Rosepoint Publishing

Before It’s Too Late by Sara Driscoll – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

An FBI K-9 Novel Book 2

Book Blurb:

As a serial killer plays games with the FBI, a special agent and her K-9 partner refuse to follow the rules in this Washington, D.C., thriller.

Somewhere in the Washington, D.C. area, a woman lies helpless in a box—barely breathing and buried alive. In Quantico, the FBI receives a coded message from the woman’s abductor. He wants to play a game: decipher the clues, save the girl. But when FBI cryptanalysts crack the code, Special Agent Meg Jennings and her K-9 partner, Hawk, are too late. An innocent life is lost…and the killer’s game is far from over.

With more coded messages, the deadly pattern is repeated—again and again. As the body count rises, Meg decides to break protocol and consult her brilliant sister, Cara, to decipher the kidnapper’s twisted clues. Putting her job on the line, Meg is determined not to let one more person die under her and Hawk’s watch. If the plan fails, it could bite them in the end. And if it leads to the killer, it could bury them forever . . .

My Review:

I can’t seem to resist getting back to a Sara Driscoll FBI K-9 novel, one of my favorite doggy series. This one, only the second in the series, but amazing with the amount of research into Civil War info and the little ditties at the beginning of each chapter. Designed to whet the interest and give a heads up to the next chapter, they are also a great learning tool of many little known military facts and those specifically gleaned from the Civil War experience.

Meg discovers she is the target of a perp who loves to play deadly games—his clues are usually left on the canine companion of an abducted woman. It’s up to the FBI cryptanalysts and then Special Agent Meg Jennings to decipher the code in time to find and save the woman. Eerily, the woman invariably looks much like Meg.

Meg’s dog is Hawk, a war canine she was able to obtain following the death of her then fiancé. A Belgian Malinois, he’s smart, alert, effective and trained extremely well. Meg is not without residual problems from her own military experience but she is smart and physical and can hold up with the best of them.

Her team includes an agent with another dog, but in this case, she quickly discovers she must carefully include two outside of the team for the help their intel can supply, one of whom is Clay McCord, a reporter who knows Civil War history. She does stretch credulity a bit this time with what a body (particularly a female body) is capable.

I appreciate the intelligence that Meg brings to the pages, but even more so the relationship she shares with Hawk and with the canine mystique in general. I always learn something new and discover it’s appalling I knew so little about my own beloved canine companions to whom we so often attributed anthropomorphic behaviors.

But as my buddy Michael Reisig says, “If you think it’s just a dog, then that’s all you’ll ever have.”

About this time last year, I read and reviewed Still Waters and love getting back to Meg, Hawk, and her amazing FBI page-turning thrillers and am always looking for another I might have missed or a new one coming out.

I received a copy of this book from my local well-stocked library that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts.

Rosepoint Rating: Four point Five Stars

Add to Goodreads

Book Details:

Genre: Animal Fiction, Dog Care, Kidnapping Thrillers
Publisher: Pinnacle Books
ASIN: B07HLYR1R4
Print Length: 309 pages
Publication Date: September 25, 2018
Source: Local Library
Title Link(s): Before It’s Too Late [Amazon]

The Authors: Sara Driscoll is the pen name of Jen J. Danna and Ann Vanderlaan,

Ann Vanderlaan - author — Ann Vanderlaan

authors of the Abbott and Lowell Forensic Mysteries. Jen is an infectious disease researcher at a cutting-edge Canadian university near Toronto, but loves to spend her free time writing the thrilling and mysterious. Ann lives in western North Carolina with five rescued pit bulls, including Kane, now a certified therapy dog. She also trains with Kane for competitive nose work. You can follow the latest news on the F.B.I. K-9 Mysteries at SaraDriscollAuthor.com.

#TuesdayBookBlog

Hard Country by Reavis Z Wortham – #BookReview – #crimethriller

Book Blurb:

There is no peace in the hard country

Tucker Snow is as tough as they come, hardened by decades working as an undercover narcotics agent for the Texas Department of Public Safety. Through special dispensation from the governor, he and his brother Harley cut a wide swath through the criminal element of Northeast Texas. But tragedy comes calling after taking a dream job as a special ranger with the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, when Tucker’s wife and toddler are killed in a horrific traffic accident caused by a drug addled felon. Close to breaking, Tucker sets his badge aside to move his surviving teenage daughter outside of Ganther Bluff, a quiet town with enough room for them to mourn their unexpected loss.

But peace doesn’t last long for a man like Tucker Snow. Instead of settling into small-town life to heal from such an unimaginable loss, a fresh kind of hell hits them with full force.

Crimes and secrets strangle this rural community, and when a new form of meth with the street name of gravel gets too close to home, it’s enough for Tucker to put his badge back on and call Harley for help. The town will ultimately be better off with him as a resident lawman, but this unforgiving landscape will threaten everything Tucker holds dear.

His Review:

Illegal drugs have hit every population in the world. Texas is no different and the law enforcement personnel in that state are charged with helping curb the epidemic. Riches can be made in drug dealing, however, and their primary goal is becoming rich. Human life means nothing to them.

Tucker and Harley Snow are agents swept up in trying to protect the public from these criminals. A new product enters the market with terrible social consequences, but dealers and distributors will kill to maintain their territory and income.

Tucker bought a beautiful spread in the panhandle and is settling in for a well-earned retirement. Since his wife and son were killed in a tragic car accident, he is left with his daughter Chloe on the ranch. His neighbor lives in a ratty mobile home and seems to have a very profitable business. He is not about to allow this lawman to come into his territory and destroy his enterprise.

This book is very well written and harkens back to some of the old Zane Grey’s westerns. The action is fast moving and at times very descriptive. The battle to control the effects on the American public of easily accessible drugs is similar to the wild west of a century earlier. Read and enjoy for there is never a dull moment. 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Murder, Police Procedurals, Crime Thrillers, Westerns
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
ASIN: B0BK2KDJYS
Print Length: (paperback) 400 pages
Publication Date: August 1, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: As a boy, award-winning writer, Reavis Z. Wortham hunted and fished the river bottoms near Chicota, Texas, the inspiration for the fictional setting for The Rock Hole and The Red River Mystery Series. He was born in Paris, Texas, but lived in Dallas. “We grew up in the city and went to school there, but every Friday evening my parents put us in the car and made the 120-mile drive to Chicota, where we truly lived at my grandparents’ place in the country until Sunday evening, when we came back to the city. Our real home was that little scratch farm in Lamar County.”

Author Reavis Z. Wortham’s first novel, The Rock Hole, is described by Kirkus Reviews as “an unpretentious gem written to the hilt and harrowing in its unpredictability.” Kirkus also listed it as one of the “Top 12 Mysteries of 2011.”

[truncated]

Reavis also penned Doreen’s 24 HR Eat Gas Now Café. More than 2,500 newspaper and magazine articles bear the byline of this award-winning Texas writer. The Rock Hole was a finalist in the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Award presented by the Independent Book Publishers Association, is a member of Mystery Writers of America, the Writers’ League of Texas, International Association of Crime Writers (North American Branch), and International Thriller Writers.

He lives with his wife, Shana, in northeast Texas.

Enjoy Your Sunday

Overkill by Sandra Brown – #AudiobookReview – #ThrowbackThursday

Book Blurb:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown delivers a riveting thriller where a conflict of conscience for a former football star and an ambitious state prosecutor swiftly intensifies into a fight for their lives.

Former Super Bowl MVP quarterback Zach Bridger hasn’t seen his ex-wife, Rebecca Pratt, for some time—not since their volatile marriage imploded—so he’s shocked to receive a life-altering call about her. Rebecca has been placed on life support after a violent assault, and he—despite their divorce—has medical power-of-attorney. Zach is asked to make an impossible choice: keep her on life support or take her off of it. Buckling under the weight of the responsibility and the glare of public scrutiny, Zach ultimately walks away, letting Rebecca’s parents have the final say.

Four years later, Rebecca’s attacker, Eban—the scion of a wealthy family in Atlanta—gets an early release from prison. The ludicrous miscarriage of justice reeks of favoritism, and Kate Lennon, a brilliant state prosecutor, is determined to put him back behind bars. Rebecca’s parents have kept her alive all these years, but if her condition were to change—if she were to die—Eban could be retried on a new charge: murder.

It isn’t lost on Zach that in order for Eban to be charged with Rebecca’s murder, Zach must actually be the one to kill her. He rejects Kate’s legal standpoint but can’t resist their ill-timed attraction to each other. Eban, having realized the jeopardy he’s in, plots to make certain that neither Zach nor Kate lives to see the death of Rebecca—and the end of his freedom.

My Review:

Have you ever found yourself requesting the same book? Or attracted by the cover and blurb, loaned the audiobook from the library a year later? I’ve done so, more than once. This time, however, it was a book from NetGalley requested last year that the CE read and reviewed. It wasn’t until I began preparing for this review that I ran across his review, a shortened version included below. We were fairly close in agreement with this one.

Zach Bridger was apparently a Super Bowl quarterback of some renown, as he was often recognized. His marriage to Rebecca was a short, unhappy one. She ended up on life support with what appeared to be Zach’s responsibility as her father could not, would not “pull the plug.”

First, a former star quarterback was a bit difficult for me to find fully engaging, although I did appreciate his philosophy regarding Rebecca. Kate Lennon has a stake in seeing that Eban should still be held accountable after his release. She is smart, driven, and effective in her role as a state prosecutor. Of course, Zach and Rebecca will become romantically involved.

“She placed her hand on his chest, ‘Thank you for saving by life.’ ‘Thank you for coming into mine.’” [Zach]

I thought the age-old struggle of the “right thing” to do was handled well, including both points of view but for me, the middle of the narrative sagged a bit going into the conclusion. What finally ticked up the interest was that little zinger in the end.

Love those twists you don’t see coming and this one caught me by surprise. The philosophy of the situation ended in a stalemate—but it’s that end run with the legalese that provides the satisfying ending.

I downloaded a copy of this audiobook with narration by Kyf Brewer from my local well-stocked library. These are my honest thoughts. 4 stars

Book Details:

Genre: Crime Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Suspense
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
ASIN: B09WTLHHVK
Listening Length: 10 hrs 10 mins
Narrator: Kyf Brewer
Publication Date: August 16, 2022
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Link: Overkill [Amazon]

His Review:

[redacted] Rebecca Pratt Bridger is confined to a hospital bed. She has very little brain activity and for all practical purposes is a vegetable. Her ex-husband, Zack Bridger, has been designated her legal guardian and the one who can tell them to disconnect the life-saving devices.

Rebecca found her husband intolerable soon after the marriage and began to sleep around. One of those times she chose a man who liked to choke the woman while having sex. She didn’t come to again.

The man who caused Rebecca to be in the coma is out of prison after four years. Eban has been spoiled his whole life. He is a person with no scruples or remorse.

The author captured the essence of a narcissist who has no regard for other individuals. It kept me engaged expecting something would happen to Eban. 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Did you read this one last year too?

The Author: Sandra Brown is the author of more than sixty New York Times bestsellers, including STING (2016), FRICTION (2015), MEAN STREAK (2014), DEADLINE (2013), LOW PRESSURE (2012), LETHAL (2011), and the critically acclaimed RAINWATER (2010).

Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into thirty-three languages.

Brown recently was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer’s Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Narrator: Kyf Brewer, an Earphones Award–winning narrator, is an actor known for Serial Mom, Stop, Record, and Fallen Arches.

The CE and I

Need You by Blake Pierce – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

A Daisy Fortune Private Investigator Mystery

Book Blurb:

When private investigator Daisy Fortune is approached by an uber-wealthy, mysterious woman to discover who murdered her fiancé on a yacht in the Mediterranean, Daisy is skeptical. Her client seems guilty, yet Daisy, a brilliant but floundering P.I., needs this case. As Daisy immerses herself in the opaque world of the mega-rich, she comes to learn, after a series of shocking twists, that the beautiful people hide the darkest secrets of all.

Daisy Fortune never wanted to be a private investigator, but when her father had a stroke, she felt obliged to carry on the family business. Her P.I. business is on the brink of bankruptcy when an uber-wealthy client offers an extraordinary fee to clear her name. To do so, Daisy will have to immerse herself in the world of the mega-rich—a world Daisy knows nothing of.

Red flags abound as Daisy finds herself pulled deeper into the web of lies and dark secrets of the world’s wealthiest.

Secrets they will do anything to protect.

Daisy, though, is brilliant and tenacious, and as she steps into the role, she begins to realize she has her father’s gift. Unearthing the truth becomes a passion for her and she learns she will stop at nothing to do it—even if it means risking her own life.

A page-turning private investigator thriller, the DAISY FORTUNE series is a riveting mystery, featuring a brilliant detective and packed with non-stop action, suspense, twists and turns, revelations, and driven by a breakneck pace that will keep you flipping pages late into the night. Fans of Michael Connelly, Harlan Coben and L.T. Ryan are sure to fall in love.

My Review:

Daisy Fortune is getting very nervous about her ability to continue with the PI agency left to her by her father, who had achieved some notoriety during his heyday.

Worried she’ll lose the business and wondering what she’ll do next, she is unexpectedly engaged by a wealthy woman who appears to be lost until she confirms she is looking for her agency to discover what happened to her recently departed fiancé. Well, yeah, doesn’t she need the money? Daisy starts packing but doesn’t realize she’ll end up on an island in Greece.

The young Jacob Vandiveer was a spoiled, uber rich male used to getting what he wanted, when he wanted. The holdings of the super rich, including the palatial estate, were beyond anything Daisy could imagine though she almost doesn’t succeed in even gaining entry. Once in, with fits and starts, she begins her investigation mostly contained within the grounds, the employees, friends, and any relatives that might have attended the party on the yacht at which he was found deceased.

My first experience with this author and this being Book 1, I thought I got in on the ground floor of a new series! The writing style is fairly simple and the installment can be an easy, fast read. Not a particularly complex plot, there are twists, but it’s easy to guess who is going to be the perp.

Daisy is not fully developed and few of the support characters are either. I’m sure Daisy will evolve with further installments. The other characters won’t be reoccurring sidekicks although there is a possible introduction to a love interest. There is, however, the suggestion of a thread that her father was not able to solve—that of her missing brother that I suspect will factor into further installments.

The conclusion wrapped up most of the loose threads, no problem there, but I was astounded that with the hefty check she received from the patriarch for solving his son’s murder, it only allowed her to pay past due and current bills—cover the next few months. My God, how much does it cost to keep a low-rent PI office open? I’ll bite on Book 2 (and I see it was published in February, Books #3 and 4 May and June respectively), see where this is going, but hope it gets a little more complex and creates interesting reoccurring characters besides Daisy. Right now I can’t decide if she’s milk toast or a self-assured and competent PI.

I received a complimentary review copy of this book from my local library that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts.

Rosepoint Rating: Four Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Private Investigator Mysteries, Women Sleuths
ASIN: B0BPJVVQD4
Print Length: 203 pages
Publication Date: January 6, 2023
Source: Local Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Blake Pierce is the USA Today bestselling author of the RILEY PAGE mystery series, which includes seventeen books. Blake Pierce is also the author of the MACKENZIE WHITE mystery series, comprising fourteen books; of the AVERY BLACK mystery series, comprising six books; of the KERI LOCKE mystery series, comprising five books; of the MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE mystery series, comprising six books; of the KATE WISE mystery series, comprising seven books; of the CHLOE FINE psychological suspense mystery, comprising six books; of the JESSIE HUNT psychological suspense thriller series, comprising twenty-eight books; of the AU PAIR psychological suspense thriller series, comprising three books; of the ZOE PRIME mystery series, comprising six books; of the ADELE SHARP mystery series, comprising sixteen books, of the EUROPEAN VOYAGE cozy mystery series, comprising six books; of the LAURA FROST FBI suspense thriller, comprising eleven books; of the ELLA DARK FBI suspense thriller, comprising fourteen books (and counting); of the A YEAR IN EUROPE cozy mystery series, comprising nine books, of the AVA GOLD mystery series, comprising six books; of the RACHEL GIFT mystery series, comprising ten books (and counting); of the VALERIE LAW mystery series, comprising nine books (and counting); of the PAIGE KING mystery series, comprising eight books (and counting); of the MAY MOORE mystery series, comprising eleven books; of the CORA SHIELDS mystery series, comprising eight books (and counting); of the NICKY LYONS mystery series, comprising eight books (and counting), of the CAMI LARK mystery series, comprising eight books (and counting), of the AMBER YOUNG mystery series, comprising five books (and counting), of the DAISY FORTUNE mystery series, comprising five books (and counting), of the FIONA RED mystery series, comprising five books (and counting), of the FAITH BOLD mystery series, comprising five books (and counting), of the JULIETTE HART mystery series, comprising five books (and counting), and of the new MORGAN CROSS mystery series, comprising five books (and counting).

ONCE GONE (a Riley Paige Mystery–Book #1), BEFORE HE KILLS (A Mackenzie White Mystery—Book 1), CAUSE TO KILL (An Avery Black Mystery—Book 1), A TRACE OF DEATH (A Keri Locke Mystery—Book 1), WATCHING (The Making of Riley Paige—Book 1), NEXT DOOR (A Chloe Fine Psychological Suspense Mystery—Book 1), THE PERFECT WIFE (A Jessie Hunt Psychological Suspense Thriller—Book One), IF SHE KNEW (A Kate Wise Mystery—Book 1), MURDER (AND BAKLAVA) (A European Voyage Cozy Mystery—Book 1), LEFT TO DIE (An Adele Sharp Mystery—Book One), A MURDER IN PARIS (A Year in Europe—Book 1), CITY OF PREY (An Ava Gold Mystery—Book One), and HER LAST WISH (A Rachel Gift FBI Suspense Thriller—Book One) are each available as a free download on Amazon!

An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit http://www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch.

#TuesdayBookBlog

Silhouette attribute: Millande’s

Mainely Wicked by Matt Cost – #BookReview – Witch & Wizard Mysteries

A Goff Langdon Mainely Mystery Book

Book Blurb:

Langdon is hired to find a man who answered a classified ad and then disappeared into thin air. And then a second person vanishes. What starts as a couple of simple missing-person cases quickly spirals into a diabolical world of witches, wiccans, and wendigos.

“You ever hear of the Church of Satan?” Jewell asked. There was silence around the fire. The flames danced and flickered, casting shadows in the dark May night. Langdon took the bottle from Richam and poured himself another…

Bart, the dour but poetic cop, is back, even if demoted to a blue uniform. The dapper lawyer, Jimmy 4 by Four, is up to his regular philandering ways. Richam is hiding a secret from Jewell, and Chabal makes a new friend… And then goes missing.

What is going to happen during the Super Flower Blood Moon and who is the Wendigo? This time, Langdon might be too late to solve these mysteries before the blood flows…

His Review:

Langdon’s sidekick, Annie, is missing and he is intent on finding her. His investigation turns up a devil worship group call Wendigo. The group gathers young women for his sustenance.

Langdon is intent upon getting Annie back but is thwarted by the Devil’s followers.

Chabal accompanies Langdon on this quest. Investigating the “Wendigo Grotto of Satan” is pretty freaky. Can this intrepid duo find Annie in time?

This story is well out of my comfort zone and I found it distressing. Apparently a nod to the 600,000 who go missing every year, there were scenes and descriptions of practice that I found difficult to read. Devil worship is simply not my thing.

An unusual departure from the books I’ve read by this author before, this will be a one-off for me. You may enjoy it if you are a fan of the genre or familiar with the legend of the Wendigo. C E Williams 3.5 stars – CE Williams

I previously read Velma Gone Awry, a historical mystery, which was engaging and entertaining and I greatly enjoyed.

Many thanks to the author for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Rosepoint Publishing: Three point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Witch & Wizard Mysteries, Private Investigator Mysteries
Publisher: Encircle Publications
ASIN: B0C4D86219
Print Length: 301 pages
Publication Date: August 9, 2023
Source: Author

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Author: Matt Cost was a history major at Trinity College. He owned a mystery bookstore, a video store, and a gym, before serving a ten-year sentence as a junior high school teacher. In 2014 he was released and began writing. And that’s what he does. He writes histories and mysteries.

Cost has published four books in the Mainely Mystery series, with the fifth, “Mainely Wicked”, due out in August of 2023. He has also published four books in the Clay Wolfe Trap series, with the fifth, “Pirate Trap”, due out in December of 2023.

For historical novels, Cost has published “At Every Hazard” and its sequel, “Love in a Time of Hate”, as well as “I am Cuba”. In April of 2023, Cost will combine his love of histories and mysteries into a historical PI mystery set in 1923 Brooklyn, “Velma Gone Awry”.

Cost now lives in Brunswick, Maine, with his wife, Harper. There are four grown children: Brittany, Pearson, Miranda, and Ryan. A chocolate Lab and a basset hound round out the mix. He now spends his days at the computer, writing.

Have a Great Sunday

The Mountains Wild: A Mystery by Sarah Stewart Taylor- #Audiobook Review – #ThrowbackThursday

Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Book Blurb:

In a series debut for fans of Tana French and Kate Atkinson, set in Dublin and New York, homicide detective Maggie D’arcy finally tackles the case that changed the course of her life.

Twenty-three years ago, Maggie D’arcy’s family received a call from the Dublin police. Her cousin Erin has been missing for several days. Maggie herself spent weeks in Ireland, trying to track Erin’s movements, working beside the police. But it was to no avail: No trace of her was ever found.

The experience inspired Maggie to become a cop. Now, back on Long Island, more than 20 years have passed. Maggie is a detective and a divorced mother of a teenager. When the Gardaí call to say that Erin’s scarf has been found and another young woman has gone missing, Maggie returns to Ireland, awakening all the complicated feelings from the first trip. The despair and frustration of not knowing what happened to Erin. Her attraction to Erin’s coworker, now a professor, who never fully explained their relationship. And her determination to solve the case, once and for all.

A lyrical, deeply drawn portrait of a woman – and a country – over two decades – The Mountains Wild introduces a compelling new mystery series from a mesmerizing author.

A Macmillan Audio production from Minotaur Books

My Review:

This is a story told in a dual line 23 years apart. The storyline is told by Maggie, who in 2016 travels to Ireland after their call to her uncle regarding new information on the disappearance of her cousin Erin, missing since 1993.

Not like Maggie didn’t do this in 1993 when Erin first went missing, but this time she goes back with her experience as a mature and successful, well-known Long Island police detective. Things have certainly changed in their quaint Irish community and the descriptions of the countryside and people provide a colorful mind video.

Of course, having been to Ireland before, Maggie fondly remembers Connor, with whom she was not at the time destined to complete a romantic affair. This time, she’s left behind a daughter with her ex in the US in the hope of finally getting to the truth.

Turns out, the mystery is a slow burn while Maggie sifts through clues and in the meantime relates lovely little tidbits about the area and the people. Character-driven with obligatory twists. The switching of timelines, however, listening to the audiobook while multi-tasking can be confusing.

The reader/listener does get to know Maggie and really, she didn’t grab me. Nor, for that matter did Connor, and I was a bit appalled at her cavalier attitude toward her ex. Connor’s situation is a great deal more serious with his ex.

She is constantly mistaken for her cousin, which I thought stretched credibility. She is there as a civilian but tends more the detective than the relative. She discovers layers of coverup, backstory no one wanted.

Perhaps, in part, because I was listening, not reading, I missed a few of the loose threads tied in conclusion (although I must say, the narrator did a great job). It, as the rest of the low-key narrative, slipped in explanation for me and the episode ended. Maybe I missed something? I felt like it and wasn’t wholly satisfied.

I downloaded a copy of this audiobook from my local well-stocked library. These are my honest thoughts.

Book Details:

Genre: International Mystery & Crime, Police Procedural Mysteries
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
ASIN: B082VMB63Q
Listening Length: 10 hrs 49 mins
Narrator: Marisa Calin
Publication Date: June 23, 2020
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Link: The Mountains Wild [Amazon]

Rosepoint Publishing: Three point Five Stars

The Author: Sarah Stewart Taylor grew up on Long Island and was educated at Middlebury College and Trinity College, Dublin. She lives with her husband and three children on a farm in Vermont where they raise sheep and grow blueberries.

Sarah is the author of the Sweeney St. George series and the Maggie D’arcy series. The first Maggie D’arcy mystery, THE MOUNTAINS WILD, was nominated for the Dashiell Hammett Prize and was on numerous Best of 2020 lists. The new Maggie D’arcy novel, A STOLEN CHILD, will be out on June 20, 2023. [Bio and photo – Goodreads]

Follow her at http://www.sarahstewarttaylor.com/

The Narrator: Marisa Calin grew up in Bath, England, trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York and is an Audie, Odyssey, Audiofile Earphones Award winning and SOVAS nominated audiobook narrator. She’s had an Audible Best Audiobook of the Year, an Apple Books Must-Listen audiobook of the month, starred reviews in Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal, and books on YALSA’s Amazing Audiobooks of the year list. You can listen to extracts of some of those books here.

She wrote, produced and appears in her first feature, A Million Happy Nows, with her company, Perfect Features, which went on to win nineteen awards on the festival circuit, including Best First Feature at Outfest. Find more at amillionhappynows.com.

Her debut Young Adult novel, Between You & Me, published in 2012 by Bloomsbury, was named a Kirkus Reviews’ Best Book of 2012, recieved a Kirkus star for “books of exceptional merit”, was selected for the American Library Associations’ 2013 Rainbow Book List of quality books with authentic LGBT content, and was chosen as a Kobo dazzling debut.

She lives in New York City. [Courtesy Marisa Calin website]

#ThrowbackThursday

Iwo, 26 Charlie by P T Deutermann – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

World War II Navy #10

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

T. Deutermann is a contemporary master of World War II military fiction: writing about the lives, deaths, dreams, fears, and combat experiences of sailors and soldiers, generals and grunts, captains and snipers, pilots and submariners, who served in the Pacific theatre war against Japan.

The island of Iwo Jima was the epic land and sea battle that produced one of the iconic images of WWII: the Marines raising the American flag on Mount Surabachi, an active volcano that was the site of intense hand-to-hand combat. In this gripping novel, Deutermann follows a young gunnery liaison officer, Lee Bishop, who during the ferocious battle for the island is pulled from his station aboard the USS Nevada to serve on-shore as a spotter, calling in coordinates for the ship to target with missiles.

But Bishop is completely unready for what he will witness and experience: a literal hell, during which 26,000 Americans are killed in a fight to the very last man, which culminates in the blistering, sulphurous tunnels of Surabachi itself, where an entire platoon of Marines is held captive. Iwo, 26 Charlie is a dramatic, utterly authentic novel by an award-winning writer.

His Review:

One of the most iconic images of the battle of Iwo Jima and World War II is the raising of our flag on Mount Suribachi. This is one of our country’s proudest moments during the war in the Pacific. This achievement took a lot longer than the citizens of our country knew. Most battles the U.S. Marines fight are in concert with the U.S. Navy. This is one of those stories.

There is a rivalry between these two branches of the U.S. military and also a bond of brotherhood. Lieutenant Lee Bishop goes onto the island with the intention to assist in firepower from the naval bombardment to “soften up” the island prior to the marine’s landing effort. The Japanese had prepared the island for the war with a myriad of caves and fortifications to thwart any attempt to occupy the island.

Lieutenant Bishop goes in to assist in fire control and direction to destroy the Japanese fortifications. His call name is IWO, 26 Charlie. The Japanese are extremely adept at killing any spotter who comes onto the island. The life expectancy of a spotter is estimated at 24 hours. The Japanese come out at night and kill anyone who is not fully awake or vigilant.

The USS Nevada has a myriad of weapons systems including 14-inch guns. Their fire control includes a rudimentary analog computer. Grids are utilized to give accurate coordinates for the placement of the ordinance. Most shells fired at the island were the 5-inch and 8-inch explosive types. The effect on the Japanese emplacements was generally minimal due to the excellent design and construction of the emplacements.

Anyone interested in the history of the Second World War will find this novel both interesting and amazing. I could not put the book down and I am sure most history buffs will have the same problem, which is a very one to have when reading! 5 stars – CE Williams

Last year I read The Last Palatine and found it absolutely riveting. I’ll be looking for anything released by this author going forward. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.

Book Details:

Genre: Historical World War II Fiction, WWII Historical Fiction, War Fiction
Publisher: St Martin’s Press
ASIN: B0BQGFM2HK
Print Length: 288 pages
Publication Date: November 28, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Peter Deutermann was born in Boston in 1941. His father was in the Navy, so he subsequently lived all over the United States and also in Argentina. He graduated from the naval academy in 1963 and served in the navy for 26 years, rising to the rank of Captain. While in the navy, he published one textbook on naval operations and several professional articles in navy-oriented journals. He held three commands: a Swiftboat in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam, a guided missile destroyer in the Atlantic Fleet, and a destroyer squadron based in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. His last tour of duty was as the division director for chemical, biological, and radiological weapons arms control negotiations on the staff of the Joint Chiefs in Washington, DC.

He retired from active duty in 1989 and began his fiction-writing career. He has published twenty novels since 1992, all with St. Martins Press, including the just-released World War II navy novel, entitled The Commodore, and the Washington thriller, The Red Swan. He has completed his 21st novel, entitled The Iceman, a World War II navy submarine story, scheduled for publication in August, 2018. See all the books on his website at http://www.ptdeutermann.com

In addition to a BS in naval engineering, Mr. Deutermann holds an MA in public administration from the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. He is also a Member of the Royal College of Defence Studies in London. He is married and has two children. Mr. Deutermann and his wife of 50 years live in Rockingham County, in the Piedmont of North Carolina, on their family pony farm.

#TuesdayBookBlog

The Water Tower by Amy Young – #BookReview – #crimethrillers

Book Blurb:

Josie Ashbury was a successful Hollywood actress with a booming career—until an on-set breakdown sends her back to her small Ohio hometown to recover. Taking a job teaching at her old high school, Josie is beginning to put the pieces of her life back together when one of her students dies under suspicious circumstances. The police close the case quickly, without any real answers. Josie is determined to find the truth behind the girl’s death.

At the same time, Josie is battling demons of her own. As she faces debilitating insomnia that leaves her with gaps in her memory, she dives into the tangled secrets surrounding the investigation. When she finally unravels the web, she discovers that the truth lies much closer to home than she could have ever imagined.

His Review:

A bright young student is found dead at the bottom of the town’s defunct water tower. Josie, one of the town’s high school teachers, found her during one of her sleepless nights’ sojourns. Was she a victim of foul play or a suicide? Josie seems to recall someone on the tower at the time of her death, but one of the town’s most influential citizens, the girl’s father, has the investigation curtailed!

Josie had left her small hometown to become a celebrated thespian in the Hollywood Hills environs. She returned to her hometown to teach high school and become reacquainted with her former classmates. She is well-liked by all of her students but is devastated by the apparent suicide.

How could the girl’s father not want the truth about his daughter’s death?

This story has many intriguing plot twists which kept me on my toes and flipping pages. I felt I needed a scorecard to keep track of the male interests in Josie’s life. Her entanglement in the death of the student pushes her beyond the normal pressures of everyday life. Can her life be in danger because of her desire to know the truth about the student’s death and the possible subsequent coverup? Read and enjoy! 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. These opinions are my own.

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Crime Thrillers, Murder Thrillers, Suspense
Publisher: Level Best Books
ASIN: B0BT3T8M1C
Print Length: 290 pages
Publication Date: June 20, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Amy Young is an author, comedian, and actress. Growing up in Bay Village, Ohio, she could most often be found with her nose buried in a book, and was particularly fond of Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High, and The Babysitters’ Club. Amy always had a flair for the dramatic and has worked as an actress in many stage productions and, during her decade living in Los Angeles, a few TV shows and movies. When not writing, Amy enjoys reading thriller and mystery novels, drinking red wine, and binging on reality TV shows with her husband and many, many cats. She currently resides outside of Cleveland, Ohio.