Tag Archives: England

Giveaway – Earl Grey And Shallow Graves by Victoria Tait @dollycas

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Earl Grey and Shallow Graves: A British Cozy Murder Mystery with a Female Sleuth
(A Waterwheel Cafe Mystery) by Victoria Tait

About Earl Grey and Shallow Graves

Earl Grey and Shallow Graves:
A British Cozy Murder Mystery with a Female Sleuth
(A Waterwheel Cafe Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – England
Kanga Press (May 19, 2023)
Number of Pages c. 240
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BXQL5YS5
GoodReads Link Coming Soon

A 30-year-old skeleton. A missing girl. Can a community police officer read the tea leaves or will a deadly secret remain buried for ever?

Sergeant Keya Varma is delighted with her new part-time role as the Cotswolds’ Rural Engagement Officer. She’s also fulfilling her dream of opening a small neighbourhood café. But she gets herself into a stew with renovation works when builders unearth a young girl’s remains.

While Keya and her police colleagues gain ground reviewing the unsolved disappearance of a local girl, her brief taste of success turns to dust when a friend is found dead at her tea shop. Confusion over identities threatens to bury the investigation and our junior police officer is worried that justice won’t be served.

Can Keya dig into the mystery and uncover the real culprit?

Earl Grey and Shallow Graves is the first book in The Waterwheel Café series. If you’ve enjoyed the Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series, then you’ll love meeting some of your favourite characters and making new friends in Victoria Tait’s intriguing British cozy mystery.

Buy Earl Grey and Shallow Graves and unearth a killer today!

About Victoria Tait

I was born and raised in Yorkshire, UK, and never expected to travel the world. I’ve drawn on my experiences following my military husband to write cozy murder mystery books with vivid and evocative settings. My determined female sleuths are joined by colourful but realistic teams of helpers, and you’ll experience surprises, humour, and sometimes, a tug on your heartstrings.

I hope you enjoyed Keya’s first book.  Why not join her and her friends as they solve more mysteries in my Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series, also based in the Cotswolds.  Visit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TMJFL7L

Do you like tea, cakes and books? Then why not join our TeaCozy Club for regular news and updates, and receive your free book gift at  VictoriaTait.com

Who doesn’t like tea, cake, and a slice of murder?

Author Links

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Giveaway – A Novel Disguise by Samantha Larsen @dollycas @HastingSamantha

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A Novel Disguise (A Lady Librarian Mystery) by Samantha Larsen

About A Novel Disguise 

A Novel Disguise (A Lady Librarian Mystery)
Historical Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Imaginary English village, 1784
Crooked Lane Books (May 16, 2023)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1639103465
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1639103461
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0B9WJ8FFT

When Miss Tiffany Woodall assumes the identity of her half-brother after his death, she realizes she isn’t the only one with a secret to hide in this historical series debut, perfect for fans of Deanna Raybourn and Sherry Thomas.

1784 London.Miss Tiffany Woodall didn’t murder her half-brother, but she did bury him in the back garden so that she could keep her cottage. Now, the confirmed spinster has to pretend to be Uriah and fulfill his duties as the Duke of Beaufort’s librarian while searching Astwell Palace for Uriah’s missing diamond pin, the only thing of value they own. Her ruse is almost up when she is discovered by Mr. Samir Lathrop, the local bookseller, who tries to save her from drowning while she’s actually just washing up in a lake after burying her brother.

Her plan is going by the book, until the rector proposes marriage and she starts to develop feelings for Mr. Lathrop. But when her childhood friend, Tess, comes to visit, Tiffany quickly realizes her secret isn’t the only one hidden within these walls. The body of a servant is found, along with a collection of stolen items, and someone else grows mysteriously ill. Can Tiffany solve these mysteries without her own disguise being discovered? If not, she’ll lose her cottage and possibly her life.

About Samantha Larsen

Samantha Hastings met her husband in a turkey sandwich line. They live in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she spends most of her time reading, eating popcorn, having tea parties, and chasing her four kids. She has degrees from Brigham Young University, the University of North Texas, and the University of Reading (UK). She’s the author of: The Last Word, The Invention of Sophie Carter, A Royal Christmas Quandary, The Girl with the Golden Eyes, Jane Austen Trivia, The Duchess Contract, Secret of the Sonnets, The Marquess and the Runaway Lady, and A Novel Disguise. She also writes cozy murder mysteries under Samantha Larsen.

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Giveaway – Then Came You by Dylan Allen @XpressoTours dylanallenwrit1

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Then Came You
Dylan Allen
Publication date: February 23rd 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Most people dream of falling in love.
But all I know of love is that it turns smart people into fools.
So, I don’t dream, I work.
And put distance between myself and the stain my father’s betrayal left on my family.

When I land a high powered job in London,
It feels like I finally have everything I want.

Then comes Simon, the gorgeous architect with a filthy mouth
who sets my body and my mind on fire.
I surrender to the pull of attraction and the promise of pleasure in his heated gaze.
But those smoldering dark eyes of his are also full of secrets.

Playing with that kind of fire is a fool’s game. And I am no fool.

So, when our night together ends on less than happy terms, I’m sure it’s for the best.

When a work project brings us back together,
I’m determined to keep Simon where he belongs – in my rearview.

Fate, however, has a different plan.

Simon breaks down my walls one sexy, wicked smile at a time.
And I discover that behind his brooding, secretive facade, lies a heart of pure gold.
Soon, all I do is dream…of his touch, his kisses,
and of a love good enough and strong enough to last forever.

But I’ve got secrets of my own.
And when they rear their heads,
nothing will be the same again.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

I look at Simon, ready to make a quip about how they look like two kids sneaking off together. My words die in my throat at the unabashed desire in his eyes.

He doesn’t say a word. There’s no need when that look says everything.

He puts his hand out and I take it. As soon as our palms touch, I know I made the right decision. If this benign touch sends my senses into a tailspin, what’s he going to do to the rest of me?

He links our fingers and brings my hand to his mouth. I shiver at the press of his warm lips and the heated promise in his eyes. I let him lead me out of the restaurant, across the street to catch the tube. But just when I dig out my fare card, he sticks his hand out to hail a black cab.

We get in, and despite the roomy back seats, we sit next to each other, thigh to thigh, both facing forward but if the way the air in the cab cracks with chemistry and attraction is anything to go by, he’s as aware of me as I am of him.

“Where to?” The cabbie’s barked question breaks our spell momentarily and we turn to look at each other. “Is my place okay?” I ask absently, my eyes glued to his mouth.

He nods as if unable to speak. I rattle off my address to the cabbie, and he pulls away from the curb.

“Addie,” Simon’s husky voice is tinged with urgency. “You’re so fucking sexy.”

When I turn to him, his eyes are on my mouth. I lick my lower lip and he bites his.

“So are you,” I confess in a whisper and the rush of anticipation makes my whole body tingle.

“Princess, you’re killing me.” He lets out a soft groan and his head moves toward mine, and my eyes flutter closed.

Time slows making me aware of every single fraction of every single second that passes before his lips finally touch me.

They softly press to the corner of my mouth and every thought flees my mind. The touch is as light as a whisper, and yet I feel it all the way to the tips of my toes. He moves his lips across mine—brushing back and forth—and with every single touch, I am unraveling. And for once, the idea of coming apart doesn’t scare me.


Author Bio:

Dylan Allen is a Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author.

She’s a Texas girl, with a serious case of wanderlust, Dylan’s travels influence her writing and she loves being able to take her readers on adventures from the comfort and safety of their favorite reading nook.

A self-proclaimed happily ever junkie, Dylan creates stories where her characters unapologetically chase their own happy endings.

When she isn’t writing or reading, eating or cooking, she and her family are planning their next adventure.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter


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Review – Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza @RobertBryndza #DevilsWay #NetGalley

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I want to thank NetGalley and Raven Street Publishing for the opportunity to read and review Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza.

You can Preorder or add to your Amazon Wish List HERE and enter the Goodreads giveaway HERE.

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Robert Bryndza’s novels have great covers. I love covers that arouse my curiosity, and fit the story inside. So put on your walking shoes and let’s follow the mystery of the missing boy.

The story sounded familiar to me and I wondered if it was taken from the headlines or I saw something on one of my TV show thrillers. If so, Robert Bryndza managed to make the story his on. The mystery grows, taking on a life of its own, becoming muddled in murder. We have suspects, but none of them stand out to me. Of course, I blamed the family first and kept telling myself, don’t get tunnel vision, manipulating the facts to fit my hypothesis.

Devil’s Way is a police procedural that takes us step by step through the mystery with Kate and Tristan. I kept trying to come to my own conclusion, but I do that with every book. Don’t you?

I love water, and so does Kate Marshall. She lived in a house that sits on the top of a cliff looking out over Thurlow Bay, England. Water is her friend, except when she isn’t paying attention and gets caught in a riptide. That is when she meets Jean.

Kate Marshall is a private detective, and ex police officer, working with her friend and partner, Tristan Harper. They’d become close, since she took him on as a research assistant seven years ago. She also owns a caravan park, but that has stories of its own. She has a son, Jake, who is now a college student. His father is a convicted serial killer, and she lost custody of him because of her drinking problem. She has been in AA for thirteen years.

Mysteries and police procedurals are always hard for me to rate. I love thrills, blood and guts, edge of my seat suspense, but then, I also like to have to follow the step by step process of solving a crime. Devil’s Way by Robert Brundza has all the elements we need to follow the investigation to its conclusion, with a twist and turn thrown in for good measure.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

THE TRUTH HIDES IN THE DARK
Kate Marshall’s investigation into a young boy’s disappearance sends her down an unexpectedly twisted path in a riveting thriller by multi-million bestselling author, Robert Bryndza.

When Private Investigator Kate Marshall is rushed to hospital after being pulled into a riptide current in the sea, the near-death experience leaves her shaken. During her recovery, she befriends Jean, an elderly lady on the same ward. Jean tells the harrowing story of how her three-year-old grandson, Charlie, went missing eleven years ago during a camping trip on Dartmoor.

By the time Kate is well enough to go home, she’s agreed to take on the case, but when Kate and her trusty sidekick Tristan start to look at the events of that fateful night, they discover that Jean has a dark past that could have put Charlie in jeopardy.

Was Charlie abducted? Or did he fall into Devil’s Way? A rushing river that vanishes into a gorge close to where they were camping.

When Kate and Tristan discover that a social worker who flagged concerns about Jean and her daughter was found brutally murdered shortly after Charlie vanished, it makes them question everything they thought they knew about the family…

Filled with twists and turns, Devil’s Way is the fourth Kate Marshall novel and the most gripping and satisfying yet!

ABOUT ROBERT BRYNDZA

Robert Bryndza

Robert Bryndza is an international bestselling author, best known for his page-turning crime and thriller novels, which have sold over five million copies.

His crime debut, The Girl in the Ice was released in February 2016, introducing Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster. Within five months it sold one million copies, reaching number one in the Amazon UK, USA and Australian charts. To date, The Girl in the Ice has sold over 1.5 million copies in the English language and has been sold into translation in 29 countries. It was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award for Mystery & Thriller (2016), the Grand prix des lectrices de Elle in France (2018), and it won two reader voted awards, The Thrillzone Awards best debut thriller in The Netherlands (2018) and The Dead Good Papercut Award for best page turner at the Harrogate Crime Festival (2016).

Robert has released a further five novels in the Erika Foster series, The Night Stalker, Dark Water, Last Breath, Cold Blood and Deadly Secrets, all of which have been global bestsellers, and in 2017 Last Breath was a Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Mystery and Thriller. Fatal Witness, the seventh Erika Foster novel, is now available to pre-order and will be published 7th July 2022.

Most recently, Robert created a new crime thriller series based around the central character Kate Marshall, a police officer turned private detective. The first book, Nine Elms, was an Amazon USA #1 bestseller and an Amazon UK top five bestseller, and the series has been sold into translation in 18 countries. The second book in the series is the global bestselling, Shadow Sands and the third book, Darkness Falls, has just been published.

Robert was born in Lowestoft, on the east coast of England. He studied at Aberystwyth University, and the Guildford School of Acting, and was an actor for several years, but didn’t find success until he took a play he’d written to the Edinburgh Festival. This led to the decision to change career and start writing. He self-published a bestselling series of romantic comedy novels, before switching to writing crime. Robert lives with his husband in Slovakia, and is lucky enough to write full-time.

You can find out more about Robert and his books at www.robertbryndza.com

MY REVIEWS FOR ROBERT BRYNDZA

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Giveaway – Armadas In The Mist by Christian Klaver @iReadBookTours @mrchrstn

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Book Details:

Book Title:  Armadas in the Mist (Empire of the House of Thorns series – Book Three) by Christian Klaver
Category:  YA Fiction (Ages 13-17),  332 pages
Genre: YA Fantasy 
Publisher:  CamCat Books 
Release date:  November 2022
Content Rating: PG. It’s very clean.
Book Description:

The Black Shuck’s forces gather just beyond the mist . . .

Captain Justice Kasric knows how complicated family can be. The escalating Human-Faerie war has scattered and wounded her siblings and transformed her parents beyond recognition. After narrowly escaping yet another dangerous clash, fifteen-year-old Justice has had enough. She’s determined to defeat the Black Shuck, the mysterious leader controlling the Faerie invasion of London, but if Justice hopes to stand a chance at victory, she’ll have to do the impossible: reunite her family and lead them against the looming Faerie Armada.

With her mother and brother at the helm of the enemy fleet, and the prophesized Seven Virtues slipping out of reach, Justice more than has her work cut out for her. Even if she can save England, the cost may be higher than she’s willing to pay.
Buy the Book:
CamCat Books
Amazon
B&N ~ IndieBound ~ BookShop
Audible 
(coming soon)
add to goodreads
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Giveaway – The First State by Tshekedi Wallace @iReadBookTours @TshekediWallace

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Book Details:

Book Title:  THE FIRST STATE  (The Judgment series Book 1) by Tshekedi Wallace
Category: Adult Fiction (18+), 237 pages
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Review Tales Publishing & Editing Services
Publication Date: August 18, 2022.
Content Rating: G 
Book Description:

England is run by the dictator and tyrant Gregory Christopher in the year 2079 from London Metropolitan state. He is crushing the citizens will by enforcing unfair laws using his statesmen, and he has used the police and his alpha hunters to put fear in the people’s hearts. Kofi Achebe and the urban fist revolution factions are fighting the evil head statesman and the men he uses to inflict pain on those who go against him as he continues to rule over the masses. The battle between the state police, unified security services, and the urban fist militia starts to become brutal and gruesome as the mad leader slowly begins to tighten his grip. He knows that he must keep the citizens in line so he can continue to rule. Slowly the despot leader begins to feel that his power is being challenged to the point where he must make the people suffer. Kofi and the urban fist militia leader Trevor Brown know that they must fight to break free of the statesmen’s evil regime and destroy the system they created once and for all. The final war in London Metropolitan becomes a fight to the death that will decide the fate of many citizens.
Buy the Book:
Amazon
Meet the Author:

Tshekedi Wallace is named after Tshekedi the Great, the King of the Bamangwato of Botswana. In keeping with his namesake, Tshekedi Wallace, who was born in Leeds, is a committed advocate for freedom due to his upbringing. He was born into a well-known family of struggle heroes who fought for the liberation of their people. He grew up listening to vigorous debates about politics, history, and issues of the day mostly discussed at the dinner table. This has given him an enduring love for history, literature, art, and politics. Although he likes to read books across all kinds of genres, he has a special love for science fiction, thrillers, poetry, and non-fiction. In his spare time, he avidly follows what’s happening in movies. He loves music from all cultures and is steeped in African culture in all its manifestations, particularly in the Caribbean and the Americas. In his spare time, he writes poetry.

connect with the author: twitter ~ instagram

FIRST STATE SPOTLIGHT Book Tour Giveaway



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Giveaway – To Kingdom Come by Claudia Riess @GoddessFish

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To Kingdom Come by Claudia Riess

GENRE: Mystery

BLURB

Amateur sleuths, Erika Shawn-Wheatley, art magazine editor, and Harrison Wheatley, art history professor, attend a Zoom meeting of individuals from around the globe whose common goal is to expedite the return of African art looted during the colonial era.  Olivia Chatham, a math instructor at London University, has just begun speaking about her recent find, a journal penned by her great-granduncle, Andrew Barrett, active member of the Royal Army Medical Service during England’s 1897 “punitive expedition” launched against the Kingdom of Benin. 

Olivia is about to disclose what she hopes the sleuthing duo will bring to light, when the proceedings are disrupted by an unusual movement in one of the squares on the grid.  Frozen disbelief erupts into a frenzy of calls for help as the group, including the victim, watch in horror the enactment of a murder videotaped in real time.

It will not be the only murder or act of brutality Erika and Harrison encounter in their two-pronged effort to hunt down the source of violence and unearth a cache of African treasures alluded to in Barrett’s journal.

Much of the action takes place in London, scene of the crimes and quest for redemption.

EXCERPT

He wondered now why had it taken such an effort to decide which of his plans to set in motion. Walking off with an artifact or two from Franks House, the British Museum’s storage facility in East London, may have given him his political statement, but at what cost? The place was crawling with workers in lab coats and masks—conservators, project managers, photographers, interns, auditors, volunteers—the lot of them engaged in the end goal of moving 200,000 objects from the museum’s collection of Africa, Oceania, and the Americans to its nearly spanking new World Conservation and Exhibition Centre. True, it would not have been an insurmountable task, entering the quiet road where the quaint redbrick warehouse lay and unobtrusively blending into the workforce, but then what? Would he have been forced to shoot his way out of the place at the risk of being gunned down himself? How sordid and at the same time mundane to mow down an uncalculated number of individuals, only to find himself a mere casualty sprawled among them. Hell no, he was neither a loony terrorist nor a crack- head martyr. The plan in place was the more sensible course, no question about it.

It was restful, hearing below his thoughts the rhythmic phrase of train wheels clacking against the tracks in lulling repetition. His calmness surprised him a little, given what lay ahead. His scenario had been well choreographed, but only on an imagined stage with players moving about under his ironclad direction. In real life, even the most meticulous plan is apt to be disrupted by unforeseen circumstances. He knew that it was exactly 1.6 miles from Effingham Junction Station to the mansion on Ockham Lane in Cobham, Surrey, but was he certain that he would not be accosted by a madman or struck by lightning on his walk to the place?

If he allowed his thoughts to ramble on in this manner, his nerves would start acting up. He must lean into the physical moment and move with it into his destiny. He looked out the window past his reflection and focused on the indifferent stars.

AUTHOR Bio and Links

An award-winning author of seven novels, Claudia Riess graduated from Vassar and resides in Manhattan and Westhampton Beach. Her most recent novel is the fourth book in her art history mystery series. “To Kingdom Come” will be released in Spring 2022 by Level Best Books.
Last year, Riess signed a second three-book contract with Level Best Books to continue the series that began with “Stolen Light.” The plot involved murder, the Italian Renaissance, and the Cuban Revolution—as well as a love story. The book was chosen by the Vassar travel program coordinator and the Vassar Latin American professor for distribution to the participants in their 2017 “people-to-people” trips to Cuba.
The latest suspense novel set in the art world, sleuths Erika Shawn, art magazine editor, and Harrison Wheatley, art history professor. Now married, the couple is caught up in a multiple-murder case involving the repatriation of African art and artifacts seized by the British in the late nineteenth century during the colonial era. Much of the action takes place in London, scene of the crimes and quest for redemption.
“Riess uses words as an artist uses a paint brush; the pages come to life.” –Joseph Epstein, Ph.D

“Mystery. Passion. Crime. What more could a book-lover want!”
–Elizabeth Cooke, author of the Hotel Marcel Series

An engaging speaker, Riess has recently given several author talks via Zoom for libraries* and is scheduled for future Zoom and podcast events at more venues. Subjects include “Anatomy of a Murder Mystery,” “Dangerous Liaison: Fiction and History,” and “The Joys and Perils of Creating a Mystery Series.” Her talks are of interest to both authors and readers.
*“Thank you for a fun evening. It was very interesting to hear about the process of writing.”

–Jocelyn Ozolins, Head of Reference, Shelter Island Library

Claudia Riess has worked in the editorial departments of The New Yorker magazine and Holt Rinehart and Winston. She has also edited several art history monographs. For more about Riess and her work, visit www.claudiariessbooks.com.
All four books in the art history mystery series are available through Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,IndieBound.org and at independent book stores. For bulk discount purchases, contact https://levelbestbooks.wordpress.com.

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Giveaway – A Bride’s Guide to Marriage and Murder by Dianne Freeman @dollycas @Difreeman001

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A Bride’s Guide to Marriage and Murder
(A Countess of Harleigh Mystery)
by Dianne Freeman

About A Bride’s Guide to Marriage and Murder


A Bride’s Guide to Marriage and Murder (A Countess of Harleigh Mystery)
Historical Cozy Mystery
5th in Series
Setting – Victorian England
Kensington (June 28, 2022)
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1496731611
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1496731616
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09HRC11G9

Frances Wynn, the American-born Countess of Harleigh, returns in Dianne Freeman’s charming, lighthearted mystery series set in Victorian England, and finds her wedding day overshadowed by murder . . .

On the eve of her marriage to George Hazelton, Frances has a great deal more on her mind than flowers and seating arrangements. The Connors and the Bainbridges, two families of American robber barons, have taken up residence in London, and their bitter rivalry is spilling over into the highest social circles. At the request of her brother, Alonzo, who is quite taken with Miss Madeline Connor, Frances has invited the Connor family to her wedding. Meanwhile, Frances’s mother has invited Mr. Bainbridge, and Frances fears the wedding may end up being newspaper-worthy for all the wrong reasons.

On the day itself, Frances is relieved to note that Madeline’s father is not among the guests assembled at the church. The reason for his absence, however, turns out to be most unfortunate: Mr. Connor is found murdered in his home. More shocking still, Alonzo is caught at the scene, holding the murder weapon.

Powerful and ruthless, Connor appears to have amassed a wealth of enemies alongside his fortune. Frances and George agree to put their wedding trip on hold to try and clear Alonzo’s name. But there are secrets to sift through, not just in the Bainbridge and Connor families, but also in their own. And with a killer determined to evade discovery at any cost—even if it means taking another life—Frances’s first days as a newlywed will be perilous indeed . . .

About Dianne Freeman

Dianne Freeman is the acclaimed author of the Countess of Harleigh Mystery series. She is an Agatha Award and Lefty Award winner, as well as a finalist for the prestigious Mary Higgins Clark Award from Mystery Writers of America. After thirty years of working in corporate accounting and finance, she now writes full-time. Born and raised in Michigan, she and her husband split their time between Michigan and Arizona. Visit her at www.DiFreeman.com.

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Fatal Witness by Robert Bryndza @RobertBryndza #NetGalley #ErikaFosterReturns

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NEW RELEASE

Every once in a while, I hop over to NetGalley and see what’s happening. I have missed some good books, but found some new authors, and Robert Bryndza is one. YEAH!

Fatal Witness (Detective Erika Foster, #7)

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

As soon as I saw the cover for Fatal Witness by Robert Bryndza, it screamed READ ME. It’s awesome and sure does relate to the story inside, suspenseful, dangerous.

Then, I read the Prologue and it grabbed me. I do love a good Prologue and it made me ask myself…How did it come to that? Why?

Erika is a police officer and had been married to one. Her husband, Mark, had died on the job and her new house is to be a fresh start for her.

I like my action fast and furious, but I settled down in the police procedural, gathering clues with Erika, though they seem to be few. Suspects are eliminated as they crop up.

Two murders, seemingly unrelated, yet both are from the same rental building.

Even though Fatal Witness is fiction, it reminds me of how small a world we live in.

Well written. Easy to read. Flows nicely.

I sometimes have difficulty with novels from the UK, but not so here. Some words were unfamiliar, but the book was written in a way they were easy to understand.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Fatal Witness by Robert Bryndza.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Detective Erika Foster is back in FATAL WITNESS – with a chilling new serial killer case in Robert Bryndza’s multi-million bestselling crime thriller series!

How do you find a killer who has destroyed all the evidence?

Detective Erika Foster is on a late-night walk near her new house in Blackheath when she stumbles upon the brutal murder of Vicky Clarke, a true-crime podcaster.

Erika is assigned to the case and discovers that Vicky had been working on a new podcast episode about a sexual predator who preys on young female students around South London, staking out his victims in their halls of residence before breaking in at the dead of night. When Erika discovers that Vicky’s notes and sound recordings were stolen from her flat at the time of her murder, it leads her to believe that Vicky was close to unmasking the attacker, and she was killed to guarantee her silence.

The case takes on a disturbing twist when the body of a young Bulgarian student doctor is discovered in the same building, and this makes Erika question everything she thought she knew about Vicky. With very little evidence, the clock is ticking to find the killer before he strikes again.

ABOUT ROBERT BRYNDZA

Robert Bryndza

Robert Bryndza is an international bestselling author, best known for his page-turning crime and thriller novels, which have sold over five million copies.

His crime debut, The Girl in the Ice was released in February 2016, introducing Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster. Within five months it sold one million copies, reaching number one in the Amazon UK, USA and Australian charts. To date, The Girl in the Ice has sold over 1.5 million copies in the English language and has been sold into translation in 29 countries. It was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award for Mystery & Thriller (2016), the Grand prix des lectrices de Elle in France (2018), and it won two reader voted awards, The Thrillzone Awards best debut thriller in The Netherlands (2018) and The Dead Good Papercut Award for best page turner at the Harrogate Crime Festival (2016).

Robert has released a further five novels in the Erika Foster series, The Night Stalker, Dark Water, Last Breath, Cold Blood and Deadly Secrets, all of which have been global bestsellers, and in 2017 Last Breath was a Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Mystery and Thriller. Fatal Witness, the seventh Erika Foster novel, is now available to pre-order and will be published 7th July 2022.

Most recently, Robert created a new crime thriller series based around the central character Kate Marshall, a police officer turned private detective. The first book, Nine Elms, was an Amazon USA #1 bestseller and an Amazon UK top five bestseller, and the series has been sold into translation in 18 countries. The second book in the series is the global bestselling, Shadow Sands and the third book, Darkness Falls, has just been published.

Robert was born in Lowestoft, on the east coast of England. He studied at Aberystwyth University, and the Guildford School of Acting, and was an actor for several years, but didn’t find success until he took a play he’d written to the Edinburgh Festival. This led to the decision to change career and start writing. He self-published a bestselling series of romantic comedy novels, before switching to writing crime. Robert lives with his husband in Slovakia, and is lucky enough to write full-time.

You can find out more about Robert and his books at www.robertbryndza.com

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Giveaway – The Lady who knew Too Much by Alyson Chase @1AlysonChase @GoddessFish

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This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Alyson Chase will be awarding a $40 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

He’s an ex-boxer. She sips tea at philosophical salons. And when these two opposites meet, their lives will never be the same.

Lady Juliana knows someone is trying to kill her father. The problem is getting anyone to believe her. Her father thinks she’s imagining things. Her brother that she’s seeking attention. And the man her brother hired to bring her back home…well, he thinks nothing much of her at all.

Brogan Duffy has clawed his way up from the streets to become the lead investigator on his very first inquiry case. The fact that it is to retrieve a spoiled aristocrat playing at intrigue is of no consequence. Nor is the fact that she beguiles him like no other woman. He has a job to do, and he won’t let anything stand in his way, not even this illogical attraction.

But Juliana might not be imagining the threat. And when it’s her life that’s on the line, Brogan has to decide to what lengths he’ll go to keep her safe. Because in order to resolve this make-or-break case in his career, Brogan might have to hazard more than his heart. And with some gambles, there’s no going back…


Read an Excerpt

His driver stretched from his spot underneath a willow tree and lumbered over. “Off to London, sir?”

“Yes.” Brogan looked back at Bluff Hall. The sun glinted off the front windows. Ivy climbed up the white walls. All in all, a cheerful picture.

A sliver of dread wedged in his gut.

He sniffed. It was Lady Juliana’s doing, filling his mind with unfounded suspicions. Yanking open the carriage door, he climbed inside, slamming it behind him.

He pounded on the ceiling, eager to be away. He’d done his job, and kept his promise to the lady. He had nothing to feel badly for.

He stretched his legs out, kicking the blanket-wrapped bundle underneath the seat opposite.

“Ouch!” The bundle shifted.

Brogan’s stomach twisted. He bent over and yanked the edge of the blanket toward him.

Dark hair spilled across the floor. Juliana pushed a hank off her face and peered up at him, blinking.

“Good afternoon,” she said, with the dignity of a princess instead of the stowaway she was. “I don’t suppose I could have a ride back to London?”

About the Author:Alyson Chase lives in Colorado. A former attorney, she happily ditched those suits and now works in her pajamas writing about men’s briefs instead of legal briefs. When she’s not writing, she’s probably engaged in one of her favorite hobbies: napping, eating, or martial arts. (That last one almost makes up for the first two, right?) She also writes humorous, small-town, contemporary romance novels under the name Allyson Charles, and paranormal romances as A. Caprice.

Website: https://www.allysoncharles.com/alyson-chase-1
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlysonChaseAuthor/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/1alysonchase
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBDDk6MbGufWiwi9cydVbZg
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/alysonchaseauthor/boards/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/alyson-chase

Amazon Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Lady-Who-Knew-Too-Much-ebook/dp/B094TH9B8R

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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