Dr. Iris Ballard is a former FBI agent who is dragging herself up from substance abuse after her last case went very bad. She has been summoned to her hometown by her mother when her twin brother Billy has apparently disappeared into the clutches of a local new cult. Iris is very good at thinking up plans to help others, but she is not always so great at executing them, especially as a lone wolf. So she calls on her FBI agent Luke to come help her. Together, they tackle the evil that is Mathias and his sidekick Ken, the enforcer. They are using the members who have joined the cult as drug mules and are running a very profitable empire, so they are going to do whatever they need to do to make sure that Iris and Luke don’t topple it. The novel races to a fiery and explosive conclusion that the reader will not see coming, but it is a conclusion that is realistic as well as satisfying, in some ways. This is a great book that it’s part of a series. Now, I need to go back and read the first one, BEAUTIFUL MAIDS ALL IN A ROW, because I want to read more about Dr. Iris Ballard. She is a fascinating character with multiple layers, so I would love to see even more books that feature her!

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Honestly, this is not the kind of book that I normally read because the narrator keeps switching between two women, one from the early 1900’s and one in present day times. However, the way the author threads their stories together is fascinating, so this is on my “you have to read this book” list! Kaine is fleeing California where her husband was murdered (although no one will believe her) and is settling into the home of her great-grandmother Ivy. The story of Ivy is woven through the story of Kaine, with the chapters in the book taking turns between the two. Ivy lost her brother at a very young age and has never really moved on from that tragedy. She keeps a “death book” of those that die so that they will be remembered. That task is easy enough until a young woman’s body is discovered at a house on Foster Hill, stuck into a tree trunk. She is unidentified, but Ivy names her Gabriella and is determined to find out what happened to her and to her baby, because she had given birth shortly before she was killed. Ivy risks her life to find out the truth. Now, Kaine is trying to find out the truth about her family heritage, a story that is interwoven with Ivy’s and thus also fraught with danger. The story is so well-written that the reader is enticed to keep reading to find out what happens to these two women and why is the house on Foster Hill a place of secrets and death.

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Kristin and her twins disappear overnight from a safe, middle-class neighborhood. Someone may know what happened to her, but no one is talking. Paul, her OB-GYN husband, is immediately suspected for foul play, but he insists that they were gone when he arrived at the house. Hallie, the precocious teen who wants to write a neighborhood newspaper, may know more than she thinks, but no one will listen to her. Izzy, the radio show producer who lives across the street, is dealing with a broken heart and resentment against her sister, and she doesn’t know what to think. The one whom everyone says knew Kristin best, Clara the next-door neighbor, says she knows nothing and the last time she saw her was at the fire pit the night before. So, what happened to Kristin? There are a lot of twists and turns before the reader finds out, but this book is definitely worth the time to read it! It is thought-provoking with a touch of cynicism that will make you wonder if your priorities are in order.

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

This book is available for pre-order at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.  It will be published on March 27, 2018.  

Karen Moore has written a book of prayers that will add to your daily time with God. Each prayer has a scripture with it and then reads like a prayer journal. It encourages the reader to spend more time with God and to keep your own prayer journal. The details in the journal are very heart-touching and lend themselves to further thought and study of the Scriptures. There is humor as well as honesty throughout this book of prayers, so that the reader is involved in the life of the author and compares oneself and one’s own life to hers. All in all, this book lends itself to having all of us take an honest look at our prayer life and our relationship with God.
Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

IMPERFECT JUSTICE is one of those books that captures your attention and holds it to the breath-taking conclusion. Kaylene has sought the help of the Haven and its resident attorney Emilie Wesley. She is ready to leave her abusive spouse when the unthinkable happens. Emilie is thrown into a whirlpool of deceit and control by the abusive spouse and enlists the help of Kaylene’s brother to try to save a nine-year-old innocent little girl from the situation that led to her mother’s death. Emilie is also being stalked, but she has no idea who is putting her life in danger daily, even as she strives to save the life of other abused women. The best part of the book is that it is made for discussion with a book group since it includes discussion questions at the end. This is a thought-provoking and heartbreaking book, with the underlying theme of “What would you do?”

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

via Review of NEED TO KNOW by Karen Cleveland

Vivian is an analyst at the CIA who has moved up in the ranks and is finally on the Russia team, trying to find the sleeper cell that has infiltrated the U.S. Her husband Matt works, but doesn’t seem to work very much, as he mostly helps at home with their four children. Vivian has wanted to stay home with the children for years and just be a mom, but their finances limit her choices. When the book starts, Vivian is working on her computer on a program that she has developed to mirror the computer of a known Russian agent named Yury. What she discovers horrifies her and threatens her job and her freedom. Pictured on her screen, as a sleeper agent, is her husband Matt. The action in this book is very fast and very believable since it is written by a former CIA agent. Vivian has to save her family as well as her marriage, if she can. But the Russians are closing in and demanding that she betray her nation. What will her choice be? Is there anyone she can turn to for help, or she is on her own to make sure that her family survives her husband’s betrayal? This was an excellent read with a twist at the end that I did not see coming and that left me saying, “What just happened?!?”

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

*This book is available for pre-order from your favorite retailer.  The publishing date is January 23, 2018.

Ellery Hathaway is a deputy in the small town of Woodbury, Massachusetts, but she has a dark secret. As a teen-anger, she was kidnapped and tortured by serial murderer Francis Coben and she survived, She was the only survivor because of FBI agent Reed Markham who doggedly followed the clues and found her before Coben could kill her. Now, each year on her birthday, Ellie is getting a strange birthday card and someone else is missing from her small town. She is convinced that someone like Coben is taking these people, so she contacts Reed and he comes to town to help follow the clues again. Ellie risks her job and her life to save the lives of others, but is she actually the one who is perpetrating these crimes? Reed is on leave from the FBI because of the stress of the job, and this is not a restful vacation for him. The macabre acts of Coben, cutting off the hands of his victims, is being repeated. Why? Coben is still on death row in an Indiana prison so it can’t be him. The twists in this thriller will have you reading late into the night and checking to make sure the doors and windows are locked.

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

 

 

Tessa is grieving for her lost children, one who died at birth and one who recently passed away. Added to that, her husband Scott has found a new love. Then, one day when she comes in from work, there is a little boy sitting in her kitchen and he calls her his new mummy. Suddenly, she is accused of child snatching, but the father didn’t even report the child missing for several days. What is happening here is a twisted tale of a mother who wants to uncover the truth and who risks her life to do so. There are a lot of surprises here that you won’t see coming! You just have to read between the lines and you will be able to guess what happened…and it’s a real thrill to read the ending and see if you were right!

 

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Katie Calumet, a nice lady who just wants to stay fit, runs daily. But one day, she doesn’t return from her run, so her husband reports her missing. There follows a narrative that is fast and engrossing about what happened to Katie. She was kidnapped, but who would do such a thing and why? The ransom demand is exhorbitant, and as the investigation continues, a lot of family secrets are revealed. Katie has been taken to the wilderness of the Adirondack Mountains, with little hope to escape her kidnappers and if she does, how will she survive in such a harsh environment? The action of the story is non-stop and moves quickly to a conclusion that has a real wow factor. This was an excellent book with lots of twists and revelations that the reader will have to read to believe. I give this books four stars.  You can buy it at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.  Bargain price of $.99!

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”