Tag: #aboutauthor

Feature Post and Book Review: Inheritance by Nora Roberts

Book Description

Inheritance is the first in The Lost Bride Trilogy – a tale of tragedies, loves found and lost, and a family haunted for generations.

1806: Astrid Poole sits in her bridal clothes, overwhelmed with happiness. But before her marriage can be consummated, she is murdered, and the circle of gold torn from her finger. Her last words are a promise to Collin never to leave him…

Graphic designer Sonya MacTavish is stunned to learn that her late father had a twin he never knew about—and that her newly discovered uncle, Collin Poole, has left her almost everything he owned, including a majestic Victorian house on the Maine coast, which the will stipulates she must live in it for at least three years. Her engagement recently broken, she sets off to find out why the boys were separated at birth—and why it was all kept secret until a genealogy website brought it to light.

Trey, the young lawyer who greets her at the sprawling clifftop manor, notes Sonya’s unease—and acknowledges that yes, the place is haunted…but just a little. Sure enough, Sonya finds objects moved and music playing out of nowhere. She sees a painting by her father inexplicably hanging in her deceased uncle’s office, and a portrait of a woman named Astrid, whom the lawyer refers to as “the first lost bride.” It’s becoming clear that Sonya has inherited far more than a house. She has inherited a centuries-old curse, and a puzzle to be solved if there is any hope of breaking it…

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/65213377-inheritance?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=2cRTKCtT9f&rank=2

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My Book Review

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

INHERITANCE (The Lost Bride Trilogy Book #1) by Nora Roberts is a wonderful ghost story that pulls you in immediately. The problem for my review is defining it. It is not a straight romance because you do not get the HEA in this book, but you do get a contemporary romance subplot and there are plenty of love stories told throughout the discovery of the family’s history. It is a historical suspense/thriller as well as a contemporary suspense/thriller. It also can be considered women’s fiction with the strong friendship between the main female characters and prominent secondary female characters. This story is all of the above.

Like every one of Nora Roberts books I have read, the characters all come to life and are memorable. Her storytelling and pacing are always engaging, and I find I always finish her books in only one or two sittings which is what happened with this book. This book has a lot of character development necessary to bring the lost brides to life and set up the background for the mystery/suspense plot. The only reason I did not give it a full 5-star rating (4.5 gets rounded up on the review sites anyway) is because it ends on a giant cliffhanger…and I do mean giant. This is a personal pet peeve for me and yes, I do realize it is a trilogy, but there is not even a partial wrap-up. And then, the next book in the trilogy does not come out for ten more months. Not one, but ten! AAGH!

The setting is a gothic historical Victorian mansion called Lost Brides Manor in small town Maine which has a ghost maid who cleans everything and one of the brides communicates with a wonderful playlist of songs for every occasion that always left me laughing. The witch ghost is menacing, and I am looking forward to her being banished. Since Sonya is a graphic designer and Cleo is an illustrator, both can work from the mansion, and it is through their jobs that they meet and interact with the town’s business owners and occupants. The dog that Sonya rescues, and the dogs of the male main characters, Trey and Owen are a great addition for a dog lover like me.

I do highly recommend this multi-generational family mystery/suspense/thriller with paranormal/supernatural ghosts, strong female characters, and developing romances even though it is killing me to wait for the next two books in the trilogy.

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About the Author

Nora Roberts is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than 200 novels, including Shelter in Place, Year One, Come Sundown, and many more. She is also the author of the bestselling In Death series written under the pen name J.D. Robb. There are more than five hundred million copies of her books in print.

Social Media Links

Website: https://noraroberts.com/

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

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/nora-roberts

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B000APK6EU/about?ingress=0&visitId=f17bfd48-bcdf-4c07-a31e-af012a2e7ad9&ref_=ap_rdr

Book Review: The Book Club Hotel by Sarah Morgan

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

THE BOOK CLUB HOTEL: A Christmas Novel by Sarah Morgan is a wonderful holiday women’s fiction/romance that is the perfect story to give everyone warm and fuzzy happy holiday feelings. This is a standalone story with memorable characters, and it is an easy, fast read that I did not want to end.

The Maple Sugar Inn is a picture-perfect historic Vermont inn that is especially magical around the Christmas holiday season. Widowed single mom, Hattie Coleman is the harried owner and is just trying to hang-on through the fully booked holidays.

Erica, Claudia, and Anna have been best friends since college and keep an annual week out of their busy lives to get together for their book club vacation at various hotels all over the country. This time Erica picked the Maple Sugar Inn and did not tell her friends why she decided on this particular inn. All three ladies are at critical points in their lives as they are turning forty and will need the support, they have always found in each other and they just may be able to help Hattie out with her problems, too.

I loved all the women in this story. They are all fully developed characters and while they individually lead completely different lives, they are the best of friends who will do anything for each other and the fact that they are brought together by books each year makes me love them even more. I also enjoyed Hattie’s sweet romance as she finally allows herself to love again. Hattie’s daughter, Delphi, was a delight and an engaging bridge between her mother and newfound aunt. A very agreeable HEA ending that is perfect for reading over the holiday season.

I highly recommend this feel-good story that is the perfect holiday women’s fiction/romance read.

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About the Author

Sarah Morgan is a USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of romance and women’s fiction. She has sold over 21 million copies of her books and her trademark humour and warmth have gained her fans across the globe.

Sarah lives near London, England and when she isn’t writing or reading, she likes to spend time outdoors hiking or riding her mountain bike.

Social Media Links

Website: https://sarahmorgan.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahMorgan_

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/sarah-morgan

Feature Post and Book Review: Christmas at The Shelter Inn by RaeAnne Thayne

Book Description

Growing up at the Shelter Inn hotel, Natalie Shepherd envied guests who could come and go as they pleased. So when it was time to finally leave for college and put the lush green mountains around Shelter Springs—along with the cloud of loss that seemed to follow her family—behind her, she swore she’d never come back. But now her sister McKenna needs a favor. On pregnancy bed rest at doctor’s orders, McKenna needs a helping hand with her two young daughters and someone to take over the inn during the hectic holiday season, and Nat can’t refuse. And just when things can’t get worse, she runs into her late brother’s best friend, Griffin Taylor… 

Griff has mixed feelings about Natalie’s return. She’s just as beautiful and full of life as he remembered, but there’s a secret he’s carried for years about her brother—and the guilt is eating away at him. Still, Christmas in this small town is filled with treasured traditions and new adventures that hold the promise of something sweet and lasting. From matchmaking seniors to rambunctious nieces, it seems everyone is hoping Nat and Griff will put loss behind them and find a happy new beginning…

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75339222-christmas-at-the-shelter-inn?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=SXhz3Hbpbo&rank=1

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My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

CHRISTMAS AT THE SHELTER INN by RaeAnne Thayne is a heartfelt emotional holiday romance/women’s fiction story set in an inn turned senior apartment complex in small town Idaho during the Christmas season. This is a standalone story.

Natalie Shepherd suffered several losses during her life and it has her leaving her small hometown as soon as possible to travel the world as a freelance writer and travel blogger. She also works as a pet and house sitter for wealthy clients. She never stays in any one place too long and while she has acquaintances, she never lets anyone into her heart. When her younger sister messages her for help at home at the Shelter Inn, Natalie immediately returns. She is helping with her two young nieces while her sister is on bedrest during her pregnancy and will leave again after the birth. What she does not expect is to discover the father who left the siblings after their mother’s death is in town for Christmas and her dead brother’s best friend is back in town and working as a local family practice doctor.

Griffin Taylor always planned on returning to his hometown when he finished medical school. He is surprised when he runs into Natalie and is happy to see her, but he is also holding a secret about the day her brother died. Griffin’s grandmother lives at the Shelter Inn and so Griff and Natalie run into each other frequently as everyone gets ready for the holidays.

There is an attraction and chemistry between the two, but Natalie is used to everyone leaving her and she does not want to open her heart to the pain of loss again, so she refuses to let anyone completely in.

I really enjoyed getting to know all the characters in this story. Natalie and her sister have such a tragic back story and yet each moves forward in completely different directions. Her nieces are absolutely adorable, and I loved that all the residents at the Shelter Inn were like extra grandparents to them. I felt at times the story was predictable, and yet I was still very interested in how Ms. Thayne could bring such disparate main characters together. The romance is slow burn because both believe there is no happy ending if Natalie won’t fight her fear, open her heart, and stop always leaving. There are no sex scenes in this story. The relationship, or lack thereof between Natalie and her father is the emotional tearjerker subplot in this story. This holiday story is full of family love, growth, and forgiveness, friendship, community, laughs as well as emotional tears.

Overall, an emotional and enjoyable holiday romance/women’s fiction read to curl up with over the holidays.

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About the Author

#1 Publishers Weekly, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author RaeAnne Thayne finds inspiration in the beautiful northern Utah mountains where she lives with her family. Her books have won numerous honors, including seven RITA Award nominations from Romance Writers of America and a Career Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews magazine.

Social Media Links

Website: https://www.raeannethayne.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/raeannethayne

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/raeanne-thayne

Feature Post and Book Review: Cold Case Kidnapping by Nicole Helm

Book Description

To save her missing sister
They’ll confront a nightmare past…

A mysterious family tree. A man thought long dead. Dahlia Easton has few solid clues to find her sister, missing for a year. But she’s in danger the moment she reaches Wyoming’s backcountry. To protect her, cold case investigator Grant Hudson must confront his town’s unresolved nightmares—even as an unspeakable threat from the past is fast closing in to silence him and Dahlia for good…

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/125006708-cold-case-kidnapping?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=lmUIxnU6Lr&rank=1

Discover more action-packed stories in the Hudson Sibling Solutions series. All books are stand-alone with uplifting endings but were published in the following order:

Book 1: Cold Case Kidnapping
Book 2: Cold Case Identity
Book 3: Cold Case Family Feud

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My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

COLD CASE KIDNAPPING (Hudson Sibling Solutions Book #1) by Nicole Helm is the start of a new cowboy romantic suspense series featuring the Hudson family of siblings based in Wyoming on their ancestral ranch. The five siblings each specialize in a different aspect of HSS (Hudson Sibling Solutions) that specializes in solving sold cases.

Dahlia Easton is searching for her sister Rose who disappeared a year ago in Texas, but she believes through her research was transported to Wyoming. She hires HSS to help her find answers.

Grant Hudson, the second eldest Hudson sibling, served as a Marine and has now returned to help on the family ranch and work cold cases for the family business. Grant is assigned Dahlia case and soon discovers it has ties to the town’s past, a cult everyone thought destroyed years ago.

As they work together to discover what happened to Rose, they find themselves at the center of a deadly threat from the past.

I really enjoyed this story and introduction to the Hudson siblings. Dahlia is a mix of vulnerability, strength, and determination that makes her an appealing heroine and Grant is a protector who feels responsible for everyone who needs to learn to believe in the strength and abilities of not just Dahlia, but his siblings as well. There is more suspense in this story with the romance being a slow burn, but it also felt as though it progressed at a believable pace. There are no sex scenes in this story. I am excited with the set up of this series as the siblings each having their own strengths and I already find them interesting.

I recommend this first in a new series. fast paced, and engaging cowboy romantic suspense. I am looking forward to reading all the siblings’ individual stories.

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About the Author

Nicole Helm is the national bestselling author of fast-paced romantic suspense for Harlequin Intrigue and down-to-earth contemporary romance. Her Intrigues routinely land on the Publishers Weekly Bestseller list, and she’s received starred PW reviews for her contemporary romances. All of her books are known for their down-to-earth characters, emotional depth, and happily ever afters.

In her spare time, Nicole loves losing herself in genealogy research, watching Cardinals baseball, and hiking with her family. She lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons.

Social Media Links

Website: https://www.nicolehelm.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NicoleTHelm

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/nicole-helm

Feature Post and Mini Book Review: Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger

Book Description

Instead of presents this Christmas, a true crime podcaster is opening up a cold case…

Madeline Martin has built a life for herself as the young owner of a thriving business, The Next Chapter Bookshop, despite her tragic childhood and now needing to care for her infirm father. When Harley Granger, a failed novelist turned true crime podcaster, drifts into her shop in the days before Christmas, he seems intent on digging up events that Madeline would much rather forget. She’s the only surviving victim of Evan Handy, the man who was convicted of murdering her best friend Steph, and is suspected in the disappearance of two sisters, also good friends of Madeline’s, who have been missing for nearly a decade. It’s an investigation that has obsessed her father Sheriff James Martin right up until his stroke took his faculties.

Harley Granger has a gift for seeing things that others miss. He wasn’t much of a novelist, but his work as a true crime author and podcaster has earned him fame and wealth—and some serious criticism for his various unethical practices. Still, visiting Little Valley to be closer to his dying father has caused him to look into a case that many people think is closed—and some want reopened. And he has a lot of questions about the night Stephanie Cramer was killed, Ainsley and Sam Wallace disappeared, and Madeline Martin was left for dead, bleeding out on a riverbank.

Since Evan Handy went to jail, three other young women have gone missing, most recently a young college dropout named Lolly. Five young women missing in the same area in a decade. Are they connected? Was Evan Handy innocent after all? Or was there some else there that night? Someone who is still satisfying his dark appetites?

As Christmas approaches and a blizzard bears down, Madeline and her childhood friend Badger return to a past they both hoped was dead—to find the missing Lolly and to answer questions that have haunted them both, discovering that the truth is more terrible and much closer to home than they think.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/122494784-christmas-presents?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=LexYqxmNYl&rank=1

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My Mini Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

CHRISTMAS PRESENTS by Lisa Unger is a suspenseful thriller set a week before Christmas featuring the survivor of an attack from a sexual predator who killed one friend and is thought to be responsible for the disappearance of two sisters, also her friends, all on the same night. Now ten years later, she is having to relive that time in her life when a famous true-crime author and podcaster comes to town and is investigating the case. This story is a little longer than a normal novella, but shorter than a full-length novel.

This thriller is told by Maddie in the present and is interspersed with chapters that are memories from the past and then there are also chapters told by Harley as he tries to dig up new facts about the old case and the missing girls. There are plenty of plot twists that continually had me changing my mind about guilt and/or innocence of the suspects. Ms. Unger handled Maggie’s trauma and survivor’s guilt even these ten years later with empathy that made it feel believable. Overall, I was satisfied with the conclusion of the missing girls’ case, but unless I missed something somewhere, I do not understand who shot two characters at the end of the story. Other than that, I enjoyed this fast-paced thriller.

This is an engaging and suspenseful Christmas time short thriller.

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About the Author

Lisa Unger is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of twenty novels, including her latest SECLUDED CABIN SLEEPS SIX. With books published in thirty-three languages and millions of copies sold worldwide, she is regarded as a master of suspense.

Unger’s critically acclaimed novels have been featured on “Best Book” lists from the Today Show, Good Morning America, Entertainment Weekly, People, Amazon, Goodreads, L.A. Times, The Boston Globe, Sun Sentinel, Tampa Bay Times and many others. She has been nominated for, or won, numerous awards including the Strand Critics, Audie, Hammett, Macavity, ITW Thriller, and Goodreads Choice. In 2019, she received two Edgar Award nominations, an honor held by only a few authors, including Agatha Christie. Her short fiction has been anthologized in The Best American Mystery and Suspense, and her non-fiction has appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and Travel+Leisure. Lisa is the current co-President of the International Thriller Writers organization. She lives on the west coast of Florida with her family.

Social Media Links

Website: https://lisaunger.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lisaunger

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lisa-unger

Feature Post and Book Review: Once Upon a Christmas by Jane Porter

Book Description

When Cara Roberts’ family plans an extra special Christmas to support her after her broken engagement, she wants nothing to do with the holiday. After learning her brother and his wife can’t use the cottage vacation they purchased, she impulsively escapes to an English cottage in the bucolic village of Bakewell, despite having no idea where Bakewell is.

Lord Alec Sherbourne of Langley Park is no fan of Christmas, but following in his parents’ footsteps, he annually donates his impressive 19th century country home to be decorated and opened on December weekends as a community fundraiser. This year, Christmas is complicated by the arrival of a pretty American woman who booked a cottage on his estate—only the cottage is occupied. Forced to take her under his vast roof, he’s dismayed when a storm and frozen pipes keep her with him longer than he’d anticipated. Even more worrisome, her presence is making it feel like Christmas for the first time in forever.

As these two holiday housemates become friends, is there something more in the Christmas air?

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60894062-once-upon-a-christmas?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Kj8Wziqceh&rank=1

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS (Love at Langley Park Book #1) by Jane Porter is an enchanting and heartwarming holiday contemporary romance featuring a hero and heroine finding love over the Christmas holiday. This is the first book in the Love at Langley Park series, and it has everything I want and hope for in a holiday romance read.

Cara Roberts broke up with her fiancée and is looking for a change of scenery over the holidays. Her brother gives her an English cottage vacation at Langley Park won in a school raffle. After a sixteen-hour trip from Seattle, Cara discovers a problem with overbooking and she is given a room in the main house with the handsome, but grumpy lord of the manor.

Lord Alec Sherbourne returns to Langley Park every Christmas holiday out of duty, but not with much holiday cheer after the death of his wife eight years ago. When burst pipes and a snowstorm have Cara staying in the manor with Alec and his elderly relatives over the holiday, he discovers this American is making Langley Park feel like Christmas for the first time.

This is a wonderful holiday romance. Cara is a sunny, optimistic person who loves people. Alec is a reserved English aristocrat who believes his responsibility is to his family estate and heritage above all else. When these two are forced together over the holiday, what should not work, does. I love Cara and the fact that she is always willing to tell the truth and have difficult discussions, even when it hurts her, but she does not stay down. She is able to open Alec’s closed off heart. This is a cozy romance with no sex scenes, just kisses, and yet it is one of the most romantic love stories I have recently read. Ms. Porter’s romances always give me realistic characters, dialogue, and emotional HEAs.

I highly recommend this delightful holiday contemporary romance! I am looking forward to the next book in this series.

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About the Author

USA Today, and New York Times bestselling author of 75+ romances and women’s fiction titles, Jane Porter has been a finalist for the prestigious RITA award six times, with her Tule Publishing novella, Take Me, Cowboy, winning the Novella Category July 2014. Today, Jane has over 15 million copies in print, including her wildly popular Flirting with Forty, a novel picked by Redbook Magazine as it’s Red Hot Summer Read in 2006 before being turned into a Lifetime movie in 2008 starring Heather Locklear. In 2021 two of Jane’s Taming of the Sheenan romances were turned into original movies for the Great American Family Network. Jane holds an MA in Writing from the University of San Francisco and makes her home in sunny San Clemente, CA with her surfer husband, three sons, and three dogs.

Social Media Links

Website: https://janeporter.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/authorjanep

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jane-porter