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Showing posts from May, 2014

A Review of The Devils' Cradle by Darcy Daniel

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The Devils' Cradle By: Darcy Daniel Genre: Thriller 475 pages Publisher: N L Lamont Publication Date: January 2014 * I received a complimentary copy from the author in exchange for an honest review. Nina has been a prisoner of her sadistic husband and brother-in-law for over a decade. When she fears her son is turning out like her husband she takes him and runs. Case Herder has his own agenda regarding her brother-in-law and when their paths cross he decides to help Nina. Their decisions leave them running for their lives. When Michael and Greg find her she has no choice but to face them head-on. The Devils' Cradle is a gripping thriller with truly scary villains and a compelling story. This is one book that will keep you up all night. I recommend it. So, I'm giving it... Buy it here: Amazon   Add it on: Goodreads  

America's Greatest Blunder: The Fateful Decision To Enter World War I by Burton Pines

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America's Greatest Blunder: The Fateful Decision To Enter World War I By: Burton Yale Pines Genre: History 437 pages Publisher: RSD Press Publication Date: October 2013 In America's Greatest Blunder the author leads up to the the conditions during the last months of WWI; and the reasoning behind America becoming involved despite remaining neutral during the early years of the war. He also reasons why America entering the war was a BIG MISTAKE. One of my great-grandfathers served in WWI and because of that ( and because I love history) I've always been intrigued with WWI history. However, I didn't know a lot about it. In America's Greatest Blunder Pines gives a new perspective to the War To End All Wars. I found the material very intriguing. Once I got into it I found it hard to put the book down. The one little problem I had was the author tended to repeat some of the information. However, it wasn't distracting and I immensely enjoyed the book. So, it

Palmetto Poison by C. Hope Clark

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Palmetto Poison ( Carolina Slade Mysteries #3) By: C. Hope Clark Genre: Mystery 280 pages Publisher: Belle Bridge Books Publication Date: February 2014 * I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Carolina Slade finds herself in trouble once again when her boss asks her to investigate a family friend who's been accused of distributing drugs and what led to his son dying. She then finds herself entangled with peanut farmers, an overly dedicated DEA agent, the governor, and murder; and her life- and the life of her family is in danger once again. Carolina is a spunky, likable heroine. I do find her a little too hard headed at times, but that's also part of her charm. She has good chemistry with her boyfriend Wayne Largo and he's a good match for her. The plot and setting kept me interested and it was a quick read. The cliffhanger ending bothered me a little but that'll just make me read the next instal

A Review of Cold Sacrifice by Leigh Russell

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Cold Sacrifice  DS Ian Peterson #1 Genre: Mystery Publisher: HarperCollins Publication Date: April 29, 2014 384 pages Synopsis: When three dead bodies are discovered in Detective Ian Peterson's hometown of Kent, it becomes clear that a vicious killer is on the loose. And without his trusted colleague, Detective Geraldine Steel, by his side, Ian's left to take the lead on a complex murder case with few clues. The first victim is a middle-aged woman named Martha, brutally stabbed to death in the local park. Her husband, who did not report her missing, is the prime suspect until a young prostitute, Della, reveals his whereabouts the night Martha was murdered. But then she is strangled to death in her apartment. While the police are frantically gathering evidence and looking for a connection, a second prostitute is suffocated. With nothing but the timing of the murders to tie the three women to one another, Ian and his new partner, Polly Mortimer, struggle

A Review of Back on the Market

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Back on the Market By: L.A. Frazier Genre: Mystery 274 pages Publisher: Cup of Tea Books  Publication Date: December 2012 Synopsis: Recently divorced, forty-something Vicky Andrews desperately needs a life. Finding her boss naked and dead at an open house she's hosting was not what she had in mind. Wishing she'd spend more time reading Nancy Drew in her formative years, Vicky calls upon her own intuition and various investigative skills to try to find a piece of incriminating evidence the murderer thinks she has--before the murderer finds her. She might decide that the world has it in for her if not for Detective Nick Carson, who shares frustration, information, and more than a few fantastic kisses as he tries to solve the case. Throw in a rescued miniature dachshund, a skeleton named Max, and a coven of well-intentioned neighbors, and maybe, just maybe, Vicky has found exactly what she needs. My Thoughts: * I received a complimentary copy from

A Review of Turning This Thing Around By Keith Maginn

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Turning This Thing Around An Inspirational Self Help Memoir By: Keith Maginn Genre: Memoir 86 pages Publisher: Keith Maginn Publication Date: January 2011 Synopsis: Turning This Thing Around is an inspiring memoir of overcoming personal struggles. This brutally honest, deeply personal account of redemption takes readers on a moving spiritual journey. Confronted with a myriad of obstacles–a debilitating arthritic disease, narcolepsy, anxiety and depression–the author was outwardly happy, but inwardly miserable. Pushed to the lowest point of his life, Maginn shares how he gradually turned things around and used his experiences to grow as a person. Supplemented by heartfelt poetry by the author and with quotes from Gandhi to Dr. Wayne Dyer to Eckhart Tolle, Turning This Thing Around has universal themes that speak to nearly everyone, as we all must face challenges as part of being human. It is a self-help memoir of sorts: the author discusses not only what he ove

IT"S STILL ATTACHED! Or Hakuna Matata

Yesterday while sitting in the chair reading the phone rang. The husband picked it up, spoke for a few minutes to the caller, and handed it to me. It was my Dad. " Lisa, do you have a box?", he asked.  " I think so. Why do you need one?", I asked. " I went to the store and on the way I hear ' Meow , meow, meow.' The damn cat got under my seat and is having kittens." So... about an hour later after I finished laughing I found a box and went outside. " Bring the box here, she's under the seat. You'll have to get 'em. I can't reach under there. I'll get you a towel." " I don't think I can fit either," I said. " You can reach better than I can." " Um, ok." So I gently reached under the seat and extracted the mother... " OOH OOH OOH, one's still attached," I exclaimed as I sat the mommy cat back down. " It's ok. That happens. Just pick it up and put

A Review of Pressed Pennies by Steven Manchester

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Pressed Pennies By: Steven Manchester Genre: Romance 355 pages Publisher: The Story Plant Publication Date: May 13, 2014 Synopsis: Rick and Abby grew up together, became best friends, and ultimately fell in love. Circumstance tore them apart in their early teens, though, and they went on to lives less idyllic than they dreamed about in those early days. Rick has had a very successful career, but his marriage flat-lined. Abby has a magical daughter, Paige, but Paige's father nearly destroyed Abby's spirit. Now fate has thrown Rick and Abby together again. In their early thirties, they are more world-weary than they were as kids. But their relationship still shimmers, and they're hungry to make up for lost time. However, Paige, now nine, is not nearly as enthusiastic. She's very protective of the life she's made with her mother and not open to the duo becoming a trio. Meanwhile, Rick has very little experience dealing with kids and doesn'

Nightmares and Other Therapy by D.W. Carver

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Nightmares and Other Therapy Smithson Series # 1 By: D.W. Carver 238 pages Genre: Thriller Publisher: Damnation Books Publication Date: September 2013 Synopsis: Michael couldn’t understand the nightmares that made him violent on waking, mostly because he didn’t have the courage to think his problem through. Eventually, pressured into entering a mental hospital by his employers he thought that here he would find answers and a way to a better life. He was never more wrong. My Thoughts: * I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review. I found the plot hard to follow at first but after a little while my brain cleared up and I started to enjoy it. It's an original work with a sympathetic protagonist. I found the subject matter hard to read at times but in the end I found it worthwhile to stick to.   Buy it: Amazon B&N Author Links: Website

The Mirror by John A. Heldt

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The Mirror (Northwest Passage #5) By: John A. Heldt Genre: Adventure/History/Romance Publisher: John A. Heldt Publication Date: March 2014 384 pages Go on get it: Amazon Synopsis:   On September 11, 2020, Ginny and Katie Smith celebrate their nineteenth birthday at a country fair near Seattle. Ignoring the warnings of a fortune-teller, they enter a house of mirrors and exit in May 1964. Armed with the knowledge they need to return to their time, they try to make the most of what they believe will be a four-month vacation. But their sixties adventure becomes complicated when they meet a revered great-grandmother and fall in love with local boys. In THE MIRROR, the continuation of THE MINE and THE SHOW, the sisters find happiness and heartbreak as they confront unexpected challenges and gut-wrenching choices in the age of civil rights, the Beatles, and Vietnam. My Thoughts: * I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review. This is

Book Review of: The Perfect Game

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The Perfect Game By: Stephen Paul Genre: Supernatural Thriller 254 pages Publisher: Telemachus Press Publication Date: February 2014 Get it here: Amazon Smashwords * I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: In a dark Manhattan alley, a young woman suddenly collapses from a brain hemorrhage. The statistics say it’s rare to have happened to someone so young and healthy, yet all signs point to natural causes. But when Kyle Vine, the man she was supposed to meet that night, learns she wasn’t the only victim, he knows there’s something more going on and soon discovers a mysterious link to the sudden success of a journeyman pitcher for the New York Yankees. As the lethal brain bleeds continue to strike, Kyle and the woman’s eccentric uncle work together to unravel a mystery unlike any the world has ever seen in order to stop a ruthless killer from striking again. Stephen Paul’s debut supernatural suspense thriller, The Perfec