Tag Archives: 4 star review

Trafficking Endangered Animals – The Tiger Temple by Steven Moore @StevenScribe

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The Tiger Temple by Steven Moore was so much more than I anticipated. Sure, I saw the blurb that mentioned Clive Cussler and I have read many books by Clive, so I thought The Tiger Temple would be a good fit. At times, I felt like I was on an adventure with Indiana Jones.

It all begins when a young girl is kidnapped by a vicious crime lord, Jago. As the story unfolds, it becomes even more disturbing. The trafficking of the endangered Sumatran tiger is deplorable. It’s hard to come up with words to describe the senseless killing.

Hiram is friends with the family and by their side every step of the way, as the try to locate Ayu and rescue her. Ayu is a courageous, young girl who fights to survive, . She is dropped in a pit, left to drown when the rain begins to fill it. Besides the rain storm, we have a volcano about to erupt. I love when an author gives an innocent, sweet child a starring role. It sure does tug at the heartstrings, as if the senseless killing of the Sumatran tigers isn’t enough.

Steven Moore gets his ideas from his travels and experiences around the world. It shows in the details his writing provides, with vivid characters and surroundings that make me feel like I am a part of the adventure. An adventure that shares the good and bad of humanity. One family member makes the ultimate sacrifice, and I think Steven Moore handled the situation in the best way possible.

It took me reading The Tiger Temple and Hiram Kane to get me engrossed in the series. Sure, the blurb caught my attention, along with the vibrant red of the cover, but it was the story itself that drew me deeper and deeper into Hiram Kane’s adventure.

The disgust I felt over the graphic details of the trafficking of the Sumatran tiger and it’s ‘parts’ was very disturbing. We know these things go on today and maybe Steven Moore’s story can help in some way.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

A betrayed criminal. A kidnapped child. A deadly race against time.

On the Island of the Gods, expedition leader Hiram Kane is on holiday after a long season guiding in the Peruvian Andes.

When a good friend’s greed leads him to betray Bali’s most notorious gangster, their peaceful community is left shell-shocked after the six-year-old daughter of its leader gets kidnapped in a vicious and violent raid.

What follows is a whirlwind race across the paradise island to rescue the girl before ‘The Rooster’ takes his sadistic revenge, and with the waking giant of volcanic Mt. Agung threatening to destroy them all, Kane risks everything to prevent a devastating tragedy.

The Tiger Temple is the exciting new prequal to the Hiram Kane adventure series. For fans of Russell Blake and Clive Cussler, Steven Moore’s action thriller will leave you breathless.

  • Genre: Action and Adventure, Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
  • 372 pages, Kindle Edition
  • First published December 20, 2017 by Condor Publishing
  • Series: Hiram Kane Adventure

ABOUT STEVE MOORE

Englishman Steven Moore grew up by the seaside, thus his first true joy was the great outdoors. His innate love of travel and a degree in anthropology, archaeology, and art history help inform his fiction writing. Steven also loves painting, photography, and both playing and watching sport.

The travel bug bit the now perpetual nomad early, and to date Steven has lived and worked on five continents, and visited almost sixty countries. Steven combines an age-old writing adage; Write what you know, with his own mantra; Write where you know, and sets most of his novels in places in which he has either lived or spent an extended period of time.

When not on the road with his writer wife Leslie, San Miguel de Allende in Mexico is home, which they share with their rescue cats Ernest Hemingway and F Scott Fitzgerald (Ernie and Fitz).

A lifelong love of food, wine, and beer have demanded a new-found love of yoga and hiking in order to fend off the imminent arrival of middle age.

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Animal Attraction – Denying My Wolf by Scarlett West @iamscarlettwest

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Denying My Wolfe is Book II in the Stone Mountain Wolf Shifter series by Scarlett West. It’s a pretty quick read at 165 pages in print, but it does not lack in animal attraction, steamy sex, and danger.

“Run her until she collapses,” my beta called out….

Julia is attacked by her pack, driving her to the enemy, Ethan’s pack. She is an alpha and he is a Beta, but she will bow down to save her sister. Can she find a home with the enemy? Can she save her sister?

Ethan is promised to another, prophesied by a seer. If, Julia can’t change that and create an alliance between the two packs, her sister will die. Of course, nothing is ever cut and dried and the past relationship comes to light when they cannot hide their attraction any longer.

Denying My Wolf by Scarlett West is a quick read, but the writing makes the wolf shifters world come to life. Julia running through the woods, the wind flowing through her fur, the smell of the forest as air rushed through her lungs…

The inner dialogue she has with her wolf has me cracking up, but I’ll leave that for you to find out for yourself. It is well worth the smiles.

Because of Twilight, I can see it all unfold before my eyes. Sure, there wasn’t any vampires, but the wolfie scenes came to life. The battles are fought to the death, new alliances are made and we are on to the next romance, Lydia and Jace, who sure do deserve something good in their lives.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Denying My Wolf by Scarlett West.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Falling for the pack enemy could destroy us both.

Ethan

After my life was destroyed by a curse, the last thing I needed was a mate—especially from the enemy pack. Julia was dumped on our doorstep for me.

No one knows about the time we hooked up in our teens, and damn if I never got her out of my system. Old sparks ignite between us, igniting a feral hunger I can’t stop, driving my wolf to claim her for good.

But can I put aside an old grudge and accept the only woman who stirs my wolf?

Julia

Rejected by my pack as an outcast, I’m delivered to the enemy in an arranged marriage.

No one knows Ethan crushed my heart when we were younger, yet he’s become devastatingly handsome and reawakened an intoxicating attraction my wolf finds impossible to ignore. Still, that doesn’t mean I have to let him back in my heart. I’m determined to fight my wolf’s need to mark him, but Ethan won’t take no for an answer.

And I’ve got secrets of my own.

My father is responsible for the curse and if anyone finds out, I’m dead.

If you love moody alphas, sassy heroines, and hot paranormal romance with a heart, Denying My Wolf, is for you. It’s the first standalone book in the Stone Mountain Wolf Shifters Series. Scroll up and One-Click this steamy wolf shifter romance that’s bound to pull your heartstrings.

  • Genre: Fiction, Occult, Paranormal, Parapsychology, Supernatural, Shapeshifters, Werewolves
  • Format: 165 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Expected publication: September 21, 2023 by Passion Press
  • Language: English
  • Series: Stone Mountain Wolf Shifters

ABOUT SCARLETT WEST

Scarlett West

Scarlett West writes steamy, paranormal romance featuring sexy Fae. Deep characters and hot romance are her thing.

An avid reader and writer who will never stop dreaming, Scarlett has traveled to many countries and been on tons of adventures. She draws her stories from these places, life experiences, and her grand imagination.

Besides writing, she’s a hobby herbalist and a dancer. If she’s not by the computer typing these things up, she can be found in a forest, on a mountain, or by the ocean.

Scarlett West would like to thank her three F’s: Fans, Family, and Friends. Thank you forever for your support.

Website / Facebook / Twitter

MY SCARLET WEST REVIEWS

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Risen From The Dead – The Legend Of Rachel Petersen by J T Baroni #JTBaroni

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I was excited to get my hands on this book. I mean, look at that cover..and his inspiration for writing it. How cool is that? Welcome to fundinmental J T.

How did this book come about?

          While hunting whitetail one year, I stumbled upon a weathered tombstone in the middle of the woods. Waiting patiently for that big buck to cross my path gave me plenty of time to think about that lone grave’s inhabitant and ponder her story, which I was then driven to write.

          Eerily enough, this is the premise of The Legend of Rachel Petersen, my first novel that Damnation Books in California published in 2012, which I have just recently revised, then self-published. Between holding down a job as a transformer repairman, and life in general, it me took two years to write the original book back then.

          However! I am now enjoying retirement; and in the first half of 2023, I revised the story by adding 165 pages and a new ending chapter. My ghost tale is now even more descriptive, has added details, and the final chapter comes out of left field and smacks you upside the head!

Describe your writing habits.

         I simply write when it’s raining, or when the urge hits, but mostly when I think of a good scene and the thoughts are flowing. Sometimes the rough draft will sit on the shelf for a month or longer, then I’ll dust it off and look at it with a fresh perspective.Only after ten or more chapters when I get lost, do I start an outline.

Do you listen to music while writing?

          Sometimes I tell Alexa to play Santa Esmeralda, Supertramp, Bob Seger, INXS, or the Golden Oldies, or the news. At times, silence, especially when I’m using the narrator function during editing.

Which authors influenced your writing?

         I enjoyed Harold Robbins’s The Adventurers, Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer, and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. I know I’m telling my age with that answer, but I enjoyed their books because they wrote captivating stories that held my interest to the last page.

Are there any projects in the works now?

            I’m 32 chapters into a psychological thriller. The plot revolves around a psychologist and an attorney who are planning to rule the world; they both share the same dark secret, but one of them has a deadly, ulterior motive. Three more chapters should finish it. Then edit, edit, edit… Keep your eyes open for, “Tell Me about your Childhood.”

It’s funny, but when I asked you for your thoughts I left it up to you, and you covered all the things I was thinking of. I love when great minds think alike, don’t you? LOL I’m excited to see what you come up with next, since I think The Legend Of Rachel Petersen was a hit!

Amazon / Goodreads

UPDATE: J T Baroni now has an Apple audiobook available, created by AI.

MY REVIEW

I confess. It was the cover that drew me in. It had that horror, paranormal, supernatural feel to it and I investigated further. When I finished the book, I found where the author’s inspiration came from. He was deer hunting and came across a tombstone. As he sat there, waiting for that elusive big buck to come through, he had plenty of time to wonder and ponder…and that What If came to life.

Christian Kane is a sports writer for The Post Gazette. He doesn’t get the anticipated promotion he was expecting and quits to write fiction. The Legend of Rachel Petersen is about the characters finding a tombstone hidden in the briars on their property and what happens after.

“We are living in a house where a twelve year old girl went cuckoo, killed her family, an’ then hanged herself in our barn.”

A book in a book is always a fun concept. J T Baroni did foreshadow what was to come and I love that he did it in such a way that I never took notice. Well done. I found myself laughing…at myself. There are other moments of laughter and I love an author that incorporates fun into some doom and gloom.

The ending was worth a star alone. I love when an author can catch me so off guard I am left with my mouth hanging open. I highly recommend The Legend Of Rachel Petersen by J T Baroni and I would love to know what you think.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Legend of Rachel Petersen by J T Baroni.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Did his book raise the dead? Outraged when The Post Gazette overlooks him for a promotion, thirty-nine year old sports writer, Christian Kane quits and moves to the country to write fiction. Inspiration flows from a grave he stumbles upon in the woods. He compiles The Legend of Rachel Petersen, a fascinating story revolving around the dead twelve year old girl lying beneath the weathered tombstone. His book becomes a Best Seller; then Hollywood makes it in to a blockbuster movie. Kane becomes rich and famous, but only to have Rachel rise from the grave to seek revenge on him for slandering her name!

  • Genre: Fiction, Horror, Paranormal, Supernatural
  • Kindle Edition (Revised Edition)
  • First published November 23, 2011 by Sky Publishing

EXCERPT

Page 79

               Staring back at him were two large empty eye sockets in a tiny skull, which rested on a satin pillow. Her facial skin, once having a flawless peaches and cream complexion, was now brown, deeply gouged with wrinkles, and drawn tight, exposing her baby teeth. Her nose was reduced to two narrow slits. Red hair, parted in the middle, covered her forehead before coming to rest in curls on her shoulders.

Page 80

               While jumping up and down, he tripped over the shovel’s handle and fell face first over the freshly dug dirt pile back into the grave, landing three inches from Rachel’s mummified face; he swore he saw Rachel smile at him!

Page 82

               His eyes widened and his jaw fell open. Floating on top of the broth were the words… ‘help me’… spelled out with the alphabet macaroni! Thaddeus quickly stirred his soup and watched in awe as the words reappeared amongst the chunks of chicken, chopped celery, and diced carrots — ‘help me.’

ABOUT J T BARONI (from Amazon)

Living in Western Pennsylvania all my life, I have been an avid Whitetail hunter since I was old enough to tote a rifle, which is also about as long as I’ve had a fondness for word games and literature. While hunting last year, I actually did stumble upon a weathered tombstone in the middle of the woods. Waiting patiently for any deer to cross my path gave me plenty of time to think about that lone grave’s inhabitant and ponder her story, which I was then driven to write. Eerily enough, this is the premise of The Legend of Rachel Petersen, my first published novel. I have also composed several songs that are currently signed with a music publisher.

My home is Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a small town outside of Pittsburgh, where my wife Becky and I are both proud members of the Lions International. We share our home with our son, Skyler, and an AKC boxer, Butkus.

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Creature Feature – What Doesn’t Kill You by Ken Brosky #KenBrosky #Horror

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The intriguing cover for What Doesn’t Kill You by Ken Brosky caught my eye and I had to check further. I am glad I did, because I love creature features and stories that put characters to the test…and they will be. Not all will survive and I love that too. (evil grin)

Emma rolls into town, bringing with her a gift that will change the town forever. It invades the town slowly, and has a sweetness to those who claim its gift. Don’t we all know that nothing comes without a cost, and no on knows what the cost will be.

Valerie and Danny are the stars, but they are not alone. Some of the most surprising characters are those staying at the halfway house, seeking help for their addictions.

In a small town, there are no secrets, and Seven Sisters is in dire need of anything that can help the people, since Highway 55 became the Old Highway 55. How many towns have died because progress has passed them by? Why do they stay, when there is no future? What would be the lure that would compel people to move on? Does Emma know?

For Seven Sisters to survive, residents will be put to the test, needing the courage to fight for what is their lives. They will need to work together. They will need to draw from deep inside and find the strength to overcome their fear.

What Doesn’t Kill You by Ken Brosky was not exactly what I thought it would be, but the more involved I became, the more the characters drew me in, the more the tension built. The pacing and action allowed the suspense to build and I did not see the end coming. I do appreciate an author that can make me say, “Well, I sure didn’t see that coming.”

I felt the rating jumping between a three and a four. Whenever that happens, a four it is.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of What Doesn’t Kill You by Ken Brosky.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Valerie Miller and her younger brother have spent their entire lives in the dreary town of Seven Sisters, where most people are resigned to a bleak future of debt and despair. But when a mysterious woman with a dark past arrives, she brings with her a gift that could transform the town’s fortunes – and the lives of Val and Danny.

This extraordinary woman’s power is both awe-inspiring and terrifying, capable of unleashing a force that will shake Seven Sisters to its core. The stakes are high, and danger is omnipresent. Can Val and Danny rise to the challenge and seize the opportunity to finally break free from the suffocating grip of their hometown? Or will they fall victim to the terrors unleashed by this enigmatic figure? One thing is certain–when the sun rises on Seven Sisters, nothing will ever be the same again.

Part creature-feature, part survival story, What Doesn’t Kill You will keep you on the edge of your seat as Val and Danny fight for their lives and all of Seven Sisters.

  • Genre: Fiction, Horror
  • 274 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Expected publication September 5, 2023 by Timber Ghost Press

ABOUT KEN BROSKY

Here’s the short and skinny:

  • I got my bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing from UW-Eau Claire
  • I got my Master’s Degree in Writing from the University of Nebraska-Omaha.
  • I wrote a bunch of books and short stories.
  • Some got published, many did not.
  • I self-published a YA series, which was awesome.
  • More stuff got rejected.
  • I sold a book to Kindle Press.
  • I wrote a mystery novel.

Sometimes, in between this stuff, I do woodworking.

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Vigilante Justice – The Disposables by David Putnam @daveputnam @oceanviewpub

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The Disposables
The Disposables
The Disposables
The Disposables

I was so excited when I won hardcover, signed copies of The Disposables, The Squandered, and The Heartless, and a signed paperback of The Scorned by David Putnam.

Today, I am going to share The Disposables in the Bruno Johnson Thriller series by David Putnam.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I have read the Bruno Johnson series out of order, but now I am back with the first book in the series, The Disposables by David Putnam. David’s personal life bleeds into his fiction in a realistic fashion. His characters not only walk the Thin Blue Line, they cross it…repeatedly. Bad Boy Bruno Johnson is a disgraced Los Angeles policeman, recently released from prison for murder. He is constantly amazed to have a girlfriend like Maria, who only sees the good in him. Neither one can turn their back on the abused and neglected children that enter their lives. I love the lengths these characters will go to do the right thing. Vigilante justice is something I can understand, even though, if everyone took the law into their own hands, we would be back in the Wild West. I don’t have Book II, The Replacements on hand, so I will be skipping to Book III, The Squandered.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Disposables by David Putnam.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Bruno Johnson, a tough street cop, member of the elite violent crime task force, feared by the bad guys, admired by the good, finds his life derailed when a personal tragedy forces him to break the law. Now he’s an ex-con and his life on parole is not going well. He is hassled by the police at every opportunity and to make matters even more difficult, his former partner, Robby Wicks, now a high-ranking detective, bullies him into helping solve a high profile crime – unofficially, of course. Meantime, Bruno’s girlfriend, Marie, brings out the good, the real Bruno, and even though they veer totally outside the law, he and Marie dedicate themselves to saving abused children, creating a type of underground railroad for neglected kids at risk, disposable kids. What they must do is perilous they step far outside the law, battling a warped justice system and Bruno’s former partner, with his own evil agenda.

  • Genres: Action and Adventure, Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Vigilante
  • 272 pages, Hardcover
  • First published April 26, 2014 by Oceanview Publishing
  • Series: Bruno Johnson #1

ABOUT DAVID PUTNAM

Best-selling author David Putnam comes from a family of law enforcement. During his career, he did it all: worked in narcotics, served on FBI-sponsored violent crimes teams, and was cross-sworn as a US Marshall, pursuing murder suspects and bank robbers in Arizona, Nevada, and California. Putnam did two tours on the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s SWAT team. He also has experience in criminal intelligence and internal affairs and has supervised corrections, patrol, and a detective bureau. In Hawaii, Putnam was a member of the real-life Hawaii Five O, serving as Special Agent for the Attorney General investigating smuggling and white-collar crimes.

Putnam lives in Southern California with his wife, Mary.

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Shall We Play A Game – The Mystery Game by Michael Chikondi #michaelbchikondi #vampires

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Sinjen, the vampire, takes a vacation, his first time off in fifty years. He’s taking his Thrall, Jack, his human friends, Miriam and Richard, and his lost love, Carlotta to a caste where they will play a murder mystery game.

I love Sinjen. He’s a complicated vampire. He is needy, looking for love, for a reason to get up each night. He searches for a reason to live, and I think he found it when he met Miriam. He won’t change her, won’t keep her for himself. But, his friend, who he thought was his thrall, is in love with her and she seems to be attracted to him too. Will Richard and Miriam marry? Probably.

With Miriam he has found a new vocation? Solving mysteries. Their first, which was supposed to be a game, turned into exposing the rogue vampire that is killing people in a most gruesome and torturous way.

The event takes place in a castle, so will there be a ghost or two?

We have a snowstorm and they are cut off from the world. Is it Aster’s doing? Aster is a vampire that dominates all others. I thought it was him, but when they discover the group is not the only vampires, Aster finds it is better not to use his ability to control the weather. Still, a vampire is never stranded and I was surprised when Sinjen turned into a wolf. I knew they misted, which was cool. He also has the ability to hypnotize people, so he can take a sip or two and wipe their minds.

I am hooked on these characters. Sinjen is such a unique vampire. He is so needy, yet strong and savage when necessary. He is dominated by Eliza, a cruel mistress that revels in his pain, but now, since The Mystery Game, Aster has given him an out and he plans on using it to his advantage. I can hardly wait to see what his next adventure will be.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Mystery Game by Michael B Chikondi.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

With his first time off in fifty years, Sinjen Carlyle decides to take his friends, Miriam, Jack and the fair Carlotta out to enjoy a murder mystery play. It’s to be set over a week, at a castle in the Scottish Highlands. Their hosts, an eccentric mystery writer and his charming wife. Before they have even made it to their rooms, he begins to suspect that he and Carlotta may not be the only two vampires there. As a snowstorm rolls in, and the play begins to blend fantasy a little too closely to reality, could there be a more sinister cause? And, with three vampires penned into on building, can they solve the play, and manage their appetites, before a real death takes place?

  • Genres: Fiction, Idle Hands Series, Paranormal, Standalone, Supernatural, Vampires
  • 209 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Published June 26, 2023

ABOUT MICHAEL B CHIKONDI (from Amazon)

Michael B. Chikondi is not to be trusted, but the creature agrees to a meeting in its burrow. We enter with trepidation, given that the thing has no doorbell. As we crawl through the narrow tunnel, gored out by its own teeth, by the texture, we hear what can only be described as a hacking cough.

“Can we approach?” we call.

“No soliciting.” the voice returns.

“You sent for us; you told us to ask you questions. You know, for promotional reasons.”

“Ask.” the dread voice responds.

“Alright, who are you?” we try.

“A creature of mist and shadow, half-mad, I used to go out, I did, and know those…humans. Not now, not since…the pen.”

“You found a pen? That’s why you became a writer?” we ask, now terrified, trying to gauge how fast we can leave the burrow. The photographer has already left us, chewing off his own watch, caught on a tree root.

“Yes, but now…I hunger…”

We are not proud; we turn tail and flee, before it can leave its den. We aren’t paid enough to get a full bio. We can only pray someone buys its books, so that the thing never comes out on its own.

Ed. What the hell is this? This isn’t what we requested. Just some nonsense and an artist’s rendition of what one of my people saw before he contracted rabies? Eh, whatever. Plenty more writers in the sea.

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Giveaway & Review – Wedding Bells Brew Murder by Carolyn Arnold @dollycas @Carolyn_Arnold #WeddingBellsBrewMurder #NetGalley

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Wedding Bells Brew Murder (Sara and Sean Cozy Mystery Series)
by Carolyn Arnold

About Wedding Bells Brew Murder

MY REVIEW

Carolyn Arnold is always a must read for me. Cozies can be fun and mysterious, so I was excited to be able to get my hands on the second book, Wedding Bells Brew Murder, of the Sara And Sean Cozy Mystery series.

Sean McKinley had inherited a fortune and proposed to Sara. Since then, their lives have been a whirlwind. They quit their jobs as homicide detectives for the Albany Police Department and have spent their time traveling the world.

Tomorrow was on track to be a perfect day, their wedding day, but knowing Carolyn Arnold, it won’t stay that way. And it doesn’t. Sara and Sean are on the job, but not. They are told to stay out of the way, by an admirer and the the leader of the investigation, Ryan. He’d always had a crush on her, so maybe she did the wrong thing calling him.

Magnum is their trusty beagle and can sniff out all kinds of things. He can be a bit disobedient, but all in all, he fits right into their lives. He will prove very helpful.

The past comes a calling. Carolyn Arnold does visit the past to fill in the blanks and I love that about her books. They can stand alone, though I always recommend beginning at the beginning. Each one is enjoyable and adds hours of entertainment for your reading pleasure.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Wedding Bells Brew Murder by Carolyn Arnold.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

SYNOPSIS

With all the guests at Sara and Sean’s wedding suspected of murder, her walk down the aisle will need to wait…

Everything is going perfectly on the big day until Sara opens the door of her bridal suite. Darlene Day, who made the wedding cake, falls into the room, a serving knife plunged into her back.

As the organists start to play “Here Comes the Bride,” Sara calls a pause to the proceedings. There’s a murder to solve, and the motive may be in the icing.

Darlene wasn’t the most loved person in the small town of Cotton Spring Falls, but rumor has it that she refused the offer of a big franchise to buy her bakery. Did they go so far as murder to put her out of business?

But when it’s discovered their wedding cake was poisoned, Sara and Sean could have been the intended victims all along. Did Darlene stumble upon the killer’s conspiracy and they silenced her before she could reveal their secret? Is it someone on the invitation list or the mysterious wedding crasher?

As long as the coffee is hot, and Sara has Sean and her beagle, Magnum, at her side, she isn’t going down in a heap of tulle and lace.

Wedding Bells Brew Murder is a closed-room mystery in the fashion of the great Agatha Christie that fans of Emma Davies, Verity Bright, and Helena Dixon will enjoy reading.

About Carolyn Arnold

CAROLYN ARNOLD is an internationally bestselling and award-winning author, as well as a speaker, teacher, and inspirational mentor. She has several continuing fiction series and has many published books. Her genre diversity offers readers police procedurals, hard-boiled and cozy mysteries, thrillers, and action adventures. Her crime fiction series have been praised by those in law enforcement as being accurate and entertaining. This led to her adopting the trademark: POLICE PROCEDURALS RESPECTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT™.

Carolyn was born in a small town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower.

She currently lives near London, Ontario, Canada with her husband and two beagles.

Author Links

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MY REVIEWS FOR CAROLYN ARNOLD

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Obsession – Deadly Risk by Jane Blythe @jblytheauthor #romanticsuspense

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Amazon / KindleUnlimited / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Storm Gallagher was a dangerous man. He’s not a stupid man, but when his plans, in the previous series (Protecting Dove) failed, he had enough men to start over. BUT, he needed his sister, Mackenzie Arden to be the coup de grace. He is sick, demented, cruel, brutal, and everything bad you never want to run across.

Because Prey already had him in their sights, Bear rescues her from Storm’s clutches. She had been stuffed in a hole in the ground, beaten, fed scraps and, even though she was weak and injured, when they fled, she pulled her own weight. They saved each other more than once, before the rest of the team pulled them out of danger.

I love that they had to race through the woods, kill or be killed, and swim for their lives. My heart was racing as much as hers when the two men came across them, barely able to fight. Mackenzie is strong, capable, determined, and very much attracted to Bear. He’s attracted to her too, but when it comes time to part company, he doesn’t even come to say goodbye.

Of course, that doesn’t last for long when the team has to rescue her again. Having a house full of hunkalicious males does not stop Storm from trying to flush them out. Once he makes up his mind to be there, they do not hesitate to admit their feelings. That is, until his ex wife manipulates a situation. The thing I like about it, Mackenzie did fall for it and run, but she called another Prey operative and had no intention of running alone.

Jane Blythe Is pretty darn good at creating fascinating characters that grab me and don’t let me go. It’s fun to have a gruff, growly teddy Bear be putty in a woman’s hands.

Action packed. Intense danger. Suspense abounds. Even though Mackenzie and Bear have their happy ever after, the series is not over and Prey Security is still on the job.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Lethal Risk by Jane Blythe.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

SYNOPSIS (from Amazon)

The last thing he wants is to fall for her.

Mackenzie Arden knows she’ll never be free of her brother’s violent obsession with her, and now she’s his prisoner and an unwitting pawn in his plot. When she’s rescued by a man who is as intriguing as he is intimidating, she finally starts to feel safe for the first time in her life, only he wants nothing to do with her.

Luca “Bear” Jackson has been betrayed too many times to put his trust in anyone. Especially a woman who might be embroiled in her brother’s terrorist plot. Try as he might to stop it from happening Mackenzie manages to make him feel things he has no interest in feeling.

But the danger isn’t over and if Bear can’t set aside his fears of being hurt again Mackenzie will pay the ultimate price.

If you loved USA today bestselling author Jane Blythe’s inclusions in Susan Stoker’s Operation Alpha world, you’ll be thrilled with DEADLY RISK, the first book in the Prey Security: Alpha Team series.

Scroll up and one click to start this thrilling military romantic suspense filled with alpha heroes, tough heroines, danger, action, and love! HEA guaranteed!

  • Genre: Adult, Contemporary and Literary Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance, Romantic Suspense, Suspense, Thriller
  • 266 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Published February 21, 2023 by Bear Spots Publications
  • Series: Prey Security: Alpha Team #2

ABOUT JANE BLYTHE

USA Today bestselling author Jane Blythe writes action-packed romantic suspense and military romance featuring protective heroes and heroines who are survivors. One of Jane’s most popular series includes Saving SEALs, part of Susan Stoker’s OPERATION ALPHA world! Writing in that world alongside authors such as Janie Crouch and Riley Edwards has been a blast, and she looks forward to bringing more books to this genre, both within and outside of Stoker’s world. When Jane isn’t binge-reading she’s counting down to Christmas and adding to her 200+ teddy bear collection!

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MY REVIEWS FOR JANE BLYTHE’S BOOKS

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Couldn’t Stop Reading – Nobody by T Joseph Browder #TJosephBrowder

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The hunkalicious NCIS looking customer ordered a Chocolate Overdose and said, “Keep your head down.” Robyn Carr wondered why he kept hanging around after finishing his drink. Four clowns enter, begin blasting away with their automatic weapons, until the customer makes a stand. When Robyn asked who he was, he responded, “I am Nobody.”

And that is the beginning of the book. It took me by surprise, because I thought I had it all figured out early on, and I was sooo wrong. So wonderfully wrong. The writing flowed smoothly, leading me deeper into this fabulous story, making me unable to stop until the last word was read, shaking my head, and thinking….what an awesome ending! Sure didn’t see that coming.

Arianna Price was fourteen years old when Nobody had saved her life. Twenty five years later, she is a Special Agent of the FBI. A profiler. She has never quit searching for the man who appears at violent, traumatic events, saving some and letting others die. She has a question only he can answer, and she will not quit looking until she finds him. WHY? Why did he save her and her mother, but let her father and brother die? That is the question I always seek an answer to when I read a murder mystery, when I read about serial killers. Many times the why is never answered, but this time may be different.

Is she special…or is it more than that?

Arianna had fought for her position, being a black woman in a man’s world. When she met Goldenfeather, a Navajo woman, she was told her to stop searching. It is a fight between good and evil and it will destroy her. I love the addition of Navajo folklore, myth and legend, and voodoo.

The history of the pacemaker was fascinating.

The ‘In The Bank’ chapter was wonderfully inspiring.

I also learned about the immortal jellyfish, Turritopsis dohrnii. I love a book that has me going to the web for more information, and the author did his research.

If you love books about battles between good and evil, this is for you. I got so much more than I had anticipated, and I have read a couple other books by T Joseph Browder, so my expectations were pretty high. No worries. He met and surpassed them.

Be sure and read the Afterword and Acknowledgments and let us know if you think T Jospeh Bowder was prescient.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Nobody by T Joseph Browder.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Fourteen-year-old Arianna Price, rescued, bloody and terrified, from a bathtub by a stranger after witnessing the brutal slaying of her father and brother during a home invasion, had no time to ask questions of the man who’d interceded on her behalf before disappearing, without a trace, into the night. Twenty-five years later, her future and profession dictated by that single event, Special Agent Arianna Price of the FBI is determined to bring the still unidentified vigilante, her erstwhile savior, in for questioning. Except he seems to have never existed. He has no name. No past. No identity. He appears during horrific acts of violence, intervenes, then vanishes like a wraith. Evidence suggests he’s been doing so for thirty years, or more. Yet, according to witnesses, he has never aged. He is punishment. He is vengeance. He is Nobody.

  • Genre: Angels and Demons, Fiction, Horror, Paranormal, Supernatural, Vigilante
  • 296 pages, Paperback
  • Published: June 5, 2023 by T. Joseph Browder

ABOUT T JOSEPH BROWDER

T. Joseph Browder

T. Joseph Browder was born in Lima, Ohio in 1969 and is the author of ‘Dark Matters,’ ‘Plague,’ and ‘Infernal,’ the first in a series of novels about the Multiverse and the age-old battle between good and evil.

Of writing T. Joseph Browder says, “I’m an addict. Some people are addicted to alcohol, some to marijuana, coke, or heroin. I’m addicted to writing. It’s my drug of choice and like the monkey on the back of the heroin user it compels me to sit down at my computer every day and check out of reality. Since I work a full-time job in the meat industry my time is limited. If I don’t ‘use’ often enough I suffer withdrawals. The pain is tangible. For me, writing is a high like no other. It’s one helluva buzz.”

A student of Psychology, T. Joseph Browder also holds Doctorates in Divinity, Metaphysics, and Religious Humanities. “I’m an ordained minister,” Browder says, “but that’s a prerequisite for the education I was pursuing. I’ve performed a wedding ceremony or two but have never felt the urge to preach before a congregation.”

Like his education, Mr. Browder’s writing is driven by an insatiable curiosity for what makes people behave the way they do, make the choices they make, and feel the way they feel. Drawing on an intimate knowledge of the evil alive in humanity his work centers on the darker aspects of life, the sudden changes and left turns life throws at all of us and how we react to those things that lurk around the next corner and go bump in the night.

Mr. Browder currently lives in Kansas with his wife, Marie, and is hard at work on a new novel.

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Dark Net Horror – Mr Sticks by Jeffrey Hale @jhalehorror @SandsPressPub

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I want to thank Perry Prete for introducing me to Sands Press and Sands Press for the opportunity to read and review Mr Sticks by Jeffrey Hale.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The dark net is filled with monsters. It’s frequented by thieves, drug dealers, child predators, and cold-blooded killers. But Mr. Sticks is the most fearsome of them all.

Mr Sticks, Mr Sticks, master of tricks,

Tallas a shadow and wide as a mouse.

Call him and tease him, but don’t displease him…or you might end up stiff as Barb Klaus.

That was the hook for me. The cover makes me think supernatural horror, but the dark net makes me think horror of the two legged kind. Sure did make me curious and I pushed it to the top of my reading list.

Let’s talk characters: Lucia is the main character. Finley is her sixteen year old sister. Their parents are no longer together, and the fact that Finley has gone missing doesn’t affect them at all. If Lucia hadn’t come home, no one would be looking for her. Brian Van Pelt is her old boyfriend, and her sister’s current boyfriend. I immediately disliked him and everything I thought about him being a douche came to light. The only redeeming quality he had was that he was willing to help her search for her sister. Peter is a computer whiz and comes on board to help them navigate the dark web and search for Finley.

Lucia does exactly what I kept telling her (LOL) not to do and l lost a lot of respect for her, but she was willing to put her life on the line to find out what happened to Finley, so I have to give her kudos for that.

Mr Sticks was definitely creepy and not easy to figure out. I felt like yelling through my ereader at Lucia. Everyone knows you don’t go off on your own. Nothing good comes of it. But, if she didn’t stay persistent, she would have had no answers at all. I give her a lot of credit for going the distance, but, boy of boy, did she make some boneheaded moves.

My rating is what it is because of my inability to figure it all out…and I was still left shaking my head and thinking WTH. Seeing Mr Sticks is a series, the story is not over and I am curious where Jeffrey Hale will take it.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Mr Sticks by Jeffrey Hale.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

The dark net is filled with monsters. It’s frequented by thieves, drug dealers, child predators, and cold-blooded killers. But Mr. Sticks is the most fearsome of them all.

Mr. Sticks uses the dark net to locate the lost and vulnerable; to lure young men and women into his web. And once he has a fly in his web, he doesn’t let go.

Nobody knows what happens to Mr. Sticks’ victims, after the dance is done, but Lucia, an office administrator from Eaton, Colorado, is determined to find out. Before her sixteen-year-old sister becomes another notch on Mr. Sticks’ belt.

  • Genre: Fiction, Horror
  • 250 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Published April 30, 2019 by Sands Press
  • Series: Mr Sticks #1

ABOUT JEFFREY HALE

Jeffrey Hale is no stranger to suburban horror. He’s been accosted by goat-human hybrids, chased by inbred wenches, attacked by giant killer bees, and survived countless hours of prime-time television. When he isn’t busy fighting for his life, he can be found reading, writing, playing the bass guitar, or otherwise making a damn fool of himself.

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