Review: Sound of Darkness (Krewe of Hunters #36), by Heather Graham

 

Title: Sound of Darkness (Krewe of Hunters #36)

Author: Heather Graham

Format: e-galley

Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "The cries of the dead are deafening

Women are being taken in Virginia, and FBI agent Mark Gallagher is determined to put a stop to it. Certain he’s closing in on the killer known as The Embracer, Mark is less than thrilled when he’s partnered with rookie agent Colleen Law, worried she’s a liability when there’s so much at stake.

But like everyone in the Krewe of Hunters, Colleen has talents that extend beyond the usual investigative toolbox. She can hear the voices of the victims in her head, and they’re telling her she and Mark are near to uncovering the truth.

When Mark’s prime suspect takes a liking to Colleen, he’s surprisingly protective of his new partner, even as he admits her connection to the victims is key. But tense interrogations turn dangerously personal when someone close to Colleen goes missing, luring the agents deep into the shadows of wooded rural Virginia, where nobody can hear them scream."

My Opinion: Women are being taken in Virginia and the FBI puts agents Mark Gallagher and Ragnar Johansen, and their FBI dog Red, on the case. The guys, and the dog, are members of a special unit of the FBI, the Krewe of Hunters, who all have special talents that they bring to bear on their cases. Colleen Law is a rookie agent who also has a special talent in that she can "hear" the voices of victims.

Quote: "Do you read minds?" She laughed. "I should say yes to that. But no - I just hear people when they're crying out." "The living and the dead." "The living and the dead."

Because Colleen is dropped right into an already established partnership, Mark definitely lets her know that he's not happy about getting saddled with a rookie, but she soon proves her worth. And they both realize that to catch the serial killer, or killers, that they are chasing, they are going to need all the special gifts they can get.

I love the Krewe series, but I had a few minor problems with this one. I felt like the romance between Colleen and Mark was a little bit forced. It just seemed like there was no connection, no connection, and then bam! Connection. I would have liked a bit more build up to it. They were a good fit once I got over the abruptness of the relationship, so it wasn't a huge problem.

I thought the mystery and crime solving part was interesting. I loved the dog, Red, and how in tune he was to the world of the supernatural, and how much he helped the team. I loved Ragnar, the big blonde modern day Viking, and really hope that he gets his own story. I thought the ending was satisfying, as well.

In summary, I loved a lot more about this book than I didn't, and can definitely recommend it to fans of the Krewe of Hunters, and paranormal mystery/romance book lovers, as well.

4.5/5 stars.

I would like to thank the author, publisher, and folks at NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I was given a copy of it free of charge in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: Point Last Seen (Last Seen in Gothic #1), by Christina Dodd

 

Title: Point Last Seen (Last Seen in Gothic #1)

Author: Christina Dodd

Format: e-book

Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "LIFE LAST SEEN

When you’ve already died, there should be nothing left to fear… When Adam Ramsdell pulls Elle’s half-frozen body from the surf on a lonely California beach, she has no memory of what her full name is and how she got those bruises ringing her throat.

GIRL LAST SEEN

Elle finds refuge in Adam’s home on the edge of Gothic, a remote village located between the steep lonely mountains and the raging Pacific Ocean. As flashes of her memory return, Elle faces a terrible truth—buried in her mind lurks a secret so dark it could get her killed.

POINT LAST SEEN

Everyone in Gothic seems to hide a dark past. Even Adam knows more than he will admit. Until Elle can unravel the truth, she doesn’t know who to trust, when to run and who else might be hurt when the killer who stalks her nightmares appears to finish what he started…"

My Opinion: Ok, with that synopsis, who can really resist this book? Not me, and I'm so glad I didn't try! Disclaimer: I'm a huge Christina Dodd fan. I was before I read this, and I definitely still am. This book, filled with lost souls, was also a mystery, a thriller, and a suspense filled ride. I absolutely love the town of Gothic and look forward to reading more about it and its inhabitants in the books that follow this one.

Adam leads a self imposed solitary existence, and he has no plans to change that, until he finds a dead body on the beach near his home. Enter Elle. After bringing her back to life, and realizing that she has no memory of who she is or how she got in the water, and after noticing that she is covered in bruises, he takes her home with him and promises her a safe place to stay until she is well enough to leave. That proves easier said than done when he starts developing feelings for her. The search for Elle's identity and the mystery of her death leads to violence not just for Adam and Elle, but for other residents of Gothic. It turns out Adam isn't the only one with a checkered past in the town.

I loved this book so much in part because I loved Adam and Elle so much. They were great characters with great chemistry. The other residents of Gothic were pretty great, too, and everyone's back story was detailed, which made it easy to get invested in them. I'm really looking forward to seeing where this book series goes.

The plot was interesting and the writing was superb, which made this a quick read for me. The pacing was also on point.

In summary, I highly recommend this book to readers looking for a good mystery to sink their teeth into. 

5/5 stars.

I received a copy of this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: Aloha Alibi (Charlotte Gibson Mysteries #1), by Jasmine Webb

 

Title: Aloha Alibi (Charlotte Gibson Mysteries #1)

Author: Jasmine Webb

Format: audiobook

Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "Most people flee to Hawaii for gorgeous weather, white-sand beaches, and cocktails at sunset. Charlotte Gibson, however, is fleeing for her life after a vengeful mobster leaves a severed finger on her doorstep as a warning. Message very much received.

That’s how Charlotte—Charlie to everyone except her mom— finds herself on Maui with six dollars to her name, living with a mother who can’t stop giving her advice on how to land herself a husband. But when a businessman is murdered and his company offers a reward to whoever finds the killer, Charlie sees an opportunity: with that kind of cash, she could afford her own place and start a new life here away from the people who want her dead. After all, how hard can hunting down a murderer be?

Teaming up with a couple of old ladies with more spunk than Betty White, Charlie is sure she’s on the right track to snag the reward money. However, the infuriating-but-smoldering-hot cop trying to keep her away from his case has other ideas. Throw in a day job at an ice cream shop, corrupt local politicians, and a best friend trying to act as the voice of reason, and Charlie has her work cut out for her.

Will she be able to find the killer, or is Charlie’s time in paradise going to go straight to hell in a handbasket?"

My Opinion: Charlie Gibson kills a man in self defense who ends up being the brother of a very vengeful mobster, and when she finds a severed finger on her doorstep, she decides it's time to get out of Dodge, fast! The only place she can go, seeing as how she has no money, is Hawaii, where she spent her childhood and where her mother still lives. I mean, there are definitely worse places to go!

I thought this was a very fun book. The premise is far fetched, to say the least, but if you could look past that, it was a good read. I loved that the main characters were all strong, independent women, other than Charlie's mother, who just couldn't seem to talk about anything other than her daughter's lack of a sex life and her single-minded need for her daughter to find a man and get married. That was really annoying. 

There was a semi-romance set up between Charlie and the "infuriating-but-smoldering-hot cop" but it felt forced. I would love to see that delved into further in a more organic way.

Since this was an audiobook, I have to say that I thought the narrator, Khristine Hyam, did a fine job with the different characters, and she injected a lot of feeling into her reading, which was great.

All in all, I enjoyed this cozy mystery, and look forward to reading any further books in this series as I can see the promise in this book.

4/5 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley for an audiobook arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review

Review: Guarding the Amish Midwife (Amish Country Justice #6), by Dana R. Lynn

Title: Guarding the Amish Midwife (Amish Country Justice #6)
Author: Dana R. Lynn
Format: ebook
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "An Amish witness to murder

Another riveting Amish Country Justice book

On the way to deliver a baby, Amish midwife Lizzy Miller witnesses her driver’s murder—and now someone plans to silence her. Lizzy knows better than to trust strangers, but she must depend on former Amish turned Englisch police officer Isaac Yoder. And there’s nowhere safe to hide…unless Isaac reconnects with the Amish community he left behind to protect the woman he’s falling for. "

My Opinion: I hadn't read the previous books in this series and was really hoping that wouldn't be a problem, and lucky for me, it wasn't! In fact, I loved this book so much I'm going to go back and start with the first one and read the rest of the series. 

Lizzy Miller is a midwife and is going to stay with her pregnant cousin to assist with her birth, but it is too far away to take her buggy, so she has to get a ride. Unfortunately, her substitute driver has to make a stop, which leads to him getting shot and Lizzy witnessing it. Luckily, the cop who ends up protecting her is former Amish, so she feels an automatic kinship with him, which is good because the killer will stop at nothing to silence her. 

I love the characters in this story! They are very well written and easy to relate to. The world building, especially when we are visiting the Amish households, makes you feel like you're right there with the characters. And the suspense! It'll have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish!

All in all, I thought this book was very well written and I can't wait to start at the beginning of the series and read books 1 through 5.

I give it a very enthusiastic 5 out of 5 stars.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: 'Twas the Knife Before Christmas (A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery #2), by Jacqueline Frost

Title: 'Twas the Knife Before Christmas (A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery #2)
Author: Jacqueline Frost
Format: ebook
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: A Christmas delight, ’Twas the Knife Before Christmas will charm the stockings off readers of Joanne Fluke and Leslie Meier. 

It’s out of the cupcake tin, into the fire for Holly White’s best friend, Caroline. Can Holly clear Caroline’s name in time to go caroling?

When a body turns up in the dumpster behind Caroline’s Cupcakes, Holly White is horrified to learn her best friend Caroline is the main suspect. Everyone in town, including Mistletoe, Maine’s sheriff, saw Caroline fighting with the victim on the night of his death. Worse, Caroline’s fingerprints are all over the murder weapon, a custom-designed marble rolling pin. 

Now, just ten days before Christmas, Holly’s up to her jingle bells in holiday shenanigans and in desperate need of a miracle. Juggling extra shifts at her family’s Christmas tree farm and making enough gingerbread jewelry to satisfy the crowd is already more than she can handle—and now she has to find time to clear her best friend of murder. Add in her budding relationship with the sheriff, and run-ins with an ex-fiancé looking to make amends, and Holly’s ready to fly south until springtime. 

But her Sherpa-lined mittens come off when Caroline is taken into custody. Can Holly wrap up the case in time for Christmas…even after she gains the true killer’s attention? Find out in ‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas, Jacqueline Frost’s second pine-scented Christmas Tree Farm mystery.

My Opinion:  I was so excited to go back and visit Holly and her family and friends at the White family's Christmas tree farm in Mistletoe, Maine! A year has passed since the events of the first book of the series, and, as expected, another murder is about to occur, with a close friend of Holly's, Caroline of Caroline's Cupcakes, as the main suspect. Caroline had had a rather public argument with her date at a benefit dinner (he couldn't keep his hands to himself), and lo and behold, he shows up dead in a giant bowl of mints at the annual tree lighting ceremony, stabbed with one of Caroline's knives!! It's up to Holly to make sure that her friend gets a fair shake when all of the evidence points right to her. 

I am so in love with the descriptions of this amazing Christmas town and all of the holiday themed events that are held up at the White family's Reindeer Games Christmas Tree Farm! I feel like I'm right there building snowmen, sledding blind folded, and riding sleighs through the tree farm (although I could do without being shot at!). The characters are all very well written, so much so that you feel like they are your friends and family, as well as Holly's. The setting was described in delicious detail, and the story unfolded at the perfect pace, jumping between sleuthing and celebrating the holiday with ease. The only complaint I have is with the romance (or lack thereof) between Holly and Evan, the local sheriff. It just seemed a bit "meh", but I'm hoping it will pick up a bit more in the next book in the series. When Holly and Evan are together, there is definite chemistry, and we do find out why Evan is a bit of an absentee love interest, but I hope they can find a way to spend more time together building on that chemistry. 

All in all, I was very happy with the characters, world building, and pacing of this book, and only have a tiny complaint about the romance, which I'm certain will grow in the following books of the series. I'm giving this book an enthusiastic 4.5 stars.

I received a copy of this book free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. 

Review: Hugo and the Bird: Gnome Wars, by Jeff Mills

Title: Hugo and the Bird: Gnome Wars
Author: Jeff Mills
Format: ebook
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: Kadavera, the witch, was dead. This should mean a celebration, but for nine-year-old Hugo, his schoolmate, Emma and their strange magical friend, Bird, it is the start of another dangerous adventure. Her death has precipitated the regeneration of not just one but both of her sister witches – and they are both far worse than she ever was. 

Conscripting the Cornish goblins, the witches capture the gnomes from the Gnome Reserve to use as guinea pigs in their experiments to be able to exist in daylight. This would allow them to fulfil their dying vow; to kill and destroy all those and their descendants, who were responsible for their own and their mothers’ unjust execution 300 years before. They are determined not to let anyone stand in their way, especially two interfering children and a stupid bird. 

A chance finding of a small amulet leads Hugo and his friends into realms of King Arthur and to the magic power of his sword, Excalibur. Emma receives some terrible news, which ultimately takes her on a journey from which there may be no return and pits her against her friends. Can Hugo and Bird, rescue the gnomes and prevent the witches from achieving their lethal goal and how can an inquisitive journalist make everything far worse? Set in North Devon, the heart-pounding adventure continues and is based on historical events. Hugo and the Bird: Gnome Wars is a tale of fantasy, revenge and friendship that readers from nine years to ninety will identify with and love.

My Opinion: Hugo and his friend, Emma, along with their magical "bird" find themselves dealing with another mystery involving resurrected witches. What's not to love about a story involving witches hell bent on revenge, magical creatures, goblins and gnomes? Due to the young age of the main characters, this book is geared towards older elementary age to middle school age children.

I didn't have a chance to read the first book in the series, Hugo and the Bird: The Toothfairy, but that didn't keep me from being able to follow along and keep up with this story. There were a number of errors with spelling, punctuation and grammar, but I received my copy through NetGalley and it is understood that the book is almost always an uncorrected proof, so hopefully the final version will go through a final editing process before release.

The characters were likeable and very much acted their age, which is better than some MG stories where the characters act much older and with more maturity than they should possess. The action was constant and the plot moved along at a quick pace. There was just the right amount of suspense to keep the reader involved, and some of it was downright scary, which younger readers will love!

In summary, I really enjoyed this story, and with some good editing to tighten it up, I can definitely recommend it for older elementary and middle grade students who love their fantasy with a good mystery thrown in to boot :)

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

4 out of 5 stars ;) 

Review: Say You're Sorry (Joseph O'Loughlin #6), by Michael Robotham

Title: Say You're Sorry (Joseph O'Loughlin #6)
Author: Michael Robotham
Format: audiobook
Source: local library

From Goodreads: "TWO MISSING GIRLS. TWO BRUTAL MURDERS. ALL CONNECTED TO ONE FARM HOUSE. WHO IS TO BLAME?

When pretty and popular teenagers Piper Hadley and Tash McBain disappear one Sunday morning, the investigation captivates a nation but the girls are never found.

Three years later, during the worst blizzard in a century, a husband and wife are brutally killed in the farmhouse where Tash McBain once lived. A suspect is in custody, a troubled young man who can hear voices and claims that he saw a girl that night being chased by a snowman.

Convinced that Piper or Tash might still be alive, clinical psychologist Joe O'Loughlin and ex-cop Vincent Ruiz, persuade the police to re-open the investigation. But they are racing against time to save the girls from someone with an evil, calculating and twisted mind.."

My Opinion: Michael Robotham is one of my all time favorite suspense writers and even though I haven't read any of the other books in the Joseph O'Loughlin series, I had heard that they can all be read as stand alone novels, and this proved to be true. I got caught up in the mystery right away and was kept interested clear to the end. 

Piper and Tash went missing three years ago and although the police investigated the disappearance, most people thought they had just run away, because that was in fact their plan. But something went wrong and three years later, Tash's body was found frozen in a lake following a terrible winter storm. Coincidentally (or not) Tash's old home, where two elderly people now lived, was the scene of a double homicide and fire that same night. 

The characters are all easy to relate to, as Michael Robotham's tend to be, and the reader is kept guessing throughout the book as to how all of the players fit and who did what to whom. As usual, I guessed who the perpetrator was, but then I second guessed myself, then third guessed, until I was as confused as I started out to be. The author drops clues in that throw you completely off, but that's a good thing in a suspense story - who wants to be able to figure it out easily? How boring would that be? 

The pacing was perfect as the story moves along at a steady pace, and the reader is kept guessing until the very end. I loved this book and highly recommend it to lovers of suspense, mysteries, and all around good story telling. I give it a very enthusiastic 5 stars and look forward to going back and starting the Joseph O'Loughlin series from the beginning. 

Review: The Dead and Buried, by Kim Harrington

Title: The Dead and Buried
Author: Kim Harrington
Format eGalley
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "A haunted house, a buried mystery, and a very angry ghost make this one unforgettable thriller.

Jade loves the house she's just moved into with her family. She doesn't even mind being the new girl at the high school: It's a fresh start, and there's that one guy with the dreamy blue eyes. . . . But then things begin happening. Strange, otherworldly things. Jade's little brother claims to see a glimmering girl in his room. Jade's jewelry gets moved around, as if by an invisible hand. Kids at school whisper behind her back like they know something she doesn't.

Soon, Jade must face an impossible fact: that her perfect house is haunted. Haunted by a ghost who's seeking not just vengeance, but the truth. The ghost of a girl who ruled Jade's school — until her untimely death last year. It's up to Jade to put the pieces together before her own life is at stake. As Jade investigates the mystery, she discovers that her new friends in town have more than a few deep, dark secrets. But is one of them a murderer?"

My Opinion: Jade has always wanted to move to a bigger town and a bigger house, and she's finally gotten her wish. Unfortunately, when school starts and she realizes that everyone is whispering about her behind her back and she is the last one to find out why, she goes from excited to peeved quickly. When she confronts her father and stepmother, she finds out that the only way they could afford the bigger and much newer house was because a girl had died there, Kayla Sloan; a girl who would have been in her class that year and who was one of the most popular, charismatic, and yes, vicious students in the school.  All of the kids, even her friends, were afraid to cross her because if she was mad at you, or even just bored that day, she could make your life a living hell. The biggest problem, though, is that her death was a mystery in that she either tripped and accidentally fell down the stairs in the house, or was pushed. When Jade has a party and some of the kids decide to try to contact Kayla's spirit via a Ouija board, they are a little bit too successful, and that's when the trouble really begins.

I read Kim Harrington's books Clarity and Perception a while back and really liked them, so I was excited when NetGalley approved my request for The Dead and Buried. I loved the premise and when I got into it, I liked the characters for the most part. Jade was enough of a rebel that she befriended who she wanted to regardless of popularity, which I really enjoyed. I really wanted to love Donovan because he was the moody artsy boy who I usually go for in books, but he always seemed to be hiding something, and that made got a bit wearing. Kane was okay, but I was usually pulling for Donovan anyway, so that didn't really bother me. I guess my biggest problem was one that has already been noted in previous reviews: There just seemed to be something missing from this book that would have taken me from liking it to loving it. And I'm not going to mention what happens at the end (obviously!) but I felt kind of let down and wanting more when I finished the book. 

I'm still a big fan of Kim's and will definitely read any future books she writes, but I have to say that this one just wasn't as great as I was hoping it would be. I would give it 3 1/2 stars :)