A secret duo of romance authors team up under the pseudonym Max Monroe to bring you a sexy, laugh-out-loud new series. Are you ready to meet the Billionaire Bad Boys?
Blind dates? Online dating profiles? Been there, done that.
Georgia Cummings has zero luck with dating, and the era of the internet is not her friend.
No matter how fast she runs, how many corners she turns, she can’t find her way out of this weird, alternate universe where men think dick pics are a replacement for small talk and getting to know a girl. One more crotch selfie and she might write men off for good…
But why can’t she stop fantasizing about him?
Kline Brooks is the quintessential billionaire bad boy—dark, styled, short hair, muscles for days, and a panty-dropping smile.
Except—he isn’t.
As his employee, he won’t touch her with a ten foot pole.
But she won’t touch him either.
Too bad their hormones missed the memo.
Disclaimer:
If you’re the type of woman who prefers crotch selfies to small talk, this book isn’t for you.
If you enjoy random men you’ve never met filling up your inbox with dirty words and porn—for reasons focused more towards diddling your donut than laughing at the absurdity—this book isn’t for you.
If you HATE laughing, this book isn’t for you.
If you want your male leads to grunt, thrust like jack rabbits, and have one-track minds that prefer a nice pair of tits to brains every hour of every day for the rest of forever, well, then, this book still isn’t for you.
But.
If you enjoy a good swoon, a hearty laugh, witty banter, and some hot as f*@% f*@%ing, then consider Georgia Cummings your Girl Friday and Kline Brooks your next irresistible book boyfriend
So ………………..
The disclaimer annoys me.
Actually, the whole blurb annoys me and does not, at all, represent the book. I think I would have liked the story better if it had mirrored the blurb.
I mean, I guess I know what they’re going for here – if you like a more serious story, then you may not appreciate the humor in this story.
And there is humor. I personally respond to stories of relationships that have a solid sense of humor interlaced throughout, but I sort of feel like this story DOES contain lots of grunts, growls and other choice sex terms throughout.
In fact, almost TOO much.
I felt like the story spent the majority of time on the sex part of their relationship. And that DOES NOT do it for me.
Let me back up a minute …
This story takes place between a high-ranking person within the company and the owner/boss of the company. Nothing new here. It’s a common fantasy of many women to have a sexual relationship with a powerful man, someone who can make or break your career. There is an element of danger in the relationship, makes it exciting on some level.
But the authors are trying to sell me on the idea that these two, very hot, very attractive, very smart individuals have worked closely together for two years before they really notice each other?
I mean, I get noticing each other, maybe a fantasy or two, but the transition between these two work colleagues to so much more happens at warp speed and that ruins the story for me. It’s like, “Excuse me.” To “Oh HI! Let’s have sex!” I like some build up, some teasing, some friction before going right into the nasty.
Not sexy, at least to me.
And the male character is just too perfect. He’s a gentleman. He’s super hot. He’s super rich. He’s super respectful of her feelings and taking her V card.
I mean, that’s great, too bad more men AREN’T like this, but it doesn’t make for a very good story.
It’s sort of boring.
I wanted to see more intellectual interaction between the two. We get it, THEY ARE ATTRACTED TO EACH OTHER AND CAN’T KEEP THEIR HANDS OFF EACH OTHER, but to me, there is so much more to a rich relationship than just sex.
I felt like the characters had potential, I just feel like the authors didn’t take the time to fully flesh them out. Instead, it was all about the sex. Which they wrote in detail, A LOT.
Ho hum.
There are only so many ways one can write about the physical side of a relationship before it becomes … boring.
And the event that temporarily broke them up…..
Come on. Really??? It was so WEAK!
These are two intelligent professionals who both act like children over an event that literally would have taken one phone call and five minutes to explain. Instead, the authors put their characters through some torturous days before clearing the air. It was just trivial and felt contrived. If these two lovebirds, who clearly love each other, have professed their love for one another and crave to be together allow one little text message to tear them apart, are they really meant to be together? What sort of reaction would they have if something really big happened?
I nearly put this story down several times. But then the authors would throw in something funny, or cute, and I would think, “Okay. Here we go. It’s getting better.”
No. Not really.
It’s like the authors know the formula for a cute little romance, threw two characters together, came up with a haphazard back story, a frail, and quite frankly, lame, “deal breaker” into the story and called it a book.
There. Done. Meant our deadline. Whew.
There are two more books in this series so far. I already know who the story in book two will be about based on the epilogue of this book and I already don’t care much for the characters. So I’ll pass, thanks.
I mean, if you haven’t been reading romance for very long, then you’ll likely enjoy this. But if you’re like me, who has been reading romance for years and expects more conflict, more depth, to the story, I wouldn’t recommend it.
Detective Angie Pallorino took down a serial killer permanently and, according to her superiors, with excessive force. Benched on a desk assignment for twelve months, Angie struggles to maintain her sense of identity—if she’s not a detective, who is she? Then a decades-old cold case washes ashore, pulling her into an investigation she recognizes as deeply personal.
Angie’s lover and partner, James Maddocks, sees it, too. But spearheading an ongoing probe into a sex-trafficking ring while keeping Angie’s increasing obsession with her case in check is taking its toll. As startling connections between the parallel investigations emerge, Maddocks realizes he has even more than Angie’s emotional state to worry about.
Driven and desperate to solve her case, Angie goes rogue, risking her relationship, career, and very life in pursuit of answers. She’ll learn that some truths are too painful to bear, and some sacrifices include collateral damage.
But Angie Pallorino won’t let it go. She can’t. It’s not in her blood.
This is the second Angie Pallorino book in the series. I like this character, a lot. She’s strong, independent, not afraid of getting hurt, either physically or emotionally, all in the name of doing what is right.
She’s damaged. And she has demons to work through, but don’t we all, on some level?
I REALLY like how the first book’s case led directly into the second book. You can read this book as a standalone, but the reading The Drowned Girls would make The Lullaby Girl make a bit more sense.
I didn’t give it five stars because I felt like it dragged a bit, but not so much that it yanked me out of the story. I also really like how Ms. White weaves a story around two different cases at once. At first, it’s a little confusing and a bit disorienting, but she soon makes it clear that the cases are tied together somehow and it works.
There were a few editorial mistakes. Missing words that momentarily made me stumble, but they were minor and not a deal breaker.
The story itself was disturbing but believable. Unfortunately, I’m sure there are sex-trafficking rings moving to this day and I’m sure they won’t be going anywhere any time soon. That sort of evil goes hand-in-hand with our fallen world today.
The love story between Angie and James is a bit hard to swallow. They seem too mismatched and the majority of this book they didn’t interact much at all. I don’t doubt their feelings for one another but I do wonder at the motivation for their feelings for one another. I understand where they are coming from but given the personalities I’ve read thus far it almost makes them a couple feel … off. I think the ending, between these two, was too rushed and felt contrived. I would have liked to see them interact more and maybe put off the ending for another book, or two. I feel like these two need more relationship building opportunities, outside of solving cases together.
Though I understand Angie’s anger and confusion, she needs to get herself sorted out first, and allow the reader to see this growth, before she jumps into anything long term with any character. Though to be fair, nothing concrete was resolved in this book between the two, just implied.
I didn’t really see the bad guy coming till near the end of the book, which was a nice surprise. I like how Angie’s parent’s relationship was complicated and a by product of their unfortunate circumstances. It’s hard to write anything more about that situation as I feel like that was a central part of the book’s premise and I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but suffice it to say, it was believable, on a more disturbing, realistic level.
I am definitely looking forward to reading book three in Angie Pallorino’s series.
A secret government unit, a group of renegade paranormal investigators… and a murder no one else can crack.
Though haunted by the recent deaths of two teammates, Jackson Crow knows that the living commit the most heinous crimes.
A police officer utilizing her paranormal intuition, Angela Hawkins already has her hands full of mystery and bloodshed.
But one assignment calls to them too strongly to resist. In a historic mansion in New Orleans’s French Quarter, a senator’s wife falls to her death. Most think she jumped; some say she was pushed. And yet others believe she was beckoned by the ghostly spirits inhabiting the house — once the site of a serial killer’s grisly work.
In this seemingly unsolvable case, only one thing is certain: whether supernatural or all too human, crimes of passion will cast Jackson and Angela into danger of losing their lives… and their immortal souls.
So, I finished this book at about 11:30 last night. (Hence the reason I was a zombie at work today), so that should tell you something. I was interested enough to continue reading well past the time I knew I should be reading.
I haven’t read anything from Ms. Graham, though I’ve seen her name everywhere and have been meaning to. So when I saw her name on Kindle Unlimited, I thought “why not?”
I’m not typically into “horror” books or like any stories dealing with the supernatural – it just spooks me. Not the content itself but because I believe in demon spirits and the possibility of these spirits manifesting and making its presence known in my life.
No thank you.
But my curiosity got the better of me and I read it.
The writing itself is not bad. It flowed easily and I wasn’t jerked out of the story by awkward phrasing or stilted conversation on the characters’ part. Though I was personally not bothered by the sheer number of “main characters,” the author did a good job keeping them straight, I can see that being confusing for a lot of readers.
There are a lot of characters and there is a lot going on at a given time.
But again, Ms. Graham does a good job keeping Jackson in our sights and the character himself divvies out responsibilities/tasks to the characters so the reader knows who is doing what, where.
The book opens with the prologue, which in essence, is the crime. The rest of the book works on solving “who dun it.”
A group of misfit characters are assigned to the job by one FBI agent who appears at the beginning of the book but then just becomes a character in the background. All of these characters who form the team have some “special” talent. Though it’s not entirely clear yet who can do what, Ms. Graham does a good job of giving us hints so we have a general idea of what roles these characters play in this task force.
The crime itself is … interesting. It’s an interesting premise, I will give her that. And the way the characters go about investigating is organized and makes sense.
However, the premise behind the story, of ghosts that can be seen, and sometimes even physically felt, just felt contrived to me.
Again, I tend to roll my eyes at paranormal stories. On one hand, they are creepy as shit, and on the other hand, they are almost ridiculous, which I would think would be a writer’s challenge for this type of genre, the sheer challenge of “selling” this premise to the reader without making it look over-the-top or just plain silly.
Most of the characters in the group can see dead people.
It’s hard to write that sentence without smirking. I feel like there was an idea for this story and then the author just decided to throw in some supernatural element to make it more interesting. It was definitely more interesting but for me, it just didn’t work.
Not to mention, Jackson and his love interest, Angela. The amount of time that these two started a physical relationship really turned me off. They knew each for what, TWO DAYS before it started getting steamy. And the fact that the rest of the team, again, all strangers and all just meeting, were perfectly fine with it did not appeal to me.
String me along!
I think, for me, if Ms. Graham is going to make this team a series, and it looks like she does, then let’s slow things down a bit. Let’s see the relationship grow, let’s see the characters tease each other and get to know each other before doing the nasty.
That completely turned me off.
In addition, the brainwashing church cult aspect of this story stuck out like a sore thumb, too.
I felt like the author took some story ideas, threw them against the wall and kept the ones that stuck. It felt hodge-podged and disjointed. Not to mention the “bad guy’s” reason for bringing the team in in the first place was sort of a weird, thin reason, in my opinion.
Overall, I’m still on the fence if I want to read any more in this series. Granted, the paranormal story lines are not my thing but I don’t think I’m ready to completely write this series off yet. I downloaded books two and three from Kindle Unlimited – let’s see if I like them enough to continue reading the series.
This is only the second time I’ve completed the Goodreads Reading challenge. The first time was in 2014 where I read 66 books. This year, I read 85. A new record.
I read ZERO books in 2017. Shame on me.
I have quit watching TV. It’s useless and I usually end the program feeling disappointed. “What did I just watch? Can I get my 90 minutes back, please?” I’ve lost interest in shows though I can’t promise that I won’t watch a bit when (if?) I get back to using my treadmill.
But that’s a different post.
Here are my reading stats for 2018:
I think one of the reasons I read so many books this year is because I found a lot of good books to read. I’m a member of Kindle Unlimited. I read exclusively on my Kindle. I haven’t bought a “real” book in years. My Kindle is my most prized possession.
I rarely download and read a book with less than four stars. I feel like the ratings are an excellent indicator whether a book is good or not and so far, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by my picks.
Here are MY five-star picks from the books I read this year (warning, there are quite a few!):
Beneath A Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan
Based on the true story of a forgotten hero, Beneath a Scarlet Sky is the triumphant, epic tale of one young man’s incredible courage and resilience during one of history’s darkest hours.
Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. He’s a normal Italian teenager—obsessed with music, food, and girls—but his days of innocence are numbered. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior.
In an attempt to protect him, Pino’s parents force him to enlist as a German soldier—a move they think will keep him out of combat. But after Pino is injured, he is recruited at the tender age of eighteen to become the personal driver for Adolf Hitler’s left hand in Italy, General Hans Leyers, one of the Third Reich’s most mysterious and powerful commanders.
Now, with the opportunity to spy for the Allies inside the German High Command, Pino endures the horrors of the war and the Nazi occupation by fighting in secret, his courage bolstered by his love for Anna and for the life he dreams they will one day share.
I don’t normally like war stories, but Pino’s love for Anna was inspiring and his determination to reach her was admirable.
A Criminal Defense by Williams Myers
Losing the trial of his life could mean losing everything.
When a young reporter is found dead and a prominent Philadelphia businessman is accused of her murder, Mick McFarland finds himself involved in the case of his life. The defendant, David Hanson, was Mick’s close friend in law school, and the victim, a TV news reporter, had reached out to Mick for legal help only hours before her death.
Mick’s played both sides of Philadelphia’s courtrooms. As a top-shelf defense attorney and former prosecutor, he knows all the tricks of the trade. And he’ll need every one of them to win.
But as the trial progresses, he’s disturbed by developments that confirm his deepest fears. This trial, one that already hits too close to home, may jeopardize his firm, his family—everything. Now Mick’s only way out is to mastermind the most brilliant defense he’s ever spun, one that will cross every legal and moral boundary.
This story had some very clever twists and the ending was justified and unexpected.
The Naturalist by Andrew Mayne
Professor Theo Cray is trained to see patterns where others see chaos. So when mutilated bodies found deep in the Montana woods leave the cops searching blindly for clues, Theo sees something they missed. Something unnatural. Something only he can stop.
As a computational biologist, Theo is more familiar with digital code and microbes than the dark arts of forensic sleuthing. But a field trip to Montana suddenly lands him in the middle of an investigation into the bloody killing of one of his former students. As more details, and bodies, come to light, the local cops determine that the killer is either a grizzly gone rogue… or Theo himself. Racing to stay one step ahead of the police, Theo must use his scientific acumen to uncover the killer. Will he be able to become as cunning as the predator he hunts—before he becomes its prey?
I found this book surprisingly gripping. It’s a slow starter but stick with it.
True Fiction by Lee Goldberg
#1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Goldberg hits the ground running in a breakneck thriller where truth and fiction collide for the unluckiest writer alive.
When a passenger jet crashes onto the beaches of Waikiki, bestselling thriller writer Ian Ludlow knows the horrific tragedy wasn’t an accident.
Years before, the CIA enlisted Ian to dream up terrorism scenarios to prepare the government for nightmares they couldn’t imagine. Now one of those schemes has come true, and Ian is the only person alive who knows how it was done…and who is behind the plot. That makes him too dangerous to live.
Ian goes on the run, sweeping up an innocent bystander in his plight–Margo French, a dog walker and aspiring singer. They are pursued by assassins and an all-seeing global-intelligence network that won’t stop until Ian and Margo are dead. Ian has written thrillers like this before, but this time he doesn’t know how it’s going to end–or if he will be alive to find out.
Action packed and hilarious.
It Ends with Her by Brianna Labuskes
He started the game. She’ll end it.
FBI special agent Clarke Sinclair doesn’t give up easily. She’s spent years tracking serial killer Simon Cross, forced to follow his twisted clues and photographs across the country. Clarke knows that Cross selects only redheaded women and that he doesn’t target another victim until Clarke discovers the previous one.
He’s never broken pattern…until now.
A girl has already gone missing in upstate New York when a second one is kidnapped—a blonde. The killer’s MO has changed, sending Clarke back to the drawing board. The closer she gets to the truth, the deeper she’s drawn into an inescapable trap made just for Clarke. Whatever Cross’s ultimate game is, it ends with her.
A deadly game of cat-and-mouse with multiple points of view.
A Dark Lure by Loreth Anne White
Twelve years ago, Sarah Baker was abducted by the Watt Lake Killer and sexually assaulted for months before managing to escape. The killer was caught, but Sarah lost everything: her marriage, her child, and the life she loved.
Struggling with PTSD, Sarah changes her name to Olivia West and finds sanctuary working on Broken Bar Ranch. But as her scars finally begin to heal, a cop involved with her horrific case remains convinced the Watt Lake Killer is still out there. He sets a lure for the murderer, and a fresh body is discovered. Now Olivia must face the impossible—could the butcher be back, this time to finish the job?
As a frigid winter isolates the ranch, only one person can help Olivia: Cole McDonough, a writer, adventurer, and ranch heir who stirs long-dormant feelings in her. But this time, Olivia’s determination to shut out her past may destroy more than her chance at love. It could cost her her life.
A dark novel of survival and healing.
The Gravity of Us by Brittainy C. Cherry
Graham Russell and I weren’t made for one another.
I was driven by emotion; he was apathetic. I dreamed while he lived in nightmares. I cried when he had no tears to shed.
Despite his frozen heart and my readiness to run, we sometimes shared seconds. Seconds when our eyes locked and we saw each other’s secrets. Seconds when his lips tasted my fears, and I breathed in his pains. Seconds when we both imagined what it would be like to love one another.
Those seconds left us floating, but when reality knocked us sideways, gravity forced us to descend.
Graham Russell wasn’t a man who knew how to love, and I wasn’t a woman who knew how to either. Yet if I had the chance to fall again, I’d fall with him forever.
Even if we were destined to crash against solid ground.
Again, stick with it, you’ll thank me later.
The Girl on the Bridge by James Hayman
From New York Times bestselling author of the acclaimed McCabe and Savage series comes an electrifying new thriller of taut and twisted suspense.
On a freezing December night, Hannah Reindel leaps to her death from an old railway bridge into the rushing waters of the river below. Yet the real cause of death was trauma suffered twelve years earlier when Hannah was plucked from a crowd of freshman girls at a college fraternity party, drugged, and then viciously assaulted by six members of the college football team.
Those responsible have never faced or feared justice. Until now. A month after Hannah’s death, Joshua Thorne—former Holden College quarterback and now a Wall Street millionaire—is found murdered, his body bound to a bed and brutally mutilated.
When a second attacker dies in mysterious circumstances, detectives Mike McCabe and Maggie Savage know they must find the killer before more of Hannah’s attackers are executed. But they soon realize, these murders may not be simple acts of revenge, but something far more sinister.
The Girl on the Bridge is a compelling and harrowing tale of suspense that once read will not easily be forgotten.
Disturbing story but a satisfying ending.
Stuck-Up Suit by Vi Keeland / Penelope Ward
Four consecutive weeks on the New York Times and #1 in Romance.
It started out like any other morning on the train.
Until I became mesmerized by the guy sitting across the aisle.
He was barking at someone on his phone like he ruled the world.
Who did the stuck-up suit think he was…God?
Actually, he looked like a God. That was about it.
When his stop came, he got up suddenly and left. So suddenly, he dropped his phone on the way out.
I might have picked it up.
I might have gone through all of his photos and called some of the numbers.
I might have held onto the mystery man’s phone for days―until I finally conjured up the courage to return it.
When I traipsed my ass across town to his fancy company, he refused to see me.
So, I left the phone on the empty desk outside the arrogant jerk’s office.
I might have also left behind a dirty picture on it first though.
I didn’t expect him to text back.
I didn’t expect our exchanges to be hot as hell.
I didn’t expect to fall for him―all before we even met.
The two of us couldn’t have been any more different.
Yet, you know what they say about opposites.
When we finally came face to face, we found out opposites sometimes do more than attract―we consumed each other.
Nothing could have prepared me for the ride he took me on. And I certainly wasn’t prepared for where I’d wind up when the ride was over.
All good things must come to an end, right? Except our ending was one I didn’t see coming.
Cute and steamy.
Wait for it by Mariana Zapata
If anyone ever said being an adult was easy, they hadn’t been one long enough. Diana Casillas can admit it: she doesn’t know what the hell she’s doing half the time. How she’s made it through the last two years of her life without killing anyone is nothing short of a miracle. Being a grown-up wasn’t supposed to be so hard. With a new house, two little boys she inherited the most painful possible way, a giant dog, a job she usually loves, more than enough family, and friends, she has almost everything she could ever ask for. Except for a boyfriend. Or a husband. But who needs either one of those?
Three words: The. Sock. Story. I laughed a full five minutes, tears streaming down my face, after reading that part. I don’t feel compelled to write reviews very often, but this story, this story was sweet, raw, selfless, touching and real all at once. Diana was strong, vulnerable, independent and loving, I could easily be her friend. Her sense of humor had me smiling, chuckling and full out laughing multiple times through her story. I loved all of the characters in this story. I loved the simple complexity of this story. I loved the writing, it was easy, real, didn’t feel forced or stilted and it never, not once, jerked me out of the story. I felt like I was standing right alongside Diana every step of the way. I felt every emotion and every struggle as if I was one of her many friends helping to live her life. This story pulled every emotion out of my body so that not only was I satisfied when it ended, I was also a little relieved. I don’t have many friends, and that’s by choice. People grate on my last nerve – too whiny, too selfish, too self absorbed, too ignorant too …. something. The few friends I have are more like Diana, well rounded, independent, compassionate, honest, funny as hell and just good PEOPLE. This is why I loved Diana. We need more Diana’s in this word. Thank you for an excellent story, Ms. Zapata.
I have since read a few more books by Mariana Zapata and she’s fast becoming one of my favorite authors. CHECK HER OUT.
The Ghostwriter by Alessandra Torre
Four years ago, I lied. I stood in front of the police, my friends and family, and made up a story, my best one yet. And all of them believed me.
I wasn’t surprised. Telling stories is what made me famous. Fifteen bestsellers. Millions of fans. Fame and fortune.
Now, I have one last story to write. It’ll be my best one yet, with a jaw-dropping twist that will leave them stunned and gasping for breath.
They say that sticks and stones will break your bones, but this story? It will be the one that kills me.
This book is not a romance. It is contemporary fiction, but very suspenseful in nature. It is about a famous romance author and a dark secret she keeps
The Memory of Butterflies by Grace Green
To keep a devastating family secret from being revealed, a young mother’s desperate lies could end up destroying everything, and everyone, she loves. The Memory of Butterflies is a poignant story of family and forgiveness—of knowing when to let go and when to hold each other close.
Hannah Cooper’s daughter is leaving for college soon. The change is bittersweet. A single mother since the age of eighteen, Hannah isn’t eager to confront the pain of being alone, but she’s determined not to let her own hang-ups keep Ellen from the future she deserves. As Ellen’s high school graduation approaches, Hannah decides it’s time to return to her roots in Cooper’s Hollow along Virginia’s beautiful and rustic Cub Creek.
With the help of longtime friend Roger Westray, Hannah devotes her energies to building a new house on the site of the old family home, destroyed in a fire more than a decade ago. But Hannah’s entire adult life has revolved around one very big secret. And her new beginning comes with unanticipated risks that will cost her far more than she could have imagined—perhaps more than she can survive.
When a confrontation forces Hannah to expose her secret, the truth may destroy her beloved daughter. Hannah is prepared to sacrifice everything to protect her family, but can their lives and their bond withstand the seismic shift that’s coming?
(Geez, I didn’t realize how many 5-star books I read over this past year – but that’s a good thing!)
Drive by Kate Stewart
Music . . . the heart’s greatest librarian.
The average song is three and a half minutes long; those three and a half minutes could lead to a slow blink, a glimpse of the past, or catapult the soul into heart-shattering nostalgia.
At the height of my career, I had the life I wanted, the life I’d always envisioned. I’d found my tempo, my rhythm. Then I received a phone call that left me off key.
You see, my favorite songs had a way of playing simultaneously. I was in love with one man’s beats and another’s lyrics. But when it came to the soundtrack of a life, how could anyone choose a favorite song? So, to erase any doubt, I ditched my first-class ticket and decided to take a drive, fixed on the rearview.
Two days.
One playlist.
And the long road home to the man who was waiting for me.
Into the Light by Aleatha Romig
Sara Adams awakes blind, unable to remember the most basic details of her life, but her darkness seems a blessing when she discovers the terrors of The Light.
Stella Montgomery investigates the news on the mean streets of Detroit, where she’s noticed a disturbing trend: young women are vanishing. When her best friend disappears, Stella investigates—despite warnings from her police detective boyfriend—following a twisted trail that leads her through the city’s most dangerous and forsaken precincts. There she uncovers something more sinister than she could have imagined: a shadowy organization known as The Light, led by the enigmatic Father Gabriel.
As Sara struggles to understand her place in the strange world she’s awakened to—an oppressive cult demanding unquestioning obedience—and her feelings for Jacob, the husband she can’t recall and whose harsh and tender attentions confuse and beguile her, Stella risks all to discover the truth. But enlightenment always comes with a price…
Away from the Dark by Aleatha Romig
(I loved her other book so much, I dove into her next one).
Nine months ago, Sara Adams awoke with no memory. The man holding her hand told her she’s a member of The Light, a tight-knit religious group led by the terrifying and charismatic Father Gabriel. As a woman in the community of The Light, her duty is to be unquestionably obedient and to submit to the will of her husband.
But as Sara’s memory starts to return and she remembers her past, she sees that everything she’s been told is a lie. The Light is an insidious and dangerous organization, and its corrupting influence reaches well beyond the confines of the remote campus where Sara is being held.
With everything at stake, Sara struggles to sort out her true memories from her indoctrination. The desire to escape consumes her, but who can she trust? And which other followers of The Light were forced into this life, brainwashed to believe they belonged? The more she remembers, the more it becomes clear that Jacob, the man who calls himself her husband, is keeping shattering secrets of his own.
But Sara cannot flee alone, leaving innocents behind. She must fight to extinguish The Light.
The Drowned Girls by Lorenth Anne White
He surfaced two years ago. Then he disappeared …
But Detective Angie Pallorino never forgot the violent rapist who left a distinctive calling card—crosses etched into the flesh of his victim’s foreheads.
When a comatose Jane Doe is found in a local cemetery, sexually assaulted, mutilated, and nearly drowned, Angie is struck by the eerie similarities to her earlier unsolved rapes. Could he be back?
Then the body of a drowned young woman floats up in the Gorge, also bearing the marks of the serial rapist, and the hunt for a predator becomes a hunt for a killer. Assigned to the joint investigative task force, Angie is more than ready to prove that she has what it takes to break into the all-male homicide division. But her private life collides with her professional ambitions when she’s introduced to her temporary partner, James Maddocks—a man she’d met the night before in an intense, anonymous encounter.
Together, Angie and Maddocks agree to put that night behind them. But as their search for the killer intensifies so does their mutual desire. And Angie’s forays into the mind of a monster shake lose some unsettling secrets about her own past . . .
How can she fight for the truth when it turns out her whole life is a lie?
From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata
If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one.
After seventeen years—and countless broken bones and broken promises—she knows her window to compete in figure skating is coming to a close.
But when the offer of a lifetime comes in from an arrogant idiot she’s spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in the way of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything.
Including Ivan Lukov.
The Wall of Winnipeg by Mariana Zapata
Vanessa Mazur knows she’s doing the right thing. She shouldn’t feel bad for quitting. Being an assistant/housekeeper/fairy godmother to the top defensive end in the National Football Organization was always supposed to be temporary. She has plans and none of them include washing extra-large underwear longer than necessary.
But when Aiden Graves shows up at her door wanting her to come back, she’s beyond shocked.
For two years, the man known as The Wall of Winnipeg couldn’t find it in him to tell her good morning or congratulate her on her birthday. Now? He’s asking for the unthinkable.
What do you say to the man who is used to getting everything he wants?
Arrogant Devil by R.S. Grey
Everyone in Cedar Creek, Texas, knows Jack McNight is an arrogant devil. Physically, I get it: he’s tan and fit, with coal-black hair that’s clearly been scorched by hellfire. Oh, and his personality? It burns just as hot.
When I show up on the doorstep of Blue Stone Ranch, I’m run-down and rockin’ my last pair of underwear. I’m hoping for a savior, but instead, I find him.
My opinion of Jack is marred by a dismal first impression, but his opinion of me is tainted even before I arrive. He’s heard I’m a spoiled princess there to take advantage of his goodwill. To him, I’m more trouble than I’m worth.
Our button-pushing banter should get under my skin. His arrogance should be a major turn-off. Problem is, devils are known to offer their own form of temptation.
Every one of his steely glares sends a shiver down my spine.
Every steamy encounter leaves me reeling.
Sure, it could be the Texas heat messing with my head, but there’s no way I’ll survive the summer without silencing him with a kiss and wrestling him out of those Wranglers.
Who knows…going to bed with the devil might just be the salvation I’ve been looking for all along.
Spilled Milk by K.L Randis
Brooke Nolan is a battered child who makes an anonymous phone call about the escalating brutality in her home.
When social services jeopardize her safety condemning her to keep her father’s secret, it’s a glass of spilled milk at the dinner table that forces her to speak about the cruelty she’s been hiding. In her pursuit for safety and justice Brooke battles a broken system that pushes to keep her father in the home.
When jury members and a love interest congregate to inspire her to fight, she risks losing the support of family and comes to the realization that some people simply do not want to be saved.
Spilled Milk is a novel of shocking narrative, triumph and resiliency.
The Fourth Monkey by J.D. Barker
For over five years, the Four Monkey Killer has terrorized the residents of Chicago. When his body is found, the police quickly realize he was on his way to deliver one final message, one which proves he has taken another victim who may still be alive.
As the lead investigator on the 4MK task force, Detective Sam Porter knows even in death, the killer is far from finished. When he discovers a personal diary in the jacket pocket of the body, Porter finds himself caught up in the mind of a psychopath, unraveling a twisted history in hopes of finding one last girl, all while struggling with personal demons of his own.
With only a handful of clues, the elusive killer’s identity remains a mystery. Time is running out and the Four Monkey Killer taunts from beyond the grave in this masterfully written fast-paced thriller.
My review of this book:
I never thought I would say this, but I actually grew to like, (respect?), the bad guy. You couldn’t help but feel sorry for his circumstances. This story was full of twists and the author did an excellent of job of wrapping the plot up into a white box and tying it off with a black string for the reader. Highly recommend. Excellent read.
And there you have it! Wow, sorry for the long post, but I guess 21 five-star books out of 85 is pretty good. I HIGHLY recommend any of these books, if you’re looking for something decent to read this next year, and if you’re part of Kindle Unlimited, you can get them for free!
I’m looking forward to “cracking” open (though I don’t actually read physical books, Ebooks for the win for me) a new set of interesting books this year. I hope I have as good of luck with these next batches of book that I did in 2018.
You can keep track of what I’m reading via the Goodreads’ Widget in the right-hand column, if you’re so inclined.
I’m certain I wouldn’t have read this many books so far this year without this challenge. I like to challenge myself – I like deadlines because they (sometimes) push me to actually GET SOMETHING DONE.
All across London, single mothers are vanishing. Margaret Hill, mother of two, walked out of her house two months before, never seen again. A month later, Carrie-Anne Morgans takes her two-year-old son for a walk in the park and disappears leaving him alone in his stroller. Lorna McCauley leaves her London flat in the early hours of the morning to buy medicine for her sick child and disappears.
Newly promoted Detective Inspector Theophilus Blackwell is assigned the case of Lorna McCauley, which, on the outside seems to be a simple case of mid-life crisis and child abandonment. Elsewhere in London, MI5 analyst, Sophia Evans, is working undercover to catch an animal rights group responsible for targeted bombings.
As her case (and her personal life) fall to pieces, she receives a strange envelope in the mail. It contains a picture of Lorna McCauley s lifeless face along with a daunting code. Now the police and MI5 are forced to work together to stop the murders, and Sophia must find her way into the terrifying mind of a serial killer
My Thoughts
I would have given this book four stars save for one thing: the whole sub-story with Marc. What was the purpose of that? I thought it detracted from the whole story. If the author wanted to give Theo and Sophia an opportunity to meet, there would have been easier, less awkward ways of doing that. I would have preferred to see the entire Marc/bombing story deleted and a blooming interest between Theo and Sophia develop throughout the story. There would have been plenty of emotional conflict given Theo’s wife’s situation. I felt like the whole Marc story was thrown in there as an afterthought and it just didn’t add anything to the story, in my opinion. In fact, it was distracting and a bit annoying, if you want the truth.
Other than than, the story was interesting and moved along nicely.
Just before her fortieth birthday, Mara Jane Mulligan, devoted wife and mother, runs out of bubble bath, and the ensuing panic attack drives her to Canada for more. She realizes that one foamy soak probably won’t cure what ails her, so she takes a 30 day vacation from her life. (What woman doesn’t need one of those?)
Surely her family will understand. Her son’s visiting Grandma, and maybe her husband won’t even miss her. Unfortunately, her husband doesn’t miss much and tracks her to Abundance, a Vancouver bubble bath company.
As her 30 days sail by, Mara Jane Mulligan discovers she has a decision to make that even Dorothy couldn’t avoid… Will she click her heels for home or kick them up for good?
My Thoughts
I liked this story – I was scared to really like this story.
I’m pushing 50, half my life is over. (Because I fully intend to live until I’m 100, with mind and body intact, thank you very much). So this story really resonated with me. It’s human nature to sit back and wonder .. what if? What if I had made different choices? What if I make a change now? What if I choose door B instead of stepping through door A. And what lies behind door C? I think we can all relate to the age-old question – is there more??
I confess, I almost stopped reading a few times. The character’s thoughts were all over the place and it was hard to stay in this character’s head, let alone try and empathize with her, for very long – there were times she wouldn’t finish a thought before another, even less rational thought, would pop into her head.
But that’s what happens when we’re confused. Nothing makes sense. When our normal day-to-day life changes, whether with, or without, our conscience consent, it’s hard to find a firm hold on an alternate reality. So … the character’s messy thoughts somehow … seemed appropriate, given what she was going through.
But here’s what I really liked about this story – the character didn’t just give up and walk away from her responsibilities or her life. She didn’t simply focus on her selfish motivations – she bathed in the sweet-smelling fragrance, liked it, didn’t want to give up her new-found happiness, but then made the decision to go back anyway. She gave her husband a chance to change WITH HER. She didn’t just write him off and decide she didn’t love him anymore, she made her wishes for change known, granted, she went about it in an overly drastic fashion (one would have to be completely dense to miss the furniture out on the lawn and the entire house painted yellow not to GET THE HINT), but she was not only brave enough to take the first step for change, she was even more brave to ask her husband if he would make the journey with her.
How many women would have simply written off the old in favor of the new?
Exactly.
It was refreshing to follow a character who made a responsible choice for a change. I get so sick of selfish characters, whether fictional or real, who think of nothing but, “I want a change and screw everyone else” mentality. (This of course, does not apply to women who decide to leave an abusive, or unhealthy, relationship – then one MUST be selfish in those instances to maintain one’s health, or even life).
I’ve been married for almost 24 years. Life DOES get stale after a while and change can be good. If there is one thing everyone can count one in life, its change. The beautiful part about this philosophy is when you have a partner who is willing to change right alongside with you.
Honestly, I would have guessed half that many. I really feel like I’ve dropped the reading ball this year. But right now? I can’t read enough. I’m absorbed. I CRAVE reading. I CAN’T WAIT to bury my nose in a book.
I CAN’T WAIT to get away from real life.
Not that real life is bad, per se. I have a great life. But it’s dull – wait – no it’s not. Not really. I’m not unhappy. The boys are living their lives but not causing us stress. Kevin and I are fine. Its just … I don’t know – I like to use my imagination. I love submersing myself in a really good story. I love picturing the characters and quietly inserting myself into the story somewhere – a shadowy character with no lines.
I’ve been reading a lot of ebooks – in fact, I haven’t held a real book in … months (years?) I ADORE my Kindle. It’s not a fancy one – just the no-frills, cheap, paperwhite basic Kindle that comes with ads because I was too cheap to pay the extra price to remove them. It’s no bigger than a real paperback book and I take it with me everywhere – it no longer bothers me to wait for anything, in fact, I sort of hope I HAVE to wait so I will have an excuse to pull my Kindle out and bury my nose in a book. (Or stare at a screen).
I read it on my lunch hour (actually, it’s only 30 minutes and that’s when I actually take a lunch). In fact, I often find myself going over my 30 minutes because I just need to finish this one paragraph / page / chapter.
I used this website a lot at the beginning of the year – they give away ebooks from lesser-known authors. I actually like that, it gives me a chance to read stories on the fringe of society.
But they’re not professionally edited and after a while, I just got too impatient with the misspelled words and sloppy format.
Then I discovered that my local library checked out ebooks and I’ve been in HEAVEN ever since. I haven’t paid for a book in probably two years.
However. I feel that trend is nearing the end, too. There are many books I’ve been interested in that are part of a series and the entire series is not available through my local library, so, I’ll most likely splurge and buy the ebook sequels on Amazon.
Which is why many authors like having their books being loaned out by the libraries – because then someone like me comes along and BUYS more of their work.
BONUS.
Even now, I’m thinking about the current story I’m reading and feeling antsy to get back to it. It’s not exciting and not especially easy to read, but it’s interesting in a sort of drowsy, charming way.
But only 43 books this year? I feel like I’ve failed. It should be higher. My goal is to make it higher next year.
But I feel overwhelmed sometimes – there are SO MANY good stories to read and SO LITTLE time.
Everyone knows how all those fairy tales go. The princess gets beautiful, nabs her prince, falls instantly in love, lives happily ever after and leaves her evil stepsisters in the dust.
But what happens when you’re the ugly stepsister and your obnoxiously perfect—read pretty, smart, and, worst of all, sickeningly nice—stepsister is dating the charming, tall, devastatingly handsome guy you’ve had a thing for since you were nine years old?
Quirky, artistic and snarky Mattie Lowe does not lead a charmed life. Her mother is constantly belittling her on Skype. Mercedes, the school mean girl, has made it her personal mission to torment Mattie. But worst of all? Her stepsister Ella is the most beautiful, popular girl in school and is dating Mattie’s secret longtime crush, Jake Kingston.
Tired of being left out and done with waiting for her own stupid fairy godmother to show up, Mattie decides to change her life. She’ll start by running for senior class president against wildly popular Jake.
Ella can keep her Prince Annoying. Mattie’s going to rule the school.
And no one, not even a cute and suddenly flirty Jake, is going to stop her.
My Thoughts
I’m really not that into YA, but I have been reading more of the genre lately. It’s refreshing to read about quasi-innocent characters and it often takes me back to my teenage years and reinforces how incredibly naive I was.
I can sum this story up in two words: cute and predictable.
I got this book for free – it’s one of the few I’ve downloaded free that I would have actually paid for.
The main character, Maddie (Tilly to those that love her), is absolutely adorable. She’s sweet, yet tough, wise, yet naive, smart, yet clueless, strong, yet vulnerable. She is funny (there are parts I literally chuckled at) and easy to relate to.
Like I said, there’s nothing unusual about this story – in fact, I sort of pictured a Disney movie in my head while reading it.
What I really liked about the story was the writing. And the tone. It was fresh, funny, and really well written. I felt like I was Maddie’s best friend, following her around and getting a pretty good glimpse of her personality, her issues and her thoughts. I empathized with the character and enjoyed everything about her. Ms. Wilson did an excellent job with characters, flow, tone …
It was an interesting, cute, fast read and I would definitely like to read more from Ms. Wilson.
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By the by: I just found out that local libraries allow members to check-out ebooks. *SQUEE!* Check out this link and see if your local library participates. Or – go to your local library website and see if it’s possible. I borrowed two ebooks today and I have two weeks to read them. GAME ON!
Born with blue in his collar instead of his veins, best-selling author Dean Cassidy chronicles his soul-scarring rise from New York’s darkest alleys to a place high atop the literary world. As difficult and unlikely as such a climb is, there’s yet another force working against Dean. He’s forever haunted by treasured memories of his long-lost teenage soul-mate. Theresa! Theresa! Theresa! She just won’t go away! Despite all Dean’s hang-ups and mental baggage, he eventually does marry another woman. And for twenty years his wife, Maddy Frances, remains so giving (and forgiving) she deserves to be canonized a living saint. Even after she finds Dean unconscious at a botched suicide attempt–a time-faded photograph of Theresa clenched in his hands-her love never wavers. But is Maddy’s loyalty enough to keep them together? Or will a force far stronger than fate alone change everything?
My Thoughts
Though I can appreciate the character working hard for his success, and the fact that he ultimately grows up and makes the right decision (which, by very definition, comes with maturity), I could not get past the preachy-bankers-and-business-type-people-are-evil segments of this book. I have no patience for characters, or authors, who can’t resist pushing their political agendas on to their readers. I know it’s hard to separate the author from the story, but at the very least, insert a counter character into the story that brings up the other side of the (author’s) issue so that the reader is not left with a bitter after taste.
Look. Life is full of hard knocks and when people work hard, make good life decisions, and finally achieve success, we should be happy for those individuals, not begrudge their hard work. Being envious is a natural feeling, but to harbor resentment and use that bitterness as a roadblock toward a better life, is counter productive. For ultimately, Dean finally achieves success from his hard work and he has every right to savor that success – should he feel guilty for that success? Should he hand his hard-earned success off to someone who hasn’t made good life decisions or who has chosen not to work as hard?
NO.
Now that he’s one of the successful people he has resented all of his life – now what? It’s suddenly okay to have money and be successful because it happened to him?
Dean was selfish, immature and a punk. Though I understand his deep love for Theresa and his regret that it didn’t work out and his guilty conscience for his role in the break up, I felt the most sorry for Maddy, she had to deal with the left overs.
I thought the character was weak in so many ways – sure, his childhood was rough, but he allowed that experience to define him instead of giving him strength and courage to grow up and move past it.
I will say, the writing was pretty good. There were some editing glitches, but for the most part, it moved the story forward and the author did a great job depicting all of Dean’s conflicting emotions.
Though I didn’t care one whit for Dean, I’d be willing to read more of this author’s work.
A secret duo of romance authors team up under the pseudonym Max Monroe to bring you a sexy, laugh-out-loud new series. Are you ready to meet the Billionaire Bad Boys?
hours.
Losing the trial of his life could mean losing everything.
something they missed. Something unnatural. Something only he can stop.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Goldberg hits the ground running in a breakneck thriller where truth and fiction collide for the unluckiest writer alive.
Twelve years ago, Sarah Baker was abducted by the Watt Lake Killer and sexually assaulted for months before managing to escape. The killer was caught, but Sarah lost everything: her marriage, her child, and the life she loved.
From New York Times bestselling author of the acclaimed McCabe and Savage series comes an electrifying new thriller of taut and twisted suspense.
If anyone ever said being an adult was easy, they hadn’t been one long enough. Diana Casillas can admit it: she doesn’t know what the hell she’s doing half the time. How she’s made it through the last two years of her life without killing anyone is nothing short of a miracle. Being a grown-up wasn’t supposed to be so hard. With a new house, two little boys she inherited the most painful possible way, a giant dog, a job she usually loves, more than enough family, and friends, she has almost everything she could ever ask for. Except for a boyfriend. Or a husband. But who needs either one of those?
To keep a devastating family secret from being revealed, a young mother’s desperate lies could end up destroying everything, and everyone, she loves. The Memory of Butterflies is a poignant story of family and forgiveness—of knowing when to let go and when to hold each other close.
Sara Adams awakes blind, unable to remember the most basic details of her life, but her darkness seems a blessing when she discovers the terrors of The Light.
Gabriel. As a woman in the community of The Light, her duty is to be unquestionably obedient and to submit to the will of her husband.
He surfaced two years ago. Then he disappeared … 
Vanessa Mazur knows she’s doing the right thing. She shouldn’t feel bad for quitting. Being an assistant/housekeeper/fairy godmother to the top defensive end in the National Football Organization was always supposed to be temporary. She has plans and none of them include washing extra-large underwear longer than necessary.
burns just as hot.
Brooke Nolan is a battered child who makes an anonymous phone call about the escalating brutality in her home.
proves he has taken another victim who may still be alive.
I can’t read enough.
