I am very excited to be on the Blog Tour for the first book in Kendra Elliot’s new romantic suspense series – Columbia River. THE LAST SISTER (Columbia River Book #1) had me glued to the page from start to finish.
Below you will find a book blurb, my book review and the author’s bio and social media links. This is a new romantic suspense series, but there are a few characters you may recognize from Ms. Elliot’s Callahan & McLane series. Enjoy!
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Book Blurb
Twenty years ago, Emily Mills’ father was murdered, and she found his body hanging in the backyard. Her younger sister, Madison, claims she was asleep in her room. Her older sister, Tara, claims she was out with friends. The tragedy drove their mother to suicide and Tara to leave town forever. The killer was caught. The case closed.
Ever since, Emily and Madison have tried to forget what happened that night – until an eerily similar murder brings it all back. It also brings FBI special agent Zander Wells to the Oregon logging town. As eager as he is to solve the brutal double slaying, he is just as intrigued with the mystery of Emily’s and her sisters’ past.
When more blood is shed, Zander suspects there’s a secret buried in this town that no one wants unearthed. Is it something Emily and Madison don’t know? Or aren’t telling? And Tara? Maybe Emily can’t bear to find her. Because when Tara disappeared, she took a secret of her own with her.
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THE LAST SISTER By Kendra Elliot Montlake; January 14, 2020 (Mystery | 336 pp. | Hardcover: $24.99, ISBN#: 978-1542006729; Kindle: $5.99, ASIN#: B07SLZ9LMN; Paperback: $12.95, ISBN#: 978-1542006705)
“Elliot skillfully unravels layers of intersecting stories, each one integral to the overall story of the Mills family and their small-town secrets. Readers will want to see more from this author.” – Publisher’s Weekly
“Part budding romance, part compelling backstory, part prescient tale of racism: provocative on all fronts” – Kirkus Reviews
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
THE LAST SISTER (Columbia River Book #1) by Kendra
Elliot is the first book in a new romantic suspense/FBI mystery series. This
book is easily read as a standalone, but a few of the characters are carry
overs from Ms. Elliot’s Callahan & McLane series.
Twenty years ago, a family was shattered when the father was
found hanging from a tree and their home burned to the ground. The mother committed
suicide a week later, the eldest daughter disappeared and that left two small
girls with secrets that they would hide for years.
Present day. FBI Special Agents Zander Wells and Ava
Callahan are sent to investigate a double murder in a small Oregon coastal town
that is eerily similar to a twenty-year-old crime that was supposedly solved. The
tip came from Emily Mills who found the slain couple and was one of the sisters
who survived the old crime. Zander is determined to solve this double homicide,
but he is also intrigued by the old case and Emily.
As Zander and Ava investigate, the killer threatens Emily
and her relatives and then strikes again to hide his crimes past and present. Secrets
long buried need to be revealed for the past and present cases to be solved
before someone else is killed.
I was completely engrossed in all the plot threads in this
suspense. Past and present, multigenerational secrets. I like that Ms. Elliot
shows the insidious, not in-your-face racism that can infect and destroy multi-generations
and towns. Zander and Emily each deserve to find happiness and I feel they were
perfect for each other. There is no sex in this story and Zander and Emily are
very attracted to each other, but Zander waits until the case is solved.
I highly recommend this book and I cannot wait for more book
in this series. There is intriguing investigation, secrets revealed, and the
start of a romance that had me turning the pages continually from beginning to “The
End”.
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Author Biography
Kendra
Elliot has landed on the Wall Street Journal bestseller list
multiple times and is the award-winning author of the Bone Secrets and Callahan
& McLane series, as well as the Mercy Kilpatrick novels: A Merciful
Death, A Merciful Truth, and A Merciful Secret. Kendra is
a three-time winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award, an International Thriller
Writers finalist, and an RT Award finalist. She has always been a voracious
reader, cutting her teeth on classic female heroines such as Nancy Drew, Trixie
Belden, and Laura Ingalls. She was born, raised, and still lives in the rainy
Pacific Northwest with her husband and three daughters, but she looks forward
to the day she can live in flip-flops. Visit her at www.kendraelliot.com.
WINTER HAWK (Evidence Series Book 9) by Rachel Grant is a
fast-paced holiday romantic suspense novella. The Evidence world features the
men and women of Raptor and all the books can be read as standalone romantic
suspense reads, but there is some character crossover.
Raptor operative and former Green Beret Nate “Hawk”
Sifuentes finds himself doing a favor for his brother on his first day of
winter vacation. He fills in as a contract driver picking up a fired military contractor
at the gates of the Navy Yard when she is escorted off the base by MPs.
Leah Ellis has no idea how she lost everything. The military
fired her from her AI work on drones and her home company has taken everything
away until an investigation is complete. She is being led off base on the first
night of Hanukkah with no home, no car and no money. The mysterious driver
picking her up does not look like any driver she has ever seen before and she
wonders if he has been sent after her technical military knowledge. She does
not know who to trust.
As Nate is driving Leah, he realizes they are being followed.
When an attempt is made to run Leah down, Nate’s protective instincts kick in
and the two escape to a fellow Raptor’s holiday cabin to hide out and figure who
is out to hurt Leah and why the beautiful and intelligent AI engineer is being
targeted.
This romantic suspense is a treat packed with everything in a small number of pages. The suspense plot is very interesting and intense with all the information on commercial and military drones and AI programming. It was woven into the romantic suspense plot so that it was never an info dump or boring. The romance between Nate and Leah was immediate and intense. I was glad that Ms. Grant revisited the character of Nate Sifuentes and gave him a strong, intelligent and older heroine to aid. Nate and Leah fit together well. The sex scenes are intense and graphic, but not gratuitous. They are two mature characters in a mature relationship.
If you like your holiday read to have plenty of action,
suspense and smokin’ hot sex scenes then this is definitely the novella for
you!
Today I am very excited to share my Feature Post and Book Review for Loreth Anne White’s IN THE DARK. This is a fantastic mystery with a romantic suspense subplot that I hope will turn into many more books with the two main characters. Save a block of time to read this one because I just could not put it down!
Below you will find a Q&A with the author, an excerpt from the book, my book review, a book summary, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. You have to read this book! As always, good luck on the Rafflecopter giveaway.
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Q&A: Author Loreth Anne White
1. You are very well known for your romantic suspense tales,
but your new title, IN THE DARK, is all about mystery — a real whodunit! Tell
us a bit about the story.
I like to think there is still a strong echo of my earlier romantic suspense
books that ripples through IN THE DARK. Yes, it’s a locked-room
mystery/thriller — wilderness style, but the mystery narrative is
wrapped inside a romantic suspense-style narrative that follows a budding
friendship between Detective Mason Deniaud and Search & Rescue manager
Callie Sutton who must not only piece together what happened as they hunt for
survivors, but also must race against time to save who might be left. The story
leaves off with a promise of more ahead in the relationship between Callie and
Mason, so my roots are still showing, I hope.
2. Your story definitely has shades of Agatha Christie as well as a nod or
two to Stephen King. Did these authors act as inspirations for this book?
IN THE DARK is not only a homage to Agatha Christie’s AND THEN THERE WERE NONE,
but Christie’s story becomes a plot device, a psychological tool that the
villain uses to instill fear in the victims trapped in the lodge because the
victims know what transpired in the book, and they anticipate the same will
happen to them.
And yes, a teensy nod to master of atmosphere and horror,
Stephen King’s THE SHINING where characters are trapped in a remote and
snowbound hotel and become mercy to the psychological horror that descends on
them.
3. A rural, isolated lodge is always a great place to start a suspenseful
novel. How exactly did your characters all come to be at Forest Shadow Lodge?
The characters are invited for an all-expenses stay at the brand new, high-end,
fly-in wilderness lodge and spa. They are lured by an offer to enjoy a ‘soft
opening’, so to speak, where they can assess the accommodation and potentially
negotiate lucrative contracts with the new lodge owners. Each guest runs a
business that would be suitable for such an establishment. Each is excited by a
possible lucrative contract. But not all is quite what meets the eye, of
course.
4. Your story is told from multiple points-of-view as you take deep dives
into the characters’ lives and histories. Does everyone have something to hide?
Don’t we all have something to hide? My characters in this book certainly do.
Some of their secrets are more powerful than others.
5. Mason and Callie are two of the law enforcement responders that are
trying to piece together exactly what happened at The Lodge. Tell us more about
these characters and what makes them so good at what they do.
Mason Deniaud was a top homicide detective before relocating to the remote
north for personal reasons. He lost a young son and a wife and he’s searching
for a way to live, or exist, if not heal. Callie Sutton is a young mother who
is single, but also isn’t because her husband lies in hospital and is brain
dead. Her husband is there, but he also isn’t there for Callie and her young
son. Like Mason, she’s in limbo, a place where she can’t move forward, or back.
It’s through this they find a bond. And the search for the missing lodge party
pushes them together.
6. IN THE DARK is a pivotal novel in your career. What does it have in
common with your previous writing and how is it different? How does this inform
your next steps as a writer?
Pivotal sounds cool. I’ll take it! Thank you. But yes IN THE DARK is a bit of a
departure from my previous romantic suspense books. If readers enjoy it,
however, and if my publisher remains happy, I’d like to keep growing in this
direction. But I do think my crime stories will always revolve around strong
women, or women who might be victims to start with, but who find agency and
take back their lives and become strong and survive through the arc of a story.
(As with my forthcoming work IN THE DEEP). I do love to include a relationship
element in my crime novels, but bonding with a potential love interest comes
out of the personal growth of the protagonist. I like to tell—and read—stories
of women who find ways to rescue themselves.
***
Excerpt:
“The
gas stove and the gas water heaters work,” Nathan said. “And there’s plumbing.”
He turned his back on them and busied himself taking mugs out of the cupboard
in an exaggerated fashion. His heart hammered in his chest. Sweat prickled
across his lip.
“And there’s tea, coffee, tins of tuna, and
soup,” Steven said as he hurriedly opened more cupboards.
Bart frowned. “Well, at least we won’t go
hungry.” He made for the living area, paused. “I found a path. It looks like it
leads around to the other bay, but it was getting too dark to follow without a
flashlight.”
“Do you think it might lead to the real lodge?”
Steven asked.
Nathan blinked. It was like the doctor was
reaching for straws by asking—as if hoping, still, that their pilot had just
made some terrible screwup with the GPS coordinates.
Bart said, “We can check again in the morning
to see if—”
“There is no real lodge.” Jackie appeared in the doorway that led from the
great room into the kitchen.
They all turned to look at the solid woman with
intense eyes.
“This is no mistake,” she said curtly. “This is
a con, some sick game.”
“What do you mean?” Bart asked.
“Did you guys not see the plaque outside, next
to the front door? This place is called Forest Shadow Lodge. As in Forest Shadow Wilderness Resort
& Spa. Here, look at this.” She pulled a brochure from her pocket and
smoothed it out on the kitchen island.
“I printed it off the website before I left
home.” She jabbed a photo of the luxury lodge. “It’s fake. It’s photoshopped,
because it’s using the same location. See this bay here? And the shape of this
one here? This mountain? This is how the terrain looked from the air. It’s this spot, but someone has photoshopped the spa into the
location. They’ve erased parts of the forest, added cabins and trails, plus
interior shots from some other spa and lodges.” She met their gazes. “This
whole thing was faked from the get-go. We were lured here. All of us. And now
we’re trapped.”
A sinister cold seemed to enter the kitchen. A
shutter banged upstairs, and wind whistled. Mist, cloying and wet, pressed up
against the windows. It grew darker inside.
“Why?” Bart asked, still holding his wood.
“God knows.” Jackie dragged her hand over her
hair. “But right now, we’re stuck. We’ve been baited and lured into some weird
kind of wilderness prison.”
“We are not trapped.” Stella entered the
kitchen. “We have a plane. And you guys have a pilot—me. We have fuel. We—”
“We have no bloody radio!” Jackie snapped,
whirling round to face Stella, her eyes furious.
“What?” said Steven.
“That’s right,” Jackie said. “Go on, tell them,
Stella.”
Stella’s gray eyes flashed, shooting daggers at
Jackie.
“Go on. Tell them. The radio is broken.
Sabotaged, wires cut.”
“But I heard you speaking to your dispatch on
the radio,” Nathan said.
“But it wasn’t working, was it, Stella?” Jackie
said. “Your dispatch couldn’t hear you, could they? No one even knows where we
are, do they?”
Stella’s features went tight.
“So when were you going to tell us this,
Stella?” Steven asked.
“I didn’t want to say right away. Fear, worry,
is not a good thing when—”
“When what? Jesus. Who are you to decide what’s right and wrong for us to know?” Steven barked.
“You’re just the pilot, not the boss of our lives, for Chrissakes.”
“There’s a chance I could fix it in the morning.
If I can—if it’s an easy fix—you’d never have to have known about it.”
“So you thought you’d play God?” Steven
snapped. “Because we would all panic.” He wagged jazz hands at the sides of his face.
“And you’re not panicking?” she said.
Silence swelled in the kitchen. It felt for a
bizarre moment as though the house was listening. Alive. Hostile. Nathan felt
hairs rise along his arms. He was sensitive to these things. He could feel
trees in the forest watching and listening to him.
***
My Book Review:
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
IN THE DARK by Loreth Anne White is her new book
which is a mystery with a romantic suspense subplot that is now one of my favorite
mystery books of 2019. You should set aside time to read this one because you
will not want to put it down.
The promise of a luxury spa vacation and the chance to
secure a lucrative contract for their companies has eight lucky guests coming
together for two weeks in a remote location in British Columbia.
What they don’t realize is each is tied together by one tragic
incident. They all have secrets to hide.
As they fly into the remote location, it is not what they
were expecting. A storm keeps them trapped at the old hunting lodge and as they
inspect the inside, they realize it is not a vacation, but a trap. Suddenly,
everyone is suspect and no one can be trusted. They are all pawns in a game
that must be played out until there is “one”.
When a seaplane is discovered by hunters, RCMP officer Mason
Deniaud and SAR expert Callie Sutton come together to retrieve it and discover
a dead body strapped inside. They learn of the other missing people and set out
to find them.
The clock is ticking. Will Mason and Callie be able to find
the missing people before there are none?
This is a GREAT read! It is a fast-paced page turner that
grabs you by the throat, pulls you into the perfectly paced plot and surprises
you at the end. The mystery is a cross between Agatha Christie’s “And Then There
Were None” and the game show “Survivor”. The malicious and deadly wilderness is
a whole other dark and gritty character in this story which adds to the
atmosphere of dread. While this is a standalone, I am hoping Ms. White will
continue writing more stories featuring Mason and Callie. They are wonderfully
flawed characters that fit together well.
I highly recommend this book! I have loved all of Ms. White’s
books to date, but this one is very special.
***
About the Book:
Title: In The Dark
Author: Loreth Anne White
Release Date: December 1, 2019
Publisher: Montlake
Summary:
The promise of a luxury vacation at a secluded wilderness
spa has brought together eight lucky guests. But nothing is what they were led
to believe. As a fierce storm barrels down and all contact with the outside is
cut off, the guests fear that it’s not a getaway. It’s a trap.
Each one has a secret. Each one has something to hide. And now, as darkness
closes in, they all have something to fear—including one another.
Alerted to the vanished party of strangers, homicide cop Mason Deniaud and search and rescue expert Callie Sutton must brave the brutal elements of the mountains to find them. But even Mason and Callie have no idea how precious time is. Because the clock is ticking, and one by one, the guests of Forest Shadow Lodge are being hunted. For them, surviving becomes part of a diabolical game.
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Author Biography:
Loreth Anne White is a bestselling author of thrillers,
mysteries, and romantic suspense. A three-time RITA finalist, she is also the
recipient of the Overall 2017 Daphne du Maurier Award, 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, she’s a
Booksellers’ Best finalist and a multiple CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Award
winner. A former journalist who has worked in both South Africa and Canada, she
now resides in the Pacific Northwest with her family. When Loreth isn’t
writing, you will find her skiing, biking, or hiking the trails with her dog
(a.k.a. the Black Beast) or open-water swimming. She calls this work, because
that’s when the best ideas come. Visit her at www.lorethannewhite.com.
I am very happy to share my Feature Post and Book Review for Lori Foster’s new contemporary romance ALL FIRED UP (Road to Love #3). Even though this is the third book in the series, it is easily read as a standalone.
Below you will find a summary of the book, an excerpt from the book, my book review and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
Charlotte Parrish has always wanted a certain kind of man: someone responsible, settled, boring. Bad boys need not apply. But when her car leaves her stranded and a mysterious stranger with brooding eyes and a protective streak comes to her rescue, she can’t deny how drawn she is to him. In town searching for family he’s never met, Mitch is everything she never thought she wanted—and suddenly everything she craves.
Finding his half brothers after all these years is more than Mitch Crews has allowed himself to wish for. Finding love never even crossed his mind…until he meets Charlotte. She’s sweet, warmhearted, sexier than she knows—and too damn good for an ex-con like him. But when his past comes back to haunt him, putting Charlotte—and the family he’s come to care for—in danger, Mitch isn’t playing by the rules. He’s already surrendered his heart, but now he’ll risk his life.
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Excerpt
From CHAPTER ONE
The warm, muggy night closed around him, leaving his shirt damp in places. Sweat prickled the back of his neck. Inside Freddie’s he’d find air-conditioning, but he’d never again take fresh air for granted. He valued every single breath of humid air that filled his lungs.
The moon climbed the black sky as time slipped by. How much time, he didn’t know: he’d stopped keeping track the second he saw her.
Headlights from the occasional passing car came near him but didn’t intrude on the shadows where he stood.
Transfixed by her.
Damn, he wanted that mouth.
In the short time he’d locked eyes on her, a dozen fantasies had formed—most of them based on her naked lips, the way she occasionally pursed them, how she twisted her lips to the side in frustration, even how she blew out a breath. The whole package was nice…but it was her mouth that kept him unmoving, staring. Imagining.
Slight of build, she served as a bright spot in the dark gloom. Understated and yet something struck him as undeniably sexy.
Once he’d noticed her, he couldn’t look away.
After speaking softly into a phone, she bit her plump bottom lip, and her expression showed frustrated defeat.
The lady had made several consecutive calls. Was she in need of assistance? Given the way she’d circled a car, occasionally glaring at it, he thought she did. Judging by her frown, there wouldn’t be any help on the way.
Since getting out of prison a year ago, Mitch had spent an excess of time with women. Hell, next to fresh air, freedom and steak, sex topped his list. He’d immersed himself in human contact, the gentleness, the carnality.
He’d taken satisfaction in pleasing someone else while abating a base need. Hell, watching a woman come gave him as much pleasure as his own release.
So he’d gotten his fill and then some—all while making plans to change the course of his life. To make it better. To carve out a meaningful future.
Here he was, where he needed to be, determined, resolute… and sidetracked by a gorgeous woman.
That in itself left him edgy with curiosity. No other woman had snagged his attention this way. He knew zip about her, and yet seeing her had heat building beneath his skin.
He tried to look away, but his attention kept zeroing back.
Freaking bizarre.
It was like seeing something you hadn’t known you wanted, but immediately recognizing it as necessary.
Even dressed in jeans, a T-shirt and flip-flops, he knew the lady had nothing in common with him. Innocence all but screamed from her slender body and reserved manner. To someone with his jaded background, that put her in the “do not touch” category.
His fingers curled and his palms burned. Yeah, he wanted to touch her despite that.
And he didn’t look away.
From the shadowed corner just outside the bar, he watched her thumb dial another number into her phone. While holding the phone to her ear, she paced. The overhead glow of the security light touched her in select places, alternately highlighting and then shadowing her understated curves.
High cheekbones framed a slender, straight nose. She tucked a few drifting curls behind a small ear. Though rounded, he saw the mulish determination in her stubborn little chin.
And that mouth…thoughts of it under his mouth—and on his body—tightened his jaw until his molars ached.
For the first time in years, he wondered if he could put off his agenda for a bit, say something to her, see if there was something between them despite the seemingly obvious roadblocks.
Opposites attract, and all that.
He’d made this trip a center point for a new future.
In this Podunk town he’d subtly uncovered what he could about Brodie and Jack Crews. That was the priority after all. Moving forward, leaving the past behind. It started with the Crews brothers. Hitting the bar tonight might have gained him more insight into them.
But would a slight detour—the type with long curly brown hair and a sweet little body—matter so much?
If he listened to his dick, the answer was no. His balls were giving a resounding “go for it” as well.
His head though… Hell, his head claimed he could afford a delay. In the grand scheme of things, it wouldn’t matter.
Since arriving in town, he’d discovered that the men were well liked, each of them married, and they had an odd but interesting business called Mustang Transport. Locals claimed they dealt with mundane shit as well as serial killers and psychopaths. Somewhere in the middle, the truth lurked.
He’d also heard about their mother. He’d been hearing about her for as long as he could remember. For very different reasons she interested him almost as much as Brodie and Jack.
He had no connection to Rosalyn Crews, but meeting the men felt important in a way nothing else ever had. He couldn’t explain it, even to himself. He’d gone through life making damn sure he needed no one, and that he wanted only for things he could get for himself.
Now, much as it chapped his ass, he wanted something else— and it depended on Brodie and Jack Crews.
It didn’t have to happen right away, though. He wouldn’t mind burning off some energy before making that initial contact—especially if he could convince this woman to give him a few hours of her time.
He noted every small movement as she spoke into her phone. He couldn’t catch every word, but the low murmur of her voice stroked over him. He was pretty sure she left a message.
Suddenly she held the phone back and stared at it. Hot annoyance tightened her mouth and brought down her brows.
“Perfect. Just freaking perfect.”
He heard that loud and clear.
Jamming the phone into a back pocket—a tight fit over that sweetly rounded backside—she dropped her head with a throaty groan that traveled along his spine like a sensual stroke. Her eyes closed, her mouth flattened, and the damp night drew her long, light brown hair into coiling curls.
He’d love to tangle his fingers in her unruly hair.
As if spurred by her innate energy, the curls moved, bouncing a little, drifting with the breeze. Judging people had kept him alive. With this woman, he sensed she didn’t indulge in downtime very often. Even standing still, she seemed to…spark with energy.
Curiosity cut into him, mingling with the carnal interest.
Had she been stood up? Walked out on a date?
Just then she growled, “Dead. Stupid phone.” The thump of her hand to a metal lamppost sent a dull clang ringing over the area. “Now what?”
Ah, well that answered his question.
White teeth nibbled her bottom lip in consideration. Considering, she glanced at the bar, shook her head once, and returned to pacing.
Clouds covered the moon, amplifying the darkness. She was far too petite to be stranded alone.
Doesn’t mean she wants a quick fuck, he argued with himself.
The young woman stewing in front of him might be more likely to sell brownies at a local bake sale, but engage in a hot one-night stand? Probably not.
Sure, she was standing outside a rowdy bar all alone on a late night—but then, so was he.
So what should he do? Be smart and turn away, or see if she needed help? He remained undecided when two men exited the bar with a lot of noisy fanfare.
Drunken asses.
The woman glanced up, then quickly away with a roll of her eyes—but not quickly enough to avoid notice.
“Charlotte, hey! Whatssup?” With a leer, a mop-headed man added, “You waitin’ for me, sugar?”
Mitch caught the way his unshaven bud snickered, proving the irony in the question.
“Definitely not,” she replied, her tone crisp and clear.
Mitch liked the sound of her voice. Not all girly or too sweet, but firm and no-nonsense.
He did not like how the two dunces eyeballed her anyway, stumbling in her direction despite her preferences.
“Ah, c’mon now, don’t be like that,” the talkative one said.
His idiot friend guffawed, stumbled and heckled some more.
Charlotte—nice name—propped her hands on slim hips and issued a dire warning. “You’d be smart to keep walking, Bernie.”
“How come you’re here alone?” He tried a teasing voice that Mitch suspected did the opposite of entice. “You know where to find me this time of night.”
“Drunk, as usual. Yes, I know.” Annoyance squared her narrow shoulders. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I finished a late delivery and was heading home, then had car trouble.”
She didn’t exactly look afraid, but more like fed up. Before Mitch gave it enough thought, his feet carried him out of the shadows and immediately drew her attention.
Soft blue. Now that he saw her eyes more clearly, he found them every bit as compelling as her mouth.
Alert, maybe a little wary, she zeroed in on him. Her lips parted and she blinked twice.
You’re sealing your fate, sugar. He tried a smile of part interest, part reassurance.
Her gaze went beyond him, searching the darkness, and then snapped back again. “Where did you come from?”
With his attention only on her, Mitch held up his hands and avoided a direct answer. “Just seeing if you need any help.”
Emboldened by liquid courage, the two men blustered at him. “G’lost, asshole. She don’t need nothin’ from you.”
As if Bernie and his bad grammar didn’t hover there beside her, Charlotte asked, “You’re new around here?”
Mitch gave her a long look. What, did she know everyone in Red Oak, Ohio? Probably. He could jog the main street, one end to the other, without breaking a sweat. “I’ve been here a few days.” Whether he was passing through, or sticking around, wasn’t her business. Besides, for now, he wasn’t sure.
Brazen stupidity urged Bernie to step up in front of him. “You ain’t listening. I told you to—”
Disgust curved Mitch’s mouth into a mean smile meant to intimidate. “You’re right. I’m not listening to you.” Insulting disregard took his gaze over the smaller man before he dismissed him. “I’m talking only to her.”
By size difference alone, it was beyond ludicrous for Bernie to issue a challenge.
And yet, he did. “Are you fuckin’ stupid?”
Charlotte’s voice, now edged with anger, interrupted anything Mitch might have replied or done. “You’ve been warned, Bernie. If you don’t knock it off right now, you are not going to like the consequences.”
Still, the fool didn’t listen. “I said,” Bernie blasted, his breath putrid, “for you to get lost.” A scrawny fist, aiming for Mitch’s face, swatted through the air.
Bad move, asshole.
Instincts could be a son of a bitch. Mitch leaned away from the weak hit…and at the same time automatically jabbed with his right.
His fist landed right on Bernie’s chin.
Eyes rolling back, the smaller man started to drop.
Infuriated that he’d lost his grip in front of Charlotte, Mitch caught the front of Bernie’s shirt and held him on his tiptoes. “You,” he whispered between barely moving lips, “need to learn when to quit.” Familiar anger surfaced despite his efforts to tamp it down…
And a small, cool hand touched him.
Struck clean down to his toes, Mitch peered first at those pale, tapered fingers with short, neat nails resting lightly against the roped muscles of his sun-darkened forearm.
Fucking sexy, that’s what it was, highlighting all their differences, especially those of strength and capability.
Her face drew him next, the delicate lines, smooth skin…that mouth and those eyes.
That wild hair.
“I think,” she said softly, a smile teasing her mouth, “if you let Bernie go now, he’ll make a hasty retreat.” Slanting those mesmerizing eyes toward old Bernie, she added with silky menace, “At least, he better.”
Keen awareness nudged out anger.
Everything about her appealed to him.
She stood to his left, and the heady scent of her skin and hair—like baby powder and flowers—teased his nose.
He drew a deeper, fuller breath, filling his lungs with her and knew he could happily drown on that scent.
Slowly, wanting to keep her close, Mitch unclenched his fingers and allowed Bernie to stumble back to where his buddy helped to prop him up.
Unconcerned with that, Charlotte’s fingers shifted in the lightest of explorations before she snatched her hand away.
Interesting—especially that splash of color on her cheeks.
She looked up at him, gave a wan smile, and whispered, “Thank you.”
“For popping him?”
Curls bounced as she gave a quick shake of her head. “For not doing him more damage.” She wrinkled her nose, leaning closer to confide, “You could have, I know.”
ALL FIRED UP (Road to Love #3) by Lori Foster is a
new contemporary romance with a suspense element in the Road to Love series.
Even though this is the third book in the series, it is easily read as a
standalone.
Charlotte Parrish was taken in and unofficially adopted by
the Crews family when her mother passed away. The brothers have always treated
her like their little sister. She gives as good as she gets while managing
their office for them. Charlotte loves her job and the all the Crews, but when
it comes to her dream man, she would prefer someone not attracted to danger,
but someone she would not have to worry about on the job and wanting to settle
down.
On the way home from a job delivering a dog to the shelter,
Charlotte’s car gets a flat and leaves her stranded outside the local bar. When
a drunken regular starts bothering her, a stranger appears out of the shadows
and rescues her.
Mitch Crews has come to town to meet the half brothers he
has never known. When he helps the stranded Charlotte, he has no idea his
brothers are about to show up. He is immediately drawn to Charlotte’s kindness,
sass and vulnerability and he knows she is too good for an ex-con like him.
When Mitch’s past comes looking for him, Charlotte and his
new found family are in danger. Mitch will learn he is no longer alone and
family fights together.
Charlotte and Mitch are wonderful characters that worked out
to be perfect for each other. I do not feel they were exactly opposites,
because in the end they really were looking for the same thing for their
futures. This is a slow building romance even with the instant attraction. The
sex scenes appear towards the end of the book and are explicit, but not
gratuitous. Ms. Foster could not have made me happier with Mitch’s dog. I love
my pitties and Brute was a great addition to the story.
This romance has a hero who really deserves a HEA, a heroine
who is sweet and strong, a family that sticks together even as secrets are revealed
and danger stalks them and lovable rescue dogs. I highly recommend this romance
even without reading the first two in the series.
***
AUTHOR BIO
Lori Foster is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author with books from a variety of publishers, including Berkley/Jove, Kensington, St. Martin’s, Harlequin and Silhouette. Lori has been a recipient of the prestigious RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award for Series Romantic Fantasy, and for Contemporary Romance. For more about Lori, visit her Web site at www.lorifoster.com.
I am very excited to once again be a part of a Release Blitz for a new Freya Barker book! TRACKING TAHLULA (Police and Fire: Operation Alpha Series, On Call #3) is another GREAT romantic suspense addition to the series!
Below you will find a description of the book, my book review and the author’s info and social media links. Enjoy!
As author Tahlula Rae has discovered; success is a double-edged sword. Leading a quiet and anonymous life, she isn’t prepared for the hateful backlash when her latest book hit the lists, propelling her into the limelight. No longer feeling safe in Denver, she takes her laptop and dog, Luke, and moves to the mountains around Durango, where her peaceful solitude is disrupted when a red-bearded man knocks on her door.
While one of the fire department’s finest, Evan Biel, is relatively content with his life, he can’t escape the sense something’s missing. When on fire-safety housecalls, he finds himself staring into a pair of soulful, copper-colored eyes sparking a deep interest. Discovering the exotic-looking woman may be in more trouble than he can handle, he tries—yet fails—to keep his distance.
When Tahlula offers San Antonio firefighters, Moose and Penelope Jacobs, temporary lodging, as they help fight seasonal wildfires, Evan’s relieved she’s no longer alone on the mountain. Yet when her troubles become outright threats on her life, his focus has to be keeping Tahlula safe.
TRACKING TAHLULA (Police and Fire: Operation Alpha Series, On Call #3) by Freya Barker is a GREAT romantic suspense addition to this series! Ms. Barker always gives me realistic characters that I would love to be friends with out of her books. This book can be read as a standalone, but there are several crossover characters from previous books in this series and Susan Stoker’s Operation Alpha world.
Tahlula Rae is a successful romantic suspense author who is
finding herself in a real-life suspense plot. As soon as she hit the NY Times
bestseller list and had to do live publicity, she seems to be the target of a
stalker for an unknown reason. After a break-in, she moves to Durango from
Denver with her rescue dog, Luke to be closer to her brother and hopefully get
away from any danger.
Evan Biel, Durango firefighter and paramedic is out making fire-safety
house calls. As he rings the bell for a remote home in the hills, he is
surprised by the exotic beauty with the soulful copper eyes who answers the door.
Evan finds he cannot get the feisty, independent, pregnant woman off his mind.
As their relationship grows, Tahlula and Evan work to
balance her independent streak vs. his protective nature. At the same time, the
summer wildfire season threatens the city as the personal dangers to Tahlula
increase. Can Evan and his friends keep Tahlula safe?
I always LOVE Ms. Barker’s characters! They are mature,
realistic, smart and likable. The romantic suspense plots keep you turning the
pages, but it is always the characters that make Ms. Barker’s books a “must buy”
for me. I am happy when I find an author who writes about older characters
finding their HEAs and Ms. Barker does it so well.
I recommend this romantic suspense and the whole series for
great characters and stories. I highly recommend Freya Barker for realistic
mature HEAs.
***
About Freya:
Freya Barker loves writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories.
Driven to make her books about ‘real’ people; with characters who are perhaps less than perfect, but just as deserving of romance, thrills and chills, and their own slice of happy.
A recipient of the RomCon “Reader’s Choice” Award for best first book, “Slim To None”, and Finalist for the Kindle Book Award with “From Dust”, Freya has not slowed down.
She continues to add to her rapidly growing collection of published novels as she spins story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!
I am very excited to be sharing this Feature Post and Book Review for Mary Burton’s new release I SEE YOU (Criminal Profiler Book 2). I highly recommend this romantic suspense, which can be easily read as a standalone.
Below you will find a guest post from the author, an excerpt from the book, my book review, a book summary, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Enjoy and as always, good luck on the Rafflecopter giveaway!
***
An Affair (and
a Murder) To Remember with Author Mary Burton
I SEE YOU, my latest romantic suspense, features
two of my very favorite characters: Homicide Detective William Vaughan and FBI
Special Agent Zoe Spencer.
Zoe Spencer is a member of an FBI criminal profiling team dedicated to finding
the most violent and prolific killers. Zoe, a talented artist and agent,
specializes in forensic reconstruction. She skillfully merges her interview
skills with pencil and paper to create stunning likenesses. And when only bones
remain, she molds clay over bone to recreate the faces of the lost.
Zoe’s work generates a high case-closure rate, which draws the attention of the
law enforcement community. Her lectures at the FBI headquarters at Quantico are
often standing room only. Among those interested in her work is Homicide Detective
William Vaughan.
Detective Vaughan, divorced and raising a college bound teenager, is a man of few words and when he does comment, his observations are always thoughtful and insightful. He not only hears what is said and but sees what is communicated via body language.
The more time Vaughan spends with Zoe, the greater his desire to breach her cool demeanor. He draws upon all his powers of observation, practiced detective skills and his somewhat rusty charm to win her. Though they begin an affair, she still remains elusive.
When a charred skull is found in Vaughan’s jurisdiction of Alexandria, Virginia, he turns to Zoe. Zoe recreates a stunning clay bust that leads to the identification of a girl who has been missing for fifteen years.
As Vaughan and Zoe dig deeper, the cold case heats up when several more women,
similar to their victim, are discovered brutally murdered. This killer, who has
avoided capture for so many years, is still hunting women. It becomes a race
against time to catch a madman who shifts his sights to his next victim: Zoe
Spencer.
I hope you enjoy I SEE YOU and this magnetic couple who I’ve pitted against one of my most chilling villains so far.
***
Excerpt
The
instant Vaughan woke, he knew she was gone. He should not have been surprised.
She never stayed long, but he’d thought last night would be different.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed and
instantly spotted the note on the mirror. It was written on the back of the
fast-food receipt in fluid and graceful handwriting.
Called a car. Didn’t want to wake you.
Spencer. He knew how to make that woman’s body
tighten with desire and how to make her moan in a way that told him she was
fully attuned to his body. But beyond that, she was still a complete stranger.
He flicked the edge of the note, surprised he
had not awoken. Since he had become a cop and father, he had turned into a
light sleeper. Both incarnations, like a doctor on call, were summoned at all
times of the day and night. His ability to shake off sleep in seconds and then
think clearly was well honed. But yesterday had been long, even for him.
He laid the note on his dresser as he glanced
at the pillow that still held the impression of her head. It was not like him
to be sentimental, but he was sorry he likely would not see her for a while.
He showered, and fifteen minutes later he was
dressed, his badge and sidearm on his belt. As the coffee brewed, he scrambled
five eggs before he realized Nate was gone. He toasted a bagel and ate alone at
the kitchen table.
He filled a travel mug with more coffee and was
on the road by six o’clock. Moonlight mingled with the lights looming over
I-395 as he looped around the beltway and headed north toward his exit. The
traffic was already building, and soon it would slow to a snail’s pace.
With luck, the first wave of files from the
Prince case would be in his office. He had been warned that there were a dozen
file boxes, but he did not care. He also had the autopsy of the Jane Doe
stabbed to death in the motel room to attend. It was going to be another long
day.
Fifteen minutes later, he had parked and was in
the break room, refilling his coffee. When he flipped on the lights of his
office, there were six file boxes stacked in front of his desk. A green sticky
note read More to come.
It was too early to call the medical examiner
about his Jane Doe from the motel room, so he set his cup down and flipped
through the first set of files.
He spent the next hour and a half reading
through the detectives’ notes. At the time of Marsha’s disappearance, the
detectives had exhausted every lead and tip that had come into the station, but
in the end came up with nothing.
***
My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
I SEE YOU (Criminal Profiler Book 2) by Mary Burton
is the second romantic suspense in the Criminal Profiler series. This book focuses
on two suspense plots, a cold case and a present day serial killer case while
still managing to give you a believable romance intertwined with the
investigations.
FBI Special Agent Zoe Spencer is a profiler and a forensic
artist who can use skeletal remains or eye- witness testimony to build or draw a
visual representation for law enforcement. As she works on the reconstruction
of a recently found skull, she brings back the face of a missing teenage girl from
19 years ago.
Alexandria homicide detective William Vaughan has been
called to the scene of a brutally murdered teenage sex worker. Just as he
begins investigating, he gets a call to assist on Zoe’s cold case. He is
interested in the case and is happy to once again work with his on-again,
off-again lover.
As William and Zoe reconnect with the sister of the cold
case victim, they are shocked to get a call that the sister’s husband has been
stabbed and the sister and her daughter have been abducted. There are deep
secrets in this family and as the investigation heats up, more bodies are being
found. Can William and Zoe find out who and what connects the past with the present
and if they are connected stop the killing spree?
I love all the layers in these suspense plots from the past
and present and how they were tied together. Ms. Burton kept me guessing and
changing my mind on who was guilty with an ending that satisfies, but also
leaves a scary question mark for the future. William is a steady, strong hero
who does not overshadow Zoe, who is a very strong heroine on her own. The
romance was believable because they were both at a point in their lives where
they were both ready to move on. The sex scenes are steamy and intimate, but
not gratuitous.
I highly recommend this romantic suspense and author. Ms.
Burton always gives me intriguing cases to solve, strong and intelligent heroes
and heroines and a romantic HEA.
***
About the Book
Title: I See You
Author: Mary Burton
Release Date: October 8, 2019
Publisher: Montlake
Summary
FBI special agent Zoe Spencer uses skeletal remains to recreate
the faces of murder victims through sculpture. Though highly scientific, the
process is also sensitive and intimate; she becomes attached to the individuals
she identifies, desperate to find justice for each.
As Zoe examines old remains, she sees a teenage girl looking back at her—the
victim in a cold case from over a decade ago. Zoe wants nothing more than to
tell this young woman’s story and to bring her killer to justice.
Zoe’s case leads her to the victim’s hometown and to homicide detective William
Vaughan, Zoe’s on-again, off-again lover. As the two become more involved in
the case, they quickly realize that it isn’t as cold as they first believed:
someone’s still out there hunting women. And with more women gone missing,
time’s running out. Can they work together and stop this madman before he kills
again?
***
Author Biography
New York Times and USA Today bestselling
novelist Mary Burton is the popular author of thirty-five romance and suspense
novels as well as five novellas. She currently lives in Virginia with her
husband and three miniature dachshunds. Visit her at www.maryburton.com.
