Review – Buried Deception by Amanda McKinney #BuriedDeception #NetGalley.

Posted on September 21, 2022 by fundinmental

I have read a couple of Amanda McKinney novels, though I didn’t review them, and enjoyed them. When I saw Buried Deception on NetGalley, I quickly grabbed it. Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake for the opportunity to read and review Buried Deception.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

“Why am I a therapist?”

“Because I’m broken.”

I have read a couple of Amanda McKinney’s books, but never reviewed them. This is the best I have read…so far.

Mia is a psychologist, who owns and runs The Dragonfly Clinic, specializing in Ptsd and criminal profiling.

Chief is the founder of the LYNX Group, a combat tracking facility and search and rescue team. He has been called out by Skull Country Sheriff McNamara to help find Courtney Hayes, who is lost in the swamp. Could the Black Cat Stalker have upped his game. Instead of raping and walking away, he now rapes and kills.

I laughed at the way Chief’s operatives scare trespassers off his land.

I did have issues with some of her characterizations of people in the beginning of the book. It doesn’t fit with anything I’ve seen on true crime and rescue shows on TV. BUT, it is fiction and artistic license does apply. Maybe there is a reason. I vacillated between a three and four rating, but because I could not put it down until I found out the ending, it earned that extra star.

Once the mystery got going, I was so into it, I could hardly stop to, well, you know. I love looking into the human psyche and reading about damaged characters dealing with extreme trauma, and villains who deserve every bad thing that comes their way.

Amanda dealt with delicate topics, like brutal trauma, PTSD, rape, grief, loss, and so much more.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Buried Deception by Amanda McKinney.

GOODREADS BLURB

In the pulse-racing first installment of the On the Edge series, a criminal psychologist teams up with a former marine on a deadly wildland mission. Not even their hearts can stay out of harm’s way.

In the swamps of East Texas, alligators aren’t the only danger lurking in the shadows.

After a young woman is brutally attacked on a popular hiking trail, the evidence points to the notorious Black Cat Stalker. The town of Skull Hollow enlists Dr. Mia Frost to provide a psychological profile and assist in the investigation.

When another person goes missing, Mia partners with Easton Crew, former marine and current CEO of a tactical tracking company. Both Mia and Easton are stubborn, strong-willed, and independent, but neither can deny the smoldering attraction between them.

As professional lines blur, Easton starts to question Mia’s motives and worries she’s getting too close to the investigation. The mystery begins to unravel, but so does Mia’s mental health as the clues dredge up her own haunted past.

It soon becomes evident that things aren’t as they seem … and people aren’t always who they say they are.

ABOUT AMANDA MCKINNEY

Amanda McKinney is the bestselling and multi-award-winning author of more than fifteen romantic suspense and mystery novels. Her latest book, Rattlesnake Road, was named one of POPSUGAR’s 12 Best Romance Books to Have a Spring Fling With, and was featured on the Today Show. The fifth book in her Steele Shadows series, Jagger (Steele Shadows Investigations), was recently nominated for the prestigious Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense.

Amanda wrote her debut novel, LETHAL LEGACY in 2017, after walking away from her career to become a writer and stay-at-home mom. Her books include the bestselling series, STEELE SHADOWS SECURITY, the multi-award-winning BERRY SPRINGS series, BLACK ROSE MYSTERIES, and many more to come.

Set in small, Southern towns, Amanda’s books are page-turning murder mysteries peppered with steamy romance She lives in Arkansas with her handsome husband, two beautiful boys, and three obnoxious dogs.

Text AMANDABOOKS to 66866 to receive Amanda’s newsletter and get the latest on new releases, promos, and freebies!

Visit her website at www.amandamckinneyauthor.com
Follow Amanda on Instagram at www.instagram.com/amandamckinneyauthor
Follow Amanda on Facebook at www.facebook.com/amandamckineyauthor (less)

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Two Nights In Lisbon by Chris Pavone #TwoNightsinLisbon #NetGalley

Posted on May 25, 2022 by fundinmental

I want to thank NetGalley and Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, Macmillan Publishing for the opportunity to read this this fabulous novel, Two Nights In Lisbon by Chris Pavone.

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

WOW! Two Nights In Lisbon by Chris Pavone was a very pleasant surprise. I can’t say exactly why I grabbed the book. The cover is nothing special, though as I look closer there is more to see the more I look.

Ariel had remade herself after the end of her marriage. Now, she has found the last piece of the puzzle for her happy ever after…until…He’s gone.

She’s alone in Lisbon, Portugal with nothing but questions. Where is he? Apparently she doesn’t know him as well a she thought. Could something from his past come back to haunt him? Is he in trouble?

Ariel loves mystery novels, and it’s a good thing. She will need the knowledge she gained from reading them to plan her own investigation. She had been an actress and trained herself to be observant, aware of her surroundings.

Near the end, a flash, and my questions are answered about him….But, not really.

Two Nights In Lisbon by Chris Pavone may seem a bit slow, methodical, but it could also be a blueprint on how to take revenge and get justice.

So many twists and turns, and, best of all, book surprises. I love book surprises that keep me flipping pages and an author’s ability to shock and awe me, again and again.

The pacing was spot on, making me want to peek ahead, but I resisted the urge. Can you? The more I think about the book, the better it gets. Excellent job, Chris.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Two Nights In Lisbon by Chris Pavone.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos — 5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

You think you know a person . . .

Ariel Price wakes up in Lisbon, alone. Her husband is gone—no warning, no note, not answering his phone. Something is wrong.

She starts with hotel security, then the police, then the American embassy, at each confronting questions she can’t fully answer: What exactly is John doing in Lisbon? Why would he drag her along on his business trip? Who would want to harm him? And why does Ariel know so little about her new—much younger—husband?

The clock is ticking. Ariel is increasingly frustrated and desperate, running out of time, and the one person in the world who can help is the one person she least wants to ask.

Tautly wound and expertly crafted, Two Nights in Lisbon is a riveting thriller about a woman under pressure, and how far she will go when everything is on the line. With sparkling prose and razor-sharp insights, bestselling author Chris Pavone delivers a stunning and sophisticated international thriller that will linger long after the surprising final page.

ABOUT CHRIS PAVONE

CHRIS PAVONE is author of four international thrillers: THE EXPATS (2012), THE ACCIDENT (2014), THE TRAVELERS (2016), and THE PARIS DIVERSION (2019). His novels have appeared on the bestseller lists of the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and IndieNext; have won both the Edgar and Anthony awards, and have been shortlisted for the Strand, Macavity, and Los Angeles Times Book Prize; are in development for film and television; and have been translated into two dozen languages.

He has written for outlets including the New York Times Book Review and Magazine, the Telegraph, and Salon; has appeared on Face the Nation, Good Day New York, All Things Considered, and the BBC; and has been profiled on the arts’ front page of the New York Times.

Chris grew up in Brooklyn, graduated from Midwood High School and Cornell University, and worked in publishing for nearly two decades at Dell Magazines, Doubleday, the Lyons Press, Regan/HarperCollins, Clarkson Potter, and Artisan/Workman, in positions ranging from copy editor and managing editor to executive editor and deputy publisher; he also wrote a (mostly blank) book about wine, and ghost-wrote a couple of nonfiction books. Then his wife got a job in Luxembourg, and the family moved abroad, where Chris raised their twin boys and started writing THE EXPATS. They now live again in New York City and on the North Fork of Long Island with an Australian Labradoodle named Wally.

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A Bad Day For Sunshine by Darynda Jones @Darynda

Posted on April 1, 2020 by fundinmental

I have seen Darynda Jones name bandied about for a long time now, so I am glad to finally pick up one of her books and have an introduction into her world with A Bad Day for Sunshine. I couldn’t resist this fabulous cover. I want to thank Darynda Jones and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review my first Darynda Jones novel.

It will be released on April 7, 2020 and is available for preorder HERE.

A Bad Day for Sunshine (Sunshine Vicram, #1)

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I have been wanting to read a Darynda Jones novel for some time now, so when I saw the chance to grab this advanced review copy from NetGalley, I jumped all over it.

Sunshine Vicram is back in town after some shenanigans pulled by her parents, getting her elected as the sheriff of Del Sol, New Mexico, and supplying her with an adorable home for her and her daughter, Aurora.

Right off I liked Sunshine and Auri’s relationship, their verbal banter leads to some very humorous dialogue, and I could see there are some underlying problems.

Sunshine has a past that demands answers and she is going to find them
Auri has seemed a bit off since the New Year’s party she went to when they arrived.

Del Sol is a small town with all kinds of crazy going on. We have some unique, quirky, entertaining characters and lots of secrets surround them. There is a sense of mystery underlying every event that transpires and no one gives answers easily.

I enjoyed the beginning of the book, but began to wonder what all the hoopla was about Darynda Jones’ work. The fun writing and character’s personalities had me liking them and the undercurrent in town made me think there was danger coming, but where is that feeling that I can’t stop reading until I have all the answers? At 30%, I became more involved, but the verdict is still out.

At 62%, Darynda Jones got my attention with a twist and I even teared up thinking about Auri…and the rest of the pack. After this it moved quickly. I know how this will end, but the last third of the book is what made it all worthwhile, keeping me glued to the pages.

Well…I love it and, even though this story is told, I am sure there is more to come for these fabulous characters and I hope to be there with them.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of A Bad Day For Sunshine by Darynda Jones.

GOODREADS BLURB

New York Times bestselling author Darynda Jones is back with the brand-new snarky, sassy, wickedly fun Sunshine Vicram series!

Sheriff Sunshine Vicram finds her cup o’ joe more than half full when the small village of Del Sol, New Mexico, becomes the center of national attention for a kidnapper on the loose.

Del Sol, New Mexico is known for three things: its fry-an-egg-on-the-cement summers, its strong cups of coffee—and a nationwide manhunt? Del Sol native Sunshine Vicram has returned to town as the elected sheriff–an election her adorably meddlesome parents entered her in–and she expects her biggest crime wave to involve an elderly flasher named Doug. But a teenage girl is missing, a kidnapper is on the loose, and all of it’s reminding Sunny why she left Del Sol in the first place. Add to that trouble at her daughter’s new school and a kidnapped prized rooster named Puff Daddy, and Sunshine has her hands full.

Enter sexy almost-old-flame Levi Ravinder and a hunky US Marshall, both elevens on a scale of one to blazing inferno, and the normally savvy sheriff is quickly in over her head. Now it’s up to Sunshine to juggle a few good hunky men, a not-so-nice kidnapping miscreant, and Doug the ever-pesky flasher. And they said coming home would be drama-free.

ABOUT DARYNDA JONES

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin’s Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys.

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