Tag Archives: series

I Am A Super Fan of Leine Basso and DV Berkom @dvberkom @SDSXXTours

Posted on by

I am a super fan of Leine Basso and DV Berkom, since I read the first book, A Killing Truth. The character is a strong female and all I could ask for in a heroine that travels the world to take out the bad guys and save the innocents.

I have read all DV Berkom’s books and am super excited to see we have a new one coming out, Dakota Burn. GIMME! GIMME!

A Killing Truth
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 1
by DV Berkom
Genre: Thriller
Now available: the chilling start to the high-octane, can’t-put-it-down Leine Basso thriller series.

A deadly assassin. A perpetual target. A double-cross she never saw coming…

They say the truth will set you free, but what if it kills you first?
Leine eliminates terrorists for a living. After a routine assassination almost gets her killed, she chalks it up to a fluke. Her lover and fellow assassin, Carlos, has another idea altogether. He thinks their boss is setting them up for a fall.
When Carlos goes missing and a bombing thwarts another mission, Leine suspects the stakes are far higher than she could ever imagine, and wonders if the man in charge might have it in for her after all.
If you like no-nonsense heroines, page-turning plots, and twists you won’t see coming, then you’ll love D.V. Berkom’s tension-filled series.

Download A Killing Truth to find out how the story began…

“[Leine Basso] is a sassy, kick-arse, no-nonsense, I’ll-eat-your-balls-for-breakfast type of woman. She simply rocks. Berkom’s books are ones when you almost forget to breathe. They’re fast-paced, taut with tension and sheer joy from start to finish.” ~Cath’n’Kindle Book Reviews
“[A Killing Truth] introduces one of modern fiction’s deadliest heroes…”~Reviewer Charles A. Ray
“This is my third Leine Basso, and like the others, the action never lets up. Leine is the female Jack Reacher only she does it all without being 6’5″ and weighing 265 pounds, so that makes her more incredible. If you like page-turners, you’ll love this book.” ~ Polly Iyer, bestselling suspense author
“A Killing Truth would make an excellent introduction to D.V. Berkom’s writing…she’s one of my favorites… love how she just puts you right in the pages and you just don’t want to end.” ~Hornfan2
“The Leine Basso series by DV Berkom is jam-packed with action and adventure and Leine Basso is one bad*** protagonist…” Fundinmental Book Reviews
“As someone who has read all of the other current Leine Basso books first, I can say that A Killing Truth had me in suspense the entire time.” Maranda, Amazon Reviewer
“Non-stop twists and turns. An excellent thriller that pits Leine
against not only international criminals but her own boss.” ~USMC-Mike
“What the world needs now is more female characters like bad ass Leine Basso. Bought the trio of books that follow this one because of how much I enjoyed the plot and twists along the way.” ~shzann
Serial Date
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 2

A former assassin is drawn into the twisted game of a serial killer who may be a grisly remnant from her past.

What happens when a reality show turns deadly?
Determined to leave her old life behind, retired assassin Leine Basso accepts
a job working security at one of television’s most popular reality shows, Serial Date. When a contestant is found dead in the prop closet, it appears the killer is one of the ‘bachelors’ on the show- an ex-con billed as a serial killer- but the detective in charge of the case isn’t so sure.
When Leine’s estranged daughter is abducted by a man claiming to be the real killer, she’s forced to rely on old skills to find her. She soon realizes the murderer may be a grisly remnant from her past and she’ll need to use all of her cunning to stop him…
…and rescue her daughter.
If you like black humor, no-nonsense heroines, and heart-stopping action, you’ll love Serial Date. Download it today!
“If you like fast-paced action, great lead characters, and don’t mind a few F-bombs and the occasional gore, DV Berkom is the author for you.” ~ BloodWrites
“Serial Date has everything a mystery/thriller needs to be successful, fast-paced and action packed, strong and memorable characters and a story that will grab you from beginning to end…” ~ Confessions of a Reader
“Why should you read it? In a nutshell it’s a fast-paced, non-linear story with some creepy elements mashed together with a splash of romance and dark humour. What’s not to like?” ~Indie eBooks
Bad Traffick
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 3

Dangerous obsessions take center stage when a former assassin and a homicide detective race against the clock to find a missing girl before she’s sold to the highest bidder.

Identified as a person of interest in three cold case murders she didn’t commit, and required to stay in L.A., retired assassin Leine Basso accepts a temporary position as a security specialist for A-list actor Miles Fournier. Soon, a woman contacts Miles, claiming to be his long-lost sister. Her twelve-year-old daughter, Mara, has been abducted and she’s desperate to get her back.
Leine learns from a contact that Mara escaped, but the traffickers are determined to track her down and deliver her to their powerful client. Running out of time, Leine must find Mara before they do, or she will be lost forever.
Praise for BAD TRAFFICK:
“Utterly gripping, compelling, edge-of-your seat writing.”
~ Cath ‘n’ Kindle Book Reviews
“…I was thrilled with this book. I did not want it to end. I was on the edge of my seat at the end! Seriously a nail-bitter!”
~ April Holgate, Amazon Top 50 Reviewer
“Tight dialogue and nonstop action marks a novel that establishes new benchmarks for action thrillers. This is a solid five-star novel that you won’t want to miss.” ~Ray’s Ramblings
“An intelligent thriller worthy of the Big Screen…” ~ BloodWrites
The Body Market
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 4
***Bonus short story, Privilege included***

A retired assassin is called in when a celebration south of the border turns into a nightmare.

Everything’s for sale…
Former assassin Leine Basso is hired by a wealthy Beverly Hills power couple to find their missing daughter, Elise, last seen partying with her boyfriend at a club in Tijuana. At first, police believe the two teenagers are the victims of a carjacking. But when Leine finds their missing vehicle with a mutilated body inside, and the local cartel warns her away, she knows if Elise isn’t already dead, she will be soon, or worse.
In the lethal world of organized crime, there’s always a worse.
As Leine races to uncover the reason behind Elise Bennett’s disappearance, she must also battle the powerful interests fighting to keep her from the truth.
Praise for the Leine Basso Thriller series:
“Now this, this is what thrillers are made of: grit, spunk, and no-nonsense unputdownability…Quite simply: Brilliant ” ~ Cath ‘n Kindle Book Reviews
“…Ms. Berkom gives us a badass heroine that’s fun to root for. Once Leine discovers what is happening, there is no stopping her…an edge of your seat thriller that delivers!” ~ Night Owl Reviews
“Without a doubt one of the most engaging, complex and enthralling mysteries that had me totally in its grip…” ~ Confessions of a Reader
“Taken fans will be overjoyed with this gritty thriller…following Basso as she works her tradecraft is a pleasure…” ~ BestThrillers.com
“A really exciting heroine for action thriller fans everywhere, but a long overdue tough and plausible literary role-model for women.”~ Ajoobacats Book Reviews
Cargo
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 5

An adventurous young backpacker, captured and sold. A black market merchant who will stop at nothing to amass the power he craves. The one woman who can stop him before he destroys everything…

Haunted by memories of an op gone bad, former assassin Leine Basso
travels to Bangkok in search of a missing backpacker. With help from an old contact, she discovers the man responsible for the girl’s disappearance is connected to a violent Hong Kong triad and is the linchpin of an extensive trafficking network—both animal and human.
Making enemies isn’t new for Leine, but making one in the triad is—she soon finds herself a prisoner on board a cargo ship headed for sub-Saharan Africa. To ensure her survival and to continue her hunt for the missing girl, she must join forces with Derek, an ivory poacher who promises to help her.
For a price.
The Last Deception
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 6
Ready to stay up all night? Everybody’s favorite assassin is back with a vengeance in this high-octane, can’t-put-it-down espionage thriller.

Espionage. Deception. A nation on the brink of war…

Just when former assassin Leine Basso thinks she’s free from the business of death, a desperate call from a friend drags her back into the dark world of espionage and arms dealers.
“Sucks you in on page one and doesn’t set you free until the end. Another sure-fire winner in a spectacular series.”
~Tim Tigner, International Bestselling Author of the Kyle Achilles series
“D.V. Berkom has created one kick-ass heroine in Leine Basso–a woman who can do it all in the dog-kill-dog world of international espionage.” ~ J. Carson Black, New York Times Bestselling Author
“Warning: once started, The Last Deception is difficult to put down…[T]he globe-trotting Leine uncovers acts of international espionage that lead her on a desperate hunt for an elusive spy that could bring down the world.” Midwest Book Review
Dark Return
Leine Basso Thrillers book 7
A former assassin, battling her demons. A sinister enemy, determined to destroy her. A wily street kid caught in the middle.
Former assassin Leine Basso is fresh off an assignment rescuing an American teenager from a terrorist group in Libya when she thwarts the murder of a street kid in Tripoli. Leine agrees to help the girl, but must first visit a refugee camp to uncover the reason behind a rash of mysterious abductions.
Leaving the camp, Leine comes under a surprise attack–but only a handful of people knew her true mission. The more she discovers about the abductions, the more of a target she becomes, forcing her to revisit a dark and violent past she thought she’d left behind. But it’s easy–too easy to fall back into her old ways.
And that could get her killed.
Will Leine be able to survive a dark return?
If you like gritty, fast-paced, can’t-put-it-down thrillers with an action-packed story ripped from the headlines, then you’ll love Dark Return. Download your copy today!
Praise for Dark Return:
“I couldn’t put it down. My entire Saturday has been spent reading Dark Return.” ~Sharon Simms
“One of the best reads to come out in this genre in quite awhile. You won’t want to put this book down.” ~Yvonne Reddy
“Excellent. There is no other way to describe it. I read it in one go it was that good. Leine is one hell of a badass.” ~Silver Surfer
“Dark Return was a thrill-a-minute, page-turning suspense that never lets up with action and intrigue. The author, DV Berkom, is a master when it comes to character development and the story line.” ~ Paula Lopez
“DV Berkom has honed her skills as writer to such a fine art that it is indeed very difficult to tear yourself away from any of her books.” ~Manie Killian
“Fast paced and full of action, this book will keep you both entertained and intrigued from start to finish. Highly recommended!!” ~Derek Williams
“This book will captivate you from the first paragraph to the last. It is full of action and non-stop adventure…” ~txdoc
“Best book in the series, they just keep getting better and better!! Read them from the first in the series or just jump in here. Brilliant read.” ~ Sally Sanders
“Berkom has matured as a solid writer with similarities to Mark Greaney, Mark Dawson (John Milton series), and a whisper of Barry Eisler.” ~Library Champion
Absolution
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 8
There’s only one sure way to stop a terrorist…
Former assassin Leine Basso has severed ties with everyone she loves to keep them safe while she hunts for the ruthless terrorist, Salome. There are rumblings that the French-born assassin is planning another attack and Leine’s determined to stop her before it’s too late.
Can Leine thwart her plans, or will Salome’s own twisted vengeance mean the end for Leine and everyone she loves?
From London to Edinburgh to the City of Angels, Salome’s making a comeback—and that comeback includes killing Leine.
Dakota Burn
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 9
A kidnapped girl. A ruthless criminal who preys on the innocent. Two killers who will stop at nothing to bring him down.
Former assassin Leine Basso was supposed to be in sunny LA, watching the first class of operatives graduate from the new anti-trafficking academy. Instead, she’s in North Dakota in the middle of a brutal winter, helping old friend Derek van der Haar track down and eliminate a deadly group of criminals hell-bent on providing young girls to the highest bidder.
The closer Leine and Derek get to the organization, the more dangerous the mission becomes. Soon, it’s evident that the traffickers are playing for keeps—and don’t care who they kill.
In a story ripped from the headlines, Dakota Burn reveals the dark underbelly of the Bakken oil fields, where human life is a commodity and outlaws still rule.
If you enjoy books by Mark Dawson, Barry Eisler, and Mark Greaney, you’ll love D.V. Berkom. Download this gritty, action-packed thriller today!
And you thought the Wild West was dead…
DV Berkom is the USA Today bestselling author of two action-packed thriller series featuring strong female leads (Leine Basso and Kate Jones). Her love of creating resilient, kick-ass women characters stems from a lifelong addiction to reading spy novels, mysteries, and thrillers, and longing to find the female equivalent within those pages.
Raised in the Midwest, she earned a BA in political science and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Several years and many adventures later, she wrote her first novel and was hooked. The Kate Jones adventure thriller, Bad Spirits, was first published in 2010 as an online serial, and was immediately popular with Kindle and Nook fans. Dead of Winter, Death Rites, and Touring for Death soon followed before she began the far grittier Leine Basso thriller series in early 2012 with Serial Date.
DV currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, Mark, and several imaginary characters who like to tell her what to do.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

My Reviews for DV Berkom’s Leine Basso Thrillers:

My Reviews for DV Berkom’s Kate Jones Thrillers:

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’ talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • Problem commenting, look for the twitter, facebook…buttons.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Giveaway – Sapphire Flames by Ilona Andrews @ilona_andrews @SDSXXTours

Posted on by

Sapphire Flames
A Hidden Legacy Novel, Book 4
by Ilona Andrews
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrew comes an enthralling new trilogy set in the Hidden Legacy world, where magic means power, and family bloodlines are the new currency of society…
In a world where magic is the key to power and wealth, Catalina Baylor is a Prime, the highest rank of magic user, and the Head of her House. Catalina has always been afraid to use her unique powers, but when her friend’s mother and sister are murdered, Catalina risks her reputation and safety to unravel the mystery.
But behind the scenes powerful forces are at work, and one of them is Alessandro Sagredo, the Italian Prime who was once Catalina’s teenage crush. Dangerous and unpredictable, Alessandro’s true motives are unclear, but he’s drawn to Catalina like a moth to a flame.
To help her friend, Catalina must test the limits of her extraordinary powers, but doing so may cost her both her House–and her heart.
“Ilona Andrews” is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing team. Ilona is a native-born Russian and Gordon is a former communications sergeant in the U.S. Army. Contrary to popular belief, Gordon was never an intelligence officer with a license to kill, and Ilona was never the mysterious Russian spy who seduced him. They met in college, in English Composition 101, where Ilona got a better grade. (Gordon is still sore about that.)
Gordon and Ilona currently reside in Texas with their two
children and many dogs and cats.
They have co-authored several NYT and USAT bestselling series. They are currently working on urban fantasy of Kate Daniels, the paranormal romance of Hidden Legacy, and thjeir independently published series, Innkeeper Chronicles.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!
  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’s talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an Amazon affiliate/product images are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Giveaway – Movies, Moonlight and Magic by January Bain @JanuaryBain @GoddessFish

Posted on by


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. January Bain will be awarding a $25 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.

Book two in the Manitoba Tea and Tarot Mysteries series

Charm McCall can solve a small-town murder, but can she figure out how to stop a man-stealing interloper?

A movie production company has come to town…and so has an old family friend of the town’s sexy new Mountie, Ace Collins. His “old pal” turns out to be a scheming long-legged blonde who throws Charm right off her game. Even Auntie T.J. playing the bagpipes down Main Street to drive the trespasser away doesn’t work.

Between catering for the world’s hungriest film crew, trying to solve the murder of the unit accountant who hired her and dealing with her new magical gifts, Charm’s a tad busy. But too bad, because she’s soon facing off against a bigger threat when more people become ill with suspected poisoning—and her own sister’s in the crosshairs. Charm’s left wondering if even Agatha Christie could have seen this one coming.

But with so much working against them—including the whole town being dead set against them consummating their relationship—do Charm and Ace stand a chance?

Read an Excerpt:

He stuck out his hand for a shake and I was blessed with the dampest paw on the planet, accompanied by a zinger of an image. Howard cared about every penny because he was embezzling company funds, meaning there would be less to steal if I made a decent profit. Sometimes I wished Granny Toogood hadn’t banned swearing—I had a few apt descriptors for this weaselly dealer. I also hoped she was feeling better. The doctor had advised a few days of rest and that had me worried.

Instead, I narrowed my eyes at him and he slid his hand from mine. Yuck. I dried my palm by rubbing it discreetly down the side of my jeans, half hidden by my Tea & Tarot apron.

“Can you start tomorrow?” he asked, his desperation leaking through, making his face shiny with sweat. Probably because the only other quote he most likely got today far exceeded ours. Guaranteed. The Husky Service on the highway did some catering, but they didn’t come cheap. And their bakery goods came out of pre-frozen tubs and boxes. We prided ourselves on everything fresh baked, from scratch—my fingernails were reduced to rubble from constant work. Proof positive.

“Tomorrow! So soon?” All the nerves in my body slammed into high gear. There was so much to do to prepare for such a large undertaking. Could it even be done that quickly?

“We’d really appreciate it. Might even find you a bit part in the movie.” It wasn’t the incentive he expected—I just shook my head, giving his start date some thought. Sometimes it was best to jump into things, otherwise I’d never do it. I just prayed I could pull it off and do my family and our town proud.

“Okay, but minus the movie walk-on.”

The relief on his face made me smile, despite his weaselly-ness.

The café door opened abruptly and in strode a young man dressed in expensive dark-wash jeans and a tight black T-shirt clothing a wiry, thin body, his face a study in annoyance. “Howard, I need to speak with you right now. Don’t think you can just get up and walk out on me, mister.” His hand on his hip pressed his case.

Howard’s face darkened to a dull red. “Chace, this is not the time or the place. Go. I’ll catch up with you later.”

The man looked as though he was going to object before he about-faced and left. His one-finger salute, reflected in the front window before he pranced away, was not in the best taste. Hmm. Good thing Granny wasn’t around to cut him down to size. In the nicest, politest way of course—she could make the worst villain tippy-toe around her. Probably ask him if he needs the finger for anything other than being rude.

“Please excuse my friend. He’s not himself today.”

“Oh, who is he then?”

Howard gave me a blank stare.

Baby Ling Ling sauntered in, grabbing my attention as she always announced her arrival with a loud greeting, or warning, depending on how her day was going. Our spectacular white Himalayan with her adorable squished-in face and apricot-colored ears, fluffy tail raised high, proceeded to choose her steps with the utmost care across the tiled floor of the café. I’d guess it was in case we’d had the bad manners to add a trap door since yesterday’s saunter. She deigned to notice the new visitor, striding over and giving him a quick sniff. She jumped a couple of feet in the air with a loud howl, her fluffy white fur standing straight on end as though she’d placed her paw on an electrical charge.

“Hiss.” She made herself as big as a tiny eight-pound cat could make herself, arched her back and continued the hissing.

“Nice cat,” Howard deadpanned.

“Careful what you say to her. Ling Ling’s officially multi-lingual since our librarian, Miriam, added Portuguese to her weekly slate of free language lessons.” I just couldn’t resist, not liking his look of disdain. Or his cheapness that was certain to affect our bottom line.

His look of confusion was quite satisfying. He gave Ling Ling a wide berth and headed for the door.

“Okay, then, we’ll expect you tomorrow? You’ll get paid once a week, just come by my office and I’ll cut you a check. Oh, and the camp’s out by Spirit Springs.” He paused, his hand on the doorknob, obviously needing confirmation.

“Yes, I know where the camp is, and the food will be there. You can count on the McCall family. We never go back on our word.” I gave him a level look that he declined to return. A nervous twitch of his nose and he hopped out of the café.

“That guy has a blackish aura with streaks of gray,” Tulip said, pursing her lips.

“Yeah, no surprise—he’s working under a brain cloud.” I didn’t want to say the words embezzling cocaine addict out loud and sink the project before it started. “And since when did you start seeing auras?” And what was I going to do with the unwanted knowledge that the guy was stealing company funds? A moral dilemma. I shouldn’t think that was business as normal, even for the movie industry.

About the Author:
January Bain has wished on every falling star, every blown-out birthday candle, and every coin thrown in a fountain to be a storyteller. To share the tales of high adventure, mysteries, and full blown thrillers she has dreamed of all her life. The story you now have in your hands is the compilation of a lot of things manifesting itself for this special series. Hundreds of hours spent researching the unusual and the mundane have come together to create books that features strong women who live life to the fullest, wild adventures full of twists and unforeseen turns, and hot complicated men who aren’t afraid to take risks. She can only hope her stories will capture your imagination.

If you are looking for January Bain, you can find her hard at work every morning without fail in her office with her furry baby, Ling Ling. And, of course, she’s married to the most romantic man! Who once famously remarked to her inquiry about buying fresh flowers for their home every week, “Give me one good reason why not?” Leaving her speechless and knocking her head against the proverbial wall for being so darn foolish. She loves flowers.

If you wish to connect in the virtual world she is easily found on Facebook. Oh, and she loves to talk books…

Blog: http://januarybainjourney.blogspot.ca/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JanuaryBain
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/january.bain
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6437282.January_Bain

Totally Bound: https://www.totallybound.com/book/movies-moonlight-and-magic
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Movies-Moonlight-Magic-Manitoba-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B07VQ8S65W/ref=sr_1_4

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found HERE

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’s talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an Amazon affiliate/product imgaes are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Giveaway & Review – The Root of Murder by Lauren Carr @TheMysteryLadie @iReadBookTours

Posted on by

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Even though I have only read Book III, Killer in the Band, in the Lovers in Crime Mystery Series, I had no trouble reading Book IV, The Root of Murder. Lauren Carr’s books read as stand alones that have recurring characters.

The title and cover were aptly chosen, as the bases of the murder goes back to the beginning, or the root of the secret and all that comes after.

Of course, Lauren Carr has some fabulous characters, people, villains and fur babies, that crack me up with their antics.

Poppy. I am so happy to read her story. She’s a good person, dealt a bad hand, but nothing stops her from moving on. She will be a great addition to the Thornton family.

Poppy’s faith and belief in things working out the way they are meant to be makes for a heartwarming, uplifting romance.

Gulliver, Ollie & Charley are unique characters with big personalities, bringing plenty of smiles and chuckles to the story. Once you meet them, I don’t think you’ll forget them.

Irving and Admiral are great manipulators and good for some chuckles at their antics.

Two murders with a spin that increases the suspect pool. And, of course, all the things that need to be dealt with in the normal world.

Animals and people alike are great and I love visiting them all as their lives grow fuller, richer.

Well, another happy ever after filled with romance, murder and intrigue, friendship and family, suspense and mystery, and characterless that will filled my heart with uplifting moments and humor.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copyof The Root of Murder by Lauren Carr.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

BOOK DETAILS

Book Title:  The Root of Murder (A Lovers in Crime Mystery #4) by Lauren Carr
Category:  Adult Fiction (18 +),  332 pages
Genre:  Mystery
Publisher:  Acorn Book Services
Release date:   March 20, 2019
Format available for review:  print, Audible download, mobi, epub, PDF
Will send print books out:  USA & Canada
Tour dates: September 9 to October 25, 2019
Content Rating:  PG-13 (Lauren Carr’s books are murder mysteries, so there are murders involved. Occasionally, a murder will happen on stage. There is sexual content, but always behind closed doors. Some mild swearing (a hell or a damn few and far between). No F-bombs!

BOOK DESCRIPTION


Homicide Detective Cameron Gates learned long ago that there is no such thing as a typical murder case. Each mystery is special in its own right—especially for the family of the victim.The homicide of a successful executive, husband, and father seems open and shut when the murder weapon is found in his estranged son-in-law’s possession. The circumstantial evidence is so damning that when her step-son, J.J. Thornton, agrees to act as the defendant’s public defender, he assumes his first murder case will be a loss. Only the report of a missing husband proves that this case is not as open and shut as it seems. Strap on your seat belts for a wild ride in this mystery rooted in decades of deception that sprouts into murder. Fall in Love with These Other Lovers in Crime Mysteries:

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

GOODREADS BLURB

Dead on Ice is the first installment of Lauren Carr’s new series (Lovers in Crime) featuring Hancock County Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Thornton and Pennsylvania State Police homicide detective Cameron Gates.

Spunky Cameron Gates is tasked with solving the murder of Cherry Pickens, a legendary star of pornographic films, whose body turns up in an abandoned freezer. The case has a personal connection to her lover, Joshua Thornton, because the freezer was located in his cousin’s basement. It doesn’t take long for their investigation to reveal that the risqué star’s roots were buried in their rural Ohio Valley community, something that Cherry had kept off her show business bio. She should have kept her hometown off her road map, too—because when this starlet came running home from the mob, it proved to be a fatal homecoming.

Real Murder (Lovers in Crime, #2)

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

GOODREADS BLURB

When Homicide Detective Cameron Gates befriends Dolly, the little old lady who lives across the street, she is warned not to get lured into helping the elderly woman by investigating the unsolved murder of one of her girls. “She’s senile,” Cameron is warned. “It’s not a real murder.”
Such is not the case. After Dolly is brutally murdered, Cameron discovers that the sweet blue-haired lady’s “girl” was a call girl, who had been killed in a mysterious double homicide.

Meanwhile, Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Thornton is looking for answers to the murder of a childhood friend, a sheriff deputy whose cruiser is found at the bottom of a lake. The deputy had disappeared almost twenty years ago while privately investigating the murder of a local prostitute.

It doesn’t take long for the Lovers in Crime to put their cases together to reveal a long-kept secret that some believe is worth killing to keep undercover.

Killer in the Band

Amazon / Audiobook / Goodreads

You can see my REVIEW HERE

GOODREADS BLURB

Summer has arrived! The Thorntons expect it to be a summer of change and change it does, but not in the way Joshua had expected.

Joshua’s eldest son, Joshua Thornton Jr. (J.J.) has graduated at the top of his class from law school and is returning home to spend the summer studying for the bar exam. However, to Joshua’s and Cameron’s shock and dismay, J.J. decides to move into the main house at Russell Ridge Farm, the largest dairy farm in the Ohio Valley, in order to rekindle a romance with Suellen Russell, the lovely widow twice his age.

The May/December romance, bonded by a love for music, between the symphony conductor and young musical prodigy had bloomed many years earlier.

​The move brings long buried tensions between the father and son to the surface–not the least of which being J.J.’s inexplicable dislike for his stepmother Cameron. But when a brutal killer strikes, the Lovers in Crime must set all differences with Joshua’s son aside to solve the crime before J.J. ends up in the cross-hairs of a murderer. Meet the author:    With over forty years of writing and publishing experience, international best-selling author Lauren Carr has played an active role in the revolution of independent authors.

While studying for her college degree in English and journalism, Lauren worked as an editor and layout design artist with the federal government in Washington, DC. It was there that Lauren learned the foundations necessary for book publishing. 

Lauren’s debut mystery, A Small Case of Murder was a finalist for the Independent Publisher Book Awards. On the heels of that success, she accepted an offer from a traditional publisher for A Reunion to Die For.

When it came time to publish her third book, Lauren rejected offers from two traditional publishers, choosing instead to independently publish It’s Murder, My Son, which made it to #1 in sales on Amazon in cozy mysteries. She has never regretted her decision to become an independent author.

Realizing that she could use her experiences to help other writers achieve their dreams to become published authors, Lauren established Acorn Book Services, offering professional services to independent authors.

The international best-selling author of over twenty-five murder mysteries, Lauren has gone on dozens of virtual blog tours (most with iRead Book Tours!) and has seen first-hand that how an author publishes is irrelevant to success. The key is exposure to potential readers. Virtual blog tours are an excellent avenue for book promotion. Book spotlights, reviews, author guest posts and interviews are forever, unlike in-person book events, which become a memory as soon as they have finished.

With her vast experience, it seemed only natural for Lauren Carr to jump at the opportunity to join the iReads Book Tours team. She lives with her husband, and two spoiled rotten German shepherds on a mountain in West Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.

You can usually find Lauren plotting her next murder mystery in her writer’s studio on her mountaintop. Visit Lauren’s  website https://mysterylady.net/ to learn more about her murder mysteries, Acorn Book Services, and now iReads Book Tours!

Connect with the author:   Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook  ~  Instagram

BOOK TOUR SCHEDULE:

Sept 9 –  Rockin Book Reviews – review of The Root of Murder / guest post / 
  Lovers in Crime series spotlight / giveaway
Sept 9 – Working Mommy Journal – review The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 9 – Amy’s Booket List – review The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 10 – The Quirky Romantic – review of The Root of Murder / author interview / giveaway
Sept 10 – Hall Ways Blog – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 10 – Life as Leels – review of Dead on Ice
Sept 11 – Literary Flits – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 11 – My Reading Journeys – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 12 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – book spotlight / giveaway
Sept 12 –  A Fountain of Books – review of Dead on Ice 
Sept 12 – Bound 4 Escape – review of Killer in the Band (audible) / giveaway
Sept 13 – Words and Peace – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
Sept 16 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 16 – Working Mommy Journal – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 16 – Amy’s Booket List – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Sept 17 – Hall Ways Blog – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 17 –  Laura’s Interests – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 18 – Literary Flits – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway 
Sept 18 – Read and Review – book spotlight / guest post
Sept 18 – Sefina Hawke’s Books – review of The Root of Murder / series spotlight
Sept 19 – #Redhead.with.Book – Lovers in Crime Series book spotlight / giveaway
Sept 19 – Life as Leels – review of Real Murder
Sept 20 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 20 – Nighttime Reading Center – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 23 – Amy’s Booket List – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 23 – Christa Reads and Writes – review of The Root of Murder / series spotlight  / giveaway
Sept 24 – Fundinmental – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 24  A Fountain of Books – review of The Real Murder 
Sept 25 – Library of Clean Reads – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 25  Laura’s Interests – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 26 – FUONLYKNEW – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 26 – Mystery Suspense Reviews – review of The Root of Murder / guest post 
Sept 27 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 30 – Amy’s Booket List – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 30 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 30 – Life as Leels – review of The Root of Murder
Sept 30 – Older & Smarter? – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 1 – Bound 4 Escape – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Oct 1 – Dab of Darkness – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 2 – Literary Flits – review of Real Murder
Oct 3 – Books for Books – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Oct 3 –  My Reading Journeys – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 4 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 7 – Bound 4 Escape – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 8 –  A Fountain of Books – review of Killer in the Band 
Oct 9 – I’m All About Books – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Oct 9 – Kristin’s Novel Cafe – review of The Root of Murder
Oct 10 – Books for Books – review of Real Murder  / giveaway
Oct 10 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 10 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 11 – Pause for Tales – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 14 – Celtic Lady’s Reviews – Lovers in Crime series spotlight / giveaway
Oct 14 –  My Reading Journeys – review of The Root of Murder / guest post / giveaway
Oct 15 – Dab of Darkness – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 15 – Bound 4 Escape – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 16 – A Fountain of Books – review of The Root of Murder / author interview 
Oct 17 – Books for Books – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 18 – B for Bookreview – Lovers in Crime series book spotlight / author interview
Oct 21- Nighttime Reading Center – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 21 – Laura’s Interests – review of The Root of Murder / guest post / giveaway
Oct 22 – Dab of Darkness – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 22 – Books Are Love – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Oct 23 – Books Are Love – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 23 – Books for Books – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 24 – JBronder Book Reviews – review of The Root of Murder / series spotlight / giveaway
Oct 24 – Books Are Love – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 25 – Jypsylynn  – review of The Root of Murder
Oct 25 – Adventurous Jessy – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 25 – Books Are Love – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 25 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway ;

MY LAUREN CARR REVIEWS

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’s talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an Amazon affiliate/product imgaes are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Giveaway & Review – Eye For An Eye by J K Franko @jk_franko @partnersincr1me

Posted on by

Eye for Eye

by JK Franko

on Tour July 22 – September 20, 2019

Eye for Eye

MY REVIEW

Talion: ex talionis – the law of talion – punishment of an injury by inflicting a similar injury on the offender, an injury similar in kind and degree.

Love the cover for Eye for Eye by J K Franko. Sure does foreshadow what’s inside!

It started thirty years ago, with the death of Joan, an eleven year old girl that only wanted to have fun at summer camp.

Now…we come to a spoiled rotten kid The scenario is one that always ticks me off royally. Can do the crime, but will do anything not to do the time. And so would his father, the Senator. I think we all know where that’s going. But… a ‘chance’ meeting and a plan is born.

Someone has to pay!

Want to commit a murder? Let’s start with PH1, the guidebook.

As the characters play their roles, I think I see where we’re going. HAH! Was I in for an awakening. The suspense came early and I was eager ‘to turn every page’. But police procedurals and psychological thrillers usually don’t make me have an intense feeling of danger,and urgency like dark, action packed, suspense thrillers. Maybe I’ m more of an adrenaline junky, even though I prefer to get my thrills through osmosis.

Everyone has secrets and as they are revealed are marvel at J K Franko’s imagination. He too Stranger on a Train and blew it away.

Manipulation, betrayal, distrust, anger, vengeance, love, devotion…

A stupendous surprise ending and I loved every minute of it. It put a smile on my face and that may expose a piece of my personality. LOL

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Eye for Eye by J K Franko.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

ABOUT THE BOOK

“NEW TWIST ON STRANGERS ON A TRAIN”
~ THE SUNDAY TIMES

 

Book Details:

Genre: Crime & Mystery
Published by: Talion Publishing
Publication Date: June 22nd 2019
Number of Pages: 400
ISBN: 1999318803 (ISBN13: 9781999318802)
Series: Talion #1
Purchase Links: Amazon | Goodreads

Read an excerpt:

When I try to piece together how this whole mess began, a part of me thinks it may have started over thirty years ago. At least the seeds were planted that far back, in the early 1980s. What happened then, at that summer camp in Texas, set the stage for everything that was to come.

Odd, how something so remote in time and geography continues to impact me here, today.

Sometimes I try to imagine her, how she felt—that eleven year-old girl—as she ran, stumbling and tripping through the woods that night. I try to put myself in her shoes. When I do, I wonder if she was frightened.

Did she understand the consequences of what she’d gotten herself into? I imagine it felt otherworldly to her, like a dream. But not a good dream. No, one of the bad ones—the ones that make your heart machine-gun as you try to outrun some dark thing that’s chasing you. But the faster you try to run, the slower you go, your legs feeling leaden, clumsy, useless.

Panic sets in. Tears of frustration form. Fear takes hold and won’t let go. You open your mouth to scream but realize, to your horror, that you’re paralyzed. It’s not that you can’t scream; you can’t even breathe. Not a dream—a nightmare.

Then again, all that may simply be my imagination. It could just be me projecting what I might have felt onto Joan. Maybe she wasn’t scared at all.

True, it was dark out. The night smelled of rain, but there was no lightning, only the far-off rumble of thunder hinting at a distant storm. There were no trail lights, no visibility but for the moon peeking out intermittently from behind a patchwork of clouds. But, Joan had been down this trail before. She was running toward the main cabin.

She had been at Camp Willow for almost two full weeks. She had been up and down that trail at least ten times a day, every day. Of course, that was during the day, and always with her buddy, or a camp counselor (the children called them troop leaders). Joan had never been on the trail at night. And never alone.

Maybe I imagine Joan was scared because, as an adult, I believe that she should have been. I would have been terrified.

***

Excerpt from Eye For Eye by JK Franko. Copyright © 2019 by JK Franko. Reproduced with permission from JK Franko. All rights reserved.

 

 

Author Bio:

JK Franko

J.K. FRANKO was born and raised in Texas. His Cuban-American parents agreed there were only three acceptable options for a male child: doctor, lawyer, and architect. After a disastrous first year of college pre-Med, he ended up getting a BA in philosophy (not acceptable), then he went to law school (salvaging the family name) and spent many years climbing the big law firm ladder. After ten years, he decided that law and family life weren’t compatible. He went back to school where he got an MBA and pursued a Ph.D. He left law for corporate America, with long stints in Europe and Asia.

His passion was always to be a writer. After publishing a number of non-fiction works, thousands of hours writing, and seven or eight abandoned fictional works over the course of eighteen years, EYE FOR EYE became his first published novel.

J.K. Franko now lives with his wife and children in Florida.

Catch Up With JK Franko On:
jkfranko.com, Goodreads, Twitter, & Facebook!

 

 

Tour Participants:

Visit these other great hosts on this tour for more great reviews, interviews, guest posts, and giveaways!



 

 

Enter The Giveaway!!!:

This is a rafflecopter giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours for JK Franko. There will be 6 winners. Two (2) winners will each win (1) Amazon.com Gift Card. Two (2) winners will each win a signed copy of EYE FOR EYE by JK Franko (Open to U.S. addresses only) and Two (2) winners will each win a Knife set (Open to U.S. addresses only). The giveaway begins on July 22, 2019 and runs through September 22, 2019. Void where prohibited.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Get More Great Reads at Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours

 

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’ talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an amazon affiliate/product images are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Giveaway & Review – Never Ever by Willow Rose @MadamWillowRose @SDSXXTours

Posted on by

Never Ever
Eva Rae Thomas Mystery Book 3
by Willow Rose
Genre: Thriller, Suspense

MY REVIEW

Willow Rose is a fabulous thriller author and when I saw this gorgeous cover, there was no doubt I had to have it. Human traffickers, terrorists and a cult abound and it’s hard to decipher who is doing what to who.

Someone took her daughter, Olivia, and Eva will stop at nothing to get her back. Her famous sister, Sydney is be her side as they hunt down the Iron Fist, a human trafficker. She walked away from her family and her lover, Matt, a cop who is trying his best to save her from Carter, a cop that will do anything to catch her and make a name for himself.

Time is precious and its running out for Olivia.

Has Eva crossed the line? Because of her treatment of the first trafficker Eva came across, there is a warrant out for her arrest and it’s all downhill from there. Eva’s friends will stick by her….no matter what. What has she done to earn their loyalty, admiration you will have to find out for yourself.

I think I see where Willow Rose is going with her dual storyline, both of which are horrendous and frightening and all too true in our current times. Truth is stranger than fiction and real life plays out on the pages as trafficking, gas attacks and the cult stories play out.

By the time I get to the halfway mark, the pace picks up and I begin to read faster.

Olivia..oh Olivia…my heart bleeds for you, yet I admire your courage, bravery, and determination to find your way home.

Matt, OMG, I cannot imagine the agony he goes through as he tries to save Eva from a ruthless cop, Carter, who is out to make a name for himself. Carter has tunnel vision and his sights are set on Eva. I think I see how she may survive and I am eager to find out if I am right.

Emma…what a fabulous surprise. Willow Rose does surprises well. The first surprise is quickly followed by a second. A villain is exposed and the surprises keep on coming. The twists and turns make my head spin.

Never Ever is the rawest writing I have read of Willow Rose’s and the first half didn’t ratchet up the suspense like the second half. For that reason I rated it a 4, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the rating went higher after the final edits.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of Never Ever by Willow Rose.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

Former FBI profiler Eva Rae Thomas returns in Willow Rose’s most hair-raising thriller yet.

Ex-agent Eva Rae Thomas is on the run. The past month she has done things she never knew she was capable of while hunting for her kidnapped daughter.
Eva Rae has risked everything,
-her career,
-her newfound love,
-her freedom.
She’s looking for the man they call the Iron Fist.
The trail has led her to Miami.
Meanwhile, Miami is under attack. Hundreds of passengers in the Metrorail are exposed to a deathly nerve gas on a peaceful Monday morning. When Eva Rae Thomas sees her daughter on the surveillance footage from the attack, she knows it is no coincidence. But by the time she uncovers the chilling truth of how it is all connected, it might be too late.
NEVER EVER is the third book in the Eva Rae Thomas Mystery Series and can be read as a standalone.
**Only 99cents 8/28 – 9/3!!**
The Queen of Scream aka Willow Rose is a #1 Amazon Best-selling Author and an Amazon ALL-star Author of more than 60 novels.
She writes Mystery, Thriller, Paranormal, Romance, Suspense, Horror, Supernatural thrillers, and Fantasy.
Willow’s books are fast-paced, nail-biting pageturners with twists you won’t see coming. Several of her books have reached the Kindle top 10 of ALL books in the US, UK, and Canada. She has sold more than three million books.
Willow lives on Florida’s Space Coast with her husband and two daughters. When she is not writing or reading, you will find her surfing and watch the dolphins play in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!

MY REVIEWS FOR WILLOW ROSE

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’s talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an Amazon affiliate/product images are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Giveaway – Strangers She Knows by Christina Dodd @ChristinaDodd @partnersincr1me

Posted on by

Strangers She Knows

by Christina Dodd

September 17, 2019

on Tour September 17 – October 1, 2019

Synopsis:

Strangers She Knows by Christina Dodd

Series STARRED reviews from Booklist

Book Details:

Genre: Mystery/Suspense
Published by: HQN Books
Publication Date: September 17, 2019
Number of Pages: 352
ISBN: 1335468331 (ISBN13: 9781335468338)
Series: Cape Charade #3
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Read an excerpt:

Yearning Sands Resort Washington’s Pacific Coast This Spring

Rae Di Luca stacked up her Level Three lesson books, opened the piano bench and put them away. She got out the Adult Course Level 1A book, opened it to “Silver Bells,” and put it on the music rack. “Mom, you have to practice.”

Kellen didn’t look up from her book. “I know.”

“When?”

“When what?”

“When are you going to do it?”

“I’m at the good part. Let me finish this chapter.”

“No, you have to practice now. You know it helps with your finger dexterity.”

When had their roles reversed, Kellen wondered? When had ten-year-old Rae become the sensible adult and Kellen become the balky child?

Oh yeah. When she had the brain surgery, her right hand refused to regain its former abilities, and the physical therapist suggested learning the piano. But there was a reason Kellen hadn’t learned to play the piano earlier in her life. She loved music—and she had no musical talent. That, added to the terrible atrophy that afflicted her fingers, made her lessons and practices an unsurpassed agony…for everyone.

She looked up, saw Rae standing, poised between coaxing and impatience, and the Rolodex in Kellen’s punctured, operated-on and much-abused brain clicked in:

RAE DI LUCA:

FEMALE, 10YO, 5‘0″, 95LBS. KELLEN’S DAUGHTER. HER MIRACLE. IN TRANSITION: GIRL TO WOMAN, BLOND HAIR TO BROWN, BROWN EYES LIGHTENING TO HAZEL. LONG LEGS; GAWKY. SKIN A COMBINATION OF HER ITALIAN HERITAGE FROM HER FATHER AND THE NATIVE AMERICAN BLOOD FROM KELLEN; FIRST PIMPLE ON HER CHIN. NEVER TEMPERAMENTAL. KIND, STRONG, INDEPENDENT.

Kellen loved this kid. The feeling was more than human. It was feral, too, and Kellen would do anything to protect Rae from threat—and had. “I know. I’m coming. It’s so much more fun to listen to you play than practice myself. You’re good and I’m…awful.”

“I’m not good. I’m just better than you.” Rae came over and wrapped her arms around Kellen’s neck, hugged and laughed. “But Luna is better than you.”

“Don’t talk to me about that dog. She howls every time I sit down at the piano. Sometimes she doesn’t even wait until I start playing. The traitor.” Kellen glared at the dog, and once again her brain—which had developed this ability after that shot to the head—sorted through the files of identity cards to read:

LUNA:

FEMALE, FULL-SIZED POODLE/AUSTRALIAN CATTLE DOG/AT LEAST ONE OTHER BREED, 50LBS, RED COAT, BROWN EYES, STRONGLY MUSCLED. RESCUED BY RAE AND MAX WHILE KELLEN RECOVERED FROM SURGERY. FAMILY MEMBER. RAE’S FRIEND, COMPANION, PROTECTOR. MUSIC LOVER.

Luna watched Kellen in return, head resting on her paws, waiting for her chance to sing a solo protest to Kellen’s inept rendition of “Silver Bells.”

“Everybody’s a critic.” Rae set the timer. “Come on. Ten minutes of scales, then you only have to practice for thirty minutes.”

“Why do I have to practice ‘Silver Bells’? Christmas isn’t for seven months.”

“So you’ll have mastered it by the time the season rolls around.”

“I used to like that song.”

“We all used to like that song.” Rae took Kellen’s left hand and tugged. “Mom, come on. You know you feel better afterward.”

Kellen allowed herself to be brought to her feet. “I’m going to do something wild and crazy. I’m going to start learning ‘When the Saints Go Marching In.’ It’s the next song in the book, and I like it.”

“You can learn anything you want after you practice your scales and work on ‘Silver Bells’ for fifteen minutes.”

No one wanted to be inside today, certainly not Rae Di Luca, certainly not Kellen Adams Di Luca, certainly not upstairs in their private quarters in the Yearning Sands Resort. Not when spring had come to the Washington state Pacific Coast. April and May’s drenching rains turned the world a soggy brown. Then, on the first of June, one day of blazing sunshine created green that spread across the coastal plain.

Kellen made her way through the ten minutes of scales—the dog remained quiescent for those—then began plunking out “Silver Bells.” 

As she struggled with the same passage, her right hand fingers responding only sporadically, Luna started with a slight whine that grew in intensity. At the first high howl, Kellen turned to the dog. 

“Look, this isn’t easy for me, either.”

Luna sat, head cocked, one ear up, one ear down, brown eyes pleading with her.

“I would love to stop,” Kellen told her and turned back to the piano. “How about a different tune? Let’s try ‘When the Saints Go Marching In.’”

She played the first few notes and out of the corner of her eye, she saw the dog subside. Then, as she worked on a tricky passage, made the same mistake, time after time, the dog sat up again, lifted her nose and howled in mourning for the slaughter of the song.

Rae giggled, and when her mother glowered, the child controlled herself. “Come on, Luna, I’ll take you outside.”

The dog didn’t budge.

“She thinks she’s helping you,” Rae explained. “Come on, Luna. Come on!” She coaxed her out the door, turned back to Kellen and said sternly, “Twenty more minutes!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Kellen struggled on, trying to make her recalcitrant fingers do her bidding. Even when she finally got the notes right, it wasn’t a piano tune so much as jack-in-the-box music. When at last the timer went off, she slumped over the keyboard and stared at the fingers of her right hand.

They were trying to atrophy, to curl in and refuse to do her bidding ever again. But the physical therapists assured her she could combat this. She had to create new nerve ways, train another part of her brain to handle the work, and since two hands were better than one and her right hand was her dominant hand, the battle was worth fighting. But every day, the forty minutes at the keyboard left her drained and discouraged. 

Behind her, Max said, “Turn around and let me rub your hands.”

She noticed he did not say, That was good. Or even, That was better.

Max didn’t tell lies.

Kellen sighed and swiveled on the piano bench. Again that Rolodex in her brain clicked in:

MAX DI LUCA:

MALE, 38YO, 6’5″, 220LBS, ITALIAN-AMERICAN, FORMER FOOTBALL PLAYER. HANDSOME, TANNED, CURLY BLACK HAIR, BROWN EYES SURROUNDED BY LONG BLACK LASHES. ONCE HIGH UP IN THE DI LUCA FAMILY CORPORATION, STEPPED DOWN TO RAISE HIS DAUGHTER, NOW DIRECTOR OF THE FAMILY’S YEARNING SANDS RESORT ON THE WASHINGTON COAST. KIND, GENEROUS, RESPONSIBLE, LOVING. A STICKLER FOR DUTY. FAR TOO MUCH WILLPOWER, WHICH WAS IRRITATING TO KELLEN IN MATTERS RELATING TO THEIR MARITAL STATE.

He took her right hand gently in both of his and, starting at the wrist, he massaged her palm, her thumb, her fingers. He used a lavender-scented oil, and stretched and worked the muscles and bones while she moaned with pleasure.

He listened with a slight smile, and when she looked into his face, she realized his lips looked fuller, he had a dark flush over his cheekbones and his nostrils flared as he breathed. She looked down at his jeans, leaned close and whispered, “Max, I’m done with practice. Why don’t we wander up to our bedroom and I’ll rub your…hand, too.”

He met her eyes. He stopped his massage. Except for the rise and fall of his chest, he was frozen in that pose of incipient passion.

Then he sat back and sighed. “Doctor says no.”

“Doctor said be careful.” 

“Woman, if I could be careful, I would. As it is, nothing is best.”

“I am torn between being flattered and frustrated.” She thought about it. “Mostly frustrated.”

“I’m just fine.” Max didn’t usually resort to sarcasm, so that told her a lot. Married almost two years and no sex. He was a good man, but he was coming to the end of his patience.

“If we’re refraining because we’re worried I’m going to pop a blood vessel while in the throes of passion, I’d like to point out there are solutions that you might enjoy.”

“That isn’t fair to you.”

“You’re massaging my hand. That’s pretty wonderful.”

“Not the same.” Again he took her tired hand and went to work.

Bitterly she said, “Kellen’s Brain. It’s like a bad sci-fi fantasy.”

He laughed. “It’s improving all the time.” When he had made her hand relax and Kellen relax with it, he said, “I’ve been thinking—the Di Luca family owns Isla Paraíso off the coast of Northern California. The family bought the island seventy years ago with the idea of placing a resort on the island, but now that doesn’t seem likely. Someone needs to go there, look things over, make decisions about its fate.”

Kellen nodded. “You want to go there? See what you think?”

“Actually, I thought we should all go there.”

He was still working her hand, but with a little too much forcefulness and concentration.

“Ouch,” she said softly.

He pulled away, horrified. “Did I hurt you?”

“Not at all. Except that you’re treating me like a child.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re not telling me what’s really going on. Why do you want to go to this island?”

“I told you—”

“I don’t doubt that what you told me is the truth. But it’s not all the truth. Max, what’s wrong?”

Max sighed, an understatement of a sigh, as if he dreaded what he was about to say. “You’re not going to like it.”

“I gathered that.”

“Mitch Nyugen.”

“What about him? He’s dead.” She remembered she couldn’t always trust Kellen’s Brain. “Isn’t he?”

“Yes. He was buried in the Cape Charade cemetery.”

“Was buried?” Unease stirred in her belly.

“This week, his widow arrived from Wyoming.”

“He wasn’t married.” That brain thing. “Was he?”

“No.” Max was as sure as Kellen was not. “Yet the woman who claimed to be his widow had all the necessary paperwork to have his body exhumed.”

“Oh, no.”

“She had the coffin placed in the chapel. Last night, the undertaker, Arthur Earthman, found her there, with the coffin open. She murdered him, and almost killed his wife, Cynthia. The widow escaped ahead of the sheriff, and she left her calling card.”

Kellen knew. She knew what Max was going to say. “She cut off Mitch’s hands.”

“And took them.” Max looked up at her, his brown eyes wretched with fear. “Mara Philippi is back. And she’s here.”

***

Excerpt from Strangers She Knows by Christina Dodd. Copyright 2019 by Christina Dodd. Reproduced with permission from HQN Books. All rights reserved.

 

 

Author Bio:

Christina Dodd

New York Times bestselling author Christina Dodd writes “edge-of-the-seat suspense” (Iris Johansen) with “brilliantly etched characters, polished writing, and unexpected flashes of sharp humor that are pure Dodd” (ALA Booklist). Her fifty-eight books have been called “scary, sexy, and smartly written” by Booklist and, much to her mother’s delight, Dodd was once a clue in the Los Angeles Times crossword puzzle.

Enter Christina’s worlds and join her mailing list at:
christinadodd.com, Goodreads, BookBub, Twitter, Instagram, & Facebook!

 

Book Blast Participants:



 

 

Book Blast Giveaway:

This is a rafflecopter giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours for Christina Dodd and HQN Books. There will be one (1) winner. The winner will receive an Amazon.com Gift Card. The giveaway begins on September 17, 2019 and runs through September 26, 2019. Void where prohibited.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

 

Get More Great Reads at Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours

 

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’ talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I’m an Amazon affiliate/product images are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Monday Mini – Craven Street by E J Stevens @EJStevensAuthor

Posted on by

I have seen E J Stevens name bandied about and even follow her newsletter, so why I haven’t read or reviewed any of her work before surprised me. LOL So I set out to correct that and picked up a review copy of Craven Street, which was released 6.25.19.

Craven Street (Whitechapel Paranormal Society, #0.5, Ivy Granger Psychic Detective, #0.10)

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The cover has an eerie vibe and I do I love the location, Whitechapel. It made me feel as if Jack The Ripper was looking over my shoulder as I walked the streets…or should I say ran, because there be monsters here.

I also love that the Whitechapel Paranormal Society has an all female unit.

We have plenty of action and sometimes our enemy will be our friend, as the bodies pile up. Gritty, dangerous action in this other worldly battle between good and evil.

Though there is not a cliffhanger, the story is far from over.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Craven Street by E J Stevens.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
3 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

In this spellbinding novella, E.J. Stevens weaves a tale of murder, necromancy, and demonic possession that brings together characters from her Whitechapel Paranormal Society Victorian horror series and award-winning Ivy Granger Psychic Detective urban fantasy series on the fog-shrouded cobblestones of 36 Craven Street.

The discovery of bricked up skeletal remains at 36 Craven Street point to something more diabolical than an illegal anatomy school. The tool marks on the bones, arcane sigils of great power, indicate more than mere butchery, more than enlightened experimentation. The signs, omens, and portents support the crown’s greatest fears. A great evil is being unleashed upon the gaslit streets of London, a blood-drenched shadow reaching skeletal fingers beyond the slums of Whitechapel.

We must stamp out this demonic plague for the sake of our Queen, our Country, and our immortal souls. – Cora Drummond, Whitechapel Paranormal Society

Collecting human souls is a thankless job, nearly as tedious as acting as solicitor to the fae. But when the demon Forneus enters an opium den searching for men eager to trade their souls for the ill-smelling weed, he stumbles on a plot so devious, so heinous, he’s jealous that he hadn’t thought of it himself.

There’s nothing like a maniacal plot to unleash Hell on earth to break the boredom of immortality. – Forneus, Grand Marquis of Hell

The Whitechapel Paranormal Society series is a Victorian horror “dreadpunk” series set in London’s East End. The Ivy Granger Psychic Detective series is an award-winning urban fantasy series known for heart-pounding action, quirky characters, and supernatural horrors.

Whitechapel Paranormal Society novels Eeper Weeper and One for Sorrow coming July and October 2019.

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’ talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I’m an Amazon affiliate/product images are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!

Free Book & Giveaway – Lion Shifters by Ella Wilde #EllaWilde @SDSXXTours

Posted on by
A Lion’s Cage
Lion Shifters Prequel
by Ella Wilde
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Clean Paranormal Romance
Shifts happen. Hearts change. Africa awaits.
Life as a slave in the fight pits of Kenya is vicious and brutally short, and no one knows this better than lion shifter Lazarus Kiprop. As a prized champion, he lives with blood on his hands and guilt in his heart. He’s survived longer than most, at a cost. With no end in sight, Lazarus has given up on ever seeing another sunrise. The last thing he needs is a vampire youngling taunting him with impossible promises of freedom.
A newly made vampire, Willow has gaping holes in her memory and a burning desire for revenge. With less than a week before her new master arrives to claim her, she’s determined to find a way out of captivity. And if the leather-clad guy in the cell next door doesn’t believe it’s possible? That’s too bad, because she’s going, with or without him. But while Willow may be able to escape her cage, will she be able to escape her heart?
“A Lion’s Cage” is the prequel to “The Lion Shifters” series.
Escape to a land where everything is possible.
Start your adventure today!
**FREE at all retailers!!**
A King’s Pride
Lion Shifters Book 1
Emma Knight is in Kenya to bury a witch, and then she’s leaving. But hostile forces are pushing her into a role she doesn’t want. When Emma breaks a cardinal rule and rescues a lion Shifter, she finds herself at a dangerous crossroads. Does she move on, or risk her secrets and her heart to save the lion’s Pride and establish peace in Nairobi?
Lion Shifter King David Kiprop is on a time-sensitive mission, one that leads him into a poacher’s snare. While he’s relieved to escape the trap, he’s not happy to owe a life-debt to the snarky, secretive female who rescued him, even if he does find Emma attractive. She’s a bewitching distraction King can’t afford. Too bad the gods have other plans.
Join the Kiprop Pride and escape to a land where everything is possible. Start your adventure today!
“A King’s Pride” is Book 1 in “The Lion Shifters” series. The Lion Shifters is cliffhanger-free and is meant to be read in order for the best reading experience
**Only .99 cents!!**
A Demon’s Wing
Lion Shifters Book 2
Summoned to Kenya by a dying witch, Grace Elkhart can’t wait to leave. She agrees to stay only long enough to help her cousin Emma establish some law and order in Nairobi. Being a Demon, Grace has the power to do that. But settle down? Join Emma’s Pride? There are too many reasons against it, starting with Jed Kiprop, the only man to ever break her Demon heart.
As a lion Shifter, Jed knows he needs to join a Pride… eventually. Now that his eldest brother King has formed one, it should be an easy choice. Except his brother’s mate has a Demon in her family. And that’s one Paranorm Jed refuses to share space with, especially when that Demon’s name is Grace, a woman he once loved before she betrayed him.
When a family tragedy and a king’s command force Jed and Grace to work together, sparks fly despite their mutual distrust. But will they be able to overcome their pride and prejudice in time to save the Pride and each other from an ancient enemy?
A Tiger’s Eye
Lion Shifters Book 3
Fun-loving Tana “Tiger” Shah is about to lose everything, including her freedom. When her estranged mother shows up at her doorstep with an indecent proposal, Tiger must make a decision: lose her home in order to pay off her family’s debt and preserve her honor, or marry a man she doesn’t know. Although her heart says no, love doesn’t pay the bills. Tiger will do whatever it takes to protect her family, even if it means turning her back on her own dreams.
Lion Shifter Ezekiel Kiprop isn’t one to play games, especially if the safety of his Pride is at risk. When it comes to his duty to defend his king, he’s never hesitated until now. And that’s what makes Tiger so dangerous: she makes him forget all reason when she’s around. Determined to focus on an unknown challenger to his brother’s throne, Ezekiel shuts down his feelings. As fate would have it, his lion has other ideas, especially when it comes to Tiger. But will their love survive the truth Tiger has been hiding?
A Lion’s Price
Lion Shifters Book 4
Rebecca Keitany’s life has been one battle after another, until the moment she’s hired by a witch to work at a tea shop. Finally, it seems Rebecca’s future is looking bright: she’s got a stable job, and an art dealer is interested in her paintings. But that’s before she attracts the unwanted attention of the powerful Lightning Bird who has one simple request, and he won’t take no for an answer. So the last thing Rebecca needs is to be saddled with Daniel Kiprop, a handsome socialite and brilliant tech developer.
Lion Shifter Daniel is all too willing to offer his expertise to his Pride’s queen. It’s an easy assignment, and then he’ll be back to his normal business, including the endless parties that fill his evenings. All is going according to plan until the night of a vicious attack that changes everything Daniel thought about life, love and the pursuit of happiness. But can he convince Rebecca he’s a changed lion before she takes up the offer of the Lightning Bird and disappears forever?
A Wolf’s Song
Lion Shifters Book 5
It’s going to be a night to remember, and not in a good way. When election chaos combines with the storm of the century, Nairobi becomes an even more dangerous city than usual. The lion Shifters retreat to their Prideland, under strict orders from their king to stay at home.
Trouble is, Isaac Kiprop was never one to follow the rules. While the other lion Shifters settle down for a long night, Isaac has other plans: his last burglary job for the hyena gang. After that, he’ll be free, or so he tells himself. And he’s pretty sure he can get away with it, until a pretty but irritating, know-it-all wolf Shifter crashes his party and his heart.
Lara Kraft is on a mission, one that doesn’t involve Isaac and his never-ending efforts to push her buttons. Her research takes her into the territory of a dangerous criminal game, and all her carefully laid plans go awry. When Lara learns the truth about the gang’s latest assignment, she’ll do anything to stop them. But good intentions have a way of getting complicated, especially when Isaac is involved.
I was born and raised in Kenya. Living up to my name, I decided an office job wasn’t my cup of tea. When I’m not rescuing orphaned elephants or conducting a lion census, I write about people who walk the thin line between the human world and the supernatural. Visit my world at www.ParanormalAfrica.com to receive exclusive gifts and top secret info.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’s talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an Amazon affiliate/product imgaes are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!