$15 GC – Rhino Horn Underground by Deven Greene @partnersincr1me #devengreene #rhinohornunderground

Posted on August 17, 2026 by fundinmental

RHINO HORN UNDERGROUND

by Deven Greene

August 10 – September 4, 2026 Virtual Book Tour

Synopsis:

Struggling journalist Paige Remington leaves San Francisco for South Africa, determined to revive her failing career with a hard-hitting exposé on rhino poaching.

Danger strikes almost immediately when poachers ambush Paige’s tour group. She survives only because she is rescued by Spencer, a man who claims to work for the FBI. He says he wants to save the rhinos and offers to help her with her story, but as he exposes her to a world she would never see on her own, she becomes embroiled in the brutal underworld of the rhino horn trade herself. Paige discovers that Spencer is not who he claims to be, and suspects he’s in the rhino poaching business himself.

Caught between her ambition and her survival, Paige must decide whether to continue learning about the world of rhino poaching from Spencer and risk becoming the next casualty, or leave for home while she still can.

Praise for Rhino Horn Underground:

“Well, that was one heck of a wild ride! . . . Readers who love international crime thrillers and wildlife fiction will adore this book. Very highly recommended.”
~ Readers’ Favorite

“Rhino Horn Underground is a bristling, brainy thriller that asks whether doing the right thing still counts when the path to it runs through the shadows.”
~ Literary Titan

“A fascinating look at an ethically fraught topic, Rhino Horn Underground underscores the collision of traditional beliefs and modern realities…an action-packed thriller!”
~ Indies Today

Book Details:

Genre: Eco-Thriller
Published by: Panthera Publishing
Publication Date: August 25, 2026
Number of Pages: 307
ISBN: 9781964620107 (ISBN10: 1964620104)
Book Links: Amazon | Kindle | Goodreads | BookBub

Read an excerpt:

Chapter 1

With the hot sun blazing above, I strain my eyes as hard as I can to look downward, but the blade pressed against my throat remains out of sight. My pulse is racing, and my breathing is so fast I can only gasp. Is that a trickle of blood I sense slowly making its way down my neck, or is it my imagination? Below and to my right, a hand holds a well-worn machete handle. That hand is attached to the muscular forearm of the man standing behind me, ready to end my life any moment. I don’t know what he looks like—it all happened so quickly—but I know he’s a Black man with a thick African accent. He’s telling me to hold still. As if I would do anything other than that right now. I clutch the cell phone in my hand, wondering if I caught anything useful on the video I’d been shooting moments before. Is the camera still running? If my phone were found, the identity of the man holding me would be revealed to the authorities who were sure to investigate later—too late to save me.

Our guide and four others on the tour of the wildlife reserve lie dead on the bare earth ten feet away, each in a pool of their own blood. As I take in the scene, a second Black man holding a rifle shoots the veterinarian who had been speaking to us. Now with a large hole in his chest, the veterinarian, armed only with a vial containing an animal tranquilizer, staggers and falls.

I think of my husband, Quinn, thousands of miles away from this South African wildlife reserve—probably asleep, oblivious to the fact that he is about to become a widower.

The two attackers yell back and forth. They seem to be having a disagreement, but I don’t understand their language. The man with the rifle raises it. I wince and brace myself for impact, but instead of aiming at me, he fires at the rhinoceros in a nearby pen. Blood and tissue—hide, bone, and brain, I suppose—spray from the back of the animal’s head. I watch in shock as the massive creature emits a haunting wail and falls.

A fraction of a second later, another shot rings out, this one quieter. I freeze as the man standing behind me collapses. His machete nicks my arm before he hits the ground. A second shot is fired, and the man who just murdered the rhino falls.

Who did that? Am I safe? I’m shaking as I slowly turn, just as Ethan, the only other surviving member of our group, grabs my arm and yells, “Let’s go!”

With no time to think, I struggle to keep up as I let him drag me. I check my arm where the machete cut it—it’s only a superficial wound oozing a small amount of blood. Ethan tucks the large pistol he’s holding into his waistband while racing toward the dead rhino. My heart is already pounding when loud voices—African voices—approach from heavy brush close by.

Ethan stops and appears to think for a moment, as my heart revs so hard I feel my chest will burst. After the brief pause, he pulls me along again, but in a different direction, now heading towards the body of the dead man who shot the rhino. He drops my hand to search the killer’s pants pockets, pulls out a set of keys, then snatches the rifle lying in the dust nearby. Motioning me to follow, he dashes to the small parking lot and jumps into the driver’s seat of an open, doorless jeep that wasn’t there when we arrived. I don’t know this man, but I scramble into the passenger side as fast as I can.

Ethan guns the engine and heads out of the park. My mind is speeding as I struggle to fasten my seat belt, hoping I don’t fall out the side of the vehicle before I get it secured. Who is this guy I met this morning and know only as Ethan? All I know is what I can observe—he’s an average-looking middle-aged White man with a dark tan and thick black glasses, dressed in gray cargo pants. His belly is covered by a dull gray, loose-fitting, long-sleeve shirt with breast pockets and front snaps, hiding the paunch underneath. His gray bucket hat hides his hair, if he has any.

He told our group his name as we left Richards Bay that morning for the two-hour drive to the wildlife reserve in the eastern part of South Africa, where we would see several rhinos and witness the horns being sawed off of one. While the other travelers and our guide were lively conversationalists as we traveled the dusty roads, Ethan remained silent, seemingly uninterested in the scenery. I had written off this milquetoast of a man as someone who was there only because he wanted to take pictures to show people back home, hoping to convince them that he was an interesting person.

Now I’m wondering: Who carries a gun under his shirt when on vacation to view wildlife? And who would be able to fire it so accurately, so swiftly?

I finally snap my seat belt and study him. He stares ahead as he removes a device from his shirt pocket and places it on the dash.

“What’s that?” I ask.

“GPS device.” Moments later, he veers off the main road. Small trees and bushes snap under the jeep.

Not sure what to do, I ask, “What about those people? And the rhino?” Stupid, I know.

“They’re all dead. No time to waste. More were getting close to us.”

“More what?”

“More poachers.”

“How do you know?” I ask.

He glances at me as if I’m an idiot. “I just know.”

“Were you going to take the horns of that rhino?” I know it’s a crime, and I don’t want to sound accusatory, but I can’t imagine any other reason he would start to run toward the deceased animal.

His face tightens and his eyes narrow. “What if I was?”

Now I’ve gotten him mad. I need to change the subject. “Where are we going?”

“I’m getting us to a safe place.”

“I really appreciate what you’ve done, but wouldn’t it be best to head back to Richards Bay?”

“It’s not safe. There’s more where they came from.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Ethan reaches into his right breast pocket and pulls out a leather case a little larger than a credit card. He throws it my way, and it lands on my lap. I gasp as I lift the front flap and see his identification. His name isn’t Ethan, but his picture is on the plastic ID. The man sitting next to me is Spencer Crenshaw, and he’s an FBI special agent.

***

Deven Greene | Author Bio:

Deven Greene lives in Northern California near San Francisco. She has a PhD in biochemistry, a medical degree, and spent over twenty years practicing pathology. She uses her education and background to craft realistic novels, primarily thrillers, grounded in science and/or medicine. Many are high concept, and some can be considered hard science fiction. Her published novels include The Erica Rosen MD Trilogy (Unnatural, Unwitting, and Unforeseen), Ties That Kill, The Organ Broker, and Happy Sun Farm.

Catch Up With Deven Greene:

www.DevenGreene.com
Subscribe to Deven’s Newsletter
Amazon Author Profile
Goodreads
BookBub – @Deven_G1
Instagram – @devengreeneauthor
Facebook – @DevenGreeneFiction

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Where Danger Brings Rewards

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Sherry’s Shelves 8.9 – 8.15.26

Posted on August 16, 2026 by fundinmental

Sunday Post is hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer
Sunday Salon is hosted by Readerbuzz
Stacking The Shelves by Reading Reality
**images are linked to Amazon (I am an affiliate)**

Hi Everyone. Well, it’s been an easy week. I have been doing some blogging and reading. I really want to get ahead on my posts and I have some reviews to write. My son, who lives in Michigan, is in the hospital. I hate being so far away. It’s not like I can help much from here. We are talking about him coming down to live and get a fresh start. Michigan is very depressed and it is hard to find work. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen him and I am not eager to do much traveling, but, maybe it’s time to travel north, visit other members of my family and pick him up. None of us are spring chickens.

Here’s a sunset pic at Five Flags. across the street from where we live.

LAST WEEK ON fundinmental

COMING UP ON fundinmental

Sherry’s Shelves
$15 GC – Rhino Horn Underground by Deven Greene
Action And Adventure – Review & $25 GC Giveaway – When The Silence Breaks by Elizabeth Goddard
$25 GC – Temperature Rising by Joel Bucat

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$25 GC – The HIstory We Carry by Margaret Whitford @partnerinsr1me #margaretwhitford #thehistorywecarry

Posted on August 15, 2026 by fundinmental

THE HISTORY WE CARRY

A Daughter’s Memoir

by Margaret Whitford

July 27 – August 21, 2026 Virtual Book Tour

Synopsis:

For fans of Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died, a memoir for daughters who recognize that to truly understand themselves and the patterns of their lives, they must first understand their mothers and the forces that shaped these women.

When Margaret Whitford’s mother was dying, she told those present that her daughter “had her history.” This was true; Margaret had conducted interviews with her mother during the last decade of her life. But this didn’t end their estrangement, and Margaret chose not to return to her mother’s side during her final days.

In this memoir, Margaret confronts this decision by unearthing in her mother’s traumatic history the roots of the emotional distance between them. She explores how a history marked by the devastation of World War II in Europe, a violent childhood home, and sexual assault accumulated into complex PTSD that shaped her mother and the way she parented Margaret as her firstborn and as a daughter—and, in turn, how Margaret carried her mother’s trauma forward in her sense of self, in her relationships to others, and in the ways she navigated her world. Indeed, Margaret not only had her mother’s history—she embodied it.

Ultimately, The History We Carry confronts the legacy of intergenerational trauma with wisdom and compassion, revealing how familial history shapes each of us but need not be wholly determinative of whom we become and how we choose to live.

Praise for The History We Carry:

“An unflinching, well-rendered memoir that generously encompasses love, trauma, and the fraught relationship between a mother and daughter.”
~ Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Margaret Whitford’s compelling memoir—a reflection on her family history, her relationship with her mother, and trauma that spans generations—is clear-eyed, compassionate, and often startling in its insight and originality. I was engrossed from beginning to end.”
~ Clifford Thompson, author of Jazz June: A Self-Portrait in Essays

“Rarely have I finished a memoir understanding how our histories, both personal and generational, live and breathe within us in the present. By unearthing the complicated and poignant relationship she has with her mother, Margaret Whitford also powerfully speaks to the collective soul-searching so vitally necessary during these trying times. Written in elegant, luminous prose, this is a memoir that will stay with you long after the story is told.”
~ Ken Harvey, author of The Book of Casey Adair

“Despite Tolstoy’s famous quote—families are generally neither happy nor unhappy—they are complicated, like Whitford’s. This important memoir delves into sibling conflict, parental infidelity, and substance abuse. Overlying these familial tensions is geopolitical upheaval and the effects of successive world wars, almost unwanted family members themselves. The History We Carry seats them together at its literary table and gives each their due in courageous, precise, and ultimately both urgent and forgiving prose.”
~ Sue William Silverman, author of Selected Misdemeanors: Essays at the Mercy of the Reader

“An exhilarating mix of memoir and deep personal research, The History We Carry explores a mother’s complex history and a daughter’s lifelong struggle to understand and connect with her mother. In clear prose that never presents simple answers but rather digs to discover unknown truths and questions even her own long-held narratives, Margaret Whitford has written a robust story of love and trauma.”
~ Sheryl St. Germain, author of 50 Miles

“All our parents live lives before we arrive, lives that come to bear on our own. In this new memoir, Margaret Whitford bravely ventures into her mother’s past to better understand her own present and future. The History We Carry is a gorgeously written book about generational trauma and the intersections of love and grief. It’s a stunning debut.”
~ Lee Martin, author of Pulitzer Prize finalist The Bright Forever

Book Details:

Genre: Dysfunctional Families, Motherhood, Bereavement
Published by: She Writes Press
Publication Date: June 2, 2026
Number of Pages: 256
ISBN: 9798896363224
Book Links: Amazon | Kindle | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads | BookBub | She Writes Press | Simon & Schuster

Read an excerpt:

A World of Two

I picture my mother lying on her hospital bed, the same one she has occupied for the last twelve days. The space is in shadow, the only light coming from the hallway. The room smells empty. No flowers or scented candles—she wouldn’t have wanted those. The sound of retreating footfalls in the corridor or a muffled voice from another part of the hospital occasionally interrupts the silence. Her breathing is shallow, until the moment it stops altogether. It happens so quietly, no one notices at first.

When my mother died in Concord, I was an ocean away, in a Paris hotel. Another day had already started. That remove feels familiar—geography and time following an established pattern.

In the morning’s early hours, I lay next to my husband, Tom, on a king-sized bed in a room of marble-inlaid tables and still-life paintings in gilded frames, the walls covered in red-and-gold-striped paper. I heard only the sounds of the night, a faint breeze moving through the magnolia trees in the courtyard and an occasional car gliding along the boulevard. While Tom slept, I lay awake, thinking about my mother. I had started to understand that we wouldn’t make it back in time. My mother would either be dead or so unresponsive that there could be no last words between us.

Tom read my brother Billy’s email while I was taking a shower. I knew from the way he walked into the bathroom, but he still had to say the words: “Your mother is dead.” Years from now, I thought, I will be able to replay this moment in my mind. He stood there, naked, looking both vulnerable and strong, his hand on the shower wall ready to reach for me.

My brothers and sister wanted to touch our mother after she died because she had not welcomed that while living. She would allow a hug or a kiss in greeting or farewell but shrugged you off if you lingered in the embrace.

Henry would have stroked her sparse hair, cut short after she could no longer shape it into a twist. He might have teased her about finally being able to touch her hair, something she loathed. Lydia might have rubbed her feet, those odd feet, with such high arches her toes curled to reach the ground. Her feet shaped by childhood polio and old age, missing the little toe on one foot, removed because of frostbite suffered during the Second World War. She could never find comfortable shoes, so she wore Birkenstock sandals year-round, donning socks with them in winter.

Billy would have rested his hand on her shoulder, let his fingers travel the length of her arm. He might have held her hand, bent at strange angles by arthritis and with the bones loose under the skin. Had I been there, I would also have been drawn to her hands, so small that they reminded me of a child’s. She kept her nails short and immaculate, a habit she’d adopted in medical school, and one I try to emulate. I might have traced the line of her aquiline nose and the contour of her jaw, fondled her cheek and pressed my fingers to her high cheekbones, a sign of her Slavic heritage, she once told me.

Her sandals and the pair of socks she last wore with them are mine now, safeguarded in a box in the back of my closet. Those Birkenstocks, the insoles shaped over time by the pressure of her feet, her navy-blue socks. I wanted the last of her clothing, something that had touched her. I run my hands over the smooth cork, hold the socks to my cheek, the much-washed cotton soft. I thought the socks might retain the cool, dry scent of her.

Our plane to Massachusetts departed in the afternoon, so Tom and I filled the morning with small errands—the purchase of a journal of good paper with a red ribbon to mark my place—and one last view of Notre-Dame. Each gesture, every step I made, accompanied by a voice in my head repeating, Your mother is dead.

The air smelled of diesel fuel and wet earth. My left arm entwined with Tom’s right, I rested my hand on his steady forearm, eavesdropped on the conversations around me, catching only phrases. I thought how these strangers knew nothing of my grief and I nothing of theirs. A rare winter’s morning, fresh with rain-washed skies, and sunlight bathing the bone-colored stone of centuries-old buildings. I noticed the quality of the light, its unusual clarity. Tom and I had introduced my mother to Paris on a trip years before. She will never see it again, I thought, trying to absorb its beauty on her behalf.

***

Author Bio:

Margaret Whitford served in leadership positions within the nonprofit world for twenty years, including ten years in the social justice field, before turning to writing. She is fascinated by the ways in which we all seek to create places of refuge for ourselves, both in a metaphorical and a physical sense. The History We Carry is her first memoir. An avid Francophile, Margaret, with her husband, divides her time between a small village in the South of France and her home in Concord, Massachusetts.

Catch Up With Margaret Whitford:

MargaretWhitford.com
Amazon Author Profile
Goodreads
Instagram – @margaretwhitfordwriter
Facebook

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A History You’ll Want To Carry

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Review – Cinematic Destinies by Patricia Leavy #peatricialeavy #cinemticdestinies #shewritespress

Posted on August 14, 2026 by fundinmental

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I don’t read a lot of romance, unless it has a suspenseful or paranormal twist, but I jumped on board Cinematic Destinies because of the publicity push. I don’t know if I missed out on anything because I haven’t read the previous two books in the Red Carpet Romance series. I sometimes grab a simple romance to cleanse my pallet. I read a lot of books and if I read too many of one particular genre back to back, they all seem to blend together. A refresher has me coming back raring to go.

Cinematic Destinies by Patricia Leavy is about the fairy tale Hollywood romance of the parents and how their children learn that everything is not always as it seems. As the children grow and work through their own problems, they strive to have a happy ever after.

Cinematic Destinies is pretty much what I expected. It makes for a great summer read.

GOODREADS BLURB

For fans of Tessa Bailey and Hannah Grace, Cinematic Destinies is a feel-good, contemporary romance about a trio of adult children searching for love and beauty in the shadow of their parents’ legendary Hollywood fairy-tale romance.

Legendary actor Finn Forrester and his wife philosopher Ella Sinclair Forrester met on the location shoot for Jean Mercier’s film Celebration. The world has been captivated by their fairy-tale romance since Finn famously proposed on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival. As the couple now prepares to celebrate their thirtieth wedding anniversary, they wonder if their children will ever find love.

Eldest daughter Betty is excelling in a medical residency program in New York City—and has convinced herself that distancing herself from emotions is the path to success. Youngest son Albert, a recent college graduate, is trying to find his footing in Boston as he struggles with his identity. Free-spirited Georgia, her mother’s spitting image and an actress following in her father’s footsteps, has been cast in Jean Mercier’s final film, mysteriously titled Beauty. When she arrives on set in Iceland and meets her costar, sparks fly. Is history repeating itself? How has growing up in the shadow of the world’s most iconic love story affected each of the Forrester children?

In this highly anticipated conclusion to The Location Shoot and After the Red Carpet, we see how Finn, Ella, and their children fulfill their cinematic destinies.

Genre: Contemporary, Romance
232 pages, Paperback
Published September 2, 2025 by She Writes Press
Series: Red Carpet Romance #3

ABOUT PATRICIA LEAVY

Patricia Leavy, Ph.D., is a bestselling author. She has published over fifty books, earning commercial and critical success in both fiction and nonfiction, and her work has been translated into many languages. Patricia has received over 100 book honors as well as career awards from the New England Sociological Association, the American Creativity Association, the American Educational Research Association, the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, and the National Art Education Association. In 2024 the London Arts-Based Research Centre established “The Patricia Leavy Award for Arts-Based Research.” She lives in Maine with her family. Patricia loves writing, reading, watching films, and traveling. These days, she’s focused on writing feel-good love stories.

Website

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The Spotlight Is On Love Next Door by Eve Kasey & Melanie A Smith @xpressotours #evekasey #melanieasmith #lovenextdoor

Posted on August 11, 2026 by fundinmental

Love Next Door: A ‘90s Anthem Duet
Eve Kasey & Melanie A. Smith
Publication date: September 1st 2026
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

One volume, two steamy interconnected romances set in 1995 Seattle

Come to My Window
Hazel Bell has lost everything — her job, her apartment, and her future in Seattle. Now her whole world is a thrift-store wardrobe, a family of houseplants, and a stranger in the opposite window who knows exactly what to say.

They exchange notes instead of names. Confessions instead of introductions. And somehow, the man she’s never met becomes the one person she can’t live without.

Gideon Sarkis knows the truth would end them before they ever begin.

He knows exactly who Hazel is. But she doesn’t know him — or how badly he once hurt her. The more notes they write, the harder he falls. But with his obligations pressing in and her options disappearing, their time is running out.

Some windows are meant to be opened.

But some secrets can shatter everything.

Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
Ben Pedersen is a ghostwriter stuck crafting someone else’s thrillers when a misdelivered package introduces him to the mystery of unit 203 — and its elusive occupant, Heaven Lee.

Lee is a software engineer burning the candle at every possible end, helping build one of the first online bookstores. She doesn’t have time for nosy neighbors. She barely has time for sleep. But the guy upstairs keeps getting her mail, and he’s funny, patient, and her dog likes him more than the UPS guy. So maybe one coffee not-date won’t kill her.

The neighborly arrangement that follows becomes something neither of them planned. But Lee won’t admit what’s in the misdelivered packages, and Ben’s writer brain won’t let a mystery rest. When curiosity crosses a line, both must decide what matters more: protecting their secrets or fighting for what they’ve found.

Love Next Door is two warm, witty nostalgic love stories about the secrets we keep, the walls we build, and the people worth tearing them down for.

Pre-order

—

Author Bio:

Melanie A. Smith is an award-winning, international best-selling author of steamy romance with smart, self-sufficient heroines and strong, swoony book boyfriends with hearts of gold. A former engineer turned stay-at-home mom and author, when Melanie is not lost in the world of books you’ll find her spending time with her husband and son, crafting, or cross-stitching.

Eve Kasey writes for a design firm by day and reads (and writes!) indie romance novels by night. Her contemporary romances balance swoon and steam while aiming to teach readers something new. She loves romance for the hope the genre conveys as well as the amplification of the simple truth that everyone everywhere deserves a happily ever after – however that looks to them. Eve lives in and loves the Pacific Northwest.

—

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Giveaway – The Art Of Almost Losing by Alina Jacobs @xpressotours #alinajacobs #theartofalmostlosing

Posted on August 10, 2026 by fundinmental

The Art of Almost Losing It
Alina Jacobs
(The Richmond Brothers, #3)
Publication date: August 4th 2026
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance

There comes a time in every almost-thirty-year-old woman’s life when getting kidnapped off the street is preferable to admitting that the hot, rich boyfriend you’ve been bragging about for months does not, in fact, exist.

Yes, it’s terrifying being stuffed in the trunk of a Mercedes, but I would rather be locked in a stranger’s penthouse than sleeping on the floor of my parents’ apartment like the loser daughter I am.

Honestly?
It’s nice to get some alone time. And my own bathroom.

He bribes me with money not to call the police.

I scream at him for forcing me to go to brunch as his prisoner at the hottest restaurant in New York.

Now everyone in my parents’ aggressively posh Manhattan neighborhood thinks we’re dating.

Buckle up, buddy.
I have a full wedding itinerary to attend, and congratulations—you’re my fake boyfriend.

Unfortunately, my kidnapper is the worst fake boyfriend in the history of fake boyfriends.

He’s mean.
Aloof.
Emotionally unavailable.
And deeply offended by how much time I spend on my phone.

Meanwhile, I’m trying to ignore how yummy he smells, all muscular and tall as he fumes next to me in bed, furious because I asked him when the sexy portion of the kidnapping is going to happen.

It’s a fair question, though, right?!? I thought kidnapping came with benefits!

Guess my kidnapper didn’t want me that much after all.

Men lying about their desire for a relationship. Story of my life.

Now I’m trapped.
He’s miserable.

And somehow, this is starting to feel dangerously like a relationship.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

The one time a hot guy shows interest in me… and he’s a violent kidnapper.

My screams cut off as he tosses in my laptop case. It lands on my ribs, knocking the breath out of me. He shoves my legs fully into the trunk, then tosses in the barking Lulu, then slams the door.

I assume it’s a mistake.

The expensive German car. The bespoke suit. The cologne that smells like money and expensive scotch—Men like him don’t grab women like me.

So why did he just shove me, in all my pizza-sauce-stained, Costco-clothes glory, into the trunk?

I needed a boyfriend, sure, but I did not expect him to arrive via a felony crime.

The engine purrs.

Wait.

Am I really being kidnapped?

Like… for real?

Sleet rattles against the roof as the realization hits.

Oh.

Oh no.

I’m trapped in the trunk of a stranger’s car. A dangerous man. Being driven God knows where.

Sure, he’s attractive—but that is deeply unhelpful information right now.

I’ll never see my family again. Never eat a dollar slice of pizza again—

Wait.

I squint.

Window.

This isn’t a sedan. This is an SUV.

I’m not trapped.

I haul myself up and pop my head over the back seat.

“You’re a crappy kidnapper!” I scream.

“Shit!” he yells—and nearly plows into a parked truck. “You—!”

The car jerks to a stop at a stop sign. He throws it into park and starts climbing over the seats toward me.

“You can’t kidnap me,” I say, panic creeping in. “You don’t want me. I’m not a girl anyone kidnaps.”

My dog barks.

Emerald-green eyes catch the light.

“Sit down,” he commands.

“My mom is going to be really upset if I don’t come home tonight,” I blurt. “Let me go.”

The doors lock.

I fumble in my purse. Find my pepper spray.

“Yes!” I whisper. “I’m a strong, independent —”

I spray… myself.

“Water,” I gasp, coughing, wheezing, blind.

I suck in a lungful of peppery air and yank at the door handle, begging it to open.

Too late.

“Stupid fucking girl,” he snarls, grabbing my jacket and dragging me forward.

“You didn’t even handcuff me!” I wheeze.

He pauses. “You really don’t know when to shut up, do you?”

He loosens his tie.

I gulp.

“I cannot believe,” he sneers, “that I kidnapped the most unattractive woman in Manhattan.”

Oh.

So… not the future love of my life after all.

Author Bio:

I write the kind of books I love—romantic comedies featuring snarly guys with hearts of gold, kick-ass heroines, and a swoon-worthy happily ever after! Also wine. And cupcakes.

When I’m not writing I can be found drinking tea, surrounded by my massive to-be-read pile! So many books…

You can connect with me on social media or find information on my books at my website.

Sign up for my newsletter so that you can get information about new releases, giveaways, and more!

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Sherry Shelves 8.2 – 8.8.26 #tallship #elissa

Posted on August 9, 2026 by fundinmental

Sunday Post is hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer
Sunday Salon is hosted by Readerbuzz
Stacking The Shelves by Reading Reality
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Hi Everyone. Mr Wonderful left for the Blue Wahoos baseball game early so he could make this video.

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Sherry’s Shelves
$25 GC – The History We Carry by Margaret Whitford

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Review & Giveaway – Sinister Remnants by Anita Dickason @dollycas #anitadickason #sinisterremnants

Posted on August 8, 2026 by fundinmental

Sinister Remnants: (A Tori Winters Mystery)
by Anita Dickason
About Sinister Remnants

Sinister Remnants: (A Tori Winters Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Setting – Texas
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Mystic Circle Books
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 26, 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 380 pages
Hardcover
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1958464139
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1958464137
Paperback
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1958464120
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1958464120
Digital
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1958464144
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0H4X16L1M

MY REVIEW

Sinister Remnants by Anita Dickason is the fourth book in the Tori Winters Mystery series. Anita uses her vast experience with law enforcement to deliver a complex mystery. As Tori Winters prepares for the grand opening of Red Door Inn, she learns of a rumor stating that she is not the true owner.

I love this group of ladies: Tori, Mia, Heidi, Tina, and Cammie are more than friends, they are family. I love their relationship and I am sure the Red Door Inn will be a success, until a remnant arises and threatens her ownership of the mansion. Of course, we have some wonderful men that stand beside them. At the moment, they are all single, but we shall see how long that lasts.

Tori and Mia play Sherlock and Watson, going off on their own investigations. They don’t always use their best judgment and that can land them in some awkward, if not dangerous, situations.

I love the pretty cover for Sinister Remnants by Anita Dickason. It foreshadows the mystery that lies between the pages. We do have plenty of villains that want to get their hands on the mansion. Murder and mayhem knock on the door. Anita writes a clean mystery, suitable for all ages. She follows her characters as they grow their life situations change. I look forward to spending more time with the ladies and their beaus. I am curious what kind of mystery Anita will come up with next.

My thanks for out to Great Escapes for the opportunity to share Sinister Remnantas by Anita Dickason with you.

ABOUT SINISTER REMNANTS

The Past Leaves Traces! Some Turn Deadly!

Ambushed during a press tour of the new Red Door Inn, Tori Winters is blindsided by an accusation that she doesn’t own the mansion.

The Metro reporter’s vicious rumor soon proves to be more than tabloid fodder. An attorney has the proof.

Ensnared in a ruthless legal battle, Tori’s desperate search for answers uncovers a chilling truth. Some things were never meant to be dug up. But someone had.

A remnant, long forgotten in the shadows of her inheritance, ignites a danger far deadlier than a courtroom fight.

One murder was only the beginning.

Who is the next victim?

Excerpt

Tori gestured toward her team. “On behalf of all of us, thank you for coming. We hope you enjoyed the tour.”

Tori moved to the foyer, while Tina distributed the packets.

Holding the front door open, she smiled and thanked each reporter as they filed out.

Polaski, the last to leave, shot her a smug little look. “Too bad you went to all this effort for nothing.”

Tori kept her expression steady, but the words hit like a blow as she closed the door. A knot of unease tightened in her chest. She turned.

“For cripes’ sake! What was that all about?”

About Anita Dickason

Anita Dickason is a twenty-two-year veteran of the Dallas Police Department. Anita served as a patrol officer, undercover narcotics detective, advanced accident investigator, and Dallas SWAT tactical officer and first female sniper. Her law enforcement experience and knowledge provide an endless source of inspiration for her characters and plots.

Author Links

https://www.anitadickason.com

https://www.facebook.com/AnitaDickasonAuthor

https://www.linkedin.com/in/anita-dickason-7b6b6650

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7396263.Anita_Dickason

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The Book Cinema Channel
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TOUR PARTICIPANTS

August 4 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT

August 5 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT

August 6 – Romance Novel Giveaways – SPOTLIGHT

August 7 – Books1987 – SPOTLIGHT

August 8 – fundinmental – REVIEW

August 8 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – REVIEW

August 9 – Sarandipity’s – SPOTLIGHT

August 10 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT

August 11 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – SPOTLIGHT

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August 12 – Ascroft, eh? – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

August 13 – Novels Alive – REVIEW

August 14 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW

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August 16 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

August 17 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

August 17 – Sarcastically Yours, Jen – SPOTLIGHT

MY ANITA DICKASON REVIEWS

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$25 GC – Twilight Tactics by Lynette Eason @partnersincr1me #lynetteeason #twilighttactics

Posted on August 7, 2026 by fundinmental

TWILIGHT TACTICS

by Lynette Eason

August 3 – 28, 2026 Virtual Book Tour

Synopsis:

SOLDIERS IN SHADOWS

He came to protect a witness. She came to teach survival skills. Now they’re targets with an enemy who won’t let either of them walk away.

FBI agent Sully Sullivan arrives at Broken Chains Ranch with Ollie Callahan–a foster teen and sole witness to a mob hit. The ranch, started by Sully’s cousin to provide a trauma recovery facility for veterans, should be a place he can keep Ollie safe until the trial. But what was meant as a peaceful haven becomes a battleground when armed attackers surround the property.

Survival expert Elena Thompson teaches wilderness skills at the ranch and coaches Ollie in self-defense. As the series of attacks on the ranch escalates into a full siege, the question becomes who the attackers are after: Ollie, the young witness? Or Elena, with her mysterious past? With communications down and help out of reach, Sully and Elena fight to keep everyone alive as secrets and danger close in.

A gripping romantic suspense thriller from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lynette Eason, full of action and danger and set on a remote ranch. Forced proximity, surprising twists, and a race against tech-savvy enemies make this a pulse-pounding read for fans of Irene Hannon, Dani Pettrey, and Elizabeth Goddard.

Book Details:

Genre: Romantic Suspense
Published by: Baker Publishing Group
Publication Date: August 4, 2026
Number of Pages: 352
ISBN: 9780800744939 (ISBN10: 0800744934)
Series: Soldiers in Shadows, Book 1
Book Links: Amazon | Kindle | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads | BookBub | Baker Book House

Read an excerpt:

Author Bio:

Lynette Eason is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of Twilight Tactics and Deadly Charade. She has written many thrilling romantic suspense series, including Lake City Heroes, Extreme Measures, Danger Never Sleeps, Blue Justice, Women of Justice, Deadly Reunions, Hidden Identity, and Elite Guardians. Learn more at LynetteEason.com.

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$25 GC – Bad Decisions & Back Roads by Zoe Forward @xpressotours #zoeforward #baddecisions

Posted on August 6, 2026 by fundinmental

Bad Decisions & Back Roads: Second Chance Veterinary Romance
Zoe Forward
(Southern Veterinary, #2)
Publication date: August 3rd 2026
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

The problem with bad decisions is you never stop wanting them.

I used to be the rebellious girl from the wrong side of the fenceline. He was the local hellraiser nobody could tame. While our families carried on a feud older than indoor plumbing, we fell for each other.

Then my vicious father found out. To save Timothy’s life, I broke his heart and disappeared.

Now over a decade later, I’m back as a large-animal veterinarian, working at his brother’s clinic and treating everything from prize dairy cows to Timothy’s homicidal llama. Avoiding him should be easy.

It isn’t.

He’s a single dad running two businesses, still infuriatingly irresistible, and determined to make me pay for every year he spent hating me.

The problem? I never stopped loving him. But if he learns why I really left, I could lose him forever.

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EXCERPT:

“Yesterday…I wrecked you?” She gave me a look I remembered. Her green eyes flared. I was about to lose this fight in a way I’d never recover from.

She slowly unzipped her coveralls. My brain immediately abandoned ship. Not helped by the fact that traitorous memory chose this exact moment to replay yesterday’s rainstorm in vivid detail.

Meanwhile, in real time, she peeled the coveralls down and somehow stepped out of them while keeping her socks from touching the ground—a feat of female sorcery I could neither explain nor stop watching.

Underneath was a tight white shirt that clung in ways that should probably require a warning label, a permit, and possibly a pastor on standby.

My eyes briefly closed. Opened. She was still there.

Beside me, Cody made a small choking noise.

I cut him a glare.

He didn’t even have the decency to look ashamed.

Then—because she enjoyed cruelty—she lifted both arms and twisted her hair into a messy bun. Which did things. Terrible, magnificent things to her chest.

Her mouth curved like she knew exactly what she’d done. She pulled a scrub top out of the duffle and pulled it down over the tight shirt. Without a word, she packed the supplies into her duffel, casually picked up the dart rifle from the ground, and started walking up the hill like she hadn’t just detonated every functioning brain cell in a fifty-yard radius.

Then she tossed over her shoulder—

“I’m back, Timothy Hurst. End of story.” A few steps later she said, “You’re welcome…for dealing with your dangerous llama.”

Author Bio:

USA Today bestselling author Zoe Forward is a parent, wife, veterinarian, and unapologetic chocolate lover. She writes spicy paranormal and contemporary romances that blend action, adventure, humor, and a touch of magic.

Zoe lives in the South with a lively menagerie of four-legged beasts and two slightly wild kids.

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