Release Blitz/Feature Post and Book Review: Watching Trin by Freya Barker

Hi, everyone!

Today I am excited to be sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for the Release Blitz of WATCHING TRIN (On Call Book #7)(Police and Fire Operation Alpha) by Freya Barker.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!

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Book Description

Freelance journalist and single mom, Katrina (Trin) Paige, has recently returned to her hometown to help her sister care for their elderly father. They’ve barely settled back into Durango’s daily life when her rebellious teenage son gets himself in tumultuous waters. While being rescued by the local fire department, he unwittingly uncovers a decades-old crime hidden underneath the churning rapids of the Animas River.

Once Trin’s life is back on an even keel, her sharp nose for a compelling story starts twitching and she dives headfirst into an investigation of her own. The more she uncovers, the closer she gets to the firefighter who not only pulled her son from the river, but who also seems present everywhere she turns.

Bodhi (Roadkill) Jones doesn’t believe in things like fate, although, he can’t deny the way his life seems to be entwined with the spunky redhead is more than mere coincidence. In fact, he’s been wondering how it is possible she escaped his attention growing up in the same town, even though she is a few years older. Swept up in an unfamiliar current, he finds himself looking for ways to spend time with her and her family.

However, when a murder investigation touches his personal life, it invades Trin’s as well, leaving him scrambling to make sure the woman he’s fast falling for is protected.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58646877-watching-trin?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=q2HJoDXZ8d&rank=1

Watching Trin (On Call, #7)

Author: Freya Barker

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: September 14th

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3zUTa4x

Start the series: https://amzn.to/3C7FdBh

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

WATCHING TRIN (On Call Book #7)( Police and Fire: Operation Alpha) by Freya Barker is the latest romantic suspense and wonderful new couple in the On Call series to follow. While this is book #7 and some of characters crossover between books, it can be easily read as a standalone. I have read the whole series and anxiously wait for each of Ms. Barker’s mature, intelligent, and sexy heroes and heroines.

Katrina “Trin” Paige has returned to her hometown to help her sister with their father who has dementia. Single mom Trin is a freelance journalist so it is easy to relocate to Durango, and she hopes the move will be good for her rebellious fourteen-year-old son, Tucker.

Barely settled in, Tucker must be rescued by the local fire department from the Animas River in the middle of the night when the stolen raft he and his friends stole capsize in the rapids. During his rescue, the firefighter who pulls him out discovers an old crime scene.

Bodhi “Roadkill” Jones is surprised by his instant attraction to the spunky mother and sister to one of his fellow firefighters. As he finds ways to spend time with Trin, her investigation into the old crime scene he discovered seems to be placing her life in danger. He discovers he will do anything to protect her and her son, but will it be enough?

I always enjoy Ms. Barker’s characters and writing style. The romance between Bodhi and Trin is realistically paced and believable. The sex scenes are hot, but never gratuitous. The secondary characters all add to the story and never feel like placeholders. The scenes dealing with Trin’s father’s dementia were heartbreaking and from friends with a similar situation, were handled with empathy and honesty, as well as the problems Tucker was dealing with as a bi-racial child. I did figure out the way the suspense plot was going very early on in the story, but it did not take away from my overall enjoyment of the story.

I recommend this addition to the On Call series and all the books written by this author.

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Author Bio

USA Today bestselling author Freya Barker loves writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories.

Driven to make her books about ‘real’ people; she creates characters who are perhaps less than perfect, each struggling to find their own slice of happy, but just as deserving of romance, thrills and chills in their lives.

Recipient of the ReadFREE.ly 2019 Best Book We’ve Read All Year Award for “Covering Ollie, the 2015 RomCon “Reader’s Choice” Award for Best First Book, “Slim To None”, Finalist for the 2017 Kindle Book Award with “From Dust”, and Finalist for the 2020 Kindle Book Award with “When Hope Ends”, Freya continues to add to her rapidly growing collection of published novels as she spins story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!

Social Media Links

Web: http://bit.ly/FreyaWeb

Facebook: http://bit.ly/FreyaFacebook

Twitter: http://bit.ly/FreyaTwitter

Instagram: http://bit.ly/FreyaInstagram

BookBub: http://bit.ly/FreyaBookBub

Book Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: A Plague Among Us: A Chautauqua Murder Mystery by Deb Pines

A Plague Among Us

A Chautauqua Murder Mystery

by Deb Pines

September 1-30, 2021 Tour

Hi, everyone!

Today is my turn on the Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tour and I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for A PLAGUE AMONG US: A Chautauqua Murder Mystery (Mimi Goldman Chautauqua Mysteries Book #8) by Deb Pines.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Good luck on the giveaway and enjoy!

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Book Description

When Al Martin, the editor of a satiric newspaper in Chautauqua, N.Y., reportedly dies of COVID-19, the local consensus is: good riddance.

A sister suspects foul play. She wonders why Al was cremated in a hurry.

The police stay out of it.

So it takes reporter and relentless snoop Mimi Goldman to try to find which of Al’s haters— including an estranged wife, three bitter siblings, a secretive caregiver, old enemies and the many targets of Al’s poison-pen sarcasm—might be a ruthless killer.

The novel, No. 8 in a series called “an Agatha Christie for the text-message age,” once again offers page-turning suspense. Wit. And the unforgettable setting of Chautauqua, a quirky, churchy, lakeside, Victorian cottage-filled summer arts community that launched an adult-education movement Teddy Roosevelt called “the most American thing in America.”

A Plague Among Us: A Chautauqua Murder Mystery

Genre: Mystery
Published by: KDP
Publication Date: July 1, 2021
Number of Pages: 280
ISBN: 979-8525017368
Series: Mimi Goldman Chautauqua Mysteries, Book 8 | Each book can be read as a Stand-Alone Mystery

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58466145-a-plague-among-us?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=8U5OfahEh2&rank=1

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My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

A PLAGUE AMONG US: A Chautauqua Murder Mystery (Mimi Goldman Chautauqua Mysteries Book #8) by Deb Pines is another charming character driven amateur sleuth mystery in the Mimi Goldman series. This book is easily read as a standalone, as are all the books in this series.

Mimi Goldman is a reporter for Chautauqua’s The Daily and always ends up getting involved in her town’s mysteries. When Al Martin, the editor of a satiric newspaper supposedly dies of Covid, his sister does not believe it. She asks Mimi to find out what really happened to Al.

There is no shortage of suspects for Mimi to investigate. Al‘s poison pen sarcasm left many hating him. He also had an estranged wife, three bitter siblings and a secretive caregiver.

Mimi and best friend, 95-year-old, Sylvia are on the case.

I enjoy reading this series and enjoy all the small-town characters. Ms. Pines uses short chapters, fast-paced intelligent and witty dialogue, and plot twists that always leave me guessing. This is also the first book I have read that does not shy away from including all aspects of the Covid pandemic.

I recommend this entertaining amateur sleuth mystery.

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Excerpt

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Mimi and Sylvia were on the road again, heading to the Tissue Donor Center in Jamestown to chase Winston Suarez.

The center wasn’t far from the Loves’ funeral home. But this time Google Maps was directing them to take the highway, not back roads.

They started out the same way, heading west on 394, passing the same early landmarks: the Institution’s empty parking lots, busy golf course and We Wan Chu Cottages.

“So what’s new?” Sylvia asked.

“Too much,” Mimi said. “It’s crazy how I keep learning stuff without seeing how any of it means anything.”

“Because the medical examiner still hasn’t called?”

“Uh-huh.”

Sylvia sighed heavily. “Maybe he’s just as difficult as his dad.”

Tom Love Sr., in Mimi’s opinion, wasn’t difficult. All he had done was stand up for his son before Sylvia picked a fight with him. But Mimi let it go.

“Well, one thing I’ll grant the older one,” Sylvia said.

“What?”

“He’s above average in the looks department.”

Mimi chuckled.

“What?”

“I thought you’re done with all of that nonsense.”

“I am.”

Sylvia moved to the left lane to take the ramp onto Route 17/Interstate-86 East and floored it.

“Whoa, hey,” Mimi said. “Mario Andretti, slow down.”

“Okay, okay,” Sylvia said. “Just had to get us on the highway.”

Sylvia slowed down to fit into the slow lane, sticking behind a FedEx truck going a steady 70 miles an hour.

Mimi filled Sylvia in on what she had heard from Shannon about Liam and Patrick. Their denials of knowing anything about the pranks. Their claims the decisions to have no autopsy and a quick cremation were just expedient—so Patrick could get home.

“So what time does Winston Suarez get off work?”

“I’m pretty sure it’s 5.”

Mimi had reached Winston once, described why she was calling. He got quiet, then hung up. After that, she called Winston and never reached him—leaving something like five or six messages.

They stayed on the highway about ten miles before taking the Jamestown airport exit, then winding around a maze of city streets until signs with a big “H” led them to the UPMC Hospital campus.

“Hopefully,” Sylvia said, “we’re more irresistible in person.”

The Tissue Donor Center was one of many outbuildings with medical-sounding names surrounding the redbrick main hospital.

Some were done in their own architectural style. Most, like the Tissue Donor Center, imitated the low-slung, redbrick design of the hospital, down to having a white number (for their address) and a primary-colored letter on their sides.

The letters were explained on campus signs. Building A was the main hospital. Building B, the signs said, was Outpatient Svcs. C was the Sherman Medical Bldg. D was Imaging & Medical Bldg. E was Physical Therapy, Pharmacies. F was the Tissue Donor Cntr.

Sylvia zipped past the early letters of the alphabet, slowing at F, the Tissue Donor Cntr. The main door had its name above it, an intercom to the right. Near the curb, another sign said, “No Standing any time. Ambulance Lane.”

They didn’t see any ambulances, but Sylvia decided to wait for Mimi anyway in a parking lot across the street.

“Break a leg,” Sylvia yelled as Mimi got out.

Mimi laughed.

If she did break a leg, no question, this was the place to do it. Her limb could be X-rayed at the Imaging Bldg.(D) and then set at Outpatient Svcs. (B).

At the door of the Tissue Donor Center, Mimi knocked.

“Who is it?”

The woman’s voice, through the intercom, was familiar.

“My name is Mimi Goldman,” Mimi said. “And—”

“Let me guess? You’re looking for Winston?”

Mimi laughed. “I guess I’m pretty predictable. Is he here?”

“He is. This is Hannah, by the way. We keep speaking on the phone. Why don’t I see if he’ll come out?”

Mimi had high hopes. How hard would it be for Winston to take a few steps to walk outside and see her?

On the other hand, blowing her off might be easier.

When she heard a ping, Mimi examined her phone. Sylvia, after coaching from her grandkids, texted like a teenager.

Wassup?

I asked for WS and someone said they’d get him. Just waiting.

Standing there, Mimi went through her email. Then she switched to her latest word game addiction: Spelling Bee in The New York Times.

Players have to make the most words, four letters or longer, from seven given letters, including one letter that had to be used in every word. The words that day had to be made from BLWCHAE, with all using an E.

Mimi started with the obvious ones: BLEACH, BLECH, BEACH, EACH, LEACH, LECH. She was moving on to trickier words when the center’s door swung open.

Out stepped a tall, handsome, dark-featured young man in a white surgical mask and blue scrubs with the name SUAREZ above his shirt pocket.

“I don’t know who you are,” he said. “I don’t know why you keep asking me about this case, but . . . I’m pleading with you to drop it and just go.”

Mimi had expected an asshole, too lazy or too self-important to talk. Not a frightened young man.

“Can you say why?” she asked. “I have no idea why this case is at all sensitive.”

Winston shook his head.

“How about off the record? You have my word that I’d never tell anyone you ever spoke to me.”

“Sorry,” he said. “I can’t risk losing my job.”

***

Author Bio

Deb Pines, an award-winning headline writer for the New York Post, is the author of seven Mimi Goldman novels and one novelette all set in the Chautauqua Institution in southwestern New York where they are top sellers.
A former reporter, Deb is also a lover of puns, show tunes and indoor cycling. She lives in New York City with her husband Dave.

Social Media Links

DebPines.com
Goodreads
BookBub – @debpines
Instagram – @pinesdebbie
Twitter – @pinesdeb
Facebook – @deborah.pines.9

Purchase Links

Amazon

Goodreads

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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/f24bf84b762/?

Blog Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: The Abberley Beach Murders by D.E. White

Hi, everyone!

Today is my turn on the Book n All Promotions Blog Tour and I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for THE ABBERLEY BEACH MURDERS (Detective Dove Milson Book #3) by D.E. White.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!

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Book Description

THE ELECTRIFYING NEWEST NOVEL STARRING DETECTIVE DOVE MILSON.

Four dead.

One clinging to life.

Are they tragic accidents or is someone out to kill?

Detective Dove Milson is called out to a gruesome scene under the pier: four bodies floating in a flooded escape room. What really happened after midnight in room 6?

Then Dove discovers one of the dead was a person of interest in a cold case involving Olympian in-the-making Mickey Delaney. She was left for dead in an abandoned quarry and has been in a coma for five years.

What’s the connection between these cases and do they have anything to do with the attacks on the beach?

One thing is clear.

Dove’s in a dangerous game of cat and mouse and only one of them will escape with their life.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58754876-the-abberley-beach-murders?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=u7FPRyagEm&rank=1

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DETECTIVE DOVE MILSON SERIES

Book 1: GLASS DOLLS

Book 2: THE ICE DAUGHTERS

Book 3: THE ABBERLEY BEACH MURDERS

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

THE ABBERLEY BEACH MURDERS (Detective Dove Milson Book #3) by D.E. White is another outstanding British police procedural crime mystery in the Detective Dove Milson series. This has quickly become one of my favorite series in this genre. The books can all be read as standalone crime mysteries, but Dove, her colleagues and family have all been evolving and I believe this series is best read in order.

Detective Dove Milson and her partner, DS Steve Parker are called to the scene of a gruesome crime. Four bodies are found floating in a flooded escape room.

Dove discovers one of the dead was a person of interest in a cold case where a promising Olympian gymnast was attacked and left for dead in a quarry. She has been in a coma for the last five years.

Dove is being watched as she works to discover if there is a connection between these two cases. Will she be able to solve the crimes before she too becomes a victim in this dangerous game?

I love Dove and D.E. White’s writing style. This book, like all the others in the series, is an intricate puzzle that is cleverly crafted and builds momentum as it comes together and reaches a surprising climax and conclusion, and I am always surprised at the end. The crimes may be gruesome but Dove and her colleagues are realistically portrayed in their determination to catch the killer and solve the crime.

I highly recommend this British police procedural crime mystery, the entire series and this author!

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Author Bio

Daisy White started writing fifteen years ago, scribbling ideas on napkins at work on the night shift. After various jobs, including working as cabin crew, in a hospital, a supermarket, and as a 999 call handler for the ambulance service, she began writing full time in 2018.

She writes cosy crime as Daisy White, including the Amazon bestselling RUBY BAKER MYSTERIES (Joffe Books), and psychological thrillers as D.E. White; REMEMBER ME and THE FORGOTTEN CHILD (HarperCollins).

Her latest book, THE FORGOTTEN CHILD, was released on kindle, audiobook and paperback in October 2019, and charted at number 15 in the US Amazon Kindle Top 100. It has been described as ‘…an explosive gangland thriller.’

Daisy’s new police procedural, GLASS DOLLS, featuring DC Dove Wilson, was published by Joffe Books in 2020. She is also working on a new cosy crime series and another standalone psychological thriller.

Rep’d by Lina Langlee at the Kate Nash Literary Agency.

BOOKS BY D. E. WHITE

DETECTIVE RUBY BAKER SERIES:

BEFORE I LEFT
BEFORE I FOUND YOU
BEFORE I TRUST YOU

DOVE MILSON SERIES:

GLASS DOLLS
THE ICE DAUGHTERS
THE ABBERLEY BEACH MURDERS

Social Media Links

AUTHOR WEBSITE
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM
GOODREADS

Feature Post and Book Review: Constance by Matthew FitzSimmons

Book Description

In the near future, advances in medicine and quantum computing make human cloning a reality. For the wealthy, cheating death is the ultimate luxury. To anticloning militants, it’s an abomination against nature. For young Constance “Con” D’Arcy, who was gifted her own clone by her late aunt, it’s terrifying.

After a routine monthly upload of her consciousness—stored for that inevitable transition—something goes wrong. When Con wakes up in the clinic, it’s eighteen months later. Her recent memories are missing. Her original, she’s told, is dead. If that’s true, what does that make her?

The secrets of Con’s disorienting new life are buried deep. So are those of how and why she died. To uncover the truth, Con is retracing the last days she can recall, crossing paths with a detective who’s just as curious. On the run, she needs someone she can trust. Because only one thing has become clear: Con is being marked for murder—all over again.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56326737-constance?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=88qM7BrYWO&rank=1

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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

CONSTANCE (Constance #1) by Matthew FitzSimmons is an exciting and thought provoking dystopian sci-fi mystery thriller that is the first of a two-book series. In the near future, if you have the millions to spare, human cloning is a reality.

Constance “Con” D’Arcy is a talented musician, who survives a horrible traffic accident which kills almost every member of the band she plays in. The accident moves her to accepting the gift of her own clone from her aunt who is the co-founder and brilliant mind behind the Palingenesis clinic.

After a routine monthly upload of her consciousness which should only take hours, Con wakes up months later in the body of her clone. She is told her original is dead, but the transition that should have happened with memories from her last upload has left her with no memory of the last 18 months.

Con is determined to find out what happened to her original and discover what has happened in the last 18 months. She cannot trust anyone who is offering to help because they all have ulterior motives and agendas. Caught between the wealthy and powerful Vernon Gaddis and Dr. Brooke Fenton fighting over what is hidden in Con’s brain and the Children of Adam who want the death of all clones, Con can trust in only herself.

This is an amazing story! I could not put it down. Constance “Con” is a protagonist that is memorable. She at times is a little too curious for her own good, but she is also fearless and resilient. She must face discrimination and bigotry as a clone at the same time she deals with the ethics of being a clone herself. Mr. FitzSimmons takes the reader through ethical and philosophical questions on cloning intertwined in the story and dialogue of his various characters. Also, and no small part of the story is an intricate crime mystery that has so many twists and surprises I could not stop turning the pages. Throw in some great rock band references and I was hooked. This book does not end with a cliffhanger, but there is an open question at the end of the story and the promise of a second book to come. I cannot wait!

I highly recommend this dystopian sci-fi mystery!

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Author Bio

Matthew FitzSimmons, an American boy from Illinois, grew up in London in the 1970s under the baleful eye of the Kings Road punks. His otherwise idyllic childhood was shattered by the traumatic experience of seeing Star Wars on December 27, 1977 in Leicester Square, listening to his father sleep through what was clearly the greatest cinematic achievement of all time, and fearing he was adopted.

For college, he attended Swarthmore College where he earned a B.A. in Psychology but lived largely in and for the theater.

After several years in New York City, and having learned he wouldn’t do absolutely anything to make it, he absconded to China. There he wrote a first novel (the less said about which the better), played center back for a foreigner’s soccer team, sparked a near riot and was forced to write a ziwo pipan (self-criticism) by the University of Nanjing—his first work of political fiction.

He now lives in Washington, D.C., where he taught English literature and theater at a private high school for over a decade. He cohabitates with a pair of old boots, collects bourbon and classic soul LPs, and wonders if he will ever write anything half as good as the first sentence of James Crumley’s The Last Good Kiss.

Social Media Links

Blog Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: The Suspects by Jodie Lawrance

Hi, everyone!

Today is my turn on the Books n All Promotions Blog Tour and I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for THE SUSPECTS (Detective Helen Carter Book #3) by Jodie Lawrance.

Below you will find a book blurb, my book review, the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!

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Book Blurb

SHE’S OUT OF UNIFORM BUT SHE’S STILL IN THE LINE OF FIRE.

Discover a thrilling new Scottish crime series starring Detective Helen Carter.

Detective Helen Carter needs a break. Instead, she’s going head-to-head with notorious cop killer Jimmy Osbourne.

Eight years ago, he pulled off the perfect heist and fled to Spain, leaving behind a trail of carnage. But not a shred of evidence to implicate him.

Now he’s back in Edinburgh. But why? Helen has her suspicions.

Within days, a mystery jewel thief surfaces on CCTV. A shooter hits a seedy back-alley.

The suspects are piling up, but Helen knows Jimmy is behind them. All her instincts tell her he’s guilty. She’s watching him. But he has eyes on her too . . .

Can she take him down before he gets to her?

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MEET THE DETECTIVE

Detective Sergeant Helen Carter is used to getting a rough time of it at work. As one of the few women officers around, she has heard it all before: she’s only there as a box-ticking exercise, or she only got the job because of her father, who was a detective inspector. But she can handle it. She knows she can hold her own against any man on the force. The only thing she can’t handle, however, are the constant fights with her fiancé, Ted.

THE SETTING

Edinburgh CID in the 1970s is on the third-floor of the ugly, modern concrete lump that is the police station. On a sunny day, you can look right out to Arthur’s Seat. And on any day, you can see spotty-faced, bored teenagers coming and going from the local high school across the road. With its historic cobbled streets and fair share of deprivation, Edinburgh police are up against every type of criminal imaginable.

DETECTIVE HELEN CARTER SERIES

Book 1: THE UNIFORM

Book 2: THE EVIDENCE

Book 3: THE SUSPECTS

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58741763-the-suspects?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=soclZZZbhf&rank=1

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My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

THE SUSPECTS (Detective Helen Carter Book #3) by Jodie Lawrance is the third Scottish police procedural crime story featuring female detective, Helen Carter in the mid 1970’s. While all the books in this series can be read as standalone crime investigations, the characters continue to be more fully fleshed and interconnected as the series progresses.

Eight years ago, Jimmy Osbourne pulled off a heist that would have been perfect except during the escape he killed a police officer and seriously injured the officer’s partner who is out for justice. Jimmy escaped to Spain leaving no evidence behind.

Now Jimmy is back in Edinburgh and Helen Carter is assigned the case. Helen is working to discover Jimmy’s reason for returning as well as finding any evidence to finally convict him.

This is another well written addition to this series, where Helen’s dogged determination and investigation skills are what solve the crimes since this series is set before DNA and other scientific evidence is used. Helen is a character facing all the sexual discrimination of her time in the police force and so she works to be the best at what she does. I did find this addition to the series was a little more difficult to get moving at first, but once everyone was sorted it began to move at a faster pace and kept me intrigued to the satisfying conclusion. All the secondary characters are becoming more fully fleshed and realistic for their time period. I am looking forward to seeing were Helen goes from here.

I can recommend this Scottish police crime thriller book and the entire series!

***

Author Bio

Jodie graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in 2018 with an MA in Creative Writing. When not writing, she is also an actress and has appeared in a variety of television, stage and film.

She’s also a contributor for BBC The Social.

Social Media Links

AUTHOR WEBSITE
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM

Book Tour/Feature Post and Audiobook Review: The Ninth Season by Deborah Serani

Hi, everyone!

Today is my turn on this Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tour and I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for the audiobook edition of THE NINTH SESSION by Deborah Serani.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Enjoy and good luck on the giveaway!

***

Book Description

An edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller that brings a unique mix of psychotherapy and sign language and Coda culture. Just when you think you have it figured out, think again!

Dr. Alicia Reese takes on a new patient. Lucas Ferro suffers with crippling anxiety, and as sessions progress, he begins to share the reasons why he’s struggling. As Ferro’s narrative becomes more menacing, Reese finds herself wedged between the cold hard frame of professional ethics and the integrity of personal truth. And, finally, when Ferro reveals his secrets, Reese learns how far she’s willing to go, willing to risk and willing to lose to do the right thing.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49603965-the-ninth-session?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=ILXubAFSfy&rank=1

The Ninth Session Audiobook Details:

Genre: Suspense Thriller
Published by: TouchPoint Press
Publication Date: September 26th 2019
Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins

Visit Audible to listen to a sample!

***

My Audiobook Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

THE NINTH SESSION by Deborah Serani is an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller written and read in a unique style. The plot is revealed in a series of psychological therapy sessions, patient notes and self-reflection. I listened to the Audible audiobook version performed by the author herself and was captivated.

Psychologist Alicia Reese is scheduled to meet a new patient and finds him having an anxiety/panic attack in her office restroom. Lucas Ferro tells Alicia he has tried therapy before, but it never seems to work. With each new session, Lucas’s revelations become more menacing, and Alicia will have to choose between carrying on with his sessions, her professional ethics and/or doing the “right” thing.

I loved the way this story progressed and the unique way it was presented. Alicia is an interesting protagonist. Ms. Serani integrates Alicia’s history of having grown up in a CODA (Children of Deaf Adults) family, her still present grief at the death of her husband and her professional life all together in a memorable character. The plot follows Alicia’s sessions with Lucas and uncovering his history and secrets. As each surprise or twist is revealed, the threat and tension levels increase the pace to a realistic climax. This is a short standalone that I did not want to stop listening to.

I enjoyed Ms. Serani’s narration. It was clear with a steady pace. I was never confused with which character was speaking during her narration. I also enjoyed that during the “Note” sections of the story, the narration had a scratching noise in the background as if Alicia was truly writing while you are listening.

I highly recommend this psychological thriller!

***

Author Bio

Deborah Serani, Psy.D. is psychologist in practice 30 years. She is also a senior professor at Adelphi University and has been published in academic journals on the subjects of depression and trauma. Dr. Serani is a go-to expert for psychological issues. Her interviews can be found at ABC News, CNN, The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Forbes, Reader’s Digest, The Washington Post and USA Today, and affiliate radio station programs at CBS and NPR, just to name a few. She is also a TEDx speaker and has lectured nationally and internationally. Dr. Serani has worked as a technical advisor for the NBC television show, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit – where a recurring character, Judge D. Serani, was named for her. Dr. Serani is an award-winning author, writing about psychological topics in many genres.