Tag: #aboutauthor

Feature Post and Book Review: Mountain Fugitive by Lynette Eason

Hi, everyone!

I have been posting Feature Post and Book Review blog posts on the Harlequin Investigators Blog Tour for all of these great reads throughout this month and the last.

Today I am sharing my blog post for MOUNTAIN FUGITIVE by Lynette Eason.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Come back throughout the month for more and enjoy!

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Book Description

Their search for a fugitive makes them both targets.

Out horseback riding, Dr. Katherine Gilroy accidentally stumbles into a deadly shoot-out and comes to US marshal Dominic O’Ryan’s aid. Now with Dominic injured and under her care, she’s determined to help him find her brother—the fugitive he believes murdered his partner. While Katherine’s sure her brother isn’t guilty, someone’s dead set on killing her and Dominic…and finding the truth is their one shot at survival.

Add Mountain Fugitive to your Goodreads!

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

MOUNTAIN FUGITIVE by Lynette Eason is an action-packed Christian romantic suspense standalone that delivered everything I am looking for in Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense. Lynette Eason is a new-to-me author and I cannot believe I have not read other titles by her previously.

Dr. Katherine Gilroy is out enjoying a horseback ride with her best friend, Isabelle when they hear gun shots. Katherine has trained as a SWAT team medic in her past and races to see if she can help while Isabelle goes for help. Katherine finds two US Marshals on the ground. One dead and one unconscious.

US Marshal Dominic O’Ryan has a concussion but is lucky to have not been shot and killed. He is determined to bring the escaped Federal witness to justice who he believes murdered his partner. The escaped witness is Katherine’s young brother and she believes he is innocent.

Katherine and Dominic work together to bring in Katherine’s brother and find the real killer.

This romantic suspense is a great balance of continual action and suspense along with a Christian romance without sex, but plenty of building attraction and heat. Katherine and Dominic are both intelligent and accomplished main characters who have had opposite upbringings and yet find common ground. The secondary characters are well fleshed for a story of this length and continually surprised me with the character plot twists. I must also mention there is a dog you will fall in love with in this story. The Christian elements of the book are few, but believably placed and do not detract from the story.

I highly recommend this fast-paced, action-packed Christian romantic suspense. I will be looking for new releases from this author and looking into her backlist, also.

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Excerpt

Heart pounding a rapid beat, Katherine pulled Hotshot to a stop between the men and the direction the bullets had come from, praying the person wouldn’t shoot the horse. She slid from the saddle, leaving the reins trailing the ground, then snagged the first-aid kit from the saddlebag. US marshals according to the vests the men wore.

Looked like their prisoner or fugitive had turned the tables on them. Which meant the person was either gone now that he’d taken care of the threat—or she was now a target because she planned to try to help the men. A quick scan of the area didn’t reveal anything unusual or worrisome, but the trees could easily be hiding the sniper.

Still using the horse as a shield, she hurried to the man closest to her. The bullet had hit him just above his left ear and he’d landed on his side. His brown, sightless eyes stared up at her and she knew he was beyond help. She checked his pulse anyway and got what she expected. Nothing.

She closed the dead man’s eyes then turned her attention to the other one. A pulse. She focused on his head. A gash just below his hairline bled freely. A low groan rumbled from him and Katherine placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t move,” she said.

He blinked and she caught a glimpse of sapphire-blue eyes. He let out another groan. “Carl…”

“Just stay still and let me look at your head.”

“I’m fine.” He rolled to his side and he squinted up at her. “Who’re you?”

“I’m Dr. Katherine Gilroy so I think I’m the better judge of whether or not you’re fine. You have a head wound which means possible concussion.” She reached for him. “What’s your name?”

He pushed her hand away. “Dominic O’Ryan. A branch caught me. Knocked me loopy for a few seconds, but not out. We were running from the shooter.” His eyes sharpened. “He’s still out there.” His hand went to his right hip, gripping the empty holster next to the badge on his belt. A star within a circle.

“Where’s my gun? Where’s Carl? My partner, Carl Manning. We need to get out of here.”

“I’m sorry,” Katherine said, her voice soft. “He didn’t make it.”

He froze. Then horror sent his eyes wide—and searching. They found the man behind her and Dominic shuddered. “No. No, no, no. Carl! Carl!” He army crawled to his partner and sucked in a gasping breath, cupped Carl’s face and felt for a pulse.

Katherine didn’t bother to tell him she’d already done the same—or what he’d find. After a few seconds, he let out a low cry then sucked in another deep breath and composed his features. The intense moment has lasted only a few seconds, but Katherine knew he was compartmentalizing, stuffing his emotions into a place he could hold them and deal with them later.

She knew because she’d often done the same thing. Still did on occasion.

In spite of that, his grief was palpable, and Katherine’s heart thudded with sympathy for him. She moved back to give him some privacy, her eyes sweeping the hills around them once more. Again, she saw nothing, but the hairs on the back of her neck were standing straight up. Hotshot had done well, standing still, being a buffer between them and a possible sniper, but Katherine’s nerves were twitching—much like when she’d worked with the police department. “I think we need to find some better cover.”

As if to prove her point, another crack sounded, and Hotshot reared. His whinnying scream echoed around them. Then he bolted for home. Katherine grabbed the first-aid kit with one hand and pulled Dominic to his feet with the other. “Run!”

***

About the Author

Lynette Eason lives in Simpsonville, SC with her husband and two children. She is an award-winning, best-selling author who spends her days writing when she’s not traveling around the country teaching at writing conferences. Lynette enjoys visits to the mountains, hanging out with family and brainstorming stories with her fellow writers. You can visit Lynette’s website to find out more at www.lynetteeason.com or like her Facebook page at www.facebook.com/lynette.eason

Social Media Links 

Website: https://lynetteeason.com/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lynette.eason

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lynetteeason

Buy Mountain Fugitive by Lynette Eason Harlequin.com: https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9781335735850_mountain-fugitive.html

Feature Post and Book Review: Colton K-9 Target by Justine Davis

Hi, everyone!

I have been posting Feature Post and Book Review blog posts on the Harlequin Investigators Blog Tour for all of these great reads throughout this month and the last.

Today I am sharing my blog post for COLTON K-9 TARGET (Coltons of Grave Gulch Book #8) by Justine Davis.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Come back throughout the month for more and enjoy!

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Book Description

Man’s best friend 

…is this cop’s most trusted partner

New to the Grave Gulch Police Department, K-9 detective Brett Shea feels like an outsider among its many Coltons. Even Annalise, his dog’s trainer, is a Colton! But when she’s attacked by a man pretending to be her date, Brett vows to track down the criminal. Though he’s sworn off forever love—which is proving harder by the day—Brett will protect her at any cost.

Add Colton K-9 Target to your Goodreads!

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My Book Review

RATING: 3 out of 5 Stars

COLTON K-9 TARGET (Coltons of Grave Gulch Book #8) by Justine Davis is a romantic suspense in the Coltons of Grave Gulch series. This is the first Colton book I have read in this series and while the romance is enjoyable, I wish I would have read the previous books first. This series should be read in order and not as standalones.

Detective Brett Shea was happy to move to the small-town police force in Grave Gulch and become their first K-9 officer. Brett’s canine partner is the black lab, Ember who has been training with Annalise Colton.

Annalise Colton and many in her family are all part of law enforcement in Grave Gulch. Besides her job training dogs, she wants to find a forever love like many in her family. She goes on-line and believes she has found her perfect match, until she is attacked and discovers she has been “catfished”. Brett happens to be close by and interrupts the attack, but he gets away.

Brett and Annalise have grown up with very different examples of family and love and even as Brett does want to catch Annalise’s attacker, he is hesitant about their strong attraction. As the two grow closer, so does the danger from an attacker who wants to finish the job.

I enjoyed Brett, Annalise and all the dogs in this story, but the romantic suspense plot itself was not strong enough for me. Much of the book was two supposedly successful and mature adults not honestly communicating enough until three quarters of the way through the story and the “catfishing” plot was interesting, but it was interrupted repeatedly by the series overall plotline of a serial killer on the loose.

Overall, it was a fast, enjoyable read, but not as good as other Colton books I have read.

***

Excerpt

Annalise stared into the darkness, hoping that forcing herself to keep her eyes open would perversely trigger the overwhelming urge to sleep. It was her last resort; she’d been lying here for two hours, unable to find a way to turn off, or at least slow down, her whirling thoughts.

And the fact that a few minutes ago Brett had come to her open doorway and lingered a moment didn’t help.

She’d heard the faint creak of a floorboard and felt a spike of that adrenaline rush before she realized it was him. That realization caused a spike of an entirely different kind until she heard him walk away and realized he’d only been checking on her.

What did you expect? That he’d climb into bed with you?

She rolled over and buried her face in her pillow, wondering why these wild thoughts kept careening into her mind. What kind of woman was she, to have been so very excited about her date tonight—never mind that it had all been a scam—yet almost simultaneously so attracted to this man who had no interest at all in her that way? Or in anything like the kind of relationship she was looking for?

I’m not looking for what you’re looking for.

He meant it. She didn’t doubt that. And she knew she should consider it fair warning. A warning some men would never bother to give. Why had he? She felt her cheeks heat at the thought that maybe he knew, how she reacted to him. Maybe she’d betrayed it somehow. That would be embarrassing. They’d always gotten on well in the joint training sessions with Ember, but her focus had been on the smart, willing dog, not on him.

Well, not any more than usual. Qualified, capable K-9 officers with a record like his weren’t thick on the ground, and he’d proven that rep well-earned in their first exercises together. That he was quietly competent and apparently unaware of his own looks were big points in his favor, in her book.

She’d assumed at first he was married, because how could he not be? He didn’t wear a ring, but some men didn’t. Then Troy had told her a week later he wasn’t and had never been.

You have to believe in love before you can give up on it.

She sighed into the darkness. That just might be the saddest thing she’d ever heard. Yet he didn’t seem sad to her. Or bitter. Just…closed off. Except with Ember. That alone told Annalise that he wasn’t completely closed off.

But that didn’t mean she should be lying here thinking about him.

And about what she would have done if he had climbed into bed with her.

“I can drive myself—”

“I know you can,” Brett said patiently to Annalise the next morning, “but I have to drop Ember off anyway.” He didn’t mention that he also didn’t want her taking off to go get lunch or something. He wanted her under observation at all times, and he’d already called Sergeant Kenwood to let him know to keep an eye on her; the man might be retired from active duty, but his instincts were as sharp as ever.

“But I’ll need my car to get home.”

“I’ll pick you up when I come get her,” he said, with a scratch of the Lab’s soft ears. “After I talk to the two other women this jerk targeted.”

“I want to take Apple and Jack,” she said. “I don’t want to leave them alone. They were scared, too.”

And that was Annalise Colton in a nutshell, he thought. “Fine. There’s room. And Ember won’t mind.”

And so he ended up with a carload of three dogs and the woman adored by them all.

Including you?

He yanked his mind off that fruitless path. He drove, trying to concentrate on mentally organizing his day.

***

About the Author

Justine Davis lives on Puget Sound in Washington State, watching big ships and the occasional submarine go by, and sharing the neighborhood with assorted wildlife, including a pair of bald eagles, deer, a bear or two, and a tailless raccoon. In the few hours when she’s not planning, plotting, or writing her next book, her favorite things are photography, knitting her way through a huge yarn stash, and driving her restored 1967 Corvette roadster—top down, of course.

Social Media Links

Website: https://justinedavis.com/ 

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Justine_D_Davis

Buy Colton K-9 Target by Justine Davis

Harlequin.com: https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9781335759382_colton-k-9-target.html

Book Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: Liner by Chris Coppel

Hi, everyone!

Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for LINER by Chris Coppel on this Blackthorn Book Tour.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an about the author section and a note from the author. Enjoy!

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Book Description

David Easton believed his life was in complete ruins. He managed to scrape together just enough money for a one-way ticket on the fabulous Oceanis. It was the most luxurious liner afloat and he planned to revel in all its opulent pleasures until in the middle of the Atlantic crossing – he would leap from the fantail, thus ending his pain and misery. The problem was that he never dreamt that while counting down the hours until his death, he would meet Diana.

Despite her traveling with her overly protective parents who hoped to introduce her to a suitable husband while onboard, they managed to find each other. As their affections grew, strange things began happening on the ship. At first, it was just mental images and dreams, but as the days passed their very reality began to bend beyond anything their minds could have imagined.

Together they had to find out what was happening to the Oceanis and how they could find a way to save the great liner and all those aboard her.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58620171-liner?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=0362Rmzfab&rank=1

  • Purchase link: http://mybook.to/Amazon_Liner
  • Release date: 28/07/2021 – Matador
  • Genre:  Horror suspense
  • Print length: 256 pages
  • Age range: This is an adult book but suitable for mature teenagers 16+
  • Trigger warnings: No
  • Amazon Rating: 4.5

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My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

LINER by Chris Coppel is a thriller set on an ocean liner in the 1960’s which I could not stop reading. The story has a bit of romance, a bit of horror, a bit of paranormal and a bit of spiritual otherworldliness that sends chills up your spine as well as makes you wonder what the heck is going on?

David Easton has lost everything he cares about, his marriage, his two children and his job as a microbiologist. Depressed, he takes his last bit of cash and buys first class passage on a top-of-the-line ocean liner named the “Oceanis”.  His ticket is one-way, and he does not plan on returning to New York.

While on board the luxury liner, David meets and becomes intrigued with Diana, an assistant editor at a New York publishing house on the ocean trip with her parents. As the couple becomes closer, strange things begin to happen on the Oceanis.

This is really all I can tell you without giving away a plot twist. I thought at first, I was reading a horror story, but this story is so much more than that. The author does a great job of creating a chilling and harrowing atmosphere, while still giving David and Diana a believable romance full of hope. This is a page turner and I finished it in one sitting. The ending was not what I expected, and I believe it will be discussed by all who read the book.

I recommend this unique thriller for an interesting and entertaining read.

***

About the Author

Chris Coppel was born in California and has since split his time between the USA and Europe, living in California, Spain, France, Switzerland and England. Chris taught advanced screenwriting at the UCLA film school and has been writing for over thirty years. As well as h this upcoming title, he is the author of Far From Burden Dell, Luck, The Lodge and Legacy.

A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

“Hi Readers,

I was raised the son of a writer. My father wrote plays, films and novels. He was successful and suffered constant wanderlust. I was born in America when he was there writing Vertigo for Alfred Hitchcock.

I give that familial insight so that you can understand that I had the genes, I just needed to find my footing and get up the nerve to put pen to paper (or to be more accurate…open my laptop). Many would say that having a successful parent should make it easier to follow their path under the protective shadow of their parent’s success. Not so!

Writing is difficult. Writing in the hopes that you will be read and your works appreciated is terrifying. In my case, the fear of failure kept my ideas and stories buried in a back closet within my brain.

Book Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: Asylum by Tamera Lawrence

Hi, everyone!

Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for ASYLUM by Tamera Lawrence on this Blackthorn Book Tour.

Below you will find an about the book section, my book review and an about the author section. Enjoy!

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About the Book

Like all children living at Rose Hill Asylum, Kyle Hampton wanted freedom from the abusive staff and violent residents. When at nine he was adopted into a loving family, he left his younger brother behind and didn’t look back. Twenty-eight years later, his choices have returned to haunt him.

Now a family man, Kyle has hidden his true childhood from his wife, only to stir up the past when, as a lark, he revisits the underground tunnels and the abandoned asylum with a friend. A dark figure wants revenge and emerges ready to destroy Kyle and everyone he loves. But Kyle isn’t going down without a fight—he’s played in the shadows before.

Will his childhood, rooted in terror, be what saves him?

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56949519-asylum?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=tD9vZYnqNY&rank=1

ASYLUM

by Tamera Lawrence

  • Genre:  Psychological thriller
  • Print length: 232 pages
  • Age range: This is an adult book but suitable for mature teenagers 16+
  • Trigger warnings: No
  • Formats available for the Tour: all standard electronic formats (sorry, no paperbacks)
  • Amazon Rating: 5 stars
  • Purchase link: https://mybook.to/TLawrenceAsylum

***

My Book Review

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

ASYLUM by Tamera Lawrence is a suspense/thriller standalone by a new to me author that left me guessing throughout. A creepy abandoned asylum, an atmosphere of fear and a history of violence and abuse all kept me turning the pages and keeping the lights on.

Kyle Hampton and his younger brother, Roy were both born at Rose Hill Asylum. As a young boy all Kyle wished for was to be freed from the abusive staff and violent residents. At nine, he was adopted, but he had to leave his brother behind.

Rose Hill Asylum has been vacant and abandoned for many years and it is about to be sold. Kyle wants to return to the place he was born one more time with is best friend, Randy who also grew up at Rose Hill and is a part-time urban explorer. The tunnels underneath the facility connect all the buildings and Kyle begins to remember the terrors they held for him.

A dark figure emerges from the asylum and wants revenge on all who wronged him. Kyle is one of his targets as well as all the people he loves, but Kyle will not go down without a fight.

This book gives you a building sense of dread and chills up your spine from beginning to end, but it is a slow start. I began this book thinking it would be a horror story, and it does scare you, but it is not supernatural. It is the horror of things that humans do to other humans. Kyle is a protagonist that kept my feelings in turmoil because at times I felt sorry for him and at other times I wondered how damaged he was from growing up in the asylum when he did not seem to connect with his wife. The author’s writing makes you feel the atmosphere of the abandoned asylum and the tunnels beneath as well as the menace and violence from the antagonist.

I recommend this chilling suspense/thriller and I will be looking into other works by this author.

***

About the Author

With a passion for writing, Award winning author Tamera Lawrence likes to entertain readers with edgy thrillers and mysteries. As a mother of six, Tamera draws on personal experiences to bring to life interesting characters set in today’s complex world. She loves meeting fans and writes book reviews upon request.

Tamera also likes to play softball and clang out a tune or two on the piano.

Other books include:

THE POND, GHOSTS OF MAYFLOWER: A PENNHURST HAUNTING & PENNHURST GHOSTS OF MAYFLOWER 11

Book Review: Enemy at the Gates by Kyle Mills

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

ENEMY AT THE GATE (Mitch Rapp Book #20) by Kyle Mills is once again my “favorite” book in this series! Action-packed and fast-paced as the previous books in the series, this new book also includes worldwide political intrigue played by billionaires and autocrats as intricate as a chess game with the common man as their pawns. If for some reason you have not read this series yet, this book is easily read as a standalone and a great place to jump in.

Mitch Rapp is trying to find a new normal and balance in his life. He is working on recovering from the damage done to his body and rehabbing and strengthening with long-distance cycling. He is also finding he is more at home and happier with Claudia and Anna in South Africa on their vineyard than in their home in the United States.

As he decides if he is out of the game for good, Irene Kennedy pulls him back in with a meeting between the new President, Anthony Cook and the world’s first trillionaire, Nicholas Ward when Ward’s research compound in Uganda is attacked and destroyed and the fate of his most valued scientists in unknown. Mitch has his reservations about the new administration, but Nicholas Ward hires Scott Coleman and his team and with Mitch along at point they enter the Ugandan jungle for a rescue op.

This is just the beginning of an intricately plotted thriller that pits Mitch against a terrorist with a God complex and an army of drug fueled followers in the Ugandan jungle, a CIA mole at the highest level and a new President and First Lady with dreams of an autocratic dynasty.

I am a Mitch Rapp Ambassador and love the whole series, but this book was a tour de force by Kyle Mills. He is able to emotionally mature Mitch Rapp without changing him so much that his fans would protest. The plot of this thriller not only keeps you turning the pages, but also makes you think and question the world order today of power and money, morally, politically, and scientifically. There are enough open-ended questions and powerful and dangerous people left for Mitch to be busy for quit a few more books and nothing could make me happier.

I highly recommend this new Mitch Rapp thriller!

***

About the Author

Kyle Mills is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty books, including the latest in Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp series, Total Power.

Growing up in Oregon, Washington, DC, and London as a the son of an FBI agent, Kyle absorbed an enormous amount about the intelligence community, giving his novels their unique authenticity. He and his wife live in Wyoming where they spend their off hours mountain biking and backcountry skiing.

Social Media Links

Website: https://www.kylemills.com/

Facebook: https://www.kylemills.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KyleMillsAuthor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/76671.Kyle_Mills

Feature Post and Book Review: Missing at Christmas by K.D. Richards

Hi, everyone!

I will be posting Feature Post and Book Review blog posts on the Harlequin Investigator Blog Tour for all of these great reads throughout this month and the next.

Today I am sharing my blog post for MISSING AT CHRISTMAS (West Investigations Book #2) by K.D. Richards.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Come back throughout the month for more and enjoy!

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Book Description

To bring her sister home for the holidays

They’ll put everything on the line.

Private investigator Shawn West is stunned when the attack victim he rescues is Addy Williams—the one woman he never forgot. She’s turning a quiet upstate New York town inside out to bring her missing sister home by Christmas. Shawn offers to help if she’ll provide a cover for his own investigation into a suspicious company in town, but can they work together to find Addy’s sister…or are they already too late?

Add Missing at Christmas to your Goodreads!

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

MISSING AT CHRISTMAS (West Investigations Book #2) by K.D. Richards is another action-packed romantic suspense in the West Investigations series. This book can easily be read as a standalone with minimal crossover of characters from the first West Investigations story.

Private Investigator Shawn West is in upstate New York to investigate the source of counterfeit computer chips for a client. While on his way to his hotel, he sees a woman being attacked and intervenes. He is surprised when the woman turns out to be the one woman he has been unable to get off his mind since he met her at his brother’s destination wedding.

Addy Williams is searching for her missing younger sister. She was doing an internship before attending MIT and has failed to get in touch with Addy. Told her sister quit her internship and moved away, Addy is determined to find her before Christmas. Shawn offers his help Addy for free if he can use their search for her sister as a cover for his own investigation.

Will Addy and Shawn be able to find Addy’s sister before it is too late for them all?

This is the second book in this series I have read by this new to me author and I really enjoyed both. In this book Shawn and Addy work well together with Addy being an intelligent and strong heroine who can hold her own even with firearms. There is strong chemistry between these two, but the two investigations keep their romance to a slow burn. The suspense plot was fast-paced and action packed with a believable crime premise.

This is a well written romantic suspense by a new-to-me author that I will be following in the future.

***

Excerpt

The doors to the kitchen swung outward, and the man reappeared, a white plastic bag in one hand and Cassie’s picture in the other.

Addy slid her phone back into her purse and rose. The pity she saw in the man’s face as he drew nearer dashed the hope that had swelled in her chest.

“I showed your sister’s picture to everyone who’s still here, and no one recognized her. I’m sorry.”

Two solid days of showing Cassie’s picture every­where she could think of in Bentham and nothing. No one remembered seeing her.

“Thanks, anyway.” She didn’t bother trying to muster a smile of thanks. She reached in her purse for her wallet.

“No charge,” he said, thrusting her food and Cassie’s picture at her. “You take care of yourself.”

Addy looked up into the man’s now compassion-filled eyes and wiped away the single tear she couldn’t stop from falling. “Thank you,” she croaked out before turning and fleeing the restaurant before the dam of tears broke.

Silver garlands hung from the streetlamps along with fluttering signs ordering the denizens of Ben­tham to have a happy holiday. The lamps themselves were spaced too far apart for the weak yellow light they cast off to beat back the dark December night.

Five blocks west, cars coasted along one of Ben­tham’s main thoroughfares, but the street in front of Addy was clear and quiet, the surrounding busi­nesses having long since closed for the night.

She’d left the metallic-blue Mustang she’d rented for the two-hour drive from Manhattan to Bentham in the hotel’s parking lot. It was easier to canvass the neighborhood on foot. All she had to show for her effort were sore feet.

A footstep sounded as she pocketed her phone. Shooting a glance over her shoulder, she squinted into the darkness but saw no one.

You’re just not used to so much quiet, she thought, walking on.

She’d lived in New York City since she was twelve but spent summers on her grandfather’s ranch in Texas. She’d loved the ranch almost as much as she loved the city, but New York wasn’t called the city that never slept for nothing. There was always some­thing to do and see, and she was used to being sur­rounded by thousands of people, even though she’d been very much alone since Cassie moved to Ben­tham.

A scraping sound came from close behind her, followed by the unmistakable sound of fast-moving footsteps.

She turned, intending to move to the side, when a hand clamped around her ponytail, jerking her back­ward against a hard chest.

It took a moment for her brain to catch up with what was happening, and by the time it did, her assailant had taken his beefy hand from her hair and clamped it over her mouth.

Addy fought her rising panic. Like any savvy city girl, she’d taken self-defense classes, but it had been a while since she’d brushed up. She’d never thought she’d actually have to use any of those techniques.

She tried to pull away, but the man’s arm was like a vise around her neck.

“Don’t fight, and I won’t hurt you,” the man growled.

She didn’t believe that for a minute. She’d left the small gun she carried for protection locked in her car’s glove compartment, a decision she regret­ted now. Who’d have thought the streets of Bentham were more dangerous than Manhattan?

Well, she had no intention of going down without a fight, gun or no gun. She sent up a quick prayer and fisted her hands at the same time a yell came from somewhere in the night.

***

About the Author

K.D. Richards is a native of the Washington, DC area who now lives outside of Toronto with her husband and two sons. You can find her at kdrichardsbooks.com.

Social Media Links 

Website: https://www.kdrichardsbooks.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kiadwritesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/kdrichardsauthor/

Buy Missing at Christmas by K.D. Richards

Harlequin.com: https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9781335489111_missing-at-christmas.html