Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for SALVATION STATION by Kathryn Schleich. I loved this chase for a heinous female serial killer and I was surprised to learn this is the author’s first novel.
Below you will find a book synopsis, my book review and the author’s bio. Enjoy!
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Book Synopsis
When committed female police captain Linda Turner, haunted by the murders of two small children and their pastor father, becomes obsessed with solving the harrowing case, she finds herself wrapped up in a mission to expose a fraudulent religious organization and an unrepentant killer.
Despite her years of experience investigating homicides for the force, Captain Linda Turner is haunted by the murders of the Hansen family. The two small children, clothed in tattered Disney pajamas, were buried with their father, a pastor, in the flower garden behind a church parsonage in Lincoln, Nebraska. But Mrs. Hansen is nowhere to be found—and neither is the killer.
In St. Louis, the televangelist Ray Williams is about to lose his show—until one of his regular attendees approaches him with an idea that will help him save it. Despite his initial misgivings, Ray agrees to give it a try. He can’t deny his attraction to this woman, and besides, she’d assured him the plan is just—God gave her the instructions in a dream.
Multiple story lines entwine throughout this compelling mystery, delving into the topics of murder, religious faith, and the inherent dangers in blindly accepting faith as truth. While Reverend Williams is swept up in his newfound success and plans for his wedding, Captain Turner can only hope that she and her team will catch the Hansens’ cunning killer—before more bodies surface.
“Salvation Station is your next must-read mystery. Kathryn Schleich perfectly blends together a taut tale of murder in the church. A devilishly good tale.”—CARA LOCKWOOD, USA Today best-selling author of I Do (But I Don’t)
“Salvation Station is an edge-of-your-seat, page-turning thriller that might possibly leave you unable to sleep. This book is what we need in the world right now—a killer we can hate and a model cop we can get behind, showing us that women are as fierce as men and then some.”—MARGO DILL, Managing Editor, WOW! Women On Writing
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
SALVATION STATION by Kathryn Schleich is a debut police procedural suspense/thriller by a new to me author. It is an intense story revolving around a dogged police captain searching for a heinous female serial killer who preys on widowed preachers and their flocks.
I was surprised when I found out this is the author’s first novel. The intertwining plots of the police investigation lead by Captain Turner and the crimes and manipulations of Susannah Baker as she works her way into a new preacher’s life and televangelist show are well paced, compelling and realistic. The author was able to both move the plot along at a good pace and yet depict that this case took many months to solve.
Linda Turner is a police Captain that the author brought to life with her dogged pursuit of justice for Rev. Hanson and his two children. Susannah Baker is a serial killer who is a master manipulator with no conscious, but the author does give her a background that shows that she could have chosen a different path. Her only love is money and self-preservation. All the secondary characters were realistic and fully fleshed.
Religion plays a big part in this suspense/thriller, but not like you would find in a Christian themed book. Both Linda and Malachi state their suspicion of organized religion after years of being investigators and seeing the worst in people. The killer uses religion and peoples’ blind faith to manipulate and steal from them. Then you have the preachers who all truly believe and they only see the good and a second chance for happiness with the supposedly god fearing Susannah. I thought the author did a well-balanced depiction of good vs. evil with religion being used as both.
I can highly recommend this suspense/thriller!
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Author Bio
Kathryn Schleich has been a writer for thirty years. Her most recent publications include the short story “Reckless Acts,” featured in After Effects: A Zimbell House Anthology, and her story “Grand Slam,” published in The Acentos Review in May 2017. She is the author of two editions of the book Hollywood and Catholic Women: Virgins, Whores, Mothers, and Other Images, which evolved from her master’s thesis. Her guest posts have been featured on the Women On Writing blog, The Muffin, and she writes for the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation’s volunteer newsletter.
When she’s not writing, Schleich is likely volunteering in the education and arts communities in the Twin Cities, where she lives. Friends, family, good food, wine, and traveling are important aspects of her life. Salvation Station is her first novel and will be available in April 2020.
Today is my turn on this Partners In Crime Blog Tour. I am excited to share my Feature Post and Book Review for FLIGHT RISK by Cara C. Putman. I could not put this romantic suspense down!
Below you will find a book synopsis, my book review, an excerpt from the book, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Good luck and enjoy!
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Book Synopsis
Bestselling author Cara Putman returns with a romantic legal thriller that will challenge the assumptions of truth tellers everywhere.
Savannah Daniels has worked hard to build her law practice, to surround herself with good friends, and to be the loyal aunt her troubled niece can always count on. But since her ex-husband’s betrayal, she has trouble trusting anyone.
Jett Glover’s father committed suicide over a false newspaper report that ruined his reputation. Now a fierce champion of truth, Jett is writing the story of his journalism career—an international sex-trafficking exposé that will bring down a celebrity baseball player and the men closest to him, including Savannah’s ex-husband.
When Jett’s story breaks, tragedy ensues. Then a commercial airline crashes, and one of Savannah’s clients is implicated in the crash. Men connected to the scandal, including her ex, begin to die amid mysterious circumstances, and Savannah’s niece becomes an unwitting target.
Against their better instincts, Jett and Savannah join ranks to sort the facts from fiction. But can Savannah trust the reporter who threw her life into chaos? And can Jett face the possibility that he’s made the biggest mistake of his life?
Book Details
Genre: Political/Romantic Suspense Published by: Thomas Nelson Publication Date: April 7th 2020 Number of Pages: 336 ISBN: 078523327X (ISBN13: 9780785233275) Series: This is a Stand Alone Novel Purchase Links:Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
FLIGHT RISK by Cara C. Putnam is a new romantic suspense with a hero, heroine and plot that make it impossible to put down!
Savannah Daniels has worked hard to build a prospering law firm filled with trusted and loyal friends since her divorce fifteen years ago. Savannah has trouble trusting since her ex-husband’s betrayal, but she would do anything for her young niece, her sister and ex-husband’s daughter.
Jett Glover is a newspaper man fiercely dedicated to only writing the truth. His father committed suicide when Jett was just twelve years old after a reporter ruined his reputation with false reporting. Jett feels like he has the story of his career, a famous baseball player and three others are all implicated in an international sex trafficking ring. He has checked all his facts and his expose is printed.
The printing of Jett’s story and a commercial airplane crash somehow tied to two of Savannah’s clients are colliding with the start of the murder of the men implicated in Jett’s article. One of those men is Savannah’s ex-husband. Can Jett and Savannah trust each other enough to work together to discover the killer? Will the truth of Jett’s article be the whole truth?
I read this book from start to finish in one sitting. Savannah is such a strong and intelligent heroine, who is giving to everyone, except herself. She is so wonderful to her niece, even with her personal heartbreak and betrayal. Jett is wonderful at accepting Savannah as she is, but he wants her to let him in and trust him. This is a cozy romance with no sex, but a growing relationship based on learning to trust again. All of the characters in this story are fully fleshed and realistic.
The plot is fast-paced and continued to surprise me with several twists and red herrings. The author had my emotions all over the place and they were intricately intertwined with the characters and plot. This book is listed as a Christian thriller besides being a romantic suspense. There are a few places where Savannah prays for strength or guidance, but it is never out of character for her or an interruption to the flow of the story.
I highly recommend this romantic suspense and I cannot wait to read more of this author’s books!
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Excerpt
The conversation flowed over the antipasti course and into the pasta della casa. Every bite of Savannah’s manicotti alla fiorentina was wonderful, the ricotta and spinach blending perfectly. Just when she knew she couldn’t take another bite and get anything done afterward, thanks to the food coma, a waiter came out with a slice of cheesecake. Her mouth watered as she took in the raspberries atop the homemade delight. She put a hand on her stomach and then smiled. “I hope you brought fresh forks for everyone.”
The handsome waiter flashed a bright smile. “Whatever the birthday donna wishes is my command.” He gave a slight bow and turned away. A moment later when he returned, a fist of forks at the ready, his demeanor had changed.
Emilie watched him a moment. “What’s wrong, Antonio?”
“There has been a horrible accident. It is on the TV in the office.”
“What kind of accident?” Savannah leaned toward him. “Does it involve someone you know?”
“No.” The man shook his head, and not one of his dark hairs moved. Yet his eyes were weighted with sadness and the shadow of something more. “It is a plane. It looks bad.”
“Oh no.” The memory of a plane careening by as she looked out a courtroom window in downtown Washington, DC, years earlier flashed through her mind. Savannah fought a shudder as she withdrew a credit card from her phone case and placed it on the bill, only for Hayden to slide it back to her and replace it with her own.
“Thank you.”
Please let this be a terrible accident and not the beginning of another 9/11.
Jaime’s head was bowed over her phone as she clicked the screen. “Looks like an isolated crash.”
All Savannah could think was that Jaime should add so far to her sentence. “That’s what we all thought on 9/11 too.”
Then a second plane careened into the Twin Towers. She saw the plane that hit the Pentagon, and a fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania, killing one of her fellow law students. She cleared her throat and stood, motioning the gals to join her.
“Let’s get back to work and see what we can learn.”
As they left her favorite restaurant, her phone buzzed and she paused to pull it out of her pocket. She glanced at the text message on the screen and her blood froze.
911. From Addy. Their emergency code.
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Author Bio
Cara Putman is the author of more than twenty-five legal thrillers, historical romances, and romantic suspense novels. She has won or been a finalist for honors including the ACFW Book of the Year and the Christian Retailing’s BEST Award. Cara graduated high school at sixteen, college at twenty, completed her law degree at twenty-seven, and recently received her MBA. She is a practicing attorney, teaches undergraduate and graduate law courses at a Big Ten business school, and is a homeschooling mom of four. She lives with her husband and children in Indiana.
I am very excited to be on this Harlequin Blog Tour. Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for SUNRISE ON HALF MOON BAY by Robyn Carr.
Below you will find a book summary, my book review, an excerpt from the book and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Summary
Sometimes the happiness we’re looking for has been there all along…
Adele and Justine have never been close. Born twenty years apart, Justine was already an adult when Addie was born. The sisters love each other but they don’t really know each other.
When Addie dropped out of university to care for their ailing parents, Justine, a successful lawyer, covered the expenses. It was the best arrangement at the time but now that their parents are gone, the future has changed dramatically for both women.
Addie had great plans for her life but has been worn down by the pressures of being a caregiver and doesn’t know how to live for herself. And Justine’s success has come at a price. Her marriage is falling apart despite her best efforts.
Neither woman knows how to start life over but both realize they can and must support each other the way only sisters can. Together they find the strength to accept their failures and overcome their challenges. Happiness is within reach, if only they have the courage to fight for it.
Set in the stunning coastal town of Half Moon Bay, California, Robyn Carr’s new novel examines the joys of sisterhood and the importance of embracing change.
SUNRISE ON HALF MOON BAY
Author: Robyn Carr
ISBN: 9780778309482
Publication Date: 4/14/2020
Publisher: MIRA Books
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
SUNRISE ON HALF MOON BAY by Robyn Carr is her new Women’s fiction novel set in a small California coastal town featuring two sisters who are about to deal with life changing transitions. This story is full of love, empathy, strength and pain as the two sister’s lives change.
Justine and Adele have led very different lives. They are twenty years apart in age and even though they like each other, they are not close.
Justine is a successful, high-power corporate attorney with a stay at home husband and two daughters. Married since college, Justine has devoted her life and long working hours to making a comfortable life for her family. With her company’s merger, she has to make some decisions about the type of work she wants in the future. And then she finds out her husband of twenty-eight years has been having an affair.
Adele returned home from college to be the caregiver for her ailing parents. After eight years as a caregiver, she has few friends and is stuck in a rut. Then Justine comes to tell Adele, finances are tight and she needs to get a job, Adele feels betrayed.
Each woman must find ways to start over and they both discover they need each other more than ever. Together they fight to overcome their failures and learn to fight for their new happiness.
I enjoyed this book so much and found it difficult to put down. Justine and Adele were so different and yet they were there for each other. Justine’s feelings of pain and heartbreak were written with such empathy by this author. How she was afraid to cry because she thought she would crack and not be able to keep all her responsibilities together ripped at my heart. I was cheering for Adele as she took the steps to change her personal life, but I was completely frustrated when she kept refusing to move on emotionally.
I was engrossed in all the emotions, good and bad that this story made me feel. All the secondary characters were fully fleshed and were essential players in this story. There is one mild sex scene that is not gratuitous. (Please Be Advised: this story contains adultery, domestic abuse and a stillborn birth.)
I highly recommend this emotional and ultimately uplifting story!
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Excerpt
“Has it ever occurred to Scott to get a serious job?” Adele asked. “I mean, forgive me, since I haven’t had a serious job in my life.”
Justine smiled patiently. “Your jobs have all been serious, and without you we’d have been lost. If you hadn’t dedicated yourself to Mom’s care, it would have cost our whole family a fortune. We’re indebted to you. And I agree it would help if Scott worked more than part-time, but I think that ship sailed years ago. He’s only worked part-time since Amber and Olivia came along.”
Adele adored her nieces, ages sixteen and seventeen. She was much closer to them than she was to Justine.
“I’m sorry you’re going through this,” Adele said. “I wish there was something I could do.”
“Well, the thing is, the future is looking very uncertain. I might need your help,” Justine said.
“What could I do?” she asked.
“Adele, I don’t like to push you, but you have to get it together. We have to make some decisions about what you’re going to do, what we’ll do with the house. I realize what I’ve given you for your hard work hasn’t been much, but I don’t know how long I can keep it up—paying for the maintenance on this house, the taxes, a modest income for you… I don’t want to panic prematurely,” Justine said. “Maybe I’ll be able to work everything out without too much hassle, but if I run into trouble… Money could get very tight, Addie. All those promises I made—that I’d help financially while you fix up the house, that I’d give you my half of the proceeds when and if you sold it… I might not be able to come through. I know, I know, I promised you it would be yours after all of your sacrifice, but you wouldn’t want me to ignore the girls’ tuition or not be able to make the mortgage…”
“But Justine!” Adele said. “That’s all I have! And I was considering finishing school myself!” Though if she was honest, she had no plans of any kind.
Justine reached out to her, squeezing her hand. “We’re a long way from me needing money. I just felt it was only fair to tell you what’s going on. If we’re in this together, we can both make it. I swear, I will make this all work out. I’ll make it right.”
But as Adele knew, they had never really been “in it together” in the past, and they wouldn’t be for very long in the future. Addie’s dedication to their parents allowed Justine to devote herself to her career. For that matter, it should be Justine and Scott shoring each other up. At least until Justine had a better idea. But where was Scott today? Golfing? Biking? Bowling?
Adele realized she had some difficult realities to face. When she dropped out of school to help her mother care for her father, she wasn’t being completely altruistic. She’d needed a place to run away to, hiding an unplanned pregnancy and covering her tattered heart. She’d never told her family that her married lover—her psychology professor—had broken down in tears when he explained he couldn’t leave his wife to marry Adele, that the college would probably fire him for having an affair with a student. For her, going home was the only option.
At the time Justine and Scott had been riding the big wave and didn’t lust after the small, old house in Half Moon Bay. That house was chump change to them. So, they worked out a deal. Adele had become her mother’s guardian with a power of attorney. But the will had never been adjusted to ref lect just one beneficiary rather than two. In the case of the death of both parents, Adele and Justine would inherit equal equity in the eighty-year-old house and anything left of the life insurance. At the time, of course, neither Adele nor Justine had ever considered the idea that Adele would be needed for very long. But before Adele knew it, eight years had been gobbled up. She was thirty-two and had been caring for her parents since she was twenty-four.
Adele, as guardian, could have escaped by turning over the house, pension, social security to a care facility for her mother and gone out on her own, finding herself a better job and her own place to live. She wasn’t sure if it was her conscience or just inertia that held her in place for so long.
“I just wanted to make sure you understood the circumstances before anything more happens,” Justine said. “And since you don’t have any immediate plans, please don’t list the house for sale or anything. Give me a chance to figure out what’s next. I have children. I’ll do whatever I can to protect them and you. They’re your nieces! They love you so much. I’m sure you want them to get a good education as much as I do.”
Does anyone want me to have a real chance to start over? Adele asked herself. This conversation sounded like Justine was pulling out of their deal.
“I’ll think about this, but Scott has responsibilities, too,” she pointed out.
“He’s been out of the full-time workforce for so long…” Justine said.
“Just the same, we all have to live up to our adult commitments and responsibilities. And you’ve had a highfalutin job for a long time. You’ve made a lot of money. You can recover. I haven’t even begun.”
“I need your help, Addie,” Justine said. “You need to come up with a plan, something we can put in motion. Make plans for your next step, put a little energy into this old house, make suggestions of what we should do with it, everything. Let’s figure out what to do before I find myself short and unable to help. I’m sorry, but we have to move forward.”
Robyn Carr is an award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than sixty novels, including highly praised women’s fiction such as Four Friends and The View From Alameda Island and the critically acclaimed Virgin River, Thunder Point and Sullivan’s Crossing series. Virgin River is now a Netflix Original series. Robyn lives in Las Vegas, Nevada. Visit her website at www.RobynCarr.com.
I am so excited to be sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for Melinda Leigh’s CROSS HER HEART (Bree Taggart Book #1). This book has everything I look for in this genre and a protagonist I cannot wait to follow into future books!
Below you will find a book description, my book review and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Description
A homicide detective’s violent family history repeats itself in #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh’s novel of murder, secrets, and retribution.
For more than twenty-five years, Philadelphia homicide detective Bree Taggert has tucked away the nightmarish childhood memories of her parents’ murder-suicide…Until her younger sister, Erin, is killed in a crime that echoes that tragic night: innocent witnesses and a stormy marriage that ended in gunfire. There’s just one chilling difference. Erin’s husband, Justin, has vanished.
Bree knows how explosive the line between love and hate can be, yet the evidence against her troubled brother-in-law isn’t adding up. Teaming up with Justin’s old friend, former sheriff’s investigator and K-9 handler Matt Flynn, Bree vows to uncover the secrets of her sister’s life and death, as she promised Erin’s children. But as her investigation unfolds, the danger hits close to home. Once again, Bree’s family is caught in a death grip. And this time, it could be fatal for her.
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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
CROSS HER HEART (Bree Taggert Book #1) by Melinda Leigh is the first book in a new romantic suspense/thriller series that has everything I look for in this genre. A strong, intelligent female protagonist, an engaging cast of secondary characters and a thrilling, intense plot that keeps you on the edge of your seat which all come together in this exceptional debut.
Philadelphia homicide detective Bree Taggart receives a call
for help from her younger sister, Erin. She drops everything and returns to her
hometown. When she arrives, it is to a nightmare which is eerily reminiscent of
her traumatizing childhood. Erin is dead and the main suspect is her estranged
husband, Justin who is missing. Bree vows to get justice for Erin and her
children.
Bree is not alone in her search for Justin. His best friend,
former sheriff’s investigator and K-9 handler Matt Flynn knows Justin has
problems, but he loved Bree and he does not believe he is capable of murder. Bree
and Matt work together to uncover Erin’s secrets and to find Justin.
Bree and Matt do not realize how closely the killer is
watching. Once again, Bree’s family is in danger and she may be the next
Taggart in the line of fire.
This book is Melinda Leigh at her best! Bree and Matt are realistic,
multifaceted characters that work very well together and complement each other.
Bree and all the characters in this story come to life immediately. I found
Bree’s compassionate handling of Erin’s children to be a great example of her internal
character. The plot has a myriad of twists and turns that had me continually
surprised and turning the pages.
I highly recommend this first book in the Bree Taggert series and I am anxiously waiting for the next in the series!
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Author Bio
#1 Wall Street Journal and #1 Amazon Charts bestselling author Melinda Leigh is a fully recovered banker. A life-long lover of books, she started writing as a way to preserve her sanity while raising her kids. Over the next few years, she learned a few things about writing a book. The process was much more fun than analyzing financial statements, and she decided to turn her hobby into a career.
Her debut novel, SHE CAN RUN, was nominated for Best First Novel by the International Thriller Writers. Since then, she has garnered numerous publisher awards, including two Silver Falchions and three Golden Leaf Awards. She is a two-time RITA® Award Finalist and has earned three Daphne du Maurier Award nominations. Melinda’s books have sold over 8.5 million copies.
She holds a 2nd degree belt in Kenpo Karate. She’s dabbled in Arnis stick fighting, studied Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and taught women’s self-defense. She lives near the beach with her family and a small herd of spoiled rescue pets. With such a pleasant life, she has no explanation for the sometimes dark and disturbing nature of her imagination.
TROUBLE (Dogwood Lane Book #3) by Adriana Locke is another
great contemporary romance in the Dogwood Lane series. This romance has another
of the lifelong friends meeting their match with all of the fun, sex and emotional
angst I have come to expect in Ms. Locke’s romances. This book can be read as a
standalone romance, but being set in a small-town all of the main characters crossover.
Penn Etling had a rough start growing up, but he is now the
laid-back, fun loving friend who is always willing to help. He is a player, but
everyone knows and understands what they will get from him. No harm and no
foul.
Avery Perry has moved to Dogwood Lane to live and work with
her aunt. She can no longer take the type of life she was expected to live in
L.A. as the daughter of a movie star. She is excited to make real friends who
want to know her without expectations. As she is attempting to hang a speaker,
she falls right into Penn’s arms. Avery knows guys like Penn and she is not
willing to go there. She wants a real relationship, not a one-night stand.
When these two come together the sparks fly, but is Penn
willing to give more of himself than ever before and stop his playboy ways? And
will Avery tell Penn the secret she is keeping and give him a chance to prove
he can change?
I absolutely love Penn. His hard body, bad boy persona, but
his soft heart are why all the girls want him and he is the perfect opposite
for Avery. And yet, they were not opposite in their emotional scars from their
upbringings. Avery is the type of heroine I like because even though she falls,
she is still willing to pull away and stick up for what she truly wants in her
life. All the secondary characters are fully fleshed out and many carry over
from the previous two books.
In this series, Ms. Locke has written realistic and fun
dialogue, sex scenes that sizzle and burn up the pages and characters in this
small-town setting that make you want to be friends with them all.
I recommend this contemporary romance and all the books in the series!
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Author Biography
USA Today bestselling
author Adriana Locke lives and breathes books. After years of slightly
obsessive relationships with the flawed bad boys dreamed up by other authors,
she decided to create her own. She is the author of Tumble, the
first novel in her Dogwood Lane series; the Exception series; the Gibson
Brothers series; and the Landry Family series.
She resides in
the Midwest with her husband, her sons, two dogs, two cats, and a bird. She
spends a large amount of time playing with her kids, drinking coffee, and
cooking. You can find her outside if the weather’s nice, and there’s always a
piece of candy in her pocket. Besides cinnamon gummy bears, boxing, and random
quotes, her next favorite thing is chatting with readers. She’d love to hear
from you! Look for her at www.adrianalocke.com.
Today I am excited to share my Feature Post and Book Review for Christi Caldwell’s new book IN BED WITH THE EARL (Lost Lords of London Book #1).
Below you will find an author guest post, a book summary, my book review, an excerpt from the book, an author bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Good luck and enjoy!
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Author Guest Post: Flaws Make the Man
My newest release, In Bed with the Earl, features an unlikely Regency hero. He was born to nobility, was kidnapped, and grew up in the roughest streets of London, as a ‘tosher’…a sewer scavenger. Nothing about Malcom or his past is in any way conventional, but he also represents how our pasts shape who we are. And there is no doubting, his past molded him into who he is… a man who doesn’t let people close…and who protects what he does have. Which is why…when he does meet Verity, someone who wants to be close for him (first, for reasons related to her work…and then, the more she knows him, simply because she’s falling for him) he resists.
People are impacted by life, in different ways. We all have many layers; and for Malcom, those layers are protective ones; a shield to protect himself from being hurt…because he’s already known so much. Yes, he’s coarse and ragged, and rough, but beneath that, readers (I hope) will see what Verity sees…that he has a good heart, and is deserving of a happily-ever-after, not only for who he is to others, but because, with the life he’s lived, he deserves it for himself.
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Summary
To solve a mystery that’s become the talk of the ton, no clues run too deep for willful reporter Verity Lovelace. Not even in the sewers of London. That’s precisely where she finds happily self-sufficient scavenger Malcom North, lost heir to the Earl of Maxwell. Now that Verity’s made him front-page news, what will he make of her?
Kidnapped as a child, with no memories of his well-heeled past, Malcom prefers the grimy spoils of the culverts to the gilded riches of society. Damn the feisty beauty who exposed the contented tosher to a parade of fortune-hunting matchmakers. How to keep them at bay? Verity must pretend to be his wife. She owes him.
The intimacy of this necessary arrangement—Verity and Malcom thrust together in close quarters—soon sparks an irresistible heat. But when the charade ends, the danger begins. Will love be enough to protect them from a treacherous plot devised to ruin them?
About the Book
Title: In Bed with the Earl
Author: Christi Caldwell
Release Date: March 17, 2020
Publisher: Montlake
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
IN BED WITH THE EARL (Lost Lords of London Book #1)
by Christi Caldwell is the first book in a new historical romance series that
had me engrossed from page one!
While sick in bed and his parents dead, Percival Northrop is
kidnapped and his life becomes a day to day struggle to survive in the St.
Giles area of Victorian London. He blocks his memory of his younger life and learns
the life of a tosher. He is now known as Malcolm North and is ruthless as he
fights to survive and thrive in the sewers of London.
Malcolm does not quite fit with his fellow toshers. He can read, calculate and speaks as if he is upper class. He is located by a private detective and told that he is the actual true heir to an Earldom. Malcom wants nothing to do with that life.
Verity Lovelace has worked for The Londoner since she was
twelve years old. She worked her way from inkwell girl to reporter, but because
she is a woman she is only given the opportunity to write the gossip column. She
is the bastard daughter of an Earl and has been the sole support for her sister
and nursemaid for years since her mother died. After having one of her stories
stolen, her job is on the line and she must find the missing Earl and interview
him or be out of a work.
Verity is rescued in the sewers by Malcolm. The two butt
heads as Verity refuses to be give up her chase of the story. Malcolm has never
let anyone get close, but there is something about this female that he cannot
forget. Verity is determined to get her story, but is she ready to pay the price?
I loved Malcom and Verity so much! I could not put this book
down. Malcolm’s fight for survival and life as a tosher was interesting and a
life that was new to me. Even as he refused his memories and emotions, he took
care of others. Verity was a survivor as much as Malcolm and that is what made
them so perfect for each other. The author’s writing is emotionally charged banter
that made me laugh out loud as well as tear up. The sexual tension between
these two was well written and there is only one sex scene towards the very end
of the story. It is explicit, but not gratuitous. All the secondary characters
were fully fleshed and wonderful additions to the story.
I highly recommend this historical romance and I am waiting
anxiously for the next book in this series!
***
Excerpt: In Bed with the Earl by
Christi Caldwell
“May
I help you, Miss Lovelace?”
That lethal purr sounded from the front of the
room, a silky taunt.
With a gasp, the page slipped from her fingers
and fluttered to a damning place at her feet.
Mr. Bram yanked the cloths from his eyes, and
he took in Verity beside Mr. North’s open desk. And all the color left his
face. “Oh, bloody hell.”
Oh, bloody hell, indeed. And all thoughts of
having been rescued by a savior, and even the importance of this story, fled in
the face of the danger staring back at her in his ruthless gaze.
He is going to kill me…
Verity swallowed hard. “If you’ll excuse us?”
Mr. North murmured.
Verity took a step toward the door.
“Not you, Miss Lovelace.”
Mr. Bram climbed awkwardly to his feet. “Oi’m
so sorry,” he said hoarsely, an apology that went ignored by Mr. North.
Her heart lurched. Every muscle in her body
lurched. This was bad. Which would have been the understated statement of the
century. She curled her toes into the soles of her borrowed slippers and
followed the stranger’s—nay, he was no longer a stranger in name—the Earl of
Maxwell’s gaze. As dread slowly wound its way through her, Verity curled those
digits all the tighter.
And as it was all the easier to focus on
matters within her control, she looked to her older patient as he limped across
the room. “Be sure and try out those remedies, Mr. Bram.” She felt Mr. North
sharpen his gaze on her person. “And I’ve something that might help with that
limp, too,” she promised.
The older man stopped. “Do ya, now?”
She may as well have promised him the sun,
moon, and stars for the way he looked at her. “Oh, yes. You’ll require—”
“Bram,” Mr. North snapped, and the older man
instantly scuttled off, but not before flashing her an apologetic look.
“It is really not Mr. Bram’s fault. He’s not
done anything wrong. You really shouldn’t take your…”
Not taking his eyes from her person, he reached
behind him with an agonizing slowness and drew the door shut. Click. That soft but decisive snap that served as a seal of
her fate.
Just like that, Verity’s bravado flagged. She
clutched at the fabric of her skirts. Wanting to be the composed reporter
gathering her research, and undaunted in the face of peril.
And she came up … pathetically empty.
That cold smile affixed to hard lips remained
in place, a grin that no person would dare mistake for anything but the feral
threat it was. He pushed away from the door and started a languid stroll toward
her.
Had she truly been relieved about determining
the identity of her savior and captor?
It was now all muddled.
“Now, Miss Lovelace? If that is your name?”
“M-my name?” Wasn’t it? Even her name eluded her
in that moment. “Of course it is.” Her voice ended on a croak as he drew ever
closer; the ice that frosted his gaze sprang her to the reality now facing her,
the menace that spilled from his broad frame. Mayhap she’d been wrong. Because
she’d experience with earls—was, in fact, the daughter of one. They were
nothing like the predatory devil that stalked her now. “I am Miss Verity Lovelace. What grounds would I have to lie?”
She hurried to place the chair of his desk between them as another barrier.
He stopped his pursuit. “And how may I help
you?”
Ironically, the stranger—the gentleman—could
have uttered no truer words than those.
They fortified her, and sent resolve creeping
back into her spine as she brought her shoulders back. Verity met his gaze
squarely. “Are you the Earl of Maxwell?”
Except, she already knew as much … she simply
sought the confirmation from the gentleman’s mouth.
His eyes grew shuttered, but not before she
caught the flash of horror in their blue-black depths.
He was a man unaccustomed to being challenged.
And his unsettledness eased away further frissons of fear. Verity slid out from
behind his desk chair and glided slowly across the room. She stopped when only
a handful of steps separated her from the very stranger who’d put a knife to
her earlier that night.
“Do I look like an earl?” he countered, belated
with that reply—that deliberately evasive one.
Taking that as an invitation to study him,
Verity peered at Mr. North. That slightly hooked nose, which had been broken
one or more times, did little to conceal the aquiline appendage that served as
a signal of his birthright. The small white nicks and scars merely marred a
canvas of otherwise flawless high, chiseled cheeks and a hard, square jawline.
Glorious. Her pulse throbbed a beat harder. His
features, melded with those flaws, only served to mark him beautiful in his masculinity.
His mouth crept up in a tight, one-sided smile that didn’t meet pitiless eyes. “Did you have a good look, Miss Lovelace?” He’d noted her appreciation. Verity’s cheeks burnt, and she curled her toes into the soles of her borrowed slippers. He merely sought to disconcert her. It was a familiar state she’d found herself many times before, with many men before him. Feigning nonchalance, Verity gave her head a little toss. “You have the look and the tones of an earl,” she pointed out. “And more…” She gestured to those private missives she’d availed herself to. “You have letters written regarding the Baron Bolingbroke.” Verity stretched up on her tiptoes so she could at least hold his gaze and not be peered down at. “Therefore, Mr. North, I would say you are, in fact, the Earl of Maxwell, after all.”
***
Author Biography
USA Today Bestselling, RITA-nominated author
Christi Caldwell blames Julie Garwood and Judith McNaught for luring her into
the world of historical romance. While sitting in her graduate school apartment
at the University of Connecticut, Christi decided to set aside her notes and
pick up her laptop to try her hand at romance. She believes the most perfect
heroes and heroines have imperfections, and she rather enjoys torturing them
before crafting them a well deserved happily ever after!
Christi makes her home in southern Connecticut where she spends her time
writing her own enchanting historical romances and caring for her three
spirited children!
