$20 GC & Review – The Crushing by Kerry Peresta @kerryperesta @partnersincr1me

Posted on November 5, 2024 by fundinmental

THE CRUSHING

by Kerry Peresta

October 21 – November 15, 2024 Virtual Book Tour

MY REVIEW

The Crushing by Kerry Peresta is the fourth novel in the Olivia Callahan series. The more I get to know her, the more I love her…and her Wine, Whine, & Win group of friends.

Hannah had gotten married and moved to Pensacola, Florida. Hazel had moved there too. She’s ready for the quiet life. Olivia’s memory may never be fully restored, but she remembers enough to have built a business and pick up her personal life. Her home has been restored since the fire and she loves it. Sherry (it’s always so fun to see my name in a book) has become a part of the private investigating firm Olivia started. Callie lives behind Olivia’s house helping out when she can. Beth is a newcomer and works at the firm. She seems like a good fit. Monty is in prison, but refuses to keep his nose out of their business.

They haven’t heard from Hannah in a long time, so Sherry makes the trip to Pensacola. Patrick, Hannah’s husband says she’s around, just not available. Something seemed amiss before Sherry even got there.

We have more than one wolf hiding in sheep’s clothing and their lives will be put on the line while running through the swamps of Florida.

Poor Hunter. He is torn between two women. At times I feel bad for him, other times I feel like he keeps one on hold for when the other doesn’t work out. So far Olivia isn’t ready for a commitment, though she feels a rightness when they are together, wanting to reach out and kiss him. Will she or won’t she?

The Crushing by Kerry Peresta rolls along at a suspenseful pace. We have many culprits heaping bad things on the ladies. Some of the danger is right in front of their eyes.

To sum it up, the more I read the more suspenseful the story became, the more danger dogged their footsteps, the more complex the mystery became. I couldn’t figure out who was doing what and why and what the outcome would be. The ending left me with a comfortable feeling of relief. The ladies live on to fight another day.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos — 4 Stars

SYNOPSIS

OLIVIA CALLAHAN SUSPENSE

The victim of a vicious assault six years ago that resulted in a traumatic brain injury, Olivia Callahan is now a private investigator with her own firm. The assault that almost took her life resulted in a spectacular metamorphosis. No longer the shy, passive introvert she once was, she’s become a driving and determined force. However, the lack of impulse control caused by her rewired brain causes her to run toward trouble instead of away from it.

When Olivia sends her colleague, Sherry, to the Florida panhandle to find a missing friend, Hannah; the search takes Sherry into the dark heart of an abusive, hostage situation. The man Hannah married is cruel, dangerous, and well-connected. Olivia reels in her favorite cop—Sergeant Hunter Faraday—for a discreet assist, and it soon becomes clear that Hannah’s new husband is adept at waging war against anything that blocks his way.

While rescuing Hannah is Olivia’s primary goal, her incarcerated ex-husband has other plans. He’s collected friends who support his obsessive need to punish her for her role in his murder conviction, and a time bomb is ticking.

As Olivia and Sherry battle to save Hannah, try to neutralize the fiendish plan of an ex bent on revenge, and endure a terrifying race for their lives through the Florida wetlands; a final betrayal waits patiently in the dark. Smiling.

Praise for The Crushing:

“Fans of Frieda McFadden and Lisa Jewell will stay up past their bedtimes devouring the latest thriller from Kerry Peresta! Haunted by her abusive ex-husband, P.I. Olivia Callahan had better keep her friends close and her enemies closer. Now, if she could only tell them apart. When one of her best friends goes missing in a Florida swamp, the clock is ticking. The suspense winds tighter on every page!”
~ Kelly Oliver, author of the Jessica James Mysteries

“The tension in Kerry Peresta’s The Crushing is off the chain. Chilling! ‘I can beat this,’ the captive whispers from her locked room. ‘I will escape.’ Taut. Gripping. Engrossing. Highly recommended!”
~ Tracy Clark, award-winning author of the Cass Raines Chicago mysteries and the Detective Harriet Foster series.

“Rich details, a strong, character-driven plot, and enough snaky twists and turns to give you vertigo – this fourth entry in Kerry Peresta’s Olivia Callahan series will have you sweating bullets and turning pages like a tornado, leaving you as breathless as a mile sprinter. There’s nothing less simple than a simple missing-persons case, and there are far worse things than gators in the dark, dank Florida boonies. Don’t believe me? Read The Crushing.”
~ J.R. Sanders, Shamus Award winning author of the Nate Ross novels.

Book Details:

Genre: Thriller, Suspense
Published by: Level Best Books
Publication Date: October 15, 2024
Number of Pages: 310
ISBN: 978-1-68512-770-1
Series: Olivia Callahan Suspense, Book Four
Book Links: Amazon | Goodreads | Level Best Books

Read an excerpt:

PROLOGUE

Sherry crammed the phone against her ear as she dashed through the thick undergrowth, trudged across boggy marshes, and arrived at a feeder stream.

“Olivia! Olivia?”

Nothing.

“Dammit!” she muttered, shoving her cell back into her pocket. She calculated that the nearest town rested fifteen miles down the highway out here in Florida-cracker country, and holing up until the shooter emerged seemed the best option.

She should’ve known there’d be no service out here.

Where did he go? She scraped mud off her face and rubbed her sunburned cheeks. He actually fired a weapon. On no planet had she ever thought this little trek would become a fight for her life, yet here she stood, hands glued to the trunk of a huge palm, eyes darting back and forth across the marshy, pancake-flat wastelands of inland Florida. Behind her lay a wide body of water surrounded by suspicious-looking marsh grass and, she suspected, alligators…and in front of her lay miles of marshland and bedraggled palms spearing the sky.

Why had she volunteered for this assignment, again?

“I just had to get my investigator’s license,” she muttered. “Maybe I should’ve stayed put as Olivia’s assistant instead of private investigator. This isn’t quite how I envisioned the job.”

She rubbed her calves. How long had she been running? Fifteen minutes? Twenty? An hour? Where was Olivia?

The distant blast of gunfire reached her ears. A bullet sliced through the air and hit the tree she’d wrapped herself around, missing her hand by inches. Sherry felt her stomach freeze into a block of ice.

Wiping the sweat from her eyes, she slid her hand to the paddle holster on her belt, gripped her Smith & Wesson revolver, and released the safety strap. Another crack of gunfire erupted closer this time. She swallowed, hard. A whoosh of air zipped past a mere twelve inches in front of her nose. Sherry dropped to the ground like a stone. The spikey bushes on the ground dug into her arms, her chest, her legs. She located a slight rise about ten feet away, and hastily low-crawled through the weeds on her stomach, edged to the top of the incline, and threw herself over the top.

Breathing hard, she peeked out above the edge. The crack-crack-crack of shots fired caused her to dive for cover. She took a deep breath, wiped the sweat off her palms, and fired back a volley of her own. When silence fell, she relaxed against the incline and tugged out her phone. A signal!

With fumbling fingers, she pressed in Olivia’s number. She waited through one ring, then two, before her call was answered.

“Where are you?” Olivia’s anxious voice demanded. “Are you okay?”

Tears of relief trailed down her cheeks. She rattled off a description of her location. Her gaze trained on the best-case origination of shots fired, she whispered, “Olivia! I found Hannah. She’s exhausted and weak, but I’ve got her.” Sherry listened to Olivia’s instructions. “Okay. I’ll meet you at the airport, but…wait. I hear something,” she whispered, and stuck the phone back in her pocket. She gripped her weapon with both hands.

Minutes passed. Sherry tried to breathe.

Something shuffled through the grass. Her eyes sliced left, right.

The shuffling stopped.

The hum of cicadas intensified. She swatted at mosquitoes. Sweat trickled down her face.

Sherry adjusted her grip on her sidearm.

She strained to hear more footsteps, but only heard the faint squawk of herons and hoot of owls. The setting sun left a red slash on the horizon. Bats dipped and swooped above her.

She lowered her weapon, puzzled. Had one of her prior shots wounded her target?

Taking her time, she rose from her niche behind the incline.

A single shot burst from her adversary’s weapon and sizzled through the air.

She cried out in pain. The bullet had nicked her, the sting of a monster wasp. She groped her waist with her free hand and lifted it away wet with blood. Rage rushed through her chest and down her arms. She planted her legs wide and emptied her weapon in the direction of the shooter.

The phone in her pocket vibrated with a text as she reloaded.

Another bullet clipped her in the shoulder.

The sound of sirens wailed in the distance.

She collapsed.

***

Author Bio:

Kerry Peresta is a suspense novelist, and her releases include The Deadening, The Rising, The Torching, and The Crushing, books one-four in the Olivia Callahan Suspense series; and Back Before Dawn, a standalone thriller, all published by Level Best Books Publishing. Her magazine articles have appeared in Hilton Head’s Local Life Magazine, The Bluffton Breeze, Lady Lowcountry, and Island Events Magazine. She spent twenty-five years in advertising as an account manager, creative director, editor, and copywriter. She is past chapter president of the Maryland Writers’ Association and a current member and presenter of Hilton Head Island Writers’ Network, South Carolina Writers Association, Pat Conroy Literary Center, International Thriller Writers, and the Sisters in Crime organization. Kerry is the mother of four adult kids, a flock of grandkids, and three cats. She and her husband moved to Hilton Head Island in 2015.

Catch Up With Kerry Peresta:
kerryperesta.com
Goodreads
BookBub – @kerryperesta
Amazon Author Page
Instagram – @kerryperesta
Twitter/X – @kerryperesta
Facebook Author Page
Facebook Personal Page

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Florida’s Gulf Coast – Fishing The Local Waters by Jim Hoskins #JimHoskins

Posted on April 25, 2022 by fundinmental

Fishing the Local Waters: Gulf Shores to Panama City

Amazon / Goodreads

Fishing the Local Waters is a great introduction to fishing on the Gulf Coast: the types of fish, prime areas to fish, equipment to fish with, the different methods of fishing and delicious recipes to cook those fish. Includes, maps and GPS coordinates. I do enjoy fishing and would recommend this tacklebox size book packed with useful information.

GOODREADS BLURB

Two local fishermen share their favorite spots and special techniques in this tackle-box sized guide to angling in Florida’s gulf coast waters. From inland jaunts to shore fishing to a day trip on a boat, the chapters cover everything a tourist or curious local needs for a fruitful outing. Information on the best bait, tackle, and methods are included, as are important safety tips, maps showing choice fishin’ holes, and local recipes for cooking up the catch of the day. LORAN coordinates to more than 50 proven spots to drop a line are included, and a directory of fishing businesses on the Emerald Coast completes this angling guide.

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Giveaway & Review – Deadly Dunes by E Michael Helms

Posted on May 7, 2016 by fundinmental

Deadly Dunes (A Mac McClellan Mystery Book 3)

E. Michael Helms

Let’s meet them now:

Interview with Mac McClellan

Today we’re pleased to welcome retired U.S. Marine-turned-private investigator Mac McClellan to {name of blog}. Mac retired from the Marines a few years ago after a twenty-four year career. He has graciously agreed to answer a few questions that might be of interest to the readers of {Blog} and his Mac McClellan Mystery series.

{Blog or Interviewer}: Welcome to {Blog}, Mac.

Mac: Thanks for having me. Good to be here.

{B/I}: Tell us a little about your background. When and where you were born, your education, military service, what brought you to the Florida panhandle after your retirement, etc.

Mac: I was born and raised in Brevard, North Carolina. I played baseball and football, and loved to camp and hike in the nearby mountains. After graduating high school I joined the Marine Corps on my 18^th birthday, August 8, 1990. My training ended just in time for me to participate as a rifleman in Operation Desert Storm. My unit was involved in taking the airfield at Kuwait City in late February of ’91. The Iraqis put up a good fight and it took us several hours to secure the area. I took a round through and through the left thigh during the battle and earned my first purple heart. Nothing bad, just a lot of blood.

After the First Gulf War I did a two-year stint with Division Recon until I blew out a knee during a training op. After rehab I transferred back to a rifle company. By the time President Bush Two decided to invade Iraq, I was a staff NCO. I served as platoon sergeant on my first deployment. Later I was promoted to Gunnery Sergeant and served as company gunny during my next two deployments. My second deployment to Iraq was in 2004. It included the Second Battle of Fallujah in November. Fallujah was a bitch. Enough said.

What brought me to the panhandle? A good buddy of mine used to brag about the area all the time. We made plans for a fishing trip when our deployment was up, but he was KIA at Fallujah. My last deployment to Iraq was extended because of Bush Two’s troop surge. When I got home my wife told me she was tired of playing both father and mother, and wanted out of the marriage. I knew she was seeing someone, but we agreed to stay together a couple of more years until our twins, Mike and Megan, finished high school. Shortly after I retired, they left for college. Jill wasted no time presenting me with the divorce papers. We signed before a judge, I bought a camper, and headed for Florida.

{B/I}: So, your Marine Corps friend and your divorce brought you to the panhandle; why did you decide to stay?

Mac: It’s complicated. The Corps had been my home for twenty-four years. I was newly divorced. My wife was living in “our” dream retirement home with her Navy chopper-pilot boyfriend. The kids had flown the nest. I came to the panhandle to fish, relax, and think about what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.

One morning I snagged a badly decomposed body while fishing near Five Mile Island. It turned out to be a popular young local woman who was supposed to be honeymooning with her husband in the mountains of Georgia or North Carolina. She also happened to be the niece of the local sheriff. We butted heads and I was warned not to leave Dodge. Then a baggie of marijuana was found stashed aboard my rental boat. Just so happens a bale of the same strain of pot had washed ashore near where I discovered the body. I knew then somebody was setting me up to take the fall. One thing led to another and I was able to solve the murder and bust up a connected drug-smuggling ring. Oh, and Kate Bell had a little something to do with my staying. She works at the local marina. We hit it off right away. She was a big help in solving the case.

{B/I}: Interesting. So you enjoyed the “thrill of the hunt” so much that you decided to take it up as a vocation and become a licensed private investigator?

Mac: (Laughs.) Not exactly. You can thank Kate and her “Uncle” Frank for that. I’m an old movie buff. One night Kate and I were coming out of the theater when she got a quick look at who she claimed was her former boyfriend. Problem was, the guy had been dead for twelve years. I tried to get her to listen to reason, but she kept insisting it was the same person. I went with Kate to see Frank Hightower. Frank’s a very close friend of the Bells, a retired cop who now runs his own private investigative company in Destin, Kate’s hometown. Kate had kept Frank informed about the murder and drug case I’d solved. Frank thought I had the makings of a decent PI. Together they conspired to get me to snoop into Kate’s old circle of friends and find out if there was anything to the boyfriend’s reappearance or not. In exchange for my time, Frank offered to pay all fees while I worked on becoming a bona fide investigator and Kate’s case. Voila—Mac McClellan, PI.

{B/I}: What makes Mac McClellan “tick?”

Mac: I’d say a strong sense of duty, dependability, and responsibility.

{B/I}: Those are certainly admirable traits. Any faults?

Mac: (Laughs again; pauses … thinking.) I’ve put on a few pounds. I need to drop about ten to get back to my fighting weight. And Kate thinks I drink too much. I guess she’s right. Maybe.

{B/I}: Moving along, are you a religious person?

Mac: No, not really. I went with my parents to church and Sunday school when I was a kid. I don’t think it did me much good. I’ve seen too much crap to believe in a loving and benevolent God. How many times have you seen coverage of some natural disaster on TV, like a tornado? They interview some guy standing outside his demolished house and he’s saying, “The good Lord was really watching out for us today.” And down the street a mother and her two young kids were crushed to death or sucked out of the house and killed. Where was the “good Lord” when that was happening? Life is a crapshoot. Call me agnostic. I’m not saying there isn’t a god, but if he/she/it exists, he/she/it doesn’t give a damn about the human race.

{B/I}: What does combat-hardened, former Marine Mac McClellan fear most?

Mac: Letting someone down.

{B/I}: Short and to the point. I like that. Favorite food?

Mac: Steak and shrimp. And BLTs.

{B/I}: Drink?

Mac: You buying? (Laughs.) Scotch, beer, ice tea—lemon,no sugar—and water.

{B/I}: Tell me the first word that comes to mind when I say: women.

Mac: Pedestal.

{B/I}: War.

Mac: Peace.

{B/I}: Surrender.

Mac: No.

{B/I}: Very good. What are you especially proud of in your life?

Mac: My kids. They’re both good people. Kate Bell. I’m a better man for knowing her. And I like to think I’ve done my best, or given my all when it comes to interacting with people in general. The Marine Corps had a lot to do with molding me into who I am today.

{B/I}: A commendable answer. One last question: is there a code or creed that you live by?

Mac: Absolutely—Semper Fidelis. Always faithful. To me, that says it all.

{B/I}: Thanks for being with us today, Mac. It’s been a pleasure having you.

Mac: Thank you. It was a pleasure being had. (Laughs.)

Everything about Michael and Mac speaks to me. We like a lot of the same things and I am eager to get this adventure on the ‘road’.

Mac reminds me of Tom Selleck in Jesse Stone and Magnum PI. He’s not the perfect hero, but he gets the job done. I don’t mind a flawed character, in fact, it makes him seem real to me.

I’m glad that he considers the Florida Panhandle the ‘Forgotten Coast.’ I love it here.

A visit for Mac turned into a move and it was his good fortune to meet Kate, a feisty, fun gal who won his heart. His managerial tone of voice rang familiar to me. I have one of those at home.

Michael Helms jumped right into the mystery Mac is hired to solve, when the professor of archaeology at Florida State University is murdered. I think we may be going on a treasure hunt.

As the bodies mount, greed raises its ugly head. Is anybody telling the truth…about anything?

I love the fun and lively banter between Mac and Kate. Romance and mystery seem to go hand and hand for me and Michael Helms has a good supply of that. Their personalities shine through making me want more of them. The location is familiar to me and adds a little something extra to the story. I loved tromping through the ditches and climbing trees with Mac. There was so much going on, I had to wait for the package to be wrapped up for me. I love when I can’t figure everything out for myself. A perfect read the season.

I recieved a copy of Deadly Dunes by E Michael Helms in return for an honest review.

4 Stars

Loving the cover by Sabrina Sun…great name. 🙂

Hours after hiring Mac McClellan to investigate the supposed suicide of her archaeologist brother, single-mom Jessie dies in a car accident. Jessie had just showed Mac artifacts and a copy of a map Jake found, items that indicate Hernando de Soto and his explorers might have camped on Five Mile Island during the winter of 1539-1540. Studying the map, Mac determines the site lies in the middle of a planned resort, The Dunes. Declaring the area an historic site could shut the project down. Suspicions aroused, he forges ahead, even though he no longer has a paying client.

Everywhere Mac turns, greed abounds, and no one he interviews seems innocent, even Jessie’s closest friends the Deckers, who have adopted her teenage daughter. Ron Decker’s construction company is building the Dunes, and he is heavily invested in its success. Then there is the oily son and ex-stripper wife of an old curmudgeon who won’t sell the one lot the project still needs to acquire. Jake’s estranged wife Laurel had plenty to gain from his death, and as Mac continues to dig, he begins to wonder if Jessie herself had more at stake than he was led to believe.

No one is happy about Mac’s persistence, and someone is unhappy enough to crash his truck and frame him for yet another murder. But Mac isn’t giving up, no matter what the cost.

Goodreads

Amazon

Inside, the Golden Pole was about what I’d imagined. Loud music, mirrored walls, and flashy neon lights of gold, pink and red dominating the joint. A circular stage stood in the center of the room, with three polished brass dancing poles. Individual stools circled the stage front, with dozens of small tables backing them up. There were two U-shaped bars, one on either side of the room. Wide-screen TVs hung on the wall behind both bars, along with monitors so customers could keep up with the center-stage action without having to turn around to gawk. The joint was about half full, not bad for a Thursday night. . . .

The two dancers abandoned their poles, gathered their tips, and disappeared backstage as the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey began to blare from the sound system. “Ladies and gentlemen,” a deep voice sounding like a ring announcer bellowed above the music, “fresh from wildly successful engagements in Baltimore, Charlotte, and Atlanta’s finest adult venues, please give a big round of applause for our featured performer, the beautiful, the luscious, the sexy . . . Miss . . . Kami . . . Kae!”

Whoops and hollers and shrill whistles bounced off the walls as a gold sequined curtain parted and none other than Hot Pink herself pranced around the stage, throwing kisses to the audience with both hands. She’d completed two circuits when the music changed from the theme to a saucy Latino song I’d never heard.

Kami kicked off the high heels, swung the long robe she’d been wearing in a circle over her head a few times, and tossed it to the back of the stage. She was down to a tight powder blue midriff blouse and white mini skirt. The skimpy outfit lit up under the house lights like it’d been dusted with silver glitter. The mostly male crowd roared its approval as Kami leapt into the spotlight, deftly grabbed the pole with both hands and went to work.

For the next ten minutes Kami made sweet love to the pole, keeping perfect time with the music, spiraling and sliding and grinding. That pole wouldn’t need polishing for a month. To the delight of the crowd she slowly shed one article of clothing and then another, teasing the most vocal guys gathered around the stage with money in-hand, until finally only a wisp of a G-string separated Kami from her birthday suit. She made repeated trips to the stage edge and back, so many bills bulging from the strings of her tiny bottoms that she was forced to make a pile of greenbacks on the stage floor.

Finally the music began to fade. Kami treated the audience to one more seductive thrust and grind, and then gathered her pile of cash and strutted off the stage to wild applause, hips bouncing like a Victoria’s Secret model. Reaching the gold curtains, she turned and blew a final kiss and disappeared.

Mac McClellan investigates a young archaeologist’s death whose recent discovery threatens to kill a planned multi-million dollar Florida waterfront resort.

Kami made sweet love to the pole, sliding, spiraling, grinding. It wouldn’t need polishing for a month.

She gathered the money and strutted offstage to wild applause, hips bouncing like a Victoria’s Secret Model.

E. Michael Helms grew up in Panama City, FL, on the beautiful coast of the Florida Panhandle. He played football and excelled in baseball as a catcher. Turning down a scholarship offer from the local Junior college, he joined the Marines after high school graduation. He served as a rifleman during some of the heaviest fighting of the Vietnam War until wounded three times in one day. Helms discounts it as “waking up on the wrong side of the foxhole.”

His memoir of the war, The Proud Bastards, has been called “As powerful and compelling a battlefield memoir as any ever written … a modern military classic,” and remains in print after 25 years.

The Private War of Corporal Henson, a semi-autobiographical fictional sequel to The Proud Bastards, was published in August 2014.

A long-time Civil War buff, he is also the author of the historical saga, Of Blood and Brothers.

Seeking a respite from writing about war, Helms decided to give mysteries a try. The first novel of his Mac McClellan Mystery series, Deadly Catch, was published in November 2013 and was named Library Journal’s “Debut Mystery of the Month.” The second Mac McClellan Mystery, Deadly Ruse, premiered in November 2014. It won the 2015 RONE Award for “Best Mystery.” Deadly Dunes was published in March 2016 by Camel Press. Deadly Spirits is scheduled for release in January 2017.

With his wife, Karen, Helms now lives in the Upstate region of South Carolina in the shadow of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. He enjoys playing guitar, hiking, camping, fishing, canoeing, and is an avid birdwatcher. He continues to listen as Mac McClellan dictates his latest adventures in his mystery series.

Represented by Fred Tribuzzo, The Rudy agency.

Website / Facebook / Goodreads / Twitter /Amazon / Google+

E Michael Helms is offering a $25.00 Gift card, four (4) ebook copies of Deadly Dunes in either .mobi, .epub, or .pdf (internationally, where legal), and one (1) autographed print set of the first three Mac McClellan Mysteries (Deadly Catch, Deadly Ruse, Deadly Dunes), U.S. & Canada only.

ENTER THE RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY HERE

En Pointe Author Services

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Sherry’s Shelves #70 – Spring is in the Air

Posted on February 21, 2016 by fundinmental

Sherry’s Shelves is my weekly update from February 14 – February 20, 2016.

The sun is shining and spring is in the air.

Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer
Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Tynga’s Reviews
Bought, Borrowed & Bagged is hosted by TalkSupe
**all images are linked to Amazon (I am an affiliate)**
**The small amount helps keep my blog running**

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SPRING IS IN THE AIR

YAY! Sunshine and warm weather has come to the Florida Panhandle. Will it stay? I don’t know, but I am going to enjoy it! I couldn’t help but get started on my yard work, weeding and beautifying. Most of the time, I am behind on my my spring prep and don’t even begin until late March or early April. I am feeling good about getting a jump start and…I may even go for a little sunbathing. Getting in the pool, now that’s another thing altogether. But it won’t be long now.

The pool is a gorgeous shade of blue and I can hear it calling to me. Summer is right around the corner, for me that means any day now. 🙂

But…BEWARE. It seems there is always something in the water.

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FREE BOOKS

Be sure and check for the “0”.

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NEW to fundinmental

I received all four of these books through his newsletter. He has been on my reading list for a long time, but the new stuff keeps shuffling my Kindle list and they get lost. Now, I follow him for a constant reminder. If they sound good to you, go check him out HERE.

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FOR REVIEW

Nothing new this week. Busy writing reviews for books already read.

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WINNINGS

I won a $10 GC for the Here Be Magic Valentine’s Day contest!

My thanks go out to Angela Campbell and everyone involved

Hope you had some goodies come your way. 😀

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LAST WEEK ON fundinmental

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THIS WEEK ON fundinmental

Sherry’s Shelves
Monday Mini Review – Danger in the Shadows by Dee Henderson
Teaser Tuesday
Giveaway – Temper by Beck Nicholas
Giveaway & Review – The Zombie Game by Glenn Shepard
Wordless Wednesday
Giveaway – Whispers of the Serpent by CL Roberts-Huth
Review – The Body Market by DV Berkom
Friday 56 & BB – Treasure by Clive Cussler
Review – Hastings’ Dead by Rohn Federbush
Saturday Shorts Review – Beyond Belief by Helen Smith

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Hope you are having a wonderful weekend.

What are you reading?

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Sunny Florida turns into a Winter Wonderland – My Adventures #7

Posted on January 29, 2014 by fundinmental

I would like to welcome you to my world, the Sunshine State of Florida.

I looked out my window this morning, hoping for some sunshine and…..

So Mr Wonderful and I went out to shoot the Ice Storm of 2014.

I thought Michigan was the Winter Wonderland, but I guess Mother Nature wants to keep us on our toes.

I don’t think we we will be sailing any time soon.

The flamingo below was relocated to Florida via Cape Cod, Mass and Rochester, New York. She is not a stranger to cold weather, but I don’t think she ever expected this.

The birds won’t be bathing today, but come back tomorrow and it will be in the 40s with sunshine.

The plants don’t know whether it is spring, fall or winter. One day a bloom, the next……

We took a lot more, but I think you get the DRIFT.

Thank you for visiting the Fundins.

Y’all come back now.

All photographs courtesy of and owned by the Fundins.

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Look below or on the right sidebar at Home and let’s talk.

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Juicy Jungle Tidbits for Vampires Elisabeth Wheatley’s Fanged Mania

Posted on November 30, 2012 by fundinmental

To join in, copy and paste these rules and the above banner into your Fanged Mania post and add your link to this week’s Fanged Mania post at Elisabeth Wheatley’s Blog. Fanged Mania is a Friday meme counting down to the release of Fanged Princess and displaying all things vampire and awesome. Fanged Mania posts can be a review of a vampire book, a quote from the latest Vampire Diaries episode, a showcase of a cool vampire book’s cover, or whatever you like so long as it is vampire related. Don’t forget, participants will be entered in the drawing to win a fanged-abulous prize pack!

The prize pack I mentioned includes Vampire Diaries and Breaking Dawn posters as well as a paperback copy of Erica Steven’s Captured (my review here) and the complete collection of The Vampire Hunter’s Daughter stories by Jennifer Malone Wright, in paperback, too! =D

Oh, and the contest is international. And the more Fanged Mania posts you have, the more entries you get! So what are you waiting for? Hop on the bandwagon!

MY REVIEW by Sherry Fundin

Goddess of the Moon – Mayan World of Vampires by Glenda Reynolds

. Goddess of the Moon: Mayan World of Vampires

King Tetaneeka and Queen Almika traveled to Chichen Itza.

While the king was occupied with palace business, Almika wandered off by herself.

Cenote at Chichen Itza by Sherry Fundin

She came upon the Sacred Sacrificial Cenote and threw her gold ring in, praying for her and her unborn daughter, Melanna. Unknown by anyone else, her labor started. As she lay dying, a stranger came out of the jungle and she bade him, protect her baby. After her body and the baby were taken away, he found the ring she had tossed into the cenote, thinking he may need it in his duty to protect the baby.

Melanna grew up in Coba, which became a Mayan city of note, with far-reaching influence. When Melanna came of age, she went on a pilgrimage, the Women’s Right of Passage, to Izla Cozumel. While there, she had wandered off on her own and fallen into a cenote. Tez was there to save her.

Back home, her personal servant Quaileen told her some of her family history. Her mother had come from a line of warriors. As she was thinking about what she learned, she wandered out to the garden, where she ran into Micah. He told her his gift and purpose in life was to appear where there would be a terrible conflict. He went on to tell her that she would have an important role to play.

Melanna was ecstatic when Tez showed up at the door of the palace. He had always been near her, keeping her safe, but she was unaware of it. As they got to know each other, she asked about his family. He told her that a blood thirsty cult had killed, not only his wife and family, but his enter village. A group of men arrived shortly after and had taken him in. They became his family.

On Bonfire Night, they had a feast, dancing and celebrating the end of school. Manny and Melanna went together, Zonya cozied up to Noctli. When Melanna looked around, she thought she saw Micah and remembered his warning.

“It all begins now.”

Zafrina, the Dark One, climbed to the top of the bonfire and announced, unless they followed the way of human sacrifice they were doomed. It was time to choose. As a show of strength, she brought the fury of a storm down upon them. Lightning flashed and wind and rain tore at their clothes, while thunder clapped all around them. Zafrina vanished into the clouds. It looked as if they wrapped her up and carried her away. As if she was part of them.

El Castillo – Chichen Itza by Sherry Fundin

They began to worship the Ancients and the droughts and plagues vanished as the sacrifices began. At first it was the prisoners that were chosen, then the ones who displeased Zafrina.

Melanna plead with her father, King Tetaneeka to stop the sacrifices. Her friend, Noctli had just been killed and she was devastated. He hated explaining to her he had no real power any more, he was just a figurehead. The Dark One, Zafrina, was the real ruler.

As events escalated for the worse, some felt a need to rebel, the Ancients had to be stopped.

Tex knew their freedom would come with a hefty price. He also knew he would have to tell Melanna his secret.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos 3 – Would Recommend To Others

I liked the cover and when I read the book blurb and saw Mayan, I didn’t need to read any further, even though the vampires gave it an intriguing twist. I knew it was a book I wanted to read. I have many memories of travel to Cancun, Chichen Itza and Cozumel. I love to read about places I have been to and am familiar with. I remember standing in the ball court wondering how in the heck they ever got the ball through the hoop, and, of course, the legend of what happened to the players.

Ball court at Chichen Itza by Sherry Fundin

Good and evil. Mayans were pretty brutal in history, could that have been because they were vampires?

A fun and entertaining read. The plot is full and varied, with more than one storyline going on. The characters are both likeable and hateable (?). I really liked the book and wanted to get more involved, would have liked to see more depth and detail to draw me deeper into the story.

I didn’t race through the pages, but I did very much enjoy the read. I will definitely be interested in reading any further books Glenda Reynolds writes, as I think she will only get better. If it was summertime, I would call it a summer read to be put on your to-be-read list.

I was given this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Glenda Reynolds was born in East Tennessee and spent her years growing up both in Michigan and later in Kentucky at a private Christian school. She currently resides in the Florida Panhandle with your husband of 29 years. Tales of the modern vampire inspired her to write about a paranormal romance saga involving her home state of Florida. Her writing is geared toward an audience who enjoys reading paranormal romances/fantasies/historical romances with Christian values such as those of Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight Saga.