My turn on the blog tour today. I am excited to share this Feature Post and Book Review for the first book in a new P.I. cozy mystery series set in Wales by a new to me author. MURDER ON THE ROCKS (Jordan Jenner Mysteries Book 1) by J.S. Strange will keep you guessing.
Below you will find a book blurb, my book review, author info, social media links and purchase links. Enjoy!
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Book Blurb:
When PI Jordan Jenner returns to work following the death of his mother, his first case involves a murdered writer…
James Fairview has been killed. As a member of a prestigious writing group hosted by bestselling author Joseph Gordon in the heart of Cardiff, Jordan not only has to cope with solving the mystery, but also deal with press attention.
As Jordan investigates, he discovers his mother’s death may not have been so simple. And when another writer is murdered, Jordan realises the killer could strike again…
A murdered writer, a mysterious death, and a group with jealousy at its heart, this is Jenner’s toughest case yet.
A cozy murder mystery with a gay male detective, Murder on the Rocks is the first in the Jordan Jenner Mysteries series. If you’re a fan of classic whodunits you will love this!
A perfect read for those looking for Welsh crime fiction.
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My Book Review:
RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
MURDER ON THE ROCKS (Jordan Jenner Mysteries Book 1) by J.S.
Strange is a new cozy P.I. mystery. It is the first in a series set in Wales
and by a new to me author. This mystery has a unique lead character and the
murder occurs within a prestigious writer’s group of not so friendly
competitors.
Freelance P.I. Jordan Jenner has just returned to work after compassionate leave for the death of his mother. DCI Vanessa Carter calls Jordan in to her new crime scene for assistance. James Fairview, a wannabe author is found poisoned at a writers’ group meeting. He is a member of bestselling author, Joseph Gordon’s writing group in Cardiff.
As Jordan investigates the private lives of the members of
the writers’ group and tries to find the killer, he finds out that his mother
knew Joseph Gordon and her death may be related in some way. Every turn has
Jordan drawn deeper into this web of lies and the killer may not be done yet.
Jordan is an intriguing main character. He is not the nicest
person, but he is intelligent and determined. I also have not read any
mysteries with a gay P.I. protagonist. The plot itself has many twists, turns
and red herrings that kept me reading and guessing right up to the end. Since
this is a cozy mystery, you are able to avoid the strict, true-to-life police
procedures and rules.
The murder mystery is all tied up in the end, but there is a
bit of a personal cliffhanger that will easily lead those of us who want more
into the next book. I am very glad I tried this new to me author and can highly
recommend this book. I am looking forward to many more mysteries in this
series.
***
About J.S.
Strange:
J.S. Strange is an author from Wales,
United Kingdom. He writes crime, mystery and horror. His first novels,
published in 2016 and 2017, were set in an apocalyptic London. Murder on the
Rocks, is the first in a cozy crime mystery series, featuring a leading gay
male detective.
Murder on the Rocks was written by Strange for many reasons. One of those
reasons was a lack of representation within the crime genre, particularly with
detectives and sleuths. Strange created Jordan Jenner, a private investigator,
who lives and works in Cardiff. Murder on the Rocks was written with the
intention of shining light on Cardiff, and bringing Cardiff, and furthermore,
Wales, into the crime genre.
Strange’s previous works, such as ‘Winter Smith: London Burning’, also explored
LGBT themes, and featured socialite Winter Smith escaping a zombie apocalypse.
‘London’s Burning’ became an Amazon best-seller in LGBT fiction.
When Strange doesn’t write, he works in television. He also presents a radio
show all about the paranormal. He has an enthusiasm for Britney Spears and
cats.
Today I am excited to share the Feature Post and Book Review for Susan Stoker’s new release DEFENDING HARLOW (Mountain Mercenaries Book 4). This addition to the series has the men working a case right at home in Colorado Springs.
Below you will find a guest post from the author, an excerpt, my book review, the author’s bio and social media info and a Rafflecopter giveaway.
You are going to love “Black” and Harlow’s story. As always, good luck on the Rafflecopter giveaway!
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Guest Post: A Mountain Mercenary’s Sneak Attack with
Author Susan Stoker
Defending Harlow is
book 4 in the Mountain Mercenaries series. Each book features one of the men
who were recruited by the mysteries “Rex” to work on his team to help rescue
kidnapped women and children. In this book we meet Lowell “Black” Lockard who
was a Navy SEAL before he became a Mountain Mercenary. He joined the group
because after his stint in the Navy, he realized that he was happiest when he
was being useful, helping others. He’d been close to his fellow SEALs when he’d
been on active duty, but somehow he was even closer with his fellow Mountain
Mercenaries.
They worked together, they played
together, and they simply enjoyed spending time with each other both during
missions and when they were living their lives in Colorado Springs.
Black loves that his friends have
found women that completed them. Gray met Allye when he rescued her from a boat
in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and they had to swim for hours to safety. Ro
met Chloe when her brother was holding her hostage in his house and was about
to pimp her out from his strip club. And Arrow met Morgan when they’d been down
in the Dominican Republic to rescue a child who’d been kidnapped by her non
custodial father. Turns out, Morgan was one of the most famous missing people
the United States had ever had, and she’d been held for over a year before
she’d accidentally been found by the Mountain Mercenaries.
He loves that his friends are happy,
but realizes that he is…bored. He wants someone to laugh with. To talk to at
the end of the day. To break the routine of his life. He envies his friends for
having that.
Meeting Harlow is a turning part in
Black’s life. She makes him laugh and he’s intrigued more than he’s ever been
by a woman before. And realizing they went to the same high school once upon a
time makes him even more curious. But there’s a problem…Harlow has had bad date
after bad date and she’s sworn off dating forever.
But Black won’t give up. He decides to “trick” her by refusing to call what they’re doing as ‘dates.’ They’re just “hanging out.” And the more he spends time with her, the more he likes her…and vice versa. Harlow will have to decide whether or not to take a chance on Black, and he’ll have to figure out how to neutralize the threat looming over Harlow and the women’s shelter she works at or else the semantics of what they’re doing will be a moot point, because someone might end up dead.
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Defending Harlow Excerpt
Neither said anything for a while as
they drove toward downtown.
Finally, Harlow asked, “Where are we
going?”
“The Pit.”
“Where?”
Lowell smiled. “Since this isn’t a
date, and we’re talking about the shelter, I decided I should take you to the
place where me and my team conduct business. The Pit.”
“It sounds scary. Please tell me there
aren’t snakes on the floor and Indiana Jones isn’t going to pop up and run
pell-mell through the place being chased by members of an ancient civilization
because they want their artifact back.”
Harlow stared at Lowell when he threw
his head back and laughed loud and long. She couldn’t help but chuckle herself.
The man sitting next to her was so different from any man she’d dated in the
past—no, wait … this wasn’t a date. Nope. Not even close.
“I can’t wait to tell the others that.
No, Harl, The Pit is a combination bar and pool hall. It’s pretty much a
hole-in-the-wall kind of place.”
“Why do you do business in a bar?”
Harlow asked.
“To be honest, I’m not sure. The Pit
is where we were interviewed when we were first asked to join the Mountain
Mercenaries … I’m assuming you know about the team?”
She nodded. “A bit. Loretta told me.
I’m sorry if she spoke out of turn, but she was trying to reassure me that you
knew what you were doing and could help us.”
“I can help you,” Lowell confirmed.
“And in a nutshell, me and my teammates are all former Special Forces soldiers,
and we work for Rex, getting women and children out of untenable situations.”
“Why mercenaries? I mean, it doesn’t
sound like that’s what you guys really are.”
Lowell shook his head, and a small
smile formed on his face. “Why do women always concentrate on that word?” he
asked, more to himself than her.
Harlow answered him even though he
hadn’t really asked. “Because. It’s weird that you call yourselves something
that you technically aren’t. I wouldn’t start a catering business and call it
Harlow Photography.”
“Point taken. I don’t know why Rex
chose that name. Probably because it was catchy and sounded better than
Colorado Badasses, or Your Worst Nightmare.”
Harlow couldn’t stop the bark of
laughter that escaped. “True.”
“The bottom line is that it doesn’t
matter what we’re called. We’re six men who go where we’re needed and do what
we have to do to rescue those who need a helping hand. I know women are
empowered, and there are many who are just as talented at what they do as we
are. But the fact remains, there are a lot of men out there who feel the need
to subjugate and beat down the women and children in their lives. They take
advantage of teenagers who are too young to know better or those who have had
horrible lives. They hurt them and force them to do things against their will.
It’s not right, or fair, and me and my friends are playing a small part in
trying to right those wrongs.”
Harlow wasn’t sure how their light and
playful conversation had turned so intense, but she turned slightly in her seat
to better look at Lowell. His teeth were clenched, and the hand on the steering
wheel was holding on so tightly, she could see his knuckles turning white. He
obviously felt deeply about the topic and his job, and Harlow couldn’t be more
proud of him.
“I’m proud to know you, Lowell
Lockard.”
He looked at her in surprise. “What?”
“The world needs more men like you and
your friends. I don’t know why men like the ones harassing the shelter are the
way they are. Why they feel the need to exert their power over those they deem
weaker than them. But I’m glad you’re there to help tip the scales. Other than
the high-speed-chase guy, generally I haven’t been afraid of my bad dates, I’ve
just been disgusted by or disappointed in them. But I know there are a lot of
women out there who’re in bad marriages and relationships, and it helps knowing
there are people who care. People who will put their own lives on the line to
help get others out of those situations, if asked.”
Lowell pulled into a parking lot of a
dark and seedy-looking building, and Harlow wasn’t surprised to see the neon
sign above the door that said The Pit. This was exactly the
kind of place where she imagined Lowell and his fellow badasses would meet.
He stopped the engine, brought the
hand he was still holding up to his mouth, and kissed the back of it. “Stay
put. I’ll come around.”
He went to let go of her, but Harlow
held on to his hand. “This isn’t a date,” she said, not sure if she was
reminding him or herself. “It’s a work meeting. I let you pick me up, but I
should’ve driven myself. And I can open my own door and pay my own way.”
Lowell leaned into her, and Harlow
forced herself not to pull back.
“I know this isn’t a date. You don’t
date. I heard that loud and clear, Harl. But in my world—and make no mistake;
when you’re with me, you’re in my world—a man opens a door for a lady. He walks
on the outside of the sidewalk, he picks her up whenever possible, and he pays
for drinks and meals. If it makes you feel better, you can think of this as a
business expense I can write off on my taxes.”
Harlow stared at him for a beat, then
nodded. What else could she do? She didn’t want to like Lowell’s world, but she
had to admit it felt good being there. She’d had doors shut in her face when
men had entered ahead of her and hadn’t held them open. She’d had to pay for
her own meals on dates. And she’d even had an experience when she’d literally
almost been run over by a bus in Seattle because she’d been forced to walk on
the outside of the sidewalk near the curb.
“Okay,” she said.
“Okay,” Lowell said with a small
smile. Then he squeezed her hand once more and climbed out.
“Not a date, not a date,” Harlow
chanted to herself quietly as Lowell walked around his car to come to her side.
He opened her door and held out a hand. Taking a deep breath, Harlow put her
hand back in his and allowed him to help her up and out of the low seat.
He didn’t let go of her hand once she
was standing next to him, though. He simply shut the car door with his free
hand and led her toward the door of the bar.
Not a date, she told
herself once more as Lowell smiled at her and pulled open the heavy wooden
door.
***
My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
DEFENDING HARLOW (Mountain Mercenaries Book 4) by Susan
Stoker is a romantic suspense that has the men of Mountain Mercenaries working
a case in their own hometown. When a women’s and children’s shelter is
threatened, these dedicated men work to discover who is responsible and why.
All of the books in this series can be read as standalones, but there is more
character crossover in this book than in the previous books.
Ex-Navy SEAL Lowell “Black” Lockard has watched his
teammates find their forever matches one by one and even though he is not ready
for forever, he would like to find someone to share his time with. When Black
shows up for his turn to teach self-defense at the women’s shelter, he is
surprised to see that the new chef is an acquaintance from high school. Harlow
is a beautiful person, inside and out, and Black wants to see more of her, but
Harlow does not date.
Harlow Reese loves her job and all of the women and children
in the shelter. She is surprised when the boy she had a crush on in high school
walks in to teach self-defense to the women. Recently a group of young thugs
has started harassing the women and children and Harlow asks Black for his
help. With Harlow’s “No Dating” rule, Black has to find a way to do things with
Harlow without calling it a date. He starts by being available at all times to
keep her safe and he begins to find that Harlow means more to him than he
planned.
The threats escalate and Black pulls in all of the Mountain
Mercenaries to help find who is responsible. Can Black and the Mountain
Mercenaries keep the shelter and its’ occupants safe as they work to uncover
the threat?
I really enjoyed the mix of romance and suspense in this book in the series. Harlow’s list of bad dates had me laughing out loud. She had bad things happening around her at the shelter, but she was not abused as the previous heroines. Lowell was an interesting mix of understanding and caring for Harlow, but he has a dark side that is revealed in this story. These two were perfect for each other and I cheered on every step Lowell took to get Harlow. The suspense plot was well written to keep the story fast paced and interesting. The sex scenes were explicit, but not gratuitous when they did occur.
I can highly recommend this book and the entire series! I am
looking forward to Ball’s story next.
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About the Book
Title: Defending Harlow
Author: Susan Stoker
Release Date: June 4, 2019
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Summary
Lowell “Black” Lockard, former Navy SEAL, has
watched his fellow Mountain Mercenaries settle down with the women of their
dreams, but he’s convinced he doesn’t need love. Then he gets a call from
Harlow Reese—a chef at a local women’s shelter—and begins to reconsider his
decision.
After being
continually harassed by a local band of punks, Harlow asks Lowell to give the
women of the shelter lessons in self-defense. She doesn’t expect him to take
such a special interest in her safety, but he insists on escorting her to and
from work, never taking no for an answer. Not that Harlow minds the personal
touch…especially when it’s coming from her former teenage crush.
Despite her long history of bad dating luck, seeing Black again makes Harlow rethink her self-imposed celibacy. Easy on the eyes and hard to forget, the man has morphed into an alpha stud. And Harlow may be exactly the type of woman Black is looking for. Making her feel safe isn’t only a duty; it’s a pleasure. But the threats are escalating. The motives are a mystery. And as the danger burns almost as hot as their passion, there’s much more at risk than their hearts.
Author Biography
Susan Stoker is
a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling
author. Her series include Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes, SEAL of Protection,
Delta Force Heroes, and Mountain Mercenaries. Married to a retired Army
noncommissioned officer, Stoker has lived all over the country—from Missouri
and California to Colorado and Texas—and currently lives under the big skies of
Tennessee. A true believer in happily ever after, Stoker enjoys writing novels
in which romance turns to love. To learn more about the author and her work,
visit her website, www.stokeraces.com,
or find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorsusanstoker.
I want to share this Feature Post and Book Review for BAYOU CITY BURNING (Harry and Dizzy Lark Book 1) by D.B. Borton which is being released June 1st. Below you will find a synopsis, an excerpt from the book, my book review and the author’s bio and social media.
This is a historical crime mystery set in the 1960’s in Houston, TX with a father/daughter hard-boiled detective duo. Oh, and did I mention the daughter is 12 years old! I highly recommend this first book in this new series and cannot wait to read more.
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Synopsis
Houston, 1961
Texas’ slickest politician has lost his presidential bid to a good-looking naval hero from Massachusetts. President Kennedy wants to put a man on the moon, and the Freedom Riders are raising morale for local civil rights activists.
Sleepy backwater Houston finds itself short on air conditioning just when things are heating up.
In a seedy downtown office, a well-dressed out-of-towner hires P.I. Harry Lark to tail two D.C. visitors looking to build NASA a space center. The more Harry finds, the more he suspects he’s working for the wrong side, and vows to wash his hands of the case. Meanwhile, Harry’s twelve-year-old daughter Dizzy is puzzling over a mystery of her own—she’s running a lost-and-found out of a suburban garage and is unexpectedly hired to find a missing dad who’s supposed to be dead and buried.
When Harry’s client turns up dead in his office, and mobsters start hounding him for cash, Harry realizes he needs the help he can get, even if it comes from his daughter. As Harry and Dizzy’s cases converge, thing is clear: some wants Houston to look like a lawless Wild West cowtown. Together, Harry and Dizzy are going to find out who that is.
***
Excerpt
It was there, and then it wasn’t: a grainy, pockmarked triangle slashed by a dark shadow. First the edges blurred into an impres sionist dream of earth tones and light, then the cut of a thin shadow skimmed across the surface, and then—darkness. Nothing to see, no matter how I strained my eyes.
Static, like a windstorm against a microphone, accented by highpitched beeps.
A calm male voice: “Contact light. Okay, engine stop.” Then another voice, a familiar twang, Texan: “We copy you down, Eagle.” The first voice again: “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”
Later, I heard that about five million people all over the world were doing exactly what I was doing at that moment. I had a summer job as a day camp counselor at the local Y, but they sent everybody home early that day—kids, counselors, and staff—to watch two men land on the moon, just like President Kennedy had promised they would eight years before. In the thrill of the moment, it was hard to predict what people would remember afterward. Probably they’d remember the words, “The Eagle has landed.” But I’d remember the part that came before. I’d remember the first word in that announcement: Houston.
If it hadn’t been for my old man, that word might have been different.
Some people regard my father Harry as a two-bit shamus. They see him as a licensed peeper with a gun under his coat and the ethics of an alligator lizard. I’ve seen him that way myself. But he’s got his principles. And I knew as I sat in our chilly living room, curtains drawn against the blazing star that lit up the lunar surface and melted the Texas sidewalks, that this was his gift to me: that word.
He didn’t have to do it. The other side was safer, and they paid better, too. But I was his little girl, and he wanted to make me happy.
“Where’s your secretary?” He angled a thumb over his shoulder toward the outer office. Two rings winked at me, a diamond and a signet.
“She must’ve stepped out,” I said noncommittally.
Jeanie had “stepped out” about six months ago when I’d traded her salary for a set of braces for my son. I liked to keep up appearances, though, so I hung an old sweater from the back of Jeanie’s chair and sprayed it with perfume from time to time—mostly rejects from my daughter’s Christmas gift exchanges. I filed some things on Jeanie’s desk instead of in the wastebasket and kept a page in the typewriter. But what did he care, unless he was worried about witnesses?
I nodded at the wooden chair in front of my desk and angled a packet of Winstons in his direction. “What can I do for you?”
He slung his raincoat over the arm of the chair. It dripped small dark stains onto the rug. He took a cigarette and we lit up. Then he settled back in the chair and grimaced. I studied his tie, waiting for him to speak. It was the same slate gray as the suit and thin as a razor blade.
“I need some information about an event that’s taking place here next week,” he said. “In town, I mean.” He waved his cigarette in the direction of the window and grimaced. The grimace told me that he’d never consider promoting Houston from a backwater berg to a city. His voice was flat and forgettable—the kind of voice that could have read the daily stock report. “And what would that be?”
“Two men are coming down from Washington, DC. I want to know what they’re doing here, where they go, who they see. Pictures, too.”
“What’s the beef?” I said.
“Let’s say that I suspect these men of conspiring to defraud taxpayers by engaging in certain underhanded practices that stand to damage my business interests and those of my associates.” He was looking at Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was hanging on my wall, when he said it. If Ike didn’t like this story, he didn’t say so. I didn’t like it, but I was in hock to a certain orthodontist, so I refrained from comment.
“Let’s say that,” I said. “And you would be Mr.—?”
“Smith.” His gaze returned to me and his eyelids dropped to halfmast over the cigarette smoke. “My name is Smith.”
“Well, Mr. Smith,” I said, “I get fifty dollars a day plus expenses.”
“Isn’t that a little steep?” he said.
I shrugged. “I have to pay for the air conditioning.” Besides, his suit told me he could afford it.
He gestured with his cigarette. “And I suppose all the other private dicks in Houston have to pay for air conditioning, too.”
I grinned. “You’re welcome to go ask them.”
I left it up to him to imagine spending the hours between now and his departure time sitting in a Houston office without air conditioning instead of cooling his heels in a lounge near the airport. I felt sure he was doing it, too.
“Yeah, all right,” he said.
My marks were Philip Miller and John Parsons. Their work had something to do with space research.
“What kind of space research?” I said, frowning. “You mean for business expansion?”
“Hey, that’s right.” He pointed the cigarette at me. “Business expansion. But the business is space—outer space.”
My phone rang. The voice on the other end was accusatory. “You were supposed to pick me up ten minutes ago for the orthodontist.”
Since he’d become a teenager, my son Hal addressed me in one of three tones of voice—bored, superior, and disgruntled. He’d found it harder to manage since he’d acquired a mouthful of metal and rubber bands, but not impossible.
I pretended to check my desk calendar and make a notation. “Yes, that’s fine,” I said. “I’ll be there.”
“I’m going to be late for the orthodontist,” Hal said.
“That’s all right. Happy to help out. Thanks for calling.” I hung up and raised my eyes to my visitor. “Where were we?”
“Space.”
“I don’t know anything about that,” I said.
“I don’t, either,” he said. “But there’s business involved, and a lot of money. That’s all you have to know.”
The two men were due to arrive the following Tuesday at Houston International. He didn’t know the time or the flight, but he gave me photographs of the men. The photographs looked like my kind of photograph—stuff taken with a telephoto lens when the subject didn’t know he was being photographed.
He glanced out the window next to the one with the air conditioner. City buildings gleamed in the rain but there wasn’t much else to look at except the Weather Ball on top of the Texas National Bank, which blinked to show that precipitation was expected. It didn’t matter to him; he was blowing town anyway, the sooner the better. He counted out four twenties and laid them on my desk. “That enough to get you started?” he asked. I nodded. He told me he’d come back in a week at the same time.
He was already swabbing the back of his neck with the wet handkerchief as he stood up.
“What if I have to get in touch with you before then?” I said.
“Save it.” He turned his back and headed for the door.
I stood at the window and watched him emerge from the building downstairs, his raincoat over his head like a pup tent. The Chinese laundry on the first floor was kicking up a lot of steam and he gave it a wide berth, stepping gingerly to keep his Italian leather shoes out of the puddles. Then he disappeared around the corner, so I didn’t get to see his car, if he had one. It was probably a rental, anyway. I had already decided that tailing him at this point was a losing proposition. He’d paid me enough to start the work he wanted me to do, but not enough to give me the trouble of tailing him.
Besides, I had a date with my surly teenaged son. I pocketed the twenties and hoped that my daughter’s teeth all stayed as straight as a drill sergeant.
***
My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
BAYOU CITY BURNING (Harry and Dizzy Lark Book 1) by D.B.
Borton is a new P.I. mystery story and the beginning of a new series. Set in
Houston, TX in the 1960’s this father/daughter team are so much fun to get to
know and follow as their separate investigations merge into one intriguing
mystery case. Did I mention that Dizzy is only 12 years old?
P.I. Harry Lark is happy when a well-dressed out-of-towner shows
up at his office. He has orthodontist bills to pay for his son. All he has to
do is follow two men from D.C. and let his client know where they go in Houston
and who they see. When Harry discovers he is not the only one following these
men, he starts to wonder what his client is really interested in.
Desdemona “Dizzy” Lark is not your average 12 year old girl.
She has started a business with her two best friends, B.D. and Mel out of her family’s
garage. Lost and Found finds lost items collected from the neighborhood and you
can have them returned or purchase them for a small trade or fee. Dizzy and her
friends are Nancy Drew fans and Dizzy wants to become a P.I. just like her Dad.
As Dizzy and the girls are sitting around the garage, little
7 year old Sissy Heffelman walks up and tells the girls she wants them to find
her daddy. An expensive Barbie doll was sent to Sissy on her birthday and she
believes it is from her father even though he was supposedly killed in a
terrible train wreck weeks before. They take Sissy’s case.
As the girls work their case, Harry’s client is killed in
his office while searching for something after breaking in in the night. Harry
has mobsters showing up from Chicago and Tampa all looking for something that
Harry knows nothing about. Houston got rid of the mob years ago, so why are
they back? All of a sudden in once quiet Houston there are bombings tied to
picketers and the dockworkers are striking. When Harry and Dizzy begin to compare
their cases, they find the two may be connected by a single incident.
This is such a fun, entertaining and intriguing mystery. Harry’s dialogue is filled with old-fashioned hard-boiled P.I. lingo that at first was a little jarring, but then it just blends right into the whole narrative and I could not imagine him talking any other way. It was especially entertaining when Dizzy used the same lingo. Harry and Dizzy have a unique relationship that had me laughing out loud at times. Set in the 1960’s, the author realistically writes about race relations, dirty politicians and the mafia. There are many twists and turns in this fast moving plot that kept me guessing.
I highly recommend this book and I cannot wait to read more mysteries with this father/daughter duo.
***
Author Bio and Social Media
D. B. Borton is the author of two mystery novel series, the Cat Caliban series (Berkley,
Hilliard and Harris) and the Gilda Liberty series (Fawcett), as well as
recent novels Second Comingand Smoke.
She has published academic
work on film, women’s literature, and the
supernatural; she is co-author of Haunting the House of Fiction: Feminist
Perspectives on Ghost Stories by American Women and Ghost Stories by
British and American Women.
She also wrote for Ms. magazine.
A native Texan, Borton became an ardent admirer
of Nancy Drew at a young age. At the age of fourteen, she acquired her own blue
roadster, trained on Houston freeways, and began her travels. She also began a
lifetime of political activism, working only for candidates who lost. She left
Texas about the time everyone else arrived.
D. B. currently teaches writing, film, and
literature at Ohio Wesleyan University.
Today’s Feature Post and Book Review is for Loreth Anne White’s upcoming release THE DARK BONES (Dark Lure Book 2). Below you will find a guest post from the author, an excerpt from the book, my book review and a Rafflecopter giveaway.
This author always gives me mystery, suspense, increasing threat (both physical and environmental) and a bit of romance all rolled into one intense story. Even though this is book 2 in the Dark Lure series, it can easily be read as a standalone, but believe me, you will want to go back and read the first book in this series.
I highly recommend this book and series! As always, good luck on the Rafflecopter giveaway.
***
Hunting For Betrayal with Author Loreth Anne White
My
newest novel, THE DARK BONES, is about a cop, Rebecca North, who learns that
her father—a retired police officer—has killed himself. She can’t believe it.
But in order to prove it was murder she must return to her small, rural home
town and face a lot of dark things she’s been running from including the man
she left behind long ago, and a cold case thought long buried.
At
the core, THE DARK BONES examines the lies people tell each other and
themselves—the false narratives they construct in order to hide mistakes, or
bad deeds, or hurtful truths, or realities that shame and burden them. And as
Rebecca North, my detective, digs deep to find the truth of what really
happened to her dad, she begins to crack open a carapace of old lies that wraps
around a cold case—a heinous deed that occurred in her small community
twenty years in the past, a crime from which people are still hiding.
Rebecca
fast learns that the secrets she is beginning to unearth are secrets people
will still kill to keep. However, opening up this vault of lies and betrayals
in the small town also reveals to Rebecca truths about herself, and about the
man she once loved, Ash Haugen. A man who betrayed her. And in confronting
those betrayals and old lies, and the reasons that underpinned them, Rebecca
and Ash can finally heal, and open themselves to a love that was always meant
to be. At the heart THE DARK BONES is also about second chances, and getting
that opportunity to try and set right the collateral damages around betrayal.
Although
THE DARK BONES stands alone, it also revisits the setting and some of the
characters from an earlier book, A DARK LURE. Those earlier characters were
left with a hard road to travel toward their happy end, and as some of them
play a key role
in Rebecca and Ash’s story, we see them also confronting outfalls around betrayal, and getting chance to continue their journey towards a good life.
***
The Dark Bones Excerpt
Rebecca felt
warmth. She was enveloped by it. She heard the crackle and pop of dry logs
burning and, in the distance, dogs barking. The smell of … fire—
Her eyes shot open, her heart thumping.
He sat there. Ash. In a chair by the fire,
watching her with his ice-blue eyes. She was in his living room, and the
lighting had been dimmed. The flickering glow of the flames in the hearth
behind him cast his rugged features into sharp relief. The scar down the side
of his face looked harsh. An old brown dog with a white muzzle slept on a rug
in front of the hearth.
Rebecca’s brain slotted puzzle pieces into
place as she struggled through a mental haze to backtrack and figure out how
she’d gotten here: The lights following her. The razed cabin and the clues that
someone had been inside the shed and maybe fled the scene. Ash shooting at her.
No gas in her truck. Fear of dying. Coming here to Haugen Ranch. Shucking her
dad’s gear in Ash’s mudroom. Him helping her into the living room of his old
family home—a great big log house built by his grandfather. Seating her on the
sofa.
She sat up slowly, trying to pull her brain
into sharper focus. A down duvet was wrapped around her, a heated blanket
beneath that. The duvet smelled of fresh laundry. Yes, she recalled, the fire
had already been going in the hearth when he’d brought her in—she’d noticed
that. Next had come hot tea with honey, warm clothes handed to her—fleece,
oversize. More tea.
He’d told her not to talk. Discussion could
wait.
She met his eyes now and felt a visceral
connection across the darkened room. This was her first proper look at him
after all these years.
Her teen lover had aged. As she had. But he’d
matured in a way she found attractive. He was neither sweet nor handsome.
Rugged rather. A brooding look. Sun bronzed and weathered. Her attention
returned to his scar. So prominent, cutting down the left side of his face from
eye to jaw. He could have had plastic surgery over the past decades, but
clearly hadn’t. Her memory slipped back to the day she’d tried to patch him up
with the help of a small medical kit and knowledge she’d gleaned during her
part-time job as a veterinary assistant.
He lied…
Her attention shifted to his hands. His
knuckles were scarred.
What were you protecting him from that day?
She recalled the blood she’d seen on those
ragged and bruised knuckles that day. Why had she not told her father she didn’t know for certain he’d fallen off
his horse and been dragged across sharp terrain?
Why had she not questioned more firmly, at age sixteen, Ash’s refusal to go
to the ER facility on that particular day? What deep psychology had driven her
to possibly blind herself to search for a darker truth?
In that tempestuous, hormone-filled year she
was sixteen, had she conveniently compartmentalized something that had created
cognitive dissonance, because she’d just recently started sleeping with Ash,
and needed to believe him? Needed to trust him again?
How had her actions that day shaped this
present? Could it—she—have possibly played a role in her father’s death?
And why, oh dear God why, did Ash still make
her feel things? This—this—was why she’d stayed away. He held an animal kind of magnetism over
her. She felt it now, her gaze locked with his arctic eyes. Her attraction had
blinded her to the fact he was not good for her. He was a liar.
She cleared her throat. “What time is it?”
“Almost midnight. You going to be okay? Do I
need to drive you to Clinton?”
From his ranch it would take almost an hour, in
the dark, on bad roads. And the ER would be closed. They’d have to call 911 for
emergency to open up with an on-call physician. It reminded Rebecca that out
here, one looked after one’s own.
“I … I must have passed out.”
A half smile. “Slept like a baby. You must have
been tired.”
A desire to tell him all rose in Rebecca: How
rough her journey home had been with the storms. How seeing her father’s body
had gutted her. How exhausted she felt, emotionally. But she held back as her
mind sharpened and the immediacy of why she was here, with him, in this house,
was pulled into clear focus.
“What made you return to my father’s place when
you did, Ash? How did you come to find me?”
“I go up to the Broken Bar mesa sometimes. The
view of the valley on a clear, cold night is surreal.” A pause. “I needed to
think.” After seeing you. The unspoken words
seemed to simmer between them. “Someplace above it all. Then as the moon rose,
I caught light glinting off metal where your father’s place was. I thought it
might be a vehicle, so I went to check before heading home.” He paused. “You
could have died out there.”
Rebecca swallowed as this fact sank like a
stone through her gut.
“Have you been sitting there watching me like
that all night?”
“You worried me,” he said. Then, very quietly,
he added, “And I like to look at you.” He paused. “It’s been so long.”
***
My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
THE DARK BONES
(Dark Lure Book 2) by Loreth Anne White is a mix of romantic suspense, mystery and
thrills with ever increasing physical, emotional and environmental threats. This
is the second book in this series, but it can easily be read as a standalone.
Detective Rebecca North is notified that her father, a
retired Mounty has committed suicide. Rebecca has been away from her hometown
in rural Western Canada for twenty years and even though she knows her father
had problems, she refuses to believe he would take his own life. He called her
just that day to tell her he is revisiting a cold case from their hometown and
that he believes he is being followed and has had papers stolen from his home.
One of the last people to see Rebecca’s father alive was her
ex-high school boyfriend, Ash Haugen. Ash always dreamed of one day marrying
Rebecca, but he broke her heart and trust. The investigation is stirring up old
feelings and lies. Even as they work together, old friends and relations may
once again pull them apart.
While regathering the evidence for the case her father was working on and trying to prove he did not commit suicide, Rebecca and Ash are under increasing threat by someone who is trying to keep the old case cold.
I loved this book! The murder mystery and the cold case keep
you guessing, turning the pages and they keep the overall pace continually
increasing to the climax. The flashbacks to Rebecca and Ash’s pasts did not
detract or slow down the story in any way. I liked the tie in to the first
book, but it does not interfere with your understanding of this mystery plot or
romance. Rebecca and Ash were complex characters with actions and emotions that
were believable. The romance grows at a realistic pace. The secondary
characters are fully fleshed out and added depth to the small town, good and
bad.
I highly recommend this book and series! Ms. White is an
author that I now automatically go to when looking for an intense suspenseful
read.
***
About a Book
Title: The Dark Bones
Author: Loreth Anne White
Release Date: May 21, 2019
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Summary
When Detective Rebecca North left her rural hometown, she
vowed never to return. Her father’s apparent suicide has changed that. The
official report is that retired cop Noah North shot himself, knocked over a
lantern, and set his isolated cabin ablaze. But Rebecca cannot believe he
killed himself.
To prove it, she needs the help of Ash Haugen, the man she
left behind. But Rebecca and Ash share more than broken hearts. Something
darker lies between them, and the investigation is stirring it back to life. Clues
lead them to the home of Olivia West and her deeply troubled twelve-year-old
daughter, Tori. The child knows more about the murder than anyone can imagine,
but she’s too terrified to say a word.
And as a cold-blooded killer resurfaces from the past, Rebecca and Ash begin to fear that their own secrets may be even harder to survive.
***
Author Biography
Loreth Anne White is an internationally bestselling author
of thrillers, mysteries, and romantic suspense. A three-time RITA finalist, she
is also the 2017 Overall Daphne du Maurier Award winner, and she has won the
Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, the National Readers’ Choice Award, and
the Romantic Crown for Best Romantic Suspense and Best Book Overall, in
addition to being a Booksellers’ Best finalist and a multiple CataRomance
Reviewers’ Choice Award winner. A former journalist and newspaper editor who
has worked in both South Africa and Canada, she now resides in the Pacific
Northwest with her family. Visit her at www.lorethannewhite.com.
Living in Durango, Colorado for the past eighteen years allowed Ollie Rizzo to build her own business and carve out a quiet existence for her and her teenage daughter. She’s used to going it alone. However, their new silver-haired neighbor might present a problem—not only is he handsome—he’s also Durango’s new chief of police; a complication she can’t afford.
For recently widowed Joe Benedetti, the job offer as Durango’s new chief of police came at the right time. With life, the new job, and his two young sons settling into a comfortable routine, he does his best to ignore the beautiful and intriguing woman across the street. Yet when he discovers she’s caught the attention of the FBI, there is no way he can stay away.
Their worlds collide with the appearance of FBI Special Agent Cruz Livingston. The agent has a warning to deliver, one that spins life in Durango out of control, giving Joe a crucial mission—keep Ollie alive.
COVERING OLLIE
(On Call Book 2) by Freya Barker is an exciting romantic suspense and the
second book in the On Call series. This is an emotional, suspenseful romance
with Freya Barker’s signature mature H/h characters and writing that pulls you
in, grabs your complete attention and makes you sad if you have to put the book
down before ‘The End’. This book can easily be read as a standalone romance,
but characters do crossover from the first book, “Burning for Autumn”.
Joe Benedetti has relocated with his two young sons to fill
the vacant position of Chief of Police in Durango, Colorado. After the death of
his wife from cancer, he wants a more manageable job and routine for himself and
his boys. He is lucky to find teenager, Trinity (Trinny) across the street, who
introduced herself right away for babysitting duty. He has noticed Trinny’s beautiful
mother, but he does not want to get involved.
Olivia (Ollie) Rizzo moved to Durango eighteen years ago and
has built a new life. As a freelance landscape architect Ollie has done well
and lived quietly with her daughter. She cannot help but hear about the boys
and the police chief from her daughter, but waving from a distance is the
extent of her interaction.
When Special Agent Cruz Livingston arrives at Ollie’s door,
her past collides with her quiet existence. Joe becomes involved immediately
when he is briefed on the danger Ollie and her daughter may be in. As Joe, his
officers and the FBI work to eliminate the threats to Ollie’s life, the two
begin to let down their walls and become close. Will Joe be able to keep Ollie
safe and grab hold of a future together?
Ollie and Joe, the kids and all of the secondary friends and
family could walk off the page, they feel so real to me. Ms. Barker knows how
to write about couples that have lived and have baggage, but in the end are
willing to work at building a new life together. They have lived life and are
not perfect physical specimens, but they are real and beautiful to their love
interest. The sex is explicit, hot and sexy and always builds in a realistic
way.
I have loved all of Ms. Barker’s romances and romantic
suspense books. I cannot recommend this author enough especially if you like
your H/h a little more mature and written with just the right amount of
suspense and sex to spice up the romance. I highly recommend this book and
series!
***
About Freya:
Freya Barker inspires with her stories about ‘real’ people, perhaps less than perfect, each struggling to find their own slice of happy.
She is the author of the Cedar Tree and Portland, ME Series, the Northern Lights Collection and the Rock Point Series. She is also co-author of the SnapShot Series.
To see Freya’s complete backlist, or to find out what is coming down the pipe, visit freyabarker.com.
I am so excited to share this Feature Post and Book Review for Meghan Quinn’s new book release THAT SECOND CHANCE (Getting Lucky Book 1). Below is an interview from the author, an excerpt from the book, my book review and info about the author. I loved this romance and all of the characters!
At the end of this post, you will see a Rafflecopter giveaway. Take a chance and good luck!
***
Get To Know Author Meghan Quinn
1. In the past few
years you have written dozens of novels! First off, how do you find the time?
And second, how has becoming a bestselling author changed your life?
I have the best partner in life ever that helps out with
everything around the house, including the kids. I also have a very overactive
imagination so when I get into a scene, my fingers fly, giving me high word
counts in a short amount of time. Even though it looks like I’m working all the
time, I make sure to make time for my family, ending every day at five at
night. And hitting the USA Today bestselling list was a huge goal of mine I had
ever since I started writing. It meant everything to me.
2. What can you
tell us about the first time you sat down to write with the goal of completing
a novel?
I was a maniac. I wrote the book in a week. Yes, a week. It
was insane. I had so much to say because I was thinking about it consistently
while commuting an hour and twenty minutes one way to work. When my fingers hit
the keyboard, it al flew out of me.
3. What is the
best part about being a romance author? What is the most difficult part?
The best part is constantly being able to create, break it
up, and then find it again. It’s such an old, classic formula, but it’s my
favorite of all time. The most difficult is trying not to gross people out with
terminology during sex scenes. There are only so many words that are on the
OKAY list. Sometimes it can be restricting.
4. What draws you
to writing romance novels? Specifically why is it important that your
characters have happily-ever-afters?
Ever since I can remember, I’ve loved love. Instead of going
out in high school, I would stay at home and watch romantic comedies. I was
fascinated with falling in love and the heartbreak, and then the make up. I
love everything about it. I think we all deserve a HEA, why not give it to our
characters too?
5. Even though you
include realism and heartbreak in your books, the thing readers really takeaway
is sense of fun you pack into the novels. How is it you (and your characters)
are able to find humor in everyday things?
I’ve always found myself to live in the clouds, in a land of
cupcakes and fun, it’s just my personality so whenever I’m in a situation, I
usually can find the fun in it and of course, I’m really good at
embellishing.
6. Give us a quick
snapshot of your newest novel That Second Chance.
Four brothers, small town romance, all single, all cursed.
Will they be able to find love, even though they’re the most eligible yet
untouchable bachelors in Port Snow, Maine?
7. What makes Ren
and Griff’s story special to you?
Their meet cute is probably one of my most favorite of all
time. Wayward moose, volunteer firefighter, a crazed woman new to town, looking
for help. It’s all charming, funny, and perfect.
8. What’s next for
this series?
Rogan!!! AND OH MY GOD!!! His story is . . . gah! I can’t even tell you how in love with it I am. There is mystery, intrigue, questions that need to be answered and so much swoon you might just fall off your chair while reading.
***
That Second Chance Excerpt
I’m counting out our register drawer,
trying to stay focused on the numbers whipping through my head, but it’s
difficult with Reid’s constant small talk. I jot down another tally mark on the
paper in front of me and set aside a stack of bills.
“Hello, are you listening?” Reid asks,
sounding annoyed.
“No. I’m counting.”
“Well, I’m talking about you, so you
might want to lend me your ear for a second.”
Huffing, I set the cash on the
counter, knowing my very persistent brother won’t be quiet until I give him my
full attention. “What’s up, Reid?”
Satisfied, he smiles. “You should ask
her out.”
“Ask who out?”
“Ren.”
Yeah, that’s not going to happen.
“No.”
I go back to counting, but Reid starts
snapping his fingers at me. “Hey, I wasn’t finished.” I look back up at him,
not even slightly interested in this conversation. “I saw the way she was
looking at you today. I think she likes you.”
“You’re confused. She was probably
just being nice, since I’m the guy who pulled her out of the window of her car
after her accident. And even if she does like me, which I highly doubt, there’s
no interest on my end. So that’s the end of that.”
“Bull,” Reid and Jen both say at the
same time.
Christ. My two most nagging siblings
are ganging up on me. Just what I need when I’m trying to get home and relax.
“Can we not make this into a
dissection of my personal life, please? I’m not in the mood, and I want to get
this done so I can go home.”
“Griff, she’s pretty, she’s sweet, and
she’s smart. She’s new to town and, I’m sure, could use a friend,” Jen says
just as the door opens, its bell chiming through the space. Brig pops in,
grease all over his shirt and a smirk on his face.
Uh-oh. There’s only one reason why
he’d be smirking at me that way.
“What are we talking about?” He rubs
his hands together and takes a seat on a barstool near the window. “If it’s
about the hot new teacher in town, I want in on this conversation.”
“We’re trying to convince Griff to ask
her out.”
Brig slow claps his appreciation.
“Novel idea. I think they’re a perfect match.”
“I’m not asking her out,” I huff,
giving up on the register and leaning against the wall behind me, arms crossed.
There’s no way I’ll be able to concentrate on counting while these three are
yapping in my ear.
“Why the hell not? She’s perfect for
you,” Brig says, a little insulted at my rejection. “Before you even say no,
you should at least get to know her a little. I told her today she could borrow
your truck while her car is in the shop.”
I count to five before answering,
tamping down my temper. “Why the hell would you do that?” Okay, maybe I didn’t
tamp it down enough.
“Uh, because she lives three houses
down from you?” Brig rolls his eyes as if I’m the stupid one in this
conversation. “She needs some help, so be a knight in shining armor, dude. Help
out the damsel in distress and then make out with her on the beach. Maybe cop a
feel; get some for once.”
“I’m not doing that,” I answer, going
back to the money, letting them know this conversation is over.
“And why not?” Jen asks.
“Because I’m not interested in
starting or being in a relationship. I’m happy with how my life is right now,
and I don’t need anything complicating it.”
“But she has heart eyes for you,” Brig
says like a jackass.
“Don’t worry; there are plenty of
Knightly brothers to choose from,” I reply.
“Come on, Griff, how fun can going
home to an empty, lonely house really be?” Jen chimes in, concern evident in
her voice.
I shift on my feet, my voice terse. “I
like my house. It’s fine. I’m fine.”
Silence falls between us, an awkward
air moving in like a fast-moving cold front.
“Is this because of New Orleans?” Reid
finally asks, taking a seat next to Brig. Both of my brothers fix their gazes
on me, waiting for an answer.
Why is this a thing whenever we talk
about my love life? Can’t they just let it go? What happened was … hell, I
don’t even know how to describe it. All I know is I don’t foresee love in my
future.
Claire was the love of my life, and I
lost her; in a blink of an eye she was gone. I’m not going through that again.
Not ever.
Shaking my head, I turn away from my
family. This conversation is over.
And with that, I take the cash to the
back office, where I can get some peace and quiet.
Ask Ren Winters out on a date? Not
going to happen.
And she’s not going to drive my truck
either. I think that’s evident in the fact that she drove her car in between
two trees.
Can’t blame a guy there.
My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
THAT SECOND CHANCE (Getting Lucky Book 1) by Meghan Quinn is
a new contemporary romance set in quaint, small town Port Snow, Maine. This is
the first book, hopefully of four, featuring the Knightly brothers and their
search for true love after being cursed by a fortune teller in NOLA.
Ren Winters is lucky to be alive. After surviving a chain
reaction crash on an L.A. freeway and a year of recovery, she is ready to move
on with her life and out from under the constant excessive worry from her
mother. She accepts a new job teaching algebra clear across the country in a small
town in Maine. A moose vs. car encounter on her first day is not what she was
expecting, but it puts her right where she needs to be, in the arms of a
handsome volunteer firefighter.
Griffin Knightly has always been the responsible oldest
brother of the four Knightly brothers. They are four of the hottest bachelors
in town, but small town gossip has left them untouchable. Coming home with a
curse from New Orleans, Griffin suffers a loss that makes him a believer and
women stay away. He fills his life with the family business, volunteering on
the fire department and many other civic groups. When called out for a car
crash, he rescues a hysterical Ren.
Ren cannot believe that this handsome man lives right down the street from her new home and is willing to introduce her to her new hometown. Griffin is trying to stay away from the new teacher, who is funny, quirky and sweet, but his family keeps throwing them together. The chemistry between Ren and Griffin is strong, but is it strong enough to defeat Griffin’s fears?
I absolutely loved this romance and all of the Knightly boys! Ms. Quinn captured my heart with this family and small town. The dialogue is spot on between the siblings with just the right amount of love and snark. All of the characters were fully fleshed out and believable. The sex in this romance is explicit and hot and the slow build-up to it made me as anxious as the characters. This is one of those books that you read quickly to get to the HEA and are completely engrossed in the romance and yet when it is over, you want more.
I highly recommend this romance and I cannot wait to read
the other Knightly boys’ stories!
***
About the Book
Title: That Second Chance
Author: Meghan Quinn
Release Date: May 7, 2019
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Summary
It
was supposed to be an innocent night, celebrating my brother’s birthday.
Nothing was supposed to go wrong. We’d vowed to be on our best behavior after
all . . .
But
it only took one rowdy night with my brothers to flip my world upside down. One
unlucky encounter saddled us with a family curse and the promise of doomed
relationships. I laughed it off immediately. “Yeah, right,” I thought. “A love
curse. Ha!”
Boy,
was I wrong.
Word
spreads quickly in a town like mine; rumors about that night soon made us the
most eligible yet untouchable bachelors in Port Snow, Maine. As a subject of
endless gossip and speculation, I could kiss my dating life goodbye.
It
would have stayed that way if Ren Winters, the new girl in town, hadn’t crashed
into my life. Brave, beautiful, and smart—her vivacious thirst for a fresh
start has given me hope that maybe, just maybe, I can have one too.
Everyone wishes for that second chance . . . but could this really be mine?
***
Author Biography
USA Today bestselling
author, wife, adoptive mother, and peanut butter lover. An author of romantic
comedies and contemporary romance, Meghan Quinn brings readers the perfect
combination of heart, humor, and heat in every book.
