it will lead them to suspect that the killer (s) is performing some kind of Mayan cult sacrifice.  Nadia, who is an analyst from Quantico, is able to use her special skills to generate a list of missing people within a radius from Savannah for them to work with.  Other clues are found that makes a local resident a suspect and the race is on to find the culprit, which begins to show that perhaps there is more than one person involved.  There are some twists and surprises and the suspense becomes very exciting and tense. 

This series is always intense, and exciting, as Arnold is an expert in police procedurals and writing amazing crime stories.  However, that being said, I found it difficult to read some parts where the killer was torturing the victim.  Remnants is an intense mystery, with an excellent FBI team, and if you enjoy murder, bad villains and exciting stories, you should be reading this series.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for review

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Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen – a Review

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Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen – a Review

 

Gone Without a TraceAmazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM / Book Depository

Description:
No one ever disappears completely…

You leave for work one morning.

Another day in your normal life.

Until you come home to discover that your boyfriend has gone.
His belongings have disappeared.
He hasn’t been at work for weeks.
It’s as if he never existed.

But that’s not possible, is it?

And there is worse still to come.

Because just as you are searching for him
someone is also watching you.

 

 

Review:

Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen is a psychological thriller.  I had mixed feelings about this book, which I will explain a bit later in this review.  The premise of the story was a good one, which catches your attention from the start.

Hannah Moore has just received good news on her job, with a promotion possibly upcoming.  She buys a bottle of wine to celebrate the wonderful news with her boyfriend, Matt.   When she arrives home after being away for a couple of days, she is shocked at what she sees.  Matt is gone, and everything in the house that they shared is missing, and replaced with all her old stuff before he moved in with her; even her computer emails &  phone messages, etc were erased.  It was just like Matt never existed; which was a great start to this story.  Needless to say, Hannah was upset, not knowing why Matt left.

We get to meet Hannah’s friends Kate and James, who are the ones she goes to for help.  Both of them try to understand why Matt would have left, asking Hannah questions about them having problems.  Hannah insists nothing was wrong. It is here the story escalates to Hannah spending all her free time trying to find Matt, which will affect her job, which begins to suffer.  Hannah becomes obsessed with researching on the computer, calling his old job or friends to no avail.  A short time later, she begins to get texts on her phone from a strange number “I am Home now”, which leads her to believe Matt is coming home.  He didn’t, but someone was coming to her house leaving hints.   As we get to the last 1/3 of the book, things change drastically, with multiple twists; which was exciting.

Now for my mixed feelings:  Once I was ¼ into the book, I did not like Hannah; not at all.  She was obnoxious, obsessive, hysterical, nasty at times and totally a disaster. At first I understood her boyfriend left her, but she was an adult (30’s) who after the initial shock, should have moved on. If he didn’t want her to find him, that should have been enough.  She didn’t even care or do anything on her job; she treated her friends bitterly.  It got to the point that I couldn’t stand her, and this went on for too long. When we got to the twist, which was sort of a surprise,  her behavior was that of a wacky crazy women. Then as things come to a climax (no spoilers), we get some more answers and twists; but the epilogue ending left me with a bitter taste.

This book was promising, the writing was good, a good thriller storyline, with some surprises and at times exciting.  But I could not sympathize with the lead character, to the point of disliking her so much, it affected my take on the book. 

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

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